EN-GEDI LOOKING TOWARD THE DEAD SEA
(click on the picture for a larger view of En-gedi)
(click on the picture for a larger view of En-gedi)Paul said of love: "...it always protects..."(I Cor. 13:7)(NIV) The Interlinear translates this portion of Paul's writing about love that it "...all things covers."
The word for "protect" or "cover" is stegei. Adam Clarke said that it is the grand and distinguishing property of love to cover and conceal the faults of another. He makes a pertinent remark that the captious and censorious ought to heed. "A person under the influence of this love never makes the sins, follies, faults or imperfections of any man the subject either of censure or conversation."
I have wondered as I have studied the definition of love Paul gave why he just kept hammering again and again its effects on relationships. Of course the reason is that he was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Every characteristic Paul gives of love points directly to how those who have agape love in their lives will properly treat one another.
The Corinthians seemed to have been a divided people on several fronts. The cure for that was love. Certainly the carping, criticizing, judging, accusing, damning would stop if love were present. For "...it always protects..." "...covers...".
Recently I watched a National Geographic documentary about the events of 9-11. I must admit that the meanness it took to blatantly kill thousands of innocent victims and in the process adversely affect thousands more would be difficult to "...cover..." I am not real sure I could. Ultimately though, forgiving, even our enemies, does not mean we have to like what they do.
The covering of sin must be related to the attitude, in some respect, of those whose sins are being covered. Otherwise we would have to "...cover..." the sins of those folks who flew those planes into The World Trade Center and the Pentagon and destroyed the lives of those who foiled their plans to crash another plane in Washington, and folks like them. The unity of the church can only be had when brothers are realistic about sin and are confessing and repenting of their sins concurrently. When any one person, in his own mind, conceives his perfection and his superiority over others unity suffers. When folks are making distinct, willfull efforts to cover the wrongs of each other then it is that unity is made possible.
One of the greatest enemies of covering one another's sins is what I call selective covering. The question arises as to which sins and how many sins should we cover. The language of Paul is unmistakable. The Greek word he uses is panta. The word means "all." Zodhiates says stegeo simply means "love hides the faults of others." How many? Paul says, "...all...". That leaves no room for selective covering.
Peter used a synonym of stegeo in I Pet. 4:8. The word is kalupto. It means "to envelop" according to Zodhiates. Zodhiates tells us that Peter is saying "to cause a multitude of sins to be overlooked and not punished." The Amplified translates Peter's words "...love covers a multitude of sins--forgives and disregards the offenses of others." The N.E.B. reads "...love cancels innumerable sins."
David had to be thankful for that reality. I am told that he wrote many of the Psalms from En-gedi. I have been privileged to be there. It is a lonesome place near the Dead Sea. Where he wrote Psalms 32...I am unaware. David was a thoughtful and God-seeking man. He was a man approved as very few. God considered him from his youth to be after His heart. How thankful David must have been of the grace of God. He wrote: "Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven and whose sins are covered" while he was confessing his sins to God. Paul quoted David in Ro. 4:7 and applied those words to us. Praise His glorious Name! Paul used the very same word for "cover" as the Septuagint has in Ps. 32:1. (epekaluphthesan) "Blessed are those whose offences have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered."(NIV)
God covers the sins of believers. That is Paul's premise in Romans 4. And Paul says love will cause us to do the same for other believers.
The word for "protect" or "cover" is stegei. Adam Clarke said that it is the grand and distinguishing property of love to cover and conceal the faults of another. He makes a pertinent remark that the captious and censorious ought to heed. "A person under the influence of this love never makes the sins, follies, faults or imperfections of any man the subject either of censure or conversation."
I have wondered as I have studied the definition of love Paul gave why he just kept hammering again and again its effects on relationships. Of course the reason is that he was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Every characteristic Paul gives of love points directly to how those who have agape love in their lives will properly treat one another.
The Corinthians seemed to have been a divided people on several fronts. The cure for that was love. Certainly the carping, criticizing, judging, accusing, damning would stop if love were present. For "...it always protects..." "...covers...".
Recently I watched a National Geographic documentary about the events of 9-11. I must admit that the meanness it took to blatantly kill thousands of innocent victims and in the process adversely affect thousands more would be difficult to "...cover..." I am not real sure I could. Ultimately though, forgiving, even our enemies, does not mean we have to like what they do.
The covering of sin must be related to the attitude, in some respect, of those whose sins are being covered. Otherwise we would have to "...cover..." the sins of those folks who flew those planes into The World Trade Center and the Pentagon and destroyed the lives of those who foiled their plans to crash another plane in Washington, and folks like them. The unity of the church can only be had when brothers are realistic about sin and are confessing and repenting of their sins concurrently. When any one person, in his own mind, conceives his perfection and his superiority over others unity suffers. When folks are making distinct, willfull efforts to cover the wrongs of each other then it is that unity is made possible.
One of the greatest enemies of covering one another's sins is what I call selective covering. The question arises as to which sins and how many sins should we cover. The language of Paul is unmistakable. The Greek word he uses is panta. The word means "all." Zodhiates says stegeo simply means "love hides the faults of others." How many? Paul says, "...all...". That leaves no room for selective covering.
Peter used a synonym of stegeo in I Pet. 4:8. The word is kalupto. It means "to envelop" according to Zodhiates. Zodhiates tells us that Peter is saying "to cause a multitude of sins to be overlooked and not punished." The Amplified translates Peter's words "...love covers a multitude of sins--forgives and disregards the offenses of others." The N.E.B. reads "...love cancels innumerable sins."
David had to be thankful for that reality. I am told that he wrote many of the Psalms from En-gedi. I have been privileged to be there. It is a lonesome place near the Dead Sea. Where he wrote Psalms 32...I am unaware. David was a thoughtful and God-seeking man. He was a man approved as very few. God considered him from his youth to be after His heart. How thankful David must have been of the grace of God. He wrote: "Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven and whose sins are covered" while he was confessing his sins to God. Paul quoted David in Ro. 4:7 and applied those words to us. Praise His glorious Name! Paul used the very same word for "cover" as the Septuagint has in Ps. 32:1. (epekaluphthesan) "Blessed are those whose offences have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered."(NIV)
God covers the sins of believers. That is Paul's premise in Romans 4. And Paul says love will cause us to do the same for other believers.
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