Thankfulness the antidote for spiritual blindness

Every time Israel forgot about God, lost the book of life then they went to other gods. They became unthankful and forgot God.

The goal of God’s people is to honor God through their thanks to Him, for what He had done in Christ (2 Cor. 4:15). The rendering of thanks should characterize the Christian’s life in every circumstance, marking the individual’s life and even corporate worship (1 Cor. 4:16–17; Phil. 4:6). Carpenter, E. E., & Comfort, P. W. (2000). In Holman treasury of key Bible words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew words defined and explained. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

Romans 1:21 (NASB95) - 21 For even though they knew God, they did not honour Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Note that they did not honour Him or give thanks and the result was a darkened heart.

Ephesians 4:17–32 (NASB95) The Christian’s Walk
- 17 So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, - 18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart;

Special note: Darkened in their understanding – because of the hardness of their heart.

Spiritual blindness

The quickest way to loose your ability to see and hear in the spiritual world is not to be thankful. In other words what is the quickest way to loose sight of what God is doing and saying in your life?

Spiritual blindness will cloud your vision. It will cloud the way you see things, it will cloud your view of what God is doing and can do in your life. You will be far more conscious of what is going on around you in the physical than focussing on what God is telling you to do.

Spiritual blindness will effect your heart. It will effect your hope. It will change the way you see life. It will effect your life greatly.

When you are spiritually blind you are more man, world, and devil conscious. To be man conscious is the easiest thing to be. You just have to live life and let your actions be guided by what people are doing to you. Let your mind be consumed by what is happening in the world today. Faith is to see what is not (Heb 11:1). To be man conscious is contrary to faith. You see what is with your physical eyes and make decisions based on your own presumptions and mental intellect.

To fall into a state of unthanfkulness is to say:”God you cannot get me out of this, nothing is powerful enough.”

One way to strethen your faith in God is to start being thankful of what He has done in your life. Revisit what he did in your life, how He has blessed you. Revisit your prophetic words.

To be unthankful is sure way to stop faith in your life. What is another opposite of thankfulness?

Ingratitude: Synopsis - The absence of due thankfulness.

Scripture gives examples of human ingratitude to God for all the blessings and gifts which he provides for them. It is especially important for Christians to give thanks to God.

Where there is absence of due thankfulness you can know pride is reigning. You let the light shine on what you have achieved. Don’t get me wrong there is nothing wrong with acheving something, but it is what is in the heart. Ingratitude says: “I did it”, thankfulness says:”Thank you God for giving me the ability.” We are the vessel and need to know how to direct our thankfulness and due worship to our Creator and King who has given us the ability to earn.

How to remove spiritual blindness

Colossians 3:15 (NASB95)
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful

1 Thessalonians 5:16–19 (NASB95) - 16 Rejoice always; - 17 pray without ceasing; - 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Dictionary - what is thankfulness?

• Gratitude directed towards God, generally in response to God’s concrete acts in history. Thanksgiving was central to Old Testament worship.

• Thankfulness - Heartfelt** gratitude to God, expressed in response to his love and mercy.

• The goal of God’s people is to honour God through their thanks to Him, for what He had done in Christ (2 Cor. 4:15). The rendering of thanks should characterise the Christian’s life in every circumstance, marking the individual’s life and even corporate worship (1 Cor. 4:16–17; Phil. 4:6).

What happens when our spiritual blindness lifted?

2 Kings 6:17 (NASB95)
- 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

In order for us to be able to get a glimpse of what God is doing in our life, family, city and nations we need to start by being thankful. Spriritual blindness is a cureable condition. We need to fight it at all cost.

2 Corinthians 3:16–17 (NASB95)
- 16 but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. - 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Spiritual growth and fruit?

2 Peter 1:1–15 (NASB95) Growth in Christian Virtue
- 1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
- 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;
- 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
- 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
- 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
- 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
- 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. - 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- 9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.
- 10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;
- 11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.

Don’t be ignorant: SPIRITUAL

1 Corinthians 12:1 (NKJV) Spiritual Gifts: Unity in Diversity
- 1. Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant:

God don’t want us to be spiritually blind, ignorant of what is going on.

John 6:63
“The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”

SPIRIT; BREATH

ruach (רוּחַ, 7307), “breath; air; strength; wind; breeze; spirit; courage; temper; Spirit.” This noun has cognates in Ugaritic, Aramaic, and Arabic. The word occurs about 378 times and in all periods of biblical Hebrew.
Ninth, the “spirit” may also be used of that which enables a man to do a particular job or that which represents the essence of a quality of man: “And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him …” (Deut. 34:9). Elisha asked Elijah for a double portion of his “spirit” (2 Kings 2:9) and received it.
Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.

2 Corinthians 3:4–6 (NKJV)The Spirit, Not the Letter
- 4. And we have such trust through Christ toward God. - 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, - 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

John 3:6 (NKJV)
- 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Galatians 5:22–26 (NKJV)
- 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, - 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. - 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. - 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. - 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Titus 3:5 (NKJV)
- 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Romans 12:1–2 (NKJV) Living Sacrifices to God
- 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. - 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Renew your mind to see what the will of God is. The opposite is spiritual blindness by not renewing your mind and not knowing what the will of God is.

Revelation 3:22 (NKJV)
- 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Entitlement - sickness of our age

The entitlement mentality can show up in church when we feel “It’s all about me!” - What blessings will Bible study (or prayer, or any other activity) bring me? - Why doesn’t the pastor (or other leaders) pay more attention to me? - I don’t like the music (or anything else) so I’ll just stay away. - How can I get God to do what I need Him to do for me? - Remember the famous quote from President Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what can you do for your country!”

Perhaps we need to ask less of : - What can my pastor do for me? - What can the church do for me? - What can God do for me?”

Instead, what would happen if we asked: - What can I do for my fellow believers? - What can I do for God? - Where can I be effective for God? - What is God saying today?

God has this amazing idea that church is about Him! ** What if we agreed with Him? **

Research

Various dictionaries, overviews and background information about this subject

Thanksgiving

Hebrew expression: todah

Pronunciation: toh DAWH

Strong’s Number: 8426

KEY VERSES: Leviticus 7:12; Psalms 42:4; 50:14; 95:2

A thorough study of the use of this word in the Hebrew Bible can lead to one conclusion: Everywhere and in every situation, God’s people should continually give thanks to God, the One who has created and redeemed them.
The giving of thanks in the Old Testament is indicated most often by the Hebrew word todah, which is translated “thanks,” “thankfulness.” Todah is the noun that is formed from the verb yadah, which means “to throw” or “to cast.” In the causative stem of the verb, its most used stem, the word means “to give thanks,” “to praise,” or “to lead.” This meaning possibly arose because of the gestures and physical involvement of the people toward God as they gave thanks. The verb also has the meaning of “affirming” or “confessing” the Name of the Lord (1 Kgs. 8:33, 35).
As might be expected, the word todah is found most often in the book of Psalms, the praise book of God’s people in which thanksgiving to the Lord dominates. Thanksgiving was accompanied with cries and shouts of joy, music, and singing (Pss. 42:4; 95:2; 100:4). In the time of Nehemiah, formal thanksgiving was rendered by two large choirs (Neh. 12:31, 40). The word todah is even used to describe an entire psalm as “A Psalm of Giving Thanks” (see Ps. 100, title). Most often thanks was rendered to God for His acts and words on behalf of His people (Ps. 119:62), but many times the psalmist calls for thanks to be given to the Lord “because He is good” (Pss. 106:1; 107:1; 118:1, 29; 136:1). He is good in His very nature as well as in the expression of that nature through His works.
In Leviticus 7:12 and 22:29, a thank offering was even provided for the person who wanted to express his appreciation to the Lord for deliverance from illness (Ps. 116:17), troubles of various kinds (Ps. 107:22), death (Ps. 56:12), or any blessing he may have received. It is evident that all of Israel’s thanksgiving was a serious but joyous form of praise. Thanksgiving permeates the New Testament as well. Jesus gave thanks to the Father to model true thanksgiving to us (Matt. 11:25; John 11:41). Most references to thanksgiving in the New Testament are found in the letters of Paul. The goal of God’s people is to honor God through their thanks to Him, for what He had done in Christ (2 Cor. 4:15). The rendering of thanks should characterize the Christian’s life in every circumstance, marking the individual’s life and even corporate worship (1 Cor. 4:16–17; Phil. 4:6).

Carpenter, E. E., & Comfort, P. W. (2000). In Holman treasury of key Bible words: 200 Greek and 200 Hebrew words defined and explained. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

THANKSGIVING

1. Gratitude directed towards God (except Luke 17:9; Acts 24:3; Rom. 16:4), generally in response to God’s concrete acts in history. Thanksgiving was central to OT worship. Sacrifice and offerings were to be made not grudgingly but with thanksgiving (Ps. 54:6; Jon. 2:9). The psalmist valued a song of thanksgiving more than sacrifice (Ps. 69:30–31). David employed Levites “to commemorate the LORD God of Israel, and to give Him thanks and praise.” (1 Chron. 16:4 HCSB; 23:30; Neh. 12:46). Pilgrimage to the temple and temple worship were characterized by thanksgiving (Pss. 42:4; 95:2; 100:4; 122:4). Thankfulness was expressed: for personal (Ps. 35:18) and national deliverance (Ps. 44:7–8); for God’s faithfulness to the covenant (Ps. 100:5); and for forgiveness (Ps. 30:4–5; Isa. 12:1). All creation joins in offering thanks to God (Ps. 145:10). See Psalms, Book of.
   Thanksgiving is a natural element of Christian worship (1 Cor. 14:16–17) and is to characterize all of Christian life (Col. 2:7; 4:2). Early Christians expressed thanks: for Christ’s healing ministry (Luke 17:16); for Christ’s deliverance of the believer from sin (Rom. 6:17–18; 7:25); for God’s indescribable gift of grace in Christ (2 Cor. 9:14–15; 1 Cor. 15:57; cp. Rom. 1:21); and for the faith of fellow Christians (Rom. 1:8).
2. Epistolary thanksgiving: an element in the opening of a typical Greek letter. All of the Pauline Letters with the exception of Galatians begin with a thanksgiving. See Letter.

Brand, C., Draper, C., England, A., Bond, S., Clendenen, E. R., & Butler, T. C. (Eds.). (2003). Thanksgiving. In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

Dictionary 8352

thankfulness - Heartfelt gratitude to God, expressed in response to his love and mercy.

Thankfulness for God’s goodness
Ps 100:4-5 See also 1Ch 16:8,34-35; 2Ch 7:3-6; Ezr 3:10-11; Ps 68:19; 106:1; 116:12-14; 136:1-3,26; Isa 63:7; 1Th 5:18; Heb 12:28

Thankfulness for deliverance
From adversity Ps 35:9-10 See also Ps 31:7-8,21-23; 44:6-8; 66:8-9,16-20; 103:1-5

From slavery in Egypt
Ex 15:20-21 See also Ex 15:1-18; Ps 105:1-45; 136:1-26

From the power of death
1Co 15:53-57

Thankfulness for answered prayer
1Sa 2:1-10 See also Ps 30:1-12; 66:16-20; 138:1-5; Jn 11:40

Thankfulness for others
Phm 4 See also Ne 11:17; Ro 1:8; Php 4:6; Col 1:10; 4:2; 1Ti 2:1; 2Ti 1:3

Thankfulness for Jesus Christ
2Co 9:15 See also Lk 2:25-32,36-38; Col 2:6; 3:15-17

Thankfulness for God’s provision
Mt 14:19 pp Mk 6:41 pp Lk 9:16 pp Jn 6:11 See also Ps 147:7-9; Mt 15:36 pp Mk 8:6; Mt 26:26-27 pp Mk 14:22-23 pp Lk 22:17-19; Lk 24:30; Ac 27:35; Ro 14:6; 1Ti 4:3

Means of expressing thankfulness to God
In song Eph 5:19-20 See also Ps 69:30; 95:2; 96:1; Isa 55:12

In music Ps 27:6; 92:1-3
In dance Ps 149:3
In worship Ps 95:2; 100:4; Heb 12:28

See also
4019 life, believers’ experience
5287 dance
5420 music
5889 ingratitude
7476 thank-offering
7963 song
8445 hospitality
8614 prayer, answers
8627 worship, elements
8644 commemoration
8664 praise
8676 thanksgiving
Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser.

SPIRITUAL 


A. Adjective. pneumatikos (πνευματικός, 4152) “always connotes the ideas of invisibility and of power. It does not occur in the Sept. nor in the Gospels; it is in fact an after-Pentecost word. In the NT it is used as follows: (a) the angelic hosts, lower than God but higher in the scale of being than man in his natural state, are ‘spiritual hosts,’ Eph. 6:12; (b) things that have their origin with God, and which, therefore, are in harmony with His character, as His law is, are ‘spiritual,’ Rom. 7:14; (c) ‘spiritual’ is prefixed to the material type in order to indicate that what the type sets forth, not the type itself, is intended, 1 Cor. 10:3, 4; (d) the purposes of God revealed in the gospel by the Holy Spirit, 1 Cor. 2:13a, and the words in which that revelation is expressed, are ‘spiritual,’ 13b, matching, or combining, spiritual things with spiritual words [or, alternatively, ‘interpreting spiritual things to spiritual men,’ see (e) below]; ‘spiritual songs’ are songs of which the burden is the things revealed by the Spirit, Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16; ‘spiritual wisdom and understanding’ is wisdom in, and understanding of, those things, Col. 1:9; (e) men in Christ who walk so as to please God are ‘spiritual,’ Gal. 6:1; 1 Cor. 2:13b [but see (d) above], 15; 3:1; 14:37; (f) the whole company of those who believe in Christ is a ‘spiritual house,’ 1 Pet. 2:5a; (g) the blessings that accrue to regenerate men at this present time are called ‘spiritualities,’ Rom. 15:27; 1 Cor. 9:11; ‘spiritual blessings,’ Eph. 1:3; ‘spiritual gifts,’ Rom. 1:11; (h) the activities Godward of regenerate men are ‘spiritual sacrifices,’ 1 Pet. 2:5b; their appointed activities in the churches are also called ‘spiritual gifts,’ lit., ‘spiritualities,’ 1 Cor. 12:1; 14:1; (i) the resurrection body of the dead in Christ is ‘spiritual,’ i.e., such as is suited to the heavenly environment, 1 Cor. 15:44; (j) all that is produced and maintained among men by the operations of the Spirit of God is ‘spiritual,’ 1 Cor. 15:46.… 


“The spiritual man is one who walks by the Spirit both in the sense of Gal. 5:16 and in that of 5:25, and who himself manifests the fruit of the Spirit in his own ways.…

“According to the Scriptures, the ‘spiritual’ state of soul is normal for the believer, but to this state all believers do not attain, nor when it is attained is it always maintained. Thus the apostle, in 1 Cor. 3:1-3, suggests a contrast between this spiritual state and that of the babe in Christ, i.e., of the man who because of immaturity and inexperience has not yet reached spirituality, and that of the man who by permitting jealousy, and the strife to which jealousy always leads, has lost it. The spiritual state is reached by diligence in the Word of God and in prayer; it is maintained by obedience and self-judgment. Such as are led by the Spirit are spiritual, but, of course, spirituality is not a fixed or absolute condition, it admits of growth; indeed growth in ‘the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,’ 2 Pet. 3:18, is evidence of true spirituality.”* 



B. Adverb. 
 pneumatikos (πνευματικω̂ς, 4153), “spiritually,” occurs in 1 Cor. 2:14, with the meaning as (j) above, and Rev. 11:8, with the meaning as in (c). Some mss. have it in 1 Cor. 2:13. Notes: (1) In om. 8:6, the rv rightly renders the noun pneuma “(the mind) of the spirit,” kjv, “spiritual (mind).” (2) In 1 Cor. 14:12 the plural of pneuma, “spirits,” rv, marg., stands for “spiritual gifts” (text). (3) In 1 Pet. 2:2, the rv renders logikos “spiritual.”

Spiritual - summary of scriptures

• I may impart some spiritual gift to you, Ro 1:11 4152
• For we know that the Law is spiritual, Ro 7:14 4152
• is your spiritual service of worship. Ro 12:1 3050
• have shared in their spiritual things, Ro 15:27 4152
• combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual 1Co 2:13 4152
• spiritual thoughts with spiritualwords. 1Co 2:13 4152
• he who is spiritual appraises all things, 1Co 2:15 4152
• not speak to you as to spiritual men, 1Co 3:1 4152
• If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it 1Co 9:11 4152
• and all ate the same spiritual food; 1Co 10:3 4152
• and all drank the same spiritual drink, 1Co 10:4 4152
• they were drinking from a spiritual rock 1Co 10:4 4152
• Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, 1Co 12:1 4152
• yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, 1Co 14:1 4152
• since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, 1Co 14:12 4151
• thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, 1Co 14:37 4152
• body, it is raised a spiritual body. 1Co 15:44 4152
• body, there is also a spiritual body. 1Co 15:44 4152
• However, the spiritual is not first, but 1Co 15:46 4152
• not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 1Co 15:46 4152
• you who are spiritual, restore such a one Ga 6:1 4152
• blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Eph 1:3 4152
• in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, Eph 5:19 4152
• against the spiritual forces of wickedness Eph 6:12 4152
• in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, Col 1:9 4152
• with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, Col 3:16 4152
• Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, 1Tm 4:14 5486
• are being built up as a spiritual house for a 1Pe 2:5 4152
• to offer up spiritual sacrifices 1Pe 2:5 4152

Spiritually

• because they are spiritually appraised . 1Co 2:14 4153

Servitude /ˈsəːvɪtjuːd/

■ noun

• 1 the state of being a slave or completely subject to someone more powerful.
• 2 Law, archaic the subjection of property to an easement. — ORIGIN Middle English: via Old French from Latin servitudo, from servus ‘slave’. Soanes, C., & Stevenson, A. (Eds.). (2004). Concise Oxford English dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Synonyms:

• BONDAGE,
• enslavement,
• helotry,
• peonage,
• serfdom,
• serfhood,
• servility,
• slavery,
• thralldom,
• yoke

Merriam-Webster, I. (1996). Merriam-Webster’s collegiate thesaurus. Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster.

Proverbs 20:24 A man’s steps are of the LORD; How then can a man understand his own way? The New King James Version. (1982). (Pr 20:24). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Proverbs 19:21 There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the LORD’s counsel—that will stand. The New King James Version. (1982). (Pr 19:21). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

1 Corinthians 15:33 (NKJV)
- 33 Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”

Joel 2:23–24 (NKJV)
- 23 Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the LORD your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you— The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month. - 24 The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.

Ingratitude

Synopsis
The absence of due thankfulness. Scripture gives examples of human ingratitude to God for all the blessings and gifts which he provides for them. It is especially important for Christians to give thanks to God.
The ingratitude of human beings to one another

• Examples of ingratitude
  • Ge 40:23 the chief butler towards Joseph; Nu 16:13–14 Dathan and Abiram to Moses
  • Genesis 40:23 (NASB95) — 23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.
  • Numbers 16:13–14 (NASB95) — 13 “Is it not enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to have us die in the wilderness, but you would also lord it over us? 14 “Indeed, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor have you given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Would you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!”
• The Israelites to Gideon and his family:
  • Jdg 8:35; Jdg 9:18
  • Judges 8:35 (NASB95) — 35 nor did they show kindness to the household of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) in accord with all the good that he had done to Israel.
  • Judges 9:18 (NASB95) — 18 but you have risen against my father’s house today and have killed his sons, seventy men, on one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your relative—
  • 1 Sa 25:21 Nabal to David; 2 Ch 24:22 King Joash to Jehoiada; Ec 9:15 the citizens to the wise man who delivered a city
  • 1 Samuel 25:21 (NASB95) — 21 Now David had said, “Surely in vain I have guarded all that this man has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him; and he has returned me evil for good.
  • 2 Chronicles 24:22 (NASB95) — 22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness which his father Jehoiada had shown him, but he murdered his son. And as he died he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!”
  • Ecclesiastes 9:15 (NASB95) — 15 But there was found in it a poor wise man and he delivered the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.
• Returning evil for good
  • Ps 35:12
  • Psalm 35:12 (NASB95) — 12 They repay me evil for good, To the bereavement of my soul.
  • See also Ge 44:4 ; Ps 109:5 ; Pr 17:13 ; Je 18:20
  • Genesis 44:4 (NASB95) — 4 They had just gone out of the city, and were not far off, when Joseph said to his house steward, “Up, follow the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid evil for good?
  • Psalm 109:5 (NASB95) — 5 Thus they have repaid me evil for good And hatred for my love.
  • Proverbs 17:13 (NASB95) — 13 He who returns evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.
  • Jeremiah 18:20 (NASB95) — 20 Should good be repaid with evil? For they have dug a pit for me. Remember how I stood before You To speak good on their behalf, So as to turn away Your wrath from them.

Ingratitude to God

• It was in evidence at the fall
  • Ge 3:2–3 Eve showed ingratitude for God’s provision by not believing him.
  • Genesis 3:2–3 (NASB95) — 2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”
  • It is part of fallen human nature
  • Ro 1:21
  • Romans 1:21 (NASB95) — 21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
  • It is a sign of the last days
  • See also 2 Ti 3:2
  • 2 Timothy 3:2 (NASB95) — 2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

Israel’s repeated ingratitude to the Lord

• For deliverance from Egypt:
  • Ex 16:3; Ex 16:8; Ex 17:7; Heb 3:7–9; Heb 3:15; Ps 95:7–9
  • Exodus 16:3 (NASB95) — 3 The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
  • Exodus 16:8 (NASB95) — 8 Moses said, “This will happen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and bread to the full in the morning; for the Lord hears your grumblings which you grumble against Him. And what are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the Lord.”
  • Exodus 17:7 (NASB95) — 7 He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?”
  • Hebrews 3:7–9 (NASB95) — 7 Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, “Today if you hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts as when they provoked Me, As in the day of trial in the wilderness, 9 Where your fathers tried Me by testing Me, And saw My works for forty years.
  • Hebrews 3:15 (NASB95) — 15 while it is said, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.”
  • Psalm 95:7–9 (NASB95) — 7 For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you would hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, As in the day of Massah in the wilderness, 9 “When your fathers tested Me, They tried Me, though they had seen My work.
  • Dt 32:6 They were rebuked by Moses for the way they repaid God; 1 Sa 8:7–8 They rejected the Lord when they rejected Samuel; Ne 9:26 They rejected God’s law and killed his prophets.
  • Deuteronomy 32:6 (NASB95) — 6 “Do you thus repay the Lord, O foolish and unwise people? Is not He your Father who has bought you? He has made you and established you.
  • 1 Samuel 8:7–8 (NASB95) — 7 The Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them. 8 “Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day—in that they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also.
  • Nehemiah 9:26 (NASB95) — 26 “But they became disobedient and rebelled against You, And cast Your law behind their backs And killed Your prophets who had admonished them So that they might return to You, And they committed great blasphemies.

Ingratitude compared with other sins

• Becoming like animals
  • Is 1:3
  • Isaiah 1:3 (NASB95) — 3 “An ox knows its owner, And a donkey its master’s manger, But Israel does not know, My people do not understand.”
  • Becoming like prostitutes
  • Eze 16:17–19
  • Ezekiel 16:17–19 (NASB95) — 17 “You also took your beautiful jewels made of My gold and of My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images that you might play the harlot with them. 18 “Then you took your embroidered cloth and covered them, and offered My oil and My incense before them. 19 “Also My bread which I gave you, fine flour, oil and honey with which I fed you, you would offer before them for a soothing aroma; so it happened,” declares the Lord God.
• Becoming like an adulterous wife
  • Ho 2:8; Ho 4:12; Ho 5:4; Ho 9:1
  • Hosea 2:8 (NASB95) — 8 “For she does not know that it was I who gave her the grain, the new wine and the oil, And lavished on her silver and gold, Which they used for Baal.
  • Hosea 4:12 (NASB95) — 12 My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them; For a spirit of harlotry has led them astray, And they have played the harlot, departing from their God.
  • Hosea 5:4 (NASB95) — 4 Their deeds will not allow them To return to their God. For a spirit of harlotry is within them, And they do not know the Lord.
  • Hosea 9:1 (NASB95) — 1 Do not rejoice, O Israel, with exultation like the nations! For you have played the harlot, forsaking your God. You have loved harlots’ earnings on every threshing floor.
• Jesus Christ exposed ingratitude
  • Lk 17:15–18
  • Luke 17:15–18 (NASB95) — 15 Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, 16 and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? 18 “Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?”
  • God is kind even to the ungrateful
  • Lk 6:35
  • Luke 6:35 (NASB95) — 35 “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.
• It is important for believers to show gratitude to God
  • Ps 100:4
  • Psalm 100:4 (NASB95) — 4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name.
  • See also Ps 107:22 ; Col 1:12 ; Col 3:15 ; 1 Th 5:18
  • Psalm 107:22 (NASB95) — 22 Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, And tell of His works with joyful singing.
  • Colossians 1:12 (NASB95) — 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.
  • Colossians 3:15 (NASB95) — 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.
  • 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NASB95) — 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.