Study To Share

“Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.” (Ps 48:12-13 AV)

It is important to know the things of God and relate them to the next generation so they do not lose the importance of them.  To tell the towers means to count them and relate the origin of them.  To tell the towers means to relate the importance of them.  Bulwarks are entrenchments one might find along the wall protecting the city of Zion.  The palaces are David’s, Solomon’s, and other palaces that existed.  They speak of government and splendor.  They speak of God’s blessing, direction, and glory.  David is sharing the importance of relating all that God had and is doing to the next generation.  He is letting us know it is important to rehearse not only the origins but also the purpose for them and the maintenance of them.  The thing is, David built them with a lot of blood, sweat, and tears.  The present generation is enjoying the fruits of the previous generation’s efforts.  Note here David does not tell us to walk about Zion with the next generation.  However, that would be a great idea. Rather, he is speaking to the present generation as the one who must know details to share with the future Israelites.  We cannot pass on what we do not know!

My father used to take us on vacations that sometimes included a historical site of one sort or another.  At the time, we resented it.  What teenager really wants to see where some event of historical significance occurred?  The one I remember the most is the sight of the Johnstown flood.  He took us to the place where the damn broke.  There is a plaque or two recounting the event, but by and large, it is one large valley with the remains of an earthen damn.  Not much to see.  No buildings.  No monuments.  No playground equipment for bored kids to play on.  We didn’t appreciate it at the time.  But it was important to my father.  In time, we may not have understood a flood that rocked the world.  But we did understand the significance of knowing about it.  A flood that wiped out a town may not be a life-changing experience.  But it did play a part in appreciating things of our past.  I also remember a trip to Harper’s Ferry.  That really stuck in my mind because I began to appreciate the facts of history as they might have played out in real-time. 

I see here as well the responsibility the coming generation has to maintain and build on what the previous generation had done.  This is not a mere exchange of information.  This exchange has a purpose behind it.  The coming generation has the responsibility to carry and go further than their predecessors did.  They have the responsibility to take the nation or church from where it is to where it needs to be.  They have the responsibility to further the glory of God and His kingdom.  The only way to do that is with an understanding of where they came from and how they got there.  Where they came from defines the future.  How they got there should increase an appreciation for what there is and instill a sense of ethical responsibility to continue on.  One of the reasons we are losing our present generation is a lack of respect for history and manifest destiny.  That being, a concrete belief in why we are here and where we are going.  Today, it seems as though people merely exist without any sense of direction and purpose.  That lies at the feet of past generations who did not leave behind an understanding of legacy and purpose.  I don’t see the older generation regaling the wonders of God with an attitude.  What I see is a love and appreciation for God, manifested by the work it takes to study what God did, and a passion to tell the generation coming up with appreciation and excitement.