Today's Reading: Psalm 94

A Poof of Air

Many men and women (most of whom we would consider “geniuses”) have introduced amazing concepts to mankind. We call them “great” men and women, “heroes” even. Throughout history, humanity has been blessed by many great thinkers: Aristotle, Plato, Confucius, Tesla, Einstein, Marie Curie, and the like. Even today, many famous people are looked upon as possessing “superior intellects.” On the website wonderlist.com, you can find a list of ten modern day geniuses with IQ’s ranging from 190 to 230. Compared to the rest of mankind (with average IQ of 100), their thoughts are magnificent and impressive. But what about compared to God? How impressive are the greatest minds when compared with the mind of God?

How do you compare the thoughts of the omniscient God with the thoughts of man? According to verse 11, the greatest scholastic and scientific minds from the history of mankind are “but a breath” compared to our God. The mind of the most genius musical composers in history are “like a vapor.” The thoughts of the greatest inventors of all time are empty and hollow compared to the infinitely matchless thoughts of God. In fact, God views all of the so-called wisdom and knowledge of man to be but a vapor that has no substance and quickly vanishes. “Surely men of low degree are a vapor, Men of high degree are a lie; If they are weighed on the scales, they are altogether lighter than vapor.” (Psalm 62:9)

The Hebrew word translated “breath” in verse 11 is “hebel.” This word literally means vapor or mist – a “poof of air” which has no substance. The root meaning of this word is seeking to convey emptiness, futility, and hollowness. It is found 73 times in the Scriptures where it is translated as: vapor, breath, vanity, vain. Figuratively, this word means something transitory and unsatisfactory. Various Bible versions have translated this word as “breath” (ESV); “futile” (NIV); “vanity” (KJV); or “shallowness” (MSG). You get the idea. It simply means that, compared to God, the thoughts of man are transitory and lack substance.

In reality, all human knowledge is known to God in eternity before it is known by men. All we have been able to do is discover that knowledge. We have discovered many of the natural laws and scientific principles which He has infused into His creation. Over time, we may discover more and deeper truths, but God is the One who placed it all here for us to discover. And, one day, all human knowledge will dissolve and vanish into thin air, giving way to the one true Genius, Hero, and Great Thinker-the Lord God. He knows our thoughts, that they are just a poof of air.