Isaiah 1:1-3
The Wickedness of Judah
2 Hear, O heavens, and listen, O earth,
for the Lord has spoken:
I reared children and brought them up,
but they have rebelled against me.
3 The ox knows its owner
and the donkey its master’s crib,
but Israel does not know;
my people do not understand.
I think I remember someone being referred to as a “dumb ox” at some point in my life. (I know that I have seen an ox pulling a cart down a Honduran road, and he didn’t look all that bright.) But as much disdain as I might have for this creature, it rivals the disdain God may feel for us when we are in our stupid, disobedient mode as humans.
If we find ourselves rebelling against the God and Father who gave us life as God’s children, then we are dumber than an ox, because the ox knows its owner. We should know our owner, too.
Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
