I came across a saying that together with its attribution I found very funny. The saying “The problem with quotes found on the internet is that they are often not true.”  So far so good. It’s undoubtedly a true statement. But the attribution makes its ‘truth’ ridiculous. It’s attributed to Abraham Lincoln, the famous US President who was murdered on April 15, 1865! More than a century before the internet. Of course the saying is a joke but with a serious point to it. Anyway it made me think of quotes that aren’t made up. Instead they are misquoted.

Here’s just one that is commonly misquoted. “Money is the root of evil” isn’t it? After all that’s from the Bible isn’t it? Well, yes and no. Yes – because the words are part of a verse from the Bible. No – because the other words surrounding the often quoted words change the meaning a lot. Here’s what the verse actually says:

“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…” (1 Timothy 6:10, NIV)

The difference is crucial. It’s the love of money that’s the problem. Not the money on its own. It’s all about our attitude to money rather than the money itself.

In addition to what our attitude should be to money the Bible contains lots of good instruction on how to live our lives in a way that is pleasing to God. But it’s very important to view these instructions in their full context. Or we may be significantly misled. The verse about money is a great illustration of how important context is!

There’s much more than instructions in God’s Bible. It’s definitely worth reading and thinking about.