Proverbs 21:1: “The king’s heart is in the and of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.”
I love that word …”whithersoever…” – roughly translated into modern English as “wherever” or “which ever way God wants to” or “in whatever direction He wishes”. Isn’t that a cool KJV word?
A little side note: I left the KJV in the dust back in the ’70′s, but have recently found that there are some irreplaceable words that are lost to most of us who read modern English. I used to bristle at those kinds of KJV ‘isms’, thinking that they were of no use to the modern world. Not to mention, the time involved in trying to explain them to people who just want to learn the Bible.
BUT… I have since come to appreciate some of those ‘tortured English’ words and phrases. Just take a look at some of the modern translations of the Bible. What do they do with some of those words and phrases… they ‘jazz them up’ so you will take notice! Well… I have come full circle and found that using some of those really wild KJV ism’s is just the thing to pique someone’s attention… and smile in the process. (Not sure about that smile… maybe it is a reminder of reading Shakespeare in class in High School… and all the fun you had…. don’t know.)
Be that as it may, in our Adult Bible Class, Proverbs 21:1 comes up as the focus of a discussion on the Sovereignty of God in our lives. In the process of making decisions and trying to ‘look your best’ at a job interview, we must ultimately come to the point of trusting the God of Glory to turn the heart of the person in authority to be doing what He intends to be done in your life. That’s where the “whithersoever” comes in: that no matter what the decision, it is God who is superintending and balancing for your good, the final outcome of the matter.
Admittedly, that is scary (at least for most of us who are realists). However, this verse reminds us of the incredible and amazing power of God to move in other people’s lives to make decisions that affect us… for God’s glory and honor. And the “withersoever” is not that God is not sure where this thing should go, but that the person making the decision has no idea why he is making that decision on your behalf! Ain’t that cool!
How about a personal example.
I was looking to get some further and specific training in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). I asked the owner of a nursing facility I was working in as a Chaplain to lay out a significant amount of money to make this happen, and fulfill other requirements. In my way of thinking there was no possible way that the owner of the facility was going to decide ‘in my favor’ … or so I surmised. One day, I was playing my trumpet music for a luncheon for the facility, and the owner was so impressed with my dedication to the people there, that he said to the Administrator at the time “give him whatever he wants.” And I was on my way to another avenue of ministry and service as a Chaplain (Now working as a Hospice Chaplain). That was 7 years ago. I can imagine the owner saying something like “why did I do that?” Well, we know that the Lord turns the heart of the owner “whithersoever” He wishes!
