1 Chronicles 2:1-8: a reflection

1These are the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, 2Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. 3The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, and Shelah, which three were born to him of Shua’s daughter the Canaanitess. Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the LORD’s sight; and he killed him. 4Tamar his daughter-in-law bore him Perez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five. 5The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul. 6The sons of Zerah: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara—five of them in all. 7The son of Carmi: Achar, the troubler of Israel, who committed a trespass in the devoted thing. 8The son of Ethan: Azariah.

In the genealogy of Israel, brief but telling notes are attached to certain names, one remembered as wicked, another as the troubler of Israel, a sobering reminder that our lives leave a mark, and that one person's sin can bring trouble on many. Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the LORD's sight, the record notes; and later, of another, Achar, the troubler of Israel, who committed a trespass. Amid the long list of names, these brief notes stand out: one man remembered simply as wicked in God's sight, another remembered as the troubler of Israel, whose single sin brought trouble on the whole people. Their lives left such a mark that this is how they are remembered in the record. This shows that our lives leave a mark, and one person's sin can trouble many. Your life leaves a mark; consider how you will be remembered. One person's sin can bring trouble on many. Live so as to be remembered for good, not as a troubler. The way we live is not without lasting consequence.

Notice the sobering notes attached to these names. In the long genealogy, most names pass without comment; but to a few, a telling note is attached. One, Er, is remembered simply as wicked in the LORD's sight. Another, Achar, is remembered as the troubler of Israel, the one whose sin brought trouble on the whole people. These brief notes are how these men are remembered, the mark their lives left in the record. This holds a sobering reflection for us. Our lives, too, leave a mark; how we live is not without lasting consequence, and is, in a sense, remembered. It is worth asking how we will be remembered: for good, or as those who did wrong, who troubled others. And there is a further warning in Achar: one person's sin can bring trouble not only on himself but on many, for his single trespass brought trouble on the whole people. Our sins are not always private in their effects; they can trouble and harm others, ripple out beyond ourselves. This calls us to live thoughtfully, mindful that our lives leave a mark and that our conduct affects others. We do well to live so as to be remembered for good rather than as those who did wrong and troubled others, mindful that our sin can harm many. Live so as to be remembered for good, not as a troubler of others. Your life leaves a mark; how you live has lasting consequence. One person's sin can bring trouble on many, not only oneself. Live thoughtfully, mindful that your conduct affects others.

That is worth taking to heart, for our lives leave a mark, and one person's sin can trouble many, as these men were remembered as wicked and as the troubler of Israel. We can live carelessly, forgetting that how we live leaves a mark and affects others; but these names are remembered for the wrong they did and the trouble it brought. Live thoughtfully. Live so as to be remembered for good, not as a troubler of others, mindful that your life leaves a mark and that your sin can bring trouble on many, not only yourself. Live so as to be remembered for good rather than as one who did wrong and troubled others, mindful that your life leaves a mark and that one person's sin can bring trouble on many, as in the genealogy of Israel brief but telling notes are attached to certain names, one remembered as wicked in the LORD's sight and another as the troubler of Israel whose single sin brought trouble on the whole people; for amid the long list of names these brief notes stand out, one man remembered simply as wicked and another as the troubler of Israel, their lives leaving such a mark that this is how they are remembered, which holds a sobering reflection for us, that our lives too leave a mark, since how we live is not without lasting consequence and is in a sense remembered, so that it is worth asking how we will be remembered, for good or as those who did wrong and troubled others, and there is a further warning in Achar, that one person's sin can bring trouble not only on himself but on many, since his single trespass brought trouble on the whole people, our sins not always being private in their effects but able to trouble and harm others and ripple out beyond ourselves, which calls us to live thoughtfully, mindful that our lives leave a mark and our conduct affects others, so that we do well to live so as to be remembered for good rather than as those who did wrong and troubled others.

Lord, in the genealogy of Israel, brief but telling notes are attached to certain names, one remembered as wicked, another as the troubler of Israel, a sobering reminder that my life leaves a mark, and that one person's sin can bring trouble on many. Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the LORD's sight, the record notes; and later, of another, Achar, the troubler of Israel, who committed a trespass. Amid the long list of names, these brief notes stand out: one man remembered simply as wicked in your sight, another as the troubler of Israel, whose single sin brought trouble on the whole people. Their lives left such a mark that this is how they are remembered. Show me the sobering notes attached to these names. In the long genealogy, most names pass without comment; but to a few, a telling note is attached. One is remembered simply as wicked in your sight. Another is remembered as the troubler of Israel, the one whose sin brought trouble on the whole people. These brief notes are how these men are remembered, the mark their lives left. This holds a sobering reflection for me. My life, too, leaves a mark; how I live is not without lasting consequence. It is worth asking how I will be remembered: for good, or as one who did wrong and troubled others. And there is a further warning in Achar: one person's sin can bring trouble not only on himself but on many. My sins are not always private in their effects; they can trouble and harm others, ripple out beyond myself. Take that to my heart. Keep me from living carelessly, forgetting that how I live leaves a mark and affects others; help me live thoughtfully, Lord, so as to be remembered for good rather than as one who did wrong and troubled others, mindful that my life leaves a mark and that my sin can bring trouble on many, not only myself.