A Bottle in the Smoke

Ever get that parched, dry, shrivelled, tainted, burnt out feeling? Perhaps the Psalmist describes your situation. If anyone knew what it was to struggle, it was often David in his spiritual plight.

The bottle in the smoke was actually a wineskin, made from the hind leg of a sheep or goat. It was used to contain and carry milk, water, or wine. When not in use for travel or a trip to the fields, the wineskin was hung up in the tent and sometimes on the roof of a permanent house. The fire built to break the chill of cold desert nights would soot and smoke the wineskin. The smoke wafted its way over to the wineskin and began a tainting & drying process. The once useful wineskin would eventually shrink and dry so much that it would crack and become rather useless.

Feeling rather useless is not a good nor welcome experience. The good news is that there was and is a way to revive the wineskin and prolong its usefulness. The owner of the wineskin would wash and clean the sooty and dry old bottle. Then he would bathe the wineskin with oil, restoring its suppleness and its usefulness.

David revealed a key to the washing and oiling when he said: For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; [yet] do I not forget thy statutes. The "yet" is not present in the Hebrew, but it is implied. David was clinging to God, but more importantly, God was clinging to him. He seems to be saying that troubles and fiery tests may blur our vision and sometimes bring a dryness, but we are refreshed by the washing of the word & the bathing of the Holy Spirit.

Remember the Lord's Word, cling to it, and receive His gracious restoration.