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Can You Really Trust the Teaching of Ecclesiastes?

June 5, 2024 By Peter Krol

Mitch Chase takes up an important question in the Bible’s wisdom literature: Can you trust the book of Ecclesiastes? Is it a collection of biblical wisdom, or is it a curation of ungodly beliefs to reject?

When you survey commentaries on the book of Ecclesiastes, you’ll notice that not every interpreter is convinced we should trust the words in this book. So how should we approach it? Is the content of Ecclesiastes like the book of Job, in which the speeches of Job’s friends have a mixture of truth and error? Or do the Preacher’s observations about life “under the sun” stay uncorrupted and trustworthy?

I think we can thoroughly trust the book’s content and wisdom, and I want to offer some considerations as to why.

Check it out!

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Paying Attention to the Bible’s Y’all

June 3, 2024 By Ryan Higginbottom

When we observe the text of Scripture, we must take notice of the grammar. Grammar is not popular, nor is it something we think about often. But it is important, as the different grammatical number (singular vs plural) of pronouns and verbs can make a big difference in our interpretation of a passage.

A Brief Grammar Lesson

In many languages, the difference between singular and plural pronouns and verb agreement is obvious. And in English, this is clear almost everywhere. We can easily recognize the difference between the first person singular (“I”) and plural (“we”) and between the third person singular (“he/she”) and plural (“they”). However, since “you” is used for both the second person singular and plural, we usually need more context to make the same distinction.

This wasn’t an issue when the 1611 King James version of the Bible was published. In the second person, “thou”/”thee”/”thy” was used for the singular and “ye”/”you”/”your” was used for the plural. Easy enough.

As English has changed over time, however, we have run into the you/you problem described above. This is compounded in our individualistic modern Western cultures, where we tend to think everything applies to me (singular) instead of to us (plural). So, even when the Scriptural context makes a plural “you” clear, we are biased toward reading in a singular fashion.

Why This Matters

Imagine a father eating breakfast with his four children. His oldest son asks if there will be time for baseball today, and the father responds, “Remember, you need to wash all the windows first.”

If all of the children are gathered at the table and engaged in the conversation, this statement is ambiguous. Is it up to just the oldest son to wash all the windows? Or, are all the children on the hook for a day of window-washing? The father might indicate this through his facial expressions or gestures, but if we only have the words, we cannot be sure.

To bring this to the Bible, consider the following two examples.

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? (1 Cor 3:16)

…since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16)

Whether Paul and Peter have individual Christians or groups of Christians in mind for these statements really matters!

How to Make These Observations

Most of us are not readers of the original Biblical languages, so we need some help to make these observations. Fortunately, there are many places on the internet to which we can turn!

Here is a list of resources for the New Testament Greek. There are options here for those who know Greek well and for those who don’t know it at all. Here is an interlinear Bible for both the Old and New Testaments. It takes a little bit of figuring out, but when you hover over the correct symbols, the site will parse the word in question.

The most amusing resource I can suggest is the Y’ALL version of the Bible. This is a site in English with plural pronouns replaced with—you guessed it—”y’all” (and the appropriate variants). I encourage interested readers to visit the site’s About page for more information.

Is this Really Necessary?

I’m not suggesting that every student of the Bible needs to consult an interlinear Hebrew or Greek resource every time they sit down with the Scriptures. My point is this: most of the Bible was written to groups of believers and not individuals, and that should affect the way we interpret and apply the text.

Of course, commands to or statements about groups of Christians always have implications for individuals. (The oldest son in my earlier example is going to be washing windows even if his father’s use of “you” was directed toward all the children.) However, understanding when the collective/group is in view provides valuable context, and when we neglect this context we might be straying from faithfulness to God’s word.

Consider the example from 1 Peter 1:16 cited above. The “you” in this verse is plural, as Peter is quoting Leviticus 11:44. In addition to paying attention to the context in 1 Peter 1, we need to know that Peter is commanding the group of Christians to be holy as God is holy. That certainly should influence what individuals are to believe, think, say, do, and love, but because the command is collective it goes beyond that. It is not enough for each individual to seek individual holiness; the community must also reflect God’s design as a group.

Sometimes the structure of a book of the Bible makes the audience clear. Most New Testament epistles are addressed to churches or groups, while 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are addressed to individuals. So reaching for an extra resource is not always necessary.

However, for most of us the singular/plural distinction is not on our radar screens. But if we would seek to honor the Lord in the way we read the Scriptures, we should pay attention to this subtle piece of grammar.

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Applying a Bible Text Generally to the Human Heart

May 31, 2024 By Peter Krol

Over the last few months, I’ve written a sequence of posts connecting Christian doctrine to Bible application. In particular, I’ve explored eight things the Bible teaches about the human experience, in order to highlight how that doctrine can improve your ability to apply the Bible.

My purpose has been to demonstrate that a firm grasp on what the Bible says generally enables you to apply the Bible far more specifically than you may have expected. As my co-blogger Ryan has written, we really want to help you move beyond the “Big Three” (read the Bible more, pray more, share the gospel more) in your regular application.

man s hand in shallow focus and grayscale photography — Photo by lalesh aldarwish on Pexels.com

Here are the eight points of doctrine I covered:

Creation: Humans were created to be different from every other creature.
Fall: Humans tried (and therefore still try) to replace God.
God’s Law: We need God’s law to show how great our sin is, and to show how life in God’s world works best.
The Law’s Purpose: We need God’s law to help us find Jesus.
The Law’s Misuse: People tend to misuse God’s law in one of two ways.
Substitutionary Atonement: We have seen a perfect man, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
Kingdom of God: We live in the tension of overlapping ages.
New Heaven and Earth: We long for a better world.

These are not the only eight doctrines we could cover. They are merely the ones that I find most directly beneficial when studying nearly any text. If you master these doctrines, you may be surprised by how rich and penetrating your application questions become, in both personal and small group study.

I don’t cover all eight areas with every text. Usually one of these doctrines will be more closely aligned than the others with the passage’s main point.

But if you feel your ability to apply the Bible has become stuck, dry, or rote, consider taking a deeper dive into the Bible’s teachings about humanity and the human experience. When you grasp how a text might apply to human hearts broadly, you’ll be able to suggest ways it might penetrate any specific human heart, including your own.

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A Darkened Sun and Falling Stars

May 29, 2024 By Peter Krol

When Jesus spoke of the sun being darkened, the moon not giving light, and the stars falling from heaven (Mark 13:24-25), was he talking about the end of the world? Or was he using prophetic terminology for the fall of Jerusalem?

Michael Bird tackles the issue in a lengthy but carefully argued article that would be well worth your time. Looking at the entire “Olivet Discourse,” he argues that:

…the discourse needs to be situated in the context of Jesus’s mission; namely, the preaching of the kingdom (Mark 1:15) and the restoration of Israel (Matt 10:5–6; 15:27; Mark 7:27; Rom 15:8). Jesus announced that Israel was facing a national crisis, that it had to choose how to be Israel. He explained how to be God’s chosen people to some who were choosing the path of violent revolution, to those who were following the pattern and piety of the Pharisees, to those who accepted the status quo of the Herodians, and to those who put put up with the moral and mercantile corruption of the priesthood. He gave them options: follow his way of being Israel, or else find the holy city laid waste and the sanctuary itself desecrated and destroyed.

Bird concedes that Matthew’s version of the Olivet Discourse (Matt 24-25) does contain a preview of the final judgment. But Mark and Luke appear to be squarely focused on events surrounding Rome’s assault on Jerusalem in AD 70.

Bird makes his case from both literary and historical contexts, and whether you end up agreeing with him or not, his article is well worth your time and consideration.

Check it out!

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Unrequited Hope and Application

May 24, 2024 By Peter Krol

A firm grasp on the natural human longing for a better world will take your application skills to the next level.

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Unrequited Hope

As we grow to love our neighbors as ourselves, this world becomes a better place to live. Good but not great. Finer but not final. A place of progress but not perfection. We long for a better world.

When God created the heavens and earth, all was very good (Gen 1:31). But man sought out many schemes (Eccl 7:29), and the consequence was a curse upon the ground (Gen 3:17). Now the human experience is one full of sickness (Ps 6:2), waiting (Ps 6:3), injustice (Ps 10), poverty (Ps 12:5), abandonment (Ps 13), corruption (Ps 14:3), abuse (Ps 22), grief (Ps 31:9), sin (Ps 51), fear (Ps 55:5), violence (Ps 59), sleeplessness (Ps 77:1-4), war (Ps 79:3-4), depression (Ps 88), chronic suffering (Ps 88:15), weakness (Ps 109:24), interpersonal conflict (Ps 120:2), disrespect (Ps 123:4), and loneliness (Ps 142:4)¹—to name just a few of the things we now suffer.

When God kicked Adam and Eve out of the garden, he did it so that they would not live forever as sinners (Gen 3:22-23). In that action was the shadow of a hint of a hope of resurrection. If they would die, it means they could live again, right? So prophets such as Isaiah foresaw a new world to come, a new creation to replace the fallen creation (Isaiah 65:17-25). A place where lives would be long and full, no person would labor in vain, and weeping and distress would never be heard.

When Jesus came along, he spoke often about how the age to come was breaking into the present through his own person and work (Mark 1:15, Luke 17:20-21). But that presented a tension with the reality that the age to come was … still a time to come. A time when those hearing Jesus’ words would get to dine with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Matt 8:11). A time when a faithful servant would receive their full reward (Matt 6:20). A place of joy that the persevering steward would enter (Matt 25:21). Jesus associates this new age with both bodily resurrection (John 5:28-29) and a new, regenerated world (Matt 19:28-29).

Paul speaks of a new creation, where the sons of God are fully revealed and suffering is replaced by disproportional glory (Rom 8:18-25). Peter motivates us to wait for the new heavens and new earth—the place where sin and suffering are gone and only righteousness is left (2 Peter 3:11-13). And John caps off our hope with his glorious picture of the dwelling place of God with men. A place that is already here but also not yet fully here. A place without tears, pain, or death (Rev 21:1-4).

Whatever we face now is but a photo-negative of what those who have trusted Christ will face then. And does not every human heart long for such a place? Isn’t that what people seek whenever they expose abuses of power, contribute aid to the needy, and rectify injustice? We all want to live in a world that is better than the one in which we now reside. And the Bible holds out much hope that such a place is coming. Just hold fast to the grace of God, persevere through these light and momentary afflictions, and testify persistently to the lordship of Jesus Christ.

Help with Application

So how does this doctrine help us to improve at applying the Bible?

In nearly any text, you can ask “unrequited hope” questions with respect to the author’s main point:

What would the world look like if everyone trusted and obeyed what the Lord declares in this text?
What hope do we have for that to take place in this world?
What hope do we have for that to take place in the next world?
Wouldn’t it be great to finally get to such a place?
How does this text highlight your pain, your suffering, or your sin?
What can you do now to prepare for a world without such things?
How does your coming resurrection in the new world motivate you to endure further hardship here and now?
What can you give up now, knowing you’ll have an eternity to enjoy it with the Lord Jesus?
If you do not trust Jesus, what hope can you have for the present world to ever act in righteousness and justice?
For the unbeliever: What has been the best time of your life? What if that is the best it will ever get for you? How does Jesus offer you far more than you can imagine?
In light of the new creation Jesus will bring, what is there left for you to be afraid of?

I am intentionally sidestepping matters of creation, gifts, strengths, law, grace, salvation, and sanctification when I ask these questions. That’s not because such matters are unimportant, but only because the focus of this post is on the natural human longing for a better world.

Sometimes, robust reflection on our hope for the future will give us ample material to speak into the issues of our age: lament, oppression, injustice, sin, suffering, tragedy, misery, perseverance, joy, hope, satisfaction—to name just a few.

Deepen your grasp of the natural human longing for a better world, and you’ll take your application skills to the next level.

This list of human experiences from the psalms was collated by my friend Clint Watkins in his wonderful book Just Be Honest: How to Worship Through Tears and Pray Without Pretending (affiliate link). ↩︎

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Recognize Both Divine and Human Authors of the Bible

May 22, 2024 By Peter Krol

Daniel Rowlands suggests that one context we ought to keep in mind when reading the Bible is the context of the whole Bible. We can do this because, though the books of the Bible were written by various human authors, they were also written by the singular divine author.

Here is a taste:

The word of God in the Bible comes to us through human writers. We find the humanity of the writers in variations of vocabulary, idioms, structure, and style. For example, there is the difference between the exquisite Hebrew poetry and varied vocabulary of Isaiah and the straight-forward narrative of Joshua. Similarly, in the New Testament there is the difference between the complex and elegant Greek of Hebrews and John’s more elementary Greek. We can detect the presence of the human authors throughout all of Scripture.

On the other hand, and at the risk of sounding obvious, we ought not neglect the divine author, God himself. Here, the incarnation of the Son of God in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word become flesh (John 1:14), is a helpful analogy for understanding the human and divine together as one.

Check it out!

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Diving Deep on Hebrews 3:13—How Should We “Exhort One Another?”

May 20, 2024 By Ryan Higginbottom

A hard heart is poisonous, but there is an antidote. The author of Hebrews gives a concise prescription: Christians are to exhort one another, every day (Hebrews 3:13).

In this article, we will try to make this command specific.

Application Within Context

We preach context regularly here at Knowable Word, and there is no exception when it comes to application. Application should flow from the main point of the passage, but we should avoid writing down that main point and then staring dreamily out the window to apply the text.

Consider our passage (Hebrews 3:7–19) as an example. In my view, the main point is that Christians should exhort one another every day to avoid being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (This is only a restatement of Hebrews 3:13.) It would be a mistake to focus on the word “exhort” and then go off on a word-study rabbit trail to frame my application. Here, as in so many places, it is not just the imperative verb that is important. The context gives the word meaning.

Let’s first look to the letter as a whole. My co-blogger Peter has written an interpretive overview of Hebrews in which he argues for this main point of the book: God has spoken by His Son whose work is finished. There is a stay-the-course nature to the tone of this letter—the author does not want his readers to give up Christ.

In the more immediate context (Hebrews 3:1–6), Jesus is contrasted with Moses. Jesus is worthy of far greater glory that Moses (Hebrews 3:3), so it doesn’t make sense to turn from Jesus to Moses and his commands.

When we turn to the ultra-local context, this Christian exhortation is meant to prevent evil, unbelieving hearts (Hebrews 3:12) and to combat the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13). Our exhortation is rooted in the fact that we share in Christ, holding our confidence firm to the end (Hebrews 3:14). Our efforts in this regard should aim to pull our friends back from disobedience and unbelief (Hebrews 3:18–19).

Shades of Meaning for our Application

If we are to exhort one another in the ways that Hebrews indicates, an analogy and some examples might help.

When thinking about this passage, I’ve pictured a marathon runner putting one foot after the other, drenched in sweat and with pain on his face. I can see his struggle between the easy option (giving up) and the hard one (finishing the race). How will I exhort him to help him finish the race?

Sometimes exhortation will look like encouragement, speaking timely truths to give a friend courage. Exhortation might also look like challenge or rebuke—if a runner is heading off course we should sound a warning. To exhort might mean reminding someone of their calling, identity, and the precious promises that are theirs in Christ. Often, to continue the analogy, exhorting will mean running next to a friend, to speak and to listen, to comfort and to point in the right direction.

While exhortation is likely part of a sermon in weekly corporate worship, it cannot be limited to that. This is to happen within our every-day relationships.

We need others to help us identify and resist false teaching, to point out temptations, and to remind us of the truth. We need friends to tell us what the finish line is like and why crossing it is so much better than ducking out of the race early.

What this Application Presupposes

In thinking through the command to exhort one another, I noticed three things this presupposes.

First, this command is given to a community of Christians, and there is a clear community responsibility. There should not be in “any of you” an unbelieving heart, and “none of you” should be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. So just as I am to exhort others, I am one who needs exhortation myself.

Additionally, this command presupposes strong relationships that can bear the weight of exhortation. This sort of strong urging is not something we can do for acquaintances. In order to encourage, challenge, and edify a brother, we need to know in what way that brother needs to be encouraged, challenged, or edified. These sorts of close, vulnerable relationships are difficult to form and difficult to maintain.

Finally, the content of my exhortation should be what God has spoken in his Son. My words and thoughts alone are not sufficient to prevent a hard heart.

Five Questions

Because application is so personal, I rarely suggest specific application points for others (unless I know them really well). Instead, here are some questions that flow out of our present considerations.

Who are some people you could exhort? From whom would you welcome exhortation? If no one comes to mind for either question, how can you build these sorts of relationships?
What can you do to make your church a place where mutual exhortation is welcomed?
In what ways are you tempted to turn away from obeying God? How could you share these with a trusted friend?
Where do you lack courage in your Christian life? How could you share this need for encouragement with someone else?
What passages of Scripture (or general biblical truths) would be most appropriate for exhorting one of your specific friends?

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Kingdom Tension and Application

May 17, 2024 By Peter Krol

A firm grasp on the tension of living in the kingdom of God will take your application skills to the next level.

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Kingdom Tension

As Jesus began his ministry, the essence of his message was “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). The messianic prophecies of Isaiah were fulfilled “today…in your hearing” at Nazareth (Luke 4:16-21). When the Jews asked Jesus when the kingdom of God would come, he clearly replied: “You see, the kingdom of God is in your midst” (Luke 17:20-21, CSB). Without a doubt, God’s kingdom had come in the person of Jesus Christ.

And yet, Jesus would also declare that “concerning that day and hour, no one knows” (Matt 24:36). “The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom” (Matt 25:1) and like a man going on a journey and entrusting his property to his servants (Matt 25:14-30). At the last supper, Jesus assured his disciples that he would not drink any more wine “until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25).

And of course, the day will come, at the end of all things, when Jesus “delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power” (1 Cor 15:24).

So which is it, Jesus? Did you bring the kingdom here and now, or will you bring it on that final day when you return? And of course, his answer is “Yes, both.”

So those who have trusted in the Messiah Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords have received the full forgiveness of their sins. The age to come has already broken into the present. But we still live in the presence of sin, and we see the effects of its power all around and within us. The present, evil age has not come to an end.

We live in the tension of overlapping ages. The power of the old has been broken, but it’s remnants remain with us. And the glories of the new have broken in, but not yet in their fulness. This is the nature of life under the Lordship of Christ prior to the resurrection and final victory.

The book of Revelation resorts to bizarre word pictures, drawn from the rest of the Bible, to paint this picture for us. We are already sealed and seated in heaven, praising the God to whom belongs all salvation (Rev 7:9-14, Eph 2:4-10)—yet we wait for the day when every hunger and thirst is satisfied and when every tear is wiped dry (Rev 7:15-17). We have seen the ancient serpent defeated and thrown down. We have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony (Rev 12:7-12). Yet that dragon still makes war on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus (Rev 12:17).

In short, though we’ve been saved, we must still be saved. Though we have been rescued, we still require rescue. We are no longer subject to sin’s penalty, but we still wrestle with sin’s power and must consign ourselves to sin’s presence. Until the final day, when sin’s penalty, power, and presence (and death itself) are all thrown together into the lake of fire to die forever.

Help with Application

So how does this doctrine help us to improve at applying the Bible?

In nearly any text, you can ask “kingdom tension” questions with respect to the author’s main point:

How has Jesus taken care of this issue in his death and resurrection?
What hope do we have to overcome the power of sin and misery in our lives?
But what is it like to cohabit with the lingering presence of such sin and misery?
What hope can you draw from the promises of God and the victory of Christ?
And how will those promises and that victory be completed in the age to come?
How does this tension drive your heart toward lament and godly complaint?
In what situations is the cry of your heart simply “How long, O Lord?”
How does the tension between forgiveness and ongoing sanctification increase your dependence on the Lord Jesus?
What hope does it give you to know that Jesus sees you, knows your situation, and cares about it even more than you do?
How can we appropriate the assurance of the age to come into our lives today, to see Jesus’ promises worked out even further?
In what ways will we have to wait until the final day to see these promises fully resolved?
What will help you to live within and endure that tension when it gets painful and complex?

I am intentionally sidestepping matters of creation, gifts, strengths, law, grace, salvation, and hope for the future when I ask these questions. That’s not because such matters are unimportant, but only because the focus of this post is on the tension of living in a kingdom that is both already here and not yet here.

Sometimes, robust reflection on this overlap of the ages will give us ample material to speak into the issues of our age: lament, oppression, injustice, sanctification, maturity, politics, social progress, anxiety, bodily malfunction, illness, personal suffering—to name just a few. Over the years, one of my sons has regularly asked me, “If Jesus died to take my sin away, why do I keep sinning?” Reminding him of the tension of living in an already and not yet kingdom doesn’t always solve his pain, but it fuels our lament and deepens our conviction. May it do the same for you and for those you lead.

Deepen your grasp of the tension of living in overlapping ages, and you’ll take your application skills to the next level.

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Need Help to Concentrate on the Bible?

May 15, 2024 By Peter Krol

Apparently some folks at All Nations Church in Ilford, London struggle to concentrate when reading their Bibles. I suspect they are not alone. The church offers some wonderful counsel here, including:

Sharpen your resolve
Keep track of your progress
Start small
Use a paper copy
Plan the place and time to read
Remove distractions
Use a highlighter
Get physically active
Use others

Perhaps some of these suggestions may benefit you as well.

Check it out!

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Substitution and Application

May 10, 2024 By Peter Krol

A firm grasp on Jesus, the Lamb of God, will take your application skills to the next level.

Substitution

The Bible paints a glorious portrait of Jesus as one who “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb 4:15). Jesus is the one who “knew no sin” (2 Cor 5:21). “He committed no sin” (1 Peter 2:22), and “in him there is no sin” (1 John 3:5).

When Jesus began his ministry, John the Baptist called him “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). As the Lamb of God, Jesus fulfilled the role of the Old Testament sacrifices, especially the Passover lamb, which involved offering a lamb “without blemish, a male a year old” (ex 12:5) and whose blood would be displayed so judgment could pass the people by.

Those with the courage to attribute all hope of salvation to the enthroned Father and to the Lamb (Rev 7:10) will find their clothes washed white in the Lamb’s blood (Rev 7:14). God “made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21).

The New Testament regularly portrays Jesus as trading places with sinners to grant them new life. The leper who could not enter towns gets to speak to the priest, while Jesus is no longer able to enter the town (Mark 1:40-45). The Rich One becomes poor so the poor might by his poverty become rich (2 Cor 8:9). The Wise One became as a fool so fools might become wise in him (1 Cor 1:20-31). The Righteous One became sin so sinner could become righteous in him (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus died so others could have life (Matt 27:50-54).

Help with Application

So how does this doctrine help us to improve at applying the Bible?

In nearly any text, you can ask “substitution” questions with respect to the author’s main point:

How has Jesus obeyed this text perfectly, and how do we fall short in our obedience?
What hope does it give you to know that Jesus has obeyed God in this area?
How does Jesus’ obedience free you up from trying to be perfect yourself?
Now that God already sees you as righteous through Christ, how does that motivate you to make progress in obedience yourself?
How can you set aside your fear and/or self-righteousness in this area?
How does the grace of Christ motivate you to be more gracious toward others?
How can you put Jesus on display, testifying about him for the world to see?
What sort of God would rescue sinners and grant them such free forgiveness? How does this inspire you to praise and serve him?
How has Jesus removed the stigma and pressure of the law, freeing you to obey without fear?
How does this text inflame your love for Jesus and your embrace of his work on your behalf?
How can you behold Jesus in his perfect obedience and free forgiveness?

I am intentionally sidestepping matters of creation, gifts, strengths, law, and hope for the future when I ask these questions. That’s not because such matters are unimportant, but only because the focus of this post is on the substitution of Jesus Christ for sinners.

Sometimes, robust reflection on Christ’s substitution for sinners will give us ample material to speak into the issues of our age: grace, patience, shame, identity, self-esteem, fear, anxiety, discouragement, depression—to name just a few.

Deepen your grasp of Jesus Christ’s substitution for sinners, and you’ll take your application skills to the next level.

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