Bible Translations
I like to read many versions of the Bible. Though there are some I find cumbersome and others which have translation challenges, most have their good qualities as well. I will often read a verse or even a book in four or five different versions to get the full meaning of the text. This year I have decided to read the NIV for the sake of this daily blog.
Birthrights
In this translation, I read something interesting. There are mentions of many births of sons and daughters, but only three are described as the result of “making love”. First was Cain, who should have been the rightful heir. But, of course, he was corrupted by evil and killed Abel.
Therefore, Adam and Eve were left with no heir as Cain was banished and Abel was deceased. We later read that Cain made love and brought forth Enoch. This was the child of one already corrupted. The name Enoch means train. Cain had parted from God and was not training his children in righteousness, but in battle. This is where the mighty Nephilim will probably come from. These sons, trained in battle, would later take the daughters of Seth and further corrupt the human race. Invariably, sin’s influence will expand its control once it has entered our world.
The third time the term making love results in a child is with Adam and Eve, who give birth to the true heir, Seth.
This sets a pattern we see later when Abraham has a son with Hagar, Ishmael, but his heir is the second son Isaac. And then again with Isaac when Esau sells his birthright for a bowl of stew to Jacob.
Patterns
This is foreshadowing that the first covenant, the Law given to Moses, would be replaced by the righteous one, the second covenant, that of faith in Jesus Christ.
It is important to recognize patterns in scripture because they guide us in our own self-discovery. We begin life being taught to be good. We inevitably fail, as no one is truly good except God. It does, however, establish the basis that there is good, and conversely, there is evil. Without one, we would not recognize the other. It is the dichotomy which exists between them that magnifies their significance.
Application
As we struggle with the challenges of life, we come to realize how wretched we are and long before I knew Jesus, I knew I needed, or at least desperately wanted, a mulligan. A second chance. We love, we make mistakes and lose that love. We want that back. It is that feeling of belonging that matters, even if not always with the same person. That connection with another person.
After multiple tries, we realize we are not truly getting any better at it. With each relationship, we continue to make new mistakes. How many chances will we get? Desperation sometimes sets in; we fear continued strikeouts will lead to the coach benching us. So, we compromise and settle for something that feels acceptable. Perhaps it is not the fairytale romance we had dreamt of, but it seems like something we could live with.
Fortunately, just as when Jesus turned water into wine in Cana in the second chapter of John, the best was saved for last. When we come to that place where we realize we will never be good enough, and we place our only hope in Jesus, He gives us a perfect salvation. He gives us redemption that surpasses all else and enables us to even understand what love truly is.
Our feeble attempts are being good, which always falters, are replaced with Jesus’ righteousness, which never fails. We get off that hamster wheel of trying and failing and instead can rest in the arms of our Savior.
Sure, we continue to sin and struggle with the personal dissatisfaction of our actions. But, we know even those sins are already forgiven and we are able to move forward knowing that we are still in Christ Jesus.
