It Could Have Been Worse…

Tonight I had a book signing at my church. It was fun. Except for the part where I wrote down the wrong Bible verse.

My favorite verse is, and has been for years, Psalms 19:14: “May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing in thy sight, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer.”

But what did I put on almost every book I signed? PROVERBS 19:14. I figured it out about ten minutes before the signing ended. Prov. 19:14 says “House and wealth are an inheritance from fathers. But a prudent wife is from the Lord.”

I felt pretty stupid. But then slightly relieved because that verse works. Okay, so it sounds a little like me bragging about being a great wife. But other than that, it’s fine. (and I am a pretty great wife:))

At least I put Proverbs and not some other book. It could have been so much worse. So I looked up some other 19:14′s to see just how much worse it could have been.

Check it out:

Gen. 19:14 “…Up, get out of this place, for the Lord will destroy the city…”

Num. 19:14 “This is the law when a man dies in a tent: everyone who comes into the tent and everyone who is in the tent shalll be unclean for seven days.”

I Sam. 19:14 “When Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.”"

Job 19:14 “My relatives have failed and my intimate friends have forgotten me.”

Ez. 19:13 “…This is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.”

I’ll stop there. I’m feeling better already.

Moral of the story: Even if you’ve had the same favorite verse for almost 20 years, check the reference one more time before signing it to a couple dozen books in your church’s coffee shop.