MikeLigalig.com

Prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet. To a plaintive tune.


The Canticle of The Most High

O Lord, I have heard your renown,
and feared, O Lord, your work.

In the course of the years revive it,
in the course of the years make it known;
in your wrath remember compassion!

God comes from Teman,
the Holy One from Mount Paran.
Covered are the heavens with his glory,
and with his praise the earth is filled.

His splendor spreads like the light;
His rays shine forth from beside him,
where his power is concealed.

Before him goes pestilence,
and the plague follows in his steps.

He pauses to survey the earth;
his look makes the nations tremble.

The Eternal Mountains are shattered,
the age-old hills bow low
along his ancient ways.

I see the tents of Cushan collapse;
trembling are the pavilions of the land of Midian.

Is your anger against streams, O Lord?
Is your wrath against the streams,
your rage against the seas,
That you drive the steeds
of your victorious chariot?

Bared and ready is your bow,
filled with arrows is your quiver.
Into streams you split the earth;

At sight of you the mountains tremble.
A torrent of rain descends;
the ocean gives forth its roar.

The sun forgets to rise,
the moon remains in its shelter,
at the light of your flying arrows,
at the gleam of your flashing spear.

In your wrath you bestride the earth,
in fury you trample the nations.

You come forth to save your people,
to save your anointed one.

You crush the heads of the wicked,
you lay bare their bases at the neck.

You pierce with your shafts the heads of their princes
whose boast would be of devouring
the wretched in their lair.

You tread the sea with your steeds amid the churning of the deep waters.

I hear, and my body trembles;
at the sound, my lips quiver.
Decay invades my bones,
my legs tremble beneath me.
I await the day of distress
that will come upon the people who attack us.

For though the fig tree blossom not
nor fruit be on the vines,
Though the yield of the olive fail
and the terraces produce no nourishment,
Though the flocks disappear from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord
and Exult in my saving God.

God, my Lord, is my Strength;
he makes my feet swift as those of hinds
and enables me to go upon the heights.

-Habakkuk 3: 1-19



Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=13954.0

That paraphrase can be seen in Matthew 6:1-4, which says:

"Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,  so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."



I take this to mean, that when you give charity,ultimately it is from God , so He is glorified through you...



You can even see this in the Talmud, Ate Belle, there are eight levels of "tzedakah," often translated as "charity".

They all help someone, but as one progresses through the levels, each is considered more meritorious than the previous one:

1) Giving begrudgingly
2) Giving less that you should, but giving it cheerfully.
3) Giving after being asked
4) Giving before being asked
5) Giving when you do not know the recipient's identity, but the recipient knows your identity
6) Giving when you know the recipient's identity, but the recipient doesn't know your identity
7) Giving when neither party knows the other's identity
8 ) Enabling the recipient to become self-reliant

Giving without expecting reward or even acknowledgment is considered part of giving when you know the recipient's identity but they don't know yours. It's not wrong to expect acknowledgment, but to do so lessens the benefit to the giver in terms of his/her spiritual growth.




Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=13954.0

Not everything, Ate Belle.

Pero, that particular passage is a favorite of mine

Deep kaayo ang message sa bible, 'te. It is impossible for a worthless impudent human sinner, like me, to ever completely understand everything that is written in Holy Scripture.

I try to understand as much as my inadequate mind allows. In the end, the goal is to have a broader understanding of Our Father in Heaven.

The goal is to have a better relation to Him, through reading scripture. Well, we should try at least.

Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=13954.0