angela hormberg

Tag: Hope

  • Proverbs 11:7

    Proverbs 11:7

    The wicked perish

    Commonplace –

    “When a wicked man dieth, his expectation shall perish: and the hope of unjust men perisheth” (Proverbs 11:7).

    When my granny was alive, she always sent me a birthday card and said she was praying for me. At the time, I was more interested in the money and candy tucked inside the card than her prayers.

    Now that I am older, I think more deeply about her prayers. Some of those prayers were not answered in her lifetime, but their beauty lies in their spiritual nature. The prayers outlived her, and I know some of them were answered after she passed away. I am grateful for her thoughtfulness and kindness towards me, even though I did not appreciate the depth of her gift – a spiritual blessing that did not perish with her.

    In contrast, the wicked pursue only material gain. When they die, their hopes die with them. As Matthew Henry notes in his Commentary “his hopes vanish with him” (697).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Proverbs 11:7.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2026 Angela Hormberg

  • Proverbs 10:28

    Proverbs 10:28

    Gladness

    Commonplace –

    “The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish” (Proverbs 10:28).

    Throughout my Proverbs journey, so far, one theme I notice over and over is how much we have in common with Solomon. While our modern age seems so different from that of the ancients so much is still the same.

    This morning as I was reading Proverbs 10:24, it reminded me of something I heard in a movie I watched last night,The Pursuit of Happyness. I have seen the movie before and remember liking it, but it has been many years since my first time watching it. One thing that really stuck with me on this viewing was the narrator’s comment on Thomas Jefferson, the writer of the Declaration of Independence, and his use of the words “the pursuit of happiness” in the Declaration. Along with life and liberty, the Declaration proclaims the pursuit of happiness is a right of all people. In a similar way, Solomon is pointing out in Proverbs 10:24 that the righteous place their hope in gladness. As our earthly government should secure our right to pursue happiness, so our heavenly government secures our right to hope in gladness. While our secular pursuit of happiness is dependent on what we consider would make us happy, our heavenly pursuit of gladness is universal, the pursuit of eternal life, where we will no longer be encumbered by our sins. That hope is the same today as it was in Solomon’s time and will continue to be the same in the future, our unchanging hope in gladness.

    Matthew Henry provides the following beautiful summary in his Commentary:

    “the hope of the righteous shall be gladness; they shall have what they hope for, to their unspeakable satisfaction. It is something future and unseen that they place their happiness in (Rom. 8:24, 25), not what they have in hand, but what the have in hope, and their hope will be shortly swallowed in fruition, and it will be their everlasting gladness. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Proverbs 10:28.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

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    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 22

    Psalm 22

    Commonplace –

    “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” (Psalm 22:1).

    Psalm 22’s lament stands in stark contrast to Psalm 21’s joy. They are desperate and sorrowful. Later, Jesus would echo David’s words on the cross in one of his last mournful cries.

    “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

    But God.

    Midway through Psalm 22, David offers the following prophetic words:

    “Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.

    For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard” (Psalm 22:24-25, emphasis mine).

    Jesus knew God’s word. He had clearly read this psalm. So, even though his last words sound like a defeat, there is a seed of hope in them. We know Jesus cried out, but we also know God heard. So, if Jesus had hope in his worst hour, and David had hope in his horrible hour, shouldn’t we have hope in our difficulties? We can share in their cry and claim the promise of deliverance, at the same time. It is a great act of rebellion against evil to face a challenging circumstance with hope. May that hope never leave us, whatever situation we face.

    Matthew Henry’s summary offers a judicious assessment of Psalm 22.

    “The Spirit of Christ, which was in the prophets, testifies in this psalm, as clearly and fully as any where in all the Old Testament, “the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow” (1 Pet 1:11); of him, no doubt, David here speaks, and not of himself, or any other man. Much of it is expressly applied to him, and some of it must be understood of him only. The providences of God concerning David were so very extraordinary that we may suppose there were some wise good men who then could not but look upon him as a figure of him that was to come. But the composition of his psalms especially, in which he found himself wonderfully carried out by the spirit of prophecy far beyond his own thought and intention, was (we may suppose) an abundant satisfaction to himself that he was not only a father of the Messiah but a figure of him” (251).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 22.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 131

    Psalm 131

    Commonplace –

    “Let Israel hope in the Lord from henceforth and for ever” (Psalm 131:3).

    David begins this psalm in a humble reflection. He acknowledges:

    1. he is not prideful,
    2. his eyes are not set on great achievements,
    3. he does not worry himself about important events outside his control, nor
    4. does he consider matters beyond himself.

    He compares his manner to that of a child, who has been weaned and can behave and maintain self control. In the last line of the psalm, he simply states that Israel’s hope is in the Lord.

    In this psalm, the psalmist is modeling how a believer should live. If we look at the opposite of each prideful trait he listed, we will come to a positive description of a believer. A believer is one who is

    1. humble,
    2. content with what he has accomplished in life,
    3. living peacefully in his day to day life, and
    4. focused only on those matters that concern him.

    Living life in this manner is a physical, day-to-day walking out of the believer’s hope in the Lord. One who lives in this manner lives in a way that reflects his complete faith that God is in control, and his hope rests solely in God, not his own actions or abilities. Matthew Henry notes, we may sing this psalm

    “…for the same purpose we read it, to teach and admonish ourselves, and one another, what we ought to be, with repentance that we have come short of being so, and humble prayer to God for his grace to make us so” (606).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 131.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 119:113-120

    Psalm 119:113-120

    Samech or Samekh

    Commonplace –

    “Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word” (Psalm 119:114).

    In regard to the second half of this verse, Matthew Henry notes,

    “I hope in thy word, which has acquainted me with thee and assured me of thy kindness to me” (Henry 581).

    It is appropriate that this section falls under the letter Samech. Hebrew4Christians comments on “The Miracle of Samekh”.

    “The letter Nun, which immediately precedes the letter Samekh in the alphabet, suggests someone who is “bent”, or someone who humbles himself in brokenness and submission to the Lord God. Putting [Nun and Samekh] together, we have the Hebrew word nes, miracle. A person of faith is a walking miracle! The LORD gives support to the fallen and broken ones who put their trust in Him” (“Samekh”).

    We only have access to God’s kindness when we are humble. We are humbled in the face of His Word.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    “Samekh”. Hebrew4Christians. John J. Parsons. accessed 5 July 2025.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 119:81-88

    Psalm 119:81-88

    Kaf or Khaf or Caph

    Commonplace –

    “My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word” (Psalm 119:81).

    David is tired, yet he hopes. It’s interesting that he begins this section of Psalm 119 crying out to God in weariness, yet expressing his hope in God’s word. As noted in the post on Kaf, “The word KAF means ‘the palm of the hand’, implying productivity and potentiality” (“Kaf”). David is weary, but, despite his weariness, he continues to read God’s word and hope in God’s word. David does not put off his study or his work, even when he is tired. Matthew Henry that David longs for the help and he waits for it.

    “Waiting for that help, assured that it will come, and tarrying till it come: But I hope in thy word; and but for hope the heart would break. When the eyes fail ye the faith must not; for the vision is for the appointed time, and at the end it shall speak and shall not lie” (Henry 575).

    Even when the work is tiresome, we must persevere, never turning from our duty, continuing to hope in God’s word.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    “Kaf”. BJE: Your Jewish Journey. NSW Board of Jewish Education, https://bje.org.au/knowledge-centre/jewish-languages/hebrew-alphabet/kaf/ , Accessed 24 June 2025.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg