Bible

 

Zechariah 10

Studie

   

1 Ask ye of the Lord rain in the latter season, and the Lord will make snows, and will give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.

2 For the idols have spoken what was unprofitable, and the diviners have seen a lie, and the dreamers have spoken vanity: they comforted in vain: therefore they were led away as a dock: they shall be afflicted, because they have no shepherd.

3 My wrath is kindled against the shepherds, and I will visit upon the buck goats: for the Lord of hosts hath visited his flock, the house of Juda, and hath made them as the horse of his glory in the battle.

4 Out of him shall come forth the corner, out of him the pin, out of him the bow of battle, out of him every exacter together.

5 And they shall be as mighty men, treading under foot the mire of the ways in battle: and they shall fight, because the Lord is with them, and the riders of horses shall be confounded.

6 And I will strengthen the house of Juda, and save the house of Joseph: and I will bring them back again, because I will have mercy on them: and they shall be as they were when I had cast them off, for I am the Lord their God, and will hear them.

7 And they shall be as the valiant men of Ephraim, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: and their children shall see, and shall rejoice, and their heart shall be joyful in the Lord.

8 I will whistle for them, and I will gather them together, because I have redeemed them: and I will multiply them as they were multiplied before.

9 And I will sow them among peoples: and from afar they shall remember me: and they shall live with their children, and shall return.

10 And I will bring them back out of the land of Egypt, and will gather them from among the Assyrians: and will bring them to the land of Galaad, and Libanus, and place shall not be found for them.

11 And he shall pass over the strait of the sea, and shall strike the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the river shall be confounded, and the pride of Assyria shall be humbled, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart.

12 I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they shall walk in his name, saith the Lord.

   

Komentář

 

Sojourn

  

It is fitting that to “sojourn” in the Bible -- to live in a foreign land -- represents instruction, learning the things represented by that area. This is used quite a bit in the early parts of the Bible, when Abraham and his immediate descendants sojourned in a variety of foreign places. It arises also later in the Old Testament, with the Israelites given rules on how to treat sojourners in their midst.

The sojourner is a person who is willing to learn and accept new spiritual truths. That's in contrast to the term "stranger", as used in the Bible. A stranger has a natural inclination to good, but is not willing to learn spiritual truths. There is a long history of using travel to round out an education, from the 19th-century “world tours” taken by Oxford and Cambridge graduates to the exchange programs and semesters abroad offered in modern school programs. The idea is pretty straightforward: by immersing ourselves in other cultures we can both learn about them and deepen our minds.