scripture twisting

Have you seen this on Facebook? It is a wonderful sentiment. I approve of the concept of looking at the positive and trying to find the good in a person.

Seeing this makes me emit an instant, “awww” and want to press “Like” and “Share.”

But I don’t. Why?

There is a Bible verse attached to the sentence. A Bible verse is the word of GOD. So I must treat it with respect, and at the very least, look it up to make sure that someone making the scripture picture didn’t accidentally make a typo on the address. So I check to see if the verse and the address match up?

No. Here is what Proverbs 11:27 actually says.

Whoever diligently seeks good seeks favor, but evil comes to him who searches for it. (ESV)
The one who searches for what is good finds favor, but if someone looks for trouble, it will come to him. (HSCB)
If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you! (NLT)

No matter what translation you look at the verse in, the sentiment expressed on the photo is not the same as the one stated in the Word. Every translation mentions evil, but the scripture photo mentions only good. The verse is saying that the person who goes looking for trouble will find it but those who do good will receive favor from God and men.

That’s the trouble with Twitter, Facebook, etc. Only half the verse is shown. Or it’s ripped from its context (Jeremiah 29:11 comes immediately to mind). The context in which this verse was ripped then twisted is embedded among-

Proverbs contrasting the nature and destiny of the righteous and wicked (11:1–31). The righteous follow a clear path in life, are delivered from troubles, are generous, and strengthen their communities. The wicked hoard money but are not saved by it, are a curse to their families and communities, and face certain punishment.

Garrett, D. A. (1998). The Poetic and Wisdom Books.

In untwisting the twisted part of the verse Matthew Henry says of it:

1. Those that are industrious to do good in the world get themselves beloved both with God and man: … that seeks opportunities of serving his friends and relieving the poor, and lays out himself therein, procures favour. All about him love him, and speak well of him, and will be ready to do him a kindness; and, which is better than that, better than life, he has God’s lovingkindness.
2. Those that are industrious to do mischief are preparing ruin for themselves: It shall come unto them; some time or other they will be paid in their own coin. And, observe, seeking mischief is here set in opposition to seeking good; for those that are not doing good are doing hurt.

Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume.

The verse is not about finding a nice quality in a person among other negative qualities. It is about a person himself doing good as opposed to evil. The one who does good receives favor from men and God. The one who does evil, piles evil back onto himself. It’s actually the opposite of what the Facebook photo verse is stating.

The Facebook twisted version makes man the hero.
The Bible’s version makes God the hero.
See the difference?

And does it make sense to put a scripture address on a verse that is totally re-phrased in man’s words, anyway?

EPrata photo

That’s the problem with twisting a verse. It’s a problem also when we carelessly re-tweet it or share it without proper investigation. We add to the general confusion regarding what the Bible actually says. Of all things on this earth the one thing we should be the most careful with is God’s word. Yet on social media, a powerful influencer of minds and hearts, it is the most carelessly handled. It’s sad that so many have shared and liked this verse that is not a verse and means what it does not mean.

Now, I’m not condemning any of the nearly 1 million people who shared it. It’s a nice sentiment. I wanted to post it myself. But if you want to send around a nice sentiment like this one, there are plenty of them in the Bible that mean exactly what they mean without omitting important parts of the verse or twisting it. You have your pick of verses that urge us to edify each other, to cover each other’s sins, or to love one another.

Before pressing “Like” or “Share” please stop and look it up. Make sure the verse is addressed correctly and isn’t twisted.

Don’t twist the Bible

To research some background on a recent blog essay, I listened to a short interview by a reporter from the Wall Street Journal blog and Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston. He was being interviewed on the occasion of the release of his latest book (October 2013) “Break Out!” In the interview, the reporter asked Osteen what he thought of the (then) new Pope, Francis. Osteen lauded the new pope. He loved the Pope’s “inclusive” message and how he got out “among the people.”

The reporter picked up on Osteen’s mention of inclusiveness and asked him how to reconcile what the bible says about, say, gay people, and welcoming same sex couples to church. ‘How do you walk that line?’ the reporter asked.

Osteen said, “Jesus said ‘you will know them by their love for one another’ so you have to say, you know, I may not agree with you, but I’m going to accept you and I’m going to love you. We believe what the bible teaches but we also we believe the bible says to accept and love everyone.”

The scripture Osteen was twisting here is “you will know them by their fruits”. (Matthew 7:16). Jesus most assuredly did NOT say you will know them by their love. And, in an ironic turn of events, just who is it that we will know? Jesus is actually talking about false prophets.

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. (Matthew 7:15-16a)

Does the bible teach us to accept everyone? It sounds nice, but no. “Accepting” same sex couples in church is accepting that they are deliberately flaunting their sin in direct opposition to God’s holy standards. It is the same with any unrepentant person. If a drunk were to come drunk to church every single week, with a vodka bottle, saying “I’m PROUD of my drunkenness!” would you accept that as God-honoring church behavior? This is why we have a process for church discipline, to bring that person to repentance. If they do not repent, we excommunicate them. We do NOT accept flagrant sin. It dishonors the name of Christ, and it also allows sin to spread like a cancer. God wants His bride to remain pure and undefiled. (Ephesians 5:25-27). We never “accept” sin. Never. Christ’s blood is too precious.

More to the point, accepting people’s sin is paving the way to hell for them. The Lord will richly repay Joel Osteen for his evil deeds.

Asked about why he is successful, he said,
“I try to make my message not heavy on doctrine necessarily”

Well, of course. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,” (1 Timothy 4:3)

I hope you will not even post one quote from Mr Osteen on your Facebook page, or buy one book of his, or listen to even one more second of his “sermons.” He is a scripture twisting, hell paving, evil minister of darkness. He is untaught and unstable.

The untaught and unstable twist them to their own destruction, as they also do with the rest of the Scriptures. (2 Peter 3:16)

Category: scripture twisting

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