Ben Fourie
Abraham said. "Please don’t be angry, Lord, and I will speak just once more. What if only ten are found?" He said, "I will not destroy it if there are ten." Genesis 18:32, GNT
How much more, then, should I have pity on Nineveh, that great city. After all, it has more than 120,000 innocent children in it, as well as many animals!” Jonah 4:11, GNT
These are two well-known stories in the Bible. We read that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah “is very great” (Genesis 18:20) and that of Nineveh, God said, “I am aware how wicked its people are” (Jonah 1:2). Because of this, God planned to destroy the cities, but he would not do so before giving them a second chance.
In the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, there was someone who pleaded on their behalf. His name was Abraham, a man full of love for his neighbours. His plea to God was that if they could find fifty innocent people, God should not destroy them. God agreed to spare the whole city because of the fifty people. Abraham went on with his plea until God promised to spare the city if there were only ten innocent people. As the story unfolded, they could not find even ten innocent people, apart from Lot and his family, so the destruction was carried out.
In Nineveh, we see a completely different scenario. God sent Jonah as a “missionary” to warn the people of Nineveh of the destruction he planned for the city. Although Jonah was unwilling to warn them and fled to Tarshish, he eventually went to Nineveh. In contrast with Abraham, Jonah did not really want Nineveh to be saved. After the people of Nineveh turned away from their wicked ways, the Lord took pity on them, but Jonah was angry with the Lord.
In these two stories, we have God, whom Jonah himself said: “I knew that you are a loving and merciful God, always kind, and always ready to change your mind and not punish.” (Jonah 4:2b) Of the two people involved, one, because he was a man of love, tried his best to avert the destruction of Sodom. The other one was angry because God changed his mind and saved Nineveh.
What kind of person am I? How do I look at my neighbour?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for your wonderful love. Please help us to be like Abraham. Amen
Ben Fourie
Toe sê hy: "My Heer moet tog nie kwaad word nie! Ek wil nog net dié keer praat. Dalk word daar tien gevind." Die Here het gesê: "Ter wille van tien sal Ek dit nie verdelg nie." Genesis 18:32, 2020-vertaling
Maar Ek, Ek mag nie besorg wees oor Nineve nie, die groot stad waarin daar meer as honderd-en-twintigduidend mense is wat die verskil tussen regs en links nie ken nie, en ook nog baie diere. Jona 4:11, 2020-vertaling
Die twee verhale is baie bekend. In albei het ons te doen met stede waar, in Sodom en Gomorra, die inwoners se sonde “uitermate swaar” (Genesis 18:20) was en in Nineve hoor ons God sê: “die kwaad wat hulle doen, het opgestyg tot voor my.” (Jona 1:2) Daarom beplan God om die stede te verwoes, maar nie sonder dat hulle nog 'n kans kry nie.
In die geval van Sodom en Gomorra is daar 'n pleitbesorger, 'n man vol liefde vir sy naaste, Abraham. Hy pleit dat God tog die stede moet spaar al is daar net vyftig regverdiges en God gee toe. So hou hy aan totdat God bereid is om die stede te spaar ter wille van net tien regverdiges. Soos die verhaal ontvou, is daar ongelukkig behalwe vir Lot en sy gesin, geen ander regverdiges nie en word die stede wel vernietig.
By Nineve het ons 'n heel ander scenario met God wat self vir Jona as “sendeling” na Nineve stuur om hulle te gaan waarsku teen die vernietiging wat Hy beplan. Jona doen dit onwillig. Eers nadat hy probeer wegkom het van hierdie verantwoordelikheid deur na Tarsis te vlug, gaan hy na Nineve. In teenstelling met Abraham wou Jona nie sien dat Nineve se inwoners gered word nie. Wanneer Nineve se mense hulle wel bekeer, en God uit liefde en mededoë nie die stad vernietig nie, is Jona kwaad daaroor.
In die twee verhale sien ons vir God van wie Jona self sê: “... ek het geweet dat U 'n genadige en barmhartige God is, geduldig en oorvloedig in troue liefde, 'n God wat berou het oor die oordeel.” (Jona 4:2b) Ons het ook twee mense. Die een, uit liefde, wou hê dat God moet red en die ander een is kwaad omdat God uit liefde wel gered het.
Watter soort mens is ek? Hoe kyk ek na my medemens?
Gebed: Dankie dat U altyd vol liefde is vir ons. Maak my asseblief ook 'n Abraham soort van mens. Amen
Ben Fourie
I will give up whole nations to save your life, because you are precious to me and because I love you and give you honour. Isaiah 43:4, GNT
In the Old Testament, we find a different view of how God loves people compared to the New Testament. These two different views make up the sum of God’s love for us. We cannot really understand God’s love if we do not compare and combine the two views.
In the Old Testament, the emphasis is more on God’s love as a covenant love for his chosen people, while in the New Testament, we read more about his love for us as individuals. One rarely finds places where we read about God’s love for individuals in the Old Testament. One such place is in 2 Samuel 12:24c: “The Lord loved the boy (Solomon).” Mostly, God’s love is always shown as love for Israel, as can be seen from our verse for today.
This all-encompassing love for his people should not be viewed as impersonal. It is deeply personal, as can be seen from Isaiah 49:15: “Can a woman forget her own baby and not love the child she bore? Even if a mother should forget her child, I will never forget you.”
God compares his love for his chosen people to what is surely the strongest bond of love in the world – the love of a mother for her baby. As we often see in the news, even the strongest bond can sometimes be violated by a mother. God said he will never violate his love for his people. In Ezra 3:11, the people of God are singing his praises and then end the song with the refrain, “the Lord is good, and his love for Israel is eternal”.
Today, God’s all-embracing love remains as strong as ever, but now it encompasses believers from all peoples, languages and races as we are now the chosen people of God. He will never forget us or leave us uncared for.
Prayer: We sing your praises, Lord, who have loved your people from ancient times and will continue to love us until eternity. Amen
Ben Fourie
Omdat jy kosbaar is in my oë, geëer is, omdat Ek die Een is wat jou liefhet, gee Ek mense in jou plek, volke in ruil vir jou lewe. Jesaja 43:4, 2020-vertaling
In die Ou Testament is die begrip van God se liefde vir die mens anders as in die Nuwe Testament. Die twee maak saam die som van God se liefde vir ons uit. Ons kan nie werklik begryp hoe omvattend God se liefde vir die mens is as ons nie albei onder oë neem nie.
In die Ou Testament leer ons God se liefde grootliks ken as ʼn verbondsliefde vir sy volk, terwyl die individu in die Nuwe Testament meer na vore kom. ʼn Mens lees maar enkele kere in die Ou Testament dat God spesifiek sê dat hy ʼn individu liefhet soos byvoorbeeld in 2 Samuel 12:24: “Die Here was lief vir hom”. Meesal is God se liefde altyd verbind aan die volk Israel soos ons uit vandag se teksvers kan sien.
Sy omvattende liefde vir sy volk moet egter nie gesien word as ʼn onpersoonlike liefde nie. Dit is diep persoonlik soos wat ons in Jesaja 49:15 (1983-vertaling) lees: “Kan ʼn vrou haar eie baba vergeet, haar nie ontferm oor die kind wat sy in die wêreld gebring het nie? Selfs al sou so iets kon gebeur, Ek sal jou nie vergeet nie."
God vergelyk sy liefde vir sy volk met sekerlik die sterkste liefde wat daar in die wêreld is, die van ʼn moeder vir haar baba. Tog kan dit, soos ons ongelukkig soms in koerante sien, gebeur dat ʼn ma haar baba nie beskerm en versorg nie. Die Here sê al kan dit by mense gebeur, dit sal nooit by Hom gebeur nie, want Hy sal nooit sy volk onversorg laat nie. In Esra 3:11 is die volk besig om God te loof en te dank en dan sing hulle: “Want Hy is goed, ja, sy troue liefde oor Israel is vir altyd.”
Hierdie omvattende liefde van God gaan steeds voort, want gelowiges uit al die volke en tale oor die hele wêreld is nou die nuwe volk van God en Hy sal ons ook nooit vergeet of onversorg laat nie.
Gebed: Ons loof en prys U vandag dat U deur al die eeue nog steeds lief is vir ons. Amen