You may notice a trend in these two verses, almost a pattern, if you will. Two simple words begin each new thought: “Don’t brag.” Don’t brag about tomorrow, and don’t brag about yourself.

It doesn’t say don’t plan, think, or dream about tomorrow.

“False friends” is a term used in linguistics for pairs of words in two languages that look and/or sound the same, but have different meanings. Being embarrassed in English means something rather different than to be embarazada (pregnant) in Spanish.

We live in an age when many mistakenly think that the essence of Christianity is inclusiveness or “unconditional love.”

From the beginning, the spread of the faith came at God’s initiative, and although the church leaders have received the gift of the Holy Spirit, the signs of God’s leading precede and exceed their plans. Just as was the case at the cross, it is clearly evident that as the faith spreads, the work of the gospel remains God’s work.

Few things irk us more than seeing someone getting away with something. “THAT’S NOT RIGHT!” we shout when we see a cheater not getting caught. We fume when a speeder blows past us on the highway. We boil when we hear of the distress caused when a child support order is ignored.

The parallels in this oracle between God and his people are strikingly similar to those between a parent and a child. The warning is familiar. We can easily imagine a parent saying, “Things are going very well for you around here and could get even better. The only thing that could make things go off-track is for you to violate Family Rule #1 – Show Respect.

Whole hearted Hezekiah distinguished himself by his single minded obedience. That obedience required vigorous opposition to the entrenched practices of his day. One widespread activity was the worship of many gods. Perhaps this had a pragmatic component, rooted in fear.

“In God we trust” is the official motto of the United States of America. Its Spanish equivalent, En Dios Confiamos, is the official motto of the Republic of Nicaragua. It’s not just the motto of these two countries. “In God we trust” resounds with the Psalms (Psalm 9:10, 40:3, 91:2, 73:28, 118:8) and is a fitting title for Psalm 91.