Biblical Notes

by J. Randal Matheny

“God who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment.” —1 Timothy 6:17 NET

For man God made the world and all
That it contains: the changing seas,
The hope of Spring, the hues of Fall,
The brooding rain, the bracing breeze;

The feathered birds to fly the skies,
The flowering plants, ferocious beasts,
The morning sun as farmers rise,
The work of hands, and happy feasts;

He carved the valleys, raised the heights,
From buried seeds, the towering trees;
And home’s embrace for peaceful nights —
For human joy did God make these.

By J. Randal Matheny

To those who have, will more and more be given:
The Word explained, with heaven’s windows opened;
The willful blind and shuttered ear will lose
What others heard and saw as joyful news.

Ignorance is a hostile choice, rebellious,
Straining against the reins — supercilious;
No challenge to their sensibilities allowed,
The knowing fools hide in a synchronized crowd.

Breaking ranks requires courage and zeal,
To answer with a bundled life and kneel
Before the Man of truth, who gives the call
To discover more and find in God our all.

From his house spring treasures old and new,
The scribe draws out the hidden into view.
Christ calls the hearing to let the deaf condemn,
To leave the mob, and enter the house with him.