Clearing My Head

Jeremiah 1-6

2006-04-10T22:57:00.000-04:00

Jeremiah is a book where it helps to know history of Israel and the surrounding nations to put everything in its place. He prophesied during the reigns of Josiah, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah -- up until the exile of Judah.

The description of Jeremiah's call is often used as a pretext for the pro-life movement, saying this proves that life begins before birth. It does no such thing though. Verse 5 speaks not to the beginning of life, but to the foreknowledge of the Almighty. Jeremiah was selected even before he was formed in his mother's womb. Yet Jeremiah, as most anyone would, felt inadequate for the task. But God put His words in Jeremiah's mouth. The first vision for Jeremiah was a play on words -- something which the Bible uses a great deal. The branch of the almond tree signified that God was watching because the Hebrew for watching and for almond tree sound alike. The second vision for Jeremiah was the beginning of his message. The boiling pot from the north is about to boil over onto the people of the northern kingdoms. Jeremiah is instructed to stand against the kings of Judah.

Chapter two begins God's case against Israel -- specifically Jerusalem. It is a familiar story. Israel has strayed from God and has run to false gods. The gods of neighboring counties have called Israel and led her astray. Now Israel has prostituted herself everywhere. The stains from her sins are dark and unable to be washed away. Foolishly "They say to wood, 'You are my father,' and to stone, 'You gave me birth'." (2:27) The foolishness of Israel's actions is apparent to us today, but Israel seemed unwilling to see for herself.

The allusions to Israel's unfaithfulness continue throughout chapter three and much of chapter four. The announcement of the punishment begins at 4:5. It is disaster from the north. The word pictures in 4:13 are used elsewhere speaking of God's judgement. "Look! He advances like the clouds, his chariots come like a whirlwind, his horses are swifter than eagles." It is a foreign army coming for Judah (4:16). Disaster strikes quickly.

Chapter five makes the point that no one is upright. Like the time when Abraham pleaded with God for the city of Sodom by searching for ten righteous people, Jerusalem finds herself in the same situation. No one is righteous. The are all unfaithful and will be punished for their actions.

The siege itself is the subject of chapter six. Nothing the Israelites do is enough to save them at this point. They have been rejected by the Lord.

Psalm 65

2006-04-10T22:56:00.000-04:00

This is a great psalm of thanksgiving -- literally. It is a harvest psalm which brims with the sights and sounds of surrounding nature. Harvest time is at the Feast of Tabernacles, which is preceeded by the Day of Atonement. All these find their place in this psalm.

The first four verses call all people to God. Sure this is a festival of Israel, but "all men will come" (v. 2) to "the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas." (v.5). This great God is not just Israel's God, but the God of all.

Verses 5-8 focus on the God of might -- the One who stilled the roaring seas, and formed the mountains. What a picture of the God of all creation! but not only is God a mighty Creator, but also a loving Sustainer. He provides water for the crops and crops for the people. The harvest is an overflowing success because God has provided what is needed for it. God gives the harvest. The seed is fed and watered by God's almighty hand.

Mark 5-6

2006-04-09T15:34:00.000-04:00

Jesus and the Twelve cross the lake to find a man possessed by many demons -- Legion. The evil spirits are fully aware who Jesus is. Mark tells the story with emphasis on the demon's shouts. Jesus' words of 5:8 are given almost as an explanation for the screams of Legion.

A herd of 2000 pigs likely wouldn't have been found on the Gallilee side of the lake! Why the spirits wanted to go into the pigs is confusing, especially given the quick death of the herd.

After the story gets back to town, the townspeople come out and see the crazy guy sitting dressed and right as rain. Then they see around 2000 head of hogs floating in the lake. Both of these were incredible sights. It was too much for them and, quite unlike Jesus' usual experiences, the people begged Jesus to leave them! Jesus complied. He didn't let the man come with Him, instead sending him back to his family as a witness.

Upon arriving back on the other side of the lake, the crowds gathered again. Jarius came to Him, begging Him to save his 12 year old daughter. Jesus immediately responded, but on the way a woman with a bleeding problem touched Jesus to be healed. She did have great faith as the Master would tell her. But somehow Jesus felt healing power go out from Him. Maybe that's just the easiest way that the author could phrase it. But Jesus knew that there had been a miracle, so He stopped to find out. The disciples thought Jesus was crazy when He asked, in the midst of a tight crowd, "Who touched me?" Jesus' purpose was not to scare the woman to death, but to explain that she had been healed, not by some magic, but because of her faith.

The delay had cost the live of Jarius' daughter. At least that was the thought. But Jesus thought differently. Taking only Peter, James and John from that point, Jesus went in, spoke words of hope and was laughed at. He kicked out the crowd and took in only the child's parents and the Three. He took her by the hand and told her to get up, which she did -- immediately. Jesus again cautioned them not to say anything -- as if that was going to work. Although it sounds like the parents couldn't figure out much to do at that point. They were overcome with shock. It could be that Jesus was being lighthearted at this point when the stunned parents looked at Him and He told them, "Don't just stand there. Get her something to eat." All is celebratory. I have to wonder about those who had laughed at Jesus a few minutes prior.

A trip back to Nazareth only brought scoffers to see Jesus. Remembering Him as the carpenter and recalling his siblings who still lived among them, they couldn't accept that this Jesus, whom they had watched grow up, could be Messiah. 6:3 states that they "took offense at him." Here we are given the names of Jesus' four step-brothers, including one named Judas. We also see that Jesus "could not do" many miracles there because they lacked faith in Him. This is pointed out by Word of Faith teachers. But this really doesn't say that Jesus was unable, but that circumstances prevented it. How so? More than likely no more than a couple of people even came to Him to be healed! It's ironic that Jesus had so much trouble dealing with the crowds, but in His hometown the crowds are not a problem. Still the real ministry is done where the crowds are.

The sending out of the Twelve is mentioned only briefly, as are Jesus' instructions. I find it a stretch to use these instructions as hard and fast rules for missions work. Jesus has tailored these words to fit the time, the assignment and the culture.

At 6:14, Mark notes the circumstances of John the Baptist's execution. He transitions into it by talking about the theories of who Jesus actually was. We see these come up around Peter's confession elsewhere. Here, Mark works his way toward the Baptist's story. Although John had intrigued Herod, the ruler was too fast with his mouth and too slow with his brain. Making a promise to grant anything, Herodias' daughter asked for John's head on a platter -- to please her mother. Herod felt obligated to honor his oath instead of his fear. The whole affair with Herod and Herodias was scandalous, even for the ruling class. Herod likely knew that John was right about the marriage being wrong as we know that he thought of the Baptist as righteous and holy. (6:20).

At 6:30 we have the Twelve returning from their missionary journey and Jesus trying to pull them away from the crowds to debrief and to rest. But the crowds followed. Or more accurately ran ahead to where they were going. 6:34 is a great depiction of Jesus' feelings for these people. "He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things."

The need for food is realized and instead of sending them away to buy food, Jesus shocks the disciples when He tells them to give the people something to eat! They immediately start tallying a bill, realizing that it would take a fortune to buy them all food.

The people were gathered in 100s and in 50s. No explanation is given for that. What must have been going through the disciples' minds as they divided up the people for a meal they were sure wouldn't even feed two, let alone 5000 men and their families. It has been pointed out by many that having twelve baskets leftover meant that each of the disciples who had little faith would have been carrying one of the baskets. I don't know that this would necessarily be true, but it is interesting.

Jesus sent the disciples ahead on the boat while He dismissed the crowd. Perhaps Jesus was trying to get the twelve to realize and better understand what had just happened. But Jesus also got some "alone" time for prayer. After dark, Jesus could see that the disciples were having a struggle getting the boat across because of the windy conditions, presumably making large waves. Then later, Jesus went out "to them" walking on the lake. But in 6:48, the text says that He was about to pass them when they saw Him walking and thought it was a ghost. Was Jesus going to the disciples and if so, why was He about to pass them by? Was He planning on letting them see Him?

In any case, He immediately spoke to them to calm them. We get no record of Peter's walk on the water with Him, which is curious considering Mark probably got much of his background information for the writing of this Gospel from Simon Peter. Was Peter ashamed of this moment or was the omission Mark's idea? We don't know, but we are told that the wind died down once Jesus was in the boat.

I'm not sure what 6:51b-52 means when it reads, "They were completely amazed for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened." What did the loaves have to do with their amazement at the water walk? Were the twelve simply overwhelmed by all that had happened in the past few hours?

By the end of the boat ride, the crowds recognized Jesus and the healing ministry resumed.

1 Samuel 11-15

2006-04-09T15:32:00.000-04:00

Here is Saul's first test as king. It's apparent that he hasn't been into all the royal trappings up until this time, since he was out plowing with the oxen! But now his time has come. The Spirit comes upon him in power. Then he recruits his army by what is essentially intimidation. He cuts his own oxen into pieces then uses the pieces as a scare tactic to anyone who doesn't muster for duty.

It works, though. Saul ambushes the army of Nahash the Ammonite and Jabesh Gilead is saved. The people offer to kill those who had grumbled against Saul when he was first crowned, but Saul refuses and they go with Samuel to Gilgal to renew Saul's kingship. It is also the setting for Samuel's farewell speech, recounted in chapter 12.

Samuel begins by asking if there is any time he has not treated the people well. Why this would be done, I'm not sure, but it seems that Samuel is trying to establish that he acts in the best interest of God, which means the best interest of the people of Israel. Samuel then gives a short history lesson. Interesting point that at 12:12, Samuel noted that Israel asks for a king when they see the threat from the now-defeated Nahash. This isn't mentioned back in chapter 8, but it is likely that Samuel is simply condensing things. After all, Saul was hardly a unanimous king
until the victory over Nahash and the Ammonites.

Samuel cautions both Saul and the people not to turn away from God, and he offers a miracle to back up his words. A thunderstorm is sent in the dry season to demonstrate the sin of the people in asking for a king. Then at 12:23, Samuel tells the people, "As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you." This is the only place I can remember in Scripture where it is stated to be a sin not to pray for others (at least in this type of context).

The time notes at the head of chapter 13 seem odd. For Saul to become king at age 30 and to reign 42 years are each disputed numbers. It seems to be the best estimate since the Hebrew omits the "30" and the "40". The numbers seem to be reconciled by Paul's speech at Pisidian Antioch in Acts 13:21, where he claims Saul to have reigned some 40 years. Of course we're not told how much time takes place between Saul's choosing and the victory over Nahash, nor between Samuel's farewell and the attack by Jonathan on the Philistines. For Saul's son to be of fighting age, Saul would have been a young father -- at least by today's standards.

In any case, Jonathan's attack begins, or probably restarts, a war with the Philistines. The first attack is against an outpost at Geba. The Philistines gather for war with an incredible army. So incredible is the Philistine army's appearance that the men of Israel hide wherever they can find a hole.

Enter Samuel. Samuel is supposed to come to Gilgal to offer sacrifices and to seek out the Lord's word on the situation. But Samuel doesn't enter. And Saul gets too anxious. Saul himself offers the sacrifices, fearing time is slipping away. As he finishes the sacrifices, Samuel shows up and rebukes Saul. He also tells him that had Saul not acted impatiently he would have been the established king forever through his family. Instead, the kingdom will be wrestled from him and given to another. Samuel's words seem to already indicate that a choice has been made, which must have been quite a shock to King Saul.

After Samuel left him, Saul began to size up the situation with the battle. Nothing is mentioned about God's specific instructions for this battle, so we might assume that Saul isn't going to get a word. Instead the word comes to Jonathan through the circumstances of chapter 14. Meanwhile Saul realizes that the Israelites are almost entirely without weapons. Somehow the Israelites had all gotten out of the blacksmith business, leaving the business to the Philistines. All sharpening, etc. was done by the enemy! Only Saul and Jonathan had a sword and a spear on the day of the battle! If a victory under those conditions doesn't make you grateful to God, nothing will!

Jonathan and his armor bearer head out to another Philistine outpost while King Saul was on the other side "under a pomegranate tree" oblivious to what his son was up to. An invitation to climb up to the Philistines is seen as God's word that He will give them the battle, so when the Philistines taunt the two men as they walk toward the outpost and invite them up to kill them, the two climb the rope and start killing Philistines. Twenty enemy soldiers fall, but a panic sets in throughout the Philistine camp. God has sent the panic (14:15).

Saul musters the troops to see who is missing and it turns out to be his son and the armor bearer. So the Israelites (without weapons) go to join the battle and find the Philistines in complete confusion, killing one another in their panic. Some who must have traded sides, traded back to fight with the Israelites. Finally the hill people of Ephraim join in the rout. But somewhere along the line Saul got caught up in emotion and ordered that no soldier be allowed to eat until Saul had avenged himself. That vow was having its effects upon the hungry Israelite army.

Word of the vow hadn't made it to Jonathan, and he ate some wild honey in front of the trooops. Upon hearing about the vow, he essentially calls it stupid. The men started to pounce on the plunder after the battle, cutting up animals and eating them raw, which was a violation of the Law. After rebuking the men for doing this, Saul has the meat brought to him. Saul then builds an altar to the Lord for the first time. The author makes it clear that it isn't until now that Saul has done this. Certainly this is a mark against the King.

He wants to send the army down at night to get more plunder from the Philistines, but the priest wants them to inquire of God. When they get no answer, they assume a sin has been committed to block God's blessing as happened back in Joshua 7. Lots are drawn between Saul and Jonathan and the rest of the men and the lot goes to Jonathan. Saul is ready to kill his son for tasting the honey, but the fighting men intervene on Jonathan's behalf. They beg Saul not to kill the hero of the battle. Jonathan is saved.

Saul's reign is marked by military victories against enemies on all sides. The war with the Philistines continued -- active or passive. At the outset of chapter 15, we see Samuel giving Saul a mission from God -- punish the Amalekites for their behavior back during the Exodus. It seems strange for God to seek justice at this time, generations after the offense. Yet God wants everything destroyed. The trouble is that the men want some of the plunder and Saul gives in to them.

Enter Samuel once again. He confronts Saul, asking him why the mission had not been completed. When Saul claims that he has completed it, Samuel utters the classic line, "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?" Saul has been caught in a lie, although I doubt Saul saw it as much of an offense. In repeating the message he received from God, Samuel tells Saul that he has been rejected as God's king. He would be replaced. For his part, Saul admits his sin and ends up going off with Samuel to worship God.

A smug King Agag of the Amalekites is brought to Samuel and Saul where he is executed by the prophet. Then Samuel left for home, as did Saul. We are told that this was the last time Samuel went to see Saul, although Samuel continued to mourn for the sinful king. The last sentence of chapter 15 puts things into perspective: "And the Lord was grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel." Of course that doesn't mean God is admitting a mistake. It simply means that God was saddened to see what had happened to his people under Saul's rule.

Psalm 64

2006-04-09T15:30:00.000-04:00

David brings his complaint against his enemies. In a sort of legal styling, David describes the actions of these wicked men. They plot together in conspiracy to bring David down. Their weapons are words. David has been comparing his enemies' words to arrows shot at him in the past few psalms. They attack quickly and painfully. David is succeptible to these attacks. It is hard to defend oneself against false rumors spread by one's enemies.

The enemies work together and encourage one another to keep after David. They devise their plots. They congratulate each other in their plans. Beyond that, the enemies have a prideful smugness about them. They think themselves to be the most clever and intelligent people. The plan is perfect. David comments in the second half of verse 6 about the very nature of fallen humanity in this regard.

Suddenly, God shoots them with arrows and it's all over. The downfall of David's enemies comes quickly -- quicker even than the enemies' attacks. The words are obviously prophetic on the part of David. He knows that God will serve justice. He has seen God do it before. The psalm reads as a kind of warning to those who look to take down a leader, especially King David.

The final verse, verse 10, reinforces the idea that the righteous should not only rejoice in the Lord, but also rely on Him. "Take refuge in Him," as the verse reads.

Job 25-31

2006-04-06T09:34:00.000-04:00

Bildad spends short chapter 25 comparing the dominion and awe deserving of God to the status of man, whom he compares to a maggot and a worm.

Job then begins his final discourse of the book sarcastically toward his friend Bildad. Then at 26:5 he begins again his complaint. He begins in basic agreement with Bildad, speaking of God's awesome power. At the beginning of chapter 27, Job's outlook shifts. He claims that God has denied him justice. Little does he realize that God has simply delayed it, not denied it. Yet still through all the suffering, Job will not give up or give in. He will keep his integrity which his wife told him to give up early in the book. He cites the example of the wicked and ruthless -- they never have enough. Terror grips the wicked at the thought of death.

Chapter 28 speaks of that which is, but cannot be seen. Silver mines and the like lie beneath the surface, just as the punishment of the unrighteous. But in the same way, men search for the elusive wisdom. They search the darkness, but it is not there. It is not in the sea. It cannot be purchased with great wealth. Although wisdom is hidden, it is not hidden in the same places as man's earthly treasures. The only way to wisdom is known by God. And God has revealed it to man. Job confirms it in 28:28: "The fear of the Lord -- that is wisdom, and to shun evil is
understanding." Wisdom begins by realizing who God is and who we are. When we finally put it all together and act upon our "fear" of God, then we are shown to have understood.

In chapter 29, Job recounts his former life; how intimate his friendship with God was and how others respected him for that. He speaks of the good that he has done. He remembers thinking that his life will be long and trouble-free because of his lifestyle. He was on top of the world.

Then in chapter 30, Job contrasts the previous chapter with the way things are now. Now he is mocked by scoundrals. Job is mocked by the lowest of people. They even sing about Job's troubles! They work harder to make Job's life miserable. Job's cries for mercy go unanswered, so far as he can tell. He wants to know why God is continuing to strike him and ignore him. Job continues to try to understand how he could be being punished to this degree after all he has done. Chapter 31 is yet another recounting of many of the good deeds Job has done. It is his final argument. This is all he has left to say.

Psalm 63

2006-04-06T09:32:00.000-04:00

A beautiful song of David, written most likely as he was hiding from his son Absalom while Absalom was trying to take over the kingdom. Even while in the midst of a desert, David's words flow like an oasis. The first verse sets the stage, exclaiming a need for God like the physical need for water in a desert. Echoes of Psalm 42 are obvious here. But beyond that, David is seeking God. David is far from Jerusalem, which is the locus of his spirituality on earth and it is making him feel far from God. Verses 2-8 then lay out some of the thoughts David has of that relationship with the Divine.

David writes of God's power and glory in His sanctuary. Then he describes a number of ways he worships: with his lips, lifting up hands, singing, a satisfied soul. Even in bed and throughout the night, David longs to take refuge under God's wings.

The key line is contained in verse 3: "Because your love is better than life..." This is hard for so many of us to grasp. We cling to life as if it were eternal. But our earthly life is fleeting. The love of the Almighty is eternal and is infinitely better than anything earthly.

Verses 9-11 are confident claims that God will not only take care of David, but that He will provide justice against David's enemies.

1 Corinthians 7-8

2006-04-04T00:15:00.000-04:00

Chapter 7 is fodder for those who like to tear into Paul about his views on women and on marriage. Indeed, Paul treats marriage as being only to keep people from sexual sin. Remembering though, in Corinth, sex was not only big business, but also religious in nature. This was a town built on worshiping a sexual godess, so the temptations were in your face -- probably in a similar manner to our American culture today. Paul is right in that a married person's interest is divided between pleasing God and pleasing spouse. His point is simply that it is better and easier to serve God when you don't have to worry about a husband or wife. Writing those words from his position (unmarried) makes Paul seem harsh toward those who marry, but that isn't his intention. He is concerned with keeping people from sin, especially sexual sin, and with enabling people to serve God better.

The marital duty section in 7:2-5 is good advice, and again is a sign that Paul did not see women as lesser partners, but as equal with men in this regard. All of the statements in chapter seven are not slanted toward the male, but are straight down the middle.

Paul notes that divorce is not what God desires, even when the spouse is not a beliver. His teaching where he clearly identifies it being from Paul and not from God are his interpretations of how to live at peace. The curious language is found in 7:14 where he talks about an unbelieving spouse being sanctified by the believing half. Certainly that doesn't mean salvation, as it violates what Paul writes elsewhere in Scripture. So Paul must be talking about raising children, which eems to be the point of 7:14.

Paul also notes the relative insignificance of our earthly state. Circumcision is meaningless for Paul. Obedience is important. Slavery is not significant, although we are not to sell ourselves since we have already been purchased. It is an extension of Paul's ideas about having to please God and a spouse. It becomes difficult trying to please an earthly master and a heavenly One.

Widows may remarry, but again Paul states that it is easier not to. But there's that sex thing to deal with again.

Chapter eight begins somewhat off-subject, talking of the importance man puts on knowledge, but the emphasis Paul puts on loving God and being known by God. This is not to say that knowledge is useless, especially as it concerns God. But if we put our confidence in our knowledge or in any other ability, we aren't trusting God as we should.

The rest of the 8th chapter deals with something we don't deal with anymore -- food which has been sacrificed to idols. Paul's point is that since those idols are nothing, that they have no effect on the food or its power to defile us. Paul also expects the Corinthians in the church to know this. But those on the outside, or the weaker members of the church can be confused if they see a Christian doing such things. In this case we are told to refrain if our knowledge causes us to express our freedom, but causes a weaker brother to be confused or emboldened to do what he considers to be a sin. Paul rightly states that we can't be so attached to our precious freedoms that we can exercise them without regard for anyone else. That lesson is for us today as well.

Genesis 48-50

2006-04-04T00:13:00.000-04:00

Jacob is nearing death and Joseph and his two sons are summoned. Word of Joseph's arrival strengthens Jacob to actually sit up. It probably took all he had to do it. His announcement that Ephraim and Manasseh would be equal to his own sons is confusing. Why would Jacob make such a move? Certainly the two each became fathers of "half-tribes" so the number 12 is unchanged. And Jacob switches the first born and the second born, to Joseph's displeasure. We aren't told why, except that in the blessing Jacob declares that Ephraim will be the greater of the two. Is it that Jacob still has to have some sense of control? Was he working through God?

Interesting that Jacob makes a big deal of seeing Ephraim and Manasseh in 48:11, as if he has never seen them. Could it be that Joseph never brought the boys to meet their grandfather before this time?

I hadn't really thought about it before, but Jacob tells Joseph to be sure he is buried in the tomb with Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebekah and with Leah. Rachel was buried along the road, but Jacob chooses to be buried with the "other" wife -- probably simply because his parents and grandparents were there and because of the historical significance.

Jacob's blessing of his sons begins with three bad blessings -- Reuben will no longer excel because of his sin with his step-mother in Genesis 35:22. Simeon and Levi will be scattered and dispersed because of their murderous revenging of Dinah in Genesis 34. Judah's exploits with Tamar (Genesis 38) are not mentioned by the patriarch. In fact the best blessing of all is saved for Judah. His tribe is to be the ruling tribe, in the person of the Messiah. Zebulun will be on the sea, Issachar will get good land, but will become slaves. Dan and Gad are each described as biting and striking heels. Asher will make rich food. (?!) Naphtali is set free? Joseph became strong because of God, who blesses him. He inherits all Jacob's blessings and is called the prince among his brothers. That dream of everyone bowing down to Joseph makes even more sense now. Benjamin is a wolf and a scavenger.

Then Jacob dies some time after telling Pharoah he is 130. We're not given his exact age. Joseph has his father embalmed and petitions Pharoah to allow him to take Jacob back to Canaan for burial. The Egyptians mourned for 70 days. Joseph observed a seven day mourning while near the Jordan. The burial party looked to be mostly Egyptian to the locals, calling the spot where Joseph and company stayed in mourning, "mourning of the Egyptians."

After Dad was gone, the brothers feared Joseph's retribution, but Joseph reassures them once again in 50:20, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good..." One might think that the brothers would realize their family line was safe after Jacob's blessing, but fear can make a person believe most anything.

Finally Joseph dies, after getting his brothers to swear that his bones would be buried in the promised land. Joseph was the first of the twelve brothers to die, at the age of 110. That would have to have put Reuben somewhere near 130 at that time.

Mark 3-4

2006-04-04T00:11:00.000-04:00

Chapter three continues Jesus' encounter with the Pharisees -- this time over a healing on the Sabbath. At 3:4, Jesus asks "them" (assumedly the Pharisees), "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" This was a twist on the question He had asked in chapter two with the paralytic on the mat. The Pharisees had no answer to the obvious question. From His reaction, Jesus wasn't asking it rhetorically. He looked at them in anger and was deeply distressed" at the stubborn attitudes. I would have loved to have seen Jesus' emotional response as He healed the man. Mark's words make it sound like Jesus did it as much to shame the Pharisees as to provide healing. Perhaps that was simply the effect of Mark's observations, which in this case probably came from Simon Peter.

Again Mark points out the crowds and the problems that they caused Jesus. They crowded around, forcing Him to teach from a small boat so as not to be so crowded. Later the group cannot even eat at a house because of all the people.

The list of disciples/apostles cited in 3:13-19 splits Simon Peter and Andrew. Considering Mark was a close friend of Peter in later years, it is interesting that Peter and the Sons of Thunder were the first three mentioned, placing Andrew after the "big three."

The only time where Jesus' family's true early feelings are recorded are at 3:21. They wanted to put Him away, fearing insanity. I suppose that would be a natural response for a family who was likely being harassed about their "lunatic" brother. More striking is Mark's placement of this verse, seemingly placing the cause for their feelings as their hearing about the crowd scenes wherever Jesus went. Certainly there was more to it than that. When they finally arrive at 3:31-34, it's no wonder Jesus doesn't hop right up to greet them! This context makes Jesus' rude treatment of His family more understandable.

The teachers of the Law had their own explanation for Jesus' behavior and acts: He was possessed by the prince of demons! Jesus explains just how foolish that argument was, simply from a logical point of view. He notes that you can't rob a strong man's house without tying up the strong man. If we are possessed by the Holy Spirit then how ridiculous it is to think that we could be possessed by demons of any stripe! Then Jesus unloads on the teachers by mentioning blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. This eternal sin, this unforgiveable sin is not simply a one-time slip of the tongue or an angry shout out by an afflicted person. No, the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit must be an ongoing denial of the Holy Spirit's power -- usually by attributing His works to something or someone else.

The Parable of the Sower is retold in all the synoptics. Mark includes it here in a section where Jesus is teaching by the lake and is forced out onto a boat by the crowd.

In speaking of the lamp on a stand, in 4:22 Jesus says, "For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open." This is an odd statment to the ears at first, but we are responsible for all those "secret" sins we commit. One day it will all be held up to the light for all to see.

Another verse which needs further consideration is 4:24, "Consider carefully what you hear... with the measure you use, it will be measured to you -- and even more." Is this a verse about judging other people or about our generosity?

The Growing Seed reminds us that we don't have God's knowledge. Many things happen which we don't understand and many people mature without our knowledge as well.

The final words of chapter 4 are uttered by the shaken disciples, who after seeing the Master tell the storm to stop, look at each other and ask, "Who is this guy?" The other miracles were one thing, but controlling the weather was something else. Probably the fishermen of the group were the most impressed, as they had to deal with storms on Galilee for a living. They knew that storms didn't just stop. This was probably a key moment for many of the disciples.

Psalm 62

2006-04-04T00:09:00.000-04:00

David's confidence in God is shown here as unshakable. In fact, his trust in only in God. According to Boice, the word "alone" or "only" is used six times in the first nine verses. There is no one like God. No one is worthy of the trust David gives except God alone. The first six verses each begin with "alone" or "only". It is an important point being made by the psalmist. In the ame way, our satisfaction must be in God alone.

Verses 5-6 are almost identical to verses 1-2. It is the theme of the psalm. God alone is our foundation and our salvation. The images of God are hard to miss here. My rock. My salvation. My fortress. My mighty rock. My refuge. Only God.

A description of David's enemies in 3-4 is contrasted not with David, but with God. Similarly verses 9-10 are advice to avoid the thinking of the enemies, and instead set your heart on God. It is a warning against seeking power, and against materialism.

David reminds us of two things about God: His strength and His loving character.

The final two lines of verse 12 are ignored in Boice's commentary, but stand out as a reminder of judgment. We will be rewarded for our works. Of course we don't merit salvation by our works, but there is a reward nonetheless. What isn't spoken here is the punishment for our sins. The death penalty was taken by Christ, but still there is to be some sort of "anti-reward" for our sinfulness as well. Thankfully, as Paul writes in Romans 8, we are not condemned to eternal punishment for those sins because of the forgiveness through Christ Jesus.

Psalm 61

2006-04-03T14:37:00.000-04:00

This psalm of David is a call from the ends of the earth. The psalmist must be feeling very far away from God. Perhaps he was physically far from Jerusalem, or he may have just felt many miles away. He longs to be sheltered by the "rock that is higher than I." The term "rock" has an enriched meaning to David, who spent much time hiding in the rocks of Israel -- caves, crags and overhangs in the rock gave David shelter many times in the past, just as God had done. But this rock is not just something David can use and climb upon. It is not just for the times when David is feeling low. Even when David is on top of the world, the Rock is still higher.

Interesting that David asks to be led to the rock. One would think he would know the way. We are led to the Rock of Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit.

The metaphors for God are numerous in this psalm. He is a refuge. He is a strong tower. He is the provider of a tent. He is a sheltering mother bird.

When in verse 6, David asks God to increase the days of the king's life, he is apparently speaking of himself. Yet the answer to this request is also found in David's decendents, especially in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 62-66

2006-04-03T14:25:00.000-04:00

Chapter 62 again speaks of the raising up of Jerusalem until it becomes the crowning jewel of earth. The land is to be healed and all is to be well. The people are to reap what they plant instead of having it taken by other nations. God is sending His Savior to redeem Israel. The vengeance of the Lord will come at that time. The picture of the Savior wearing clothing soaked in the blood of His enemies is vivid.

The text turns to praise at 63:7. It reads like one of David's psalms calling for the Lord to redeem His people. It is a time where the Israelites do not possess the land they were promised. At 63:18 we see that the land is occupied no longer and that enemies have overtaken it. The call for God to act continues in chapter 64, as the author recounts the many times when God came to save His people, Israel.

I love the beginning of chapter 65 because it a) is quoted in the New Testament, b) it tells of God bringing Gentiles to Himself and c) it sounds so much like what God has done for us. He revealed Himself to nations who did not ask for Him. He was found by those who didn't seek Him. God makes it easier for us in our current culture because it is easy to find out about Him if we are looking. Those without access to all we have must follow the light of creation and conscience to find Him. With us, we have revelation all around us. Yet 65:2-3 is also very true. "All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations -- a people who continually provoke me to my face, offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on altars of brick..." How common it is for us to reject God in spite of all God does for us. We wallow in our sins but yet tell others, "Keep away; don't come near me, for I am too sacred for you!" What foolishness! Yet God knows and justice will be served.

God will not abandon His people because of the failures of some. He will provide for the righteous, but will punish the ungodly.

At 65:17 we begin the final promise of the prophecy, that of a new heaven and a new earth, where everything is peace and love and wolves and lambs will share stable space. 66:3 is important to remember. "This is the one I esteem; he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word." But all this will not happen overnight. (Indeed it has been over 2500 years already!)

Psalm 60

2006-04-03T14:24:00.000-04:00

According to the description of this psalm, it was written later in David's life. It was during a time where much of the Bible describes a string of military victories for David and for Israel. However, the opening verses of Psalm 60 suggest a defeat that we have no record of in the history books. Boice suggests that even in the good times, we have the bad thrown in as well. That is certainly true.

The first three verses talk of a rejection of Israel by God, the military problems I alluded to earlier. The description speaks of Joab striking down 12,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt, while 2 Samuel tells of David striking down 18,000 in the same place. It could be that the historian is crediting David for all military success, but it is also true that 30,000 could have been killed over two battles. Whatever the solution to this dilemma, God has brought some kind of defeat, yet it served as a "banner" to those who feared God. Somehow, even the bad gave the godly great confidence in their God.

The references in verses 6-8 are curious. Some have posed that it speaks of the places where the patriarchs walked, so the psalm traced the history of God giving the land to the Hebrews. Others believe it is simply a marking of territory, as it were, with Shechem and the Valley of Succoth being on opposite borders of the land. Either way, it is clear that God claims dominion for Israel over this territory. Moab, Edom and Philistia are beaten down by the strength of Israel's army and Israel's God.

Verses 9-12 again call on God to lead the armies with the promise of victory once again in the final verse.

1 Samuel 6-10

2006-04-01T00:05:00.000-05:00

The Philistines return the ark to Israel to stop the infestation of tumors upon the people. The priests and diviners (no explanation of what is meant my that) tell the Philistines to bring an offering of five gold rats and five gold tumors because of the five Philistine rulers who had been stricken. Then, following the priests instructions, the put the ark on a cart driven by two cows and it arrives at the border at Beth Shemesh. The cart is chopped up and the cows are sacrificed to the Lord and the people made sacrifices all day. But 70 men apparently got too nosy about what was inside the ark and the Lord struck them down. A footnote says 50,070 men, but that doesn't make sense considering the population. Either way, the people of the town are scared to death. They sent word to Kiriath Jearim for them to come take the ark there. It was done and the ark stayed in Kiriath Jearim for 20 years. Eleazar was assigned to guard the ark.

The ark was a symbol of God's presence. The consequences for its mishandling are quite severe all through the Old Testament. Here were 70 men who were curious, as probably most people would be, but they dared to look inside the sacred ark. Did God really need to guard His holiness in such a way? Throughout the Old Testament, God is clearly honored in His power and glory. The overarching theme of God's character is that He is too holy to even approach. This is good to keep in mind as we are now allowed to approach the Throne of Grace with confidence since Christ has done His work as mediator.

Samuel calls for a housecleaning of all the false gods which had made their way into the homes and the hearts of the people of Israel. A holy assembly at Mizpah followed with true confession from the people. The Philistines came to attack, but the Lord sent them into a panic and the Israelites came after them an slaughtered them. Samuel then set up a stone calling it "Ebenezer" or "stone of help" to signify how the Lord had helped Israel so far.

Samuel judged Israel traveling on a circuit -- Bethel, Gilgal, Mizpah and at home in Ramah. His sons were appointed as judges as Samuel grew old, but they were no better than Eli's sons had been. The citizens, somewhat concerned about what would happen without Samuel, but mostly wanting to be like the other nations, asked Samuel for a king. Samuel was hurt, but God told Samuel that it was He who was being rejected. Somehow the Israelites thought that a king wouldn't go astray like so many of the judges before had done.

Samuel warned them of what a king would do, but the people wouldn't listen. Samuel then went to the Lord who told Samuel to give them a king. Why would God allow such a thing to happen? God honored the choice of the Israelites by granting it. However, He also knew the outcome of such a request. He used it for their good, certainly, but it was a rough lesson.

At the outset of chapter nine, we meet the future king, out looking for some stray donkeys. Although he was impressive physically, something changed in Saul when he was chosen by God. In 10:9 we are told explicitly that "God changed Saul's heart." Even those who knew Saul saw the change in him. Still when Samuel assembled all Israel at Mizpah to make public the new king, Saul was hiding! He is shown as being humble at his humble lineage. He was a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe. He claimed to be of the least of all the clans within the tribe. How could such character come from such a towering man?

Many miraculous events are described in chapters 9 and 10, affirming Saul's selection as king to Samuel and eventually to Saul and to the people themselves.

Finally at the end of chapter 10 we see that not everyone was impressed with the man who stood head and shoulders above everyone else. The text calls them "troublemakers" and it seems that every crowd has them. Meanwhile Saul has been joined by a few brave men who have been touched by God, assumedly in an emotional or spiritual way. These men have attached themselves to the new king Saul.

Psalm 59

2006-03-31T23:59:00.000-05:00

David is once again facing his enemies. It's amazing just how strong David's faith was in the midst of his trials. And following the psalms, especially from 52-59, it is easy to see how David was strengthened through the Holy Spirit. He comes away from every cry of despair with a renewed sense of hope.

In this psalm, David is again asking for deliverance from his enemies. They have risen up against him. They are bloodthirsty. They are waiting to attack David, planning to do him in even though he has done nothing to offend either these men or King Saul, whom they represent. David asks that God arise to punish the "wicked traitors." He describes them as dogs -- not gentle pets, but howling scavengers, looking for something or someone to tear apart. His enemies are all about violence against David, but his God laughs at those who look to destroy him.

At verse 5, David pulls out a list of God's names. Lord, God Almighty, God of Israel.

David calls them "nations" instead of simply men. Boice suggests that David actually wrote this later in life, as times when nations were threatening Israel may have reminded King David of the times when he was on the run from Saul and his men. It could be that these men represented far more than simply a soldier of Saul to David. It's hard to say. But David regarded them as enemies.

The psalm's refrain is found in verse 9, then slightly altered in verse 17. David gets through these tough spots emotionally and spiritually because he is taking refuge in God. As he writes in Psalm 57, David is taking comfort in the shadow of God's wings.

In verse 10, again David addresses the Almighty asking Him to bring down his enemies, but not to kill them. Rather he wants those men to live in defeat. Killing them is too good for them, he seems to be saying. Then he asks God to make an example of them so that the world will know the power of David's God -- "that God rules over Jacob."

The dogs return every evening and howl and shriek until they can be satisfied. But David will lift his voice to God in the morning. His enemies will not win. Praises are reserved for God, as David knows He will deliver him.

The refrain in verse 17 is changed so that instead of watching for God, David now is singing praises to Him. According to Boice, the Hebrew word for watch and for sing have only one letter difference. For David it is a progression to the point of singing praises to the One whom he watched for all night.

Genesis 44-47

2006-03-30T00:09:00.000-05:00

The brothers are sent back to Jacob, but along with their silver, Joseph instructs his men to hide his silver cup in Benjamin's sack. After they have been gone a short time, he sends his men after them, accusing them of stealing the cup. It's odd that Joseph talks about using that cup for "divination" since I would assume that to be forbidden, even back in those times for the patriarchs. Again in 44:15, Joseph leads the brothers to believe that he found out the cup was gone by means of divination. (How he divined that without his cup, he doesn't say.) Was this simply a ruse, playing into the brothers' stereotypes about Egyptians? For that matter, why was Joseph going through all this trickery anyway? Why does he continue the act up until chapter 45? He seems to have found out all that he wanted to know before this latest ruse.

Judah is adament about taking Benjamin's place rather than going back to Israel without his beloved son. It is at this point that Joseph can keep up the act no longer. He sends out all the Egyptians from the room and tells the brothers his true identity. His question is if Jacob is still alive, but his brothers have almost literally seen a ghost. They can't speak.

Joseph reassures them that he is not angry, and encourages them not to be angry with themselves. Much more forgiving than most of us would be in those circumstances. But in 45:5 we see Joseph's mindset -- it was God who sent him ahead of the family. And Joseph knows why: to save not only himself, but his family, and in fact, all of Egypt. Joseph was the savior in God's hands.

Joseph sends the brothers back to fetch Jacob amid lots of tears. The family will settle in Goshen to ride out the famine (and years to come as well). Pharoah goes one better and tells the family to take empty carts back to Canaan to haul their belongings back to Egypt. But the Pharoah tells them they shouldn't bring everything, for they will have everything they need in Egypt! A great promise from the leader of a country deep in famine.

Jacob is beside himself when he finds out that not only is Joseph still alive, but that he will get to see him before he dies. On the way to Egypt, God gives him reassurance again in a vision at Beersheba, after Jacob had offered sacrifices to God there. Jacob was indeed a thankful man. Judah is sent ahead to get directions to Goshen. Joseph is ready to see his father again, and again the tears flow.

Including Joseph's sons in Egypt, the Israelites now numbered 70 direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as they settle in the land of Goshen.

Five of the brothers are sent to Pharoah to insure that the Hebrews will be able to live in the prime portion of Goshen. Joseph tells the brothers to be sure to tell Pharoah that they are shepherds and have been all their lives. Egyptians wanted nothing to do with shepherds, so this must have been the best way to get the best land. Pharoah even asks Joseph to find one trustworthy to be in charge of Pharoah's own livestock. I wonder whom Joseph thought to be the most trustworthy.

Finally Jacob meets Pharoah. The NIV text says that he "blessed" Pharoah at meeting him and leaving him, but the footnotes make me think it wasn't so much a blessing as a polite greeting like, "May the Lord be with you," or something to that effect.

Beginning at 47:13, we see Joseph dealing with the hungry Egyptians in the midst of famine. He sells them reserved food in exchange for their livestock, then finally in exchange for their freedom. By selling them this food, the Egyptians have been sold into slavery to Pharoah, and Pharoah owns all the land except for that which was owned by the priests.

It was a benevolent slavery as the people could still work the land and keep 4/5 of what they grew, with the other 1/5 going to Pharoah -- a 20% tax bracket.

Finally Jacob is turning 147 and is preparing to die. He makes Joseph promise that his bones will go back to Canaan to be buried along with his family.

Psalm 58

2006-03-29T14:43:00.001-05:00

David's focus in this psalm is upon the wicked judges and rules. The corruption at the top of government. How incredibly frustrating this problem is. It's no surprise that this psalm is an impreccatory psalm, calling for real justice to be meted out to the unjust judges.

Boice reports that there are many problems in translating this psalm, as the variants between English translations attest. The first two verses in some form or another focus on evil leaders who seem to keep silent about the injustice or even participate in the injustices themselves. David's words are spoken directly to these evil men.

He further describes these men in verse 3-5 as being evil since birth -- not just having a sin nature, but beyond that. They do not listen to arguments of those who oppose their decision. They are like snake which cannot be charmed, for they cannot hear the music (reason).

So David calls upon God to end their evil. He asks God to break the teeth of these lions, to wash them away like flood waters, to blunt their evil deeds like blunted arrows, to melt them away and to kill off their evil at its first breath, as a stillborn child. All this is to be done to show men that the righteous are rewarded and that God does judge the earth. While that is certainly true, God does not always reward and punish people while they are living on earth. Oftentimes judgment comes after death, confusing some people who do not wish to think of a judgment beyond earth.

1 Corinthians 5-6

2006-03-28T16:27:00.000-05:00

Paul brings up the rumor that a gross sexual sinner is being celebrated within the Corinthian church! Not even the heathens were this bad! And that's tough to accomplish! Paul calls for the believers to put this man out of the fellowship. Church discipline. The purpose is so the man can be saved after the sinful nature is destroyed. Paul tells them that the only way this man is going to repent is if he is humiliated instead of being celebrated. At present he has no reason to change. And his corruption ruins the name of Christ in Corinth.

Paul points out that just as a little yeast works its way through all of the dough, so sin does the same thing. Allowing that sin is a corruption of the church itself. We are not told about a situation where repentence occurs before discipline can take place. This example is strictly about a man who perversely doesn't think he needs to repent and a church who, for some reason, brags about this man's sinfulness among itself and presumably to the world.

Paul uses much Passover imagery to show the keeping of that Festival through keeping our "bread" pure and unleavened. The Passover Lamb is Christ.

At 5:9, Paul returns to his talk of judgment by reminding the believers that they have been warned not to associate with the sexually immoral. He clarifies this statement so that we understand Paul is not calling us to cloister ourselves away for purity's sake. Paul is calling for church discipline. A Christian should not be someone known as sexually immmoral, greedy, an idolater, a slanderer, a drunk or a cheat. These are not Christian characteristics, and those who display these characteristics should be dealt with as Scripture tells us. We are to keep our brothers and sisters pure. God will judge those outside of the church.

The line between the godly and the ungodly is further marked in Paul's discussion of lawsuits. Why would believers take this to unbelievers for judgment? In 6:2 he tells us that the saints (presumably all believers) will judge the world! We will even, and we're not given details, be judging angels! Certainly trivial cases can be judged by those who are going to judge the world.
That's a qualification I'm not sure we all realize we are to have. And frankly, there are many within the church whom I'm not sure should be allowed to judge. But that's for God to decide. I'm to encourage those people in the faith and away from the attitudes described at the end of chapter 5.

The need for lawsuits is a sign of immaturity in the faith. Paul tells us that we should rather be cheated than to take a brother to court in front of unbelievers. Yet the worldly behavior is still a part of the Christian brotherhood in Corinth and it not supposed to be there. Paul reminds them that many were called out of very sinful lifestyles and washed clean. Those dirty habits should not be the hallmarks of their current lives.

The final section of chapter six again deals with sexual immorality -- a hot button issue in Corinth and the Corinthian church. The proverb at 6:12 is curious by its inclusion here. Is Paul saying that all sex is permissible, but not all sex is beneficial? It seems he is quoting other sources. Perhaps the Corinthians were using this proverb as an excuse for continuing to behave badly. Many times we seek only to do what is permissible without regard for what is best. But Paul writes that we are not to be mastered by anything, and sexual appetites can master even the strongest of people. Paul downplays the "needs" and "urges" by pointing out that food and stomachs will each be destroyed by God.

Paul continues by telling the believers that the body is not made to be used to be immoral. Sexual sin is the one sin committed against one's own body. That body, which is a house for God, is defiled by sexual sin. Joining my body with a prostitute's body is like joining God's house with a house of prostitution. The holy linked with the sinful. It is not right. Especially when we consider
that the body we have is not ours. It is worthless if not redeemed from sinfulness. We were bought at a price. Therefore what was purchased should honor the Purchaser.

Mark 1-2

2006-03-28T16:23:00.000-05:00

I've always tended to neglect Mark, as each of the other synoptics seem to expand so much on the events while Mark keeps things brief and to the point. The story of Jesus' life reads a little differently at this speed, and I think that's important to see. I mentally tend to fill in some of the details found in Luke and in Matthew, but I am trying to resist that urge to see what Mark wrote and why he chose these events and these details in particular.

The account of John the Baptist gives many details in a short couple of paragraphs. Mark cites the prophecy of Isaiah and gives the best physical description of this strange looking man. John's baptism was for repentance - for forgiveness of sins. Baptism was not a new practice. It was the standard way for Gentiles to join the Jewish faith. What was shocking was that John was baptizing those who were already Jews! This went beyond the atonement through animal sacrifice and called people to publically declare their own sinfulness and repentance. The people were baptized as they confessed their sins. Probably not simultaneously, but the two events were tied together. Yet John was pointing the way toward Someone greater.

The prelude to Jesus' baptism is missing here. We have only a note of the baptism itself and of the Spirit's descent and the voice from heaven -- Son, Spirit, Father. Immediately after the baptism, Jesus is led into the temptation in the desert. No more details are given here.

At 1:14, we begin the accounts of the calling of disciples. Mark carefully notes that Jesus didn't begin calling disciples until after John was imprisoned. At least His ministry didn't begin until that time. Natural reading of the text would seem to point to the callings as taking place after Jesus began preaching, although that wouldn't have to be the case.

The fisherman brothers are called. All four leave their nets at once. James and John leave their father and the workers and walk off the boat. We read nothing more of disciples until Levi is called in 2:13-17. However, we do go to Simon and Andrew's house in 1:29-31.

Jesus is seen as different by those who hear Him. His teaching has authority. Apparently the teachers of the Law didn't teach this way, making me wonder how those men taught. Then the testimony of the evil spirit adds more of a stir about this Galillean teacher.

Crowds begin to follow Him. Jesus ducks out to a solitary place to pray one morning and the disciples have to go looking for Him. When informed that everyone was looking for Him, Jesus sets off for new territory to share with more people. It is this struggle which is intriguing all through Jesus' ministry. People seek after Him, usually for selfish reasons, and He spends part of the time trying to stay out of the limelight. The evil spirit is told to "Be quiet!" in 1:25. The healed leper is told not to tell his story to anyone in 1:44. Mark explains the reason for Jesus' insistance upon silence -- the crowds are keeping Him from doing what He is sent to do. Mark closes chapter 1 by writing, "As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places." The mobs seeking healing kept Jesus from teaching and walking openly in the towns.

We see the crowds figure into the first story of chapter 2, as a group of friends trying to get a paralytic to Jesus have to lower him through the roof to get to the Master. Jesus uses the occasion to start in on the Pharisees. He forgives the man of his sins, then, sensing that He has touched a nerve, explains that He can do that as well as do the physical healing! The people are amazed. The Pharisees are seething.

Jesus taught while walking along the lake. Being forced out of town, Jesus found some who would not have ordinarily sought Him out. One of these is Levi, the tax collector. I hadn't previously noticed that Levi is the son of Alphaeus (2:14). Lists of disciples do not note Levi, but they note Matthew the tax collector and James, the son of Alphaeus. Was there another set of brothers within the Twelve or was Alphaeus a common name? I've read of many possibilities of Matthew and Bartholomew being the same person (since "Bar" means "son of") but I can't remember any theory about James and Levi being the same person. A little more research is needed here.

Jesus again uses the party at Levi's to work on the Pharisees a bit. His reply in 2:17 could be seen as saying that the Pharisees don't need Jesus' words, but that's not it at all. The Pharisees simply saw themselves as healthy and the sinners as sick. Jesus is using their terms, essentially.

Through the rest of chapter 2, Jesus is pointing out that He is not like anyone else. Fasting is not for times of celebration, and Jesus likens His life to a time for celebration. The Sabbath is not above the Son, and so Jesus could designate how the Sabbath should be celebrated. The Pharisees, lost in their legalism, could see nothing but law breaking. Jesus was pointing out the purpose of the laws.

Landmarks on the Journey - 3/28/06

2006-03-28T11:29:00.000-05:00

Wow, what a month it's been. I hit my first roadblock on the journey -- real life. For two weeks, I neglected this journey, only managing to read bits and pieces of a few passages. My heart was involved in other areas. Some of it was my own fault. Some of it was the demands of the occasional family emergency. But I'm refreshed now and back on track.

My unstated goal of reading and commenting on the whole Bible by the end of November is in jeopardy at this point. But that's alright. I'll make up a little extra time. Plus I was already about ten days ahead of the one year pace anyway.

Even with the extra burden of blogging my thoughts after each passage, I missed sitting and reading God's Word in this fashion. Certainly I still was in the Word in preparation for Sunday mornings anyway, but this is a unique type of study. I'm glad to be back at it once again.

Psalm 57

2006-03-28T11:03:00.000-05:00

Another in a string of psalms where David is in deep trouble after being betrayed at every turn. The description tells us that this psalm was written while David was hiding in a cave -- the same cave where his band of loyal supporters was formed. But at this point, David is likely still alone except for the fact that he is hiding in the Lord spiritually and emotionally while physically living in a cave.

Boice dissects this psalm a pattern with three topics and a refrain. David begins with a call out to God in verse 1. This call is for mercy. Verses 2-3 speak of God's faithfulness and steadfastness toward him. God fulfills His purpose for David. At verse 4 is a specific complaint about David's enemies. He is surrounded once again. Then the refrain found in verses 5 and 11.

After the first refrain, verse 6 again focuses on David's enemies but this time his enemies have found themselves trapped by their own methods. Verses 7-8 speak of faithfulness and steadfastness again, but this time it is David who is steadfast toward God. David's faithfulness causes him to break out into a song of praise. By verses 9-10, David again addresses God, but again the focus of his address has changed. He is not calling out for mercy, but crying out in praise. Then the final chorus repeats the call for God to be exalted. Exalting God should excite any of His children, just as men are excited by the exaltation of celebrities and the like.

Overall, the psalm is laid out A/B/C/Refrain/C/B/A/Refrain. Jewish parallelism at its best.

The striking picture of taking refuge in the shadow of God's wings is something which can ring true in the live of the believer. Certainly God doesn't have wings, but the theme of God's wings are found throughout Scripture. Boice calls attention to the wings of the cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant, but the shadow of God's wings refers to more than God's presence -- it speaks of God's protection. We are to "hide in God" rather than simply hiding with God.

Psalm 56

2006-03-28T01:59:00.000-05:00

What can man do to me? Well, plenty, if we are honest with ourselves. But none of it is of eternal consequence. Even in David's darkest hours, his trust was in God. When enemies twisted his words and looked for a place to murder him, David trusted in the Lord.

This psalm was written at a time after David had been chased and betrayed. He had gone to the hometown of Goliath, the champion he had killed a few years earlier, for protection but found none. David was a desperate man. He was alone. And he was also afraid. Yet twice in this psalm he writes, "What can mortal man do to me?"

David was confident of deliverance. Again he promises to present thank offerings for the deliverance which he knows is coming. Faith wins the victory, even before a physical victory is provided.

Isaiah 56-61

2006-03-28T00:16:00.000-05:00

The words of God continue to be given to all in chapter 56. A picture is given of those outside Israel reaching out to Him and God receiving them. "My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations," (56:7) is the verse recited by Jesus while cleansing the temple. Clearly God is not simply a national God. It is the righteous He is calling while the wicked are punished -- but not always in the way the world expects. God explains in 57:1-2 that many righteous die to be spared from further evil. It is victory which is found at death for them. But the wicked will continue to be tormented on earth. Even their good works will be exposed as having bad motives (56:12). The idols which lured the evil are not saving gods. They are not able to rest (56:20-21). There is no peace for the wicked.

However those who are contrite will live with the Holy One forever.

The falseness of the fasts are exposed in chapter 58. Why is God ignoring their fasting? Because their heart isn't in it. They refrain from eating, but not from their evil lifestyle. But true fasting is described in 58:6-14. It is not a lack of food, but standing for the oppressed and hungry and poor and homeless and naked. It is eerily reminicent of Jesus' parable of the Sheep and the Goats.

A new set of charges begin in chapter 59, but it is the same theme. God is holy. Man is evil and his deeds are corrupt. Those craving justice go unsatisfied until the Lord takes matters into His own hands beginning in 59:16. Two pieces of the armor of God are mentioned in this description: the breastplate of righteousness (technically He puts on righteousness as a breastplate) and the helmet of salvation. God will mete out justice. But His promise is that His Spirit will not leave.

Chapter 60 begins a section foretelling the glory of Zion. It is a time where all will recognize the light of Israel - or more accurately, Israel's God. The city walls are rebuilt by foreigners and their kings will serve Zion. There is a sense in which this is fulfilled in the resettlement of Jerusalem, but there seems to be much more to it than I would have imagined. Chapter 61, of course,
begins with the passage Jesus claimed to fulfill in declaring the year of the Lord's favor.

1 Samuel 1-5

2006-03-16T11:06:00.000-05:00

We begin with a new story with a familiar plot. Two wives, one barren and ridiculed. This wife is the one who is most loved by the husband. It's not Jacob, Leah and Rachel this time, it's Elkanah, Peninnah and Hannah. Hannah is barren, but stands at the tabernacle, offering a silent prayer for a child whom she promises to give to God. Why does she want a child only to give it away? The shame of being childless in a culture which treasured children. Hannah wanted her shame lifted. Is this a legitimate reason? Apparently God thought enough of the request to grant it -- seemingly right away. The next year, Hannah has a small baby, preventing her from making the journey to Shiloh. Instead she goes after the baby has been weaned and presents him to Eli. In 1:28 Hannah tells Eli her testimony and it causes Eli to worship God. It is a powerful answer to prayer and a faithful woman to keep such a vow. Hannah's prayer at the outset of chapter two is a touching tribute to the the sovereign God. The prayer sounds like it is plucked straight from the Psalter. Hannah's joy is complete.

The narrative takes a turn to focus on Eli's sons who are revealed as wicked men -- stealing from the Lord by taking whatever they felt like taking, rather than receiving only what they were entitled to. The fact that they took their share "by force" only reinforces the picture of renegade, selfish individuals. Contrast this with the picture of the boy Samuel, dressed in an ephod made by his mother. It is a touching scene of Elkanah and Hannah seeing the boy only at festival time, but being rewarded for their sacrifice with five other children.

Eli is portrayed as being uncaring about the corruption in his children. He rebukes them, but does nothing to stop them. At 2:25 we see God hardening the hearts of the two corrupt priests for the reason that the Lord wanted to put them to death. God hardens whom He wants to harden. This isn't exactly double predestination, but it shows a consequence to thumbing one's nose at God too many times.

An unnamed prophet then brings the word of God to Eli. His family would be cut off. This is God going back on a promise because of the disobedience of not only the sons, but also the father. Eli will die, and Hophni and Phinehas will perish on the same day.

The call of Samuel in chapter three is a well-told story. Samuel mistakenly goes to Eli three times before Eli figures out what is going on. We are told explicitly that Samuel did not yet know the Lord at this point (3:7). The message for Samuel is that God is about to carry out the sentence which Eli already knows well.

"The guilt of Eli's house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering," (3:14) shows that there is no real repentance present here.

As Samuel grew all Israel recognized him as a prophet.

Meanwhile, we return to the story of Eli and the boys. The Philistines capture the Ark of the Covenant after the Israelites stupidly bring it near the battlefield. In the battle Hophni and Phinehas die. The word of their death causes more trouble. A messenger passes along the news of the Ark's capture to Eli who falls backward off his chair, hitting his head and breaking his neck. Phinehas' wife dies in labor upon hearing the news.

Finally, chapter five tells us of the hot potato that the Ark became for the Philistines. Wherever the Ark was taken, the people were afflicted. First their god Dagon kept falling on his face before the Ark, then the people of the areas where the Ark was present began to be infested with tumors. Finally, the Philistines send the treasured Ark back to Israel to keep more people from being stricken.

Genesis 40-43

2006-03-14T18:24:00.000-05:00

Joseph is still in prison, seemingly lost and wasting away. Although he has some authority, he is stuck in prison with no foreseeable release. When he interprets the dreams of two of Pharoah's servants (check that -- as Joseph points out it was God doing the interpretation), Joseph seemingly has a ray of hope. Sure the baker is going to be executed, but the cupbearer has promised to remember him upon regaining his position with the ruler. Despair slowly reenters Joseph's life as he is literally forgotten, as is the promise the cupbearer made to him.

It was more than two years before Joseph is remembered. It takes the occasion of Pharoah's dream to jog the memory of the cupbearer. Again, when called to interpret, Joseph is careful to note that he cannot interpret dreams but that God can. It must have seemed like a minute distinction to Pharoah and his staff.

Joseph was allowed to shave and change clothes before being presented to Pharaoh. How much "shaving" was necessary for a Hebrew? Did all still wear beards at that point?

God gave Pharoah parallel dreams. He was repeating Himself. Joseph states that the dream came in two forms because "the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon." (41:32) Many commentators point out that when God repeats Himself in Scripture, we should pay even closer attention than normally.

The dream is interpreted and Joseph is the one to come up with a plan of action. Pharoah is taken with the Hebrew and puts him in charge of everything. At 41:40 we see a telling verse: "Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you." That's quite a comment from one with that kind of power.

Pharoah renames Joseph and gives him all the authority in the realm. All this at the age of 30. During the next seven years, Joseph puts his skills to work. Egypt is well prepared for the coming seven years of famine. The storehouses are not even opened to Egyptians until the famine had spread and was being felt all over Egypt. Then Joseph provided relief. He sold the grain -- he didn't give it away.

Word of the presence of food in Egypt reaches Jacob, so he sends ten of his remaining eleven sons off to buy food. He was afraid of something happening to Benjamin, the last remaining son of his beloved Rachel. The loss of Simeon would be bad, but the loss of Benjamin would probably mark the loss of Jacob.

Jacob's treatment of his family is curious. Is he exacting a little revenge? Is he thinking that the brothers will reject him and keep him from his father? His questioning of the brothers seems like he is putting on a front, but certainly if he had revealed himself at the outset, the brothers would have been happy to have brought the rest of the family to Egypt, wouldn't they?

The brothers take the rough treatment and Joseph's insistence upon seeing Benjamin as punishment for what they did to Joseph years earlier. Reuben is even using the "I told you so" approach with the others. Joseph, who had been speaking through an interpreter could hear the "private" conversations and what he was hearing was enough to bring him to tears, but not to reveal himself.

Simeon is bound and jailed while Joseph tells the servants to plant the silver back in the bags of grain, rather than to take them into the treasury. Mind games once again. The nine brothers who return to Jacob are scared to death at finding their payment returned to them in such a way as to suggest they had stolen what they had received. Jacob refuses to let Benjamin go to return, counting Simeon as good as dead, apparently. Finally when the food runs out, Jacob is forced to allow his youngest to accompany his brothers back to Egypt, as Joseph had told them he would not see them again without Benjamin. First Reuben, then Judah promises his father that Benjamin would be safe. Reuben even tells his father to kill Reuben's own two sons if Benjamin doesn't come back safely, in an effort to reassure Jacob of the brother's true intentions.

A double portion of silver is packed along with some gifts and the boys head back to Egypt to buy more grain. Joseph sends instructions to take the family to his own private residence for a meal. The brothers are reassured that the silver they found in their sacks is not stolen, but that God has blessed them.

The brothers bowed low to Joseph -- just as in his boyhood dream -- upon his arrival at home. The meal was served to Joseph by himself in one room, to the brothers as a group in another room, and to the Egyptians in a third location. For some reason, Benjamin got five portions to his brothers' one.

Psalm 55

2006-03-14T18:21:00.000-05:00

Once again David has been betrayed, this time by a close friend (v. 13). The pain of betrayal is bitter, especially when the betrayer is someone who has been trusted. At least Jesus saw His betrayal coming. David seems to be taken off guard; so much so that the first eight verses of this psalm are quite angry and emotional. He even expresses a wish to escape his problem and fly away -- something David had never before expressed. Was this an older man, tired of dealing with a life of war and pain?

David calls for God to act in verse 9, to confuse the speech of the wicked in language reminiscent of Babel in Genesis 11. He describes the wickedness of the people in the city: violence and strife, malice and abuse, threats and lies.

Finally at verse 12 we see the reason for David's emotional state -- betrayal. This situation is different for David. He has faced betrayal before, but not by one so trusted. He lament continues to its depth in verse 15 where he calls upon God again to take his enemies -- not simply his betrayer -- to the grave. The language in verse 15 is similar to that of the rebellion in the desert when Korah and his group were swallowed up by the earth.

Job 21-24

2006-03-12T23:45:00.000-05:00

Job counters Zophar's argument by pointing out the many wicked living on with seemingly no punishment from the Lord for their actions. It is not a brief joy as Zophar has asserted, it is a lifetime. At 21:15b, Jov says something very telling. Quoting the wicked, he says, "Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?" (emphasis mine.) For the wicked it is all about getting something for themselves. "What's in it for me?" Job sees and hears that wretched excuse for ignoring God. And it seems to him that God is not bothering to punish them as He has punished Job.

At 21:19, Job quotes a proverb of the time, "God stores up a man's punishment for his sons." Job considers that injustice and wants the guilty to pay himself. He of course is forgetting the whole idea of punishment after death. But so too, Zophar's contention is aptly proven false by Job's experiences.

Eliphaz then reenters at the outset of chapter 22. He brings with him a series of accusations which sound much like Jesus' words to the "goats" in Matthew 25:41-43. The charges seem to be made up, considering it took Eliphaz and the others a while to travel to see Job in the first place. Yet the Temanite claims that Job has been cheating people and not being charitable to those in need.

Amazingly, Job ignores Eliphaz's accusations when he resumes in chapters 23 and 24. His response is an extension of his case -- Job wants a face to face meeting with God to find out why he is being punished. But Job laments that he cannot find God. What a contrast to the psalmist who can find no escape from the Holy Spirit! Job cannot track God down, though he follows Him closely. He wonders when his final judgment will occur, and dreads it.

In his argument, Job lays out many sins performed regularly by the wicked of the world and the conditions in which the poor are forced to endure. The evil will not help those who need such help, and they are not punished for it. Job's words foreshadow Jesus' teaching about the evil hating the light and loving the darkness, as told in John, chapter 3.

Psalm 54

2006-03-12T23:43:00.000-05:00

Again David is trapped among evil men. The description gives the setting as a time when David had been betrayed by the Ziphites. This ties in well with Psalm 52, where David has been betrayed by Doeg the Edomite. These two betrayals happened in a short period of time, and by the setting of this psalm, David is ready for God to inflict His vengeance.

Yet after three verses of calling out to God for salvation from his circumstances, by verse four David is remembering where his help comes from. He calls for a right judgment upon those who gladly would betray him in verse five. But the psalm closes with David being assured that God will not let him die here. David promises to bring a freewill offering to God after he has been delivered -- not as a bribe, but as a promise, since knows that God will do as he has asked. Once again, David is praying with incredible confidence that God's will is for him to survive and to thrive. Knowing that he has been chosen to be Israel's king is certainly a key to David's amazing confidence and faith. He knows that God has promised and that He will deliver.

1 Corinthians 3-4

2006-03-10T23:05:00.000-05:00

Paul calls the Corinthians "worldly" and likens them to infants in the family. We all take that first step toward Christ a little reluctantly, I think. It's hard to change your entire worldview, and that's what Christianity calls us to do. There is no shame in being an infant, if you are growing in faith. Paul, though, is telling the Corinthians that they are not growing as they should. The world still has its hooks in these baby believers. The first sign of this is the divisive nature of the church. Paul recaps his complaint from chapter one here and uses it to illustrate the need for all kinds of workers in the Kingdom of God. Paul planted. Apollos watered. God gave the growth. All is supposed to be for God's glory, not for the people or the leaders. I think many in the ministry need to be reminded of this on a regular basis.

The right foundation is the key. Paul writes that no matter how good or how bad your work is, it must be on the only true foundation. If you build on that foundation, the quality of your work will be shown for what it is. The testing fire will determine the quality. We hate to think of going through the fire, but God says that we will all go through in one fashion or another. If our work is destroyed by the fire, we will know it was not good. Yet if it is on the right foundation, we still
will be saved -- in heaven, but smelling like smoke.

At 3:16 I have seen interpretations of my single body being God's temple, and others saying that the church is God's temple. Is "you, yourselves" plural or referring to a plural? I cannot say. The common interpretation is that our single bodies are temples, but are we not also as a church a Temple of God? More research is needed here.

Paul closes the third chapter by reminding the believers that what the world calls "wisdom" is but foolishness to God. He uses what the world thinks is foolish to trap the wise. Wise people rely on their own understanding, not the Lord's. This is a constant trap.

Paul now calls attention to his own plight and his own status compared to that of the Corinthians. Although the world considers Paul a fool and someone to be ridiculed, Paul is fully aware that the only opinion which matters is that of God. The Corinthians are rich. They have possessions, and they didn't come after their conversion -- their earthy treasures had already been accumulated. However Paul reminds them that everything they had was received from God. We have no reason to boast about wealth because it is all a gift from God.

The only true judge is God because He sees motives. He knows what is in a man's heart. He is not fooled by outward appearances. This is the way we are to judge.

The Corinthians will be receiving Timothy to show the church what Paul is writing about. Perhaps Paul is trying to wake up the Corinthians because they seem to have thrown off any respect they had for Paul, thinking they would never see him again. But Paul is adamant that he will get back to Corinth, if it is God's will. He asks if they want him to show up to whip them into shape or with a gentle spirit. The choice is up to the Corinthians, depending upon their obedience to Paul's teaching. If they imitate Paul, as he instructs them in 4:16, all will be well and Paul will continue to encourage them. If the believers don't mature, Paul will have to take stronger measures.

Genesis

2006-03-10T15:17:00.000-05:00

Genesis 1-3

Well, let's see... the creation of the universe and the fall of man all in one day's reading, eh? Just another bland day! I'll see if I can find something to write about!

It seems that the first thing God created out of nothing was water, as we see the Spirit of God hovering over the waters even before light hits the scene. And that light has no apparent source until Day 4. Yet there is day and night,evening and morning. On Day 2, God spearates the waters and inserts the sky in the midst of it. That means above the sky was a whole bunch of water. That will come into play when we hit the Great Flood. Plants and trees come in on Day 3 once dry land appears. Light, sky and sea, land and plants so far.

The sun and the moon show up in Day 4, although the moon isn't referred to by name. The purpose of these two are to separate day from night, to serve as markers for seasons, days and years and to give light. On Day 5 we get sea creatures and birds. The sea animals are instructed to be fruitful and multiply. Then on Day 6 the land animals appear just before man is made. Sun and moon, sea animals, land animals. A bit of symmetry between Days 1-3 and Days 4-6.

Man is created in God's image. Not a physical image, obviously as God is spirit. And both male and female are in His image. Man is also told to befruitful and multiply and all green plants are given as food to man and animals.

Day 7 is holy, not because God rested His tired bones, but because He stopped His creating.

Chapter 2 gives us more detail about man's creation and the Garden of Eden. It's rather amusing that we are told that God had planted a garden "in the east"like we would try to figure out where exactly east is. New York? Jerusalem? Tokyo? Obviously it's east of the setting for much of the Bible, and with the Tigris and Euphrates running out of it, Eden must have been somewhere around Northern Iraq.

The two trees mentioned in the garden are special trees. The tree of life gives some kind of life-sustaining fruit because the possibility of sinful man eating from this tree and never dying is the reasoning behind Adam and Eve's banishment and the guarded entrance to the garden mentioned at the end of chapter three. The tree of knowledge was the one with the tasty-looking fruit.

It is striking that Eve wasn't made like every other animal -- from dust. Perhaps she was taken from Adam's side (or rib) is so that Adam would seeher as an equal, not simply another animal, albeit a special one. It's pretty evident that God has a one woman - one man arrangement based on 2:24.

Chapter three reads like a bizarre story. Talking snakes will do that.

Eve exaggerates what God told them about the fruit of the tree of knowledge. God didn't ban them touching the fruit, although it would have been a good idea based on what happened. Satan's lie is a contemporary one. We all want to be like God. How different our life would be if we didn't have to worry about good vs. evil!

The first thing the couple realized when their eyes were opened was their nakedness. They felt shame, apparently about their differences physically? Why do we have an inherent shame over our bodies? For Adam and Eve it wouldn't have been lust, I wouldn't think. What is immediately shameful about a naked body in that context?

I wonder what the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day sounded like.

Adam, then Eve play the blame game.
Adam: Well it was that woman you put here with me.
Eve: Well, it was that serpent.
The serpent didn't have anyone to blame it on.

Man's punishment is the curse of the ground. Woman's punishment is the pain of childbirth and being "ruled over" by the husband. The snake's punishment is interesting. Did the snake have legs originally? Or just the talking ones?

The protoevangel in 3:15 is the reminder of Jesus' eventual victory. It was the scene in The Passion of the Christ preview where we see Jesus' foot crush the snake when I began to take that movie seriously. That's what it's all about and here we see just a whisper of the plot of salvation.

Adam and Eve's clothes were provided by God, assumedly from the skins of animals which gave their lives at this point. Death has entered the picture.

Genesis 4-7

Another meaty section. We always assume Cain is the first baby ever born and Abel is the second, but nothing really suggests that except the absence of recording any other births. "With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a son," which is said to be the reason for the name "Cain" seems like it might be a new experience for Eve, but it really doesn't have to be. Of course we never get to read about the birth of any daughters, nor do we hear another female named until 4:19 when he read about Lamech's wives. Cain's wife would be his sister or niece -- one of the unmentioned children we see in 5:6 and 5:8.

Abel's sacrifice was the fat of some of the firstborn, while Cain's sacrifice was simply some of the fruits of the soil. It seems that Abel put God's portion first while Cain gave "leftovers". Abel put God first while Cain thought of himself and his interests first.

Seth is a "replacement" child to Eve. The genealogy of chapter five is interesting in the details given and the details omitted. The math tells you that Methuselah died the same year as the flood (although not necessarily IN the flood). Besides the long life spans of these people, it looks odd that these men were still producing children at age 90, 105, 162, etc. Not to say that these were their first children, but one wonders how many children these people had, how early they started having them and how long they continued conceiving children. All this and we're not even thinking about Noah being 500 when he became the father of Shem, Ham and Japeth. Were these the only three righteous sons or were they his only children?

The Nephilim, the heroes of old. Legends in their own time. I don't think they were angels because angels are not reproducing beings. Nowhere else is anyone thought to be the child of an angel. The NT tells us that angels don't marry, etc. The Nephilim must have been heroic people. They are not mentioned post-flood (that I'm aware of), so the thought of 9 foot, 9 inch Goliath being descended from Nephilim doesn't make sense.

Every inclination of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil all the time. That's evil, friends. Is that worse than today? Hard to say.

Noah builds the ark, but God brings the animals to him and it's God who shuts the door. Many claim it didn't rain at all before the Big One. It's possible, although what really makes the flood is not simply rain, but the springs of the great deep and the floodgates of heaven opening up.

Seven of every kind of clean animal, two of every unclean. Gotta have food on the voyage. Seven of every kind of bird also. No allowances for sea creatures. They are never mentioned. Some have argued with me that the sea creatures would have died in the polluted waters. I'm sure many did, but not all (obviously).

Forty days and nights of rain. 150 days of flood. Five months.

Genesis 8-11

Noah and the family spent a whole lot of time on that ark. The boat hit Ararat on 7/17, but they didn't get out until 2/27. That's over 6 months just sitting there landed, most of that time with no waves or water even touching the ark. Understanding that they didn't get out until all areas of the earth were available to be inhabited.

The first animal sent out of the ark was a raven which kept flying back and forth. I assume it lit on top of the ark or something for a while and didn't remain flying for weeks. The dove which finally brought back an olive branch showed that not only was the earth drying, but vegetation had started growing once again.

Some of the clean animals who rode the ark for just over a year (The ark was closed on 2/17) were offered as a sacrifice after the landing. The springs of the deep were closed as were the floodgates of the heavens. And God's sign of the covenant, the rainbow, must have been a new sight for the humans -- again giving credence to the idea that rain hadn't happened before the flood.

Meat with blood is prohibited in chapter nine. No rare steak. Although everything is given to the hands of man.

The account of the drunken, naked, passed out Noah is odd. Had the boys really never seen Noah naked before? Shem and Japeth went through dramatic means to be sure they didn't see anything embarrassing. And Noah didn't curse Ham, but his son Canaan. Why? Was Canaan the only child at this point? Was he conceived on the ark or are we talking years later? Certainly Noah was around for 350 years, so there's no real timetable here.

The geneaologies of chapter ten seem rather edited for length. The Japheth line is remarkably short. Only two sets of grandkids are mentioned. The mention of "Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord" is quite odd. I wonder what the Hebrew looks like there at 10:9. The Canaanite clans were the people conquered later in Genesis.

In 10:25, we see mention of Peleg (meaning "division") so named because "in his time the earth was divided." I wonder what this refers to. Continental drift? Civil war?

A short mention in 10:31 that these are "the sons of Shem by their clans and languages..." -- this occurs right before the whole Babel narrative in chapter 11.

Genesis 12-14

Abram is called from Haran where he, Sarai, Lot and his father Terah had been living. In chapter eleven they tried moving to Canaan, but stopped at Haran, coincidentally the name of Lot's father who had passed away in Ur. Abram receives God's call and must have wondered about becoming a great nation even at that point, having no children. Now at the age of 75, Abram is off to wherever the Lord is telling him to go. After a brief stop at Shechem, he moved on to somewhere between Bethel and Ai. He had built an altar at Shechem, then again at Bethel. Then he took off for Egypt. I wonder what was spurring him onward. The Lord had appeared to him already, but Abram keeps going.

The sister/wife lie in Egypt eventually catches up to Abram, although it doesn't turn out as poorly as it could have. Pharaoh could have easily just had Abram killed, but the diseases probably convinced Pharaoh to letAbram and Sarai live. Hard to believe that a pillar of faith like Abram could let his wife be taken and used by another just to ease his fears of being killed.

Lot takes the greener pastures in chpater 13. Greener pastures, but lousy neighbors! Abram goes to Hebron and builds yet another altar. Lot's neighbors get him into trouble, as Sodom is sacked by a bunch of kings under Kedorlaomer. Abram becomes a mighty warrior -- something that doesn't usually come to mind when thinking of Abram. In 14:14 we are given an exact count of Abram's make shift army -- 318. Odd bit of detail.

The mysterious Melchizedek, King of Salem/Jerusalem makes his quick apprearance at this point, blessing Abram and honoring God. Abram gives the priest a tithe -- the first tithe mentioned in Scripture. I wonder what possessed Abram to do this. The part where Abram refuses help from the king of Sodom seems logical though.

Chapter fifteen features a recounting of God's call upon Abram and this time it is in the form of a covenant. "Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness" at 15:6, which of course pops up again in Romans 4. The Lord confirmed the covenant with an elaborate scene of birds and carcasses cut in half. This was a normal setting for a human covenant with the two parties walking through together. This time the only one to pass through was God, indicating that God alone could keep such a covenant.

Genesis 16-18

"OK. I get it, God. You need us to help You out in this whole "father of a great nation" business, eh? So let's get another woman involved in all this. What could go wrong?"

Hagar. A maidservant of Sarai who was thrust into a tough situation. She's not exactly blameless here though. By 16:4, she was getting nasty to her mistress -- apparently holding her pregnancy over Sarai's head, as it were. She probably didn't begin all the bitterness, but she gave it its first voice. From there, the roof begins to cave in. Sarai complains to Abraham, Abe washes his hands of the whole problem and Sarai mistreats Hagar until she runs off. I found it interesting that in 18:3 it says that Sarai gave Hagar "to her husband to be his wife." Bigamy. Not just an out-of-wedlock birth. I'd like to look in the the translation of that verse.

What a comment to make about a person: "He will be a wild donkey of a man," said the angel of the Lord to Hagar about Ishmael. The Bible doesn't tell us a lot about Ishmael, but his story is probably very interesting. The Westerner in me wonders if the Middle Eastern trouble isn't rooted in a conflict between a stiff-necked people (Jews) and the descendants of a man whose "hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers." Doesn't sound like a promising situation, does it?

Chapter 17 screams one question: Why circumcision? Of all the signs God could have come up with, why would the removal of penile foreskin be the chosen sign? Does this speak to male pride and sexual dominance? Maybe God taking men down a peg? I get the image of a slave being purchased by Abraham, then being told what had to happen to him to be a part of Abraham's household!

Abraham laughed, Sarai laughed... names were changed. When God changes your name, watch out! Abraham had Ishmael at the age of 86, yet he thought that being 100 was over the hill? How long had it been since the days of Genesis 5, when people lived to be 900 and were having children into their 600s? The perspective on Sarai/Sarah I can understand though.

At chapter 18, the three visitors arrive. The text announces them as "the LORD" and Abraham hurredly is making preparations to feed them. Part of this could be the culture to take care of travelers, but somewhere early on Abraham realizes he is speaking with God. I'd be tempted to call the three "men" Father, Son and Holy Spirit except that chapter 19 begins by talking about "the two angels" who go to Sodom. The angel of the Lord is usually agreed to be a reference to the Second Person of the Trinity -- a pre-incarnate Jesus. I'm not sure exactly why the Second Person is singled out rather than the Third or First. In any case, Abraham addresses the angel of the Lord as deity.

The "bargaining session" looking for a few good men in Sodom is fascinating. Abraham realizes that there aren't many good folk in that town. The Lord knows it too. Abraham doesn't go down to four people which would have covered Lot, his wife and two daughters.

Genesis 19

What a strange chapter! On so many different levels this passage is disturbing. First we see the two angels headed to Sodom, only to be spotted by Lot at the city gate. Lot knew there was something special about these two -- just as Abraham sensed something about his visitors a chapter earlier. The angels said they were planning on spending the night in the town square -- what a scene that would have been! Odd enough the way it turned out. Lot strongly persuaded the two to spend the night at his house. He fed them, but before bedtime, a crowd gathers outside the house. I get weird flashbacks to watching "Night of the Living Dead" when I was younger from this passage. The text says that "All the men from every part of Sodom -- both young and old -- surrounded the house." They called on Lot to send the two men (angels) out to be raped -- technically sodomized.

Lot knew there was something about these two, as I doubt he would have gone to such lengths to protect two ordinary visitors. Still it's surprising what he offered the mob outside. Two virgin daughters were not a good enough trade for the crowd. 1) What an offer! and 2) How disturbed were these Sodomites, anyway?

It was the angels who pull Lot to safety in the house, then they struck the mob blind. When the mob broke up (apparently) Lot went to recruit his "sons-in-law" to flee with the family while the city would be destroyed. The two who laughed him off. So Lot, his wife and two daughters head for Zoar after convincing the angels that Lot couldn't handle the trip up to the mountains. The next morning the fire and brimstone fell, not only on Sodom, but on Gomorrah and in the entire plain region. A large meteor? Perhaps. Whatever it was, it did the job.

Job's wife looks back on the city as she runs and "she became a pillar of salt." Here's another place I'd love to study the Hebrew. Whatever the exact context, Lot's wife hesitated, looked back in identification with that city. When she did so, she disobeyed the instructions given by the angels in 19:17. Oddly, the instructions were given just after Lot hesitated to leave in 19:16. Now, with the plain charred and smoking, Lot and his two daughters are the only survivors. Lot's wife was dead, perhaps buried by falling debris and buried -- thus causing the pillar of salt reference.

Lot and his daughters left Zoar because Lot was afraid to live in that city. We're not told why. Perhaps he was identified as a Sodomite and the people of Zoar wanted to get rid of him. In any case, Lot takes his daughters and lives in a cave in the mountains -- hermit style. The daughters then devise a plan to keep the family line going. On sucessive nights, the girls get Dad drunk and each sleep with him, conceiving a son. It's hard to get past the "ick-factor" on this one. Comparisons to Abraham and Sarah's plan with Hagar spring to mind. Each plan worked. Ishmael became the father of the arabic peoples. Lot's new children were the fathers of the Moabites and the Ammonites.

Genesis 20-23

The account of Abraham and Abimelech is a rerun of Abraham's mistake with Pharoah years earlier. Interesting that Abraham feared that king taking Sarah from him. With Pharoah, it was that Pharoah would see Sarah's beauty and take her for himself. With Abimelech, Sarah is 74 years old -- hardly the picture of a beauty queen! Yet the same thing happens, only God keeps Abimelech from sleeping with Sarah -- thus saving his family.

The admission that Abraham and Sarah are really half-sisters shocks us in today's culture, especially with all the birth defects from close marriage these days. But those laws weren't given until Exodus, a good 400-500 years later. When a spouse was needed, the family was the first place to look at that point. (Although the bit with Lot's daughters and Lot is still a bit much.)

Isaac finally comes and Hagar and Ishmael are sent away. The boys were having a real sibling rivalry. Ishmael will become the father of a nation also. The reason Ishmael will be a nation is because of Abraham according to 21:13.

Chapter 22 is often read and seen as a precursor to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The emotions of Abraham are hard to gauge. Certainly he must have been overwhelmed at the hearing of God's instructions of 22:2, yet by 22:5 he tells his servants that "we" will go worship and "we" will come back. The faith of Abraham. Isaac must have shared that faith, or at least had a strong confidence in his father.

Abraham's obedience is given as the reason why all nationss on earth would be blessed through Isaac in 22:18.

At Sarah's death, Abraham finally buys some land. He has been, since leaving Ur, a nomad living in tents, even though he became "like a prince" to the surrounding peoples. Ephron tries to give Abraham a grave for Sarah, but Abraham insists on paying the price. His time is almost over.

Genesis 24-27

We read precious little about Isaac in the Scriptures. This passage contains almost all of the details of his life, aside from the time on Mt. Moriah in chapter 22, and the report of his death in chapter 35. What we find out is hardly impressive.

Chapter 24 deals with the finding and bringing back of Rebekah to be Isaac's wife. A nameless servant of Abraham is given the duty, and his specific prayer request is answered as asked. Abraham has apparently heard from God about where to obtain a wife. Either that or he has great confidence that God will approve of finding a wife for Isaac among Abraham's family rather than among the Canaanites.

One of the more interesting characters in chapter 24 is Rebekah's brother, Laban. Of course we know he'll pop up again, but he's already displaying a need to be in charge of the situation.

The servant gave costly gifts to Rebekah, her mother, and to her brother Laban, but not to her father?

It's interesting that we assume the servant is traveling alone until verse 32 when the other men are mentioned, as well as the number of camels.

Abraham's third wife is mentioned briefly in chapter 25. Six more children, but the entire estate went to Isaac. The other children were packed off and sent away from Isaac. At 25:6, the text mentions "concubines." Hagar was a "wife" according the to earlier text, but could it just have been "marital relations"? Keturah is described as a "wife", so I wonder who we're missing. It is possible that Keturah and Hagar are who is meant, but the text as translated is vague.

The twins are born in chapter 25 as well. It's apparent they aren't identical! It's also apparent they won't be getting along well. The account of the birthright seems so odd. How hungry can a person be? If a bowl of stew means that much, then Esau truly did despise his birthright. Of course I wonder what made Jacob think to ask for the birthright in the first place.

In chapter 26, we see Isaac getting the Promise directly from God, as his father had also. Sadly, we read also that Isaac didn't learn from his father's mistakes. Again a patriarch tries the "she's my sister" line to avoid danger, only to narrowly avoid horrible consequences. We also see that Isaac has his father's financial skills, eventually becoming so powerful that he is sent away as too
big of a threat.

At 26:34-35, we read of Esau's two Hittite wives and that "They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah." Certainly an in-law situation is tough, but it seems that these two women really rubbed Isaac and Rebekah the wrong way -- so much so that Rebekah is the one to be sure that Jacob's wife is from the family.

The thievery of the blessing is a well-told story. The deception of Rebekah foreshadows the trickery of her brother, Laban in the next passage. "Let the curse fall on me," says Rebekah when Jacob fears a curse if Isaac discovers the deception. When Jacob brings in the "tasty food" he lies to his father directly three times: "I am Esau, your firstborn," "The Lord your God gave me success," and "I am [really Esau]." The trick is well thought-out, taking into account Esau's hairiness and his scent -- two things a sightless man would instantly recognize. Only the voice is a giveaway, but still Isaac believes his hands and his nose instead of his ears.

The blessing itself seems irrevokable. Isaac cannot take it back, as he admits in 27:33. The cry to "Bless me -- me too, my father!" is heartbreaking in a way, as Esau has nothing left to hope for. Except revenge. The idea of a blessing or a curse seems so foreign to me... especially one that is irrevokable.

Genesis 28-31

We resume Jacob's story as he is sent off to find a wife by his parents, although Rebekah's reason to send Jacob away is to save his life from his brother, Esau. Jacob is sent back to Laban, his uncle, to find a wife from his daughters. Of course Jacob winds up with two of Laban's daughters, but that comes later. Even Esau buys the story of looking for a "family" wife, as he takes another -- this one from the family of his relative Ishmael. On the tip to Paddan Aram, Jacob stops for the night and is given a vision of a staircase or ladder reaching from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. Then above it was the Lord, who affirmed the covenant with Abraham and designated it to Jacob, promising him to watch over him and bring him back to the land he is to inherit. Jacob thinks this is the gate of heaven itself and calls it Bethel -- house of God. He vows to make God his God since he has been promised safety and care. He also promises a tithe, although I have no idea how he is planning to offer this tithe to God.

When Jacob finally arrives in chapter 29, he is immediately taken with Rachel. Laban comes out to greet Jacob and welcomes him. After a month, Laban tells Jacob to stop working for free and to name his wages. Jacob then asks for Rachel in exchange for seven years' work. It seems like Laban is taking advantage of Jacob at this point, and probably is. He gets seven years worth of labor for his daughter. Meanwhile at the wedding feast, Daddy Laban pulls the old switcheroo and instead sneaks in the daughter with the "weak eyes" without Jacob's knowledge. How it was that Jacob didn't figure out it was the wrong sister until after a honeymoon night with her is mysterious. However there was some poetic justice in that Jacob was deceived just as Jacob had deceived his own father. Jacob could only be partly outraged. He had reaped as he had sown.

Leah was put in a no-win situation. She was immediately the unwanted wife. She was likely put up to it by her father. Had she not done so, she would have been shamed in Paddan Aram and wound up an old maid. But she was now married to a man who would take good care of her. And she had children -- six boys and a girl. However in the naming of the boys, Leah reveals that she is still seeking her husband's favor, which she never really gets.

A week after the first wedding comes the second and Jacob finally has his Rachel. The first seven years worked to get her seemed like only a few days. In 29:30 we are explicitly told that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. From his actions throughout his lifetime, it is obvious that Rachel is the ONE for him.

The fight over the children in chapter 30 seems so bizarre to a monogamous man like myself. Bartering for who gets to sleep with the husband is strange. So is the practice of giving a woman's maidservant to be her husband's concubine. In today's culture, that's almost instant divorce! But this is a blended family. Four birth mothers, two wives who are sisters to one another, two servants who have slept with the master, and children everywhere. Only Dinah is mentioned, but it seems that there are some unmentioned daughters in the household as well.
Eleven of the sons are there with only Benjamin yet to come as Rachel dies in childbirth in chapter 35.

After Jacob's fourteen years of service to Laban are up, Laban manipulates him into staying in Paddan Aram, as Laban has gotten richer with God blessing Jacob's efforts. So Jacob outfoxes the fox and through some mystery of animal breeding, builds his own flocks while Laban's power is diminished. Jacob found (or is told) a way to insure that flocks would have streaked, speckled or spotted offspring by using tree branches cut in a certain way. The stronger animals he would
breed to produce offspring for himself and the weaker animals would be bred to produce offspring for Laban. Jacob became rich and powerful and Laban and his servants were resentful.

In 31:3, God tells Jacob to get back home, so Jacob calls the wives to the fields and explains the situation. Here we see that Laban has been trying to get the best of the deal for years, but only Jacob knows the secrets. This is payback for Laban's dirty dealing. The more he tries to manipulate, the more he fails.

Jacob and family and their entourage while Laban is off shearing sheep. Rachel also, for some unknown reason, steals a "household idol" from her father. By the time Laban gets back home, Jacob and company have been gone for three days. Laban goes off in pursuit for seven days until he catches up to Jacob. But on the night before he met with the family, Laban was given a dream telling him to behave himself, essentially.

At the meeting, Laban pleaded for the folks to return. He complained that they sneaked off without notice and didn't allow him to kiss the kids or have a big sendoff party. Certainly Laban was lying about his intentions, as he would have never willingly let anybody get away. He had tried hard to get his sister, Rebekah, to not go with Isaac. In 31:29, Laban says that he has the power to harm Jacob but is only holding off because of his dream from God. But there is one thing Laban thinks he can be indignant about -- his missing "god". Jacob is sure no one stole it, not knowing that his beloved had done it -- and swears to kill anyone who took it.

Laban searches everywhere. Everywhere except the camel's saddle which Rachel was sitting on. Rachel had hidden the idol there and claimed not to be able to get up to let Laban search because she was on her period! It actually worked!

Now Jacob is tired of Laban's excuses and recounts all the injustices he has suffered at the hands of Laban. Laban still doesn't get it, calling the wives, the children and the flocks belonging to Jacob as "mine" in 31:43. However, he does get the fact that he is without any power and offers to draw up a covenant to keep the two families from hostilities. Jacob's oath is in the name of the
Fear (capitalized) of his father Isaac. Back in 31:42, Jacob referred to "the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac" as well. I need to do a word study on the Fear of Isaac.

The two families depart in peace concluding chapter 31.

Genesis 32-35

Jacob now departs as well, headed for a meeting with Esau. Jacob is scared to death of the brother he had cheated and prepares to "soften him up" a bit with a stream of gifts. Interesting that in his prayer of 32:11-12, Jacob feared for not only himself, but for the mothers and children also. Yet Jacob remembers the promise God made to him. in 32:10, he remembers how much more he has than the last time he made this trip, some twenty years earlier.

The night before the big meeting, Jacob wrestles with "a man" who is later known to be God. Jacob wants to know the wrestler's name -- it is to be a hollow victory for Jacob if he could find out his opponent's name. Instead, Jacob receives a new name, Israel. Instead of being "the deceiver", he is to be known as the one who "wrestles with God". It is interesting how the narrator uses this new name sparingly for Jacob. After all, his old instincts as a deceiver continue to play out in his life.

Jacob now has a limp because of a damaged hip tendon. I wonder the significance of God doing this. The Jews saw something almost deserving of respect for this tendon in other animals as well... another weird reaction.

By chapter 33, Jacob sees Esau coming, so he divided up the family into groups with the most expendible put in the most vulnerable position. The concubines and their children were placed first. Leah and her children were behind them, then Rachel and Joseph (Jacob's greatest treasures) as far away from harm as possible. But the preparations prove unnecessary as Esau comes in friendship, accepting Jacob's gifts only at his brother's insistence.

Jacob still is deceiving Esau as he sends him back home, promising to come. Instead Jacob travels to Succoth instead of to Seir. Eventually he settles near Shechem, where he buys a plot of ground.

The story of Dinah in chapter 34 is ugly no matter how you look at it. When Shechem violates Dinah, it is considered tanamount to rape by her brothers. The Bible is silent on Dinah's willingness in all of this, but that could be nothing. In any case, Shechem falls in love with the woman he has violated and now has his father try to broker a deal for her. The brothers take after Dad and trick the men of Shechem (the city) to be circumcised. While they are still sore from the procedure, Dinah's brothers exact their revenge by killing all the men in the town and plundering all that is left. Soon, God tells Jacob to go back to Bethel, and the family left for that place. According to 35:5, God prevented anyone from the surrounding towns to go after Jacob's family because of the whole affair with Dinah and Shechem.

Jacob's response to the brother's revenge is odd. His fear is for himself and his household, not for the honor of his daughter. His sons obviously disagree with Jacob's sentiments.

God appeared to Jacob again at Bethel in 35:9-12. He again pronounces the name change from Jacob to Israel and speaks the promise which was given to Abraham.

The death of Rachel in 35:19 also marked the birth of Jacob's last son. The boy Rachel had called Ben-Oni, meaning "son of my trouble", his father renamed Benjamin, or son of my right hand. A marker was set up to mark Rachel's grave on the road to Bethlehem. How horrible it must have been for Jacob to see his beloved die, especially in childbirth. The other women of the promise lived to old age, but Rachel would not.

Jacob is finally called Israel by the narrator in 35:21. Has Rachel's death changed the deceiver?

A strange story of Reuben sleeping with his father's concubine, assumedly either Zilpah or Bilhah, is mentioned in passing at 35:22. Jacob mentions it again at the time of his blessings to the family in 49:4.

Finally Isaac dies at the age of 180 and is buried by both Esau and Jacob. In the passage where Jacob steals his father's blessing, Isaac is portrayed as old and feeble (and indeed blind) at that time. Yet he lives at least another twenty years more -- probably many more years than 20.

Genesis 36-39

Chapter 36 is a genealogy of Esau, along with a note that Esau had to move away from Jacob as each were too rich and powerful to be too close together. Sounds like the sibling rivalry never went away.

The account of Jacob beginning in 37:2 is actually the account of Joseph, who is so often presented as a precursor to Christ. Right off the bat, we read about Joseph bringing back a bad report about his brothers. As the baby of the family, the only (at that time) son of Jacob's beloved wife, Joseph had to have annoyed his brothers. Apparently it went far beyond that, with most of the young men willing to kill their kid brother at one point. Joseph's recounting of his dreams were putting the brothers off, as well as even his father. 37:11 says that the brothers were jealous, but "his father kept the matter in mind." It's likely that Jacob didn't know what to do about the whole matter, especially in light of his "most favored child" status already.

Joseph has to look in an unexpected place for the brothers and the flocks. They moved on without unexpectedly. Was it this type of behavior which the "bad report" dealt with earlier on? Were the brothers doing something that they knew Joseph would take back to his father to get them into trouble? Something was up, because they had already planned Joseph's murder between the time they saw him walking on the horizon and the time he actually arrived. Rueben seems to be the voice of reason, but in reality it looks like he wanted a special notice from his father. In 37:22 we see that Rueben wanted to take Joseph back to his father. Somehow I read an ulterior motive into that sentence -- perhaps I'm wrong.

Instead of murder, the boys decide to make a little money for their brother. So they sell him to a band of Midianite merchants -- Ishmaelites -- distant relatives. The price is 20 shekels of silver. Not exactly 30 coins, but strikingly similar. Reuben isn't around to keep his brothers from selling Joseph. It is doubtful he could have even convinced them. So the cover story is concocted, and Joseph's fancy coat is covered in goat's blood and given to Jacob to give him the impression that Joseph has been eaten by wild animals. Note the careful words of verse 32. They don't come out and lie, but they present their father with only the facts they want him to see.

The passage with Judah and his daughter-in-law Tamar is an interesting insertion into the narrative. Judah is caught acting in an unhonorable way regarding the giving of his youngest son in marriage to his oldest son's widow. Again, this seems to be a story with no "good guys" and only people of questionable virtue.

Noteworthy is that God put to death Er, who was wicked in the Lord's sight, and his brother Onan, who practiced contraception with his wife to avoid the very reason he was married to her in the first place -- to provide children in the name of his brother. Since this was wicked, God killed Onan also. This is the kind of justice we all dream about until we realize the effect it would have on our lives!

Judah sends Tamar away, thinking his youngest son, Shelah, would probably end up the same as his brothers. Years later, after Shelah had grown and become eligible for marriage, Tamar was forgotten and plotted revenge, of sorts. Posing as a prostitute, she seduced her father-in-law and became pregnant. Judah's efforts to pay for her service came up empty, as Tamar disappeared back into her widow's clothing. Finally, when it was found that Tamar was pregnant, she was to be executed. But she sent a message to Judah -- showing him the staff, seal and cord he left with the "prosititute", signifying that he was the father of the babies.

She gave birth to twins, and the odd story of one hand coming out, then the other twin being born first is shared.

I wonder why finding out that the father was Judah stayed the execution of Tamar. What status did he have to prevent it (and his own execution as well).

We return to Joseph in chapter 39. Twice in this chapter he is put in charge of everything so that his master doesn't even have to worry about anything. Joseph is a very trustworthy person. Of course, Potiphar didn't think so, but that story was false. It is rather amazing how Joseph was able to avoid the attempts at seduction from Potiphar's wife, even leaving his cloak behind to avoid the temptation of being with her. The reason Joseph gives the woman is that it would be a wicked thing to do a sin against God. It would have been especially wicked because Potiphar trusted Joseph so much.

I find it odd that Potiphar's wife referred to Joseph as "this Hebrew" in 39:14, and "that Hebrew in 39:17. There weren't many Hebrews at that time, so I wonder where she would have learned the term to use it, especially perjoritively.

In prison, Joseph became the inmate in charge. Why was Joseph so trustworthy? His integrity for one thing, but the text specifically says that when Joseph was in charge, everything went right for his master. First with Potiphar, then with the prison warden. God gave Joseph success.

Genesis 40- 43

Joseph is still in prison, seemingly lost and wasting away. Although he has some authority, he is stuck in prison with no foreseeable release. When he interprets the dreams of two of Pharoah's servants (check that -- as Joseph points out it was God doing the interpretation), Joseph seemingly has a ray of hope. Sure the baker is going to be executed, but the cupbearer has promised to remember him upon regaining his position with the ruler. Despair slowly reenters Joseph's life as he is literally forgotten, as is the promise the cupbearer made to him.

It was more than two years before Joseph is remembered. It takes the occasion of Pharoah's dream to jog the memory of the cupbearer. Again, when called to interpret, Joseph is careful to note that he cannot interpret dreams but that God can. It must have seemed like a minute distinction to Pharoah and his staff.

Joseph was allowed to shave and change clothes before being presented to Pharaoh. How much "shaving" was necessary for a Hebrew? Did all still wear beards at that point?

God gave Pharoah parallel dreams. He was repeating Himself. Joseph states that the dream came in two forms because "the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon." (41:32) Many commentators point out that when God repeats Himself in Scripture, we should pay even closer attention than normally.

The dream is interpreted and Joseph is the one to come up with a plan of action. Pharoah is taken with the Hebrew and puts him in charge of everything. At 41:40 we see a telling verse: "Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you." That's quite a comment from one with that kind of power.

Pharoah renames Joseph and gives him all the authority in the realm. All this at the age of 30. During the next seven years, Joseph puts his skills to work. Egypt is well prepared for the coming seven years of famine. The storehouses are not even opened to Egyptians until the famine had spread and was being felt all over Egypt. Then Joseph provided relief. He sold the grain -- he didn't give it away.

Word of the presence of food in Egypt reaches Jacob, so he sends ten of his remaining eleven sons off to buy food. He was afraid of something happening to Benjamin, the last remaining son of his beloved Rachel. The loss of Simeon would be bad, but the loss of Benjamin would probably mark the loss of Jacob.

Jacob's treatment of his family is curious. Is he exacting a little revenge? Is he thinking that the brothers will reject him and keep him from his father? His questioning of the brothers seems like he is putting on a front, but certainly if he had revealed himself at the outset, the brothers would have been happy to have brought the rest of the family to Egypt, wouldn't they?

The brothers take the rough treatment and Joseph's insistence upon seeing Benjamin as punishment for what they did to Joseph years earlier. Reuben is even using the "I told you so" approach with the others. Joseph, who had been speaking through an interpreter could hear the "private" conversations and what he was hearing was enough to bring him to tears, but not to reveal himself.

Simeon is bound and jailed while Joseph tells the servants to plant the silver back in the bags of grain, rather than to take them into the treasury. Mind games once again. The nine brothers who return to Jacob are scared to death at finding their payment returned to them in such a way as to suggest they had stolen what they had received. Jacob refuses to let Benjamin go to return, counting Simeon as good as dead, apparently. Finally when the food runs out, Jacob is forced to allow his youngest to accompany his brothers back to Egypt, as Joseph had told them he would not see them again without Benjamin. First Reuben, then Judah promises his father that Benjamin would be safe. Reuben even tells his father to kill Reuben's own two sons if Benjamin doesn't come back safely, in an effort to reassure Jacob of the brother's true intentions.

A double portion of silver is packed along with some gifts and the boys head back to Egypt to buy more grain. Joseph sends instructions to take the family to his own private residence for a meal. The brothers are reassured that the silver they found in their sacks is not stolen, but that God has blessed them.

The brothers bowed low to Joseph -- just as in his boyhood dream -- upon his arrival at home. The meal was served to Joseph by himself in one room, to the brothers as a group in another room, and to the Egyptians in a third location. For some reason, Benjamin got five portions to his brothers' one.

Genesis 44-47

The brothers are sent back to Jacob, but along with their silver, Joseph instructs his men to hide his silver cup in Benjamin's sack. After they have been gone a short time, he sends his men after them, accusing them of stealing the cup. It's odd that Joseph talks about using that cup for "divination" since I would assume that to be forbidden, even back in those times for the patriarchs. Again in 44:15, Joseph leads the brothers to believe that he found out the cup was gone by means of divination. (How he divined that without his cup, he doesn't say.) Was this simply a ruse, playing into the brothers' stereotypes about Egyptians? For that matter, why was Joseph going through all this trickery anyway? Why does he continue the act up until chapter 45? He seems to have found out all that he wanted to know before this latest ruse.

Judah is adament about taking Benjamin's place rather than going back to Israel without his beloved son. It is at this point that Joseph can keep up the act no longer. He sends out all the Egyptians from the room and tells the brothers his true identity. His question is if Jacob is still alive, but his brothers have almost literally seen a ghost. They can't speak.

Joseph reassures them that he is not angry, and encourages them not to be angry with themselves. Much more forgiving than most of us would be in those circumstances. But in 45:5 we see Joseph's mindset -- it was God who sent him ahead of the family. And Joseph knows why: to save not only himself, but his family, and in fact, all of Egypt. Joseph was the savior in God's hands.

Joseph sends the brothers back to fetch Jacob amid lots of tears. The family will settle in Goshen to ride out the famine (and years to come as well). Pharoah goes one better and tells the family to take empty carts back to Canaan to haul their belongings back to Egypt. But the Pharoah tells them they shouldn't bring everything, for they will have everything they need in Egypt! A great promise from the leader of a country deep in famine.

Jacob is beside himself when he finds out that not only is Joseph still alive, but that he will get to see him before he dies. On the way to Egypt, God gives him reassurance again in a vision at Beersheba, after Jacob had offered sacrifices to God there. Jacob was indeed a thankful man. Judah is sent ahead to get directions to Goshen. Joseph is ready to see his father again, and again the tears flow.

Including Joseph's sons in Egypt, the Israelites now numbered 70 direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as they settle in the land of Goshen.

Five of the brothers are sent to Pharoah to insure that the Hebrews will be able to live in the prime portion of Goshen. Joseph tells the brothers to be sure to tell Pharoah that they are shepherds and have been all their lives. Egyptians wanted nothing to do with shepherds, so this must have been the best way to get the best land. Pharoah even asks Joseph to find one trustworthy to be in charge of Pharoah's own livestock. I wonder whom Joseph thought to be the most trustworthy.

Finally Jacob meets Pharoah. The NIV text says that he "blessed" Pharoah at meeting him and leaving him, but the footnotes make me think it wasn't so much a blessing as a polite greeting like, "May the Lord be with you," or something to that effect.

Beginning at 47:13, we see Joseph dealing with the hungry Egyptians in the midst of famine. He sells them reserved food in exchange for their livestock, then finally in exchange for their freedom. By selling them this food, the Egyptians have been sold into slavery to Pharoah, and Pharoah owns all the land except for that which was owned by the priests.

It was a benevolent slavery as the people could still work the land and keep 4/5 of what they grew, with the other 1/5 going to Pharoah -- a 20% tax bracket.

Finally Jacob is turning 147 and is preparing to die. He makes Joseph promise that his bones will go back to Canaan to be buried along with his family.

Genesis 48-50

Jacob is nearing death and Joseph and his two sons are summoned. Word of Joseph's arrival strengthens Jacob to actually sit up. It probably took all he had to do it. His announcement that Ephraim and Manasseh would be equal to his own sons is confusing. Why would Jacob make such a move? Certainly the two each became fathers of "half-tribes" so the number 12 is unchanged. And Jacob switches the first born and the second born, to Joseph's displeasure. We aren't told why, except that in the blessing Jacob declares that Ephraim will be the greater of the two. Is it that Jacob still has to have some sense of control? Was he working through God?

Interesting that Jacob makes a big deal of seeing Ephraim and Manasseh in 48:11, as if he has never seen them. Could it be that Joseph never brought the boys to meet their grandfather before this time?

I hadn't really thought about it before, but Jacob tells Joseph to be sure he is buried in the tomb with Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebekah and with Leah. Rachel was buried along the road, but Jacob chooses to be buried with the "other" wife -- probably simply because his parents and grandparents were there and because of the historical significance.

Jacob's blessing of his sons begins with three bad blessings -- Reuben will no longer excel because of his sin with his step-mother in Genesis 35:22. Simeon and Levi will be scattered and dispersed because of their murderous revenging of Dinah in Genesis 34. Judah's exploits with Tamar (Genesis 38) are not mentioned by the patriarch. In fact the best blessing of all is saved for Judah. His tribe is to be the ruling tribe, in the person of the Messiah. Zebulun will be on the sea, Issachar will get good land, but will become slaves. Dan and Gad are each described as biting and striking heels. Asher will make rich food. (?!) Naphtali is set free? Joseph became strong because of God, who blesses him. He inherits all Jacob's blessings and is called the prince among his brothers. That dream of everyone bowing down to Joseph makes even more sense now. Benjamin is a wolf and a scavenger.

Then Jacob dies some time after telling Pharoah he is 130. We're not given his exact age. Joseph has his father embalmed and petitions Pharoah to allow him to take Jacob back to Canaan for burial. The Egyptians mourned for 70 days. Joseph observed a seven day mourning while near the Jordan. The burial party looked to be mostly Egyptian to the locals, calling the spot where Joseph and company stayed in mourning, "mourning of the Egyptians."

After Dad was gone, the brothers feared Joseph's retribution, but Joseph reassures them once again in 50:20, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good..." One might think that the brothers would realize their family line was safe after Jacob's blessing, but fear can make a person believe most anything.

Finally Joseph dies, after getting his brothers to swear that his bones would be buried in the promised land. Joseph was the first of the twelve brothers to die, at the age of 110. That would have to have put Reuben somewhere near 130 at that time.

Isaiah

2006-03-10T15:09:00.000-05:00

Isaiah 1-6

Wow! Blood and guts and destruction galore! Isaiah is a book I've been wanting to dig into deeply for about a year now. This reading is only going to open up more questions and desire for further study that I probably can't take on right now. I know that a cursory reading of the book will not do it justice. In this passage I found myself thinking, "Has this happened already or is it still to come?" Figuring that prophecy can be proleptic, I'll allow for the possibility of future fulfillment, but most seem to be focused on the coming fall of the nation of Israel.

The Lord begins with a statement of repulsion with the empty religion being practiced in Israel. Boy, some of these accusations sound applicable to many in the Church today! To wake them up, God even refers to His people as Sodom and as Gomorrah, which should have stirred at least some indignity among His people. His instructions are to

"Seek justice, encourage the oppressed, defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow."

Social responsibility, put simply. Of course, Israel was essentially a theocracy, but still Christians today could learn something from what God wanted done.

The terrible judgment. Israel being laid low. In 3:8-9 the accusations again take a familiar turn:

Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the Lord, defying His glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.

And so the punishment will come. More woes in 5:20-24:

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks, who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent. Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, so their roots will decay and their flowers blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the LORD Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Again, awfully familiar. How does God restrain Himself?

Finally chapter 6! An incredible vision of heaven itself. After seeing all that, how could Isaiah say anything but, "Here am I, send me!"? A touch of a coal to the lips has allowed guilt to be taken away and sin to be atoned for. At least in the same sense that any animal sacrifice atoned for sin. The real atonement came later.

Isaiah 7-11

The prophets aren't always easy to understand at first read, and although it's not really my first read much of the detail here will take a lot more research. However, I'll toss out a few observations.

Isaiah's son is named for a warning for the nation. It's reminiscent of Hosea's children. Many of Israel's prophets were given the job of being living examples and living illustrations for the people of Israel to understand. I wonder how many of the people really "got it". The virgin with child of 7:14 is said to be Mary, according to Matthew, but a certain level of fulfillment takes place with Isaiah's child as well. It's a time frame for the coming destruction for Isaiah. Assyria destroys Israel and eventually Assyria is destroyed as well.

A great passage of warning at 8:19-21.

The prophecy of Messiah in chapter nine segues into a prophecy of warning for Israel. God judges, yet there is hope. One of Isaiah's son is named, "a remnant will return". The promise comes in 10:20. Many have taken this to be future as well.

The eleventh chapter of the Branch from Jesse. There is the fulfillment at the incarnation and also at the "end of the world". Sorting out the details is tough work and far too intricate to outline in this fashion, especially without a month of two of research.

Isaiah 12-17

Chapter 12 is a song of praise, reading like it was taken straight from the Psalter. "The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation." This is the cry of Israel when the Lord shall reign.

The prophecy against Babylon predicts the entired kingdom being overthown "by God" and the city itself becoming desolate forever. Current scholarship places the city of Babylon somewhere in northern Iraq -- in a desolate area.

In the midst of the Babylonian prophecy, we see Lucifer's sin described in 14:12-17. Lucifer's sin and fate must be reminiscent of the Babylonian ruler. It would be easy to overlook that passage as simply part of the prophecy against Babylon. The phrases "fallen from heaven" and "cast down from the earth" are clues, as are the names "morning star, son of the dawn".

The shorter prophecies against Assyrian and the Philistines end chapter 14. Moab is mourned over in chapters 15 and 16 -- it will be gone in three years. Then Damascus' future is foretold in chapter 17. "You have forgotten God your Savior...

Isaiah 18-22

Wow. Tough stuff to read without a complete commentary or two. Various prophecies against the nations. However the prophecy toward Cush of chapter 18 sounds like there will be conversions from among those people. Same with at least five cities of Egyptians in 19:18 and following. Yet those who trusted in their own nation would be put to shame and carried off.

Isaiah performed the task of living prophecy as well as living prophet. In 20:3 we learned that Isaiah walked around buck naked for three years to illustrate what would happen to these peoples. Tough work being a prophet...

Babylon's prophecy is written in an interesting way -- the surprising defeat of Babylon learned from the report of the lookout.

The Edom prophecy features a play on words -- Dumah means silence and the prophecy is about Edom being completely quiet, presumably because it has been destroyed.

The people of Jerusalem met with a fierce anger from the Lord. The final segment is about Isaiah's replacement, it appears, Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, and his eventual end as well.

Isaiah 23-28

I wish I had a lot more insight into these chapters. If anything, this passage shows me how little I've paid attention to these prophecies. I was reading on another blog about many pastor's refusal to preach on OT texts. My response was that I believe most pastors don't know the OT texts as they do NT texts. I'm afraid I'm probably accurate on this count. These prophecies speak to the power of God and His foreknowledge, yet the specifics escape us. Are these prophecies fulfilled in Christ? in the end of the exile? yet to be fulfilled? How literal are the prophecies of Chapter 24 concerning the devastation of the earth? Is this the destruction of Jerusalem or a future event? Many questions begging my research.

Chapter 25 is a mighty psalm of praise... "let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation."

Again I wonder when the prophecies of chapter 26-28 are fulfilled. I recognize the cornerstone prophecy of 28:16 which applies to Christ.

Isaiah 29-33

I noticed three passages in chapter 29 which are quoted in the New Testament. 29:13 is quoted by Jesus in Mark 7:6-7 as pertaining to the Pharisees, mostly. 29:14 comes back in 1 Cor. 1:19 when Paul is writing about the foolishness of man. Then 29:16 is brought back by Paul in Romans 9 in his discussion about God's sovereignty. It's odd to see three so easily recognizable in that short portion of Scripture.

The image of God as a consuming fire is repeated at least three times in this passage. There is much language of judgment and power regarding God and His reaction to the sins and rebellions of the people. Chapter 30 tells the people not to depend on Egypt for protection, presumably from the coming judgment. More hardship, distress, destruction follows until 30:18:

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him.

An oasis of hope within a sea of despair. His love for Israel is shown throughout the rest of chapter 30. Then by chapter 31, we return to the warnings about relying upon Egypt.

The picture of the ruler of the Kingdom of Righteousness of chapter 32 is yet another oasis. But with it comes a description and warning about being a fool. Then chapter 33 reads like a psalm of King David. God's love for His people is cherished. His power is celebrated.

Isaiah 34-39

More judgment. The Lord is angry with all nations. That's not good. Many images of blood and dismemberment throughout chapter 34. Edom seems to be taking the brunt of the assault. The place will be a wasteland after God gets through with it. Yet by 34:16, we see those in the Lord's favor are protected. Continuing through chpater 35, there is joy for those whom God saves. The ransomed of the Lord will return, singing as they come.

We return to narrative in chapter 36 with the story of Sennacherib's seige of Jerusalem. King Hezekiah has wisely thought ahead to keep his own citizens from getting into a shouting match with the Assyrians. The people on the wall heard the boastful threats of the commander, but said nothing, as per instructions.

The boast were based on Assyria's accumulated victories. If the other gods couldn't stop them, then why would Israel's God be able to? The commander taunts the people on the wall in Hebrew to be sure they understand. He tries to persuade them to turn against Hezekiah. It sounds like the captivity will be better than the current conditions, and perhaps it would have been.

The administrator, the secretary and the recorder report back to the king. Hezekiah sends them to Isaiah the prophet for instructions. The king asks God to avenge those who insulted the Living God. Isaiah's message for the king is to ignore the Assyrians. As prophecied, the Assyrian forces are to be called home to deal with the Cushites. But Sennacherib still tries to convince Hezekiah
to surrender.

Hezekiah prays sincerely and honestly. This is a great example of how we should approach the Living God. The king's answer is a favorable one because of this honest and humble prayer. The angel of the Lord kills 185,000 Assyrian soldiers overnight. Sennacherib broke camp and went home. Assumedly, the troops went as well. Sennacherib, as predicted, is cut down in another battle.

Chapter 38 deals with the king's severe illness -- an infected boil, it appears from 38:21. In any case, Hezekiah's death is imminent until he prays. Isaiah sends word that God has granted the king 15 more years. Hezekiah's prayer of thanksgiving is touching.

I will walk humbly all my years because of this anguish of my soul.

That is compelling. If only we would learn without all the anguish.

The good will party from Babylon is shown everything in the palace. Perhaps Hezekiah is showing off. In any case, Isaiah gives Hezekiah the bad news and the king takes it well -- after all, he thinks, "it's all going to happen after I'm dead." What a poor way to go out. It is not clear whether this punishment is because of Hezekiah's antics, although the way it is phrased, we are led to believe that the particulars of the exile are chosen because of the king's bragging.

Isaiah 40-44

Finally, another familiar chapter of Isaiah as we come to chapter 40. And what a chpater it is! Comfort is coming for Israel in the person of Jesus Christ, but first comes the one preparing the way. Israel has paid for her sins -- double in fact. Now the herald is calling out that the deliverer is coming. Even though man is just a temporary life on earth, God's word doesn't die. It doesn't fade. Now is the time to see the Lord coming in power.

We go from the power of God in 40:10 to the tender, caring shepherd in 40:11, then into a description of the incredible God beginning again in 40:12. This passage is reminiscent of God's speech at the end of the book of Job. The nations are but nothing. Idols are a waste of gold and wood. God is beyond anything else imagined. His holiness is called to mind in 40:16, His majesty in 40:22, His power in 40:23-24. There is no one like our God.

Not only is He powerful, but He is our hope. Our strength is renewed in Him. So many people use 40:31 as their life verse, urging a constant faith and hope in the One who strengthens us.

At chpater 41 we see the power of God intimidating the idol worshipers of the islands. Although they encourage one another, the fight is in vain. God has come for His Israel. Poigniant is 41:10, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." This is the God who was
King David's strength and shield. This is the God who takes up Israel's cause.

The image of God creating water and shade in the desert for a hot and thirsty people dominates 41:17-20. The God who provides.

Next is a taunting of false gods in 41;21-24. The God who judges justly.

The Suffering Servant makes His entrance in chapter 42. He is not a conquering hero, but a quiet judge. He will destroy those who trust in idols, but will uplift those who call on Him. God has sent tragedy upon Israel for their sins were great. But in chapter 43 redemption comes and Israel is gathered together once again.

At 43:10b we have a statement of God's uniqueness, "Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me, I even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior." It is all plain to see.

Even as Israel is being gathered, we see the nature of God's mercy. He is a forgiving God, remembering sins no more. Israel did not earn mercy -- indeed one cannot earn mercy -- for the people have been sinful and unfaithful since day one.

Again in 44:6b we see that there is but one God and no other. This is a common theme throughout this section of Isaiah. We shall see more in coming chapters. Also in 44:8 we have another instance. The prophecy then turns to a discourse about the foolishness of idols. This has always seemed like the obvious argument to me -- you use half the wood for a fire and the other half you worship? Foolish. God is redeeming Israel and as chapter 44 is closing we see that Jerusalem will spring back to life as well as the Temple of the Lord.

Isaiah 45-50

Chapter 45 continues the prophecy of the resettling of Jerusalem after the exile (presumably). Again with prophecy, it is hard to get a full-orbed understanding without extensive research. Shining out from the verses is the repeated proclamation from God that He alone is God and that there is no other like Him. This would be an important passage for the Latter-Day Saints to grasp. We will not become gods in any sense, as God Himself tells us that He is the only God and that there never has been another or will be another like Him. Five times in chapter 45 the words are given by God and in 45:14, even the foreigners admit such to Israel.

The foolishness of the Bablylonian Gods are mentioned in chapter 46. Again, the uniqueness of God as the only deity is taught. Babylon's eventual doom is predicted in chapter 47. This must have seemed impossible both to the world and to the Babylonians themselves.

God's attention turns back to Israel in chapter 48 and to their stubborn refusal to turn completely from idolatry. In 48:12-13 is a reference used in Revelation of God being the first and the last -- Alpha and Omega. This is an important passage in defense of the deity of Jesus Christ, and in His part in creation as laid out in 48:13. Finally Israel's release from Babylon is foretold in the final portions of chapter 48.

The Suffering Servant returns in chapter 49. He is "the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel... despised and abhorred by the nation..." Israel is to be restored because God has not forgotten His people. Chapter 50 is a call to obey the Servant who is not so weak as to be unable to redeem Israel. Obedience is key. 50:10-11 are illustrative of how it is to be: those in the dark are to trust and rely on God, but those who are content with their own imitation lights are told to stick to the imitation and await the coming punishment.

Isaiah 51-55

Chapter 51 begins with a promise from God to restore Israel once again. Even though the things of earth, and even earth itself, will wear out, the salvation of God is forever. Israel has been drinking of the Lord's cup of wrath and in 51:23, God promises to give that cup to Israel's enemies.

The reason for Israel's restoration is for God's glory. His enemies have been mocking Him and soon they will see their mistake. God will bring His people out of Assyria as He brought them out of Egypt, but there will be no need to hurry, as God will be bringing up the rear as guard.

The Suffering Servant appears once again at 52:13, leading us into the incredible 53rd chapter of Isaiah. The beautiful poetry of this chapter becomes even more beautiful once one knows the identity of the Servant. So much prophecy is so obviously fulfilled from within this chapter. He was despised and rejected. He was not beautiful so that everyone would want to be with Him. He took our punishment and yet it appeared that God had turned His back on Him. The "we are healed" of 53:5 is a spiritual healing. The parallelism of the verse makes this plain with
the first part of each line being physical and the last part of each line being spiritual.

The fulfilled prophecy keeps coming line by line. His silence, His lack of decendents, His grave... all these things noted as fulfilled in the Gospel accounts. Over and over we are told that He bore our burden for us and that He is our intercessor.

At 54:5, we see another reference to the deity of Christ. The Redeemer is called the God of all the earth. The description of God's actions being emotional in nature is interesting. Certainly God doesn't act capriciously. He has a plan and a reason for everything, but the best way for us to understand is to compare His actions to normal human reactions.

God promises to rebuild Jerusalem with precious stones and jewels -- an allusion to the incredible value He sees in that city.

Even the wicked will be forgiven if he repents and turns to God. Although that doesn't seem right to some, God tells us in 55:8-9 that His ways are not our ways. We don't have His understanding or perspective. He sends out His word and it accomplishes what He wishes. And those who trust Him will go out in joy and be led forth in peace. Certainly everything isn't singing mountains and clapping trees in a believer's life, but God is with us. It is all for the Lord's renown. For His glory.

Isaiah 56-61

The words of God continue to be given to all in chapter 56. A picture is given of those outside Israel reaching out to Him and God receiving them. "My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations," (56:7) is the verse recited by Jesus while cleansing the temple. Clearly God is not simply a national God. It is the righteous He is calling while the wicked are punished -- but not always in the way the world expects. God explains in 57:1-2 that many righteous die to be spared from further evil. It is victory which is found at death for them. But the wicked will continue to be tormented on earth. Even their good works will be exposed as having bad motives (56:12). The idols which lured the evil are not saving gods. They are not able to rest (56:20-21). There is no peace for the wicked.

However those who are contrite will live with the Holy One forever.

The falseness of the fasts are exposed in chapter 58. Why is God ignoring their fasting? Because their heart isn't in it. They refrain from eating, but not from their evil lifestyle. But true fasting is described in 58:6-14. It is not a lack of food, but standing for the oppressed and hungry and poor and homeless and naked. It is eerily reminicent of Jesus' parable of the Sheep and the Goats.

A new set of charges begin in chapter 59, but it is the same theme. God is holy. Man is evil and his deeds are corrupt. Those craving justice go unsatisfied until the Lord takes matters into His own hands beginning in 59:16. Two pieces of the armor of God are mentioned in this description: the breastplate of righteousness (technically He puts on righteousness as a breastplate) and the helmet of salvation. God will mete out justice. But His promise is that His Spirit will not leave.

Chapter 60 begins a section foretelling the glory of Zion. It is a time where all will recognize the light of Israel - or more accurately, Israel's God. The city walls are rebuilt by foreigners and their kings will serve Zion. There is a sense in which this is fulfilled in the resettlement of Jerusalem, but there seems to be much more to it than I would have imagined. Chapter 61, of course,
begins with the passage Jesus claimed to fulfill in declaring the year of the Lord's favor.

Isaiah 62-66

Chapter 62 again speaks of the raising up of Jerusalem until it becomes the crowning jewel of earth. The land is to be healed and all is to be well. The people are to reap what they plant instead of having it taken by other nations. God is sending His Savior to redeem Israel. The vengeance of the Lord will come at that time. The picture of the Savior wearing clothing soaked in the blood of His enemies is vivid.

The text turns to praise at 63:7. It reads like one of David's psalms calling for the Lord to redeem His people. It is a time where the Israelites do not possess the land they were promised. At 63:18 we see that the land is occupied no longer and that enemies have overtaken it. The call for God to act continues in chapter 64, as the author recounts the many times when God came to save His people, Israel.

I love the beginning of chapter 65 because it a) is quoted in the New Testament, b) it tells of God bringing Gentiles to Himself and c) it sounds so much like what God has done for us. He revealed Himself to nations who did not ask for Him. He was found by those who didn't seek Him. God makes it easier for us in our current culture because it is easy to find out about Him if we are looking. Those without access to all we have must follow the light of creation and conscience to find Him. With us, we have revelation all around us. Yet 65:2-3 is also very true. "All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations -- a people who continually provoke me to my face, offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on altars of brick..." How common it is for us to reject God in spite of all God does for us. We wallow in our sins but yet tell others, "Keep away; don't come near me, for I am too sacred for you!" What foolishness! Yet God knows and justice will be served.

God will not abandon His people because of the failures of some. He will provide for the righteous, but will punish the ungodly.

At 65:17 we begin the final promise of the prophecy, that of a new heaven and a new earth, where everything is peace and love and wolves and lambs will share stable space. 66:3 is important to remember. "This is the one I esteem; he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word." But all this will not happen overnight. (Indeed it has been over 2500 years already!)

Matthew

2006-03-10T14:55:00.000-05:00

Matthew 1-2

This was probably not the best time to read Matthew 1 & 2, with the echoes of Christmas still ringing in my ears. It read a little like remembered lines from a Christmas play. Perhaps it would have read that way in July as well. We'll see when I get to Luke!

The genealogy which heads up Matthew is interesting in the names which are brought up. Three sets of 14 generations are mentioned, but it seems like some editing has been done to make it come out in three even segments. No matter. Beget works for fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, etc.

Tamar is included in spite of that horrible story. I never realized that Boaz's mother was named Rahab. Interesting also that Bathsheba's name isn't mentioned -- only that she had been Uriah's wife, yet another note of scandal into Jesus' lineage. Joseph is never called Jesus' father. Abraham to David to Jesus. Those are the names to watch for from verse one, then again in verse 17. Clearly this is a Jewish genealogy!

If we all received as many angelic messages as Joseph did, would we be more obedient? It was like God had Joe on speed dial.

Matthew, ever the Jew, points out prophecy after prophecy fulfilled by Messiah. Even the last verse of chapter two features a prophecy which isn't included in the OT, from all I have read. Indeed there is no footnote. So many of these prophecies were declared as fulfilled by Matthew in spite of a seeming differing context in the OT. More evidence that the Holy Spirit was at work in Matthew.

The Slaughter of the Innocents by Herod was probably no big deal in the reign of terror under that feared ruler. For a man who was killing off his own kids, a few babies in Bethlehem probably wouldn't have made the evening news in Jerusalem, I'd bet.

The Holy Family returns to Nazareth. How odd it must have been to come back home for Mary and Joseph. Scandal. Rumors. Gossip. It's surprising that Joseph could have had a successful carpentry business if the whole town thought Jesus was illegitimate. Perhaps pity for the duped "father"?

No mention of shepherds or angelic songs in the mountains from Matthew. No talk of a stable or a No Vacancy sign at the inn. Just obedience from Joseph and the episode with the Magi. And oh yeah, that guiding star.

Matthew 3-4

I get the impression that John the Baptist and Jesus had quite different preaching styles. The Wild Man with the hairy outfit and locust juice in the corner of his mouth shouting, "Repent!" Although by the time we hit 4:17, Jesus' message was "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!" Still I think the delivery was different. But maybe that's just the image I've been brought up with. There was something about John that got to people's hearts. In 3:6, we see that John baptized only after the people confessed their sins. The Baptist's words must have cut deeply.

His response to the Pharisees probably gives many the whole Wild Man image. His message, "If you're so good, where is your fruit?" Clearly the Pharisees weren't coming out to confess and repent.

Jesus told John that he should baptize Him "to fulfill all righteousness." Isn't this the best way of telling us that it is right for us to be baptized as well? Baptism wasn't new with John. It had been practiced for years for people becoming Jews. John and Jesus both knew that this was different. Jesus wouldn't have been baptized as a baby because He was already Jewish. John's ministry gave the rite it's new meaning -- or rather it's clearer meaning.

The Father's testimony about the Son is given as Jesus comes out of the baptismal waters.

It was the Holy Spirit who led Jesus into the desert to be tempted. If God allowed Jesus to be tempted, why would we expect to get out of it? The devil, meanwhile, is testing to see what kind of Messiah this Jesus will be. Did he expect to succeed? Did he really expect Jesus to kneel and worship him? Is he really that stupid?

Jesus settled in Capernaum to begin His ministry, although He travelled extensively throughout Galillee. What an odd place to begin preaching -- like coming to Mississippi or Alabama instead of the large religious centers, mainly Jerusalem and the area.

The "fishers of men" segments show immediate responses from the four fishermen.

Matthew 5-7

Considering I preached for almost 8 months on this passage, this post could go long! However instead of dissecting it, I'll just present a few things which leapt off the page at me.

The location of the sermon is said to be a mountainside where Jesus sat down to teach, which is the typical posture for teaching. The sermon is addressed to "them" which should refer back to "the disciples" unless there is something funny about the Greek there. So Jesus was primarily speaking to the disciples (no word on if it was just the Twelve as the intended audience), but at the end of chapter 7 we see that "the crowds" had obviously been listening in. Unless "crowds" and "disciples" were the same people, but that doesn't appear to be the case.

The Beatitudes are an indication of the "upside-down" nature of Jesus' teachings. The poor in spirit, the meek, the persecuted for righteousness sake... these people aren't usually thought of as "blessed" or "happy" as Jesus claimed. But His emphasis was more eternal than temporal, although the benefits of living a life as Jesus instructs are certainly earthly as well.

The Law isn't being abolished but fulfilled. In 5:18 Jesus talks about the time when "everything is accomplished." Compare to the words of Jesus from the cross, "It is finished" or more accurately the idiom means "Paid in full." Jesus isn't downplaying the Law as much as He is demonstrating Paul's argument that we cannot fulfill it ourselves. If James, Son of Alphaeus thought he had to be more righteous than the Pharisees, he would have given up trying to reach heaven. Jesus put it more bluntly in 5:48 in the call to live a perfect life. Salvation isn't by our works.

The hypocrisy of works done for public consumption must have hit home for some listening to the sermon. Making a show out of giving and praying and fasting was how the Pharisees got their reputation.

At 5:8 Jesus points out that our Father knows our needs before we ask. It's a bit surprising that He doesn't also mention that the Father knows our wants as well. He knows those also! And He provides. But that doesn't mean we aren't to ask. That comes in 7:7-8. Ask, seek, knock. If dealing with salvation, this is a call for the sinner not to simply "be saved" but to ask, to seek, and to knock. Clearly man has a responsibility in the matter. Or at least a say-so.

In 6:24, the NIV translates the word Money with a capital M. I typically use the word "stuff" to signify the capital M Money.

The gate is narrow and the road is also. If we ever feel like most of the world doesn't believe as we do it's because they don't. Many have fooled themselves and will be among those calling "Lord, Lord..." (7:21). I wonder about those who were casting out demons in Jesus' name that the disciples were asking about. Were these people real followers or were they self-deceived?

I've known a few bad people who produce things looking like good fruit. We can't allow ourselves to do a poor job inspecting the fruit and seeing it for what it is.

The final instruction is to act upon what we've learned. Application. The missing step for many who call themselves Christians.

Matthew 8-10

Familiar passages. A lot of healings, mostly with fewer details than Luke provides. Much of this is a way of Jesus getting to be more known by the disciples. After he calms the storm, the twelve turn to one another and ask, "Who is this?" Jesus seems to prefer a little mystery too, as he tells people not to spread the word about the healings. I've always thought that Jesus wanted people to come to Him for the message, not just for the freebies. Still word travels fast, and I'm sure that a good many missed the message in spite of faith in Jesus. Still we get to see some personality when Jesus tells the leper, "I am willing. Be clean."

The cost of following is highlighted in 8:18-22, but it really comes to light in chapter 10 as Jesus is sending out the twelve. This chapter shows the disciples being sent to the Jews -- explicitly not to the Samaritans or the Gentiles. The Jews get first shot. However Jesus is not the peacemaking, mild-mannered teacher. He brings a sword. Families will be split in two. Betrayal will be the rule. Jesus prepares the disciples as best He can for the persecution which will surely come. The world is very different than Jesus.

At verse 23, we see a time frame given. Obviously the coming of the Son of Man alludes to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Not that persecution stops then, but these disciples' mission to the Jews essentially is over by that time.

The familiar verse "Freely you have received, freely give," is sandwiched in the midst of the instructions. The things to be given are what has been received. It's the healing, raising, cleansing, etc. that immediately precedes the instructions to give.

Matthew 11-13

Another jam-packed passage. We begin with Jesus sending reassurance to John the Baptist, then identifying him as the Elijah who was to come, foretold in the Old Testament. John and Jesus had two very divergent approaches -- neither of which is embraced by people who wish to find something wrong.

Jesus' miracles weren't convincing to those who didn't wish to believe. Capernaum, Bethsaida, Korazin... these people were given all kinds of reasons to repent but they did not. Tyre, Sidon and even Sodom are mentioned as more ready to repent than the towns who saw the miracles firsthand. We also see a hint of the day of judgment being a future event, as Sodom had certainly have passed away by Jesus' day.

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice," is used as a chide to the Pharisees who didn't get the whole idea of the law. Certainly God wants sacrifice from us, but not the blood of bulls, lambs and doves. Mercy is overlooked by the Pharisees in favor of legalism.

We see in 12:15-21 the reference from Isaiah explaining why Jesus told people not to tell who He was. Still I wonder why it was done that way. Of course, as explained earlier, the miracles didn't convince anyone who didn't want to be convinced.

Would someone on Satan's team cast out demons? It doesn't make sense, according to Jesus. I could see it all as a grand charade to a certain extent, but Jesus rightly notes that demons were cast out by others allied to the Pharisees.

The Sign of Jonah - 3 days and 3 nights - is an expression. Any part of a day equals one day in that culture. We get a bit more technical about exact time in our day.

The Parable of the Sower offers up a question for me: Are those who are sewn in the rocky places saved? They sprang up, but withered and died. Is this losing salvation? If not, how do we determine between a short-lived plant growth and any other growing plant? The test is in the fruit -- long term -- but we have no way of knowing about the short term.

Some of the parables of chapter 13 deal with judgment. Wheat and weeds, good fish and bad fish -- gathered together then separated. Why would we think there should be a separate Christian culture?

Finishing off chapter 13, we return to the theme of people not believing. Jesus' hometown folks couldn't bring themselves to believe that this boy they saw grow up could be Messiah.

Matthew 14-16

The passage begins with the rest of John the Baptist's story, his arrest and execution. Interesting that Herod didn't kill John at first because he feared the people. Apparently he feared the reaction of his party guests more.

The story of the feeding of the 5000 is set as beginning with Jesus' reaction to hearing of John's death. He preferred to be alone, presumably to grieve. A similar reaction is shown upon Lazarus' death. In any case, the people found him and asked for healings. Jesus obliged them. Five loaves and two fish feed 5000 men and their companions with 12 baskets left over -- one for each of the doubting disciples to collect and carry. One chapter later, seven loaves and "a few small fish" fed 4000 men and their companions with even baskets left over. It's amazing that the disciples in 15:33 hadn't the faith to think that Jesus couldn't do the same miracle again!

After the feeding of the 5000, Jesus forces the disciples to go on without Him so He could have some private prayer time. Then in the middle of the night, He walks out to them on the water. I wonder why He chose to catch up to them this way. Peter is the adventurous one -- the only one with enough faith to step out of the boat -- but even his faith is weak. At 14:32, they worshiped Him and called Him the Son of God. If I'm not mistaken, that's the first such admission from the twelve.

Jesus' message about honoring God over human tradition falls on deaf ears even today. I'm not simply talking about the Roman Catholic Church, but all who believe worship is done only "one way" to honor God. It's the "we've always done it that way" syndrome.

The list of evil in 15:19 distinguishes adultery from sexual immorality.

It's odd to see the Master treat the Canaanite woman in a seemingly nonchalant way. All in teaching a lesson, I guess.

It's the Pharisees who demand a sign and are called evil in chapter 16. The phrase "Jesus then left them and went away," even gives the impression of disgust from Him.

Peter's confession is what the Church Universal is built upon. That confession and what it means. Then that confession is backed up with our actions as a Church. His Church will built on a strong foundation -- something stronger than Simon Peter! Again in 16:20 He warns the twelve not to tell anyone of His Messiahship. Then He started to explain what that Messiahship really meant. It was too much for most any Jew of the time who understood God's Kingdom as political and physical. When Peter rebukes (not just suggests or asks) Jesus for saying these things, Jesus addresses Satan as being the one behind the rebuke. That "rock" Simon Peter was being used by the evil one not long after his great confession.

The "Son of Man coming in his kingdom" is obviously a reference to the sacking of Jerusalem in 70 A. D. since some standing there would not taste death before that time. The admonishment in 16:27 then appears to be a type of earthly justice, not heavenly.

Matthew 17-19

Matthew's account of the Transfiguration includes another time when men heard God's voice from heaven. The voice terrified them here, as opposed to no real reaction being given at Jesus' baptism. I love the line in 17:8 that when they looked up, they saw no one but Jesus. Wouldn't that be so much easier if all we saw was Jesus? Instead we keep looking in the mirror, trying to satisfy that person.

The epileptic boy's demon could not be driven out by the twelve. "Except by prayer and fasting" it says in the notes. I'll note that Jesus didn't seem to pray or fast before exorcizing it. It was likely an ego check for the disciples who, according to Luke, had been so excited that they could order demons to come out of people. Jesus explains it as having such little faith. If they had the faith to drive out other demons, why did they suddenly lack faith? Was it because they lost sight of who was doing the exorcisms?

Matthew records Jesus telling the disciples reacting with grief upon hearing that Jesus would have to die and be raised to life.

The temple tax must have been a use tax to help pay the costs of the construction. Jesus paid for Himself and Peter. Apparently the other eleven had to come up with their own tax money.

The theme of becoming like a child to inherit the Kingdom begins chapter 18. The image of the child is an important one for us. Certainly we like to think of ourselves as adults, but God sees us as His children. The accompanying warning of not causing people to sin isn't talked about much. Peer pressure and the like are very real, especially in certain segments of society.

Jesus uses the expression "enter life" to signify our entrance into eternal life.

Matthew records the Parable of the Lost Sheep, but not the Lost Coin or the Lost Son from Luke 15. I wonder why.

Jesus gives us instructions to restore a sinful brother, but if these steps fail to win him back, it would seem He advocates a form of shunning. More research is needed as to how people usually treated pagans and tax collectors.

Binding and loosing must not be power of judgment or vengeance, as that would conflict with what we know God's job to be.

The "two or three gathered in My name" passage is set in the context of prayer among agreeing people. I am with those who come together in Christ. Assumedly this would mean that the prayer lines up with the One who is there with them.

Forgiveness must come from the heart. The number of times a person is forgiven is irrelevant. I for one am glad of that!

Jesus comes out in chpater 19 as being strictly against divorce. The disciples reaction in 19:10 is almost comical by our standards. It seems they saw no advantage to marriage if you can't just divorce a wife for any reason. Jesus affirms that the single life is better, but that no everyone can handle it. (I know I wouldn't be able to handle it!) Still the one who is gifted in this area should accept it. I know that I could do more for God's Kingdom as a single man -- in theory. Yet my personality and character makes me dependent upon my wife for mental and emotional health. Could God help me overcome that? I'm sure He could, but again it comes back to my own emotional strength.

Jesus' blessing of the little children is by placing His hands on them. I wonder what the exact posture was. Could it have been a simple embrace?

The rich young ruler comes calling at 19:16, although Matthew doesn't identify him as a ruler. The lesson again is one of idolatry. The young man didn't want to part with his money, and Jesus knew it, and called him on it. Again the disciples' reaction is comical. "If the rich can't be saved, then who can?!" Jesus rightfully points out the obvious problem of loyalty to self before loyalty to God when self has a lot of cash. The disciples point out that they have left all things to follow Jesus and ask what awaits them as a reward. Jesus tells them about their twelve thrones and the 100 times more than what each gave up. At 19:30 "many who are first..." specifies that not all, but many of the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Again, it is meant to be a general statement, not a blanket suggestion that all those suffering are righteous.

Matthew 20-22

Jesus tells a parable at the outset of chapter 20 - The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. Even the workers who were still standing around an hour before quitting time were paid for a day's work. Rather hard for us to conceive of a convicted murderer's deathbed confession and repentance allowing him entrance to the same reward I am awaiting, but then again I was one of the first few workers. Who am I to complain? I'm going to heaven! What a great parable for the longtime, crusty family of God member! The first will be last and the last will be first.

In 20:17-19, Jesus clearly lines out what will be happening in the next few weeks. Here, Matthew gives no reaction from the disciples. Likely it was like the other accounts we have -- disbelief and even telling Jesus not to talk like that. It's easy for us to see with 20/20 hindsight, but it's still tough to figure out how the twelve missed this.

Matthew gives us the fullest accounting of the request of James and John for the best seats in heaven. They sent their mother? Why would mom get involved? Was it her idea or did the boys put her up to it? We're not told. Elsewhere we are just told that James and John were asking and we don't hear about the intermediary. It is extremely difficult to overcome pride. In his later days, I'm sure John had to work to keep it down. We love to think of ourselves as important.

Jesus' answer must have sounded confusing to the Zebedee family. The boys had exlaimed their willingness to drink the cup, but Jesus told them that drinking the cup wouldn't put them in the choice thrones. That Someone else was putting out the placecards was odd enough for them.

The other ten were understandably upset with James and John. Finally Jesus has to lecture them about the proper way to "become great." Knowing that it was a completely upside-down teaching for the disciples (and the rest of us) Jesus used Himself as an example -- the ultimate servant. Why we revert back to seeking fame and fortune the world's way instead of Jesus' way is to be blamed on our own reliance upon our sinful nature.

The two beggars near Jericho would not quit yelling for mercy, even when the crowd tried to shut them up. Jesus had compassion on them. He asked them what they wanted Him to do for them. I wonder if they had thought up any other answers to that question.

Palm Sunday arrives at the beginning of chapter 21. The disciples are sent for donkeys and Jesus makes His entrance on the "kingly" donkey's colt. A crowd is in front of Him and another crowd comes behind Him. I've heard so many opinions on what this procession actually looked like. In a huge city like Jerusalem, swollen with people for the Passover, how many would have noticed His entrance? I'm guessing a very small percentage.

He heads for the temple -- not His first trip there, so He knows what happens at the temple -- and cleanses the place, quoting the Psalms as He does. He is not arrested. The only time He encounters the authority figures, they are mad over the shouts of praise from the children! There seems to be no outrage in Matthew's account of the priests and scribes from Jesus' table-flipping activities. After things settle down, and Jesus is through healing those who were there, He goes back to Bethany for the night.

The account of the fig tree seems a bit out of character for Jesus. I've always wondered about this one. Was it Jesus being tired and stressed out? Was there a teaching moment in cursing a tree without fruit? It eventually became an opportunity for Jesus to teach the twelve about the power of prayer and the need for faith. The point is not so we can throw mountains around or kill off fig trees. Instead we are to do greater works -- change hearts. Anything we ask in prayer must be in line with God's will to be answered. If we are asking for something God doesn't want, it will not happen. Jesus is not giving us carte blanche to do anything, but to line up our own will with His.

The questioning begins anew in 21:23 with Jesus coming back to the temple courts. The first trick question Jesus deflects with a typical rhetorical construct of the day. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine." To the chief priests, Jesus' question was a bit trickier than theirs. The priests feared the people above all. They could not afford an uprising, especially at Passover. Common thought among the people about John the Baptist was that he was a prophet, yet the priests rejected him. That put the whole subject of John the Baptist on the dangerous list. Jesus pushed the issue and the priests backed down.

Then Jesus goes further. The Parable of the Two Sons is aimed at those who reject Jesus and the Parable of the Tenants is even more pointed. The lesson of the fruit tree is repeated here, this time pertaining to the establishment religiosity -- the chief priests and Pharisees. They knew it and conspired to find a time for an arrest, but they had to beware the people.

The parables continue into chapter 22. "For many are invited, but few are chosen." Same idea.

The Pharisees and Saducees play tag-team offering trick questions designed to turn the crowd against Jesus. The logical place to begin is something the people hold as a hot-button issue - paying taxes to Rome. Then the Sadducees pose a question to try to show the correctness of their position (saying there is no resurrection) and the ridiculousness of other teachings. Jesus isn't confused, but turns the conversation and accusation back on the Sadducees. "You don't know the Scriptures or the power of God." That claim is true for many people today as well.

The Pharisees try again and Jesus fires back with the Greatest Commandment, with which the Pharisees cannot logically argue. Jesus wraps up the entire Old Testament application into three verses. Finally he tweaks the Pharisees by showing from the Psalter about who the Son of David really was supposed to be.

And from that day on, no one dared to ask Him any more questions.

Indeed.

Matthew 23-25

The woes of chapter 23 begin with an admission that the Pharisees still held authority over the people and that the people should obey them -- what they say, not what they do, of course. Their quest is for honor and respect, yet they will be humbled, as will all who exalt themselves.

The woes are for:
1) Keeping everyone out of heaven, not just themselves.
2) Corrupting those they convert to God.
3) By the method of swearing, they make the earthly more important than the eternal.
4) Ignoring the point of the Law and getting sidetracked on tiny matters.
5) Emphasizing outward appearances instead of a cleasing of the heart.
6) Hypocrisy -- appearing clean on the outside, but wicked on the inside.
7) Supposing innocence of the murder of God's prophets before.

The words of Jesus rain down like acid. He condemns the Pharisees and the people of "this generation" (23:36). That generation would see the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple which was their pride and joy. Jesus' final words in the chapter is a warning that Jerusalem will not be able to call on Him until they acknowledge Jesus' Messiahship. At that, Jesus walked away.

In chapter 24 Jesus gives us the Olivet Discourse based upon the disciples asking him three things:
a) "When will this happen?" (The stones of the temple being thrown down.)
b) "What will be the sign of your coming?"
c) "What will be the sign of the end of the age?"

All kinds of scholars have taken all kinds of directions from this jumping off point. Some claim that these things are three different occasions, while others claim that two are the same. My inclination is to say that (a) happened at A.D.70 with the destruction of the temple (most would agree) and that (c) is "the end of the world" as it has come to be known (most would agree here also). The bone of contention is (b). I have read convincing arguments that Jesus' coming on the clouds is judgment language which could make His coming at the same time as (a). The problem lies in determining if Jesus answers questions about His "coming on the clouds" or about His physical return.

The fulfillment of 24:14 with the Gospel being preached in the whole world could mean "all the known world" and if it does, all parts of the world known in Jesus' day have had the Gospel preached there, and have had for a long time.

The abomination that causes desolation of 24:15 is linked to the defilement of the temple just before it's destruction in A.D. 70. This need not be a future event. It seems the language blends from talking about (a) to (c) somewhere in the middle of chapter 24, yet when we reach 24:34 we see the sticking point to determining the meaning of the prophecy. "This generation" will not all have passed away until "all these things have happened." Frankly, there is no other way to interpret the text up until 24:34 except to mark it down as fulfilled almost 2000 years ago. That causes us problems because we don't know how to view "all the earth" mourning, and sending angels "with a loud trumpet call" and gathering "his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to another."

The warnings of one being taken while one is left behind seems to refer to the gathering of the elect in context. But can it refer to those who are taken for punishment? It would seem not, as those of us on earth are to rise first after the bodies of our deceased brethren. Whatever the interpretation, we are to be ready. Punishment awaits those who do not persevere.

Parables of judgment follow in chapter 25. The Parable of the Ten Virgins again calls us to be ready for the Lord's return. Coming to Him too late is not allowed. Those who preach a second chance during a tribulation period ignore this warning. The Parable of the Talents warns us not simply to wait by doing nothing, but to do the Lord's work while we await His return. Being ready is not just being available -- it is preparing oneself. Again the punishment is being cast out to a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Finally, we are to be ready, to use what we have been given, then as illustrated in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, we are to take care of those around us. Failure to do so means that we don't really know Him. This time the punishment is clarified to say "eternal punishment" and the reward is "eternal life".

Matthew 26-28

Beginning with Jesus' statement in 26:2 the events begin to unfold. The words, "As you know..." seem so strange because it seems that the twelve really hadn't figured it out yet, despite clear message given by the Lord. The chief priests, meanwhile, wanted Jesus out of the way quietly.

The anointing at Bethany again brings Jesus to remind the disciples of His upcoming death -- prepared for burial.

I wonder what it was that gave Judas the idea to betray Jesus. What set him off? Was it the anointing? How did he know the priests would pay? What did he want the money for? A getaway?

How did the disciples miss Jesus clearly identifying His betrayer in 26:25? What was going through Judas' mind at that point? If Satan entered into him when he left the upper room, what pushed him toward the door?

Did the disciples understand the meaning of the bread and the cup?

What hymn did they sing before dismissing?

At 26:32 Jesus has already told the twelve about His plans after the Resurrection. Did they miss this part too? Or just so overcome they didn't know what to think? Jesus has been speaking in parables for so long, they seemed to miss the obvious answers.

Noting that in 26:35 it wasn't just Peter who vowed to die defending Jesus. Most did, just not that night.

Peter, James and John came with Jesus. "The sons of Zebedee" is the phrase used. It reminds me of their mother coming to Jesus asking for prime thrones and Jesus asking them if they can drink of His cup. (20:20).

Sorrow to the point of death. Quite an emotional concept. I think I've been there, although not for the same reasons. I've felt near death from sorrow. Jesus knew death was coming. Was His sorrow for His life, for the eleven who remained, for the suffering to come, for those who still denied Him???

In 26:41, I wonder which specific temptation Jesus wanted the three to avoid. He woke them once, then let them sleep until the arresting party was spotted.

I wonder why a signal was needed. Shouldn't the guards have known which one Jesus was?

Matthew mentions Peter's swordplay and Jesus' rebuke, Jesus' acknowledgment that He could be protected by angels if He wished, and His taunting of the crowd about their swords and clubs. He also mentions that the eleven all fled just twenty or so verses after he reported that they all vowed to die protecting Him. No mention of Jesus' healing the servant.

At the Sanhedrin trial, the false witnesses can't get their story straight. Even the "credible" witnesses are answered with silence from the Master. The only thing Jesus answers is the question of His identity.

The passage of Peter's denial tells of two different women asking him, then a crowd of people identifying Peter by his Galillean accent. Peter's response gets more animated each time. The word "immediately" is found in 26:74. Peter's response and regret is also immediate.

Judas' change of heart was too late to change anything. Judas must have seen his role as more important than the priests did. His refusal to accept the money put the priests in an awkward situation. Finally they found their way out of it, only to unknowingly fulfill prophecy!

Before Pilate, Jesus answers one question -- again about His identity. This time it is the title, "King of the Jews" and not "the Christ, the Son of God." To the other charges Jesus says nothing. Pilate's way out of executing an innocent man was the prisoner release ploy. He knew the people would never ask for the notorious Barabbas over the innocent Jesus. He underestimated the chief priests. In the other Gospels we see more of the political strategy employed by the priests. Here we simply see a crowd who is easily swayed. Even the pleadings of Pilate's wife seem to do nothing for Pilate. He knows what he should do, but every attempt to do it is met with resistence. Finally he washes his hands of the whole affair and assigns responsibility for Jesus' death to the crowd of Jews, who gladly accept the guilt.

The soldiers had a little fun at Christ's expense before leading Him off to Calvary. These soldiers dealt in death. They loved their work. How little redeeming quality there had to be in their hearts. Until 27:54, there seems to be nothing there but evil, yet the earthquakes at Christ's death did seem to wake these men up.

After the soldiers had nailed up the prisoners and had gambled for Jesus' clothes, they sat down to watch the death. I never thought of these soldiers doing anything but standing and keeping watch -- military style. Instead, they sat down and watched the effects of their work.

Pictures of Golgotha have always left me with the impression that it stands alone outside of the city walls, but there were people passing by, obviously on a road. Jesus' shame was in full view of the public. Even the chief priests and elders come out to mock Jesus. I wonder why. Didn't they feel vindicated at the thought of Jesus on a cross? Did they have to come out to have the last word? Even the robbers insulted him. Well, at least one.

Three hours of darkness in the middle of the morning. If the time lines up as 9:00am to Noon, that is a bizarre time for darkness.

Jesus quotes Psalm 22 from the cross. The quote is from the beginning, but the psalm in total is a psalm of victory. Of course the bystanders completely misunderstand, thinking Jesus is calling for Elijah. Vultures, mocking the dying.

Jesus died after a "cry out." The curtain in the temple is torn top to bottom. The earth shakes. Tombs break open and dead people are revived. Not just any dead people, but dead holy people. I wish we knew more about that.

The women watched His death and watched Joseph wrap the body and place it in his new tomb. On Saturday -- the Sabbath -- the priests were still worried about Jesus and the disciples that they went back to Pilate. The stone was sealed and a squad was stationed to guard the tomb.

The angel rolled back the stone and sat on it. The guards passed out cold from fright. Yet Jesus was gone. The text makes it hard to determine if the women were there when the stone was rolled away. I would assume not, although Jesus could have left the area without the women spotting Him. He could walk through walls, after all.

The angel's instruction is to tell the disciples to go to Galilee to meet up with Jesus, just as Jesus told them would happen back in 26:2. Jesus intercepts the women on their way back, again telling them to tell the eleven to meet Him in Galilee.

The bribes to the guards are given and the cover story is invented -- the same story that the priests had feared the day before. The thought of a Roman guard sleeping on the job, then being allowed to live is laughable.

Finally at 28:16, the disciples and Jesus meet back in Galilee, as expected. Much of the detail given in the other Gospels is missing here. Matthew's focus is on the Great Commission given to the disciples. It is a two-part commission: to make disciples by baptizing them and teaching them.

Judges

2006-03-10T14:50:00.000-05:00

Judges 1-6

A big chunk 0f Scripture with a familiar theme -- Israel meanders away from God whenever there is no strong leadership present.

We begin with a recounting of the remaining Canaanites whom the Jews do not evict from the land, although most end up as servants. This lack of obedience in driving them out is evidence of a lack of faith among the people. The story of Caleb giving his daughter is rehashed, probably because Othniel shows up as a judge in 3:7 -- the first after Joshua and his generation are gone. Othniel, Caleb's nephew and son-in-law, rules for 40 years. While he is there, the nation is at peace. But when Othniel is gone, the Moabites move in and hold the Israelites for 18 years, until Ehud, the southpaw.

Eventually we learn why Scripture tells us that Ehud is a lefty, specifically for a bit of trickery against the portly King Eglon. The details of this assassination are remarkable. Even Ehud's escape is possible because the king's men think he's having an embarrassingly long stop in the restroom. Even at first glance, the king would not look wounded as the knife was pushed in until Eglon's fat closed in around it.

Shamgar is a brief mention at the end of chapter three. He is also mentioned in Deborah's song in 5:6. Perhaps Shamgar was the military leader and Deborah the judge? But then why would Deborah send for Barak? That deserves more study.

The Song chides many of the tribes of Israel for not being a part of the attack on Sisera. Reuben, Gilead, Dan... where were you when the fighting started?

At chapter six we begin the saga of Gideon. An unlikely hero if there ever was one, Gideon is constantly asking for signs of confirmation. Compare that with the Pharisees of Jesus' day being called a wicked and perverse generation for asking for a sign. Gideon was seeking to serve God. The Pharisees were looking for a miracle to debunk.

Gideon does manage to gather enough courage to destroy his father's idol to Baal and the Asherah poles, although he waited until night to do it in secret. Amazingly it is Gideon's father who stands up for him once the story gets out.

Judges 7-11

We resume the story of Gideon and the Midianites with God forcing the Israelites into admitting that their own strength was not going to win the upcoming battle. God pared the fighting troops down to 300 to take on the combined armies of the Midianites, Amalekites, and the other eastern peoples. In short, God was making sure that His people recognized this victory as a miracle -- something only possible because God was with them.

God was helping Gideon's faith all the way through. The altar, the fleece, the army selection, and now God tells Gideon if he's still feeling skittish about the whole battle to spy on the enemy at their campfire. Of course he hears of the prophecy of he and his army scattering his foes. Interesting symbolism that the dream was of a small barley loaf flattening a tent in the Midianite camp completely. The overheard interpretation was the last piece of the faith puzzle for Gideon, and he returned to rally the 300 for the fight. They do battle by breaking jars and blowing horns -- the confusion is what sets the enemy to fleeing. More tribes join in once the chase is on.

The family infighting begins with Ephraim, but Gideon rebuffs them with praise and modesty. Asking for help outside of the nation of Israel proves to be more complicated. The leaders of Succoth and Peniel each refuse to feed and provide for the 300 fighting men, exhausted from chasing the enemy back home. The town leaders even seem to taunt Gideon. Bad idea. He punished the elders of Succoth by apparently beating them with thorns and briars. Then he pulled down the tower of Peniel -- likely the source of pride, as well as a military lookout -- then killed all the men of the town.

Gideon is strong for a while, but his weakness is the ephod he makes from the plunder of earrings. Not only Gideon and his family were tripped up with this idol, but "all Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it..." What a horrible end to the story. Even more horrible was after Gideon died, Israel went back to its infatuation with Baal. Still more horrible is the rising up of Abimelech, son of Gideon and a concubine, plotting to take power by killing all 70 of his half brothers on one stone. Well not quite all. One son, Jotham, hid and emerged to shout a taunt to Abimelech from atop Mt. Gerizim before going into hiding in Beer. (the place, not the drink.)

Finally it is God who turns the people against Abimelech after three years. Abimelech had another great military victory, but it ended in dishonor as he was struck on the head by a millstone dropped from a tower by a woman inside. Abimelech considered it shameful enough that he asked his armor-bearer to finish him off so no one could say that a woman killed him. Semantics don't change the truth. In 9:57, it is reported that Abimelech's end was the result of Jotham's curse.

Two short mentions of Tola, a judge for 23 years and Jair, a judge for 22 years begin chapter 10. Apparently nothing of significance happened on their watch. Judging from the normal behavior of the people, if there was a strong judge everyone was on their best behavior so we must assume that Tola and Jair were good judges. Next up after another cry from a judgeless Israel for help, is Jephthah, whose story begins chapter eleven.

Jephthah picked up a band of adventurers (probably mercenaries) and was recruited by the leaders of Gilead to lead the army against the Ammonites. Jephthah becomes the leader and begins by trying a little diplomacy with the Ammonite king. In response to that king's declaration that Israel was on Ammonite soil, taken by Joshua and company, Jephthah responds with a history lesson which is basically ignored by the king. So the battle begins.

Jephthah makes an unnecessary vow to God saying that if the Lord grants him victory, he will sacrifice to God the first thing coming out of the door of his house when he returns home from battle. To his dismay, that thing was his daughter, an only child. The girl understands Dad's situation and asks only for two months to be with her friends before she dies. Her father agrees and after those two months, Jephthah sacrifices his daughter to God. The author notes that this began a custom among young Israelite women to go out for four days in commemoration.

What to make of this brutal sacrifice. Well, a vow was a vow, especially one made to God. So Jephthah didn't hold back his only child, just as Father Abraham had done with Isaac. Still the fault lies in the foolish vow. The bearing of punishment by the girl isn't the worst that could have happened to her. Death never is the worst. Death without being reconciled to God is the worst. Still I wonder what must have been going through Jephthah's mind through the whole process, when he killed his daughter, and for the rest of his life.

Judges 12-16

One final episode with Jephthah begins chapter 12. The men of Ephraim became insulted that they weren't called into the fight with the Ammonites. For some reason they took great offense and threatened to burn down Jephthah's house with him in it. Jephthah claimed that he had called on Ephraim, but that they had ignored the call. The men of Gideon are called out to go to war against Ephraim. They surround Ephraim. Those who tried to escape were tested. For some reason, Ephraimites couldn't say "Sibboleth". We are not told if God orchestrated this test or if it was a matter of a regional accent. In any case Ephraim paid dearly for attacking Jephthah -- 42,000 Eprhaimites were killed.

After Jephthah came Ibzan with 30 sons with foreign wives and 30 daughters with foreign husbands (outside his own clan, that is). He led Israel for seven years. Next up was Elon's ten year reign. Then came Abdon for eight years. The text gives an interesting picture of Abdon's 40 sons and 30 grandsons who rode on 70 donkeys! When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey's colt, it was seen as a sign of a king. Still it doesn't seem too impressive a sight to see the leader and his 70 offspring riding donkeys!

At chapter 13's beginning, Abdon is gone and Israel has left God again. So they have been taken over by the Philistines for 40 years. Enter Manoah and his unnamed wife from Zorah of the Danites. His wife was sterile, but is promised a son by the angel of the Lord. He is to be a Nazirite -- set apart to God, with a set of rules to live by. When the wife tells Manoah about the angel of the Lord's visit, he prays to learn how to raise the boy. God had to be pleased with such a prayer.

The wife gets another visit and she calls Manoah in also. The Angel gives the requested instructions, although He doesn't mention anything about the boy's hair in the recorded text. Manoah wants the Angel's name, still unaware of the identity of their visitor. The sacrifice is offered in front of the Angel, and the Angel ascends to heaven in its flames. Manoah finally figures out who had been sitting with he and his wife! His reaction, like so many others, is fear of dying. His wife pointed out that they would be dead already if that were so.

The story of Samson itself is odd (as is much of Judges). God is apparently using Samson to torment the occupying Philistines, and Samson is not only gifted in strength, but also has the presence of the Holy Spirit at most times. However, he still seems to be acting out of pure selfishness. God is using this flaw in Samson to accomplish His purposes.

Samson's bride is picked from among the Philistines over his parents' objections. Still the marriage is made. The story of the lion, its carcass and the honey is interesting in that there is so much detail given which seems unnecessary to us. Certainly this was written by someone living within a different culture, but we would normally miss that Samson gave the honey to his parents without telling them he retrieved it from a carcass. That was unclean, and giving it to his parents made them ceremonially unclean. Things like that seem so out of place in this book.

Samson makes a bet, sure that he will win, by posing a riddle to his companions about the honey and the lion's carcass. Four days into the bet, the men go to Samson's bride to get her to get the answer. They threaten her father's household and his property if she refuses to help. So she starts to whine to Samson, "You don't really love me..." and such to try to wheedle the answer from him. Samson's interesting answer to her is that since he hasn't told his own parents the answer, he certainly isn't going to share it with her! He has put his wife "in her place" so to speak. Finally on the last day Samson gives in and tells her. She tells the men and they solve the riddle. Samson knows exactly what has happened, so he went to town, killed 30 men and took their possessions and gave them to the men as payment of the bet. Then he stormed back to his father's house. In the meantime, the father of the bride gives Samson's wife to his best man from the wedding.

When Samson goes to visit his wife again, he finds that she has been given to "his friend" and is offered his wife's sister instead. Samson instead wants revenge (as usual) and burns most everything which can be burned by starting fires with torches tied to foxes' tails. Nobody could invent this stuff!

The Philistines want re-revenge so they try to capture Samson from the men of Judah, who know where Samson is. Samson agrees to go with them, bound. Yet when the Philistine see Samson, they run at him, Samson breaks the ropes easily then picks up a donkey skull which is conveniently lying around and uses it to kill 1000 Philistines. He even sings a little song about it afterward. He is worn out and pathetically calls out to God for water, which is provided for him.

When we hit chapter 16, we find the Philistines still after Samson, almost catching him as he sleeps with a prostitute in Gaza. Still Samson gets away early, tears down the city gates and carries them to a hill outside of town. The Philistines were terribly intimidated by this man they couldn't figure out how to outsmart, and that they couldn't overpower.

Enter Delilah. Samson's weakness for manipulating women gets him in trouble again. His weakness for nagging shows up again as well. The Philistines need to find some way to neutralize Samson's strength, so they enlist Delilah to get at the truth. Delilah sounds much like Samson's wife from chapter 14 as she asks for Samson's secret. He gives her three wild goose chases, apparently hoping she'll tire of asking. Her accomplices who had been trying to overpower
the strong man had apparently given up, as Delilah had to reassure them that the fourth time was the charm.

One would think that Samson would have seen this coming after three attacks. He figured out what had happened with the riddle easily enough. Still he indulged Delilah. Why? Selfishness?

This is the first we see a mention of the reason for Samson's strength when he "tells her everything" in 16:17. Interesting that Samson wore his hair in seven braids. Seven is one of those "biblical numbers" so I wonder about the significance of the number. In any case, the braids are shaved and Samson is captured. His eyes are gouged out and he is shackled with the strongest stuff available -- bronze shackles. The proud warrior is made into an entertainer, to amuse the leaders of the Philistines.

At the last banquet, Samson delivers a show for the enemy. One wonders what kind of a performance he would put on if he was still thought to have lost his strength. Still the show brings the house down (pun intended). He loses his life in what Samson called an act of revenge on the Philistines for the loss of his eyes.

In all the dedication to the Lord and in all the ways that the Holy Spirit came upon him in power, Samson sure had precious little to say about God. His prayers were selfish in nature. His actions were the same. He appears as a spoiled brat -- an athlete who was never told "no". And he was the leader of Israel for 20 years. Of course, who was going to defeat him or tell him "no"?

Judges 17-21

The most telling verse of Judges is repeated at 17:6... "In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as he saw fit." It was always those times where everyone did as they saw fit that the Israelites got into the most trouble.

After Samson's death, we are introduced to a man named Micah who has apparently taken about 28 pounds of silver from his mother, then returned it. His mother decided to give it to God, yet her idea is to make an idol. That idol is cast and set up in Micah's house. A "young" Levite from Bethlehem enters the scene. As a aside, it's amazing how many times the little town of Bethlehem is mentioned in the Old Testament. In any case, the Levite is looking for a place to stay and Micah invites him to live with him and act as his personal priest for the idol god in his house.

I'm not sure why the Danites are still looking for land as an inheritance at this point in history. Perhaps they did not run out the Canaanites from their alloted portion and the Danites were themselves cast out.

The scouting party from Dan discovered Micah's stash when they recognized the voice of the young Levite. After scouting Laish, they organized their battle party of 60 warriors and went for the attack on unsuspecting Laish. On the way they stopped and took Micah's idols, ephod and even the Levite to serve as Dan's priest. Micah was outnumbered and gave up after a brief chase. The Danites continued and destroyed Laish and took the territory. They rebuilt the city and called it Dan and set up the Levite and his family as the tribal priests until the time of the captivity, which I would assume to mean the known captivity of Israel and not some smaller event, although I have no proof of that being the case.

The final three chapters of Judges is about as ugly as the Bible gets. Chapter 19 begins with a Levite and his concubine (interestingly not his wife). The woman was from Bethlehem, but the Levite lived in a remote part of Ephraim. The woman was unfaithful and eventually ran back to her father's home. Four months later, the Levite went to Bethlehem to bring her back.

For some reason, the father-in-law keeps stalling the Levite -- probably so that his daughter would remain with him a bit longer. Finally the Levite tires of the games and leaves, headed for home. He avoids stopping in what is now Jerusalem because the city is filled with foreigners, opting instead to walk as far as Gibeah where he, his concubine and his servant set up camp on the town square.

From here, the story of Lot in Sodom is eerily similar. A man from the Levite's home area comes and invites the travelers home with him for the night. Then a pack of evil men come around in some kind of sex-crazed frenzy and call for the man to send out the traveler to rape. As Lot had done, the man offered his virgin daughter as a substitute along with the man's concubine. Apparently there was no way to get this gang away from the house.

Finally the Levite sent his concubine out to the deviates and they brutally rape her until morning. She collapses trying to get back into the house. Her husband trips over her that next morning, picks her up, loads her on the donkey and takes her home with him. The text doesn't explain when she dies, but she must have been dead by the time he arrived home. He then cuts her body into 12 pieces and has the pieces sent to all the tribes, apparently to summon them to Mizpah for justice.

The other tribes go to war with Benjamin, although it takes the third bloody attack to finally rout them. The final battle for Gibeah sounds much like a battle back in Joshua with the same ambush ruse used. Six thousand Benjamites escape, but the rest are killed. As the result of a vow made during the assembly at Mizpah, the other tribes will not give the survivors wives, even though peace is finally made. Trying to give descendants to the Benjamite survivors becomes first priority. First, the virgins of Jabesh Gilead are taken because the men of that town had neglected to attend the assembly at Mizpah. All others in Jabesh Gilead were killed. They were still a good two thousand women short, so they instructed the remaining Benjamites to essentially kidnap some of the girls from Shiloh. This was done to skirt the vow made -- their fathers would not be "giving" their daughters, and thus no curse would come upon them.

I wonder about this whole debacle. The concept of justice seems quite odd. Of course no one is really any too innocent in all this. The concubine who was raped until she died was an unfaithful spouse who ran away from her husband. The Benjamites refused to turn over the offenders or give any justice to the Levite. Jabesh Gilead refused to take part in the battlefield justice. The whole passage is a mishmash of stubbornness and violence. God saw fit to punish the Benjamites for acting like the people of Sodom, yet he did not wipe the tribe off the face of the earth. One nagging thought is why the men of Benjamin were allowed to win two days worth of battles, killing thousands of Israelite warriors if God was fighting against them ultimately? What was the rest of the tribes supposed to learn from all of that?

Perhaps the biggest lesson is found in the repeated final verse of Judges. "In those days Israel had no king' everyone did as he saw fit."

Isaiah 51-55

2006-03-09T23:31:00.000-05:00

Chapter 51 begins with a promise from God to restore Israel once again. Even though the things of earth, and even earth itself, will wear out, the salvation of God is forever. Israel has been drinking of the Lord's cup of wrath and in 51:23, God promises to give that cup to Israel's enemies.

The reason for Israel's restoration is for God's glory. His enemies have been mocking Him and soon they will see their mistake. God will bring His people out of Assyria as He brought them out of Egypt, but there will be no need to hurry, as God will be bringing up the rear as guard.

The Suffering Servant appears once again at 52:13, leading us into the incredible 53rd chapter of Isaiah. The beautiful poetry of this chapter becomes even more beautiful once one knows the identity of the Servant. So much prophecy is so obviously fulfilled from within this chapter. He was despised and rejected. He was not beautiful so that everyone would want to be with Him. He took our punishment and yet it appeared that God had turned His back on Him. The "we are healed" of 53:5 is a spiritual healing. The parallelism of the verse makes this plain with
the first part of each line being physical and the last part of each line being spiritual.

The fulfilled prophecy keeps coming line by line. His silence, His lack of decendents, His grave... all these things noted as fulfilled in the Gospel accounts. Over and over we are told that He bore our burden for us and that He is our intercessor.

At 54:5, we see another reference to the deity of Christ. The Redeemer is called the God of all the earth. The description of God's actions being emotional in nature is interesting. Certainly God doesn't act capriciously. He has a plan and a reason for everything, but the best way for us to understand is to compare His actions to normal human reactions.

God promises to rebuild Jerusalem with precious stones and jewels -- an allusion to the incredible value He sees in that city.

Even the wicked will be forgiven if he repents and turns to God. Although that doesn't seem right to some, God tells us in 55:8-9 that His ways are not our ways. We don't have His understanding or perspective. He sends out His word and it accomplishes what He wishes. And those who trust Him will go out in joy and be led forth in peace. Certainly everything isn't singing mountains and clapping trees in a believer's life, but God is with us. It is all for the Lord's renown. For His glory.

Psalm 53

2006-03-09T23:30:00.000-05:00

This psalm is Psalm 14 with a few minor changes and an additional three lines. In verse 1, "deeds" becomes "ways in Psalm 53. In verse 3 changes "All have turned aside" to "Everyone has turned away." In verse 4 "evildoers is not "the evildoers." "The Lord" (Jehovah) of Psalm 14 is now "God" (Elohim) in four places in Psalm 53. That makes all seven references to the Almighty using the word "God".

The other major change is in verse 5. In Psalm 14, the fools of Israel are being addressed. They are called evildoers and their attempts to hurt the poor are thwarted by God. In Psalm 53, the evildoers appear to people who have attacked Israel. In fact these three lines seem to point to some kind of military victory.

So why is this psalm recorded twice, essentially? Good question. Realizing that Paul also used these words in Romans 3:10-12, it seems that God really wants us to grab a hold of His point. The exact point, I cannot say. But God is pointing out how people try to convince themselves that God doesn't exist, and that God is watching all the while as these evildoers chase their own sinfulness. God saves His own. The evil are left to their own devices.

Psalm 52

2006-03-07T20:57:00.000-05:00

The historical setting of Psalm 52 reveals to us who the evil man of verses 1-7 really is -- Doeg the Edomite, who betrayed David to Saul and killed the priests of Nob because of David's presence. David has little good to say about Doeg. He writes of what God will do to such an evil man, and the reaction of the godly also. Remarkably, he writes almost in the opposite manner as Job speaks. David relates how living such an evil life will be a lesson to others. The righteous will laugh at him for his stupidity in being so evil. Job remarked upon the evil who suceeded and how the good were laughed at. Indeed in many of David's earlier psalms, he writes of the evil laughing at him because of his plight. Verses 5-7 are actually prophetic in nature, predicting a horrible end for Doeg.

Doeg is described as boastful and proud, loving evil, and using words as his weapon. These are all fairly common sins, warning anyone of the potential for sin lying within a person.

The final two verses are put there as a contrast to show how a life should be led. David used himself as an example, in spite of the fact that he was far from perfect himself. His description in verse 8 of himself as an olive tree, flashes us back to Psalm 1 and his account of the righteous man.

Ruth

2006-03-07T20:50:00.003-05:00

This story takes place in the days of the Judges -- a microstory within the framework of Judges. The customs and practices are very foreign to the modern mind. The concept of a redeemer, and taking off a sandal, and having children for one's brother is so strange. But we can concentrate on the things which are timeless and strive to see the message in that which is dated.

Naomi and Ruth are the characters of chapter one whom we know. The forgotten characters, Elimelech, Naomi's husband and the two sons, Mahlon and Kilion become footnotes soon after the story begins. However to Naomi, these three are her whole family, her whole life. Fortunately, her boys married well. Kilion marries Orpah and Mahlon marries Ruth -- each woman a native of Moab. It is not until Boaz's pronouncement of chapter four that we even find out which son married which Moabitess. The boys aren't altogether relevent to the story. It is the story of Naomi and Ruth, and even Orpah of which we are told.

When Naomi hears that things in Bethlehem are better than in Moab, she decides to move home alone. She is a bitter woman -- mad at God for taking her whole family in the ten years she has lived in Moab. But the daughters-in-law want to keep their commitment to Naomi. They intend to be old widows together, it appears. Finally, Naomi suceeds in talking Orpah into staying to find a husband in Moab, but Ruth cannot be swayed. She will gladly take on a new people, a new God, a new life.

Ruth sets about to take care of herself and her mother-in-law by harvesting the grain left behind in the field by the workers. By "chance" she works in a field belonging to Boaz, who shows up from a journey later in the day. He immediately takes an interest in her. When she finds out that Ruth is the woman who came back with his relative Naomi, he takes especially good care of her, even telling the workers to leave some behind specifically for her.

When Naomi tries to provide a new home for Ruth, she sets a plan in motion to get Boaz to redeem Elimelech's property which would include Ruth. I'm not sure what the legal status of that property had been, but the law allowed for a way for it to stay in the family, as well as to keep the family name alive. Naomi sets the wheels in motion by sending Ruth to the threshing floor, where she probably should not have been to sleep at Boaz's feet. Boaz gets the message and is willing to redeem the land and the woman, but there is a closer relative who gets first crack at it all.

Boaz meets this unnamed relative at the Bethlehem town gate. The relative was willing to redeem the land, but said that he "cannot" acquire Ruth in the process. So Boaz then had the next option, which he gladly took. Since Naomi was probably not of child-bearing age, perhaps the law was different for her?

The elders of the town pronouced a blessing upon Boaz and Ruth, invoking the names of Rachel and Leah who provided the ancestral children for Israel's growth and Perez and his parents Judah and Tamar. It is interesting that this is included remembering the scandalous occasion of that birth. But the emphasis is upon a child for Boaz and Ruth. We learn of Obed's birth at the end of the narrative and see that he is the grandfather (or simply ancestor) of King David.

The message of the book is found in God's care over a woman who would not leave the side of her mother-in-law despite conventional wisdom. Ruth was willing to be a lonely widow the rest of her life rather than to stay in Moab as Orpah did. Why she left is a bit of a mystery to us, although it is implied that Ruth is a woman of extreme love and devotion.

Genesis 36-39

2006-03-07T20:50:00.002-05:00

Chapter 36 is a genealogy of Esau, along with a note that Esau had to move away from Jacob as each were too rich and powerful to be too close together. Sounds like the sibling rivalry never went away.

The account of Jacob beginning in 37:2 is actually the account of Joseph, who is so often presented as a precursor to Christ. Right off the bat, we read about Joseph bringing back a bad report about his brothers. As the baby of the family, the only (at that time) son of Jacob's beloved wife, Joseph had to have annoyed his brothers. Apparently it went far beyond that, with most of the young men willing to kill their kid brother at one point. Joseph's recounting of his dreams were putting the brothers off, as well as even his father. 37:11 says that the brothers were jealous, but "his father kept the matter in mind." It's likely that Jacob didn't know what to do about the whole matter, especially in light of his "most favored child" status already.

Joseph has to look in an unexpected place for the brothers and the flocks. They moved on without unexpectedly. Was it this type of behavior which the "bad report" dealt with earlier on? Were the brothers doing something that they knew Joseph would take back to his father to get them into trouble? Something was up, because they had already planned Joseph's murder between the time they saw him walking on the horizon and the time he actually arrived. Rueben seems to be the voice of reason, but in reality it looks like he wanted a special notice from his father. In 37:22 we see that Rueben wanted to take Joseph back to his father. Somehow I read an ulterior motive into that sentence -- perhaps I'm wrong.

Instead of murder, the boys decide to make a little money for their brother. So they sell him to a band of Midianite merchants -- Ishmaelites -- distant relatives. The price is 20 shekels of silver. Not exactly 30 coins, but strikingly similar. Reuben isn't around to keep his brothers from selling Joseph. It is doubtful he could have even convinced them. So the cover story is concocted, and Joseph's fancy coat is covered in goat's blood and given to Jacob to give him the impression that Joseph has been eaten by wild animals. Note the careful words of verse 32. They don't come out and lie, but they present their father with only the facts they want him to see.

The passage with Judah and his daughter-in-law Tamar is an interesting insertion into the narrative. Judah is caught acting in an unhonorable way regarding the giving of his youngest son in marriage to his oldest son's widow. Again, this seems to be a story with no "good guys" and only people of questionable virtue.

Noteworthy is that God put to death Er, who was wicked in the Lord's sight, and his brother Onan, who practiced contraception with his wife to avoid the very reason he was married to her in the first place -- to provide children in the name of his brother. Since this was wicked, God killed Onan also. This is the kind of justice we all dream about until we realize the effect it would have on our lives!

Judah sends Tamar away, thinking his youngest son, Shelah, would probably end up the same as his brothers. Years later, after Shelah had grown and become eligible for marriage, Tamar was forgotten and plotted revenge, of sorts. Posing as a prostitute, she seduced her father-in-law and became pregnant. Judah's efforts to pay for her service came up empty, as Tamar disappeared back into her widow's clothing. Finally, when it was found that Tamar was pregnant, she was to be executed. But she sent a message to Judah -- showing him the staff, seal and cord he left with the "prosititute", signifying that he was the father of the babies.

She gave birth to twins, and the odd story of one hand coming out, then the other twin being born first is shared.

I wonder why finding out that the father was Judah stayed the execution of Tamar. What status did he have to prevent it (and his own execution as well).

We return to Joseph in chapter 39. Twice in this chapter he is put in charge of everything so that his master doesn't even have to worry about anything. Joseph is a very trustworthy person. Of course, Potiphar didn't think so, but that story was false. It is rather amazing how Joseph was able to avoid the attempts at seduction from Potiphar's wife, even leaving his cloak behind to avoid the temptation of being with her. The reason Joseph gives the woman is that it would be a wicked thing to do a sin against God. It would have been especially wicked because Potiphar trusted Joseph so much.

I find it odd that Potiphar's wife referred to Joseph as "this Hebrew" in 39:14, and "that Hebrew in 39:17. There weren't many Hebrews at that time, so I wonder where she would have learned the term to use it, especially perjoritively.

In prison, Joseph became the inmate in charge. Why was Joseph so trustworthy? His integrity for one thing, but the text specifically says that when Joseph was in charge, everything went right for his master. First with Potiphar, then with the prison warden. God gave Joseph success.

1 Corinthians 1-2

2006-03-07T20:50:00.001-05:00

Paul's letter to the Christians of Corinth begins with a thanksgiving, but judging by the problems outlined in this letter, one has to wonder just how thankful Paul was feeling at that moment! Yes, they were believers, but they were so incredibly immature. Paul reminds the Corinthians that they have it all -- there is no spiritual gift they do not have, they have been enriched in every way. But there are problems to be sure and Paul begins by addressing the divisions within the Corinthian church.

The divisions seem to be almost about spiritual fathers. Only some have figured out that it is Jesus whom they are to follow. Peter and Apollos and Paul and others have been used by God to bring people in Corinth to faith, but some have a devotion beyond the place they should to mere men. Paul rightly points out that Christ was not divided. He taught unity. Paul is glad he hadn't been called to baptize, although he did baptize a few there in Corinth. I wonder the significance of Paul's call to preach, not to baptize. He is an evangelist, not a shepherd.

Paul says that he's not called to use the words of human wisdom to preach the Gospel so that God's power will be all the more apparent. However my mind goes to Paul at Mars Hill, reasoning with the wise scholars of Athens. Of course the scholars didn't think much of Paul's "wisdom" and Paul calls attention in 1:18-25 that the Gospel will sound foolish to those who do not believe. It won't make sense to them. Christ is a stumbling block to Jews who are looking for "signs" or apparently some huge revolution or political upheaval with the coming of Messiah. Christ is a stumbling block to the Greeks because the Gospel seems too easy. Yet what man considers wisdom is elementary foolishness to God.

Paul points out that most of the believers there were of a low social standard before accepting Christ. But Christ is using them to shame those who are infatuated with their own abilities and status. The boasting is not in the wonderful head start the people of the church already had -- they didn't have much of anything. The boasting should be in the Lord. Even Paul, when he first came to Corinth, didn't come with anything more than the testimony about Christ and His crucifixion and what that means to us all. Paul's preaching wasn't persuasive, but God displayed
His power so that all should know it wasn't Paul saving anyone, but God.

Yet the Gospel really is wise. But this wisdom is beyond our knowing. Had the chief priests had been able to understand, Christ would not have been crucified (at least not by them). The only way we can understand God is through the gift of the Holy Spirit. God's wisdom is only discerned spiritually. We are all but gnats without wisdom compared to the incredible wisdom of God.

Isaiah 45-50

2006-03-07T20:50:00.000-05:00

Chapter 45 continues the prophecy of the resettling of Jerusalem after the exile (presumably). Again with prophecy, it is hard to get a full-orbed understanding without extensive research. Shining out from the verses is the repeated proclamation from God that He alone is God and that there is no other like Him. This would be an important passage for the Latter-Day Saints to grasp. We will not become gods in any sense, as God Himself tells us that He is the only God and that there never has been another or will be another like Him. Five times in chapter 45 the words are given by God and in 45:14, even the foreigners admit such to Israel.

The foolishness of the Bablylonian Gods are mentioned in chapter 46. Again, the uniqueness of God as the only deity is taught. Babylon's eventual doom is predicted in chapter 47. This must have seemed impossible both to the world and to the Babylonians themselves.

God's attention turns back to Israel in chapter 48 and to their stubborn refusal to turn completely from idolatry. In 48:12-13 is a reference used in Revelation of God being the first and the last -- Alpha and Omega. This is an important passage in defense of the deity of Jesus Christ, and in His part in creation as laid out in 48:13. Finally Israel's release from Babylon is foretold in the final portions of chapter 48.

The Suffering Servant returns in chapter 49. He is "the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel... despised and abhorred by the nation..." Israel is to be restored because God has not forgotten His people. Chapter 50 is a call to obey the Servant who is not so weak as to be unable to redeem Israel. Obedience is key. 50:10-11 are illustrative of how it is to be: those in the dark are to trust and rely on God, but those who are content with their own imitation lights are told to stick to the imitation and await the coming punishment.

Psalm 51

2006-03-07T11:09:00.000-05:00

What struck me first upon rereading this psalm is that it is so contemporary. There are almost no spots where I cannot simply use these words as a confession and prayer for myself. I haven't committed adultery or had anyone killed, but I am no less a sinner in need of forgiveness and mercy.

David begins with a call for mercy based on God's love and compassion. Mercy by definition is unearned, and certainly David has done nothing special to deserve special consideration... or has he? He is King of Israel -- a man after God's own heart. He has been incredibly blessed by God, yet still he has sinned horribly. Murder and adultery were each punishable by death in the OT law. David knows he has no legal leg to stand on. Maybe this helps him turn to God for mercy. Maybe it makes it tougher. But forgiveness is what he seeks from a merciful God.

David confesses his sinfulness before Him in verses 3-6. David is fully aware of his sin. He knows he will never forget what he has done. His sin has been against God and God alone. That is interesting in that I would think that Uriah would have been sinned against as well as the entire nation of Israel. But David's point is that all sin is an offense against God. David's sinfulness has been there sin birth -- before that, if you take David's words literally.

He asks to be cleansed beginning with verse 7. Change hyssop to soap and again this passage is so contemporary. In verse 8 David asks to hear joy and gladness. The guilt of his sin has kept all joy from him. Nothing else can take away the pain except for forgiveness. He cannot move on or keep his mind on other things. Yet he asks God to do that... to hide His face from David's sin.

David takes the next step in verse 10, asking for a new, fresh start. Create in me means that he wants a new beginning -- a do-over, with the first attempt permanently erased. There are still consequences for David's actions, but in God's sight there is forgiveness and a clean slate. David asks God not to leave him in any fashion, including the removal of the Holy Spirit. He wants the joy of his salvation back and a new resolve to keep him from sinning again.

In return, David will teach other siners to do right and to repent. There is no better teacher than one who has learned by experience. Offerings are not the answer. It is not atoning works that we are called to do. Jesus has done that, and even in David's time he knew that what God wanted was a change of heart and a broken, contrite spirit. This is what David was presenting to God.

The psalm concludes with a prayer for Jerusalem and Israel. David wants to do a good job for God, after all it was God who placed him in the throne of authority over His people.

Landmarks on the Journey - 3/4/06

2006-03-04T19:39:00.000-05:00

Two months gone and I've completed Joshua, Judges, Matthew, Romans, Nahum and the first 1/3 of Psalms. There are still days when it's tough to sit down and read, especially when I need to blog my thoughts as well. That really does slow my progress, but it enhances my understanding.

This blog setup is working fine. I'm combining all the posts in a single book into one post and linking it in my checklist on the sidebar. I'll probably leave the individual posts up as well, at least through the end of the year.

This is a very enjoyable experience and I recommend it for everyone. My only drawback is that I am not getting to my devotional every single day as I had hoped. I'm still around 10-12 days behind on the year. Still I'm getting something out of each of the psalms when I use the commentary as well. Otherwise some of the psalms wouldn't leap out at me as well.

Coming up: 1 Corinthians, Mark, 1 Samuel, Jeremiah and Exodus. Good stuff all the way around.

Psalm 50

2006-03-04T19:17:00.000-05:00

This psalm begins with three names for God back to back to back. El, Elohim and Yahweh come together to provide an overarching look at God. It reminds me of the Rocky movies where champion Apollo Creed was being introduced with nickname after nickname, inspiring Rocky to say to his trainer, "He's sure got a lot of names, huh?"

Boice quotes Alexander Maclaren who says, "El speaks of God as mighty; Elohim, as the object of religious fear; Jehovah [Yahweh], as the self-existent and covenant God." This gives a better idea of who it is who is summoning all of His people together. The first six verses are written in the style of Moses ascending the mountain to meet with the Lord.

When God speaks out it is to His people -- those who call themselves by His name. The first group (verses 7-15) are the people who are simply going through the motions. Empty ritual is their habit. Their actions are like they are doing God a favor by offering sacrifices to Him. God's words are harsh. He has no need of sacrifice. The ritualism is for them, not for Him. They are to bring God their thankfulness and their honor, as seen in verses 14 and 15.

Beginning at verse 16, we see those who are really not believers at all, but mere hypocrites. They think that they need not obey. Perhaps their thinking is that their offerings or church attendance is enough to earn them a heavenly reward so they can do what they want. In any case, God is not happy with their behavior. He calls them wicked. He recognized that they hate God's instructions. They have no hope. "I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue."

The psalm ends with a charge to honor God with our thank offerings. It's an attitude of the heart reflected in our actions which proves our belief in God.

Psalm 49

2006-03-04T18:50:00.002-05:00

You can't take it with you. The riches of this earth may impress many people, but as we see in verses 7 and 8 they are not enough to pay the redemption of another person. "The ransom for a life is costly -- no payment is ever enough." Amen to that.

This is a wisdom psalm. The wisdom comes from God, as the psalmist tells us in verse 4. God redeems us because we cannot do any redeeming. It is all about God's efforts and abilities which are far beyond our own.

Not only do we see the foolishness of trusting in earthly wealth, as is taught all over Scripture, but we also see that we cannot escape death. Even the rich move to the tomb and leave their life's wealth to others. Without understanding and for that matter knowing God, man is no better than roadkill. Trusting oneself is worthless. That condition is elaborated in verses 12-14. But the great contrast is verse 15: "But God will redeem my soul from the grave; He will surely take me to Himself."

Judges 17-21

2006-03-04T18:50:00.001-05:00

The most telling verse of Judges is repeated at 17:6... "In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as he saw fit." It was always those times where everyone did as they saw fit that the Israelites got into the most trouble.

After Samson's death, we are introduced to a man named Micah who has apparently taken about 28 pounds of silver from his mother, then returned it. His mother decided to give it to God, yet her idea is to make an idol. That idol is cast and set up in Micah's house. A "young" Levite from Bethlehem enters the scene. As a aside, it's amazing how many times the little town of Bethlehem is mentioned in the Old Testament. In any case, the Levite is looking for a place to stay and Micah invites him to live with him and act as his personal priest for the idol god in his house.

I'm not sure why the Danites are still looking for land as an inheritance at this point in history. Perhaps they did not run out the Canaanites from their alloted portion and the Danites were themselves cast out.

The scouting party from Dan discovered Micah's stash when they recognized the voice of the young Levite. After scouting Laish, they organized their battle party of 60 warriors and went for the attack on unsuspecting Laish. On the way they stopped and took Micah's idols, ephod and even the Levite to serve as Dan's priest. Micah was outnumbered and gave up after a brief chase. The Danites continued and destroyed Laish and took the territory. They rebuilt the city and called it Dan and set up the Levite and his family as the tribal priests until the time of the captivity, which I would assume to mean the known captivity of Israel and not some smaller event, although I have no proof of that being the case.

The final three chapters of Judges is about as ugly as the Bible gets. Chapter 19 begins with a Levite and his concubine (interestingly not his wife). The woman was from Bethlehem, but the Levite lived in a remote part of Ephraim. The woman was unfaithful and eventually ran back to her father's home. Four months later, the Levite went to Bethlehem to bring her back.

For some reason, the father-in-law keeps stalling the Levite -- probably so that his daughter would remain with him a bit longer. Finally the Levite tires of the games and leaves, headed for home. He avoids stopping in what is now Jerusalem because the city is filled with foreigners, opting instead to walk as far as Gibeah where he, his concubine and his servant set up camp on the town square.

From here, the story of Lot in Sodom is eerily similar. A man from the Levite's home area comes and invites the travelers home with him for the night. Then a pack of evil men come around in some kind of sex-crazed frenzy and call for the man to send out the traveler to rape. As Lot had done, the man offered his virgin daughter as a substitute along with the man's concubine. Apparently there was no way to get this gang away from the house.

Finally the Levite sent his concubine out to the deviates and they brutally rape her until morning. She collapses trying to get back into the house. Her husband trips over her that next morning, picks her up, loads her on the donkey and takes her home with him. The text doesn't explain when she dies, but she must have been dead by the time he arrived home. He then cuts her body into 12 pieces and has the pieces sent to all the tribes, apparently to summon them to Mizpah for justice.

The other tribes go to war with Benjamin, although it takes the third bloody attack to finally rout them. The final battle for Gibeah sounds much like a battle back in Joshua with the same ambush ruse used. Six thousand Benjamites escape, but the rest are killed. As the result of a vow made during the assembly at Mizpah, the other tribes will not give the survivors wives, even though peace is finally made. Trying to give descendants to the Benjamite survivors becomes first priority. First, the virgins of Jabesh Gilead are taken because the men of that town had neglected to attend the assembly at Mizpah. All others in Jabesh Gilead were killed. They were still a good two thousand women short, so they instructed the remaining Benjamites to essentially kidnap some of the girls from Shiloh. This was done to skirt the vow made -- their fathers would not be "giving" their daughters, and thus no curse would come upon them.

I wonder about this whole debacle. The concept of justice seems quite odd. Of course no one is really any too innocent in all this. The concubine who was raped until she died was an unfaithful spouse who ran away from her husband. The Benjamites refused to turn over the offenders or give any justice to the Levite. Jabesh Gilead refused to take part in the battlefield justice. The whole passage is a mishmash of stubbornness and violence. God saw fit to punish the Benjamites for acting like the people of Sodom, yet he did not wipe the tribe off the face of the earth. One nagging thought is why the men of Benjamin were allowed to win two days worth of battles, killing thousands of Israelite warriors if God was fighting against them ultimately? What was the rest of the tribes supposed to learn from all of that?

Perhaps the biggest lesson is found in the repeated final verse of Judges. "In those days Israel had no king' everyone did as he saw fit."

Psalm 48

2006-03-04T18:50:00.000-05:00

This psalm sings the praises of God by singing the praises of His holy city, Jerusalem. After all, it is God whose presence makes the city holy. He has shown Himself in the might of Jerusalem. In verses 12 and 13, the hearer is told to walk the city and take a look at the signs of it's greatness -- it's bulwarks and ramparts. Every landmark is a reminder of God's power and strength.

The people have heard the stories of God's deliverance and according to verse eight, they have now seen it with their own eyes. We believe by faith, but it is incredible to see the wonders ourselves. The military victory spoken of in verses 4-7 is a mystery, although it could easily be the same victory as has been spoken of in Psalms 46 and 47. Just a look at the incredible nature of Jerusalem has turned them away in terror, as if God has allowed the enemy to see His mighty army ready for battle.

This God has been Israel's guide and will be forever. He is our guide also.

Matthew 23-25

2006-03-01T00:04:00.000-05:00

The woes of chapter 23 begin with an admission that the Pharisees still held authority over the people and that the people should obey them -- what they say, not what they do, of course. Their quest is for honor and respect, yet they will be humbled, as will all who exalt themselves.

The woes are for:
1) Keeping everyone out of heaven, not just themselves.
2) Corrupting those they convert to God.
3) By the method of swearing, they make the earthly more important than the eternal.
4) Ignoring the point of the Law and getting sidetracked on tiny matters.
5) Emphasizing outward appearances instead of a cleasing of the heart.
6) Hypocrisy -- appearing clean on the outside, but wicked on the inside.
7) Supposing innocence of the murder of God's prophets before.

The words of Jesus rain down like acid. He condemns the Pharisees and the people of "this generation" (23:36). That generation would see the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple which was their pride and joy. Jesus' final words in the chapter is a warning that Jerusalem will not be able to call on Him until they acknowledge Jesus' Messiahship. At that, Jesus walked away.

In chapter 24 Jesus gives us the Olivet Discourse based upon the disciples asking him three things:
a) "When will this happen?" (The stones of the temple being thrown down.)
b) "What will be the sign of your coming?"
c) "What will be the sign of the end of the age?"

All kinds of scholars have taken all kinds of directions from this jumping off point. Some claim that these things are three different occasions, while others claim that two are the same. My inclination is to say that (a) happened at A.D.70 with the destruction of the temple (most would agree) and that (c) is "the end of the world" as it has come to be known (most would agree here also). The bone of contention is (b). I have read convincing arguments that Jesus' coming on the clouds is judgment language which could make His coming at the same time as (a). The problem lies in determining if Jesus answers questions about His "coming on the clouds" or about His physical return.

The fulfillment of 24:14 with the Gospel being preached in the whole world could mean "all the known world" and if it does, all parts of the world known in Jesus' day have had the Gospel preached there, and have had for a long time.

The abomination that causes desolation of 24:15 is linked to the defilement of the temple just before it's destruction in A.D. 70. This need not be a future event. It seems the language blends from talking about (a) to (c) somewhere in the middle of chapter 24, yet when we reach 24:34 we see the sticking point to determining the meaning of the prophecy. "This generation" will not all have passed away until "all these things have happened." Frankly, there is no other way to interpret the text up until 24:34 except to mark it down as fulfilled almost 2000 years ago. That causes us problems because we don't know how to view "all the earth" mourning, and sending angels "with a loud trumpet call" and gathering "his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to another."

The warnings of one being taken while one is left behind seems to refer to the gathering of the elect in context. But can it refer to those who are taken for punishment? It would seem not, as those of us on earth are to rise first after the bodies of our deceased brethren. Whatever the interpretation, we are to be ready. Punishment awaits those who do not persevere.

Parables of judgment follow in chapter 25. The Parable of the Ten Virgins again calls us to be ready for the Lord's return. Coming to Him too late is not allowed. Those who preach a second chance during a tribulation period ignore this warning. The Parable of the Talents warns us not simply to wait by doing nothing, but to do the Lord's work while we await His return. Being ready is not just being available -- it is preparing oneself. Again the punishment is being cast out to a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Finally, we are to be ready, to use what we have been given, then as illustrated in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, we are to take care of those around us. Failure to do so means that we don't really know Him. This time the punishment is clarified to say "eternal punishment" and the reward is "eternal life".

Matthew 26-28

2006-03-01T00:02:00.001-05:00

Beginning with Jesus' statement in 26:2 the events begin to unfold. The words, "As you know..." seem so strange because it seems that the twelve really hadn't figured it out yet, despite clear message given by the Lord. The chief priests, meanwhile, wanted Jesus out of the way quietly.

The anointing at Bethany again brings Jesus to remind the disciples of His upcoming death -- prepared for burial.

I wonder what it was that gave Judas the idea to betray Jesus. What set him off? Was it the anointing? How did he know the priests would pay? What did he want the money for? A getaway?

How did the disciples miss Jesus clearly identifying His betrayer in 26:25? What was going through Judas' mind at that point? If Satan entered into him when he left the upper room, what pushed him toward the door?

Did the disciples understand the meaning of the bread and the cup?

What hymn did they sing before dismissing?

At 26:32 Jesus has already told the twelve about His plans after the Resurrection. Did they miss this part too? Or just so overcome they didn't know what to think? Jesus has been speaking in parables for so long, they seemed to miss the obvious answers.

Noting that in 26:35 it wasn't just Peter who vowed to die defending Jesus. Most did, just not that night.

Peter, James and John came with Jesus. "The sons of Zebedee" is the phrase used. It reminds me of their mother coming to Jesus asking for prime thrones and Jesus asking them if they can drink of His cup. (20:20).

Sorrow to the point of death. Quite an emotional concept. I think I've been there, although not for the same reasons. I've felt near death from sorrow. Jesus knew death was coming. Was His sorrow for His life, for the eleven who remained, for the suffering to come, for those who still denied Him???

In 26:41, I wonder which specific temptation Jesus wanted the three to avoid. He woke them once, then let them sleep until the arresting party was spotted.

I wonder why a signal was needed. Shouldn't the guards have known which one Jesus was?

Matthew mentions Peter's swordplay and Jesus' rebuke, Jesus' acknowledgment that He could be protected by angels if He wished, and His taunting of the crowd about their swords and clubs. He also mentions that the eleven all fled just twenty or so verses after he reported that they all vowed to die protecting Him. No mention of Jesus' healing the servant.

At the Sanhedrin trial, the false witnesses can't get their story straight. Even the "credible" witnesses are answered with silence from the Master. The only thing Jesus answers is the question of His identity.

The passage of Peter's denial tells of two different women asking him, then a crowd of people identifying Peter by his Galillean accent. Peter's response gets more animated each time. The word "immediately" is found in 26:74. Peter's response and regret is also immediate.

Judas' change of heart was too late to change anything. Judas must have seen his role as more important than the priests did. His refusal to accept the money put the priests in an awkward situation. Finally they found their way out of it, only to unknowingly fulfill prophecy!

Before Pilate, Jesus answers one question -- again about His identity. This time it is the title, "King of the Jews" and not "the Christ, the Son of God." To the other charges Jesus says nothing. Pilate's way out of executing an innocent man was the prisoner release ploy. He knew the people would never ask for the notorious Barabbas over the innocent Jesus. He underestimated the chief priests. In the other Gospels we see more of the political strategy employed by the priests. Here we simply see a crowd who is easily swayed. Even the pleadings of Pilate's wife seem to do nothing for Pilate. He knows what he should do, but every attempt to do it is met with resistence. Finally he washes his hands of the whole affair and assigns responsibility for Jesus' death to the crowd of Jews, who gladly accept the guilt.

The soldiers had a little fun at Christ's expense before leading Him off to Calvary. These soldiers dealt in death. They loved their work. How little redeeming quality there had to be in their hearts. Until 27:54, there seems to be nothing there but evil, yet the earthquakes at Christ's death did seem to wake these men up.

After the soldiers had nailed up the prisoners and had gambled for Jesus' clothes, they sat down to watch the death. I never thought of these soldiers doing anything but standing and keeping watch -- military style. Instead, they sat down and watched the effects of their work.

Pictures of Golgotha have always left me with the impression that it stands alone outside of the city walls, but there were people passing by, obviously on a road. Jesus' shame was in full view of the public. Even the chief priests and elders come out to mock Jesus. I wonder why. Didn't they feel vindicated at the thought of Jesus on a cross? Did they have to come out to have the last word? Even the robbers insulted him. Well, at least one.

Three hours of darkness in the middle of the morning. If the time lines up as 9:00am to Noon, that is a bizarre time for darkness.

Jesus quotes Psalm 22 from the cross. The quote is from the beginning, but the psalm in total is a psalm of victory. Of course the bystanders completely misunderstand, thinking Jesus is calling for Elijah. Vultures, mocking the dying.

Jesus died after a "cry out." The curtain in the temple is torn top to bottom. The earth shakes. Tombs break open and dead people are revived. Not just any dead people, but dead holy people. I wish we knew more about that.

The women watched His death and watched Joseph wrap the body and place it in his new tomb. On Saturday -- the Sabbath -- the priests were still worried about Jesus and the disciples that they went back to Pilate. The stone was sealed and a squad was stationed to guard the tomb.

The angel rolled back the stone and sat on it. The guards passed out cold from fright. Yet Jesus was gone. The text makes it hard to determine if the women were there when the stone was rolled away. I would assume not, although Jesus could have left the area without the women spotting Him. He could walk through walls, after all.

The angel's instruction is to tell the disciples to go to Galilee to meet up with Jesus, just as Jesus told them would happen back in 26:2. Jesus intercepts the women on their way back, again telling them to tell the eleven to meet Him in Galilee.

The bribes to the guards are given and the cover story is invented -- the same story that the priests had feared the day before. The thought of a Roman guard sleeping on the job, then being allowed to live is laughable.

Finally at 28:16, the disciples and Jesus meet back in Galilee, as expected. Much of the detail given in the other Gospels is missing here. Matthew's focus is on the Great Commission given to the disciples. It is a two-part commission: to make disciples by baptizing them and teaching them.

Psalm 47

2006-03-01T00:02:00.000-05:00

Another psalm recounting God's awesome power, but this time He is not simply recognized as Israel's King, but also as the King over all the earth. God is not some regional or national deity. I am reminded of Paul at Mars Hill, telling the people that the "unknown god" is actually the God of all.

The psalmist begins by showing us the King of the earth, moving back to remind us that this King is the God of Israel, then looking forward to a time when all nations will assemble before Him. God subdued the nations under Moses and Joshua. God chose the inheritance of the Israelites -- the Promised Land and the Promise itself. And someday He will be treated as King by all.

Psalm 46

2006-02-27T19:09:00.001-05:00

Ah, the power and majesty of God! This was the inspiration for Martin Luther's classic hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is our God" and it inspired Luther through the dark days of the Reformation. It is the musical telling of Satan not being able to overthrow the Church. God and His power would not allow it. God alone is our refuge. He is the stronghold which protects us and He is the source of inner strength as well. God prevents harm from us, and when He allows it, He is the One to see us through it.

While the first stanza stresses God as our refuge, at verse 4 we see the picture of Jerusalem under attack, yet the supply of fresh water (the river whose streams make glad the city of God) flows in toward the Temple (the holy place). Even in time of calamity, God is providing what is needed.

Boice agrees with most that this psalm was written about Sennacherib's assault on Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah. Yet the situation really matters not, especially in the third stanza where we see that God will have His way on the earth, despite the wars of man. He will not negotiate peace, He will proclaim it as a conquerer.

The call to "be still, and know that I am God" is really not a call for us to contemplate who God is and wait for Him to act. Instead it calls us to accept what God has already proclaimed. Be still. Shut up. He is God. I am not.

The chorus of verses 7 and 11 emphasize that God is the Lord Almighty. It is He who is the power. We also see that God is the God of Jacob -- the deceiver who took his whole life to finally trust in God fully. He is our God as well.

Genesis 32-35

2006-02-27T19:09:00.000-05:00

Jacob now departs as well, headed for a meeting with Esau. Jacob is scared to death of the brother he had cheated and prepares to "soften him up" a bit with a stream of gifts. Interesting that in his prayer of 32:11-12, Jacob feared for not only himself, but for the mothers and children also. Yet Jacob remembers the promise God made to him. in 32:10, he remembers how much more he has than the last time he made this trip, some twenty years earlier.

The night before the big meeting, Jacob wrestles with "a man" who is later known to be God. Jacob wants to know the wrestler's name -- it is to be a hollow victory for Jacob if he could find out his opponent's name. Instead, Jacob receives a new name, Israel. Instead of being "the deceiver", he is to be known as the one who "wrestles with God". It is interesting how the narrator uses this new name sparingly for Jacob. After all, his old instincts as a deceiver continue to play out in his life.

Jacob now has a limp because of a damaged hip tendon. I wonder the significance of God doing this. The Jews saw something almost deserving of respect for this tendon in other animals as well... another weird reaction.

By chapter 33, Jacob sees Esau coming, so he divided up the family into groups with the most expendible put in the most vulnerable position. The concubines and their children were placed first. Leah and her children were behind them, then Rachel and Joseph (Jacob's greatest treasures) as far away from harm as possible. But the preparations prove unnecessary as Esau comes in friendship, accepting Jacob's gifts only at his brother's insistence.

Jacob still is deceiving Esau as he sends him back home, promising to come. Instead Jacob travels to Succoth instead of to Seir. Eventually he settles near Shechem, where he buys a plot of ground.

The story of Dinah in chapter 34 is ugly no matter how you look at it. When Shechem violates Dinah, it is considered tanamount to rape by her brothers. The Bible is silent on Dinah's willingness in all of this, but that could be nothing. In any case, Shechem falls in love with the woman he has violated and now has his father try to broker a deal for her. The brothers take after Dad and trick the men of Shechem (the city) to be circumcised. While they are still sore from the procedure, Dinah's brothers exact their revenge by killing all the men in the town and plundering all that is left. Soon, God tells Jacob to go back to Bethel, and the family left for that place. According to 35:5, God prevented anyone from the surrounding towns to go after Jacob's family because of the whole affair with Dinah and Shechem.

Jacob's response to the brother's revenge is odd. His fear is for himself and his household, not for the honor of his daughter. His sons obviously disagree with Jacob's sentiments.

God appeared to Jacob again at Bethel in 35:9-12. He again pronounces the name change from Jacob to Israel and speaks the promise which was given to Abraham.

The death of Rachel in 35:19 also marked the birth of Jacob's last son. The boy Rachel had called Ben-Oni, meaning "son of my trouble", his father renamed Benjamin, or son of my right hand. A marker was set up to mark Rachel's grave on the road to Bethlehem. How horrible it must have been for Jacob to see his beloved die, especially in childbirth. The other women of the promise lived to old age, but Rachel would not.

Jacob is finally called Israel by the narrator in 35:21. Has Rachel's death changed the deceiver?

A strange story of Reuben sleeping with his father's concubine, assumedly either Zilpah or Bilhah, is mentioned in passing at 35:22. Jacob mentions it again at the time of his blessings to the family in 49:4.

Finally Isaac dies at the age of 180 and is buried by both Esau and Jacob. In the passage where Jacob steals his father's blessing, Isaac is portrayed as old and feeble (and indeed blind) at that time. Yet he lives at least another twenty years more -- probably many more years than 20.

Romans

2006-02-27T10:51:00.000-05:00

Chapter 1-2

Again, there is a whole host of things to deal with in this passage. However, I'm going to try to keep my observations limited to what really stood out for me this time through. Paul spends some time expressing his desire to visit Rome to preach the Gospel personally. It's amazing that a Christian community could grow and flourish in Rome with Ceasar claiming to be a god and everything. Just flying under the radar, I suppose.

Anyway we see God's wrath against the godlessness and wickedness -- not precisely against those who practice it. Of course it is because they have rejected God and God "let them go" (giving them over to a corrupt heart, a depraved mind and their sinful desires). I hadn't noticed before that there is no specific reference to atheism here. These people have "gods" of one sort of another. Images which look like people or birds or animals are mentioned specifically here, although at one point in Scripture Paul writes about the people whose "god is their stomach" so the idea of living like there is no God exists. Still it seemed that everyone had their own god. It could be argued that today's atheists have a god as well -- themselves.

Here also we have the condemnation of homosexuality which so many try to skip past or twist it's meaning. Perversion is how that "alternate lifestyle" is described. Any attempt to justify homosexuality must deal honestly with this passage.

Beginning with chapter two, Paul tears into people who are hypocritically judging others. They are not practicing what they preach. They overlook their own sins while denouncing the sins of others -- even when the sins are the same. Here we get the discussion of the Law written on our hearts. Conscience. That inner knowledge that what you're doing is wrong. This is where the Bible expressly talks about it, saying that even those who don't have the Law (or haven't heard about Jesus) still know right from wrong. How does this play out in terms of eternal judgment? Will a person who has never heard of Jesus go to heaven? Paul writes that they have a Law unto themselves, or that they are judged by a different standard. To those people who do not have the light of Christ is an inner leading which directs not only their morality, but also points them toward Christ. When a person truly seeks out more light than they have, more light will be given. I'm sure that the landing of missionaries all over the world has been physical answers to prayers of people seeking more light.

Finally Paul addresses the Jews who consider themselves special because of circumcision or their godly ancestor. Their hypocrisy, he writes, disgraces God. I think about all the people who run God's name through the mud because of the ridiculous public sins. Pat Robertson may be a committed Christian, but he really hurts the cause of Christ when he sticks his foot in his mouth
on a weekly basis!

But Paul says that circumcision is a sign that you accept the Law. Yet if you break the Law, cirucumcision means diddly-squat (loose translation). Faith is something inside which shows up on the outside. Thinking of faith as being an act of obedience, whethercircumcision or baptism or church attendance, is wrong. Christianity is based inside of us.

Chapter 3-4

Paul answers what is essetially a stupid question to head up chapter 3. "Should we sin more to show how much better God is than us?" No. We don't need to make God look good or faithful or sinless or forgiving or anything else we try to excuse our own behavior with. God is faithful. We are not. God is righteous. We are not. No one understands. No one seeks Him. And no one will be declared righteous by observing the law, as Paul points out. The law is there to show us that we are sinners in need of a Savior.

That's where Christ comes in. We all sin and fall short, but God presented Christ as our sacrifice of atonement, though faith. That fulfills justice. So we have nothing to brag about in salvation. Our justification has nothing to do with our observation of the law. Jew or Gentile.

Paul's discussion of Abraham being justified by faith is a beautiful description of how we are saved in the same manner as the father of the Israelites.

God calls things that are not as though they were. God's knowledge of the future is being discussed here, over the objection of the open theists.

Chapter 5-6

Romans always "reads better" when you can take a little time and go straight through Paul's argument. One section leans so heavily upon another. His style is familiar. The use of the argument which goes, "If this is so, how much more will there be if this is true also," is extensive, especially in chapter five. "Since we have now been justified by his blook, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!" If something terrible happens because of man, how much better it can be made with a perfect God. Jesus used the same style in His teachings as well. Much of the Adam/Jesus - Death/Alive passages are based on that rhetorical style.

It's hard not to stop at my favorite passages like 5:3-5 where we learn that suffering produces perseverance, character and hope which does not disappoint.

At 6:19, Paul writes that he's putting "this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves". I assume that means the examples he's using are geared especially for his audience.

The slavery to sin/slavery to Christ concept is something I don't think most people (myself included) really gets. Maybe because the idea of slavery is so abhorrant to us. We value our "freedom" way too much.

Chapter 7-8

Another important passage, but then there's not a lot of "dead wood" in Romans! Paul begins by explaining our freedom from the law by comparing us to a woman whose marriage vow lasts only until her husband passes away. So too, we are bound to the law only until we die to the law through the body of Christ. Those who claim the need for us to follow Hebrew law miss the point of this passage. The law makes us aware of our sin and drives us to a Savior.

Paul draws a line between slavery to sin and slavery to Christ. Slavery to sin a part of our sinful nature, yet spiritually we are slaves to Christ. Paul's wonderful discussion of "I don't do what I want..." in 7:14-28 gives hope to us! Well, to me anyway. This fight within continues although as Christians we are controlled by the Spirit. Yet the body still retains the sin nature. And we are obligated to the Spirit, not to sin. And although we deserve death, there is no condemnation for us if we are in Christ Jesus.

We are sons and daughters of God. Adoption. Heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. With the priviledges come the sufferings and we get to share it all. And as serious as the sufferings can be, all the greater are the rewards. One of the rewards is the intercession of the Spirit -- even when we cannot figure out how to pray.

Through it all, God works it all for our good. Somehow. Some way. We are called according to His purpose and we are to be like Him. Were we predestined individually or predestined because we were in Christ or both? Or neither. Who can know the mind of God? In any case, if God is for us, who can be against us? Can anything separate us from Christ's love? Not the physical troubles of 8:35, nor the spiritual of 8:38-39.

Chapter 9-10

What a way to follow up the first eight chapters! Paul discusses the sovereignty of God as it pertains to allowing Gentiles into the Kingdom of God. It is not because of physical decending that places people in the Kingdom, but upon God's choice. Most take this as an individual call, but it can also be read as a "class election" of sorts. God has called those who choose to trust in Christ for salvation. Many Jews chose not to believe and face the consequences. God chooses to uphold justice for all. The cornerstone has become a stumbling stone, and it remains so for so many to this day.

Calling on the name of the Lord is the "ticket" to salvation. It is a head AND heart thing -- Confess with your mouth (action), and believe in your heart (faith) for salvation. That Gospel must be given, not just to the Jews, but to the Gentile world as well.

Chapter 11-12

Romans 11 is an intimidating chapter because it is hard to understand Paul's reasoning. Is he saying that Israel is saved apart from Christ Jesus? Obviously not, based on other Scripture, yet verse 26 says that "all Israel will be saved." It appears that this is not a reference to spiritual Israel, since the context has Paul speaking of a hardening of Israel until the full number of Gentiles has come into the Kingdom. So something is still to be accomplished with Israel -- a mass turning to Jesus?

Paul points out that not all Israel is hardened, since he, for one, is a Christian. There have been other Jewish converts to Christ over the years as well. God hardens who He wants to harden. Yet there appears to be a choice for Jews today, just as there is a choice for Gentiles. And since a Jew has the Old Testament background, as it were, to the faith, re-grafting them into the Kingdom is relatively easy according to Paul.

The doxology of 11:33-36 is breathtaking, frustrating, awe-inspiring and humbling all at the same time.

Romans 12 is a masterpiece of application of Paul's first eleven chapters. Beginning with the first two verses, Paul exhorts the follower of Christ to live out the doctrines preached by the Master. Offering our bodies as living sacrifices is an incredible visual image of what taking up our cross is like. And with God's mercy as the reason, why shouldn't we offer Him everything? Our worship is the offering of our very selves, and when we do so, we won't be made in the image of the world, but we will be transformed. Our minds will be different. We won't think like the world thinks. Why are we so surprised when the world has different priorities than Christians? Why are we shocked when the world rejects and mocks the Church?

Perhaps the reason lies in verse three, where we are told not to think too highly of ourselves. It is far too easy to go from "forgiven" to "superior" in our minds. We can reject the renewal of our minds and try to crawl down in the gutter with the world once again; communicating on their level.

When we are transformed, we seek to serve Him. We look for ways to use the gifts given us. We search for ways to express our love for Christ and for others. And we don't try to live in conflict with others. We seek peace when possible. Evil is overcome with good. How hard that is to practice!

Chapter 13-14

God sets up the governments. We assume the bad ones are included as well as the good ones. However, 13:1-7 is written to almost endorse the governing officials. We must take that principle and apply it even to the bad governments. It's hard to understand God setting up Hitler or Hussein, but He can use all these situations for His own glory.

Our debt to one another is to love one another. This is the fulfillment of the Law. This is how Jesus fulfilled the Law -- by love... perfect love. And now is the time for us to show that love, as the time before we leave this earth is getting closer by the day. So to show love, our behavior should be decent. The list of sins of 13:13 are selfish sins (as most sins are). Sex and booze, fighting and jealousy. That's not how we are to be. That is self-gratification.

Chapter 14 is a plea for the infighting to stop among the Romans. This call for unity (or at least a lack of divisiveness) is rooted in the debateable issues arguments. Chiefly is the issue of food. Some Jews would have insisted on a kosher diet, while others would remember not only Peter's vision, but also the words of Jesus that food doesn't make a person unclean.

Still we are not to flaunt our understanding -- EVEN IF WE ARE CORRECT! That's a tall order for us. Paul teaches that dietary restrictions are not binding, but above all we are not to try to force our understanding upon those who are convinced that we are wrong. Don't goad a man into trying a little ham. The issue of sabbath is mentioned in passing in 14:5.

The key is that whatever we do, we are to do it to the Lord. If we abstain from meat, we are to do it as a sign of our love for God. If we worship on Tuesday, it is to be a sign of our love for God. In 14:22, Paul even tells us to keep our beliefs to ourselves on these subjects! How much does that go against the grain!

Chapter 15-16

Chapter 15 begins with the application of the teaching of bearing with one another's weaknesses. We are to look to build up our neighbor. A nice summary of the purpose of Scripture is given at 15:4. "For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." The Bible is to give us hope. And we are to be unified in this hope. Jew or Gentile. Man or woman. Accepting one another brings praise to God.

Paul recounts his use as minister to the Gentiles beginning with 15:14. Paul has desired to be the trail-blazer, bringing Christ to places where no one has yet heard. Because of that desire, he has not been able to come to Rome. But he hopes to change that by stopping off in Rome on his way to Spain. We know today that Paul never made it to Spain, but that desire is impressive. However, Paul still has a trip back to Jerusalem to make, and trouble will surely find him there. But Paul's love for the people of the Roman church is apparent from this passage in chapter 15, as well as the lengthy list of greetings in chapter 16.

Paul asks for specific prayers that he may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that his service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the church there. I often think of Paul as a free spirit guided by the Holy Spirit, but Paul was a working part of the Church. He held the elders in Jerusalem with high regard.

Many of the names of chapter 16 are strange to us. Priscilla and Aquila have settled in Rome, though -- reason enough for their old student to want to come see Rome.

Paul's final warning is against devisive people within the church, twisting doctrines and setting up a legalistic system. That temptation to draw attention to onesself by uniquely interpreting the Gospel has not died with the Apostolic age.

Romans 15-16

2006-02-27T10:38:00.000-05:00

Chapter 15 begins with the application of the teaching of bearing with one another's weaknesses. We are to look to build up our neighbor. A nice summary of the purpose of Scripture is given at 15:4. "For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." The Bible is to give us hope. And we are to be unified in this hope. Jew or Gentile. Man or woman. Accepting one another brings praise to God.

Paul recounts his use as minister to the Gentiles beginning with 15:14. Paul has desired to be the trail-blazer, bringing Christ to places where no one has yet heard. Because of that desire, he has not been able to come to Rome. But he hopes to change that by stopping off in Rome on his way to Spain. We know today that Paul never made it to Spain, but that desire is impressive. However, Paul still has a trip back to Jerusalem to make, and trouble will surely find him there. But Paul's love for the people of the Roman church is apparent from this passage in chapter 15, as well as the lengthy list of greetings in chapter 16.

Paul asks for specific prayers that he may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that his service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the church there. I often think of Paul as a free spirit guided by the Holy Spirit, but Paul was a working part of the Church. He held the elders in Jerusalem with high regard.

Many of the names of chapter 16 are strange to us. Priscilla and Aquila have settled in Rome, though -- reason enough for their old student to want to come see Rome.

Paul's final warning is against devisive people within the church, twisting doctrines and setting up a legalistic system. That temptation to draw attention to onesself by uniquely interpreting the Gospel has not died with the Apostolic age.

Psalm 45

2006-02-27T10:30:00.000-05:00

A wedding song. How out of place this looks at first glance! Yet the psalm tells the story of Messiah dressed as the bridegroom, coming for His bride. Without that realization, Psalm 45 makes no sense. Even with that realization it is sometimes hard to follow the storyline. It helps to know that the wedding celebration of ancient times began with the groom leaving his own house and parading to his bride's home, bringing her out, then parading back to the groom's home where the weeklong party would take place. Psalm 45 is written almost in play-by-play fashion.

After a verse of introduction, the narrator addresses the groom -- the most excellent of men, blessed by God forever. The description in verse 4 is of one riding "in behalf of truth, humility and righteousness." What a great summary of the Christian life.

The attention turns to the bride in verse 10, with words of advice for her. She is brought out to meet her betrothed for the return trip. The final two verses concern the legacy of the groom -- "the nations will praise you for ever and ever."

No one knows for whom the psalm was written originally. The psalmist certainly didn't understand all the parallels within the text. The adjectives seem to speak of Solomon, with all the mentions of riches and splendor, but we don't know for sure. However the allusions to Christ are much easier to spot from our position on this side of the cross.

Matthew 20-22

2006-02-24T08:30:00.000-05:00

Jesus tells a parable at the outset of chapter 20 - The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. Even the workers who were still standing around an hour before quitting time were paid for a day's work. Rather hard for us to conceive of a convicted murderer's deathbed confession and repentance allowing him entrance to the same reward I am awaiting, but then again I was one of the first few workers. Who am I to complain? I'm going to heaven! What a great parable for the longtime, crusty family of God member! The first will be last and the last will be first.

In 20:17-19, Jesus clearly lines out what will be happening in the next few weeks. Here, Matthew gives no reaction from the disciples. Likely it was like the other accounts we have -- disbelief and even telling Jesus not to talk like that. It's easy for us to see with 20/20 hindsight, but it's still tough to figure out how the twelve missed this.

Matthew gives us the fullest accounting of the request of James and John for the best seats in heaven. They sent their mother? Why would mom get involved? Was it her idea or did the boys put her up to it? We're not told. Elsewhere we are just told that James and John were asking and we don't hear about the intermediary. It is extremely difficult to overcome pride. In his later days, I'm sure John had to work to keep it down. We love to think of ourselves as important.

Jesus' answer must have sounded confusing to the Zebedee family. The boys had exlaimed their willingness to drink the cup, but Jesus told them that drinking the cup wouldn't put them in the choice thrones. That Someone else was putting out the placecards was odd enough for them.

The other ten were understandably upset with James and John. Finally Jesus has to lecture them about the proper way to "become great." Knowing that it was a completely upside-down teaching for the disciples (and the rest of us) Jesus used Himself as an example -- the ultimate servant. Why we revert back to seeking fame and fortune the world's way instead of Jesus' way is to be blamed on our own reliance upon our sinful nature.

The two beggars near Jericho would not quit yelling for mercy, even when the crowd tried to shut them up. Jesus had compassion on them. He asked them what they wanted Him to do for them. I wonder if they had thought up any other answers to that question.

Palm Sunday arrives at the beginning of chapter 21. The disciples are sent for donkeys and Jesus makes His entrance on the "kingly" donkey's colt. A crowd is in front of Him and another crowd comes behind Him. I've heard so many opinions on what this procession actually looked like. In a huge city like Jerusalem, swollen with people for the Passover, how many would have noticed His entrance? I'm guessing a very small percentage.

He heads for the temple -- not His first trip there, so He knows what happens at the temple -- and cleanses the place, quoting the Psalms as He does. He is not arrested. The only time He encounters the authority figures, they are mad over the shouts of praise from the children! There seems to be no outrage in Matthew's account of the priests and scribes from Jesus' table-flipping activities. After things settle down, and Jesus is through healing those who were there, He goes back to Bethany for the night.

The account of the fig tree seems a bit out of character for Jesus. I've always wondered about this one. Was it Jesus being tired and stressed out? Was there a teaching moment in cursing a tree without fruit? It eventually became an opportunity for Jesus to teach the twelve about the power of prayer and the need for faith. The point is not so we can throw mountains around or kill off fig trees. Instead we are to do greater works -- change hearts. Anything we ask in prayer must be in line with God's will to be answered. If we are asking for something God doesn't want, it will not happen. Jesus is not giving us carte blanche to do anything, but to line up our own will with His.

The questioning begins anew in 21:23 with Jesus coming back to the temple courts. The first trick question Jesus deflects with a typical rhetorical construct of the day. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine." To the chief priests, Jesus' question was a bit trickier than theirs. The priests feared the people above all. They could not afford an uprising, especially at Passover. Common thought among the people about John the Baptist was that he was a prophet, yet the priests rejected him. That put the whole subject of John the Baptist on the dangerous list. Jesus pushed the issue and the priests backed down.

Then Jesus goes further. The Parable of the Two Sons is aimed at those who reject Jesus and the Parable of the Tenants is even more pointed. The lesson of the fruit tree is repeated here, this time pertaining to the establishment religiosity -- the chief priests and Pharisees. They knew it and conspired to find a time for an arrest, but they had to beware the people.

The parables continue into chapter 22. "For many are invited, but few are chosen." Same idea.

The Pharisees and Saducees play tag-team offering trick questions designed to turn the crowd against Jesus. The logical place to begin is something the people hold as a hot-button issue - paying taxes to Rome. Then the Sadducees pose a question to try to show the correctness of their position (saying there is no resurrection) and the ridiculousness of other teachings. Jesus isn't confused, but turns the conversation and accusation back on the Sadducees. "You don't know the Scriptures or the power of God." That claim is true for many people today as well.

The Pharisees try again and Jesus fires back with the Greatest Commandment, with which the Pharisees cannot logically argue. Jesus wraps up the entire Old Testament application into three verses. Finally he tweaks the Pharisees by showing from the Psalter about who the Son of David really was supposed to be.

And from that day on, no one dared to ask Him any more questions.

Indeed.

Psalm 44

2006-02-23T10:26:00.000-05:00

Now here we have an honest psalm which should resonate with most everyone. Boice compares it to Romans 8, but I kept thinking about Job as I read it. Here we have a time when it seems like God is sleeping, or not paying any attention. Of course we know that's not true, but we naturally wonder when all seems to be going wrong.

The psalm begins with a recounting of all that God has done for Israel. The first three verses detail the victories of long ago, followed by the recent victories. The psalmist gives God full credit for these victories. Israel knows that it wasn't their own power which allowed them to conquer everyone from the Egyptian captors to the native Canaanites.

But by verse 9, we see a problem. The battles are not going Israel's way. They are being defeated. They are retreating. Other nations are mocking them and their God. And at verse 17 we see that this isn't the typical Israelite defeat. We're so used to God giving them the victory if they are obedient and defeating them when they turn away (which happens quite often). But here the psalmist claims they haven't turned away. And at verse 21 he claims that if they had deserted God, that God would have discovered it -- not just that God would know, but that He would have informed the Israelites in no uncertain terms.

"Awake, O Lord!" is the psalmist's call of verse 23. It seems like God nodded off and in the meantime, Israel was being defeated. It wasn't making sense. It makes no more sense to us today when "bad things happen to good (or God's) people." It would be easy for us if the good always prospered and the evil always failed. But that's not God's way. He rewards the good in ways that we don't always see. Maybe that we don't often see -- especially when viewed from the outside.

The psalm doesn't really provide an answer for what is going on in Israel. That's probably because the psalmist doesn't know what is happening. The situation remains terribly confusing. But the final verse gives us our way through the pain and difficulties. "Redeem us because of Your unfailing love." God's love for us doesn't ever end. He has not forgotten. As Longfellow put it in I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep." His love goes on forever. And that is where our hope lies.

Psalm 42-43

2006-02-22T14:12:00.000-05:00

It is hard to separate these two psalms, as they have the same theme and seem to share the same musical chorus. The refrain is found in 42:5, 42:11 and again at 43:5.
"Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God."

The theme is one of overcoming depression, or at least a time of being downcast.

At the outset, the psalmist, one of the Sons of Korah, is in need of feeling God's presence. The historical background could have been the exile, but that really isn't the important part. The psalmist is feeling separated from God -- an experience which most of us feel at one time or another. He needs God like a thirsty deer pants for water. The illustration is one of extreme need. It has caused a severe depression for the psalmist, remembering how things used
to be but cannot be now.

After the first chorus, the psalmist realizes that with a depressed soul, he should remember God. Certainly God has not left him. Yet by 42:9, the feelings of abandonment have returned. It has even caused physical pain. Then he sings the familiar refrain.

Psalm 43 begins with a prayer to God for rescue. He recaps his feelings, but at the same time asks for guidance and hope. Before the final chorus, the psalmist has resolved to go to God and to praise Him.

Is this an example of a man working his way out of spiritual depression? Possibly, but it may also simply be a roadmap for others trying to cope with such feelings.

Isaiah 40-44

2006-02-22T10:20:00.000-05:00

Finally, another familiar chapter of Isaiah as we come to chapter 40. And what a chpater it is! Comfort is coming for Israel in the person of Jesus Christ, but first comes the one preparing the way. Israel has paid for her sins -- double in fact. Now the herald is calling out that the deliverer is coming. Even though man is just a temporary life on earth, God's word doesn't die. It doesn't fade. Now is the time to see the Lord coming in power.

We go from the power of God in 40:10 to the tender, caring shepherd in 40:11, then into a description of the incredible God beginning again in 40:12. This passage is reminiscent of God's speech at the end of the book of Job. The nations are but nothing. Idols are a waste of gold and wood. God is beyond anything else imagined. His holiness is called to mind in 40:16, His majesty in 40:22, His power in 40:23-24. There is no one like our God.

Not only is He powerful, but He is our hope. Our strength is renewed in Him. So many people use 40:31 as their life verse, urging a constant faith and hope in the One who strengthens us.

At chpater 41 we see the power of God intimidating the idol worshipers of the islands. Although they encourage one another, the fight is in vain. God has come for His Israel. Poigniant is 41:10, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." This is the God who was
King David's strength and shield. This is the God who takes up Israel's cause.

The image of God creating water and shade in the desert for a hot and thirsty people dominates 41:17-20. The God who provides.

Next is a taunting of false gods in 41;21-24. The God who judges justly.

The Suffering Servant makes His entrance in chapter 42. He is not a conquering hero, but a quiet judge. He will destroy those who trust in idols, but will uplift those who call on Him. God has sent tragedy upon Israel for their sins were great. But in chapter 43 redemption comes and Israel is gathered together once again.

At 43:10b we have a statement of God's uniqueness, "Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me, I even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior." It is all plain to see.

Even as Israel is being gathered, we see the nature of God's mercy. He is a forgiving God, remembering sins no more. Israel did not earn mercy -- indeed one cannot earn mercy -- for the people have been sinful and unfaithful since day one.

Again in 44:6b we see that there is but one God and no other. This is a common theme throughout this section of Isaiah. We shall see more in coming chapters. Also in 44:8 we have another instance. The prophecy then turns to a discourse about the foolishness of idols. This has always seemed like the obvious argument to me -- you use half the wood for a fire and the other half you worship? Foolish. God is redeeming Israel and as chapter 44 is closing we see that Jerusalem will spring back to life as well as the Temple of the Lord.

Psalm 41

2006-02-21T12:03:00.000-05:00

David is again sick. It's a familiar theme in the past few psalms. So is his confidence that God will deliver him. In this psalm, he makes the case for mercy -- not because David thinks he deserves mercy (by definition, mercy is undeserved), but he asks for mercy anyway.

He begins by expanding upon what Jesus would later encapsulate into one of the Beatitudes. Blessed are those who show mercy, for they will be shown mercy. David knows that he has lived a life showing mercy to others. I think of the many times he could have killed King Saul who was pursuing him, but showed mercy instead. David has lived that kind of life. Still his call for mercy is not because he feels God owes him. He simply is asking for mercy.

David lays out his situation. Not only is his horribly sick, but people are waiting for, and hoping for his death. This "vile disease" (v. 8) is something which sickens both his body and his spirit. Yet his confidence remains. His close friend has deserted him. Friends come to call and go through all the niceties, but they leave spreading gossip of David's upcoming demise.

David's call to "repay them" in verse 10 should be seen as a king guarding the kingdom from traitors, rebels and revolutionaries rather than a simple revenge for treating David badly.

Once again, David has admitted that he is a sinner, but this sickness is not seen as divine punishment. It is simply something which the Lord will see him through.

It is God who upholds David in his integrity. If I want to live a life of integrity, I cannot do it alone. I need God's strength to life that kind of life. David admits this freely.

This psalm, and the first book of the Psalms, ends with an outburst of praise to God. Amen and Amen.

Judges 12-16

2006-02-20T15:52:00.003-05:00

One final episode with Jephthah begins chapter 12. The men of Ephraim became insulted that they weren't called into the fight with the Ammonites. For some reason they took great offense and threatened to burn down Jephthah's house with him in it. Jephthah claimed that he had called on Ephraim, but that they had ignored the call. The men of Gideon are called out to go to war against Ephraim. They surround Ephraim. Those who tried to escape were tested. For some reason, Ephraimites couldn't say "Sibboleth". We are not told if God orchestrated this test or if it was a matter of a regional accent. In any case Ephraim paid dearly for attacking Jephthah -- 42,000 Eprhaimites were killed.

After Jephthah came Ibzan with 30 sons with foreign wives and 30 daughters with foreign husbands (outside his own clan, that is). He led Israel for seven years. Next up was Elon's ten year reign. Then came Abdon for eight years. The text gives an interesting picture of Abdon's 40 sons and 30 grandsons who rode on 70 donkeys! When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey's colt, it was seen as a sign of a king. Still it doesn't seem too impressive a sight to see the leader and his 70 offspring riding donkeys!

At chapter 13's beginning, Abdon is gone and Israel has left God again. So they have been taken over by the Philistines for 40 years. Enter Manoah and his unnamed wife from Zorah of the Danites. His wife was sterile, but is promised a son by the angel of the Lord. He is to be a Nazirite -- set apart to God, with a set of rules to live by. When the wife tells Manoah about the angel of the Lord's visit, he prays to learn how to raise the boy. God had to be pleased with such a prayer.

The wife gets another visit and she calls Manoah in also. The Angel gives the requested instructions, although He doesn't mention anything about the boy's hair in the recorded text. Manoah wants the Angel's name, still unaware of the identity of their visitor. The sacrifice is offered in front of the Angel, and the Angel ascends to heaven in its flames. Manoah finally figures out who had been sitting with he and his wife! His reaction, like so many others, is fear of dying. His wife pointed out that they would be dead already if that were so.

The story of Samson itself is odd (as is much of Judges). God is apparently using Samson to torment the occupying Philistines, and Samson is not only gifted in strength, but also has the presence of the Holy Spirit at most times. However, he still seems to be acting out of pure selfishness. God is using this flaw in Samson to accomplish His purposes.

Samson's bride is picked from among the Philistines over his parents' objections. Still the marriage is made. The story of the lion, its carcass and the honey is interesting in that there is so much detail given which seems unnecessary to us. Certainly this was written by someone living within a different culture, but we would normally miss that Samson gave the honey to his parents without telling them he retrieved it from a carcass. That was unclean, and giving it to his parents made them ceremonially unclean. Things like that seem so out of place in this book.

Samson makes a bet, sure that he will win, by posing a riddle to his companions about the honey and the lion's carcass. Four days into the bet, the men go to Samson's bride to get her to get the answer. They threaten her father's household and his property if she refuses to help. So she starts to whine to Samson, "You don't really love me..." and such to try to wheedle the answer from him. Samson's interesting answer to her is that since he hasn't told his own parents the answer, he certainly isn't going to share it with her! He has put his wife "in her place" so to speak. Finally on the last day Samson gives in and tells her. She tells the men and they solve the riddle. Samson knows exactly what has happened, so he went to town, killed 30 men and took their possessions and gave them to the men as payment of the bet. Then he stormed back to his father's house. In the meantime, the father of the bride gives Samson's wife to his best man from the wedding.

When Samson goes to visit his wife again, he finds that she has been given to "his friend" and is offered his wife's sister instead. Samson instead wants revenge (as usual) and burns most everything which can be burned by starting fires with torches tied to foxes' tails. Nobody could invent this stuff!

The Philistines want re-revenge so they try to capture Samson from the men of Judah, who know where Samson is. Samson agrees to go with them, bound. Yet when the Philistine see Samson, they run at him, Samson breaks the ropes easily then picks up a donkey skull which is conveniently lying around and uses it to kill 1000 Philistines. He even sings a little song about it afterward. He is worn out and pathetically calls out to God for water, which is provided for him.

When we hit chapter 16, we find the Philistines still after Samson, almost catching him as he sleeps with a prostitute in Gaza. Still Samson gets away early, tears down the city gates and carries them to a hill outside of town. The Philistines were terribly intimidated by this man they couldn't figure out how to outsmart, and that they couldn't overpower.

Enter Delilah. Samson's weakness for manipulating women gets him in trouble again. His weakness for nagging shows up again as well. The Philistines need to find some way to neutralize Samson's strength, so they enlist Delilah to get at the truth. Delilah sounds much like Samson's wife from chapter 14 as she asks for Samson's secret. He gives her three wild goose chases, apparently hoping she'll tire of asking. Her accomplices who had been trying to overpower
the strong man had apparently given up, as Delilah had to reassure them that the fourth time was the charm.

One would think that Samson would have seen this coming after three attacks. He figured out what had happened with the riddle easily enough. Still he indulged Delilah. Why? Selfishness?

This is the first we see a mention of the reason for Samson's strength when he "tells her everything" in 16:17. Interesting that Samson wore his hair in seven braids. Seven is one of those "biblical numbers" so I wonder about the significance of the number. In any case, the braids are shaved and Samson is captured. His eyes are gouged out and he is shackled with the strongest stuff available -- bronze shackles. The proud warrior is made into an entertainer, to amuse the leaders of the Philistines.

At the last banquet, Samson delivers a show for the enemy. One wonders what kind of a performance he would put on if he was still thought to have lost his strength. Still the show brings the house down (pun intended). He loses his life in what Samson called an act of revenge on the Philistines for the loss of his eyes.

In all the dedication to the Lord and in all the ways that the Holy Spirit came upon him in power, Samson sure had precious little to say about God. His prayers were selfish in nature. His actions were the same. He appears as a spoiled brat -- an athlete who was never told "no". And he was the leader of Israel for 20 years. Of course, who was going to defeat him or tell him "no"?

Psalm 40

2006-02-20T15:52:00.002-05:00

From out of the slimy pit, David has been pulled by God. In a psalm foreshadowing Jeremiah's experience in a muddy cistern, David recalls his rescue by the Lord from a situation so deep he didn't think he would ever get out of. We don't know what situation that was, but there are many times when we find ourselves in a slimy pit where we don't think we'll ever emerge. Sometimes it's because of our own sins and bad habits. Sometimes it's the pit of depression. At other times it's a series of circumstances, not of our own doing, which have us seemingly trapped. But David's testimony is that God has pulled him out of this mucky pit and placed him on solid ground.

Beginning in verse 4, David expands upon the life of one who trusts in the Lord. We are to trust in Him, not to the proud and worldly. We can see what He has done and knowing that He does not change, we can expect more of the same. He opens our ears (as v. 6) and allows us not only to hear with our ears, but also with our heart. As such, our lives and our speech should conform. At verse 9, we see that the words God has put in our hearts should not be covered up or denied. What a testimony to proclaim to the world!

Yet as we hit verse 11, we see that even though David is out of the pit, the troubles are not gone forever. Neither is David's sinfulness. Still David is unashamed to call on the Lord to vindicate him and bring glory to Himself.

In spite of our poor and needy circumstances, we are always in the sight of God who is our help and our deliverer.

Genesis 28-31

2006-02-20T15:52:00.001-05:00

We resume Jacob's story as he is sent off to find a wife by his parents, although Rebekah's reason to send Jacob away is to save his life from his brother, Esau. Jacob is sent back to Laban, his uncle, to find a wife from his daughters. Of course Jacob winds up with two of Laban's daughters, but that comes later. Even Esau buys the story of looking for a "family" wife, as he takes another -- this one from the family of his relative Ishmael. On the tip to Paddan Aram, Jacob stops for the night and is given a vision of a staircase or ladder reaching from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. Then above it was the Lord, who affirmed the covenant with Abraham and designated it to Jacob, promising him to watch over him and bring him back to the land he is to inherit. Jacob thinks this is the gate of heaven itself and calls it Bethel -- house of God. He vows to make God his God since he has been promised safety and care. He also promises a tithe, although I have no idea how he is planning to offer this tithe to God.

When Jacob finally arrives in chapter 29, he is immediately taken with Rachel. Laban comes out to greet Jacob and welcomes him. After a month, Laban tells Jacob to stop working for free and to name his wages. Jacob then asks for Rachel in exchange for seven years' work. It seems like Laban is taking advantage of Jacob at this point, and probably is. He gets seven years worth of labor for his daughter. Meanwhile at the wedding feast, Daddy Laban pulls the old switcheroo and instead sneaks in the daughter with the "weak eyes" without Jacob's knowledge. How it was that Jacob didn't figure out it was the wrong sister until after a honeymoon night with her is mysterious. However there was some poetic justice in that Jacob was deceived just as Jacob had deceived his own father. Jacob could only be partly outraged. He had reaped as he had sown.

Leah was put in a no-win situation. She was immediately the unwanted wife. She was likely put up to it by her father. Had she not done so, she would have been shamed in Paddan Aram and wound up an old maid. But she was now married to a man who would take good care of her. And she had children -- six boys and a girl. However in the naming of the boys, Leah reveals that she is still seeking her husband's favor, which she never really gets.

A week after the first wedding comes the second and Jacob finally has his Rachel. The first seven years worked to get her seemed like only a few days. In 29:30 we are explicitly told that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. From his actions throughout his lifetime, it is obvious that Rachel is the ONE for him.

The fight over the children in chapter 30 seems so bizarre to a monogamous man like myself. Bartering for who gets to sleep with the husband is strange. So is the practice of giving a woman's maidservant to be her husband's concubine. In today's culture, that's almost instant divorce! But this is a blended family. Four birth mothers, two wives who are sisters to one another, two servants who have slept with the master, and children everywhere. Only Dinah is mentioned, but it seems that there are some unmentioned daughters in the household as well.
Eleven of the sons are there with only Benjamin yet to come as Rachel dies in childbirth in chapter 35.

After Jacob's fourteen years of service to Laban are up, Laban manipulates him into staying in Paddan Aram, as Laban has gotten richer with God blessing Jacob's efforts. So Jacob outfoxes the fox and through some mystery of animal breeding, builds his own flocks while Laban's power is diminished. Jacob found (or is told) a way to insure that flocks would have streaked, speckled or spotted offspring by using tree branches cut in a certain way. The stronger animals he would
breed to produce offspring for himself and the weaker animals would be bred to produce offspring for Laban. Jacob became rich and powerful and Laban and his servants were resentful.

In 31:3, God tells Jacob to get back home, so Jacob calls the wives to the fields and explains the situation. Here we see that Laban has been trying to get the best of the deal for years, but only Jacob knows the secrets. This is payback for Laban's dirty dealing. The more he tries to manipulate, the more he fails.

Jacob and family and their entourage while Laban is off shearing sheep. Rachel also, for some unknown reason, steals a "household idol" from her father. By the time Laban gets back home, Jacob and company have been gone for three days. Laban goes off in pursuit for seven days until he catches up to Jacob. But on the night before he met with the family, Laban was given a dream telling him to behave himself, essentially.

At the meeting, Laban pleaded for the folks to return. He complained that they sneaked off without notice and didn't allow him to kiss the kids or have a big sendoff party. Certainly Laban was lying about his intentions, as he would have never willingly let anybody get away. He had tried hard to get his sister, Rebekah, to not go with Isaac. In 31:29, Laban says that he has the power to harm Jacob but is only holding off because of his dream from God. But there is one thing Laban thinks he can be indignant about -- his missing "god". Jacob is sure no one stole it, not knowing that his beloved had done it -- and swears to kill anyone who took it.

Laban searches everywhere. Everywhere except the camel's saddle which Rachel was sitting on. Rachel had hidden the idol there and claimed not to be able to get up to let Laban search because she was on her period! It actually worked!

Now Jacob is tired of Laban's excuses and recounts all the injustices he has suffered at the hands of Laban. Laban still doesn't get it, calling the wives, the children and the flocks belonging to Jacob as "mine" in 31:43. However, he does get the fact that he is without any power and offers to draw up a covenant to keep the two families from hostilities. Jacob's oath is in the name of the
Fear (capitalized) of his father Isaac. Back in 31:42, Jacob referred to "the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac" as well. I need to do a word study on the Fear of Isaac.

The two families depart in peace concluding chapter 31.

Psalm 39

2006-02-20T15:52:00.000-05:00

David begins here by telling about his need to get something off his chest -- his own despair of a short life. He has tried to keep quiet about it around those who are God's enemies, but at last he must speak. When he bares his heart beginning in verse 4, he contemplates the brevity of life. "Each man's life is but a breath."

So what does a person do, realizing that he is only granted a little bit of time to walk the earth? His daily tasks are so meaningless in the grand scheme of things. What does one look for? David answers in verse 7, "My hope is in you." Is there a better summary?

He calls upon God to cleanse him, to take away the guilt and suffering for his sins. God is David's only hope.

The psalm's final verse is reminiscent of Job's cries, "Look away from me, that I may rejoice again before I depart and am no more." David, as Job did before him, wants God to take away the burden of punishment from him so he can have a little peace before he dies. David is sure this is the end for him, although it's just a feeling. The thought is that he cannot bear any more
suffering.

Job 15-20

2006-02-17T17:20:00.000-05:00

Eliphaz steps back to the plate to begin chapter 15. He again accuses Job of sin, in fact accusing him of admitting it. Eliphaz is repeating the wisdom of old, and claims that the elders agree with him. Indeed the Temanite is truly repeating the things he was taught growing up. However, he doesn't stop to consider whether or not they are true. He seems to confuse Job's plea of righteousness with the righteousness of God. While Job only confesses that he is not guilty of enough to warrant this punishment, Eliphaz assumes that Job is claiming to be perfect.

Eliphaz paints an interesting picture of the evil man who is constantly tormented by God and by all kinds of suffering. While it is true that everything for the evil man is not as well as he lets on, even the evil man is usually unaware of any torment going on until disaster actually does strike. He is not haunted by horrible sounds in his ears, as Eliphaz would have us think.

Job retorts in chapter 16, "Will your long-winded speeches never end?" I begin to wonder the same thing, realizing that we're not halfway through this book yet! But Job has tired of the argument. Even if he wins the argument, he is still in misery. He goes into detail how God is attacking him at every turn. Then in 16:19 Job cries,

"Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high, My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pout out tears to God; on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend."

In chapter 18, Bildad resumes the conversation. He also calls for an end to the long speeches, of which Job keeps lapsing into. Mostly it's because Job is not listening to (or agreeing with) their long-winded speeches! But again Job's condition is compared to the fabled condition of evil people of old. Since they were evil and suffered such a fate, then Job must also be evil.

At the start of Job's reply in 19:5-6, he continues a hypothetical that if the three friends were actually better than Job, then God has indeed wronged Job. It's an odd argument, which almost looks like Job is accusing God of wrongdoing (which we know isn't the case from God's speech at the end). He continues his lament of his condition detailing everything down to his bad breath in 19:17. It is interesting that intimate friends and family would turn away from a man
in such a desperate condition.

Finally, Job declares again of his Redeemer and that He will eventually triumph over all the earth. Job is looking forward to the time when he will see God face to face, assumedly to ask for an explanation of why this has happened to him.

When Zophar speaks again, he regurgitates (pun intended) the same tale of the evil eating up the property of others, but God not letting him enjoy if before making him vomit it back again. It's a different twist to the same argument each friend has been trying to make. They are making Job seem like an incredibly evil person, which just brings Job all the more further down in spirit.

Psalm 38

2006-02-16T10:22:00.000-05:00

Here we see a terribly sick David calling out for help to God. It sounds like Psalm 6 -- in fact the beginning sounds exactly like Psalm 6. Boice speculates that the two were written near the same time with Psalm 38 coming first because the end sees David continuing to wait while Psalm 6 ends with the assurance that God has heard his prayer.

The poem itself begins with a three-verse prayer, asking God not to punish out of anger, although God has every right to do so. We see admissions of guilt in verses 4 and 5, and it seems that God has pointed this out to David as the cause of his sickness. "My sinful folly," are David's words and those words ring true in many sinful situations in my own life. David describes his illness at length and turns a short prayer of petition toward heaven again in verse 9 before returning to the description of his physical state.

His is rejected by friends and enemies alike in this debilitated state, and lonliness kicks in. Another quick prayer at verse 15 emphasizes the theme: waiting upon the Lord. Boice speculates that Psalm 38 is placed after Psalm 37 because of the theme of waiting. The psalmist who tells us to wait in 37 is actually having to do the waiting in 38.

David again confesses his sin in verse 18 and concludes by asking for mercy. Certainly David knows he deserves any punishment which God wants to give. Still he asks for mercy.

Romans 13-14

2006-02-15T23:47:00.001-05:00

God sets up the governments. We assume the bad ones are included as well as the good ones. However, 13:1-7 is written to almost endorse the governing officials. We must take that principle and apply it even to the bad governments. It's hard to understand God setting up Hitler or Hussein, but He can use all these situations for His own glory.

Our debt to one another is to love one another. This is the fulfillment of the Law. This is how Jesus fulfilled the Law -- by love... perfect love. And now is the time for us to show that love, as the time before we leave this earth is getting closer by the day. So to show love, our behavior should be decent. The list of sins of 13:13 are selfish sins (as most sins are). Sex and booze, fighting and jealousy. That's not how we are to be. That is self-gratification.

Chapter 14 is a plea for the infighting to stop among the Romans. This call for unity (or at least a lack of divisiveness) is rooted in the debateable issues arguments. Chiefly is the issue of food. Some Jews would have insisted on a kosher diet, while others would remember not only Peter's vision, but also the words of Jesus that food doesn't make a person unclean.

Still we are not to flaunt our understanding -- EVEN IF WE ARE CORRECT! That's a tall order for us. Paul teaches that dietary restrictions are not binding, but above all we are not to try to force our understanding upon those who are convinced that we are wrong. Don't goad a man into trying a little ham. The issue of sabbath is mentioned in passing in 14:5.

The key is that whatever we do, we are to do it to the Lord. If we abstain from meat, we are to do it as a sign of our love for God. If we worship on Tuesday, it is to be a sign of our love for God. In 14:22, Paul even tells us to keep our beliefs to ourselves on these subjects! How much does that go against the grain!

Matthew 17-19

2006-02-15T23:47:00.000-05:00

Matthew's account of the Transfiguration includes another time when men heard God's voice from heaven. The voice terrified them here, as opposed to no real reaction being given at Jesus' baptism. I love the line in 17:8 that when they looked up, they saw no one but Jesus. Wouldn't that be so much easier if all we saw was Jesus? Instead we keep looking in the mirror, trying to satisfy that person.

The epileptic boy's demon could not be driven out by the twelve. "Except by prayer and fasting" it says in the notes. I'll note that Jesus didn't seem to pray or fast before exorcizing it. It was likely an ego check for the disciples who, according to Luke, had been so excited that they could order demons to come out of people. Jesus explains it as having such little faith. If they had the faith to drive out other demons, why did they suddenly lack faith? Was it because they lost sight of who was doing the exorcisms?

Matthew records Jesus telling the disciples reacting with grief upon hearing that Jesus would have to die and be raised to life.

The temple tax must have been a use tax to help pay the costs of the construction. Jesus paid for Himself and Peter. Apparently the other eleven had to come up with their own tax money.

The theme of becoming like a child to inherit the Kingdom begins chapter 18. The image of the child is an important one for us. Certainly we like to think of ourselves as adults, but God sees us as His children. The accompanying warning of not causing people to sin isn't talked about much. Peer pressure and the like are very real, especially in certain segments of society.

Jesus uses the expression "enter life" to signify our entrance into eternal life.

Matthew records the Parable of the Lost Sheep, but not the Lost Coin or the Lost Son from Luke 15. I wonder why.

Jesus gives us instructions to restore a sinful brother, but if these steps fail to win him back, it would seem He advocates a form of shunning. More research is needed as to how people usually treated pagans and tax collectors.

Binding and loosing must not be power of judgment or vengeance, as that would conflict with what we know God's job to be.

The "two or three gathered in My name" passage is set in the context of prayer among agreeing people. I am with those who come together in Christ. Assumedly this would mean that the prayer lines up with the One who is there with them.

Forgiveness must come from the heart. The number of times a person is forgiven is irrelevant. I for one am glad of that!

Jesus comes out in chpater 19 as being strictly against divorce. The disciples reaction in 19:10 is almost comical by our standards. It seems they saw no advantage to marriage if you can't just divorce a wife for any reason. Jesus affirms that the single life is better, but that no everyone can handle it. (I know I wouldn't be able to handle it!) Still the one who is gifted in this area should accept it. I know that I could do more for God's Kingdom as a single man -- in theory. Yet my personality and character makes me dependent upon my wife for mental and emotional health. Could God help me overcome that? I'm sure He could, but again it comes back to my own emotional strength.

Jesus' blessing of the little children is by placing His hands on them. I wonder what the exact posture was. Could it have been a simple embrace?

The rich young ruler comes calling at 19:16, although Matthew doesn't identify him as a ruler. The lesson again is one of idolatry. The young man didn't want to part with his money, and Jesus knew it, and called him on it. Again the disciples' reaction is comical. "If the rich can't be saved, then who can?!" Jesus rightfully points out the obvious problem of loyalty to self before loyalty to God when self has a lot of cash. The disciples point out that they have left all things to follow Jesus and ask what awaits them as a reward. Jesus tells them about their twelve thrones and the 100 times more than what each gave up. At 19:30 "many who are first..." specifies that not all, but many of the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Again, it is meant to be a general statement, not a blanket suggestion that all those suffering are righteous.

Psalm 37

2006-02-15T23:45:00.000-05:00

Boice calls this psalm the fullest exposition of Jesus' third Beatitude, "Blessed are the meek..." Indeed the first portion of Psalm 37 speaks of Depending upon the Lord. We are to delight in Him, trust in Him, commit our way to Him, and be still before Him among other things. Finally in verse 11 we read that "the meek will inherit the land," which would mean the nation of Israel, although in Jesus' vernacular the meek inherit the earth, which is much less nationalistic and more universal.

Memorable verses abound here. "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart," is verse 4. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him..." is the beginning of the seventh verse. David is laying out how our life is to be and those instructions are memorable.
However, the focus turns to the wicked by verse 12. God will not let them prosper. Especially when compared to the way of the righteous, the wicked are doomed. The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously. A person is either a giver or a taker. David leaves no doubt which we are to be.

In verse 25, David describes himself as old, meaning this would have been written late in his life. He has never seen the children of the righteous begging for bread, but others certainly have. Still God provides, even if it is through the gifts received through begging.

The generalizations of the wicked being cut off and the righteous being blessed are problematic unless you consider the difference between long-range and short-range. The evil often succeed in the short term and the righteous will often lose the immediate battles, however the long term perspective is usually different -- especially if the long term goal is an eternal, rather than a temporal one. The instructions to "wait for the Lord" shows this perspective.

Isaiah 34-39

2006-02-15T20:23:00.000-05:00

More judgment. The Lord is angry with all nations. That's not good. Many images of blood and dismemberment throughout chapter 34. Edom seems to be taking the brunt of the assault. The place will be a wasteland after God gets through with it. Yet by 34:16, we see those in the Lord's favor are protected. Continuing through chpater 35, there is joy for those whom God saves. The ransomed of the Lord will return, singing as they come.

We return to narrative in chapter 36 with the story of Sennacherib's seige of Jerusalem. King Hezekiah has wisely thought ahead to keep his own citizens from getting into a shouting match with the Assyrians. The people on the wall heard the boastful threats of the commander, but said nothing, as per instructions.

The boast were based on Assyria's accumulated victories. If the other gods couldn't stop them, then why would Israel's God be able to? The commander taunts the people on the wall in Hebrew to be sure they understand. He tries to persuade them to turn against Hezekiah. It sounds like the captivity will be better than the current conditions, and perhaps it would have been.

The administrator, the secretary and the recorder report back to the king. Hezekiah sends them to Isaiah the prophet for instructions. The king asks God to avenge those who insulted the Living God. Isaiah's message for the king is to ignore the Assyrians. As prophecied, the Assyrian forces are to be called home to deal with the Cushites. But Sennacherib still tries to convince Hezekiah
to surrender.

Hezekiah prays sincerely and honestly. This is a great example of how we should approach the Living God. The king's answer is a favorable one because of this honest and humble prayer. The angel of the Lord kills 185,000 Assyrian soldiers overnight. Sennacherib broke camp and went home. Assumedly, the troops went as well. Sennacherib, as predicted, is cut down in another battle.

Chapter 38 deals with the king's severe illness -- an infected boil, it appears from 38:21. In any case, Hezekiah's death is imminent until he prays. Isaiah sends word that God has granted the king 15 more years. Hezekiah's prayer of thanksgiving is touching.

I will walk humbly all my years because of this anguish of my soul.

Psalm 36

2006-02-15T15:19:00.000-05:00

This psalm is abruptly broken into two parts. The first part is called an oracle. This oracle is obviously from God about the sinfulness of the wicked. The first four verses describes the evil person in certain terms. First of all,he has no fear of God. Not simply being scared or having terror, but absolutely no respect or reverence for Him. The reason for not having fear of God is because he has placed himself on God's throne. Self-deception and self-flattery has so infected the mind of the wicked that actual sin goes unnoticed. I can't help but compare this passage to the many who claim that their homosexuality is not sin, despite Scripture to the contrary. He has so deceived himself that he does not feel convicted of sinfulness. There is quite a step between seeing sin in oneself and not doing anything about it and being unable to see sin as sin. It happens over time and with much self-delusion.

The evil person speaks ill of others. The situation gets to the point where he can no longer even do good because his motivation is bad in everything he does. Night and day he plots evil, which contrasts with the righteous man of Psalm 1 who meditates on God's Word day and night. The sinful man chooses the course he takes, accepting the wrong as if it were right.

At verse 5, the tone shifts and David contrasts the evil person with God Himself, and those who take shelter in Him. The poetry of verses 5 and 6 describe God's love, His faithfulness, His righteousness and His justice. Of note, a God cannot be said to be faithful unless He communicates to us. He could not be faithful if He made no promises to live up to.

Those who trust God are then satisfied in His unfailing love. They drink from His river of delights, or joy. They have access to the fountain of life itself, and see light in the light of God. The allusion to light is particularly striking because of the way Jesus used the symbolism of light in His ministry. For that matter, Jesus talked about heaven as "entering into life" according to Matthew's Gospel, and how often does John talk about the unfailing love of God?

God is our shelter from the storm of the wicked.

Nahum

2006-02-13T11:06:00.000-05:00

It had been a while since I had read Nahum. Going into it, I knew that Nahum was a prophecy against Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire. It was the second time a prophet was sent to Nineveh. About 150 years earlier, Jonah had been sent (and eventually went) to give a message of warning. The king and the city repented. This time there was no warning being given. The prophecy was about the coming destruction of Nineveh.

On this reading, I was a little more aware of the picture of God's anger given in the words Nahum carried to Nineveh. He begins with a statement of God's justice and power. A quick note in 1:7 that God is not simply a God of wrath is followed by more words about the coming destruction. Nineveh's sins are seen as plots against the Lord in 1:9.

This is to be a total destruction. There will be no descendants. No survivors. Judah is avenged! Assyria will rise no more.

The battle details of chapter 2 and 3 are verified by history. The Sycthians laid seige to Nineveh for two years. When the flood waters of the Tigris washed away part of the city's wall, the invaders took advantage to gain entrance to the city itself. Everything was destroyed.

God calls to Nineveh in 3:8 and following, reminding them that Thebes, another great city had already fallen, even with the mighty Nile as it's protectorate. Could Nineveh count on the Tigris to protect it? It actually helped the destruction. "Look at your toops -- they are all women!" The taunt of 3:13 sheds some light on the shame of a woman in battle (see Judges 11). "You fight like girls," would be the modern equivalent.

In the end, what no one thought could happen, did. The surprise of the surrounding nations that mighty Nineheh could fall was predicted and fulfilled.

Judges 7-11

2006-02-12T22:54:00.001-05:00

We resume the story of Gideon and the Midianites with God forcing the Israelites into admitting that their own strength was not going to win the upcoming battle. God pared the fighting troops down to 300 to take on the combined armies of the Midianites, Amalekites, and the other eastern peoples. In short, God was making sure that His people recognized this victory as a miracle -- something only possible because God was with them.

God was helping Gideon's faith all the way through. The altar, the fleece, the army selection, and now God tells Gideon if he's still feeling skittish about the whole battle to spy on the enemy at their campfire. Of course he hears of the prophecy of he and his army scattering his foes. Interesting symbolism that the dream was of a small barley loaf flattening a tent in the Midianite camp completely. The overheard interpretation was the last piece of the faith puzzle for Gideon, and he returned to rally the 300 for the fight. They do battle by breaking jars and blowing horns -- the confusion is what sets the enemy to fleeing. More tribes join in once the chase is on.

The family infighting begins with Ephraim, but Gideon rebuffs them with praise and modesty. Asking for help outside of the nation of Israel proves to be more complicated. The leaders of Succoth and Peniel each refuse to feed and provide for the 300 fighting men, exhausted from chasing the enemy back home. The town leaders even seem to taunt Gideon. Bad idea. He punished the elders of Succoth by apparently beating them with thorns and briars. Then he pulled down the tower of Peniel -- likely the source of pride, as well as a military lookout -- then killed all the men of the town.

Gideon is strong for a while, but his weakness is the ephod he makes from the plunder of earrings. Not only Gideon and his family were tripped up with this idol, but "all Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it..." What a horrible end to the story. Even more horrible was after Gideon died, Israel went back to its infatuation with Baal. Still more horrible is the rising up of Abimelech, son of Gideon and a concubine, plotting to take power by killing all 70 of his half brothers on one stone. Well not quite all. One son, Jotham, hid and emerged to shout a taunt to Abimelech from atop Mt. Gerizim before going into hiding in Beer. (the place, not the drink.)

Finally it is God who turns the people against Abimelech after three years. Abimelech had another great military victory, but it ended in dishonor as he was struck on the head by a millstone dropped from a tower by a woman inside. Abimelech considered it shameful enough that he asked his armor-bearer to finish him off so no one could say that a woman killed him. Semantics don't change the truth. In 9:57, it is reported that Abimelech's end was the result of Jotham's curse.

Two short mentions of Tola, a judge for 23 years and Jair, a judge for 22 years begin chapter 10. Apparently nothing of significance happened on their watch. Judging from the normal behavior of the people, if there was a strong judge everyone was on their best behavior so we must assume that Tola and Jair were good judges. Next up after another cry from a judgeless Israel for help, is Jephthah, whose story begins chapter eleven.

Jephthah picked up a band of adventurers (probably mercenaries) and was recruited by the leaders of Gilead to lead the army against the Ammonites. Jephthah becomes the leader and begins by trying a little diplomacy with the Ammonite king. In response to that king's declaration that Israel was on Ammonite soil, taken by Joshua and company, Jephthah responds with a history lesson which is basically ignored by the king. So the battle begins.

Jephthah makes an unnecessary vow to God saying that if the Lord grants him victory, he will sacrifice to God the first thing coming out of the door of his house when he returns home from battle. To his dismay, that thing was his daughter, an only child. The girl understands Dad's situation and asks only for two months to be with her friends before she dies. Her father agrees and after those two months, Jephthah sacrifices his daughter to God. The author notes that this began a custom among young Israelite women to go out for four days in commemoration.

What to make of this brutal sacrifice. Well, a vow was a vow, especially one made to God. So Jephthah didn't hold back his only child, just as Father Abraham had done with Isaac. Still the fault lies in the foolish vow. The bearing of punishment by the girl isn't the worst that could have happened to her. Death never is the worst. Death without being reconciled to God is the worst. Still I wonder what must have been going through Jephthah's mind through the whole process, when he killed his daughter, and for the rest of his life.

Psalm 35

2006-02-12T22:54:00.000-05:00

An imprecatory psalm of David. These always make people uncomfortable, myself included. The thought of asking God for revenge goes against the peaceful nature of what Jesus taught. But is David really asking for revenge? It seems he is merely asking for justice.

Boice outlines this psalm with a three verse introduction and a three verse conclusion. The introduction lays out David asking for God to be his defense attorney and his champion in battle. Verses 4-10 lay out the battle champion call. The legal case is discussed in verses 11-17. Then both are merged into one argument in verses 18-28. I'm not sure I see the immediate distinctions in all these cases, but it's clear that David uses both the military and the legal situations to plead his case to God.

Mostly, David is asking that God give the accusers a taste of their own medicine. These are people whom David claims he has not wronged, yet still they are out for his blood. God is to be his champion in battle. God is to be his advocate in court, pleading his case. Each of these situations call for a "loser" if David is to be vindicated. David asks that the accusers be put to shame and confustion, clothed with shame and disgrace. In short, he doesn't want them getting what they are after. That sounds pretty normal to me!

Finally, David declares, "My tongue will speak of your righteousnss and of your praises all day long."

Genesis 24-27

2006-02-11T00:23:00.001-05:00

We read precious little about Isaac in the Scriptures. This passage contains almost all of the details of his life, aside from the time on Mt. Moriah in chapter 22, and the report of his death in chapter 35. What we find out is hardly impressive.

Chapter 24 deals with the finding and bringing back of Rebekah to be Isaac's wife. A nameless servant of Abraham is given the duty, and his specific prayer request is answered as asked. Abraham has apparently heard from God about where to obtain a wife. Either that or he has great confidence that God will approve of finding a wife for Isaac among Abraham's family rather than among the Canaanites.

One of the more interesting characters in chapter 24 is Rebekah's brother, Laban. Of course we know he'll pop up again, but he's already displaying a need to be in charge of the situation.

The servant gave costly gifts to Rebekah, her mother, and to her brother Laban, but not to her father?

It's interesting that we assume the servant is traveling alone until verse 32 when the other men are mentioned, as well as the number of camels.

Abraham's third wife is mentioned briefly in chapter 25. Six more children, but the entire estate went to Isaac. The other children were packed off and sent away from Isaac. At 25:6, the text mentions "concubines." Hagar was a "wife" according the to earlier text, but could it just have been "marital relations"? Keturah is described as a "wife", so I wonder who we're missing. It is possible that Keturah and Hagar are who is meant, but the text as translated is vague.

The twins are born in chapter 25 as well. It's apparent they aren't identical! It's also apparent they won't be getting along well. The account of the birthright seems so odd. How hungry can a person be? If a bowl of stew means that much, then Esau truly did despise his birthright. Of course I wonder what made Jacob think to ask for the birthright in the first place.

In chapter 26, we see Isaac getting the Promise directly from God, as his father had also. Sadly, we read also that Isaac didn't learn from his father's mistakes. Again a patriarch tries the "she's my sister" line to avoid danger, only to narrowly avoid horrible consequences. We also see that Isaac has his father's financial skills, eventually becoming so powerful that he is sent away as too
big of a threat.

At 26:34-35, we read of Esau's two Hittite wives and that "They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah." Certainly an in-law situation is tough, but it seems that these two women really rubbed Isaac and Rebekah the wrong way -- so much so that Rebekah is the one to be sure that Jacob's wife is from the family.

The thievery of the blessing is a well-told story. The deception of Rebekah foreshadows the trickery of her brother, Laban in the next passage. "Let the curse fall on me," says Rebekah when Jacob fears a curse if Isaac discovers the deception. When Jacob brings in the "tasty food" he lies to his father directly three times: "I am Esau, your firstborn," "The Lord your God gave me success," and "I am [really Esau]." The trick is well thought-out, taking into account Esau's hairiness and his scent -- two things a sightless man would instantly recognize. Only the voice is a giveaway, but still Isaac believes his hands and his nose instead of his ears.

The blessing itself seems irrevokable. Isaac cannot take it back, as he admits in 27:33. The cry to "Bless me -- me too, my father!" is heartbreaking in a way, as Esau has nothing left to hope for. Except revenge. The idea of a blessing or a curse seems so foreign to me... especially one that is irrevokable.

Psalm 34

2006-02-11T00:23:00.000-05:00

This psalm comes with a notation about David's experience when it was written. I'm not sure it helps us understand it any better though. Just the knowledge that David had his share of trouble and his prayers were not all answered instantly. Even still, David praised God. I am reminded of Job, who in the depths of his tragedy and grieving, still would not curse God.

David spends a few verses remembering the times when God had saved him. He was delivered from his fears, his troubles and his enemies.

"Taste and see that the Lord is good." What an invitation! Still so few take David up on the offer. I have known of people who have walked away from God after tasting, and I've wondered why they did. A salty taste when they were craving sweets?

Fear the Lord. Ultimate respect and awe. It is the hard-to-define way our relationship with God is to be. In verses 9-14 David urges his listeners to fear Him. The result? Lacking nothing... no good thing. Fear of the Lord is based in obedience: keeping tongue in check, clamping lying and gossipping lips, fleeing all sorts of evil.

David reminds us that God has not turned away from our plights on earth. His eyes are on the righteous. His ears hear their cries. And He delivers them.

A final messianic prophecy in verse 20 about the bones of a righteous man not being broken. The psalm is concluded with a promise that the Lord redeems those who serve Him. We will not be condemned. (See Romans 8:1)

Romans 11-12

2006-02-10T12:13:00.000-05:00

Romans 11 is an intimidating chapter because it is hard to understand Paul's reasoning. Is he saying that Israel is saved apart from Christ Jesus? Obviously not, based on other Scripture, yet verse 26 says that "all Israel will be saved." It appears that this is not a reference to spiritual Israel, since the context has Paul speaking of a hardening of Israel until the full number of Gentiles has come into the Kingdom. So something is still to be accomplished with Israel -- a mass turning to Jesus?

Paul points out that not all Israel is hardened, since he, for one, is a Christian. There have been other Jewish converts to Christ over the years as well. God hardens who He wants to harden. Yet there appears to be a choice for Jews today, just as there is a choice for Gentiles. And since a Jew has the Old Testament background, as it were, to the faith, re-grafting them into the Kingdom is relatively easy according to Paul.

The doxology of 11:33-36 is breathtaking, frustrating, awe-inspiring and humbling all at the same time.

Romans 12 is a masterpiece of application of Paul's first eleven chapters. Beginning with the first two verses, Paul exhorts the follower of Christ to live out the doctrines preached by the Master. Offering our bodies as living sacrifices is an incredible visual image of what taking up our cross is like. And with God's mercy as the reason, why shouldn't we offer Him everything? Our worship is the offering of our very selves, and when we do so, we won't be made in the image of the world, but we will be transformed. Our minds will be different. We won't think like the world thinks. Why are we so surprised when the world has different priorities than Christians? Why are we shocked when the world rejects and mocks the Church?

Perhaps the reason lies in verse three, where we are told not to think too highly of ourselves. It is far too easy to go from "forgiven" to "superior" in our minds. We can reject the renewal of our minds and try to crawl down in the gutter with the world once again; communicating on their level.

When we are transformed, we seek to serve Him. We look for ways to use the gifts given us. We search for ways to express our love for Christ and for others. And we don't try to live in conflict with others. We seek peace when possible. Evil is overcome with good. How hard that is to practice!

Psalm 33

2006-02-10T12:04:00.000-05:00

Boice calls this psalm, "A Praise Psalm for Everyone," because it is not written exclusively for the nation of Israel. Yet in verse 12 we read, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance." Certainly the psalmist likely meant Israel, but the promise is meant for all. Now I truly don't believe that the USA has a god outside of freedom, so I don't apply that promise for Americans today. However to deny that we as Americans have been richly blessed is foolish. Of course the Romans of Jesus' day were richly blessed also.

In verse two we have instruments mentioned for the first time in the psalter. The harp and ten-stringed lyre were to be played skillfully. I wonder why mentions like this are not convincing for the Church of Christ and others who deny instruments in worship because the New Testament doesn't make mention of musical instruments. Odd.

God's word is right and true. He is faithful, He loves righteousness and justice. These statements are indications of God's character. He also is active in the world: "the earth is full of His unfailing love."

He spoke and it came to be. Even the psalmist was familiar with the Genesis Creation narrative. Created from nothing by just a word.

"The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear Him." We should know that, but sometimes we forget -- especially in times of trouble. Our hope is in the Lord. We must wait for Him.

Joshua

2006-02-09T14:34:00.000-05:00

Joshua 1-5:

Themes I picked up in these chapters:

(1) The elevation of Joshua as leader. How odd it must have been for Israel to even think about going anywhere without Moses! But he was gone and the mantle fell on the shoulders of Joshua. The "pep talk" in chapter one where God tells Joshua to be strong and courageous repeatedly tells me that Joshua had a little struggle with doubt. The people wanted Moses, and Joshua probably wanted Moses as well, but there was no Moses. In 4:14 we finally see that Joshua was elevated to "Moses" status among the Israelites. In fact, Joshua probably had less open rebellion and grumbling to deal with than his predecessor.

(2) The careful leading by God of the Israelites. Everything was laid out, step by step. Each step was to be an obedient one. Everything was to be done a certain way so that all would benefit. It was and they did.

After staying 1000 yards away from the Ark at all times, I wonder how the people felt when they had to pass by it while walking across the dry bottom of the flood-stage Jordan.

(3) The establishment of an ebenezer. God wanted a memorial set up so that the people would never forget what had happened. Twelve stones, one for each tribe, were pulled from the dry river bed and were set up at Gilgal to serve as a reminder and a teaching tool.

What kind of ebenezers do we set up today? Are they remembrances of God or of man? Many churches have inscribed plaques honoring past members. What do we have to honor God in the same way?

Another reminder was the renewal of the call to circumcision in chapter 5. You wouldn't think that the best way to prepare for battle would be cutting in private areas, but God had a purpose. Over and over again we are reminded of God's love and His activity. God wanted to make sure we (they) didn't forget. Of course, they did forget...

And what about Rahab and those spies. Here is a woman who had her prayer for deliverance answered unexpectedly. I wonder how much of the Jericho wall was left standing for Rahab's "house in the wall" to remain intact with her whole family inside.

Joshua 6-10:

A whole lot of bloodshed in these five chapters! We begin at Jericho with the march around the wall for seven straight days. I guess one of those days would have had to have been a Sabbath, right? I wonder if the Pharisees thought about all that "work" their ancestors performed.

Destoying cities everywhere. Jericho completely destroyed except for Rahab and her family, who were given a place to live outside the camp of Israel. Also Achan's stolen booty was from Jericho, although it was eventually found. Interesting detail that the silver was on the bottom and the gold and robe on top. I wonder what the significance of that was.

Ai wins one because of Israel's disobedience. Then Israel sets the ambush "behind" the city. Joshua's force came from the north, but the ambush force came from the west, not the south. I guess either Joshua didn't head for the front gates or there is something in the geography that would make west "behind" the city. Or possibly the ambush force went 90 degrees around the city to enter it. I doubt that one will ever be cleared up.

Joshua reinforces the Covenant after the victory at Ai. The people gathered before the two mountains and Joshua read every word of the Law. Repetition. Reminders.

The folks from Gibeon pull a fast one on Joshua and the elders. Still I wonder how they knew that Joshua would live up to his oath. Certainly someone who had apparently been so bloodthirsty wouldn't necessarily honor an oath made by deception. Probably the only chance they thought they had. The moldy bread was a nice touch.

Then comes bloody chapter ten. The five kings attack Gibeon and Israel comes to their aid. Probably a convenient reason to go off to take care of those nations. The armies are routed and only a few escape. The five kings who had been hiding in a cave were brought out to face Joshua. The Israelite army commanders were told to step on the necks of the kings in symbolic domination. Then Joshua repeats the instructions which he was given in chapter one. "Be strong and courageous." Joshua is passing along the wisdom. He has obviously found it useful.

The longest day passage reads like a heroic story with God as the mightiest warrior. As Joshua had summoned the sun to remain in the sky until the battle was over, I was reminded of Moses holding his arms aloft (and eventually held up by Joshua) as the Israelites were fighting before the crossing of the Jordan. Even the notation of Joshua's outstreached javelin in 8:26 runs this familiar theme.

Finally, the cities of the five kings are utterly destroyed as well as a few other nations before Joshua brings the troops home. Why would God want so many "innocent" people killed? Well, they were hardly innocent. This was God's judgment upon peoples who engaged in horrible practices like child sacrifice and other horrid things. These were not people who were essentially good. God used the armies of Israel in judgment just as He used foreign armies to bring judgment upon Israel and Judah years later.

Oh, and I'm guessing that Israelites didn't move a lot of rocks. How many notations of rocks "being there to this day" were in this passage. (Then add the rocks from the Jordan set up at Gilgal in the previous section. Ebenezers. Monuments. Remember. We cannot overlook the history of God's provision for Israel or for us.

Joshua 11-15:

Finally at chapter eleven, it seems that all the remaining nations team up to try to expel Israel from the land. The king of Hazor initiates the action as "head of all these kingdoms" according to 11:10. Joshua turned back to take out Hazor and kill the king. Again, the Israelites were used as the instruments of God's justice to exterminate the evil nations.

I wonder what the purpose of hamstringing horses would be. Would a hamstrung horse still be useful? For breeding perhaps, but beyond that it would seem easier to kill them along with everything else.

The land finally had peace at the end of chapter eleven, although it wasn't until Caleb did away with the people around Hebron that we see peace declared again at the end of chapter fourteen.

Caleb must have been quite the 85 year old! He asked for what he was promised. He seemed to even be asking for a challenge -- a place where the enemies were larger than normal. But conquer them, he did. The section of chapter 15 is odd in its inclusion. I suppose it is just a more detailed part of the land distribution.

The rest of this passage would be useful in making a map and is more understandable if you have a map sitting beside you. Even still, it's tough to get past all the names of towns which are long since gone or now carry different names.

Joshua 16-20:

This passage reads a little like someone is describing a detailed wall map. Land for Judah has already been allotted, then in chapter 16, the half-tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh are assigned land. These are to be the first two tribes set up on this side of the Jordan. The rest are drawn by lot by Joshua back at Shiloh.

Interesting that the Canaanites living among the two half-tribes of Joseph were never fully exterminated, although they eventually became slaves. The two half-tribes came complaining about the size of their allotments, but were told to conquer the forested hill country. The tribesmen pled for a break since the Canaanites had iron chariots, which I assume means they would be tough to conquer militarily. Joshua simply sends them back, telling them that they will be able to do it -- although he doesn't mention that the Lord would be the one fighting for them at this point.

A female named Noah? See 17:3.

In chapter 18, Joshua seems a little disturbed that the tribes haven't taken possession of the land to this point. He organizes the surveying crew, then brings the tribal chiefs back to cast lots for the plots of land.

Joshua took the town of Timnath Serah (Timnath Heres - Judges 2:9) for his allotment. Cities of refuge were Kadesh, Shechem, Hebron, Bezer, Ramoth and Golan. An interesting concept which assumes that families will be out for avenging dead loved ones, vigilante style.

I wonder how long the whole process took for the Israelites to conquer the land, to subdue the land, to split up the land, and to settle the land.

Joshua 21-24:

Now that the other tribes have been allotted land, the tribe of Levi are designated towns to live in, as prescribed by God. The are given towns and surrounding lands for pasture. Of all the towns given to the Levites, five of the six cities of refuge are included (all but Bezer). Perhaps it was best for those with priestly functions to also serve as protectors of those falsely accused.
Eventually the eastern tribes get to go back across the Jordan to the lands they had been given previously. Their families were already settled. The men were bringing back a part of the spoils of war to share with those who were not able to join the fight. These two and a half tribes built an altar as a monument to the unity in God between the twelve tribes. Rumors start to fly and the other tribes are convinced that Gad and Reuben are trying to break away and worship some other God. The "rest of the story" is finally related when the other tribes come for a showdown. If anything the incident seems to further bond the tribes together.

Fast forward to years later. Twenty-five years later if Joshua and Caleb were the same age. Joshua gives his farewell to the leaders, reminding them to stay the course without turning aside. Then all of the tribes are assembled as Joshua ends his leadership by issuing an ultimatum: "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve." He speaks about getting rid of the idols now within the nation, although it seems that this is more a precautionary warning than a situation similar to the confrontation with Achan back in chapter 7. This was a renewal of the covenant. Joshua issued the vow that he and his house had made their choice already for the Lord.

It almost reads like he is trying to talk the Israelites out of committing to the Lord, offering them warning after warning. "You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God..." Indeed we cannot serve Him properly and Israel would prove Joshua right even though they promised they would not stray from the terms of the covenant.

Finally, Joshua goes home to die at the age of 110. Joseph's bones, brought from Egypt are finally buried. Then Eleazar the priest son of Aaron dies and the book of Joshua comes to a close. Then it all starts falling apart.

Matthew 14-16

2006-02-08T12:16:00.000-05:00

The passage begins with the rest of John the Baptist's story, his arrest and execution. Interesting that Herod didn't kill John at first because he feared the people. Apparently he feared the reaction of his party guests more.

The story of the feeding of the 5000 is set as beginning with Jesus' reaction to hearing of John's death. He preferred to be alone, presumably to grieve. A similar reaction is shown upon Lazarus' death. In any case, the people found him and asked for healings. Jesus obliged them. Five loaves and two fish feed 5000 men and their companions with 12 baskets left over -- one for each of the doubting disciples to collect and carry. One chapter later, seven loaves and "a few small fish" fed 4000 men and their companions with even baskets left over. It's amazing that the disciples in 15:33 hadn't the faith to think that Jesus couldn't do the same miracle again!

After the feeding of the 5000, Jesus forces the disciples to go on without Him so He could have some private prayer time. Then in the middle of the night, He walks out to them on the water. I wonder why He chose to catch up to them this way. Peter is the adventurous one -- the only one with enough faith to step out of the boat -- but even his faith is weak. At 14:32, they worshiped Him and called Him the Son of God. If I'm not mistaken, that's the first such admission from the twelve.

Jesus' message about honoring God over human tradition falls on deaf ears even today. I'm not simply talking about the Roman Catholic Church, but all who believe worship is done only "one way" to honor God. It's the "we've always done it that way" syndrome.

The list of evil in 15:19 distinguishes adultery from sexual immorality.

It's odd to see the Master treat the Canaanite woman in a seemingly nonchalant way. All in teaching a lesson, I guess.

It's the Pharisees who demand a sign and are called evil in chapter 16. The phrase "Jesus then left them and went away," even gives the impression of disgust from Him.

Peter's confession is what the Church Universal is built upon. That confession and what it means. Then that confession is backed up with our actions as a Church. His Church will built on a strong foundation -- something stronger than Simon Peter! Again in 16:20 He warns the twelve not to tell anyone of His Messiahship. Then He started to explain what that Messiahship really meant. It was too much for most any Jew of the time who understood God's Kingdom as political and physical. When Peter rebukes (not just suggests or asks) Jesus for saying these things, Jesus addresses Satan as being the one behind the rebuke. That "rock" Simon Peter was being used by the evil one not long after his great confession.

The "Son of Man coming in his kingdom" is obviously a reference to the sacking of Jerusalem in 70 A. D. since some standing there would not taste death before that time. The admonishment in 16:27 then appears to be a type of earthly justice, not heavenly.

Psalm 32

2006-02-07T10:22:00.000-05:00

Boice claims that a "maskil" is a psalm of instruction. I hadn't read that before, but in some sense most all of the Psalms are words of instruction. Boice claims Psalm 32 to be the instructing of others promised in Psalm 51:13, and that this psalm was written a good while after the fifty-first -- after a long period of reflection. Perhaps he is right, I cannot say. But David does begin with a heartfelt expression of confidence is the forgiving nature of Almighty God. Paul, in fact, quotes the first two verses in Romans 4 as further proof that justification is by faith alone.

David recounts the experience of keeping sin locked up within; denying it to others and even to himself. Then in verse 5, he tells of confessing followed by forgiveness. "You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance." That's a wonderful statement of confidence, forged by many experiences with God's deliverance.

Verses 8-10 read like instructions (Don't be a mule!). Finally a call for rejoicing and singing to all those who are upright in heart -- not simply upright, for none of us are. This ties itself back to the opening lines, remarking about our transgressions being forgiven and our sins being covered. That's when we are truly blessed.

Isaiah 29-33

2006-02-07T10:09:00.000-05:00

I noticed three passages in chapter 29 which are quoted in the New Testament. 29:13 is quoted by Jesus in Mark 7:6-7 as pertaining to the Pharisees, mostly. 29:14 comes back in 1 Cor. 1:19 when Paul is writing about the foolishness of man. Then 29:16 is brought back by Paul in Romans 9 in his discussion about God's sovereignty. It's odd to see three so easily recognizable in that short portion of Scripture.

The image of God as a consuming fire is repeated at least three times in this passage. There is much language of judgment and power regarding God and His reaction to the sins and rebellions of the people. Chapter 30 tells the people not to depend on Egypt for protection, presumably from the coming judgment. More hardship, distress, destruction follows until 30:18:

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him.

Landmarks on the Journey - 2/6/06

2006-02-06T16:21:00.000-05:00

With the breakdown in my "work" computer, it's been hard to get my entries posted in a timely manner. That has also kept my reading on schedule rather than getting farther ahead. My devotional in the Psalms is almost six days behind, even though I am still ahead of pace for the whole journey.

I managed to get a bunch of posts from the weekend's reading up today. Job is still easier to do in sections of Job's friend/Job instead of dividing the passage up awkwardly. That puts me a bit ahead in Job, but I pass it up coming around the next week.

Joshua is finished -- the first book completed.

Job 11-14

2006-02-06T15:35:00.001-05:00

Zophar presents his argument to Job, but fails to convert him to his way of thinking. Zophar has a high view of God, but is still wed to the idea that tragedy is the result of disobedience, so severe tragedy is the result of severe disobedience. He calls for Job to repent and devote his heart to God.

Job replies that his friend is simply repeating the obvious regarding God's might, but that he is not guilty of severe disobedince. In 13:5, "If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom." -- the "Your mother wears Army boots" quote of the Bible!

Job's faith in God is secure. "Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him. I will surely defend my ways to his face." And interestingly in 13:16, Job remarks that asking for an audience with God should prove His innocence because the guilty wouldn't dare ask for a judgment from God.

A note of divine forgiveness in 14:14-17. Our offenses are not kept forever because God covers over our sin. To the Old Testament Jew, this was through blood sacrifice. To us today it is through the blood sacrifice of Christ Jesus.

Judges 1-6

2006-02-06T15:35:00.000-05:00

A big chunk 0f Scripture with a familiar theme -- Israel meanders away from God whenever there is no strong leadership present.

We begin with a recounting of the remaining Canaanites whom the Jews do not evict from the land, although most end up as servants. This lack of obedience in driving them out is evidence of a lack of faith among the people. The story of Caleb giving his daughter is rehashed, probably because Othniel shows up as a judge in 3:7 -- the first after Joshua and his generation are gone. Othniel, Caleb's nephew and son-in-law, rules for 40 years. While he is there, the nation is at peace. But when Othniel is gone, the Moabites move in and hold the Israelites for 18 years, until Ehud, the southpaw.

Eventually we learn why Scripture tells us that Ehud is a lefty, specifically for a bit of trickery against the portly King Eglon. The details of this assassination are remarkable. Even Ehud's escape is possible because the king's men think he's having an embarrassingly long stop in the restroom. Even at first glance, the king would not look wounded as the knife was pushed in until Eglon's fat closed in around it.

Shamgar is a brief mention at the end of chapter three. He is also mentioned in Deborah's song in 5:6. Perhaps Shamgar was the military leader and Deborah the judge? But then why would Deborah send for Barak? That deserves more study.

The Song chides many of the tribes of Israel for not being a part of the attack on Sisera. Reuben, Gilead, Dan... where were you when the fighting started?

At chapter six we begin the saga of Gideon. An unlikely hero if there ever was one, Gideon is constantly asking for signs of confirmation. Compare that with the Pharisees of Jesus' day being called a wicked and perverse generation for asking for a sign. Gideon was seeking to serve God. The Pharisees were looking for a miracle to debunk.

Gideon does manage to gather enough courage to destroy his father's idol to Baal and the Asherah poles, although he waited until night to do it in secret. Amazingly it is Gideon's father who stands up for him once the story gets out.

Psalm 31

2006-02-06T15:26:00.000-05:00

A prayer is followed by an expression of trust in God. That order is familiar in the Psalms, as indeed time in prayer should remind us of God's faithfulness. Yet our needs continue. David's lament beginning in verse 9 is yet another indication of how difficult David's life really was. The sword certainly never left his side, as there was always an uprising or a struggle to take care of. This for the man after God's own heart. Why would I expect a perfect life?

The lament leads David back to a stanza of expression of trust in God. Verse 14 brings him back on the road to God, and this time he reaches praise by verse 19.

"The Lord preseves the faithful, but the proud He pays back in full."