Vaso
A metáfora do vaso é uma das mais belas da Bíblia. Assim como o oleiro molda o barro, Deus nos forma segundo seus propósitos, fazendo de nós vasos úteis para sua glória.
Nas mãos do oleiro
Deus é o Oleiro e nós somos o barro. Ele tem autoridade e sabedoria para nos moldar conforme sua vontade perfeita, e não devemos questionar sua obra.
Yet now Yahweh, you are our father;
we are the clay and you are our potter,
and we all are the work of your hand.
The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,"Stand up and go down to the house of the potter, and there I will let you hear my words." So I went down to the house of the potter and look, there he was doing work at the potter’s wheels. And the vessel that he was making with the clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter, so he made again another vessel, as it was right in the eyes of the potter to make.
And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,"Like this potter, am I not able to do to you, O house of Israel?" declares Yahweh. "Look, like the clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.
On the contrary, O man, who are you who answers back to God? Will what is molded say to the one who molded it, "Why did you make me like this"?Or does the potter not have authority over the clay, to make from the same lump a vessel that is for honorable use and one that is for ordinary use?
Woe to the one who strives with his maker,
a potsherd among potsherds of earth!
Does the clay say to the one who fashions it,
‘What are you making?’
and ‘Your work has no hands’?
Your perversity!
As if a potter shall be regarded as the clay! That the product of its maker says, "He did not make me,"
and the thing made into shape says of its potter, "He has no understanding."
Vasos para honra
O cristão é chamado a ser um vaso de honra, purificado e preparado para toda boa obra. Nosso valor está em quem nos formou e no que carregamos.
Now in a great house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also wooden and earthenware ones, some of which are for honorable use, and some of which are for ordinary use. Therefore, if someone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.
But we have this treasure in earthenware jars, in order that the extraordinary degree of the power may be from God and not from us.
The precious sons of Zion
weighed against fine gold,
how they are thought of as earthen vessels of clay,
the work of the potter’s hands.
Moldados pela graça
Mesmo quando nos sentimos frágeis e imperfeitos, o poder de Deus se aperfeiçoa em nossa fraqueza. Ele nos restaura e nos renova continuamente.
Your hands fashioned me and made me altogether,
then you destroyed me.
Please remember that you made me like clay,
but you turn me into dust again?
Like impure silver which overlays an earthen vessel,
so are smooth lips and an evil heart.
Wail, you shepherds, and cry out.
And roll about in mourning in the dust, O leaders of the flock.
For your days of slaughter and your dispersions have arrived,
and you will fall like a vessel of desire.