I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done. – Psalm 118:17

Today's Scripture Reading (August 31, 2022): Psalms 118

John Wycliffe (1328-1384) was an early church reformer. Over a hundred years before Martin Luther began his reformation journey, Wycliffe was already asking some important questions. And as a result of his questions, he was also making some significant enemies. Wycliffe was not just an important reformer; he was also one of the first to attempt to translate the Bible into English, a translation of which the established church was not in favor. At the time, they were content to have the Bible in the possession of the religious elite. The Wycliffe Bible, a series of translations that were translated under the direction of John Wycliffe, began to appear between 1382, just before Wycliffe's death in 1384, and 1395.

One of Wycliffe's favorite verses was Psalm 118:17. "I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done." James Montgomery Boice tells a story of Wycliffe.

"John Wycliffe … fell sick at one point as the result of his incessant labors for the gospel. The friars heard that their enemy was dying and hastened to his bedside. Surely Wycliffe would be overcome with remorse for his Protestant heresies. Surely he would renounce his views and ask for God's forgiveness and the friars' blessing. A crowd of monks representing four major orders of the friars gathered around him. They began by wishing him health, then quickly changed their tune and urged him to make a full confession since he would soon have to give an accounting of himself to God. Wycliffe waited patiently until they had ended. Then, asking his servant to raise him a little so he could speak better, Wycliffe fixed his keen eyes on them and said in a commanding voice, 'I shall not die but live and proclaim…the evil deeds of the friars.'" (James Montgomery Boice)

The verse was not only precious to Wycliffe. Martin Luther also held this verse close to his heart. According to Johannes Mathesius (1504-1565), a disciple of Luther, Martin Luther had Psalm 118:17 written on the wall of his study.

And it has become the cry of the Christian Church. Even in the darkest moments of our experience, we know that we will not die but live. We exclaim with the assurance of Job that

I know that my redeemer lives,
    and that in the end he will stand on the earth.
And after my skin has been destroyed,
    yet in my flesh I will see God;
I myself will see him
    with my own eyes—I, and not another.
    How my heart yearns within me (Job 19:25-27)!

We will not die but live!

Today's Scripture Reading: Psalm 119:1-48