Author
Shane W. Houle earned his M.A. at Columbia Biblical Seminary, and his D.Min. at Trinity International University. He has been married to Julene for 30 years and lives in beautiful Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Copyright: December 5th, 2017
Copyright: September 5th, 2017
Copyright: December 14th, 2016
Copyright: October 9th, 2016
Copyright: July 3rd, 2016
Copyright: April 18th, 2016
Copyright: December 21st, 2015
Copyright: July 10th, 2015
Learn the Bible in a Year
Formerly, Bible in a Year to the World
Shane W. Houle
All rights reserved
shanehoule1@gmail.com
www.LearntheBibleinaYear.com
ISBN-13: 978-1532805943
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015904728.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, North Charleston, SC
Scripture taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®, Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Used by permission of Zondervan.
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The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Offices by Biblica, Inc. TM
Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. Reproduced by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Limited.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my dear friends, Ed and Sharon Porter. Their generous support and constant encouragement made this project possible. [T]he Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8).
Introduction
When Philip found the Ethiopian gentleman reading the prophet Isaiah, he asked him, Do you understand what you are reading? The man replied, How can I . . . unless someone explains it to me? (Acts 8:30-31). The Bible is a difficult book and a little explanation can be helpful.
The goal of Learn the Bible in a Year is to teach the whole Bible, in every language of the world, for free. We want everyone in the world to have access to quality Bible teaching that is comprehensive and concise. Learn the Bible in a Year is a 501(c)(3) organization and your gifts are tax deductible. Thank you for helping more and more people to learn the Bible in a year.
Disclaimer
I learned early as a preacher to gather thoughts, ideas and illustrations from wherever I could. Many have found there way into this book but, in most cases, credit is not given because I have forgotten the source. I make no claim to originality and am thankful for all who have taught me.
Overview
The Bible is the story of God’s salvation, and can be surveyed in fifteen episodes. Once we understand the Bible’s big story, the little stories within it make more sense. All dates are approximate.
1. The Creation: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1) and all they contain. Then he made Adam and Eve in his image to have a relationship with him. The first couple enjoyed walking with God in the Garden of Eden when everything was good. This stage is difficult to date and believing scholars disagree.
2. The Fall: Adam and Eve were free to eat from every tree in the garden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Tragically, the devil convinced them to eat the forbidden fruit, and they brought God’s curse on the world. As a result, their offspring are born with a sinful nature, and everyone dies eventually. This is the problem the Bible is going to solve.
3. The Patriarchs: God called Abraham (2091 BC) and promised to bless the world through him (Genesis 12:2-3). Most of the Bible is the story of this man’s family. Abraham had a son named Isaac, Isaac had a son named Jacob, and Jacob had twelve sons. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, and his sons became the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel.
4. The Exodus: Jacob’s son, Joseph, was sold by his brothers into Egyptian slavery (1898 BC). God was with him, however, and he rose to great prominence. When the family of Israel numbered about seventy, Joseph brought them down to Egypt and cared for them. The family grew dramatically and, generations later, were forced to become slaves. They were cruelly oppressed until Moses arrived and led them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea (1446 BC).
5. The Desert: After leaving Egypt, the Israelites camped at Mount Sinai where God gave them Ten Commandments and many other laws. A year or so later they arrived at Canaan, the land God had promised to Abraham (Genesis 13:15). God told his people to take the land, but they refused because they feared the people who lived there, and wouldn’t trust God to defeat them. As a result, God made them wander in the desert forty years until most of the adults had died, including Moses.
6. The Conquest: Joshua led the next generation of Israelites into the Promised Land (1406 BC). As Moses led them through the Red Sea (Exodus 14:29), Joshua led them across the Jordan River on dry ground (Joshua 3:17). With God’s help, they took most of the land, but not all of it. The presence of enemy occupants remained a serious problem for hundreds of years.
7. The Judges: Once in the Promised Land, the Israelites turned away from God. But, when life became difficult, they turned back to him for help. God faithfully helped his people by raising up leaders (called Judges) to defeat their enemies. Then they turn away from God again, until life became difficult. This cycle repeated itself several times for centuries.
8. The United Kingdom: Even though God was their king, Israel wanted an earthly king, so they could be like the other nations. Saul became the first king of Israel (1043 BC) and, although he started well, he finished badly. David was the second king of Israel, and also its greatest, because he defeated their enemies and led them to worship God. David’s son, Solomon, was the third king of Israel and brought the nation to its height. But Solomon turned away from God and most of the people followed him. Due to his unfaithfulness the nation would break apart.
9. The Divided Kingdom: After Solomon’s death (931 BC) the nation divided, north and south. The ten tribes to the north kept the name Israel. They adopted a false religion and, a couple centuries later, fell to the Assyrians (722 BC). The tribes to the south were called Judah and were later known as the Jews. They served God occasionally, but not faithfully, and were conquered by the Babylonians (586 BC).
10. The Exile: The Babylonians deported the conquered Jews to Babylon. As Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, the Jews were expelled from the Promised Land because of their disobedience. This was a very dark time but, due to God’s promise, they weren’t without hope. Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back (Deuteronomy 30:4), wrote Moses.
11. The Restoration: When the king of Persia defeated Babylon, he allowed the Jews to return home (537 BC), just as God had promised. Many stayed behind, but those who went back rebuilt the temple and tried to follow God. They were a tiny fraction of what they had been and struggled in many ways. God sent a few prophets to encourage them but, then, the prophetic voice ceased (430 BC).
12. The Silent Years: Like a dramatic pause, the Bible is silent for hundreds of years before the arrival of Christ. God’s people were back in the Promised Land but were under Persian rule. Then they were ruled by the Greeks. Then they won their independence for about a hundred years. By the time of Christ they were under Roman rule, and longed to be free again.
13. The Christ: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). Jesus lived a sinless life, but was crucified by his enemies (AD 30). Then he was laid in a tomb but, three days later, he rose from the dead. Through his life, death and resurrection, Jesus reversed the curse of sin and death for all who believe in him.
14. The Church: After Jesus rose from the dead, he told his followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). The Apostle Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and three thousand believed (Acts 2:41). The Apostle Paul started many churches and took the gospel all the way to Rome (Acts 28:16). The church continues to preach the gospel and, today, nearly a third of all people on earth claim to be Christians.
15. The Return: Jesus will return at an undisclosed time to judge the living and the dead (1 Peter 4:5). To some he will say, Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34). To the rest he will say, Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41). This is the most amazing story ever told, and just happens to be true.
Lesson 1
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
The book of Genesis was written by Moses, for the people of God, around 1445 BC. He began with the best explanation of who God is: the creator of the universe.
Notice first, the universe began to exist. There was a time when the universe did not exist, and this is powerful evidence for the existence of God. If anything is clear to us it’s that something cannot come from nothing. If there was nothing more than a single grain of sand in the entire universe, it would still prove the existence of God because, out of nothing, nothing comes.
To avoid responsibility to their Maker, however, some have argued that the universe is eternal. If it always existed, then it didn’t need to be created—or so it is thought. But, in the last century, scientists discovered the universe is expanding and, therefore, had a beginning.
If you play the movie of an expanding universe backward, you’ll see it become smaller and smaller, until it no longer exists. And, if you play the movie forward again, you’ll see the universe pop into existence at a particular point in time. An expanding universe proves the universe is not eternal, but had a beginning, just as the Bible teaches.
Notice second, the greatness of God who exists outside time and space, and is the best explanation for both. When I was a child, I tried to imagine the beginning of time. I traveled back to the very first moment when everything began. But then I wondered, What was before then? Then I traveled to the edge of space where I could only imagine a massive brick wall. But then I wondered, What’s on the other side of that wall?
We can’t imagine the beginning of time or space, but we can easily think of the God who made them both, because that’s how he designed us. Time and space find their source in God, and lead us back to him.
Notice third, nothing is impossible with God. Unbelievers scoff at biblical miracles like the virgin birth of Christ (Luke 1:35), and the resurrection of Christ (Matthew 28:1-7). This is understandable since, by their very nature, miracles are rare and hard to believe.
But if you accept the first and most spectacular miracle of the Bible—that God created everything out of nothing—then there’s no reason to think he couldn’t part the sea (Exodus 14:21-22), make the sun stand still (Joshua 10:13), or preserve a man inside a fish (Jonah 1:17). Nothing is logically impossible for a God who creates everything out of nothing.
Genesis 1:3 God said, Let there be light, and there was light.
But God didn’t make the sun for another three days (Genesis 1:16), so we ought to think about where this light came from. The best explanation is that it came from God himself. God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5), wrote John.
So after he made the world, God began to reveal himself. This he did progressively to Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses, the prophets, and to many others. God revealed himself, more and more, until he came in the person of Jesus Christ who said, I am the light of the world (John 8:12). Isaiah didn’t say it. Neither did Jeremiah, Ezekiel or Daniel. Only Jesus Christ could say, I am the light of the world, because only Jesus Christ is divine.
And coming to Christ is like God turning on his light in our hearts. For God, who said, Let light shine out of darkness, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6), wrote Paul. We live in spiritual darkness until we understand the gospel. Then, suddenly, the light comes on.
Through Jesus Christ we come to know God not by argument or inference, but directly and personally. There’s excellent evidence for Christianity, but we aren’t Christians primarily because of the evidence. We are Christians because Jesus Christ revealed himself to us through the gospel.
Nor is he done revealing himself. The city [of God] does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp (Revelation 21:23), wrote John.
Notice the progression: God said, Let there be light, and there was light (Genesis 1:3). Then he revealed himself, more and more, to Abraham, Moses and the prophets. Then he came in the person of Jesus Christ who said, I am the light of the world (John 8:12). Then he made his light shine in our hearts (2 Corinthians 4:6). And, soon, we’ll live in the city where God himself is the light (Revelation 21:23), because God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
Genesis 1:16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
Moses wrote for the Israelites who, after many years, came out of Egyptian slavery. In Egypt they learned about the sun god, the moon god, and many other gods. So Moses had to teach them that those gods don’t exist. The God who just redeemed them created both the sun and the moon—and He also made the stars.
Credible estimates put the number of stars in the sky to be more than all the grains of sand on earth. To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing (Isaiah 40:25-26), wrote Isaiah.
But God was just getting started. After he made the stars God created birds, fish and every other creature (Genesis 1:20-25). Over a million species of life on earth has been catalogued, and that’s probably only a tenth of what exists. If the name BOB written in the sand proves intelligence at work, how much more the world and all its amazing creatures!
Hummingbirds are a fine example of God’s intelligent design. They’re the smallest birds in the world and some weigh less than a penny. Their wings rotate a full circle, allowing them to fly forward, backward, sideways and even upside-down. They fly about twenty-five miles an hour, and can dive up to sixty miles an hour. Some can fly over twenty hours, without rest, and migrate over two thousand miles. They breathe over two hundred times a minute, and their hearts beat over a thousand times a minute. They visit about a thousand flowers a day and pollinate every flower they visit. How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all (Psalm 104:24), wrote the Psalmist.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 2
Genesis 1:11 Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.
In the beginning God created everything out of nothing (Genesis 1:1). But, since then, he normally uses the natural means he built into creation. He could produce a million apples a day out of nothing, but prefers to use natural means instead. So after he made the fish and the birds he said, Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth (Genesis 1:22). At first God created animals according to their kinds (Genesis 1:25). But, since then, he uses the natural means he built into them.
God’s two ways of working can be understood as miracle and providence. Jesus healed many people miraculously, but God heals most people providentially. Small cuts normally heal through the means God built into the body. He may also use medicine (which comes from creation) and doctors who’ve learned how the body works. This kind of healing is not technically miraculous, but providential.
Likewise, Jesus taught us to pray for our daily bread (Matthew 6:11), but it doesn’t normally drop out of heaven. He normally gives us jobs, to earn money, so we can buy bread from the market. When Jesus fed the multitudes with only five loaves of bread and two fish (Matthew 14:17), he was providing miraculously. More often he uses soil, sun, rain, farmers, bakers and merchants to provide.
When we understand that God works providentially, not just miraculously, we’ll see his kindness in every plate of food, every healing, and every other need he meets. Miracles still occur, of course, but God is always working providentially. Miracle and providence, we could say, are the right and left hands of God.
Genesis 1:27 God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
This was important to the Israelites because, in Egypt, they were treated like beasts. They were Pharaoh’s slaves and their primary job was to make bricks. And, if they didn’t make their quota, they were given a beating (Exodus 5:1-18). Whole generations lived and died under the hot Egyptian sun, working like beasts, and considered little more.
But here we learn that there is a qualitative difference between people and animals. People are made in the image of God, animals are not. It’s not merely a matter of degree, but of kind, dignity and worth. Without clarity on this point we’ll treat people like animals, and animals like people. There are some places, in fact, where cattle are treated with honor while people go hungry. This is one reason theology matters.
The image of God is also that which allows us to know God personally. You can’t have a personal relationship with a turtle, because a turtle is too different from you. You can’t have a meaningful conversation with a cat, because a cat is too different from you too. But you can know God more deeply than you know your spouse, because you were made in the image of God.
This is also why the Bible allows capital punishment in the case of murder. Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind (Genesis 9:6), wrote Moses. God sees murdering others as an attack on himself, because every human being bears the image of God.
This is also why it’s wrong to curse other people. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. . . . this should not be (James 3:9-10), wrote James.
Before we curse another person, or make an obscene gesture, we should remember whose image they bear. The image of God is so basic to our humanity, and to the ordering of society, that it’s found in the very first chapter of the Bible.
The ultimate reason God created people in his image is because he planned to become one of us. When Christ came into the world, God took on our humanity, never to put it off (Hebrews 7:17). For all eternity we’ll relate to God through Jesus Christ, who is truly God and truly human.
Genesis 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.
God gave Adam and Eve an important job to do: fill the earth and subdue it. From this we understand that God wants people to contribute to society through work and family. Raising children, building roads, creating art, and anything else that contributes to the good of society, is actually serving God. This idea was reinforced by the Apostle Paul who wrote, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord. . . . It is the Lord Christ you are serving (Colossians 3:23-24).
Some people think the only way to serve God is through church, or some other religious means. It’s true that every child of God has an essential role to play in the church (1 Corinthians 12:12-31), but the work we do for God in the world is also important. Adam, for example, served God by gardening. The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it (Genesis 2:15), wrote Moses. Gardening was Adam’s service to God.
The work we do for the glory of God, and the good of others, is not merely a way to make money or raise a family. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. This gives meaning and significance to all we do, and should make our work an act of worship.
Genesis 1:31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.
God could’ve made the world an ordinary place, but chose to make it very good. I was on my way to class, on a fall afternoon, when I passed a familiar tree. I’d seen it many times before but this time was different. The lowering sun shone through the golden leaves and seemed to darken the branches. The tree itself was grand but, against the deep blue sky, it was art. I wanted to say to everyone, Look at that!
Before there was television, people went for long walks and called it marveling. They’d look at flowers, trees and birds, and simply marvel at them. If we’re willing to take the time, we can too. Creation reflects the glory of God (Isaiah 6:3), and he wants us to see it everywhere.
Genesis 2:3 God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
After God created the world we might imagine he was tired. But the amount of God's power that he used to create the world was mathematically zero. God’s power is infinite so, no matter how much he uses, it’s never at all diminished. God didn’t rest because he was tired, but because resting is good. It’s also good for us.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28), said Jesus. Many are surprised to learn that the way to heaven is not by working, but by resting. If all we had to do was a million good deeds, we’d all be very busy. Or if all we had to do was pay a million dollars, we’d all be working overtime. But the way to heaven isn’t by working, or even by being good, but by resting in the finished work of Christ. In repentance and rest is your salvation (Isaiah 30:15), wrote Isaiah.
A little girl was hiking with her big brother when she twisted her ankle and couldn’t go on. The only way home was to climb on her brother’s back and let him carry her. Likewise, we put all our weight on Jesus Christ, and trust him to carry us home.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 3
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.
This is the first mention of Satan in the Bible and, while he’s not on every page, he has a leading role. He’s called the Destroyer (Revelation 9:11), the enemy (Luke 10:19), the father of lies (John 8:44), a murderer (John 8:44), the evil one (Matthew 5:37) and many other things.
Satan is God’s enemy but, since he can’t attack God directly, he attacks those who are made in God’s image, and dearly loved by him. Satan knows his doom is sure, but he wants to bring down as many people with him as he can.
Here the Bible says he’s crafty. Other translations include sneaky, clever, cunning, subtle, intelligent and shrewd. Satan is a clever devil who is good at what he does. If you lived a thousand years, you could easily become an expert at something: music, math, logic, drama or any number of things. Satan has been around longer than that, and has refined his craft to an art form.
He’s so skillful, in fact, that he leads the whole world astray (Revelation 12:9), wrote John. We know how to split the atom and fly to the moon but, after thousands of years, there’s still no consensus on who God is, what he requires, or if he even exists. Satan is an evil genius who leads the whole world astray.
Genesis 3:1b He said to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?
This is the first temptation of a human being, and it’s brilliant. If Satan can make us doubt God’s word, he’s broken the relationship and won the battle for our souls. That’s why more books have been written against the Bible than any other book by far. The Bible is the most banned, burned and blasphemed book ever written. Satan is serious about turning people away from God, and he starts by attacking God’s word.
Satan hates the Bible and wants us to doubt it, but Jesus loves the Bible and wants us to trust it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law (Luke 16:17), he said. By referring to the least stroke of a pen, Jesus showed that he believed the Bible right down to the spelling.
He also said your word is truth (John 17:17). He didn’t say your word is truthful, or your word contains truth, but your word is truth. In fact, All Scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16), wrote Paul. It’s as though God himself breathed out every single syllable in the Bible.
So when Jesus was tempted by the devil, he didn’t doubt the Bible—he quoted it. It is written . . . . It is also written . . . . it is written (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10), he said. The most trustworthy person in the world, believed the most trustworthy book in the world, and they bear witness to each other.
Our first parents were deceived by the devil because they doubted God’s word. Jesus triumphed over the devil because he trusted God’s word. Now the choice is ours: we can follow Jesus, or we can follow Satan.
Genesis 3:5 God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
Satan wanted Adam and Eve to doubt the goodness of God, so he focused on what God withheld. They were free to eat from every tree in the garden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17). But if God was holding something back, maybe he wasn’t so good after all. First the devil tempted them to doubt God’s word, then he tempted them to doubt God’s goodness.
This is still effective whenever we don’t get something that we want (like someone to marry) or whenever we do get something that we don’t want (like the death of a child). Whenever life disappoints us we tend to question the goodness of God.
For example, a missionary served God for years, when his son was attacked by a swarm of bees, that forced him to jump off a cliff to his death. Wouldn’t a good God have kept that from happening? Adam and Eve were the first, but certainly not the last, to question the goodness of God.
Thankfully, God proved his goodness, once and for all, through the death and resurrection of his Son. Before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it was less clear what kind of God we were dealing with. But when God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son (John 3:16), his goodness was clearly displayed for all to see. Only a perfectly good God would give his Son for the sins of a world that hated him.
As soon as we believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, we give up the right to question the perfect goodness of God ever again. If the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ doesn’t convince us that God is good, nothing ever will. Every believer must settle this matter, once and for all: God is good all the time. The devil hates this fact and wants us to doubt it. But Jesus proved this fact and wants us to trust it.
Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
The first duty of a Christian husband is to protect his family from the devil. But Adam chose to use his wife as a guinea pig instead. If she fell over dead, he wouldn’t have eaten the fruit. But, since she survived, he thought it might be safe. Turning away from God can make us so selfish that we’ll hurt people we love in order to please ourselves.
Genesis 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
This is how shame came into the world. Adam and Eve had nothing to hide before they sinned but, afterward, they wanted to cover themselves. So they gathered fig leaves, and stitched them together, in a desperate attempt to cover their shame. If you’ve ever dreamed of being naked in public, you know how they felt.
But even if we have no physical shame, everyone carries moral shame. If everything we ever did became public information, we couldn’t leave the house. One survey showed that fifty percent of adult males carry a secret so dark that, if it were exposed, it would destroy them.
Shame is a negative emotion but it has a positive side. It means we’re not as bad as we could be. As long as we have a sense of shame, we also have a conscience. The work of the Holy Spirit is to convince us of our sins (John 16:8), so that we can repent, and be restored to God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 4
Genesis 3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
This was a little desperate but, for all they knew, God was coming to kill them. [W]hen you eat [of the tree] you will certainly die (Genesis 2:17), he warned. God had given them life, and now he was free to take it away.
Like our first parents, we also try to hide from God. Some hide by putting God out of their minds. Others hide by neglecting his word. Others use religion to hide from God, instead of relating to him personally. Nothing comes more naturally to guilty sinners than trying to hide from God.
Genesis 3:9 But the Lord God called to the man, Where are you?
This is God seeking man, not to kill him, but to restore him. This idea is so important that Jesus repeated it several times. The good shepherd searches for his one lost sheep (Luke 15:4). The distressed woman searches for her one lost coin (Luke 15:8). The rejected Father looks down the road searching for his one lost son (Luke 15:20). For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10), said Jesus.
A little boy was separated from his father at the county fair. He was surrounded by the best stuff in the world, but couldn’t enjoy it, because he didn’t know where his father was. But, after his father found him, the little boy enjoyed both the fair and his father more than ever. God is seeking lost people, not to punish them, but to restore them.
Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.
This is God’s solution to the problem of sin, spoken to the devil. It’s a messianic prophecy that’s remarkable for at least three reasons.
First, the solution to sin wouldn’t be Adam or Eve, but someone else. We’d expect the first couple to pay for their own sin, but God promised to send another who would crush [the devil’s] head. This idea is further developed throughout the Old Testament, so the Promised One wouldn’t be unexpected.
Second, the Promised One would be male. He will crush your head, not She will crush your head. In a single pronoun God eliminated half the human race from the pool of possible candidates. And, throughout the Old Testament, the pool shrinks even further.
The Promised One would be descended from Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10), born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), and minister in Galilee (Isaiah 9:1-2). If you put all the prophecies together, in fact, there’s only one person who fulfilled them all perfectly. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), said Jesus.
Third, the conflict between the serpent and the Promised One would likely include fatalities. If you step on a serpent’s head, it will probably die. And, if it bites your heel, you could also die. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ was fatal in the sense that he actually died. But, through his resurrection, he dealt a fatal blow to Satan that will bring him to his end. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was a cosmic conflict of life and death. It’s also the main point of the whole Bible.
Genesis 3:19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.
Even though the Promised One would fix the problem of sin, there’d still be consequences for Adam and Eve—and their descendants. Mankind was made to tend the garden, but now would become part of the garden. As a result, every child is born with a terminal disease called aging, and we’re just at various stages. Imagine what you’ll look like thirty years from now.
I got together with friends, whom I hadn’t seen for years, and was surprised by how much they had changed. Hair had fallen out, wrinkles had come, and so had extra weight. I tried to conceal my surprise, but noticed they were also surprised. Then it became a contest to see who could act the least surprised. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, everyone sins, and die we must.
Genesis 3:21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.
The only way to get skin off an animal is to kill it, so this was the first animal sacrifice. Animals were likely tame before the fall, and may’ve been something like pets. Adam and Eve were vegetarians (Genesis 1:29, 9:3), and had never seen an animal die. But, naked and ashamed, they needed the animal’s skin to cover their disgrace.
To make his point, God may’ve made them watch the slaughter of this innocent victim: throat slit, blood spilt, eyes wild, body trembling, life draining, lights out. It was a bloody object lesson to portray the wickedness of sin and the terrible cost involved.
In fact, the Old Testament is filled with the blood of sacrificial animals: sheep, goats, bulls and more. But all the blood of all the animals ever sacrificed could never take away sins (Hebrews 10:11), says Hebrews. That required nothing less than the shed blood of Jesus Christ—God in human flesh. Sin is man taking the place of God; salvation is God taking the place of man.
As Adam and Eve were clothed with the skin of a beast, all who believe in Jesus Christ are clothed with him. [Y]ou who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ (Galatians 3:27), wrote Paul. We lost any righteousness of our own, but God has arrayed [us] in a robe of his righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), wrote Isaiah. The first animal sacrifice pointed forward to the sacrifice of Christ.
Genesis 3:24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
The opportunity to eat from the tree of life, and live forever, was apparently gone for ever. How sad it must’ve been for Adam and Eve to leave the garden and venture into the untamed world. There they would die, and all their offspring would also die. This remains the worst day in the history of the world.
Thankfully, the tree of life appears again at the end of the Bible. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit (Revelation 22:2), wrote John. The tree of life first appeared in the old paradise of Eden. But, after the death, of Christ it appears again in the new paradise of God’s eternal kingdom.
This is helpful for understanding the Bible’s storyline. It’s the record of paradise lost through sin, and regained through Jesus Christ. The cherubim mentioned above were later embroidered on the temple curtain (2 Chronicles 3:14), which kept people away from the presence of God. That curtain was torn from top to bottom when Jesus died on the cross (Matthew 27:51). This shows the way to God is now open to everyone who comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 5
Genesis 4:1-2 Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. . . . Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
Cain and Abel were the first two sons born to Adam and Eve. There weren't many career choices back then, so Cain grew up to be a farmer, and Abel kept flocks. As an offering to God, Cain brought some of his produce, and Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock (Genesis 4:4). This is how they honored God as the source of all they had.
Genesis 4:4-5 The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.
From this we learn that not all offerings are pleasing to God. The text is not explicit, but Abel seems to have brought his best, while Cain bought something less. The real problem wasn’t what they brought, however, but the attitude of their hearts. We learn elsewhere that Abel’s heart was right with God (Hebrews 11:4), and Cain’s heart was not (1 John 3:12). It’s not enough to bring our offerings to God, we must bring them with worshipping hearts.
Genesis 4:5b Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Cain thought his offering was perfectly fine, and God was lucky to have it. He should’ve received God’s favor, not his frown, he thought. What kind of God would disapprove of an offering anyway? Cain wasn’t sure that he even liked God very much. Then the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? (Genesis 4:6-7).
God wasn’t being unreasonable. He simply wanted Cain to understand worship. Cain’s offering showed a measure of compliance, but it wasn’t from his heart. Giving to God seemed like a tax to Cain, not an expression of love. God assured Cain that he would be accepted, if he’d only do what was right.
Genesis 4:7b But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.
God used a powerful image to illustrate Cain’s struggle with sin—and ours. It’s like a wild beast ready to devour. Sin is not a cuddly kitten, but a savage carnivore. Cain could do the right thing, and be accepted by God, or he could do as he pleased, and be devoured by sin.
Many face a similar choice at one time or another. Some choose to conquer lust, others are devoured. Some choose to conquer drugs, others are devoured. Some choose to conquer hate, others are devoured. Sin is not a toothless tiger, but a ferocious beast hungry for souls.
Genesis 4:8 Cain said to his brother Abel, Let’s go out to the field.
Cain led his brother far enough away that their parents wouldn’t hear him scream. Cain probably gave some thought to the place, and how to dispose of the body. If his brother went missing, his parents would assume he was eaten by an animal, or that he was lost. So While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him (Genesis 4:8b).
Cain became the first murderer, and made his brother the first martyr. Cain wasn’t merely jealous of his brother; he hated him for loving God. Cain hated God so much that he murdered his brother for loving God. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother (1 John 3:12), wrote John.
Believers and unbelievers often get along, but when the devil gets involved we should expect the worst. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you (John 15:20), said Jesus. Abel was the first to die for his faith, but millions have followed him.
Here we also see that sin can have unintended consequences. When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit they hoped to elevate the human condition (Genesis 3:5). Instead, their natures were corrupted, and passed down to their children, so that one killed the other. Even worse, their sinful natures were passed down to future generations. This has produced a world of sin and misery where everyone dies. If Adam and Eve could’ve foreseen the results of their sin, they wouldn’t have sinned in the first place. Sadly, many have a similar story.
Genesis 4:9 Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is your brother Abel? I don’t know, he replied. Am I my brother’s keeper?
Cain’s sarcastic reply showed he was completely unrepentant. He had no sorrow for sin, or any regret for what he had done. He hardened his heart against the voice of God, and became a hardened killer. Even then, God would’ve received Cain if he would’ve repented. [A] broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:17), wrote David.
Genesis 4:10 Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.
Abel’s parents didn’t hear him scream, but God heard his blood crying out from the ground. It is mine to avenge; I will repay (Deuteronomy 32:25), said God elsewhere. Whoever rejects God’s mercy will have to face his justice.
As part of his punishment, Cain would become a restless wanderer (Genesis 4:12). His life would be an aimless journey, without meaning or direction, leading to the grave, and then to hell below. This sad path is chosen by many, but those who follow Christ journey to a better place. We can go with God, or we can go with the devil, but the destinations are as different as the paths we choose.
Genesis 4:25-26 Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him. Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.
Since Cain rejected God, and his righteous brother was dead, true religion was in danger of vanishing from the earth. But God gave Adam and Eve another son, and then a grandson. Having learned their family’s history, they took God seriously, and began to call on the name of the Lord.
This idea occurs throughout the Bible, along with a promise of salvation. [E]veryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Joel 2:32), wrote Joel. [E]veryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Acts 2:21), preached Peter. And Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13), wrote Paul.
A little girl fell into a hole that was actually a very deep well. Rescue teams worked around the clock, for over two days, while others watched and prayed. In what seemed to be a miracle, the little girl was saved from the pit of her destruction. There’s no place so far down that God isn’t able to reach us. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 6
Genesis 6:5 The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.
Things went downhill rather quickly after Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. Their first-born son Cain, murdered their second-born son Abel, in the first religious persecution (Genesis 4:8). Then Lamech corrupted God’s pattern for marriage by introducing polygamy (Genesis 4:19). And, before long, every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.
This is one of the clearest statements of human depravity in the Bible and, two chapters later, we read that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21). We don’t have to grow up before we start sinning; it begins when we are children.
I could tell of my own childhood sins, which were many and deadly, but I will tell on my friends instead. We lived near a lake where there were frogs and, to pass the time, we’d catch them. Not content to let them go, my friends amused themselves by inventing ways to torture the frogs. I could list the ways they tortured them, but it’s more disturbing than it’s worth. Even in our youth we have more in common with devil (morally) than we do with Jesus Christ.
The Bible’s first concern isn’t how to have a wonderful life, or how to make the world a better place. It speaks to these, and other issues, but they’re not the main point. The Bible’s main concern is sin, and what God has done to fix it through his Son Jesus Christ. Any other reading of the Bible is a misinterpretation.
Genesis 6:6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.
Other translations say, his heart was filled with pain (NIRV), he was heartbroken (GW) and, it broke his heart (NLT). This is a little surprising because we don’t expect an all-powerful God to be emotionally involved with his creatures—unless, of course, he’s also a heavenly Father who suffers deeply whenever his children go astray.
A friend of mine grew up in a good and godly home, and we went to the same school. He was normal in grade school, a little wild in middle school, but in high school he personified rebellion. He engaged in every form of destructive behavior until he finally disappeared. About a year later I saw his mother and was surprised by her appearance—she looked ten years older. I shudder to think how often I broke my parents’ hearts, not to mention my heavenly Father’s heart.
Genesis 6:7 So the Lord said, I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created . . . for I regret that I have made them.
Human beings turned out so badly that God had second thoughts. God is an all-powerful supreme being, complete in himself. But he’s also a rejected Father with all the attending emotions. God is a real person with real feelings, and our behavior affects his feelings. Sin is more than a violation of God’s law; it is pain in God’s heart.
Genesis 6:9 Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.
The world was filled with wickedness but Noah was an exception. He preferred to be in step with God, and out of step with the world, than to be in step with the world, and out of step with God. Noah didn’t care about the world’s approval nearly as much as God’s approval. Whether he had many friends, or few, Noah would only have one best friend—the God who gave him life. So when God determined to judge the world with a flood, he commissioned Noah to build an ark, in which he and his family would be saved.
Noah was also a preacher (2 Peter 2:5), so when people came to see the ark he likely gave them a sermon. We don’t have a record of his words, but he probably told them to repent, since God doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. This went on day after day, week after week, and year after year. But apart from his family, Noah never won a single convert. Ministry can be hard sometimes.
Genesis 6:15 The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.
Critics like to mock this story but there are some interesting facts to support it. First, the ark was about four hundred fifty feet long, by seventy-five feet wide, by forty-five feet high. Imagine a building one and a half times the size of a football field, and four and a half stories tall. It was a massive structure, but credible estimates show it was precisely the right size for the cargo.
Second, the ark was six times longer than it was wide. This is the same ratio that’s used by modern ship builders. Ships built to these proportions are extremely stable and almost impossible to capsize. And, as far as we know, the ark was the first of its kind. It was engineered by God, and the pattern is still used today.
Third, there are extra-biblical accounts supporting the story of a catastrophic flood. The two most famous are the Atra-Hasis Epic and the Gilgamesh Epic. Both were written before the biblical account, which suggests the story was passed down orally, from Noah and his family, to later generations, until it was written down by Moses around 1445 BC. There are differences between the stories, but the biblical account is the most plausible one by far.
Genesis 7:13 On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark.
By this time the ark was fully loaded, and the rain was coming down. Out of all the people on earth, only eight were saved (1 Peter 3:20). This is meant to shock us because we can barely imagine God only saving eight people. What about Aunt Edna, Uncle Roy and Cousin Pete? When it came to being saved, most people missed the boat. They still do. [S]mall is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (Matthew 7:13-14), said Jesus.
Most people reject their need to be saved, but believers sense the approaching judgment of God and take action. As Noah and his family got into the ark, we get into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ (John 5:24). We too will experience ridicule, but we’d rather be in Christ than anywhere else without him.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 7
Genesis 7:16 Then the Lord shut him in.
We can imagine people changing their minds about Noah once it started raining. For years they heard him preach, and watched his godly behavior. At any time they could’ve gone over to his side. But it was easier to be part of the godless majority, than to join a godly minority.
We can also imagine people standing around the ark saying, We’re sorry Noah. Can you open the door? Can you please, please, open the door? But Noah couldn’t open the door because Noah didn’t shut the door. The door had been shut by God.
As the water rose, we should imagine families on their housetops, and children asking their parents if they were going to die. We should imagine parents regretting their failure to raise their children for the Lord, and looking into their eyes with panic as they were being swept away.
This is so important, in fact, that Jesus used this story to teach about the end of the age. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:37-39).
And, Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, Sir, open the door for us. But he will answer, I do not know you or where you come from (Luke 13:25). According to Jesus, there will be people who planned to get into the kingdom of God eventually, but put it off until it was too late. Then they’ll plead with God, but he will say, I do not know you.
A few other parallels are worth noticing. Building the ark seemed foolish to those who’d perish, and the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18), wrote Paul. The ark was the only way to be saved, and there is no other name under heaven . . . by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12), said Peter. Those who heard Noah preach rejected the truth, and others perish because they refused to love the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:10), wrote Paul. Salvation in Noah’s day wasn’t completely different than it is today.
Genesis 7:17-23 For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered. The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than fifteen cubits.
Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind. Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; people and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.
We can imagine Noah’s little family gathered in the ark as the rain came pouring down. We can imagine the water rising higher and higher until the boat began to float. And we can imagine Noah praying that it wouldn’t break apart. Dear God, please, keep this boat in the palm of your hand. Forty days later the rain let up, but it was over a year before the ground was dry enough for them to leave the boat. Then they built an altar to worship the God who saved them (Genesis 8:20).
Hard times can make us thankful. When everything is wonderful, every single day, our appreciation begins to fade. But when God sends hardship, we learn how precious a normal day really is. Whenever the sun goes down on a normal day, we should thank God that we’re not in a flood. And if we are in a flood, we should thank God that he will get us through it.
Genesis 9:3 Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.
At first, God only allowed a vegetarian diet (Genesis 1:29). But, after the flood, he included meat. This is an important correction to false religious views that restrict the human diet. Whatever God has made should be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth (1 Timothy 4:3), wrote Paul. There are many things we prefer not to eat, but there’s nothing that God has forbidden to eat.
A young lady attended a Bible study where she argued for the equal sacredness of all living creatures. She was a vegetarian by conviction and wouldn’t even kill a fly. But, during the Bible study, a bee crawled up her sleeve and stung her. Instinctively she killed it, and everyone saw what she did. False religions often confuse the created order. But the Bible makes sense of the world, and works in the world God created.
Genesis 9:13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
The next time Noah saw a cloud he might’ve become nervous. And the next time it rained he might’ve panicked. So God gave him the sign of a rainbow to assure him that he’d never destroy the earth with a flood again (Genesis 9:15). Whenever we see a rainbow, we should thank God for preserving the world he created. The world doesn’t endure on its own. It only endures because God sustains it (Hebrews 1:3).
Genesis 9:20-21 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent.
This is a little surprising. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God (Genesis 6:9). Noah’s preaching (2 Peter 2:5), and his faithful work on the ark, also speak to his righteous character. He was a very godly man but, like the rest of us, he wasn’t perfect.
Life wasn’t easy, after the flood, and Noah sought comfort in wine. But too much wine leads to drunkenness, which may also lead to immodesty. Noah may’ve disrobed because of the heat, or some other reason, but this story doesn’t reflect well on him.
Genesis 9:22-23 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.
Ham should’ve protected his father’s dignity by covering his father’s nakedness, and saying nothing about it. [L]ove covers over a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8), wrote Peter. But instead of keeping quiet, Ham broadcast his father’s indiscretion to his brothers. They could’ve added to the ridicule, but showed proper respect by covering their father’s shame. When Noah found out what happened, he blessed Shem and Japheth, and cursed the descendants of Ham (Genesis 9:24-27).
Other than Jesus Christ, there are no perfect people. Even righteous Noah had a moment of failure. We ought to keep this in mind for ourselves, and also for other sinners. Some sins need to be exposed, but most should be covered over. And, whenever we fail, we should take our sins to Jesus Christ, and be assured of his forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 8
Genesis 10:1 This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.
For humanity to survive after the flood, Noah’s sons had to reproduce, and here we find the names of their offspring. The Bible contains many genealogies and, though not always entertaining, they show we’re part of a much larger story. Like those who’ve gone before us, we’re born into the world, play a part, and then we die. Our lives are made up of the choices we make, and each day is a new page on which to write our story.
Genesis 10:8-12 Cush was the father of Nimrod. . . . The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah and Resen.
Nimrod was a builder of civilizations. Whether he was good or evil isn’t clear but, if we enjoy the benefits of an advanced civilization, we ought to be thankful for those who helped build it. This will include leaders, teachers, parents, artists, soldiers, merchants and laborers. Great societies happen because people give their best. It’s our duty to God (Genesis 1:28), and others (Romans 13:9), to contribute to society by doing our best work.
Genesis 11:1 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech.
For many years communication flowed freely as the world enjoyed a single language. This helped people cooperate and make cultural progress. Instead of using their social cohesion to glorify God, however, they used it to rebel against him. Instead of pursuing God’s glory, they pursued their own.
Genesis 11:4 [L]et us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves.
Simply put, they wanted to be famous. They wanted to build a city with a magnificent tower that would distinguish them and win the approval of others. They wanted to be well-known, and very well-respected. This is not uncommon, even today.
Many have built homes they couldn’t afford, to impress people they didn’t like. And many have bought cars for the same reason. Our purpose on earth is not to bring glory to ourselves, however, but to the God who made us. Not to us, Lord, . . . but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist. This is a great relief, and a wonderful blessing, once we embrace it.
Genesis 11:6 The Lord said, If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.
Nothing is impossible for God, of course. But here we learn that nothing is impossible for us—under the right circumstances. This is the clearest statement of human potential in the Bible, and was spoken by God himself. When people work together, toward a common goal, there’s little they can’t achieve.
This is more obvious today than ever before. Technological developments have produced better machines, medicines and institutions than the world has ever known. Since the rate of progress is only getting faster, it’s hard to know where we’ll be a hundred years from now, if God permits.
But there’s a problem: unified people often produce a world opposed to God. The people in this story had little concern for God, and wanted to build a city without him. But God doesn’t like that, and won’t allow it forever.
Genesis 11:7-6 [L]et us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other. So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
How strange it must’ve been to go to work that day, and find so many people speaking other languages. The bosses couldn’t communicate with the foremen; the foremen couldn’t communicate with the laborers; and no one knew what to do. The community broke apart as people went their ways with whoever spoke their language. Thousands of years later, this is still an issue.
The world remains divided by over six thousand languages, making communication difficult. But after Jesus rose form the dead, God did something different. People from various countries were gathered in Jerusalem when the Spirit enabled the disciples to speak in languages the people could understand. [W]e hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues (Acts 2:11), they said.
God confused the human language due to our sin, but he let us hear the gospel due to his grace. We still have different languages, but all who believe are united by faith in Jesus Christ. This is a greater unity than sharing a common language, and is based on the knowledge of God. God is reversing the curse of of this event through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Genesis 11:9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world.
Babel and confused are similar in Hebrew, so the writer made a play on words. Babylon was later destroyed, and stands for all civilizations opposed to God, which will also be destroyed. [A] mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again (Revelation 18:21), wrote John.
God isn’t opposed to cities, or progress, but the purpose of both are to glorify him. Human centered cities come and go, but the city of God will last forever. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come (Hebrews 13:14), says Hebrews. [That] city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp (Revelation 21:23), wrote John.
God has a plan for the earth to be subdued, and filled with his people (Genesis 1:28). Sin has brought frustration, but God’s plan will be accomplished eventually. God and his people will live together in a perfect world of his design, and it will never end. This is the future of all who belong to Jesus Christ.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 9
Genesis 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
This begins the story of how God built the nation of Israel, beginning with Abram (later called Abraham). Here the story shifts from God’s relationship with the world, in general, to God’s relationship with Abraham and his offspring—the Israelites. Abraham wasn’t chosen by God because he was better than anyone else, but simply because God chose him (Romans 9:15). He’s so important to the Bible’s story that his name is mentioned over two hundred times.
Abraham was living in a pagan culture when God broke into his life and told him to move to the Promised Land. Abraham lived in a tent (Hebrews 11:9) for much of his life, For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10), says Hebrews. He’s an example to those who refuse to settle down in this life as they journey to the next.
Genesis 12:2-3 I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
God kept this promise to Abraham by making him into a great nation, and by making him famous. In the previous chapter the people wanted to make a name for themselves (Genesis 11:4). But, as Abraham followed God, God made a name for Abraham.
God also promised Abraham that, all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. This anticipates the gospel of Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:7-9) who, two thousand years later, was Abraham’s descendent (Matthew 1:1). Because the gospel has spread throughout the world, the world has been blessed through Abraham. The God of Abraham keeps his promises and, therefore, we can trust him.
Genesis 12:10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.
Abraham may’ve hoped for great things in the Promised Land but, instead, he encountered a famine. Like many since, Abraham found that God’s ways don’t always make sense to us. The way of faith can be difficult, even when we’re exactly where God wants us to be.
Abraham went down to Egypt, where the food supply was stable, due to the Nile River. But there he was afraid that Pharaoh might kill him, to take his beautiful wife Sarai (later called Sarah). Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you (Genesis 12:13), he said.
Sarah actually was Abraham’s half sister (Genesis 20:12). But this was still a deception, and a terrible thing to ask. Pharaoh did, in fact, take Sarah to be his wife. And, while the text is not explicit, he seems to have slept with her (Genesis 12:19). This would’ve strained Abraham and Sarah’s relationship, and compromised their walk with God. It’s interesting how early in the story they failed.
Like others who try to follow God, Abraham and Sarah weren’t perfect. Their confidence in God wasn’t always strong and, under pressure, they failed more than once. The story of God and his people is about sin and grace, failure and forgiveness. The only one who never sinned, of course, was Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:22). He lived our life, and died our death, so that he could be our Savior (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Genesis 12:20 Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.
God sent diseases on Pharaoh and his household to show his disapproval. They came to understand that this was due to Abraham’s wife, so Pharaoh gave her back to Abraham and sent them on their way. They left Pharaoh’s palace with sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels (Genesis 12:16). God prospered Abraham and Sarah, even when they were out of his will.
Sin normally has negative consequences, including divine discipline (Hebrews 12:6). But, on occasion, God may bring us good even when we sin. Then we should praise him for not giving us what we deserve, but for giving us what we don’t deserve. The biblical word for this is grace (Ephesians 2:8). Justice is getting what we deserve; mercy is not getting what we deserve; grace is getting what we don’t deserve—the undeserved favor of God.
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Genesis 13:5 Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents.
Lot was Abraham’s nephew, and they both became so wealthy that the land couldn’t support their families together. Both groups began to quarrel, so Abraham made peace by offering Lot whatever region he preferred. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left (Genesis 13:9), he said.
This was a generous offer and reflects well on Abraham’s character. As the elder of the clan, Abraham had the right to choose, but he left the choice to Lot. A generous person will prosper (Proverbs 11:25), says Proverbs. God applauds generosity, and is often pleased to reward it.
Genesis 13:10 Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan toward Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt.
Lot chose the best of the land, and left the rest to Abraham. The land he chose was close to Sodom, however, a town known for its wickedness (Genesis 13:13). But the region’s wealth was enough to offset any of Lot’s concerns. Abraham made him a generous offer and Lot made the most of it.
There was something Lot didn’t know, however. Sodom would soon be destroyed by the judgment of God (Genesis 19:1-29). Lot would escape with his daughters, but everything else would be lost. Getting what you want isn’t always what you want.
Genesis 13:14-15 The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.
Lot thought he chose the best, but it soon became the worst. Abraham settled for what was left, but it soon became the best. This is a helpful principle when it comes to making choices.
Instead of grasping for what we want, it’s often wise to let others go first. God knows what’s best for us, and he also knows the future (Isaiah 46:10). Letting others choose first is a way of being generous, and trusting God to give us what he wants for us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 10
Genesis 14:14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit.
A coalition of kings conquered Sodom and Gomorrah, and a few other towns in the region. Many were taken captive, including Lot, Abrahams’ nephew. When Abraham heard of it, he marshaled his personal army, and went to the rescue.
Abraham’s personal army shows that he was a man of power and wealth. But, if the battle went badly, he might become a prisoner of war. It’s easy to be courageous from a distance but, when trouble comes near, we must look to God. The words, Do not be afraid occur over fifty times in the Bible, and are often spoken by God himself.
Genesis 14:16 [Abraham] recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.
Abraham’s nighttime attack was so effective that the opposing armies fled. He rescued those who were taken captive and recovered their possessions. There must have been great rejoicing as the people returned safe and sound. Abraham was now a hero.
On the way home, Abraham was met by the king of Jerusalem, with whom he ate and drank. Abraham gave him ten percent of the plunder, and the king gave him a blessing. Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth (Genesis 14:19).
Most people didn’t believe in the one true God, so this is a little surprising. But this man was a godly priest as well as a godly king. His name was Melchizedek, and he’s only mentioned one other time in the Old Testament. You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110:4), wrote David.
King David wasn’t a priest, but he foresaw a king who would be a priest. This was fulfilled by Jesus Christ the King of kings (1 Timothy 6:15) and great high priest (Hebrews 4:14). He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 6:20), says Hebrews.
Abraham acknowledged Melchizedek’s greatness by giving him a tenth of the plunder, and by receiving his blessing. Likewise, we give our offerings to Jesus Christ (Philippians 4:18), and are also blessed by him (Romans 10:12). The Old Testament foreshadows Jesus Christ in many ways, and Melchizedek is a fine example.
*****
Genesis 15:1 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.
After defeating the coalition of kings, Abraham may’ve feared retaliation. God responded by saying, I am your shield. Likewise, Abraham returned the booty to its owners, and God responded by saying, I am . . . your very great reward. God shields those who trust him (Psalm 18:30), and rewards those who serve him (Romans 8:32).
Genesis 15:2 But Abram said, Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?
Abraham didn’t have any children and he wasn’t getting any younger. Unless God answered his prayer for a child, all that he owned would go to one of his servants. Abraham was troubled by this, so he brought it to God’s attention.
Genesis 15:4 Then the word of the Lord came to him: This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.
God told Abraham to count the stars and said, So shall your offspring be (Genesis 15:5). Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6).
This verse is quoted three times by the Apostle Paul to show that salvation is by faith, not by works (Romans 4:3, Romans 4:23, Galatians 3:6). The words it was credited to him were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead (Romans 4:23-24), he wrote.
God didn’t count Abraham righteous because he was good, but because he believed God’s promise. And God doesn’t count us righteous because we are good, but because we believe his promise of eternal life through Christ. For we maintain that a person is justified by faith (Romans 3:28), wrote Paul. Other religions teach that we get right with God by being good. Christianity teaches that we get right with God by believing in Jesus Christ. [T]he one who believes has eternal life (John 6:47), said Jesus.
Genesis 15:7 He also said to him, I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.
God also promised Abraham the land of Canaan, and confirmed it with an oath. He told him to bring some animals and cut them in half. That evening a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces (Genesis 15:17). This is very strange to us but, in effect, God was saying, May I become like these severed animals if I don’t keep my word.
When God makes a promise to his people, he wants us to believe it. Since Abraham didn’t have a Bible or a church to strengthen his faith, God confirmed his promise with a bloody oath. This showed that God would rather die than break his word to Abraham.
We find something similar to this in the Lord’s Supper. For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death (1 Corinthians 11:26), wrote Paul. God made a bloody covenant with Abraham, and This cup is the new covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20), said Jesus.
God would rather die than break his word to Abraham, and God was willing to die to keep his word to us (Jeremiah 31:33, Isaiah 53:5). If Abraham believed God on the basis of severed animals, how much more should we believe God on the basis of his crucified Son, whom he also raised from the dead (Matthew 28:6). The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does (Psalm 145:13), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 11
Genesis 16:1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.
Ten years had passed since God promised Abraham that he’d become a great nation (Genesis 12:1-4), but he still didn’t have any children. Abraham’s wife grew impatient and suggested they have children through Hagar, Sarah’s slave. Abraham agreed and Hagar conceived. But, as soon as she knew she was pregnant, tension developed within the family. As the mother of Abraham’s child, Hagar felt superior to Sarah, and began to disrespect her. This made Sarah so angry she mistreated Hagar until she ran away. What started as a perfect plan ended in domestic strife.
Sometimes God will let us choose between two kinds of suffering: not getting what we want, and getting what we don’t want. The sorrow of not getting what they wanted convinced Abraham and Sarah to act apart from God’s will. Due to their impatience, they got what they didn’t want—family conflict. Not getting what we want is usually better than getting what we don’t want, so it’s best to wait for God.
Genesis 16:7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert.
Hagar ran away from home, but didn’t have a good place to go, so she ended up near a spring in the desert—pregnant and alone. There she encountered the angel of the Lord who spoke to her. Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going? (Genesis 16:8).
Hagar was partly to blame for her trouble since she had provoked Sarah. If she had shown a little respect, things would’ve been different. God could’ve left her to the consequences of her misbehavior, but he sought her out when she was at her lowest.
This reminds us of Jesus who came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). When we make a mess of things, Jesus comes with love and compassion. We may’ve put him off in the past, but our desperation reveals how much we need him.
Genesis 16:9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, Go back to your mistress and submit to her.
This may’ve been the last thing Hagar wanted to hear. Sarah had treated her badly, and submitting wouldn’t be easy. But submission to God often involves submitting to difficult people.
Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands (Ephesians 5:22), wrote Paul. Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority (1 Peter 2:13), wrote Peter. Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters (1 Peter 2:18), wrote Peter again. In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders (1 Peter 5:5), wrote Peter yet again. We show our submission to Christ by submitting to those who are over us. This brings glory to God, and is often the way to future blessing.
Genesis 16:10 I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.
God told Hagar to do a difficult thing and promised to reward her. Large families were desirable and Hagar’s descendants would be too many to count. When following God seems difficult we should remember his promise: the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8), wrote Paul.
The angel of the Lord told Hagar to call her son Ishmael (Genesis 16:11), meaning God hears. But she also had a name for God: You are the God who sees me (Genesis 16:13). When no one else can see us, God sees. When no one else can hear us, God hears. Whenever we’re hurting, or in trouble, he’s the God who sees and hears.
*****
Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless.
It had been nearly twenty-five years since God promised Abraham that he’d become a great nation (Genesis 12:2). But Sarah still hadn’t conceived, so God appeared again to reinforce his promise. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations (Genesis 17:5), he said.
Abram means exalted father, and Abraham means father of many. God changed Abram’s name to Abraham because he’d become the father of many nations. This was difficult for Abraham to believe but, eventually, God fulfilled his word.
Biologically, Abraham became the father of the Israelites, the Edomites (Genesis 36:1-43) and the Ishmaelites (Genesis 25:12-18). To be the father of three nations is a remarkable legacy, but it seems to fall short of God’s promise to make him the father of many nations.
In addition to the biological fulfillment of God’s promise, however, there’s also a spiritual fulfillment: those who have faith [in Christ] are children of Abraham (Galatians 3:7), wrote Paul. By the end of the age, this will include people from every nation on earth.
[T]here before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9), wrote John. This surpasses anything Abraham might’ve imagined. God’s promises take time to be fulfilled, but their fulfillment exceeds all our expectations.
Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
In response to God’s promise, Abraham and all his male offspring were to be circumcised. This symbolized the Abrahamic covenant, as a wedding ring symbolizes the covenant of marriage. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people (Genesis 17:14), said God. Circumcision was the sign of God's covenant for hundreds of years.
It’s no surprise, therefore, that a controversy developed in the early church about whether Gentile Christians should also be circumcised. The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses (Acts 15:5), some argued. The apostles gathered to discuss this issue and concluded it wasn’t necessary. We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved (Acts 15:11), said Peter.
The Apostle Paul later explained that our sinful natures are circumcised by Christ, and the sign of the new covenant is baptism. Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him (Colossians 2:11-12), he wrote. Circumcision has been replaced by baptism as the sign of the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 12
Genesis 19:1 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city.
This is the account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by the judgment of God. The towns were given over to the sin of homosexuality, so God rained down burning sulfur on them (Genesis 19:24). Before he poured out his wrath, however, God sent two angels in human form to rescue Lot, Abraham’s nephew.
Lot was a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (2 Peter 2:7), wrote Peter. Lot was a child of God who was trying to live in a godless culture. He had settled down in Sodom and compromised his values. He would still be saved, but his choice to live in a godless culture would cost him dearly.
Genesis 19:8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them.
The men of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house and demanded that he send out the angelic visitors to be sexually molested. Lot tried to dissuade them by offering his daughters instead. It’s hard to imagine a father making this kind of compromise, unless he was already compromised. Spiritual compromise is a slippery slope that leads to ever-increasing compromise.
Living in a wicked culture will condition us to wickedness until we think that wickedness is normal. Living together before marriage used to be called living in sin, but now it’s normal. Saving one’s virginity for marriage used to be praised, but now it’s often scorned. Homosexuality used to be unmentionable, but now it’s mainstream. We can’t escape our culture, but should be aware of how it’s shaping us.
Genesis 19:14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city! But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
The angels had warned Lot about the coming judgment, so Lot tried to warn his sons-in-law. They weren’t convinced, however, because Lot’s lifestyle didn’t reflect his faith. The more we live like the world, the less compelling our witness will be. The more we compromise our faith, the less we’ll be believed.
Genesis 19:15 Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.
The angels warned Lot to flee with his family, or they would be destroyed with the city. There are some places Christians shouldn’t be, and some people they shouldn’t be with. Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you (2 Corinthians 6:17), wrote Paul. This doesn’t mean we should avoid the ungodly altogether, but that we should be careful about our associations (1 Corinthians 15:33).
Genesis 19:24-25 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities.
Sodom and Gomorrah were located near the south end of the Dead Sea. The burning sulfur may’ve come from an earthquake that ejected sulfur, gases and asphalt, still found in this region. If ignited by lighting, they could’ve resulted in the catastrophic destruction this passage describes.
Genesis 19:26 Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
This was a fatal mistake since the angel had warned them clearly: Don’t look back (Genesis 19:17). But Lot’s wife was leaving everything she owned, and almost everyone she loved. She nearly escaped the doom of the city but, when she looked back, she became a pillar of salt. Lot’s wife was almost saved.
Looking back often leads to going back, so if we look back on what we’ve left for Christ, we’ll find an opportunity to return. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you (Proverbs 4:25), says Proverbs. The doom of Lot’s wife reveals the foolishness of looking back on the world we’ve left behind.
This idea is so important that Jesus applied it to his return. On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife! (Luke 17:31-32), he said. When Jesus Christ returns we shouldn’t look back on what we’re leaving behind, but fix our eyes firmly on him.
Jesus’ brother, Jude, also referred to this episode. Sodom and Gomorrah . . . . serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire (Jude 1:7), he wrote. We shouldn’t think of hell as anything less than the misery of being burned alive forever. This is a graphic illustration of the fate of all who prefer their sin over the Savior. Hell is not a mild discomfort, but a terrible agony that will never end.
The primary sin for which Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed was flagrant homosexuality. This is clearly condemned by Scripture, along with other sins. Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10), wrote Paul. This doesn't mean we’ll never stumble or fall, but that we should always get back up, and continue to fight against sin.
A Christian man was dying of AIDS as a result of his homosexual sin. His pastor came to see him and referred to him as a homosexual. The man replied, I’m not a homosexual. I’m a Christian who struggles with homosexuality. My faith in Christ is deeper than any other part of me.
That was a good response. God is not against homosexuals, heterosexuals, transexuals, bisexuals, or any other kind of person. God is against sin, and he sent his Son to die on a cross so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
God expects nothing more from homosexuals than from heterosexual singles: abstinence. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 13
Genesis 19:30 Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains. . . . He and his two daughters lived in a cave.
At one time they were influential members of a wealthy community, but now they were living apart from civilization. Lot was getting older and, without children of their own, Lot’s daughters would have no one to care for them in their old age. So they got their father drunk, slept with him, and bore his children. Sodom’s culture had clearly shaped their ways.
One of the most important decisions parents make is how and where to raise their children. Those with every advantage often turn out badly, and those with none can turn out fine. On balance, however, those who are raised well do better than those who aren’t. Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it (Proverbs 22:6), says Proverbs. Also, Bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33), wrote Paul.
Besides their other mistakes, Lot and his wife raised their daughters in a wicked town. As a result, their family became an incestuous mess. Lot’s last recorded act, in fact, was drunken sex with his daughters. This also led to future trouble since their offspring became the Moabites and the Ammonites—enemies of Israel. The way of sin is always downhill.
*****
Genesis 20:1 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar.
When the king of Gerar wanted Sarah for his harem, Abraham feared for his life. Again he said, She is my sister (Genesis 20:2). This is the same lie he told Pharaoh (Genesis 12:1-20), and may’ve told to others (Genesis 20:13). This was a serious character flaw which made Abraham a repeat offender.
After so many years of following God, we’re surprised at Abraham’s lack of moral progress. I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless (Genesis 17:1), said God. But Abraham was far from blameless. He believed in God (Genesis 15:6), but his life didn’t always show it. He had good intentions, but could also be weak.
Other than Jesus Christ, the main characters of the Bible are seldom moral heroes. Like us, they have some good points, and some bad points, and need to be saved. God was patient with Abraham and, even though he failed, he was still called God’s friend (James 2:23). God is also patient with us, and doesn’t reject us when we fail.
Genesis 20:3 God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken.
If not for divine intervention, the king of Gerar might’ve made Sarah pregnant, and kept her as his wife. This would’ve jeopardized God’s promise to Abraham: I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her (Genesis 17:16).
Abimelek claimed that he was innocent because he didn’t know Sarah was married. Then God said to him in the dream, Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her (Genesis 20:6), said God.
There may’ve been times Abimelek planned to sleep with Sarah, but suddenly lost desire. Or there may have been times he had desire, but lacked the opportunity. For however long Sarah was in his harem, God kept Abimelek from sinning against him.
If God did this for Abimelek, how often has he done it for us? At times we’ve had the opportunity to sin, but lacked the desire. Or we had the desire, but lacked the opportunity. Left to ourselves, there’s little we wouldn’t be guilty of. But God has restrained us and kept us from sinning as often as we would. If it wasn’t for God’s restraining grace, the world would be even worse than it is.
Genesis 20:14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him.
Once again, God treated Abraham better than he deserved. His lack of faith and obedience might’ve destroyed his future, as well as God’s plan to bless the world through him (Genesis 12:3). But God’s plan to bless the world depends more on God than it does on us. [I]f we are faithless, he remains faithful (2 Timothy 2:13), wrote Paul.
*****
Genesis 21:1 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.
Twenty-five years after the original promise (Genesis 12:2-3), God gave Abraham and Sarah the child they were waiting for. The long wait wasn’t easy, but it deepened their faith and heightened their joy.
This was the child through whom the world would be blessed (Genesis 12:3), because through him Messiah would come (Matthew 1:1-2). Abraham and Sarah waited many years for Isaac, and the world would have to wait two thousand more years for Jesus Christ. Isaac came at the very time God had promised (Genesis 21:2), and Jesus was born when the set time had fully come (Galatians 4:4), wrote Paul. God takes longer than we like, but he’s always on time.
Genesis 21:3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.
God had said you will call him Isaac (Genesis 17:19), which means, he laughs. About a year earlier, Abraham and Sarah laughed in disbelief at the idea of having a child at such an old age (Genesis 17:17, Genesis 18:12). But when Isaac was born Sarah said, God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me (Genesis 20:6).
The laughter of disbelief became the laughter of joy, as Abraham and Sarah saw God’s promise fulfilled. Their faith was weak, at times, but God was true to his word, and gave them what he promised. Their laughter makes us think of the joy that will be ours when God fulfills his promises to us in the age to come. We’ll laugh at our former doubts, and be amazed at the greatness of God who does immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20), wrote Paul.
*****
Genesis 21:8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast.
Weaning took place around age three, and was considered a rite of passage, since many died before then. If children lived until they were weaned, they’d probably make it to adulthood.
Ishmael was Abraham’s firstborn son and heir to the family fortune. But with all the attention going to Isaac, he may’ve felt his position slipping away. Instead of celebrating Isaac’s weaning, therefore, he began to mock his little brother (Genesis 16:12). This was noticed by Sarah and she reacted strongly.
Genesis 21:10 Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.
Abraham was greatly distressed by Sarah’s demand, but God told him to listen to her, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned (Genesis 21:12), said God. Then he assured Abraham that Ishmael would also become a nation (Genesis 21:13). So, early the next morning, Abraham sent Ishmael and his mother away.
God cares about families, and normally wants to keep them together (Malachi 2:14-16). If we have to choose between family and God, however, we must always choose God. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus.
Sending Hagar and Ishmael away was one of the most difficult things Abraham ever did. He wasn’t always perfect, but God was his highest priority. When God’s will was clear to him, he was willing to obey, no matter how difficult. And he is the father of all who believe (Romans 4:11), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 14
Genesis 22:1-2 Some time later God tested Abraham. . . . Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.
Abraham must’ve wondered what kind of God would give him a child, then demand the child be killed. The God of the Bible is not who we expect, and this causes problems for Abraham. Anyone who kills his son because he thinks God told him to is mentally unstable. This story is off to a terrible start.
Genesis 22:3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.
As Abraham cut the wood that morning he probably wondered, What kind of God would ask me to do this? How can I explain this to my wife? What will people think of me? Should I trust God, or run away from him?
The Bible hadn’t been written yet, but Abraham personified an important truth. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6), says Proverbs.
Genesis 22:4-5 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.
Over the course of their journey, Abraham worked through the question, How could a good God tell me to kill my son? He concluded that God would raise him from the dead. This is why he said, We will worship and then we will come back to you (Hebrews 11:19). Abraham was so convinced that God was good, if God told him to sacrifice his son, it would result in a resurrection.
Genesis 22:6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife.
But Isaac grew suspicious. The fire and wood are here . . . but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? (Genesis 22:7), he asked. God himself will provide the lamb (Genesis 22:8), said Abraham. At this point, Abraham spoke better than he knew. Two thousand years later God would provide the perfect lamb: the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). That’s where the Bible is going, and this story foreshadows it.
We shouldn’t miss the parallel between Isaac carrying the wood to his sacrifice, and Jesus carrying the wood to his sacrifice. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ (Colossians 2:17), wrote Paul.
If you stand outside on a sunny afternoon, you’ll cast a shadow that portrays your likeness. And, if you read the Old Testament carefully, you’ll find the shadow of Christ in many places. Abraham and Isaac had no idea of the greater significance their story would have. But here we see the shadow of Christ in Isaac and, to some degree, the heavenly Father in Abraham.
This is also a mark of inspiration. The Bible has many human authors, but only one divine author. It has many little stories, but only one big story that binds them all together. If the Bible was a puzzle, there’d be many pieces, but only one picture. And right in the center would be the crucifixion of the Son of God.
Genesis 22:9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
Isaac was at least an adolescent by this time, since he was able to carry the wood (Genesis 22:6). We might expect a struggle as Abraham tied him up, since most people would fight for their lives. But Isaac trusted his father even in death. Jesus could’ve also fought for his life, but he also trusted his Father in death. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), he said.
Genesis 22:10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
Abraham’s son was laying on the altar, and the knife was now unsheathed. From Abraham’s perspective, his son was good as dead. Nothing is harder than the death of a child, as many parents will testify. Abraham may’ve regretted the day he decided to follow God.
Genesis 22:11-12 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, Abraham! Abraham! Here I am, he replied. Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.
Because he was willing to sacrifice his son, Abraham’s loyalty could never again be questioned. Likewise, because God was willing to sacrifice his Son, his loyalty can never be questioned either. Some things can only be proven through sacrifice, like our commitment to God, and his to us.
Genesis 22:13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns.
He sacrificed the ram instead of his son, and called that place The Lord Will Provide. Five hundred years later, when Moses wrote this story down, they were still saying: On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided (Genesis 22:14). That mountain, of course, was in the region of Moriah (Genesis 22:2).
Moriah is only mentioned twice in the Bible. Take your son . . . to the region of Moriah (Genesis 22:2) and the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem [was built] on Mount Moriah (2 Chronicles 3:1).
It was just a hilltop when Abraham arrived but, centuries later, it’s where the temple of God was built. It’s where God provided a ram for Isaac, and where thousands of sheep were sacrificed. Then came Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who also died in the region of Moriah. So on the mountain of the Lord, it really was provided.
The people in the story had no idea they were foreshadowing the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. God telling Abraham to sacrifice his son seemed morally repugnant at first. But when we see that God provided a substitute (first the ram, then his Son) we perceive the glory of God and his purpose of this story.
Notice again the many parallels between the shadow in Isaac, and the reality in Christ. Isaac was the dearly loved son of Abraham, and Jesus is the dearly loved Son of God. Isaac went to the region of Moriah, and Jesus went to the region of Moriah. Isaac went willingly for his father, and Jesus went willingly for his Father.
Isaac carried the wood for his sacrifice, and Jesus carried the wood for his sacrifice. Isaac trusted his father unto death, and Jesus trusted his Father unto death. Isaac rose from the dead figuratively, and Jesus rose from the dead literally. Isaac was the son promised to Abraham, and Jesus was the Son promised to world.
But there’s also an important difference. Isaac didn’t have to die because God provided a substitute; Jesus did have to die because he was the substitute. [God] did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all (Romans 8:32), wrote Paul. Jesus died for our sins so that we could live forever. He is our substitute.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 15
Genesis 24:1 Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.
But his son Isaac was still unmarried, so Abraham sent a trusted servant back to his clan, to find a suitable wife. It was a journey of several hundred miles, that would take weeks to complete, with no guarantee of success. But the servant shared his master’s faith, so he prayed earnestly for God’s help.
Lord, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. May it be that when I say to a young woman, Please let down your jar that I may have a drink, and she says, Drink, and I’ll water your camels too—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac (Genesis 24:12-14).
Choosing the right wife for someone else was an uncertain task, so the servant asked God to confirm the choice in an obvious way: have the girl offer to water his camels. Camels can drink about twenty-five gallons (and he had ten of them) so this would be a convincing sign. It would also show that the woman was kind and hardworking—excellent qualities for a spouse.
Genesis 24:16-19 The woman was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again. The servant hurried to meet her and said, Please give me a little water from your jar. Drink, my lord, she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink. After she had given him a drink, she said, I’ll draw water for your camels too.
This convinced the servant that she was the one for Isaac, so he gave her jewelry and asked to meet her family. They were related to Abraham and, to some degree, shared his faith. The servant explained the reason for his visit, and asked for the young lady to return with him to marry Isaac.
Genesis 24:51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.
They began the long journey home the following day. Isaac was in the field when he saw the caravan approaching, and his heart probably skipped a beat. Had they been successful? Did he have a wife? Would they be compatible? Yes, yes and yes! So she became his wife, and he loved her (Genesis 25:67), wrote Moses.
When Rebekah went to the well that day, she had no idea she’d soon be married to a wealthy young man, and become a leading lady among God’s people. This doesn’t happen to everyone, but reminds us that God is in control. We never know what a day will bring, and can even give thanks for unknown blessings already on the way.
Genesis 25:20 Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah.
They probably wanted to have children right away but, like Sarah, Rebekah was barren. Isaac prayed, but the answer didn’t come for twenty years. Then, at last, The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant (Genesis 20:21).
God may enroll us in the school of prayer by leaving some of our needs unmet. Apart from these we wouldn’t pray as often, or rely on God as much. Our needs are not an oversight, but the means of knowing God better. This is why Jesus taught us to always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1).
Genesis 25:22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, Why is this happening to me?
Rebekah didn’t know that she was pregnant with two active boys. Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger (Genesis 25:23), said God.
The first to be born was red and hairy, so they named him Esau, which probably means hairy. The second was grasping his brother’s heel when he came out, so they named him Jacob. Jacob means he grasps the heel, but figuratively means he deceives. (And he would live up to his name.)
The twins were nearly as different as they could be. Esau loved the open country; Jacob preferred to stay at home. Esau thought little of God; Jacob took God seriously. Esau was favored by Isaac; Jacob was favored by Rebekah. From Esau came the Edomites; from Jacob came the Israelites.
Many parents have been surprised by how different their children are from each other: physically, emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, relationally, and other ways. The only thing some siblings have in common, it seems, is their sinful nature. This was true for Jacob and Esau, who were frequently at odds.
Genesis 25:29-30 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!
Jacob and Esau were now adults, but Jacob never got over the fact that he was born second. The birthright belonged to Esau, which gave him certain privileges like a greater inheritance, and being future head of the clan. Esau could also expect to receive God’s promise to his grandfather Abraham: all peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:3).
This bothered Jacob so much that, short of murder, he’d do whatever he could to get his brother’s birthright. The fact that Esau was famished, and Jacob had some stew, presented an opportunity.
Genesis 25:31-34 First sell me your birthright. Look, I am about to die, Esau said. What good is the birthright to me? But Jacob said, Swear to me first. So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.
Jacob wanted the birthright more than Esau, so Esau finally gave it up. It simply wasn’t that important to him. He wasn’t greedy or ambitious. He didn’t care about the inheritance, or being head of the family. But he didn’t care about God’s promise to Abraham either. He just wanted some food.
In some ways Esau was a better person than Jacob but, according to the Bible, he was godless (Hebrews 12:16). God’s promise to Abraham mattered less to him than a bowl of stew. Esau should’ve put off his appetite, and held onto God’s promise. But he chose to sell God’s promise, and satisfy his appetite.
We too can live for here and now, and lose it all eventually. Or we can live for the age to come, and keep it all forever. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life (John 12:25), said Jesus. Esau partly believed in God but, in practice, he was godless.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 16
Genesis 27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau.
Isaac was preparing to die and wanted to give his fatherly blessing to his firstborn son Esau, rather than to Jacob. This was against God’s will since the Lord had told Rebekah, the older will serve the younger (Genesis 25:23). But Isaac favored Esau, so he sent him away to hunt for game, then to prepare a meal for him. After dinner, he’d give Esau his blessing.
The blessing was thought to carry real power, and was a continuation of the blessing God gave to Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3). Esau regretted selling his birthright, and wanted to recover the loss if possible. This was an important moment for him.
But Rebekah overheard the conversation and, since Jacob was her favorite, she took action. Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing (Genesis 27:8-10), she said.
The deception grew more complicated but, surprisingly, it worked. May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness—an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed (Genesis 27:28-29), said Isaac.
Shortly after Jacob received his father’s blessing, Esau returned and discovered what happened. He received a secondary blessing, but was furious that his deceptive brother took both his birthright and the primary blessing. He was so angry, in fact, that he planned to kill his brother after their father died. The threat was real enough that Jacob would soon run for his life, and stay away for the next twenty years.
There’s little in Jacob or Esau that we should admire. They shared the serious flaw of wanting the blessing of God, without pursuing God himself. God is not a means to an end, however, but the end for which we are made. The greatest blessing we can receive is more of God. It’s wrong to seek the blessing of God without pursuing God himself. But he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6), says Hebrews.
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Genesis 27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.
Another source of tension in this troubled family was Esau’s choice of wives. They were a source of grief to Rebekah, and she hoped Jacob would do better. Few things shape our lives more than whom we marry, but it also affects our larger family. It’s often wise, therefore, to consult our parents before we make a decision.
Isaac and Rebekah struggled with Esau’s wives because they were from a different clan. Marriage within a clan was usually preferred due to social customs. Ordinarily, we prefer people who are like us, and find them easier to live with. Instead of bringing her joy, Esau’s wives brought Rebekah sorrow.
We can think marriage as two overlapping circles. The overlapping part represents what we share in common. It may include age, education, politics, religion and background. The non-overlapping parts represent what we don’t share in common. It may include all the above and more. The overlapping part is what makes marriage easy; the non-overlapping parts are what make marriage interesting. Over a lifetime, most people prefer easy.
*****
Genesis 28:10-11 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.
Taking his parents’ advice, Jacob fled the comforts of home. At the end of the day he slept on the ground, surrounded by who knew what. Away from the people he knew, some of whom he loved, he probably felt alone. What Jacob needed most, he thought, was a good night’s sleep.
He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth. . . . All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring (Genesis 28:12-14).
Jacob was at a low point when God appeared to him in a dream and affirmed the promise he’d given to Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3), then to Isaac (Genesis 26:2-5), and now to Jacob. Jacob’s life wasn’t an example to anyone, but his faith in God was not misplaced. God was alive, and would do what he had promised.
The stairway to heaven which Jacob saw in his dream speaks of Jesus Christ. [Y]ou will see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man (John 1:51), said Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only way to God (John 14:6), and the angels go up and down to serve those who will inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14), says Hebrews.
This is also helpful for understanding how Jesus read the Old Testament. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), he said. When Jesus read about the stairway to heaven, he saw himself as the way to God. When he read about sacrificial lambs, he saw himself as the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). When he read about the high priest, he knew that he was the faithful high priest in service to God (Hebrews 2:17).
Other examples could be given, but these are enough to show that Jesus saw himself throughout the Old Testament, and we aren’t wrong to see him there as well. From beginning to end, the Bible points to Jesus Christ. He came to save us from our sins (Matthew 1:21), and to restore us to a greater paradise than Adam lost (Genesis 3, Revelation 22). The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does (Psalm 145:13), wrote David.
Genesis 28:16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.
Jacob thought that God was far away, but then he learned that God was near. God didn’t seem near when Jacob had only a rock for a pillow, so when God appeared in his dream Jacob was surprised. We too can go through life unaware of God’s presence, but he’s always closer than we think.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 17
Genesis 29:1 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.
That’s where his uncle Laban lived, and where Jacob hoped to stay until it was safe to go home (Genesis 27:43-44). Jacob stopped at a well and was delighted to meet Laban’s daughter, Rachel. Uncle Laban was thrilled by Jacob’s arrival and received him as part of the family. By God’s kindness, Jacob found a home away from home.
Jacob quickly fell in love with Rachel, and offered to serve Laban seven years if he could marry her. So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her (Genesis 29:20). Seven years is a long time to be engaged but, compared to the treasure of his bride, they seemed like just a few days to Jacob.
This is one of the most romantic statements in the Bible, and reminds us that passionate love is a gift from God (James 1:17). It’s wonderful to think that this kind of love is God’s idea, and even reflects his love for us.
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:31-32), wrote Paul.
The most passionate love between husband and wife is only a faint reflection of how Christ feels about his church. Human passion fades over time, but we’ll delight in the love of Christ forever.
Genesis 29:21 Then Jacob said to Laban, Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.
Laban held a wedding feast and gave his daughter to Jacob. But, when Jacob woke up in the morning, the woman lying next to him wasn’t Rachel, but Rachel’s older sister, Leah!
Jacob was upset about this but Laban replied, It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work (Genesis 29:26-27).
Jacob deceived his brother Esau, and Laban deceived his nephew Jacob. A man reaps what he sows (Galatians 6:7), wrote Paul. Jacob’s family had problems in the past, and would have problems in the future. But God had chosen them, and wouldn’t abandon them. Through all their sin and misbehavior, God would remain faithful. This should comfort us whenever our families are having problems.
Genesis 30:1 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, Give me children, or I’ll die!
Rachel’s sister, Leah, had given birth to four sons (Genesis 29:31-35), but Rachel was still childless. In her frustration she turned to Jacob and said, Give me children, or I’ll die! Not everyone wants to have children but, for some, the desire is nearly as strong as the will to live. God was gracious to Rachel and she soon gave birth to Joseph.
Likewise, whenever the gospel is preached, there’s potential for new birth. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth (James 1:18), wrote James. The preacher who goes to God and says, Give me children, or I’ll die, will likely receive what he asks. Every preacher, and every church, should have the same desire as Rachel.
Genesis 30:25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland.
After many years of serving Laban, Jacob wanted to go home. By this time he had many children, and wanted to bring them up in the Promised Land (Genesis 28:13). Laban didn’t want to lose his family, of course, so he persuaded Jacob to stay a little longer in exchange for breeding rights. As a result, Jacob grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys (Genesis 29:43).
As Jacob’s fortune increased, however, Laban’s fortune decreased, and this created tension in the family. It was time for Jacob to go but, instead of saying goodbye, he left without notice. When Laban found out he was furious and went with others in pursuit.
Then Laban said to Jacob, What have you done? You’ve deceived me, and you’ve carried off my daughters like captives in war. Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels and harps? You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. You have done a foolish thing (Genesis 31:26-38), he said.
This was my situation [Jacob replied]: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes. It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times. If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed (Genesis 31:40-42), he said.
The relationship was severely strained but they did what they could to part gracefully. Jacob killed some livestock and they ate a family meal. Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home (Genesis 31:55).
Sometimes families turn on each other and inflict emotional pain. This is seldom helpful since, even if they separate, the memories live on. One lady cried at her father’s funeral, and the pastor asked if they were close. We didn’t speak for the last seventeen years, she replied, and the last thing I said was, I hope you go to hell. We should always try to be friends with our family because they’ll always be a part of us. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:18), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 18
Genesis 32:1-2 Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. When Jacob saw them, he said, This is the camp of God! So he named that place Mahanaim.
Jacob and his family needed protection on their way back to the Promised Land, so God dispatched a camp of angels to watch over them. Jacob’s clan was sizable, with plenty of servants, and hundreds of animals, so they were quite a camp in themselves.
When Jacob saw the camp of angels, along with his own camp, he called the place Mahanaim, meaning two camps. It’s a reminder that we’re not alone in the world, but that God dispatches angels to watch over us. Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14), says Hebrews.
Genesis 32:3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir.
Jacob and Esau hadn’t seen each other in twenty years, and they didn’t part on the best of terms. Jacob stole his brother’s birthright and blessing, and Esau wanted to kill him (Genesis 27:41). So Jacob fled to Harran where he spent the next twenty years working, having a family, and growing rich.
But now he was returning to the Promised Land, and wanted to make peace with his brother, so he sent messengers ahead. When Esau learned his brother was returning, he went out to meet him—with four hundred men! This was not a good sign. When someone who wants you dead comes to meet you with four hundred men, they’re not a welcoming committee.
When Jacob learned of this he had great fear and distress (Genesis 32:7). Easu had nursed a grudge for the last twenty years and this was his chance to get even. The text is not explicit but he probably planned to kill Jacob and his family.
Then Jacob prayed, O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac . . . I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps. Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. But you have said, I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted (Genesis 32:9-12).
After Jacob prayed he sent his brother a series of gifts. He sent two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams—over five hundred fifty animals in all. He sent them in herds, and spaced them out, so they kept coming one after another (Genesis 32:13-20).
The purpose of the gifts was to appease his brother’s wrath. But we should also see that prayer and action are not mutually exclusive. Some people pray without acting; others act without praying. It’s best to pray as though everything depends on God, and then to act as though everything depends on us. That’s what Jacob did, and he hoped for the best.
Genesis 32:24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
Jacob put some space between him and his family, and spent the night alone. He probably wondered if this would be his last night on earth. Would Esau attack in the morning? Would he alone be killed, or would his family also be killed?
As he thought about these things, Jacob was ambushed by a man who wanted to wrestle. The man didn’t have a knife, and didn’t want to kill Jacob. He only wanted to wrestle through the night. To make a long explanation short, Jacob’s opponent was God (Genesis 32:30).
As they wrestled, [God] touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched (Genesis 32:25). Wrestling is very intense and, during their match, God gave Jacob a limp (Genesis 32:31) that may’ve lasted the rest of his life. But why would God do this?
Jacob was independent by nature because he was strong in himself. He was physically strong, mentally strong, and very strong willed. But, as he prepared to meet Esau, Jacob realized how much he needed God, and God wanted him to remember that. So God gave Jacob a limp. It was a reminder that Jacob needed God wherever he went.
God did something similar for the Apostle Paul. Paul was so gifted that he might’ve become proud, so God gave him a thorn in [the] flesh: perhaps a painful eye disease (2 Corinthians 12:7, Galatians 4:15). Three times Paul prayed that God would take it away. But God said, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:8-9).
Almost everyone has some kind of weakness: physical, emotional, mental, financial or something else. Perhaps you’ve prayed that God would take your weakness away. If he does you can praise him. If not, you should use your weakness to make you more dependent on God. We’re always stronger when we lean on God than when we think we can do it alone.
Genesis 32:26 Then the man said, Let me go, for it is daybreak. But Jacob replied, I will not let you go unless you bless me.
By this time Jacob knew he was wrestling with God. Even though he was injured he wouldn’t give up until he received a blessing. This can be called wrestling with God in prayer (Colossians 4:12).
Like many dads, I used to wrestle with my son when he was just a little guy. I could have easily crushed him, since I was many times his size. But I wanted to see what he could do, so I would matched him strength for strength. I made him work hard until finally, almost miraculously, he’d flip me over and win. God is looking for people who will wrestle him in prayer. And, many times, he’ll even let us win.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 19
Genesis 32:28 Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God.
Israel means He struggles with God and is meant in a positive way. God is not an easy person to follow, understand, or even like sometimes. The godless put him out of their minds, but the godly are willing to struggle with him.
In our best moments we love God deeply and, in our worst, we might even hate him. But at least we take God seriously. What God detests is to be taken lightly, as though he’s not an important person. The problem isn’t that people disbelieve in God, but that he’s simply not important to them.
Jacob struggled with God, and God changed his name to Israel. God also changed Abram’s name to Abraham (Genesis 17:5), and Sarai’s name to Sarah (Genesis 17:15). God shows his authority over us by changing our names whenever he likes. Jesus showed his authority over Simon by changing his name to Peter. You are Simon son of John. You will be called . . . Peter (John 1:42), he said. Surprisingly, Peter went along with it.
Not everyone in the Bible got a new name, but we learn from the Bible that God knows our names (John 10:3). I went to a large high school and was surprised to discover the principle knew my name—though not for a good reason. But Jesus knows our names because he loves us and, in heaven, he’ll give us a new name too. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it (Revelation 2:17), he said.
Some people have pet names for each other that no one else knows. They’re not meant to be public names, but private ones that create a bond of closeness. When my daughter was growing up I called her Bunkerdoodles. Imagine a God who is so affectionate toward you that he gives you a name known only to you and him.
Genesis 33:1 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men.
It was clear to Jacob that he was not in control. He had prayed, of course, but there was Esau marching in his direction with a personal army. Jacob likely trembled since he didn’t know if he would live or die. But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept (Genesis 33:4). Twenty years of estrangement dissolved in a puddle of tears.
Jesus drew on this scene to describe what happens whenever a wayward child comes home to God. The father ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him (Luke 15:20), wrote Luke. The reconciliation of Jacob and Esau reflects what happens whenever God and sinners are reconciled.
Genesis 33:19-20 [Jacob bought] the plot of ground where he pitched his tent. There he set up an altar and called it El Elohe Israel.
Esau went back to Seir (Genesis 33:16), and Jacob went to the Promised Land. To commemorate his arrival, Jacob built an altar. Altars were places of sacrifice where meals were eaten in fellowship with God. Jacob’s altar points forward to the altar at the temple, where sacrificial lambs were offered. That altar points forward to the cross of Christ, where the Lamb of God was offered (John 1:29, 19:18).
This is picked up in the book of Hebrews which says, We have an altar . . . (Hebrews 13:10). This may be an allusion to the table of the Lord’s Supper, which is observed every week in churches around the world. It’s not a sacrifice we make, however, but one that God has made for us, when he gave his Son to die on a cross for our sins (1 Peter 3:18). We have table fellowship with God as we feast on his Son through faith.
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Genesis 34:1 Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land.
After many years away, Jacob and his family were in the Promised Land. Other than Jacob, everyone was new to the region. With or without her parents’ permission, Dinah set out to meet some local women. Regrettably, she caught the attention of Shechem, the son of a local ruler.
Shechem was attracted to Dinah but, instead of making polite advances, he raped her. It’s not clear if he suffered remorse, but he loved Dinah, spoke tenderly to her (Genesis 34:3), and wanted to marry her. When Jacob learned his daughter had been raped, he wisely did nothing at first.
That evening, Shechem and his father came by and tried to make amends. Let me find favor in your eyes, and I will give you whatever you ask. Make the price for the bride and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife (Genesis 34:11-12), said Shechem.
But Jacob’s sons wanted revenge, so they agreed to give their sister to Shechem, if every male in his clan would be circumcised. Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword and took Dinah from Shechem’s house and left.
The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city where their sister had been defiled. They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields. They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children, taking as plunder everything in the houses (Genesis 34:25-29). When Jacob learned what his sons had done he was very upset. But they replied, Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute? (Genesis 34:31).
The revenge of Jacob’s sons was worse than the crime by far. To murder innocent men, and carry off their families, was completely unjustified. It may’ve felt good to release their rage, but they’d bear the shame for the rest of their lives. They were murderers.
Whenever someone we love is hurt, we naturally want revenge. The impulse isn’t wrong because the Lord is a God of justice (Isaiah 30:18). But we don’t have to take revenge ourselves; God will do it for us.
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on his foes and vents his wrath against his enemies (Nahum 1:2), wrote Nahum. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: It is mine to avenge; I will repay (Romans 12:19), wrote Paul.
Since God has promised revenge, we can leave it to him. Then we can obey Christ who said, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44). This is what Jesus did as he hung on the cross (Luke 23:34), and he’s the model for us all. His words free us from hate so that we can live in love again.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 20
Genesis 37:2 Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers.
The early chapters of Genesis record the creation of the world (Genesis 1-2), our fall into sin (Genesis 3), the story of the flood (Genesis 6-9), the tower of Babel (Genesis 11), and a few other stories about God and the world.
But the world didn’t want God, so he turned to Abram saying, I will make you into a great nation. . . . and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:2-3). God changed Abram’s name to Abraham (Genesis 17:5), and gave him a son named Isaac (Genesis 21:1-3), who had a son named Jacob (Genesis 25:26), whose name God changed to Israel (Genesis 32:28).
But if you’re going to have a nation, you’ll need some people, so Israel had twelve sons (Genesis 35:22-26), who had families of their own. They became the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel (Genesis 49:1-28), and this little nation became the primary setting for the rest of the Bible. Joseph is one of the sons of Israel, but his story is so important it takes up nearly a third of the book of Genesis (Genesis 37-50).
By way of introduction, two things should be noted. First, the story has a U shape. It starts well, turns bad, stays mostly bad, but ends well. This mirrors the life of Jesus Christ who came down from heaven, lived a difficult life, but rose from the dead to reign in glory.
Second, it’s a story of providence. Behind the scenes of Joseph’s life we perceive the hand of God who, in all things, works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28), wrote Paul. God is always at work in this story, even when he seems absent.
Genesis 37:4 When his brothers saw that their father loved [Joseph] more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.
This is one of the most dysfunctional families in the Bible, but there are others. Cain killed his brother Abel (Genesis 4:8). Abraham shared his wife with Pharaoh (Genesis 12:19). David’s son committed incest (2 Samuel 13:14). And Jesus’ family thought he was crazy (Mark 3:21). Wherever two or more sinners live under the same roof, there is trouble.
Joseph was actually part of the problem. He had a dream in which the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to him (Genesis 37:9). He shared the dream with his family but, if he had been wiser, he would’ve kept it to himself. Joseph’s family took the dream to mean that, one day, they’d bow down to Joseph, and they were offended by this. Joseph enjoyed the idea but he didn’t know how difficult his life would become before his dream would come true.
This is the Christian life in miniature. We know our story ends well and that God is with us on every page. We’re surprised when things go badly but, even then, we know our glorious future will soon be here. So we always have hope.
Genesis 37:19-20 Here comes that dreamer! they said to each other. Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we will see what comes of his dreams.
Joseph’s brothers were away from home, grazing the family’s sheep. Joseph was sent to check on them, and they saw him from a distance. Joseph was wearing a special robe their father had given him, and his brothers were so jealous they wanted to kill him (Genesis 37:20).
We don’t always think of jealousy as a serious sin, but it can become serious. Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy? (Proverbs 27:4), says Proverbs. Joseph’s brothers were so jealous, in fact, that they determined to kill him (Genesis 37:19-20). But when they saw a band of merchants on their way to Egypt, they decided to sell him into slavery instead (Genesis 37:25-27). Then they dipped his robe in goats’ blood, and gave it to their father, and let him draw his own conclusion. Some ferocious animal has devoured him (Genesis 37:33), he said.
Genesis 37:34-35 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. No, he said, I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave. So his father wept for him.
It must’ve been hard for the brothers to watch their father suffer for their sin. Children suffer from the sins of their parents (Jeremiah 32:18), but parents can also suffer from the sins of their children. Joseph’s brothers got what they wanted, but their father paid the price.
What nobody realized is that God would use their wicked deed to elevate Joseph. God’s plan was for Joseph to rule over Egypt, and his brothers helped him get there. If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31), wrote Paul. The devil is against us. Our family can be against us. The world can be against us. And life itself can seem against us. But if God is for us, there’s no power in hell that can prevail against us. Believers always win in the end.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 21
Genesis 37:36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.
Joseph could’ve been sold to someone obscure but, in the providence of God, he was sold to one of Pharaoh’s officials, so he could be groomed for higher service. If Joseph was going to be in charge of Egypt, he’d have to learn how government works, how leadership behaves, and how to handle responsibility. Joseph learned quickly, and handled himself so well, that he was soon in charge of Potiphar’s entire estate. With Joseph in charge, Potiphar didn’t have to worry about a thing, except what to have for dinner (Genesis 39:6).
*****
Genesis 38:1 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah.
We’re not told why Judah left his brothers, at this time, but it may have been due to their sin against Joseph. Their mutual secret would’ve weighed on their consciences and poisoned their relationships. Sin creates disharmony, and Judah wanted to get away. We can’t do evil to others without doing it to ourselves.
Genesis 38:2 Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man.
Together they had three sons, and the oldest married a woman named Tamar. He died young, however, so Tamar married Judah’s second son. He also died young, so Judah offered Tamar his third son as soon as he grew up. But Judah was afraid his third son would also die young, so he didn’t fulfill his pledge.
This put Tamar in a difficult position. She was twice a widow, and without any children. Her prospects for marriage were poor, and she’d have no one to take care of her when she was old. In a culture that prized motherhood, her situation was bleak. So Tamar took action.
She veiled her face and went to a place known for prostitution. Judah came by, but he didn’t recognize her, and bought her service in exchange for a goat. He didn’t have a goat with him, however, so he gave Tamar his seal and staff as a pledge. This is how Tamar became pregnant by her father-in-law. She did it on purpose to secure his financial support.
Genesis 38:24 About three months later Judah was told, Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant. Judah said, Bring her out and have her burned to death!
Judah’s double standard is regrettable, but many condemn others for the sin they allow themselves. Judah was ashamed when Tamar produced his seal and staff, proving that he was the one who made her pregnant. She later gave birth to twins, and all four are mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:3).
Here we see the kind of people God sent his Son to save--not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy (Titus 3:5), wrote Paul. God used the unseemly union of Judah and Tamar to bring his Son into the world. We should never do evil that good may result (Romans 3:8), but nothing is so evil that God can’t use it for good (Romans 8:28).
*****
Genesis 39:5 [T]he Lord blessed the household of [Potiphar] because of Joseph.
It wasn’t because Potiphar prayed and obeyed that his household was being blessed, but because of Joseph. Joseph may’ve been the only person in Potiphar’s household who believed in God, and it was because of him that God was blessing Potiphar.
From this it appears that God may bless our employers because of us. Christians ought to serve their employers wholeheartedly, and pray for God’s blessing wherever they are. God may bless our places of employment simply because we are there.
Genesis 39:6-7 Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, Come to bed with me!
Day after day, Potiphar’s wife pursued Joseph. And day after day, Joseph declined. Finally, she grabbed him by the cloak and said, Come to bed with me. Joseph promptly ran out of the house and left his cloak behind (Genesis 39:10-12). Potiphar’s wife was so angry that she told her husband Joseph made advances and, when she screamed, Joseph ran out of the house without his cloak. So Potiphar threw Joseph in prison (Genesis 39:11-20).
Many have noticed that life isn't always fair. We hope to be rewarded for good behavior, not punished for it. But setbacks are often a setup for God to bring us good. We bring glory to God by trusting him even when things go wrong.
Genesis 39:20-21 But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him.
There he met a couple of Pharaoh’s officials whose dreams he was able to interpret. Two years later, when Pharaoh had a dream, one of the officials mentioned Joseph. Pharaoh summoned Joseph to interpret his dream (Genesis 41:14) and, suddenly, he was in the presence of Pharaoh. This wouldn’t have happened if Joseph hadn’t gone to prison. Sometimes we have to go down, before we go up.
When I was in middle school the building had a new section and an old section. If you were on the second floor of the new section, and wanted to go to the third floor of the old section, first you had to go down, then over, then up. That’s how it is with God. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up (James 4:10), wrote James.
Genesis 41:15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.
Pharaoh thought the dream was important, and he was right. Seven skinny cows ate up seven fat cows, and seven skinny grains ate up seven fat grains (Genesis 41:17-24). The meaning was clear to Joseph: there’d be seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine (Genesis 41:29-30).
Drawing on all he had learned, Joseph advised Pharaoh on how to prepare for the famine. Pharaoh was so impressed that he put Joseph in charge of Egypt, second only to himself (Genesis 41:43). In a single day, Joseph went from the prison to the palace. It may’ve seemed like a dream to Joseph, but his dream was coming true.
Likewise, all who serve God faithfully will also be promoted. To one Jesus will say, take charge of five cities (Luke 19:19). And to another he will say, take charge of ten cities (Luke 19:17). We might be on the bottom now, but our promotion is coming soon.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 22
Genesis 42:1 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, Why do you just keep looking at each other?
There was no grain in Canaan, due to the famine, so Joseph sent his sons to Egypt to buy some. It had been over twenty years since Joseph was sold into slavery, and his brothers considered him dead. The last thing they expected when they went to Egypt was to run into Joseph. When they saw him, in fact, they didn’t even recognize him.
But Joseph recognized them and, instead of revealing himself, he accused them of being spies, and threw them in prison. There they had time to think and began to reflect on their sin. Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that is why this distress has come on us (Genesis 42:21), they said.
This is the pain of a guilty conscience. The brothers saw the desperate look in Joseph’s eyes when he pleaded for his life and they never forgot it. Many nights, perhaps, they woke up in a cold sweat regretting what they had done. Now, at last, they were getting what they deserved. Judgment Day had finally come.
Genesis 45:4 Then Joseph said to his brothers . . . I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!
The brothers were overwhelmed. The dream Joseph had as boy of seventeen was coming true before their eyes. Was this really happening? What would happen next? Joseph had suffered much because of them and now he could pay them back. But Joseph kissed all his brothers and wept over them (Genesis 45:15). Instead of justice, they received mercy (James 2:13). After so many years apart, they were a family again.
Pharaoh was pleased by this, and promised Joseph’s brothers the best land in Egypt (Genesis 45:18). He gave them carts to bring their families down, along with their father Jacob. He gave them ten donkeys loaded with the best things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other provisions for [their] journey (Genesis 45:23). It was all so overwhelming. Instead of being punished for their sin, they were being blessed!
This, in fact, is what Jesus Christ has done for us. Instead of being punished for our sins, we are blessed . . . with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3), wrote Paul. And if we have the spiritual blessings, we’ll also have the material blessings. Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34), Christ will say. Joseph’s brothers were overwhelmed and our amazement will never cease.
Genesis 45:13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt.
Joseph had all the honor of Egypt, and all the wealth in the world. But he also wanted his father’s approval. He’d done well for himself, and wanted his dad to be proud of him. His father would soon rejoice that Joseph was alive, and Joseph would receive the approval he longed for.
Sadly, there are many who crave their father’s approval but never receive it. I’ve sat with men in their sixties who were still deeply pained because of their Father’s disapproval. You’ll never amount to a bottle of piss, one recalled his father saying. A day seldom passed when he didn’t think about that.
But Christ has promised his approval to all who truly believe in him. Well done, good and faithful servant (Matthew 25:21), he will say. Given our many failures this is hard to imagine. How could Christ give his approval to ordinary Christians who fail every day? The answer is found God’s word. He forgave us all our sins (Colossians 2:13), and will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8), wrote Paul. If Christ forgives all our sins and remembers all our good deeds then we’ll hear him say, Well done, good and faithful servant! What could be better than that?
Genesis 48:1 Some time later Joseph was told, Your father is ill.
After many years in Egypt, Joseph’s father was dying. But just before he passed, he gave a prophecy that Messiah would come from Judah. The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his (Genesis 49:10).
We might expect Jesus to be descended from Joseph, since he was the most prominent son of Jacob. But Jesus’ genealogy shows that he was descended from Joseph’s brother, Judah (Matthew 1:2, 16), just as Jacob foretold. Nevertheless, Joseph does foreshadow Jesus in a number of ways.
Joseph was the special son of Jacob, and Jesus is the special Son of God. Joseph was rejected by his brothers, and Jesus was rejected by his brothers (John 7:5). Joseph was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry (Genesis 41:46), and Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry (Luke 3:23).
Joseph ruled Egypt under Pharaoh, and Jesus rules the world under his Father. Joseph fed the people with grain, and Jesus fed the people with bread (John 6:10-11). Joseph suffered before he was exalted, and Jesus suffered before he was exalted. Joseph’s brothers were saved by coming to him, and we are saved by coming to Christ. These surprising parallels are like fingerprints that reveal the Bible’s author.
Genesis 50:15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?
Joseph’s brothers were still afraid because of what they’d done to him. Perhaps Joseph had treated them well only because of their father. So they came to Joseph and said, we are your slaves (Genesis 50:18). Joseph didn’t hold a grudge, however, and assured them their fears were unfounded. You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good (Genesis 50:20), he said.
This is the climactic verse of the story and makes an important point: God turns evil into good. It didn’t seem good to Joseph when he was sold into slavery, or when he was rotting away in prison. But looking back it was clear: if he hadn’t been sold into slavery he couldn’t have saved Egypt, or his family, or been promoted to such a high position.
Paul likely had this in mind when he wrote, in all things God works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28). Nothing happens apart from God (Ephesians 1:11), who governs all things for the good of his children. It won’t seem that way when your house burns down, you get laid off from your job, and they repossess your car. But if you love Jesus Christ, nothing bad can happen to you that God hasn’t planned for your good. This is a wonderful comfort in all the trials of life.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 23
Exodus 1:1-4 These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
The book of Exodus was written by Moses for the people of God around 1445 BC. It tells how God delivered his people from Egyptian slavery and made a covenant with them, including laws to govern them.
When Israel first went down to Egypt they were just large family. But over the next four hundred years they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them (Exodus 1:7). Pharaoh felt threatened by their increasing numbers, so he turned the Israelites into slaves. Exodus recounts their deliverance from Egypt and the beginning of their journey to the Promised Land.
Exodus 1:15-16 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.
This would reduce the number of Israelites, as well as the risk of insurrection. Disobeying Pharaoh’s command could be deadly, but the midwives feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do (Exodus 1:17).
Shiphrah and Puah are an example of what Jesus taught many years later. I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. . . . Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell (Luke 12:4-5). Disobeying Pharaoh could be fatal, but disobeying God could be even worse. The fear of God delivers us from the fear of powerful people, even the most powerful person on earth.
It’s also worth noticing that the midwives are mentioned by name, but Pharaoh is not. Most people would’ve known the Pharaoh’s name, but not the midwives’ names. Now we know the midwives’ names (Shiphrah and Puah) but not the Pharaoh’s name. The wicked will soon be forgotten, but the righteous will be known forever.
Exodus 2:1-2 Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son.
This begins the story of Moses, the man of God (Deuteronomy 33:1). The midwives refused to kill the boys at birth, but Pharaoh’s decree was still in place, and every Israelite boy was at risk. Moses’ parents may’ve prayed for a girl, and been disappointed when they had a boy. They couldn’t bring themselves to part with their child at once, however, so they hid him for three months (Exodus 2:2). When he could no longer be concealed, they put him in a box, and placed it in the Nile River. When Pharaoh’s daughter came to bathe, she saw the box, and the baby inside. Her maternal instincts were suddenly aroused.
Moses’ sister was watching all this, and said to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you? (Exodus 2:7). Pharaoh’s daughter agreed and actually paid Moses’ mother to nurse him. This probably continued for at least a few years. Then Moses’ mother brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and Moses became her son (Exodus 2:10).
God had a special plan for Moses, and oversaw his entire life, to be sure that it went according to his plan. Moses was so important to God’s plan that nothing was left to chance. This is also true for all who believe in Jesus Christ.
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul. Our lives don’t always make sense to us, but one day we’ll see that everything went according to God’s plan—for our good and for his glory.
Growing up an Egyptian prince, Moses enjoyed every advantage, including the best education (Acts 7:22). His leadership training equipped him to lead the nation of Israel. His academic training equipped him to write Scripture. And his military training equipped him to fight the Lord’s battles (Numbers 21). Moses didn’t know it at the time, but God was preparing him for future service.
Then one day, Moses had an awakening. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt (Hebrews 11:26), says Hebrews.
Moses could’ve had a wonderful life if he’d only been content with Egypt. But all the treasures of Egypt weren’t enough for him. They appeared to be everything a man could want, but they couldn’t satisfy his deepest need. God alone could meet that need, and all the treasures of Egypt were nothing by comparison. So Moses gave up Egypt in order to have God.
In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:33), said Jesus. This seems like a terrible price to many. But what is the world, and everything in it, compared to Jesus Christ? He’s the one for whom we were made, and will give us everything else (Romans 8:32). Moses saw that the best of Egypt was only temporary, so he threw it away because he was looking ahead to his reward (Hebrews 11:26), says Hebrews. The best of everything can’t make us happy if it only lasts for a while.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 24
Exodus 2:11 One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor.
There he saw an Egyptian beating an Israelite and, since no one was around, Moses killed the Egyptian. Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not (Acts 7:25), said Stephen.
Moses assumed the Israelites would rally around him and that he’d lead an insurrection. When things didn’t go according to plan, Moses had to run for his life to the land of Midian (Exodus 2:15). He was forty years old at the time (Acts 7:23) and, for the next forty years (Acts 7:30), he would shepherd another man’s sheep in the middle of nowhere.
Moses’ life didn’t turn out the way he expected. He thought he was destined for greatness but, when he took action, things went badly. He spent most of his life as an Egyptian prince, but now he was a lowly shepherd. For the next forty years Moses had time to think. Should he have believed in God? Should he have killed the Egyptian? Did God still have a plan for his life? Moses had been so sure of himself, but now he was confused.
What Moses didn’t realize is that God was still preparing him. Moses believed in God but he also believed in Moses. He had to learn that God could work with or without him. God might be happy to use Moses, but God didn’t need Moses. Just because you’re great doesn’t mean that you’ll be greatly used by God. Moses had to learn the lesson of humility, so that he might be used by God in the future.
With time, in fact, Moses became a humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth (Numbers 12:3). His youth slipped away along with his self-confidence. He used to be powerful in speech and action (Acts 7:22), but now he was slow of speech and tongue (Exodus 4:10).
Time is a great teacher of humility, and happy are those who learn it soon. God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up (1 Peter 5:5-6), wrote Peter. We all have to make a choice. We can humble ourselves, or we can be humbled by God.
Exodus 3:1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
Horeb means desert or desolation, and probably describes Moses’ mood as well as the landscape. The first part of his life was filled with promise and potential, but throughout the second part of his life he was painfully underemployed. Shepherds, in fact, were detestable to Egyptians (Genesis 46:34), so Moses was doing a job that he was conditioned to despise.
If a man succeeds early in life, but not later on, he may carry a sense of shame. Moses had been on top of the world, but now was in a place called desolate. But there he’d learn that God meets people in desolate places. Whenever our lives become worse than we expect, that’s where God is likely to meet us. He is the God of the desert.
Exodus 3:4 God called to him from within the bush, Moses! Moses! And Moses said, Here I am.
Moses saw a bush on fire that wouldn’t burn up. And, when he got closer, he saw that God was in the bush. This seems rather unlikely, but the God of heaven and earth is free to reveal himself any way he pleases. God in a bush reminds us that God is humble. What, after all, is more humble than a bush?
We may not always think of God as humble, but we should. If I became a worm to save the worms, that would be an act of humility. But I’m much closer to being a worm than God was to being a man. The difference between people and worms is finite, but the difference between God and people is infinite. For God to become one of us required extreme humility.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8), wrote Paul. God’s humility didn’t end with his incarnation, but included his crucifixion, death and burial. The maker of heaven and earth did all this for our salvation. When we understand God’s humility, we won’t be afraid to humble ourselves in order to know him better.
Exodus 3:5 Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.
This was the same ground where Moses had to watch his step because his sheep had done their business. But the presence of God made the ground holy. Common ground becomes holy ground whenever God is uniquely present.
This also applies to churches. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them (Matthew 18:20), said Jesus. If Christians worship in a barn, that place becomes sacred because of the presence of Jesus. But then it becomes a barn again. If Christians worship in a cathedral, it too becomes sacred because of the presence of Jesus. But then it’s just a fancy building.
By telling Moses to take off his shoes, God was teaching him to worship with respect. God is not a mild-mannered deity whom we can approach casually. He holds the power of life and death, and must be approached with reverence. This is more important than many people realize. The church in Corinth displeased the Lord through careless worship, and some died as a result (1 Corinthians 11:31). So let us worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28-29), says Hebrews.
Exodus 3:6 I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were the ones to whom God had pledged the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 30:20), where Moses would lead the Israelites. Abraham’s son was Isaac, Isaac’s son was Jacob, and Jacob’s sons became the twelve tribes of Israel.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob truly believed in God, but weren’t always perfect. When Pharaoh wanted Abraham’s wife, Abraham didn’t resist (Genesis 12:10-20). Isaac did something similar with his wife (Genesis 26:7-9). And, while Jacob never gave up his wives, he was deceitful (Genesis 27:36). And yet, God identified himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He’s the God of imperfect people who truly believe in him. It’s not perfection that God requires, but genuine faith (Galatians 3:7). This should be a comfort to imperfect believers everywhere.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 25
Exodus 3:10 I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.
Forty years earlier Moses felt up to the task, but not anymore. Egypt was the last place he wanted to be, and Pharaoh was the last person he wanted to see. But then God said, I will be with you (Exodus 3:12). And that was helpful. What Moses couldn’t do alone, God was going to do through him.
This is the same promise Jesus gave to the church. [G]o and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20), he said.
Moses was called to confront Pharaoh, and the church is called to evangelize the world. Both tasks seem impossible, but nothing is impossible with God (Luke 18:27). God likes to use his people to do impossible things so that he will get the glory.
Exodus 3:13-14 Moses said to God, Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? Then what shall I tell them? God said to Moses, I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I am has sent me to you.
This name reveals two important things about God. First, he is self-existent. Everything depends on God for existence, but God alone is self-existent. He made the trees, rocks and stars, but no one made him. Everything else began to exist, but God has always existed because he is self-existent.
Second, God is who he is. We can take him or leave him, but we can’t change him. There’s not a sinner on earth who wouldn’t change God if they could. We like his promises, but not his threats. We like his love, but not his wrath. We like his forgiveness, but not his commands. We like his blessings, but not his curses. We like his heaven, but not his hell.
Instead of worshipping the God who exists, therefore, many worship the god of their imagination, which is merely an idol. Idols can’t save us, and neither can the god of our imagination. If we want God to accept us as we are, we must return the favor. He is who he is.
And this amazing God has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Very truly I tell you, Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, I am! (John 8:58). Since Abraham lived two thousand years before Christ, Jesus’ listeners correctly understood him to be claiming the sacred name for himself—so they picked up stones to stone him (John 8:59). And when they finally did kill him, Jesus rose from the dead because he has existence in himself (John 10:17-18). Jesus Christ is who he is.
Exodus 4:13 But Moses said, Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.
It might surprise us that a man like Moses would try to get out of doing God’s will, but he had a few reasons. First, he felt unequal to the task (Exodus 3:11). Second, the people might not believe him (Exodus 4:1). And, third, he didn’t speak very well (Exodus 4:10). So he asked God to send someone else.
Whoever tries to serve God will be reluctant, at times, because God often asks us to do what we don’t want to do. But if we always do what we’ve always done, we’ll never become all we can be for God. Like Moses, we may try to decline the Almighty, but that’s usually not in our best interest.
God denied Moses’ request, but he sent his brother Aaron to help him (Exodus 4:14). For the rest of their lives, these two men fulfilled God’s will by working together. Whenever the task seems overwhelming, God may give us a partner to help.
Exodus 5:1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Let my people go.
Weakness of will didn’t bring Pharaoh to the top of Egypt and, since he didn’t want to lose his labor supply, he replied defiantly. Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go (Exodus 5:2), he said. This is the beginning of a mighty conflict between an earthly king and the King of heaven. Since Pharaoh admitted that he didn’t know the Lord, God introduced himself with a series of plagues (Exodus 7-12).
The first was a plague of blood on the Nile River that killed the fish. The second was a plague of frogs that got into homes and beds. The third was a plague of gnats that infested people and animals. The fourth was a plague of flies that destroyed the land. The fifth was a plague of death on the Egyptians’ livestock. The sixth was a plague of boils on men and animals. The seventh was a plague of hail that stripped every tree and ruined the crops. The eighth was a plague of locusts that devoured everything green. The ninth was a plague of darkness that lasted three days. The tenth, and final plague, was the death of firstborn males.
Pharaoh could’ve softened his heart toward God but chose, instead, to harden his heart (Exodus 8:15, 8:32, etc.). In response, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart even more (Exodus 9:12, 10:20, etc.). This can be called judicial hardening and is a fitting response to rebellion. If we harden our hearts against God, he may harden them even more. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts (Hebrews 3:7-8), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 26
Exodus 12:13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.
The tenth and final plague was the one that broke Pharaoh’s will, and allowed God’s people to depart from Egypt. Every Israelite family was to slaughter a lamb and apply the blood to the doorframe of their home (Exodus 12:7). When God came to kill every firstborn male, he’d see the blood and pass over them. This became known as Passover.
Exodus 12:29-30 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.
Pharaoh’s will was finally broken and Israel was free to go. Passover has been a Jewish holiday ever since, and this is also important for Christians. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed (1 Corinthians 5:7), wrote Paul. Jesus was crucified during the Passover holiday (John 18:39) to fulfill the imagery of the Passover lamb. He does so in other ways as well.
The Passover lamb was to be without defect (Exodus 12:5), and Jesus was without moral defect. The Passover lamb was to be a young male (Exodus 12:5), and Jesus was a young male. Not a bone of the Passover lamb was to be broken (Exodus 12:46), and when the soldiers came to break Jesus’ legs, they saw he was already dead, so none of his bones were broken (John 19:32-33). The blood of the Passover lamb had to be applied to the door frames of their homes (Exodus 12:33) or it wouldn’t save them, and the death of Christ must be personally believed or it will not save us. In this, and many other ways, the Old Testament looks forward to Jesus Christ who came to fulfill it (Luke 24:44).
Exodus 14:10 [T]he Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them.
This was a terrifying development for God’s chosen people. After the last plague, Pharaoh gave them permission to leave Egypt, and they assumed the battle was over. Egypt was devastated, Pharaoh’s will was broken, and God’s people were free to begin their journey to the Promised Land. But as Pharaoh watched his labor supply march out of Egypt, he changed his mind. He marshaled his troops and pursued the people of God until they were against the sea. Pharaoh was behind them, the sea was before them, and there was no place to go.
Exodus 14:10b They were terrified and cried out to the Lord.
In desperation, God’s people cried out to him in prayer. No one had to tell them to pray; they prayed instinctively. Trouble drives people to prayer, and prayer is the plea of people in trouble. The trouble may be our own fault, someone else’s fault, or no one’s fault. But it can always be used by God as a way to reveal himself as the one who answers prayer.
God, in fact, has designed our lives to be a series of problems and answered prayers. It’s in the tension—between our problems and God’s answers—that we experience God most keenly and learn to pray. If not for our problems we’d pray less often, less earnestly, and experience less of God.
Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
After crying out to God in prayer, the Lord answered his people through Moses. They wouldn’t have to fight the Egyptian army. God was going to fight for them. All they had to do was wait for God.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, but not always. Sometimes the proper course of action is to wait for God. [God] acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4), wrote Isaiah. And, Wait for your God always (Hosea 12:6), wrote Hosea. When God’s people were desperate, and didn’t know what to do, God told them to be still.
Exodus 14:21-22 The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.
Other than the act of creation, this is the most spectacular miracle in the Bible. Moses held out his staff and God sent a powerful wind that blew a path right through the Red Sea. There was a wall of water on the right, and on the left, and the bottom became dry ground.
The number of Israelite men who crossed the sea was about six hundred thousand (Exodus 12:37). This means the total number was over two million people. Moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, teens and toddlers walked between the towering walls of water to the other side of the sea. God Almighty was their God, and they were his chosen people.
This was a decisive miracle that’s still believed by many people today. It was written down by Moses and witnessed by two million people. It’s hard to deny a miracle witnessed by that many people, even centuries later. The parting of the Red Sea is the decisive miracle for the people of God in the Old Testament.
The decisive miracle for the people of God in the New Testament is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s supported by eyewitness testimony from credible people who were willing to suffer and die for what they saw. In a court of law, that’s simply as good as it gets. And none of the Apostles ever changed their story.
In contrast, four swimmers from the United States made up a story that they were robbed at the 2016 Olympics. But they all withdrew their story within a week because it wouldn’t hold up under examination. The apostles held to their story the rest of their lives, and some sealed it with their blood. Either they were crazy, or they were just telling the truth that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 27
Exodus 14:26 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.
Foolish Pharaoh lead his army into the sea to pursue the people of God. It’s hard to know what he was thinking since God’s mighty power was the only thing holding the water back. After God’s people were safely across, God withdrew his power, and the water returned to its place. Pharaoh and his army were buried at sea.
This is a wonderful scene in God’s story. And there is a sense in which all history can be seen as his-story. We can be the good guys or the bad guys. We can be on God’s side or the wrong side. But since we’re born into God’s world, we all have a part in his story. We may even be part of a miracle more dramatic than the exodus.
Someone worse than Pharaoh is coming, and he too will oppose the people of God. [The antichrist] was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world (Revelation 13:7-8), wrote John.
But just when it seems like the cause of Christ has been defeated, Jesus will return to overthrow the antichrist. He will be thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur (Revelation 19:20), and the people of God will live happily ever after. Wherever we live, and whenever we live, we all have a part in God’s story.
Exodus 15:13 In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling.
After God’s people got to the other side of the sea, they began to worship in song. Since God had delivered them from Pharaoh, they could be sure he’d lead them all the way to the Promised Land. By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night (Exodus 13:21).
When it was time to stop, the pillar would stop. When it was time to go, the pillar would go. All they had to do was follow the pillar, and they could be sure they were exactly where God wanted them to be.
I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12), said Jesus. We aren’t the ancient Israelites, but our situation is similar in at least three ways: we’ve been delivered from the evil one, we are not home yet, and we need God to lead us the rest of the way. [H]e will be our guide even to the end (Psalm 48:14), wrote the Psalmist. So how does God lead his people today?
There’s a harbor in Italy that, at one time, could only be reached by sailing between rocks. But so many ships were dashed on the rocks that they set up a navigational system. Three separate lights were mounted on three separate poles. When all the lights lined up, the captain could be sure he was exactly where he belonged. If the lights didn’t line up, he needed to correct his course.
God has also given us three lights: his word, his Spirit and his providence. Whenever we have to make a big decision we should ask if it agrees with God’s word. If not, he’s not leading in that direction. But if it agrees with God’s word, we should also ask if it agrees with his Spirit in our heart (2 Corinthians 1:22). If our heart says No, that may be an impulse from the Spirit (Acts 16:6-10).
If the decision agrees with God’s word, and his Spirit in our heart seems to approve, we can also ask if it agrees with his providence. In other words, is it practical? God’s ways aren’t always practical, but he’s unlikely to call a person who’s bad at math to be an accountant. God is usually practical, and the most practical thing we can do is to carefully follow him.
Exodus 16:31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.
After God led his people out of Egypt, he gave them bread from heaven, all the way to the Promised Land. As they slept, each night, enough bread came down for the following day. The people called the bread manna which, in Hebrew, sounds like What is it? (Exodus 16:15). This is how God fed his people, every day, for the next forty years. The Bible contains many stories of God’s provision, and this is one the best.
Jesus drew on this story to teach an important lesson about himself. After he fed five thousand, his popularity went up so dramatically that some wanted to make him king (John 6:15). Instead of being pleased, however, Jesus accused them of wanting another free lunch—which they freely admitted!
I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world (John 6:48-51), he said.
God gives us food for our temporal life, but also for eternal life. Jesus is the bread from heaven who gives eternal life to all who feast on him through faith. This is another way of describing what it means to believe.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 28
Exodus 17:6 Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.
On their way to the Promised Land, God’s people ran out of water. God told Moses to strike a rock with his rod, and enough water came out for everyone to drink. Even in the desert God could provide water to keep his people alive.
The New Testament provides an interesting commentary on this episode. [T]hat rock was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4), wrote Paul. It’s hard to imagine how a rock could be Christ, but there is an interesting parallel. When Moses struck the rock with his rod, water came out. When the solder thrust his spear into Jesus’ side, water came out mixed with blood (John 19:34). Water from the rock satisfied people’s physical thirst, and Jesus satisfies our spiritual thirst. Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink (John 7:37), he said.
*****
Exodus 17:8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.
God’s people faced opposition as they journeyed to the Promised Land. The Amalekites waged war and were a very serious threat. Moses told Joshua to lead the Israelites in battle while he went up a hill to watch and pray. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning (Exodus 17:11).
Moses raised his hands in prayer, but after a while he grew tired. So Moses sat on a rock while others held up his hands until, at last, the Amalekites were defeated. From this we learn that battles are won or lost in prayer.
This is why Jesus began his ministry with forty days of prayer and fasting (Matthew 4:1-11). During this time he fought the devil, and was victorious. Three times Satan tempted Jesus, and three times Jesus defeated Satan.
Jesus also cast out demons but his disciples were less effective. Why could not we drive it out? they asked. This kind can come out only by prayer (Mark 9:28-29), said Jesus. In the battle between light and darkness, only those who pray have power. Satan wants us to save time by neglecting prayer because that’s how he wins the battles.
*****
Exodus 19:1-2 On the first day of the third month after the Israelites left Egypt—on that very day—they came to the Desert of Sinai. . . . and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain.
About seven weeks after leaving Egypt, God’s people arrived at Mount Sinai. There they camped for nearly a year (Numbers 10:11-12), and received God’s law. This was a formative time as they learned what it meant to be God’s people, and for God to be their God (Exodus 6:7).
Exodus 19:9 The Lord said to Moses, I am going to come to you in a dense cloud.
God was about to reveal himself and give his people the Ten Commandments. He wouldn’t come on a rainbow, or on a beam of light, but in a dense cloud, also called a thick cloud (Exodus 19:16). At the very time God was revealing himself, he’d also be concealing himself.
From this we learn there’s always more to God than meets the eye. We can know God truly (John 17:3), but never exhaustively. No matter how much we know about God, there will always be more that we don’t know, because God is infinite. This is why God can never be boring.
If you find a piece of music that you really enjoy, you’ll want to hear it again and again. But after you hear it a hundred times, it won’t thrill you quite as much. This can never happen with God because his perfections are infinite. For all eternity he’ll never cease to amaze us.
Exodus 19:16-19 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.
God could’ve come in gentleness but revealed himself in power. He was about to give his laws and didn’t want them taken as suggestions. God is a great king whose word is to be obeyed on pain of death (Romans 6:23). Many think of God as an indulgent father but that image is not in the Bible. The God of the Bible kills people and sends them to hell. He is to be greatly feared and fully obeyed (Proverbs 10:27).
Exodus 20:1 And God spoke all these words. . . . You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image. . . You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. . . . Remember the Sabbath. . . . Honor your father and your mother. . . You shall not murder. . . . You shall not commit adultery. . . .You shall not steal. . . .You shall not give false testimony. . . . You shall not covet . . . (Exodus 20:3-17).
These Ten Commandments are the only words God spoke audibly to the nation of Israel. They were written in stone by God himself (Exodus 31:18), and were stored in the ark of the covenant, in the Most Holy Place, inside the tabernacle (Exodus 34:1, 40:20).
It would be hard to overstate the importance of the Ten Commandments before the coming of Christ, but a change has taken place. Most of the Ten Commandments are repeated in the New Testament, but not all of them. And, surprisingly, we’re never told to obey the Ten Commandments.
The Old Testament law is no longer binding in an absolute sense (Hebrews 8:13), but serves an important purpose. It reveals our sin (Romans 3:20), so that we might flee to Christ, and be justified by faith (Galatians 3:24), wrote Paul. Christians are free from the law as a way of salvation (Romans 7:4-6), but are under Christ’s law ( 1 Corinthians 9:21) as a way of life. The Ten Commandments have great significance, but are not the way of salvation.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 29
Exodus 20:18-19 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.
God’s people were afraid of God so they begged Moses to mediate. Moses represented the people to God, and God to the people. This was a helpful arrangement because it gave ordinary sinners access to God without fear of being destroyed by his holy wrath.
Priests and prophets were later ordained for a similar purpose, but the ideal mediator came in the person of Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul.
As perfectly God, Jesus represents God to humans. As perfectly human, Jesus represents humans to God. Sinners can’t approach a holy God without a mediator and hope to survive. But God has provided the perfect mediator in the person of Jesus Christ. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6), he said. This is why we pray in Jesus’ name (John 15:16).
*****
Exodus 23:2 Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong.
God wants his people to think for themselves, and not be governed by a herd mentality. It’s easier to follow a crowd than to think for ourselves, of course, but that is neither right nor safe. Crowds often go in the wrong direction, and we follow them at our peril.
Middle-eastern shepherds were surprised, one day, when one of their sheep walked off a cliff. But they were even more surprised when a second one followed, and then a third. Before long the entire flock of four hundred sheep had gone over the cliff to their death. We can follow the crowd or we can follow the shepherd. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27), said Jesus.
*****
Exodus 25:8 [H]ave them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.
God’s presence with his people was seen in a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night (Exodus 13:21). For the additional good of his people, he also ordained a place for worship. It was an elaborate tent about fifteen feet wide, fifteen feet high, and forty-five feet long. It wasn’t very large, but it was crafted with expensive materials to make it beautiful. God dwelt inside the tabernacle so he could be with his people wherever they went.
The New Testament says something similar about Jesus Christ. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14). This, in fact, is an allusion to the tabernacle. God lived in a tent so he could be near his people. Then he came in Christ so he could be even nearer.
A friend of mine grew up in a family of thirteen children. They all got married, had children of their own, and no one moved away. Everyone thought it was great, except Grandma and Grandpa. With everyone stopping by all the time, they were so exhausted that they moved to another state.
But other grandparents follow their children because they can’t bear to be away from them. That’s what God is like. So after Christ returned to heaven, he sent the Spirit to live within us (John 14:17). Notice the progression: God dwelt among his people in the tabernacle, then in Christ, now by the Spirit, and soon in heaven.
I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God (Revelation 21:3), wrote John. Any separation from God will be a thing of the past, and we’ll dwell in his presence forever. That will be eternal joy.
Exodus 29:38 This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old.
Inside the courtyard of the tabernacle was an altar for burning sacrifices. Two lambs were offered every day, but there were also grain offerings, fellowship offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings. They were all necessary to stay in a right relationship with God. God was teaching his people that sin is serious, and must be paid for.
All the ceremonies and sacrifices also showed that the way to God wasn’t completely open yet. God was in the midst of his people, but he wasn’t very accessible. If anyone who wasn’t a priest got close to God’s tent, in fact, they were to be killed (Numbers 3:10).
Even most priests could only go in the first room of God’s tent, not the back room, where God himself was. Only the High Priest was allowed in there (and only once a year) with sacrificial blood (Leviticus 16). The two rooms were called the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place, and were separated by an elaborate curtain (Exodus 26:31-33). God was with his people, but he was still hard to get to.
All the animals sacrificed for hundreds of years never really atoned for sin, in fact, but only pointed forward to the sacrifice of Christ. The moment he died on the cross the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51), showing the way to God is now open to everyone who believes in Jesus Christ. He’s our great high priest (Hebrews 4:14), and our perfect sacrifice who opened the way to God for us.
*****
Exodus 32:1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.
Moses had been with God on top of Mount Sinai for nearly six weeks. In his absence the people grew restless and asked for gods to lead them. Aaron collected gold and melted it down to create an idol in the shape of a calf. He also built an altar and declared a festival the following day. The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry (Exodus 32:6). God’s people weren’t acting like very good people.
Only weeks before they heard God say, You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth (Exodus 20:3-4). We will do everything the Lord has said (Exodus 24:7), they replied.
They planned to follow God with all their hearts, and even made a pledge, but then they went astray. They were the people of God but they were also sinners. And telling sinners not to sin is like telling roaches to stay out of the kitchen.
This is important to understand so we won’t despair whenever we fail badly. Even the Apostle Paul struggled with indwelling sin. What a wretched man I am! (Romans 7:24), he wrote. But he put his faith in Jesus Christ who saved us from the penalty of sin, is now saving us from the power of sin (Romans 7:25), and will save us from the presence of sin (Revelation 21:27). [Y]ou are to give him the name Jesus, [said the angel] because he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 30
Exodus 32:9-10 I have seen these people, the Lord said to Moses. . . . Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.
God was so angry at his people for breaking his law, that he wanted to destroy them and start over with Moses. This was an opportunity for Moses himself to become a great nation. But Moses was more concerned for God’s reputation than he was for his own legacy. He even preferred death to seeing God’s people destroyed (Exodus 32:32).
This reminds of Jesus Christ who was also willing to die so that we might live forever. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (John 15:13), he said. Jesus laid down his life for us, so that we could live forever through him (John 6:47).
Exodus 32:14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
Moses’ intercession saved God’s people from total destruction, and also reminds us of the intercession of Christ. When we consider how often and badly we sin, it’s surprising we didn’t perish years ago. This is because Jesus intercedes for us to be sure his salvation is applied for all time. [H]e is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them (Hebrews 7:25), says Hebrews.
Whenever sin threatens to separate us from God, Jesus pleads on our behalf. Because of his death, and constant intercession, God pardons our sins and will never give up on us. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34), wrote Paul. We’re not only saved by the death of Jesus Christ, but also by his intercession.
Exodus 32:15-16 Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf the people had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it (Exodus 32:19-20).
By breaking the tablets in front of God’s people, Moses was showing how violently the people had broken their covenant with God. It would later be renewed (Exodus 34:10-28), but was presently shattered. Over the centuries, God’s people broke the covenant often, and often had to renew it (Deuteronomy 29, Joshua 8, Joshua 24, 2 Kings 23). This imperfect arrangement showed the need for something better, and the prophet Jeremiah foretold a better covenant.
The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, declares the Lord.
This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. . . . For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
This was put into effect by the Lord Jesus Christ the night before his death. [H]e took the cup, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you (Luke 22:20). The new covenant is based on the sacrifice of Christ and is eternal (Hebrews 13:20). We show our participation in the new covenant, not by bringing a sacrifice, but by receiving the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:24-25) throughout our lives. We don’t live under the old covenant which God made with his people at Mount Sinai. We live under the new covenant which God made with his people through Jesus Christ.
Exodus 32:21 He said to Aaron, What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?
Moses’ brother was in trouble and he knew it. So he did what people often do when they’re caught in a sin—he lied. Do not be angry, my lord, Aaron answered. You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him. So I told them, Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off. Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf! (Exodus 32:22-24).
This, of course, was perfect nonsense but Aaron was desperate. He was the future high priest of God’s chosen people, and failed at his calling before he even began. Instead of leading God’s people into proper worship, he led them into idolatry.
Aaron’s failure reminds us of our need for a perfect high priest. Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrews 7:26-27), says Hebrews. Jesus is the perfect high priest, who offered himself as the perfect sacrifice, for all time.
Exodus 32:25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control.
Moses recovered control by having three thousand people put to death (Exodus 32:28). They were likely the worst offenders and became an example to the others. God also showed his disapproval by sending a plague (Exodus 32:35). From this we learn that true religion should never be mixed with false religion, for our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 31
Leviticus 1:1 The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting.
The book of Leviticus was written by Moses for the people of God around 1445 BC. The nation was still gathered at the base of Mount Sinai, and was being prepared for their journey to the Promised Land. Through Moses, God gave his people instructions for worship and regulations for holiness.
Leviticus 9:23 Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.
They nation received instructions from God regarding appropriate worship, and were having their first worship service at the newly constructed tabernacle. Moses brother, Aaron, was the high priest, and his four sons were also priests.
Leviticus 9:24 Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar.
This is the first of five times in which God showed his approval by consuming a sacrifice with fire. It also happened for Gideon (Judges 6:21), David (1 Chronicles 21:26), Solomon (2 Chronicles 7:1), and Elijah (1 Kings 18:38).
Fire and God are connected throughout the Bible. God is called a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). He led his people with a pillar of fire (Numbers 14:14). Before his throne is a sea of glass glowing with fire (Revelation 15:2); And his eyes are like a blazing fire (Revelation 1:14). Fire is good but dangerous. Whoever isn’t careful may be burned.
Leviticus 10:1 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu . . . offered unauthorized fire before the Lord.
Instead worshipping God the way he prescribed, Aaron’s sons worshiped God their own way. They probably thought God’s way could be improved, so they tried to make it better. As a result, fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord (Leviticus 10:2). From this we learn not to worship God any way we please, but only in ways that he has prescribed.
Much has changed since the coming of Christ, but the principle still applies. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth (John 4:24), said Jesus. [E]verything should be done in a fitting and orderly way (1 Corinthians 14:40), wrote Paul. And we ought to worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28), says Hebrews.
New Testament worship is less regulated than Old Testament worship, but we must never depart from Scripture, and must always revere the God we are worshipping. Believers in the city of Corinth were disrespectful while receiving the Lord’s Supper and some of them died (1 Corinthians 11:30). Whenever we’re part of a worship service, we must be keenly aware of God’s presence, and conduct ourselves accordingly.
Leviticus 10:3 Aaron remained silent.
Aaron saw his two oldest sons killed by God but didn’t say a word. He probably knew that God was right, and feared for his own life. Aaron’s sons were carried away and he was forbidden to mourn for them (Leviticus 10:4-7).
God still requires a higher commitment to himself than to our own flesh and blood. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus.
This is very important because our loved ones can lead us away from Christ if we let them. Parents have led their children away from Christ, and children have led their parents away from Christ. But the best way to help ourselves, and others, is by staying true to Jesus Christ.
A godly man raised his son in the faith, taught him well, and prayed for him daily. His son refused to live for Christ, however, and wanted little to do with his father. But at his father’s funeral it became clear to the son that his father was right after all. He didn’t want to die without God, so he gave his life to Christ during his father’s funeral. Even after death the father was able to help his son by staying true to Jesus Christ.
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Leviticus 16:15 [Aaron] shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain . . . . He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover . . . .
The Day of Atonement was the most solemn day of the year and was to be observed with self-denial (Leviticus 16:29). It was the only day in which the high priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place where he’d offer blood for the sins of the nation. A goat was slain and he’d take some of its blood and sprinkle it on the atonement cover.
The atonement cover was the lid on the ark of the covenant where the Ten Commandments were stored (Exodus 25:16). On either end were cherubim, made of gold, with wings that overshadowed the cover (Exodus 25:18, 22). The space between the cherubim was where God himself dwelt. [H]e sits enthroned between the cherubim (Psalm 99:1), wrote the Psalmist.
To understand the Day of Atonement we should think of God, sitting on the throne of his law, contained in the ark of the covenant. Everyone has broken God’s law (Romans 3:10), so everyone must die (Romans 6:23). But if blood was sprinkled between God and his law, God’s people could live, because the death penalty had been carried out.
Likewise, God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. Even though we sin every day, we can live before God because Christ has died in our place. The Day of Atonement foreshadowed Christ’s death on the cross. Christ himself is the atoning sacrifice.
Leviticus 16:21 [Aaron] is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task.
In another ritual on the Day of Atonement, the high priest was to place his hands on the head of a goat and confess the sins of the people. Then a designated person was to lead the goat away from the people into the wilderness. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness (Leviticus 16:22), wrote Moses.
God was teaching his people that the way to get rid of their sins wasn’t by ignoring them, or paying for them, but by transferring them to another. The people likely watched intently as their sins were carried away by the goat. It later became the practice to push the goat off a cliff to be sure it wouldn’t return.
Likewise, the Lord has laid on [Christ] the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6), wrote Isaiah. And as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:12), wrote David. All our sins were laid on Christ, who not only died for them, but carried them away forever. This should make our hearts rejoice.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 32
Leviticus 18:17 Do not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. . . . That is wickedness.
This chapter contains the most extensive list of sexual prohibitions in the Bible, many of them unmentionable. Sexuality is God’s idea and was pronounced very good by him (Genesis 1:31). Sex is God’s wedding gift to those who are married, but it’s often misused by married and singles alike. This is why such an extensive list was necessary.
Many applaud themselves for avoiding outward misconduct but Jesus taught that our hearts are also important. You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:27-28). Likewise, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality (Ephesians 5:3), wrote Paul.
Sexual immorality is a result of our sinful nature, but also because the sexual impulse is so powerful. Good and godly people have done very foolish things because they allowed their better judgment to be overruled. Whoever wants to please God should follow the example of Job. I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman (Job 31:1), he said. And God helps those who determine to do his will.
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Leviticus 24:10 Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite.
We don’t know what caused the fight but the young man used the occasion to blaspheme God. This was a violation of the third command: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name (Exodus 20:7). No penalty had been revealed, however, so the young man was taken into custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear (Leviticus 24:12).
Leviticus 24:13-16 Then the Lord said to Moses: Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. Say to the Israelites: Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death.
To use God’s name disrespectfully is to insult the king of the universe and to risk immediate judgment. Sinful speech is never appropriate (Ephesians 4:29) but we’re not as severely threatened for ordinary profanity as we are for blasphemy. It would be better to use ordinary profanity a hundred times a day than to disrespect the name of God even once.
In light of this fact, it’s remarkable how often God’s name is misused around the world, every day. People seldom misuse the name of Buddha, Muhammad or Krishna. But the name of God, and his Son Jesus Christ, are misused in the most vulgar ways thinkable, as though Satan was speaking the words himself. [A]ll day long my name is constantly blasphemed (Isaiah 52:5), said God. Imagine what it’s like to hear your name being used as a curse twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three-hundred sixty-five days a year, for centuries.
God may seem to overlook the sin of blasphemy but, actually, he doesn’t. I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:36-37), said Jesus.
I had a friend in high school who was as happy and fun as anyone I’ve ever known. But he spoke of God and Jesus Christ in ways that were straight from hell. Nothing bad ever happened to him until the summer after high school. He was mowing the side of a hill when the tractor tipped over and snuffed out his life. No one heard his final words but, if they were like his ordinary speech, I don’t think he died well.
God is usually patient with us, but we should never put him to the test, because he can call us to account at any time. It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31), says Hebrews.
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Leviticus 23:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Speak to the Israelites and say to them: These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.
This chapter outlines Israel’s religious calendar including their many festivals. God wanted his people to rejoice, so he gave them occasions to celebrate. The word rejoice, in fact, is found over one hundred times throughout the Old Testament.
In contrast to the religious calendar of the Old Testament, the New Testament has no religious calendar or holidays. Christians gathered on the first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:2), but were not forbidden to work on that day. Christmas and Easter are not mentioned, and weren’t observed until after the apostles died. Christians are not required to observe any religious holidays.
Nevertheless, God wants his people to be joyful. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4), wrote Paul. The good news of Jesus Christ is enough to make us happy every single day.
A large hotel chain interviewed five thousand people for five hundred jobs. The managers were told not to hire anyone who smiled fewer than four times during their interview. If people judged your religion by your face, would they want to join? Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Leviticus 25:10 Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you.
The Year of Jubilee was to be celebrated every fiftieth year, so most people would experience it at least once in their adult life. Debt was to be canceled (Leviticus 25:23-28), and slaves were set free (Leviticus 25:39-55). Those who were oppressed could always look forward to the day of their freedom.
Jesus had the Year of Jubilee in mind when he preached at Nazareth. The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners . . . to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4:18-19, Isaiah 61:1-2), he said.
The Year of Jubilee wasn’t well observed by Israel, but Jesus fulfills it by setting us free from sin (Acts 13:9), and canceling our debt of sin. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness (Colossians 2:13-14), wrote Paul. What the Year of Jubilee promised for a year, Christ has given forever. [I]f the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36), he said.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 33
Numbers 1:1 The Lord spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt.
The book of Numbers was written by Moses for the people of God around 1406 BC. It tells the failure of God’s people to enter the Promised Land and, as a result, their nearly forty years of wandering in the desert. It contains many stories of sin, punishment and repentance—all for our instruction (1 Corinthians 10:11).
Numbers 6:2-3 If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the Lord as a Nazirite, they must abstain from wine.
Service at the tabernacle was restricted to the tribe of Levi (Numbers 1:50), so most Israelites never had this privilege. But any Israelite who wanted to be uniquely devoted to God could become a Nazirite. That required avoiding anything from the grapevine, not cutting one’s hair, and avoiding contact with the dead (Numbers 6:3-8). The vow was normally temporary, but could also last a lifetime.
The Nazirite vow isn’t for Christians, however, because Christians don’t need a vow to be close to God. We’re already close to God through faith in Jesus Christ. [I]n Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near (Ephesians 2:3), wrote Paul. What many desired in the Old Testament has been given to us in Christ. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ is as close to God as they can possibly be.
Knowing that we are close to God, through faith in Jesus Christ, will make us want to feel that way as well. Come near to God and he will come near to you (James 4:8), wrote James. This doesn’t require a vow, however, but simple faithfulness in all our daily affairs.
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Numbers 11:1 Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the Lord.
Life with God wasn’t always easy, but he faithfully met the needs of his people. Instead of being thankful and content, however, they frequently complained. As a result, fire from God burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp (Numbers 11:1b), wrote Moses.
There’s a very important difference between complaining to God and being a chronic complainer. God wants to hear our problems (Psalm 142:2), but he doesn’t want us to complain all the time. The happiest people aren’t those with the fewest problems, but those who’ve learned to trust in God and have a proper attitude.
The air-conditioning went out at a Christian youth conference where thousands were gathered for several days. It was blistering hot but the leadership found a solution. They hung a banner over the stage that read: You can’t make it hot enough for me to complain. Everyone adjusted their attitude and the conference was a success.
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Numbers 12:1-2 Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses . . . . Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? they asked. Hasn’t he also spoken through us?
God’s people complained against Moses, frequently, but the complaints of Miriam and Aaron were more serious. Aaron was the high priest (Exodus 28:1), and Miriam was a prophet (Exodus 15:20). If they undermined Moses’ leadership the whole nation might die in the desert. Miriam was most at fault, it seems, since God struck her with leprosy. But Moses prayed for her and, seven days later, she was restored.
Jesus was also opposed by someone very close to him. When he spoke about his crucifixion, Peter began to rebuke him. Never, Lord! he said. This shall never happen to you (Matthew 16:22). There was no room in Peter’s thinking for Jesus’ crucifixion. Jesus would be the king and Peter would serve along side him. If Jesus had other ideas, he needed to be corrected.
Peter didn’t die, or even get leprosy, but he did receive the strongest rebuke in the Bible. Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me (Matthew 16:23), said Jesus. Peter didn’t know it but the devil was speaking through him to turn Jesus away from the cross. If that had happened, the whole world would die and go to hell. Christian leaders might think they have better ideas than Jesus. But Jesus is greater than Moses, and we cross him at our peril.
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Numbers 13:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites.
Israel camped at Mount Sinai for almost a year, then marched across the desert until they came to edge of the Promised Land. There God told Moses to send in a dozen men to explore the land he was giving to them. This would help in the conquest, and would assure God’s people that it was a land flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8). The task would take about forty days, and cover more than four hundred miles. The rest of God’s people waited earnestly as they camped outside the Promised Land.
Numbers 13:25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land.
To show the land was bountiful, the explorers brought back a sample of fruit that was so heavy it took two men and a pole to carry it (Numbers 13:23). The land was all that God had promised, but there was some concern whether it could be conquered (Numbers 13:28-29). Most of the explorers thought the challenge was simply too great for them.
Numbers 13:30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.
This is one of the most positive statements of faith in the Bible. The land was filled with powerful people, and fortified cities, but they were no match for God. God had promised this land to his people, and was against those who lived there (Genesis 15:16). If God overcame the Egyptians, he could defeat these people as well.
Numbers 13:31-33 But the men who had gone up with him said, We cannot attack those people; they are stronger than we are. . . . We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.
This is a classic mistake. The cowardly explorers took their eyes off God and focused on their problems. The more they focused on their problems, the bigger they seemed. The less they focused on God, the smaller he seemed. Eventually their problems were bigger than God, and God was no match for their problems.
Like the ancient Israelites, many seem to have faith until they have a problem—then they give way to fear. Joshua and Caleb overcame their fear by focusing on God.
Most of the Israelites didn’t share Joshua and Caleb’s faith, however, so they chose to rebel against the Lord and Moses. We should choose [another] leader and go back to Egypt (Numbers 14:4), they said. After all that God had done for them, they were willing to walk away.
This hard to imagine, but many who are given every spiritual advantage also walk away from Christ. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace (Hebrews 6:6), says Hebrews. The consequences for rebelling against Moses were severe, but the consequences for rebelling against Christ are even worse.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 34
Numbers 14:12 I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.
Once again the Lord was so angry with the Israelites, that he was willing to destroy the whole nation, and start over with Moses. Given the trouble they’d been to Moses, it’s surprising he didn’t agree. But Moses was so humble (Numbers 12:3) that he was still less concerned with his legacy than with God’s reputation. He thought the Egyptians might hear of it and say, The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath, so he slaughtered them in the wilderness (Numbers 14:16). God listened to Moses, and didn’t destroy his people, but there would still be serious consequences.
Numbers 14:29-30 In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more . . . except Caleb . . . and Joshua.
God didn’t kill his people at once but, over the next forty years, they’d wander in the desert until all the adults were dead. They could’ve conquered the Promised Land but would have to die in the desert. They could’ve lived by faith but would have to wander aimlessly.
The journey of life has forks in the road at which we must choose to follow Christ or go another way. Our faithless choices aren’t always fatal, but their consequences diminish our lives as well as the lives of others. God’s path is seldom easy but it’s the only one that will take us where we want to go.
Numbers 14:37 [The] men who were responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the Lord.
Most of God’s people lived out the rest of their natural lives, but the ten explorers who incited rebellion were struck down by God and died. This wasn’t unfair considering the negative effect their leadership had on others. It also shows that leaders are held to a higher standard.
This idea appears in the New Testament as well. Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly (James 3:1), wrote James. People in leadership are held to a higher standard because of the effect they have on others.
Numbers 14:40 Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised.
When God’s people saw the consequences of their sin they decided to obey. But now it was too late. Moses told them not to go into battle because the Lord would not be with them (Numbers 14:42). But, rebellious to the end, they went into battle anyway and fell by the sword. Sometimes it really is too late.
A country preacher stood over the casket of a local outlaw. Too late for Joe, he said. He heard the gospel a hundred times but always put it off. Too late for Joe. Too late for Joe. Some in the church were upset at the preacher’s bluntness, but most agreed he was right. Sometimes it really is too late. I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2), wrote Paul.
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Numbers 15:30 But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or foreigner, blasphemes the Lord and must be cut off from the people of Israel.
A man who gathered wood on the Sabbath day would serve as an example. [T]he Lord said to Moses, The man must die. The whole assembly must stone him outside the camp. So the assembly took him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the Lord commanded Moses (Numbers 15:35-36).
The Bible makes a distinction between those who sin carelessly and those who sin defiantly. Defiant sin is looking God in the face and shaking your fist at him. Such sins are normally premeditated, not followed by repentance, and extremely dangerous.
If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, It is mine to avenge; I will repay, and again, The Lord will judge his people. It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:26-31), says Hebrews.
This is why Paul required believers who were sinning defiantly to be put out of the church (1 Corinthians 5:2). The goal was not their eternal doom but repentance and restoration, so their spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord (1 Corinthians 5:5), he wrote.
Every believer sins carelessly every single day (Matthew 5:48). And many sin defiantly at one time or another. But God is pleased to forgive every sin as long as we trust in Christ, and keep on turning back to him (1 John 1:9). [A] broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:17), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 35
Numbers 16:1-3 Korah [and some others] became insolent and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?
This was a serious challenge to God’s appointed leaders. After all the miracles God had done through Moses, it’s hard to believe that such a challenge could be made. Instead of defending himself, Moses directed Korah and his supporters to come to the tabernacle the following day.
Then Moses said, This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: If these men die a natural death and suffer the fate of all mankind, then the Lord has not sent me.
But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.
As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community (Numbers 16:28-33).
Few things make ministry more miserable than being falsely accused. Some ministers have even wished that God would vindicate them as clearly as he did Moses. But this judgment has never been repeated, and many good ministers have been forced out of leadership.
Even the Apostle Paul had to defend himself against some in the church who undermined his ministry (2 Corinthians 11:5). Every Christian leader should be held accountable, but so should those who accuse them. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them (Titus 3:10), wrote Paul.
Other than Jesus Christ, there are no perfect leaders. But any church that allows its leaders to be wrongfully attacked will soon run out of qualified leaders. Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you (Hebrews 13:17), says Hebrews.
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Numbers 17:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes.
God showed his approval of Moses by burying his accusers. Now he’d show his approval of Aaron in a gentler way. A staff was taken from the leader of each ancestral tribe (twelve in all), and each leader’s name was written on his staff. Aaron’s name was written on the staff of Levi, since he belonged to that tribe. Then the staffs were placed in the tabernacle. The following day Aaron’s staff had sprouted, budded, blossomed and produced almonds. This was proof that he was, in fact, chosen by God to be high priest.
God has given similar proof that we belong to him. No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit (Luke 6:43-44), said Jesus. And the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), wrote Paul. The more we bear the fruit of the Spirit, the more clearly we belong to Christ.
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Numbers 20:2 Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron.
Israel ran out of water about forty years earlier, and God told Moses to strike a rock with his staff. Water came out (Exodus 17:1-7) and all the people survived. Now, at the end of their journey, a new generation needed water, and God would meet their need as well. But, instead of striking the rock with his staff, God told Moses to speak to the rock (Numbers 20:8).
This should have gone well but, by this time, Moses had led God’s people for many years and had grown a little impatient. Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock? Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank (Numbers 20:10-11).
Instead of speaking to the rock, as God directed, Moses struck it twice with his staff. And, instead of giving the glory to God, he took the credit himself. Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them (Numbers 20:12), said God.
Here we see the importance of obeying God and giving him the glory for whatever good he does though us. If we lead someone to Christ, we give the glory to God. If our children turn out well, we give the glory to God. If we get a promotion, we give the glory to God. Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 36
Numbers 22:4-5 Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor.
When King Balak saw God’s people camping near Moab, he was alarmed by the apparent threat, and knew that he couldn’t withstand them. So he sent for Balaam, a man known for spiritual power, to curse Israel. Do not let anything keep you from coming to me, because I will reward you handsomely and do whatever you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me (Numbers 22:16-17), he said. So Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials (Numbers 22:21).
But God was angry at Balaam and sent an angel with a sword to oppose him. Balaam didn’t see the angel, but his donkey did, and tried to avoid it three times. This made Balaam so angry that he beat his donkey severely.
Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times? Balaam answered the donkey, You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now. The donkey said to Balaam, Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you? No, he said.
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. The angel of the Lord asked him, Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.
Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back. The angel of the Lord said to Balaam, Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you. So Balaam went with Balak’s officials (Numbers 22:28-35).
Balaam didn’t know it at the time but he was in serious danger for planning to curse God’s people. Whoever attempts to curse God’s people only curse themselves. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse (Genesis 12:3), said God. Christians can never be cursed because we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3), wrote Paul. And If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31), wrote Paul also.
Numbers 22:36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him.
Balak showed Balaam the people he wanted cursed, but Balaam could only bless them. How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? (Numbers 23:8), he said. God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. . . . he has blessed, and I cannot change it (Numbers 23:19-20), he added.
When we consider Satan’s desire for our harm, we have every reason to be afraid. But when we consider God’s desire for our good, our fears are put to flight. Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34), Christ will say to us. God’s people are blessed by him, and can never be cursed by anyone.
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Numbers 25:1 While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women.
Some of the Moabite women invited some Israelite men to worship Baal and engage in ritual sex. This ignited God’s anger and he commanded Moses to execute those who were guilty. Before the sentence was carried out, however, an Israelite man brought a Moabite women into his tent right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel (Numbers 25:6). This wasn’t a shameful deed done in secret, but an open act of defiance against Moses and God.
Numbers 25:7-8 When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach.
The crime was a public violation of the first and seventh commandments: You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3) and You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14). The execution carried out by Phinehas was according to the penalty for sins committed defiantly. [A]nyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or foreigner, blasphemes the Lord and must be cut off from the people of Israel. Because they have despised the Lord’s word and broken his commands, they must surely be cut off (Numbers 15:30-31), wrote Moses. This no longer applies today (Hebrews 8:13), of course, but Phinehas received God’s approval for defending his honor.
As the nation of Israel made its way to the Promised Land, it encountered opposition and seduction. These are the right and left hands of Satan which he uses to this day. If the world can’t intimidate the church through opposition, it will try to win it back through seduction. You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? (James 4:4), wrote James. Believers are to love the world (John 3:16) but not its sinful ways. We’re to live in the world but should also remain distinct.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 37
Deuteronomy 1:1 These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan.
The book of Deuteronomy was written by Moses for the people of God around 1406 BC, while the nation camped in the land of Moab, just outside the Promised Land. In a series of speeches, Moses reviewed the covenant God made with Israel after they came out of Egypt, forty years earlier. The first generation had died and a new generation needed to hear God’s word before entering the land. There’s little that is new in Deuteronomy but it’s quoted in the New Testament over forty times. Moses knew that he would die soon, and this is his farewell address.
Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
There’s only one God, the creator and sustainer of all that exists. This conviction made Israel unique among surrounding nations who worshipped many gods. Whenever Israel turned to other gods they became weak. But when they trusted the one true and living God, they became strong. It’s awesome to know that this same God has become our heavenly Father through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:5).
Deuteronomy 6:5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Jesus identified this as the first and greatest commandment (Matthew 22:38), which makes it even more important than feeding our children. The reason God wants us to love him with all our heart, soul and strength, is because that’s how he loves us. What God wants most from his people is a deep and loving relationship.
We should express our love for God through prayer, obedience and service, but they are not the same as love. Genuine love for God includes an affectionate yearning for more of him. This means turning away from whatever displeases him, and always drawing closer. Even if our hearts are dry at times, if we truly desire more of God, we are on the right track.
Deuteronomy 6:6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.
It’s not enough to have the word of God in our heads. Satan has that. Nor is it enough to believe the word of God, or even obey the word of God. We must have the word of God on our hearts—the place of our affection. We should, in fact, have the same affection for the word of God that we have for God himself. A good indication of how we feel about God is how we feel about his word. If we don’t love his word, our love for God should be called into question.
Deuteronomy 6:7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
God’s word is so important for raising children that it ought to be a normal part of our daily conversation. Some time ago I was out for a hike and, as I walked up the trail, I passed a family that was coming down. As we passed each other I overheard a little girl ask her father this question: If God is loving, why did he allow so many bad things to happen to Job? (Job 1:1-2:8).
That’s a good question, especially from a child. But what truly impressed me was how naturally it occurred in their conversation. The Bible was so important to them that it wasn’t reserved for church alone, or even for family devotions, but was naturally discussed as they were out for a hike.
Deuteronomy 6:12 [B]e careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
When God’s people came out of Egyptian slavery, he led them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (Numbers 14:14). All they had to do was look and they could see a visible manifestation of God. But that was about to change as they entered the Promised Land. They’d spread out to various regions and no longer see the sign of God’s presence. So Moses reminded them not to forget the Lord.
A godly man was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease so he wrote down everything on note cards. Turn off the stove, check the mail and flush the toilet were a few of the notes he wrote to himself. But, with the passing of time, his condition grew worse, and even the notes didn’t help very much. So he wrote a final note on his hand and copied it over daily: Remember God.
There are many things in our busy lives that compete with God for our attention. But if we remember God each morning, through prayer and Bible study, he’ll never be far from our thoughts the rest of the day.
Deuteronomy 6:18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you.
Since God determines the quality of our lives, it’s always wise to obey him. Under the old covenant, God promised to bless his people if they were obedient, and to curse them if they were disobedient (Deuteronomy 28). Since rewards and punishments could come quickly, Moses encouraged God’s people to do the right thing.
Following Christ may involve hardship (John 16:33), but this principle still applies. [G]odliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come (1 Timothy 4:8), wrote Paul. If we Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, we might be surprised by all the good he does for us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 38
Deuteronomy 7:6 The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.
For many years the Israelites were slaves in Egypt, despised by the people who owned them. After Egypt they wandered in the desert, a people without a homeland. To themselves, as well as to others, they seemed to have little value. But they were so valued by God that he called them his treasured possession.
God is the owner of everything, so there’s nothing we can give him that he doesn’t already have—except our hearts. When a sinner gives their heart to God, he is so enriched that the sinner becomes his treasured possession.
I was six years old when my dad made me a slingshot. He cut a branch from a tree and whittled it smooth. Then he attached two strips of rubber and a leather pouch. It fit my hand perfectly and made me feel dangerous. I carried my slingshot everywhere and, for a while, it was my treasured possession. Then, one day, I put it in my pocket and, when I got home, it wasn’t there. I retraced my steps with tears but it was never recovered.
Thankfully, that never happens to God. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand (John 10:28-29), said Jesus. All who belong to God through faith in Jesus Christ will be treasured by him forever.
Deuteronomy 8:3 [M]an does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
After fasting forty days, Jesus was hungrier than most people will ever be. But when the devil told him to satisfy his hunger by turning stones into bread, he quoted this verse to him (Matthew 4:4). From this we learn that it’s more important to feed our souls than it is to feed our bodies. If we have to choose between breakfast and the Bible, we should always choose the Bible. It’s better to have a full soul and an empty stomach, than to have a full stomach and an empty soul.
Getting through the Bible seems like a difficult task, but it’s not so hard if we read it daily. By reading a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, we can cover the whole Bible in under four years. If we do this repeatedly, we’ll probably read the Bible several times before we die.
Deuteronomy 8:4 Your clothes did not wear out . . . during these forty years.
Throughout their journey, God fed his people bread from heaven (Exodus 16:4), and gave them water from a rock (Exodus 17:6). These were clear and obvious miracles for everyone to see. But they may’ve overlooked a more subtle miracle. God was keeping their clothes from wearing out over the course of forty years.
When we get to heaven we’ll likely discover some things God did for us that we didn’t notice at the time. Some miracles are obvious and others are only seen in hindsight. God is always doing more for us than we know at the time and we should thank him daily. Thank you, Father, for your many acts of kindness, especially those I do not see.
Deuteronomy 10:16 [D]o not be stiff-necked any longer.
God often accused his people of being stiff-necked. The problem wasn’t medical but a rebellious attitude. They were like animals that wouldn’t be guided by their owners.
Many years ago I rode a horse that was intent on going its own way. When I pulled to the right it stiffened its neck. When I pulled to the left it did the same. It even went under a low-hanging branch in order to knock me off. I didn’t like that horse at all.
A better animal responds quickly to a tug on the reigns, and is a joy to its owner. We can’t be guided by God if we insist on our own way. Instead of being stiff-necked we should learn pray like Christ: not my will, but yours be done (Luke 22:42). Then we will not be stiff-necked any longer.
Deuteronomy 14:1 You are the children of the Lord your God.
This is the highest possible status, and also the happiest. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! (1 John 3:1), wrote John. When we understand who we are, because of Jesus Christ, we’ll want to live accordingly.
The king’s son behaved badly and did some things of which he was ashamed. He confided in his father who offered wise advice. No one is surprised when common people misbehave, because that’s what common people do. But if you remember that you’re royalty, then you’ll behave royally. Never forget who and whose you are, he said. God also wants his children to have a clear identity so he tells us plainly, You are the children of the Lord your God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 39
Deuteronomy 18:15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.
Moses was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament but foresaw another who would be like him. This was fulfilled by Jesus Christ about fifteen hundred years later. Jesus was similar to Moses in the following ways.
Moses was laid in a basket (Exodus 2:3), and Jesus was laid in manger (Luke 2:7, 16). Moses spent his early years in Egypt, and Jesus spent his early years in Egypt (Matthew 2:13). Moses gave up the glory of the palace, and Jesus gave up the glory of heaven. Moses was the first person in the Old Testament to do miracles, and Jesus was the first person in the New Testament to do miracles.
Moses fed the people bread from heaven (Exodus 16:14), and Jesus multiplied bread on earth (John 6:11). Moses delivered the people from the tyranny of Pharaoh, and Jesus delivers us from the tyranny of Satan. Moses parted the water, and Jesus walked on water.
Moses was nearly stoned to death, (Exodus 17:4), and Jesus was nearly stoned to death (John 8:59). Moses sacrificed the blood of animals (Exodus 24:5-8), and Jesus sacrificed his own blood (Matthew 26:28). Moses led people to the Promised Land of Canaan, and Jesus leads people to the Promised Land of heaven. Jesus is the prophet like Moses, to whom we must listen.
Deuteronomy 26:11 [R]ejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household.
God didn’t want his people to take their possessions for granted, but to see them as tokens of love from his fatherly hand. If we see our possessions as things we’ve earned, they’ll do us no spiritual good, and may even harm us. But if we see them as gifts from our heavenly Father, they’ll help us love him even more.
Until recently, the wealthiest people in the world lived and died without enjoying many things that we take for granted. They may have had a palace, but not a refrigerator, television, furnace or air-conditioner. They may have had servants, but not the internet, hot water or even indoor plumbing. The good things we enjoy don’t come to us by accident. They are gifts from our heavenly Father and tokens of his love.
Deuteronomy 29:29 The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever.
The Israelites knew little about God until he delivered them from slavery and gave them his written word. This answered many of their questions but may’ve raised even more. The more God reveals himself, the more questions we seem to have. Who has plumbed the depth of the Trinity? Who has resolved the two natures of Christ? Who has solved the problem of evil? These are just a few of the secret things that belong to the Lord our God.
[B]ut the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, wrote Moses. The Bible is an ocean in which a whale can swim and a child can wade. Some truths lay on the surface but we’ll never reach the bottom. Little children can learn the basics but scholars can’t exhaust it. God is glorified by the reverent study of his word, and we are enriched by what we learn.
Deuteronomy 30:20 [T]he Lord is your life.
This is the secret of happiness. The Lord is not a part of your life, an accessory to your life, or tangential to your life. The Lord is your life. No Lord, no life. And, if the Lord is your life, then the more you love the Lord, the more you’ll love your life. The surest way to happiness, therefore, is to Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength (Mark 12:30), because the Lord is your life.
Deuteronomy 31:6 [H]e will never leave you nor forsake you.
Life was about to change for the people of God as they entered the Promised Land. It flowed with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8), but those who lived there wouldn’t give it up without a fight. In all their battles and conflicts, God wanted his people to know that he’d never leave them nor forsake them.
This is important to believe when times are good, but especially when times are hard, because that’s when we’re likely to feel forsaken. Feelings change with the weather but God is always the same. His word is truer than our feelings and his commitment never wavers.
The Bible doesn’t promise that we’ll never be diseased, bankrupt or divorced. But it does promise that God will never leave us nor forsake us. He’s always there to support, encourage, strengthen and provide—and to forgive our sins (Colossians 2:13). We should always stand upon this truth, especially when times are tough.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 40
Deuteronomy 31:20 [W]hen they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods and worship them.
This is God’s problem. Because he is generous, God wants to bless his people with prosperity. But he knows that his people are so perverse that, when he makes them prosperous, they will turn away from him. Instead of being thankful, and serving him more carefully, they’ll feel secure enough to go their own way. Even today, few things are more spiritually lethal than financial prosperity. [It] is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:23), said Jesus.
This is why God often leaves some of our needs unmet. The more we need from God, the more likely we are to pray to him. The less we need from God, the more likely we are to ignore him. What seems the best for us is often the worst, and what seems the worst for us is often the best. Instead of complaining about what God has withheld, we ought to praise him for keeping us close to him. What could be worse, after all, than having everything we want and turning away from God?
Deuteronomy 33:27 The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.
As Moses prepared to die, he pronounced a blessing on the nation and reminded them of God’s everlasting arms. He’s our heavenly father who carries us close to his heart.
Many years ago I moved to another state and left behind family and friends. I was single at the time and, for about a year, had little social network. This made me feel like I was falling without a safety net. But that’s never true for God’s people: underneath are the everlasting arms. The furthest we can ever fall is into his loving embrace.
*****
Deuteronomy 34:1 Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho.
Some time earlier God told Moses to bring water from a rock by speaking to it. Moses disregarded God’s word and struck the rock twice with his staff. Then, instead of giving glory to God, he took the credit for himself. As a result, God informed Moses that he wouldn’t enter the Promised Land (Exodus 20:1-13). Here we find him going up a mountain to die.
From this we understand that God does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11). Even his best servants are not exempt from the consequences of their sins. God could’ve overlooked Moses’ sin, but it was important for the people to see that God’s justice applies to everyone—even to Moses.
Deuteronomy 34:4 Then the Lord said to him, This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, I will give it to your descendants. I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.
God showed Moses kindness by letting him see the Promised Land before he died. He could’ve died on the plain below, but God sent him to the mountaintop (Deuteronomy 32:48-50) where he could see it for himself. What a joy it must’ve been for Moses to see the Promised Land with his own eyes. In wrath, God also remembered mercy (Habakkuk 3:2).
Deuteronomy 34:5-6 And Moses the servant of the Lord died there in Moab, as the Lord had said. He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is.
By burying Moses himself, God insured that his grave wouldn’t become a shrine. Moses was so greatly used by God that God’s people may’ve been tempted to worship at his grave rather than at the tabernacle. God graciously kept that from happening.
God may bury his workers but he still continues to work. Moses was dead but Joshua would lead God’s people into the Promised Land. Then God raised up judges, kings and prophets to lead his people. Then he sent his Son who commissioned the apostles (Matthew 28:18-20). Then Paul told Timothy to instruct reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others (2 Timothy 2:2). This has been going on for thousands of years and the kingdom of God is growing. God’s workers come and go but God continues to work.
Deuteronomy 34:7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.
Moses didn’t die from natural causes but because God shortened his life. Even at a hundred twenty years he was still strong, and could’ve served God much longer. But this isn’t the end of Moses’ story. About fifteen centuries later he appeared on the mountain of transfiguration to talk with Jesus Christ about his approaching crucifixion (Matthew 17:1-13).
Imagine the honor this was for Moses. He died because of his sin, but spoke to the one who’d die for his salvation. He died outside the Promised Land, but stood inside the Promised Land with Jesus. He led God’s people to an earthly Promised Land, but spoke to the one who’d lead us to the Promised Land of heaven. Apart from Jesus Christ, Moses’ story didn’t end very well. But because of Jesus Christ his story ends in glory.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 41
Joshua 1:1-2 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them.
The book of Joshua was written around 1390 BC and, though anonymous, some of it probably came from Joshua himself. The author recounts how, with God’s help, Joshua completed Moses’ ministry by leading God’s people into the Promised Land.
Joshua was probably a slave in Egypt, who witnessed the plagues, and followed Moses through the Red Sea. That generation died in the wilderness but, due to their faith, Joshua and Caleb were allowed to live and enter the Promised Land.
Joshua 1:8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
It wasn’t enough for Joshua to be a military genius, he also had to be a student of God’s word. The promise of success was based on obedience, which required daily study and meditation. This was also God’s will for the future kings of Israel. When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law . . . . It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life (Deuteronomy 17:18-19), wrote Moses.
When Israel’s kings departed from God’s law, they lost their right to rule God’s kingdom. The reason Jesus is qualified to be the King of kings (Revelation 19:16) is because he perfectly kept God’s word. Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Deuteronomy 8:3, Matthew 4:4), he said.
Joshua 2:1 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. Go, look over the land, he said, especially Jericho. So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
We’re not told why the spies went to the house of a prostitute but there are at least four possible reasons. First, men going to the house of a prostitute was not likely to raise suspicion. Second, a prostitute might be an excellent source of information due to her various clients. Third, since prostitutes weren’t known for integrity, she might been willing to sell this information. Fourth, since good hotels were scarce, some prostitutes also provided lodging.
Joshua 2:2-3 The king of Jericho was told, Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land. So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.
Jericho was a city-state and the king perceived the Israelites to be a serious threat. When he learned that Rahab was harboring two of them, he commanded her to turn them in. If a king commands you to turn in a couple spies, you either cooperate or become guilty of treason. You either save your life or lose it.
But sometimes saving your life is losing it, and losing your life is saving it. Rahab could’ve saved her life for a little while by turning over the spies, or saved it forever by putting her trust in God. That’s how it is with Christ. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it (Mark 8:35), said Jesus.
Joshua 2:4-5 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I do not know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.
It’s a little surprising the king’s men trusted the word of a prostitute but, somehow, she convinced them. The spies were actually hiding under stalks of flax on Rahab’s roof (Joshua 2:6). Flax was used for making linen and was often dried on rooftops. These sort of details add credibility to the story and draw the reader in.
Joshua 2:7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
This gave Rahab the time she needed to talk to the spies at length. She told them that fear had fallen on Jericho because they knew that God had parted the Red Sea for the Israelites, and defeated kings for them (Numbers 21:21-35). This would be helpful information for Joshua since few things are more important to the outcome of war than morale. It also fulfilled God’s word through Moses: the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall on them (Exodus 15:15-16).
Rahab also made a profession of faith in God. [F]or the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below (Joshua 2:11), she said. We don’t know how she came to this conclusion, but she clearly believed in God, since she was now on the side of Israel. When Rahab heard about the God who delivered his people from slavery, she probably longed to be his. She may’ve even prayed that God would let her change sides. So when the opportunity came, she took it.
Like Rahab, our first allegiance is no longer to the kingdom of this world, but to the kingdom of God. We too foresee the day when The kingdom of the world [will] become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah (Revelation 11:15), wrote John. We’ve also committed treason against the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4) by giving our allegiance to Christ. In these and other ways, Rahab models the Christian life.
Joshua 2:12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you.
The spies agreed to spare Rahab and her family. This is a little surprising in light of an earlier command given by God through Moses. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy (Deuteronomy 7:2). But, upon her profession of faith, this is precisely what they did.
The division between Israelite and non-Israelite was less about ethnicity than allegiance to God. This is why Paul called the church the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16). A true Israelite isn’t someone with Abraham’s DNA, but with Abraham’s faith (Galatians 3:7). Because she believed in the God of Abraham, Rahab was allowed to live.
Joshua 2:21 So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
The scarlet cord was a prearranged sign that would identify Rahab’s house to Israel’s army. Everyone else in the city would be destroyed, but the soldiers were to spare the house with the scarlet cord in the window.
A scarlet cord was probably used because Rahab had one, and because it could be seen. But it would later remind the Israelites of their escape from Egypt. They were saved by the scarlet blood of a Passover lamb (Exodus 12:1-30). And Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed (1 Corinthians 5:7), wrote Paul. Scarlet is the color of blood, and we’re saved by the blood of Christ.
Rahab is also mentioned three times in the New Testament: once for her faith (Hebrews 11:31), once for her works (James 2:25), and once in the genealogy of Christ (Matthew 1:5). The woman who started out as a Canaanite prostitute became part of God’s people, and a great-great-grandmother of the Savior of the world. It’s truly remarkable what God can do for ordinary people who trust him.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 42
Joshua 3:1 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites . . . went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over.
Forty years earlier, God parted the Red Sea for Moses, so he could lead the people of God out of Egyptian slavery. Now he’d dry up the Jordan River for Joshua so he could lead them into the Promised Land. Joshua was the new leader of Israel, and this was the moment they’d all been waiting for.
Joshua 3:3 When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it.
The ark of the covenant was normally kept in the the Most Holy Place, inside the tabernacle. But, occasionally, it was used to lead the people of God in solemn procession. The ark is so important to this story that it’s mentioned no fewer than sixteen times.
It’s frequently called the ark of the covenant because it contained the Ten Commandments (Exodus 25:16), which were the basis of the covenant God made with Israel, forty years earlier, at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-20). The ark symbolized God’s throne (Exodus 25:22), so the people were to understand that God, their king, was leading them into the Promised Land.
Joshua 3:4 But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits between you and the ark; do not go near it.
Because the ark symbolized God’s throne, the people were to keep a respectful distance. Two thousand cubits is over half a mile. This would allow more people to see the ark than if it was being crowded. The ark was so sacred that no one was allowed to touch it, on pain of death (2 Samuel 6:7). Even those who carried the ark had to use poles, inserted into rings, that were mounted on its side (Exodus 25:14).
Joshua 3:8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.
The Jordan River isn’t wide or deep, but the spring rains (and melting snow from Mount Hermon) caused it swell to about a hundred feet wide and ten feet deep. The strength of the current would also make it difficult to pass. Without any sign of the water’s abating, however, the priests were told to stand in the river.
There are times when God requires his people to act on faith before they see his provision (Mark 11:24). The man with the shriveled hand was healed as he stretched it out (Luke 6:10); the bread and fish were multiplied as they were being distributed (John 6:11); and the Jordan River would cease to flow only after the priests stepped into it. God doesn’t always explain himself before he calls us to act.
Joshua 3:15-16 [A]s soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam.
God may’ve put his hand in the river at Adam, and stopped the flow himself. But why would he do it so far away? The place where the water stopped flowing is about eighteen miles upstream. Why didn’t God put his hand in the river right in front of the Israelites so they could see his mighty power?
God intervenes directly, sometimes, but he also uses means. More than once the Jordan River has stopped flowing near Adam due to a mudslide. As recently as 1927, in fact, the water stopped flowing for over twenty hours.
The Jordan Valley is on a fault line where earthquakes are known to occur. If an earthquake caused a mudslide to stop the river’s flow, just as the priests were stepping in, that would be no less remarkable than if God intervened directly. In fact, the discovery of a natural cause gives additional credibility to the biblical record. We not only know what God did, we may even know how he did it.
Joshua 3:17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
When the whole nation had safely crossed over, the priests also crossed over, and came out of the river. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before (Joshua 4:18).
By a miracle of timing God revealed his providential care for his people. If they had arrived an hour sooner, the miracle would not have worked. If they had taken an hour longer to cross, the miracle would not have worked either. But the moment they stepped into the river, the water stopped flowing. And the moment they stepped out of the river, the water returned to flood stage. The God of Israel is also the Lord of time. We may not always like his timing, but we can always trust it.
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Joshua 5:13-15 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, Are you for us or for our enemies? Neither, he replied, but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come. Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, What message does my Lord have for his servant? The commander of the Lord’s army replied, Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy. And Joshua did so.
As Joshua prepared to fight the battle of Jericho, he met a heavenly figure with a drawn sword. His loyalty wasn’t to the Israelites, or to the Canaanites, but to God alone. From this we understand that God is always for himself. Many want God to be on their side, but God is always on his own side. There are only two sides in life, and whoever is on God’s side wins.
The heavenly figure in this passage identified himself as the commander of the army of the Lord (Joshua 5:14). Israel was God’s army on earth, but God also has an army in heaven. The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands (Psalm 68:17), wrote the Psalmist. As Joshua fought God’s battles on earth, he was encouraged to know that heaven would also be fighting.
The commander revealed his heavenly identity when he said, Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy (Joshua 5:15). Since this is what God said to Moses at the burning bush, we know this figure is divine. And since Jesus said, These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), we know this figure is Christ. And the drawn sword reminds us of Christ’s return. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations (Revelation 19:15), wrote John. The gentle shepherd from Nazareth is also a conquering king.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 43
Joshua 6:1 Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites.
The city of Jericho was terrified by Israel’s crossing the Jordan River. They knew the God of Israel had parted the Red Sea and defeated other kings (Joshua 2:10). They also knew that they were next. But, instead of surrendering to God, they barred their gates against him. They knew this day was coming and had probably stored up supplies. They hoped to survive, of course, but would rather die than surrender to the God of Israel. This shows how stubborn some people can be against God.
Joshua 6:2 Then the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.
The conquest of a walled city was a major challenge, but God spoke as though the victory had already been won. Israel would have to fight but the outcome was assured. They could fight with confidence, not in themselves, but in the God who promised them victory.
The church is also assured of victory as we take the gospel to the world. We don’t use the weapons of the world (2 Corinthians 10:4), but the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17), wrote Paul. And we are more than conquerers through him who loved us (Romans 8:37), wrote Paul again.
The battle for souls continues to rage but, in the end, there will be people from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9), wrote John. The battle must be fought, but outcome is certain.
Joshua 6:3-5 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.
This may be the most unusual military strategy ever devised. It was designed by God to be so unlikely that he alone would receive the glory. The presence of the ark of the covenant also showed that Jericho’s defeat was, first and foremost, the work of God.
The soldiers could’ve complained that the battle plan didn’t make sense. But, unless they did it God’s way, they would’ve been defeated. Children don’t always understand why their parents tell them to do something, and often ask Why? But parents have authority over their children and, Because I said so is still a good answer. That’s why we’re supposed to obey God, even when his ways don’t make sense to us.
God was also giving Jericho time to repent. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. Jericho was surrounded and their doom was sure. Why not open the gate and surrender? Some people are so opposed to God that they resist him to the end.
Joshua 6:20 When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.
If you go to Jericho today, you’ll find the main attraction is the ancient wall that collapsed. It’s been thoroughly excavated and the following four items are consistent with the biblical record. First, there’s evidence of collapsed walls. Second, there’s evidence of a rapid defeat. Third, there’s evidence of a fire. And, fourth, there’s evidence that it happened around 1406 BC, which is the date of this story. Archaeology can’t prove the Bible, but it consistently supports the Bible’s truthfulness.
Joshua 6:21 They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.
This was consistent with God’s command. [D]o not leave alive anything that breathes. Completely destroy them . . . as the Lord your God has commanded you. Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 20:16-18), wrote Moses.
It’s no wonder that many have asked, What kind of God would command the annihilation of an entire region of people? Answer: the God who has a right to. God is the giver of life and has the right to take it away. Every day is a gift and no one deserves tomorrow. [T]he wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), wrote Paul. Because we sin every day, every day should be our last. The fact that anyone lives another day proves that God is gracious.
But like the people of Noah’s day (Genesis 6), and the people of Sodom (Genesis 19), those who lived in Canaan were especially wicked. Their rejection of God included worshipping idols, sexual perversion, and killing children. God was patient for hundreds of years but, eventually, their sin reached its full measure (Genesis 15:16). A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he (Deuteronomy 32:4), wrote Moses.
The annihilation of Jericho also reminds us of what will happen when Jesus Christ returns. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses. . . . Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. . . . He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty (Revelation 19:14-15), wrote John. The return of Jesus Christ to judge the world will make the destruction of Jericho seem like child’s play.
Joshua 6:22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.
Rahab sided with Israel’s God by harboring Israel’s spies, and by giving them information (Joshua 2). She took her life in her hands and could’ve been killed for treason, but she sided with God and was saved. This is also true for all who believe in Christ.
[T]his is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me (John 6:39), said Jesus. Not a single man, woman, boy or girl who truly believes in Jesus Christ will ever be lost. The Lord knows those who are his (2 Timothy 2:19), and will not kill the righteous with the wicked (Genesis 18:25). No one who believes in Jesus Christ will perish but [will] have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 44
Joshua 7:2 Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai . . . and told them, Go up and spy out the region.
After the fall of Jericho, Joshua turned his attention to the little town of Ai. If God’s army advanced quickly, the Promised Land could be theirs in a very short time. Like a train gathering speed they were gathering momentum.
When the spies returned from Ai, they were so confident it could be conquered, they only recommended two or three thousand soldiers be sent to overthrow it. But, to everyone’s surprise, Ai scattered Israel’s army and killed thirty-six soldiers. This was a catastrophic setback because it was now clear to everyone that Israel could be defeated. All their enemies would be emboldened to fight, and all their momentum was lost. It was a devastating setback to the entire military campaign.
Joshua 7:6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening.
As Joshua lay facedown before the ark of the covenant, God revealed the reason for Israel’s defeat. Israel has sinned . . . . They have taken some of the devoted things [and] put them with their own possessions (Joshua 7:11), he said.
The previous attack on Jericho came with clear instructions. All the silver and gold . . . are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury (Joshua 6:19). But a soldier found some precious things, in Jericho, and kept them for himself. God was withholding his support until he was put to death.
The soldier’s name was Achan, and God exposed him through a process of elimination. All the tribes of Israel came forward, and the tribe of Judah was chosen. That was Achan’s tribe. Then the clans of Judah came forward, and the Zerahites were chosen. That was Achan’s clan. Then the Zerahite families came forward, and the family of Zimri was chosen. That was Achan’s family. Then the men of Zimri came forward, and Achan himself was chosen (Joshua 7:16-18). Now his fate was sealed.
At any point in the process Achan could’ve confessed and begged for mercy. We can imagine his heart pounding faster and faster as the circle of suspects got smaller and smaller. Should he confess or hope to get away with it? He’d never outlive the shame, but perhaps he could save his life. The tension nearly killed him, but Achan refused to confess until it was too late.
Joshua 7:19-21 Then Joshua said to Achan, My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me. Achan replied, It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.
We can imagine Achan’s temptation when he saw the precious things. It was a life-changing amount of wealth that could’ve established his family for years. Perhaps he never stole a thing before but, when the opportunity came, he took it. He hoped for the best but got the worst.
Joshua 7:24-25 Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. Joshua said, Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today. Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.
From Achan we learn the importance of not concealing our sins. Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy (Proverbs 28:13), says Proverbs. When we conceal our sins we put God to the test and dare him to expose us. But, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins (1 John 1:9), wrote John. If Achan could speak from the grave, he’d say the best time to confess our sins is before it’s too late.
Joshua 8:1 Then the Lord said to Joshua . . . . go up and attack Ai.
At God’s direction, Israel positioned troops behind the city to wait in secret. Then Joshua led other troops in front of the city to lure their soldiers out. When Ai’s solders saw Israel’s troops, they ran out to fight. Then Joshua gave the signal and the troops behind the city ran in and set it on fire. When Ai’s solders saw their city burning, they knew they’d lost the battle. Then Israel’s troops attacked and slaughtered them. Ai’s king was brought to Joshua, and his body was hung on a pole, as warning to other kings.
God’s strategy made perfect sense, this time, and was completely effective. God’s ways don’t always make sense, but often they do. As the church seeks to spread the gospel, it should consider what strategies God may be pleased to use. Some strategies have worked well in the past, and others are working well today. God often works strategically to accomplish his mission on earth.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 45
Joshua 9:3-4 [W]hen the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they resorted to a ruse.
Gibeon was about nineteen miles from Israel’s camp and feared for their lives. They knew God had commanded Moses to kill everyone who lived in the land (Joshua 9:24, Deuteronomy 7:1-2), so they tricked Israel into making a treaty with them. They put on old clothes, took old bread, and pretended to come from far away. And it worked.
The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath (Joshua 9:14-15). When Israel learned the Gibeonites lived nearby, they were upset with their leaders for being deceived. The Gibeonites were forced into hard labor, but they were allowed to live because of the oath.
The Gibeonites can be admired for their fear of God, and the resourceful way they saved their lives. But Israel’s leaders, including Joshua, are to be faulted for not seeking God in this matter. Whenever we have to make an important decision, we should seek God’s will through prayer, his word, and godly advisers (Proverbs 15:22). This is what Joshua failed to do, and he lost credibility because of it.
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Joshua 10:5 Then the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon—joined forces.
In a collective effort to stop God’s people, five local kings combined armies. But Joshua wouldn’t be stopped and, after an all night march, he surprised the opposing armies with an early morning attack. God helped his people by hurling hail from heaven that killed more enemies than died by the sword.
This reminds us of what will happen before the return of Jesus Christ. From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible (Revelation 16:21), wrote John. The weapons of God’s wrath are more powerful than all the weapons on earth.
But Joshua needed more time so he said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon. So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies . . . . There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being (Joshua 10:12-14).
Whoever heard Joshua command the sun and the moon to stand still must’ve wondered what he was thinking. Would a man control the movement of planets? Even Joshua may’ve been surprised by the words that came out of his mouth. This kind of faith can only come from above.
Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, Go, throw yourself into the sea, and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them (Mark 11:23), said Jesus. If God is going to do an extraordinary miracle, he can give his servants faith, then do what they ask.
This miracle is so remarkable, however, that even believers might be tempted to doubt whether it actually happened. Would God really stop the rotation of planets because one of his servants prayed? It’s almost too much to imagine.
Our real problem, of course, is that God is so much bigger than we normally think. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1), wrote Moses. If God can create everything out of nothing, then to lengthen a single day is child’s play.
Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you (Jeremiah 32:17), wrote Jeremiah. And The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth (Acts 17:24), said Paul. If we believe God created everything out of nothing, it’s not very hard to believe his other miracles.
We have further assurance of this account from Jesus Christ himself. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law (Luke 16:17), he said. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ must believe what Jesus taught, and Jesus taught the Bible is true. Whoever doesn’t believe the Bible, doesn’t fully believe in Jesus Christ.
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Joshua 22:4 [R]eturn to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on the other side of the Jordan.
It took about seven years for Israel to conquer the Promised Land. Then it was time for the soldiers who settled east of the Jordan River to return to their homes. Before they crossed the river, however, they built an altar to the Lord as a reminder to their fellow Israelites that they all served the same God.
But a misunderstanding arose. Those on the west side of the river thought the altar was an act of rebellion against God. Out of holy zeal they prepared to go to war against their fellow Israelites. This would’ve been disastrous, but the confusion was dispelled, and war was avoided.
Zeal for God is good, but Satan can use it against us if we’re not careful. When a Samaritan village refused to welcome Jesus, James and John said, Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them? But Jesus turned and rebuked them (Luke 9:54-55). James and John were zealous for Christ, but their zeal wasn’t Christian.
Even worse, in the eighteenth century, over a dozen women were hanged near Salem Massachusetts for the crime of witchcraft. Common sense gave way to hysteria as ordinary people tried to do the will of God. But their actions led to wrongful deaths and harmed the cause of Christ. Zeal without knowledge, and knowledge without zeal, are equally harmful to the church (Romans 10:2). Christians should pray for godly ministers whose zeal is based on knowledge.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 46
Judges 1:1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Canaanites?
The book of Judges begins where the book of Joshua ends, and covers events from around 1375 to 1100 BC. The author isn’t identified, but seems to have written around 1000 BC. Before Israel had a king it was very loosely organized. It was led by various judges and was often in a state of apostasy. The book of Judges recounts several events from these dark days.
Judges 1:4 [T]he Lord gave the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek.
God gave his people success against their opponents and they captured the king of Bezek. They should’ve put him to death (Deuteronomy 20:16-18) but, instead, they cut off his thumbs and big toes. This would prevent him from wielding a sword or being sure-footed in battle.
Judges 1:7 Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.
Throughout his reign, the king of Bezek had cut off the thumbs and big toes of seventy other kings, reducing them to poverty. Now that he suffered the same way, he was convinced that God was paying him back. And he may’ve been right.
Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury (Leviticus 24:19-20), wrote Moses. The God of the Bible requires perfect justice.
This is why Judgment Day should be the dread fear of unrepentant sinners. When we consider the extent of our sins, and the perfect justice of God, we have nothing to look forward to but everlasting misery. [A] fire will be kindled by my wrath, one that burns down to the realm of the dead below (Deuteronomy 32:22), said God.
But there’s more to God than perfect justice. He’s also perfect love (1 John 4:8). This is why he sent his Son to die on a cross for our sins (John 3:16). Jesus fulfilled the demands of justice by suffering in our place. That’s why whoever believes in him has eternal life and will not be judged (John 5:24), said Jesus. The God of perfect justice has paid for our sins himself, so that we can receive his perfect love.
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Judges 3:12 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel.
Israel was subject to the king of Moab for eighteen years. In their misery they cried out to God, and God raised up a leader named Ehud to deliver them. Ehud brought tribute to Eglon, king of Moab, but concealed a double-edged sword under his clothing. After he gave Eglon the tribute, Ehud said, I have a message from God for you (Judges 3:20).
Eglon was a very fat man and, as he rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king’s belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, and his bowels discharged. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it.
Then Ehud went out to the porch; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, He must be relieving himself in the inner room of the palace. They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead (Judges 3:21-25).
We are surprised by the graphic details of this story but they’re included for a reason. Kings are often held in awe by ordinary people, but they are ordinary too. They have ordinary bodies, with ordinary functions, and are as prone to death as anyone else. They may feel superior, due to their position, but will lie in a grave like the rest of us.
Death comes to all and makes us equal when it comes. The world elevates one above another but the worms make no distinction. We are what we are in the sight of God, nothing more and nothing less. We should never think that we’re successful, therefore, until after Judgment Day. [M]any who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first (Matthew 19:30), said Jesus.
Judges 3:26 While they waited, Ehud got away.
Ehud returned to Israel, and gathered an army that followed him back to Moab, where they killed about ten thousand soldiers. That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years (Judges 3:30).
Ehud was used by God to deliver his people from foreign oppression. He reminds us that one person with God is greater than an army without him. Our greatest usefulness is not what we can do for God, but what God can do through us. Our first concern should always be to simply follow God.
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Judges 4:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, now that Ehud was dead.
Because of their disobedience, God allowed the Israelites to be afflicted by Jabin, the king of Canaan. He had nine hundred chariots and cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years (Judges 4:3).
Deborah was Israel’s judge, at this time, and also a prophet. Through her, God commanded an Israelite named Barak to gather ten thousand men to defeat Jabin’s army, which was being led by a man named Sisera.
Barak was reluctant, but he agreed to the mission if Deborah would go with him. She consented but, due to Barak’s reluctance, Deborah predicted the honor of the battle wouldn’t go to him, but to a woman (Judges 4:9). Then Barak pursued the chariots . . . and all Sisera’s troops fell by the sword (Judges 4:16).
Sisera escaped, however, and fled to a woman’s tent. Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, Come, my lord, come right in. Don’t be afraid. So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket. I’m thirsty, he said. Please give me some water. She opened a skin of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him up. Stand in the doorway of the tent, he told her. If someone comes by and asks you, Is anyone in there? say No.
But Jael . . . picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to [Sisera] while he lay fast asleep, exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died. Just then Barak came by in pursuit of Sisera, and Jael went out to meet him. Come, she said, I will show you the man you’re looking for. So he went in with her, and there lay Sisera with the tent peg through his temple—dead (Judges 4:17-22).
With nine hundred chariots, Sisera seemed invincible. But he died at the hands of a woman, armed with a hammer and a peg. Those with every advantage often lose, but those who trust God will be victorious. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 47
Judges 6:1 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.
The Midianites were so oppressive that Israel was forced to live in caves just to survive. They systematically destroyed Israel’s crops and slaughtered or stole their livestock. In their misery Israel remembered God and cried out to him for help.
About that time the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, who was threshing wheat in secret to keep it from the Midianites. The Lord is with you, mighty warrior (Judges 6:12), said the angel. Gideon didn’t look like a mighty warrior, and wasn’t behaving like one. But the angel of the Lord saw what Gideon could become and commissioned him to save the nation. When Gideon objected the Lord answered, I will be with you (Judges 6:16).
This is God’s response whenever we’re given a task that is too much for us. It could be saving a nation, leading a ministry, or raising a difficult child. It could be starting a church or taking final exams. After he commissioned his disciples to evangelize the world Jesus said, surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20). God’s presence gives us courage and strength to do what we couldn’t do on our own.
Judges 6:17 Gideon replied, If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me.
Gideon wanted to be sure the Angel of the Lord wasn’t the product of his imagination so he asked for a sign. When Gideon prepared a meal, the angel of the Lord touched the meat and the unleavened bread with the tip of the staff that was in his hand. Fire flared from the rock, consuming the meat and the bread. And the angel of the Lord disappeared (Judges 6:21).
The Lord told Gideon to tear down his father’s altar to Baal, but this was a dangerous act so he did it after dark. When the people discovered what Gideon had done they wanted him dead. But his father said, If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself (Judges 6:31). Gideon’s life was spared, but this event shows how apostate God’s people had become. They were willing to kill Gideon for opposing a false religion.
Judges 6:36-37 Gideon said to God, If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised—look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.
The weakness of Gideon’s faith is surprising. God already gave him a sign, but now he wanted another. He wanted to leave some wool on the ground overnight. If the ground was dry in the morning, but the wool was wet, that would be a sign that God would do what he said. The sign was fulfilled but, to be sure it wasn’t a coincidence, Gideon asked God to give him the opposite sign the following day. Then the ground was covered with dew, but the wool was completely dry.
Gideon’s lack of faith isn’t commendable, and his method of testing God isn’t recommended. But we should recall that Gideon didn’t have a Bible, and was about to risk his life. He simply wanted assurance that he was doing the right thing. Many have followed Gideon’s example of testing God’s will, but the best way to know God’s will is to learn the Bible thoroughly, and then apply it wisely. Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path (Psalm 119:105), wrote the Psalmist.
Judges 7:1 Early in the morning [Gideon] and all his men camped at the spring of Harod.
Gideon gathered an army of thirty-two thousand men. But God told him to send some away so that Israel wouldn’t take credit for the victory. Gideon must’ve gasped when twenty-two thousand men walked away, leaving him with only ten thousand soldiers. But God thought that was still too many, so Gideon reduced the troops to only three hundred. Now the odds of victory were so remote that all the credit would go to God.
Judges 7:8-9 Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the Lord said to Gideon, Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.
Gideon was afraid, however, so God told him to go and listen to what the Midianites were saying. Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. . . . A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed. His friend responded, This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands (Judges 7:13-14), he said.
Judges 7:15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.
Gideon gave each of his three hundred soldiers a torch, concealed by a clay jar, and also a trumpet. When the Israelites surrounded the Midianite camp, they blew their trumpets, revealed their torches, and gave a mighty shout. Three hundred torches and trumpets gave the illusion of thousands of soldiers. The Midianites panicked and, in the darkness, began to kill each other.
From this we learn that God’s trumpets and torches are better than the swords of his enemies. It’s not the mighty who win in the end, but the weak who trust in Christ. God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him (1 Corinthians 1:27-29), wrote Paul. God’s people win in the end, not because they’re mighty, but because their God is mighty.
Judges 8:22 The Israelites said to Gideon, Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us from the hand of Midian.
Gideon declined their request, but asked for gold, from which he made a religious article. This became an idol and All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it (Judges 8:27). This is a sad conclusion to Gideon’s story. The man who won the war against idolatry, led God’s people back into it.
God wants to be first in our lives, and whatever we put ahead of him is an idol—even if it’s something good. Gold is good, but it can become an idol if we put it ahead of God. The same is true of health, family, pleasure and position. Without appropriate caution, today’s devoted Christian may be tomorrow’s idolater. Dear children, keep yourselves from idols (1 John 5:21), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 48
Judges 9:5 [Abimelek] went to his father’s home . . . and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers.
After Gideon died, his son Abimelek wanted to be king. But Gideon had over seventy sons who might be willing to challenge him. So Abimelek killed most of them and began his terrible reign.
When the town of Shechem turned against Abimelek, he slaughtered many of them. Those who survived fled to a stronghold, which Abimelek set on fire, burning a thousand people to death (Judges 9:49).
Then he attacked another town that also had a tower. But this time, when he tried to burn it down, a woman on the roof dropped a stone on his head, fatally wounding him (Judges 9:53). As Abimelek was dying, he commanded his servant to kill him with a sword, so it couldn’t be said that he died at the hands of a woman. This is how Abimelek perished, just three years into his reign.
Some people love power so much they’ll do anything to get it and keep it. Abimelek was powerless to keep himself alive, however, and died a young man. This is different from Jesus Christ who refused to be made king (John 6:15), and laid down his life for his people. Many kings have killed their own people, but Jesus Christ died for his people. He’s the kind of king we need.
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Judges 11:1 Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his mother was a prostitute.
Jephthah’s father had other sons, by his legal wife, and they rejected Jephthah. He could’ve become bitter, or filled with self-pity, but he chose to go on with his life. Over time, in fact, Jephthah became such an effective warrior that, when his people needed him, they asked him to be their commander. Suddenly, the outcast was the leader.
This also reminds us of Jesus Christ, who was conceived outside of marriage (Luke 1:26-38), and was rejected by his people (John 1:11). But now he’s the leader of many and will return to rule the world (Revelation 19:14-16). The one who was rejected will soon become the king (Revelation 19:16).
Judges 11:29 [Jephthah] advanced against the Ammonites.
This battle was so important that Jephthah made a vow to God. If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering (Judges 11:30-31), he said.
Animals were kept in the house, sometimes, so Jephthah may have had a goat in mind. But when he returned victorious, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of timbrels! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter (Judges 11:34).
Now Jephthah problem. When a man makes a vow to the Lord . . . he must not break his word but must do everything he said (Numbers 30:2), wrote Moses. And, If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you (Deuteronomy 23:21), wrote Moses again. And, It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it (Ecclesiastes 5:5), wrote Solomon. As far as Jephthah knew, there was no way out of his vow.
Judges 11:35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, Oh no, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.
Jephthah’s daughter could hardly believe her ears. Would she really have to die because of her father’s vow? Tragically, yes. Young as she was, she graciously accepted the sentence of death. After two months of grieving she became a human sacrifice. Worst of all, it didn’t have to be that way.
Jephthah knew enough of the Bible to take his vows seriously, but not enough to know that child sacrifice was forbidden. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter (Deuteronomy 18:10), wrote Moses.
God had also made provision for foolish vows. [I]f anyone thoughtlessly takes an oath to do anything, whether good or evil . . . they must confess in what way they have sinned. As a penalty for the sin they have committed, they must bring to the Lord a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering (Leviticus 5:4-6), wrote Moses.
Jephthah had good intentions when he made his vow, but shouldn’t have killed his daughter. Breaking his vow would’ve been a sin, but it wasn’t as bad as child sacrifice. Whenever we have to choose between two sins, we should choose the lesser. Then we should pray for God’s forgiveness, and trust that Jesus’ death was sufficient payment for whatever we have done. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. This is not an empty promise, but the word of God to repentant sinners.
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Judges 13:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
Once again the nation found itself in trouble due to their sin. And, once again, God raised up a deliverer in the person of Samson. He became an epic warrior capable of killing thirty men with his bare hands (Judges 14:19), and a thousand with the jawbone of a donkey (Judges 15:15).
Judges 13:2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth.
Like Isaac, Jacob, Samuel and John the Baptist, Samson’s parents were childless. They probably prayed for years that God would give them a baby. Then, one day, the angel of the Lord appeared and told them they’d have a son, whom they were to raise as a Nazarite (Judges 13:3-5). This meant he should never drink wine, cut his hair, or go near a corpse (Numbers 6:1-21). He was to be uniquely devoted to God in this way.
Judges 13:15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.
Unaware of the angel’s true identity, Manoah and his wife wanted to entertain him by providing a meal. But the angel suggested they present a burnt offering instead. As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame (Judges 13:16). Then Manoah and his wife realized the angel of the Lord was God himself (Judges 13:22).
This is likely an appearance of Jesus Christ before his incarnation, technically called a Christophany. Jesus taught the Old Testament was about him (John 5:39, Luke 24:27), so whenever God appears in physical form it’s probably Jesus Christ.
Other examples include God walking in the Garden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8), the commander of the army of the Lord, who appeared to Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15), and the man who appeared in the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who looked like a son of the gods (Daniel 3:25).
This idea can also be argued from the fact that there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul. As the angel ascended in the flame (Judges 13:16), never to be seen again, Jesus concluded his earthly ministry by ascending into heaven (Acts 1:9). The Old and New Testaments make up a single book in which Jesus Christ is the central figure.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 49
Judges 14:1-2 Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.
Samson was a man of many flaws. One of his worst was a weakness for Philistine women. Intermarriage was forbidden by God (Deuteronomy 7:3-4), but that didn’t bother Samson at all. Even though she was an enemy of God’s people, and his parents objected, and God had forbidden it, Samson was determined to marry her. He wanted what he wanted, simply because he wanted it. God’s people can be willful at times.
In a moment of transparency, an honest believer confessed, I know the badness of my heart. There are times when I am more than willing to cross the Almighty. Never mind that Jesus bled and died for me, has forgiven my sins, and promised me a home in heaven. There are times when I simply want to do what I want to do, and go ahead and do it. This kind of behavior is never advisable, but underscores the depth of our depravity and need for salvation.
Judges 14:4 His parents did not know that this was from the Lord.
This is a troubling statement that can’t be fully explained. It implies that God was partly responsible for the evil in Samson’s heart. But how could God be responsible for the evil in Samson’s heart, without being the source or cause of evil? The problem appears in other places as well.
After Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, God promoted him to second in command over Egypt. Then Joseph said to his brothers, You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good (Genesis 50:20). God intended their wicked act to bring about a greater good, but he still intended their wicked act. This seems to be a problem.
Even more profoundly, God used the wickedest act ever (killing the Messiah) to bring about the greatest good ever (salvation for the world). This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross (Acts 2:23), said Peter. We don’t know how God can ordain evil, without being the source or cause of evil. But we do know that God is in charge of everything, and overrules evil to bring about a greater good. This is what he’d do through Samson.
Judges 14:5 Samson went down to Timnah together with his father and mother.
Samson and his parents were on their way to meet the bride-to-be, and make arrangements for the wedding. Along the way they were separated when a young lion came roaring toward Samson. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat (Judges 14:6).
This is one of three times The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon [Samson] (Judges 14:6, 14:19 and 15:14). Some of his exploits are so remarkable that they defy human explanation. But when we understand they were done by the power of the Spirit, they become more plausible, because nothing is too hard for God (Jeremiah 32:17).
Judges 14:8-9 Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass, and in it he saw a swarm of bees and some honey. He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along.
This was Samson’s wedding day and, as he went, he found some honey in the carcass of the lion he killed earlier. The wedding feast went on for seven days and, to entertain his new Philistine friends, Samson proposed a riddle. Out of the eater, something to eat; out of the strong, something sweet (Judges 14:14).
If they could solve his riddle, Samson would give them each a new set of clothes. If not, they were each to give him a new set of clothes. Clothing was expensive, however, so Samson’s friends persuaded his new wife to get the answer for them. Samson explained the riddle to her and she informed his companions. Suddenly, Samson was in debt.
In order to pay his debt, Samson went to another town, killed thirty Philistine men, and stole their clothes. He was so angry at his wife, however, that he went back home to live with his parents.
Samson is not a good role model for anyone. But, in God’s providence, he was disrupting the good relationship between the Philistines and the Israelites. The Israelites were commanded by God to take over the Promised Land and drive out the inhabitants (Deuteronomy 7:2). Instead, they had settled down in the land and were being governed by the inhabitants (Judges 15:11). This arrangement was so agreeable, in fact, that God’s plan to have a chosen people was in jeopardy.
By committing acts of violence against the Philistines, Samson was keeping Israel from being absorbed by them. In that case, all the promises God had made to his people (Genesis 12:1-3) would’ve been defeated. God keeps his promises, and was using Samson toward that end.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 50
Judges 15:1 Later on, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He said, I’m going to my wife’s room.
It’s possible that Samson hadn’t consummated the marriage, and went to his wife for that reason. But, in his absence, her father had given her to another. I was so sure you hated her, he said, that I gave her to your companion (Judges 15:2).
This made Samson so angry that he caught three hundred foxes and tied their tails in pairs. Then he fastened a torch to each pair of tails, and set them lose in the grain fields. The fire consumed not only the grain, but also the vineyards, and the olive groves (Judges 15:4-5). This was a massive economic blow to the Philistines.
In retaliation, the Philistines took Samson’s former wife, along with her father, and burned them to death. This antagonized Samson even more so He attacked them viciously and slaughtered many of them (Judges 15:8).
This made the Philistines willing to wage war on the entire nation of Israel. They’d be satisfied, however, if Israel handed over Samson. The Israelites were willing to do this, but the challenge of apprehending Samson was so great, they sent three thousand men to make the arrest.
Samson didn’t want to kill his own people, so he allowed himself to be bound by two new ropes (Judges 15:13). When the Philistines came for him, he broke the ropes, picked up a donkey’s jawbone, and killed a thousand of them (Judges 15:14-15). With a donkey’s jawbone I have made donkeys of them. With a donkey’s jawbone I have killed a thousand men (Judges 15:16), he said.
Samson’s violence seems extreme, but he was a warrior of the highest calibre, and was fighting the Lord’s enemies. The kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this world are always at war, and God himself is the ultimate warrior. The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name (Exodus 15:3), wrote Moses.
The church should never take up arms (Matthew 26:52) because the gospel is a message of peace (Romans 5:1). But when Christ returns he’ll come with a vengeance that will make Samson look like a pacifist. [W]ith fire and with his sword the Lord will execute judgment on all people, and many will be those slain by the Lord (Isaiah 66:16), wrote Isaiah.
Judges 16:1 One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her.
This is not the kind of behavior we expect from biblical heroes. But There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10), wrote Paul. Samson was a man of great physical strength and great moral weakness. There was little he couldn’t do physically, and little he wouldn’t do morally.
When the Philistines learned where Samson was, they planned to kill him in the morning. But, in the middle of the night, Samson got up, tore out the city gate and carried it to the top of a distant hill (Judges 16:3-4). This was his greatest display of strength, and reminds us that strength is a gift from God. We may never set a world record, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31) wrote Isaiah. When our strength is running low, we can always look to God.
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Judges 16:4 Some time later, he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah.
This is the third and final woman in Samson’s story, and she leads to his ruin. The Philistine rulers offered her a fortune, if she could learn the secret of Samson’s strength, so he could be subdued. With remarkable candor she made her request. Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued (Judges 16:6), she said.
This became a lovers game and Samson misled her three times. But she nagged him until he was sick to death of it (Judges 16:16). Then he revealed his secret: No razor has ever been used on my head, he said, because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man (Judges 16:17). So when Samson fell asleep, his head was shaved and his strength departed.
Judges 16:21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison.
Samson was a gifted person with the fatal flaw of unbridled sexuality. First he married a Philistine woman, then he went to a prostitute, then he slept with Delilah. In the end, the eyes with which he lusted were brutally gouged out, and the strongest man in the world became weak.
If Samson had conquered his lust the way he conquered the Philistines, his story would’ve been different. Most of our misery doesn’t come from obeying God, but from disobeying God. We don’t break God’s laws so much as we break ourselves upon them.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 51
Judges 16:22 But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
In spite of his many mistakes, Samson’s life would end triumphantly. As he worked in prison, day after day, grinding grain for his enemies, Samson’s hair began to grow. This was the sign of his Nazarite vow and the secret of his strength.
Then, one day, the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands (Judges 16:23). This was quite a large gathering with three thousand people on the flat temple roof, and many more inside. Then they brought out Samson as a trophy of war to entertain them.
With the help of a servant, Samson made his way to the temple’s supporting pillars where he prayed, Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes (Judges 16:28). Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived (Judges 16:30).
Samson is one of the most tragic figures in the Bible, but leaves us with an important point. Regardless how badly we fail, God can still use us if we renew our commitment to him. The New Testament actually applauds Samson because of his faith (Hebrews 11:32). From Samson we learn that the most important thing about us isn’t who we are, or what we’ve done, but the God to whom we belong.
Judges 16:31 Then his brothers and his father’s whole family went down to get him. They brought him back and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had led Israel twenty years.
Samson died in the temple of Dagon, but was buried in the Promised Land. This should be an encouragement to imperfect Christians everywhere. As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10). But all who believe in Jesus Christ are kept by him (John 10:29), and will arrive in the Promised Land of heaven.
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Judges 17:1-2 Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim said to his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse—I have that silver with me; I took it.
This strange little story shows how far God’s people had fallen away from his word. In summary, Micah stole some money from his mother but then he gave it back. In return, she bought an expensive idol and gave it to Micah. He put the idol in a shrine, along with some household gods, and hired a Levite as a priest. But the priest stole Micah’s religious items and became the priest of a larger group. True religion had almost disappeared.
If you take grape juice, and blend it with apple juice, you might call it grapple juice. Likewise, syncretism is the blending of ideas to come up with something new. Micah took a few ideas from God’s word, and blended them with a few ideas from paganism, to come up with a religion that violated God’s word at almost every point.
This is the natural course of religion unless we’re committed to God’s word as our final authority. If God’s word isn’t our final authority something else is. It could be culture, tradition, another book, or even ourselves. Whenever another authority is allowed to compete with God’s word, it’ll produce a religion that contradicts God’s word. And the further we stray from God’s word, the further we stray from God.
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Judges 19:1 Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
The Levite was probably already married but took a concubine to have additional children. She didn’t have the legal status of a wife, and wasn’t happy in the relationship, so she returned home to her parents. Four months later, the Levite went to her parents’ home, and persuaded her to come back. On the way, they stayed overnight in the town of Gibeah, in the territory of Benjamin. There they received lodging from an old man who let them stay at his house.
Judges 19:22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.
This shocking development reminds us of Sodom and Gomorrah before God destroyed it with fire from heaven (Genesis 19). Morality among God’s people had plummeted and this Levite wasn’t any better. In order to save himself, he threw his concubine outside. Then the men proceeded to rape her until she was dead (Genesis 19:28).
To get his revenge, the Levite cut his dead concubine into twelve parts and sent them throughout Israel. The nation was so appalled that it declared war on the town of Gibeah. Victory should’ve come quickly, but the tribe of Benjamin defended the town of Gibeah, and civil war broke out. There were heavy losses on both sides but, in the end, Benjamin was defeated.
Judges 21:25 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
This is the final verse in the book of Judges, and is a fitting conclusion to the moral and political chaos of the time. God had parted the Red Sea and led his people out of slavery. Then he led them through the wilderness to the Promised Land. They didn’t conquer the land, however, and were no better morally than the pagans who lived there. They needed a godly king to help them fulfill their destiny.
Eventually kings were appointed and things improved a little. But the kings had problems of their own, and often did more harm than good. Then, one day, a righteous king arrived. The people took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel! (John 12:13).
That king, of course, was Jesus Christ. He died for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), and will return as King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). Then we’ll have the king that we need, and the world will be as it ought to be. That’s where the Bible is going, and that’s the movement of history. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus (Revelation 22:20), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 52
Ruth 1:1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab.
The book of Ruth was written around 1200 BC, and is considered by some to be the classic love story of the Bible. It begins in the little town of Bethlehem, meaning house of bread. But the bread was running out due to a famine. To keep body and soul together, a little family of four migrated fifty miles to the land of Moab, where they hoped their situation would improve. Sadly, it would not.
Ruth 1:2 The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi.
After they arrived in Moab, Elimelek died, leaving Naomi a widow in a foreign land. Her two sons married, but also died about ten years later. Naomi was now a widow, living in a foreign land, with no immediate family. Hearing that life had improved in Bethlehem, Naomi decided to return home. Her daughters-in-law planned to go with her but, since there was nothing Naomi could do for them, she encouraged them to remain in Moab and to remarry (Ruth 1:9). One of them agreed; the other did not.
Ruth 1:16-17 Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.
The young lady’s name was Ruth, and her words were a pledge to care for Naomi in her old age. The two were apparently close, and Ruth was willing to give up marriage and children in order to care for her aging mother-in-law.
Ruth was also loyal to God. Your people will be my people and your God my God, she said. Before she met Naomi, Ruth probably worshipped Chemosh, the god of the Moabites (1 Kings 11:7). He was a local deity who made little difference in her life. But Ruth came to believe in God Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth (Genesis 1:1). Her faith was so firm, in fact, that she was willing to leave family, friends and homeland, to live in the land of Israel, and worship Israel’s God.
Ruth 1:19 When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, Can this be Naomi?
Life was hard for Naomi, and she may have aged so much that she was barely recognizable. She went out with a husband and sons, but returned with neither. She went out looking for prosperity, but returned in poverty. Do not call me Naomi, she told them. Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter (Ruth 1:20). Naomi means pleasant, and Mara means bitter. Naomi’s life had been so bitter, she wanted to change her name to Mara.
It should be admitted that belonging to God is no guarantee against misery. Believing in God can even make our misery worse. In light of God’s promise to answer our prayers (Matthew 7:7-8), whenever our prayers go unanswered, it can seem like God is mocking us. I have been disappointed enough times that I simply pray for less and less, in order not to be disappointed more and more, someone confessed. That’s how Naomi felt.
Ruth 1:21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. . . . The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.
The Bible doesn’t whitewash Naomi’s speech, or shift the blame away from God. It simply keeps us waiting for God, because that’s the essence of faith. Faith believes that, sooner or later, God will act and things will improve.
Ruth 2:1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz.
Boaz features prominently in the rest of the story, but here it’s enough to see that he was related to Naomi, and was a man of standing in the community. There’s no indication Naomi asked Boaz for help but, if things got worse, he was someone she could turn to.
Since it was harvest time, Ruth went into the fields to glean. The land didn’t belong to her, but Israel had a law that required property owners to leave some produce behind for the poor. When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands (Deuteronomy 24:19), wrote Moses.
Providentially, Ruth found herself in a field that belonged to Boaz. They hadn’t met but, when he arrived, Boaz made a good impression. The Lord be with you, he said to his workers. The Lord bless you, they replied. This little exchanged revealed to Ruth that Boaz was a man of some godliness, and enjoyed a good relationship with his employees.
Boaz inquired about Ruth and learned that she was the Moabite who returned with Naomi. May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord (Ruth 2:12), he said. But he went even further and urged Ruth to continue gleaning in his field, and told his workers to leave her additional grain. He also paid for her lunch. Boaz was so generous to Ruth, in fact, that it’s difficult to know if he was just being kind, or if he was being drawn to her. They were both devout, and apparently single.
Ruth 2:19 Her mother-in-law asked her, Where did you glean today?
Ruth told Naomi that she gleaned in the field of Boaz, and Naomi was delighted. That man is our close relative; he is one of our guardian-redeemers (Ruth 2:20), she said. A guardian-redeemer was a close relative who was obligated to help other family members who were in serious trouble. The idea is found in Israel’s laws (Leviticus 25:25-55), and appears more prominently in the book of Ruth than anywhere else in the Bible.
Here we see the invisible hand of God beginning to care for Naomi and Ruth. They hadn’t imposed on family or friends, but were looking to God to meet their needs. Now, at last, God was beginning to act.
We find this same idea in the teaching of Jesus Christ. So do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:31-33).
Jesus didn’t say that life would never be hard, or even extremely hard. But he taught that we have a heavenly Father who knows exactly what we need. He also taught us to put God first in our lives, then trust him to take care of us. Naomi and Ruth were doing exactly that.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 53
Ruth 3:1 One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, My daughter, I must find a home for you, where you will be well provided for.
Ruth had been caring for Naomi, but now Naomi was caring for Ruth. Her intuition told her the kindness of Boaz was more than mere compassion. But Boaz may’ve been shy since, apparently, he never married. If Naomi and Ruth waited for Boaz to act, they might’ve waited forever. So Naomi gave her daughter-in-law some bold advice.
Wash, put on perfume, and get dressed in your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing floor, but do not let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do (Ruth 3:3-4).
To modern readers this seems extremely forward and, in fact, it was. But there’s nothing inappropriate here. Ruth was simply proposing marriage. Boaz was the kind of person who was good at many things, but not love. He may’ve been turned down in the past and feared being rejected again. For whatever reason, Boaz didn’t seem to have the courage to take the initiative with Ruth. If she didn’t make her intentions clear, nothing was going to happen. So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law told her to do (Ruth 3:6).
Ruth 3:7 Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down.
Due to cold feet, Boaz soon woke up and was startled. Who are you? he asked. I am your servant Ruth, she said. Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a guardian-redeemer of our family (Ruth 3:9).
Boaz could hardly believe his ears. He was older than Ruth, and assumed she’d be attracted to younger men (Ruth 1:10). Perhaps he prayed for a wife in the past. Perhaps he even prayed for Ruth to be his wife. Now God was doing all that he had hoped for.
By calling Boaz her guardian-redeemer, Ruth was also appealing to his obligation to care for her, due to the loss of her first husband. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law (Deuteronomy 25:5), wrote Moses. Boaz wasn’t her brother-in-law, but he was happy to accept the responsibility.
Ruth 3:11 And now, my daughter, do not be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character.
The Bible never describes Ruth as a beautiful woman so she may have been rather plain. What mattered most to Boaz was her noble character. A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown (Proverbs 12:4). A wife of noble character . . . . is worth far more than rubies (Proverbs 31:10). Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised (Proverbs 31:30), says Proverbs.
As Ruth and Boaz looked into heaven that night, we can imagine tears of praise streaming down their faces, for the goodness of God who brought them together. Ruth had found a husband, and Boaz had found wife.
Ruth 3:12 Although it is true that I am a guardian-redeemer of our family, there is another who is more closely related than I.
In great romantic stories there’s often a third-person conflict, and this is no exception. There was someone ahead of Boaz who could’ve cared for Naomi and Ruth if he wanted to. Boaz could’ve ignored this fact, but he preferred to handle the situation with integrity. If God had brought them together, he could work this out as well.
Ruth 4:1 Boaz went up to the town gate and sat down there just as the guardian-redeemer he had mentioned came along.
The Bible doesn’t tell us the time of day, but it was probably early morning. Boaz went to the town gate, where business was conducted, and there he found the one person ahead of him with the right to care for Naomi and Ruth. Boaz said, Come over here, my friend, and sit down. So he went over and sat down. Boaz took ten of the elders of the town and said, Sit here, and they did so (Ruth 4:1b-2).
This was serious business. The presence of elders would insure that it was properly conducted and formally witnessed. At first the gentleman involved showed some interest, but then he gave the right to Boaz.
What joy and relief Boaz must’ve felt when he was given the legal right to care for Naomi and Ruth. Today you are witnesses [he said]. Then the elders and all the people at the gate said, We are witnesses (Ruth 4:10-11). And they gave Boaz their blessing.
Ruth 4:13, 17 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. . . . The women living there said, Naomi has a son! And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
This made Ruth the great-grandmother of the future king David. This story, in fact, may’ve been told to the little boy David by Grandma Ruth herself. We can imagine how this would’ve shaped the future king’s faith in God.
Because Ruth was the great-grandmother of David, she was also an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). By choosing a Moabite woman to be an ancestor of the Messiah, God was showing that participation in his family is not determined by birth, but by genuine faith. Throughout the story, Ruth is a model of genuine faith in God.
Boaz is also an ancestor of Jesus Christ, but he is even more. As Ruth’s guardian-redeemer, Boaz foreshadows Jesus Christ as our Redeemer (Titus 2:14). As one who took a Gentile wife, Boaz foreshadows Jesus who gladly receives Gentiles (Matthew 28:20). As Boaz brought a reversal of fortune to Naomi and Ruth, Jesus brings a reversal of fortune to all who believe in him (John 5:24). God provided a husband for Ruth, and he provided a Savior for us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 54
1 Samuel 1:1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah.
First and Second Samuel were originally one book, and the author is not identified. They tell the history of Israel from around 1105 BC to 970 BC, highlighting the lives of Samuel, Saul and David. Samuel was an important leader who helped the nation transition from the rule of judges to the rule of kings. The story begins with his birth, which was an answer to prayer.
1 Samuel 1:2 [Elkanah] had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah.
Not many wives want to share their husbands, so the situation wasn’t perfect. Elkanah may’ve married Hannah first but, when she didn’t bear children, he likely married Peninnah. If Hannah felt jealous or inadequate, it only got worse when Peninnah became pregnant. Instead of showing empathy, she flaunted her fertility, provoking Hannah to tears.
1 Samuel 1:11 Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life.
Hannah prayed at the tabernacle and was observed by Eli the priest. She prayed silently, but her lips were moving, and Eli thought she was drunk. She explained that she wasn’t drunk, but was praying out of a broken heart. Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast (1 Samuel 1:18).
It’s worth noticing that before Hannah prayed she was in deep anguish (1 Samuel 1:10), but after she prayed her face was no longer downcast. From her example we learn to give our concerns to God. One of the great benefits of having a heavenly Father is trusting that he cares for us. Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you (Psalm 55:22), wrote David. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7), wrote Peter. God wants us to bring our cares to him and leave them there. When the burdens of life are too heavy for us, we can give them to God.
1 Samuel 1:20 So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel.
Hannah could’ve forgotten her vow, as many people do, but she was determined to keep it. Her little boy was around three years old when she brought him to the tabernacle and gave him to Eli the priest. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:27-28), she said.
From that day forward, Samuel stayed at the house of God, under the supervision of Eli the priest. It must’ve been difficult for Hannah to leave her son at the house of God, but she wasn’t sad. My heart rejoices in the Lord (1 Samuel 2:1), she said.
Somehow Hannah knew that God had a plan for her son, and that was enough for her. Samuel, in fact, would be used by God to anoint the first two kings of Israel. [God] will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed, said Hannah (1 Samuel 2:10).
Anointing was the practice of applying oil to people or things, to show they were set apart for God. Many people and things were anointed in the Old Testament, but kings were especially known as the Lord’s anointed.
This reminds us of Jesus Christ, because Christ comes from the Greek word for anointed, and Messiah comes from the Hebrew word for anointed. The words Christ and Messiah are applied to Jesus hundreds of times in the New Testament because he is God’s anointed king.
Jesus wasn’t anointed with oil, however, but with the Holy Spirit (John 1:32, Luke 4:18). The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor (Luke 4:18, Isaiah 61:1), he said. Samuel anointed the first two kings of Israel, but Jesus was anointed by the Spirit of God.
1 Samuel 2:12 Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord.
Eli’s adult sons (Hophni and Phinehas) disregarded God’s word, slept with women who served at the tabernacle (1 Samuel 2:22), and were bad examples to Samuel. And, yet, their father allowed them to continue as priests.
People of low moral character sometimes go into the ministry. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves (Matthew 7:15), said Jesus. When ministry positions are held by ungodly leaders, God isn’t taken seriously and the people of God suffer. Eli should’ve dismissed his sons from the ministry, but seemed to care more for them than for the Lord. He rebuked his sons (1 Samuel 2:23-25), but let them keep their positions without changing their behavior.
Christian parents may also be tempted to put their children ahead of God. Instead of revolving their lives around God, they revolve their lives around their children. They may even tolerate ungodliness within their own home. But anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus. Putting our children ahead of God is a serious sin, and a disservice to our children.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 55
1 Samuel 2:27, 30 Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, This is what the Lord says: . . . . Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.
Eli had dishonored God by permitting his wicked sons to remain in the ministry, so God sent a prophet with a word of judgment. Eli’s sons would die on the same day (1 Samuel 2:33-34), and God would replace Eli with a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind (1 Samuel 2:35), said God.
This reminds us of Jesus Christ, the great high priest of all believers. Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrews 7:26-27), says Hebrews.
Ordinary ministers often fail due to their sinful natures. But we have a priest who can never fail because he is divine, and has no sinful nature. And because he’s offered a perfect sacrifice, he can bring us to God no matter what we’ve done. He can even save ministers who’ve failed at their calling.
1 Samuel 3:1 The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli.
We don’t know Samuel’s age at this time, but twelve years old is a reasonable guess. Eli had been his guardian and mentor for several years, and Samuel was now familiar with the sacrificial system.
1 Samuel 3:1b In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.
The work of the priests was being carried out, but there weren’t many prophets receiving God’s word. God was under no obligation to speak, of course, and could even withhold his speech as a form of punishment. The days are coming, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I will send a famine through the land—not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord (Amos 8:11), wrote Amos.
Hearing God’s word proclaimed to us is a privilege that God can take away due to our neglect. There are places, in fact, where the church used to flourish but no longer exists (Revelation 1:20, 2:5). Hearing God’s word is a privilege that should never be taken for granted.
1 Samuel 3:2-7 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, Here I am. And he ran to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me.
But Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me. My son, Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
Samuel knew about God, and was doing God’s work, but didn’t know God for himself. He was on his way to becoming an unconverted minister who would die and go to hell. Eternal life doesn’t come from knowing about God, or even serving God, but from knowing God personally. Now this is eternal life [said Jesus]: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent (John 17:3).
A friend of mine attended seminary and was preparing for pastoral ministry. He studied Greek, Hebrew, systematic theology and church history. But a lady from his church told him that wasn’t enough—he had to know God for himself. By repenting of his sin, and turning to Christ with all his heart, he came to know God personally, and was able to tell others about him. Likewise, Samuel was about to meet the Lord.
1 Samuel 3:8 A third time the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me.
Neither Samuel nor Eli were getting much sleep that night. This was the third time God called Samuel, and the third time Samuel mistook God’s voice for Eli’s. Finally, Eli understood it was God who was calling Samuel. So Eli told Samuel, Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening (1 Samuel 3:9).
1 Samuel 3:10-11 The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel said, Speak, for your servant is listening. And the Lord said to Samuel: See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle.
God told Samuel that he was about to punish Eli for not restraining his sons. The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering (1 Samuel 3:14), he said. This was a lot for a boy to bear, and Samuel was afraid to tell Eli. But Eli said, May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you. So Samuel told him everything (1 Samuel 3:17-18).
Whoever speaks for God must be willing to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth—not just the parts that people want to hear. False teachers often tell the truth about God’s love, but are silent about his wrath. But the first message God gave Samuel was a message of judgment on his beloved guardian, Eli. Samuel was reluctant but, even though he was young, he told Eli the cold hard truth.
1 Samuel 3:19 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground.
This probably means that whatever Samuel said came to pass, but it may also reflect the authority with which he spoke. Some preachers’ words fall to the ground before they reach the first row but, whenever Samuel spoke, everyone paid attention. This also reminds us of Jesus Christ who taught as one who had authority (Matthew 7:29). And all the people hung on his words (Luke 19:48), wrote Luke.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 56
1 Samuel 4:1 Now the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines.
Israel brought the ark of the covenant into battle hoping it would help, but it didn’t help at all. Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died (1 Samuel 4:10-11). This was not what they were hoping for.
The ark of the covenant was the visible sign of God’s power and presence, so for it to be lost was nothing short of disastrous. It was like God himself had been captured. Eli was ninety-eight years old, and was so overwhelmed that he fell backward off his chair, broke his neck, and died (1 Samuel 4:18). His daughter-in-law went into labor but wouldn’t survive. She named the boy Ichabod, saying, The Glory has departed from Israel (1 Samuel 2:21).
The judgment of God had been coming for many years but came in a single day. Eli, Hophni and Phinehas had decades to repent but chose not to. They mistook God’s patience for his permission and brought disaster on themselves and on the people of God. Samuel learned up close that God should be taken seriously. Soon he’d provide the leadership God’s people needed so desperately.
1 Samuel 5:1 After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.
The ark of the covenant was a trophy of war, so the Philistines brought it into the temple of Dagon, their national deity. The following morning, however, the image of Dagon was lying facedown before the ark of God. They put it back in its place but the following morning the image was lying before the ark again. This time its hands and head were broken off and were lying on the threshold of the temple door. God was showing the Philistines that, even though they’d captured the ark, their god was no match for the God of Israel.
1 Samuel 5:6 The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity.
The Philistines may’ve hoped the ark would bring them blessing but just the opposite occurred. God afflicted them with tumors and rats. They weren’t ready to give up the ark, however, so they sent it to Gath, another Philistine town. But God afflicted them as well, so they sent the ark to Ekron. For obvious reasons, Ekron didn’t want it either.
Since the power and presence of God were identified with the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:22), it could be a source of blessing (2 Samuel 6:12). But the power and presence of God are only a blessing to those who are living in obedience. If we’re living in disobedience, God’s power and presence can make us sick, or even kill us (1 Corinthians 11:30). It’s only good to be close to God if our lives are pleasing to him.
1 Samuel 6:1-2 When the ark of the Lord had been in Philistine territory seven months, the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.
The Philistines had enough of the ark and wanted to send it back to Israel. In hope of receiving God’s favor, they included an offering of five gold tumors and five gold rats, to symbolize their plagues (1 Samuel 6:5).
They put the ark on a cart, pulled by two cows that had never been yoked, and also had calves. Cows that had never been yoked wouldn’t know how to pull a cart together and, even if they did, they’d want to return to their calves. Nevertheless, the cows proceeded to the Israelite town of Beth Shemesh. Then the Philistines knew their plagues were from the Lord, and weren’t merely a coincidence.
1 Samuel 6:13 Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they rejoiced at the sight.
And what a sight it was! Israel didn’t have to rescue the ark, ransom the ark, or negotiate its return. God himself brought it to them. The people chopped up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord (1 Samuel 6:14). Then they put the ark on top of a large rock as a memorial. God was back in town.
1 Samuel 6:19 But God struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy of them to death because they looked into the ark of the Lord.
The ark of God was normally kept in the tabernacle, so most people never caught a glimpse of it. Some of the people of Beth Shemesh used this opportunity to look where they had no business looking. Instead of honoring God, by averting their gaze, they peered into the ark and died. The fault was theirs alone since God had warned that unauthorized people who look at the holy things . . . will die (Numbers 4:20). Again we see that God doesn’t make idle threats.
We all want God on our terms, but God insists on his own terms. God wants us to be close to him, but not to become familiar. He’s not our buddy, pal or chum, but God Almighty (Genesis 17:1), worthy of respect. We must worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 57
1 Samuel 7:5 Then Samuel said, Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.
God’s people had fallen into idolatry but, under Samuel’s leadership, they agreed to throw away their idols and serve the Lord. Samuel gathered the people at Mizpah for a time of spiritual renewal. They fasted, confessed their sins, and poured out water before the Lord (1 Samuel 7:6).
The ceremony of pouring out water wasn’t required by God, but may symbolize pouring out our hearts to him. [P]our out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord (Lamentations 2:19), wrote Jeremiah. And, pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge (Psalm 62:8), wrote David. Prayer is normally calm and quiet but, when the heart is full of emotion, it can be appropriate to pour it out to God.
1 Samuel 7:7 When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them.
Satan is never pleased when people are turning to God, so he interrupted the occasion by sending the Philistines to wage war on Israel. God’s people were afraid and asked Samuel to pray while they went out to fight. Samuel offered a sacrifice and called out to God in prayer. As the Philistines drew near, God sent thunder that was so loud it threw them into a panic, and they were defeated.
This recalls the words of Hannah, Samuel’s mother, when she gave him to the Lord. The Most High will thunder from heaven; the Lord will judge the ends of the earth (1 Samuel 2:10). Samuel’s mother may have died by then, but her words were being fulfilled.
1 Samuel 8:1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders.
This was a bad idea since Samuel’s sons weren’t morally qualified to lead. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice (2 Samuel 8:3). Samuel should’ve known not to appoint his corrupt sons, since Eli made the same mistake with terrible results. The desire to see our children succeed can be so strong that it overrules our better judgment.
Children of godly parents don’t always grow up to be godly adults. Samuel’s sons were willing to receive whatever advantage their father could provide, but weren’t willing to serve their father’s God. This pattern continues even today. A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to the mother who bore him (Proverbs 17:25), says Proverbs.
1 Samuel 8:4-5 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.
It wasn’t wrong for God's people to ask for a king, since that had been God’s plan from the beginning (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). The problem was that they wanted to be like all the other nations. Instead of relying on their heavenly king, through prayerful obedience, they wanted an earthly king with a powerful army. God reluctantly agreed and told Samuel to give them a king (1 Samuel 8:21).
The world still longs for someone who will bring lasting peace and prosperity. We need a king who will overcome evil and lead the world in righteousness. And he is coming soon (Revelation 22:20). [T]he government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), wrote Isaiah. He will rule in righteousness, and happy are those who serve him now.
*****
1 Samuel 9:1 There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish. [H]e had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.
Saul enjoyed the benefits of a good appearance and belonging to a prominent family. The donkeys were missing, one day, and Saul was sent to find them. Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys (1 Samuel 9:3), said his father. After a few days of searching, Saul wanted to return home. But the servant suggested seeing the prophet Samuel, who might be able to tell them where the donkeys were.
God told Samuel that Saul was on his way, and to anoint him ruler over Israel. As soon as they arrived, Samuel told Saul that the donkeys had been found, and that he was to rule God’s people. The following morning Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head saying, Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over his inheritance? (1 Samuel 10:1).
It’s surprising how little choice Saul seemed to have in the matter. He didn’t ask to be king, wasn’t trying to be king, and didn’t even want to be king (1 Samuel 10:22). But God chose to make him king and, suddenly, everything changed for Saul. Our lives belong to God, and we never know when he will call us to a sizable task. The best way to prepare for great things is to be faithful in the little things (Matthew 25:21).
1 Samuel 10:9 As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart.
Changing hearts is the work of the Holy Spirit. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws (Ezekiel 36:26-27), wrote Ezekiel. Nothing was more important to Saul’s success than the help of the Holy Spirit.
Likewise, God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5), wrote Paul. The Spirit empowers us to live for Christ and to carry out his work (1 Corinthians 12:7). Apart from the Spirit, in fact, we don’t even belong to Christ (Romans 8:9). But your Father in heaven [will] give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13), said Jesus. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ should rely on the Holy Spirit every single day.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 58
1 Samuel 11:1 Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh Gilead.
This was Saul’s first test of leadership and it would be decisive. His government wasn’t established yet, and he was plowing his field when he heard the news. Nahash the Ammonite was planning to gouge out the right eye of everyone who lived in Jabesh Gilead, even if they surrendered.
Immediately the Spirit of God came on Saul and he marshaled an army. [T]hey broke into the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together (1 Samuel 11:11).
Saul’s reign was off to a great start. This victory established him as king in the hearts of God’s people. He was thirty years old, and would lead Israel for the next forty-two years (1 Samuel 13:1). With God’s help, Saul could do great things for the nation.
*****
1 Samuel 13:5 The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore.
By this time Saul had been king for many years, and was facing a serious challenge. God had given the land to Israel, but the Philistines wouldn’t give it up, and they often had the advantage. This challenge was so great that Saul’s army was quaking with fear (1 Samuel 13:7), and many were deserting.
The prophet Samuel had instructed Saul to wait for his arrival, so he could offer a sacrifice before the battle. Since the prophet spoke for God, this was God’s command. But Samuel didn’t arrive on time and Saul felt compelled to act. Perhaps the prophet was sick, or was delayed for some other reason. If he waited any longer, Saul thought he’d lose the battle. So he offered the sacrifice himself.
1 Samuel 13:10-11 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him. What have you done? asked Samuel.
Saul explained his actions but Samuel wasn’t pleased. You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure (1 Samuel 13:13-14), he said.
At first reading, the consequences seem disproportionate to Saul’s failure. Saul was under pressure to act because the prophet was late. There wouldn’t have been a problem if Samuel had simply arrived on time. It was because of Samuel’s delay that Saul took action. And, for this, he wouldn’t have a dynasty. He wouldn’t be deposed, but his sons wouldn’t rule after him.
This was a test of Saul’s faith, and Saul failed the test. The word of the prophet was the word of God to Saul, and the word of God was wait. If Saul had waited on God, his future would’ve been different.
Taking action ahead of God is always counterproductive. [God] acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4), wrote Isaiah. We like to take matters into our own hands but, sometimes, God wants us to wait. Whoever waits on God never waits too long.
*****
1 Samuel 14:1 One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his young armor-bearer, Come, let’s go over to the Philistine outpost.
By this time, Saul’s son Jonathan was a grown man, and an excellent warrior. He was also a man of faith. Unafraid of battle, he went with his armor-bearer into enemy territory to see what could be done. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few (1 Samuel 14:6), he said. Jonathan’s confidence wasn’t in himself, but in the Lord. Even if they were outnumbered, God could give them victory.
1 Samuel 14:7 Do all that you have in mind, his armor-bearer said. Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.
This would’ve been a great encouragement to Jonathan. We are mutually encouraged by each other’s faith (Romans 1:12), wrote Paul. Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves (Ecclesiastes 4:12), wrote Solomon. And if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven (Matthew 18:19), said Jesus. Two people with God are a mighty force.
The odds against them were great, however, so Jonathan and his armor-bearer sought further assurance. They planned to reveal themselves to the Philistines and if they said Come up to us, that would be a sign that God would give them victory. That’s what happened, and they defeated twenty enemy soldiers.
1 Samuel 14:15 Then panic struck the whole army . . . and the ground shook. It was a panic sent by God.
The Philistine army sensed that God was against them and they began to flee. Saul saw what was happening and led his army into battle. With God’s help, they thoroughly defeated the Philistines.
None of this would’ve happened apart from the courageous faith of Jonathan and his armor-bearer. Mighty works of God often start with just one or two people. It’s not the number that matters, but the courage and faith of those involved. Even one person with God makes a majority.
1 Samuel 14:24 Now the Israelites were in distress that day.
They should’ve been rejoicing, because of the victory, but they were in distress because Saul had bound them with an oath. Cursed be anyone who eats food before evening comes, before I have avenged myself on my enemies (1 Samuel 14:24), he said.
In an effort to get God’s support, Saul required his men to fast throughout the day. But God hadn’t commanded it, nor was it wise. Fighting is hard work, and even harder on an empty stomach. By commanding a fast, Saul put his soldiers at a serious disadvantage. His lack of good judgment was becoming a liability.
Making matters worse, Jonathan didn’t hear his father’s command. So when he found some honey in the forest, he ate it. When his father learned of this, he determined to have Jonathan killed because of the oath. Thankfully, the soldiers came to Jonathan’s defense, and Saul backed down. But Saul’s reputation for leadership was hurt. The future was no longer bright for him.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 59
1 Samuel 15:1 Samuel said to Saul, I am the one the Lord sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the Lord.
Kings of other nations were free to do as they pleased since they were the highest authority. But God was the highest authority in Israel, and the king was to be his servant. Since the prophet Samuel spoke for God, he had authority over King Saul. Saul was to take his orders from God, through the prophet Samuel.
1 Samuel 15:3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.
The Amalekites were the sworn enemies of God’s people, and the time had come for their destruction. This was a perfect opportunity for Saul to recover from his failure, since he came under God’s disfavor just two chapters earlier. By fully obeying the Lord’s command, he could show that he wanted nothing more than to please the Lord. This could be a turning point in the right direction.
1 Samuel 15:7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt.
The attack was very successful but, instead of total destruction, Saul spared the Amalekite king and all the best livestock. Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: I regret that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions (1 Samuel 15:10-11).
Saul was guilty of incomplete obedience. He did some of what God commanded, even most of what God commanded, but not all of what God commanded. This was a serious problem.
Some people think God is pleased with them because they keep a few of his commands. Others think God is pleased with them because they keep most of his commands. But if you’re brought into court for stealing, it won’t matter if you’ve never committed murder. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it (James 2:10), wrote James. Partial obedience is a violation of God’s law and makes us guilty in his sight.
1 Samuel 15:12 Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor.
Instead of giving glory to God, Saul took the glory for himself, by setting up a monument in his own honor. This is a key distinction between those who belong to God, and those who don’t. Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist. By setting up a monument to himself, Saul showed that he was more committed to his own glory than to God’s glory.
1 Samuel 15:13-14 When Samuel reached him, Saul said, The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions. But Samuel said, What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?
Saul tried to convince Samuel that he had obeyed God, and that the livestock were for sacrifice. But Samuel replied: Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king (1 Samuel 15:22-23).
These are some of the strongest words in the Bible, and they strike at one of our deepest fears: rejection by God. But Saul rejected God before God rejected Saul. By rejecting God’s word, Saul rejected God himself. How we relate to God’s word is how we relate to God.
Some are bold in their rejection of God’s word, while others are more subtle. Many remain ignorant so they won’t feel obligated to keep God’s word at every point. But their willing ignorance proves they don’t love God with all their hearts. It’s clear from the Bible that the more we love the Lord, the more we’ll love his word.
Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long (Psalm 119:97). I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold (Psalm 119:127). And I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly (Psalm 119:167), wrote the Psalmist. Likewise, Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me (John 14:21), said Jesus. We shouldn’t claim to love God unless we love and obey his word.
1 Samuel 15:24 I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them.
To help explain his disobedience, Saul admitted fearing his own men. They fought valiantly and wanted to keep some of the livestock for themselves. Saul didn’t want to seem unreasonable, so he allowed his men to do what God had forbidden. But any leader of God’s people must be more afraid of God than of God’s people. Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe (Proverbs 29:25), says Proverbs. Saul wanted his men’s approval more than he wanted God’s approval. This made him unqualified to lead the people of God.
1 Samuel 15:30 Saul replied, I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.
Since it was no longer possible to deny his guilt, Saul confessed with the hope of regaining Samuel’s favor. If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins (1 John 1:9), wrote John. But Saul was less concerned about God’s forgiveness than Samuel’s support. If word spread that Samuel disapproved of Saul, Saul would lose much of his authority. So he begged Samuel to publicly worship God with him. And, for the good of the nation, Samuel agreed.
1 Samuel 15:32 Then Samuel said, Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites.
This was the king Saul was commanded to kill, but didn’t. Since he failed to carry out the Lord’s command, Samuel would do it for him. As your sword has made women childless, so will your mother be childless (1 Samuel 15:33), he said. Then he killed the Amalekite king in the presence of the Lord.
The Old Testament is filled with blood, much of it spilt at God’s command. The New Testament seems better, at first, until we get near the end. There we learn that many will be trampled in the winepress of God’s wrath until the blood flows as high as the horses’ bridles (Revelation 14:19-20), wrote John.
This would be bad enough if the blood only flowed for a mile, or two, but it’ll flow for one hundred eighty miles. The God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are one and the same. He’s not to be taken lightly.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 60
1 Samuel 16:1 The Lord said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel?
Samuel was troubled by Saul’s failure and grieved for some time. Then God told him to go Bethlehem to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the future king of Israel. When Samuel saw the first son he thought, Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord. But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:6-7).
In a world that prizes beauty, the most attractive are often favored. This is why people diet, exercise and wear expensive clothing. If we want people’s approval we’ll spend time improving our appearance. But if we want God’s approval we’ll spend time improving our heart. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.
And not every heart is pure in God’s sight. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly (Mark 7:21-22), said Jesus.
Some people think their hearts are good by nature, and it’s only their bodies that lead them astray. But Jesus taught that corruption begins in the heart. If we want to please God, we must banish evil from our hearts, and dwell on that which is good. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God (Matthew 5:8), said Jesus.
1 Samuel 16:10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, The Lord has not chosen these.
Then Jesse called for his youngest son, David, who was watching the sheep. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, Rise and anoint him; this is the one (1 Samuel 16:12). Samuel anointed David in the presence of his brothers, and the Holy Spirit came powerfully upon him.
David had a fine appearance but, more importantly, he had a heart for God. Twice the Bible describes him as a man after [God’s] own heart (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). This is not said of anyone else, and distinguished David above others. It could be argued, in fact, that the most important qualification for being king was the desire to please God.
This is one reason that Jesus is qualified to be king of the world. David was great, but he wasn’t without sin (Psalm 51:5). And If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8), wrote John.
There’s only one person who ever obeyed God perfectly. [F]or I seek not to please myself but him who sent me (John 5:30), said Jesus. And, I always do what pleases him (John 8:29), said Jesus again. We should imagine a perfect king ruling the world forever, because that’s what the future holds (Luke 1:33).
1 Samuel 16:14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.
This is a fascinating insight into the spiritual realm. Saul had enjoyed the help of God’s Spirit, and was greatly empowered to lead the nation. But, due to chronic disobedience, the Holy Spirit departed from Saul and was replaced by an evil spirit.
We should be careful about drawing conclusions from this about the Christian life. But we should also be careful to not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom [we] were sealed for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30), wrote Paul.
We should, Instead, be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), and bear the fruit of the Spirit [which] is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), wrote Paul. The spiritual realm is just as real as the physical realm, and we shouldn’t give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:27).
1 Samuel 16:15-16 Saul’s attendants said to him, See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.
Saul didn’t know that David was anointed the future king of Israel, so when one of Saul’s servants recommended David for the job of musician, Saul didn’t object. Whenever the evil spirit came on Saul, David played his instrument, and the evil spirit would leave him alone (1 Samuel 16:23). This is also insightful, and can be helpful today.
Everyone is troubled by the devil sometimes (Matthew 4:1-11) and, whenever this happens, we can be helped by listening to godly music, or by singing it. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19), wrote Paul. Godly music can glorify the Lord and put the devil to flight.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 61
1 Samuel 17:1 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Sokoh in Judah.
This begins the account of David and Goliath, one of the most celebrated stories in literature. The Israelites were gathered in the Valley of Elah to fight the Philistines. They occupied one hill, the Philistines another, and the valley stretched between them. The stakes were high and the Philistines had an advantage: A champion named Goliath (1 Samuel 17:4).
He was over nine and a half feet tall, wore a suit of armor, and had a personal shield bearer. Humanly speaking, Goliath seemed invincible. For the next forty days, morning and evening, he challenged the Israelite army.
Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects (1 Samuel 17:8-9). But there wasn’t a soldier in Israel who dared to fight Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of . . . Jesse, who was from Bethlehem.
David was watching his father’s sheep in Bethlehem, about fifteen miles away. Three of his brothers were in the army, and David was sent by his father to bring his brothers supplies. As he was talking with them, Goliath . . . stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance (1 Samuel 17:23). David was appalled by this. Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? (1 Samuel 17:26), he asked.
David knew that Goliath had every advantage but one: he wasn’t circumcised. Circumcision was the mark of the covenant and came with certain promises. [T]he Lord your God himself will fight for you (Deuteronomy 3:22). And, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you (Exodus 23:22). David believed the promises of God and wasn’t afraid of Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
When David stood before Saul he said, Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him. Saul replied, You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth (1 Samuel 17:32-33). We don’t know David’s age at the time but, since Israelite men were able to serve in the army at age twenty (Numbers 1:3), he was likely still in his teens.
But David had experience. When a lion went after a sheep from his flock, David killed the lion and rescued the sheep. A bear did the same thing, and David killed the bear. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine (1 Samuel 17:37), he said.
David was courageous in the face of danger because he recalled God’s help in the past. If you can remember a time God helped you in the past, it can give you courage in the future. Has God taken care of you financially? He can do it again. Has God taken care of you physically? He can do it again. Has God taken care of you spiritually? He can do it again. The God who helped you in the past, will help you to the end.
1 Samuel 17:40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
No one was more surprised than Goliath to see his opponent. He expected a warrior but encountered a boy not even dressed for battle. Come here, he said, and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals! (1 Samuel 17:44). His words were meant to intimidate, but David had words for Goliath.
You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands (1 Samuel 17:45-47).
This is one of the best battle speeches ever recorded, and shows the remarkable faith that David had in God. He wasn’t merely hoping that God would save him; he was absolutely certain that God would save him. This is like saving faith in Jesus Christ. [It] is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8), wrote Paul. Sometimes faith is little more than hopefulness but, other times, it can be remarkably confident.
1 Samuel 17:48-51 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him. David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. The Philistine army ran for their lives and many were cut down. It was a great day for Israel.
It’s not unusual for those who read this story to identify with David. But we are not David. We are like the trembling Israelites, defenseless before a powerful enemy. We need someone like David who can rescue us from the power of death. That person is David’s great-great-grandson, Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:17). Through his life, death and resurrection, he has defeated death and given us eternal life. Through the victory of Jesus Christ, we can battle the forces of darkness, knowing their doom is sure.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 62
1 Samuel 18:1 Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself.
Jonathan was Saul’s son and the natural heir to his father’s throne. He could’ve seen David as a rival, but their mutual respect led to one of the greatest friendships in the Bible. In a private ceremony, Jonathan gave David his sword, implying he accepted David’s right to be king. Unlike his father, Jonathan was willing to accept the role God had for him, instead of grasping for more.
This is an important lesson for everyone. A person can receive only what is given them from heaven (John 3:27), said John the Baptist. Many have overreached and hurt themselves in the process. It’s better and wiser to submit to God’s will, and do our best at the role he has for us. It isn’t wrong to become all that we can be for God, but God has a limit for everyone. And godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6), wrote Paul.
1 Samuel 18:5 Whatever mission Saul sent him on, David was so successful that Saul gave him a high rank in the army.
David was still a young man, but he was rising quickly in Saul’s army. He was so successful, in fact, that women were heard singing, Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands (1 Samuel 18:7). This made Saul so jealous that he wanted David dead. He even threw his spear at him, hoping to pin David to the wall (1 Samuel 18:11).
Then Saul offered his daughter in marriage to David, for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins (1 Samuel 18:25). Saul hoped David would die in battle, but David returned with two hundred Philistine foreskins, and married into the royal family (1 Samuel 18:27). When Saul saw that God was with David, he was even more determined to kill him.
In one of the strangest stories in the Bible, Saul went looking for David and found him with the prophet Samuel. Saul wanted to kill David, but the Spirit of God came on Saul, and he too prophesied in Samuel’s presence. He lay naked all that day and all that night. This is why people say, Is Saul also among the prophets? (1 Samuel 19:24).
It’s difficult to know what was happening, but it seems that Saul was so overcome by God’s Spirit, that he couldn’t harm David. David must’ve been amazed to see the one who wanted to kill him lying on the ground prophesying. There’s no limit to what the Spirit of God can do, but a spiritual experience is not the same as saving faith.
Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers! (Matthew 7:22-23), said Jesus. The best indication of saving faith isn’t spiritual experience, but obedience to the one who saves (Matthew 7:21).
1 Samuel 20:4 Jonathan said to David, Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do for you.
David was still suspicious of Saul, so he went to Jonathan for help. Jonathan agreed to warn David if he learned that his father was still against him. This became clear soon enough.
You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have sided with [David] to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you? As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me, for he must die! Why should he be put to death? What has he done? Jonathan asked his father. But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him (1 Samuel 20:30-33).
Saul’s rebellion was affecting his mental health. God is the rational center of the universe, so our best hope for a sound mind is to agree with God about everything. Whenever we disagree with God we’re being irrational. This leads to instability and creates a miserable environment for everyone around us.
Saul was the most powerful person in Israel, and probably the wealthiest. We might think his power and wealth would make him happy but such was not the case. The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous (Proverbs 3:33), says Proverbs.
Beautiful homes are often filled with miserable people because of God’s curse. The people inside might have everything the world has to offer, but they can’t find happiness apart from God. Other homes are humble by comparison, but may be filled with joy because of God’s blessing. It’s not the size of the house that matters, but the one who is present to bless or curse.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 63
1 Samuel 21:1 David went to Nob, to Ahimelek the priest.
Ahimelek gave David some bread from the tabernacle, as well as the sword of Goliath. David didn’t tell him that he was running from Saul, most likely because he didn’t want to make Ahimelek guilty of helping someone the king opposed.
1 Samuel 21:10 That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.
After leaving Ahimelek, David went to the Philistine town of Gath. If he was identified by the Philistines he’d probably be killed, so he tried to blend in as much as possible. When he was recognized in the presence of the king, David pretended to be insane, and let saliva run down his beard. The king was repulsed, and let David leave, assuming he’d lost his mind.
This wasn’t David’s finest hour but he thought it was better to lose his dignity than his life. We may never have to make that choice but, in a Christ-rejecting world, we may be scorned. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world (1 Corinthians 4:12), wrote Paul. Following Christ will often mean a loss of the world’s respect.
1 Samuel 22:1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.
This became his home for awhile, and All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander (1 Samuel 22:2). David was being hunted by Saul, but now had a military base of about four hundred men (1 Samuel 22:2).
With enough time David’s kingdom would become a superpower, but we ought to notice how it began—in a cave with four hundred losers. They were in distress or in debt or discontented, but they were also the ones God would use to build his glorious kingdom.
This is like the church. God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are (1 Corinthians 1:27-29), wrote Paul.
Those who gather around Jesus Christ are like those who gathered around David, hoping for something better. And, like them, we won’t be disappointed. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32), said Jesus. God takes those the world rejects and gives them his glorious kingdom.
1 Samuel 22:3 From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?
When Samuel anointed David the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 16), his parents may’ve hoped their lives would soon improve. But such was not the case. When David’s life was threatened by Saul, their lives were also at risk. So David took them to another country where they would be safe.
Likewise, Mary and Joseph took Jesus to a country where he would be safe. King Herod wanted to kill him, so the family fled to Egypt (Matthew 2:13). The kings of this world often oppose the kingdom of God, but will not overcome it. The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever (Revelation 11:15), wrote John. Victory comes to the people of God, but not without resistance.
*****
1 Samuel 22:6 Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side.
Saul and his men were hunting for David, and Saul was growing paranoid. When he learned that David had been to Nob, he summoned the high priest, Ahimelek, along with all the priests of Nob. Then he accused Ahimelek of conspiracy and commanded his soldiers to kill all the priests—eighty-five in all.
But his soldiers wouldn’t kill the priests so Saul commanded Doeg, the Edomite, to perform the task. This he did singlehandedly. Then Doeg went to the town of Nob where he killed every man, woman and child. Like the paranoid king he served, there was no evil he wouldn’t do.
With Doeg in mind, David wrote the fifty-second Psalm. Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin: He will snatch you up and pluck you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living (Psalm 52:5). People get away with terrible crimes in this life, but will face God’s judgment in the next.
1 Samuel 22:20 But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David.
This is the first mention of Abiathar, and he would serve as priest during David’s reign. The prophet Gad also joined David (1 Samuel 22:5), and he would serve as prophet during David’s reign. Prophet, priest and king were brought together by God, to provide appropriate leadership for the kingdom of God.
The offices of prophet, priest and king were normally kept separate to maintain a balance of power. Kings were not allowed to be priests, and were to obey God’s word given through the prophets. But Jesus Christ is prophet, priest and king, all in one person. No balance of power is needed because Jesus is divine and without a sinful nature.
As the ultimate prophet, Jesus spoke the word of God so clearly that he is called the Word (John 1:1). As our great high priest he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12). And On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16), wrote John. The offices of prophet, priest and king foreshadow Jesus Christ, the ultimate prophet, priest and king. His kingdom will never end.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 64
1 Samuel 24:2 Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David.
David didn’t seem to have a chance. The king of Israel considered him public enemy number one, and was using his army to track him down. David often hid in caves, but God was his ultimate refuge. The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed (Psalm 9:9). Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge (Psalm 16:1). [M]y God is my rock, in whom I take refuge (Psalm 18:2), he wrote. When we’re threatened on every side, God alone can keep us safe.
A soldier was running for his life and ducked inside a cave with a very small mouth. Then he watched a spider spin its web across it. Minutes later the enemy arrived but, seeing the web, concluded no one was in there. Later the soldier wrote, With God a spider’s web is like a wall, and without God a wall is like a spider’s web.
1 Samuel 24:3 [Saul] came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself.
Saul didn’t know that David and his men were hiding in the back of the cave. It seemed like God had brought this about, so David could kill the one who was trying to kill him. But David refused to kill Saul because he respected Saul’s authority. The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord (1 Samuel 24:6), he said.
Since God made Saul the king of Israel, David was determined to submit to his authority until God chose to remove him. This same attitude was taught by the Apostle Paul. Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established (Romans 13:1), he wrote. In a world that disrespects authority, Christians should obey their authorities, as though they were appointed by God.
1 Samuel 24:4 Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
As Saul was relieving himself, David snuck up behind him, and cut off a piece of his clothing. After Saul left the cave, David called out to him saying, Why do you listen when men say, David is bent on harming you? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands (1 Samuel 24:9-10).
Then he showed Saul the piece of his robe, and Saul realized that David could’ve killed him. He was so overcome that he wept aloud and said, You are more righteous than I . . . . You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly . . . . I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands (1 Samuel 24:17-21).
But tears of remorse and regret are not always tears of repentance. Saul appeared to be repentant, but his future actions would show that he wasn’t. Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of direction. If Saul had truly repented, he would’ve given his throne to David, and David would have given him a place of honor. That’s how it works for those who believe in Jesus Christ. We give him the throne of our hearts, and he gives us a place of honor in his glorious kingdom. Who could wish for anything more?
*****
1 Samuel 25:2 A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel.
The man’s name was Nabal and he’s described as surly and mean. Not everyone is equally nice, but some are truly awful. For whatever reason, they’ve decided to treat others badly. This is the opposite of Christianity since Jesus commands us to love everyone, even our enemies (Matthew 5:44). And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone (2 Timothy 2:24), wrote Paul. But Nabal wasn’t a servant of God. He was surely and mean.
1 Samuel 25:4 While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.
Nabal had thousands of sheep and their wool was worth a fortune. Since David and his men had protected both the sheep and their shepherds, they had a right to share in Nabal’s abundance. So David sent some of his men to ask for a portion. But, true to character, Nabal treated them badly. Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered . . . and give it to men coming from who knows where? (1 Samuel 25:11), he said.
Nabal was surly and mean because of his love for money--a root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul. Those who love money often treat others badly, in order to have more money. Nabal was well served by David and his men but, instead of sharing his wealth, he sent them away empty-handed. This wouldn’t end well for Nabal.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 65
1 Samuel 25:12-13 David’s men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported every word. David said to his men, Each of you strap on your sword!
Nabal finally offended the wrong person. David was the future king of Israel and now had an army of six hundred men (1 Samuel 25:13). He has paid me back evil for good. May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him! (1 Samuel 25:21-22), said David.
Fearing disaster, one of Nabal’s servants informed his wife. Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household (1 Samuel 25:17), he said. So Nabal’s wife took an abundance of food, loaded it on donkeys, and went out to meet David.
1 Samuel 25:23-25 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. She fell at his feet and said: Pardon your servant, my lord, and let me speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. Please pay no attention, my lord, to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name—his name means Fool, and folly goes with him.
Nabal was a fool in the eyes of others, but also in the eyes of God. [F]ools despise wisdom and instruction (Proverbs 1:7). [T]he mouth of a fool invites ruin (Proverbs 10:4). [F]ools detest turning from evil (Proverbs 13:19). And Fools mock at making amends (Proverbs 14:9), says Proverbs.
But Nabal’s wife was just the opposite. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman (1 Samuel 25:3). She humbled herself before David, turned away his wrath, and interceded for her husband. Her timely intervention saved the lives of many.
This reminds of Jesus Christ who is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34), wrote Paul. Like Nabal, we often play the fool and call down the wrath of God. Thankfully, we have a Savior who turns away the wrath of God, and intercedes on our behalf. Without the intercession of Christ, we’d certainly perish for the foolish things we’ve done.
1 Samuel 25:32-33 David said to Abigail, Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands.
David was close to making a big mistake. He was rightly offended by Nabal’s treatment, but his retaliation would’ve been worse than the offense. Abigail was sent by God to keep David from an action that would’ve brought guilt, regret and damage to his reputation.
God overruled David’s foolish plans and, by his grace, overrules ours sometimes. He might send someone like Abigail, or change our mind himself. God often protects us from the harm we’d do to others, as well as to ourselves.
1 Samuel 25:36 When Abigail went to Nabal, he was in the house holding a banquet like that of a king. He was in high spirits and very drunk.
This was not the right time for Abigail to tell her husband what happened, so she waited until morning. When Nabal learned the danger he was in, and the harm he nearly brought on his family, his heart failed him and he became like a stone (1 Samuel 25:37). Nabal probably had a heart attack and, about ten days later, he died.
1 Samuel 25:39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Praise be to the Lord, who has upheld my cause against Nabal for treating me with contempt.
Nabal lived as a fool but also died as one. He lingered ten days without any sign of repentance. He could’ve turned from his wicked ways and received eternal life. But after more than a week there was no sign of change. Finally, the Lord struck Nabal and he died (1 Samuel 25:38).
Nabal got what he deserved but God would rather show mercy. Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? (Ezekiel 18:23). God doesn’t enjoy killing the wicked but his justice may demand it.
An early death may even be a form of God’s mercy. The punishment for eighty years of sin will likely be less than for twenty years of sin (Revelation 20:11-12). The worst thing that can happen to those who refuse to repent is to live a long life. So prepare to meet your God (Amos 4:12), wrote Amos.
1 Samuel 25:39b Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife.
By marrying Nabal’s widow, David acquired his wealth. Everything Nabal worked for, and everything he acquired, now belonged to someone who loved God. [A] sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous (Proverbs 13:22), says Proverbs. If we don’t manage our money for God, he can give it to someone else.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 66
1 Samuel 26:2 Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David.
The greatest threat to Saul wasn’t David, but Saul himself. Since God determined he shouldn’t be king (1 Samuel 15:23), Saul should’ve arranged a smooth transition to the king of God’s choice. By resolving to keep his position, regardless of God’s will, Saul became an increasingly tragic figure. This is true for all who serve in the kingdom of God.
The kingdom belongs to Jesus Christ, not to anyone else. Pastors, teachers, musicians, custodians and ushers all serve at the discretion of Jesus Christ, and are never promised a permanent position. Opposition doesn’t mean a person should resign, but whoever serves in any position should be willing to resign whenever they believe it’s God’s will.
1 Samuel 26:3 Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah.
When David learned that Saul and his army were camping nearby, he waited until it was dark. Then he went, with one of his men, into the enemy camp. So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. . . . Abishai said to David, Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice (1 Samuel 26:7-8).
Abishai wanted to kill Saul but, once again, David wanted to prove his loyalty. He wanted to show Saul that he could take his life if he wanted to, but he really didn’t want to. [T]he Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish (1 Samuel 26:10), said David.
There’s a time to act, and a time to wait, and wisdom knows the difference. It’d take over ten years from the time David was anointed king until he actually became king. But David was willing to wait on God no matter how long it took. One of the greatest tests of faith is waiting for God to act. This was a test of David’s faith and, unlike Saul, David passed.
1 Samuel 26:12 So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.
Walking into a camp of three thousand enemy soldiers appears to be foolish. But David and Abishai were willing to do this because they believed that God was with them. Common sense is a gift from God which he normally wants us to use. But there are also times for taking a risk because we believe that God is with us. Taking chances for God (and being willing to fail) are part of the life of faith.
1 Samuel 26:13 Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the hill some distance away.
From there, David called out to the commander of Saul’s army. Why didn’t you guard your lord the king? . . . As surely as the Lord lives, you and your men must die, because you did not guard your master, the Lord’s anointed (1 Samuel 26:15-16), he said.
Then David called attention to the missing spear and water jug. This was proof that he was there and could’ve killed Saul if he wanted to. Once again we can imagine Saul’s alarm when he learned that his life had been spared by the man he was trying to kill.
Wise people learn from their mistakes and become a little wiser. Fools repeat their mistakes and become more foolish still. The first time David spared his life, Saul should’ve learned that David was not a threat to him. But, the victim of his own paranoia, Saul repeated his mistake and showed himself a royal fool. God knows we all make mistakes. May God help us not to repeat them.
1 Samuel 26:17 Saul recognized David’s voice and said, Is that your voice, David my son? David replied, Yes it is, my lord the king.
This is the final conversation between David and Saul. Saul appeared to repent and acknowledged David as the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 26:25). But Saul couldn’t be trusted and David knew it. To be in Saul’s company was to risk his life, and the lives of his men. The only wise course was to separate and they never spoke again. Sometimes, we can’t just get along.
*****
1 Samuel 27:1 David thought to himself, One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul. The best thing I can do is to escape to the land of the Philistines.
The relentless stress of being hunted by Saul compelled David to form an apparent alliance with Israel’s enemy, the Philistines. Achish, king of Gath, gave David and his six hundred men the town of Ziklag. With David on his side, Achish thought he’d have less to fear from the nation of Israel.
1 Samuel 27:8 Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites.
These were Israel’s enemies, but David led Achish to believe that he was attacking God’s people in Judah. To be sure he wasn’t found out, David did not leave a man or woman alive (1 Samuel 27:9). David was defeating God’s enemies and protecting himself from being discovered.
1 Samuel 27:12 Achish trusted David and said to himself, He has become so obnoxious to his people, the Israelites, that he will be my servant for life.
David deceived Achish and survived in Philistine territory for over a year (1 Samuel 15:7). Then he was made king of God’s people and defeated the Philistines (1 Chronicles 18:1). David’s double-life was over and he could be who he really was.
It’s not clear if David’s double-life met with God’s approval, but he wasn’t the last believer to conceal his true identity. Joseph [of Arimathea] was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders (John 19:38), wrote John. This is never recommended (Matthew 10:33), but people often do what they must in order to stay alive. We should pray for Christians who are facing persecution, and use the freedom we enjoy to advance the kingdom of God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 67
1 Samuel 28:4 The Philistines assembled and came and set up camp at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and set up camp at Gilboa.
Saul was a seasoned warrior but this battle gave him pause. When [he] saw the Philistine army, he was afraid; terror filled his heart (1 Samuel 28:5). The text is not explicit but, apparently, Israel was outnumbered. This didn’t mean certain defeat, of course. Saul’s son Jonathan proved that Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few (1 Samuel 14:6). For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory (Deuteronomy 20:4), wrote Moses.
But God’s help wasn’t guaranteed, and Saul wasn’t living for God. Because he rejected the word of the Lord, God had rejected him as king (1 Samuel 15:23). Instead of being filled with faith, therefore, Saul was stricken with fear--terror filled his heart.
Obedience isn’t always easy, but it allows us to face life fearlessly, knowing that nothing can happen to us apart from the will of our heavenly Father (Luke 12:4-7). Those who refuse to walk with God may prosper for a time, but are left to themselves when disaster strikes. I will show them my back and not my face in the day of their disaster (Jeremiah 18:17), said God.
1 Samuel 28:6 [Saul] inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him.
For many years Saul did as he pleased but, now that he was desperate, he inquired of the Lord. He didn’t want to live for God; he only wanted God’s help. But God isn’t obligated to answer the prayers of those who don’t want to live for him so, this time, the Lord did not answer him.
This was a very dark time for Saul but it wasn’t too late for him. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:23), says God. If Saul would’ve sought God with all his heart, he would’ve found the God he was looking for. But that wasn’t Saul’s way so, instead, he turned to a spiritist.
1 Samuel 28:7 Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.
Since God wasn’t answering Saul, he decided to call on the prophet Samuel instead. But Samuel was dead (1 Samuel 25:1), so Saul looked for a medium who might be able to call him up. Once again, Saul revealed his true spiritual condition.
Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists (Leviticus 19:31). I will set my face against anyone who turns to mediums and spiritists (Leviticus 20:6), said God. In better days Saul had expelled spiritists from the land but now he was seeking one himself.
1 Samuel 28:7b There is one in Endor, they said.
Endor was a two-hour walk and the day had already passed. But Saul was convinced that Samuel could tell him what to do. So he went with two of his men and found the woman they were looking for. Whom shall I bring up for you? Bring up Samuel, he said.
This is Saul at his lowest. Years earlier God changed his heart and made him a new person (1 Samuel 10:9). When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying . . . they asked each other . . . . Is Saul also among the prophets? (1 Samuel 10:11). But starting well is no guarantee of finishing well, and Saul was finishing badly. He used to be among the prophets, but now he was consulting a spiritist.
1 Samuel 28:12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!
The woman was afraid because Saul had expelled the spiritists and could’ve had her killed. But time had changed the king and the spiritist was now his friend. Don’t be afraid. What do you see? The woman said, I see a ghostly figure coming up out of the earth. What does he look like? he asked. An old man wearing a robe is coming up, she said. Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground (1 Samuel 28:13-14).
The Bible condemns calling up the dead, but doesn’t deny the possibility. Demons might also impersonate the dead but, in this case, God allowed Samuel to appear.
Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? . . . The Lord will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines (1 Samuel 28:16-19), said Samuel. Saul’s greatest fear was confirmed. He was a dead man walking.
1 Samuel 28:24-25 The woman had a fattened calf at the house, which she butchered at once. She took some flour, kneaded it and baked bread without yeast. Then she set it before Saul and his men, and they ate. That same night they got up and left.
It must’ve been a lonely walk back to camp as they thought about the battle. The fighting grew fierce and Saul was critically wounded. Instead of suffering torture at the hands of his enemies, Saul fell on his sword and died. His sons also died, and the army suffered heavy losses. The Philistines cut off Saul’s head, hung up his body, and put his armor in a pagan temple (1 Samuel 31:3-10). Worse than dying in battle, however, Saul died without God. He’s one of the most tragic figures in the Bible.
From Saul we learn there’s nothing more important than staying right with God. Every day we’re growing closer to God, or drifting further away from him. It’s seldom apparent day by day, or even week by week. But over the course of years, a gradual drift can turn into apostasy. Saul had power, fame and wealth but they couldn’t keep him from death, or dying without God. There’s only one friend we can’t afford to lose, but Saul lost his friendship with God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 68
1 Samuel 30:1 David and his men reached Ziklag.
David had an army of six hundred men and, together with their families, they were living in Ziklag. When David and his men returned, one day, they found their town burned to the ground, and all the women and children taken captive. David’s soldiers were so distressed that all they could talk about was stoning David. By all accounts, it was not a good day.
After believing in God, some people think their life will be an unbroken series of blessings. [W]hatever they do prospers (Psalm 1:3), wrote the Psalmist. And you make the way of the righteous smooth (Isaiah 26:7), wrote Isaiah. This is true, of course, but it’s not the whole truth. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22), said Paul. And In this world you will have trouble (John 16:33), said Jesus. God is pleased to smooth the way for us, but he also allows trouble to help us grow in faith.
1 Samuel 30:4 So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep.
It’s hard to make grown men cry, especially those who’ve been hardened by battle. But the pain of losing their families, and all their possessions, was so great that all six hundred men wept aloud. Imagine six hundred men howling over the loss of everything precious to them. We don’t know how long they wept, but they didn’t stop weeping until they had no strength left to weep.
Weeping is discouraged in many cultures but not in the Bible. Joseph wept (Genesis 45:14), David wept (2 Samuel 15:30), Job wept (Job 16:16), Jeremiah wept (Lamentations 2:11), Peter wept (Luke 22:62), Paul wept (Acts 20:31), and may others wept. In fact, the shortest verse in the Bible says, Jesus wept (John 11:35).
Life hurts, sometimes, and reliable studies show that crying has many benefits such as removing toxins, reducing stress, elevating mood, and releasing negative feelings. [W]eeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5), wrote David.
1 Samuel 30:6 David found strength in the Lord his God.
After weeping his heart out, David turned to God, and found new strength in him. Human strength comes to an end, but God has an endless supply. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak (Isaiah 40:29), wrote Isaiah.
But how, exactly, did David find strength in God? The Bible doesn’t say but David probably considered the fact that God is mighty and helped him in the past. God also knew where the women and children were and could help David rescue them. As David thought this way his grief gave way to hope, his thoughts became clear, and his strength returned.
1 Samuel 30:8 David inquired of the Lord.
David inquired of God and received the guidance that he needed. Life is confusing, at times, but God is still available. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you (James 1:5), wrote James. We don’t have to navigate life alone. God will guide us if we’re willing to follow.
1 Samuel 30:11 They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David.
David and his army were on the march, searching for their enemies, and trusting God to lead them. They came across an Egyptian slave who was abandoned by his master because he was sick. It had been three days since he had anything to eat or drink, but he revived as soon as he was nourished. He was with the Amalekites when they burned Ziklag and knew where they could be found. On the conditions that his life be spared, and he not be returned to his master, he agreed to lead David to the place.
Whenever we have a problem, God may have a strategic person to help us. Whenever someone else has a problem, we may be the strategic person to help them. Everyone needs other people to help solve their problems. This is how God uses us.
1 Samuel 30:16 He led David down, and there they were, scattered over the countryside, eating, drinking and reveling because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from Judah.
Energized by God, and the desire to save their families, David and his men fought the Amalekites until the following evening. They recovered all the women and children, plus a great amount of plunder which they divided among themselves. A devastating event turned into something good.
We shouldn’t judge a tragedy at the time it occurs, because we never know how God will use it for good. David and his men thought their loss was the worst day of their lives. By following God and doing his will, however, it became one of the best. God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 69
2 Samuel 1:1 After the death of Saul, David returned from striking down the Amalekites and stayed in Ziklag two days.
David was unaware of Saul’s death when a messenger arrived with an account of the battle. When [Saul] turned around and saw me . . . he said to me, Stand here by me and kill me! I’m in the throes of death, but I’m still alive. So I stood beside him and killed him, because I knew that after he had fallen he could not survive. And I took the crown that was on his head and the band on his arm and have brought them here to [you] (2 Samuel 1:7-10).
More accurately, Saul was wounded in battle and killed himself to avoid being tortured (1 Samuel 31:3-4). This man was probably a scavenger who got to Saul’s body before the Philistines. He probably made up this story to gain David’s favor and a position in his new administration. He thought he was being wise, but he was being a fool.
2 Samuel 1:15-16 Then David called one of his men and said, Go, strike him down! So he struck him down, and he died. For David had said to him, Your blood be on your own head. Your own mouth testified against you when you said, I killed the Lord’s anointed.
Instead of the reward he hoped for, this man met with death. He didn’t understand David’s respect for God’s king. Saul was chosen by God (1 Samuel 10:1), and only God had the right to remove him. By claiming to kill God’s king, this man gave up his life.
Those who want to advance too quickly often turn to schemes. Whoever plots evil will be known as a schemer (Proverbs 24:8). A fool finds pleasure in wicked schemes (Proverbs 10:23). And [God] condemns those who devise wicked schemes (Proverbs 12:2), says Proverbs.
An American investor was sentenced to one hundred fifty years in prison for cheating customers out of billions of dollars. He was living high for a while but not for long. Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose ways are perverse (Proverbs 28:6), says Proverbs.
2 Samuel 2:4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron, and there they anointed David king over the tribe of Judah.
David was thirty years old at this time (2 Samuel 5:4-5), and it would be another seven years before he was king over the whole nation. And the transition wasn’t smooth.
Abner (the commander of Saul’s army) met with Joab (the commander of David’s army) at the town of Gibeon—each with troops. To minimize bloodshed, twelve soldiers were put forward from each side to engage in mortal combat. Then each man grabbed his opponent by the head and thrust his dagger into his opponent’s side, and they fell down together (2 Samuel 2:16).
Since there was no obvious winner, a battle broke out in which Judah lost twenty men, and Israel lost three hundred sixty men (2 Samuel 2:30-31). It could’ve been worse, but nothing was settled.
Some time later Abner agreed to unite Israel under David, but Joab was angry because Abner had killed his brother in the previous battle (2 Samuel 2:23). So Joab took him aside into an inner chamber, as if to speak with him privately. And there, to avenge the blood of his brother [he] stabbed him in the stomach (2 Samuel 3:27).
Meanwhile, Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth was ruling as king in Israel. He was taking a noonday rest when he was cruelly stabbed to death. His murderers took his head to David hoping for approval. But David wasn’t pleased and had them killed (2 Samuel 4:1-12). Then, at last, the kingdom was united under David.
Likewise, the church should be united under Christ (John 17:23), but is often at war with itself. Professing Christians have even used torture and murder against other professing Christians. Thankfully, it won’t always be that way. When Christ returns, he’ll bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth (Ephesians 1:10), wrote Paul. The transition may be painful, but the reign of Christ will be glorious.
*****
2 Samuel 5:6 The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there.
Israel had taken Jerusalem before (Judges 1:8, 21) but the Jebusites had taken it back. With valleys on three sides, it was easy to defend, but it wouldn’t be easy to take. David and his men entered through a water shaft which still exists today. The Jebusites were defeated and Jerusalem became the City of David (1 Samuel 5:9).
Jerusalem has been around for at least three thousand years (Genesis 14:18), and probably even longer. It’s also been known as Zion, and is mentioned in the Bible over eight hundred times. It’s where the temple was built (1 Kings 6), where Jesus was crucified (John 19:20), and where he’ll return (Zechariah 14:4) to rule the world. God is also planning a new Jerusalem.
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away (Revelation 21:2-4), wrote John. This will be our eternal home.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 70
2 Samuel 6:2 [David] and all his men went to Baalah in Judah to bring up from there the ark of God.
David established Jerusalem as the political center of Israel, then proceeded to make it the religious center as well. The most important religious object was the ark of the covenant, since it was God’s throne on earth (1 Samuel 4:4). God was uniquely present between the two cherubim that [were] over the ark (Exodus 25:22). By bringing the ark to the capital city, David was showing that God was the king of Israel, and that David was merely his servant. The Lord Almighty—he is the King of glory (Psalm 24:10), he wrote.
To properly honor God, David arranged a massive celebration. He and thirty thousand young men accompanied the ark of God in a kind of military escort. They put the ark on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab (2 Samuel 6:3) where it had been for many years. It was a great day of music, worship and celebration. But that was about to change.
2 Samuel 6:6 When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled.
We don’t know why the oxen stumbled, but maybe the road was uneven, or maybe there was a stone in the way. People likely gasped when they saw ark sliding off the cart. For it to fall to the ground would’ve been a terrible disgrace.
Uzzah had the presence of mind to reach out his hand and steady the ark. He kept it from falling to the ground and possibly breaking apart. But any sigh of relief was brief. The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God (2 Samuel 6:7).
We might expect God to be thankful to Uzzah for keeping the ark from falling to the ground. And we might expect Uzzah to be rewarded for saving the day. But if anything was worse than God’s throne falling to the dirt, it was being touched by sinful hands. Dirt never rebelled against its Maker, but sinners do this all the time. Letting God’s throne fall to the ground would’ve been better by far than defiling it with sinful hands.
It’s also surprising that David planned this event without consulting God’s word. God provided clear instructions about how the ark was to be moved. There were rings on the side, through which poles were to be inserted, so the ark could be carried (Exodus 25:12-15), without being touched. God had also clearly warned that anyone who touched the ark would die (Numbers 4:15). And that’s what happened.
Some people hope that ignorance will protect them from God’s judgment, but that didn’t work for Uzzah. He didn’t know what God required, but God killed him anyway. [T]he wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), wrote Paul. This is true even if we don’t know that we’re sinning.
It also appears that our worship of God isn’t always pleasing to him, even when it’s pleasing to us. Thousands of people praising God seems like a success. But it’s not successful if it’s not biblical. [T]rue worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth (John 4:23), said Jesus. If our worship isn’t governed by God’s word, it isn’t pleasing to God.
2 Samuel 6:8 David was angry because the Lord’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah.
David planned a great event but God ruined the party. The punishment seemed to outweigh the offense and this made David angry. It also made him afraid. David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me? (2 Samuel 6:9).
David was beginning to understand that God is to be revered. He is good, kind, loving and gracious. But he’s also holy and just. He often overlooks our sins (Deuteronomy 9:27), but not always. We should worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:28-29), says Hebrews.
2 Samuel 6:10 [David] was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David.
David didn’t know if God was safe so he sent the ark to the house of Obed-Edom. Three months later he learned that God was blessing the household of Obed-Edom because of the ark. So, once again, David brought the ark to Jerusalem, not on a cart, but properly carried.
2 Samuel 6:14-15 Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
This is one of the most exuberant worship scenes in the Bible. As part of the parade, David was leading God’s people in dance. This type of worship isn’t found in the New Testament, but it’s mentioned in the Psalms.
Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with timbrel and harp (Psalm 149:3). [P]raise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe (Psalm 150:4). God’s Old Testament people could worship enthusiastically.
2 Samuel 6:16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart.
Michal was David’s first wife, the daughter of King Saul. Since she was raised a princess, she probably had ideas of how royalty should behave. And David wasn’t behaving royally. Also, she may’ve been embarrassed by David’s full-hearted devotion to God. This led to an argument and an unhappy outcome. Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death (2 Samuel 6:23).
This may’ve been the judgment of God or the judgment of David. Since David had other wives, he may’ve stopped sleeping with Michal, and deprived her of children. This would’ve been cruel, of course, but underscores how destructive disrespect can be to a marriage, and why Paul said the wife must respect her husband (Ephesians 5:33).
If it was the judgment of God, however, it shows that we shouldn’t despise those who are more expressive in worship than we are. God’s people should be careful not to draw attention away from God by drawing it to themselves. But if someone is more enthusiastic in worship than we are, we shouldn’t think less of them. Rather, we should consider whether our own hearts are as full of praise as they ought to be.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 71
2 Samuel 7:1-2 After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.
David was firmly established as king in Jerusalem and had built himself a very nice home. But the ark of God was still in a tent, as it had been for over four hundred years. It was constructed at the foot of Mount Sinai, shortly after the Israelites were delivered from Egyptian slavery.
2 Samuel 7:3 Nathan replied to the king, Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.
As the prophet Samuel advised King Saul, so various prophets advised King David. This is the first story in which we encounter Nathan, but not the last (2 Samuel 12, 1 Kings 1). He was a faithful servant of the king, and David named one of his sons Nathan meaning gift.
2 Samuel 7:4-5 But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying: Go and tell my servant David, This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in?
Nathan had advised David to do whatever he had in mind. But this was his advice as David’s counselor, not as the mouthpiece of God. That same night God informed Nathan that David was not to build him a temple. I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. . . . did I ever say . . . Why have you not built me a house of cedar? (2 Samuel 7:6-7).
But God was pleased with David’s desire to honor him, and responded with a very significant promise. The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you (2 Samuel 7:11). David wanted to build a house for God, but God would build a house for David. David wanted to build God a physical house, but God would build David an everlasting household. I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood . . . your throne will be established forever (2 Samuel 7:12-16), said God.
God’s promise to David was an everlasting dynasty. One of his sons would rule as king forever. Dynasties are often brief, but may also last for centuries, or even millennia. But an everlasting dynasty is hard to imagine.
God’s promise to David had roots going back hundreds of years to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. [K]ings of peoples will come from her (Genesis 17:16), said God. Years later, Abraham’s grandson (Jacob) added, The scepter will not depart from Judah (Genesis 49:10). Since David was descended from Abraham, Jacob and Judah, God was fulfilling his promises and making them even greater.
But it didn’t turn out the way David thought. In 586 BC, the Babylonians destroyed the city of Jerusalem, blinded the king, and took him back to Babylon. To the natural eye, this was the end of David’s dynasty, and a shock to everyone who believed God’s promise.
The eighty-ninth Psalm captures the bewilderment felt by many. God said of David, I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure. . . . Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness—and I will not lie to David—that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun; it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky. . . .
[But] You have renounced the covenant with your servant and have defiled his crown in the dust. You have broken through all his walls and reduced his strongholds to ruins. All who pass by have plundered him; he has become the scorn of his neighbors. . . . Indeed, you have turned back the edge of his sword and have not supported him in battle. You have put an end to his splendor and cast his throne to the ground (Psalm 89:29-44), wrote the Psalmist.
God’s people didn’t stop believing, however, even when God’s promise seemed to fail. But they didn’t ignore the problem either. They acknowledged the tension between what God had clearly promised (David’s eternal dynasty) and what they had clearly experienced (the collapse of David’s dynasty). In the traditional sense, Israel has never had a Davidic monarch since it fell to Babylon. Many must’ve wondered if they could trust God’s promises or not.
But, centuries later, Scripture records the birth of the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham (Matthew 1:1). The angel had said to his mother, The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David . . . his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:31-33). So when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the people shouted Hosanna to the Son of David (Matthew 21:9), and Blessed is the king of Israel! (John 12:13).
The prophets also foresaw a future king from David’s line. A shoot will come up from the stump of [David]; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit (Isaiah 11:1), wrote Isaiah. And, I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely (Jeremiah 23:5), said Jeremiah. And, He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom . . . forever (Isaiah 9:7), wrote Isaiah.
What God’s people didn’t know, and couldn’t understand, was that David’s messianic Son had been ruling from heaven’s throne since before the beginning of time. From a human perspective the collapse of David’s dynasty was a theological disaster that couldn’t be resolved. But from heaven’s perspective there was no problem at all. David’s son was king forever—past, present and future. He just hadn’t been born yet.
The promises of God find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ. For no matter how many promises God has made, they are Yes in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20), wrote Paul. And Remember Jesus Christ . . . descended from David (2 Timothy 2:8), wrote Paul again. And, I am the Root and the Offspring of David (Revelation 22:16), said Jesus Christ himself.
God gave David an everlasting dynasty through his great-great-grandson, Jesus Christ. And, when he returns, Jesus’ kingdom will surpass David’s in every possible way, and will never come to an end. God always keeps his promises, even when they seem to fail.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 72
2 Samuel 9:1 David asked, Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?
Jonathan was the son of King Saul and David’s dear friend. When David’s life was at risk, he received Jonathan’s help, and vowed kindness to his family (1 Samuel 20:15). Since Jonathan had died (1 Samuel 31:2), David looked for a way to keep his promise.
Jonathan’s son was Mephibosheth, and he was just five years old when his father died in battle. His nurse picked him up and fled, but as she hurried to leave, he fell and became disabled (2 Samuel 4:4). With better medical help the injury would’ve healed correctly but, without it, he became lame in both feet (2 Samuel 9:3).
This was a turning point in the young man’s life from which he’d never recover. He was born a prince, but lost his position and mobility in a single day. He couldn’t play games with his friends, and would have limited choices for employment. Not a day passed that he didn’t feel the loss.
But this was the kind of person David was looking for. He brought him into his house and said, Mephibosheth! . . . I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table (2 Samuel 9:6-7).
This too was a turning point in Mephibosheth’s life—but a positive one. In a single day he was adopted into the king’s family and given great wealth. He bowed down and said, What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me? (2 Samuel 9:8). Mephibosheth had little to offer David and he knew it. But David took care of him for the sake of Jonathan.
This reminds us of what God has done for us because of Jesus Christ. He took us as we were, adopted us into his family, and gave us unexpected wealth. God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms [to] show the incomparable riches of his grace (Ephesians 2:6-7), wrote Paul. What David did for Mephibosheth, because of Jonathan, is a very faint reflection of what God will do for everyone who believes in Jesus Christ.
*****
2 Samuel 10:1 In the course of time, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun succeeded him as king.
The Ammonite king had been kind to David, perhaps while he was running from Saul. So when the Ammonite king died, David wanted to show kindness to his son, who was reigning in his father’s place. This was gracious of David since, at one time, the Ammonites had been Israel’s enemies (Judges 11:4, 1 Samuel 11:15).
When David sent a delegation to express his sympathy, however, the new king doubted David’s motives and treated the delegation like spies. [He] shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the buttocks, and sent them away (2 Samuel 10:4).
This was an extreme provocation that revealed the new king’s foolishness. By exposing the private parts of David’s men, and shaving half their beards, he guaranteed retaliation. Few things are more precious than dignity and, whenever it’s violated, it can led to fury.
This also reminds us of Jesus Christ. As David sent a delegation to the Ammonites, God sent his Son into the world. As the Ammonites shaved off half their beards, Jesus’ beard was plucked from his face (Isaiah 50:6). As the Ammonites shamefully exposed the delegation, Jesus was hung on a cross fully exposed. As the Ammonites’ behavior incited the wrath of David, so the wrath of God is incited against all who oppose Jesus Christ (John 3:36). These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), said Jesus.
2 Samuel 10:6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become obnoxious to David, they hired twenty thousand Aramean foot soldiers from Beth Rehob and Zobah, as well as the king of Maakah with a thousand men, and also twelve thousand men from Tob.
The cost of mercenary troops to fight the Israelites was thirty-eight tons of silver (1 Chronicles 19:6). This was a massive amount that likely depleted the nation’s wealth. If the Ammonite king had given this money to David, in order to make amends, the conflict could’ve been resolved. War could’ve been avoided, and lives could’ve been spared.
Jesus used this same line of thinking to encourage surrender to him. [S]uppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace (Luke 14:31-32), he said.
Like the foolish Ammonite king, we’ve all provoked the King of kings, and made him very angry (John 3:36). He’s coming with the armies of heaven (Revelation 19:14-15), but disaster can still be avoided if we’re willing to pay the price: those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:33). Jesus requires full surrender of everything we have and everything we are. In return, we’re given eternal life in his glorious kingdom. We surrender our rags to receive his riches.
2 Samuel 10:8 The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation.
With the help of hired armies they believed their chances were good. The battle was intense, but Israel prevailed, and David put to death over forty thousand troops (1 Samuel 10:18). This was a catastrophic loss for the Ammonites which could’ve been avoided.
Like the foolish Ammonites, many will oppose Jesus Christ to the very end. Even when Christ returns, many will refuse to lay down their arms. They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings (Revelation 17:14), wrote John. Opposition to Christ is certain defeat, but surrender leads to victory. Our only wisdom is to change sides before it is too late.
2 Samuel 12:30 David took the crown from their king’s head, and it was placed on his own head.
The crown was made of gold set with precious stones and weighed about seventy-five pounds. By taking the crown for himself, David showed his sovereignty over the Ammonites. If he did this whenever he conquered, he had many crowns. Likewise, it’s said of Jesus Christ, on his head are many crowns (Revelation 19:12). There’s only one king of the universe, and every crown will be his.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 73
2 Samuel 11:1 In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.
Spring was the time for war because the weather was agreeable, and fields provided food for armies on the march. David led battles in the past, but now that he was established, others could do the work. So David remained at home, a king at his leisure.
2 Samuel 11:2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace.
David’s palace had a flat roof porch, and may’ve been the tallest building in Jerusalem. This gave him a view of the region, as well as other people’s homes. From there he saw a woman bathing and noticed she was beautiful. David should have looked away but, instead, he prolonged his gaze. Then he sent for the woman and she became pregnant. Her name was Bathsheba, and she was married to Uriah.
This was a problem since David was a spiritual leader, and the law of God said You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14). Even worse, If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death (Leviticus 20:10). David and Bathsheba were both in serious trouble.
It would’ve been better if David had simply looked away. He was a good man who loved God, and served him with all his heart. But goodness is no guarantee against weakness and, in a moment of weakness, David sinned. Now he’d try to conceal it.
2 Samuel 11:6 David sent this word to Joab: Send me Uriah the Hittite.
David’s plan was so simple it could hardly fail. He called Bathsheba’s husband home from battle to give an account of the war. Having been away for a while, he’d surely want to sleep with his wife. When he learned that she was pregnant, he’d assume the child was his.
But Uriah was a man of such character that, as long as his fellow soldiers were sleeping in a field, he refused the comfort of his own bed. So he slept at the entrance of David’s palace, along with the other servants.
Then David got Uriah drunk, hoping to weaken his resolve. But this also failed. Now David was growing desperate, so he sent Uriah back to battle, with a letter to his commander. Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die (2 Samuel 11:15).
It’s hard to imagine what David was thinking when he wrote those terrible words. He believed in God’s law, including You shall not murder (Exodus 20:13). This was against everything David stood for. But desperate people do desperate things, and David was truly desperate. So he set in motion his plan to kill an innocent man.
This is why Jesus taught us to pray, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (Matthew 6:13). Under the right circumstances there’s nothing of which we’re not capable—including adultery and murder. Those who do such things aren’t always worse than others, but are truly ensnared by the devil. Their conduct should be condemned, of course, but under similar circumstances we could do the same.
2 Samuel 11:26-27 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son.
As the most powerful man in the nation, David was able to avoid execution for himself and Bathsheba. Perhaps he married her quickly so the child would seem to come from their marriage. Or maybe he hoped to appear noble by taking the pregnant widow of a worthy soldier.
But the trauma of David’s sin so hardened his heart that he wasn’t relating to God. Instead of confessing and repenting, David seems to have rationalized his sin as the privilege of kings. He already had numerous wives, why not one more? But the thing David had done displeased the Lord (1 Samuel 11:27b).
2 Samuel 12:1 The Lord sent Nathan to David.
Nathan was the prophet to whom God gave the unhappy task of rebuking the king. It’s not clear how Nathan knew of David’s sin, but he may have learned it from God. So Nathan went to David with a parable of two men: one rich, the other poor. The rich man had numerous sheep, but the poor man had only one little sheep, which he loved with all his heart. One day the rich man had visitors but, instead of killing one of his own sheep for dinner, he took the poor man’s sheep instead.
As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! (2 Samuel 12:5), said David. You are the man! (2 Samuel 12:7), said Nathan. Then he told David about the terrible consequences that would come because of his sin, including the death of their child.
2 Samuel 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord.
God pardoned David’s sin but didn’t remove the consequences. The child died and David never recovered his greatness. The man whom God used to build his kingdom let many people down, especially himself.
God’s kingdom needs a righteous king in order to have God’s favor. Jesus is the only king who never sinned (1 Peter 2:22), and his kingdom is coming soon. Then God’s people will live forever under the rule of a perfect king.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 74
2 Samuel 13:1 In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David.
Amnon was the firstborn son of David and the crown prince of Israel. He allowed himself to fall in love with his half-sister, Tamar, to whom marriage was forbidden. Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere (Leviticus 18:9), wrote Moses. By setting his affection on what God had forbidden, Amnon became frustrated. There were other young ladies to chose from, but Amnon wanted what God had refused.
2 Samuel 13:2 Amnon became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he made himself ill. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.
Amnon’s love for Tamar could be better described as lust. He wasn’t as noble as Job who said, I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman (Job 31:1). Instead, Amnon fantasized about what it would be like to have her. Jesus’ words apply to Amnon perfectly: anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28).
2 Samuel 13:3 Now Amnon had an adviser named Jonadab . . . . [He] was a very shrewd man.
As advisor to the crown prince, Jonadab wanted to help Amnon get his way so that he’d remain in his favor. Jonadab advised Amnon to fake illness, and arrange for his sister Tamar to come and take care of him.
When she arrived, he grabbed her and said, Come to bed with me, my sister. No, my brother! she said to him. Don’t force me! Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing. What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you (2 Samuel 13:11-13), she said.
Tamar was in danger of becoming a victim of rape and incest, which would scar her the rest of her life. For siblings to marry was forbidden in God’s law, but it was not without precedent. Abraham, the father of Israel, was married to his half sister, Sarah (Genesis 20:12). If Amnon spoke to their Father, King David, perhaps he’d allow it.
2 Samuel 13:14 But [Amnon] refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.
Amnon didn’t expect to grow up and become a rapist. Raised in a godly home, he knew this was a terrible sin. But instead of resisting his sinful nature, he repeatedly indulged it until it got the best of him. What had he become?
This is why Jesus reserved some of his strongest language for sexual sin. If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell (Matthew 5:29-30). It would have better for Amnon to pluck out his eye, and cut off his hand, than to do what he had done.
2 Samuel 13:15 Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, Get up and get out!
The Bible doesn’t explain the reversal of Amnon’s affections, but two explanations are possible. First, whenever we hurt someone deeply, we may be tempted to hate them because of the guilt we feel. The more we’re able to hate them, the less guilty we may feel.
Second, instead of accepting his guilt, Amnon may’ve put the blame on Tamar, convincing himself that she seduced him. Since we’re naturally quick to blame others, and slow to blame ourselves, this may be more likely.
2 Samuel 13:16-17 No! she said to him. Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me. But he refused to listen to her. He called his personal servant and said, Get this woman out of my sight and bolt the door after her.
Tamar went away weeping. She tore the beautiful robe she was wearing and put ashes on her head as a sign of her grief. She would never be the same. She never fully recovered.
Sexual crimes are especially bad because the harm can last a lifetime. Emotional damage can leave the victim less responsive sexually, and diminish marital happiness. Or, feeling compromised, the victim may become promiscuous and spiral down morally. This is why the penalty for sexual crimes could even include death (Leviticus 20:10).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 75
2 Samuel 13:20 Her brother Absalom said to her, Has that Amnon, your brother, been with you? Be quiet for now, my sister; he is your brother. Don’t take this thing to heart. And Tamar lived in her brother Absalom’s house, a desolate woman.
Tamar’s full brother, Absalom, took his sister into his house and cared for her. Instead of bringing a scandal on the royal family, Absalom advised his sister to keep the matter quiet. His motives aren’t clear, but he may’ve been concerned for his sister’s reputation, and her ability to marry in the future. As a desolate woman, however, Tamar seems to have never married or had children. In that culture, there was scarcely anything worse.
2 Samuel 13:21 When King David heard all this, he was furious.
But he didn’t actually do anything. It wasn’t an easy case since, on the one hand, the law required marriage. If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her . . . . He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives (Deuteronomy 22:28-29), wrote Moses.
On the other hand, the law forbad marriage. If a man marries his sister . . . it is a disgrace. They are to be publicly removed from their people (Leviticus 20:17), wrote Moses again. Furthermore, since David also committed sexual sin, he had no moral authority. If he challenged Amnon for his behavior, Amnon could challenge David for his behavior. Even though David was furious, there wasn’t much he could do.
2 Samuel 13:22 Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad; he hated Amnon because he had disgraced his sister Tamar.
Absalom waited two full years for his father to take action against Amnon. But, when nothing was done, he took matters into his own hands. He invited his brothers to a celebration and, when Amnon had plenty of wine, he commanded his servants to kill him. Then Absalom fled the country.
2 Samuel 13:36 The king . . . and all his attendants wept very bitterly.
David mourned the loss of both his sons. He may’ve recalled the words of the prophet after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband killed. You struck down Uriah the Hittite . . . and took his wife to be your own. . . . Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house (2 Samuel 12:9-10).
David was guilty of sexual sin and murder—and now his sons were guilty of the same. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. . . . Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction (Galatians 6:7-8), wrote Paul.
David sowed to please his flesh and reaped the destruction of his children. If only he had controlled himself when he saw Bathsheba bathing! The effect of David’s sin spilled over on his family, and our sin will often hurt those who are nearest and dearest to us.
But whenever our sin is great, God’s grace can be even greater (Romans 5:20). The consequences may last a lifetime but, because of Jesus Christ, we’re still holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation (Colossians 1:22), wrote Paul. And we will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:11), wrote Peter. The good news of God’s grace overcomes the bad news of our sin. Christ died for sinners so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John.
*****
2 Samuel 14:1 Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom.
After murdering his brother Amnon, for raping their sister Tamar, Absalom fled from the land of Israel to Gesher. This pained his Father David, who grieved for about three years (2 Samuel 13:38). This was observed by Joab, a high-ranking official, who was concerned for David’s happiness.
Communication between David and Absalom was so completely broken down that they needed someone else to bring them together. Joab became their mediator and, in this way, reminds us of Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul.
Jesus could speak to humans on behalf of God, because he was God in human flesh (John 1:1, 14). And he could speak to God on behalf of humans, because he’s the only human who never sinned (1 Peter 2:22). The rift between God and humanity was so profound that we couldn’t come together without a mediator. But now we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1), wrote Paul.
2 Samuel 14:21 The king said to Joab . . . . Go, bring back the young man Absalom.
Joab went to Geshur and brought back David’s son, but David refused to meet with him for about two more years. Then Absalom said to Joab, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death (2 Samuel 14:32).
Absalom thought he did nothing wrong by killing his brother for raping their sister. And, if he did, he was willing to die for it. Joab reported this to David who then called for his son. Absalom came into his father’s presence and bowed down with his face to the ground. . . . And the king kissed Absalom (2 Samuel 14:33).
This sounds like a happy ending to a story of estrangement, but it’s not. The kiss was a public sign that the crown prince was now in good standing with his father. But the relationship was never fully restored and there is no happy ending.
God made families for nurture and love, but they can become a living hell. That’s why it’s important to always get along with our family. It’s better to do the hard work of reconciliation than to live with anger the rest of our lives. We can never avoid our families completely (at least mentally) so it’s wise to be friends whenever possible.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 76
2 Samuel 15:1 In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him.
Absalom was about thirty years old at this time, and had a royal appearance. In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him. Whenever he cut the hair of his head . . . he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels by the royal standard (1 Samuel 14:25-26).
Absalom enhanced his royal appearance with a chariot and a body guard of fifty men. Having murdered his older brother, Amnon, Absalom was next in line for David’s throne. He often stood by the road to the city gate and heard the concerns of the people.
[W]henever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the people of Israel (2 Samuel 15:5-6).
Absalom was planning to be king but it’s not clear why David allowed him to act this way. David probably watched with interest but underestimated his son’s ambition. Absalom wouldn’t wait for David to die of natural causes. He was plotting his father’s demise.
2 Samuel 15:7 At the end of four years, Absalom said to the king, Let me go to Hebron and fulfill a vow I made to the Lord.
After four years of winning people’s hearts, Absalom decided the time had come for him to act. Hebron was about nineteen miles south of Jerusalem, and was a town of some importance. It’s where David was anointed king (2 Samuel 2:4), and where Absalom was born (2 Samuel 3:2-3).
To get his father’s permission to go to Hebron, Absalom used a religious lie. While your servant was living at Geshur in Aram, I made this vow: If the Lord takes me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the Lord in Hebron (2 Samuel 15:8).
David may’ve been pleased with Absalom’s apparent commitment to God. Perhaps, at last, he was growing in his faith. The king said to him, Go in peace (2 Samuel 15:9). But Absalom was planning war.
Absalom’s use of a religious lie, to conceal his godless plan, shows the bankruptcy of his character. He was an ambitious man in the worst possible sense. Perhaps the murder of his older brother wasn’t merely revenge, but a clearing of the way for him to become king. Now that he had the people’s support, he was willing to kill his father to make it happen.
Here we see the difference between good ambition and bad ambition. It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known (Romans 15:20), wrote Paul. We ought to be ambitious to do all the good we can, but ambition becomes evil whenever we’re willing to hurt others to promote ourselves. For where you have . . . selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice (James 3:16), wrote James. Beware of the person with selfish ambition.
2 Samuel 15:9 So [Absalom] went to Hebron.
There he declared himself to be king with such success that David and his officials had to flee Jerusalem, lest Absalom come with an army and put the city to the sword (2 Samuel 15:14). This was a total assault on David’s reign and Absalom was winning.
2 Samuel 15:31 Now David had been told, Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.
Ahithophel was one of David’s top advisors and now he was serving his enemy. This gave Absalom another advantage since the advice Ahithophel gave was like that of one who inquires of God (2 Samuel 16:23). The defection of Ahithophel also hurt David personally. Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me (Psalm 41:9), he wrote.
Jesus quoted David’s words and applied them to Judas Iscariot (John 13:18). Judas appeared to be Jesus’ friend in many ways. He walked with Jesus, talked with Jesus, ate with Jesus, and gave every appearance of being a faithful disciple. But, when it became clear that Jesus would die, Judas switched sides (Luke 22:4). Both Judas and Ahithophel turned against their king in order to save themselves.
Unless we want to be like Judas and Ahithophel, we must be more loyal to Christ than we are to ourselves. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it (Luke 9:24), said Jesus. Judas and Ahithophel share something else in common. Centuries apart from each other they both committed suicide (Matthew 27:5, 2 Samuel 17:23). If we put ourselves ahead of Christ, we’re likely to die despairing.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 77
2 Samuel 15:31 So David prayed, Lord, turn Ahithophel’s counsel into foolishness.
Soon after David prayed he was met by Hushai the Arkite, a trusted advisor. Hushai was loyal to David, so David sent him back to Jerusalem to pretend to be loyal to Absalom. Hushai would serve as David’s spy and, hopefully, undermine Ahithophel.
Then Hushai . . . went to Absalom and said to him, Long live the king! (2 Samuel 16:16). Absalom was a little surprised that Hushai abandoned David so quickly. Hushai explained that Absalom was chosen by God and, therefore, had his support as well. Just as I served your father, so I will serve you (2 Samuel 16:19), he said. Absalom received Hushai, which put him in position to help David.
2 Samuel 16:20-21 Absalom said to Ahithophel, Give us your advice. What should we do? Ahithophel answered, Sleep with your father’s concubines whom he left to take care of the palace. Then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself obnoxious to your father, and the hands of everyone with you will be more resolute.
True to his reputation, Ahithophel offered brilliant advice. For Absalom to sleep with his father’s concubines would completely destroy their relationship and a possible co-regency. When the people heard of it they’d have to choose between David and Absalom. Since Absalom had the power, the people would quickly align with him. So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel (2 Samuel 16:22).
This was a literal fulfillment of what God said to David after he committed adultery with Bathsheba. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel (2 Samuel 12:11-12), said God.
In fact, the roof on which Absalom slept with his father’s concubines may have been the same roof from which David lusted at Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:2). But if David confessed his sin, and God forgave him (2 Samuel 12:13), why did this still happen? The answer isn’t provided but the lesson is clear: sin is the way to misery.
Before David’s spectacular sin his life was triumphant. But, afterward, he struggled. Since God is the one who determines the quality of our lives, we should always try to please him. Then, when trouble comes, at least we’ll know it wasn’t because of our foolish behavior.
2 Samuel 17:1 Ahithophel said to Absalom, I would choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David.
After seizing control of the palace, and taking over the harem, there was only one thing left for Absalom to do: kill his dad. Since David was on the run he’d be weak and vulnerable, so Ahithophel advised Absalom to attack at once. But Absalom said, Summon also Hushai the Arkite, so we can hear what he has to say as well (2 Samuel 17:5).
Ahithophel’s advice was so good that it would be hard to oppose. But Hushai was loyal to David so he had to do his best. Let all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba . . . be gathered to you, with you yourself leading them into battle. Then we will attack [David] wherever he may be found, and we will fall on him as dew settles on the ground. Neither he nor any of his men will be left alive (2 Samuel 17:11-12), he said. With these, and other words, Hushai delayed the battle and sent information to David. God was beginning to help his servant.
2 Samuel 18:1 David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.
David was on the run but he still had a sizable army. And even though there’d be a battle, he was still concerned for his son. Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake (2 Samuel 18:5), he said.
The battle took place in a forest, and Absalom’s mule went under a tree. Abaslom’s hair got caught in a branch and, when his mule kept going, Absalom was left hanging by his hair. One of David’s men took three javelins and plunged them into Absalom’s heart (2 Samuel 18:14). He died, somewhat comically, hanging by the hair he loved.
How different things would’ve been for Absalom if he’d simply served his father, and his father’s God. With all the benefits of royalty, and his natural gifts (2 Samuel 14:25-26), Absalom could’ve been a force for good. But power, privilege and prestige weren’t enough for Absalom. Consumed by selfish ambition, he overreached, and died a young man.
2 Samuel 18:33 [David] went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!
Only those who’ve lost a child know the depth of David’s grief. The one who brought him sorrow in life, brought him sorrow in death as well. We might expect David to be relieved at the death of his enemy son, but he wished that he had died instead.
This kind of emotion finds it’s source in the heart of our heavenly Father. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. That’s why there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:10), said Jesus. We’ve all rebelled against the king, but we need not die like Absalom.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 78
2 Samuel 20:2 [A]ll the men of Israel deserted David to follow Sheba son of Bikri.
Absalom was so popular that, even though he was dead, a man named Sheba continued his revolt. If Sheba wasn’t put down he would divide the nation. This was an emergency that required immediate action, so David sent troops to eliminate Sheba before he could get organized.
Sheba fled to Abel Beth Maakah, a fortified city in northern Israel. There he was found by David’s troops, who began to batter down the city wall (2 Samuel 20:15). But a woman inside spoke with David’s general, and offered to give him Sheba’s head, if he’d agree to withdraw. David’s general agreed, and Sheba’s head was thrown over the wall. The city was saved and so was the nation of Israel.
Division is a serious threat to nations, organizations and churches. There are often some who want to seize control that doesn’t belong to them. Unless they’re treated firmly the organization will be hurt. Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended (Proverbs 22:10), says Proverbs.
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2 Samuel 21:15 David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted.
David was a warrior but he was advancing in age. His strength was nearly gone when he was attacked by a massive Philistine who was heavily armed. It appeared that David’s life was over, when one of his men came to the rescue, and struck down the Philistine. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished (2 Samuel 21:17).
Part of the wisdom of age is knowing our limitations. If we pretend we’re still in our prime, we’ll likely meet with injury or death. Instead of trying to prove ourselves, we ought to accept the limits of our age, and preserve our lives for additional service. David was able to serve God many more years because he stopped going to war.
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2 Samuel 24:1 Again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.
We’re not told why the Lord was angry at Israel, but the nation was often in spiritual decline. Whenever this happened God was known to afflict his people to remind them of their need for him. Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word (Psalm 119:67), wrote the Psalmist.
It’s even less clear why God incited David to take a national census. If God was angry at the nation why not send a plague? Instead, God incited David to take a census, then he punished the nation for David’s sin. Since taking a census was not forbidden, David’s sin seems to be pride. He wanted to know the extent of his military power (2 Samuel 24:2) for the sake of his own glory.
Pride is more serious than many people realize. When pride comes, then comes disgrace (Proverbs 11:2). Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Pride brings a person low (Proverbs 29:23). And, God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble (James 4:6).
But if God doesn’t tempt anyone to sin (James 1:13), why did he incite David to sin? A parallel account even blames the devil. Satan . . . incited David to take a census (1 Chronicles 21:1), it says. David is clearly sinning but who’s to blame—God, David or Satan?
The same problem occurs elsewhere. Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart (Exodus 11:10). Instead of softening Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would obey, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would disobey. So who was to blame—God or Pharaoh?
Other examples could also be given (Joshua 11:20, 1 Kings 22:21-23, Ezekiel 14:9), but the clearest are Herod and Pontius Pilate, who conspired to crucify Jesus. This was a sin of the highest order, but they only did what [God’s] power and will had decided beforehand should happen (Acts 4:28), wrote Luke.
If God decided beforehand what would happen, why were Herod and Pilate still to blame? And why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will? (Romans 9:19), asked Paul.
Along with the Trinity, and the two natures of Christ, this is one of the great mysteries of the Bible. We serve a God who is sovereign over all things, including human sin, but in such a way that he’s not the source or cause of sin (1 John 1:5). Unless this is firmly held, we’ll serve a God who’s partially evil, or a God who’s not in control of the world he created.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 79
2 Samuel 24:2 So the king said to Joab and the army commanders with him, Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and enroll the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are.
Joab probably knew this would inflate David’s pride, and cause him to trust in his army instead of God, so he opposed the idea. But David insisted, so Joab obeyed. Nearly ten months later Joab returned with the count. David had over a million able-bodied men who could handle a sword (2 Samuel 24:9).
David should’ve been thrilled but he was troubled. I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing (2 Samuel 24:10), he said.
During the months Joab was gone, it seems that David wrestled with his conscience. In the past, whenever he put his trust in God, he was successful. And, whenever he took his eyes off God, he failed. So why was David taking his eyes off God and putting them on his army? When the numbers came back, David realized how faithful God had been to him, and how faithless he had been toward God. I have sinned, he said.
We also sin whenever we put our trust anywhere but God. Family, friends and doctors ought to be trustworthy—but our trust shouldn’t be in them. Nor should it be in our government or military. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David.
2 Samuel 24:11-12 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer: Go and tell David, This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options.
God let David choose between three years of famine, three months of fleeing from his enemies, or three days of plague. Once again we see that sin has consequences repentance may not remove. None of the options David faced would be easy and, as a result, he was in deep distress (2 Samuel 24:14).
This is what happens whenever we have to face the consequences of our sin. Whoever steals from their employer, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever cheats on their taxes, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever has an affair, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Almost every day there’s someone in the news, who’s going through deep distress, because of what they’ve done.
The best time to think about this isn’t after we sin, but before we sin. There’s not much we can do after we sin but, if we think about deep distress before we sin, we might find the presence of mind to avoid it. [T]hrough the fear of the Lord evil is avoided (Proverbs 16:6), says Proverbs.
David chose three days of plague because of God’s mercy. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great (2 Samuel 24:14), he said. When we consider all the evil we’ve done, and the little justice we’ve received, we’ll agree with David that God is merciful. The consequences may be severe but they’re always less than we deserve.
2 Samuel 24:15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
This wasn’t only due to David’s sin, but also to the people’s sin. God was angry at the nation (2 Samuel 24:1) and this would get their attention. When things are going well we might pray a little less, give a little less, serve a little less, and sin a little more. But when tragedy strikes, we come back to the importance of knowing and serving God. It’s not the way it ought to be, but often the way it is.
2 Samuel 24:16-17 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, Enough! Withdraw your hand. The angel of the Lord was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, I have sinned.
The plague was due, in part, to David’s sin, and he took responsibility. I, the shepherd, have done wrong (2 Samuel 24:17b), he said. David was a good shepherd, most of the time. But in this case he was a bad shepherd, and the people suffered because of him.
This contrasts with Jesus Christ who is the good shepherd all the time. I am the good shepherd . . . and I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:14-15) he said. Many of David’s sheep died because of his sin, but those who belong to Christ will live because of his righteousness.
2 Samuel 24:18 On that day Gad went to David and said to him, Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David arrived, Arunah was there with oxen and wood for the sacrifice. He offered them to David, free of charge, but David insisted on paying. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing (1 Samuel 24:14), he said. So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site (1 Chronicles 21:25). That was a great amount of money even for David. But the Lord accepted his sacrifice and the plague stopped.
Sacrifice is important to God because it proves our commitment to him. It also proves God’s commitment to us. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebrews 10:14), says Hebrews. And, This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10), wrote John. Commitment is proven through sacrifice. But whatever we sacrifice for God is nothing compared to the sacrifice he has made for us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 80
1 Kings 1:1-4 When King David was very old, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him. So his attendants said to him, Let us look for a young virgin to serve the king and take care of him. She can lie beside him so that our lord the king may keep warm. Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful young woman and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The woman was very beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king had no sexual relations with her.
The author of First and Second Kings isn’t known, but they were written for the people of God, around 550 BC. The first four verses are an honest account of David’s frailty at the end of his life. He could no longer keep himself warm, and lacked the virility to have sex with a beautiful young woman. This was a different stage of David’s life than when he was slaying Goliath (1 Samuel 17), or adding to his harem (2 Samuel 5:13).
David was only about seventy years old at this time (2 Samuel 5:4) but his difficult life had worn him out. He wouldn’t live much longer but hadn’t appointed a successor. This became a problem when one of his sons began to assert himself.
1 Kings 1:5 Adonijah . . . put himself forward and said, I will be king.
Adonijah was the oldest of David’s remaining sons and a likely successor to his father’s throne. His chariots, entourage and natural good looks gave him a kingly appearance. But, like his brother Absalom, Adonijah was overly ambitious.
Since David was frail, Adonijah appointed himself king without expecting much resistance. He had the support of many officials including Joab (David’s general), and Abiathar (David’s priest). So Adonijah held a celebration where his rule was made official. Once again, David’s throne was being challenged by one of his sons.
Even the best parents can have rebellious children, but some of David’s children were truly awful. Amnon raped his sister Tamar (2 Samuel 13:14), Absalom led a revolt (2 Samuel 15-17), and Adonijah was trying to steal his father’s throne. Where did David go wrong?
David was a busy king and probably delegated most parental duties to the mothers of his children. Mothers are well equipped for this but religious training is the duty of fathers. Fathers should raise their children in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4), wrote Paul. Mothers can be helpful and effective (2 Timothy 1:5), but there is no substitute for a good and godly father.
1 Kings 1:11 Then Nathan asked Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has become king, and our lord David knows nothing about it?
Solomon was the second son of David and Bathsheba, after the child of their adultery died (2 Samuel 12:15-24). David promised Bathsheba that Solomon would be king (1 Kings 1:13) but, unless David acted quickly, that wouldn’t happen. Even worse, if Adonijah came to power he might have Solomon and Bathsheba put to death to eliminate a possible challenge to his throne.
1 Kings 1:12 Now then, let me advise you how you can save your own life and the life of your son Solomon.
Nathan the prophet advised Bathsheba to tell David what was happening and, while she was there, he would arrive to confirm it. When David learned of the situation, he quickly arranged a ceremony for Solomon to be installed as king. Then they sounded the trumpet and all the people shouted, Long live King Solomon! (1 Kings 1:39). When Adonijah’s supporters learned that David made Solomon king, they quickly dispersed so they wouldn’t be killed for their rebellion.
1 Kings 1:51 Then Solomon was told, Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the horns of the altar.
Afraid for his life, Adonijah ran to the place of sacrifice and grabbed hold of the altar. This didn’t guarantee his safety but, since the place was sacred, Adonijah hoped for mercy. If he shows himself to be worthy, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground, said Solomon. So Adonijah came and bowed down (1 Kings 52-53).
Solomon was now the undisputed king of Israel. He’d rule the nation forty years (1 Kings 11:42) and bring it to its height. The Lord loved him (2 Samuel 12:24) and he was greatly used by God.
Again we see that God is able to bring good out of evil. God was displeased when David committed adultery with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:18) and had her husband killed (2 Samuel 11:16-17). But God used their second son to lead the nation to greatness.
Sexual sin isn’t uncommon among God’s people, and murder isn’t unheard of. But they’re not in a separate category of sin, nor are they handled differently. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. The consequences of sin may last a lifetime, but we don’t live under a cloud of God’s wrath. God completely forgives, and can even bring a blessing out of our rebellion.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 81
1 Kings 2:13 Adonijah . . . went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother.
Having lost his bid for the throne, Adonijah wanted to marry Abishag. Even though she was a member of David’s harem, it may’ve been allowable since she was still a virgin. Instead of making the request himself, Adonijah improved his odds by persuading Bathsheba to ask her son. Solomon answered his mother . . . . You might as well request the kingdom for him—after all, he is my older brother (1 Kings 2:22).
In the minds of many, Adonijah had a legitimate claim to the throne since he was David’s oldest remaining son. If he married David’s companion, that would only strengthen his claim. While pretending to support Solomon, Adonijah was really supporting himself. So Solomon had him put to death (1 Kings 2:25).
Adonijah thought he could hide his motives from Solomon but he was fatally wrong. And so it is with Christ. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart (1 Corinthians 4:5), wrote Paul. Many who claim allegiance to Christ are really devoted to themselves. It’s not enough to appear loyal; we must be loyal from the heart.
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1 Kings 3:4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
Solomon was just a young man when he began to reign, and felt unequal to the task. But after he honored God with a sacrifice, God appeared to him in a dream and said, Ask for whatever you want me to give you (1 Kings 3:5).
Solomon could’ve asked for bottomless wealth, military might, long life, or whatever his heart desired. But, more than anything else, he wanted wisdom and knowledge (2 Chronicles 1:10) to govern God’s people well. The Lord was so pleased with his request that he gave Solomon what he asked for, plus so much wealth and honor that he had no equal among kings (1 Kings 3:13).
If we ask God for what he wants to give us, he might give us even more. Many ask for health, wealth and happiness when they should be asking for holiness or usefulness. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures (James 4:3), wrote James. It’s good to ask God for what we want (Matthew 7:7-8), but we should also ask God for what he wants.
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1 Kings 3:16 Now two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.
Solomon’s wisdom was quickly put to the test by a couple of prostitutes. While they were living together, they each gave birth to a son. During the night, one of them accidentally laid on her son and he died. So she took her dead son and put him in bed with her roommate, and took her roommate’s son as her own. But the following morning, when her roommate awoke, she knew the dead baby wasn’t hers.
It seems the lower courts weren’t able to solve the dispute, so it was taken to Solomon. There were no witnesses so it was impossible to determine who the real mother was by ordinary means. With the wisdom of God, however, Solomon called for a sword to divide the baby in half.
The real mother dropped the case at once in order to save her baby’s life. She’d much rather lose her baby than have her child cut in half. Her strong reaction made it clear that she was the real mother and the case was solved. Then Solomon was held in awe by all the people because they saw that he had wisdom from God to administer justice (1 Kings 3:28).
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1 Kings 6:1 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel . . . [Solomon] began to build the temple of the Lord.
On their way to the Promised Land, God’s people worshiped at a special tent called the tabernacle. It worked well for many years because it was portable, and God’s people were on the move. But the tabernacle was centuries old, by now, and God’s people were settled in the Promised Land. It was time for something better.
My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. But the Lord said to my father David, You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name (1 Kings 8:17-19), said Solomon.
With the help of God’s Spirit, David made plans for the temple (1 Chronicles 28:19), and gathered materials including wood, stone, iron, bronze, silver, gold and precious stones—all in large quantities (1 Chronicles 29:2). Since David was still alive at this time, he commissioned Solomon to carry out the work (1 Chronicles 28:20).
The temple itself wasn’t big: about ninety feet long, thirty feet wide, and forty-five feet high (1 Kings 6:2). But other structures were added, along with courtyards, that made it very impressive. It took thousands of workers (1 Kings 5:13-16) seven years to finish the task (1 Kings 6:38), and it was one of the greatest buildings of the ancient world.
Upon its completion God showed his approval in two important ways. First, When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple (1 Kings 8:10-11).
This also happened at the tabernacle many years earlier. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35). In both cases this was clear and convincing proof of God’s approval.
Second, God showed his approval by sending fire to consume Solomon’s sacrifice (2 Chronicles 7:1), as he also did for Moses at the tabernacle (Leviticus 9:24). It was important for God’s people to know that the temple was pleasing to God, and that he wanted to be approached in this way.
Solomon’s temple stood for many years but was destroyed by the Babylonians (2 Kings 25:8-9), around 586 BC. Another temple was built in its place, but it was destroyed by the Romans a few decades after Christ. The problem with earthly temples is that they can be destroyed.
Likewise, Jesus said of himself, Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days (John 2:19). The temple of his body was destroyed on the cross, and his resurrection proved that God accepted his sacrifice. We no longer need a building to worship God, nor do we need to offer sacrifices. We come to God through faith in Jesus Christ, who is our temple and our sacrifice.
And because the church is united to Christ, it’s his temple on earth. As the glory of God filled the temple in the Old Testament, so Jesus gave his Spirit to the church on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). God is no longer found in a temple of stone, but among his gathered children.
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? (1 Corinthians 3:16), wrote Paul. And where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them (Matthew 18:20), said Jesus. Every Christian has the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19), and God’s Spirit is uniquely present whenever we gather for worship.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 82
1 Kings 10:1 When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.
If Sheba was in modern day Yemen, the trip was over twelve hundred miles. The queen came with her questions but also with a caravan of merchandize. When she heard Solomon’s wisdom, and saw his wealth, she was overwhelmed.
The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your people must be! (1 Kings 10:6-8), she said. Then she gave the king her treasure but, in return, Solomon gave her even more (1 Kings 10:10, 2 Chronicles 9:12).
The Queen of Sheba recognized Solomon’s wisdom, but many overlook the wisdom of Christ. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here (Matthew 12:42), said Jesus.
Even those who are naturally dull can become eternally wise by following Jesus Christ. Christ has become for us wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:30), wrote Paul. This is the highest wisdom there is and surpasses the wisdom of Solomon.
*****
1 Kings 11:1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women.
Solomon had wisdom from God but he didn’t always apply it to himself. Instead of following the pattern for marriage established at creation (Genesis 1:27), Solomon took many wives. This was a practice of kings to stabilize relationships with surrounding nations. When a king’s daughter was given to a foreign king, the two kingdoms were less likely to go to war.
1 Kings 11:2 They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.
One of the greatest threats to God’s people was losing their distinction through intermarriage. Even before they reached the Promised Land, some Israelite men were having sex with foreign women, and worshipping their gods (Numbers 25). God’s anger burned so fiercely that twenty-four thousand perished.
Solomon may’ve thought the command against intermarriage didn’t apply to him because, as the king, his situation was unique. This is a common way of thinking whenever we face temptation. Because our situation is unique, we think God will overlook our behavior, or make an exception for us. But God knows our situation is never unique.
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13), wrote Paul. God is willing to help, and would’ve helped Solomon too, if he was willing to obey.
1 Kings 11:2b Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.
Solomon took many wives for political reasons, but also for sexual pleasure. This was so important to him that he had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines (1 Kings 11:3). If Solomon slept with a different woman every night, it would take about three years to see each one again. He may have pleased himself but he denied most of them any hope of a meaningful relationship. It was a very selfish practice.
1 Kings 11:4 As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods.
Solomon’s heart didn’t turn to other gods all at once, but by degrees. At first he probably found the worship of foreign gods to be repulsive. But, for the sake of his wives, he was willing to put up with it. After many years, however, Solomon grew accustomed to the worship of foreign gods, and the situation seemed normal to him. With the passing of even more time, the worship of foreign gods not only seemed normal, but desirable. After all, shouldn’t everyone be allowed to worship according to their conscience?
Finally, the worship of foreign gods was not only good for others, but also good for Solomon. If the God of Israel had richly blessed him, perhaps the other gods would bless him even more. The human heart seldom turns away from God all at once, but usually by degrees.
1 Kings 11:5-8 He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. . . . Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
Solomon didn’t abandon God completely, but added other gods to his religion. This is not unusual. When different religions come into contact they often blend together in a process called syncretism.
Christians in Corinth were invited to eat at pagan temples and some accepted the invitation. But You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21), wrote Paul.
Many Christians read the Bible but also read their horoscope. They believe in heaven and hell, but also in reincarnation. I met a girl at a bookstore who referred to herself as a Christian Buddhist. This may be fashionable but it’s not Christianity. If we don’t limit our religion to the Bible it will contradict the Bible. Believers should always be on guard against syncretism.
1 Kings 11:9 The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.
Solomon grew up with the knowledge of God, and encountered God on two occasions (1 Kings 3:5, 9:2). This is a privilege given to few, and made Solomon’s guilt even worse. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked (Luke 12:48), said Jesus.
Encountering God is a gift from him, but it’s no guarantee against turning away. Many who’ve experienced God deeply in the past aren’t living for him now. It’s not enough to rely on the past; we must seek his face always (Psalm 105:4), wrote the Psalmist.
When we consider Solomon’s wisdom, and his encounters with God, we should be shocked by his apostasy and fear for our souls. If Solomon turned away from God, what might happen to us? [W]ork out your salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), wrote Paul. The Bible gives us enough assurance to be secure, but never enough to be careless.
1 Kings 11:13 I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.
Solomon led the nation to its peak but it was brief. Whenever God’s word contradicted his personal judgment, Solomon rejected God’s word and followed his personal judgment (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). This made him successful for a while but not for very long. God split the kingdom after he died and all his gains were lost. God’s work must be done God’s way in order to have lasting results.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 83
1 Kings 12:1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king.
After Solomon died, his son Rehoboam ruled in his place. His father’s success was financed through heavy taxation and the people were feeling oppressed. They hoped the installation of a new king would be an opportunity to negotiate something more agreeable.
1 Kings 12:2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this . . . he returned from Egypt.
Jeroboam was an important leader in Solomon’s labor force (1 Kings 11:28), and he received word from the prophet Ahijah that he’d rule over most of Israel (1 Kings 11:29-39). Solomon didn’t like this prophecy so he tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt (1 Kings 11:40). When Solomon died, Jeroboam returned to fulfill his destiny. He was a serious threat to Rehoboam.
1 Kings 12:4 [The people said to Rehoboam] Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten [it] and we will serve you.
Rehoboam promised to respond within three days, which would give him time to consult his advisors. Those who served his father encouraged the new king to answer the people favorably. If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants (1 Kings 12:7), they said.
These men understood that the purpose of power is to serve. [W]hoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave (Matthew 20:26-27), said Jesus. Rehoboam needed to serve the people if he wanted to succeed. But that’s not what he had in mind.
1 Kings 12:8 Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.
These young men weren’t familiar with the daily pain and misery of ordinary Israelites. They were children of privilege who wanted to live in the manner to which they had grown accustomed. Solomon was the greatest king they’d ever known and his authority was absolute. If Rehoboam appeared weak he might never recover. Instead of giving into the people, he should be stronger than his father.
1 Kings 12:13 The king answered the people harshly. . . . My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.
Scorpions seem to refer to a brutal kind of lash. Rehoboam’s policies would be harsher than his father’s, and the punishment for breaking them would also be worse. He wasn’t the kind of king who was willing to negotiate.
1 Kings 12:16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse’s son? . . . So the Israelites went home.
This was nothing short of catastrophic for Rehoboam and the nation. The glorious kingdom was now divided, north and south, never to be united again. Instead of one powerful nation, they became two weaker nations, less able to defend themselves. It was a breach that would never be healed.
Rehoboam was an inexperienced leader and apparently insecure. He viewed the challenge to his leadership as a threat which caused him to overreact. If he had listened to the people, and made a few concessions, the nation would’ve been saved. Instead of a weakness, his loving concern would’ve been a strength.
1 Kings 12:20 When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.
The prophecy given to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:29-39) was coming true, but it also had conditions. If you do whatever I command you and walk in obedience to me and do what is right in my eyes by obeying my decrees and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you (1 Kings 11:38). But Jeroboam wouldn’t be faithful to God, and things would turn out badly.
1 Kings 12:26 Jeroboam thought to himself, The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David.
The southern kingdom (Judah) and the northern kingdom (Israel) were politically distinct but shared a common religion. Since the temple was in Judah, faithful Israelites would travel there at least three times a year, as the law of God required (Exodus 23:17).
This shouldn’t have been a problem, but Jeroboam was convinced that a common religion would cause the Israelites to give their allegiance back to Judah, and he would be killed for treason. So, instead of trusting God, he changed the nation’s religion.
1 Kings 12:28-29 [Jeroboam] made two golden calves. He said to the people, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt. One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan.
Bethel and Dan were at the southern and northern ends of Israel, so the people wouldn’t have to go all the way to Jerusalem to worship. Jeroboam also appointed a priesthood, and planned a yearly festival. His religion was similar to the Jewish religion, but it wasn’t in the Bible. It was, in fact, idolatry.
Most of the northern kingdom followed Jeroboam, but not everyone. Some abandoned their property and went to live in Judah, so they could worship God according to his word (2 Chronicles 11:13-16). They’re like Christians who leave a church because the church has left the word of God. We are not free to worship God any way we choose, but only according to his word. The further we stray from the word of God, the further we stray from Christ.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 84
1 Kings 13:1 By the word of the Lord a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering.
Since the northern kingdom departed from biblical religion, God could’ve turned his back on them. Instead, he reached out to his people through a series of prophets. The first one isn’t named but is simply called a man of God.
As Jeroboam stood by the altar, the man of God from Judah began to speak. Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you (1 Kings 13:2).
This man risked his life by interrupting a religious service led by King Jeroboam. He mentioned a future king, named Josiah, who would demolish the altar Jeroboam built (2 Kings 23:15). Josiah ruled about three hundred years after Jeroboam, and did what the man of God foretold. Telling the future is easy for God because he knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10).
1 Kings 13:3 That same day the man of God gave a sign: This is the sign the Lord has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out.
To show that his distant prophecy would be fulfilled, the man of God foretold something that would happen that very day. But the man of God was being a nuisance, so Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar and said, Seize him! Immediately the hand he stretched out shriveled up, the altar split apart, and the ashes poured out—just as the prophet foretold.
The prophet was clearly speaking for God, so the king asked for his hand to be restored. As soon as the prophet prayed, the king’s hand was healed. After all this, we might expect the king to abandon his false religion and lead God’s people in true religion. Instead, he tried to bribe the man of God with a gift. If he could win the prophet’s support, it would add credibility to the king’s new religion.
To his many other sins Jeroboam added stubbornness. He determined his course of action and would continue at any cost. Even when God made his will clear, Jeroboam wouldn’t change.
If we condemn Jeroboam, however, we must also condemn ourselves, because there’s an obstinate streak in all of us. Even when God’s will is clear to us, we often go against it. All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people (Isaiah 65:2), said God. Jeroboam was wrong to be stubborn, and so are we sometimes.
1 Kings 13:11 Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day.
The old prophet’s sons seem to have been at the sacrifice and witnessed the events. They knew their father would be interested, so they quickly brought him the news. The old prophet wanted to meet the younger man of God, so he mounted his donkey and went after him. Then he invited him home to eat.
The younger man of God was hungry, and would’ve gone home with the old prophet, but God had told him earlier not to eat or drink in that place. The old prophet answered, I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord: Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water (1 Kings 13:18). But the old prophet was lying.
He probably wanted to spend time with the younger man of God and hear everything God was saying to him. Since everyone lies a little, what could possibly happen? The younger man of God believed the older prophet and went back to his house. But while they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet.
This is what the Lord says: You have defied the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors (1 Kings 13:21-22).
Many families owned a burial place but those who died away from home were usually buried where they died. The old prophet was telling the younger man of God that he wouldn’t make it home that day.
This is a very strange story but it reveals the low level of godliness even among the religious leaders. The king was leading a false religion, the old prophet was a liar, and the younger man of God allowed himself to be deceived to satisfy his appetite—all on the same day!
One of God’s best gifts to his people are religious leaders who are faithful to what God says. But even good religious leaders can fail both privately and publicly. Since the beginning, in fact, there’s only been one religious leader with a perfect record. I always do what pleases [my Father] (John 8:29), said Jesus. He’s the only religious leader who’s completely trustworthy.
1 Kings 13:23 When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him.
It must’ve been a strange parting. They both knew God and were able to hear his voice. The older prophet must’ve felt terrible, and the younger man of God must’ve felt foolish. He began the journey home but didn’t get very far before he was killed by a lion. The older prophet buried him and asked to be buried in the same place (1 Kings 13:31).
Perhaps the reason neither man is named is because they both fell short of what God required. [A]ll have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), wrote Paul. This is why we need to be saved. If the prophets fell short, how much more do we? Whoever hopes to get to heaven on their own will be very disappointed. But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Acts 2:21), said Peter.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 85
1 Kings 14:1 At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill.
If Abijah was Jeroboam’s firstborn son, he was also the crown prince. Jeroboam was so concerned for his son that he sent his wife to the prophet Ahijah, hoping for a good word from God. Ahijah was old and blind, but God was still using him. God told Ahijah that Jeroboam’s wife was on her way, and what she should tell her husband.
Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I raised you up from among the people and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes. You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have aroused my anger and turned your back on me (1 Kings 14:7-9).
Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel—slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone. Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds will feed on those who die in the country. . . . As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die (1 Kings 14:10-12).
[Furthermore] the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their ancestors and scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they aroused the Lord’s anger by making Asherah poles. And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit (1 Kings 14:15-16).
From Jeroboam we learn that one person can lead millions into sin. Jeroboam’s son died, and all the prophet’s other words were fulfilled in due time (1 Kings 15:25-30), including the nation’s dispersion. Since God holds us responsible for the sins we lead others to commit (Matthew 18:6), as well as our own sins, our guilt may have no limit. We should always keep in mind the affect our sin will have on others, as well as on ourselves.
We should also notice that leadership matters. Jeroboam led millions into sin, but Christ has led even more into righteousness. Jeroboam’s kingdom was dispersed, but Christ’s kingdom is being gathered from all over the world. Jeroboam’s kingdom was filled with disgrace, but Christ’s kingdom will be filled with honor. No matter what we’ve done in the past, we can be part of Christ’s kingdom if we’ll simply receive him as our Lord (Colossians 2:6). As goes the king, so goes the kingdom.
*****
1 Kings 14:25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem.
Rehoboam allowed evil to flourish in Judah (1 Kings 14:23-24), so God sent the king of Egypt to attack them. This is what the Lord says, You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak (2 Chronicles 12:5). God is under no obligation to protect those who abandon him.
When Rehoboam heard this, he humbled himself and said, The Lord is just (2 Chronicles 12:6). Then God softened the punishment and said, My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. They will, however, become subject to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands (2 Chronicles 12:7-8).
Rehoboam loved freedom so much that he wanted to be free from God. But when he was free from God, there was no one to protect him from King Shishak. So instead of serving the King of heaven, he had to serve the king of Egypt. That’s how it is with us.
If we serve God, he’ll protect us from the evil one (Matthew 6:13). But if we won’t serve God, there’s no one to protect us from the one who hates us most. Perfect freedom is serving the God who loved us enough to die for us. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36), said Jesus. Truest freedom is living the way God created us to live.
*****
1 Kings 16:15 Zimri reigned in Tirzah seven days.
Zimri had the shortest reign of all the kings of Israel. He began by killing the previous king, and taking the throne for himself. To reduce the odds of retaliation, he also killed the previous king’s extended family. But when General Omri heard what Zimri had done, he marched on the capital city. Sensing certain defeat, Zimri went into the royal palace, set it on fire, and perished in the flames.
Zimri thought it was better to die by fire, than to fall into the hands of Omri. He may’ve been right, but he wasn’t mindful of the flames of hell below, where the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:48), said Jesus. Zimri thought his suffering would be brief, only to discover that it will never end. Few people like the idea of hell, but it’s so important to Christianity that Jesus taught about it frequently. Jesus didn’t die to save us from a mild discomfort, but from the worst conceivable agony.
*****
1 Kings 16:23 Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned twelve years.
One of his greatest achievements was the purchase of a hill called Samaria, which became the capital city. It was centrally located and rose three hundred feet above the surrounding area. This made it difficult to attack, and helped stabilize the nation. In fact, Omri was so successful militarily that, many years later, Assyrian records still referred to Israel as the house of Omri.
In spite of his many achievements, the Bible gives little space to Omri, and concludes that he did evil in the eyes of the Lord (1 Kings 16:25). Omri reminds us that the judgment of history is nothing compared to the judgment of God. Omri was applauded by many in his day, but nobody cares today. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever (1 John 2:17), wrote John.
*****
1 Kings 16:29-30 Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him.
Ahab’s worst offense was leading the nation to worship Baal instead of God. He even built a temple to Baal in the capital city. Ahab did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him (1 Kings 16:33).
We’d expect God to pour out his wrath but, instead, he graciously sent his prophets. This is because God is patient with us, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. We ought to be amazed by the patience of God, but never put it to the test. Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning (1 Corinthians 15:34), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 86
1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.
Ahab and his wife Jezebel were making Baal worship the official religion of Israel. Rather than turn away from his people, God sent the prophet Elijah to turn them back to him. Elijah’s name means the Lord is my God, and that was the heart of his message.
To show his people the foolishness of serving Baal (the god of crops and fertility) God sent a drought that would last three and a half years (James 5:17). Most people can live a few weeks without food, but only a few days without water. God can get our attention anytime by turning off the water. Whenever we take a drink of God’s water, we should thank him for the rain.
1 Kings 17:2-4 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.
Elijah would have to hide for the next few years because of the king’s wrath. God sent him to a brook that would flow for some time, and commanded the ravens to feed him. Twice a day they brought Elijah bread and meat, and he drank water from the brook (1 Kings 17:6). God can provide for his people even in difficult times. Regardless of economic conditions, we should always look to God as our provider.
1 Kings 17:8-9 Then the word of the Lord came to him: Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.
After the brook dried up, God sent Elijah to a town outside the boarders of Israel. There he saw a widow gathering sticks, and asked her for bread and water. She was so poor, however, that she was preparing her final meal, so she and her son could eat it and die.
Elijah said to her, Do not be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son (1 Kings 17:13).
The prophet’s request seems selfish at first. Would he really deny a poor widow and her son part of their final meal in order to feed himself? Not actually. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land (1 Kings 17:14), he said.
All the widow had was a little flour and oil, but Elijah assured her that God would replenish it until the drought was over. She obeyed the prophet’s word, and God kept his promise. Her food supply never ran out (1 Kings 17:15).
We too should give to God while hoping to receive from him. Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine (Proverbs 3:9-10), says Proverbs.
God is generous with us, and wants us to be generous with him. Giving to God acknowledges that he is the source of all we have, and that we trust him for the future. Regardless how little we have, we can always give some away.
*****
1 Kings 17:17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill.
This would be a concern to any parent but, since the boy was her only child, the situation was even more serious. And because she was a widow, her son was her only hope of support in old age. But the child’s condition grew worse and he died. She said to Elijah, What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son? (1 Kings 17:18).
The woman’s reply is interesting for two reasons. First, she blamed Elijah for the death of her son. Since God is over everything, and Elijah represented God, the death of her son was Elijah’s fault. Her logic wasn’t fair to Elijah but, when people are angry at God, they may lash out at his ministers.
The woman’s reply is also interesting because she was reminded of her sin. We don’t know what her sin was, but it must’ve been serious if she thought it was related to the death of her son. David’s sin with Bathsheba caused the death of their son (2 Samuel 12:14), so she may have been right. But probably not.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John. God punished Jesus for our sins, so that he could look with favor on us. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Jeremiah 31:34), said God.
Since we never know infallibly what God is doing, it’s not always wise to connect particular suffering with any particular sin. It’s better to confess all our sins (1 John 1:9), and focus on God’s love for us in Christ Jesus.
1 Kings 17:19 Give me your son, Elijah replied.
Elijah took the boy into a room, where he could earnestly pray for him, and the boy’s life returned. What a joy for his mother to receive her son alive again!
This miracle anticipates the raising of the widow’s son by Jesus (Luke 7:11-17), and the general resurrection at the end of the age. [F]or a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned (John 5:28-29), said Jesus.
It’s not enough to think that our souls will go to heaven or hell when we die. That is certainly true, but the day is coming when all the dead will be reunited with their bodies forever. The lost will suffer in their bodies forever, and the righteous will flourish in their bodies forever.
The pleasure and pain we experience now reminds us of the pleasure or pain we’ll experience then. This is terrible news for the lost, but wonderful news for the righteous. [Y]ou will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand (Psalm 16:11), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 87
1 Kings 18:1 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.
The land was parched, because of the draught, but the nation hadn’t returned to God. God was about to make it rain again, but he wanted the people to know that it was from him, not from Baal. So Elijah challenged the king to meet him on Mount Carmel with hundreds of false prophets and many others. We should imagine thousands of people who followed a false religion, and Elijah as the only one speaking for God.
Here we see that truth is not determined by majority opinion. Most people have no reason for their beliefs except that others believe them too. They go along with the majority, believing the majority is usually right. But God alone is always right. If everyone in the world disagrees with God, then everyone in the world is wrong. It’s not easy to stand with God against the majority, but Elijah was a man of character.
1 Kings 18:21 Elijah went before the people and said, How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.
The Israelites had a long history of believing in God, but also believing in other gods. But the other gods weren’t helping very much, and now God’s people were wondering what to do. Elijah told them to stop wavering and make up their minds.
Christians also waver between serving God and other possibilities. We accept Jesus as Lord, but we also accept the values of our culture, even when they disagree with Jesus. Instead of following the Lord wholeheartedly, we might follow him halfheartedly, or even less. We’re like someone with a foot in two boats. Unless we make up our minds, we’ll end up in the water. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do (James 1:8), wrote James.
1 Kings 18:22-23 Then Elijah said to them, I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us.
To demonstrate who the real God was, Elijah proposed a sacrifice. He and the prophets of Baal would each prepare a bull, put it on wood, but not start a fire. Then they’d pray, and whatever deity answered with fire was God.
The prophets of Baal went first. They called on Baal and danced around the altar from morning until noon. When there was no response, Elijah began to taunt them. Shout louder! he said. Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.
So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. . . . But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention (1 Kings 18:27-29).
Then Elijah built an altar with stones, and dug a trench around it. He cut up the bull, laid it on the wood, and had water poured on the sacrifice until the trench was full.
Then he offered a simple prayer, and the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God! (1 Kings 18:38-39).
This was an awesome display of God’s power which seemed to win the day. God revealed himself so clearly that it was hard not to believe. We might wish that God would do this more often but, ordinarily, God calls us to believe in him due to his revelation in nature, Scripture, conscience and Christ. The evidence is conclusive, so there’s no excuse for not believing (Romans 1:20).
1 Kings 18:40 Then Elijah commanded them, Seize the prophets of Baal. Do not let anyone get away! They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.
This may seem a little harsh, but it was actually less than what the law of God required. The full penalty would’ve required the destruction of entire towns (Deuteronomy 13:12-18).
It’s a serious thing to teach a false religion, and God hates it. To lead anyone away from the truth of God is no longer a capital crime, but it’s still a serious sin. If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea (Matthew 18:6), said Jesus.
1 Kings 18:41 Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
God had promised rain (1 Kings 18:1), and Elijah knew it was coming (1 Kings 18:41), so he began to pray. Go and look toward the sea, he told his servant. And he went up and looked. There is nothing there, he said (1 Kings 18:43).
Seven times Elijah told him to go back and look and, on the seventh time, he saw a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising out of the sea. Then the sky grew black with clouds, the wind picked up, and a heavy rain began to fall.
Here we learn the importance of prayer for bringing about the will of God. God does’t need our prayers but likes to use them to bring about what he has promised. God’s will is to bring about his kingdom, so Jesus taught us to pray, your kingdom come (Matthew 6:10). God could bring his kingdom without our prayers, but he prefers to use our prayers to bring his will to pass. Whenever we understand the will of God, we should pray for God to do it.
1 Kings 18:46 The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
Jezreel was about sixteen miles away but, empowered by God, Elijah ran ahead of Ahab’s chariot. He must’ve been thrilled over the defeat of Baal in the presence of the king and thousands of others. Now God was sending rain to show his approval. God was using Elijah to turn the nation around. It was the finest moment of his life so far.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 88
1 Kings 19:1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
Since a triumph like this could only come from God, Elijah probably assumed that Queen Jezebel would come over to God’s side. The King and Queen would lead the nation in a revival, and true worship would be restored. It could even spread to the ends of he earth. Elijah must have been amazed at what God was doing through him.
1 Kings 19:2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.
This was the opposite of what Elijah was expecting. The demonstration of God’s power and blessing were so obvious they couldn’t be denied. Elijah should’ve become an advisor to the king and queen as they reformed the nation. Instead, the queen was determined to kill him, just as she had killed other prophets of God (1 Kings 18:4).
We might assume that people want the truth about God, and all we have to do is tell them. The heart is so corrupt, however, that we’d rather suppress the truth by [our] wickedness (Romans 1:18) than believe in the God of the Bible. That’s what Jezebel did, and that’s what we do by nature. Sinners don’t want a holy God who punishes sin and makes demands on them. That’s a truth we’d rather suppress.
1 Kings 19:3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.
There wasn’t much else he could do. When you fight with all you have, but it’s not enough, all you can do is run. Instead of being the winner, Elijah became the loser. The ecstasy of victory became the agony of defeat.
The battle for truth won’t be won until Christ returns. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against . . . the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12), wrote Paul. Satan won’t give up and neither should we. God will help us win some battles but, like Elijah, we may have to run for our lives sometimes.
1 Kings 19:4 [Elijah] came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die.
This is the prophet at his lowest. He’d been running for days, to escape the wrath of Jezebel, and was exhausted. The trauma of his struggle was so great, in fact, that it took away his will to live. I have had enough, Lord . . . Take my life, he said.
Godly leaders aren’t exempt from feelings of despair. Moses (Numbers 11:15), Job (Job 6:8-9) and Jonah (Jonah 4:3) also prayed for death, but God had a future for each of them. As long as God keeps us alive, he has a reason for us to live.
1 Kings 19:5-6 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, Get up and eat. He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
This happened a second time and, strengthened by the food, Elijah traveled another forty days until he reached Mount Sinai. That’s where God met with Moses and established his covenant with Israel (Exodus 19-20). Elijah was hoping to find God there as well.
1 Kings 19:9 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: What are you doing here, Elijah?
Elijah poured out his complaint to God, and the Lord displayed his power. [A] great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:11-12).
God wasn’t working in the dramatic way Elijah longed for, but he was still speaking. If Elijah would pay attention, he could still be used by God. This is not an invitation to listen to the voices in our heads, but a reminder to listen to what God has said in his word. We might wish for mighty acts, but God’s word is always mighty. Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:29), wrote Jeremiah. As long we are listening, we can still be used by God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 89
1 Kings 21:1 Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite.
Naboth lived in Jezreel and owned a vineyard that was close to Ahab’s palace. Ahab wanted to buy Naboth’s vineyard to use as a vegetable garden, and was willing to pay whatever Naboth asked, or to give him a better vineyard. But Naboth wanted to keep the vineyard in his family since that’s what God required. The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers (Leviticus 25:23), said God.
God gave the land to Israel by tribes (Joshua 13-21), and family property was to be passed down from generation to generation. Naboth could obey God, or sell his vineyard, but he couldn’t do both. It took a measure of courage, but he said Yes to God, and No to the king.
1 Kings 21:4 So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors. He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat.
It’s inappropriate for kings to pout but that’s what Ahab did. He couldn’t have what he wanted so he lay on his bed and sulked. When his wicked wife, Jezebel, discovered the reason for his mood she said, Cheer up. I’ll get you the vineyard (1 Kings 21:7).
Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians (1 Kings 16:31), so she had an idea of how kings should rule. Pagan kings often took whatever land they wanted because, theoretically, it all belonged to them. Jezebel had no concern for God, or Naboth, but only for what she wanted. So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, placed his seal on them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city with him (1 Kings 21:8).
Jezebel wrote that Naboth should be accused of cursing God and the king, and then be stoned to death. The sentence was carried out, and Naboth’s sons were also killed (2 Kings 9:26), to eliminate their claim on the land.
1 Kings 21:15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, Get up and take possession of the vineyard.
But that very day God sent the prophet Elijah to meet Ahab at his newly acquired vineyard. And Elijah came with a word from God. I will wipe out your descendants and cut off from Ahab every last male in Israel . . . . [and] dogs will devour Jezebel (1 Kings 21:21-23), he said.
Ahab killed Naboth and his sons so, God would kill Ahab and his sons—and dogs would eat his wife. Sometime later Ahab’s sons were slaughtered, and their heads were put into baskets (2 Kings 10:7). Jezebel was thrown from an upper room and trampled to death by horses. [W]hen they went out to bury her, they found nothing except her skull, her feet and her hands (2 Kings 9:35). The rest was eaten by dogs (2 Kings 9:36), just as the prophet foretold.
Naboth suffered injustice but his story isn’t over. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:10), said Jesus. Naboth will probably have a better vineyard in God’s kingdom than he ever had before. He’ll show us around and tell us more about Ahab and Jezebel, but they won’t be there to talk about him. We may suffer injustice now, but Christ will make it right in the age to come.
*****
1 Kings 22:3 The king of Israel had said to his officials, Don’t you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?
Ramoth Gilead was about twenty-eight miles east of the Jordan River, and rightly belonged to the nation of Israel. It was taken over by the Arameans and Ahab wanted to take it back. He requested help from Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, who agreed go with him. But Jehoshaphat wanted to consult the Lord, so Ahab gathered four hundred prophets, who all agreed that God would give them victory. Zedekiah, son of Kenaanah, made iron horns declaring, This is what the Lord says: With these you will gore the Arameans until they are destroyed (1 Kings 22:11).
But Jehoshaphat wasn’t convinced. He thought these prophets were only telling the king what he wanted to hear, so he asked for a more reliable prophet. Then Ahab called for Micaiah, son of Imlah, who was encouraged to agree with what the other prophets said. But Micaiah was a man of conviction who only cared what God said. I saw all Israel scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd (1 Kings 22:17), he declared. In other words, the king would be killed and his army would be scattered.
1 Kings 22:24 Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah went up and slapped Micaiah in the face.
To be publicly slapped in the face is very insulting, and Micaiah may have blushed. Then King Ahab had Micaiah thrown in prison until he returned from battle. If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken through me, said Micaiah. Then he added, Mark my words, all you people!
1 Kings 22:29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, wanted to hear from a true prophet. But, when he did, he ignored the prophet’s words and went to battle anyway. This is how many people listen to sermons. They want to know what God says, not to obey him, but to see what he thinks about their plans.
1 Kings 22:30 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will enter the battle in disguise, but you wear your royal robes.
Ahab was concerned that Micaiah’s prophecy might come true so, instead of wearing his royal robes, he went to battle in disguise. King Jehoshaphat agreed to wear the royal robes, and nearly died as a result.
Meanwhile, someone drew his bow at random and hit the king of Israel between the sections of his armor (1 Kings 22:34). Ahab told his chariot driver to get him out of the battle, but he remained propped up in his chariot so his soldiers wouldn’t lose heart. The battle raged all day long, but the king’s bleeding wouldn’t stop. That evening Ahab died, just as Micaiah foretold.
The random shot of an arrow wasn’t random to God. An inch to the left or the right and the arrow would’ve struck the king’s armor. But God directed the arrow to its mark so the king would die as he decreed. No amount of protection can save a man whom God has decided to kill.
Ahab was one of the wickedest kings Israel ever had. Along with his wicked wife, Jezebel, he led God’s people to worship Baal. He partly believed in God, but never truly turned to him. The purpose of God’s patience is to lead us to repentance (Romans 2:4). But if we won’t repent, all that is left is judgment.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 90
2 Kings 1:2 Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself.
Ahaziah, the son of Ahab and Jezebel, ruled the northern kingdom of Israel from 853 to 852 BC, and did evil in the eyes of the Lord (1 Kings 22:52). He fell from an upper room and was injured so severely that it wasn’t clear if he would live or die. But, instead of turning to God, he sent messengers to consult with the god of Ekron, to see if he would recover.
Some people respond to hardship by turning to God, others by turning away from him, and others by ignoring him. On one floor of a hospital there may be someone who’s praising God, another who’s cursing God, and another who’s ignoring God. Suffering doesn’t change our view of God so much as it reveals it. Ahaziah thought the God of Israel was irrelevant, so he didn’t bother to consult him.
2 Kings 1:3 But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Go up and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?
The king’s messengers didn’t make it the few days journey to Ekron, because God sent the prophet Elijah with the answer to Ahaziah’s question. It seemed that God was reaching out to Ahaziah, even though Ahaziah wasn’t reaching out to God.
2 Kings 1:5 When the messengers returned to the king, he asked them, Why have you come back?
The messengers weren’t expected for several days, so the king was surprised to see them. They explained their meeting with Elijah and gave the king his answer: You will certainly die! (2 Kings 1:6). It wasn’t the answer Ahaziah wanted since he was still in his early twenties. But long life isn’t promised to anyone—only certain death. [P]eople are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:27), says Hebrews.
At least Ahaziah could use his remaining time to prepare to meet the Almighty. [I]f someone who is wicked repents, that person’s former wickedness will not bring condemnation (Ezekiel 33:12), said God. This was an opportunity that could lead to eternal life. But the wicked often refuse to repent even when they’re dying. So, instead of turning to God, Ahaziah sent fifty men to arrest Elijah.
2 Kings 1:9-10 The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, Man of God, the king says, Come down! Elijah answered the captain, If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men! Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.
Word of this got back to Ahaziah but he was unfazed. He sent another fifty men and got the same results. Then he sent another fifty men but the captain approached the prophet differently. He fell on his knees and begged Elijah for his life, and for the lives of his soldiers. So Elijah spared their lives and went to see the king. Then the king died just as Elijah predicted.
It’s unfortunate that a hundred soldiers had to die because the king was stubborn, but people often suffer because of their leaders. This is true for nations, organizations and families. [God] punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents (Exodus 34:7), recorded Moses.
Ahaziah was the wicked son of Ahab. If Ahab had followed God, and taught his children well, his son’s future might’ve been different. But, since Ahab rejected God, and worshipped a false god, that’s what his son did too. Everything we do, whether good or evil, ripples out to those around us.
*****
2 Kings 2:1 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.
Some time earlier God told Elijah to anoint Elisha to succeed him as a prophet (1 Kings 19:16). When Elijah found him, Elisha was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen (twenty-four in all) which shows he was a person of wealth.
Elijah threw his cloak around Elisha to show his prophetic ministry was being passed on to him. Elisha kissed his parents goodbye and prepared a feast by slaughtering his oxen and cooking them on his plowing equipment. Then he became Elijah’s servant.
This reminds us that the call of God is more important than anything else in life. When Jesus called Matthew from his tax collecting business, Matthew got up, left everything and followed him (Luke 5:28).
We may have to leave everything to follow Christ, but probably not. We can serve by preaching his word, raising children, waiting tables, or any legitimate occupation. Thinking of our job as a way to serve Christ elevates it to the highest possible level.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 91
2 Kings 2:2 Elijah said to Elisha, Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel. But Elisha said, As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.
Elisha was aware that God would soon take Elijah away and was determined to stay by his side. Elijah may’ve wanted to be alone with God, but Elisha was determined to be a witness. So they went together to see the company of the prophets (2 Kings 2:3) at Bethel and Jericho. These were probably religious communities that looked to Elijah for leadership during this time of apostasy. Elijah was stopping by to say farewell.
2 Kings 2:6 Then Elijah said to him, Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.
Again Elisha refused, and they walked together to the Jordan River, followed by fifty men from the company of the prophets. When they got to the river, Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground (2 Kings 2:8).
This was an important miracle for Elijah’s disciples to see because it put Elijah in the same category as Joshua who also parted the Jordan River (Joshua 3:9-17). It also identified him with Moses who parted the Red Sea (Exodus 14:15-22). They could be confident the instruction they received from Elijah was truly from God.
The religion of the Bible is not only theological but also historical. More than mere assertions, it tells of real events with real witnesses. The fifty men who observed Elijah’s final miracle would be enough to overcome any unbelief the religious community may’ve had. They would also be emboldened to share their faith.
The ministry of Jesus Christ was also authenticated by miracles done before many witnesses. Some people are willing to die for what they believe is true, but few are willing to die for what they know is false. The disciples were in a position to know if Jesus was a fake, and none of them believed that. They saw his miracles and were willing to die for the truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (Matthew 14:33).
2 Kings 2:9-10 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you? Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit, Elisha replied. You have asked a difficult thing, Elijah said, yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.
To carry out his ministry, Elisha wanted twice the spiritual power that Elijah had. Elijah established the condition that Elisha would have to see his departure in order to receive his request. But he didn’t rebuke Elisha for wanting such a thing.
Likewise, your Father [will] give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13), said Jesus. By paying attention to Christ, and asking for more of his Spirit, we too can do the work of our Master. [B]e filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), said Paul. And, apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5), said Jesus. Effective ministry can only take place with the help of the Holy Spirit.
2 Kings 2:11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
In one of the most dramatic scenes in the Bible, the prophet was taken into heaven by a chariot of fire drawn by horses of fire. Elijah was one of only two people in the Old Testament who were taken into heaven without dying. The other was Enoch, who walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away (Genesis 5:24).
Elijah and Enoch remind us of what will happen to believers when Jesus Christ returns. [W]e who are still alive and are left will be caught up . . . in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17), wrote Paul. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other (Matthew 24:31), said Jesus. Christians should live like birds on a branch, ready to fly away at any moment.
2 Kings 2:13 Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.
This was the same cloak that Elijah had put on Elisha when he was first called to the prophetic ministry (1 Kings 19:19). It was also the cloak that Elijah just used to part the Jordan River (2 Kings 2:8). As Elijah was going into heaven he dropped the cloak for Elisha. After seeing his master go into heaven, and recovering his cloak, Elisha promptly used it.
2 Kings 2:14 He took the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and struck the water with it. Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah? he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.
Elisha’s first miracle assured him (and others) that The spirit of Elijah [was] resting on Elisha (2 Kings 2:15). The passing of Elijah’s cloak symbolized the succession of ministry. Elisha was now the lead prophet of Israel, and would do even more miracles than Elijah.
*****
2 Kings 2:23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered at him.
The boys were probably in their teens and there were at least forty-two of them (2 Kings 2:24). They were a physical threat to Elisha and were clearly disrespectful. Get out of here, baldy! they said. Get out of here, baldy! (2 Kings 2:23b).
Elisha was either going bald or had shaved his head. Either way, the boys were insulting a man of God and, therefore, God himself. So Elisha called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys (2 Kings 2:24).
It’s not clear if they lived or died, but youthfulness is no excuse for wickedness. God knows that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21), and he called these youth to account. Not all young people are equally wicked but there are no innocent youth. The most vile adults on earth began as beautiful babies.
A church was having a service for parents to dedicate their children to God. Someone asked if they could pin white roses on the children to symbolize their purity. The pastor said they could use any color rose they wanted as long as it was black. Children need to repent and follow Jesus Christ as soon as they are able, or they too will come under his wrath (John 3:36).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 92
2 Kings 3:5 [T]he king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
For some time the Moabites were forced to pay a yearly tax to Israel of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams (2 Kings 3:4). When Israel’s king died, however, the king of Moab asserted his independence by refusing to pay the tax.
Joram, the new king of Israel, set out at once to subdue the Moabites. He recruited the kings of Judah and Edom to go with him but, on their way across the desert, these three armies ran out of water. They were in serious danger when they consulted the prophet Elisha, who assured them of God’s help.
For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink (2 Kings 3:17). The following morning the water flowed until all the land was filled. But God was doing even more.
When the Moabites saw the water on the reddish soil, in the light of the morning sun, it looked like blood to them. They thought the armies had turned on each other and filled the land with their blood. They rushed to the plunder, only to be slaughtered by the Israelites, who were very much alive. Israel then advanced to conquerer many towns.
2 Kings 3:26-28 When the king of Moab saw that the battle had gone against him . . . . he took his firstborn son, who was to succeed him as king, and offered him as a sacrifice on the city wall. The fury against Israel was great; they withdrew and returned to their own land.
The conclusion to this story is completely unexpected. The Israelites were victorious until the king of Moab sacrificed his son to a pagan god. Then his army rallied and Israel was forced to retreat. Moab’s god seemed to defeat the God of Israel, and Moab remained independent.
This was not the desired outcome but it gives credibility to the whole account. If the story was fictitious it would have a different ending. By including the embarrassing facts, the writer gives us reason to believe the whole story, including God’s supply of water in the desert.
This story is also supported by an artifact known as the Moabite Stone. It’s an engraved rock about four feet high, two feet wide, and two inches thick. It has a curved top and is housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The inscription includes an account of this battle including Moab’s victory. It mentions other people and places in the Bible, and belongs to this exact period of time. It’s widely received as corroborating documentation of the biblical record from the king of Moab himself.
The Bible authenticates this story by including the embarrassing facts, and the king of Moab authenticated this story by writing it in stone. The Bible is reliable in all its parts because it is the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16).
*****
2 Kings 4:1 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.
This dear woman was in a difficult situation. In spite of her husband’s commitment to God, he hadn’t prospered financially. His devotion, in fact, may’ve kept him from earning as much as could. Or he may’ve been so generous that he became poor. Then he found himself in debt, and died prematurely, leaving his family in financial distress.
All this woman had in her house was a little jar of olive oil, so Elisha told her to borrow as many empty jars as she could. Then she was to go into her house and pour the oil from her little jar into all the other jars until they were all full.
2 Kings 4:6-7 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, Bring me another one. But he replied, There is not a jar left. Then the oil stopped flowing. She went and told the man of God, and he said, Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.
God knows the burden of crushing debt and is able to deliver us. The fault may belong to us, or to someone else, or it may be circumstantial. In any case, we should pray for God’s help and do all that we can to pay our debts.
But there’s another debt we can never repay, and that’s our debt of sin. Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48), said Jesus. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them (James 4:17), wrote James. Every bad thing we do, and every good thing we fail to do, puts us further into God’s debt.
This is the problem the gospel is meant to solve. What we couldn’t do for ourselves, Jesus did for us. We owed a debt we couldn’t pay; he paid a debt he didn’t owe. As the oil was poured out to pay the widow’s debt, so the blood of Christ was poured out to pay our debt of sin. Instead of being in debt forever, Christ has made us eternally rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).
*****
2 Kings 4:8 One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat.
The woman and her husband built a guest room for Elisha, but all was not well. She was childless, and he was old. It was only a matter of time before the wealthy woman became a lonely widow. Elisha informed the woman that she would give birth and, within a year, she was holding a baby. But, a few years later, the boy developed a headache and died. So Elisha went to his room to raise him from the dead.
2 Kings 4:34-35 Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out on him, the boy’s body grew warm. Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.
Resurrections aren’t very common in the Bible, but they’re important because they anticipate the general resurrection at the end of the age (John 5:28-29). Jesus raised three people from the dead, and even raised himself (John 10:18). The one who believes in me will live, even though they die (John 11:25), he said.
At the moment of death, all who believe in Jesus Christ go to be with him in heaven. [We] prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8), wrote Paul. But this is an in-between stage before we are raised physically. [H]e will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body (Philippians 3:21), wrote Paul again.
This is a wonderful promise for anyone who’s ever wanted a glorious body. How strong do you want to be? How smart do you want to be? How attractive do you want to be? How well do you want to sing or dance? We believe in the resurrection of the body and everlasting life in the age to come (Apostles Creed, paraphrased).
Reflection and Review
Lesson 93
2 Kings 5:1 Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram.
In the political order, Naaman was probably second only to the king. He was a valiant man and highly regarded because of his many victories. But even the strongest are frail and, one day, Naaman noticed a patch of skin that was different from the rest. He may’ve treated it with balm and hoped it would go away but it didn’t. The condition grew worse, in fact, and began to spread. Naaman likely went to an expert who confirmed his deepest concern. It was leprosy. This meant the end of Naaman’s career, and even his family life, since he’d probably have to live in isolation until he died.
2 Kings 5:2 Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife.
It was a terrible day when this little girl was captured, and she must’ve wondered why God allowed it to happen. But nothing happens by accident, and God had important work for her. When she learned of Naaman’s condition, she told his wife the prophet Elisha could heal him. Her child-like faith seems simplistic, but God would use her witness in a very big way. Whenever bad things happen to us, we should be alert to how God may want to use us.
2 Kings 5:4 Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said.
The words of a little girl from Israel were now the subject of conversation between a king and his commander. Naaman’s situation was desperate and, since there was no hope for him in Aram, the king encouraged Naaman to go to Israel. He also gave him a letter to Israel’s king.
Some people only seek God when they’re desperate, but seeking God is never a bad idea. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13), said God. Our prayers won’t always be answered the way we want, but God will always do what is best. And nothing in the world compares to having God himself.
2 Kings 5:6 The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.
Israel's king was alarmed. Miracles aren’t available on demand so, by expecting a miracle, the king of Aram seemed to be starting a fight. But Elisha wasn’t concerned at all. Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel (2 Kings 5:8), he said. So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house (2 Kings 5:9).
This was an important moment for Naaman. He came a long way and his hopes were high. He even imagined what would happen next. Elisha would wave his hand over the spot, call on God, and cure him of the leprosy (2 Kings 5:11). But that didn’t happen.
Elisha didn’t even come to the door. His messenger simply told Naaman to wash in the Jordan seven times. Naaman was so insulted that he left in a rage and mocked the Jordan River. But his servants calmed him down and he went to the Jordan and did what he was told. When he came out, his skin was completely restored.
God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble (James 4:6), wrote James. If Naaman remained proud, he wouldn’t have received a thing. But, when he humbled himself, and obeyed Elisha, God gave him what he wanted. Whoever wants to receive from God will be helped by a little humility.
2 Kings 5:15 Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.
Naaman was a changed man. He wasn’t just healed; he was converted. He confessed that Israel’s God existed, and that all other gods did not. This was a bold profession of faith but Naaman went even further. [P]lease accept a gift, he said. He had 750 pounds of silver, 150 pounds of gold, and ten sets of clothing (2 Kings 5:5). This was an extreme amount of wealth, but seemed like very little compared to his life.
2 Kings 5:16 The prophet answered, As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing. And even though Naaman urged him, he refused.
Elisha could have used the money to build a school, a house, or any number of things. But he refused to accept it because he didn’t earn it. God did the miracle, not Elisha. He may’ve also feared that Naaman would think his motives were mixed. You cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24), said Jesus.
Success in ministry isn’t determined by income, but by faithfulness. Christian ministers should be paid (1 Corinthians 9:14), but should be careful to handle financial matters with complete integrity, so they don’t discredit the gospel.
2 Kings 5:17 [I] will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord.
As Naaman thought about his future, he resolved never to sacrifice to pagan gods again. But he had a problem. Part of his royal duty was to escort the king of Aram to a pagan temple and bow down. For this he wanted forgiveness. Go in peace, Elisha said (1 Kings 5:19).
This was quite a concession in light of the second commandment. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything . . . . You shall not bow down to them (Exodus 20:4-5). But Elisha’s consent seems to imply God’s consent as well. If so, it shows God’s understanding toward those who want to follow him, even if they do so imperfectly.
He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust (Psalm 103:9-14), wrote David.
2 Kings 5:19-20 After Naaman had traveled some distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him.
Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, was astonished that Elisha declined a fortune, without a second thought. Surely it was meant to be a blessing for their many years of faithful service! So Gehazi went after Naaman and requested a gift, which Naaman was happy to give. But when Gehazi returned, Elisha said to him, Naaman’s leprosy will cling to you and to your descendants forever (1 Kings 5:17). Gehazi put money ahead of God, and it cost him everything.
Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul. Money is so powerful that people will do almost anything for more of it, even at the cost of their souls.
One man stole a bag of coins and put it into his backpack. To avoid the police he jumped in a river and tried to swim to the other side. But the coins weighed more than he thought, and he sunk to the bottom and died. First he got the money, then the money got him. That’s what happens to everyone who puts money ahead of God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 94
2 Kings 6:2 Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.
Elisha’s disciples wanted to build a meeting place near the Jordan River. As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. Oh no, my lord! he cried out. It was borrowed! (2 Kings 6:5). Elisha threw a stick near where the axhead fell, and it floated to the surface. It was an amazing recovery.
This miracle violates the laws of nature, but that’s what miracles do. It was no more difficult for God to make the axhead rise in the water, than for Jesus Christ to walk on the water (John 6:16-24). Violating the laws of nature isn’t a challenge for God, since he created the laws of nature, and can pause them whenever he likes.
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2 Kings 6:8 Now the king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers, he said, I will set up my camp in such and such a place.
But every time he set up his camp, the prophet Elisha informed the king of Israel where the king of Aram was staying. The king of Aram thought one of his officers might be an enemy spy, but then he learned the problem was Elisha. So, during the night, the king of Aram sent his soldiers to surround the town where Elisha was staying. The next morning, Elisha’s servant saw the town surrounded, and feared for his life.
2 Kings 6:16 Don’t be afraid, the prophet answered. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.
Then Elisha prayed that his servant’s eyes would be opened and, when they were, he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:17). Elisha wasn’t afraid of enemy soldiers because he saw heavenly soldiers. There’s always more to life than meets the eye.
Angelic armies gave courage to Elisha, and also to Jesus Christ at the time of his arrest. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? (Matthew 26:53). A Roman legion could be as many as six thousand soldiers, so Jesus was claiming access to over seventy-two thousand angels.
Not only that, but angels watch over believers as well. Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14), asks Hebrews. God can protect us himself, of course, but he also likes to use angels. Whenever we’re afraid we can ask God to send angels to protect us.
2 Kings 6:18 As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, Strike this army with blindness. So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked.
Then Elisha led them to the King of Israel, who suggested killing them. But Elisha told the king to give them food instead. So he prepared a great feast for them, and after they had finished eating and drinking, he sent them away, and they returned to their master. So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory (2 Kings 6:23).
This was a strange way to settle a war but it worked. If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink (Romans 12:20), wrote Paul. Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you (Luke 6:27), said Jesus. If you show kindness to your enemies, they’ll find it harder to oppose you.
*****
2 Kings 6:24 Some time later, Ben-Hadad king of Aram mobilized his entire army and marched up and laid siege to Samaria.
The capital city of Israel was under siege and the famine was causing such hunger that people were eating their children. The God of Elisha did miracles in the past but where was he now? May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of Elisha . . . remains on his shoulders today! (2 Kings 6:31), said the king.
Widespread hunger was making the king angry at God but, since God was out of reach, he directed his anger at God’s representative. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God (Romans 8:7), wrote Paul. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you (John 15:20), said Jesus. We shouldn’t be surprised when God’s enemies lash out at his people.
2 Kings 6:32 Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him.
Israel’s king arrived with an officer ready to remove Elisha’s head. But his life was spared because Elisha predicted relief the following day. When the officer doubted the prophet’s word, Elisha said, You will see it with your own eyes . . . but you will not eat any of it! (2 Kings 7:2).
The next morning four Israelite men decided to surrender. But when they got to the enemy’s camp they found it abandoned. God caused the Arameans to hear the sound of horses and chariots the previous night. They thought Israel had hired foreign armies so they ran for their lives and left their supplies behind. When word got back to the city, the people ran out and found more than enough for everyone. The king’s officer saw it with his eyes, but was trampled to death by the people. The prophet’s word to the officer was fulfilled, despite his unbelief.
Christians can also be prone to unbelief even while reading the Bible. How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! (Luke 24:25), said Jesus. No one has ever had greater confidence in the Bible than Jesus Christ (Luke 16:17), and this should be true of his people.
Christians believe the Bible, in all its parts, because that’s what Jesus believed. Whoever doesn’t believe the Bible in all its parts thinks they know better than Jesus. Anyone who leads us away from the Bible leads us away from Christ. Doubting the Bible is never wise; according to Christ it is foolish.
*****
2 Kings 9:6 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anoint you king over the Lord’s people Israel.
Elisha sent a young prophet to anoint Jehu as the new king of Israel. Almost at once, Jehu sought to eliminate Baal worship from the nation. He pretended to host a sacrifice to Baal, and summoned every prophet, priest, and servant of Baal to attend. When they crowded into Baal’s temple, Jehu commanded his guards to kill them, and not one escaped. The temple was then torn down and it became a public toilet. The Lord said to Jehu . . . you have done well in accomplishing what is right in my eyes (2 Kings 10:30).
God’s approval of this event reveals his hatred of idolatry. Since God is our Maker (Psalm 95:6), and our sustainer (Acts 17:25), he alone is to be worshipped. This is made clear in the first commandment. You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3). If we love anything more than God, we are guilty of idolatry.
A church was having a rummage sale and a man donated his classic motorcycle. When someone asked why, he said, I truly loved that motorcycle, but I wanted God to know that I love him even more.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 95
2 Kings 11:1 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family.
Queen Athaliah led the southern kingdom of Judah from 841 to 835 BC, and was one of the wickedest rulers to ever take the throne. She was the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, from whom she learned to worship Baal. She married Jehoram (king of Judah) to strengthen ties between the northern and southern kingdoms.
Jehoram died when he was forty years old, and was succeeded by their son Ahaziah, who ruled just a year before he was captured and put to death (2 Chronicles 22:1-9). This was Athaliah’s opportunity to seize power, which she did by killing her grandchildren, so they couldn’t challenge her claim to the throne. This was more than raw ambition; it was a demonic assault on God’s plan for Messiah to come from the line of David (2 Samuel 7:16, Matthew 1:1). Athaliah’s attack on the royal family was an attack on God’s plan of salvation.
2 Kings 11:2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes, who were about to be murdered.
Joash was an important child because he was the son of Ahaziah (the previous king) and, therefore, a descendent of King David. Jehosheba acted courageously and was probably encouraged by her husband, Jehoiada. He was an influential priest who knew the importance of having a descendent of David on the throne.
Athaliah’s massacre of the heirs to David’s throne, reminds us of Herod’s massacre of Bethlehem’s children to eliminate Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:16). In both cases God intervened to preserve his future king. There is no . . . plan that can succeed against the Lord (Proverbs 21:30), says Proverbs. Many have tried, but all have failed.
2 Kings 11:3 [Joash] remained hidden with his nurse at the temple of the Lord for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.
Athaliah was queen of Judah for six years while little Joash grew. Then, at just the right time, Jehoiada arranged for the young boy to be crowned king. Joash was surrounded by guards and brought in front of the temple. In the presence of many witnesses, Jehoiada put a crown on the young man’s head. [T]he people clapped their hands and shouted, Long live the king! (2 Kings 11:12).
When Athaliah heard the commotion she went to investigate. Then Athaliah tore her robes and called out, Treason! Treason! (2 Kings 11:14). Jehoiada ordered her execution and she was removed from the temple grounds and put to death.
2 Kings 11:17-18 Jehoiada then made a covenant between the Lord and the king and people that they would be the Lord’s people. . . . All the people of the land went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols to pieces and killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altars.
As Jehu defeated Baal worship in Israel (the northern kingdom), so Jehoida defeated it in Judah (the southern kingdom). Jehoiada’s faithfulness kept Judah from turning away from God completely. Through his courageous work, the worship of God was reestablished, and idolatry was restrained. Jehoiada’s contribution was so great, in fact, that He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple (2 Chronicles 24:16).
King Joash was faithful to God only as long as Jehoiada lived. When his godly uncle died, Joash turned to idols. This proved disastrous for Joash and the nation. From Joash we learn that every religious advantage is no guarantee of faithfulness.
The apostasy of Joash got the attention of Zechariah, Jehoiada’s son. He preached to the people saying, This is what God says: Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you (2 Chronicles 24:20).
Joash didn’t like this kind of preaching so he ordered the execution of Zechariah, the son of Jehoida. Wicked Joash killed the son of the man who saved him as a baby and made him king. As Zechariah lay dying he said to Joash, May the Lord see this and call you to account (2 Chronicles 24:22). Within a year, Joash was murdered (2 Chronicles 24:25).
This story has many twists and turns, heroes, villains and lessons. The battle against evil is never won in this age, but only fought. The day is coming, however, when Christ will put all his enemies under his feet (1 Corinthians 15:25). Even so, Come, Lord Jesus (Revelation 22:20), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 96
2 Kings 14:1 In the second year of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah began to reign.
Amaziah ruled the southern kingdom of Judah from around 796 to 767 BC. He had some good qualities, but his reign was marred by an act of idolatry. When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them. The anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who said, Why do you consult this people’s gods, which could not save their own people from your hand? (2 Chronicles 25:14-15).
The prophet’s logic was clear. If the local gods couldn’t save their own people, why would a conquering king bow down them? Amaziah may’ve thought he was victorious because the local gods changed sides, and bowed down to them to give thanks. Nevertheless, The anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and he was later put to death (2 Kings 14:19).
God is a real person, with real emotions, one of which is jealousy. Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God (Exodus 34:1), wrote Moses. And The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath (Nahum 1:2), wrote Nahum. Amaziah thought he received additional help from other gods, but only inflamed the jealous wrath of God Almighty.
This may seem like ancient superstition but whole segments of Christianity do the same thing. Instead of praying to God alone, they encourage believers to bow down to various statues or images. Many think they’re receiving additional help, but all they’re really doing is inflaming God’s wrath. It’s a dangerous thing to be loved by a God whose name is Jealous. We must pray to him alone.
*****
2 Kings 15:1 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign.
Azariah is more famously known as King Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26:1). Azariah was likely his personal name, and Uzziah was likely his throne name. Uzziah ruled the southern kingdom of Judah for fifty-two years, from around 791 to 739 BC. He ruled alongside his father at first, and alongside his son near the end.
2 Kings 15:3 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.
And As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success (2 Chronicles 26:5). Uzziah had financial success, military success, and many successful building projects. [H]is fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful (2 Chronicles 26:8).
The Bible makes a connection between righteousness and success. He holds success in store for the upright (Proverbs 2:7), says Proverbs. This is a good incentive to be righteous, but we shouldn’t press the idea too far. Success can be a sign of God’s favor, but it’s not a sure sign of God’s favor. The wicked may also prosper (Psalm 73:3), and many false religions have prospered.
The best indication of success isn’t the size of our house, or the extent of our reputation, but what God says to us on Judgment Day. If we live to hear him say, Well done, good and faithful servant! (Matthew 25:21), we’re on the road to success. If we live for anything else, we’re on the road to misery. We should never consider ourselves to be successful until after Judgment Day.
(2 Chronicles 26:16) But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall.
The problem with too much earthly success is that it can lead to pride, which often leads to a fall. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18), says Proverbs. You save the humble, but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low (2 Samuel 22:28), said David.
Uzziah wasn’t content with political power; he wanted religious power too. He went into God’s temple to burn incense, which was something only priests were allowed to do (Numbers 3:10). Risking their lives, some of the priests followed the king into the temple and opposed him to his face. When he refused to back down God struck with him with leprosy. Uzziah lived in isolation the rest of his life and was banned from the temple of God (2 Chronicles 26:21).
From Uzziah we learn that starting well is no guarantee of finishing well. When he lived righteously, God gave him success. But when he was filled with pride, he had a tragic fall. It’s better to struggle throughout our lives than succeed at the cost of our souls. Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil (Proverbs 15:16), says Proverbs.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 97
2 Kings 18:1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
Hezekiah began to rule as king when he was twenty-five years old. He led the southern kingdom of Judah from around 715 to 686 BC, twenty-nine years in all. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 18:3) by getting rid of idolatry and reestablishing the worship of God. Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him (2 Kings 18:5).
Hezekiah’s greatest strength was simple trust in God. It was severely tested but served him well throughout his life. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6), says Proverbs. God wants his people to cultivate simple trust in him.
2 Kings 18:10 Samaria was captured in Hezekiah’s sixth year, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel.
This event was catastrophic and probably reinforced Hezekiah’s reliance on God. Samaria was the capital city of Israel, and it’s fall to the Assyrians in 722 BC was the end of the northern kingdom.
The northern kingdom of Israel had split from the southern kingdom of Judah in 931 BC. Over the next two hundred years, or so, the northern kingdom of Israel had twenty kings, none of them good. So God allowed them to be destroyed by the Assyrians, just as Moses foretold. The Lord will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your ancestors. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone (Deuteronomy 28:36), he wrote.
This proved to Hezekiah that God doesn’t make idle threats. If the southern kingdom of Judah obeyed God, they’d enjoy his blessing. If not, they’d be exiled too. Now that the northern kingdom was destroyed, in fact, there was no geographical buffer between Assyria and Judah. Hezekiah needed God’s protection more than ever.
2 Kings 18:13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
In spite of Hezekiah’s obedience to God, the king of Assyria invaded Judah and captured many towns. Hezekiah gave him a fortune to withdraw but it wasn’t enough. The king of Assyria wanted to capture Jerusalem too. So Hezekiah prayed: Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, Lord, are God (2 Kings 19:19).
Isaiah the prophet was aware of Hezekiah’s prayer and sent a reply. [T]his is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it. By the way that he came he will return; he will not enter this city, declares the Lord (2 Kings 19:33-34). This was a wonderful promise that would quickly come to pass.
2 Kings 19:35-36 That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew.
This event is so important that the Bible records it three separate times (2 Chronicles 32:20-21, Isaiah 37:36). It was also recorded by the Greek historian Herodotus (fifth century BC), who attributed it to an outbreak of the bubonic plague. We also have corroboration from the king of Assyria himself.
The Sennacherib prism is on display in The British Museum and, while it doesn’t mention the loss of soldiers, it claims to have captured forty-six towns in Judah, taken a fortune in silver and gold, and shut up Hezekiah like a caged bird. This is consistent with the biblical account, including the fact that he didn’t conquer Jerusalem.
2 Kings 19:37 One day, while [Sennacherib] was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword.
The man who put so many to the sword, died by the sword of his sons. Pagan gods are of little help at the time of death, and Nisrok was no exception. But Jesus gives eternal life to all who believe. Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life (John 6:37), he said. Only the true and living God has power over death.
2 Kings 20:1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.
Hezekiah was still a young man, and didn’t want to die, so he prayed earnestly and wept bitterly (2 Kings 20:3). God spoke to the prophet again saying, Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you (2 Kings 20:5).
This is very interesting because we don’t expect God to change his mind. God is not human . . . that he should change his mind (Numbers 23:19), said Balaam. And all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:16), wrote David. And [we are] predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul.
These verses might suggest that human choice and behavior have little influence with God since everything has been determined. But other verses should also be considered. If I tell a righteous person that they will surely live, but then they trust in their righteousness and do evil, none of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered; they will die for the evil they have done. And if I say to a wicked person, You will surely die, but they then turn away from their sin and do what is just and right. . . that person will surely live (Ezekiel 33:13-15), said God.
Nineveh’s response to the preaching of Jonah is a good example. Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown (Jonah 3:4), he said. But the city of Nineveh turned from their sin and called on God. When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened (Jonah 3:10), wrote Jonah.
It’s difficult to reconcile the unchanging plan of God with his willingness to change based on our response to him. But this only shows that we’re dealing with a personal God, not impersonal fate. God and his plan are both unchanging, but he changes his plans based on our response to him. Since this is beyond our comprehension we’re tempted to accept one set of verses against the other. It’s better to hold both together and admit there are some things we won’t understand until the age to come.
2 Kings 20:7 Then Isaiah said, Prepare a poultice of figs. They did so and applied it to the boil, and he recovered.
God told Isaiah that King Hezekiah would be healed (1 Kings 20:5), so we might expect a miracle. But Isaiah called for some figs to be applied to the boil, and Hezekiah recovered within a few days (2 Kings 20:8). We don’t have to choose between God and other remedies, since God often uses other remedies to heal. There’s nothing inconsistent about taking medicine and asking God to heal.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 98
2 Kings 21:1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years.
Manasseh was the king of Judah from 696 to 642 BC. His reign of fifty-five years likely included several years of co-regency with his godly father Hezekiah. Unlike his father, however, Manasseh did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 21:2). This included worshipping false gods, desecrating the temple, killing innocent people, sacrificing his children, practicing witchcraft, consulting mediums, and leading the nation astray (2 Kings 21:1-9, 2 Chronicles 33:1-9). He was a very bad man.
Children of godly parents often grow up to be godly adults (Proverbs 22:6), but the opposite may also occur. Instead of following God, some do everything he forbids. By pursuing freedom from God, however, they become Satan’s slaves. That’s what happened to Manasseh. The commanders of the king of Assyria . . . took Manasseh prisoner, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon (2 Chronicles 33:11).
He deserved nothing less, of course, but the long walk to Babylon gave Manasseh time to think. He rejected the God of his father to do whatever he liked. Now he had a hook in his nose and was being led to a foreign land. Once he sat on a throne, now he was a beast. Once he was in charge, now he was enslaved. Perhaps his dad was right about God after all.
(2 Chronicles 33:12) In his distress [Manasseh] sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors.
When Manasseh’s road of rebellion became a dead end, he turned to the Lord. And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God (2 Chronicles 33:13).
Children raised in godly homes may reject their parents’ faith because they aren’t sure it’s true. Many put it to the test by breaking God’s commands and living for themselves. As long as things go well they may never change. When things go badly, however, some return to the God of their parents. It’s better to start badly and finish well, than to start well and finish badly.
Manasseh is one of the best examples of God’s grace in the Bible. He not only ruined his own life, but the lives of many others. There was little he wasn’t guilty of, and God was under no obligation to save him. But God heard his prayer and made him a trophy of grace. For it is by grace you have been saved . . . not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9), wrote Paul. Manasseh proves that no one is too bad to be saved if they’re willing to repent.
(2 Chronicles 33:15-16) [Manasseh] got rid of the foreign gods and removed the image from the temple of the Lord, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem; and he threw them out of the city. Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it, and told Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel.
Manasseh was a changed man. We don’t become good in order to be saved, but once we’re saved we’ll want to be good. I will show you my faith by my deeds (James 2:18), wrote James. Having served the devil for many years, Manasseh spent the rest of his life serving God.
Godly parents ought to be encouraged by this story, and trust the long arm of God’s grace for their own wayward children. At his worst, Manasseh seemed out of God’s reach. But he never forgot his father’s faith, and found his way back to his father’s God. Many others have done the same.
The story is told of a Spanish father, and his teenage son, whose relationship was strained. The son ran away from home, and his father went searching far and wide. Then he put an ad in the paper that read: Dear Paco, meet me in front of the newspaper office at noon. All is forgiven. I love you. At noon, the following day, eight hundred Pacos showed up (Ernest Hemingway, paraphrased). The world is filled with wayward children who want to return to their heavenly Father, and God is so gracious that he longs to receive them back.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 99
2 Kings 22:1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years.
Josiah led God’s people from around 640 to 609 BC, and implemented greater reform than any king before or since. Since the previous king was wicked, the nation was apostate. The temple was used for male prostitution (2 Kings 23:7), and children were being sacrificed (2 Kings 23:10). The days were extremely dark, and the time had come for godly leadership.
2 Kings 22:8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.
God’s word had been missing for many years and no one seemed to notice. The priesthood remained, and there was religious activity, but there was no Bible. Then, while the temple was being repaired, God’s word was rediscovered.
This would be hard to imagine if it wasn’t so common today. Many churches have busy leaders who do everything but teach God’s word. As a result, most people don’t know the Bible and do what it forbids.
The apostles are a better example. When they were asked to do other things they replied, we will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word (Acts 6:4). This is the first duty of Christian ministers and their most important service to the church.
2 Kings 22:11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes.
Josiah was alarmed by the terrible threats of punishment found in God’s word. The Lord will send on you curses, confusion and rebuke in everything you put your hand to, until you are destroyed and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in forsaking him. . . . Because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you . . . you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you. . . . You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. In the morning you will say, If only it were evening! and in the evening, If only it were morning! (Deuteronomy 28:20-67). Since much of this had already happened to the northern kingdom of Israel, Josiah knew it could happen to them as well.
Jesus Christ was also very threatening. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire (Matthew 7:19), he said. And Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41), he’ll say to many.
An important idea that led to my conversion was the possibility of waking up in hell and never getting out. Jesus is the most credible person who ever lived, and he threatened me with eternal fire. I could either force the idea out of my mind, or repent of my sins and follow him. The severity of his threat helped me to make the right decision.
2 Kings 22:13 Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and for all Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord’s anger that burns against us because those who have gone before us have not obeyed the words of this book; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written there concerning us.
Josiah sent representatives to the prophet Huldah to see if there was any hope. But her answer wasn’t encouraging. This is what the Lord says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people, according to everything written in the book . . . . Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and aroused my anger by all the idols their hands have made, my anger will burn against this place and will not be quenched (2 Kings 23:16-17), she said.
No matter what we’ve done individually, we can turn to Christ and be saved. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Hebrews 8:12), said God. But the collective sins of the nation had reached a point where God’s wrath wouldn’t be turned away. They could still be saved individually, but the nation would suffer disaster.
It’s helpful to understand that God deals with individuals as well as nations. God reigns over the nations (Psalm 47:8), wrote the Psalmist. Whenever a nation becomes corrupt, God is free to pour out his wrath (Genesis 15:16). He did this to Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and to many others. We ought to be concerned for ourselves, but also for our nation.
2 Kings 23:1 Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
After hearing God’s word they also agreed to serve him. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12), says Hebrews. The word of God is powerful for changing people’s lives.
The early church also grew through the power of God’s word. [T]he word of God spread (Acts 6:7). [T]he word of God continued to spread (Acts 12:24). The word of the Lord spread (Acts 13:49). And, the word of the Lord spread widely (Acts 19:20), wrote Luke. God’s church fulfills its mission through the power of his word.
2 Kings 23:29 Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo.
Josiah was under forty years old and his death seemed premature. Why didn’t God preserve him to continue reforming the nation? God’s ways don’t always make sense to us, but Josiah is remembered as one of the finest kings to lead the nation, and he died a servant of God. Who could ask for anything more?
Reflection and Review
Lesson 100
2 Kings 23:31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.
Second Kings concludes with the account of four kings who ruled in quick succession, each of them evil. Jehoahaz was the son of King Josiah, and ruled for just three months after his father’s death in 609 BC. After doing evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 23:32), he was dethroned by Pharaoh Necho and taken to Egypt.
Jehoahaz may’ve dreamed of a long and glorious reign in which he’d build a mighty kingdom. But all his dreams were dashed by circumstances beyond his control. He reminds us how easily our dreams can be destroyed, and that the only wise course is to seek first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). Then we’ll flourish forever regardless what happens now.
*****
2 Kings 23:36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.
Jehoiakim also did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 23:37). When the prophet Jeremiah was read to him, he took the scroll and threw it into a fire (Jeremiah 36:23). But the prophet’s words came true when the king of Babylon attacked Jerusalem, raided the temple, and carried Jehoiakim into exile (Jeremiah 36:29, 2 Chronicles 36:6).
The Bible is the most hated book on earth, but also the most loved and widely read. Haters of God reject the Bible, and even commit to flames, but can’t stop it from coming true. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever (Isaiah 40:8), wrote Isaiah.
*****
2 Kings 24:8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.
Shortly after he came to the throne, Jehoiachin surrendered to King Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:12). He too was taken to Babylon, with ten thousand others, leaving only the poorest behind (2 Kings 24:14). He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father had done (2 Kings 24:9).
There was little Jehoiachin could’ve done politically, since he was only eighteen years old, but he certainly could’ve prayed. Some people only turn to God when life is hard, but Jehoiachin wouldn’t even do that. Like many before and since, he wanted nothing to do with God.
Under King David the nation of Israel became a dominant force, and Solomon took it to its greatest height. But, when Solomon died, in 931 BC, the nation split and never reunited. The northern kingdom of Israel fell to the Assyrians in 722 BC, and the southern kingdom of Judah would fall to the Babylonians in 586 BC. As long as God’s people followed God, they prospered. But when they turned away from God, there was no one to protect them.
*****
2 Kings 24:18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.
Zedekiah was the last to rule the kingdom of Judah before it was destroyed. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 24:19), and also in the eyes of Nebuchadnezzar, by rebelling against him.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, responded to Zedekiah’s revolt by surrounding the city of Jerusalem and cutting off the food supply. Then he broke through the city walls and captured Zedekiah. He killed Zedekiah’s sons in front of him and then put out his eyes. The last thing Zedekiah was the execution of his sons (2 Kings 25:7).
The Babylonians burned down the temple and other buildings in Jerusalem. They destroyed the city walls and took most of the people into exile. Only the poorest were left behind to work the fields (2 Kings 25:12). The Promised Land was God’s gift to his people on the condition of obedience. When they turned away from God, he rightly kicked them out.
Some of the kings who led God’s people were better than others, but most were terrible. Instead of leading God’s people to worship him, they led God’s people away from him. The results were catastrophic but the point is clear: as goes the king, so goes the kingdom.
All the kings’ failures remind us of our need for a better king. If only God’s people had a king who was perfectly righteous and mighty, the kingdom of God would flourish as never before. This is our greatest need, and this is what God has provided in the person of Jesus Christ. Soon he’ll return, and his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:33), wrote Luke.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 101
1 Chronicles 1:1-4 Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, Noah. The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham and Japheth.
First and Second Chronicles were originally one book. The author isn’t identified but may’ve been Ezra the priest, writing around 450 BC, for those who returned from Babylonian exile. It was a difficult time, for many reasons, and the Chronicler wanted to assure God’s people that God was still with them.
Much of the content of First and Second Chronicles is also found in First and Second Kings, so is not repeated here. What follows is unique to Chronicles and reveals God’s remarkable faithfulness.
2 Chronicles 20:1 After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.
It was an ordinary day when Jehoshaphat awoke, but he quickly learned that a vast army was marching toward Jerusalem, and were only a day away. Most kings would’ve used that time to get their army ready, but Jehoshaphat thought of something even more important. He proclaimed a fast, and turned to God in prayer.
Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? . . . Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you (2 Chronicles 20:6-13).
This was not the first time Jehoshaphat prayed. The depth, sincerity and spontaneity of his words show that he was familiar with prayer, and with the God who saves. Jehoshaphat didn’t wait for disaster to strike before he learned to pray. He knew how to pray when disaster was at his door.
2 Chronicles 20:14-17 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah . . . . This is what the Lord says to you: Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. . . . You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you.
Jehoshaphat may’ve slept lightly that night but the following morning he set out with his army and a choir. He put the choir in front of the army and, as they marched, they sang. Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever (2 Chronicles 20:21). If the army joined in, it was an amazing time of worship.
2 Chronicles 20:22 As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir.
It’s not clear who was doing the ambushing, but all three armies turned on each other, and completely destroyed each other. By the time the choir arrived, not a man was left standing. And the plunder was so great it took three days to gather.
From this we learn that praise is a powerful weapon. God’s people praised the Lord on their way to the battle, and didn’t have to lift a sword. As they gave praise to God, God worked on their behalf. We can fight our battles alone or enlist God’s help through prayer and praise.
*****
2 Chronicles 36:23 This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord their God be with them.
Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in 586 BC, and the Jews were taken into exile because of their sin. But, through the prophet Jeremiah, God promised they’d return. When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back (Jeremiah 29:10), he said.
Cyrus, king of Persia, defeated the Babylonians in 539 BC, and allowed God’s people to go back home. The God who brought his people out of Egypt, and gave them the Promised Land, now brought them out of Babylon, and gave it back to them. God is the one who saved them. God is the one who kept them. And God is the one who brought them home.
This is also what God is doing for the church. We are foreigners and exiles (1 Peter 2:11), living in a world that’s not our home. The world opposes the church, and even hates the church (John 15:19), but hasn’t overcome the church. God is the one who saved us. God is the one who’s keeping us. And God is the one who will bring us home.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 102
Ezra 1:1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing.
The book of Ezra was likely written by Ezra the priest, [and] teacher of the Law (Ezra 7:11) around 430 BC. It tells how God’s people returned from Babylonian exile, rebuilt the temple, and struggled to live God’s way. It’s a story of starting over that covers nearly a hundred years, from 538 to 433 BC.
Ezra 1:5 Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites—everyone whose heart God had moved—prepared to go up and build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.
Cyrus, king of Persia, defeated the Babylonians, and allowed the Jews to go home (Ezra 1:2-4). The generation that went into exile had mostly died, and a new generation had taken its place. They were born in Babylon, and were comfortable there, so those who returned to the Promised Land were only about fifty thousand (Ezra 2:64-65). The reason they returned was because God moved their hearts. This is truly remarkable.
The reason they left family and friends is because God moved their hearts. The reason they left the comfort of home is because God moved their hearts. And the reason they left safety and security is because God moved their hearts.
This, in fact, is why many people do what they do for God. It’s why some become missionaries, serve an important cause, or give financial support. God moved the heart of Cyrus to allow the Jews to go home (Ezra 1:1), and he moved the hearts of his people to make the journey back. When God wants to do something great, he often begins by moving our hearts.
Ezra 3:6 On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord.
Shortly after God’s people arrived back in the Promised Land, they gathered in Jerusalem, built an altar and began to sacrifice daily. This was important because without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22), says Hebrews. No sacrifice had been offered for nearly seventy years because they were living in Babylon. Now, at last, sacrificial blood was being spilt again.
This was a great relief to their collective conscience, but is only a little comfort compared to what Christians enjoy. All the animals ever sacrificed merely pointed ahead to Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). And, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10), says Hebrews. Christians no longer sacrifice animals (Hebrews 10:18), but remember what Christ has done for us, as we confess our sins to him (1 John 1:9).
Ezra 3:10-11 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord . . . . all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
After building the altar, God’s people started work on the temple itself. When the foundation was laid they gave a great shout, but those who had seen the earlier temple began to weep. They wept so loudly, in fact, that no one could distinguish between the sound of joy and the sound of weeping (Ezra 3:12-13).
The new generation was excited about the temple, but the old generation was discouraged by how badly it compared to the previous temple. They were wrong to be discouraged, however, since this temple would also bring glory to God. They should’ve been thankful for the honor of serving God, but were discouraged by comparing their work to another.
Churches can also be discouraged by comparing themselves to other churches. The church of Jesus Christ is always growing, declining and being rebuilt. The important thing is not the size of the church, but its faithfulness to God. It’s always an honor to serve the Lord of the church.
Ezra 4:4 Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.
Whenever God’s people try to do something great for God, they will be opposed. But God is greater than the opposition and, in this case, actually made them pay for it. Their expenses are to be fully paid . . . so that the work will not stop (Ezra 6:8), decreed the king of Persia. Furthermore, I decree that if anyone defies this edict, a beam is to be pulled from their house and they are to be impaled on it (Ezra 6:11-12).
God’s people must have been amazed. When there was little they could do themselves, God made their enemies pay for the temple or die. The temple was being rebuilt, not because God’s people were great, but because their God was great.
Ezra 6:15 The temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
This was about twenty years after the project began, and was a milestone for the people of God. There was a great celebration because the Lord had filled them with joy by changing the attitude of the king . . . so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God (Ezra 6:22).
Great things are often accomplished by people working together for years. Some were masons, others were engineers, and others were simply helpers. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah also helped the project through their preaching (Ezra 5:1). The important thing, in any work of God, is for everyone to do what they can.
A little girl sat on the steps of a new church building, and a gentleman paused to admire it. She explained that she was involved in the project because her dad was a worker and she brought his lunch. It takes many people to do God’s work, and everyone is important.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 103
Ezra 7:6 [Ezra] was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given.
About eighty years after the Jews returned from Babylonian exile, Ezra returned with a few thousand more of his countrymen. He was a priest, and a capable teacher of God’s word. Even though the temple had been rebuilt, God’s word wasn’t being carefully followed. Ezra received permission from the king of Persia to return to Israel and strengthen God’s people in their faith. Ezra wanted the people of God to conform their lives to the word of God so they would enjoy the blessing of God.
Ezra 7:10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.
Ezra was an effective minister of God’s word for three reasons. First, he was a devoted student. We should think of him getting up early, staying up late, and pouring over Scripture until he knew it forward and backward. Second, he applied the Bible to himself. He didn’t read it for knowledge alone, but to conform his life to God’s will. Third, he taught God’s word to others. He wanted all God’s people to receive the riches of the Bible. This kind of minister can be a great blessing to God’s people in any generation.
Ezra 7:15 Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his advisers have freely given to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem.
The king of Persia not only gave Ezra permission to return to Jerusalem, but sent him back with a fortune. While the temple was being rebuilt Haggai prophesied, I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord Almighty. The silver is mine and the gold is mine, declares the Lord Almighty (Haggai 2:7-8).
God’s people had little money themselves, but God provided for his work in other ways. The God of heaven and earth is never short of cash.
Ezra 7:27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart to bring honor to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way.
It seemed strange that a foreign king would finance God’s work in Jerusalem, but Ezra saw it as a sign of God’s power. God is sovereign over the hearts of kings, and can make them sympathetic to his will. In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him (Proverbs 21:1), wrote Solomon.
Ezra 9:1-2 After these things had been done, the leaders came to me and said, The people of Israel, including the priests and the Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the neighboring peoples with their detestable practices. . . . They have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, and have mingled the holy race with the peoples around them.
About four months after Ezra returned to Jerusalem, a serious problem was brought to his attention. Some of God’s people had married pagans. This was a clear violation of God’s word. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your children away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you (Deuteronomy 7:3-4), wrote Moses.
The situation was so serious that Ezra tore his clothes, pulled out his hair, and prayed (Ezra 9:3). A crowd gathered, joined him in prayer, and agreed to put away their wives. Women and children were sent away from their homes, their husbands, and their fathers, so that the purity of God’s people could be preserved. It was a drastic and painful solution to a very serious problem.
Like the ancient people of God, Christians are only allowed to marry in the faith (1 Corinthians 7:39). Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? (2 Corinthians 6:14-15), wrote Paul.
But, unlike the ancient Israelites, Christians who are married to an unbeliever shouldn’t seek a divorce. If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him (1 Corinthians 7:12-13), wrote Paul. Getting married is easy; staying married is difficult; staying happily married is the challenge of a lifetime.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 104
Nehemiah 1:1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hakaliah.
The book of Nehemiah begins around 445 BC, about ten years after the close of the book of Ezra, and was likely written by Ezra the priest around 430 BC. Many of the Jews had returned from exile, and were living in and around Jerusalem. The temple had been rebuilt, but the city walls were still in ruins, exposing the people to constant danger. Nehemiah held the high position of cupbearer to the king of Persia when he received news about the poor condition of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 1:2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.
When Nehemiah learned that the city was still in disrepair, he mourned and fasted several days. Then he prayed that God would give him favor with the king of Persia, so that he could return to Jerusalem and help his people.
If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it (Nehemiah 2:5), he said. The king granted his request and even provided materials for the project. Nehemiah attributed this to the gracious hand of God being upon him (Nehemiah 2:8).
Nehemiah 2:11-12 I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.
Nehemiah didn’t want his plans to be known prematurely because he didn’t want Jerusalem’s enemies to learn of it before the project began. He examined the walls at night, to avoid detection, and then brought his plan to God’s people. Let us start rebuilding (Nehemiah 2:18), they said. But it wasn’t long before they met resistance.
Nehemiah 4:7-8 [W]hen Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it.
Israel’s enemies weren’t content to sit and watch as the city was being rebuilt. And because they had an army, (Nehemiah 4:2) they were a serious threat. Just because God is involved in a project doesn’t mean there won’t be problems. But Nehemiah was a man of faith, and knew how to respond.
Nehemiah 4:9 [W]e prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
They didn’t just pray to God, or just post a guard, but prayed to God and posted a guard. They also armed the laborers, who worked even harder than before. They prayed as though everything depended on God, and worked as though everything depended on them. This is the surest way to success.
Some people are willing to pray like everything depends on God, but aren’t willing to work very hard. Others are willing to work like everything depends on them, but aren’t willing to pray very hard. But when God’s people are willing to pray like everything depends on God, and work like everything depends on them, success can’t be far away.
Nehemiah 5:1 Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews.
In addition to the external threat, there was also an internal threat. Some of God’s people were going into debt because working on the wall gave them less time to work at their jobs. And some of the rich were growing richer by charging interest for loans. This was more than oppressive; it was forbidden by God.
Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest (Deuteronomy 23:19), wrote Moses. Even among God’s people, some were willing to exploit their neighbors. Nehemiah was angry at those who oppressed their fellow Jews, and they agreed to restore what had been wrongly taken. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul.
The building project was threatened from within and without. But Nehemiah provided good and godly leadership to see the task completed in just fifty-two days (Nehemiah 6:15). It must’ve seemed like a miracle, but the work wasn’t over. Now that the city was secure, it was time to build up the people.
Nehemiah 8:1 They told Ezra the teacher of the Law to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded for Israel.
They built a platform for the occasion, and Ezra read from God’s word for several hours, while the people listened attentively. As they listened, they understood how badly they had sinned, and began to weep. They agreed with God against themselves, and were starting to be renewed.
Ezra is a good example to those who teach and preach God’s word. The preacher’s job isn’t to entertain the people, or tell them something new, but to clearly proclaim God’s word to them. He’s to keep the people of God and the word of God together. It’s the people’s job to listen attentively, and conform their lives to what the Bible says. This is how the church of God is constantly renewed.
Nehemiah 8:10 Nehemiah said, Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
It was good for God’s people to grieve their sins, but Nehemiah didn’t want them to be overcome with grief. God had done great things for them, and they were turning back to him. This was reason to rejoice. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4), wrote Paul.
It’s important for God’s people to rejoice in the Lord, because he gives or withholds the ability to enjoy everything else. All other joys are derivative; God alone is the source. The more we rejoice in the Lord, the more we’ll enjoy all that he gives. This is nothing less than the key to happiness.
Nehemiah 13:6-7 [I]n the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission and came back to Jerusalem.
After leading God’s people for twelve years, Nehemiah went back to Babylon for some time. We don’t know how long he was gone but, when he returned, the situation had declined. The temple was being misused, the Sabbath was being broken, and God’s people were marrying pagans again.
Nehemiah was so angry about the mixed marriages that he rebuked them and called curses down on them. [He] beat some of the men and pulled out their hair (Nehemiah 13:25). Nehemiah’s reaction was so severe that he likely surprised many. He was a forceful leader who wasn’t afraid to hurt people’s feelings.
There’s no place for physical punishment in the church, of course, but when Titus was dealing with unruly Christians, Paul wrote that he should rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith (Titus 1:13). Ordinarily, the Lord’s servant . . . must be kind to everyone (2 Timothy 2:24). But he must also be willing to rebuke if necessary.
Nehemiah reminds us of the value of powerful leadership. When he was gone, the city fell into sin. When he returned, things were set right. Good and godly leaders are a gift to the church, and ought to be highly regarded. Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account (Hebrews 13:17), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 105
Esther 1:1 This is what happened during the time of Xerxes, the Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush.
The book of Esther is named after a Jewish girl who became the queen of Persia, and delivered her people from a plot to destroy them. The author isn’t named, but probably wrote from Persia around 460 BC, to explain the origin of the festival of Purim, which commemorates this event. The book of Esther is unique because it doesn’t mention God by name, but highlights his providential care in a series of remarkable coincidences. Even when God is silent, he is caring for his people.
Esther 1:10-12 On the seventh day, when King Xerxes was in high spirits from wine, he commanded . . . to bring before him Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown, in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles, for she was lovely to look at. But when the attendants delivered the king’s command, Queen Vashti refused to come. Then the king became furious and burned with anger.
The King and Queen were hosting separate banquets when Xerxes decided to parade his beautiful wife before his many guests. By refusing to comply, Vashti disrespected her husband and publicly embarrassed him. The king consulted with his advisors, and they recommended Vashti be removed as queen, so that women everywhere wouldn’t disrespect their husbands.
High position comes with responsibility, and a single misstep can cause a fall. We might imagine life is better near the top, but many have found this isn’t always so. Instead of envying people above us, we ought to cultivate contentment, for godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6), wrote Paul.
Esther 2:2 Then the king’s personal attendants proposed, Let a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king.
These were added to his harem so that he might have his choice among many. Esther had a lovely figure and was beautiful (Esther 2:7), so she was also added to the king’s harem. After a year of beauty treatments she slept with the king (Esther 2:14), and he preferred her over the others. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti (Esther 2:17).
Esther appears to have gained her royal position through moral compromise. The Bible doesn’t condemn or condone her behavior, but simply states the facts. It’s never right to disobey God, of course, but God is so great that he’s able to bring good out of evil—even the evil of our sin. This is not a reason to sin, of course, but a reason to glorify God who always works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28).
Esther 3:1 After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles.
Haman was a descendent of Agag, king of the Amalekites, an ancient enemy of Israel. By the order of King Xerxes, people were to honor Haman by kneeling in his presence. But Esther’s cousin (Mordecai) refused to kneel because of the ancient hostility, or because he thought such honor was due to God alone. Mordecai was also Esther’s guardian because, after her parents died, he raised her (Esther 2:7).
Honor was important to Haman and, when he learned that Mordecai was a Jew, he determined to kill all the Jews in the kingdom (Esther 3:6), not just Mordecai. Since Esther hadn’t revealed her Jewish ethnicity, Haman unknowingly set in motion a plan that, if carried out, would kill the king’s wife.
Esther may’ve planned to hide her ethnicity, but Mordecai urged her to go directly to the king. This was complicated since, on pain of death, no one was allowed into the king’s presence without an invitation, including the king’s wife (Esther 4:11). Exceptions were made, but it was risky.
Mordecai said to her, Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this? (Esther 4:13-14).
Esther could do the right thing, and possibly die, or she could do the wrong thing, and possibly die. Neither option was agreeable but perhaps God had made her queen for this very occasion. She was entrusted by God with high position and dare not fail now. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked (Luke 12:48), said Jesus.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 106
Esther 5:1-2 Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.
Instead of making her request at once, Esther invited both the king and Haman to a banquet. Haman felt honored to be included but, afterward, he encountered Mordecai who disrespected him again. Not content to wait for the killing of all the Jews, Haman planed to execute Mordecai early. He even set up a pole on which to impale him (Esther 5:14).
Esther 6:1-2 That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him. It was found recorded there that Mordecai had exposed . . . two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, who had conspired to assassinate King Xerxes.
This episode occurred years earlier, but was never brought to the king’s attention. Xerxes didn’t know that Mordecai was Jewish, and ordered Haman to publicly honor him. Haman was to lead Mordecai throughout the city on horseback while proclaiming, This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor! (Esther 6:11). Haman was embarrassed and alarmed as things began turning against him. How could be put to death a man who saved the king’s life?
Here we see the invisible hand of God working on behalf of his people. God is the one who kept the king awake, so he’d request the record of his reign be read to him, so he’d discover what Mordecai had done for him. God wasn’t working miraculously, but he was working providentially. This, in fact, is how God normally works.
God takes center stage, sometimes, but usually works behind the scenes. Either way, he’s in control of everything that happens. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered (Matthew 10:29-30), said Jesus. Our heavenly Father is always in control, so we needn’t be afraid.
Esther 7:1-2 So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther’s banquet, and as they were drinking wine on the second day, the king again asked, Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted.
When the King learned that Esther was Jewish, he became so angry at Haman (for his plan to kill the Jews) that he left the room to think. Haman fell on the couch, where Esther was reclining, and begged for his life. When the king returned, it appeared that Haman was molesting Esther, and Haman’s fate was sealed. He was impaled on the pole on which he planned to impale Mordecai.
Then Mordecai was given Haman’s position and began to defend the Jews. Since the first decree couldn’t be repealed, Mordecai and Xerxes wrote a new decree, permitting the Jews to defend themselves (Esther 8:11). Some attacks were made, but God’s people were victorious. Mordecai made the next two days a holiday, to be celebrated every year with feasting and gifts (Esther 9:20-22). This is the origin of the festival of Purim.
Notice the many coincidences that made this outcome possible. Coincidentally, Esther became queen. Coincidentally, Mordecai discovered a plan to assassinate the king. Coincidentally, the king was sleepless shortly before Haman planned to have Mordecai killed. Coincidentally, the account read to the king was the record of Mordecai saving his life. Taken together, all these coincidences are a conspicuous providence.
Esther 10:3 Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews, and held in high esteem by his many fellow Jews, because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews.
Mordecai was faithful to God, faithful to God’s people, and faithful to the king. As a result, he was promoted to the highest position under King Xerxes. It may’ve seemed like a dream, but it was real.
Likewise, those who are faithful to Jesus Christ will also be promoted. Imagine him saying to you, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness! (Matthew 25:21). If it seems like a dream to us, it’s one that will never end. Now is the time to be faithful.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 107
Job 1:1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job.
Job may’ve lived around 2100 BC, but his story was written down many years later, perhaps around 500 BC. It takes place in the land of Uz, which was just outside the land of Israel. If God is fair, why do the righteous suffer? That’s the concern of this book. The problem is not entirely solved, but insights are provided.
Job 1:6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.
We seldom think of Satan in heaven, but here he appears with angels in the presence of God. Satan will be thrown into hell for ever and ever (Revelation 20:10), but currently roams the earth (Job 1:7), and even appears before God. God and Satan even talk.
Job 1:8 Then the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job?
At the time of this conversation, Job’s life was going well. He had seven sons, three daughters, and enough livestock to make him the wealthiest person around (Job 1:3-4). He wasn’t only rich, however, but also righteous. The Lord said to Satan, There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil (Job 1:8b). Job was rich, righteous, and greatly blessed by God.
Job 1:9-11 Does Job fear God for nothing? Satan replied. Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.
There are five important things we should learn from this conversation. First, we have an enemy. We expect to be punished for our sins and rewarded for our righteousness, but it’s not that simple. There’s a powerful evil being who delights to see the righteous suffer.
Second, God is our protector. He put a hedge around Job and everything he had (Job 1:10). A proper hedge can be an effective means to keep outside what doesn’t belong inside. God can surround us with a hedge and protect us from all harm.
Third, our lives are not private. Job’s ordeal is played out in the presence God, Satan and angels. To this the New Testament adds, a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1), those who’ve gone to heaven before us. Any sense of privacy is pure illusion. God and many witnesses see everything we do.
Fourth, hardship reveals our loyalty. Satan thought Job’s first loyalty wasn’t to God, but to Job. He thought Job was serving God because of what he got from God, not because he was loyal to God. If God took away Job’s prosperity, Job would turn away from God. This is the heart of the issue.
Fifth, Satan wants us to curse God. [S]tretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face (Job 1:11), said Satan. God is the object of more and greater cursing every day than any other being in the universe. Some people even curse God for the pleasure it makes them feel. Even the righteous are tempted to curse God sometimes. This was Satan’s goal for Job, and also for us.
Job 1:12 The Lord said to Satan, Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.
Satan is the enemy of God, of course, but also of God’s people, and everyone made in God’s image. Since he can’t attack God directly, he attacks the people God loves. Every disease, sorrow, pain, murder, torture, war and death can be traced, directly or indirectly, back to Satan.
But Satan is under God’s control. He was free to destroy all that Job had, but not the man himself. [O]n the man himself do not lay a finger, said God. Satan’s power is greater than any human power, but is nothing compared to the power of God. Satan’s power is awesome, but he’s on a leash. God’s leash.
Job 1:13-19 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, a messenger came to Job and said, The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
The day began like any other day. Job probably got out of bed and thanked God for all the blessings he enjoyed. Perhaps he had eggs for breakfast, and planned to join the celebration at his son’s house later that day. It was nice to have the family together, enjoying the abundance God had provided.
But in just a few minutes Job went from riches to rags. One after another the messengers came with news of catastrophic loss: oxen, donkeys, servants, sheep and camels were all suddenly gone. Then, worst of all, the loss of his dear children. Seven sons and three daughters died when the house collapsed on them. How does a man of God respond to such a disaster?
Reflection and Review
Lesson 108
Job 1:20-21 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.
Job, of course, was devastated. But he chose to worship God instead of cursing him. Praising God in heaven is easier than praising God on earth. And praising God when things go right is easier than praising him when things go wrong. By worshipping God in the midst of loss, Job brought more glory to God than angels above.
Job was able to respond this way because he understood two important things. First, everything he had on earth was only temporary. Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart, he said. He came into the world with nothing, and would leave with nothing. The important thing was that he still had God.
Second, Job understood that God was in control of his loss. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, he said. Job wasn’t in the hands of fate, chance or the devil. He was in the hands of a good and loving God who is always worthy of praise. So even in the midst of loss, Job gave praise to God.
Job 1:22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
Whenever evil strikes it seems like God isn’t doing his job, or is doing it rather badly. If the disaster is overwhelming, in fact, we might even think that God is evil. No matter how things appear, however, we must trust that God is good, and is doing something good for us.
A child begged his father not to take him into surgery, but the father did anyway because it was best for the child. He wasn’t trying to hurt the child, but to help the child. God may have to hurt us in order to help us, but he will never harm us. No matter how great the affliction, we can never charge God with wrongdoing. We should praise him, in fact, for the good he’s doing, even if we can’t understand it.
Job 2:1-6 On another day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. And the Lord said to Satan, Where have you come from? Satan answered the Lord, From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.
Then the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.
Skin for skin! Satan replied. A man will give all he has for his own life. But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to Satan, Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.
Job did so well in his first round of testing that God honored him with a second. In the first round, Satan was allowed to destroy all that belonged to Job, but not his health. Now he was free to destroy even that. This was a staggering test because, apart from health, there’s little in the world that can even be enjoyed.
Job 2:7-9 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!
Perhaps the only reason Satan didn’t take Job’s wife, along with his children, is because he wanted to speak to Job through her. This is the only time she’s quoted in the Bible, and it doesn’t reflect well on her. But she lost everything too. And, as the mother of ten dead children, her pain may’ve been worse than Job’s.
Job’s wife told him to Curse God and die, but Job wouldn’t do either. Some are willing to curse God, and some are willing to kill themselves, but Satan’s joy is most complete when people curse God and then kill themselves. We don’t know how often this occurs but this was Satan’s will for Job. Here we see the evilness of Satan, and his perfect will for each of us.
Job 2:10 Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?
Job was the kind of person who did what was right because it was right, not because it worked. He was loyal to his Maker because it’s always right to be loyal to your Maker.
A middle-aged man was taken to the hospital with neck pain. Soon he was paralyzed and unable to speak. Over many years he recovered his speech, but always needed a wheel chair. His son was angry at God and asked his father why he wasn’t angry too. Why should I accept good from God and not trouble? he said. God is to be honored for who he is, not only for what he gives.
Job 2:11-13 When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.
When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.
The presence of friends must’ve been a comfort to Job, at least for awhile. They showed their sensitivity by sitting with him in silence. This isn’t always easy. We’re uncomfortable with people in pain and want to say something helpful. We’re tempted to say, I know what you’re going through, I know how you feel, or something theological. But most of the time we don’t know what they’re going through, how they feel, or how it relates to God. It’s wiser to show our concern by simply being present, and saying very little.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 109
Job 3:1 After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.
He was, after all, human. Job wasn’t cursing God, as the devil intended, but only the day of his birth. The loss of health, wealth and family were so overwhelming that he wished he’d never been born. Life in a fallen world is so painful, at times, that many have come to the same conclusion.
The best remedy for this is a vivid view of the age to come. The Apostle Paul was familiar with suffering, but also with heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2-4). When he compared the two he was greatly encouraged. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Romans 8:18), he said. The worst possible life on earth is nothing compared to the glory that will be ours forever. This is a great encouragement to all who suffer in faith.
Job 3:25 What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me.
Believing in God is no guarantee against losing everything. If we think nothing bad can happen to us, because we believe in God, then we’ll stop believing in God when something bad happens to us. Faith knows that God is always in full control (Matthew 10:29-31), and won’t allow anything to happen to us, that’s not for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). This kind of faith enjoys the best, endures the worst, and glorifies God in everything.
Job 10:3 Does it please you to oppress me, to spurn the work of your hands?
Job didn’t have a Bible, so it’s no surprise he drew some wrong conclusions. His suffering made him think of God as an oppressor who enjoyed watching his servant suffer. Suffering can deepen our knowledge of God, but it can also distort our theology. We might conclude that God is good but not entirely powerful, or that he’s powerful but not entirely good. But the Bible insists that God is all good, and all powerful, and allows suffering to make us like Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28-29).
Job 19:25-27 I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!
Throughout his suffering Job’s faith went up and down, but this was a high point. He looked ahead to a time when he’d see his redeemer on earth. Without fully understanding, Job looked forward to the redemption Christ would provide, to his second coming, and to the resurrection of believers (John 5:28-29). Even if we lose everything, we’ll receive much more in the age to come. This is our greatest comfort in times of loss.
A young lady earned a doctorate in literature and became a university professor. She was a brilliant wordsmith until a brain tumor eroded her ability to think and speak. Toward the end of her life she only quoted Scripture. Her last words were, I know that my redeemer lives.
Job 23:10 [W]hen he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
Job was starting to see his hardship as a form of purification. Gold must go through fire for dross to be removed, and Christians must go through suffering for their faith to be purified. The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart (Proverbs 17:3), says Proverbs.
Job 38:1 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm.
After thirty-five chapters of speeches from Job and his friends, God finally speaks. But God didn’t provide the answer Job or his friends were looking for. Instead of explaining why a good and powerful God would allow the righteous to suffer, God reminded them that his wisdom is beyond our comprehension.
Children can’t understand everything their parents do, so we shouldn’t expect to understand everything God does. What we know of his goodness, power and wisdom is enough for us to trust him.
Job 42:5-6 My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
Throughout his story, Job insisted that he was a pretty good person. And, compared to everyone else, he was. But even though he was the most righteous person around (Job 1:8), Job was still a sinner who fell short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). It wasn’t until he saw himself in the light of God’s glory that he could say, I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
This is why it’s never wise to compare ourselves to other sinners. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise (2 Corinthians 10:12), wrote Paul. Most people think they’re better than average, but God’s standard is perfection (Matthew 5:48). When we compare ourselves to other sinners, we think too much of ourselves. It’s only when we see ourselves in the light of God’s holiness that we can say with Job, I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
Job 42:12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.
God gave Job twice as much as he had before, and many more years to enjoy it. Whenever we go through difficult times, we might think they’ll never end. But they usually do. We went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance (Psalm 66:12), wrote the Psalmist. Suffering is never the last word for the people of God. Even if we suffer to death, we’ll awake to eternal joy. Tough times never last but tough people do.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 110
Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked.
The book of Psalms is a collection of prayers and praise that were set to music and used for worship by the people of God. King David authored many of them but Asaph, Solomon and Moses were also authors, along with a few others.
Various Psalms date from between 1500 and 500 BC, and the book was put into its final form in the 300’s BC. The book of Psalms expresses the full range of religious emotions, from breathtaking highs to suffocating lows. It reflects the religious feelings of believers in all circumstances, throughout the ages.
The first word of the first verse of the first Psalm is the word blessed. The Hebrew word can also be translated happy, so the point of the first psalm is to direct our feet into the way of happiness. All men seek happiness. There are no exceptions. However different the means they may employ, they all strive towards this goal.
The reason some people go to church is to be happy, and the reason some people stay home is to be happy. The reason some people get married is to be happy, and the reason some people get divorced is to be happy. I’ve been on several diets, over the years, and I always start because I think that being thinner will make me happy. But when I get hungry enough, I think that eating will make me happy. Whether I eat or starve, I do both for the same reason. Psalm one tells us how to be happy in God.
Psalm 1:1b [He] does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers.
Few things will influence our lives for good or evil more than those around us. This is why parents are concerned about what kind of friends their children make. I was thirteen years old when I began to run with the wrong crowd, and my mother expressed her concern. I said, The reason I run with them is to be a good influence. But I was lying through my teeth and she knew it. She shook her head and said, Tell me who you run with, and I’ll tell you who you are.
A young lady was also going out with the wrong crowd, and told her parents the same lie. They said, If you’re going out with unbelievers make the ratio three to one: three friends who are on the right track for every one who is not. That’s good advice. The sinful nature is so powerful that it’s easier to be influenced toward evil, than to influence others toward good. Your best friends are the ones who bring out the best in you.
Psalm 1:2 . . . whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.
We don’t know the author of Psalm One, but he clearly loved the Bible. He didn’t merely read the Bible, he made it his meditation. A good way to meditate on God’s word is by committing it to memory. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119:11), wrote the Psalmist. As we memorize the word of God, it sinks into our soul, and helps us throughout the day.
Psalm 1:3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.
Israel’s climate is mostly hot and dry, so it’s not always easy to make things grow. But, along the Jordan River, everything grows nicely because of the constant water supply. The writer is saying, poetically, the closer you are to God, the more you’ll flourish.
A young missionary who’d later die for his faith these words: I walked out on the hill just now and it is exalting. It is delicious to stand and be embraced by the shadow of a friendly tree with the wind tugging at your coattail and the heavens tugging at your heart. To gaze and glory and give oneself again to God. What more could a man ask. The fullness, pleasure, and sheer excitement of knowing God on earth (Jim Elliot). This is the kind of spiritual flourishing that God wants for all of us.
Psalm 1:3b . . . whatever they do prospers.
Prosperity doesn’t come easily in a fallen world. Some people prosper financially, but their relationships are a mess. Others prosper relationally, but their finances are a mess. Others prosper outwardly, but inwardly they’re a mess. And some people are just a mess. But here we learn that prosperity often comes from knowing God’s word, and being among his people.
Whenever you buy something that requires assembly, it’s wise to read the instructions. Otherwise you may assemble it incorrectly, and it won’t work the way it should. God knows how life is supposed to work, and has revealed it in his word. It’s the only way to true prosperity.
Psalm 1:4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
In some places wheat and chaff are still separated the way they were in the Bible. Both are tossed into the air and, because the chaff is lighter, the wind blows it off to the side. The wheat is stored in a barn, and the chaff is burned in a fire.
John the Baptist used this image to describe how Christ will separate the righteous from the wicked. [H]e will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:12), he said. They’re together now, but will be sorted out in the end.
Psalm 1:5-6 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
The first word in this Psalm is blessed, and the last word is destruction. Those who belong to Jesus Christ will enjoy eternal blessedness, and those who die apart from Christ will endure eternal destruction. This Psalm teaches us how to be happy in this life, and in the one to come.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 111
Psalm 2:11 Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling.
We don’t normally celebrate God’s rule with trembling, but that’s the response called for by this text. David is speaking to kings, before whom ordinary people trembled. Since kings held the power of life and death, it could be a dreadful thing to stand in their presence. How much more the king of all the earth?
A proper response to God includes both celebration and trembling. [T]remble before him, all the earth (Psalm 96:9). My flesh trembles in fear of you; (Psalm 119:20). Do not be arrogant, but tremble (Romans 11:20). And work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), wrote Paul.
The Bible gives us enough assurance to be secure, but never enough to be careless. Excessive assurance will cause a person to be spiritually lax, and insufficient assurance will cause a person to be spiritually tense. Sufficient assurance allows us to celebrate the rule of God with trembling.
Psalm 4:8 In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
David had powerful enemies and, on occasion, he had to run for his life. He needed God’s protection while he was awake, but even more while he slept. Instead of sleeping lightly, he committed himself to God’s care, knowing that God alone could make him dwell in safety.
For those who live in fear, nothing is more precious than feeling secure, and none are safer than those who trust in God. Being a Christian doesn’t mean you won’t be murdered at midnight, but that you won’t be murdered by chance, because God will preserve your life until he calls you home.
Psalm 8:3-4 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
When we consider the expanse of the universe, it’s easy to feel insignificant by comparison. Even our planet is tiny compared to many others. But earth is the place of God’s special work. It’s where he sent his Son to live and teach. These are the people for whom he died. And this is where he’ll live in the future. The vastness of the universe shouldn’t make us feel insignificant, but compel us to worship the God who made it, and who numbers the hairs of our heads (Matthew 10:30).
Psalm 10:1 Why, Lord, do you stand far off Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
There are times in life when God seems remarkably close. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken (Psalm 16:8). But as for me, it is good to be near God (Psalm 73:28). And, The Lord is near to all who call on him (Psalm 145:18), wrote the Psalmists.
But there are other times when God seems painfully absent. Lord, do not forsake me; do not be far from me (Psalm 38:21). Why do you hide your face and forget our misery? (Psalm 44:24). Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me? (Psalm 88:14), wrote the Psalmists also.
The felt presence of God, and the felt absence of God, are both legitimate feelings expressed in God’s word. They’re powerful, and often undeniable, but are not our most reliable guide. Regardless of what we’re going through, we should always trust in the promise of Christ. I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20), he said. God wants us to live by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7), more than by our feelings.
Psalm 14:1 The fool says in his heart, There is no God.
God is self-evident from the world he created (Romans 1:20), and whoever disagrees is a fool. The conviction may be philosophical, or merely practical, but it’s the prevailing view of many. And, yet, God refuses to go away.
A young atheist was going through a difficult time and found himself angry at God. He had to remind himself that it didn’t make sense to be angry at God because he didn’t believe in God. But pain makes us think about God whether we believe in him or not. Many who hit their thumb with a hammer mention God instinctively. So why doesn’t everyone admit they believe in God?
The answer is that God is inconvenient. Saying yes to him means saying no to ourselves. The good news of atheism is that there is no Judgment Day, so we can live as we please now. This is very appealing, even if it isn't true.
But those who’ve come to God through faith in Jesus Christ are normally happier than atheists for several reasons. First, they’ve resolved their guilt through faith, repentance and forgiveness. Second, they’re not afraid of death because they have eternal life. Third, they’re more optimistic because they believe that God is good. Fourth, they have better relationships because they’ve learned to love and forgive. And fifth, they’re less worried about this life because they’re looking forward to the next.
Those who argue against God argue against the very one who gives them the ability to argue at all. They’re like a little girl who’s able to slap her father’s face, only because he holds her up. Apart from sin, everyone would believe in God immediately and without argument.
Psalm 16:11 [Y]ou will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
King David knew pleasure, and saw it as a gift from God. This helped him look forward to the age to come when he he’d enjoy eternal pleasures at God’s right hand. The greatest pleasures on earth are only a foretaste of what the righteous will enjoy forever.
The devil wants us think that God is against pleasure, but this is contrary to Scripture and reason. When God created Adam and Eve, he put them in the Garden of Eden, a place of sensual bliss. He also gave them physical senses to enjoy all that he made: the beauty of nature, the taste of food, the sound of birds, the sense of touch, and the smell of lilacs in bloom. To this he added the joy of his presence to make us glad (Psalm 21:6). It can even be argued that we were made for pleasure—the pleasure of God and creation.
But pleasure is so powerful it can destroy us if we’re not careful. Many who were once rich have died penniless due to an excessive pursuit of pleasure. Others have lost their health or reputations. The proper use of pleasure is to enjoy it within the limits God has set. God should be our highest pleasure, and his commandments our first concern. Then we’ll enjoy pleasure as he intends, and look forward to eternal pleasures at his right hand.
Psalm 19:7 The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
David found God’s word to be his most reliable guide. It was more trustworthy than advice from his friends, or even of his own conclusions. Even today, the Bible should be trusted above all else.
A military aircraft was returning from a mission and, due to a tailwind, arrived home sooner than expected. Their instruments showed the airbase was directly below them, but their instincts told them otherwise. Instead of trusting their instruments, they relied on their instincts, and never made it home. Our most reliable guide to heaven isn’t our instincts, but what God has said in his word.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 112
Psalm 22:1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
These are haunting words to pray, but David was desperate, and felt abandoned by God. He was being attacked by ruthless men and God seemed strangely absent. David trusted God, served God, and worshipped God. But where was God when David needed him most?
Some people think that life with God is uniformly joyful, but nothing could be further from the truth. There are moments of delight, but also of despair. Jesus himself quoted this verse while he hung on the cross. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46), he said.
Jesus’ fellowship with the Father had never been interrupted because Jesus never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). But when he bore the penalty for our sins on the cross, God apparently withdrew all sense of his favor. By quoting the first verse of this Psalm, Jesus drew attention to the whole Psalm, which parallels his crucifixion in many ways.
Psalm 22:7 All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
As Jesus hung on the cross, the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him (Mark 15:31). Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads (Matthew 27:39). The parallel is undeniable. David and Jesus both experienced public ridicule and mocking.
Psalm 22:13 Roaring lions that tear their prey open their mouths wide against me.
David’s opponents reminded him of a lion tearing its prey. And before Jesus was crucified, his flesh was torn from the lashing he received (John 19:1).
Psalm 22:14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint.
Crucifixion could lead to the dislocation of bones, as victims hung on the cross for hours before they died. The gospels don’t mention this explicitly, but it’s certainly possible that some of Jesus’ bones came out of joint as he hung on the cross.
Psalm 22:15 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
If you’ve ever been extremely thirsty you know what this is like. The tongue sticks to the roof of the mouth as if it’s seeking moisture. As Jesus hung on the cross he was parched and said, I am thirsty (John 19:28).
Psalm 22:16 Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet.
David’s enemies were like dogs biting his hands and feet. But the word pierce reminds us of the piercing of Jesus’ hands and feet when he was nailed to the cross. Even after he rose from the dead, Jesus’ hands had holes in them (John 20:27). But he was pierced for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5), said Isaiah. And They will look on me, the one they have pierced (Zechariah 12:10), Zechariah foretold.
Psalm 22:17 All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me.
Crucifixion was meant to humiliate so victims were normally naked. All Jesus’ bones were on display and, as he looked down from the cross, he saw his enemies gloating in triumph. We can imagine his shame and humiliation as his enemies stared at his naked, bony, crucified body.
Psalm 22:18 They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.
The parallel here is extraordinary. When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. Let’s not tear it, they said to one another. Let’s decide by lot who will get it (John 19:23-24). So they divided Jesus’ clothes, and cast lots for his garment, just as David described.
Psalm 22:26 The poor will eat and be satisfied.
The Psalm begins somberly, but ends triumphantly. It speaks of a meal for the poor that will leave them completely satisfied. This reminds us of the meal Jesus ordained the night before his death (Luke 22:17-19). For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death (1 Corinthians 11:26), he said. Jesus gave his body and blood, so we could feast on him through faith.
Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord.
After Jesus rose from the dead he told his followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). They spread out far and wide, preaching the gospel wherever they went. Two thousand years later, people around the world gather each week to remember Christ, and turn to him in faith.
Psalm 22:31 They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!
This is the last verse of the Psalm and reminds us of Jesus’ last words from the cross: It is finished (John 19:30). This is a close parallel to He has done it! When Jesus died on the cross, his work of redemption was complete.
Psalm 22 sounds like an eyewitness account of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, so we have to remind ourselves that David wrote this Psalm about a thousand years before Christ was born. By quoting the first verse of this Psalm, Jesus gave us a glimpse of what he was going through on the cross. And because the Psalm ends well, he was pointing to the good that would come as a result. This kind of prediction and fulfillment are a clear indication of divine authorship.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 113
Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
The twenty-third Psalm was written by David about three thousand years ago, and may be the most loved poem in the world. He spent his youth as a shepherd, so he had a good idea of what sheep are like: stubborn, nearsighted, no sense of direction, mostly defenseless, and not very smart. In a flash of insight David realized that people are a lot like sheep, and that even he needed someone to watch over him.
This is surprising because David was one of the most capable people who ever lived. He was a gifted poet and musician, a lethal warrior, and a remarkable leader. If anyone had reason to feel self-sufficient, it should’ve been David. But David felt dependent on God, and became one of the greatest people who ever lived.
Psalm 23:2-3 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.
This is the life we long for: an everyday stroll down to the riverside to picnic and relax. It’s a life of leisure, the purpose of which is to know and love our Shepherd.
The patriarch Jacob was also a shepherd, and was moving his flocks to another town. The journey was long, but he was patient, and refused to drive the sheep too hard. If they are driven hard just one day, all the animals will die (Genesis 33:13), he said. God is a gentle shepherd who knows how to care for his sheep. Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest (Mark 6:31), said Jesus.
Psalm 23:3 He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
A good shepherd cared for his sheep by keeping them on the right path. The only way for a sheep to get into serious trouble was to go his own way. This was a bad idea because, in the eyes of a wolf, sheep are just lamb chops waiting to happen.
Years ago I was walking along a path when I was surprised by a large dog. He was tied up to a tree and, when he saw me coming, he actually hid behind it. But the moment I was within striking distance, he lunged at me and nearly got my throat. Thankfully his leash ran out, and he fell in a heap. But it’s not hard to imagine what might’ve happened if I wasn’t on the path.
Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
We can imagine David passing through a valley where bandits were known to attack, especially after sunset. David wondered how he’d defend himself, and began to feel afraid. Then he remembered that God was with him. This brought him comfort, courage and confidence.
On our journey to heaven we may walk through valleys of fear, depression, rejection, guilt, addiction, unemployment, confusion, sickness, poverty, pain, and other effects of living in a sin-cursed world. But God is with us in every valley, and is leading us to a place where there’ll be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (Revelation 21:4). Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).
Psalm 23:4b . . . your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
David was familiar with the rod and staff, which he used to coral his sheep, and comfort them. They were an extension of his personal touch, to remind his sheep that he was there for them.
A shepherd was watching his flock in a place that was torn by war. Whenever a shot rang out the sheep would tremble uncontrollably. Then he’d reach out his staff and touch each one as if to say, Don’t be afraid; I am here for you. We can also comfort others by saying, Don't be afraid; God is here for you.
Psalm 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Here there is a change of imagery. David is no longer a wandering sheep, but a guest of honor at a heavenly banquet. A good host would welcome his guests by filling their cups and anointing their foreheads with oil. Isaiah spoke of a banquet at the end of the age, where God himself will be the host, and we will be his guests (Isaiah 25:6). He will fill our cups, anoint our heads and say, Welcome home my child.
But as someone capable of both adultery and murder, David seems optimistic about his reception at the heavenly banquet. I’d be happy to slip in quietly and take a place near the back. If there was a place for the most unworthy, I’d be happy to sit there. But that’s not what the Bible teaches.
[Y]ou will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:11), wrote Peter. When you walk through heaven’s door there’ll be shouts of praise to God for his amazing grace, and for the blood of Christ which makes the foulest clean. God himself will be your host, filling your cup, anointing your head, and rejoicing at your arrival.
Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
My wife and I used to look at new home magazines and discovered we have similar taste. We both like anything over two million dollars. But can you imagine God’s house?
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am (John 14:2-3), said Jesus.
A young lady was hospitalized for depression. She never took her eyes off the ground and rarely spoke word. Then, one day, she was assigned a doctor with an unusual last name. He introduced himself as Dr. Heaven.
That was his real name and it helped change her thoughts. She stopped worrying about this life, and began to think of the one to come. She took her eyes off her problems, and put them on God. Within five weeks she was released from the hospital and went on to become a successful teacher. Regardless what happens in this life, we’ll dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 114
Psalm 25:11 For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
David didn’t request forgiveness because God is forgiving, loving or merciful, but For the sake of [his] name. This idea appears more than once: forgive our sins for your name’s sake (Psalm 79:9), wrote Asaph. And, your sins have been forgiven on account of his name (1 John 2:12), wrote John.
God’s name is glorified by forgiving our sins because it enhances his reputation as the God who forgives. The greater our sins, in fact, the more God is glorified by forgiving them. It’s one thing to forgive gossip and unkindness, but quite another to forgive murder, rape and blasphemy.
But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Nehemiah 9:17), said the Levites. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him (Daniel 9:9), wrote Daniel. God wants to be known as forgiving, so he’s willing to forgive anyone for anything, if they come to him through faith in Jesus Christ (1 John 1:9).
If God only forgave little sins, or few sins, he couldn’t be known as very forgiving. Everyone on earth forgives sins that are little or few. But if God forgives the worst possible repeat offenders, who believe in Jesus Christ, then he deserves a reputation as the God who forgives sinners. Once we’ve done our worst, and there’s no other reason for God to forgive, we should pray like David. For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Psalm 27:8 My heart says of you, Seek his face! Your face, Lord, I will seek.
David wasn’t content to go through religious motions; he wanted to encounter God. He wanted to be so close to God that it was like seeing his face. This is a longing for closeness. Think of your mother’s face, or your father’s face, or your spouse’s face. We seldom look at a person’s face for long unless we’re committed to them.
More than a few grandparents have put pennies in their hand, so the grandkids could pry their fingers open, grab the pennies, and run away. It’s a wonderful game, but it’s also how some people pray. They don’t seek God for himself, but for what he has in his hand. It’s not wrong to pray for our needs, but we should also seek God’s face. Our heart’s deepest desire isn’t what we can get from God, but for more of God himself.
Psalm 29:11 [T]he Lord blesses his people with peace.
The biblical idea of peace is broader than the absence of conflict. It’s more like things as they’re supposed to be. Imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your body. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your heart. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your mind, at home, at work, and at church. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be throughout the whole world because, one day, the peace of God will permeate every molecule of his creation. Sin has made a mess of things but Christ is making it right. Even now, he blesses his people with peace.
Psalm 31:19 How abundant are the good things that you have stored up for those who fear you.
For many years David lived with little, but he later received an abundance of things that God had stored up for him: power, privilege, health, wealth, friends, family and more. David wasn't unique in this way. God is storing up things for everyone who fears him, and he wants us to be aware of it.
When my children were small, their grandmother stored up things under her bed for them. Some were for birthdays, some were for Christmas, and some were just for fun. They weren’t allowed to look under her bed, but I think they used to dream of all that was being stored up for them. And so should we.
Some of our hearts’ desires have been planted by God because he plans to fulfill them. It may happen suddenly, gradually, or not until eternity. But the gifts of God will come, and they will be abundant.
Psalm 32:5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
David didn’t identify the sin he committed, but he acknowledged the difficulty of coming to repentance. Instead of confessing his sin, and requesting forgiveness, he wanted to ignore the fact that he did something wrong. He may’ve justified his sin, or put it out of his mind, but he couldn’t go forward with God until he owned up to it. Then he confessed his sin, and God forgave him.
A woman took part in a bank robbery in which an officer was shot and killed. She changed her identity and avoided arrest for twenty-three years. But her first thought every morning, and her last at night, was of the man who was killed. She took a class on depression but found no relief. So, more than two decades later, she turned herself in to authorities. I have had to examine my conscience and accept any responsibility I have, she said.
If our conscience is working properly we’ll have feelings of guilt whenever we break God’s law. The purpose of these feelings is not to make us miserable, but to bring us back to God. As soon as we confess, God will forgive. Then our feelings of guilt will gradually subside. There’s no other way to go forward with God.
Psalm 34:3 Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.
David wasn’t content to be a solitary worshipper but wanted others to join him. He was so concerned for God’s glory that he wanted to enlarge the circle of praise as far as he could. This should be the attitude of every church, and every true believer in Jesus Christ. Christianity isn’t a solitary religion, but one that gathers corporately, and invites others to glorify the Lord with us.
A nobleman built a church for his village but didn’t include any lights. He gave each family lamp and reminded them that it would be a little darker whenever they didn’t attend. We ought to invite others to church and we ought to go ourselves.
Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
David’s relationship with God was so delicious, that he wanted others to taste for themselves. As the tongue tastes food, we can experience God by drawing near to him. And, when we do, we’ll discover that he is good.
There’s almost nothing better to me than a ripe watermelon on a hot summer day. Several years ago I ate one all by myself. Watermelon proves to me that God is good because only a good God would invent something that delicious. But God and watermelon also have this in common: the closer you get to the heart, the better they are. Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Psalm 36:8 [Y]ou give [us] drink from your river of delights.
A college I attended had a river nearby, where we liked to swim in the spring. There was a tree on the bank, with a rope-swing attached, that was often in use. We’d swing over the river, flip in the air, and splash down in the water. It was, to us, a river of delight.
This is only a foretaste of what’s to come. In the last chapter of God’s word we read of the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God (Revelation 22:1). In glorified bodies we’ll swing, flip and laugh to our hearts content. Whatever is delightful in this age, is only a foretaste of what’s to come.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 115
Psalm 51:1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
After committing adultery with Bathsheba, and having her husband killed, David’s initial impulse was not to ask for mercy, but to run away from God. So God sent the prophet Nathan to bring him back. Then David wrote this remarkable Psalm of repentance, which begins with a plea for mercy. David didn’t shift the blame for his behavior, like Adam and Eve. Nor did he blame God for making him a sexual being, or Bathsheba for bathing in plain sight. He simply begged for mercy.
We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy (Daniel 9:18) wrote Daniel. You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy (Micah 7:18), wrote Micah. And The Lord is full of compassion and mercy (James 5:11), wrote James. Serious sinners need to know that God is the most merciful being in the universe, even to the worst of us.
Psalm 51:2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
Sin is so unnatural that, if our conscience is working properly, we’ll feel dirty whenever we do wrong. We can bathe ourselves in water, and use the strongest soap, but the sense of being defiled won’t go away until we’re cleansed by God.
In the event of robbery, banks have included permanent dye with the money. When the crooks reach for the cash, their hands are instantly marked. They can use every kind of detergent, and scrub until they’re raw, but the dye won’t come off. Their guilt is clear for everyone to see.
Apart from the cleansing work of Christ, every sin we commit leaves a permanent stain on our soul. They can’t be removed by time, regret, remorse, sacrifice, service, or anything other than the blood of Christ. But the blood of Jesus . . . purifies us from all sin (1 John 1:7), wrote John.
Psalm 51:3 I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
Whenever David looked in the mirror, he saw an adulterous murderer looking back at him. He was a very important person, lived in a beautiful home, and had accomplished many things. But he didn’t like himself. And people can't be happy unless they’re happy with themselves.
Many have done such terrible things, in fact, that they wish they’d never been born. Some have even killed themselves due to the pain of their guilt. But the purpose of guilt isn’t to make us hate ourselves; it’s to lead us to the one who can wash our guilt away, and give us a glorious future.
Psalm 51:4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.
David sinned against Bathsheba in the act of adultery, and against her husband by arranging his death. But he claimed to sin primarily against God. Some people think sin is okay, if no one gets hurt, but that never happens. God is always hurt by our sin.
This is why forgiveness is never complete until we’re forgiven by God. We should ask forgiveness from those we’ve offended but, even if the whole world forgives us, we’re never completely forgiven until we’re forgiven by God.
Psalm 51:5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
As David looked back on his life, he couldn’t recall a time when he wasn’t a sinner. He concluded that his sinfulness began the moment he was conceived. This is true for everyone because we’re all descendants of Adam and Eve—the first human sinners. Their righteous natures were corrupted by sin and passed down to their children. That’s why The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure (Jeremiah 17:9), wrote Jeremiah.
It’s so bad, in fact, that we’re not only sinners by nature, but also by choice. Not everyone is inclined toward music, or athletics, but we’re all inclined toward sin. It’s such a part of our nature that we not only enjoy it, but do it with skill. In this regard, we have more in common with the devil than we do with Jesus Christ. But our Savior took our penalty so we could be forgiven.
Psalm 51:7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Hyssop is a small plant that could be dipped in water, and used in a cleansing ceremony (Numbers 19:17-19). David was convinced that if God would cleanse him, he’d be whiter than snow. The words translated Cleanse me, can even be translated Un-sin me. God’s forgiveness is so complete, it’s like we never even sinned.
David learned that murder is a difficult thing to get over, and those who abort their babies often struggle terribly. But God is so good that he not only wants to forgive us, but longs to help us recover. That is why he offers to un-sin us.
Psalm 51:13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.
After asking God to forgive him, David wondered if anything good could come from his sin. Then he recalled that others struggle with sin and, if he could find his way back to God, he could help others do the same. By writing this Psalm, in fact, David has helped countless sinners come back to God.
We even find comfort in David’s sin, because if God can forgive him, then he can forgive us. God used David’s sin to demonstrate the extent of his forgiveness so that other sinners wouldn’t lose heart. God is willing to forgive our sin and even use it for good somehow.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 116
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.
Life is seldom carefree outside of Eden. We’re concerned about our money, our marriage, our health, our kids, our jobs, our parents, the economy, aging, war, death and more. Too many cares weigh us down, and will break us if we’re not careful. Instead of carrying the burdens of life ourselves, God invites us to cast our cares on him.
A man was buying plywood at a home improvement store, and stacking it on the roof of his car. There was no problem, at first, and the car seemed to handle it fine. But fifty sheets later his roof caved in, and his car was completely destroyed.
Our problems seem quite manageable one at a time. But if they are stacked high enough they’ll crush us. Casting our cares on the Lord isn’t just good advice, it may be the only way to survive. Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.
Psalm 56:3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
David’s life was in serious danger as he fled from his enemies. If they had their way, his life would soon be over. David was rightly afraid, but he refused to let his fear overwhelm him. Instead, he put his trust in God.
Trusting God is easy when the bills are paid, the job is secure, and your health is holding up. But we know from Scripture, and experience, that terrible things happen to God’s holy people sometimes. Trusting God isn’t believing nothing bad will ever happen, but that God is always in control, and is up to something good (Romans 8:28).
Imagine a veterinarian who wants to free a bear caught in a trap. First he has to shoot it with a tranquilizer, which the bear perceives as an attack. By thrashing around, the bear only makes things worse. If the bear understood the veterinarian was trying to do it good, it could relax. That’s what David did whenever he was afraid. When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
Psalm 65:3 When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.
Everyone sins, every day, but some days are worse than others. If the world, the flesh and the devil conspire, we can find ourselves doing things we never thought we’d do.
I swam in the ocean, years ago, and tried to body surf. But instead of riding on top of the wave, it dragged me along the bottom. I was absolutely powerless, and came up a bloody mess. That’s what overwhelming sin is like. It drags us along the bottom and makes a mess of us.
God’s answer to overwhelming sin is overwhelming forgiveness. We come to him in terrible shape and he makes us new again. [H]e does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities (Psalm 103:10). What we need the most from God, he gives us through his Son. Your sins are forgiven. . . . Your faith has saved you; go in peace (Luke 7:48-50), he said.
Psalm 69:14 Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink.
David was having a terrible time and feared for his life. Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up or the pit close its mouth over me (Psalm 69:15), he wrote. There are times when death comes near and only God can save us.
Two men were walking an Alaskan shoreline, when one stepped into quicksand. A helicopter was sent to lift him out, but the pain was so intense they had to stop. Soon he was up to his armpits, and the tide was coming in, so they tried again and, this time, it worked. Whether our quicksand is real, or metaphorical, we can call to God for help. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death (Psalm 68:20).
Psalm 73:25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
One of the first and favorite words of children is the word mine. We like stuff, we need stuff, and many spend their whole lives getting more stuff. This makes us happy for awhile, but it doesn’t always last.
A minister was having lunch with a wealthy man who was troubled in his heart. I have everything I need to be happy but I’m miserable as hell, he said. Later, that day, the minister sat with man who lost his wife and was caring for his ailing sister. I don't have two nickels to rub together, but I’m the happiest person I know, he said.
No one in the Bible was happy all the time, but if there’s a secret to happiness it’s probably this: Delight yourself in God, for he gives or withholds the ability to enjoy everything else. God may give you everything in the world except the ability to enjoy it. Or, he may give you little with the ability to enjoy it greatly.
This is important to know when we’re young, but especially with age, when earthly pleasures slip away. If we delight ourselves in God, we’ll enjoy whatever is left, and look forward to the best.
Psalm 73:26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Many have gathered a fortune only to lose it later on. Some have gathered another fortune only to lose it as well. But whoever has God has an eternal treasure that can never be lost. He is our portion forever.
A wealthy and powerful prince disguised himself and went on a journey to find a bride who would love him for who he was. His disguise was so convincing, in fact, that most wanted nothing to do with him. Then, at last, he found a bride who loved him deeply and sincerely.
When they returned to his kingdom, she was amazed by his power, privilege and possessions, which now belonged to her as well. This is the future of all who belong to Jesus Christ. Whoever loves Christ for his own sake will have everything else thrown in. But Christ himself is our portion forever.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 117
Psalm 78:4 [We] will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.
The person who wrote this had no idea how many generations he would influence with his advice. Three thousand years later, God is stilling using his words to inspire parents to pass down their faith to the next generation.
This is what God had in mind when he chose Abraham to be the father of the nation of Israel. For I have chosen him so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord (Genesis 18:19), said God. Abraham taught Isaac, Isaac taught Jacob, Jacob taught his children, and so forth. Over time, a nation of believers was formed.
Likewise, Moses taught the Israelites to pass down God’s many words to their children. [Talk] about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up (Deuteronomy 11:19), he said. Likewise, Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it (Proverbs 22:6), says Proverbs.
As a third generation believer, my wife is a good example of this. Her grandparents came to Christ shortly after they were married, and raised their children in the faith. Then my wife’s parents raised their children in the faith, and we raised our children in the faith. Today there are four generations of Christians who trace their heritage to one set of godly grandparents who’ve gone to be with the Lord.
When our children were small, we read a chapter of the Bible together almost every day. Most of the time they didn’t know what it meant, but we finished the whole Bible in about four years. Then we started over. When they were in their teens I allowed them to read on their own, but we got together once a week to discuss what they had learned.
The reason I did this was not only to teach my children, but to teach them how to teach their children. By God’s grace there could be several generations who arrive in heaven because we told the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.
Psalm 90:12 Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Most tombstones have a date-of-birth and a date-of-death, separated by a little dash. A million years from now all that will matter is what you did with your dash. If you live to be ninety years old, you’ll spend over thirty-two thousand days doing something. You can spend those days for yourself or for the Lord. But how you spend your days is how you spend your life.
No one knows when their life will end but, if you want a hopeful estimate, subtract your age from ninety, and multiply that by three hundred sixty-five. Then purchase that many marbles and put them into a container. Removing a marble a day will help you keep track of how many days you might have left. But there are no guarantees.
When I was a kid, I jumped belly first into an large inner tube and got wedged in the middle. My face was against the rubber and I couldn’t move or breathe. My friends were swimming nearby, and I could hear them playing, but they didn’t know I was dying. I still remember thinking, I didn’t expect to die today; I’m only nine years old! Somehow I wiggled free, but I learned the end is always near. Only this life will soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.
Psalm 100:3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his.
The first duty of creatures is to find their Maker and obey him. We didn’t make ourselves, and don’t belong to ourselves. We were made by God and, therefore, we are his. Turning away from God is nothing short of criminal.
Imagine building the house of your dreams on a perfect piece of property. Imagine a stone exterior, hardwood floors, a finished garage, and more. But the day you planned to move in the locks were changed, and someone else was living there. That’s how God must feel when we take the life he made for himself and lock him out. Repentance is giving our lives back to God and letting him live within us—not as a visitor but as the rightful owner (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Our life doesn’t belong to us; it belongs to the one who made us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 118
Psalm 103:10 [H]e he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
A nomadic youth got into a fight with his friend, and hit him so hard that he killed him. The law of the land was life for a life, so the boy was in serious trouble. But instead of running away, he ran a day and a half back to the tribal chief. He admitted his crime and begged the chief to protect him. And the chief agreed.
But, when boys’ accusers arrived, they told the chief something he didn’t know. The boy who was killed was the chief’s only son. The chief was visibly shaken, but after a moment to think he said, Then the one who killed my son will become my son, and all that I have will be his.
This, of course, is nothing less than gospel. God sent his Son into the world and we killed him. But if we return to God, he’ll forgive our sins, and that all he has will be ours.
Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him.
We can imagine David lying under a starry sky, amazed at the expanse above. He may’ve been in awe at the power of God, but that’s not what gripped his heart. What moved him most was the fact that God’s love for him was higher than the heavens above.
This is a little surprising because David did many things to make himself unlovely to God. He was a sinner, like everyone else, and there was nothing of which he wasn’t capable. Yet, somehow, he came into a special relationship with God, and knew that he was the object of infinite love.
If you had a spaceship that could travel the speed of light, you’d pass the moon in just over a second. About eight and a half minutes later you’d pass the sun. To get to the next galaxy would take twenty-five thousand years, and to get to the edge of the universe would take ninety-three billion years. Imagine God stretching out his hands from one end of the universe to the other. That’s how much he loves us.
Psalm 103:12 [A]s far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Whenever David thought about God, he was reminded of his sin, because God is against sin. But a thousand years later Christ would go to the cross so we could be forgiven (Colossians 2:13). Christ’s work was so effective that David could say in advance, as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
The distance from the North Pole to the South Pole is over twelve thousand miles, but the distance from east to west is harder to measure because there aren’t any poles. David was saying that God has removed our sins completely and forever--as far as the east is from the west.
Psalm 104:5 He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.
For many years this verse was used to support the idea that the sun revolves around the earth. If the earth can never be moved, then it can’t revolve around the sun. When science showed the earth does, in fact, revolve around the sun some people lost their confidence in the Bible.
But the Psalmist wasn’t making a scientific argument for an earth-centered universe. He was saying poetically that God made the world a stable place in which to live. By overstating what the Bible teaches, the church embarrassed itself and gave the world a reason to doubt God’s word.
If God is the author of nature and Scripture, they can’t contradict each other. When they appear to contradict, we are misunderstanding nature, Scripture, or both. Contradictory opinions don’t need to be settled at once, but can be held in tension until more information becomes available.
We can think of nature and Scripture as two books from the same author, both requiring interpretation. With time, our knowledge of each continues to improve. Christians must be careful not to make the Bible say what it doesn’t, or yield to scientific theories that oppose it. Scientific theories come and go, but the word of our God endures forever (Isaiah 40:8), wrote Isaiah.
Psalm 106:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Whenever you feel depressed, make a list of one hundred things for which you can be thankful. If you slept inside, on a bed, with a pillow and a blanket, that’s four. If you used a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and shampoo, that’s eight. If you had coffee with sugar and cream in your favorite mug, that’s twelve. The more we’re thankful for what we have, the less we’ll be bothered by what we don’t have.
A pastor went to a leper colony where he led a worship service and took song requests. One lady raised a fingerless hand and said, Let’s sing Count your many blessings. Count them one by one. Count your many blessings and see what God has done. Even with a fingerless hand we can Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 119
Psalm 116:14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.
Making and fulfilling vows was an important expression of faith in the Old Testament. Jacob said, If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God . . . and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth (Genesis 28:20-22).
When Hannah wanted a baby she said, Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life (1 Samuel 1:11).
But there is a problem with vows: most people are better at making them than keeping them. Many have promised to do something if God would answer their prayer, but when God answered their prayer they didn’t fulfill their vow.
Imagine a man lost in the woods who prayed, Lord, if you save me, I’ll give you my life. Then he heard children playing and, by walking in their direction, he found his way out. Later he wondered if God really answered his prayer, or if it was just a coincidence. Since he couldn’t be sure, he decided the vow wasn’t binding, and went on living as before.
It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it (Ecclesiastes 5:5), wrote Solomon. Oaths and vows were so abused, in fact, that they’re never taught in the New Testament as an expression of Christian faith. They’re not forbidden, but they’re not encouraged either.
Shortly after I believed, a minister encouraged me to vow that I’d read four chapters of the Bible a day. I wanted to please my heavenly Father, so I made the vow and kept it—for about a week. If I hadn’t made the vow I wouldn’t have been guilty of sin, but since I made the vow I was.
Breaking a vow is a serious sin, but it’s handled like every other sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. It’s not wrong to tell God what you’d like to do for him but, because of human weakness, it’s better not to vow.
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Psalm 119:1 Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.
This psalm is the longest chapter in the Bible, and is a celebration of God’s word. It begins with the word blessed, which occurs over two hundred times in the Bible, and refers to the happiness of those who belong to God and follow his ways. The ways of God aren’t always easy, but they’re always best for us, and lead to our greatest happiness. Human sorrow is the result of disobeying God, not the result of obeying him.
Psalm 119:11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
Few things are more helpful to resisting sin than committing God’s word to memory. Satan wanted Jesus to turn stones into bread but Jesus replied, It is written: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). Then Satan urged him to throw himself off the temple but Jesus replied, It is also written: Do not put the Lord your God to the test (Matthew 4:7). Then Satan urged Jesus to worship him, but Jesus replied, Away from me, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only (Matthew 4:10).
Three times Jesus was tempted by the Devil, and three times Jesus quoted God’s word. By committing God’s word to memory, we’re able to use it against Satan whenever we’re tempted to sin.
Psalm 119:14 I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
Likewise, The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold (Psalm 119:72). And, God’s word is more precious than gold, than much pure gold (Psalm 19:10), wrote the Psalmists.
An archaeologist uncovered five million dollars worth of jewelry, from the fifteenth century, just a foot and a half beneath the floor of a cottage. The owners never worried about the economy, medical bills, or having enough to eat because they were so rich.
They died, of course, and the cottage was occupied by others for hundreds of years. Many sat at the kitchen table, wondering how to pay their bills, while a fortune lay just beneath their feet. Whoever has a Bible, but doesn’t read it, is sitting on buried treasure. Whoever reads it often is richer than a king.
Psalm 119:16 I will not neglect your word.
Like everyone else, the writer had commitments that competed with his desire to study God’s word. Instead of rising early, and staying up late, he may’ve been tempted to get extra sleep. But he resolved not to neglect God’s word, regardless of other commitments.
If a minister stood in front of a church, and tore out pages of the Bible, many would object. But unless we study every page of the Bible, we may as well tear it out. Everyone who believes the Bible should be able to say with conviction, I will not neglect your word.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 120
Psalm 119:18 Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
It’s impossible to fully understand the Bible without divine assistance. Jesus’ disciples were often confused by what he had to say (Luke 18:34). But after he rose from the dead, Jesus opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures (Luke 24:45), wrote Luke. The Bible is a difficult book (2 Peter 3:16), and we need God’s help to understand it.
My family and I studied a drawing, years ago, that left me unsettled. All I could see was a random assortment of dots, colors and lines. They saw a clear and distinct image, and were surprised that I couldn’t. Likewise, we’ll miss much of the Bible without God’s help. Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
Psalm 119:24 Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors.
Legal counselors can help us with a lawsuit; financial counselors can help us with our budget; and family counselors can help us get along. Many spend a great deal of money to speak with a counselor, but how much would you pay for an hour with God?
Your Maker understands you better than you understand yourself, and his counsel is free. Rejecting his word often leads to problems, and obeying his word often leads to peace. Many who read and follow the Bible find it better than many counselors. A Bible that’s coming apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.
Psalm 119:34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law.
Even the writers of Scripture found the Bible hard to understand. The Apostle Peter said of the Apostle Paul, His letters contain some things that are hard to understand (2 Peter 3:16). We can imagine Peter reading Paul and saying, What does he mean by that? But, if we’re willing to persevere, we can make steady progress.
Those who practice an instrument, fifteen minutes a day, will eventually learn the instrument. They won’t become masters, but they’ll learn how to play. Likewise, those who read a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, will eventually learn the Bible. If done repeatedly, they’ll read it more than a dozen times in the course of an average life. The most important things aren’t always easy, but they’re always worth the effort.
Psalm 119:60 I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands.
Many have calmed themselves by planning to obey in the future. They permit themselves to sin in the present because they plan to obey eventually. But delayed obedience is nothing more than disobedience. If you tell your child to do something, and they wait ten minutes to do it, they’ve been disobedient for ten minutes. Since the writer understood this, he resolved to hasten and not delay to obey the Lord.
Psalm 119:102 I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me.
One dear lady started a book but put it down because she found it boring. Then she met the author and fell in love with him. When she read his book again, she found it full of things that taught her more about her beloved. That’s how it is with the Bible. The more we love God, the more we’ll enjoy his word.
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
Electric lights didn’t exist when the Bible was written, so darkness was taken seriously. If you were out on a cloudy night, and didn’t have an oil lamp, you could be lost until morning. Oil lamps weren’t very bright, but provided enough light to take the next step. That’s what the Bible does for us until we’re safely home. It’s a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.
Psalm 119:164 Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws.
The writer was so in love with God’s word that he wanted to praise him seven times a day for it. Perhaps he praised God when he got up, on his way to work, during lunch, on his way home, at dinner, before he went to bed, and whenever he woke up at night.
Praising God is a wonderful way to overcome sorrow and make us thankful. Nothing is more effective at banishing gloom than habitual praise. The more we learn to praise the Lord, the more we’ll enjoy him. The more we enjoy him, the more we’ll enjoy our lives.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 121
Psalm 119:176 I have strayed like a lost sheep. Seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commands.
This is a shocking conclusion to the longest chapter in the Bible, especially from someone who loved God and was spiritually mature. As much as the writer studied the Bible, and tried to follow it, he found himself wandering away from God. This side of heaven there will always be a part of us that wants to stray. What a wretched man I am! (Romans 7:24), wrote Paul.
Thankfully, the good shepherd will not forsake us even when we wander. He’ll come looking for us, and bring us into his fold again (Matthew 18:12-14). He’s the one who saves us, and also the one who keeps us (John 10:28).
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Psalm 130:5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits.
Few things are more important to an obedient life than learning to wait for God. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord (Psalm 27:14), wrote David. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning (Psalm 130:6), wrote the Psalmist. And, Blessed are all who wait for him! (Isaiah 30:18), wrote Isaiah.
One of the scariest moments in a trapeze act is when the flyer lets go of his trapeze and waits for the catcher to catch him. Both agree the flyer must never try to catch the catcher, but must wait for the catcher to catch the flyer. That’s how it is with God sometimes. We might be waiting for a spouse, a promotion, or something only God knows. Waiting isn’t easy, but it’s how we show our faith. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Psalm 131:2 I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.
Weaning occurred around age three and was a rite of passage from infancy to childhood. It changed the relationship between a child and their mother. Before they’re weaned, children love their mother for who she is, but also for what they receive from her. After weaning, children love their mother without receiving her breast.
This is how David saw himself with God. He was less concerned with what he received from God than simply to be with God. David continued to make requests, but was content to be in God’s presence. He was like a weaned child sitting with his mother.
Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life.
David avoided sword and spear many times throughout his life. He must’ve been surprised, at times, to find he was still alive. As he thought about this, he gave credit to God. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death (Psalm 68:20), he wrote.
A lady was cleaning the balcony of her ninth floor apartment when she toppled over the railing. She fell a hundred feet but landed in a canopy above the entry.
A young man wasn’t wearing his seatbelt when his car flipped over. He was catapulted into the air and landed in some power lines. But they were insulated and he was rescued without injury.
God is the giver of life, and also the one who preserves it. Every day we should give him another reason to keep us alive.
Psalm 139:20 They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name.
Throughout the Psalms, God’s people sing praises to his name (Psalm 7:17), declare his name (Psalm 22:22), trust in his name (Psalm 33:21), exalt his name (Psalm 34:3), hope in his name (Psalm 52:9), fear his name (Psalm 61:5), love his name (Psalm 69:36), call on his name (Psalm 80:18), glorify his name (Psalm 86:12), rejoice in his name (Psalm 89:16) and extol his name (Psalm 145:2). But it’s characteristic of the wicked to misuse God’s name.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name (Exodus 20:7), wrote Moses. Ordinary profanity is a terrible sin (Ephesians 4:19), but it’s immeasurably worse to misuse God’s name. And anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death (Leviticus 24:16), said God. This should no longer be enforced (Hebrews 8:13), but it reveals the seriousness of misusing God’s name.
God’s name should never be used as an exclamation, a casual expression, and certainly not as a curse. God’s name should only be used with the highest reverence, as when we are speaking directly to him. To misuse God’s name in anyway puts us in league with the devil--your adversaries misuse your name.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 122
Proverbs 1:1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel.
Solomon was the king of Israel in the tenth century BC, and led the nation to its height. His intellect was nothing short of extraordinary. God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. . . . He spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and five.
He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles and fish. From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom (1 Kings 4:29-34). Solomon is one of the most remarkable people who ever lived, and to learn from him is not a small privilege.
The book of Proverbs is a collection of wisdom sayings gathered from the school of life. They’re general principles of how the world works, and the fastest route to practical wisdom. Others contributed to the book of Proverbs such as Agur (Proverbs 30:1) and Lemuel (Proverbs 31:1), but the largest contributor seems to be Solomon.
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that asks, How do we know what we know? Do we know things are true by induction, deduction, abduction, intuition, or some other way? It’s an important question because, unless we understand how we know something, how can we be sure that we really know it? According to this verse, true knowledge begins with the fear of God—the intuition that he exists and is to be obeyed.
To deny this truth leads to irrationalism because without an ultimate mind the logic system of every mind is equally valid, and there’s no basis for a common rationality. Without belief in God there can be no right or wrong, only preferences. There can be no absolute truth, only your truth and my truth. The rejection of God is, therefore, the loss of reason. This is why the world is so confused.
When I was a child I learned the alphabet. Then I learned to read words. Then I learned to read sentences. Now I read books. In a way, the alphabet became for me the beginning of knowledge. But, according to this verse, there’s something even more basic to knowledge than the alphabet: the fear of God. A child who fears God knows more about ultimate reality than a university professor who doesn’t fear God.
Proverbs 2:14 [Wicked Men] delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil.
One of the most shocking things I’ve ever read is a quote from a wicked man who said, I thank God, in whom I do not believe, that I’m able to do all the evil in my heart. There is something in the unconverted heart that rejoices not only in the pleasure of sin, but also in the perverseness of sin.
A classic example comes from Saint Augustine who recounts an episode from his youth. There was a pear tree close to our own vineyard, heavily laden with fruit, which was not tempting either for its color or for its flavor. Late one night . . . a group of young scoundrels, and I among them, went to shake and rob this tree.
We carried off a huge load of pears, not to eat ourselves, but to dump out to the hogs . . . . Doing this pleased us all the more because it was forbidden. . . . [I had] no inducement to evil but the evil itself. It was foul, and I loved it. I loved my own undoing. . . . seeking nothing from the shameful deed but shame itself (Confessions, book two, chapter four.)
Augustine was stealing pears, not because he needed pears, but because he delighted in stealing. To enjoy evil simply because it’s evil is to enjoy evil for its own sake. This underscores the depth of our depravity and need for conversion.
Before knowing Christ, wickedness brings us joy, but now it brings us grief. The righteous still sin, but are almost unwilling, and despise themselves while they’re sinning. This is different from those who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil.
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
The highest court of appeal, for most people, is what makes sense to them. One of the greatest challenges of faith, therefore, is submitting to God when his ways don’t make sense to us. This is the essence of faith, and is not unreasonable. It’s simply acknowledging that God knows better than we do.
When I was twelve years old I went hunting with my Dad and followed him into the woods. On our way out he turned right, but my instincts told me to go left. And when he turned left, I was sure we should go right. There were times I wanted to abandon my dad and go my own way. But I’m glad I didn’t because we came out at just the right place. That’s how it is with God. If we trust him more than we trust ourselves, he will make our paths straight, and keep us from going in circles.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 123
Proverbs 3:9-10 Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
This is one of the great promises of God regarding our money. The language is agrarian but the principle clear: if we are generous with God, he’ll be generous with us. Giving to God is an important act of worship and obedience, but also a way of being blessed. Many have found that God faithfully meets their needs, as they faithfully honor God with their money.
But there are false ministers who abuse the Bible’s teaching to raise money for themselves. The worst example I’ve seen was a preacher on television who asked people to use their credit cards to give a thousand dollars. In return he promised that God would bless them financially, especially those who were in debt. Your credit card got you into debt, and your credit card can get you out of debt, he said.
But even the worst examples don’t negate the biblical truth that if we are generous with God, he’ll be generous with us. The best financial advice I know is to save ten percent, give ten percent, and live on the rest. How much we give us up to us (2 Corinthians 9:7a), but God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7b), wrote Paul.
Proverbs 3:33 The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.
Some homes are filled with happiness, harmony and joy. Others are filled with hatred, rage and despair. Some homes are unusually happy. Others are so miserable that no one wants to be there. Our misery or happiness may have various causes but, on balance, righteousness brings a blessing, and wickedness brings a curse.
This is why it’s so important for the righteous to guard their hearts and homes from wickedness. If your home is not as happy as it could be, start by cleansing your heart of everything impure. Then remove from your house anything that belongs to you, but doesn’t bring glory to God. Then be careful what comes into your home electronically. If Jesus feels at home in your house, he will bring a blessing. If not, all that’s left is a curse.
Proverbs 4:18 The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
The elderly are sometimes described as living in their sunset years. This is a pleasant way to describe life’s end, since few things are more beautiful than a painted sky at the day’s close. If you complete the analogy, childhood is morning, adulthood is afternoon, and retirement is evening.
But that’s not the image we find here. For those who belong to God, all of life is morning, and the day of death is high noon. We don’t ride off into the sunset, but step into a brighter light.
This is what we find at the end of the Bible. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there (Revelation 21:23-25), wrote John. Christianity a faith of radical optimism, not because there are no hardships, but because our story ends well, and then goes on forever.
Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
Whatever you allow into your heart affects every part of your life. This is true of love, joy and peace, as well as hatred, bitterness and wrath. One of the most important things we can ever do is to protect our heart from evil.
An American soldier on foreign soil didn’t know he was in danger, but a professional sniper had his heart in the crosshairs. The sniper gently squeezed the trigger and the bullet hit its mark. The soldier went down, but was able to get back up again, because he was wearing protective armor. Since we’re always in the devil’s crosshairs, guarding our heart is life or death.
Proverbs 4:27 Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.
Our sinful nature is like a dog on a leash, trying to pull us off the path. He’s a big dog, curious about everything, and pulls hard right and left. Our job is to control the dog and make it obey. If we don’t control our sinful nature, it’ll control us, and take us where we don’t want to go. That’s about as silly as a dog walking its owner.
Proverbs 6:32 [A] man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself.
There are a number of proverbs that deal with the subject of adultery, perhaps because it ran in Solomon’s family. King David was Solomon’s father, and started out as a humble shepherd who followed the Lord with all his heart. God blessed him and gave him success leading the nation.
But a major turning point in David’s life was an act of adultery with a woman named Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:2-4). Prior to that event, David’s life was characterized by victory and success. But, after that event, he experienced hardship and failure. Solomon knew from his father’s experience that few things are more destructive than adultery and, by extension, all sexual sin.
The sexual impulse is one of the strongest in human nature, however, and isn’t always subject to reason. Many who know the risks are often sexually reckless, and may even believe sex is worth dying for. Others keep their body from adultery but commit it in their mind on a regular basis.
Many wives are hurt to find their husbands looking at pornography, any many husbands are hurt to learn their wives want someone else. The biblical ideal is an exclusive union between husband and wife, in a covenant of marriage, committed for life. That ideal has never been improved, and is worth a little self-control.
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
People who are wise think about the future. The farmer who puts off caring for his crops until the day before the harvest isn’t wise. The student who puts off studying until the night before the exam isn’t wise. And the athlete who puts off training until the day before the event isn’t wise. But the person who doesn’t get ready for Judgment Day is the biggest fool of all. Wisdom uses every day to get ready for the future. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 124
Proverbs 10:9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.
The idea of integrity includes honesty, truthfulness, decency, righteousness and trustworthiness. Hananiah is given little space in the Bible, but his character is summarized nicely: he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most people do (Nehemiah 7:2). This is something to aim for.
A professor said to his students, I’m giving two tests today: one is trigonometry and the other is integrity. I hope you pass them both. But if you have to fail one, fail trigonometry. There are many good people who can’t pass trigonometry. But there are no good people who can’t pass integrity.
This agrees with King David who prayed, I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity (1 Chronicles 29:17).
Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the Lord brings wealth.
Getting money from God isn’t the point of the Bible, but neither is God against people acquiring wealth. Solomon’s wealth was legendary, and he saw it as a blessing from God. We too should be thankful for whatever God has given to us.
I don’t have Solomon’s bank account, but I sleep on a better mattress every night. I don’t have a personal orchestra, but I have access to better music at the touch of a button. I don’t have a personal chef, but I have a refrigerator, a microwave, and a grocery store near my house. I don’t have a stable of horses, but I have a little truck that tops sixty miles an hour. I don’t have a palace, but I have climate control, indoor plumbing, and hot running water. God is the source of our wealth, and he should be praised for all that he’s given.
Proverbs 10:24 What the wicked dread will overtake them; what the righteous desire will be granted.
A common dream we have as children, and even as adults, is to be chased by a beast we can’t escape. We’re running against the wind, up a hill, or are falling down as the beast gets closer and closer. We tend to wake up in time and are glad it was just a dream. But the nightmare of waking up in hell will never end. And who knows how demons will torment the lost forever?
Heaven is just the opposite: what the righteous desire will be granted. There are at least four universal desires: physical beauty, financial freedom, loving relationships, and a higher purpose. Imagine the best possible you, in the best possible place, with the best possible people, and the best possible God. God’s answer to every request in heaven is Yes, and his answer to every request in hell is No.
Proverbs 13:9 The light of the righteous shines brightly.
Jesus may’ve been thinking of this when he called his disciples the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). [L]et your light shine before others (Matthew 5:16), he said. My friend bought a lamp to help him work on his car, but it kept falling to the ground. When he picked it up for the third time he said, I bought you to shine for me. In a world that’s darkened by sin, Jesus wants us to shine. Whenever we speak to another person we should try to brighten their day.
Proverbs 14:15 The simple believe anything.
Part of the fun of raising kids is telling them that chocolate milk comes from brown cows, and that the moon is made of cheese. Gullibility is normal in children but, if we never grow out of it, we become superstitious and give people money to tell us our fortunes.
Others are so skeptical they refuse to believe almost anything. A good example are those who refuse to believe the earth is round because it seems to be flat. They won’t believe the evidence because they don’t want to be wrong. But skepticism leads to wrong conclusions just as often as gullibility since both are ways to avoid thinking.
The biblical approach to wisdom takes the middle way of discernment. It reviews the evidence carefully, then draws conclusions. The gullible require no evidence at all; and no amount of evidence will ever convince the skeptics. But Christianity is a reasonable faith based on sufficient evidence. It invites us to check the facts and make our decision in light of them.
Proverbs 14:26 Whoever fears the Lord has a secure fortress.
This verse speaks to our need for security and protection from all who would harm us. Life can be threatening, and we need a place of safety where we can flee for refuge. Herod the Great built Masada for this very purpose. Imagine twenty acres on top of a high rock, with luxurious accommodations, and apparently impregnable. It was, no doubt, one of the safest places on earth.
About a thousand Israelites fled to Masada before the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70. Imagine their dismay as they watched the Romans build a battering ram over the course of several months. The wall was eventually breached and the Romans marched in only to find that most of them had already died from suicide. God alone is a secure fortress in whom we can live and never die.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 125
Proverbs 14:31 [W]hoever is kind to the needy honors God.
My mother was a God fearing woman, which is why I was surprised the first time I heard her cuss. With six kids, and a part-time job, she had little time to spare. Saturdays were precious because that’s when she did the housework.
One Saturday morning she was catching up on laundry, when a needy person pulled into the driveway. This dear lady was going through a difficult time and, even though they weren’t close friends, she found my mom to be supportive. But when my mother saw her car, I heard her quietly say, oh spit (slightly revised).
But what she did next made an even bigger impression. She put down the laundry, got out some refreshments, and gave this dear lady a couple hours of time and attention. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, and I’ll never forget it. [W]hoever is kind to the needy honors God.
Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.
This is a comfort to us when we’re being good but not when we’re misbehaving. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account (Hebrews 4:13), says Hebrews.
When I was growing up we had a picture above the fireplace of a lady whose eyes followed you everywhere. If you were standing by the door, her eyes were on you. If you were sitting on the couch, her eyes were on you. And if you looked at her from the stairway, her eyes were still on you.
I didn’t like that picture much and, if we’re honest, there are times we’d rather avoid the relentless gaze of God. He sees you when you are sleeping; he knows when you are awake; he knows if you’ve been bad or good so be good for goodness’ sake.
When my daughter was in middle school she played the clarinet and, in the band room, was an enormous drum that she always wanted to try. So she stayed after school one day and, assuming the teacher had left, she pounded the drum with all her might. You can imagine her surprise when the teacher stepped out of her office and said, Sarah, what are you doing? And wouldn’t we be surprised, the next time we misbehaved, if a voice from heaven said, What are you doing?
Proverbs 17:3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart.
When silver and gold are melted, impurities rise to the surface. Then they’re removed to make the metal purer. Silver melts at 1763 degrees Fahrenheit, and gold melts around 1948 degrees Fahrenheit. God may turn up the heat in our lives to purify our hearts. When the impurities rise to the surface, we should let God remove them, so we’ll become more like Christ. God wants our hearts to be so pure that, when he looks at them, he sees his own reflection. That’s the purpose of our trials.
Proverbs 17:25 A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to the mother who bore him.
Almost nothing is more important to Christian parents than seeing their children live for God. And nothing weighs more heavily on them than seeing their children serve the devil. But, even with excellent training, children make their own choices. Some turn out beautifully and others go astray.
A disappointed mom wrote the following. How does a parent, who has prayed daily, deal with the rebellion of a child? How does a loving parent accept the rejection of her offspring? How does a parent keep from giving up hope? Why do children see loving parents as their enemies? Why are these children choosing the wrong path? Why are they so selfish?
These are excellent questions that don’t have easy answers. But if earthly parents feel this way, how much more our heavenly Father? How he must rejoice whenever we do well, and grieve whenever we go astray. We should pray for our children often, but not forget that we are children too. Every day we have the opportunity to make our Father proud, or to break his heart.
Proverbs 18:9 One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys.
Vandalism costs the United States hundreds of millions of dollars per year. Windows are broken, buildings are burned, and property is defaced. But those who are lazy cost the public even more. By withholding their contribution to society, they rob the government of taxes, and steal from their neighbors. Everyone on earth owes it to God, country and neighbor to be as productive as they can be. To the degree we’re not doing our best, we’re in league with one who destroys.
Proverbs 18:21 The tongue has the power of life and death.
With our tongues we kill and make alive; we resurrect and send to the grave. A few good words can give us hope, and a few bad words can fatally wound.
A young lady took her own life. She left an unfinished note with just two words: He said. We don’t know what he said, but it was painful enough to put her over the edge. Our deepest suffering often comes, not from what others do to us, but from what they say to us—or say about us.
But many have found that words can also give life. I was going through a difficult time, many years ago, when I made a new friend named Dave. He was smart and outgoing, and did me a greater favor than he’ll ever know. Whenever he saw me he shook my hand, looked me in the eye, and said, You’re great. I have no idea why he said it, or why he said it so often. But those words were life to me. And when I meet him in heaven I’m going to shake his hand, look him in the eye and say, You’re great!
Reflection and Review
Lesson 126
Proverbs 22:24 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered.
Anger management is an important theme in Proverbs because it’s so important to life. Everyone becomes angry at times, and anger itself is not a sin (Ephesians 4:26). But uncontrolled anger can ruin everything, and may even be demonic.
After King Saul drifted away from God, the Spirit of God departed from him and an evil spirit . . . tormented him (1 Samuel 16:14). To get relief, Saul had the young man David play his musical instrument. But the evil spirit troubled Saul again and, filled with rage, he hurled his spear across the room at David (1 Samuel 18:10-11, 19:9-10). The devil is filled with fury (Revelation 12:12), and whenever a sinner becomes furious, the situation may be demonic.
Venting our rage may feel good, but it’s not a sign of wisdom. Fools give full vent to their rage (Proverbs 29:11), says Proverbs. A young man wasn't happy with his golf shot so he swung his club at a nearby bench. The club snapped, ricocheted back, pierced his heart and he died.
Another man was having trouble at his bank, trying to cash a check at the drive-through window. He was told that he’d have to come inside but, since the lobby was closed, he’d have to come back the following day. He wanted to settle it then, however, so he drove his truck into the lobby and asked to close his account.
Anger is a brief insanity that’s obvious to everyone except the person who’s angry. It makes people feel powerful but has the opposite effect. It destroys reputations as well as relationships. Anger is so destructive, in fact, that we shouldn’t even associate with those who have anger issues. Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered.
Proverbs 22:29 Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings.
Solomon had many employees, and whenever he needed to fill a position he’d search for the best cook, gardener, builder, or whatever he needed. The most skillful workers were promoted to serve the king, and were likely paid what they deserved.
A good strategy for work is to find something you’re good at and never stop improving. One lady was passed over for a promotion and complained that she had twenty-six years experience. Her supervisor explained that she had one year of experience, twenty-six times. It’s not enough to do the same thing over and over. We should have a strategy for improvement.
My wife is a dental hygienist who truly loves her job. She’s been cleaning teeth for over thirty years and still comes home excited about how much plaque she removed. If that’s not strange enough, in her spare time she reads dental hygiene magazines, takes dental hygiene courses, watches dental hygiene videos, and keeps up on the latest products. She’s adored by her employer and is paid very well.
Proverbs 23:19 Set your heart on the right path.
The text doesn’t say, Set your feet on the right path but, Set your heart on the right path. Wherever the heart goes, the feet will eventually follow. It may take a week, a month, a year or even longer. But eventually the feet will follow the heart.
Solomon’s rule as king started out extremely well. God appeared to him twice (1 Kings 11:9) and gave him wonderful promises. But Solomon’s preoccupation with worldly success led to the neglect of his soul and a pattern of compromise. By the end of his life he was building temples to foreign gods. There’s something in the best of us that wants to leave the God we love. Unless we keep our heart on the right path, it’ll lead us to the land of regret.
Proverbs 26:4-5 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.
These two sayings are helpful for understanding how proverbs work. They’re not promises that always come true, or commands to be obeyed in every situation. Proverbs are short sayings that often apply, but not always. There is a time to answer a fool, so he doesn’t think he’s wise. But there’s also a time not to answer a fool, so you don’t become like him. Proverbs are a fast path to wisdom, but it takes wisdom to know which proverb to apply in any situation.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 127
Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
I watched my dad sharpen steak knives at the table when I was a child. He’d run the blade across the sharpening rod, back and forth, until the dull knife became sharp again. As steel sharpens steel, good friends can make each other better.
One of God’s best gifts to me was a roommate who was totally committed to Jesus Christ. We were both in our early twenties, and his example of commitment and sacrifice raised my standards considerably. His greatest strength was prayer, and mine was Bible study. We truly sharpened each other in our devotion to Christ.
Likewise, one of the best gifts you can give yourself is a friend who helps you grow in your faith. You can both commit to reading a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, and underlining whatever you find interesting. Then get together, once a week, and discuss what you have learned. You’ll be surprised how much you sharpen each other’s devotion to Jesus Christ.
Proverbs 28:13 Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
No one wants to appear as bad as they are, so nothing comes more naturally than concealing our sins. We don’t have to reveal everything to everyone, but we should be honest with God at all times. This will mean agreeing with God against ourselves so we can receive his mercy.
One dear lady had a seven-year affair with a married man that ended when he left her for a younger woman. She was so depressed that she went to a psychiatrist for counseling and medication, but only spiraled downward. She blamed the world for her misery, and rejected any sense of guilt or responsibility. As a result, her life became a bottomless pit. But if we confess our sins, and renounce them, God will smile on us and help us live a new life.
Proverbs 28:26 Those who trust in themselves are fools.
Self-assurance can be a strength, but also a terrible weakness. I was getting my hair cut, some time ago, and the subject of religion came up. I asked the lady if she trusted in Christ and she said, No, I only trust myself. Her answer sounded good, but I wondered if it was true. Did she trust herself enough to cut her own hair? Probably not.
If I have a medical problem, I need a trustworthy doctor. If I have a legal problem, I need a trustworthy attorney. If I have a sin problem, I need a trustworthy Savior. Jesus Christ is the most trustworthy person who ever lived, and he died to save us from our sins (Matthew 1:21). Whoever trusts in him will be saved but, Those who trust in themselves are fools.
Proverbs 29:23 Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.
Proud people think the way to attain honor is by promoting themselves. They boast of their achievements and seek affirmation. This works for a while but usually not for long. God opposes the proud (James 4:6), wrote James.
King Herod put on his royal robes and gave a public address. The speech was so well received that the people shouted, This is the voice of a god, not of a man (Acts 12:22). Herod enjoyed the praise so much that, instead of giving glory to God, he kept it for himself. As a result, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died (Acts 12:23).
Herod was eaten by worms before he died, and most are eaten by worms after they die. We can step on the worms, but the worms win. That’s why pride is such a foolish thing. It’s the only disease that makes everyone sick except the one who has it. But if we humble ourselves under the hand of God, he will lift us up in due time (1 Peter 5:6). The proud prefer their honor now; the humble wait to be honored by God.
Proverbs 29:27 The righteous detest the dishonest; the wicked detest the upright.
The deepest divide in the world isn’t between the sexes, or the races, but between the righteous and the wicked. If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you (John 15:18-19), said Jesus.
The divide between the righteous and the wicked often appears in culture wars. Believers want the world to honor God, and the wicked want the world to be free from God. Conflicts arise in politics, the media, schools, at work, and even in homes. As a result, the gospel is often marginalized.
Believers should remember that the goal of Christianity isn’t to take over governments, or even cultures. It’s to preach the gospel everywhere, for the salvation of those who believe. Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked (Daniel 12:10), wrote Daniel.
Proverbs 30:8 [G]ive me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.
Until recently the human diet has been fairly simple. Many have lived on bread and fish, fruits and vegetables, and whatever else could be gathered. Food for the day was seldom assumed or taken for granted. But this has changed dramatically. No one in the Bible could’ve imagined today’s grocery store, or the abundance we enjoy.
Thank you God for hamburger, ketchup, pickles, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Thank you also for apples, oranges, strawberries and bananas. Thank you also for milk: one percent, two percent, fat-free or whole. Thank you also for orange juice, grape juice, and even cranberry juice. Thank you also for cookies and chips and ice-cream. And finally, Lord, thanks for daily bread—with peanut butter and jelly, of course.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 128
Ecclesiastes 1:1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem.
The author of Ecclesiastes doesn’t identify himself by name, but King Solomon is the most likely candidate. He probably wrote around 950 BC to help God’s people understand some of life’s frustrations. Ecclesiastes is written from the perspective of someone who believes in God, but doesn’t seem to love God. The tone is bleak, therefore, but numerous insights can be gleaned.
Ecclesiastes 1:2 Meaningless! Meaningless! says the Teacher. Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.
An important difference between people and beasts is that people can’t be happy without meaning. Cows don’t ask the meaning of life, or why they were born, but people often do. And many find the answer elusive. A wealthy man was asked what he learned from his success that he wished he knew when he was young. He said, When you get to the top, nothing is there.
But if he’d gone all the way to the top, he would’ve found God. Apart from him, everything else is pointless. The meaning of life is that there is a life-giver, to whom we owe our life. It’s only through loving and serving God that we find ultimate meaning and purpose.
Ecclesiastes 1:14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
The little phrase under the sun occurs over two dozen times throughout Ecclesiastes, and contrasts with what’s above the sun, namely God. Apart from God, our earthly activities are meaningless, like chasing after the wind.
Imagine a little boy blowing bubbles and chasing after them. It’s fun, of course, but they quickly pop and he must chase another. That’s how many people live. They chase money, pleasure, romance, and success but none of them bring lasting satisfaction. That only comes from pursuing God.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has also set eternity in the human heart.
Because we’re made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and because God is eternal (Genesis 21:33), people know in their hearts that they will live forever. That, of course, is a very long time.
If God told a little bird to gather every grain of sand on Earth and carry it to the Moon, then take both to Venus, then all three to Saturn, and so forth, by the time that little bird gathered up the entire universe, it would be 9:35 in the morning, on the first day of eternity.
That’s why the most important thing we can do is secure the salvation of our souls. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? (Mark 8:36), said Jesus. And, [some] will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life (Matthew 25:46), he said. We ought to be the most concerned about where we’ll spend the longest, not just the next few years.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
Few things on earth are more helpful than money, but there’s a limit to what money can buy. A wealthy banker lived in a mansion, and pursued wealth above everything else. Among other things, he wanted to buy the property around his home, as far as he could see. But the people living there hated him, and refused to sell their land to him. Years past, and the man became so miserable that he took his own life.
The desire for wealth isn’t evil in itself, but reflects the fact that we were made for more. This is why heaven is described as a place of inconceivable wealth, where even the street is made of gold (Revelation 21:21). God is the source of infinite wealth, and whoever has him will have everything else (Revelation 21:7).
Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.
We don’t look forward to funerals but we can certainly learn from them. There we see that all our earthly dreams will come to an end some day. Sooner or later we’ll take our place in the coffin and people will talk about us. Even if they say nice things, we won’t be there to enjoy it. We’re all destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:27), says Hebrews. Funerals help us keep the end of life in view.
As part of his medical training a doctor watched many people die, and knew the symptoms well. He was checking a patient who barely had a pulse, and whose blood pressure was dropping steadily. His eyes were as blank as billiard balls and he thought he’d check the retinas—but he was shocked by what he saw. As he looked into the eyes of a man who was ready to die, he saw a clear reflection of himself. Who can live and not see death, or who can escape the power of the grave? (Psalm 89:48), wrote the Psalmist. Those who are wise live each day preparing for their last.
Ecclesiastes 7:10 Do not say, Why were the old days better than these? For it is not wise to ask such questions.
The old days are often better than our declining years, but not as good as the future. Forgetting what is behind . . . God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14), wrote Paul. Regardless how great the past, the future is better by far for those who follow Christ.
An old preacher stood at the door shaking hands with people after the service. He said the same thing to almost everyone. Just keep going. Just keep going. Just keep going. There are better things ahead than anything left behind.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 129
Ecclesiastes 7:20 Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.
This idea is so important it’s repeated several times throughout the Bible. Who can say, I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin? (Proverbs 20:9). [A]ll have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And, If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8), wrote John. We aren’t sinners because we sin, we sin because we’re sinners.
This wasn’t always the case. Our first parents were without sin until they ate the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:6). At that point human nature became so corrupt that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21), wrote Moses. Now we’re sinners by nature and by choice. It’s who we are and what we do.
But Jesus Christ is saving us. We’ve been saved from the penalty of sin (John 5:24). We are being saved from the power of sin (1 Corinthians 1:18). And we will be saved from the presence of sin (Revelation 21:27). [Y]ou are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21), said the angel.
Ecclesiastes 8:8 [N]o one has power over the time of their death.
A normal life-span, according to the Bible, is between seventy and eighty years (Psalm 90:10). But these aren’t guaranteed. Some are cut down by war, others by disease, and others in surprising ways.
One man thought he was safe in bed when an airplane crashed through his roof. Another was driving his car when a deer jumped through his window and punctured his neck with an antler. Another was standing in his own front yard when he was struck by lightning. Instead of trying to live longer, we should prepare to meet our Maker.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.
God doesn’t want us to live half-heartedly. He sets a task before each one, and wants us to do it with vigor. God is honored when we live to the fullest, serving him with all our might.
If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well (Martin Luther King Jr.).
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord (Colossians 3:23), wrote Paul.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.
We naturally think the fastest person is the one who wins the race, the strongest person is the one who wins the battle, and the most intelligent are those who become rich. But this isn’t always true.
The fastest person on earth might live in a remote village, unknown to the rest of the world. The best soldier might die from a sniper’s bullet, and the most brilliant might be poor if the world isn’t ready for their ideas.
Only when God matches our gifts with the right opportunities will we encounter success. When we understand that gifts and opportunities are both from God, we’ll give him all the glory and keep none for ourselves.
Ecclesiastes 10:18 Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.
The Bible condemns laziness repeatedly. Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing (Proverbs 20:4). A little sleep, a little slumber . . . and poverty will come on you like a thief (Proverbs 24:33-34), says Proverbs.
The greatest condemnation of laziness came from Jesus Christ himself. You wicked, lazy servant! . . . throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:30), he said. God’s people shouldn’t be lazy, especially regarding his kingdom.
An old farmer died and willed all that he owned to the devil. The town agreed to honor his wish by doing nothing with his possessions. Years later the house was broken down, the tractor was rusted through, and the field was covered with weeds. If you want to give your life to the devil, just do nothing at all.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
Some sins are open for everyone to see; others wait for Judgment Day. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known (Luke 12:2), said Jesus. Time doesn’t erase what was done in the past.
One lady stole some cigarettes when she was eighteen years old, and failed to pay the court. Twenty-two years later she was getting off a cruise ship when she was arrested and thrown in jail. Officials were looking for terrorists but, when they saw the warrant for her arrest, they simply did their job. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ won’t be condemned (Romans 8:1), but every hidden thing will be brought into judgment.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 130
Song of Songs 1:1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.
This book celebrates romantic love as one of God’s best gifts to us. It was probably written by Solomon around 950 BC. The title means it’s the best of songs, which is appropriate given the rapturous experience it describes. The language is surprisingly sensuous, but its inclusion in the Bible shows God’s approval of sexual expression in marriage. It’s never quoted in the New Testament, or even alluded to, but marital love does reflect the love of Christ for his church (Ephesians 5:32).
Song of Songs 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love is more delightful than wine.
Most of the song is written from the perspective of the woman, and here she expresses her powerful longing for the affection of her husband. She’s not passive or shy, but surprisingly forward and clear.
This reminds us of Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, shortly after they were created. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame (Genesis 2:25), wrote Moses. God designed them for physical union, and they were happy being naked. After they sinned they covered themselves with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7). But, at first, they were uninhibited. This is God’s ideal for marriage.
Song of Songs 2:15 Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards.
Foxes are pests that will destroy a vineyard if they’re not stopped. Loving relationships are also destroyed by little problems, if they’re not resolved. Relationships aren’t only ruined by big problems, but by many little problems if they are not settled in a timely way.
Husbands and wives should be open with each other about the little ways they annoy each other. Neither should assume the other knows what’s troubling them, for that isn’t fair or reasonable. Little annoyances must be expressed without nagging (Proverbs 21:19), and then resolved. By eliminating little problems quickly, good relationships can become even better.
Song of Songs 4:1 How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are doves. Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from the hills of Gilead.
Several times the husband extols the beauty of his wife with images that don’t translate well into other cultures. But both are apparently beautiful, and he gives her the approval that she desires.
Relationships only flourish through positive reinforcement. One study showed that it takes nine compliments to offset every criticism. This is why few things are more important to being happily married than expressing appreciation. Find the best qualities in your spouse and reinforce them constantly.
Song of Songs 4:16 Let my beloved come into his garden and taste its choice fruits.
Again the woman is surprisingly forward in her request for sex. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife (1 Corinthians 7:3-4), wrote Paul. Sexual attentiveness often leads to happiness.
Song of Songs 7:10 I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.
The exclusive nature of this couple’s relationship gave them reason to rejoice. She belonged to him alone, and he belonged to her alone. That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh (Genesis 2:24), wrote Moses.
Many find happiness in marriage they couldn’t find anywhere else. It’s the most binding of all human relationships, and provides security where love can flourish. That’s why marriage often begins with vows to love, honor and cherish until death.
A Christian man married a delightful young lady who was struck by lightning on their honeymoon. She was paralyzed but, due to their vows, the marriage was secure and they remained together until she died, thirty-nine years later (BB Warfield and Annie Kinkaid). Marriage is a commitment for life, and should never be entered into without this kind of resolve.
Song of Songs 8:7 Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away. If one were to give all the wealth of one’s house for love, it would be utterly scorned.
Love is so strong it can’t be quenched, and is better than wealth by far. It’s why Jesus left his throne in heaven to die on a cross for our sins. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us (1 John 3:16), wrote John.
Even the best marriage is a only a faint reflection of the love Christ has for his bride. There’ll be no marriage in the age to come (Matthew 22:30), because the church will be married to Christ. [A]s a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you (Isaiah 62:5), wrote Isaiah. The deepest longing of our hearts will be fulfilled, and our passionate love will never fade.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 131
Isaiah 1:1 The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
The prophet Isaiah wrote the book that bears his name from around 740 to 680 BC. He apparently spent most his life in Jerusalem, and is considered by many to be the greatest of the writing prophets because of the depth, breath and beauty of his work. He has been called the fifth evangelist (after Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) for his depiction and explanation of the Messiah’s death (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). He may also have died a martyr by being sawed in half (Hebrews 11:37).
The Dead Sea Scrolls (discovered in 1947) include a nearly complete scroll of Isaiah from before 100 BC. Before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the earliest copy of Isaiah was from around AD 935—over a thousand years later.
Since Isaiah wrote around seven hundred years before Christ, and since our earliest copy of Isaiah was from around nine hundred years after Christ, critics assumed the biblical text was corrupt due to so many years of copying.
But scholars found the earlier and later copies of Isaiah to be nearly identical. Most differences were due to spelling, and no differences affected the meaning of the text. This is because the biblical texts were copied by professionals who believed they were preserving the very words of God. The text of Scripture we have today is extremely reliable.
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Isaiah 6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple.
The death of a king was an anxious moment for God’s people, since other nations might view it as a good time to attack. But after the death of godly King Uzziah, the prophet had a vision of the eternal king sitting on his throne. Whenever life is uncertain, we should think of the one who sits on heaven’s throne, ruling over all.
The king Isaiah saw was so majestic that the train of his robe filled the temple. We don’t have much experience with royal trains today, but we are familiar with bridal trains. Some are longer than others, but the longest bridal train on record is over a mile long. Isaiah doesn’t tell us the exact length of God’s train, but it was so long that it filled his temple. In other words, God’s majesty is unsurpassed by any earthly king.
Isaiah 6:2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
The seraphim are heavenly beings not mentioned by name outside this passage, but may correspond to the living creatures mentioned elsewhere (Revelation 4:8). Their name probably means burning ones, and may be due to their closeness to God, who’s a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29).
They probably covered their faces because they couldn’t withstand the brightness of God, and they may’ve covered their feet because they were dirty. The seraphim remind us that heavenly creatures exist, about whom we know very little. There’s more to the spiritual realm than we can imagine.
Isaiah 6:3 And they were calling to one another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty.
Holiness includes the ideas morality and separation, but is fuller than both ideas combined. Holiness is so closely identified with God, in fact, that to say holy, holy, holy is nearly the same as saying God, God, God. God is never called three-times anything in the Bible other than holy, holy, holy. This is terrible news for sinners, because God’s holiness and human sinfulness are completely incompatible.
Isaiah 6:4-5 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. Woe to me! I cried. I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.
In the previous chapter Isaiah pronounced a series woes on the wicked. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20). Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes (Isaiah 5:21). Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine (Isaiah 5:22), he said. But after coming into the presence of God the prophet cried out, Woe to me! . . . I am ruined!
Isaiah was a pretty good person compared to many others. But, in the presence of God, he saw himself for who he really was—a sinner exposed to wrath. The closer we are to God, the more we’ll feel our sin. The further we are from God, the more we’ll feel righteous. The righteous know they are wicked, and the wicked think they are righteous.
Job had a similar experience when he encountered God. My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes (Job 42:5-6). Likewise, Peter said to Jesus, Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! (Luke 5:8). Sin is so common it doesn’t normally bother us but, in the presence of a holy God, it becomes our greatest concern.
There may’ve been several areas in which Isaiah fell short, but the sin that troubled him most was his speech. For I am a man of unclean lips, he said. We don’t think of inappropriate speech as a terrible sin, but Jesus did. Everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:36-37), he said.
Since Isaiah spoke for God, he was even more accountable (James 3:1). If a surgeon wouldn’t mix clean and unclean instruments, a prophet shouldn’t mix clean and unclean words.
Isaiah 6:6-7 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.
Sinners can’t approach a holy God apart from sacrifice but, thankfully, there was an altar in God’s presence. The sacrifice isn’t mentioned, but the purpose of the sacrificial system was to point ahead to the sacrifice of Christ. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul.
By taking a coal from the altar, and applying it to the prophet’s lips, the angel was showing that God’s provision was sufficient for the prophet’s wicked speech. Likewise, the sacrifice of Christ is sufficient for the wickedest things we’ve ever done.
Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? And I said, Here am I. Send me!
With his sin atoned for, the prophet was in a position to speak for God to others. He’d spend the rest of his life proclaiming the holiness of God, the problem of sin, and the coming remedy of Jesus Christ. The church has a similar task but enjoys the advantage preaching after the death and resurrection of Christ. Preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ is the glory and honor of the church.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 132
Isaiah 13:19-20 Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the pride and glory of the Babylonians, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations.
Babylon was one of the greatest cities of the ancient world and for it to destroyed was almost unthinkable. But, in 539 BC, Babylon was overthrown by Cyrus the Great and eventually ceased to exist as anything like a glorious city.
But if you go to Babylon today you’ll find that it’s not completely abandoned. There’s some restoration going on and a few tourists to be seen. This has caused some to wonder if this prophecy has been fulfilled or if we should still be waiting. The answer is found in Isaiah’s use of prophetic hyperbole.
Hyperbole is intentional exaggeration in order to make a point. If we say Joe is older than dirt, or Mary never stops talking, we don’t mean to be taken literally. Isaiah was simply predicting that Babylon would never rise again. That has been the case for thousands of years, and is a stunning fulfillment of prophecy.
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Isaiah 20:2 [God said to Isaiah] Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet. And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot.
This is one of the most bizarre episodes in the Bible. God told Isaiah to walk naked through Jerusalem for a period of three years. Just as my servant Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years . . . so the king of Assyria will lead away stripped and barefoot the Egyptian captives . . . with buttocks bared (Isaiah 20:3-4), said God.
The purpose of this prophetic action was to warn the Jews to look to God for protection, not to Egypt, since Assyria would defeat the Egyptians. But we also see how embarrassing the prophetic ministry could be. Speaking for God was an honor, of course, but when God wanted to make his point graphically, the prophet was not allowed to decline. We can only imagine his embarrassment and that of his wife and children.
This also reminds us of the humiliation of Jesus Christ as he hung on the cross. We know that he was naked because the soldiers gambled for his clothing, including his undergarment (John 19:23-24). Since crucifixion was meant to degrade, it’s unlikely he was left with even a stitch to cover himself. Imagine hanging fully exposed before friends, family and foes. To God’s wonderful qualities of power, love and justice, we must also add humility.
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Isaiah 23:1 A prophecy against Tyre: . . . Tyre is destroyed and left without house or harbor.
Tyre was an important seaport on the Mediterranean, which included an island about a half mile offshore. If the mainland was attacked, residents could flee to the island for protection. This made Tyre feel invincible and, for many years, it was.
Nebuchadnezzar took the mainland in 572 BC, but he couldn’t take the island even though he tried for another fifteen years. Eventually, the people on the island went back to the mainland. So how could Tyre ever be destroyed as the prophet foretold?
Many years after Nebuchadnezzar failed, Alexander the Great conquered the mainland, and used the ruins to build a road out to the island. The prophet Ezekiel caught a glimpse of this and wrote: they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea (Ezekiel 26:12). After taking the island-city in 332 BC, Alexander crucified two thousand people, and sold thirty thousand others into slavery. Tyre was destroyed and left without house or harbor, just as Isaiah foretold.
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Isaiah 29:13 These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
The temple was open, prayers were being offered, and songs were being sung, but few were drawing near to God with their hearts. They had a form of godliness (2 Timothy 3:5), but it wasn’t from within. This is so often the case that Jesus applied this verse to the people of his day (Matthew 15:8). And it may apply to us as well.
It’s easier to worship God outwardly than it is to worship him inwardly. Many churches have excellent attendance, but little devotion. You have forsaken the love you had at first (Revelation 2:4), said Jesus. You are always on their lips but far from their hearts (Jeremiah 12:2), wrote Jeremiah.
Christian hearts won’t be filled with love on Sundays unless it’s cultivated throughout the week. When we gather for worship, we must lift our hearts to God as he desires. It takes more energy to get a plane in the air than to keep it there, so we must make the effort to worship God from our hearts until it comes naturally.
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Isaiah 32:8 But the noble make noble plans, and by noble deeds they stand.
The culture of Isaiah’s day was so corrupt that many were doing little or nothing for God. They were growing old without any godly accomplishments. But this is never acceptable to those who are noble. Noble people make noble plans, and by noble deeds they stand.
Here we see the importance of both planning and doing. Some people do without planning, others plan without doing. But noble people make noble plans and do them.
For many years I had deeds but not plans. I was living for God but didn’t have a clear direction for my life. I was twenty-five years old, and nearly broke, when I was suddenly gripped by the fear that life was passing me by. So I drew a line on a piece of paper with the my age at one end and the number seventy at the other.
Then I wrote down what I wanted to accomplish, when I wanted to accomplish it, and what I’d have to do to see it happen. Then I began to work my plan. I’ve revised it several times but have accomplished many things. Planning and doing is how we make the most of our lives for God.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 133
Isaiah 34:4 All the stars in the sky will be dissolved and the heavens rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree.
Isaiah foresaw the destruction of the universe as a result of our sin. Sin brought a curse on the earth (Genesis 3:17-20) that spread like a virus, and God’s judgment will be so severe that it will reach the furthest star. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare (2 Peter 3:10), wrote Peter.
Aristotle (384-322 BC) taught the universe is eternal in both directions and, for many years, that was the accepted theory. But now it’s thought the universe had a beginning (the big bang) and that it will have an end (the big crunch). This is more consistent with the Biblical view. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). And in the end, all the starry host will fall.
But that’s not the end of the story. [W]e are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13), wrote Peter. [T]he new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me (Isaiah 66:22), said God. God will create a whole new world, perhaps with the same materials. Then the curse will be reversed, and the new creation will last forever. This is the biblical view of the future.
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Isaiah 35:10 Everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Although God’s people would go through difficult times, they had everlasting joy to look forward to. Everlasting happiness would be enough, but God has promised joy. Joy surpasses happiness as far as happiness surpasses sorrow. And a million years of joy wouldn’t be as joyful, if we thought it would ever end. But it won’t.
My Grandpa was riding in my uncle’s speed boat when he smiled so widely that his false teeth flew into the lake. His joy went away with his teeth, but in the age to come our joy will never end. Think of the happiest moment of your life and double it twice. If that’s what you have to look forward to, you can enjoy it now. Everlasting joy will crown [our] heads.
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Isaiah 41:13 For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.
On your first day of school your mother probably held your hand as she brought you into class. She helped you meet the teacher, and find your desk, but then she had to go. God never does that. From cradle to grave he holds your hand and helps you along the way. He doesn’t want you to be afraid, but to hold his hand tightly through every stage of life.
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Isaiah 42:3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
This describes the gentleness that Jesus would show to those who were bruised by sin, and whose smoldering wick of faith was about to go out. He wouldn’t rebuke or reject them, but nurture and assure them.
A sinful woman came to Jesus and washed his feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, kissed them, and poured perfume on them. Some were repulsed by her behavior, but Jesus said, Your sins are forgiven. . . . Your faith has saved you; go in peace (Luke 7:48-50).
That’s what Jesus says to every broken person who looks to him in faith—no matter how badly they’ve failed in the past, are failing in the present, or will fail in the future. Instead of breaking those who are bruised by sin, Jesus heals them. Instead of snuffing out the smoldering wick of faith, he fans it into flame. This is the kind of ministry Jesus had in the past, and continues to have today.
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Isaiah 44:28 [The Lord] says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, Let it be rebuilt, and of the temple, Let its foundations be laid.
About a hundred fifty years before Cyrus became the king of Persia, the prophet Isaiah identified him by name, making this one of the most remarkable prophecies in the Bible. God can foretell the future because he planned it long ago. [We’ve] been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul. Nothing happens by chance, including the rule of kings.
The early Jewish historian, Josephus, claimed that Cyrus was informed about the prophecies concerning him (Antiquities of the Jews, XI.1.2). The prophet Daniel was a high ranking official living in Babylon at this time, and may’ve had a scroll of Isaiah which he showed to Cyrus. Whether or not this happened, Cyrus took action.
This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel (Ezra 1:2-3).
Cyrus’ decree is corroborated by an artifact known as the Cyrus Cylinder, which was found in AD 1879, and is housed in The British Museum. It doesn’t mention the Jews by name, but states Cyrus’ policy of allowing displaced peoples to return home, and to restore their temples. So God’s people were allowed to return to their homeland, just as Isaiah foretold.
Isaiah 48:17 I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
Children know little about the world, and rely on their parents to guide them. If their parents are wise, they can be a tremendous help. One of the things that persuaded me to follow Christ was the idea that he was more qualified to run my life I was. Since he created the universe, and had kept it running for years, perhaps he could also run my life. This seems obvious to some, but not to everyone.
When a young man asked Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus said, Sell everything you have . . . . Then come, follow me. He should’ve been delighted, but went away sad, because he was very wealthy (Luke 18:18-23). But now he’s been sad for thousands of years because Jesus was actually right. Faith is believing that Jesus knows best, and will lead us in the way that’s best for us.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 134
Isaiah 52:13 See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.
This begins a passage describing the suffering, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and what it means for his people. It’s so vivid that it’s often been called the fifth gospel. It was so important to the writers of the New Testament that they quote or refer to it over thirty times. It’s so precise that it’s difficult to believe it was written over seven hundred years before the event it describes. But this simply proves what God said elsewhere. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come (Isaiah 46:10).
Isaiah 52:14 [H]is appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness.
This is a description of Jesus Christ after he was flogged. Jewish floggings were limited to forty lashes (Deuteronomy 25:3), but the Romans could lash without limit. The whips were made of leather, with metal and bone attached, for the purpose of tearing off flesh. Floggings were so severe that many didn’t survive.
The gospel writers show remarkable restraint when describing the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. They simply say he was flogged and crucified (Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15). Since their original readers were familiar with flogging and crucifixion, no more description was needed.
But Isaiah wrote before the practice of Roman flogging and crucifixion, so he included what the gospel writers left out. Jesus was so marred and disfigured that he barely seemed human. This is how he appeared as he hung on the cross.
Isaiah 52:15 [H]e will sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him.
The covenant between God and Israel was ratified when Moses sprinkled animal blood on the people and said, This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you (Exodus 24:8). But that only anticipated the blood of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah speaks of the blood of the new covenant (1 Corinthians 11:25), shed by Jesus Christ for all nations (Matthew 28:19), not just Israel. [W]ith your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5:9), wrote John. This included kings.
Kings have great authority, and speak with great authority, until they meet a greater king. Then they shut their mouths out of respect. Countless kings and political leaders have acknowledged Jesus Christ as King of kings (Revelation 17:14), and shut their mouths before him.
Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed our message . . . ?
The gospel has spread around the world but most people reject it. John and Paul referred to this verse to explain this surprising reaction.
Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: Lord, who has believed our message (John 12:37-38), wrote John.
But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our message? (Romans 10:16), wrote Paul.
Since Jesus died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2) we might expect the whole world to believe in Jesus Christ. But this has never been the case and God is not surprised. Christianity is a global religion but, compared to the whole, only a few truly believe (Matthew 7:14).
Isaiah 53:2 He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
Whenever the Bible speaks of a person’s appearance, it’s usually positive. Sarai was a very beautiful woman (Genesis 12:14). Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful (Genesis 29:17). Joseph was well-built and handsome (Genesis 39:6); David had a fine appearance and handsome features (1 Samuel 16:12). And, there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom (2 Samuel 14:25).
But the Bible tells us nothing of Jesus’ appearance except that he had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. This may be the politest way to say that Jesus was homely. He had no beauty. There was nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. This contradicts most depictions of Christ in art and film.
Since Jesus was homely, he wouldn’t be singled out as a natural leader, or receive the special attention given to those with a good appearance. Whenever he opened his mouth he’d have to overcome a bias against him. This made him less inclined to seek the approval of anyone other than his heavenly Father.
Reflection and Review
Lesson 135
Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised.
Some people stare at those who are suffering to satisfy their curiosity; others turn away to avoid the pain. As Jesus hung on the cross some people stared, and others turned away. But since he was a man of suffering, Jesus can relate to us whenever we suffer. He doesn’t turn away from us, or stare out of curiosity. He looks on us with compassion and enters into our pain. The reason he can do this is because he knows what it is to suffer.
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
The fact that Jesus died on a cross was proof, for some, that he wasn’t the Messiah: anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse (Deuteronomy 21:23), wrote Moses. The fact that Jesus was hung on a pole proved that he wasn’t blessed by God, but cursed by him. But he became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13), wrote Paul. The pain and suffering Jesus endured wasn’t for sins he committed, but for sins we committed. Jesus was under God’s curse, but he was there for us.
Isaiah 53:5 [H]e was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.
The piercing of his hands and feet was visible to all, but the crushing h
Shane W. Houle earned his M.A. at Columbia Biblical Seminary, and his D.Min. at Trinity International University. He has been married to Julene for 30 years and lives in beautiful Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Copyright: December 5th, 2017
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Learn the Bible in a Year
Formerly, Bible in a Year to the World
Shane W. Houle
All rights reserved
shanehoule1@gmail.com
www.LearntheBibleinaYear.com
ISBN-13: 978-1532805943
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015904728.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, North Charleston, SC
Scripture taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®, Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Used by permission of Zondervan.
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The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Offices by Biblica, Inc. TM
Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. Reproduced by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Limited.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my dear friends, Ed and Sharon Porter. Their generous support and constant encouragement made this project possible. [T]he Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8).
Introduction
When Philip found the Ethiopian gentleman reading the prophet Isaiah, he asked him, Do you understand what you are reading? The man replied, How can I . . . unless someone explains it to me? (Acts 8:30-31). The Bible is a difficult book and a little explanation can be helpful.
The goal of Learn the Bible in a Year is to teach the whole Bible, in every language of the world, for free. We want everyone in the world to have access to quality Bible teaching that is comprehensive and concise. Learn the Bible in a Year is a 501(c)(3) organization and your gifts are tax deductible. Thank you for helping more and more people to learn the Bible in a year.
Disclaimer
I learned early as a preacher to gather thoughts, ideas and illustrations from wherever I could. Many have found there way into this book but, in most cases, credit is not given because I have forgotten the source. I make no claim to originality and am thankful for all who have taught me.
Overview
The Bible is the story of God’s salvation, and can be surveyed in fifteen episodes. Once we understand the Bible’s big story, the little stories within it make more sense. All dates are approximate.
1. The Creation: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1) and all they contain. Then he made Adam and Eve in his image to have a relationship with him. The first couple enjoyed walking with God in the Garden of Eden when everything was good. This stage is difficult to date and believing scholars disagree.
2. The Fall: Adam and Eve were free to eat from every tree in the garden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Tragically, the devil convinced them to eat the forbidden fruit, and they brought God’s curse on the world. As a result, their offspring are born with a sinful nature, and everyone dies eventually. This is the problem the Bible is going to solve.
3. The Patriarchs: God called Abraham (2091 BC) and promised to bless the world through him (Genesis 12:2-3). Most of the Bible is the story of this man’s family. Abraham had a son named Isaac, Isaac had a son named Jacob, and Jacob had twelve sons. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, and his sons became the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel.
4. The Exodus: Jacob’s son, Joseph, was sold by his brothers into Egyptian slavery (1898 BC). God was with him, however, and he rose to great prominence. When the family of Israel numbered about seventy, Joseph brought them down to Egypt and cared for them. The family grew dramatically and, generations later, were forced to become slaves. They were cruelly oppressed until Moses arrived and led them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea (1446 BC).
5. The Desert: After leaving Egypt, the Israelites camped at Mount Sinai where God gave them Ten Commandments and many other laws. A year or so later they arrived at Canaan, the land God had promised to Abraham (Genesis 13:15). God told his people to take the land, but they refused because they feared the people who lived there, and wouldn’t trust God to defeat them. As a result, God made them wander in the desert forty years until most of the adults had died, including Moses.
6. The Conquest: Joshua led the next generation of Israelites into the Promised Land (1406 BC). As Moses led them through the Red Sea (Exodus 14:29), Joshua led them across the Jordan River on dry ground (Joshua 3:17). With God’s help, they took most of the land, but not all of it. The presence of enemy occupants remained a serious problem for hundreds of years.
7. The Judges: Once in the Promised Land, the Israelites turned away from God. But, when life became difficult, they turned back to him for help. God faithfully helped his people by raising up leaders (called Judges) to defeat their enemies. Then they turn away from God again, until life became difficult. This cycle repeated itself several times for centuries.
8. The United Kingdom: Even though God was their king, Israel wanted an earthly king, so they could be like the other nations. Saul became the first king of Israel (1043 BC) and, although he started well, he finished badly. David was the second king of Israel, and also its greatest, because he defeated their enemies and led them to worship God. David’s son, Solomon, was the third king of Israel and brought the nation to its height. But Solomon turned away from God and most of the people followed him. Due to his unfaithfulness the nation would break apart.
9. The Divided Kingdom: After Solomon’s death (931 BC) the nation divided, north and south. The ten tribes to the north kept the name Israel. They adopted a false religion and, a couple centuries later, fell to the Assyrians (722 BC). The tribes to the south were called Judah and were later known as the Jews. They served God occasionally, but not faithfully, and were conquered by the Babylonians (586 BC).
10. The Exile: The Babylonians deported the conquered Jews to Babylon. As Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, the Jews were expelled from the Promised Land because of their disobedience. This was a very dark time but, due to God’s promise, they weren’t without hope. Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back (Deuteronomy 30:4), wrote Moses.
11. The Restoration: When the king of Persia defeated Babylon, he allowed the Jews to return home (537 BC), just as God had promised. Many stayed behind, but those who went back rebuilt the temple and tried to follow God. They were a tiny fraction of what they had been and struggled in many ways. God sent a few prophets to encourage them but, then, the prophetic voice ceased (430 BC).
12. The Silent Years: Like a dramatic pause, the Bible is silent for hundreds of years before the arrival of Christ. God’s people were back in the Promised Land but were under Persian rule. Then they were ruled by the Greeks. Then they won their independence for about a hundred years. By the time of Christ they were under Roman rule, and longed to be free again.
13. The Christ: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). Jesus lived a sinless life, but was crucified by his enemies (AD 30). Then he was laid in a tomb but, three days later, he rose from the dead. Through his life, death and resurrection, Jesus reversed the curse of sin and death for all who believe in him.
14. The Church: After Jesus rose from the dead, he told his followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). The Apostle Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and three thousand believed (Acts 2:41). The Apostle Paul started many churches and took the gospel all the way to Rome (Acts 28:16). The church continues to preach the gospel and, today, nearly a third of all people on earth claim to be Christians.
15. The Return: Jesus will return at an undisclosed time to judge the living and the dead (1 Peter 4:5). To some he will say, Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34). To the rest he will say, Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41). This is the most amazing story ever told, and just happens to be true.
Lesson 1
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
The book of Genesis was written by Moses, for the people of God, around 1445 BC. He began with the best explanation of who God is: the creator of the universe.
Notice first, the universe began to exist. There was a time when the universe did not exist, and this is powerful evidence for the existence of God. If anything is clear to us it’s that something cannot come from nothing. If there was nothing more than a single grain of sand in the entire universe, it would still prove the existence of God because, out of nothing, nothing comes.
To avoid responsibility to their Maker, however, some have argued that the universe is eternal. If it always existed, then it didn’t need to be created—or so it is thought. But, in the last century, scientists discovered the universe is expanding and, therefore, had a beginning.
If you play the movie of an expanding universe backward, you’ll see it become smaller and smaller, until it no longer exists. And, if you play the movie forward again, you’ll see the universe pop into existence at a particular point in time. An expanding universe proves the universe is not eternal, but had a beginning, just as the Bible teaches.
Notice second, the greatness of God who exists outside time and space, and is the best explanation for both. When I was a child, I tried to imagine the beginning of time. I traveled back to the very first moment when everything began. But then I wondered, What was before then? Then I traveled to the edge of space where I could only imagine a massive brick wall. But then I wondered, What’s on the other side of that wall?
We can’t imagine the beginning of time or space, but we can easily think of the God who made them both, because that’s how he designed us. Time and space find their source in God, and lead us back to him.
Notice third, nothing is impossible with God. Unbelievers scoff at biblical miracles like the virgin birth of Christ (Luke 1:35), and the resurrection of Christ (Matthew 28:1-7). This is understandable since, by their very nature, miracles are rare and hard to believe.
But if you accept the first and most spectacular miracle of the Bible—that God created everything out of nothing—then there’s no reason to think he couldn’t part the sea (Exodus 14:21-22), make the sun stand still (Joshua 10:13), or preserve a man inside a fish (Jonah 1:17). Nothing is logically impossible for a God who creates everything out of nothing.
Genesis 1:3 God said, Let there be light, and there was light.
But God didn’t make the sun for another three days (Genesis 1:16), so we ought to think about where this light came from. The best explanation is that it came from God himself. God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5), wrote John.
So after he made the world, God began to reveal himself. This he did progressively to Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses, the prophets, and to many others. God revealed himself, more and more, until he came in the person of Jesus Christ who said, I am the light of the world (John 8:12). Isaiah didn’t say it. Neither did Jeremiah, Ezekiel or Daniel. Only Jesus Christ could say, I am the light of the world, because only Jesus Christ is divine.
And coming to Christ is like God turning on his light in our hearts. For God, who said, Let light shine out of darkness, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6), wrote Paul. We live in spiritual darkness until we understand the gospel. Then, suddenly, the light comes on.
Through Jesus Christ we come to know God not by argument or inference, but directly and personally. There’s excellent evidence for Christianity, but we aren’t Christians primarily because of the evidence. We are Christians because Jesus Christ revealed himself to us through the gospel.
Nor is he done revealing himself. The city [of God] does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp (Revelation 21:23), wrote John.
Notice the progression: God said, Let there be light, and there was light (Genesis 1:3). Then he revealed himself, more and more, to Abraham, Moses and the prophets. Then he came in the person of Jesus Christ who said, I am the light of the world (John 8:12). Then he made his light shine in our hearts (2 Corinthians 4:6). And, soon, we’ll live in the city where God himself is the light (Revelation 21:23), because God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
Genesis 1:16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
Moses wrote for the Israelites who, after many years, came out of Egyptian slavery. In Egypt they learned about the sun god, the moon god, and many other gods. So Moses had to teach them that those gods don’t exist. The God who just redeemed them created both the sun and the moon—and He also made the stars.
Credible estimates put the number of stars in the sky to be more than all the grains of sand on earth. To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing (Isaiah 40:25-26), wrote Isaiah.
But God was just getting started. After he made the stars God created birds, fish and every other creature (Genesis 1:20-25). Over a million species of life on earth has been catalogued, and that’s probably only a tenth of what exists. If the name BOB written in the sand proves intelligence at work, how much more the world and all its amazing creatures!
Hummingbirds are a fine example of God’s intelligent design. They’re the smallest birds in the world and some weigh less than a penny. Their wings rotate a full circle, allowing them to fly forward, backward, sideways and even upside-down. They fly about twenty-five miles an hour, and can dive up to sixty miles an hour. Some can fly over twenty hours, without rest, and migrate over two thousand miles. They breathe over two hundred times a minute, and their hearts beat over a thousand times a minute. They visit about a thousand flowers a day and pollinate every flower they visit. How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all (Psalm 104:24), wrote the Psalmist.
Reflection and Review
- Why does the first miracle make it easier to believe other miracles?
- Why did Jesus claim to be the light of the world?
- How does creation prove that God exists?
Lesson 2
Genesis 1:11 Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.
In the beginning God created everything out of nothing (Genesis 1:1). But, since then, he normally uses the natural means he built into creation. He could produce a million apples a day out of nothing, but prefers to use natural means instead. So after he made the fish and the birds he said, Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth (Genesis 1:22). At first God created animals according to their kinds (Genesis 1:25). But, since then, he uses the natural means he built into them.
God’s two ways of working can be understood as miracle and providence. Jesus healed many people miraculously, but God heals most people providentially. Small cuts normally heal through the means God built into the body. He may also use medicine (which comes from creation) and doctors who’ve learned how the body works. This kind of healing is not technically miraculous, but providential.
Likewise, Jesus taught us to pray for our daily bread (Matthew 6:11), but it doesn’t normally drop out of heaven. He normally gives us jobs, to earn money, so we can buy bread from the market. When Jesus fed the multitudes with only five loaves of bread and two fish (Matthew 14:17), he was providing miraculously. More often he uses soil, sun, rain, farmers, bakers and merchants to provide.
When we understand that God works providentially, not just miraculously, we’ll see his kindness in every plate of food, every healing, and every other need he meets. Miracles still occur, of course, but God is always working providentially. Miracle and providence, we could say, are the right and left hands of God.
Genesis 1:27 God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
This was important to the Israelites because, in Egypt, they were treated like beasts. They were Pharaoh’s slaves and their primary job was to make bricks. And, if they didn’t make their quota, they were given a beating (Exodus 5:1-18). Whole generations lived and died under the hot Egyptian sun, working like beasts, and considered little more.
But here we learn that there is a qualitative difference between people and animals. People are made in the image of God, animals are not. It’s not merely a matter of degree, but of kind, dignity and worth. Without clarity on this point we’ll treat people like animals, and animals like people. There are some places, in fact, where cattle are treated with honor while people go hungry. This is one reason theology matters.
The image of God is also that which allows us to know God personally. You can’t have a personal relationship with a turtle, because a turtle is too different from you. You can’t have a meaningful conversation with a cat, because a cat is too different from you too. But you can know God more deeply than you know your spouse, because you were made in the image of God.
This is also why the Bible allows capital punishment in the case of murder. Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind (Genesis 9:6), wrote Moses. God sees murdering others as an attack on himself, because every human being bears the image of God.
This is also why it’s wrong to curse other people. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. . . . this should not be (James 3:9-10), wrote James.
Before we curse another person, or make an obscene gesture, we should remember whose image they bear. The image of God is so basic to our humanity, and to the ordering of society, that it’s found in the very first chapter of the Bible.
The ultimate reason God created people in his image is because he planned to become one of us. When Christ came into the world, God took on our humanity, never to put it off (Hebrews 7:17). For all eternity we’ll relate to God through Jesus Christ, who is truly God and truly human.
Genesis 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.
God gave Adam and Eve an important job to do: fill the earth and subdue it. From this we understand that God wants people to contribute to society through work and family. Raising children, building roads, creating art, and anything else that contributes to the good of society, is actually serving God. This idea was reinforced by the Apostle Paul who wrote, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord. . . . It is the Lord Christ you are serving (Colossians 3:23-24).
Some people think the only way to serve God is through church, or some other religious means. It’s true that every child of God has an essential role to play in the church (1 Corinthians 12:12-31), but the work we do for God in the world is also important. Adam, for example, served God by gardening. The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it (Genesis 2:15), wrote Moses. Gardening was Adam’s service to God.
The work we do for the glory of God, and the good of others, is not merely a way to make money or raise a family. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. This gives meaning and significance to all we do, and should make our work an act of worship.
Genesis 1:31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.
God could’ve made the world an ordinary place, but chose to make it very good. I was on my way to class, on a fall afternoon, when I passed a familiar tree. I’d seen it many times before but this time was different. The lowering sun shone through the golden leaves and seemed to darken the branches. The tree itself was grand but, against the deep blue sky, it was art. I wanted to say to everyone, Look at that!
Before there was television, people went for long walks and called it marveling. They’d look at flowers, trees and birds, and simply marvel at them. If we’re willing to take the time, we can too. Creation reflects the glory of God (Isaiah 6:3), and he wants us to see it everywhere.
Genesis 2:3 God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
After God created the world we might imagine he was tired. But the amount of God's power that he used to create the world was mathematically zero. God’s power is infinite so, no matter how much he uses, it’s never at all diminished. God didn’t rest because he was tired, but because resting is good. It’s also good for us.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28), said Jesus. Many are surprised to learn that the way to heaven is not by working, but by resting. If all we had to do was a million good deeds, we’d all be very busy. Or if all we had to do was pay a million dollars, we’d all be working overtime. But the way to heaven isn’t by working, or even by being good, but by resting in the finished work of Christ. In repentance and rest is your salvation (Isaiah 30:15), wrote Isaiah.
A little girl was hiking with her big brother when she twisted her ankle and couldn’t go on. The only way home was to climb on her brother’s back and let him carry her. Likewise, we put all our weight on Jesus Christ, and trust him to carry us home.
Reflection and Review
- What is the difference between a miracle providence?
- How should the image of God affect our behavior toward others?
- What does the beauty of creation tell us about God?
Lesson 3
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.
This is the first mention of Satan in the Bible and, while he’s not on every page, he has a leading role. He’s called the Destroyer (Revelation 9:11), the enemy (Luke 10:19), the father of lies (John 8:44), a murderer (John 8:44), the evil one (Matthew 5:37) and many other things.
Satan is God’s enemy but, since he can’t attack God directly, he attacks those who are made in God’s image, and dearly loved by him. Satan knows his doom is sure, but he wants to bring down as many people with him as he can.
Here the Bible says he’s crafty. Other translations include sneaky, clever, cunning, subtle, intelligent and shrewd. Satan is a clever devil who is good at what he does. If you lived a thousand years, you could easily become an expert at something: music, math, logic, drama or any number of things. Satan has been around longer than that, and has refined his craft to an art form.
He’s so skillful, in fact, that he leads the whole world astray (Revelation 12:9), wrote John. We know how to split the atom and fly to the moon but, after thousands of years, there’s still no consensus on who God is, what he requires, or if he even exists. Satan is an evil genius who leads the whole world astray.
Genesis 3:1b He said to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?
This is the first temptation of a human being, and it’s brilliant. If Satan can make us doubt God’s word, he’s broken the relationship and won the battle for our souls. That’s why more books have been written against the Bible than any other book by far. The Bible is the most banned, burned and blasphemed book ever written. Satan is serious about turning people away from God, and he starts by attacking God’s word.
Satan hates the Bible and wants us to doubt it, but Jesus loves the Bible and wants us to trust it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law (Luke 16:17), he said. By referring to the least stroke of a pen, Jesus showed that he believed the Bible right down to the spelling.
He also said your word is truth (John 17:17). He didn’t say your word is truthful, or your word contains truth, but your word is truth. In fact, All Scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16), wrote Paul. It’s as though God himself breathed out every single syllable in the Bible.
So when Jesus was tempted by the devil, he didn’t doubt the Bible—he quoted it. It is written . . . . It is also written . . . . it is written (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10), he said. The most trustworthy person in the world, believed the most trustworthy book in the world, and they bear witness to each other.
Our first parents were deceived by the devil because they doubted God’s word. Jesus triumphed over the devil because he trusted God’s word. Now the choice is ours: we can follow Jesus, or we can follow Satan.
Genesis 3:5 God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
Satan wanted Adam and Eve to doubt the goodness of God, so he focused on what God withheld. They were free to eat from every tree in the garden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17). But if God was holding something back, maybe he wasn’t so good after all. First the devil tempted them to doubt God’s word, then he tempted them to doubt God’s goodness.
This is still effective whenever we don’t get something that we want (like someone to marry) or whenever we do get something that we don’t want (like the death of a child). Whenever life disappoints us we tend to question the goodness of God.
For example, a missionary served God for years, when his son was attacked by a swarm of bees, that forced him to jump off a cliff to his death. Wouldn’t a good God have kept that from happening? Adam and Eve were the first, but certainly not the last, to question the goodness of God.
Thankfully, God proved his goodness, once and for all, through the death and resurrection of his Son. Before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it was less clear what kind of God we were dealing with. But when God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son (John 3:16), his goodness was clearly displayed for all to see. Only a perfectly good God would give his Son for the sins of a world that hated him.
As soon as we believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, we give up the right to question the perfect goodness of God ever again. If the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ doesn’t convince us that God is good, nothing ever will. Every believer must settle this matter, once and for all: God is good all the time. The devil hates this fact and wants us to doubt it. But Jesus proved this fact and wants us to trust it.
Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
The first duty of a Christian husband is to protect his family from the devil. But Adam chose to use his wife as a guinea pig instead. If she fell over dead, he wouldn’t have eaten the fruit. But, since she survived, he thought it might be safe. Turning away from God can make us so selfish that we’ll hurt people we love in order to please ourselves.
Genesis 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
This is how shame came into the world. Adam and Eve had nothing to hide before they sinned but, afterward, they wanted to cover themselves. So they gathered fig leaves, and stitched them together, in a desperate attempt to cover their shame. If you’ve ever dreamed of being naked in public, you know how they felt.
But even if we have no physical shame, everyone carries moral shame. If everything we ever did became public information, we couldn’t leave the house. One survey showed that fifty percent of adult males carry a secret so dark that, if it were exposed, it would destroy them.
Shame is a negative emotion but it has a positive side. It means we’re not as bad as we could be. As long as we have a sense of shame, we also have a conscience. The work of the Holy Spirit is to convince us of our sins (John 16:8), so that we can repent, and be restored to God.
Reflection and Review
- What did Satan want Adam and Eve to think about God?
- How does Jesus prove that God is good?
- What is the best remedy for shame?
Lesson 4
Genesis 3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
This was a little desperate but, for all they knew, God was coming to kill them. [W]hen you eat [of the tree] you will certainly die (Genesis 2:17), he warned. God had given them life, and now he was free to take it away.
Like our first parents, we also try to hide from God. Some hide by putting God out of their minds. Others hide by neglecting his word. Others use religion to hide from God, instead of relating to him personally. Nothing comes more naturally to guilty sinners than trying to hide from God.
Genesis 3:9 But the Lord God called to the man, Where are you?
This is God seeking man, not to kill him, but to restore him. This idea is so important that Jesus repeated it several times. The good shepherd searches for his one lost sheep (Luke 15:4). The distressed woman searches for her one lost coin (Luke 15:8). The rejected Father looks down the road searching for his one lost son (Luke 15:20). For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10), said Jesus.
A little boy was separated from his father at the county fair. He was surrounded by the best stuff in the world, but couldn’t enjoy it, because he didn’t know where his father was. But, after his father found him, the little boy enjoyed both the fair and his father more than ever. God is seeking lost people, not to punish them, but to restore them.
Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.
This is God’s solution to the problem of sin, spoken to the devil. It’s a messianic prophecy that’s remarkable for at least three reasons.
First, the solution to sin wouldn’t be Adam or Eve, but someone else. We’d expect the first couple to pay for their own sin, but God promised to send another who would crush [the devil’s] head. This idea is further developed throughout the Old Testament, so the Promised One wouldn’t be unexpected.
Second, the Promised One would be male. He will crush your head, not She will crush your head. In a single pronoun God eliminated half the human race from the pool of possible candidates. And, throughout the Old Testament, the pool shrinks even further.
The Promised One would be descended from Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10), born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), and minister in Galilee (Isaiah 9:1-2). If you put all the prophecies together, in fact, there’s only one person who fulfilled them all perfectly. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), said Jesus.
Third, the conflict between the serpent and the Promised One would likely include fatalities. If you step on a serpent’s head, it will probably die. And, if it bites your heel, you could also die. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ was fatal in the sense that he actually died. But, through his resurrection, he dealt a fatal blow to Satan that will bring him to his end. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was a cosmic conflict of life and death. It’s also the main point of the whole Bible.
Genesis 3:19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.
Even though the Promised One would fix the problem of sin, there’d still be consequences for Adam and Eve—and their descendants. Mankind was made to tend the garden, but now would become part of the garden. As a result, every child is born with a terminal disease called aging, and we’re just at various stages. Imagine what you’ll look like thirty years from now.
I got together with friends, whom I hadn’t seen for years, and was surprised by how much they had changed. Hair had fallen out, wrinkles had come, and so had extra weight. I tried to conceal my surprise, but noticed they were also surprised. Then it became a contest to see who could act the least surprised. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, everyone sins, and die we must.
Genesis 3:21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.
The only way to get skin off an animal is to kill it, so this was the first animal sacrifice. Animals were likely tame before the fall, and may’ve been something like pets. Adam and Eve were vegetarians (Genesis 1:29, 9:3), and had never seen an animal die. But, naked and ashamed, they needed the animal’s skin to cover their disgrace.
To make his point, God may’ve made them watch the slaughter of this innocent victim: throat slit, blood spilt, eyes wild, body trembling, life draining, lights out. It was a bloody object lesson to portray the wickedness of sin and the terrible cost involved.
In fact, the Old Testament is filled with the blood of sacrificial animals: sheep, goats, bulls and more. But all the blood of all the animals ever sacrificed could never take away sins (Hebrews 10:11), says Hebrews. That required nothing less than the shed blood of Jesus Christ—God in human flesh. Sin is man taking the place of God; salvation is God taking the place of man.
As Adam and Eve were clothed with the skin of a beast, all who believe in Jesus Christ are clothed with him. [Y]ou who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ (Galatians 3:27), wrote Paul. We lost any righteousness of our own, but God has arrayed [us] in a robe of his righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), wrote Isaiah. The first animal sacrifice pointed forward to the sacrifice of Christ.
Genesis 3:24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
The opportunity to eat from the tree of life, and live forever, was apparently gone for ever. How sad it must’ve been for Adam and Eve to leave the garden and venture into the untamed world. There they would die, and all their offspring would also die. This remains the worst day in the history of the world.
Thankfully, the tree of life appears again at the end of the Bible. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit (Revelation 22:2), wrote John. The tree of life first appeared in the old paradise of Eden. But, after the death, of Christ it appears again in the new paradise of God’s eternal kingdom.
This is helpful for understanding the Bible’s storyline. It’s the record of paradise lost through sin, and regained through Jesus Christ. The cherubim mentioned above were later embroidered on the temple curtain (2 Chronicles 3:14), which kept people away from the presence of God. That curtain was torn from top to bottom when Jesus died on the cross (Matthew 27:51). This shows the way to God is now open to everyone who comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
Reflection and Review
- Why do people try to hide from God?
- How did sin change the world?
- What is the Bible’s storyline?
Lesson 5
Genesis 4:1-2 Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. . . . Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
Cain and Abel were the first two sons born to Adam and Eve. There weren't many career choices back then, so Cain grew up to be a farmer, and Abel kept flocks. As an offering to God, Cain brought some of his produce, and Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock (Genesis 4:4). This is how they honored God as the source of all they had.
Genesis 4:4-5 The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.
From this we learn that not all offerings are pleasing to God. The text is not explicit, but Abel seems to have brought his best, while Cain bought something less. The real problem wasn’t what they brought, however, but the attitude of their hearts. We learn elsewhere that Abel’s heart was right with God (Hebrews 11:4), and Cain’s heart was not (1 John 3:12). It’s not enough to bring our offerings to God, we must bring them with worshipping hearts.
Genesis 4:5b Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Cain thought his offering was perfectly fine, and God was lucky to have it. He should’ve received God’s favor, not his frown, he thought. What kind of God would disapprove of an offering anyway? Cain wasn’t sure that he even liked God very much. Then the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? (Genesis 4:6-7).
God wasn’t being unreasonable. He simply wanted Cain to understand worship. Cain’s offering showed a measure of compliance, but it wasn’t from his heart. Giving to God seemed like a tax to Cain, not an expression of love. God assured Cain that he would be accepted, if he’d only do what was right.
Genesis 4:7b But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.
God used a powerful image to illustrate Cain’s struggle with sin—and ours. It’s like a wild beast ready to devour. Sin is not a cuddly kitten, but a savage carnivore. Cain could do the right thing, and be accepted by God, or he could do as he pleased, and be devoured by sin.
Many face a similar choice at one time or another. Some choose to conquer lust, others are devoured. Some choose to conquer drugs, others are devoured. Some choose to conquer hate, others are devoured. Sin is not a toothless tiger, but a ferocious beast hungry for souls.
Genesis 4:8 Cain said to his brother Abel, Let’s go out to the field.
Cain led his brother far enough away that their parents wouldn’t hear him scream. Cain probably gave some thought to the place, and how to dispose of the body. If his brother went missing, his parents would assume he was eaten by an animal, or that he was lost. So While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him (Genesis 4:8b).
Cain became the first murderer, and made his brother the first martyr. Cain wasn’t merely jealous of his brother; he hated him for loving God. Cain hated God so much that he murdered his brother for loving God. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother (1 John 3:12), wrote John.
Believers and unbelievers often get along, but when the devil gets involved we should expect the worst. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you (John 15:20), said Jesus. Abel was the first to die for his faith, but millions have followed him.
Here we also see that sin can have unintended consequences. When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit they hoped to elevate the human condition (Genesis 3:5). Instead, their natures were corrupted, and passed down to their children, so that one killed the other. Even worse, their sinful natures were passed down to future generations. This has produced a world of sin and misery where everyone dies. If Adam and Eve could’ve foreseen the results of their sin, they wouldn’t have sinned in the first place. Sadly, many have a similar story.
Genesis 4:9 Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is your brother Abel? I don’t know, he replied. Am I my brother’s keeper?
Cain’s sarcastic reply showed he was completely unrepentant. He had no sorrow for sin, or any regret for what he had done. He hardened his heart against the voice of God, and became a hardened killer. Even then, God would’ve received Cain if he would’ve repented. [A] broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:17), wrote David.
Genesis 4:10 Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.
Abel’s parents didn’t hear him scream, but God heard his blood crying out from the ground. It is mine to avenge; I will repay (Deuteronomy 32:25), said God elsewhere. Whoever rejects God’s mercy will have to face his justice.
As part of his punishment, Cain would become a restless wanderer (Genesis 4:12). His life would be an aimless journey, without meaning or direction, leading to the grave, and then to hell below. This sad path is chosen by many, but those who follow Christ journey to a better place. We can go with God, or we can go with the devil, but the destinations are as different as the paths we choose.
Genesis 4:25-26 Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him. Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.
Since Cain rejected God, and his righteous brother was dead, true religion was in danger of vanishing from the earth. But God gave Adam and Eve another son, and then a grandson. Having learned their family’s history, they took God seriously, and began to call on the name of the Lord.
This idea occurs throughout the Bible, along with a promise of salvation. [E]veryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Joel 2:32), wrote Joel. [E]veryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Acts 2:21), preached Peter. And Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13), wrote Paul.
A little girl fell into a hole that was actually a very deep well. Rescue teams worked around the clock, for over two days, while others watched and prayed. In what seemed to be a miracle, the little girl was saved from the pit of her destruction. There’s no place so far down that God isn’t able to reach us. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Reflection and Review
- What kind of offering is pleasing to God?
- How is sin like a ferocious beast?
- How can we call on the name of the Lord?
Lesson 6
Genesis 6:5 The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.
Things went downhill rather quickly after Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. Their first-born son Cain, murdered their second-born son Abel, in the first religious persecution (Genesis 4:8). Then Lamech corrupted God’s pattern for marriage by introducing polygamy (Genesis 4:19). And, before long, every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.
This is one of the clearest statements of human depravity in the Bible and, two chapters later, we read that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21). We don’t have to grow up before we start sinning; it begins when we are children.
I could tell of my own childhood sins, which were many and deadly, but I will tell on my friends instead. We lived near a lake where there were frogs and, to pass the time, we’d catch them. Not content to let them go, my friends amused themselves by inventing ways to torture the frogs. I could list the ways they tortured them, but it’s more disturbing than it’s worth. Even in our youth we have more in common with devil (morally) than we do with Jesus Christ.
The Bible’s first concern isn’t how to have a wonderful life, or how to make the world a better place. It speaks to these, and other issues, but they’re not the main point. The Bible’s main concern is sin, and what God has done to fix it through his Son Jesus Christ. Any other reading of the Bible is a misinterpretation.
Genesis 6:6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.
Other translations say, his heart was filled with pain (NIRV), he was heartbroken (GW) and, it broke his heart (NLT). This is a little surprising because we don’t expect an all-powerful God to be emotionally involved with his creatures—unless, of course, he’s also a heavenly Father who suffers deeply whenever his children go astray.
A friend of mine grew up in a good and godly home, and we went to the same school. He was normal in grade school, a little wild in middle school, but in high school he personified rebellion. He engaged in every form of destructive behavior until he finally disappeared. About a year later I saw his mother and was surprised by her appearance—she looked ten years older. I shudder to think how often I broke my parents’ hearts, not to mention my heavenly Father’s heart.
Genesis 6:7 So the Lord said, I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created . . . for I regret that I have made them.
Human beings turned out so badly that God had second thoughts. God is an all-powerful supreme being, complete in himself. But he’s also a rejected Father with all the attending emotions. God is a real person with real feelings, and our behavior affects his feelings. Sin is more than a violation of God’s law; it is pain in God’s heart.
Genesis 6:9 Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.
The world was filled with wickedness but Noah was an exception. He preferred to be in step with God, and out of step with the world, than to be in step with the world, and out of step with God. Noah didn’t care about the world’s approval nearly as much as God’s approval. Whether he had many friends, or few, Noah would only have one best friend—the God who gave him life. So when God determined to judge the world with a flood, he commissioned Noah to build an ark, in which he and his family would be saved.
Noah was also a preacher (2 Peter 2:5), so when people came to see the ark he likely gave them a sermon. We don’t have a record of his words, but he probably told them to repent, since God doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. This went on day after day, week after week, and year after year. But apart from his family, Noah never won a single convert. Ministry can be hard sometimes.
Genesis 6:15 The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.
Critics like to mock this story but there are some interesting facts to support it. First, the ark was about four hundred fifty feet long, by seventy-five feet wide, by forty-five feet high. Imagine a building one and a half times the size of a football field, and four and a half stories tall. It was a massive structure, but credible estimates show it was precisely the right size for the cargo.
Second, the ark was six times longer than it was wide. This is the same ratio that’s used by modern ship builders. Ships built to these proportions are extremely stable and almost impossible to capsize. And, as far as we know, the ark was the first of its kind. It was engineered by God, and the pattern is still used today.
Third, there are extra-biblical accounts supporting the story of a catastrophic flood. The two most famous are the Atra-Hasis Epic and the Gilgamesh Epic. Both were written before the biblical account, which suggests the story was passed down orally, from Noah and his family, to later generations, until it was written down by Moses around 1445 BC. There are differences between the stories, but the biblical account is the most plausible one by far.
Genesis 7:13 On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark.
By this time the ark was fully loaded, and the rain was coming down. Out of all the people on earth, only eight were saved (1 Peter 3:20). This is meant to shock us because we can barely imagine God only saving eight people. What about Aunt Edna, Uncle Roy and Cousin Pete? When it came to being saved, most people missed the boat. They still do. [S]mall is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (Matthew 7:13-14), said Jesus.
Most people reject their need to be saved, but believers sense the approaching judgment of God and take action. As Noah and his family got into the ark, we get into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ (John 5:24). We too will experience ridicule, but we’d rather be in Christ than anywhere else without him.
Reflection and Review
- Are people sinners by nature or by choice?
- How does God feel about the wicked?
- Why didn’t more people believe Noah?
Lesson 7
Genesis 7:16 Then the Lord shut him in.
We can imagine people changing their minds about Noah once it started raining. For years they heard him preach, and watched his godly behavior. At any time they could’ve gone over to his side. But it was easier to be part of the godless majority, than to join a godly minority.
We can also imagine people standing around the ark saying, We’re sorry Noah. Can you open the door? Can you please, please, open the door? But Noah couldn’t open the door because Noah didn’t shut the door. The door had been shut by God.
As the water rose, we should imagine families on their housetops, and children asking their parents if they were going to die. We should imagine parents regretting their failure to raise their children for the Lord, and looking into their eyes with panic as they were being swept away.
This is so important, in fact, that Jesus used this story to teach about the end of the age. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:37-39).
And, Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, Sir, open the door for us. But he will answer, I do not know you or where you come from (Luke 13:25). According to Jesus, there will be people who planned to get into the kingdom of God eventually, but put it off until it was too late. Then they’ll plead with God, but he will say, I do not know you.
A few other parallels are worth noticing. Building the ark seemed foolish to those who’d perish, and the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18), wrote Paul. The ark was the only way to be saved, and there is no other name under heaven . . . by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12), said Peter. Those who heard Noah preach rejected the truth, and others perish because they refused to love the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:10), wrote Paul. Salvation in Noah’s day wasn’t completely different than it is today.
Genesis 7:17-23 For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered. The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than fifteen cubits.
Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind. Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; people and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.
We can imagine Noah’s little family gathered in the ark as the rain came pouring down. We can imagine the water rising higher and higher until the boat began to float. And we can imagine Noah praying that it wouldn’t break apart. Dear God, please, keep this boat in the palm of your hand. Forty days later the rain let up, but it was over a year before the ground was dry enough for them to leave the boat. Then they built an altar to worship the God who saved them (Genesis 8:20).
Hard times can make us thankful. When everything is wonderful, every single day, our appreciation begins to fade. But when God sends hardship, we learn how precious a normal day really is. Whenever the sun goes down on a normal day, we should thank God that we’re not in a flood. And if we are in a flood, we should thank God that he will get us through it.
Genesis 9:3 Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.
At first, God only allowed a vegetarian diet (Genesis 1:29). But, after the flood, he included meat. This is an important correction to false religious views that restrict the human diet. Whatever God has made should be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth (1 Timothy 4:3), wrote Paul. There are many things we prefer not to eat, but there’s nothing that God has forbidden to eat.
A young lady attended a Bible study where she argued for the equal sacredness of all living creatures. She was a vegetarian by conviction and wouldn’t even kill a fly. But, during the Bible study, a bee crawled up her sleeve and stung her. Instinctively she killed it, and everyone saw what she did. False religions often confuse the created order. But the Bible makes sense of the world, and works in the world God created.
Genesis 9:13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
The next time Noah saw a cloud he might’ve become nervous. And the next time it rained he might’ve panicked. So God gave him the sign of a rainbow to assure him that he’d never destroy the earth with a flood again (Genesis 9:15). Whenever we see a rainbow, we should thank God for preserving the world he created. The world doesn’t endure on its own. It only endures because God sustains it (Hebrews 1:3).
Genesis 9:20-21 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent.
This is a little surprising. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God (Genesis 6:9). Noah’s preaching (2 Peter 2:5), and his faithful work on the ark, also speak to his righteous character. He was a very godly man but, like the rest of us, he wasn’t perfect.
Life wasn’t easy, after the flood, and Noah sought comfort in wine. But too much wine leads to drunkenness, which may also lead to immodesty. Noah may’ve disrobed because of the heat, or some other reason, but this story doesn’t reflect well on him.
Genesis 9:22-23 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.
Ham should’ve protected his father’s dignity by covering his father’s nakedness, and saying nothing about it. [L]ove covers over a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8), wrote Peter. But instead of keeping quiet, Ham broadcast his father’s indiscretion to his brothers. They could’ve added to the ridicule, but showed proper respect by covering their father’s shame. When Noah found out what happened, he blessed Shem and Japheth, and cursed the descendants of Ham (Genesis 9:24-27).
Other than Jesus Christ, there are no perfect people. Even righteous Noah had a moment of failure. We ought to keep this in mind for ourselves, and also for other sinners. Some sins need to be exposed, but most should be covered over. And, whenever we fail, we should take our sins to Jesus Christ, and be assured of his forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
Reflection and Review
- Is it ever too late to be saved?
- Should we be surprised when godly people fail?
- Why shouldn’t we talk about other people’s sins?
Lesson 8
Genesis 10:1 This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.
For humanity to survive after the flood, Noah’s sons had to reproduce, and here we find the names of their offspring. The Bible contains many genealogies and, though not always entertaining, they show we’re part of a much larger story. Like those who’ve gone before us, we’re born into the world, play a part, and then we die. Our lives are made up of the choices we make, and each day is a new page on which to write our story.
Genesis 10:8-12 Cush was the father of Nimrod. . . . The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah and Resen.
Nimrod was a builder of civilizations. Whether he was good or evil isn’t clear but, if we enjoy the benefits of an advanced civilization, we ought to be thankful for those who helped build it. This will include leaders, teachers, parents, artists, soldiers, merchants and laborers. Great societies happen because people give their best. It’s our duty to God (Genesis 1:28), and others (Romans 13:9), to contribute to society by doing our best work.
Genesis 11:1 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech.
For many years communication flowed freely as the world enjoyed a single language. This helped people cooperate and make cultural progress. Instead of using their social cohesion to glorify God, however, they used it to rebel against him. Instead of pursuing God’s glory, they pursued their own.
Genesis 11:4 [L]et us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves.
Simply put, they wanted to be famous. They wanted to build a city with a magnificent tower that would distinguish them and win the approval of others. They wanted to be well-known, and very well-respected. This is not uncommon, even today.
Many have built homes they couldn’t afford, to impress people they didn’t like. And many have bought cars for the same reason. Our purpose on earth is not to bring glory to ourselves, however, but to the God who made us. Not to us, Lord, . . . but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist. This is a great relief, and a wonderful blessing, once we embrace it.
Genesis 11:6 The Lord said, If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.
Nothing is impossible for God, of course. But here we learn that nothing is impossible for us—under the right circumstances. This is the clearest statement of human potential in the Bible, and was spoken by God himself. When people work together, toward a common goal, there’s little they can’t achieve.
This is more obvious today than ever before. Technological developments have produced better machines, medicines and institutions than the world has ever known. Since the rate of progress is only getting faster, it’s hard to know where we’ll be a hundred years from now, if God permits.
But there’s a problem: unified people often produce a world opposed to God. The people in this story had little concern for God, and wanted to build a city without him. But God doesn’t like that, and won’t allow it forever.
Genesis 11:7-6 [L]et us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other. So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
How strange it must’ve been to go to work that day, and find so many people speaking other languages. The bosses couldn’t communicate with the foremen; the foremen couldn’t communicate with the laborers; and no one knew what to do. The community broke apart as people went their ways with whoever spoke their language. Thousands of years later, this is still an issue.
The world remains divided by over six thousand languages, making communication difficult. But after Jesus rose form the dead, God did something different. People from various countries were gathered in Jerusalem when the Spirit enabled the disciples to speak in languages the people could understand. [W]e hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues (Acts 2:11), they said.
God confused the human language due to our sin, but he let us hear the gospel due to his grace. We still have different languages, but all who believe are united by faith in Jesus Christ. This is a greater unity than sharing a common language, and is based on the knowledge of God. God is reversing the curse of of this event through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Genesis 11:9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world.
Babel and confused are similar in Hebrew, so the writer made a play on words. Babylon was later destroyed, and stands for all civilizations opposed to God, which will also be destroyed. [A] mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again (Revelation 18:21), wrote John.
God isn’t opposed to cities, or progress, but the purpose of both are to glorify him. Human centered cities come and go, but the city of God will last forever. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come (Hebrews 13:14), says Hebrews. [That] city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp (Revelation 21:23), wrote John.
God has a plan for the earth to be subdued, and filled with his people (Genesis 1:28). Sin has brought frustration, but God’s plan will be accomplished eventually. God and his people will live together in a perfect world of his design, and it will never end. This is the future of all who belong to Jesus Christ.
Reflection and Review
- Why are genealogies helpful?
- Is it wrong to desire fame?
- What does God think of cities?
Lesson 9
Genesis 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
This begins the story of how God built the nation of Israel, beginning with Abram (later called Abraham). Here the story shifts from God’s relationship with the world, in general, to God’s relationship with Abraham and his offspring—the Israelites. Abraham wasn’t chosen by God because he was better than anyone else, but simply because God chose him (Romans 9:15). He’s so important to the Bible’s story that his name is mentioned over two hundred times.
Abraham was living in a pagan culture when God broke into his life and told him to move to the Promised Land. Abraham lived in a tent (Hebrews 11:9) for much of his life, For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10), says Hebrews. He’s an example to those who refuse to settle down in this life as they journey to the next.
Genesis 12:2-3 I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
God kept this promise to Abraham by making him into a great nation, and by making him famous. In the previous chapter the people wanted to make a name for themselves (Genesis 11:4). But, as Abraham followed God, God made a name for Abraham.
God also promised Abraham that, all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. This anticipates the gospel of Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:7-9) who, two thousand years later, was Abraham’s descendent (Matthew 1:1). Because the gospel has spread throughout the world, the world has been blessed through Abraham. The God of Abraham keeps his promises and, therefore, we can trust him.
Genesis 12:10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.
Abraham may’ve hoped for great things in the Promised Land but, instead, he encountered a famine. Like many since, Abraham found that God’s ways don’t always make sense to us. The way of faith can be difficult, even when we’re exactly where God wants us to be.
Abraham went down to Egypt, where the food supply was stable, due to the Nile River. But there he was afraid that Pharaoh might kill him, to take his beautiful wife Sarai (later called Sarah). Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you (Genesis 12:13), he said.
Sarah actually was Abraham’s half sister (Genesis 20:12). But this was still a deception, and a terrible thing to ask. Pharaoh did, in fact, take Sarah to be his wife. And, while the text is not explicit, he seems to have slept with her (Genesis 12:19). This would’ve strained Abraham and Sarah’s relationship, and compromised their walk with God. It’s interesting how early in the story they failed.
Like others who try to follow God, Abraham and Sarah weren’t perfect. Their confidence in God wasn’t always strong and, under pressure, they failed more than once. The story of God and his people is about sin and grace, failure and forgiveness. The only one who never sinned, of course, was Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:22). He lived our life, and died our death, so that he could be our Savior (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Genesis 12:20 Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.
God sent diseases on Pharaoh and his household to show his disapproval. They came to understand that this was due to Abraham’s wife, so Pharaoh gave her back to Abraham and sent them on their way. They left Pharaoh’s palace with sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels (Genesis 12:16). God prospered Abraham and Sarah, even when they were out of his will.
Sin normally has negative consequences, including divine discipline (Hebrews 12:6). But, on occasion, God may bring us good even when we sin. Then we should praise him for not giving us what we deserve, but for giving us what we don’t deserve. The biblical word for this is grace (Ephesians 2:8). Justice is getting what we deserve; mercy is not getting what we deserve; grace is getting what we don’t deserve—the undeserved favor of God.
*****
Genesis 13:5 Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents.
Lot was Abraham’s nephew, and they both became so wealthy that the land couldn’t support their families together. Both groups began to quarrel, so Abraham made peace by offering Lot whatever region he preferred. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left (Genesis 13:9), he said.
This was a generous offer and reflects well on Abraham’s character. As the elder of the clan, Abraham had the right to choose, but he left the choice to Lot. A generous person will prosper (Proverbs 11:25), says Proverbs. God applauds generosity, and is often pleased to reward it.
Genesis 13:10 Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan toward Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt.
Lot chose the best of the land, and left the rest to Abraham. The land he chose was close to Sodom, however, a town known for its wickedness (Genesis 13:13). But the region’s wealth was enough to offset any of Lot’s concerns. Abraham made him a generous offer and Lot made the most of it.
There was something Lot didn’t know, however. Sodom would soon be destroyed by the judgment of God (Genesis 19:1-29). Lot would escape with his daughters, but everything else would be lost. Getting what you want isn’t always what you want.
Genesis 13:14-15 The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.
Lot thought he chose the best, but it soon became the worst. Abraham settled for what was left, but it soon became the best. This is a helpful principle when it comes to making choices.
Instead of grasping for what we want, it’s often wise to let others go first. God knows what’s best for us, and he also knows the future (Isaiah 46:10). Letting others choose first is a way of being generous, and trusting God to give us what he wants for us.
Reflection and Review
- How does living in a tent illustrate the Christian life?
- How has God blessed the world through Abraham?
- What can we learn from Lot’s choice to live near Sodom?
Lesson 10
Genesis 14:14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit.
A coalition of kings conquered Sodom and Gomorrah, and a few other towns in the region. Many were taken captive, including Lot, Abrahams’ nephew. When Abraham heard of it, he marshaled his personal army, and went to the rescue.
Abraham’s personal army shows that he was a man of power and wealth. But, if the battle went badly, he might become a prisoner of war. It’s easy to be courageous from a distance but, when trouble comes near, we must look to God. The words, Do not be afraid occur over fifty times in the Bible, and are often spoken by God himself.
Genesis 14:16 [Abraham] recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.
Abraham’s nighttime attack was so effective that the opposing armies fled. He rescued those who were taken captive and recovered their possessions. There must have been great rejoicing as the people returned safe and sound. Abraham was now a hero.
On the way home, Abraham was met by the king of Jerusalem, with whom he ate and drank. Abraham gave him ten percent of the plunder, and the king gave him a blessing. Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth (Genesis 14:19).
Most people didn’t believe in the one true God, so this is a little surprising. But this man was a godly priest as well as a godly king. His name was Melchizedek, and he’s only mentioned one other time in the Old Testament. You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110:4), wrote David.
King David wasn’t a priest, but he foresaw a king who would be a priest. This was fulfilled by Jesus Christ the King of kings (1 Timothy 6:15) and great high priest (Hebrews 4:14). He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 6:20), says Hebrews.
Abraham acknowledged Melchizedek’s greatness by giving him a tenth of the plunder, and by receiving his blessing. Likewise, we give our offerings to Jesus Christ (Philippians 4:18), and are also blessed by him (Romans 10:12). The Old Testament foreshadows Jesus Christ in many ways, and Melchizedek is a fine example.
*****
Genesis 15:1 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.
After defeating the coalition of kings, Abraham may’ve feared retaliation. God responded by saying, I am your shield. Likewise, Abraham returned the booty to its owners, and God responded by saying, I am . . . your very great reward. God shields those who trust him (Psalm 18:30), and rewards those who serve him (Romans 8:32).
Genesis 15:2 But Abram said, Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?
Abraham didn’t have any children and he wasn’t getting any younger. Unless God answered his prayer for a child, all that he owned would go to one of his servants. Abraham was troubled by this, so he brought it to God’s attention.
Genesis 15:4 Then the word of the Lord came to him: This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.
God told Abraham to count the stars and said, So shall your offspring be (Genesis 15:5). Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6).
This verse is quoted three times by the Apostle Paul to show that salvation is by faith, not by works (Romans 4:3, Romans 4:23, Galatians 3:6). The words it was credited to him were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead (Romans 4:23-24), he wrote.
God didn’t count Abraham righteous because he was good, but because he believed God’s promise. And God doesn’t count us righteous because we are good, but because we believe his promise of eternal life through Christ. For we maintain that a person is justified by faith (Romans 3:28), wrote Paul. Other religions teach that we get right with God by being good. Christianity teaches that we get right with God by believing in Jesus Christ. [T]he one who believes has eternal life (John 6:47), said Jesus.
Genesis 15:7 He also said to him, I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.
God also promised Abraham the land of Canaan, and confirmed it with an oath. He told him to bring some animals and cut them in half. That evening a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces (Genesis 15:17). This is very strange to us but, in effect, God was saying, May I become like these severed animals if I don’t keep my word.
When God makes a promise to his people, he wants us to believe it. Since Abraham didn’t have a Bible or a church to strengthen his faith, God confirmed his promise with a bloody oath. This showed that God would rather die than break his word to Abraham.
We find something similar to this in the Lord’s Supper. For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death (1 Corinthians 11:26), wrote Paul. God made a bloody covenant with Abraham, and This cup is the new covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20), said Jesus.
God would rather die than break his word to Abraham, and God was willing to die to keep his word to us (Jeremiah 31:33, Isaiah 53:5). If Abraham believed God on the basis of severed animals, how much more should we believe God on the basis of his crucified Son, whom he also raised from the dead (Matthew 28:6). The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does (Psalm 145:13), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
- How does Melchizedek remind us of Christ?
- How do we get right with God?
- How do we know that God will keep his word?
Lesson 11
Genesis 16:1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.
Ten years had passed since God promised Abraham that he’d become a great nation (Genesis 12:1-4), but he still didn’t have any children. Abraham’s wife grew impatient and suggested they have children through Hagar, Sarah’s slave. Abraham agreed and Hagar conceived. But, as soon as she knew she was pregnant, tension developed within the family. As the mother of Abraham’s child, Hagar felt superior to Sarah, and began to disrespect her. This made Sarah so angry she mistreated Hagar until she ran away. What started as a perfect plan ended in domestic strife.
Sometimes God will let us choose between two kinds of suffering: not getting what we want, and getting what we don’t want. The sorrow of not getting what they wanted convinced Abraham and Sarah to act apart from God’s will. Due to their impatience, they got what they didn’t want—family conflict. Not getting what we want is usually better than getting what we don’t want, so it’s best to wait for God.
Genesis 16:7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert.
Hagar ran away from home, but didn’t have a good place to go, so she ended up near a spring in the desert—pregnant and alone. There she encountered the angel of the Lord who spoke to her. Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going? (Genesis 16:8).
Hagar was partly to blame for her trouble since she had provoked Sarah. If she had shown a little respect, things would’ve been different. God could’ve left her to the consequences of her misbehavior, but he sought her out when she was at her lowest.
This reminds us of Jesus who came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). When we make a mess of things, Jesus comes with love and compassion. We may’ve put him off in the past, but our desperation reveals how much we need him.
Genesis 16:9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, Go back to your mistress and submit to her.
This may’ve been the last thing Hagar wanted to hear. Sarah had treated her badly, and submitting wouldn’t be easy. But submission to God often involves submitting to difficult people.
Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands (Ephesians 5:22), wrote Paul. Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority (1 Peter 2:13), wrote Peter. Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters (1 Peter 2:18), wrote Peter again. In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders (1 Peter 5:5), wrote Peter yet again. We show our submission to Christ by submitting to those who are over us. This brings glory to God, and is often the way to future blessing.
Genesis 16:10 I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.
God told Hagar to do a difficult thing and promised to reward her. Large families were desirable and Hagar’s descendants would be too many to count. When following God seems difficult we should remember his promise: the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8), wrote Paul.
The angel of the Lord told Hagar to call her son Ishmael (Genesis 16:11), meaning God hears. But she also had a name for God: You are the God who sees me (Genesis 16:13). When no one else can see us, God sees. When no one else can hear us, God hears. Whenever we’re hurting, or in trouble, he’s the God who sees and hears.
*****
Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless.
It had been nearly twenty-five years since God promised Abraham that he’d become a great nation (Genesis 12:2). But Sarah still hadn’t conceived, so God appeared again to reinforce his promise. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations (Genesis 17:5), he said.
Abram means exalted father, and Abraham means father of many. God changed Abram’s name to Abraham because he’d become the father of many nations. This was difficult for Abraham to believe but, eventually, God fulfilled his word.
Biologically, Abraham became the father of the Israelites, the Edomites (Genesis 36:1-43) and the Ishmaelites (Genesis 25:12-18). To be the father of three nations is a remarkable legacy, but it seems to fall short of God’s promise to make him the father of many nations.
In addition to the biological fulfillment of God’s promise, however, there’s also a spiritual fulfillment: those who have faith [in Christ] are children of Abraham (Galatians 3:7), wrote Paul. By the end of the age, this will include people from every nation on earth.
[T]here before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9), wrote John. This surpasses anything Abraham might’ve imagined. God’s promises take time to be fulfilled, but their fulfillment exceeds all our expectations.
Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
In response to God’s promise, Abraham and all his male offspring were to be circumcised. This symbolized the Abrahamic covenant, as a wedding ring symbolizes the covenant of marriage. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people (Genesis 17:14), said God. Circumcision was the sign of God's covenant for hundreds of years.
It’s no surprise, therefore, that a controversy developed in the early church about whether Gentile Christians should also be circumcised. The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses (Acts 15:5), some argued. The apostles gathered to discuss this issue and concluded it wasn’t necessary. We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved (Acts 15:11), said Peter.
The Apostle Paul later explained that our sinful natures are circumcised by Christ, and the sign of the new covenant is baptism. Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him (Colossians 2:11-12), he wrote. Circumcision has been replaced by baptism as the sign of the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
Reflection and Review
- What are two kinds of suffering from which we often choose?
- Why does God require submission to others?
- Why is circumcision no longer necessary?
Lesson 12
Genesis 19:1 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city.
This is the account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by the judgment of God. The towns were given over to the sin of homosexuality, so God rained down burning sulfur on them (Genesis 19:24). Before he poured out his wrath, however, God sent two angels in human form to rescue Lot, Abraham’s nephew.
Lot was a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (2 Peter 2:7), wrote Peter. Lot was a child of God who was trying to live in a godless culture. He had settled down in Sodom and compromised his values. He would still be saved, but his choice to live in a godless culture would cost him dearly.
Genesis 19:8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them.
The men of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house and demanded that he send out the angelic visitors to be sexually molested. Lot tried to dissuade them by offering his daughters instead. It’s hard to imagine a father making this kind of compromise, unless he was already compromised. Spiritual compromise is a slippery slope that leads to ever-increasing compromise.
Living in a wicked culture will condition us to wickedness until we think that wickedness is normal. Living together before marriage used to be called living in sin, but now it’s normal. Saving one’s virginity for marriage used to be praised, but now it’s often scorned. Homosexuality used to be unmentionable, but now it’s mainstream. We can’t escape our culture, but should be aware of how it’s shaping us.
Genesis 19:14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city! But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
The angels had warned Lot about the coming judgment, so Lot tried to warn his sons-in-law. They weren’t convinced, however, because Lot’s lifestyle didn’t reflect his faith. The more we live like the world, the less compelling our witness will be. The more we compromise our faith, the less we’ll be believed.
Genesis 19:15 Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.
The angels warned Lot to flee with his family, or they would be destroyed with the city. There are some places Christians shouldn’t be, and some people they shouldn’t be with. Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you (2 Corinthians 6:17), wrote Paul. This doesn’t mean we should avoid the ungodly altogether, but that we should be careful about our associations (1 Corinthians 15:33).
Genesis 19:24-25 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities.
Sodom and Gomorrah were located near the south end of the Dead Sea. The burning sulfur may’ve come from an earthquake that ejected sulfur, gases and asphalt, still found in this region. If ignited by lighting, they could’ve resulted in the catastrophic destruction this passage describes.
Genesis 19:26 Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
This was a fatal mistake since the angel had warned them clearly: Don’t look back (Genesis 19:17). But Lot’s wife was leaving everything she owned, and almost everyone she loved. She nearly escaped the doom of the city but, when she looked back, she became a pillar of salt. Lot’s wife was almost saved.
Looking back often leads to going back, so if we look back on what we’ve left for Christ, we’ll find an opportunity to return. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you (Proverbs 4:25), says Proverbs. The doom of Lot’s wife reveals the foolishness of looking back on the world we’ve left behind.
This idea is so important that Jesus applied it to his return. On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife! (Luke 17:31-32), he said. When Jesus Christ returns we shouldn’t look back on what we’re leaving behind, but fix our eyes firmly on him.
Jesus’ brother, Jude, also referred to this episode. Sodom and Gomorrah . . . . serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire (Jude 1:7), he wrote. We shouldn’t think of hell as anything less than the misery of being burned alive forever. This is a graphic illustration of the fate of all who prefer their sin over the Savior. Hell is not a mild discomfort, but a terrible agony that will never end.
The primary sin for which Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed was flagrant homosexuality. This is clearly condemned by Scripture, along with other sins. Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10), wrote Paul. This doesn't mean we’ll never stumble or fall, but that we should always get back up, and continue to fight against sin.
A Christian man was dying of AIDS as a result of his homosexual sin. His pastor came to see him and referred to him as a homosexual. The man replied, I’m not a homosexual. I’m a Christian who struggles with homosexuality. My faith in Christ is deeper than any other part of me.
That was a good response. God is not against homosexuals, heterosexuals, transexuals, bisexuals, or any other kind of person. God is against sin, and he sent his Son to die on a cross so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
God expects nothing more from homosexuals than from heterosexual singles: abstinence. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
- How did living in Sodom shape Lot’s morals?
- Why shouldn’t Christians look back on what they’ve left for Christ?
- Is God against homosexuals?
Lesson 13
Genesis 19:30 Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains. . . . He and his two daughters lived in a cave.
At one time they were influential members of a wealthy community, but now they were living apart from civilization. Lot was getting older and, without children of their own, Lot’s daughters would have no one to care for them in their old age. So they got their father drunk, slept with him, and bore his children. Sodom’s culture had clearly shaped their ways.
One of the most important decisions parents make is how and where to raise their children. Those with every advantage often turn out badly, and those with none can turn out fine. On balance, however, those who are raised well do better than those who aren’t. Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it (Proverbs 22:6), says Proverbs. Also, Bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33), wrote Paul.
Besides their other mistakes, Lot and his wife raised their daughters in a wicked town. As a result, their family became an incestuous mess. Lot’s last recorded act, in fact, was drunken sex with his daughters. This also led to future trouble since their offspring became the Moabites and the Ammonites—enemies of Israel. The way of sin is always downhill.
*****
Genesis 20:1 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar.
When the king of Gerar wanted Sarah for his harem, Abraham feared for his life. Again he said, She is my sister (Genesis 20:2). This is the same lie he told Pharaoh (Genesis 12:1-20), and may’ve told to others (Genesis 20:13). This was a serious character flaw which made Abraham a repeat offender.
After so many years of following God, we’re surprised at Abraham’s lack of moral progress. I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless (Genesis 17:1), said God. But Abraham was far from blameless. He believed in God (Genesis 15:6), but his life didn’t always show it. He had good intentions, but could also be weak.
Other than Jesus Christ, the main characters of the Bible are seldom moral heroes. Like us, they have some good points, and some bad points, and need to be saved. God was patient with Abraham and, even though he failed, he was still called God’s friend (James 2:23). God is also patient with us, and doesn’t reject us when we fail.
Genesis 20:3 God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken.
If not for divine intervention, the king of Gerar might’ve made Sarah pregnant, and kept her as his wife. This would’ve jeopardized God’s promise to Abraham: I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her (Genesis 17:16).
Abimelek claimed that he was innocent because he didn’t know Sarah was married. Then God said to him in the dream, Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her (Genesis 20:6), said God.
There may’ve been times Abimelek planned to sleep with Sarah, but suddenly lost desire. Or there may have been times he had desire, but lacked the opportunity. For however long Sarah was in his harem, God kept Abimelek from sinning against him.
If God did this for Abimelek, how often has he done it for us? At times we’ve had the opportunity to sin, but lacked the desire. Or we had the desire, but lacked the opportunity. Left to ourselves, there’s little we wouldn’t be guilty of. But God has restrained us and kept us from sinning as often as we would. If it wasn’t for God’s restraining grace, the world would be even worse than it is.
Genesis 20:14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him.
Once again, God treated Abraham better than he deserved. His lack of faith and obedience might’ve destroyed his future, as well as God’s plan to bless the world through him (Genesis 12:3). But God’s plan to bless the world depends more on God than it does on us. [I]f we are faithless, he remains faithful (2 Timothy 2:13), wrote Paul.
*****
Genesis 21:1 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.
Twenty-five years after the original promise (Genesis 12:2-3), God gave Abraham and Sarah the child they were waiting for. The long wait wasn’t easy, but it deepened their faith and heightened their joy.
This was the child through whom the world would be blessed (Genesis 12:3), because through him Messiah would come (Matthew 1:1-2). Abraham and Sarah waited many years for Isaac, and the world would have to wait two thousand more years for Jesus Christ. Isaac came at the very time God had promised (Genesis 21:2), and Jesus was born when the set time had fully come (Galatians 4:4), wrote Paul. God takes longer than we like, but he’s always on time.
Genesis 21:3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.
God had said you will call him Isaac (Genesis 17:19), which means, he laughs. About a year earlier, Abraham and Sarah laughed in disbelief at the idea of having a child at such an old age (Genesis 17:17, Genesis 18:12). But when Isaac was born Sarah said, God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me (Genesis 20:6).
The laughter of disbelief became the laughter of joy, as Abraham and Sarah saw God’s promise fulfilled. Their faith was weak, at times, but God was true to his word, and gave them what he promised. Their laughter makes us think of the joy that will be ours when God fulfills his promises to us in the age to come. We’ll laugh at our former doubts, and be amazed at the greatness of God who does immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20), wrote Paul.
*****
Genesis 21:8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast.
Weaning took place around age three, and was considered a rite of passage, since many died before then. If children lived until they were weaned, they’d probably make it to adulthood.
Ishmael was Abraham’s firstborn son and heir to the family fortune. But with all the attention going to Isaac, he may’ve felt his position slipping away. Instead of celebrating Isaac’s weaning, therefore, he began to mock his little brother (Genesis 16:12). This was noticed by Sarah and she reacted strongly.
Genesis 21:10 Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.
Abraham was greatly distressed by Sarah’s demand, but God told him to listen to her, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned (Genesis 21:12), said God. Then he assured Abraham that Ishmael would also become a nation (Genesis 21:13). So, early the next morning, Abraham sent Ishmael and his mother away.
God cares about families, and normally wants to keep them together (Malachi 2:14-16). If we have to choose between family and God, however, we must always choose God. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus.
Sending Hagar and Ishmael away was one of the most difficult things Abraham ever did. He wasn’t always perfect, but God was his highest priority. When God’s will was clear to him, he was willing to obey, no matter how difficult. And he is the father of all who believe (Romans 4:11), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
- What was Abraham’s weakness?
- Why did God make Abraham and Sarah wait so long for a child?
- Why should we be more committed to God than to our family?
Lesson 14
Genesis 22:1-2 Some time later God tested Abraham. . . . Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.
Abraham must’ve wondered what kind of God would give him a child, then demand the child be killed. The God of the Bible is not who we expect, and this causes problems for Abraham. Anyone who kills his son because he thinks God told him to is mentally unstable. This story is off to a terrible start.
Genesis 22:3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.
As Abraham cut the wood that morning he probably wondered, What kind of God would ask me to do this? How can I explain this to my wife? What will people think of me? Should I trust God, or run away from him?
The Bible hadn’t been written yet, but Abraham personified an important truth. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6), says Proverbs.
Genesis 22:4-5 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.
Over the course of their journey, Abraham worked through the question, How could a good God tell me to kill my son? He concluded that God would raise him from the dead. This is why he said, We will worship and then we will come back to you (Hebrews 11:19). Abraham was so convinced that God was good, if God told him to sacrifice his son, it would result in a resurrection.
Genesis 22:6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife.
But Isaac grew suspicious. The fire and wood are here . . . but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? (Genesis 22:7), he asked. God himself will provide the lamb (Genesis 22:8), said Abraham. At this point, Abraham spoke better than he knew. Two thousand years later God would provide the perfect lamb: the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). That’s where the Bible is going, and this story foreshadows it.
We shouldn’t miss the parallel between Isaac carrying the wood to his sacrifice, and Jesus carrying the wood to his sacrifice. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ (Colossians 2:17), wrote Paul.
If you stand outside on a sunny afternoon, you’ll cast a shadow that portrays your likeness. And, if you read the Old Testament carefully, you’ll find the shadow of Christ in many places. Abraham and Isaac had no idea of the greater significance their story would have. But here we see the shadow of Christ in Isaac and, to some degree, the heavenly Father in Abraham.
This is also a mark of inspiration. The Bible has many human authors, but only one divine author. It has many little stories, but only one big story that binds them all together. If the Bible was a puzzle, there’d be many pieces, but only one picture. And right in the center would be the crucifixion of the Son of God.
Genesis 22:9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
Isaac was at least an adolescent by this time, since he was able to carry the wood (Genesis 22:6). We might expect a struggle as Abraham tied him up, since most people would fight for their lives. But Isaac trusted his father even in death. Jesus could’ve also fought for his life, but he also trusted his Father in death. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), he said.
Genesis 22:10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
Abraham’s son was laying on the altar, and the knife was now unsheathed. From Abraham’s perspective, his son was good as dead. Nothing is harder than the death of a child, as many parents will testify. Abraham may’ve regretted the day he decided to follow God.
Genesis 22:11-12 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, Abraham! Abraham! Here I am, he replied. Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.
Because he was willing to sacrifice his son, Abraham’s loyalty could never again be questioned. Likewise, because God was willing to sacrifice his Son, his loyalty can never be questioned either. Some things can only be proven through sacrifice, like our commitment to God, and his to us.
Genesis 22:13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns.
He sacrificed the ram instead of his son, and called that place The Lord Will Provide. Five hundred years later, when Moses wrote this story down, they were still saying: On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided (Genesis 22:14). That mountain, of course, was in the region of Moriah (Genesis 22:2).
Moriah is only mentioned twice in the Bible. Take your son . . . to the region of Moriah (Genesis 22:2) and the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem [was built] on Mount Moriah (2 Chronicles 3:1).
It was just a hilltop when Abraham arrived but, centuries later, it’s where the temple of God was built. It’s where God provided a ram for Isaac, and where thousands of sheep were sacrificed. Then came Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who also died in the region of Moriah. So on the mountain of the Lord, it really was provided.
The people in the story had no idea they were foreshadowing the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. God telling Abraham to sacrifice his son seemed morally repugnant at first. But when we see that God provided a substitute (first the ram, then his Son) we perceive the glory of God and his purpose of this story.
Notice again the many parallels between the shadow in Isaac, and the reality in Christ. Isaac was the dearly loved son of Abraham, and Jesus is the dearly loved Son of God. Isaac went to the region of Moriah, and Jesus went to the region of Moriah. Isaac went willingly for his father, and Jesus went willingly for his Father.
Isaac carried the wood for his sacrifice, and Jesus carried the wood for his sacrifice. Isaac trusted his father unto death, and Jesus trusted his Father unto death. Isaac rose from the dead figuratively, and Jesus rose from the dead literally. Isaac was the son promised to Abraham, and Jesus was the Son promised to world.
But there’s also an important difference. Isaac didn’t have to die because God provided a substitute; Jesus did have to die because he was the substitute. [God] did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all (Romans 8:32), wrote Paul. Jesus died for our sins so that we could live forever. He is our substitute.
Reflection and Review
- What is disturbing about this story?
- Why is Moriah important?
- How does Isaac remind us of Christ?
Lesson 15
Genesis 24:1 Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.
But his son Isaac was still unmarried, so Abraham sent a trusted servant back to his clan, to find a suitable wife. It was a journey of several hundred miles, that would take weeks to complete, with no guarantee of success. But the servant shared his master’s faith, so he prayed earnestly for God’s help.
Lord, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. May it be that when I say to a young woman, Please let down your jar that I may have a drink, and she says, Drink, and I’ll water your camels too—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac (Genesis 24:12-14).
Choosing the right wife for someone else was an uncertain task, so the servant asked God to confirm the choice in an obvious way: have the girl offer to water his camels. Camels can drink about twenty-five gallons (and he had ten of them) so this would be a convincing sign. It would also show that the woman was kind and hardworking—excellent qualities for a spouse.
Genesis 24:16-19 The woman was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again. The servant hurried to meet her and said, Please give me a little water from your jar. Drink, my lord, she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink. After she had given him a drink, she said, I’ll draw water for your camels too.
This convinced the servant that she was the one for Isaac, so he gave her jewelry and asked to meet her family. They were related to Abraham and, to some degree, shared his faith. The servant explained the reason for his visit, and asked for the young lady to return with him to marry Isaac.
Genesis 24:51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.
They began the long journey home the following day. Isaac was in the field when he saw the caravan approaching, and his heart probably skipped a beat. Had they been successful? Did he have a wife? Would they be compatible? Yes, yes and yes! So she became his wife, and he loved her (Genesis 25:67), wrote Moses.
When Rebekah went to the well that day, she had no idea she’d soon be married to a wealthy young man, and become a leading lady among God’s people. This doesn’t happen to everyone, but reminds us that God is in control. We never know what a day will bring, and can even give thanks for unknown blessings already on the way.
Genesis 25:20 Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah.
They probably wanted to have children right away but, like Sarah, Rebekah was barren. Isaac prayed, but the answer didn’t come for twenty years. Then, at last, The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant (Genesis 20:21).
God may enroll us in the school of prayer by leaving some of our needs unmet. Apart from these we wouldn’t pray as often, or rely on God as much. Our needs are not an oversight, but the means of knowing God better. This is why Jesus taught us to always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1).
Genesis 25:22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, Why is this happening to me?
Rebekah didn’t know that she was pregnant with two active boys. Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger (Genesis 25:23), said God.
The first to be born was red and hairy, so they named him Esau, which probably means hairy. The second was grasping his brother’s heel when he came out, so they named him Jacob. Jacob means he grasps the heel, but figuratively means he deceives. (And he would live up to his name.)
The twins were nearly as different as they could be. Esau loved the open country; Jacob preferred to stay at home. Esau thought little of God; Jacob took God seriously. Esau was favored by Isaac; Jacob was favored by Rebekah. From Esau came the Edomites; from Jacob came the Israelites.
Many parents have been surprised by how different their children are from each other: physically, emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, relationally, and other ways. The only thing some siblings have in common, it seems, is their sinful nature. This was true for Jacob and Esau, who were frequently at odds.
Genesis 25:29-30 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!
Jacob and Esau were now adults, but Jacob never got over the fact that he was born second. The birthright belonged to Esau, which gave him certain privileges like a greater inheritance, and being future head of the clan. Esau could also expect to receive God’s promise to his grandfather Abraham: all peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:3).
This bothered Jacob so much that, short of murder, he’d do whatever he could to get his brother’s birthright. The fact that Esau was famished, and Jacob had some stew, presented an opportunity.
Genesis 25:31-34 First sell me your birthright. Look, I am about to die, Esau said. What good is the birthright to me? But Jacob said, Swear to me first. So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.
Jacob wanted the birthright more than Esau, so Esau finally gave it up. It simply wasn’t that important to him. He wasn’t greedy or ambitious. He didn’t care about the inheritance, or being head of the family. But he didn’t care about God’s promise to Abraham either. He just wanted some food.
In some ways Esau was a better person than Jacob but, according to the Bible, he was godless (Hebrews 12:16). God’s promise to Abraham mattered less to him than a bowl of stew. Esau should’ve put off his appetite, and held onto God’s promise. But he chose to sell God’s promise, and satisfy his appetite.
We too can live for here and now, and lose it all eventually. Or we can live for the age to come, and keep it all forever. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life (John 12:25), said Jesus. Esau partly believed in God but, in practice, he was godless.
Reflection and Review
- What is the value of unanswered prayer?
- What kind of person was Jacob?
- What kind of person was Esau?
Lesson 16
Genesis 27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau.
Isaac was preparing to die and wanted to give his fatherly blessing to his firstborn son Esau, rather than to Jacob. This was against God’s will since the Lord had told Rebekah, the older will serve the younger (Genesis 25:23). But Isaac favored Esau, so he sent him away to hunt for game, then to prepare a meal for him. After dinner, he’d give Esau his blessing.
The blessing was thought to carry real power, and was a continuation of the blessing God gave to Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3). Esau regretted selling his birthright, and wanted to recover the loss if possible. This was an important moment for him.
But Rebekah overheard the conversation and, since Jacob was her favorite, she took action. Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing (Genesis 27:8-10), she said.
The deception grew more complicated but, surprisingly, it worked. May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness—an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed (Genesis 27:28-29), said Isaac.
Shortly after Jacob received his father’s blessing, Esau returned and discovered what happened. He received a secondary blessing, but was furious that his deceptive brother took both his birthright and the primary blessing. He was so angry, in fact, that he planned to kill his brother after their father died. The threat was real enough that Jacob would soon run for his life, and stay away for the next twenty years.
There’s little in Jacob or Esau that we should admire. They shared the serious flaw of wanting the blessing of God, without pursuing God himself. God is not a means to an end, however, but the end for which we are made. The greatest blessing we can receive is more of God. It’s wrong to seek the blessing of God without pursuing God himself. But he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6), says Hebrews.
*****
Genesis 27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.
Another source of tension in this troubled family was Esau’s choice of wives. They were a source of grief to Rebekah, and she hoped Jacob would do better. Few things shape our lives more than whom we marry, but it also affects our larger family. It’s often wise, therefore, to consult our parents before we make a decision.
Isaac and Rebekah struggled with Esau’s wives because they were from a different clan. Marriage within a clan was usually preferred due to social customs. Ordinarily, we prefer people who are like us, and find them easier to live with. Instead of bringing her joy, Esau’s wives brought Rebekah sorrow.
We can think marriage as two overlapping circles. The overlapping part represents what we share in common. It may include age, education, politics, religion and background. The non-overlapping parts represent what we don’t share in common. It may include all the above and more. The overlapping part is what makes marriage easy; the non-overlapping parts are what make marriage interesting. Over a lifetime, most people prefer easy.
*****
Genesis 28:10-11 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.
Taking his parents’ advice, Jacob fled the comforts of home. At the end of the day he slept on the ground, surrounded by who knew what. Away from the people he knew, some of whom he loved, he probably felt alone. What Jacob needed most, he thought, was a good night’s sleep.
He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth. . . . All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring (Genesis 28:12-14).
Jacob was at a low point when God appeared to him in a dream and affirmed the promise he’d given to Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3), then to Isaac (Genesis 26:2-5), and now to Jacob. Jacob’s life wasn’t an example to anyone, but his faith in God was not misplaced. God was alive, and would do what he had promised.
The stairway to heaven which Jacob saw in his dream speaks of Jesus Christ. [Y]ou will see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man (John 1:51), said Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only way to God (John 14:6), and the angels go up and down to serve those who will inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14), says Hebrews.
This is also helpful for understanding how Jesus read the Old Testament. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), he said. When Jesus read about the stairway to heaven, he saw himself as the way to God. When he read about sacrificial lambs, he saw himself as the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). When he read about the high priest, he knew that he was the faithful high priest in service to God (Hebrews 2:17).
Other examples could be given, but these are enough to show that Jesus saw himself throughout the Old Testament, and we aren’t wrong to see him there as well. From beginning to end, the Bible points to Jesus Christ. He came to save us from our sins (Matthew 1:21), and to restore us to a greater paradise than Adam lost (Genesis 3, Revelation 22). The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does (Psalm 145:13), wrote David.
Genesis 28:16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.
Jacob thought that God was far away, but then he learned that God was near. God didn’t seem near when Jacob had only a rock for a pillow, so when God appeared in his dream Jacob was surprised. We too can go through life unaware of God’s presence, but he’s always closer than we think.
Reflection and Review
- What was Jacob’s family like?
- How does Jacob’s dream remind us of Jesus Christ?
- Why was Jacob surprised that God was in that place?
Lesson 17
Genesis 29:1 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.
That’s where his uncle Laban lived, and where Jacob hoped to stay until it was safe to go home (Genesis 27:43-44). Jacob stopped at a well and was delighted to meet Laban’s daughter, Rachel. Uncle Laban was thrilled by Jacob’s arrival and received him as part of the family. By God’s kindness, Jacob found a home away from home.
Jacob quickly fell in love with Rachel, and offered to serve Laban seven years if he could marry her. So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her (Genesis 29:20). Seven years is a long time to be engaged but, compared to the treasure of his bride, they seemed like just a few days to Jacob.
This is one of the most romantic statements in the Bible, and reminds us that passionate love is a gift from God (James 1:17). It’s wonderful to think that this kind of love is God’s idea, and even reflects his love for us.
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:31-32), wrote Paul.
The most passionate love between husband and wife is only a faint reflection of how Christ feels about his church. Human passion fades over time, but we’ll delight in the love of Christ forever.
Genesis 29:21 Then Jacob said to Laban, Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.
Laban held a wedding feast and gave his daughter to Jacob. But, when Jacob woke up in the morning, the woman lying next to him wasn’t Rachel, but Rachel’s older sister, Leah!
Jacob was upset about this but Laban replied, It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work (Genesis 29:26-27).
Jacob deceived his brother Esau, and Laban deceived his nephew Jacob. A man reaps what he sows (Galatians 6:7), wrote Paul. Jacob’s family had problems in the past, and would have problems in the future. But God had chosen them, and wouldn’t abandon them. Through all their sin and misbehavior, God would remain faithful. This should comfort us whenever our families are having problems.
Genesis 30:1 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, Give me children, or I’ll die!
Rachel’s sister, Leah, had given birth to four sons (Genesis 29:31-35), but Rachel was still childless. In her frustration she turned to Jacob and said, Give me children, or I’ll die! Not everyone wants to have children but, for some, the desire is nearly as strong as the will to live. God was gracious to Rachel and she soon gave birth to Joseph.
Likewise, whenever the gospel is preached, there’s potential for new birth. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth (James 1:18), wrote James. The preacher who goes to God and says, Give me children, or I’ll die, will likely receive what he asks. Every preacher, and every church, should have the same desire as Rachel.
Genesis 30:25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland.
After many years of serving Laban, Jacob wanted to go home. By this time he had many children, and wanted to bring them up in the Promised Land (Genesis 28:13). Laban didn’t want to lose his family, of course, so he persuaded Jacob to stay a little longer in exchange for breeding rights. As a result, Jacob grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys (Genesis 29:43).
As Jacob’s fortune increased, however, Laban’s fortune decreased, and this created tension in the family. It was time for Jacob to go but, instead of saying goodbye, he left without notice. When Laban found out he was furious and went with others in pursuit.
Then Laban said to Jacob, What have you done? You’ve deceived me, and you’ve carried off my daughters like captives in war. Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels and harps? You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. You have done a foolish thing (Genesis 31:26-38), he said.
This was my situation [Jacob replied]: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes. It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times. If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed (Genesis 31:40-42), he said.
The relationship was severely strained but they did what they could to part gracefully. Jacob killed some livestock and they ate a family meal. Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home (Genesis 31:55).
Sometimes families turn on each other and inflict emotional pain. This is seldom helpful since, even if they separate, the memories live on. One lady cried at her father’s funeral, and the pastor asked if they were close. We didn’t speak for the last seventeen years, she replied, and the last thing I said was, I hope you go to hell. We should always try to be friends with our family because they’ll always be a part of us. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:18), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
- How does romantic love remind us of Christ and the church?
- Why are families often difficult?
- Does Jesus make families better or worse?
Lesson 18
Genesis 32:1-2 Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. When Jacob saw them, he said, This is the camp of God! So he named that place Mahanaim.
Jacob and his family needed protection on their way back to the Promised Land, so God dispatched a camp of angels to watch over them. Jacob’s clan was sizable, with plenty of servants, and hundreds of animals, so they were quite a camp in themselves.
When Jacob saw the camp of angels, along with his own camp, he called the place Mahanaim, meaning two camps. It’s a reminder that we’re not alone in the world, but that God dispatches angels to watch over us. Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14), says Hebrews.
Genesis 32:3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir.
Jacob and Esau hadn’t seen each other in twenty years, and they didn’t part on the best of terms. Jacob stole his brother’s birthright and blessing, and Esau wanted to kill him (Genesis 27:41). So Jacob fled to Harran where he spent the next twenty years working, having a family, and growing rich.
But now he was returning to the Promised Land, and wanted to make peace with his brother, so he sent messengers ahead. When Esau learned his brother was returning, he went out to meet him—with four hundred men! This was not a good sign. When someone who wants you dead comes to meet you with four hundred men, they’re not a welcoming committee.
When Jacob learned of this he had great fear and distress (Genesis 32:7). Easu had nursed a grudge for the last twenty years and this was his chance to get even. The text is not explicit but he probably planned to kill Jacob and his family.
Then Jacob prayed, O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac . . . I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps. Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. But you have said, I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted (Genesis 32:9-12).
After Jacob prayed he sent his brother a series of gifts. He sent two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams—over five hundred fifty animals in all. He sent them in herds, and spaced them out, so they kept coming one after another (Genesis 32:13-20).
The purpose of the gifts was to appease his brother’s wrath. But we should also see that prayer and action are not mutually exclusive. Some people pray without acting; others act without praying. It’s best to pray as though everything depends on God, and then to act as though everything depends on us. That’s what Jacob did, and he hoped for the best.
Genesis 32:24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
Jacob put some space between him and his family, and spent the night alone. He probably wondered if this would be his last night on earth. Would Esau attack in the morning? Would he alone be killed, or would his family also be killed?
As he thought about these things, Jacob was ambushed by a man who wanted to wrestle. The man didn’t have a knife, and didn’t want to kill Jacob. He only wanted to wrestle through the night. To make a long explanation short, Jacob’s opponent was God (Genesis 32:30).
As they wrestled, [God] touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched (Genesis 32:25). Wrestling is very intense and, during their match, God gave Jacob a limp (Genesis 32:31) that may’ve lasted the rest of his life. But why would God do this?
Jacob was independent by nature because he was strong in himself. He was physically strong, mentally strong, and very strong willed. But, as he prepared to meet Esau, Jacob realized how much he needed God, and God wanted him to remember that. So God gave Jacob a limp. It was a reminder that Jacob needed God wherever he went.
God did something similar for the Apostle Paul. Paul was so gifted that he might’ve become proud, so God gave him a thorn in [the] flesh: perhaps a painful eye disease (2 Corinthians 12:7, Galatians 4:15). Three times Paul prayed that God would take it away. But God said, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:8-9).
Almost everyone has some kind of weakness: physical, emotional, mental, financial or something else. Perhaps you’ve prayed that God would take your weakness away. If he does you can praise him. If not, you should use your weakness to make you more dependent on God. We’re always stronger when we lean on God than when we think we can do it alone.
Genesis 32:26 Then the man said, Let me go, for it is daybreak. But Jacob replied, I will not let you go unless you bless me.
By this time Jacob knew he was wrestling with God. Even though he was injured he wouldn’t give up until he received a blessing. This can be called wrestling with God in prayer (Colossians 4:12).
Like many dads, I used to wrestle with my son when he was just a little guy. I could have easily crushed him, since I was many times his size. But I wanted to see what he could do, so I would matched him strength for strength. I made him work hard until finally, almost miraculously, he’d flip me over and win. God is looking for people who will wrestle him in prayer. And, many times, he’ll even let us win.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God use angels to help us if he could do it himself?
- What did Jacob do when he learned Esau was coming with four hundred men?
- Why did God make Jacob limp?
Lesson 19
Genesis 32:28 Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God.
Israel means He struggles with God and is meant in a positive way. God is not an easy person to follow, understand, or even like sometimes. The godless put him out of their minds, but the godly are willing to struggle with him.
In our best moments we love God deeply and, in our worst, we might even hate him. But at least we take God seriously. What God detests is to be taken lightly, as though he’s not an important person. The problem isn’t that people disbelieve in God, but that he’s simply not important to them.
Jacob struggled with God, and God changed his name to Israel. God also changed Abram’s name to Abraham (Genesis 17:5), and Sarai’s name to Sarah (Genesis 17:15). God shows his authority over us by changing our names whenever he likes. Jesus showed his authority over Simon by changing his name to Peter. You are Simon son of John. You will be called . . . Peter (John 1:42), he said. Surprisingly, Peter went along with it.
Not everyone in the Bible got a new name, but we learn from the Bible that God knows our names (John 10:3). I went to a large high school and was surprised to discover the principle knew my name—though not for a good reason. But Jesus knows our names because he loves us and, in heaven, he’ll give us a new name too. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it (Revelation 2:17), he said.
Some people have pet names for each other that no one else knows. They’re not meant to be public names, but private ones that create a bond of closeness. When my daughter was growing up I called her Bunkerdoodles. Imagine a God who is so affectionate toward you that he gives you a name known only to you and him.
Genesis 33:1 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men.
It was clear to Jacob that he was not in control. He had prayed, of course, but there was Esau marching in his direction with a personal army. Jacob likely trembled since he didn’t know if he would live or die. But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept (Genesis 33:4). Twenty years of estrangement dissolved in a puddle of tears.
Jesus drew on this scene to describe what happens whenever a wayward child comes home to God. The father ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him (Luke 15:20), wrote Luke. The reconciliation of Jacob and Esau reflects what happens whenever God and sinners are reconciled.
Genesis 33:19-20 [Jacob bought] the plot of ground where he pitched his tent. There he set up an altar and called it El Elohe Israel.
Esau went back to Seir (Genesis 33:16), and Jacob went to the Promised Land. To commemorate his arrival, Jacob built an altar. Altars were places of sacrifice where meals were eaten in fellowship with God. Jacob’s altar points forward to the altar at the temple, where sacrificial lambs were offered. That altar points forward to the cross of Christ, where the Lamb of God was offered (John 1:29, 19:18).
This is picked up in the book of Hebrews which says, We have an altar . . . (Hebrews 13:10). This may be an allusion to the table of the Lord’s Supper, which is observed every week in churches around the world. It’s not a sacrifice we make, however, but one that God has made for us, when he gave his Son to die on a cross for our sins (1 Peter 3:18). We have table fellowship with God as we feast on his Son through faith.
*****
Genesis 34:1 Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land.
After many years away, Jacob and his family were in the Promised Land. Other than Jacob, everyone was new to the region. With or without her parents’ permission, Dinah set out to meet some local women. Regrettably, she caught the attention of Shechem, the son of a local ruler.
Shechem was attracted to Dinah but, instead of making polite advances, he raped her. It’s not clear if he suffered remorse, but he loved Dinah, spoke tenderly to her (Genesis 34:3), and wanted to marry her. When Jacob learned his daughter had been raped, he wisely did nothing at first.
That evening, Shechem and his father came by and tried to make amends. Let me find favor in your eyes, and I will give you whatever you ask. Make the price for the bride and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife (Genesis 34:11-12), said Shechem.
But Jacob’s sons wanted revenge, so they agreed to give their sister to Shechem, if every male in his clan would be circumcised. Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword and took Dinah from Shechem’s house and left.
The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city where their sister had been defiled. They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields. They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children, taking as plunder everything in the houses (Genesis 34:25-29). When Jacob learned what his sons had done he was very upset. But they replied, Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute? (Genesis 34:31).
The revenge of Jacob’s sons was worse than the crime by far. To murder innocent men, and carry off their families, was completely unjustified. It may’ve felt good to release their rage, but they’d bear the shame for the rest of their lives. They were murderers.
Whenever someone we love is hurt, we naturally want revenge. The impulse isn’t wrong because the Lord is a God of justice (Isaiah 30:18). But we don’t have to take revenge ourselves; God will do it for us.
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on his foes and vents his wrath against his enemies (Nahum 1:2), wrote Nahum. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: It is mine to avenge; I will repay (Romans 12:19), wrote Paul.
Since God has promised revenge, we can leave it to him. Then we can obey Christ who said, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44). This is what Jesus did as he hung on the cross (Luke 23:34), and he’s the model for us all. His words free us from hate so that we can live in love again.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it good to struggle with God?
- How does Jacob’s altar remind us of the Lord’s Supper?
- How should Dinah’s brothers have responded to her rape?
Lesson 20
Genesis 37:2 Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers.
The early chapters of Genesis record the creation of the world (Genesis 1-2), our fall into sin (Genesis 3), the story of the flood (Genesis 6-9), the tower of Babel (Genesis 11), and a few other stories about God and the world.
But the world didn’t want God, so he turned to Abram saying, I will make you into a great nation. . . . and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Genesis 12:2-3). God changed Abram’s name to Abraham (Genesis 17:5), and gave him a son named Isaac (Genesis 21:1-3), who had a son named Jacob (Genesis 25:26), whose name God changed to Israel (Genesis 32:28).
But if you’re going to have a nation, you’ll need some people, so Israel had twelve sons (Genesis 35:22-26), who had families of their own. They became the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel (Genesis 49:1-28), and this little nation became the primary setting for the rest of the Bible. Joseph is one of the sons of Israel, but his story is so important it takes up nearly a third of the book of Genesis (Genesis 37-50).
By way of introduction, two things should be noted. First, the story has a U shape. It starts well, turns bad, stays mostly bad, but ends well. This mirrors the life of Jesus Christ who came down from heaven, lived a difficult life, but rose from the dead to reign in glory.
Second, it’s a story of providence. Behind the scenes of Joseph’s life we perceive the hand of God who, in all things, works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28), wrote Paul. God is always at work in this story, even when he seems absent.
Genesis 37:4 When his brothers saw that their father loved [Joseph] more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.
This is one of the most dysfunctional families in the Bible, but there are others. Cain killed his brother Abel (Genesis 4:8). Abraham shared his wife with Pharaoh (Genesis 12:19). David’s son committed incest (2 Samuel 13:14). And Jesus’ family thought he was crazy (Mark 3:21). Wherever two or more sinners live under the same roof, there is trouble.
Joseph was actually part of the problem. He had a dream in which the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to him (Genesis 37:9). He shared the dream with his family but, if he had been wiser, he would’ve kept it to himself. Joseph’s family took the dream to mean that, one day, they’d bow down to Joseph, and they were offended by this. Joseph enjoyed the idea but he didn’t know how difficult his life would become before his dream would come true.
This is the Christian life in miniature. We know our story ends well and that God is with us on every page. We’re surprised when things go badly but, even then, we know our glorious future will soon be here. So we always have hope.
Genesis 37:19-20 Here comes that dreamer! they said to each other. Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we will see what comes of his dreams.
Joseph’s brothers were away from home, grazing the family’s sheep. Joseph was sent to check on them, and they saw him from a distance. Joseph was wearing a special robe their father had given him, and his brothers were so jealous they wanted to kill him (Genesis 37:20).
We don’t always think of jealousy as a serious sin, but it can become serious. Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy? (Proverbs 27:4), says Proverbs. Joseph’s brothers were so jealous, in fact, that they determined to kill him (Genesis 37:19-20). But when they saw a band of merchants on their way to Egypt, they decided to sell him into slavery instead (Genesis 37:25-27). Then they dipped his robe in goats’ blood, and gave it to their father, and let him draw his own conclusion. Some ferocious animal has devoured him (Genesis 37:33), he said.
Genesis 37:34-35 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. No, he said, I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave. So his father wept for him.
It must’ve been hard for the brothers to watch their father suffer for their sin. Children suffer from the sins of their parents (Jeremiah 32:18), but parents can also suffer from the sins of their children. Joseph’s brothers got what they wanted, but their father paid the price.
What nobody realized is that God would use their wicked deed to elevate Joseph. God’s plan was for Joseph to rule over Egypt, and his brothers helped him get there. If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31), wrote Paul. The devil is against us. Our family can be against us. The world can be against us. And life itself can seem against us. But if God is for us, there’s no power in hell that can prevail against us. Believers always win in the end.
Reflection and Review
- How did the nation of Israel begin?
- Why is jealousy so dangerous?
- How do we know that God is for us?
Lesson 21
Genesis 37:36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.
Joseph could’ve been sold to someone obscure but, in the providence of God, he was sold to one of Pharaoh’s officials, so he could be groomed for higher service. If Joseph was going to be in charge of Egypt, he’d have to learn how government works, how leadership behaves, and how to handle responsibility. Joseph learned quickly, and handled himself so well, that he was soon in charge of Potiphar’s entire estate. With Joseph in charge, Potiphar didn’t have to worry about a thing, except what to have for dinner (Genesis 39:6).
*****
Genesis 38:1 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah.
We’re not told why Judah left his brothers, at this time, but it may have been due to their sin against Joseph. Their mutual secret would’ve weighed on their consciences and poisoned their relationships. Sin creates disharmony, and Judah wanted to get away. We can’t do evil to others without doing it to ourselves.
Genesis 38:2 Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man.
Together they had three sons, and the oldest married a woman named Tamar. He died young, however, so Tamar married Judah’s second son. He also died young, so Judah offered Tamar his third son as soon as he grew up. But Judah was afraid his third son would also die young, so he didn’t fulfill his pledge.
This put Tamar in a difficult position. She was twice a widow, and without any children. Her prospects for marriage were poor, and she’d have no one to take care of her when she was old. In a culture that prized motherhood, her situation was bleak. So Tamar took action.
She veiled her face and went to a place known for prostitution. Judah came by, but he didn’t recognize her, and bought her service in exchange for a goat. He didn’t have a goat with him, however, so he gave Tamar his seal and staff as a pledge. This is how Tamar became pregnant by her father-in-law. She did it on purpose to secure his financial support.
Genesis 38:24 About three months later Judah was told, Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant. Judah said, Bring her out and have her burned to death!
Judah’s double standard is regrettable, but many condemn others for the sin they allow themselves. Judah was ashamed when Tamar produced his seal and staff, proving that he was the one who made her pregnant. She later gave birth to twins, and all four are mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:3).
Here we see the kind of people God sent his Son to save--not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy (Titus 3:5), wrote Paul. God used the unseemly union of Judah and Tamar to bring his Son into the world. We should never do evil that good may result (Romans 3:8), but nothing is so evil that God can’t use it for good (Romans 8:28).
*****
Genesis 39:5 [T]he Lord blessed the household of [Potiphar] because of Joseph.
It wasn’t because Potiphar prayed and obeyed that his household was being blessed, but because of Joseph. Joseph may’ve been the only person in Potiphar’s household who believed in God, and it was because of him that God was blessing Potiphar.
From this it appears that God may bless our employers because of us. Christians ought to serve their employers wholeheartedly, and pray for God’s blessing wherever they are. God may bless our places of employment simply because we are there.
Genesis 39:6-7 Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, Come to bed with me!
Day after day, Potiphar’s wife pursued Joseph. And day after day, Joseph declined. Finally, she grabbed him by the cloak and said, Come to bed with me. Joseph promptly ran out of the house and left his cloak behind (Genesis 39:10-12). Potiphar’s wife was so angry that she told her husband Joseph made advances and, when she screamed, Joseph ran out of the house without his cloak. So Potiphar threw Joseph in prison (Genesis 39:11-20).
Many have noticed that life isn't always fair. We hope to be rewarded for good behavior, not punished for it. But setbacks are often a setup for God to bring us good. We bring glory to God by trusting him even when things go wrong.
Genesis 39:20-21 But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him.
There he met a couple of Pharaoh’s officials whose dreams he was able to interpret. Two years later, when Pharaoh had a dream, one of the officials mentioned Joseph. Pharaoh summoned Joseph to interpret his dream (Genesis 41:14) and, suddenly, he was in the presence of Pharaoh. This wouldn’t have happened if Joseph hadn’t gone to prison. Sometimes we have to go down, before we go up.
When I was in middle school the building had a new section and an old section. If you were on the second floor of the new section, and wanted to go to the third floor of the old section, first you had to go down, then over, then up. That’s how it is with God. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up (James 4:10), wrote James.
Genesis 41:15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.
Pharaoh thought the dream was important, and he was right. Seven skinny cows ate up seven fat cows, and seven skinny grains ate up seven fat grains (Genesis 41:17-24). The meaning was clear to Joseph: there’d be seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine (Genesis 41:29-30).
Drawing on all he had learned, Joseph advised Pharaoh on how to prepare for the famine. Pharaoh was so impressed that he put Joseph in charge of Egypt, second only to himself (Genesis 41:43). In a single day, Joseph went from the prison to the palace. It may’ve seemed like a dream to Joseph, but his dream was coming true.
Likewise, all who serve God faithfully will also be promoted. To one Jesus will say, take charge of five cities (Luke 19:19). And to another he will say, take charge of ten cities (Luke 19:17). We might be on the bottom now, but our promotion is coming soon.
Reflection and Review
- How did God use Judah and Tamar’s sin?
- Why did God allow Joseph to be thrown into prison?
- What can we learn from Joseph’s promotion?
Lesson 22
Genesis 42:1 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, Why do you just keep looking at each other?
There was no grain in Canaan, due to the famine, so Joseph sent his sons to Egypt to buy some. It had been over twenty years since Joseph was sold into slavery, and his brothers considered him dead. The last thing they expected when they went to Egypt was to run into Joseph. When they saw him, in fact, they didn’t even recognize him.
But Joseph recognized them and, instead of revealing himself, he accused them of being spies, and threw them in prison. There they had time to think and began to reflect on their sin. Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that is why this distress has come on us (Genesis 42:21), they said.
This is the pain of a guilty conscience. The brothers saw the desperate look in Joseph’s eyes when he pleaded for his life and they never forgot it. Many nights, perhaps, they woke up in a cold sweat regretting what they had done. Now, at last, they were getting what they deserved. Judgment Day had finally come.
Genesis 45:4 Then Joseph said to his brothers . . . I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!
The brothers were overwhelmed. The dream Joseph had as boy of seventeen was coming true before their eyes. Was this really happening? What would happen next? Joseph had suffered much because of them and now he could pay them back. But Joseph kissed all his brothers and wept over them (Genesis 45:15). Instead of justice, they received mercy (James 2:13). After so many years apart, they were a family again.
Pharaoh was pleased by this, and promised Joseph’s brothers the best land in Egypt (Genesis 45:18). He gave them carts to bring their families down, along with their father Jacob. He gave them ten donkeys loaded with the best things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other provisions for [their] journey (Genesis 45:23). It was all so overwhelming. Instead of being punished for their sin, they were being blessed!
This, in fact, is what Jesus Christ has done for us. Instead of being punished for our sins, we are blessed . . . with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3), wrote Paul. And if we have the spiritual blessings, we’ll also have the material blessings. Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34), Christ will say. Joseph’s brothers were overwhelmed and our amazement will never cease.
Genesis 45:13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt.
Joseph had all the honor of Egypt, and all the wealth in the world. But he also wanted his father’s approval. He’d done well for himself, and wanted his dad to be proud of him. His father would soon rejoice that Joseph was alive, and Joseph would receive the approval he longed for.
Sadly, there are many who crave their father’s approval but never receive it. I’ve sat with men in their sixties who were still deeply pained because of their Father’s disapproval. You’ll never amount to a bottle of piss, one recalled his father saying. A day seldom passed when he didn’t think about that.
But Christ has promised his approval to all who truly believe in him. Well done, good and faithful servant (Matthew 25:21), he will say. Given our many failures this is hard to imagine. How could Christ give his approval to ordinary Christians who fail every day? The answer is found God’s word. He forgave us all our sins (Colossians 2:13), and will reward each one for whatever good they do (Ephesians 6:8), wrote Paul. If Christ forgives all our sins and remembers all our good deeds then we’ll hear him say, Well done, good and faithful servant! What could be better than that?
Genesis 48:1 Some time later Joseph was told, Your father is ill.
After many years in Egypt, Joseph’s father was dying. But just before he passed, he gave a prophecy that Messiah would come from Judah. The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his (Genesis 49:10).
We might expect Jesus to be descended from Joseph, since he was the most prominent son of Jacob. But Jesus’ genealogy shows that he was descended from Joseph’s brother, Judah (Matthew 1:2, 16), just as Jacob foretold. Nevertheless, Joseph does foreshadow Jesus in a number of ways.
Joseph was the special son of Jacob, and Jesus is the special Son of God. Joseph was rejected by his brothers, and Jesus was rejected by his brothers (John 7:5). Joseph was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry (Genesis 41:46), and Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry (Luke 3:23).
Joseph ruled Egypt under Pharaoh, and Jesus rules the world under his Father. Joseph fed the people with grain, and Jesus fed the people with bread (John 6:10-11). Joseph suffered before he was exalted, and Jesus suffered before he was exalted. Joseph’s brothers were saved by coming to him, and we are saved by coming to Christ. These surprising parallels are like fingerprints that reveal the Bible’s author.
Genesis 50:15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?
Joseph’s brothers were still afraid because of what they’d done to him. Perhaps Joseph had treated them well only because of their father. So they came to Joseph and said, we are your slaves (Genesis 50:18). Joseph didn’t hold a grudge, however, and assured them their fears were unfounded. You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good (Genesis 50:20), he said.
This is the climactic verse of the story and makes an important point: God turns evil into good. It didn’t seem good to Joseph when he was sold into slavery, or when he was rotting away in prison. But looking back it was clear: if he hadn’t been sold into slavery he couldn’t have saved Egypt, or his family, or been promoted to such a high position.
Paul likely had this in mind when he wrote, in all things God works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28). Nothing happens apart from God (Ephesians 1:11), who governs all things for the good of his children. It won’t seem that way when your house burns down, you get laid off from your job, and they repossess your car. But if you love Jesus Christ, nothing bad can happen to you that God hasn’t planned for your good. This is a wonderful comfort in all the trials of life.
Reflection and Review
- Why were Joseph’s brothers troubled by their sin?
- Why did Joseph want his father’s approval?
- How did God use the sin of Joseph’s brothers?
Lesson 23
Exodus 1:1-4 These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
The book of Exodus was written by Moses for the people of God around 1445 BC. It tells how God delivered his people from Egyptian slavery and made a covenant with them, including laws to govern them.
When Israel first went down to Egypt they were just large family. But over the next four hundred years they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them (Exodus 1:7). Pharaoh felt threatened by their increasing numbers, so he turned the Israelites into slaves. Exodus recounts their deliverance from Egypt and the beginning of their journey to the Promised Land.
Exodus 1:15-16 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.
This would reduce the number of Israelites, as well as the risk of insurrection. Disobeying Pharaoh’s command could be deadly, but the midwives feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do (Exodus 1:17).
Shiphrah and Puah are an example of what Jesus taught many years later. I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. . . . Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell (Luke 12:4-5). Disobeying Pharaoh could be fatal, but disobeying God could be even worse. The fear of God delivers us from the fear of powerful people, even the most powerful person on earth.
It’s also worth noticing that the midwives are mentioned by name, but Pharaoh is not. Most people would’ve known the Pharaoh’s name, but not the midwives’ names. Now we know the midwives’ names (Shiphrah and Puah) but not the Pharaoh’s name. The wicked will soon be forgotten, but the righteous will be known forever.
Exodus 2:1-2 Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son.
This begins the story of Moses, the man of God (Deuteronomy 33:1). The midwives refused to kill the boys at birth, but Pharaoh’s decree was still in place, and every Israelite boy was at risk. Moses’ parents may’ve prayed for a girl, and been disappointed when they had a boy. They couldn’t bring themselves to part with their child at once, however, so they hid him for three months (Exodus 2:2). When he could no longer be concealed, they put him in a box, and placed it in the Nile River. When Pharaoh’s daughter came to bathe, she saw the box, and the baby inside. Her maternal instincts were suddenly aroused.
Moses’ sister was watching all this, and said to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you? (Exodus 2:7). Pharaoh’s daughter agreed and actually paid Moses’ mother to nurse him. This probably continued for at least a few years. Then Moses’ mother brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and Moses became her son (Exodus 2:10).
God had a special plan for Moses, and oversaw his entire life, to be sure that it went according to his plan. Moses was so important to God’s plan that nothing was left to chance. This is also true for all who believe in Jesus Christ.
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul. Our lives don’t always make sense to us, but one day we’ll see that everything went according to God’s plan—for our good and for his glory.
Growing up an Egyptian prince, Moses enjoyed every advantage, including the best education (Acts 7:22). His leadership training equipped him to lead the nation of Israel. His academic training equipped him to write Scripture. And his military training equipped him to fight the Lord’s battles (Numbers 21). Moses didn’t know it at the time, but God was preparing him for future service.
Then one day, Moses had an awakening. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt (Hebrews 11:26), says Hebrews.
Moses could’ve had a wonderful life if he’d only been content with Egypt. But all the treasures of Egypt weren’t enough for him. They appeared to be everything a man could want, but they couldn’t satisfy his deepest need. God alone could meet that need, and all the treasures of Egypt were nothing by comparison. So Moses gave up Egypt in order to have God.
In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:33), said Jesus. This seems like a terrible price to many. But what is the world, and everything in it, compared to Jesus Christ? He’s the one for whom we were made, and will give us everything else (Romans 8:32). Moses saw that the best of Egypt was only temporary, so he threw it away because he was looking ahead to his reward (Hebrews 11:26), says Hebrews. The best of everything can’t make us happy if it only lasts for a while.
Reflection and Review
- Does God want us to be afraid of him?
- How did God prepare Moses to lead Israel?
- Why would Moses choose God instead of Egypt?
Lesson 24
Exodus 2:11 One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor.
There he saw an Egyptian beating an Israelite and, since no one was around, Moses killed the Egyptian. Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not (Acts 7:25), said Stephen.
Moses assumed the Israelites would rally around him and that he’d lead an insurrection. When things didn’t go according to plan, Moses had to run for his life to the land of Midian (Exodus 2:15). He was forty years old at the time (Acts 7:23) and, for the next forty years (Acts 7:30), he would shepherd another man’s sheep in the middle of nowhere.
Moses’ life didn’t turn out the way he expected. He thought he was destined for greatness but, when he took action, things went badly. He spent most of his life as an Egyptian prince, but now he was a lowly shepherd. For the next forty years Moses had time to think. Should he have believed in God? Should he have killed the Egyptian? Did God still have a plan for his life? Moses had been so sure of himself, but now he was confused.
What Moses didn’t realize is that God was still preparing him. Moses believed in God but he also believed in Moses. He had to learn that God could work with or without him. God might be happy to use Moses, but God didn’t need Moses. Just because you’re great doesn’t mean that you’ll be greatly used by God. Moses had to learn the lesson of humility, so that he might be used by God in the future.
With time, in fact, Moses became a humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth (Numbers 12:3). His youth slipped away along with his self-confidence. He used to be powerful in speech and action (Acts 7:22), but now he was slow of speech and tongue (Exodus 4:10).
Time is a great teacher of humility, and happy are those who learn it soon. God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up (1 Peter 5:5-6), wrote Peter. We all have to make a choice. We can humble ourselves, or we can be humbled by God.
Exodus 3:1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
Horeb means desert or desolation, and probably describes Moses’ mood as well as the landscape. The first part of his life was filled with promise and potential, but throughout the second part of his life he was painfully underemployed. Shepherds, in fact, were detestable to Egyptians (Genesis 46:34), so Moses was doing a job that he was conditioned to despise.
If a man succeeds early in life, but not later on, he may carry a sense of shame. Moses had been on top of the world, but now was in a place called desolate. But there he’d learn that God meets people in desolate places. Whenever our lives become worse than we expect, that’s where God is likely to meet us. He is the God of the desert.
Exodus 3:4 God called to him from within the bush, Moses! Moses! And Moses said, Here I am.
Moses saw a bush on fire that wouldn’t burn up. And, when he got closer, he saw that God was in the bush. This seems rather unlikely, but the God of heaven and earth is free to reveal himself any way he pleases. God in a bush reminds us that God is humble. What, after all, is more humble than a bush?
We may not always think of God as humble, but we should. If I became a worm to save the worms, that would be an act of humility. But I’m much closer to being a worm than God was to being a man. The difference between people and worms is finite, but the difference between God and people is infinite. For God to become one of us required extreme humility.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8), wrote Paul. God’s humility didn’t end with his incarnation, but included his crucifixion, death and burial. The maker of heaven and earth did all this for our salvation. When we understand God’s humility, we won’t be afraid to humble ourselves in order to know him better.
Exodus 3:5 Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.
This was the same ground where Moses had to watch his step because his sheep had done their business. But the presence of God made the ground holy. Common ground becomes holy ground whenever God is uniquely present.
This also applies to churches. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them (Matthew 18:20), said Jesus. If Christians worship in a barn, that place becomes sacred because of the presence of Jesus. But then it becomes a barn again. If Christians worship in a cathedral, it too becomes sacred because of the presence of Jesus. But then it’s just a fancy building.
By telling Moses to take off his shoes, God was teaching him to worship with respect. God is not a mild-mannered deity whom we can approach casually. He holds the power of life and death, and must be approached with reverence. This is more important than many people realize. The church in Corinth displeased the Lord through careless worship, and some died as a result (1 Corinthians 11:31). So let us worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28-29), says Hebrews.
Exodus 3:6 I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were the ones to whom God had pledged the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 30:20), where Moses would lead the Israelites. Abraham’s son was Isaac, Isaac’s son was Jacob, and Jacob’s sons became the twelve tribes of Israel.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob truly believed in God, but weren’t always perfect. When Pharaoh wanted Abraham’s wife, Abraham didn’t resist (Genesis 12:10-20). Isaac did something similar with his wife (Genesis 26:7-9). And, while Jacob never gave up his wives, he was deceitful (Genesis 27:36). And yet, God identified himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He’s the God of imperfect people who truly believe in him. It’s not perfection that God requires, but genuine faith (Galatians 3:7). This should be a comfort to imperfect believers everywhere.
Reflection and Review
- How did God humble Moses?
- How do we know that God is humble?
- What kind of people were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?
Lesson 25
Exodus 3:10 I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.
Forty years earlier Moses felt up to the task, but not anymore. Egypt was the last place he wanted to be, and Pharaoh was the last person he wanted to see. But then God said, I will be with you (Exodus 3:12). And that was helpful. What Moses couldn’t do alone, God was going to do through him.
This is the same promise Jesus gave to the church. [G]o and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20), he said.
Moses was called to confront Pharaoh, and the church is called to evangelize the world. Both tasks seem impossible, but nothing is impossible with God (Luke 18:27). God likes to use his people to do impossible things so that he will get the glory.
Exodus 3:13-14 Moses said to God, Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? Then what shall I tell them? God said to Moses, I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I am has sent me to you.
This name reveals two important things about God. First, he is self-existent. Everything depends on God for existence, but God alone is self-existent. He made the trees, rocks and stars, but no one made him. Everything else began to exist, but God has always existed because he is self-existent.
Second, God is who he is. We can take him or leave him, but we can’t change him. There’s not a sinner on earth who wouldn’t change God if they could. We like his promises, but not his threats. We like his love, but not his wrath. We like his forgiveness, but not his commands. We like his blessings, but not his curses. We like his heaven, but not his hell.
Instead of worshipping the God who exists, therefore, many worship the god of their imagination, which is merely an idol. Idols can’t save us, and neither can the god of our imagination. If we want God to accept us as we are, we must return the favor. He is who he is.
And this amazing God has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Very truly I tell you, Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, I am! (John 8:58). Since Abraham lived two thousand years before Christ, Jesus’ listeners correctly understood him to be claiming the sacred name for himself—so they picked up stones to stone him (John 8:59). And when they finally did kill him, Jesus rose from the dead because he has existence in himself (John 10:17-18). Jesus Christ is who he is.
Exodus 4:13 But Moses said, Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.
It might surprise us that a man like Moses would try to get out of doing God’s will, but he had a few reasons. First, he felt unequal to the task (Exodus 3:11). Second, the people might not believe him (Exodus 4:1). And, third, he didn’t speak very well (Exodus 4:10). So he asked God to send someone else.
Whoever tries to serve God will be reluctant, at times, because God often asks us to do what we don’t want to do. But if we always do what we’ve always done, we’ll never become all we can be for God. Like Moses, we may try to decline the Almighty, but that’s usually not in our best interest.
God denied Moses’ request, but he sent his brother Aaron to help him (Exodus 4:14). For the rest of their lives, these two men fulfilled God’s will by working together. Whenever the task seems overwhelming, God may give us a partner to help.
Exodus 5:1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Let my people go.
Weakness of will didn’t bring Pharaoh to the top of Egypt and, since he didn’t want to lose his labor supply, he replied defiantly. Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go (Exodus 5:2), he said. This is the beginning of a mighty conflict between an earthly king and the King of heaven. Since Pharaoh admitted that he didn’t know the Lord, God introduced himself with a series of plagues (Exodus 7-12).
The first was a plague of blood on the Nile River that killed the fish. The second was a plague of frogs that got into homes and beds. The third was a plague of gnats that infested people and animals. The fourth was a plague of flies that destroyed the land. The fifth was a plague of death on the Egyptians’ livestock. The sixth was a plague of boils on men and animals. The seventh was a plague of hail that stripped every tree and ruined the crops. The eighth was a plague of locusts that devoured everything green. The ninth was a plague of darkness that lasted three days. The tenth, and final plague, was the death of firstborn males.
Pharaoh could’ve softened his heart toward God but chose, instead, to harden his heart (Exodus 8:15, 8:32, etc.). In response, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart even more (Exodus 9:12, 10:20, etc.). This can be called judicial hardening and is a fitting response to rebellion. If we harden our hearts against God, he may harden them even more. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts (Hebrews 3:7-8), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
- How does the promise of God’s presence help us do his will?
- What does God’s name reveal about him?
- Why did Pharaoh hardened his heart toward God?
Lesson 26
Exodus 12:13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.
The tenth and final plague was the one that broke Pharaoh’s will, and allowed God’s people to depart from Egypt. Every Israelite family was to slaughter a lamb and apply the blood to the doorframe of their home (Exodus 12:7). When God came to kill every firstborn male, he’d see the blood and pass over them. This became known as Passover.
Exodus 12:29-30 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.
Pharaoh’s will was finally broken and Israel was free to go. Passover has been a Jewish holiday ever since, and this is also important for Christians. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed (1 Corinthians 5:7), wrote Paul. Jesus was crucified during the Passover holiday (John 18:39) to fulfill the imagery of the Passover lamb. He does so in other ways as well.
The Passover lamb was to be without defect (Exodus 12:5), and Jesus was without moral defect. The Passover lamb was to be a young male (Exodus 12:5), and Jesus was a young male. Not a bone of the Passover lamb was to be broken (Exodus 12:46), and when the soldiers came to break Jesus’ legs, they saw he was already dead, so none of his bones were broken (John 19:32-33). The blood of the Passover lamb had to be applied to the door frames of their homes (Exodus 12:33) or it wouldn’t save them, and the death of Christ must be personally believed or it will not save us. In this, and many other ways, the Old Testament looks forward to Jesus Christ who came to fulfill it (Luke 24:44).
Exodus 14:10 [T]he Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them.
This was a terrifying development for God’s chosen people. After the last plague, Pharaoh gave them permission to leave Egypt, and they assumed the battle was over. Egypt was devastated, Pharaoh’s will was broken, and God’s people were free to begin their journey to the Promised Land. But as Pharaoh watched his labor supply march out of Egypt, he changed his mind. He marshaled his troops and pursued the people of God until they were against the sea. Pharaoh was behind them, the sea was before them, and there was no place to go.
Exodus 14:10b They were terrified and cried out to the Lord.
In desperation, God’s people cried out to him in prayer. No one had to tell them to pray; they prayed instinctively. Trouble drives people to prayer, and prayer is the plea of people in trouble. The trouble may be our own fault, someone else’s fault, or no one’s fault. But it can always be used by God as a way to reveal himself as the one who answers prayer.
God, in fact, has designed our lives to be a series of problems and answered prayers. It’s in the tension—between our problems and God’s answers—that we experience God most keenly and learn to pray. If not for our problems we’d pray less often, less earnestly, and experience less of God.
Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
After crying out to God in prayer, the Lord answered his people through Moses. They wouldn’t have to fight the Egyptian army. God was going to fight for them. All they had to do was wait for God.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, but not always. Sometimes the proper course of action is to wait for God. [God] acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4), wrote Isaiah. And, Wait for your God always (Hosea 12:6), wrote Hosea. When God’s people were desperate, and didn’t know what to do, God told them to be still.
Exodus 14:21-22 The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.
Other than the act of creation, this is the most spectacular miracle in the Bible. Moses held out his staff and God sent a powerful wind that blew a path right through the Red Sea. There was a wall of water on the right, and on the left, and the bottom became dry ground.
The number of Israelite men who crossed the sea was about six hundred thousand (Exodus 12:37). This means the total number was over two million people. Moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, teens and toddlers walked between the towering walls of water to the other side of the sea. God Almighty was their God, and they were his chosen people.
This was a decisive miracle that’s still believed by many people today. It was written down by Moses and witnessed by two million people. It’s hard to deny a miracle witnessed by that many people, even centuries later. The parting of the Red Sea is the decisive miracle for the people of God in the Old Testament.
The decisive miracle for the people of God in the New Testament is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s supported by eyewitness testimony from credible people who were willing to suffer and die for what they saw. In a court of law, that’s simply as good as it gets. And none of the Apostles ever changed their story.
In contrast, four swimmers from the United States made up a story that they were robbed at the 2016 Olympics. But they all withdrew their story within a week because it wouldn’t hold up under examination. The apostles held to their story the rest of their lives, and some sealed it with their blood. Either they were crazy, or they were just telling the truth that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
Reflection and Review
- How is Jesus like the Passover lamb?
- Why is it important to wait for God?
- How do we know Jesus Christ rose from the dead?
Lesson 27
Exodus 14:26 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.
Foolish Pharaoh lead his army into the sea to pursue the people of God. It’s hard to know what he was thinking since God’s mighty power was the only thing holding the water back. After God’s people were safely across, God withdrew his power, and the water returned to its place. Pharaoh and his army were buried at sea.
This is a wonderful scene in God’s story. And there is a sense in which all history can be seen as his-story. We can be the good guys or the bad guys. We can be on God’s side or the wrong side. But since we’re born into God’s world, we all have a part in his story. We may even be part of a miracle more dramatic than the exodus.
Someone worse than Pharaoh is coming, and he too will oppose the people of God. [The antichrist] was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world (Revelation 13:7-8), wrote John.
But just when it seems like the cause of Christ has been defeated, Jesus will return to overthrow the antichrist. He will be thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur (Revelation 19:20), and the people of God will live happily ever after. Wherever we live, and whenever we live, we all have a part in God’s story.
Exodus 15:13 In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling.
After God’s people got to the other side of the sea, they began to worship in song. Since God had delivered them from Pharaoh, they could be sure he’d lead them all the way to the Promised Land. By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night (Exodus 13:21).
When it was time to stop, the pillar would stop. When it was time to go, the pillar would go. All they had to do was follow the pillar, and they could be sure they were exactly where God wanted them to be.
I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12), said Jesus. We aren’t the ancient Israelites, but our situation is similar in at least three ways: we’ve been delivered from the evil one, we are not home yet, and we need God to lead us the rest of the way. [H]e will be our guide even to the end (Psalm 48:14), wrote the Psalmist. So how does God lead his people today?
There’s a harbor in Italy that, at one time, could only be reached by sailing between rocks. But so many ships were dashed on the rocks that they set up a navigational system. Three separate lights were mounted on three separate poles. When all the lights lined up, the captain could be sure he was exactly where he belonged. If the lights didn’t line up, he needed to correct his course.
God has also given us three lights: his word, his Spirit and his providence. Whenever we have to make a big decision we should ask if it agrees with God’s word. If not, he’s not leading in that direction. But if it agrees with God’s word, we should also ask if it agrees with his Spirit in our heart (2 Corinthians 1:22). If our heart says No, that may be an impulse from the Spirit (Acts 16:6-10).
If the decision agrees with God’s word, and his Spirit in our heart seems to approve, we can also ask if it agrees with his providence. In other words, is it practical? God’s ways aren’t always practical, but he’s unlikely to call a person who’s bad at math to be an accountant. God is usually practical, and the most practical thing we can do is to carefully follow him.
Exodus 16:31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.
After God led his people out of Egypt, he gave them bread from heaven, all the way to the Promised Land. As they slept, each night, enough bread came down for the following day. The people called the bread manna which, in Hebrew, sounds like What is it? (Exodus 16:15). This is how God fed his people, every day, for the next forty years. The Bible contains many stories of God’s provision, and this is one the best.
Jesus drew on this story to teach an important lesson about himself. After he fed five thousand, his popularity went up so dramatically that some wanted to make him king (John 6:15). Instead of being pleased, however, Jesus accused them of wanting another free lunch—which they freely admitted!
I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world (John 6:48-51), he said.
God gives us food for our temporal life, but also for eternal life. Jesus is the bread from heaven who gives eternal life to all who feast on him through faith. This is another way of describing what it means to believe.
Reflection and Review
- Why would Pharaoh lead his army into the sea?
- How does God lead his people today?
- How is Jesus like manna?
Lesson 28
Exodus 17:6 Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.
On their way to the Promised Land, God’s people ran out of water. God told Moses to strike a rock with his rod, and enough water came out for everyone to drink. Even in the desert God could provide water to keep his people alive.
The New Testament provides an interesting commentary on this episode. [T]hat rock was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4), wrote Paul. It’s hard to imagine how a rock could be Christ, but there is an interesting parallel. When Moses struck the rock with his rod, water came out. When the solder thrust his spear into Jesus’ side, water came out mixed with blood (John 19:34). Water from the rock satisfied people’s physical thirst, and Jesus satisfies our spiritual thirst. Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink (John 7:37), he said.
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Exodus 17:8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.
God’s people faced opposition as they journeyed to the Promised Land. The Amalekites waged war and were a very serious threat. Moses told Joshua to lead the Israelites in battle while he went up a hill to watch and pray. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning (Exodus 17:11).
Moses raised his hands in prayer, but after a while he grew tired. So Moses sat on a rock while others held up his hands until, at last, the Amalekites were defeated. From this we learn that battles are won or lost in prayer.
This is why Jesus began his ministry with forty days of prayer and fasting (Matthew 4:1-11). During this time he fought the devil, and was victorious. Three times Satan tempted Jesus, and three times Jesus defeated Satan.
Jesus also cast out demons but his disciples were less effective. Why could not we drive it out? they asked. This kind can come out only by prayer (Mark 9:28-29), said Jesus. In the battle between light and darkness, only those who pray have power. Satan wants us to save time by neglecting prayer because that’s how he wins the battles.
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Exodus 19:1-2 On the first day of the third month after the Israelites left Egypt—on that very day—they came to the Desert of Sinai. . . . and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain.
About seven weeks after leaving Egypt, God’s people arrived at Mount Sinai. There they camped for nearly a year (Numbers 10:11-12), and received God’s law. This was a formative time as they learned what it meant to be God’s people, and for God to be their God (Exodus 6:7).
Exodus 19:9 The Lord said to Moses, I am going to come to you in a dense cloud.
God was about to reveal himself and give his people the Ten Commandments. He wouldn’t come on a rainbow, or on a beam of light, but in a dense cloud, also called a thick cloud (Exodus 19:16). At the very time God was revealing himself, he’d also be concealing himself.
From this we learn there’s always more to God than meets the eye. We can know God truly (John 17:3), but never exhaustively. No matter how much we know about God, there will always be more that we don’t know, because God is infinite. This is why God can never be boring.
If you find a piece of music that you really enjoy, you’ll want to hear it again and again. But after you hear it a hundred times, it won’t thrill you quite as much. This can never happen with God because his perfections are infinite. For all eternity he’ll never cease to amaze us.
Exodus 19:16-19 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.
God could’ve come in gentleness but revealed himself in power. He was about to give his laws and didn’t want them taken as suggestions. God is a great king whose word is to be obeyed on pain of death (Romans 6:23). Many think of God as an indulgent father but that image is not in the Bible. The God of the Bible kills people and sends them to hell. He is to be greatly feared and fully obeyed (Proverbs 10:27).
Exodus 20:1 And God spoke all these words. . . . You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image. . . You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. . . . Remember the Sabbath. . . . Honor your father and your mother. . . You shall not murder. . . . You shall not commit adultery. . . .You shall not steal. . . .You shall not give false testimony. . . . You shall not covet . . . (Exodus 20:3-17).
These Ten Commandments are the only words God spoke audibly to the nation of Israel. They were written in stone by God himself (Exodus 31:18), and were stored in the ark of the covenant, in the Most Holy Place, inside the tabernacle (Exodus 34:1, 40:20).
It would be hard to overstate the importance of the Ten Commandments before the coming of Christ, but a change has taken place. Most of the Ten Commandments are repeated in the New Testament, but not all of them. And, surprisingly, we’re never told to obey the Ten Commandments.
The Old Testament law is no longer binding in an absolute sense (Hebrews 8:13), but serves an important purpose. It reveals our sin (Romans 3:20), so that we might flee to Christ, and be justified by faith (Galatians 3:24), wrote Paul. Christians are free from the law as a way of salvation (Romans 7:4-6), but are under Christ’s law ( 1 Corinthians 9:21) as a way of life. The Ten Commandments have great significance, but are not the way of salvation.
Reflection and Review
- What should we learn from Israel’s battle with the Amalekites?
- Why did God reveal himself in such a frightening way?
- Why aren't the Ten Commandments the way to be saved?
Lesson 29
Exodus 20:18-19 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.
God’s people were afraid of God so they begged Moses to mediate. Moses represented the people to God, and God to the people. This was a helpful arrangement because it gave ordinary sinners access to God without fear of being destroyed by his holy wrath.
Priests and prophets were later ordained for a similar purpose, but the ideal mediator came in the person of Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul.
As perfectly God, Jesus represents God to humans. As perfectly human, Jesus represents humans to God. Sinners can’t approach a holy God without a mediator and hope to survive. But God has provided the perfect mediator in the person of Jesus Christ. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6), he said. This is why we pray in Jesus’ name (John 15:16).
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Exodus 23:2 Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong.
God wants his people to think for themselves, and not be governed by a herd mentality. It’s easier to follow a crowd than to think for ourselves, of course, but that is neither right nor safe. Crowds often go in the wrong direction, and we follow them at our peril.
Middle-eastern shepherds were surprised, one day, when one of their sheep walked off a cliff. But they were even more surprised when a second one followed, and then a third. Before long the entire flock of four hundred sheep had gone over the cliff to their death. We can follow the crowd or we can follow the shepherd. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27), said Jesus.
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Exodus 25:8 [H]ave them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.
God’s presence with his people was seen in a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night (Exodus 13:21). For the additional good of his people, he also ordained a place for worship. It was an elaborate tent about fifteen feet wide, fifteen feet high, and forty-five feet long. It wasn’t very large, but it was crafted with expensive materials to make it beautiful. God dwelt inside the tabernacle so he could be with his people wherever they went.
The New Testament says something similar about Jesus Christ. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14). This, in fact, is an allusion to the tabernacle. God lived in a tent so he could be near his people. Then he came in Christ so he could be even nearer.
A friend of mine grew up in a family of thirteen children. They all got married, had children of their own, and no one moved away. Everyone thought it was great, except Grandma and Grandpa. With everyone stopping by all the time, they were so exhausted that they moved to another state.
But other grandparents follow their children because they can’t bear to be away from them. That’s what God is like. So after Christ returned to heaven, he sent the Spirit to live within us (John 14:17). Notice the progression: God dwelt among his people in the tabernacle, then in Christ, now by the Spirit, and soon in heaven.
I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God (Revelation 21:3), wrote John. Any separation from God will be a thing of the past, and we’ll dwell in his presence forever. That will be eternal joy.
Exodus 29:38 This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old.
Inside the courtyard of the tabernacle was an altar for burning sacrifices. Two lambs were offered every day, but there were also grain offerings, fellowship offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings. They were all necessary to stay in a right relationship with God. God was teaching his people that sin is serious, and must be paid for.
All the ceremonies and sacrifices also showed that the way to God wasn’t completely open yet. God was in the midst of his people, but he wasn’t very accessible. If anyone who wasn’t a priest got close to God’s tent, in fact, they were to be killed (Numbers 3:10).
Even most priests could only go in the first room of God’s tent, not the back room, where God himself was. Only the High Priest was allowed in there (and only once a year) with sacrificial blood (Leviticus 16). The two rooms were called the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place, and were separated by an elaborate curtain (Exodus 26:31-33). God was with his people, but he was still hard to get to.
All the animals sacrificed for hundreds of years never really atoned for sin, in fact, but only pointed forward to the sacrifice of Christ. The moment he died on the cross the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51), showing the way to God is now open to everyone who believes in Jesus Christ. He’s our great high priest (Hebrews 4:14), and our perfect sacrifice who opened the way to God for us.
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Exodus 32:1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.
Moses had been with God on top of Mount Sinai for nearly six weeks. In his absence the people grew restless and asked for gods to lead them. Aaron collected gold and melted it down to create an idol in the shape of a calf. He also built an altar and declared a festival the following day. The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry (Exodus 32:6). God’s people weren’t acting like very good people.
Only weeks before they heard God say, You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth (Exodus 20:3-4). We will do everything the Lord has said (Exodus 24:7), they replied.
They planned to follow God with all their hearts, and even made a pledge, but then they went astray. They were the people of God but they were also sinners. And telling sinners not to sin is like telling roaches to stay out of the kitchen.
This is important to understand so we won’t despair whenever we fail badly. Even the Apostle Paul struggled with indwelling sin. What a wretched man I am! (Romans 7:24), he wrote. But he put his faith in Jesus Christ who saved us from the penalty of sin, is now saving us from the power of sin (Romans 7:25), and will save us from the presence of sin (Revelation 21:27). [Y]ou are to give him the name Jesus, [said the angel] because he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
Reflection and Review
- Why is Jesus a perfect mediator between God and humans?
- What does the sanctuary tell us about God?
- How does Jesus save us from the penalty, power and presence of sin?
Lesson 30
Exodus 32:9-10 I have seen these people, the Lord said to Moses. . . . Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.
God was so angry at his people for breaking his law, that he wanted to destroy them and start over with Moses. This was an opportunity for Moses himself to become a great nation. But Moses was more concerned for God’s reputation than he was for his own legacy. He even preferred death to seeing God’s people destroyed (Exodus 32:32).
This reminds of Jesus Christ who was also willing to die so that we might live forever. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (John 15:13), he said. Jesus laid down his life for us, so that we could live forever through him (John 6:47).
Exodus 32:14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
Moses’ intercession saved God’s people from total destruction, and also reminds us of the intercession of Christ. When we consider how often and badly we sin, it’s surprising we didn’t perish years ago. This is because Jesus intercedes for us to be sure his salvation is applied for all time. [H]e is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them (Hebrews 7:25), says Hebrews.
Whenever sin threatens to separate us from God, Jesus pleads on our behalf. Because of his death, and constant intercession, God pardons our sins and will never give up on us. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34), wrote Paul. We’re not only saved by the death of Jesus Christ, but also by his intercession.
Exodus 32:15-16 Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf the people had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it (Exodus 32:19-20).
By breaking the tablets in front of God’s people, Moses was showing how violently the people had broken their covenant with God. It would later be renewed (Exodus 34:10-28), but was presently shattered. Over the centuries, God’s people broke the covenant often, and often had to renew it (Deuteronomy 29, Joshua 8, Joshua 24, 2 Kings 23). This imperfect arrangement showed the need for something better, and the prophet Jeremiah foretold a better covenant.
The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, declares the Lord.
This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. . . . For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
This was put into effect by the Lord Jesus Christ the night before his death. [H]e took the cup, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you (Luke 22:20). The new covenant is based on the sacrifice of Christ and is eternal (Hebrews 13:20). We show our participation in the new covenant, not by bringing a sacrifice, but by receiving the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:24-25) throughout our lives. We don’t live under the old covenant which God made with his people at Mount Sinai. We live under the new covenant which God made with his people through Jesus Christ.
Exodus 32:21 He said to Aaron, What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?
Moses’ brother was in trouble and he knew it. So he did what people often do when they’re caught in a sin—he lied. Do not be angry, my lord, Aaron answered. You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him. So I told them, Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off. Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf! (Exodus 32:22-24).
This, of course, was perfect nonsense but Aaron was desperate. He was the future high priest of God’s chosen people, and failed at his calling before he even began. Instead of leading God’s people into proper worship, he led them into idolatry.
Aaron’s failure reminds us of our need for a perfect high priest. Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrews 7:26-27), says Hebrews. Jesus is the perfect high priest, who offered himself as the perfect sacrifice, for all time.
Exodus 32:25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control.
Moses recovered control by having three thousand people put to death (Exodus 32:28). They were likely the worst offenders and became an example to the others. God also showed his disapproval by sending a plague (Exodus 32:35). From this we learn that true religion should never be mixed with false religion, for our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
- Why is Jesus’ intercession important for our salvation?
- Why did the old covenant need to be replaced by a new covenant?
- Why is Jesus a perfect high priest?
Lesson 31
Leviticus 1:1 The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting.
The book of Leviticus was written by Moses for the people of God around 1445 BC. The nation was still gathered at the base of Mount Sinai, and was being prepared for their journey to the Promised Land. Through Moses, God gave his people instructions for worship and regulations for holiness.
Leviticus 9:23 Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.
They nation received instructions from God regarding appropriate worship, and were having their first worship service at the newly constructed tabernacle. Moses brother, Aaron, was the high priest, and his four sons were also priests.
Leviticus 9:24 Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar.
This is the first of five times in which God showed his approval by consuming a sacrifice with fire. It also happened for Gideon (Judges 6:21), David (1 Chronicles 21:26), Solomon (2 Chronicles 7:1), and Elijah (1 Kings 18:38).
Fire and God are connected throughout the Bible. God is called a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). He led his people with a pillar of fire (Numbers 14:14). Before his throne is a sea of glass glowing with fire (Revelation 15:2); And his eyes are like a blazing fire (Revelation 1:14). Fire is good but dangerous. Whoever isn’t careful may be burned.
Leviticus 10:1 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu . . . offered unauthorized fire before the Lord.
Instead worshipping God the way he prescribed, Aaron’s sons worshiped God their own way. They probably thought God’s way could be improved, so they tried to make it better. As a result, fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord (Leviticus 10:2). From this we learn not to worship God any way we please, but only in ways that he has prescribed.
Much has changed since the coming of Christ, but the principle still applies. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth (John 4:24), said Jesus. [E]verything should be done in a fitting and orderly way (1 Corinthians 14:40), wrote Paul. And we ought to worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28), says Hebrews.
New Testament worship is less regulated than Old Testament worship, but we must never depart from Scripture, and must always revere the God we are worshipping. Believers in the city of Corinth were disrespectful while receiving the Lord’s Supper and some of them died (1 Corinthians 11:30). Whenever we’re part of a worship service, we must be keenly aware of God’s presence, and conduct ourselves accordingly.
Leviticus 10:3 Aaron remained silent.
Aaron saw his two oldest sons killed by God but didn’t say a word. He probably knew that God was right, and feared for his own life. Aaron’s sons were carried away and he was forbidden to mourn for them (Leviticus 10:4-7).
God still requires a higher commitment to himself than to our own flesh and blood. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus.
This is very important because our loved ones can lead us away from Christ if we let them. Parents have led their children away from Christ, and children have led their parents away from Christ. But the best way to help ourselves, and others, is by staying true to Jesus Christ.
A godly man raised his son in the faith, taught him well, and prayed for him daily. His son refused to live for Christ, however, and wanted little to do with his father. But at his father’s funeral it became clear to the son that his father was right after all. He didn’t want to die without God, so he gave his life to Christ during his father’s funeral. Even after death the father was able to help his son by staying true to Jesus Christ.
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Leviticus 16:15 [Aaron] shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain . . . . He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover . . . .
The Day of Atonement was the most solemn day of the year and was to be observed with self-denial (Leviticus 16:29). It was the only day in which the high priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place where he’d offer blood for the sins of the nation. A goat was slain and he’d take some of its blood and sprinkle it on the atonement cover.
The atonement cover was the lid on the ark of the covenant where the Ten Commandments were stored (Exodus 25:16). On either end were cherubim, made of gold, with wings that overshadowed the cover (Exodus 25:18, 22). The space between the cherubim was where God himself dwelt. [H]e sits enthroned between the cherubim (Psalm 99:1), wrote the Psalmist.
To understand the Day of Atonement we should think of God, sitting on the throne of his law, contained in the ark of the covenant. Everyone has broken God’s law (Romans 3:10), so everyone must die (Romans 6:23). But if blood was sprinkled between God and his law, God’s people could live, because the death penalty had been carried out.
Likewise, God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. Even though we sin every day, we can live before God because Christ has died in our place. The Day of Atonement foreshadowed Christ’s death on the cross. Christ himself is the atoning sacrifice.
Leviticus 16:21 [Aaron] is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task.
In another ritual on the Day of Atonement, the high priest was to place his hands on the head of a goat and confess the sins of the people. Then a designated person was to lead the goat away from the people into the wilderness. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness (Leviticus 16:22), wrote Moses.
God was teaching his people that the way to get rid of their sins wasn’t by ignoring them, or paying for them, but by transferring them to another. The people likely watched intently as their sins were carried away by the goat. It later became the practice to push the goat off a cliff to be sure it wouldn’t return.
Likewise, the Lord has laid on [Christ] the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6), wrote Isaiah. And as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:12), wrote David. All our sins were laid on Christ, who not only died for them, but carried them away forever. This should make our hearts rejoice.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God require a higher commitment to himself than to family?
- What was the ark of the covenant?
- What did the scapegoat symbolize?
Lesson 32
Leviticus 18:17 Do not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. . . . That is wickedness.
This chapter contains the most extensive list of sexual prohibitions in the Bible, many of them unmentionable. Sexuality is God’s idea and was pronounced very good by him (Genesis 1:31). Sex is God’s wedding gift to those who are married, but it’s often misused by married and singles alike. This is why such an extensive list was necessary.
Many applaud themselves for avoiding outward misconduct but Jesus taught that our hearts are also important. You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:27-28). Likewise, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality (Ephesians 5:3), wrote Paul.
Sexual immorality is a result of our sinful nature, but also because the sexual impulse is so powerful. Good and godly people have done very foolish things because they allowed their better judgment to be overruled. Whoever wants to please God should follow the example of Job. I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman (Job 31:1), he said. And God helps those who determine to do his will.
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Leviticus 24:10 Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite.
We don’t know what caused the fight but the young man used the occasion to blaspheme God. This was a violation of the third command: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name (Exodus 20:7). No penalty had been revealed, however, so the young man was taken into custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear (Leviticus 24:12).
Leviticus 24:13-16 Then the Lord said to Moses: Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. Say to the Israelites: Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death.
To use God’s name disrespectfully is to insult the king of the universe and to risk immediate judgment. Sinful speech is never appropriate (Ephesians 4:29) but we’re not as severely threatened for ordinary profanity as we are for blasphemy. It would be better to use ordinary profanity a hundred times a day than to disrespect the name of God even once.
In light of this fact, it’s remarkable how often God’s name is misused around the world, every day. People seldom misuse the name of Buddha, Muhammad or Krishna. But the name of God, and his Son Jesus Christ, are misused in the most vulgar ways thinkable, as though Satan was speaking the words himself. [A]ll day long my name is constantly blasphemed (Isaiah 52:5), said God. Imagine what it’s like to hear your name being used as a curse twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three-hundred sixty-five days a year, for centuries.
God may seem to overlook the sin of blasphemy but, actually, he doesn’t. I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:36-37), said Jesus.
I had a friend in high school who was as happy and fun as anyone I’ve ever known. But he spoke of God and Jesus Christ in ways that were straight from hell. Nothing bad ever happened to him until the summer after high school. He was mowing the side of a hill when the tractor tipped over and snuffed out his life. No one heard his final words but, if they were like his ordinary speech, I don’t think he died well.
God is usually patient with us, but we should never put him to the test, because he can call us to account at any time. It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31), says Hebrews.
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Leviticus 23:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Speak to the Israelites and say to them: These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.
This chapter outlines Israel’s religious calendar including their many festivals. God wanted his people to rejoice, so he gave them occasions to celebrate. The word rejoice, in fact, is found over one hundred times throughout the Old Testament.
In contrast to the religious calendar of the Old Testament, the New Testament has no religious calendar or holidays. Christians gathered on the first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:2), but were not forbidden to work on that day. Christmas and Easter are not mentioned, and weren’t observed until after the apostles died. Christians are not required to observe any religious holidays.
Nevertheless, God wants his people to be joyful. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4), wrote Paul. The good news of Jesus Christ is enough to make us happy every single day.
A large hotel chain interviewed five thousand people for five hundred jobs. The managers were told not to hire anyone who smiled fewer than four times during their interview. If people judged your religion by your face, would they want to join? Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Leviticus 25:10 Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you.
The Year of Jubilee was to be celebrated every fiftieth year, so most people would experience it at least once in their adult life. Debt was to be canceled (Leviticus 25:23-28), and slaves were set free (Leviticus 25:39-55). Those who were oppressed could always look forward to the day of their freedom.
Jesus had the Year of Jubilee in mind when he preached at Nazareth. The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners . . . to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4:18-19, Isaiah 61:1-2), he said.
The Year of Jubilee wasn’t well observed by Israel, but Jesus fulfills it by setting us free from sin (Acts 13:9), and canceling our debt of sin. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness (Colossians 2:13-14), wrote Paul. What the Year of Jubilee promised for a year, Christ has given forever. [I]f the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36), he said.
Reflection and Review
- Why is blasphemy so evil?
- Why should Christians rejoice?
- How does Jesus fulfill the Year of Jubilee?
Lesson 33
Numbers 1:1 The Lord spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt.
The book of Numbers was written by Moses for the people of God around 1406 BC. It tells the failure of God’s people to enter the Promised Land and, as a result, their nearly forty years of wandering in the desert. It contains many stories of sin, punishment and repentance—all for our instruction (1 Corinthians 10:11).
Numbers 6:2-3 If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the Lord as a Nazirite, they must abstain from wine.
Service at the tabernacle was restricted to the tribe of Levi (Numbers 1:50), so most Israelites never had this privilege. But any Israelite who wanted to be uniquely devoted to God could become a Nazirite. That required avoiding anything from the grapevine, not cutting one’s hair, and avoiding contact with the dead (Numbers 6:3-8). The vow was normally temporary, but could also last a lifetime.
The Nazirite vow isn’t for Christians, however, because Christians don’t need a vow to be close to God. We’re already close to God through faith in Jesus Christ. [I]n Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near (Ephesians 2:3), wrote Paul. What many desired in the Old Testament has been given to us in Christ. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ is as close to God as they can possibly be.
Knowing that we are close to God, through faith in Jesus Christ, will make us want to feel that way as well. Come near to God and he will come near to you (James 4:8), wrote James. This doesn’t require a vow, however, but simple faithfulness in all our daily affairs.
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Numbers 11:1 Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the Lord.
Life with God wasn’t always easy, but he faithfully met the needs of his people. Instead of being thankful and content, however, they frequently complained. As a result, fire from God burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp (Numbers 11:1b), wrote Moses.
There’s a very important difference between complaining to God and being a chronic complainer. God wants to hear our problems (Psalm 142:2), but he doesn’t want us to complain all the time. The happiest people aren’t those with the fewest problems, but those who’ve learned to trust in God and have a proper attitude.
The air-conditioning went out at a Christian youth conference where thousands were gathered for several days. It was blistering hot but the leadership found a solution. They hung a banner over the stage that read: You can’t make it hot enough for me to complain. Everyone adjusted their attitude and the conference was a success.
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Numbers 12:1-2 Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses . . . . Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? they asked. Hasn’t he also spoken through us?
God’s people complained against Moses, frequently, but the complaints of Miriam and Aaron were more serious. Aaron was the high priest (Exodus 28:1), and Miriam was a prophet (Exodus 15:20). If they undermined Moses’ leadership the whole nation might die in the desert. Miriam was most at fault, it seems, since God struck her with leprosy. But Moses prayed for her and, seven days later, she was restored.
Jesus was also opposed by someone very close to him. When he spoke about his crucifixion, Peter began to rebuke him. Never, Lord! he said. This shall never happen to you (Matthew 16:22). There was no room in Peter’s thinking for Jesus’ crucifixion. Jesus would be the king and Peter would serve along side him. If Jesus had other ideas, he needed to be corrected.
Peter didn’t die, or even get leprosy, but he did receive the strongest rebuke in the Bible. Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me (Matthew 16:23), said Jesus. Peter didn’t know it but the devil was speaking through him to turn Jesus away from the cross. If that had happened, the whole world would die and go to hell. Christian leaders might think they have better ideas than Jesus. But Jesus is greater than Moses, and we cross him at our peril.
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Numbers 13:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites.
Israel camped at Mount Sinai for almost a year, then marched across the desert until they came to edge of the Promised Land. There God told Moses to send in a dozen men to explore the land he was giving to them. This would help in the conquest, and would assure God’s people that it was a land flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8). The task would take about forty days, and cover more than four hundred miles. The rest of God’s people waited earnestly as they camped outside the Promised Land.
Numbers 13:25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land.
To show the land was bountiful, the explorers brought back a sample of fruit that was so heavy it took two men and a pole to carry it (Numbers 13:23). The land was all that God had promised, but there was some concern whether it could be conquered (Numbers 13:28-29). Most of the explorers thought the challenge was simply too great for them.
Numbers 13:30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.
This is one of the most positive statements of faith in the Bible. The land was filled with powerful people, and fortified cities, but they were no match for God. God had promised this land to his people, and was against those who lived there (Genesis 15:16). If God overcame the Egyptians, he could defeat these people as well.
Numbers 13:31-33 But the men who had gone up with him said, We cannot attack those people; they are stronger than we are. . . . We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.
This is a classic mistake. The cowardly explorers took their eyes off God and focused on their problems. The more they focused on their problems, the bigger they seemed. The less they focused on God, the smaller he seemed. Eventually their problems were bigger than God, and God was no match for their problems.
Like the ancient Israelites, many seem to have faith until they have a problem—then they give way to fear. Joshua and Caleb overcame their fear by focusing on God.
Most of the Israelites didn’t share Joshua and Caleb’s faith, however, so they chose to rebel against the Lord and Moses. We should choose [another] leader and go back to Egypt (Numbers 14:4), they said. After all that God had done for them, they were willing to walk away.
This hard to imagine, but many who are given every spiritual advantage also walk away from Christ. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace (Hebrews 6:6), says Hebrews. The consequences for rebelling against Moses were severe, but the consequences for rebelling against Christ are even worse.
Reflection and Review
- Why isn’t the Nazirite vow for Christians?
- How should believers complain to God?
- How can believers strengthen their faith?
Lesson 34
Numbers 14:12 I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.
Once again the Lord was so angry with the Israelites, that he was willing to destroy the whole nation, and start over with Moses. Given the trouble they’d been to Moses, it’s surprising he didn’t agree. But Moses was so humble (Numbers 12:3) that he was still less concerned with his legacy than with God’s reputation. He thought the Egyptians might hear of it and say, The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath, so he slaughtered them in the wilderness (Numbers 14:16). God listened to Moses, and didn’t destroy his people, but there would still be serious consequences.
Numbers 14:29-30 In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more . . . except Caleb . . . and Joshua.
God didn’t kill his people at once but, over the next forty years, they’d wander in the desert until all the adults were dead. They could’ve conquered the Promised Land but would have to die in the desert. They could’ve lived by faith but would have to wander aimlessly.
The journey of life has forks in the road at which we must choose to follow Christ or go another way. Our faithless choices aren’t always fatal, but their consequences diminish our lives as well as the lives of others. God’s path is seldom easy but it’s the only one that will take us where we want to go.
Numbers 14:37 [The] men who were responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the Lord.
Most of God’s people lived out the rest of their natural lives, but the ten explorers who incited rebellion were struck down by God and died. This wasn’t unfair considering the negative effect their leadership had on others. It also shows that leaders are held to a higher standard.
This idea appears in the New Testament as well. Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly (James 3:1), wrote James. People in leadership are held to a higher standard because of the effect they have on others.
Numbers 14:40 Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised.
When God’s people saw the consequences of their sin they decided to obey. But now it was too late. Moses told them not to go into battle because the Lord would not be with them (Numbers 14:42). But, rebellious to the end, they went into battle anyway and fell by the sword. Sometimes it really is too late.
A country preacher stood over the casket of a local outlaw. Too late for Joe, he said. He heard the gospel a hundred times but always put it off. Too late for Joe. Too late for Joe. Some in the church were upset at the preacher’s bluntness, but most agreed he was right. Sometimes it really is too late. I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2), wrote Paul.
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Numbers 15:30 But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or foreigner, blasphemes the Lord and must be cut off from the people of Israel.
A man who gathered wood on the Sabbath day would serve as an example. [T]he Lord said to Moses, The man must die. The whole assembly must stone him outside the camp. So the assembly took him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the Lord commanded Moses (Numbers 15:35-36).
The Bible makes a distinction between those who sin carelessly and those who sin defiantly. Defiant sin is looking God in the face and shaking your fist at him. Such sins are normally premeditated, not followed by repentance, and extremely dangerous.
If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, It is mine to avenge; I will repay, and again, The Lord will judge his people. It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:26-31), says Hebrews.
This is why Paul required believers who were sinning defiantly to be put out of the church (1 Corinthians 5:2). The goal was not their eternal doom but repentance and restoration, so their spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord (1 Corinthians 5:5), he wrote.
Every believer sins carelessly every single day (Matthew 5:48). And many sin defiantly at one time or another. But God is pleased to forgive every sin as long as we trust in Christ, and keep on turning back to him (1 John 1:9). [A] broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:17), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God hold leaders to a higher standard?
- Is it ever too late to be saved?
- Why is defiant sin so dangerous?
Lesson 35
Numbers 16:1-3 Korah [and some others] became insolent and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?
This was a serious challenge to God’s appointed leaders. After all the miracles God had done through Moses, it’s hard to believe that such a challenge could be made. Instead of defending himself, Moses directed Korah and his supporters to come to the tabernacle the following day.
Then Moses said, This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: If these men die a natural death and suffer the fate of all mankind, then the Lord has not sent me.
But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.
As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community (Numbers 16:28-33).
Few things make ministry more miserable than being falsely accused. Some ministers have even wished that God would vindicate them as clearly as he did Moses. But this judgment has never been repeated, and many good ministers have been forced out of leadership.
Even the Apostle Paul had to defend himself against some in the church who undermined his ministry (2 Corinthians 11:5). Every Christian leader should be held accountable, but so should those who accuse them. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them (Titus 3:10), wrote Paul.
Other than Jesus Christ, there are no perfect leaders. But any church that allows its leaders to be wrongfully attacked will soon run out of qualified leaders. Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you (Hebrews 13:17), says Hebrews.
*****
Numbers 17:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes.
God showed his approval of Moses by burying his accusers. Now he’d show his approval of Aaron in a gentler way. A staff was taken from the leader of each ancestral tribe (twelve in all), and each leader’s name was written on his staff. Aaron’s name was written on the staff of Levi, since he belonged to that tribe. Then the staffs were placed in the tabernacle. The following day Aaron’s staff had sprouted, budded, blossomed and produced almonds. This was proof that he was, in fact, chosen by God to be high priest.
God has given similar proof that we belong to him. No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit (Luke 6:43-44), said Jesus. And the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), wrote Paul. The more we bear the fruit of the Spirit, the more clearly we belong to Christ.
*****
Numbers 20:2 Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron.
Israel ran out of water about forty years earlier, and God told Moses to strike a rock with his staff. Water came out (Exodus 17:1-7) and all the people survived. Now, at the end of their journey, a new generation needed water, and God would meet their need as well. But, instead of striking the rock with his staff, God told Moses to speak to the rock (Numbers 20:8).
This should have gone well but, by this time, Moses had led God’s people for many years and had grown a little impatient. Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock? Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank (Numbers 20:10-11).
Instead of speaking to the rock, as God directed, Moses struck it twice with his staff. And, instead of giving the glory to God, he took the credit himself. Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them (Numbers 20:12), said God.
Here we see the importance of obeying God and giving him the glory for whatever good he does though us. If we lead someone to Christ, we give the glory to God. If our children turn out well, we give the glory to God. If we get a promotion, we give the glory to God. Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist.
Reflection and Review
- How should churches treat their leaders?
- What is the evidence we belong to Christ?
- Why should believers give glory to God for whatever good they do?
Lesson 36
Numbers 22:4-5 Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor.
When King Balak saw God’s people camping near Moab, he was alarmed by the apparent threat, and knew that he couldn’t withstand them. So he sent for Balaam, a man known for spiritual power, to curse Israel. Do not let anything keep you from coming to me, because I will reward you handsomely and do whatever you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me (Numbers 22:16-17), he said. So Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials (Numbers 22:21).
But God was angry at Balaam and sent an angel with a sword to oppose him. Balaam didn’t see the angel, but his donkey did, and tried to avoid it three times. This made Balaam so angry that he beat his donkey severely.
Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times? Balaam answered the donkey, You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now. The donkey said to Balaam, Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you? No, he said.
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. The angel of the Lord asked him, Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.
Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back. The angel of the Lord said to Balaam, Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you. So Balaam went with Balak’s officials (Numbers 22:28-35).
Balaam didn’t know it at the time but he was in serious danger for planning to curse God’s people. Whoever attempts to curse God’s people only curse themselves. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse (Genesis 12:3), said God. Christians can never be cursed because we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3), wrote Paul. And If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31), wrote Paul also.
Numbers 22:36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him.
Balak showed Balaam the people he wanted cursed, but Balaam could only bless them. How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? (Numbers 23:8), he said. God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. . . . he has blessed, and I cannot change it (Numbers 23:19-20), he added.
When we consider Satan’s desire for our harm, we have every reason to be afraid. But when we consider God’s desire for our good, our fears are put to flight. Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:34), Christ will say to us. God’s people are blessed by him, and can never be cursed by anyone.
*****
Numbers 25:1 While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women.
Some of the Moabite women invited some Israelite men to worship Baal and engage in ritual sex. This ignited God’s anger and he commanded Moses to execute those who were guilty. Before the sentence was carried out, however, an Israelite man brought a Moabite women into his tent right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel (Numbers 25:6). This wasn’t a shameful deed done in secret, but an open act of defiance against Moses and God.
Numbers 25:7-8 When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach.
The crime was a public violation of the first and seventh commandments: You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3) and You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14). The execution carried out by Phinehas was according to the penalty for sins committed defiantly. [A]nyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or foreigner, blasphemes the Lord and must be cut off from the people of Israel. Because they have despised the Lord’s word and broken his commands, they must surely be cut off (Numbers 15:30-31), wrote Moses. This no longer applies today (Hebrews 8:13), of course, but Phinehas received God’s approval for defending his honor.
As the nation of Israel made its way to the Promised Land, it encountered opposition and seduction. These are the right and left hands of Satan which he uses to this day. If the world can’t intimidate the church through opposition, it will try to win it back through seduction. You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? (James 4:4), wrote James. Believers are to love the world (John 3:16) but not its sinful ways. We’re to live in the world but should also remain distinct.
Reflection and Review
- Why can’t Christians ever be cursed?
- How could God speak through a donkey?
- Which is worse for the church: opposition or seduction?
Lesson 37
Deuteronomy 1:1 These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan.
The book of Deuteronomy was written by Moses for the people of God around 1406 BC, while the nation camped in the land of Moab, just outside the Promised Land. In a series of speeches, Moses reviewed the covenant God made with Israel after they came out of Egypt, forty years earlier. The first generation had died and a new generation needed to hear God’s word before entering the land. There’s little that is new in Deuteronomy but it’s quoted in the New Testament over forty times. Moses knew that he would die soon, and this is his farewell address.
Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
There’s only one God, the creator and sustainer of all that exists. This conviction made Israel unique among surrounding nations who worshipped many gods. Whenever Israel turned to other gods they became weak. But when they trusted the one true and living God, they became strong. It’s awesome to know that this same God has become our heavenly Father through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:5).
Deuteronomy 6:5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Jesus identified this as the first and greatest commandment (Matthew 22:38), which makes it even more important than feeding our children. The reason God wants us to love him with all our heart, soul and strength, is because that’s how he loves us. What God wants most from his people is a deep and loving relationship.
We should express our love for God through prayer, obedience and service, but they are not the same as love. Genuine love for God includes an affectionate yearning for more of him. This means turning away from whatever displeases him, and always drawing closer. Even if our hearts are dry at times, if we truly desire more of God, we are on the right track.
Deuteronomy 6:6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.
It’s not enough to have the word of God in our heads. Satan has that. Nor is it enough to believe the word of God, or even obey the word of God. We must have the word of God on our hearts—the place of our affection. We should, in fact, have the same affection for the word of God that we have for God himself. A good indication of how we feel about God is how we feel about his word. If we don’t love his word, our love for God should be called into question.
Deuteronomy 6:7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
God’s word is so important for raising children that it ought to be a normal part of our daily conversation. Some time ago I was out for a hike and, as I walked up the trail, I passed a family that was coming down. As we passed each other I overheard a little girl ask her father this question: If God is loving, why did he allow so many bad things to happen to Job? (Job 1:1-2:8).
That’s a good question, especially from a child. But what truly impressed me was how naturally it occurred in their conversation. The Bible was so important to them that it wasn’t reserved for church alone, or even for family devotions, but was naturally discussed as they were out for a hike.
Deuteronomy 6:12 [B]e careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
When God’s people came out of Egyptian slavery, he led them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (Numbers 14:14). All they had to do was look and they could see a visible manifestation of God. But that was about to change as they entered the Promised Land. They’d spread out to various regions and no longer see the sign of God’s presence. So Moses reminded them not to forget the Lord.
A godly man was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease so he wrote down everything on note cards. Turn off the stove, check the mail and flush the toilet were a few of the notes he wrote to himself. But, with the passing of time, his condition grew worse, and even the notes didn’t help very much. So he wrote a final note on his hand and copied it over daily: Remember God.
There are many things in our busy lives that compete with God for our attention. But if we remember God each morning, through prayer and Bible study, he’ll never be far from our thoughts the rest of the day.
Deuteronomy 6:18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you.
Since God determines the quality of our lives, it’s always wise to obey him. Under the old covenant, God promised to bless his people if they were obedient, and to curse them if they were disobedient (Deuteronomy 28). Since rewards and punishments could come quickly, Moses encouraged God’s people to do the right thing.
Following Christ may involve hardship (John 16:33), but this principle still applies. [G]odliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come (1 Timothy 4:8), wrote Paul. If we Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, we might be surprised by all the good he does for us.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God want us to love him deeply?
- Why do people forget about God?
- How has serving God improved your life?
Lesson 38
Deuteronomy 7:6 The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.
For many years the Israelites were slaves in Egypt, despised by the people who owned them. After Egypt they wandered in the desert, a people without a homeland. To themselves, as well as to others, they seemed to have little value. But they were so valued by God that he called them his treasured possession.
God is the owner of everything, so there’s nothing we can give him that he doesn’t already have—except our hearts. When a sinner gives their heart to God, he is so enriched that the sinner becomes his treasured possession.
I was six years old when my dad made me a slingshot. He cut a branch from a tree and whittled it smooth. Then he attached two strips of rubber and a leather pouch. It fit my hand perfectly and made me feel dangerous. I carried my slingshot everywhere and, for a while, it was my treasured possession. Then, one day, I put it in my pocket and, when I got home, it wasn’t there. I retraced my steps with tears but it was never recovered.
Thankfully, that never happens to God. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand (John 10:28-29), said Jesus. All who belong to God through faith in Jesus Christ will be treasured by him forever.
Deuteronomy 8:3 [M]an does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
After fasting forty days, Jesus was hungrier than most people will ever be. But when the devil told him to satisfy his hunger by turning stones into bread, he quoted this verse to him (Matthew 4:4). From this we learn that it’s more important to feed our souls than it is to feed our bodies. If we have to choose between breakfast and the Bible, we should always choose the Bible. It’s better to have a full soul and an empty stomach, than to have a full stomach and an empty soul.
Getting through the Bible seems like a difficult task, but it’s not so hard if we read it daily. By reading a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, we can cover the whole Bible in under four years. If we do this repeatedly, we’ll probably read the Bible several times before we die.
Deuteronomy 8:4 Your clothes did not wear out . . . during these forty years.
Throughout their journey, God fed his people bread from heaven (Exodus 16:4), and gave them water from a rock (Exodus 17:6). These were clear and obvious miracles for everyone to see. But they may’ve overlooked a more subtle miracle. God was keeping their clothes from wearing out over the course of forty years.
When we get to heaven we’ll likely discover some things God did for us that we didn’t notice at the time. Some miracles are obvious and others are only seen in hindsight. God is always doing more for us than we know at the time and we should thank him daily. Thank you, Father, for your many acts of kindness, especially those I do not see.
Deuteronomy 10:16 [D]o not be stiff-necked any longer.
God often accused his people of being stiff-necked. The problem wasn’t medical but a rebellious attitude. They were like animals that wouldn’t be guided by their owners.
Many years ago I rode a horse that was intent on going its own way. When I pulled to the right it stiffened its neck. When I pulled to the left it did the same. It even went under a low-hanging branch in order to knock me off. I didn’t like that horse at all.
A better animal responds quickly to a tug on the reigns, and is a joy to its owner. We can’t be guided by God if we insist on our own way. Instead of being stiff-necked we should learn pray like Christ: not my will, but yours be done (Luke 22:42). Then we will not be stiff-necked any longer.
Deuteronomy 14:1 You are the children of the Lord your God.
This is the highest possible status, and also the happiest. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! (1 John 3:1), wrote John. When we understand who we are, because of Jesus Christ, we’ll want to live accordingly.
The king’s son behaved badly and did some things of which he was ashamed. He confided in his father who offered wise advice. No one is surprised when common people misbehave, because that’s what common people do. But if you remember that you’re royalty, then you’ll behave royally. Never forget who and whose you are, he said. God also wants his children to have a clear identity so he tells us plainly, You are the children of the Lord your God.
Reflection and Review
- Why are God’s people his treasured possession?
- Why is it foolish to be stiff-necked?
- Why does God tell us that we are his children?
Lesson 39
Deuteronomy 18:15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.
Moses was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament but foresaw another who would be like him. This was fulfilled by Jesus Christ about fifteen hundred years later. Jesus was similar to Moses in the following ways.
Moses was laid in a basket (Exodus 2:3), and Jesus was laid in manger (Luke 2:7, 16). Moses spent his early years in Egypt, and Jesus spent his early years in Egypt (Matthew 2:13). Moses gave up the glory of the palace, and Jesus gave up the glory of heaven. Moses was the first person in the Old Testament to do miracles, and Jesus was the first person in the New Testament to do miracles.
Moses fed the people bread from heaven (Exodus 16:14), and Jesus multiplied bread on earth (John 6:11). Moses delivered the people from the tyranny of Pharaoh, and Jesus delivers us from the tyranny of Satan. Moses parted the water, and Jesus walked on water.
Moses was nearly stoned to death, (Exodus 17:4), and Jesus was nearly stoned to death (John 8:59). Moses sacrificed the blood of animals (Exodus 24:5-8), and Jesus sacrificed his own blood (Matthew 26:28). Moses led people to the Promised Land of Canaan, and Jesus leads people to the Promised Land of heaven. Jesus is the prophet like Moses, to whom we must listen.
Deuteronomy 26:11 [R]ejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household.
God didn’t want his people to take their possessions for granted, but to see them as tokens of love from his fatherly hand. If we see our possessions as things we’ve earned, they’ll do us no spiritual good, and may even harm us. But if we see them as gifts from our heavenly Father, they’ll help us love him even more.
Until recently, the wealthiest people in the world lived and died without enjoying many things that we take for granted. They may have had a palace, but not a refrigerator, television, furnace or air-conditioner. They may have had servants, but not the internet, hot water or even indoor plumbing. The good things we enjoy don’t come to us by accident. They are gifts from our heavenly Father and tokens of his love.
Deuteronomy 29:29 The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever.
The Israelites knew little about God until he delivered them from slavery and gave them his written word. This answered many of their questions but may’ve raised even more. The more God reveals himself, the more questions we seem to have. Who has plumbed the depth of the Trinity? Who has resolved the two natures of Christ? Who has solved the problem of evil? These are just a few of the secret things that belong to the Lord our God.
[B]ut the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, wrote Moses. The Bible is an ocean in which a whale can swim and a child can wade. Some truths lay on the surface but we’ll never reach the bottom. Little children can learn the basics but scholars can’t exhaust it. God is glorified by the reverent study of his word, and we are enriched by what we learn.
Deuteronomy 30:20 [T]he Lord is your life.
This is the secret of happiness. The Lord is not a part of your life, an accessory to your life, or tangential to your life. The Lord is your life. No Lord, no life. And, if the Lord is your life, then the more you love the Lord, the more you’ll love your life. The surest way to happiness, therefore, is to Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength (Mark 12:30), because the Lord is your life.
Deuteronomy 31:6 [H]e will never leave you nor forsake you.
Life was about to change for the people of God as they entered the Promised Land. It flowed with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8), but those who lived there wouldn’t give it up without a fight. In all their battles and conflicts, God wanted his people to know that he’d never leave them nor forsake them.
This is important to believe when times are good, but especially when times are hard, because that’s when we’re likely to feel forsaken. Feelings change with the weather but God is always the same. His word is truer than our feelings and his commitment never wavers.
The Bible doesn’t promise that we’ll never be diseased, bankrupt or divorced. But it does promise that God will never leave us nor forsake us. He’s always there to support, encourage, strengthen and provide—and to forgive our sins (Colossians 2:13). We should always stand upon this truth, especially when times are tough.
Reflection and Review
- How does Jesus’ similarity to Moses strengthen our faith in him?
- Why does God want us to rejoice in our possessions?
- Why should we believe that God will never leave us nor forsake us?
Lesson 40
Deuteronomy 31:20 [W]hen they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods and worship them.
This is God’s problem. Because he is generous, God wants to bless his people with prosperity. But he knows that his people are so perverse that, when he makes them prosperous, they will turn away from him. Instead of being thankful, and serving him more carefully, they’ll feel secure enough to go their own way. Even today, few things are more spiritually lethal than financial prosperity. [It] is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:23), said Jesus.
This is why God often leaves some of our needs unmet. The more we need from God, the more likely we are to pray to him. The less we need from God, the more likely we are to ignore him. What seems the best for us is often the worst, and what seems the worst for us is often the best. Instead of complaining about what God has withheld, we ought to praise him for keeping us close to him. What could be worse, after all, than having everything we want and turning away from God?
Deuteronomy 33:27 The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.
As Moses prepared to die, he pronounced a blessing on the nation and reminded them of God’s everlasting arms. He’s our heavenly father who carries us close to his heart.
Many years ago I moved to another state and left behind family and friends. I was single at the time and, for about a year, had little social network. This made me feel like I was falling without a safety net. But that’s never true for God’s people: underneath are the everlasting arms. The furthest we can ever fall is into his loving embrace.
*****
Deuteronomy 34:1 Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho.
Some time earlier God told Moses to bring water from a rock by speaking to it. Moses disregarded God’s word and struck the rock twice with his staff. Then, instead of giving glory to God, he took the credit for himself. As a result, God informed Moses that he wouldn’t enter the Promised Land (Exodus 20:1-13). Here we find him going up a mountain to die.
From this we understand that God does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11). Even his best servants are not exempt from the consequences of their sins. God could’ve overlooked Moses’ sin, but it was important for the people to see that God’s justice applies to everyone—even to Moses.
Deuteronomy 34:4 Then the Lord said to him, This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, I will give it to your descendants. I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.
God showed Moses kindness by letting him see the Promised Land before he died. He could’ve died on the plain below, but God sent him to the mountaintop (Deuteronomy 32:48-50) where he could see it for himself. What a joy it must’ve been for Moses to see the Promised Land with his own eyes. In wrath, God also remembered mercy (Habakkuk 3:2).
Deuteronomy 34:5-6 And Moses the servant of the Lord died there in Moab, as the Lord had said. He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is.
By burying Moses himself, God insured that his grave wouldn’t become a shrine. Moses was so greatly used by God that God’s people may’ve been tempted to worship at his grave rather than at the tabernacle. God graciously kept that from happening.
God may bury his workers but he still continues to work. Moses was dead but Joshua would lead God’s people into the Promised Land. Then God raised up judges, kings and prophets to lead his people. Then he sent his Son who commissioned the apostles (Matthew 28:18-20). Then Paul told Timothy to instruct reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others (2 Timothy 2:2). This has been going on for thousands of years and the kingdom of God is growing. God’s workers come and go but God continues to work.
Deuteronomy 34:7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.
Moses didn’t die from natural causes but because God shortened his life. Even at a hundred twenty years he was still strong, and could’ve served God much longer. But this isn’t the end of Moses’ story. About fifteen centuries later he appeared on the mountain of transfiguration to talk with Jesus Christ about his approaching crucifixion (Matthew 17:1-13).
Imagine the honor this was for Moses. He died because of his sin, but spoke to the one who’d die for his salvation. He died outside the Promised Land, but stood inside the Promised Land with Jesus. He led God’s people to an earthly Promised Land, but spoke to the one who’d lead us to the Promised Land of heaven. Apart from Jesus Christ, Moses’ story didn’t end very well. But because of Jesus Christ his story ends in glory.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God leave some of our needs unmet?
- Why should Moses’ death concern Christian leaders?
- How did God show mercy to Moses, even though he would die?
Lesson 41
Joshua 1:1-2 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them.
The book of Joshua was written around 1390 BC and, though anonymous, some of it probably came from Joshua himself. The author recounts how, with God’s help, Joshua completed Moses’ ministry by leading God’s people into the Promised Land.
Joshua was probably a slave in Egypt, who witnessed the plagues, and followed Moses through the Red Sea. That generation died in the wilderness but, due to their faith, Joshua and Caleb were allowed to live and enter the Promised Land.
Joshua 1:8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
It wasn’t enough for Joshua to be a military genius, he also had to be a student of God’s word. The promise of success was based on obedience, which required daily study and meditation. This was also God’s will for the future kings of Israel. When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law . . . . It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life (Deuteronomy 17:18-19), wrote Moses.
When Israel’s kings departed from God’s law, they lost their right to rule God’s kingdom. The reason Jesus is qualified to be the King of kings (Revelation 19:16) is because he perfectly kept God’s word. Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Deuteronomy 8:3, Matthew 4:4), he said.
Joshua 2:1 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. Go, look over the land, he said, especially Jericho. So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
We’re not told why the spies went to the house of a prostitute but there are at least four possible reasons. First, men going to the house of a prostitute was not likely to raise suspicion. Second, a prostitute might be an excellent source of information due to her various clients. Third, since prostitutes weren’t known for integrity, she might been willing to sell this information. Fourth, since good hotels were scarce, some prostitutes also provided lodging.
Joshua 2:2-3 The king of Jericho was told, Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land. So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.
Jericho was a city-state and the king perceived the Israelites to be a serious threat. When he learned that Rahab was harboring two of them, he commanded her to turn them in. If a king commands you to turn in a couple spies, you either cooperate or become guilty of treason. You either save your life or lose it.
But sometimes saving your life is losing it, and losing your life is saving it. Rahab could’ve saved her life for a little while by turning over the spies, or saved it forever by putting her trust in God. That’s how it is with Christ. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it (Mark 8:35), said Jesus.
Joshua 2:4-5 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I do not know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.
It’s a little surprising the king’s men trusted the word of a prostitute but, somehow, she convinced them. The spies were actually hiding under stalks of flax on Rahab’s roof (Joshua 2:6). Flax was used for making linen and was often dried on rooftops. These sort of details add credibility to the story and draw the reader in.
Joshua 2:7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
This gave Rahab the time she needed to talk to the spies at length. She told them that fear had fallen on Jericho because they knew that God had parted the Red Sea for the Israelites, and defeated kings for them (Numbers 21:21-35). This would be helpful information for Joshua since few things are more important to the outcome of war than morale. It also fulfilled God’s word through Moses: the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall on them (Exodus 15:15-16).
Rahab also made a profession of faith in God. [F]or the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below (Joshua 2:11), she said. We don’t know how she came to this conclusion, but she clearly believed in God, since she was now on the side of Israel. When Rahab heard about the God who delivered his people from slavery, she probably longed to be his. She may’ve even prayed that God would let her change sides. So when the opportunity came, she took it.
Like Rahab, our first allegiance is no longer to the kingdom of this world, but to the kingdom of God. We too foresee the day when The kingdom of the world [will] become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah (Revelation 11:15), wrote John. We’ve also committed treason against the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4) by giving our allegiance to Christ. In these and other ways, Rahab models the Christian life.
Joshua 2:12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you.
The spies agreed to spare Rahab and her family. This is a little surprising in light of an earlier command given by God through Moses. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy (Deuteronomy 7:2). But, upon her profession of faith, this is precisely what they did.
The division between Israelite and non-Israelite was less about ethnicity than allegiance to God. This is why Paul called the church the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16). A true Israelite isn’t someone with Abraham’s DNA, but with Abraham’s faith (Galatians 3:7). Because she believed in the God of Abraham, Rahab was allowed to live.
Joshua 2:21 So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
The scarlet cord was a prearranged sign that would identify Rahab’s house to Israel’s army. Everyone else in the city would be destroyed, but the soldiers were to spare the house with the scarlet cord in the window.
A scarlet cord was probably used because Rahab had one, and because it could be seen. But it would later remind the Israelites of their escape from Egypt. They were saved by the scarlet blood of a Passover lamb (Exodus 12:1-30). And Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed (1 Corinthians 5:7), wrote Paul. Scarlet is the color of blood, and we’re saved by the blood of Christ.
Rahab is also mentioned three times in the New Testament: once for her faith (Hebrews 11:31), once for her works (James 2:25), and once in the genealogy of Christ (Matthew 1:5). The woman who started out as a Canaanite prostitute became part of God’s people, and a great-great-grandmother of the Savior of the world. It’s truly remarkable what God can do for ordinary people who trust him.
Reflection and Review
- Why did God want the kings of Israel to know his word?
- How does Rahab model the Christian life?
- Why was Rahab allowed to live?
Lesson 42
Joshua 3:1 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites . . . went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over.
Forty years earlier, God parted the Red Sea for Moses, so he could lead the people of God out of Egyptian slavery. Now he’d dry up the Jordan River for Joshua so he could lead them into the Promised Land. Joshua was the new leader of Israel, and this was the moment they’d all been waiting for.
Joshua 3:3 When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it.
The ark of the covenant was normally kept in the the Most Holy Place, inside the tabernacle. But, occasionally, it was used to lead the people of God in solemn procession. The ark is so important to this story that it’s mentioned no fewer than sixteen times.
It’s frequently called the ark of the covenant because it contained the Ten Commandments (Exodus 25:16), which were the basis of the covenant God made with Israel, forty years earlier, at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-20). The ark symbolized God’s throne (Exodus 25:22), so the people were to understand that God, their king, was leading them into the Promised Land.
Joshua 3:4 But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits between you and the ark; do not go near it.
Because the ark symbolized God’s throne, the people were to keep a respectful distance. Two thousand cubits is over half a mile. This would allow more people to see the ark than if it was being crowded. The ark was so sacred that no one was allowed to touch it, on pain of death (2 Samuel 6:7). Even those who carried the ark had to use poles, inserted into rings, that were mounted on its side (Exodus 25:14).
Joshua 3:8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.
The Jordan River isn’t wide or deep, but the spring rains (and melting snow from Mount Hermon) caused it swell to about a hundred feet wide and ten feet deep. The strength of the current would also make it difficult to pass. Without any sign of the water’s abating, however, the priests were told to stand in the river.
There are times when God requires his people to act on faith before they see his provision (Mark 11:24). The man with the shriveled hand was healed as he stretched it out (Luke 6:10); the bread and fish were multiplied as they were being distributed (John 6:11); and the Jordan River would cease to flow only after the priests stepped into it. God doesn’t always explain himself before he calls us to act.
Joshua 3:15-16 [A]s soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam.
God may’ve put his hand in the river at Adam, and stopped the flow himself. But why would he do it so far away? The place where the water stopped flowing is about eighteen miles upstream. Why didn’t God put his hand in the river right in front of the Israelites so they could see his mighty power?
God intervenes directly, sometimes, but he also uses means. More than once the Jordan River has stopped flowing near Adam due to a mudslide. As recently as 1927, in fact, the water stopped flowing for over twenty hours.
The Jordan Valley is on a fault line where earthquakes are known to occur. If an earthquake caused a mudslide to stop the river’s flow, just as the priests were stepping in, that would be no less remarkable than if God intervened directly. In fact, the discovery of a natural cause gives additional credibility to the biblical record. We not only know what God did, we may even know how he did it.
Joshua 3:17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
When the whole nation had safely crossed over, the priests also crossed over, and came out of the river. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before (Joshua 4:18).
By a miracle of timing God revealed his providential care for his people. If they had arrived an hour sooner, the miracle would not have worked. If they had taken an hour longer to cross, the miracle would not have worked either. But the moment they stepped into the river, the water stopped flowing. And the moment they stepped out of the river, the water returned to flood stage. The God of Israel is also the Lord of time. We may not always like his timing, but we can always trust it.
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Joshua 5:13-15 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, Are you for us or for our enemies? Neither, he replied, but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come. Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, What message does my Lord have for his servant? The commander of the Lord’s army replied, Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy. And Joshua did so.
As Joshua prepared to fight the battle of Jericho, he met a heavenly figure with a drawn sword. His loyalty wasn’t to the Israelites, or to the Canaanites, but to God alone. From this we understand that God is always for himself. Many want God to be on their side, but God is always on his own side. There are only two sides in life, and whoever is on God’s side wins.
The heavenly figure in this passage identified himself as the commander of the army of the Lord (Joshua 5:14). Israel was God’s army on earth, but God also has an army in heaven. The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands (Psalm 68:17), wrote the Psalmist. As Joshua fought God’s battles on earth, he was encouraged to know that heaven would also be fighting.
The commander revealed his heavenly identity when he said, Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy (Joshua 5:15). Since this is what God said to Moses at the burning bush, we know this figure is divine. And since Jesus said, These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), we know this figure is Christ. And the drawn sword reminds us of Christ’s return. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations (Revelation 19:15), wrote John. The gentle shepherd from Nazareth is also a conquering king.
Reflection and Review
- Why was the ark of the covenant used to lead God’s people?
- How did God stop the Jordan River from flowing?
- How do we know the commander of the army of the Lord was Christ?
Lesson 43
Joshua 6:1 Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites.
The city of Jericho was terrified by Israel’s crossing the Jordan River. They knew the God of Israel had parted the Red Sea and defeated other kings (Joshua 2:10). They also knew that they were next. But, instead of surrendering to God, they barred their gates against him. They knew this day was coming and had probably stored up supplies. They hoped to survive, of course, but would rather die than surrender to the God of Israel. This shows how stubborn some people can be against God.
Joshua 6:2 Then the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.
The conquest of a walled city was a major challenge, but God spoke as though the victory had already been won. Israel would have to fight but the outcome was assured. They could fight with confidence, not in themselves, but in the God who promised them victory.
The church is also assured of victory as we take the gospel to the world. We don’t use the weapons of the world (2 Corinthians 10:4), but the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17), wrote Paul. And we are more than conquerers through him who loved us (Romans 8:37), wrote Paul again.
The battle for souls continues to rage but, in the end, there will be people from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:9), wrote John. The battle must be fought, but outcome is certain.
Joshua 6:3-5 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.
This may be the most unusual military strategy ever devised. It was designed by God to be so unlikely that he alone would receive the glory. The presence of the ark of the covenant also showed that Jericho’s defeat was, first and foremost, the work of God.
The soldiers could’ve complained that the battle plan didn’t make sense. But, unless they did it God’s way, they would’ve been defeated. Children don’t always understand why their parents tell them to do something, and often ask Why? But parents have authority over their children and, Because I said so is still a good answer. That’s why we’re supposed to obey God, even when his ways don’t make sense to us.
God was also giving Jericho time to repent. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. Jericho was surrounded and their doom was sure. Why not open the gate and surrender? Some people are so opposed to God that they resist him to the end.
Joshua 6:20 When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.
If you go to Jericho today, you’ll find the main attraction is the ancient wall that collapsed. It’s been thoroughly excavated and the following four items are consistent with the biblical record. First, there’s evidence of collapsed walls. Second, there’s evidence of a rapid defeat. Third, there’s evidence of a fire. And, fourth, there’s evidence that it happened around 1406 BC, which is the date of this story. Archaeology can’t prove the Bible, but it consistently supports the Bible’s truthfulness.
Joshua 6:21 They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.
This was consistent with God’s command. [D]o not leave alive anything that breathes. Completely destroy them . . . as the Lord your God has commanded you. Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 20:16-18), wrote Moses.
It’s no wonder that many have asked, What kind of God would command the annihilation of an entire region of people? Answer: the God who has a right to. God is the giver of life and has the right to take it away. Every day is a gift and no one deserves tomorrow. [T]he wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), wrote Paul. Because we sin every day, every day should be our last. The fact that anyone lives another day proves that God is gracious.
But like the people of Noah’s day (Genesis 6), and the people of Sodom (Genesis 19), those who lived in Canaan were especially wicked. Their rejection of God included worshipping idols, sexual perversion, and killing children. God was patient for hundreds of years but, eventually, their sin reached its full measure (Genesis 15:16). A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he (Deuteronomy 32:4), wrote Moses.
The annihilation of Jericho also reminds us of what will happen when Jesus Christ returns. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses. . . . Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. . . . He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty (Revelation 19:14-15), wrote John. The return of Jesus Christ to judge the world will make the destruction of Jericho seem like child’s play.
Joshua 6:22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.
Rahab sided with Israel’s God by harboring Israel’s spies, and by giving them information (Joshua 2). She took her life in her hands and could’ve been killed for treason, but she sided with God and was saved. This is also true for all who believe in Christ.
[T]his is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me (John 6:39), said Jesus. Not a single man, woman, boy or girl who truly believes in Jesus Christ will ever be lost. The Lord knows those who are his (2 Timothy 2:19), and will not kill the righteous with the wicked (Genesis 18:25). No one who believes in Jesus Christ will perish but [will] have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
- Why did God use a battle plan that didn’t make sense?
- Does archaeology prove the Bible is true?
- Why did God command the slaughter of Jericho?
Lesson 44
Joshua 7:2 Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai . . . and told them, Go up and spy out the region.
After the fall of Jericho, Joshua turned his attention to the little town of Ai. If God’s army advanced quickly, the Promised Land could be theirs in a very short time. Like a train gathering speed they were gathering momentum.
When the spies returned from Ai, they were so confident it could be conquered, they only recommended two or three thousand soldiers be sent to overthrow it. But, to everyone’s surprise, Ai scattered Israel’s army and killed thirty-six soldiers. This was a catastrophic setback because it was now clear to everyone that Israel could be defeated. All their enemies would be emboldened to fight, and all their momentum was lost. It was a devastating setback to the entire military campaign.
Joshua 7:6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening.
As Joshua lay facedown before the ark of the covenant, God revealed the reason for Israel’s defeat. Israel has sinned . . . . They have taken some of the devoted things [and] put them with their own possessions (Joshua 7:11), he said.
The previous attack on Jericho came with clear instructions. All the silver and gold . . . are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury (Joshua 6:19). But a soldier found some precious things, in Jericho, and kept them for himself. God was withholding his support until he was put to death.
The soldier’s name was Achan, and God exposed him through a process of elimination. All the tribes of Israel came forward, and the tribe of Judah was chosen. That was Achan’s tribe. Then the clans of Judah came forward, and the Zerahites were chosen. That was Achan’s clan. Then the Zerahite families came forward, and the family of Zimri was chosen. That was Achan’s family. Then the men of Zimri came forward, and Achan himself was chosen (Joshua 7:16-18). Now his fate was sealed.
At any point in the process Achan could’ve confessed and begged for mercy. We can imagine his heart pounding faster and faster as the circle of suspects got smaller and smaller. Should he confess or hope to get away with it? He’d never outlive the shame, but perhaps he could save his life. The tension nearly killed him, but Achan refused to confess until it was too late.
Joshua 7:19-21 Then Joshua said to Achan, My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me. Achan replied, It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.
We can imagine Achan’s temptation when he saw the precious things. It was a life-changing amount of wealth that could’ve established his family for years. Perhaps he never stole a thing before but, when the opportunity came, he took it. He hoped for the best but got the worst.
Joshua 7:24-25 Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. Joshua said, Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today. Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.
From Achan we learn the importance of not concealing our sins. Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy (Proverbs 28:13), says Proverbs. When we conceal our sins we put God to the test and dare him to expose us. But, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins (1 John 1:9), wrote John. If Achan could speak from the grave, he’d say the best time to confess our sins is before it’s too late.
Joshua 8:1 Then the Lord said to Joshua . . . . go up and attack Ai.
At God’s direction, Israel positioned troops behind the city to wait in secret. Then Joshua led other troops in front of the city to lure their soldiers out. When Ai’s solders saw Israel’s troops, they ran out to fight. Then Joshua gave the signal and the troops behind the city ran in and set it on fire. When Ai’s solders saw their city burning, they knew they’d lost the battle. Then Israel’s troops attacked and slaughtered them. Ai’s king was brought to Joshua, and his body was hung on a pole, as warning to other kings.
God’s strategy made perfect sense, this time, and was completely effective. God’s ways don’t always make sense, but often they do. As the church seeks to spread the gospel, it should consider what strategies God may be pleased to use. Some strategies have worked well in the past, and others are working well today. God often works strategically to accomplish his mission on earth.
Reflection and Review
- Why was the defeat at Ai a catastrophic setback?
- Why did God use a process of elimination to identify Achan?
- What strategies are being used to spread the gospel today?
Lesson 45
Joshua 9:3-4 [W]hen the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they resorted to a ruse.
Gibeon was about nineteen miles from Israel’s camp and feared for their lives. They knew God had commanded Moses to kill everyone who lived in the land (Joshua 9:24, Deuteronomy 7:1-2), so they tricked Israel into making a treaty with them. They put on old clothes, took old bread, and pretended to come from far away. And it worked.
The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath (Joshua 9:14-15). When Israel learned the Gibeonites lived nearby, they were upset with their leaders for being deceived. The Gibeonites were forced into hard labor, but they were allowed to live because of the oath.
The Gibeonites can be admired for their fear of God, and the resourceful way they saved their lives. But Israel’s leaders, including Joshua, are to be faulted for not seeking God in this matter. Whenever we have to make an important decision, we should seek God’s will through prayer, his word, and godly advisers (Proverbs 15:22). This is what Joshua failed to do, and he lost credibility because of it.
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Joshua 10:5 Then the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon—joined forces.
In a collective effort to stop God’s people, five local kings combined armies. But Joshua wouldn’t be stopped and, after an all night march, he surprised the opposing armies with an early morning attack. God helped his people by hurling hail from heaven that killed more enemies than died by the sword.
This reminds us of what will happen before the return of Jesus Christ. From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible (Revelation 16:21), wrote John. The weapons of God’s wrath are more powerful than all the weapons on earth.
But Joshua needed more time so he said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon. So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies . . . . There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being (Joshua 10:12-14).
Whoever heard Joshua command the sun and the moon to stand still must’ve wondered what he was thinking. Would a man control the movement of planets? Even Joshua may’ve been surprised by the words that came out of his mouth. This kind of faith can only come from above.
Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, Go, throw yourself into the sea, and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them (Mark 11:23), said Jesus. If God is going to do an extraordinary miracle, he can give his servants faith, then do what they ask.
This miracle is so remarkable, however, that even believers might be tempted to doubt whether it actually happened. Would God really stop the rotation of planets because one of his servants prayed? It’s almost too much to imagine.
Our real problem, of course, is that God is so much bigger than we normally think. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1), wrote Moses. If God can create everything out of nothing, then to lengthen a single day is child’s play.
Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you (Jeremiah 32:17), wrote Jeremiah. And The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth (Acts 17:24), said Paul. If we believe God created everything out of nothing, it’s not very hard to believe his other miracles.
We have further assurance of this account from Jesus Christ himself. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law (Luke 16:17), he said. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ must believe what Jesus taught, and Jesus taught the Bible is true. Whoever doesn’t believe the Bible, doesn’t fully believe in Jesus Christ.
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Joshua 22:4 [R]eturn to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on the other side of the Jordan.
It took about seven years for Israel to conquer the Promised Land. Then it was time for the soldiers who settled east of the Jordan River to return to their homes. Before they crossed the river, however, they built an altar to the Lord as a reminder to their fellow Israelites that they all served the same God.
But a misunderstanding arose. Those on the west side of the river thought the altar was an act of rebellion against God. Out of holy zeal they prepared to go to war against their fellow Israelites. This would’ve been disastrous, but the confusion was dispelled, and war was avoided.
Zeal for God is good, but Satan can use it against us if we’re not careful. When a Samaritan village refused to welcome Jesus, James and John said, Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them? But Jesus turned and rebuked them (Luke 9:54-55). James and John were zealous for Christ, but their zeal wasn’t Christian.
Even worse, in the eighteenth century, over a dozen women were hanged near Salem Massachusetts for the crime of witchcraft. Common sense gave way to hysteria as ordinary people tried to do the will of God. But their actions led to wrongful deaths and harmed the cause of Christ. Zeal without knowledge, and knowledge without zeal, are equally harmful to the church (Romans 10:2). Christians should pray for godly ministers whose zeal is based on knowledge.
Reflection and Review
- What did Joshua do wrong when he negotiated with the Gibeonites?
- Why should we believe that God stopped the sun for Joshua?
- How can our zeal for God be misdirected?
Lesson 46
Judges 1:1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Canaanites?
The book of Judges begins where the book of Joshua ends, and covers events from around 1375 to 1100 BC. The author isn’t identified, but seems to have written around 1000 BC. Before Israel had a king it was very loosely organized. It was led by various judges and was often in a state of apostasy. The book of Judges recounts several events from these dark days.
Judges 1:4 [T]he Lord gave the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek.
God gave his people success against their opponents and they captured the king of Bezek. They should’ve put him to death (Deuteronomy 20:16-18) but, instead, they cut off his thumbs and big toes. This would prevent him from wielding a sword or being sure-footed in battle.
Judges 1:7 Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.
Throughout his reign, the king of Bezek had cut off the thumbs and big toes of seventy other kings, reducing them to poverty. Now that he suffered the same way, he was convinced that God was paying him back. And he may’ve been right.
Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury (Leviticus 24:19-20), wrote Moses. The God of the Bible requires perfect justice.
This is why Judgment Day should be the dread fear of unrepentant sinners. When we consider the extent of our sins, and the perfect justice of God, we have nothing to look forward to but everlasting misery. [A] fire will be kindled by my wrath, one that burns down to the realm of the dead below (Deuteronomy 32:22), said God.
But there’s more to God than perfect justice. He’s also perfect love (1 John 4:8). This is why he sent his Son to die on a cross for our sins (John 3:16). Jesus fulfilled the demands of justice by suffering in our place. That’s why whoever believes in him has eternal life and will not be judged (John 5:24), said Jesus. The God of perfect justice has paid for our sins himself, so that we can receive his perfect love.
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Judges 3:12 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel.
Israel was subject to the king of Moab for eighteen years. In their misery they cried out to God, and God raised up a leader named Ehud to deliver them. Ehud brought tribute to Eglon, king of Moab, but concealed a double-edged sword under his clothing. After he gave Eglon the tribute, Ehud said, I have a message from God for you (Judges 3:20).
Eglon was a very fat man and, as he rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king’s belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, and his bowels discharged. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it.
Then Ehud went out to the porch; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, He must be relieving himself in the inner room of the palace. They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead (Judges 3:21-25).
We are surprised by the graphic details of this story but they’re included for a reason. Kings are often held in awe by ordinary people, but they are ordinary too. They have ordinary bodies, with ordinary functions, and are as prone to death as anyone else. They may feel superior, due to their position, but will lie in a grave like the rest of us.
Death comes to all and makes us equal when it comes. The world elevates one above another but the worms make no distinction. We are what we are in the sight of God, nothing more and nothing less. We should never think that we’re successful, therefore, until after Judgment Day. [M]any who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first (Matthew 19:30), said Jesus.
Judges 3:26 While they waited, Ehud got away.
Ehud returned to Israel, and gathered an army that followed him back to Moab, where they killed about ten thousand soldiers. That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years (Judges 3:30).
Ehud was used by God to deliver his people from foreign oppression. He reminds us that one person with God is greater than an army without him. Our greatest usefulness is not what we can do for God, but what God can do through us. Our first concern should always be to simply follow God.
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Judges 4:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, now that Ehud was dead.
Because of their disobedience, God allowed the Israelites to be afflicted by Jabin, the king of Canaan. He had nine hundred chariots and cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years (Judges 4:3).
Deborah was Israel’s judge, at this time, and also a prophet. Through her, God commanded an Israelite named Barak to gather ten thousand men to defeat Jabin’s army, which was being led by a man named Sisera.
Barak was reluctant, but he agreed to the mission if Deborah would go with him. She consented but, due to Barak’s reluctance, Deborah predicted the honor of the battle wouldn’t go to him, but to a woman (Judges 4:9). Then Barak pursued the chariots . . . and all Sisera’s troops fell by the sword (Judges 4:16).
Sisera escaped, however, and fled to a woman’s tent. Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, Come, my lord, come right in. Don’t be afraid. So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket. I’m thirsty, he said. Please give me some water. She opened a skin of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him up. Stand in the doorway of the tent, he told her. If someone comes by and asks you, Is anyone in there? say No.
But Jael . . . picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to [Sisera] while he lay fast asleep, exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died. Just then Barak came by in pursuit of Sisera, and Jael went out to meet him. Come, she said, I will show you the man you’re looking for. So he went in with her, and there lay Sisera with the tent peg through his temple—dead (Judges 4:17-22).
With nine hundred chariots, Sisera seemed invincible. But he died at the hands of a woman, armed with a hammer and a peg. Those with every advantage often lose, but those who trust God will be victorious. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
- What should we learn from the king of Bezek?
- What should we learn from the graphic details of Eglon’s death?
- What should we learn from Sisera’s defeat?
Lesson 47
Judges 6:1 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.
The Midianites were so oppressive that Israel was forced to live in caves just to survive. They systematically destroyed Israel’s crops and slaughtered or stole their livestock. In their misery Israel remembered God and cried out to him for help.
About that time the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, who was threshing wheat in secret to keep it from the Midianites. The Lord is with you, mighty warrior (Judges 6:12), said the angel. Gideon didn’t look like a mighty warrior, and wasn’t behaving like one. But the angel of the Lord saw what Gideon could become and commissioned him to save the nation. When Gideon objected the Lord answered, I will be with you (Judges 6:16).
This is God’s response whenever we’re given a task that is too much for us. It could be saving a nation, leading a ministry, or raising a difficult child. It could be starting a church or taking final exams. After he commissioned his disciples to evangelize the world Jesus said, surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20). God’s presence gives us courage and strength to do what we couldn’t do on our own.
Judges 6:17 Gideon replied, If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me.
Gideon wanted to be sure the Angel of the Lord wasn’t the product of his imagination so he asked for a sign. When Gideon prepared a meal, the angel of the Lord touched the meat and the unleavened bread with the tip of the staff that was in his hand. Fire flared from the rock, consuming the meat and the bread. And the angel of the Lord disappeared (Judges 6:21).
The Lord told Gideon to tear down his father’s altar to Baal, but this was a dangerous act so he did it after dark. When the people discovered what Gideon had done they wanted him dead. But his father said, If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself (Judges 6:31). Gideon’s life was spared, but this event shows how apostate God’s people had become. They were willing to kill Gideon for opposing a false religion.
Judges 6:36-37 Gideon said to God, If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised—look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.
The weakness of Gideon’s faith is surprising. God already gave him a sign, but now he wanted another. He wanted to leave some wool on the ground overnight. If the ground was dry in the morning, but the wool was wet, that would be a sign that God would do what he said. The sign was fulfilled but, to be sure it wasn’t a coincidence, Gideon asked God to give him the opposite sign the following day. Then the ground was covered with dew, but the wool was completely dry.
Gideon’s lack of faith isn’t commendable, and his method of testing God isn’t recommended. But we should recall that Gideon didn’t have a Bible, and was about to risk his life. He simply wanted assurance that he was doing the right thing. Many have followed Gideon’s example of testing God’s will, but the best way to know God’s will is to learn the Bible thoroughly, and then apply it wisely. Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path (Psalm 119:105), wrote the Psalmist.
Judges 7:1 Early in the morning [Gideon] and all his men camped at the spring of Harod.
Gideon gathered an army of thirty-two thousand men. But God told him to send some away so that Israel wouldn’t take credit for the victory. Gideon must’ve gasped when twenty-two thousand men walked away, leaving him with only ten thousand soldiers. But God thought that was still too many, so Gideon reduced the troops to only three hundred. Now the odds of victory were so remote that all the credit would go to God.
Judges 7:8-9 Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the Lord said to Gideon, Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.
Gideon was afraid, however, so God told him to go and listen to what the Midianites were saying. Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. . . . A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed. His friend responded, This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands (Judges 7:13-14), he said.
Judges 7:15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.
Gideon gave each of his three hundred soldiers a torch, concealed by a clay jar, and also a trumpet. When the Israelites surrounded the Midianite camp, they blew their trumpets, revealed their torches, and gave a mighty shout. Three hundred torches and trumpets gave the illusion of thousands of soldiers. The Midianites panicked and, in the darkness, began to kill each other.
From this we learn that God’s trumpets and torches are better than the swords of his enemies. It’s not the mighty who win in the end, but the weak who trust in Christ. God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him (1 Corinthians 1:27-29), wrote Paul. God’s people win in the end, not because they’re mighty, but because their God is mighty.
Judges 8:22 The Israelites said to Gideon, Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us from the hand of Midian.
Gideon declined their request, but asked for gold, from which he made a religious article. This became an idol and All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it (Judges 8:27). This is a sad conclusion to Gideon’s story. The man who won the war against idolatry, led God’s people back into it.
God wants to be first in our lives, and whatever we put ahead of him is an idol—even if it’s something good. Gold is good, but it can become an idol if we put it ahead of God. The same is true of health, family, pleasure and position. Without appropriate caution, today’s devoted Christian may be tomorrow’s idolater. Dear children, keep yourselves from idols (1 John 5:21), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
- Why does obeying God require courage?
- Have you ever asked God for a sign?
- How do Christians become idolaters?
Lesson 48
Judges 9:5 [Abimelek] went to his father’s home . . . and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers.
After Gideon died, his son Abimelek wanted to be king. But Gideon had over seventy sons who might be willing to challenge him. So Abimelek killed most of them and began his terrible reign.
When the town of Shechem turned against Abimelek, he slaughtered many of them. Those who survived fled to a stronghold, which Abimelek set on fire, burning a thousand people to death (Judges 9:49).
Then he attacked another town that also had a tower. But this time, when he tried to burn it down, a woman on the roof dropped a stone on his head, fatally wounding him (Judges 9:53). As Abimelek was dying, he commanded his servant to kill him with a sword, so it couldn’t be said that he died at the hands of a woman. This is how Abimelek perished, just three years into his reign.
Some people love power so much they’ll do anything to get it and keep it. Abimelek was powerless to keep himself alive, however, and died a young man. This is different from Jesus Christ who refused to be made king (John 6:15), and laid down his life for his people. Many kings have killed their own people, but Jesus Christ died for his people. He’s the kind of king we need.
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Judges 11:1 Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his mother was a prostitute.
Jephthah’s father had other sons, by his legal wife, and they rejected Jephthah. He could’ve become bitter, or filled with self-pity, but he chose to go on with his life. Over time, in fact, Jephthah became such an effective warrior that, when his people needed him, they asked him to be their commander. Suddenly, the outcast was the leader.
This also reminds us of Jesus Christ, who was conceived outside of marriage (Luke 1:26-38), and was rejected by his people (John 1:11). But now he’s the leader of many and will return to rule the world (Revelation 19:14-16). The one who was rejected will soon become the king (Revelation 19:16).
Judges 11:29 [Jephthah] advanced against the Ammonites.
This battle was so important that Jephthah made a vow to God. If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering (Judges 11:30-31), he said.
Animals were kept in the house, sometimes, so Jephthah may have had a goat in mind. But when he returned victorious, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of timbrels! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter (Judges 11:34).
Now Jephthah problem. When a man makes a vow to the Lord . . . he must not break his word but must do everything he said (Numbers 30:2), wrote Moses. And, If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you (Deuteronomy 23:21), wrote Moses again. And, It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it (Ecclesiastes 5:5), wrote Solomon. As far as Jephthah knew, there was no way out of his vow.
Judges 11:35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, Oh no, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.
Jephthah’s daughter could hardly believe her ears. Would she really have to die because of her father’s vow? Tragically, yes. Young as she was, she graciously accepted the sentence of death. After two months of grieving she became a human sacrifice. Worst of all, it didn’t have to be that way.
Jephthah knew enough of the Bible to take his vows seriously, but not enough to know that child sacrifice was forbidden. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter (Deuteronomy 18:10), wrote Moses.
God had also made provision for foolish vows. [I]f anyone thoughtlessly takes an oath to do anything, whether good or evil . . . they must confess in what way they have sinned. As a penalty for the sin they have committed, they must bring to the Lord a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering (Leviticus 5:4-6), wrote Moses.
Jephthah had good intentions when he made his vow, but shouldn’t have killed his daughter. Breaking his vow would’ve been a sin, but it wasn’t as bad as child sacrifice. Whenever we have to choose between two sins, we should choose the lesser. Then we should pray for God’s forgiveness, and trust that Jesus’ death was sufficient payment for whatever we have done. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. This is not an empty promise, but the word of God to repentant sinners.
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Judges 13:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
Once again the nation found itself in trouble due to their sin. And, once again, God raised up a deliverer in the person of Samson. He became an epic warrior capable of killing thirty men with his bare hands (Judges 14:19), and a thousand with the jawbone of a donkey (Judges 15:15).
Judges 13:2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth.
Like Isaac, Jacob, Samuel and John the Baptist, Samson’s parents were childless. They probably prayed for years that God would give them a baby. Then, one day, the angel of the Lord appeared and told them they’d have a son, whom they were to raise as a Nazarite (Judges 13:3-5). This meant he should never drink wine, cut his hair, or go near a corpse (Numbers 6:1-21). He was to be uniquely devoted to God in this way.
Judges 13:15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.
Unaware of the angel’s true identity, Manoah and his wife wanted to entertain him by providing a meal. But the angel suggested they present a burnt offering instead. As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame (Judges 13:16). Then Manoah and his wife realized the angel of the Lord was God himself (Judges 13:22).
This is likely an appearance of Jesus Christ before his incarnation, technically called a Christophany. Jesus taught the Old Testament was about him (John 5:39, Luke 24:27), so whenever God appears in physical form it’s probably Jesus Christ.
Other examples include God walking in the Garden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8), the commander of the army of the Lord, who appeared to Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15), and the man who appeared in the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who looked like a son of the gods (Daniel 3:25).
This idea can also be argued from the fact that there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul. As the angel ascended in the flame (Judges 13:16), never to be seen again, Jesus concluded his earthly ministry by ascending into heaven (Acts 1:9). The Old and New Testaments make up a single book in which Jesus Christ is the central figure.
Reflection and Review
- Does power make people corrupt?
- What should Christians do when they have to choose between two sins?
- Why would Jesus Christ appear in the Old Testament?
Lesson 49
Judges 14:1-2 Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.
Samson was a man of many flaws. One of his worst was a weakness for Philistine women. Intermarriage was forbidden by God (Deuteronomy 7:3-4), but that didn’t bother Samson at all. Even though she was an enemy of God’s people, and his parents objected, and God had forbidden it, Samson was determined to marry her. He wanted what he wanted, simply because he wanted it. God’s people can be willful at times.
In a moment of transparency, an honest believer confessed, I know the badness of my heart. There are times when I am more than willing to cross the Almighty. Never mind that Jesus bled and died for me, has forgiven my sins, and promised me a home in heaven. There are times when I simply want to do what I want to do, and go ahead and do it. This kind of behavior is never advisable, but underscores the depth of our depravity and need for salvation.
Judges 14:4 His parents did not know that this was from the Lord.
This is a troubling statement that can’t be fully explained. It implies that God was partly responsible for the evil in Samson’s heart. But how could God be responsible for the evil in Samson’s heart, without being the source or cause of evil? The problem appears in other places as well.
After Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, God promoted him to second in command over Egypt. Then Joseph said to his brothers, You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good (Genesis 50:20). God intended their wicked act to bring about a greater good, but he still intended their wicked act. This seems to be a problem.
Even more profoundly, God used the wickedest act ever (killing the Messiah) to bring about the greatest good ever (salvation for the world). This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross (Acts 2:23), said Peter. We don’t know how God can ordain evil, without being the source or cause of evil. But we do know that God is in charge of everything, and overrules evil to bring about a greater good. This is what he’d do through Samson.
Judges 14:5 Samson went down to Timnah together with his father and mother.
Samson and his parents were on their way to meet the bride-to-be, and make arrangements for the wedding. Along the way they were separated when a young lion came roaring toward Samson. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat (Judges 14:6).
This is one of three times The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon [Samson] (Judges 14:6, 14:19 and 15:14). Some of his exploits are so remarkable that they defy human explanation. But when we understand they were done by the power of the Spirit, they become more plausible, because nothing is too hard for God (Jeremiah 32:17).
Judges 14:8-9 Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass, and in it he saw a swarm of bees and some honey. He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along.
This was Samson’s wedding day and, as he went, he found some honey in the carcass of the lion he killed earlier. The wedding feast went on for seven days and, to entertain his new Philistine friends, Samson proposed a riddle. Out of the eater, something to eat; out of the strong, something sweet (Judges 14:14).
If they could solve his riddle, Samson would give them each a new set of clothes. If not, they were each to give him a new set of clothes. Clothing was expensive, however, so Samson’s friends persuaded his new wife to get the answer for them. Samson explained the riddle to her and she informed his companions. Suddenly, Samson was in debt.
In order to pay his debt, Samson went to another town, killed thirty Philistine men, and stole their clothes. He was so angry at his wife, however, that he went back home to live with his parents.
Samson is not a good role model for anyone. But, in God’s providence, he was disrupting the good relationship between the Philistines and the Israelites. The Israelites were commanded by God to take over the Promised Land and drive out the inhabitants (Deuteronomy 7:2). Instead, they had settled down in the land and were being governed by the inhabitants (Judges 15:11). This arrangement was so agreeable, in fact, that God’s plan to have a chosen people was in jeopardy.
By committing acts of violence against the Philistines, Samson was keeping Israel from being absorbed by them. In that case, all the promises God had made to his people (Genesis 12:1-3) would’ve been defeated. God keeps his promises, and was using Samson toward that end.
Reflection and Review
- Why are God’s people wicked at times?
- How was Samson able to perform remarkable acts of strength?
- Why was it important for Israel to remain distinct from the Philistines?
Lesson 50
Judges 15:1 Later on, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He said, I’m going to my wife’s room.
It’s possible that Samson hadn’t consummated the marriage, and went to his wife for that reason. But, in his absence, her father had given her to another. I was so sure you hated her, he said, that I gave her to your companion (Judges 15:2).
This made Samson so angry that he caught three hundred foxes and tied their tails in pairs. Then he fastened a torch to each pair of tails, and set them lose in the grain fields. The fire consumed not only the grain, but also the vineyards, and the olive groves (Judges 15:4-5). This was a massive economic blow to the Philistines.
In retaliation, the Philistines took Samson’s former wife, along with her father, and burned them to death. This antagonized Samson even more so He attacked them viciously and slaughtered many of them (Judges 15:8).
This made the Philistines willing to wage war on the entire nation of Israel. They’d be satisfied, however, if Israel handed over Samson. The Israelites were willing to do this, but the challenge of apprehending Samson was so great, they sent three thousand men to make the arrest.
Samson didn’t want to kill his own people, so he allowed himself to be bound by two new ropes (Judges 15:13). When the Philistines came for him, he broke the ropes, picked up a donkey’s jawbone, and killed a thousand of them (Judges 15:14-15). With a donkey’s jawbone I have made donkeys of them. With a donkey’s jawbone I have killed a thousand men (Judges 15:16), he said.
Samson’s violence seems extreme, but he was a warrior of the highest calibre, and was fighting the Lord’s enemies. The kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this world are always at war, and God himself is the ultimate warrior. The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name (Exodus 15:3), wrote Moses.
The church should never take up arms (Matthew 26:52) because the gospel is a message of peace (Romans 5:1). But when Christ returns he’ll come with a vengeance that will make Samson look like a pacifist. [W]ith fire and with his sword the Lord will execute judgment on all people, and many will be those slain by the Lord (Isaiah 66:16), wrote Isaiah.
Judges 16:1 One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her.
This is not the kind of behavior we expect from biblical heroes. But There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10), wrote Paul. Samson was a man of great physical strength and great moral weakness. There was little he couldn’t do physically, and little he wouldn’t do morally.
When the Philistines learned where Samson was, they planned to kill him in the morning. But, in the middle of the night, Samson got up, tore out the city gate and carried it to the top of a distant hill (Judges 16:3-4). This was his greatest display of strength, and reminds us that strength is a gift from God. We may never set a world record, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31) wrote Isaiah. When our strength is running low, we can always look to God.
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Judges 16:4 Some time later, he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah.
This is the third and final woman in Samson’s story, and she leads to his ruin. The Philistine rulers offered her a fortune, if she could learn the secret of Samson’s strength, so he could be subdued. With remarkable candor she made her request. Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued (Judges 16:6), she said.
This became a lovers game and Samson misled her three times. But she nagged him until he was sick to death of it (Judges 16:16). Then he revealed his secret: No razor has ever been used on my head, he said, because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man (Judges 16:17). So when Samson fell asleep, his head was shaved and his strength departed.
Judges 16:21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison.
Samson was a gifted person with the fatal flaw of unbridled sexuality. First he married a Philistine woman, then he went to a prostitute, then he slept with Delilah. In the end, the eyes with which he lusted were brutally gouged out, and the strongest man in the world became weak.
If Samson had conquered his lust the way he conquered the Philistines, his story would’ve been different. Most of our misery doesn’t come from obeying God, but from disobeying God. We don’t break God’s laws so much as we break ourselves upon them.
Reflection and Review
- Why shouldn’t the church use violence?
- How does Samson remind us of Christ?
- Why does sin often lead to misery?
Lesson 51
Judges 16:22 But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
In spite of his many mistakes, Samson’s life would end triumphantly. As he worked in prison, day after day, grinding grain for his enemies, Samson’s hair began to grow. This was the sign of his Nazarite vow and the secret of his strength.
Then, one day, the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands (Judges 16:23). This was quite a large gathering with three thousand people on the flat temple roof, and many more inside. Then they brought out Samson as a trophy of war to entertain them.
With the help of a servant, Samson made his way to the temple’s supporting pillars where he prayed, Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes (Judges 16:28). Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived (Judges 16:30).
Samson is one of the most tragic figures in the Bible, but leaves us with an important point. Regardless how badly we fail, God can still use us if we renew our commitment to him. The New Testament actually applauds Samson because of his faith (Hebrews 11:32). From Samson we learn that the most important thing about us isn’t who we are, or what we’ve done, but the God to whom we belong.
Judges 16:31 Then his brothers and his father’s whole family went down to get him. They brought him back and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had led Israel twenty years.
Samson died in the temple of Dagon, but was buried in the Promised Land. This should be an encouragement to imperfect Christians everywhere. As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10). But all who believe in Jesus Christ are kept by him (John 10:29), and will arrive in the Promised Land of heaven.
*****
Judges 17:1-2 Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim said to his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse—I have that silver with me; I took it.
This strange little story shows how far God’s people had fallen away from his word. In summary, Micah stole some money from his mother but then he gave it back. In return, she bought an expensive idol and gave it to Micah. He put the idol in a shrine, along with some household gods, and hired a Levite as a priest. But the priest stole Micah’s religious items and became the priest of a larger group. True religion had almost disappeared.
If you take grape juice, and blend it with apple juice, you might call it grapple juice. Likewise, syncretism is the blending of ideas to come up with something new. Micah took a few ideas from God’s word, and blended them with a few ideas from paganism, to come up with a religion that violated God’s word at almost every point.
This is the natural course of religion unless we’re committed to God’s word as our final authority. If God’s word isn’t our final authority something else is. It could be culture, tradition, another book, or even ourselves. Whenever another authority is allowed to compete with God’s word, it’ll produce a religion that contradicts God’s word. And the further we stray from God’s word, the further we stray from God.
*****
Judges 19:1 Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
The Levite was probably already married but took a concubine to have additional children. She didn’t have the legal status of a wife, and wasn’t happy in the relationship, so she returned home to her parents. Four months later, the Levite went to her parents’ home, and persuaded her to come back. On the way, they stayed overnight in the town of Gibeah, in the territory of Benjamin. There they received lodging from an old man who let them stay at his house.
Judges 19:22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.
This shocking development reminds us of Sodom and Gomorrah before God destroyed it with fire from heaven (Genesis 19). Morality among God’s people had plummeted and this Levite wasn’t any better. In order to save himself, he threw his concubine outside. Then the men proceeded to rape her until she was dead (Genesis 19:28).
To get his revenge, the Levite cut his dead concubine into twelve parts and sent them throughout Israel. The nation was so appalled that it declared war on the town of Gibeah. Victory should’ve come quickly, but the tribe of Benjamin defended the town of Gibeah, and civil war broke out. There were heavy losses on both sides but, in the end, Benjamin was defeated.
Judges 21:25 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
This is the final verse in the book of Judges, and is a fitting conclusion to the moral and political chaos of the time. God had parted the Red Sea and led his people out of slavery. Then he led them through the wilderness to the Promised Land. They didn’t conquer the land, however, and were no better morally than the pagans who lived there. They needed a godly king to help them fulfill their destiny.
Eventually kings were appointed and things improved a little. But the kings had problems of their own, and often did more harm than good. Then, one day, a righteous king arrived. The people took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel! (John 12:13).
That king, of course, was Jesus Christ. He died for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), and will return as King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). Then we’ll have the king that we need, and the world will be as it ought to be. That’s where the Bible is going, and that’s the movement of history. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus (Revelation 22:20), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
- Was there anything good about Samson?
- What was Micah’s biggest mistake?
- Why does the world need a righteous king?
Lesson 52
Ruth 1:1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab.
The book of Ruth was written around 1200 BC, and is considered by some to be the classic love story of the Bible. It begins in the little town of Bethlehem, meaning house of bread. But the bread was running out due to a famine. To keep body and soul together, a little family of four migrated fifty miles to the land of Moab, where they hoped their situation would improve. Sadly, it would not.
Ruth 1:2 The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi.
After they arrived in Moab, Elimelek died, leaving Naomi a widow in a foreign land. Her two sons married, but also died about ten years later. Naomi was now a widow, living in a foreign land, with no immediate family. Hearing that life had improved in Bethlehem, Naomi decided to return home. Her daughters-in-law planned to go with her but, since there was nothing Naomi could do for them, she encouraged them to remain in Moab and to remarry (Ruth 1:9). One of them agreed; the other did not.
Ruth 1:16-17 Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.
The young lady’s name was Ruth, and her words were a pledge to care for Naomi in her old age. The two were apparently close, and Ruth was willing to give up marriage and children in order to care for her aging mother-in-law.
Ruth was also loyal to God. Your people will be my people and your God my God, she said. Before she met Naomi, Ruth probably worshipped Chemosh, the god of the Moabites (1 Kings 11:7). He was a local deity who made little difference in her life. But Ruth came to believe in God Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth (Genesis 1:1). Her faith was so firm, in fact, that she was willing to leave family, friends and homeland, to live in the land of Israel, and worship Israel’s God.
Ruth 1:19 When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, Can this be Naomi?
Life was hard for Naomi, and she may have aged so much that she was barely recognizable. She went out with a husband and sons, but returned with neither. She went out looking for prosperity, but returned in poverty. Do not call me Naomi, she told them. Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter (Ruth 1:20). Naomi means pleasant, and Mara means bitter. Naomi’s life had been so bitter, she wanted to change her name to Mara.
It should be admitted that belonging to God is no guarantee against misery. Believing in God can even make our misery worse. In light of God’s promise to answer our prayers (Matthew 7:7-8), whenever our prayers go unanswered, it can seem like God is mocking us. I have been disappointed enough times that I simply pray for less and less, in order not to be disappointed more and more, someone confessed. That’s how Naomi felt.
Ruth 1:21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. . . . The Lord has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.
The Bible doesn’t whitewash Naomi’s speech, or shift the blame away from God. It simply keeps us waiting for God, because that’s the essence of faith. Faith believes that, sooner or later, God will act and things will improve.
Ruth 2:1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz.
Boaz features prominently in the rest of the story, but here it’s enough to see that he was related to Naomi, and was a man of standing in the community. There’s no indication Naomi asked Boaz for help but, if things got worse, he was someone she could turn to.
Since it was harvest time, Ruth went into the fields to glean. The land didn’t belong to her, but Israel had a law that required property owners to leave some produce behind for the poor. When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands (Deuteronomy 24:19), wrote Moses.
Providentially, Ruth found herself in a field that belonged to Boaz. They hadn’t met but, when he arrived, Boaz made a good impression. The Lord be with you, he said to his workers. The Lord bless you, they replied. This little exchanged revealed to Ruth that Boaz was a man of some godliness, and enjoyed a good relationship with his employees.
Boaz inquired about Ruth and learned that she was the Moabite who returned with Naomi. May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord (Ruth 2:12), he said. But he went even further and urged Ruth to continue gleaning in his field, and told his workers to leave her additional grain. He also paid for her lunch. Boaz was so generous to Ruth, in fact, that it’s difficult to know if he was just being kind, or if he was being drawn to her. They were both devout, and apparently single.
Ruth 2:19 Her mother-in-law asked her, Where did you glean today?
Ruth told Naomi that she gleaned in the field of Boaz, and Naomi was delighted. That man is our close relative; he is one of our guardian-redeemers (Ruth 2:20), she said. A guardian-redeemer was a close relative who was obligated to help other family members who were in serious trouble. The idea is found in Israel’s laws (Leviticus 25:25-55), and appears more prominently in the book of Ruth than anywhere else in the Bible.
Here we see the invisible hand of God beginning to care for Naomi and Ruth. They hadn’t imposed on family or friends, but were looking to God to meet their needs. Now, at last, God was beginning to act.
We find this same idea in the teaching of Jesus Christ. So do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:31-33).
Jesus didn’t say that life would never be hard, or even extremely hard. But he taught that we have a heavenly Father who knows exactly what we need. He also taught us to put God first in our lives, then trust him to take care of us. Naomi and Ruth were doing exactly that.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God allow his people to suffer?
- Did Naomi have a right to complain?
- How did Naomi and Ruth cope with poverty?
Lesson 53
Ruth 3:1 One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, My daughter, I must find a home for you, where you will be well provided for.
Ruth had been caring for Naomi, but now Naomi was caring for Ruth. Her intuition told her the kindness of Boaz was more than mere compassion. But Boaz may’ve been shy since, apparently, he never married. If Naomi and Ruth waited for Boaz to act, they might’ve waited forever. So Naomi gave her daughter-in-law some bold advice.
Wash, put on perfume, and get dressed in your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing floor, but do not let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do (Ruth 3:3-4).
To modern readers this seems extremely forward and, in fact, it was. But there’s nothing inappropriate here. Ruth was simply proposing marriage. Boaz was the kind of person who was good at many things, but not love. He may’ve been turned down in the past and feared being rejected again. For whatever reason, Boaz didn’t seem to have the courage to take the initiative with Ruth. If she didn’t make her intentions clear, nothing was going to happen. So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law told her to do (Ruth 3:6).
Ruth 3:7 Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down.
Due to cold feet, Boaz soon woke up and was startled. Who are you? he asked. I am your servant Ruth, she said. Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a guardian-redeemer of our family (Ruth 3:9).
Boaz could hardly believe his ears. He was older than Ruth, and assumed she’d be attracted to younger men (Ruth 1:10). Perhaps he prayed for a wife in the past. Perhaps he even prayed for Ruth to be his wife. Now God was doing all that he had hoped for.
By calling Boaz her guardian-redeemer, Ruth was also appealing to his obligation to care for her, due to the loss of her first husband. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law (Deuteronomy 25:5), wrote Moses. Boaz wasn’t her brother-in-law, but he was happy to accept the responsibility.
Ruth 3:11 And now, my daughter, do not be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character.
The Bible never describes Ruth as a beautiful woman so she may have been rather plain. What mattered most to Boaz was her noble character. A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown (Proverbs 12:4). A wife of noble character . . . . is worth far more than rubies (Proverbs 31:10). Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised (Proverbs 31:30), says Proverbs.
As Ruth and Boaz looked into heaven that night, we can imagine tears of praise streaming down their faces, for the goodness of God who brought them together. Ruth had found a husband, and Boaz had found wife.
Ruth 3:12 Although it is true that I am a guardian-redeemer of our family, there is another who is more closely related than I.
In great romantic stories there’s often a third-person conflict, and this is no exception. There was someone ahead of Boaz who could’ve cared for Naomi and Ruth if he wanted to. Boaz could’ve ignored this fact, but he preferred to handle the situation with integrity. If God had brought them together, he could work this out as well.
Ruth 4:1 Boaz went up to the town gate and sat down there just as the guardian-redeemer he had mentioned came along.
The Bible doesn’t tell us the time of day, but it was probably early morning. Boaz went to the town gate, where business was conducted, and there he found the one person ahead of him with the right to care for Naomi and Ruth. Boaz said, Come over here, my friend, and sit down. So he went over and sat down. Boaz took ten of the elders of the town and said, Sit here, and they did so (Ruth 4:1b-2).
This was serious business. The presence of elders would insure that it was properly conducted and formally witnessed. At first the gentleman involved showed some interest, but then he gave the right to Boaz.
What joy and relief Boaz must’ve felt when he was given the legal right to care for Naomi and Ruth. Today you are witnesses [he said]. Then the elders and all the people at the gate said, We are witnesses (Ruth 4:10-11). And they gave Boaz their blessing.
Ruth 4:13, 17 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. . . . The women living there said, Naomi has a son! And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
This made Ruth the great-grandmother of the future king David. This story, in fact, may’ve been told to the little boy David by Grandma Ruth herself. We can imagine how this would’ve shaped the future king’s faith in God.
Because Ruth was the great-grandmother of David, she was also an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). By choosing a Moabite woman to be an ancestor of the Messiah, God was showing that participation in his family is not determined by birth, but by genuine faith. Throughout the story, Ruth is a model of genuine faith in God.
Boaz is also an ancestor of Jesus Christ, but he is even more. As Ruth’s guardian-redeemer, Boaz foreshadows Jesus Christ as our Redeemer (Titus 2:14). As one who took a Gentile wife, Boaz foreshadows Jesus who gladly receives Gentiles (Matthew 28:20). As Boaz brought a reversal of fortune to Naomi and Ruth, Jesus brings a reversal of fortune to all who believe in him (John 5:24). God provided a husband for Ruth, and he provided a Savior for us.
Reflection and Review
- What kind of wife does the Bible recommend?
- How did Boaz demonstrate his faith?
- How does Boaz remind us of Jesus Christ?
Lesson 54
1 Samuel 1:1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah.
First and Second Samuel were originally one book, and the author is not identified. They tell the history of Israel from around 1105 BC to 970 BC, highlighting the lives of Samuel, Saul and David. Samuel was an important leader who helped the nation transition from the rule of judges to the rule of kings. The story begins with his birth, which was an answer to prayer.
1 Samuel 1:2 [Elkanah] had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah.
Not many wives want to share their husbands, so the situation wasn’t perfect. Elkanah may’ve married Hannah first but, when she didn’t bear children, he likely married Peninnah. If Hannah felt jealous or inadequate, it only got worse when Peninnah became pregnant. Instead of showing empathy, she flaunted her fertility, provoking Hannah to tears.
1 Samuel 1:11 Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life.
Hannah prayed at the tabernacle and was observed by Eli the priest. She prayed silently, but her lips were moving, and Eli thought she was drunk. She explained that she wasn’t drunk, but was praying out of a broken heart. Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast (1 Samuel 1:18).
It’s worth noticing that before Hannah prayed she was in deep anguish (1 Samuel 1:10), but after she prayed her face was no longer downcast. From her example we learn to give our concerns to God. One of the great benefits of having a heavenly Father is trusting that he cares for us. Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you (Psalm 55:22), wrote David. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7), wrote Peter. God wants us to bring our cares to him and leave them there. When the burdens of life are too heavy for us, we can give them to God.
1 Samuel 1:20 So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel.
Hannah could’ve forgotten her vow, as many people do, but she was determined to keep it. Her little boy was around three years old when she brought him to the tabernacle and gave him to Eli the priest. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:27-28), she said.
From that day forward, Samuel stayed at the house of God, under the supervision of Eli the priest. It must’ve been difficult for Hannah to leave her son at the house of God, but she wasn’t sad. My heart rejoices in the Lord (1 Samuel 2:1), she said.
Somehow Hannah knew that God had a plan for her son, and that was enough for her. Samuel, in fact, would be used by God to anoint the first two kings of Israel. [God] will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed, said Hannah (1 Samuel 2:10).
Anointing was the practice of applying oil to people or things, to show they were set apart for God. Many people and things were anointed in the Old Testament, but kings were especially known as the Lord’s anointed.
This reminds us of Jesus Christ, because Christ comes from the Greek word for anointed, and Messiah comes from the Hebrew word for anointed. The words Christ and Messiah are applied to Jesus hundreds of times in the New Testament because he is God’s anointed king.
Jesus wasn’t anointed with oil, however, but with the Holy Spirit (John 1:32, Luke 4:18). The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor (Luke 4:18, Isaiah 61:1), he said. Samuel anointed the first two kings of Israel, but Jesus was anointed by the Spirit of God.
1 Samuel 2:12 Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord.
Eli’s adult sons (Hophni and Phinehas) disregarded God’s word, slept with women who served at the tabernacle (1 Samuel 2:22), and were bad examples to Samuel. And, yet, their father allowed them to continue as priests.
People of low moral character sometimes go into the ministry. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves (Matthew 7:15), said Jesus. When ministry positions are held by ungodly leaders, God isn’t taken seriously and the people of God suffer. Eli should’ve dismissed his sons from the ministry, but seemed to care more for them than for the Lord. He rebuked his sons (1 Samuel 2:23-25), but let them keep their positions without changing their behavior.
Christian parents may also be tempted to put their children ahead of God. Instead of revolving their lives around God, they revolve their lives around their children. They may even tolerate ungodliness within their own home. But anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37), said Jesus. Putting our children ahead of God is a serious sin, and a disservice to our children.
Reflection and Review
- How can we give our cares to God?
- How was Jesus anointed king?
- What should we learn about parenting from Eli?
Lesson 55
1 Samuel 2:27, 30 Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, This is what the Lord says: . . . . Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.
Eli had dishonored God by permitting his wicked sons to remain in the ministry, so God sent a prophet with a word of judgment. Eli’s sons would die on the same day (1 Samuel 2:33-34), and God would replace Eli with a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind (1 Samuel 2:35), said God.
This reminds us of Jesus Christ, the great high priest of all believers. Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrews 7:26-27), says Hebrews.
Ordinary ministers often fail due to their sinful natures. But we have a priest who can never fail because he is divine, and has no sinful nature. And because he’s offered a perfect sacrifice, he can bring us to God no matter what we’ve done. He can even save ministers who’ve failed at their calling.
1 Samuel 3:1 The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli.
We don’t know Samuel’s age at this time, but twelve years old is a reasonable guess. Eli had been his guardian and mentor for several years, and Samuel was now familiar with the sacrificial system.
1 Samuel 3:1b In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.
The work of the priests was being carried out, but there weren’t many prophets receiving God’s word. God was under no obligation to speak, of course, and could even withhold his speech as a form of punishment. The days are coming, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I will send a famine through the land—not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord (Amos 8:11), wrote Amos.
Hearing God’s word proclaimed to us is a privilege that God can take away due to our neglect. There are places, in fact, where the church used to flourish but no longer exists (Revelation 1:20, 2:5). Hearing God’s word is a privilege that should never be taken for granted.
1 Samuel 3:2-7 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, Here I am. And he ran to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me.
But Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me. My son, Eli said, I did not call; go back and lie down. Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
Samuel knew about God, and was doing God’s work, but didn’t know God for himself. He was on his way to becoming an unconverted minister who would die and go to hell. Eternal life doesn’t come from knowing about God, or even serving God, but from knowing God personally. Now this is eternal life [said Jesus]: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent (John 17:3).
A friend of mine attended seminary and was preparing for pastoral ministry. He studied Greek, Hebrew, systematic theology and church history. But a lady from his church told him that wasn’t enough—he had to know God for himself. By repenting of his sin, and turning to Christ with all his heart, he came to know God personally, and was able to tell others about him. Likewise, Samuel was about to meet the Lord.
1 Samuel 3:8 A third time the Lord called, Samuel! And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here I am; you called me.
Neither Samuel nor Eli were getting much sleep that night. This was the third time God called Samuel, and the third time Samuel mistook God’s voice for Eli’s. Finally, Eli understood it was God who was calling Samuel. So Eli told Samuel, Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening (1 Samuel 3:9).
1 Samuel 3:10-11 The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel said, Speak, for your servant is listening. And the Lord said to Samuel: See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle.
God told Samuel that he was about to punish Eli for not restraining his sons. The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering (1 Samuel 3:14), he said. This was a lot for a boy to bear, and Samuel was afraid to tell Eli. But Eli said, May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you. So Samuel told him everything (1 Samuel 3:17-18).
Whoever speaks for God must be willing to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth—not just the parts that people want to hear. False teachers often tell the truth about God’s love, but are silent about his wrath. But the first message God gave Samuel was a message of judgment on his beloved guardian, Eli. Samuel was reluctant but, even though he was young, he told Eli the cold hard truth.
1 Samuel 3:19 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground.
This probably means that whatever Samuel said came to pass, but it may also reflect the authority with which he spoke. Some preachers’ words fall to the ground before they reach the first row but, whenever Samuel spoke, everyone paid attention. This also reminds us of Jesus Christ who taught as one who had authority (Matthew 7:29). And all the people hung on his words (Luke 19:48), wrote Luke.
Reflection and Review
- Why is Jesus Christ a perfect high priest?
- What is the difference between knowing about God, and knowing God personally?
- Why is it hard to tell the whole truth about God?
Lesson 56
1 Samuel 4:1 Now the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines.
Israel brought the ark of the covenant into battle hoping it would help, but it didn’t help at all. Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died (1 Samuel 4:10-11). This was not what they were hoping for.
The ark of the covenant was the visible sign of God’s power and presence, so for it to be lost was nothing short of disastrous. It was like God himself had been captured. Eli was ninety-eight years old, and was so overwhelmed that he fell backward off his chair, broke his neck, and died (1 Samuel 4:18). His daughter-in-law went into labor but wouldn’t survive. She named the boy Ichabod, saying, The Glory has departed from Israel (1 Samuel 2:21).
The judgment of God had been coming for many years but came in a single day. Eli, Hophni and Phinehas had decades to repent but chose not to. They mistook God’s patience for his permission and brought disaster on themselves and on the people of God. Samuel learned up close that God should be taken seriously. Soon he’d provide the leadership God’s people needed so desperately.
1 Samuel 5:1 After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.
The ark of the covenant was a trophy of war, so the Philistines brought it into the temple of Dagon, their national deity. The following morning, however, the image of Dagon was lying facedown before the ark of God. They put it back in its place but the following morning the image was lying before the ark again. This time its hands and head were broken off and were lying on the threshold of the temple door. God was showing the Philistines that, even though they’d captured the ark, their god was no match for the God of Israel.
1 Samuel 5:6 The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity.
The Philistines may’ve hoped the ark would bring them blessing but just the opposite occurred. God afflicted them with tumors and rats. They weren’t ready to give up the ark, however, so they sent it to Gath, another Philistine town. But God afflicted them as well, so they sent the ark to Ekron. For obvious reasons, Ekron didn’t want it either.
Since the power and presence of God were identified with the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:22), it could be a source of blessing (2 Samuel 6:12). But the power and presence of God are only a blessing to those who are living in obedience. If we’re living in disobedience, God’s power and presence can make us sick, or even kill us (1 Corinthians 11:30). It’s only good to be close to God if our lives are pleasing to him.
1 Samuel 6:1-2 When the ark of the Lord had been in Philistine territory seven months, the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.
The Philistines had enough of the ark and wanted to send it back to Israel. In hope of receiving God’s favor, they included an offering of five gold tumors and five gold rats, to symbolize their plagues (1 Samuel 6:5).
They put the ark on a cart, pulled by two cows that had never been yoked, and also had calves. Cows that had never been yoked wouldn’t know how to pull a cart together and, even if they did, they’d want to return to their calves. Nevertheless, the cows proceeded to the Israelite town of Beth Shemesh. Then the Philistines knew their plagues were from the Lord, and weren’t merely a coincidence.
1 Samuel 6:13 Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they rejoiced at the sight.
And what a sight it was! Israel didn’t have to rescue the ark, ransom the ark, or negotiate its return. God himself brought it to them. The people chopped up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord (1 Samuel 6:14). Then they put the ark on top of a large rock as a memorial. God was back in town.
1 Samuel 6:19 But God struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy of them to death because they looked into the ark of the Lord.
The ark of God was normally kept in the tabernacle, so most people never caught a glimpse of it. Some of the people of Beth Shemesh used this opportunity to look where they had no business looking. Instead of honoring God, by averting their gaze, they peered into the ark and died. The fault was theirs alone since God had warned that unauthorized people who look at the holy things . . . will die (Numbers 4:20). Again we see that God doesn’t make idle threats.
We all want God on our terms, but God insists on his own terms. God wants us to be close to him, but not to become familiar. He’s not our buddy, pal or chum, but God Almighty (Genesis 17:1), worthy of respect. We must worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
- Why did God allow the ark to be captured?
- How did God show his power over Dagon?
- Is it safe to be near God?
Lesson 57
1 Samuel 7:5 Then Samuel said, Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.
God’s people had fallen into idolatry but, under Samuel’s leadership, they agreed to throw away their idols and serve the Lord. Samuel gathered the people at Mizpah for a time of spiritual renewal. They fasted, confessed their sins, and poured out water before the Lord (1 Samuel 7:6).
The ceremony of pouring out water wasn’t required by God, but may symbolize pouring out our hearts to him. [P]our out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord (Lamentations 2:19), wrote Jeremiah. And, pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge (Psalm 62:8), wrote David. Prayer is normally calm and quiet but, when the heart is full of emotion, it can be appropriate to pour it out to God.
1 Samuel 7:7 When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them.
Satan is never pleased when people are turning to God, so he interrupted the occasion by sending the Philistines to wage war on Israel. God’s people were afraid and asked Samuel to pray while they went out to fight. Samuel offered a sacrifice and called out to God in prayer. As the Philistines drew near, God sent thunder that was so loud it threw them into a panic, and they were defeated.
This recalls the words of Hannah, Samuel’s mother, when she gave him to the Lord. The Most High will thunder from heaven; the Lord will judge the ends of the earth (1 Samuel 2:10). Samuel’s mother may have died by then, but her words were being fulfilled.
1 Samuel 8:1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders.
This was a bad idea since Samuel’s sons weren’t morally qualified to lead. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice (2 Samuel 8:3). Samuel should’ve known not to appoint his corrupt sons, since Eli made the same mistake with terrible results. The desire to see our children succeed can be so strong that it overrules our better judgment.
Children of godly parents don’t always grow up to be godly adults. Samuel’s sons were willing to receive whatever advantage their father could provide, but weren’t willing to serve their father’s God. This pattern continues even today. A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to the mother who bore him (Proverbs 17:25), says Proverbs.
1 Samuel 8:4-5 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.
It wasn’t wrong for God's people to ask for a king, since that had been God’s plan from the beginning (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). The problem was that they wanted to be like all the other nations. Instead of relying on their heavenly king, through prayerful obedience, they wanted an earthly king with a powerful army. God reluctantly agreed and told Samuel to give them a king (1 Samuel 8:21).
The world still longs for someone who will bring lasting peace and prosperity. We need a king who will overcome evil and lead the world in righteousness. And he is coming soon (Revelation 22:20). [T]he government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), wrote Isaiah. He will rule in righteousness, and happy are those who serve him now.
*****
1 Samuel 9:1 There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish. [H]e had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.
Saul enjoyed the benefits of a good appearance and belonging to a prominent family. The donkeys were missing, one day, and Saul was sent to find them. Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys (1 Samuel 9:3), said his father. After a few days of searching, Saul wanted to return home. But the servant suggested seeing the prophet Samuel, who might be able to tell them where the donkeys were.
God told Samuel that Saul was on his way, and to anoint him ruler over Israel. As soon as they arrived, Samuel told Saul that the donkeys had been found, and that he was to rule God’s people. The following morning Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head saying, Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over his inheritance? (1 Samuel 10:1).
It’s surprising how little choice Saul seemed to have in the matter. He didn’t ask to be king, wasn’t trying to be king, and didn’t even want to be king (1 Samuel 10:22). But God chose to make him king and, suddenly, everything changed for Saul. Our lives belong to God, and we never know when he will call us to a sizable task. The best way to prepare for great things is to be faithful in the little things (Matthew 25:21).
1 Samuel 10:9 As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart.
Changing hearts is the work of the Holy Spirit. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws (Ezekiel 36:26-27), wrote Ezekiel. Nothing was more important to Saul’s success than the help of the Holy Spirit.
Likewise, God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5), wrote Paul. The Spirit empowers us to live for Christ and to carry out his work (1 Corinthians 12:7). Apart from the Spirit, in fact, we don’t even belong to Christ (Romans 8:9). But your Father in heaven [will] give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13), said Jesus. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ should rely on the Holy Spirit every single day.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God want us to pour out our hearts to him?
- Why does the world need a righteous king?
- Why did God change Saul’s heart?
Lesson 58
1 Samuel 11:1 Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh Gilead.
This was Saul’s first test of leadership and it would be decisive. His government wasn’t established yet, and he was plowing his field when he heard the news. Nahash the Ammonite was planning to gouge out the right eye of everyone who lived in Jabesh Gilead, even if they surrendered.
Immediately the Spirit of God came on Saul and he marshaled an army. [T]hey broke into the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together (1 Samuel 11:11).
Saul’s reign was off to a great start. This victory established him as king in the hearts of God’s people. He was thirty years old, and would lead Israel for the next forty-two years (1 Samuel 13:1). With God’s help, Saul could do great things for the nation.
*****
1 Samuel 13:5 The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore.
By this time Saul had been king for many years, and was facing a serious challenge. God had given the land to Israel, but the Philistines wouldn’t give it up, and they often had the advantage. This challenge was so great that Saul’s army was quaking with fear (1 Samuel 13:7), and many were deserting.
The prophet Samuel had instructed Saul to wait for his arrival, so he could offer a sacrifice before the battle. Since the prophet spoke for God, this was God’s command. But Samuel didn’t arrive on time and Saul felt compelled to act. Perhaps the prophet was sick, or was delayed for some other reason. If he waited any longer, Saul thought he’d lose the battle. So he offered the sacrifice himself.
1 Samuel 13:10-11 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him. What have you done? asked Samuel.
Saul explained his actions but Samuel wasn’t pleased. You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure (1 Samuel 13:13-14), he said.
At first reading, the consequences seem disproportionate to Saul’s failure. Saul was under pressure to act because the prophet was late. There wouldn’t have been a problem if Samuel had simply arrived on time. It was because of Samuel’s delay that Saul took action. And, for this, he wouldn’t have a dynasty. He wouldn’t be deposed, but his sons wouldn’t rule after him.
This was a test of Saul’s faith, and Saul failed the test. The word of the prophet was the word of God to Saul, and the word of God was wait. If Saul had waited on God, his future would’ve been different.
Taking action ahead of God is always counterproductive. [God] acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4), wrote Isaiah. We like to take matters into our own hands but, sometimes, God wants us to wait. Whoever waits on God never waits too long.
*****
1 Samuel 14:1 One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his young armor-bearer, Come, let’s go over to the Philistine outpost.
By this time, Saul’s son Jonathan was a grown man, and an excellent warrior. He was also a man of faith. Unafraid of battle, he went with his armor-bearer into enemy territory to see what could be done. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few (1 Samuel 14:6), he said. Jonathan’s confidence wasn’t in himself, but in the Lord. Even if they were outnumbered, God could give them victory.
1 Samuel 14:7 Do all that you have in mind, his armor-bearer said. Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.
This would’ve been a great encouragement to Jonathan. We are mutually encouraged by each other’s faith (Romans 1:12), wrote Paul. Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves (Ecclesiastes 4:12), wrote Solomon. And if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven (Matthew 18:19), said Jesus. Two people with God are a mighty force.
The odds against them were great, however, so Jonathan and his armor-bearer sought further assurance. They planned to reveal themselves to the Philistines and if they said Come up to us, that would be a sign that God would give them victory. That’s what happened, and they defeated twenty enemy soldiers.
1 Samuel 14:15 Then panic struck the whole army . . . and the ground shook. It was a panic sent by God.
The Philistine army sensed that God was against them and they began to flee. Saul saw what was happening and led his army into battle. With God’s help, they thoroughly defeated the Philistines.
None of this would’ve happened apart from the courageous faith of Jonathan and his armor-bearer. Mighty works of God often start with just one or two people. It’s not the number that matters, but the courage and faith of those involved. Even one person with God makes a majority.
1 Samuel 14:24 Now the Israelites were in distress that day.
They should’ve been rejoicing, because of the victory, but they were in distress because Saul had bound them with an oath. Cursed be anyone who eats food before evening comes, before I have avenged myself on my enemies (1 Samuel 14:24), he said.
In an effort to get God’s support, Saul required his men to fast throughout the day. But God hadn’t commanded it, nor was it wise. Fighting is hard work, and even harder on an empty stomach. By commanding a fast, Saul put his soldiers at a serious disadvantage. His lack of good judgment was becoming a liability.
Making matters worse, Jonathan didn’t hear his father’s command. So when he found some honey in the forest, he ate it. When his father learned of this, he determined to have Jonathan killed because of the oath. Thankfully, the soldiers came to Jonathan’s defense, and Saul backed down. But Saul’s reputation for leadership was hurt. The future was no longer bright for him.
Reflection and Review
- Do you tend to act quickly or wait too long?
- Who has encouraged your faith the most?
- Why was Saul beginning to fail?
Lesson 59
1 Samuel 15:1 Samuel said to Saul, I am the one the Lord sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the Lord.
Kings of other nations were free to do as they pleased since they were the highest authority. But God was the highest authority in Israel, and the king was to be his servant. Since the prophet Samuel spoke for God, he had authority over King Saul. Saul was to take his orders from God, through the prophet Samuel.
1 Samuel 15:3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.
The Amalekites were the sworn enemies of God’s people, and the time had come for their destruction. This was a perfect opportunity for Saul to recover from his failure, since he came under God’s disfavor just two chapters earlier. By fully obeying the Lord’s command, he could show that he wanted nothing more than to please the Lord. This could be a turning point in the right direction.
1 Samuel 15:7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt.
The attack was very successful but, instead of total destruction, Saul spared the Amalekite king and all the best livestock. Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: I regret that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions (1 Samuel 15:10-11).
Saul was guilty of incomplete obedience. He did some of what God commanded, even most of what God commanded, but not all of what God commanded. This was a serious problem.
Some people think God is pleased with them because they keep a few of his commands. Others think God is pleased with them because they keep most of his commands. But if you’re brought into court for stealing, it won’t matter if you’ve never committed murder. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it (James 2:10), wrote James. Partial obedience is a violation of God’s law and makes us guilty in his sight.
1 Samuel 15:12 Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor.
Instead of giving glory to God, Saul took the glory for himself, by setting up a monument in his own honor. This is a key distinction between those who belong to God, and those who don’t. Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory (Psalm 115:1), wrote the Psalmist. By setting up a monument to himself, Saul showed that he was more committed to his own glory than to God’s glory.
1 Samuel 15:13-14 When Samuel reached him, Saul said, The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions. But Samuel said, What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?
Saul tried to convince Samuel that he had obeyed God, and that the livestock were for sacrifice. But Samuel replied: Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king (1 Samuel 15:22-23).
These are some of the strongest words in the Bible, and they strike at one of our deepest fears: rejection by God. But Saul rejected God before God rejected Saul. By rejecting God’s word, Saul rejected God himself. How we relate to God’s word is how we relate to God.
Some are bold in their rejection of God’s word, while others are more subtle. Many remain ignorant so they won’t feel obligated to keep God’s word at every point. But their willing ignorance proves they don’t love God with all their hearts. It’s clear from the Bible that the more we love the Lord, the more we’ll love his word.
Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long (Psalm 119:97). I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold (Psalm 119:127). And I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly (Psalm 119:167), wrote the Psalmist. Likewise, Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me (John 14:21), said Jesus. We shouldn’t claim to love God unless we love and obey his word.
1 Samuel 15:24 I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them.
To help explain his disobedience, Saul admitted fearing his own men. They fought valiantly and wanted to keep some of the livestock for themselves. Saul didn’t want to seem unreasonable, so he allowed his men to do what God had forbidden. But any leader of God’s people must be more afraid of God than of God’s people. Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe (Proverbs 29:25), says Proverbs. Saul wanted his men’s approval more than he wanted God’s approval. This made him unqualified to lead the people of God.
1 Samuel 15:30 Saul replied, I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.
Since it was no longer possible to deny his guilt, Saul confessed with the hope of regaining Samuel’s favor. If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins (1 John 1:9), wrote John. But Saul was less concerned about God’s forgiveness than Samuel’s support. If word spread that Samuel disapproved of Saul, Saul would lose much of his authority. So he begged Samuel to publicly worship God with him. And, for the good of the nation, Samuel agreed.
1 Samuel 15:32 Then Samuel said, Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites.
This was the king Saul was commanded to kill, but didn’t. Since he failed to carry out the Lord’s command, Samuel would do it for him. As your sword has made women childless, so will your mother be childless (1 Samuel 15:33), he said. Then he killed the Amalekite king in the presence of the Lord.
The Old Testament is filled with blood, much of it spilt at God’s command. The New Testament seems better, at first, until we get near the end. There we learn that many will be trampled in the winepress of God’s wrath until the blood flows as high as the horses’ bridles (Revelation 14:19-20), wrote John.
This would be bad enough if the blood only flowed for a mile, or two, but it’ll flow for one hundred eighty miles. The God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are one and the same. He’s not to be taken lightly.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Saul build a monument to himself?
- Why do some believers avoid God’s word?
- Should we think of Jesus gentle or violent?
Lesson 60
1 Samuel 16:1 The Lord said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel?
Samuel was troubled by Saul’s failure and grieved for some time. Then God told him to go Bethlehem to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the future king of Israel. When Samuel saw the first son he thought, Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord. But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:6-7).
In a world that prizes beauty, the most attractive are often favored. This is why people diet, exercise and wear expensive clothing. If we want people’s approval we’ll spend time improving our appearance. But if we want God’s approval we’ll spend time improving our heart. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.
And not every heart is pure in God’s sight. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly (Mark 7:21-22), said Jesus.
Some people think their hearts are good by nature, and it’s only their bodies that lead them astray. But Jesus taught that corruption begins in the heart. If we want to please God, we must banish evil from our hearts, and dwell on that which is good. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God (Matthew 5:8), said Jesus.
1 Samuel 16:10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, The Lord has not chosen these.
Then Jesse called for his youngest son, David, who was watching the sheep. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, Rise and anoint him; this is the one (1 Samuel 16:12). Samuel anointed David in the presence of his brothers, and the Holy Spirit came powerfully upon him.
David had a fine appearance but, more importantly, he had a heart for God. Twice the Bible describes him as a man after [God’s] own heart (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). This is not said of anyone else, and distinguished David above others. It could be argued, in fact, that the most important qualification for being king was the desire to please God.
This is one reason that Jesus is qualified to be king of the world. David was great, but he wasn’t without sin (Psalm 51:5). And If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8), wrote John.
There’s only one person who ever obeyed God perfectly. [F]or I seek not to please myself but him who sent me (John 5:30), said Jesus. And, I always do what pleases him (John 8:29), said Jesus again. We should imagine a perfect king ruling the world forever, because that’s what the future holds (Luke 1:33).
1 Samuel 16:14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.
This is a fascinating insight into the spiritual realm. Saul had enjoyed the help of God’s Spirit, and was greatly empowered to lead the nation. But, due to chronic disobedience, the Holy Spirit departed from Saul and was replaced by an evil spirit.
We should be careful about drawing conclusions from this about the Christian life. But we should also be careful to not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom [we] were sealed for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30), wrote Paul.
We should, Instead, be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), and bear the fruit of the Spirit [which] is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), wrote Paul. The spiritual realm is just as real as the physical realm, and we shouldn’t give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:27).
1 Samuel 16:15-16 Saul’s attendants said to him, See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.
Saul didn’t know that David was anointed the future king of Israel, so when one of Saul’s servants recommended David for the job of musician, Saul didn’t object. Whenever the evil spirit came on Saul, David played his instrument, and the evil spirit would leave him alone (1 Samuel 16:23). This is also insightful, and can be helpful today.
Everyone is troubled by the devil sometimes (Matthew 4:1-11) and, whenever this happens, we can be helped by listening to godly music, or by singing it. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19), wrote Paul. Godly music can glorify the Lord and put the devil to flight.
Reflection and Review
- Is the human heart good or evil?
- Why did Jesus have a good heart?
- Should Christians be concerned about losing the Holy Spirit?
Lesson 61
1 Samuel 17:1 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Sokoh in Judah.
This begins the account of David and Goliath, one of the most celebrated stories in literature. The Israelites were gathered in the Valley of Elah to fight the Philistines. They occupied one hill, the Philistines another, and the valley stretched between them. The stakes were high and the Philistines had an advantage: A champion named Goliath (1 Samuel 17:4).
He was over nine and a half feet tall, wore a suit of armor, and had a personal shield bearer. Humanly speaking, Goliath seemed invincible. For the next forty days, morning and evening, he challenged the Israelite army.
Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects (1 Samuel 17:8-9). But there wasn’t a soldier in Israel who dared to fight Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of . . . Jesse, who was from Bethlehem.
David was watching his father’s sheep in Bethlehem, about fifteen miles away. Three of his brothers were in the army, and David was sent by his father to bring his brothers supplies. As he was talking with them, Goliath . . . stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance (1 Samuel 17:23). David was appalled by this. Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? (1 Samuel 17:26), he asked.
David knew that Goliath had every advantage but one: he wasn’t circumcised. Circumcision was the mark of the covenant and came with certain promises. [T]he Lord your God himself will fight for you (Deuteronomy 3:22). And, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you (Exodus 23:22). David believed the promises of God and wasn’t afraid of Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
When David stood before Saul he said, Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him. Saul replied, You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth (1 Samuel 17:32-33). We don’t know David’s age at the time but, since Israelite men were able to serve in the army at age twenty (Numbers 1:3), he was likely still in his teens.
But David had experience. When a lion went after a sheep from his flock, David killed the lion and rescued the sheep. A bear did the same thing, and David killed the bear. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine (1 Samuel 17:37), he said.
David was courageous in the face of danger because he recalled God’s help in the past. If you can remember a time God helped you in the past, it can give you courage in the future. Has God taken care of you financially? He can do it again. Has God taken care of you physically? He can do it again. Has God taken care of you spiritually? He can do it again. The God who helped you in the past, will help you to the end.
1 Samuel 17:40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
No one was more surprised than Goliath to see his opponent. He expected a warrior but encountered a boy not even dressed for battle. Come here, he said, and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals! (1 Samuel 17:44). His words were meant to intimidate, but David had words for Goliath.
You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands (1 Samuel 17:45-47).
This is one of the best battle speeches ever recorded, and shows the remarkable faith that David had in God. He wasn’t merely hoping that God would save him; he was absolutely certain that God would save him. This is like saving faith in Jesus Christ. [It] is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8), wrote Paul. Sometimes faith is little more than hopefulness but, other times, it can be remarkably confident.
1 Samuel 17:48-51 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him. David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. The Philistine army ran for their lives and many were cut down. It was a great day for Israel.
It’s not unusual for those who read this story to identify with David. But we are not David. We are like the trembling Israelites, defenseless before a powerful enemy. We need someone like David who can rescue us from the power of death. That person is David’s great-great-grandson, Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:17). Through his life, death and resurrection, he has defeated death and given us eternal life. Through the victory of Jesus Christ, we can battle the forces of darkness, knowing their doom is sure.
Reflection and Review
- Why wasn’t David afraid of Goliath?
- How does this story remind us of Christ?
- Does this story increase your faith?
Lesson 62
1 Samuel 18:1 Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself.
Jonathan was Saul’s son and the natural heir to his father’s throne. He could’ve seen David as a rival, but their mutual respect led to one of the greatest friendships in the Bible. In a private ceremony, Jonathan gave David his sword, implying he accepted David’s right to be king. Unlike his father, Jonathan was willing to accept the role God had for him, instead of grasping for more.
This is an important lesson for everyone. A person can receive only what is given them from heaven (John 3:27), said John the Baptist. Many have overreached and hurt themselves in the process. It’s better and wiser to submit to God’s will, and do our best at the role he has for us. It isn’t wrong to become all that we can be for God, but God has a limit for everyone. And godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6), wrote Paul.
1 Samuel 18:5 Whatever mission Saul sent him on, David was so successful that Saul gave him a high rank in the army.
David was still a young man, but he was rising quickly in Saul’s army. He was so successful, in fact, that women were heard singing, Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands (1 Samuel 18:7). This made Saul so jealous that he wanted David dead. He even threw his spear at him, hoping to pin David to the wall (1 Samuel 18:11).
Then Saul offered his daughter in marriage to David, for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins (1 Samuel 18:25). Saul hoped David would die in battle, but David returned with two hundred Philistine foreskins, and married into the royal family (1 Samuel 18:27). When Saul saw that God was with David, he was even more determined to kill him.
In one of the strangest stories in the Bible, Saul went looking for David and found him with the prophet Samuel. Saul wanted to kill David, but the Spirit of God came on Saul, and he too prophesied in Samuel’s presence. He lay naked all that day and all that night. This is why people say, Is Saul also among the prophets? (1 Samuel 19:24).
It’s difficult to know what was happening, but it seems that Saul was so overcome by God’s Spirit, that he couldn’t harm David. David must’ve been amazed to see the one who wanted to kill him lying on the ground prophesying. There’s no limit to what the Spirit of God can do, but a spiritual experience is not the same as saving faith.
Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers! (Matthew 7:22-23), said Jesus. The best indication of saving faith isn’t spiritual experience, but obedience to the one who saves (Matthew 7:21).
1 Samuel 20:4 Jonathan said to David, Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do for you.
David was still suspicious of Saul, so he went to Jonathan for help. Jonathan agreed to warn David if he learned that his father was still against him. This became clear soon enough.
You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have sided with [David] to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you? As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me, for he must die! Why should he be put to death? What has he done? Jonathan asked his father. But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him (1 Samuel 20:30-33).
Saul’s rebellion was affecting his mental health. God is the rational center of the universe, so our best hope for a sound mind is to agree with God about everything. Whenever we disagree with God we’re being irrational. This leads to instability and creates a miserable environment for everyone around us.
Saul was the most powerful person in Israel, and probably the wealthiest. We might think his power and wealth would make him happy but such was not the case. The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous (Proverbs 3:33), says Proverbs.
Beautiful homes are often filled with miserable people because of God’s curse. The people inside might have everything the world has to offer, but they can’t find happiness apart from God. Other homes are humble by comparison, but may be filled with joy because of God’s blessing. It’s not the size of the house that matters, but the one who is present to bless or curse.
Reflection and Review
- Why was Jonathan willing to yield his throne to David?
- What can we learn from Saul’s encounter with God’s Spirit?
- Why was Saul becoming unstable?
Lesson 63
1 Samuel 21:1 David went to Nob, to Ahimelek the priest.
Ahimelek gave David some bread from the tabernacle, as well as the sword of Goliath. David didn’t tell him that he was running from Saul, most likely because he didn’t want to make Ahimelek guilty of helping someone the king opposed.
1 Samuel 21:10 That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.
After leaving Ahimelek, David went to the Philistine town of Gath. If he was identified by the Philistines he’d probably be killed, so he tried to blend in as much as possible. When he was recognized in the presence of the king, David pretended to be insane, and let saliva run down his beard. The king was repulsed, and let David leave, assuming he’d lost his mind.
This wasn’t David’s finest hour but he thought it was better to lose his dignity than his life. We may never have to make that choice but, in a Christ-rejecting world, we may be scorned. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world (1 Corinthians 4:12), wrote Paul. Following Christ will often mean a loss of the world’s respect.
1 Samuel 22:1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.
This became his home for awhile, and All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander (1 Samuel 22:2). David was being hunted by Saul, but now had a military base of about four hundred men (1 Samuel 22:2).
With enough time David’s kingdom would become a superpower, but we ought to notice how it began—in a cave with four hundred losers. They were in distress or in debt or discontented, but they were also the ones God would use to build his glorious kingdom.
This is like the church. God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are (1 Corinthians 1:27-29), wrote Paul.
Those who gather around Jesus Christ are like those who gathered around David, hoping for something better. And, like them, we won’t be disappointed. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32), said Jesus. God takes those the world rejects and gives them his glorious kingdom.
1 Samuel 22:3 From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?
When Samuel anointed David the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 16), his parents may’ve hoped their lives would soon improve. But such was not the case. When David’s life was threatened by Saul, their lives were also at risk. So David took them to another country where they would be safe.
Likewise, Mary and Joseph took Jesus to a country where he would be safe. King Herod wanted to kill him, so the family fled to Egypt (Matthew 2:13). The kings of this world often oppose the kingdom of God, but will not overcome it. The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever (Revelation 11:15), wrote John. Victory comes to the people of God, but not without resistance.
*****
1 Samuel 22:6 Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side.
Saul and his men were hunting for David, and Saul was growing paranoid. When he learned that David had been to Nob, he summoned the high priest, Ahimelek, along with all the priests of Nob. Then he accused Ahimelek of conspiracy and commanded his soldiers to kill all the priests—eighty-five in all.
But his soldiers wouldn’t kill the priests so Saul commanded Doeg, the Edomite, to perform the task. This he did singlehandedly. Then Doeg went to the town of Nob where he killed every man, woman and child. Like the paranoid king he served, there was no evil he wouldn’t do.
With Doeg in mind, David wrote the fifty-second Psalm. Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin: He will snatch you up and pluck you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living (Psalm 52:5). People get away with terrible crimes in this life, but will face God’s judgment in the next.
1 Samuel 22:20 But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David.
This is the first mention of Abiathar, and he would serve as priest during David’s reign. The prophet Gad also joined David (1 Samuel 22:5), and he would serve as prophet during David’s reign. Prophet, priest and king were brought together by God, to provide appropriate leadership for the kingdom of God.
The offices of prophet, priest and king were normally kept separate to maintain a balance of power. Kings were not allowed to be priests, and were to obey God’s word given through the prophets. But Jesus Christ is prophet, priest and king, all in one person. No balance of power is needed because Jesus is divine and without a sinful nature.
As the ultimate prophet, Jesus spoke the word of God so clearly that he is called the Word (John 1:1). As our great high priest he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12). And On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16), wrote John. The offices of prophet, priest and king foreshadow Jesus Christ, the ultimate prophet, priest and king. His kingdom will never end.
Reflection and Review
- What kind of people does God often use to build his glorious kingdom?
- What can we learn from Doeg the Edomite?
- How does Jesus fulfill the offices of prophet, priest and king?
Lesson 64
1 Samuel 24:2 Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David.
David didn’t seem to have a chance. The king of Israel considered him public enemy number one, and was using his army to track him down. David often hid in caves, but God was his ultimate refuge. The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed (Psalm 9:9). Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge (Psalm 16:1). [M]y God is my rock, in whom I take refuge (Psalm 18:2), he wrote. When we’re threatened on every side, God alone can keep us safe.
A soldier was running for his life and ducked inside a cave with a very small mouth. Then he watched a spider spin its web across it. Minutes later the enemy arrived but, seeing the web, concluded no one was in there. Later the soldier wrote, With God a spider’s web is like a wall, and without God a wall is like a spider’s web.
1 Samuel 24:3 [Saul] came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself.
Saul didn’t know that David and his men were hiding in the back of the cave. It seemed like God had brought this about, so David could kill the one who was trying to kill him. But David refused to kill Saul because he respected Saul’s authority. The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord (1 Samuel 24:6), he said.
Since God made Saul the king of Israel, David was determined to submit to his authority until God chose to remove him. This same attitude was taught by the Apostle Paul. Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established (Romans 13:1), he wrote. In a world that disrespects authority, Christians should obey their authorities, as though they were appointed by God.
1 Samuel 24:4 Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
As Saul was relieving himself, David snuck up behind him, and cut off a piece of his clothing. After Saul left the cave, David called out to him saying, Why do you listen when men say, David is bent on harming you? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands (1 Samuel 24:9-10).
Then he showed Saul the piece of his robe, and Saul realized that David could’ve killed him. He was so overcome that he wept aloud and said, You are more righteous than I . . . . You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly . . . . I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands (1 Samuel 24:17-21).
But tears of remorse and regret are not always tears of repentance. Saul appeared to be repentant, but his future actions would show that he wasn’t. Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of direction. If Saul had truly repented, he would’ve given his throne to David, and David would have given him a place of honor. That’s how it works for those who believe in Jesus Christ. We give him the throne of our hearts, and he gives us a place of honor in his glorious kingdom. Who could wish for anything more?
*****
1 Samuel 25:2 A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel.
The man’s name was Nabal and he’s described as surly and mean. Not everyone is equally nice, but some are truly awful. For whatever reason, they’ve decided to treat others badly. This is the opposite of Christianity since Jesus commands us to love everyone, even our enemies (Matthew 5:44). And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone (2 Timothy 2:24), wrote Paul. But Nabal wasn’t a servant of God. He was surely and mean.
1 Samuel 25:4 While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.
Nabal had thousands of sheep and their wool was worth a fortune. Since David and his men had protected both the sheep and their shepherds, they had a right to share in Nabal’s abundance. So David sent some of his men to ask for a portion. But, true to character, Nabal treated them badly. Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered . . . and give it to men coming from who knows where? (1 Samuel 25:11), he said.
Nabal was surly and mean because of his love for money--a root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul. Those who love money often treat others badly, in order to have more money. Nabal was well served by David and his men but, instead of sharing his wealth, he sent them away empty-handed. This wouldn’t end well for Nabal.
Reflection and Review
- How is God like a refuge for his people?
- How should Christians view those who are in authority?
- What is the difference between regret and repentance?
Lesson 65
1 Samuel 25:12-13 David’s men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported every word. David said to his men, Each of you strap on your sword!
Nabal finally offended the wrong person. David was the future king of Israel and now had an army of six hundred men (1 Samuel 25:13). He has paid me back evil for good. May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him! (1 Samuel 25:21-22), said David.
Fearing disaster, one of Nabal’s servants informed his wife. Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household (1 Samuel 25:17), he said. So Nabal’s wife took an abundance of food, loaded it on donkeys, and went out to meet David.
1 Samuel 25:23-25 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. She fell at his feet and said: Pardon your servant, my lord, and let me speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. Please pay no attention, my lord, to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name—his name means Fool, and folly goes with him.
Nabal was a fool in the eyes of others, but also in the eyes of God. [F]ools despise wisdom and instruction (Proverbs 1:7). [T]he mouth of a fool invites ruin (Proverbs 10:4). [F]ools detest turning from evil (Proverbs 13:19). And Fools mock at making amends (Proverbs 14:9), says Proverbs.
But Nabal’s wife was just the opposite. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman (1 Samuel 25:3). She humbled herself before David, turned away his wrath, and interceded for her husband. Her timely intervention saved the lives of many.
This reminds of Jesus Christ who is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us (Romans 8:34), wrote Paul. Like Nabal, we often play the fool and call down the wrath of God. Thankfully, we have a Savior who turns away the wrath of God, and intercedes on our behalf. Without the intercession of Christ, we’d certainly perish for the foolish things we’ve done.
1 Samuel 25:32-33 David said to Abigail, Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands.
David was close to making a big mistake. He was rightly offended by Nabal’s treatment, but his retaliation would’ve been worse than the offense. Abigail was sent by God to keep David from an action that would’ve brought guilt, regret and damage to his reputation.
God overruled David’s foolish plans and, by his grace, overrules ours sometimes. He might send someone like Abigail, or change our mind himself. God often protects us from the harm we’d do to others, as well as to ourselves.
1 Samuel 25:36 When Abigail went to Nabal, he was in the house holding a banquet like that of a king. He was in high spirits and very drunk.
This was not the right time for Abigail to tell her husband what happened, so she waited until morning. When Nabal learned the danger he was in, and the harm he nearly brought on his family, his heart failed him and he became like a stone (1 Samuel 25:37). Nabal probably had a heart attack and, about ten days later, he died.
1 Samuel 25:39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Praise be to the Lord, who has upheld my cause against Nabal for treating me with contempt.
Nabal lived as a fool but also died as one. He lingered ten days without any sign of repentance. He could’ve turned from his wicked ways and received eternal life. But after more than a week there was no sign of change. Finally, the Lord struck Nabal and he died (1 Samuel 25:38).
Nabal got what he deserved but God would rather show mercy. Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? (Ezekiel 18:23). God doesn’t enjoy killing the wicked but his justice may demand it.
An early death may even be a form of God’s mercy. The punishment for eighty years of sin will likely be less than for twenty years of sin (Revelation 20:11-12). The worst thing that can happen to those who refuse to repent is to live a long life. So prepare to meet your God (Amos 4:12), wrote Amos.
1 Samuel 25:39b Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife.
By marrying Nabal’s widow, David acquired his wealth. Everything Nabal worked for, and everything he acquired, now belonged to someone who loved God. [A] sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous (Proverbs 13:22), says Proverbs. If we don’t manage our money for God, he can give it to someone else.
Reflection and Review
- How is the intercession of Abigail like the intercession of Christ?
- How does God keep us from making big mistakes?
- Why was Nabal foolish?
Lesson 66
1 Samuel 26:2 Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David.
The greatest threat to Saul wasn’t David, but Saul himself. Since God determined he shouldn’t be king (1 Samuel 15:23), Saul should’ve arranged a smooth transition to the king of God’s choice. By resolving to keep his position, regardless of God’s will, Saul became an increasingly tragic figure. This is true for all who serve in the kingdom of God.
The kingdom belongs to Jesus Christ, not to anyone else. Pastors, teachers, musicians, custodians and ushers all serve at the discretion of Jesus Christ, and are never promised a permanent position. Opposition doesn’t mean a person should resign, but whoever serves in any position should be willing to resign whenever they believe it’s God’s will.
1 Samuel 26:3 Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah.
When David learned that Saul and his army were camping nearby, he waited until it was dark. Then he went, with one of his men, into the enemy camp. So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. . . . Abishai said to David, Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice (1 Samuel 26:7-8).
Abishai wanted to kill Saul but, once again, David wanted to prove his loyalty. He wanted to show Saul that he could take his life if he wanted to, but he really didn’t want to. [T]he Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish (1 Samuel 26:10), said David.
There’s a time to act, and a time to wait, and wisdom knows the difference. It’d take over ten years from the time David was anointed king until he actually became king. But David was willing to wait on God no matter how long it took. One of the greatest tests of faith is waiting for God to act. This was a test of David’s faith and, unlike Saul, David passed.
1 Samuel 26:12 So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.
Walking into a camp of three thousand enemy soldiers appears to be foolish. But David and Abishai were willing to do this because they believed that God was with them. Common sense is a gift from God which he normally wants us to use. But there are also times for taking a risk because we believe that God is with us. Taking chances for God (and being willing to fail) are part of the life of faith.
1 Samuel 26:13 Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the hill some distance away.
From there, David called out to the commander of Saul’s army. Why didn’t you guard your lord the king? . . . As surely as the Lord lives, you and your men must die, because you did not guard your master, the Lord’s anointed (1 Samuel 26:15-16), he said.
Then David called attention to the missing spear and water jug. This was proof that he was there and could’ve killed Saul if he wanted to. Once again we can imagine Saul’s alarm when he learned that his life had been spared by the man he was trying to kill.
Wise people learn from their mistakes and become a little wiser. Fools repeat their mistakes and become more foolish still. The first time David spared his life, Saul should’ve learned that David was not a threat to him. But, the victim of his own paranoia, Saul repeated his mistake and showed himself a royal fool. God knows we all make mistakes. May God help us not to repeat them.
1 Samuel 26:17 Saul recognized David’s voice and said, Is that your voice, David my son? David replied, Yes it is, my lord the king.
This is the final conversation between David and Saul. Saul appeared to repent and acknowledged David as the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 26:25). But Saul couldn’t be trusted and David knew it. To be in Saul’s company was to risk his life, and the lives of his men. The only wise course was to separate and they never spoke again. Sometimes, we can’t just get along.
*****
1 Samuel 27:1 David thought to himself, One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul. The best thing I can do is to escape to the land of the Philistines.
The relentless stress of being hunted by Saul compelled David to form an apparent alliance with Israel’s enemy, the Philistines. Achish, king of Gath, gave David and his six hundred men the town of Ziklag. With David on his side, Achish thought he’d have less to fear from the nation of Israel.
1 Samuel 27:8 Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites.
These were Israel’s enemies, but David led Achish to believe that he was attacking God’s people in Judah. To be sure he wasn’t found out, David did not leave a man or woman alive (1 Samuel 27:9). David was defeating God’s enemies and protecting himself from being discovered.
1 Samuel 27:12 Achish trusted David and said to himself, He has become so obnoxious to his people, the Israelites, that he will be my servant for life.
David deceived Achish and survived in Philistine territory for over a year (1 Samuel 15:7). Then he was made king of God’s people and defeated the Philistines (1 Chronicles 18:1). David’s double-life was over and he could be who he really was.
It’s not clear if David’s double-life met with God’s approval, but he wasn’t the last believer to conceal his true identity. Joseph [of Arimathea] was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders (John 19:38), wrote John. This is never recommended (Matthew 10:33), but people often do what they must in order to stay alive. We should pray for Christians who are facing persecution, and use the freedom we enjoy to advance the kingdom of God.
Reflection and Review
- When should God’s servants be willing to resign?
- Was it foolish for David to walk into Saul’s camp?
- How should Christians evangelize where Christianity is illegal?
Lesson 67
1 Samuel 28:4 The Philistines assembled and came and set up camp at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and set up camp at Gilboa.
Saul was a seasoned warrior but this battle gave him pause. When [he] saw the Philistine army, he was afraid; terror filled his heart (1 Samuel 28:5). The text is not explicit but, apparently, Israel was outnumbered. This didn’t mean certain defeat, of course. Saul’s son Jonathan proved that Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few (1 Samuel 14:6). For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory (Deuteronomy 20:4), wrote Moses.
But God’s help wasn’t guaranteed, and Saul wasn’t living for God. Because he rejected the word of the Lord, God had rejected him as king (1 Samuel 15:23). Instead of being filled with faith, therefore, Saul was stricken with fear--terror filled his heart.
Obedience isn’t always easy, but it allows us to face life fearlessly, knowing that nothing can happen to us apart from the will of our heavenly Father (Luke 12:4-7). Those who refuse to walk with God may prosper for a time, but are left to themselves when disaster strikes. I will show them my back and not my face in the day of their disaster (Jeremiah 18:17), said God.
1 Samuel 28:6 [Saul] inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him.
For many years Saul did as he pleased but, now that he was desperate, he inquired of the Lord. He didn’t want to live for God; he only wanted God’s help. But God isn’t obligated to answer the prayers of those who don’t want to live for him so, this time, the Lord did not answer him.
This was a very dark time for Saul but it wasn’t too late for him. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:23), says God. If Saul would’ve sought God with all his heart, he would’ve found the God he was looking for. But that wasn’t Saul’s way so, instead, he turned to a spiritist.
1 Samuel 28:7 Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.
Since God wasn’t answering Saul, he decided to call on the prophet Samuel instead. But Samuel was dead (1 Samuel 25:1), so Saul looked for a medium who might be able to call him up. Once again, Saul revealed his true spiritual condition.
Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists (Leviticus 19:31). I will set my face against anyone who turns to mediums and spiritists (Leviticus 20:6), said God. In better days Saul had expelled spiritists from the land but now he was seeking one himself.
1 Samuel 28:7b There is one in Endor, they said.
Endor was a two-hour walk and the day had already passed. But Saul was convinced that Samuel could tell him what to do. So he went with two of his men and found the woman they were looking for. Whom shall I bring up for you? Bring up Samuel, he said.
This is Saul at his lowest. Years earlier God changed his heart and made him a new person (1 Samuel 10:9). When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying . . . they asked each other . . . . Is Saul also among the prophets? (1 Samuel 10:11). But starting well is no guarantee of finishing well, and Saul was finishing badly. He used to be among the prophets, but now he was consulting a spiritist.
1 Samuel 28:12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!
The woman was afraid because Saul had expelled the spiritists and could’ve had her killed. But time had changed the king and the spiritist was now his friend. Don’t be afraid. What do you see? The woman said, I see a ghostly figure coming up out of the earth. What does he look like? he asked. An old man wearing a robe is coming up, she said. Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground (1 Samuel 28:13-14).
The Bible condemns calling up the dead, but doesn’t deny the possibility. Demons might also impersonate the dead but, in this case, God allowed Samuel to appear.
Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? . . . The Lord will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines (1 Samuel 28:16-19), said Samuel. Saul’s greatest fear was confirmed. He was a dead man walking.
1 Samuel 28:24-25 The woman had a fattened calf at the house, which she butchered at once. She took some flour, kneaded it and baked bread without yeast. Then she set it before Saul and his men, and they ate. That same night they got up and left.
It must’ve been a lonely walk back to camp as they thought about the battle. The fighting grew fierce and Saul was critically wounded. Instead of suffering torture at the hands of his enemies, Saul fell on his sword and died. His sons also died, and the army suffered heavy losses. The Philistines cut off Saul’s head, hung up his body, and put his armor in a pagan temple (1 Samuel 31:3-10). Worse than dying in battle, however, Saul died without God. He’s one of the most tragic figures in the Bible.
From Saul we learn there’s nothing more important than staying right with God. Every day we’re growing closer to God, or drifting further away from him. It’s seldom apparent day by day, or even week by week. But over the course of years, a gradual drift can turn into apostasy. Saul had power, fame and wealth but they couldn’t keep him from death, or dying without God. There’s only one friend we can’t afford to lose, but Saul lost his friendship with God.
Reflection and Review
- Why was Saul filled with fear?
- Why didn’t God answer Saul?
- What makes Saul a tragic figure?
Lesson 68
1 Samuel 30:1 David and his men reached Ziklag.
David had an army of six hundred men and, together with their families, they were living in Ziklag. When David and his men returned, one day, they found their town burned to the ground, and all the women and children taken captive. David’s soldiers were so distressed that all they could talk about was stoning David. By all accounts, it was not a good day.
After believing in God, some people think their life will be an unbroken series of blessings. [W]hatever they do prospers (Psalm 1:3), wrote the Psalmist. And you make the way of the righteous smooth (Isaiah 26:7), wrote Isaiah. This is true, of course, but it’s not the whole truth. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22), said Paul. And In this world you will have trouble (John 16:33), said Jesus. God is pleased to smooth the way for us, but he also allows trouble to help us grow in faith.
1 Samuel 30:4 So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep.
It’s hard to make grown men cry, especially those who’ve been hardened by battle. But the pain of losing their families, and all their possessions, was so great that all six hundred men wept aloud. Imagine six hundred men howling over the loss of everything precious to them. We don’t know how long they wept, but they didn’t stop weeping until they had no strength left to weep.
Weeping is discouraged in many cultures but not in the Bible. Joseph wept (Genesis 45:14), David wept (2 Samuel 15:30), Job wept (Job 16:16), Jeremiah wept (Lamentations 2:11), Peter wept (Luke 22:62), Paul wept (Acts 20:31), and may others wept. In fact, the shortest verse in the Bible says, Jesus wept (John 11:35).
Life hurts, sometimes, and reliable studies show that crying has many benefits such as removing toxins, reducing stress, elevating mood, and releasing negative feelings. [W]eeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5), wrote David.
1 Samuel 30:6 David found strength in the Lord his God.
After weeping his heart out, David turned to God, and found new strength in him. Human strength comes to an end, but God has an endless supply. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak (Isaiah 40:29), wrote Isaiah.
But how, exactly, did David find strength in God? The Bible doesn’t say but David probably considered the fact that God is mighty and helped him in the past. God also knew where the women and children were and could help David rescue them. As David thought this way his grief gave way to hope, his thoughts became clear, and his strength returned.
1 Samuel 30:8 David inquired of the Lord.
David inquired of God and received the guidance that he needed. Life is confusing, at times, but God is still available. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you (James 1:5), wrote James. We don’t have to navigate life alone. God will guide us if we’re willing to follow.
1 Samuel 30:11 They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David.
David and his army were on the march, searching for their enemies, and trusting God to lead them. They came across an Egyptian slave who was abandoned by his master because he was sick. It had been three days since he had anything to eat or drink, but he revived as soon as he was nourished. He was with the Amalekites when they burned Ziklag and knew where they could be found. On the conditions that his life be spared, and he not be returned to his master, he agreed to lead David to the place.
Whenever we have a problem, God may have a strategic person to help us. Whenever someone else has a problem, we may be the strategic person to help them. Everyone needs other people to help solve their problems. This is how God uses us.
1 Samuel 30:16 He led David down, and there they were, scattered over the countryside, eating, drinking and reveling because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from Judah.
Energized by God, and the desire to save their families, David and his men fought the Amalekites until the following evening. They recovered all the women and children, plus a great amount of plunder which they divided among themselves. A devastating event turned into something good.
We shouldn’t judge a tragedy at the time it occurs, because we never know how God will use it for good. David and his men thought their loss was the worst day of their lives. By following God and doing his will, however, it became one of the best. God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God let bad things happen to us?
- How does God guide his people today?
- How do you find strength in God?
Lesson 69
2 Samuel 1:1 After the death of Saul, David returned from striking down the Amalekites and stayed in Ziklag two days.
David was unaware of Saul’s death when a messenger arrived with an account of the battle. When [Saul] turned around and saw me . . . he said to me, Stand here by me and kill me! I’m in the throes of death, but I’m still alive. So I stood beside him and killed him, because I knew that after he had fallen he could not survive. And I took the crown that was on his head and the band on his arm and have brought them here to [you] (2 Samuel 1:7-10).
More accurately, Saul was wounded in battle and killed himself to avoid being tortured (1 Samuel 31:3-4). This man was probably a scavenger who got to Saul’s body before the Philistines. He probably made up this story to gain David’s favor and a position in his new administration. He thought he was being wise, but he was being a fool.
2 Samuel 1:15-16 Then David called one of his men and said, Go, strike him down! So he struck him down, and he died. For David had said to him, Your blood be on your own head. Your own mouth testified against you when you said, I killed the Lord’s anointed.
Instead of the reward he hoped for, this man met with death. He didn’t understand David’s respect for God’s king. Saul was chosen by God (1 Samuel 10:1), and only God had the right to remove him. By claiming to kill God’s king, this man gave up his life.
Those who want to advance too quickly often turn to schemes. Whoever plots evil will be known as a schemer (Proverbs 24:8). A fool finds pleasure in wicked schemes (Proverbs 10:23). And [God] condemns those who devise wicked schemes (Proverbs 12:2), says Proverbs.
An American investor was sentenced to one hundred fifty years in prison for cheating customers out of billions of dollars. He was living high for a while but not for long. Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose ways are perverse (Proverbs 28:6), says Proverbs.
2 Samuel 2:4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron, and there they anointed David king over the tribe of Judah.
David was thirty years old at this time (2 Samuel 5:4-5), and it would be another seven years before he was king over the whole nation. And the transition wasn’t smooth.
Abner (the commander of Saul’s army) met with Joab (the commander of David’s army) at the town of Gibeon—each with troops. To minimize bloodshed, twelve soldiers were put forward from each side to engage in mortal combat. Then each man grabbed his opponent by the head and thrust his dagger into his opponent’s side, and they fell down together (2 Samuel 2:16).
Since there was no obvious winner, a battle broke out in which Judah lost twenty men, and Israel lost three hundred sixty men (2 Samuel 2:30-31). It could’ve been worse, but nothing was settled.
Some time later Abner agreed to unite Israel under David, but Joab was angry because Abner had killed his brother in the previous battle (2 Samuel 2:23). So Joab took him aside into an inner chamber, as if to speak with him privately. And there, to avenge the blood of his brother [he] stabbed him in the stomach (2 Samuel 3:27).
Meanwhile, Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth was ruling as king in Israel. He was taking a noonday rest when he was cruelly stabbed to death. His murderers took his head to David hoping for approval. But David wasn’t pleased and had them killed (2 Samuel 4:1-12). Then, at last, the kingdom was united under David.
Likewise, the church should be united under Christ (John 17:23), but is often at war with itself. Professing Christians have even used torture and murder against other professing Christians. Thankfully, it won’t always be that way. When Christ returns, he’ll bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth (Ephesians 1:10), wrote Paul. The transition may be painful, but the reign of Christ will be glorious.
*****
2 Samuel 5:6 The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there.
Israel had taken Jerusalem before (Judges 1:8, 21) but the Jebusites had taken it back. With valleys on three sides, it was easy to defend, but it wouldn’t be easy to take. David and his men entered through a water shaft which still exists today. The Jebusites were defeated and Jerusalem became the City of David (1 Samuel 5:9).
Jerusalem has been around for at least three thousand years (Genesis 14:18), and probably even longer. It’s also been known as Zion, and is mentioned in the Bible over eight hundred times. It’s where the temple was built (1 Kings 6), where Jesus was crucified (John 19:20), and where he’ll return (Zechariah 14:4) to rule the world. God is also planning a new Jerusalem.
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away (Revelation 21:2-4), wrote John. This will be our eternal home.
Reflection and Review
- Why do people turn to schemes?
- Why is the church often divided?
- What’s significant about Jerusalem?
Lesson 70
2 Samuel 6:2 [David] and all his men went to Baalah in Judah to bring up from there the ark of God.
David established Jerusalem as the political center of Israel, then proceeded to make it the religious center as well. The most important religious object was the ark of the covenant, since it was God’s throne on earth (1 Samuel 4:4). God was uniquely present between the two cherubim that [were] over the ark (Exodus 25:22). By bringing the ark to the capital city, David was showing that God was the king of Israel, and that David was merely his servant. The Lord Almighty—he is the King of glory (Psalm 24:10), he wrote.
To properly honor God, David arranged a massive celebration. He and thirty thousand young men accompanied the ark of God in a kind of military escort. They put the ark on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab (2 Samuel 6:3) where it had been for many years. It was a great day of music, worship and celebration. But that was about to change.
2 Samuel 6:6 When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled.
We don’t know why the oxen stumbled, but maybe the road was uneven, or maybe there was a stone in the way. People likely gasped when they saw ark sliding off the cart. For it to fall to the ground would’ve been a terrible disgrace.
Uzzah had the presence of mind to reach out his hand and steady the ark. He kept it from falling to the ground and possibly breaking apart. But any sigh of relief was brief. The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God (2 Samuel 6:7).
We might expect God to be thankful to Uzzah for keeping the ark from falling to the ground. And we might expect Uzzah to be rewarded for saving the day. But if anything was worse than God’s throne falling to the dirt, it was being touched by sinful hands. Dirt never rebelled against its Maker, but sinners do this all the time. Letting God’s throne fall to the ground would’ve been better by far than defiling it with sinful hands.
It’s also surprising that David planned this event without consulting God’s word. God provided clear instructions about how the ark was to be moved. There were rings on the side, through which poles were to be inserted, so the ark could be carried (Exodus 25:12-15), without being touched. God had also clearly warned that anyone who touched the ark would die (Numbers 4:15). And that’s what happened.
Some people hope that ignorance will protect them from God’s judgment, but that didn’t work for Uzzah. He didn’t know what God required, but God killed him anyway. [T]he wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), wrote Paul. This is true even if we don’t know that we’re sinning.
It also appears that our worship of God isn’t always pleasing to him, even when it’s pleasing to us. Thousands of people praising God seems like a success. But it’s not successful if it’s not biblical. [T]rue worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth (John 4:23), said Jesus. If our worship isn’t governed by God’s word, it isn’t pleasing to God.
2 Samuel 6:8 David was angry because the Lord’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah.
David planned a great event but God ruined the party. The punishment seemed to outweigh the offense and this made David angry. It also made him afraid. David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me? (2 Samuel 6:9).
David was beginning to understand that God is to be revered. He is good, kind, loving and gracious. But he’s also holy and just. He often overlooks our sins (Deuteronomy 9:27), but not always. We should worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:28-29), says Hebrews.
2 Samuel 6:10 [David] was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David.
David didn’t know if God was safe so he sent the ark to the house of Obed-Edom. Three months later he learned that God was blessing the household of Obed-Edom because of the ark. So, once again, David brought the ark to Jerusalem, not on a cart, but properly carried.
2 Samuel 6:14-15 Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
This is one of the most exuberant worship scenes in the Bible. As part of the parade, David was leading God’s people in dance. This type of worship isn’t found in the New Testament, but it’s mentioned in the Psalms.
Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with timbrel and harp (Psalm 149:3). [P]raise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe (Psalm 150:4). God’s Old Testament people could worship enthusiastically.
2 Samuel 6:16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart.
Michal was David’s first wife, the daughter of King Saul. Since she was raised a princess, she probably had ideas of how royalty should behave. And David wasn’t behaving royally. Also, she may’ve been embarrassed by David’s full-hearted devotion to God. This led to an argument and an unhappy outcome. Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death (2 Samuel 6:23).
This may’ve been the judgment of God or the judgment of David. Since David had other wives, he may’ve stopped sleeping with Michal, and deprived her of children. This would’ve been cruel, of course, but underscores how destructive disrespect can be to a marriage, and why Paul said the wife must respect her husband (Ephesians 5:33).
If it was the judgment of God, however, it shows that we shouldn’t despise those who are more expressive in worship than we are. God’s people should be careful not to draw attention away from God by drawing it to themselves. But if someone is more enthusiastic in worship than we are, we shouldn’t think less of them. Rather, we should consider whether our own hearts are as full of praise as they ought to be.
Reflection and Review
- Why was the ark of God important?
- What do we learn from the death of Uzzah?
- What do you think of David’s conflict with Michal?
Lesson 71
2 Samuel 7:1-2 After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.
David was firmly established as king in Jerusalem and had built himself a very nice home. But the ark of God was still in a tent, as it had been for over four hundred years. It was constructed at the foot of Mount Sinai, shortly after the Israelites were delivered from Egyptian slavery.
2 Samuel 7:3 Nathan replied to the king, Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.
As the prophet Samuel advised King Saul, so various prophets advised King David. This is the first story in which we encounter Nathan, but not the last (2 Samuel 12, 1 Kings 1). He was a faithful servant of the king, and David named one of his sons Nathan meaning gift.
2 Samuel 7:4-5 But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying: Go and tell my servant David, This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in?
Nathan had advised David to do whatever he had in mind. But this was his advice as David’s counselor, not as the mouthpiece of God. That same night God informed Nathan that David was not to build him a temple. I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. . . . did I ever say . . . Why have you not built me a house of cedar? (2 Samuel 7:6-7).
But God was pleased with David’s desire to honor him, and responded with a very significant promise. The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you (2 Samuel 7:11). David wanted to build a house for God, but God would build a house for David. David wanted to build God a physical house, but God would build David an everlasting household. I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood . . . your throne will be established forever (2 Samuel 7:12-16), said God.
God’s promise to David was an everlasting dynasty. One of his sons would rule as king forever. Dynasties are often brief, but may also last for centuries, or even millennia. But an everlasting dynasty is hard to imagine.
God’s promise to David had roots going back hundreds of years to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. [K]ings of peoples will come from her (Genesis 17:16), said God. Years later, Abraham’s grandson (Jacob) added, The scepter will not depart from Judah (Genesis 49:10). Since David was descended from Abraham, Jacob and Judah, God was fulfilling his promises and making them even greater.
But it didn’t turn out the way David thought. In 586 BC, the Babylonians destroyed the city of Jerusalem, blinded the king, and took him back to Babylon. To the natural eye, this was the end of David’s dynasty, and a shock to everyone who believed God’s promise.
The eighty-ninth Psalm captures the bewilderment felt by many. God said of David, I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure. . . . Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness—and I will not lie to David—that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun; it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky. . . .
[But] You have renounced the covenant with your servant and have defiled his crown in the dust. You have broken through all his walls and reduced his strongholds to ruins. All who pass by have plundered him; he has become the scorn of his neighbors. . . . Indeed, you have turned back the edge of his sword and have not supported him in battle. You have put an end to his splendor and cast his throne to the ground (Psalm 89:29-44), wrote the Psalmist.
God’s people didn’t stop believing, however, even when God’s promise seemed to fail. But they didn’t ignore the problem either. They acknowledged the tension between what God had clearly promised (David’s eternal dynasty) and what they had clearly experienced (the collapse of David’s dynasty). In the traditional sense, Israel has never had a Davidic monarch since it fell to Babylon. Many must’ve wondered if they could trust God’s promises or not.
But, centuries later, Scripture records the birth of the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham (Matthew 1:1). The angel had said to his mother, The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David . . . his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:31-33). So when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the people shouted Hosanna to the Son of David (Matthew 21:9), and Blessed is the king of Israel! (John 12:13).
The prophets also foresaw a future king from David’s line. A shoot will come up from the stump of [David]; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit (Isaiah 11:1), wrote Isaiah. And, I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely (Jeremiah 23:5), said Jeremiah. And, He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom . . . forever (Isaiah 9:7), wrote Isaiah.
What God’s people didn’t know, and couldn’t understand, was that David’s messianic Son had been ruling from heaven’s throne since before the beginning of time. From a human perspective the collapse of David’s dynasty was a theological disaster that couldn’t be resolved. But from heaven’s perspective there was no problem at all. David’s son was king forever—past, present and future. He just hadn’t been born yet.
The promises of God find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ. For no matter how many promises God has made, they are Yes in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20), wrote Paul. And Remember Jesus Christ . . . descended from David (2 Timothy 2:8), wrote Paul again. And, I am the Root and the Offspring of David (Revelation 22:16), said Jesus Christ himself.
God gave David an everlasting dynasty through his great-great-grandson, Jesus Christ. And, when he returns, Jesus’ kingdom will surpass David’s in every possible way, and will never come to an end. God always keeps his promises, even when they seem to fail.
Reflection and Review
- Why did it seem that God broke his promise to David?
- How did God fulfill his promise to David?
- How do we know that God will keep his promises?
Lesson 72
2 Samuel 9:1 David asked, Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?
Jonathan was the son of King Saul and David’s dear friend. When David’s life was at risk, he received Jonathan’s help, and vowed kindness to his family (1 Samuel 20:15). Since Jonathan had died (1 Samuel 31:2), David looked for a way to keep his promise.
Jonathan’s son was Mephibosheth, and he was just five years old when his father died in battle. His nurse picked him up and fled, but as she hurried to leave, he fell and became disabled (2 Samuel 4:4). With better medical help the injury would’ve healed correctly but, without it, he became lame in both feet (2 Samuel 9:3).
This was a turning point in the young man’s life from which he’d never recover. He was born a prince, but lost his position and mobility in a single day. He couldn’t play games with his friends, and would have limited choices for employment. Not a day passed that he didn’t feel the loss.
But this was the kind of person David was looking for. He brought him into his house and said, Mephibosheth! . . . I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table (2 Samuel 9:6-7).
This too was a turning point in Mephibosheth’s life—but a positive one. In a single day he was adopted into the king’s family and given great wealth. He bowed down and said, What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me? (2 Samuel 9:8). Mephibosheth had little to offer David and he knew it. But David took care of him for the sake of Jonathan.
This reminds us of what God has done for us because of Jesus Christ. He took us as we were, adopted us into his family, and gave us unexpected wealth. God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms [to] show the incomparable riches of his grace (Ephesians 2:6-7), wrote Paul. What David did for Mephibosheth, because of Jonathan, is a very faint reflection of what God will do for everyone who believes in Jesus Christ.
*****
2 Samuel 10:1 In the course of time, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun succeeded him as king.
The Ammonite king had been kind to David, perhaps while he was running from Saul. So when the Ammonite king died, David wanted to show kindness to his son, who was reigning in his father’s place. This was gracious of David since, at one time, the Ammonites had been Israel’s enemies (Judges 11:4, 1 Samuel 11:15).
When David sent a delegation to express his sympathy, however, the new king doubted David’s motives and treated the delegation like spies. [He] shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the buttocks, and sent them away (2 Samuel 10:4).
This was an extreme provocation that revealed the new king’s foolishness. By exposing the private parts of David’s men, and shaving half their beards, he guaranteed retaliation. Few things are more precious than dignity and, whenever it’s violated, it can led to fury.
This also reminds us of Jesus Christ. As David sent a delegation to the Ammonites, God sent his Son into the world. As the Ammonites shaved off half their beards, Jesus’ beard was plucked from his face (Isaiah 50:6). As the Ammonites shamefully exposed the delegation, Jesus was hung on a cross fully exposed. As the Ammonites’ behavior incited the wrath of David, so the wrath of God is incited against all who oppose Jesus Christ (John 3:36). These are the very Scriptures that testify about me (John 5:39), said Jesus.
2 Samuel 10:6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become obnoxious to David, they hired twenty thousand Aramean foot soldiers from Beth Rehob and Zobah, as well as the king of Maakah with a thousand men, and also twelve thousand men from Tob.
The cost of mercenary troops to fight the Israelites was thirty-eight tons of silver (1 Chronicles 19:6). This was a massive amount that likely depleted the nation’s wealth. If the Ammonite king had given this money to David, in order to make amends, the conflict could’ve been resolved. War could’ve been avoided, and lives could’ve been spared.
Jesus used this same line of thinking to encourage surrender to him. [S]uppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace (Luke 14:31-32), he said.
Like the foolish Ammonite king, we’ve all provoked the King of kings, and made him very angry (John 3:36). He’s coming with the armies of heaven (Revelation 19:14-15), but disaster can still be avoided if we’re willing to pay the price: those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:33). Jesus requires full surrender of everything we have and everything we are. In return, we’re given eternal life in his glorious kingdom. We surrender our rags to receive his riches.
2 Samuel 10:8 The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation.
With the help of hired armies they believed their chances were good. The battle was intense, but Israel prevailed, and David put to death over forty thousand troops (1 Samuel 10:18). This was a catastrophic loss for the Ammonites which could’ve been avoided.
Like the foolish Ammonites, many will oppose Jesus Christ to the very end. Even when Christ returns, many will refuse to lay down their arms. They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings (Revelation 17:14), wrote John. Opposition to Christ is certain defeat, but surrender leads to victory. Our only wisdom is to change sides before it is too late.
2 Samuel 12:30 David took the crown from their king’s head, and it was placed on his own head.
The crown was made of gold set with precious stones and weighed about seventy-five pounds. By taking the crown for himself, David showed his sovereignty over the Ammonites. If he did this whenever he conquered, he had many crowns. Likewise, it’s said of Jesus Christ, on his head are many crowns (Revelation 19:12). There’s only one king of the universe, and every crown will be his.
Reflection and Review
- How does David’s kindness to Mephibosheth remind us of God’s kindness to us?
- How does Jesus compare conversion to a battle between kings?
- Why won’t the world surrender to Christ when he returns?
Lesson 73
2 Samuel 11:1 In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.
Spring was the time for war because the weather was agreeable, and fields provided food for armies on the march. David led battles in the past, but now that he was established, others could do the work. So David remained at home, a king at his leisure.
2 Samuel 11:2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace.
David’s palace had a flat roof porch, and may’ve been the tallest building in Jerusalem. This gave him a view of the region, as well as other people’s homes. From there he saw a woman bathing and noticed she was beautiful. David should have looked away but, instead, he prolonged his gaze. Then he sent for the woman and she became pregnant. Her name was Bathsheba, and she was married to Uriah.
This was a problem since David was a spiritual leader, and the law of God said You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14). Even worse, If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death (Leviticus 20:10). David and Bathsheba were both in serious trouble.
It would’ve been better if David had simply looked away. He was a good man who loved God, and served him with all his heart. But goodness is no guarantee against weakness and, in a moment of weakness, David sinned. Now he’d try to conceal it.
2 Samuel 11:6 David sent this word to Joab: Send me Uriah the Hittite.
David’s plan was so simple it could hardly fail. He called Bathsheba’s husband home from battle to give an account of the war. Having been away for a while, he’d surely want to sleep with his wife. When he learned that she was pregnant, he’d assume the child was his.
But Uriah was a man of such character that, as long as his fellow soldiers were sleeping in a field, he refused the comfort of his own bed. So he slept at the entrance of David’s palace, along with the other servants.
Then David got Uriah drunk, hoping to weaken his resolve. But this also failed. Now David was growing desperate, so he sent Uriah back to battle, with a letter to his commander. Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die (2 Samuel 11:15).
It’s hard to imagine what David was thinking when he wrote those terrible words. He believed in God’s law, including You shall not murder (Exodus 20:13). This was against everything David stood for. But desperate people do desperate things, and David was truly desperate. So he set in motion his plan to kill an innocent man.
This is why Jesus taught us to pray, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (Matthew 6:13). Under the right circumstances there’s nothing of which we’re not capable—including adultery and murder. Those who do such things aren’t always worse than others, but are truly ensnared by the devil. Their conduct should be condemned, of course, but under similar circumstances we could do the same.
2 Samuel 11:26-27 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son.
As the most powerful man in the nation, David was able to avoid execution for himself and Bathsheba. Perhaps he married her quickly so the child would seem to come from their marriage. Or maybe he hoped to appear noble by taking the pregnant widow of a worthy soldier.
But the trauma of David’s sin so hardened his heart that he wasn’t relating to God. Instead of confessing and repenting, David seems to have rationalized his sin as the privilege of kings. He already had numerous wives, why not one more? But the thing David had done displeased the Lord (1 Samuel 11:27b).
2 Samuel 12:1 The Lord sent Nathan to David.
Nathan was the prophet to whom God gave the unhappy task of rebuking the king. It’s not clear how Nathan knew of David’s sin, but he may have learned it from God. So Nathan went to David with a parable of two men: one rich, the other poor. The rich man had numerous sheep, but the poor man had only one little sheep, which he loved with all his heart. One day the rich man had visitors but, instead of killing one of his own sheep for dinner, he took the poor man’s sheep instead.
As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! (2 Samuel 12:5), said David. You are the man! (2 Samuel 12:7), said Nathan. Then he told David about the terrible consequences that would come because of his sin, including the death of their child.
2 Samuel 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord.
God pardoned David’s sin but didn’t remove the consequences. The child died and David never recovered his greatness. The man whom God used to build his kingdom let many people down, especially himself.
God’s kingdom needs a righteous king in order to have God’s favor. Jesus is the only king who never sinned (1 Peter 2:22), and his kingdom is coming soon. Then God’s people will live forever under the rule of a perfect king.
Reflection and Review
- Was David basically good or bad?
- What does Uriah teach us about life?
- How could David have avoided this failure?
Lesson 74
2 Samuel 13:1 In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David.
Amnon was the firstborn son of David and the crown prince of Israel. He allowed himself to fall in love with his half-sister, Tamar, to whom marriage was forbidden. Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere (Leviticus 18:9), wrote Moses. By setting his affection on what God had forbidden, Amnon became frustrated. There were other young ladies to chose from, but Amnon wanted what God had refused.
2 Samuel 13:2 Amnon became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he made himself ill. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.
Amnon’s love for Tamar could be better described as lust. He wasn’t as noble as Job who said, I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman (Job 31:1). Instead, Amnon fantasized about what it would be like to have her. Jesus’ words apply to Amnon perfectly: anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28).
2 Samuel 13:3 Now Amnon had an adviser named Jonadab . . . . [He] was a very shrewd man.
As advisor to the crown prince, Jonadab wanted to help Amnon get his way so that he’d remain in his favor. Jonadab advised Amnon to fake illness, and arrange for his sister Tamar to come and take care of him.
When she arrived, he grabbed her and said, Come to bed with me, my sister. No, my brother! she said to him. Don’t force me! Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing. What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you (2 Samuel 13:11-13), she said.
Tamar was in danger of becoming a victim of rape and incest, which would scar her the rest of her life. For siblings to marry was forbidden in God’s law, but it was not without precedent. Abraham, the father of Israel, was married to his half sister, Sarah (Genesis 20:12). If Amnon spoke to their Father, King David, perhaps he’d allow it.
2 Samuel 13:14 But [Amnon] refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.
Amnon didn’t expect to grow up and become a rapist. Raised in a godly home, he knew this was a terrible sin. But instead of resisting his sinful nature, he repeatedly indulged it until it got the best of him. What had he become?
This is why Jesus reserved some of his strongest language for sexual sin. If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell (Matthew 5:29-30). It would have better for Amnon to pluck out his eye, and cut off his hand, than to do what he had done.
2 Samuel 13:15 Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, Get up and get out!
The Bible doesn’t explain the reversal of Amnon’s affections, but two explanations are possible. First, whenever we hurt someone deeply, we may be tempted to hate them because of the guilt we feel. The more we’re able to hate them, the less guilty we may feel.
Second, instead of accepting his guilt, Amnon may’ve put the blame on Tamar, convincing himself that she seduced him. Since we’re naturally quick to blame others, and slow to blame ourselves, this may be more likely.
2 Samuel 13:16-17 No! she said to him. Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me. But he refused to listen to her. He called his personal servant and said, Get this woman out of my sight and bolt the door after her.
Tamar went away weeping. She tore the beautiful robe she was wearing and put ashes on her head as a sign of her grief. She would never be the same. She never fully recovered.
Sexual crimes are especially bad because the harm can last a lifetime. Emotional damage can leave the victim less responsive sexually, and diminish marital happiness. Or, feeling compromised, the victim may become promiscuous and spiral down morally. This is why the penalty for sexual crimes could even include death (Leviticus 20:10).
Reflection and Review
- What kind of friend was Jonadab?
- Why did Jesus condemn sexual sin?
- Why do you think Amnon reversed his feelings toward Tamar?
Lesson 75
2 Samuel 13:20 Her brother Absalom said to her, Has that Amnon, your brother, been with you? Be quiet for now, my sister; he is your brother. Don’t take this thing to heart. And Tamar lived in her brother Absalom’s house, a desolate woman.
Tamar’s full brother, Absalom, took his sister into his house and cared for her. Instead of bringing a scandal on the royal family, Absalom advised his sister to keep the matter quiet. His motives aren’t clear, but he may’ve been concerned for his sister’s reputation, and her ability to marry in the future. As a desolate woman, however, Tamar seems to have never married or had children. In that culture, there was scarcely anything worse.
2 Samuel 13:21 When King David heard all this, he was furious.
But he didn’t actually do anything. It wasn’t an easy case since, on the one hand, the law required marriage. If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her . . . . He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives (Deuteronomy 22:28-29), wrote Moses.
On the other hand, the law forbad marriage. If a man marries his sister . . . it is a disgrace. They are to be publicly removed from their people (Leviticus 20:17), wrote Moses again. Furthermore, since David also committed sexual sin, he had no moral authority. If he challenged Amnon for his behavior, Amnon could challenge David for his behavior. Even though David was furious, there wasn’t much he could do.
2 Samuel 13:22 Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad; he hated Amnon because he had disgraced his sister Tamar.
Absalom waited two full years for his father to take action against Amnon. But, when nothing was done, he took matters into his own hands. He invited his brothers to a celebration and, when Amnon had plenty of wine, he commanded his servants to kill him. Then Absalom fled the country.
2 Samuel 13:36 The king . . . and all his attendants wept very bitterly.
David mourned the loss of both his sons. He may’ve recalled the words of the prophet after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband killed. You struck down Uriah the Hittite . . . and took his wife to be your own. . . . Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house (2 Samuel 12:9-10).
David was guilty of sexual sin and murder—and now his sons were guilty of the same. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. . . . Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction (Galatians 6:7-8), wrote Paul.
David sowed to please his flesh and reaped the destruction of his children. If only he had controlled himself when he saw Bathsheba bathing! The effect of David’s sin spilled over on his family, and our sin will often hurt those who are nearest and dearest to us.
But whenever our sin is great, God’s grace can be even greater (Romans 5:20). The consequences may last a lifetime but, because of Jesus Christ, we’re still holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation (Colossians 1:22), wrote Paul. And we will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:11), wrote Peter. The good news of God’s grace overcomes the bad news of our sin. Christ died for sinners so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John.
*****
2 Samuel 14:1 Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom.
After murdering his brother Amnon, for raping their sister Tamar, Absalom fled from the land of Israel to Gesher. This pained his Father David, who grieved for about three years (2 Samuel 13:38). This was observed by Joab, a high-ranking official, who was concerned for David’s happiness.
Communication between David and Absalom was so completely broken down that they needed someone else to bring them together. Joab became their mediator and, in this way, reminds us of Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), wrote Paul.
Jesus could speak to humans on behalf of God, because he was God in human flesh (John 1:1, 14). And he could speak to God on behalf of humans, because he’s the only human who never sinned (1 Peter 2:22). The rift between God and humanity was so profound that we couldn’t come together without a mediator. But now we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1), wrote Paul.
2 Samuel 14:21 The king said to Joab . . . . Go, bring back the young man Absalom.
Joab went to Geshur and brought back David’s son, but David refused to meet with him for about two more years. Then Absalom said to Joab, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death (2 Samuel 14:32).
Absalom thought he did nothing wrong by killing his brother for raping their sister. And, if he did, he was willing to die for it. Joab reported this to David who then called for his son. Absalom came into his father’s presence and bowed down with his face to the ground. . . . And the king kissed Absalom (2 Samuel 14:33).
This sounds like a happy ending to a story of estrangement, but it’s not. The kiss was a public sign that the crown prince was now in good standing with his father. But the relationship was never fully restored and there is no happy ending.
God made families for nurture and love, but they can become a living hell. That’s why it’s important to always get along with our family. It’s better to do the hard work of reconciliation than to live with anger the rest of our lives. We can never avoid our families completely (at least mentally) so it’s wise to be friends whenever possible.
Reflection and Review
- Was Absalom wrong to avenge his sister?
- How does the gospel comfort us when sin has ruined our lives?
- Why is Christ a perfect mediator?
Lesson 76
2 Samuel 15:1 In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him.
Absalom was about thirty years old at this time, and had a royal appearance. In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him. Whenever he cut the hair of his head . . . he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels by the royal standard (1 Samuel 14:25-26).
Absalom enhanced his royal appearance with a chariot and a body guard of fifty men. Having murdered his older brother, Amnon, Absalom was next in line for David’s throne. He often stood by the road to the city gate and heard the concerns of the people.
[W]henever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the people of Israel (2 Samuel 15:5-6).
Absalom was planning to be king but it’s not clear why David allowed him to act this way. David probably watched with interest but underestimated his son’s ambition. Absalom wouldn’t wait for David to die of natural causes. He was plotting his father’s demise.
2 Samuel 15:7 At the end of four years, Absalom said to the king, Let me go to Hebron and fulfill a vow I made to the Lord.
After four years of winning people’s hearts, Absalom decided the time had come for him to act. Hebron was about nineteen miles south of Jerusalem, and was a town of some importance. It’s where David was anointed king (2 Samuel 2:4), and where Absalom was born (2 Samuel 3:2-3).
To get his father’s permission to go to Hebron, Absalom used a religious lie. While your servant was living at Geshur in Aram, I made this vow: If the Lord takes me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the Lord in Hebron (2 Samuel 15:8).
David may’ve been pleased with Absalom’s apparent commitment to God. Perhaps, at last, he was growing in his faith. The king said to him, Go in peace (2 Samuel 15:9). But Absalom was planning war.
Absalom’s use of a religious lie, to conceal his godless plan, shows the bankruptcy of his character. He was an ambitious man in the worst possible sense. Perhaps the murder of his older brother wasn’t merely revenge, but a clearing of the way for him to become king. Now that he had the people’s support, he was willing to kill his father to make it happen.
Here we see the difference between good ambition and bad ambition. It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known (Romans 15:20), wrote Paul. We ought to be ambitious to do all the good we can, but ambition becomes evil whenever we’re willing to hurt others to promote ourselves. For where you have . . . selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice (James 3:16), wrote James. Beware of the person with selfish ambition.
2 Samuel 15:9 So [Absalom] went to Hebron.
There he declared himself to be king with such success that David and his officials had to flee Jerusalem, lest Absalom come with an army and put the city to the sword (2 Samuel 15:14). This was a total assault on David’s reign and Absalom was winning.
2 Samuel 15:31 Now David had been told, Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.
Ahithophel was one of David’s top advisors and now he was serving his enemy. This gave Absalom another advantage since the advice Ahithophel gave was like that of one who inquires of God (2 Samuel 16:23). The defection of Ahithophel also hurt David personally. Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me (Psalm 41:9), he wrote.
Jesus quoted David’s words and applied them to Judas Iscariot (John 13:18). Judas appeared to be Jesus’ friend in many ways. He walked with Jesus, talked with Jesus, ate with Jesus, and gave every appearance of being a faithful disciple. But, when it became clear that Jesus would die, Judas switched sides (Luke 22:4). Both Judas and Ahithophel turned against their king in order to save themselves.
Unless we want to be like Judas and Ahithophel, we must be more loyal to Christ than we are to ourselves. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it (Luke 9:24), said Jesus. Judas and Ahithophel share something else in common. Centuries apart from each other they both committed suicide (Matthew 27:5, 2 Samuel 17:23). If we put ourselves ahead of Christ, we’re likely to die despairing.
Reflection and Review
- How did Absalom become so evil?
- What’s the difference between good ambition and bad ambition?
- Why do people turn away from Christ?
Lesson 77
2 Samuel 15:31 So David prayed, Lord, turn Ahithophel’s counsel into foolishness.
Soon after David prayed he was met by Hushai the Arkite, a trusted advisor. Hushai was loyal to David, so David sent him back to Jerusalem to pretend to be loyal to Absalom. Hushai would serve as David’s spy and, hopefully, undermine Ahithophel.
Then Hushai . . . went to Absalom and said to him, Long live the king! (2 Samuel 16:16). Absalom was a little surprised that Hushai abandoned David so quickly. Hushai explained that Absalom was chosen by God and, therefore, had his support as well. Just as I served your father, so I will serve you (2 Samuel 16:19), he said. Absalom received Hushai, which put him in position to help David.
2 Samuel 16:20-21 Absalom said to Ahithophel, Give us your advice. What should we do? Ahithophel answered, Sleep with your father’s concubines whom he left to take care of the palace. Then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself obnoxious to your father, and the hands of everyone with you will be more resolute.
True to his reputation, Ahithophel offered brilliant advice. For Absalom to sleep with his father’s concubines would completely destroy their relationship and a possible co-regency. When the people heard of it they’d have to choose between David and Absalom. Since Absalom had the power, the people would quickly align with him. So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel (2 Samuel 16:22).
This was a literal fulfillment of what God said to David after he committed adultery with Bathsheba. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel (2 Samuel 12:11-12), said God.
In fact, the roof on which Absalom slept with his father’s concubines may have been the same roof from which David lusted at Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:2). But if David confessed his sin, and God forgave him (2 Samuel 12:13), why did this still happen? The answer isn’t provided but the lesson is clear: sin is the way to misery.
Before David’s spectacular sin his life was triumphant. But, afterward, he struggled. Since God is the one who determines the quality of our lives, we should always try to please him. Then, when trouble comes, at least we’ll know it wasn’t because of our foolish behavior.
2 Samuel 17:1 Ahithophel said to Absalom, I would choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David.
After seizing control of the palace, and taking over the harem, there was only one thing left for Absalom to do: kill his dad. Since David was on the run he’d be weak and vulnerable, so Ahithophel advised Absalom to attack at once. But Absalom said, Summon also Hushai the Arkite, so we can hear what he has to say as well (2 Samuel 17:5).
Ahithophel’s advice was so good that it would be hard to oppose. But Hushai was loyal to David so he had to do his best. Let all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba . . . be gathered to you, with you yourself leading them into battle. Then we will attack [David] wherever he may be found, and we will fall on him as dew settles on the ground. Neither he nor any of his men will be left alive (2 Samuel 17:11-12), he said. With these, and other words, Hushai delayed the battle and sent information to David. God was beginning to help his servant.
2 Samuel 18:1 David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.
David was on the run but he still had a sizable army. And even though there’d be a battle, he was still concerned for his son. Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake (2 Samuel 18:5), he said.
The battle took place in a forest, and Absalom’s mule went under a tree. Abaslom’s hair got caught in a branch and, when his mule kept going, Absalom was left hanging by his hair. One of David’s men took three javelins and plunged them into Absalom’s heart (2 Samuel 18:14). He died, somewhat comically, hanging by the hair he loved.
How different things would’ve been for Absalom if he’d simply served his father, and his father’s God. With all the benefits of royalty, and his natural gifts (2 Samuel 14:25-26), Absalom could’ve been a force for good. But power, privilege and prestige weren’t enough for Absalom. Consumed by selfish ambition, he overreached, and died a young man.
2 Samuel 18:33 [David] went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!
Only those who’ve lost a child know the depth of David’s grief. The one who brought him sorrow in life, brought him sorrow in death as well. We might expect David to be relieved at the death of his enemy son, but he wished that he had died instead.
This kind of emotion finds it’s source in the heart of our heavenly Father. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. That’s why there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:10), said Jesus. We’ve all rebelled against the king, but we need not die like Absalom.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Absalom sleep with his father’s concubines?
- What kind of friend was Hushai?
- How does David’s grief remind us of God’s heart?
Lesson 78
2 Samuel 20:2 [A]ll the men of Israel deserted David to follow Sheba son of Bikri.
Absalom was so popular that, even though he was dead, a man named Sheba continued his revolt. If Sheba wasn’t put down he would divide the nation. This was an emergency that required immediate action, so David sent troops to eliminate Sheba before he could get organized.
Sheba fled to Abel Beth Maakah, a fortified city in northern Israel. There he was found by David’s troops, who began to batter down the city wall (2 Samuel 20:15). But a woman inside spoke with David’s general, and offered to give him Sheba’s head, if he’d agree to withdraw. David’s general agreed, and Sheba’s head was thrown over the wall. The city was saved and so was the nation of Israel.
Division is a serious threat to nations, organizations and churches. There are often some who want to seize control that doesn’t belong to them. Unless they’re treated firmly the organization will be hurt. Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended (Proverbs 22:10), says Proverbs.
*****
2 Samuel 21:15 David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted.
David was a warrior but he was advancing in age. His strength was nearly gone when he was attacked by a massive Philistine who was heavily armed. It appeared that David’s life was over, when one of his men came to the rescue, and struck down the Philistine. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished (2 Samuel 21:17).
Part of the wisdom of age is knowing our limitations. If we pretend we’re still in our prime, we’ll likely meet with injury or death. Instead of trying to prove ourselves, we ought to accept the limits of our age, and preserve our lives for additional service. David was able to serve God many more years because he stopped going to war.
*****
2 Samuel 24:1 Again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.
We’re not told why the Lord was angry at Israel, but the nation was often in spiritual decline. Whenever this happened God was known to afflict his people to remind them of their need for him. Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word (Psalm 119:67), wrote the Psalmist.
It’s even less clear why God incited David to take a national census. If God was angry at the nation why not send a plague? Instead, God incited David to take a census, then he punished the nation for David’s sin. Since taking a census was not forbidden, David’s sin seems to be pride. He wanted to know the extent of his military power (2 Samuel 24:2) for the sake of his own glory.
Pride is more serious than many people realize. When pride comes, then comes disgrace (Proverbs 11:2). Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Pride brings a person low (Proverbs 29:23). And, God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble (James 4:6).
But if God doesn’t tempt anyone to sin (James 1:13), why did he incite David to sin? A parallel account even blames the devil. Satan . . . incited David to take a census (1 Chronicles 21:1), it says. David is clearly sinning but who’s to blame—God, David or Satan?
The same problem occurs elsewhere. Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart (Exodus 11:10). Instead of softening Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would obey, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would disobey. So who was to blame—God or Pharaoh?
Other examples could also be given (Joshua 11:20, 1 Kings 22:21-23, Ezekiel 14:9), but the clearest are Herod and Pontius Pilate, who conspired to crucify Jesus. This was a sin of the highest order, but they only did what [God’s] power and will had decided beforehand should happen (Acts 4:28), wrote Luke.
If God decided beforehand what would happen, why were Herod and Pilate still to blame? And why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will? (Romans 9:19), asked Paul.
Along with the Trinity, and the two natures of Christ, this is one of the great mysteries of the Bible. We serve a God who is sovereign over all things, including human sin, but in such a way that he’s not the source or cause of sin (1 John 1:5). Unless this is firmly held, we’ll serve a God who’s partially evil, or a God who’s not in control of the world he created.
Reflection and Review
- How should a church treat people who are divisive?
- Why do some people ignore the physical limitations of age?
- Why is God hard to understand?
Lesson 79
2 Samuel 24:2 So the king said to Joab and the army commanders with him, Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and enroll the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are.
Joab probably knew this would inflate David’s pride, and cause him to trust in his army instead of God, so he opposed the idea. But David insisted, so Joab obeyed. Nearly ten months later Joab returned with the count. David had over a million able-bodied men who could handle a sword (2 Samuel 24:9).
David should’ve been thrilled but he was troubled. I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing (2 Samuel 24:10), he said.
During the months Joab was gone, it seems that David wrestled with his conscience. In the past, whenever he put his trust in God, he was successful. And, whenever he took his eyes off God, he failed. So why was David taking his eyes off God and putting them on his army? When the numbers came back, David realized how faithful God had been to him, and how faithless he had been toward God. I have sinned, he said.
We also sin whenever we put our trust anywhere but God. Family, friends and doctors ought to be trustworthy—but our trust shouldn’t be in them. Nor should it be in our government or military. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David.
2 Samuel 24:11-12 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer: Go and tell David, This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options.
God let David choose between three years of famine, three months of fleeing from his enemies, or three days of plague. Once again we see that sin has consequences repentance may not remove. None of the options David faced would be easy and, as a result, he was in deep distress (2 Samuel 24:14).
This is what happens whenever we have to face the consequences of our sin. Whoever steals from their employer, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever cheats on their taxes, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever has an affair, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Almost every day there’s someone in the news, who’s going through deep distress, because of what they’ve done.
The best time to think about this isn’t after we sin, but before we sin. There’s not much we can do after we sin but, if we think about deep distress before we sin, we might find the presence of mind to avoid it. [T]hrough the fear of the Lord evil is avoided (Proverbs 16:6), says Proverbs.
David chose three days of plague because of God’s mercy. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great (2 Samuel 24:14), he said. When we consider all the evil we’ve done, and the little justice we’ve received, we’ll agree with David that God is merciful. The consequences may be severe but they’re always less than we deserve.
2 Samuel 24:15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
This wasn’t only due to David’s sin, but also to the people’s sin. God was angry at the nation (2 Samuel 24:1) and this would get their attention. When things are going well we might pray a little less, give a little less, serve a little less, and sin a little more. But when tragedy strikes, we come back to the importance of knowing and serving God. It’s not the way it ought to be, but often the way it is.
2 Samuel 24:16-17 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, Enough! Withdraw your hand. The angel of the Lord was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, I have sinned.
The plague was due, in part, to David’s sin, and he took responsibility. I, the shepherd, have done wrong (2 Samuel 24:17b), he said. David was a good shepherd, most of the time. But in this case he was a bad shepherd, and the people suffered because of him.
This contrasts with Jesus Christ who is the good shepherd all the time. I am the good shepherd . . . and I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:14-15) he said. Many of David’s sheep died because of his sin, but those who belong to Christ will live because of his righteousness.
2 Samuel 24:18 On that day Gad went to David and said to him, Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David arrived, Arunah was there with oxen and wood for the sacrifice. He offered them to David, free of charge, but David insisted on paying. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing (1 Samuel 24:14), he said. So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site (1 Chronicles 21:25). That was a great amount of money even for David. But the Lord accepted his sacrifice and the plague stopped.
Sacrifice is important to God because it proves our commitment to him. It also proves God’s commitment to us. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebrews 10:14), says Hebrews. And, This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10), wrote John. Commitment is proven through sacrifice. But whatever we sacrifice for God is nothing compared to the sacrifice he has made for us.
Reflection and Review
- How did David sin by taking a census?
- Why does sin cause deep distress?
- Why do we need the sacrifice of Christ?
Lesson 80
1 Kings 1:1-4 When King David was very old, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him. So his attendants said to him, Let us look for a young virgin to serve the king and take care of him. She can lie beside him so that our lord the king may keep warm. Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful young woman and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The woman was very beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king had no sexual relations with her.
The author of First and Second Kings isn’t known, but they were written for the people of God, around 550 BC. The first four verses are an honest account of David’s frailty at the end of his life. He could no longer keep himself warm, and lacked the virility to have sex with a beautiful young woman. This was a different stage of David’s life than when he was slaying Goliath (1 Samuel 17), or adding to his harem (2 Samuel 5:13).
David was only about seventy years old at this time (2 Samuel 5:4) but his difficult life had worn him out. He wouldn’t live much longer but hadn’t appointed a successor. This became a problem when one of his sons began to assert himself.
1 Kings 1:5 Adonijah . . . put himself forward and said, I will be king.
Adonijah was the oldest of David’s remaining sons and a likely successor to his father’s throne. His chariots, entourage and natural good looks gave him a kingly appearance. But, like his brother Absalom, Adonijah was overly ambitious.
Since David was frail, Adonijah appointed himself king without expecting much resistance. He had the support of many officials including Joab (David’s general), and Abiathar (David’s priest). So Adonijah held a celebration where his rule was made official. Once again, David’s throne was being challenged by one of his sons.
Even the best parents can have rebellious children, but some of David’s children were truly awful. Amnon raped his sister Tamar (2 Samuel 13:14), Absalom led a revolt (2 Samuel 15-17), and Adonijah was trying to steal his father’s throne. Where did David go wrong?
David was a busy king and probably delegated most parental duties to the mothers of his children. Mothers are well equipped for this but religious training is the duty of fathers. Fathers should raise their children in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4), wrote Paul. Mothers can be helpful and effective (2 Timothy 1:5), but there is no substitute for a good and godly father.
1 Kings 1:11 Then Nathan asked Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has become king, and our lord David knows nothing about it?
Solomon was the second son of David and Bathsheba, after the child of their adultery died (2 Samuel 12:15-24). David promised Bathsheba that Solomon would be king (1 Kings 1:13) but, unless David acted quickly, that wouldn’t happen. Even worse, if Adonijah came to power he might have Solomon and Bathsheba put to death to eliminate a possible challenge to his throne.
1 Kings 1:12 Now then, let me advise you how you can save your own life and the life of your son Solomon.
Nathan the prophet advised Bathsheba to tell David what was happening and, while she was there, he would arrive to confirm it. When David learned of the situation, he quickly arranged a ceremony for Solomon to be installed as king. Then they sounded the trumpet and all the people shouted, Long live King Solomon! (1 Kings 1:39). When Adonijah’s supporters learned that David made Solomon king, they quickly dispersed so they wouldn’t be killed for their rebellion.
1 Kings 1:51 Then Solomon was told, Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the horns of the altar.
Afraid for his life, Adonijah ran to the place of sacrifice and grabbed hold of the altar. This didn’t guarantee his safety but, since the place was sacred, Adonijah hoped for mercy. If he shows himself to be worthy, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground, said Solomon. So Adonijah came and bowed down (1 Kings 52-53).
Solomon was now the undisputed king of Israel. He’d rule the nation forty years (1 Kings 11:42) and bring it to its height. The Lord loved him (2 Samuel 12:24) and he was greatly used by God.
Again we see that God is able to bring good out of evil. God was displeased when David committed adultery with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:18) and had her husband killed (2 Samuel 11:16-17). But God used their second son to lead the nation to greatness.
Sexual sin isn’t uncommon among God’s people, and murder isn’t unheard of. But they’re not in a separate category of sin, nor are they handled differently. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. The consequences of sin may last a lifetime, but we don’t live under a cloud of God’s wrath. God completely forgives, and can even bring a blessing out of our rebellion.
Reflection and Review
- Why do children of godly parents often become ungodly.
- Why was David slow to transfer his throne to Solomon?
- How did God bring a blessing out of David’s sin with Bathsheba?
Lesson 81
1 Kings 2:13 Adonijah . . . went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother.
Having lost his bid for the throne, Adonijah wanted to marry Abishag. Even though she was a member of David’s harem, it may’ve been allowable since she was still a virgin. Instead of making the request himself, Adonijah improved his odds by persuading Bathsheba to ask her son. Solomon answered his mother . . . . You might as well request the kingdom for him—after all, he is my older brother (1 Kings 2:22).
In the minds of many, Adonijah had a legitimate claim to the throne since he was David’s oldest remaining son. If he married David’s companion, that would only strengthen his claim. While pretending to support Solomon, Adonijah was really supporting himself. So Solomon had him put to death (1 Kings 2:25).
Adonijah thought he could hide his motives from Solomon but he was fatally wrong. And so it is with Christ. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart (1 Corinthians 4:5), wrote Paul. Many who claim allegiance to Christ are really devoted to themselves. It’s not enough to appear loyal; we must be loyal from the heart.
*****
1 Kings 3:4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
Solomon was just a young man when he began to reign, and felt unequal to the task. But after he honored God with a sacrifice, God appeared to him in a dream and said, Ask for whatever you want me to give you (1 Kings 3:5).
Solomon could’ve asked for bottomless wealth, military might, long life, or whatever his heart desired. But, more than anything else, he wanted wisdom and knowledge (2 Chronicles 1:10) to govern God’s people well. The Lord was so pleased with his request that he gave Solomon what he asked for, plus so much wealth and honor that he had no equal among kings (1 Kings 3:13).
If we ask God for what he wants to give us, he might give us even more. Many ask for health, wealth and happiness when they should be asking for holiness or usefulness. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures (James 4:3), wrote James. It’s good to ask God for what we want (Matthew 7:7-8), but we should also ask God for what he wants.
*****
1 Kings 3:16 Now two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.
Solomon’s wisdom was quickly put to the test by a couple of prostitutes. While they were living together, they each gave birth to a son. During the night, one of them accidentally laid on her son and he died. So she took her dead son and put him in bed with her roommate, and took her roommate’s son as her own. But the following morning, when her roommate awoke, she knew the dead baby wasn’t hers.
It seems the lower courts weren’t able to solve the dispute, so it was taken to Solomon. There were no witnesses so it was impossible to determine who the real mother was by ordinary means. With the wisdom of God, however, Solomon called for a sword to divide the baby in half.
The real mother dropped the case at once in order to save her baby’s life. She’d much rather lose her baby than have her child cut in half. Her strong reaction made it clear that she was the real mother and the case was solved. Then Solomon was held in awe by all the people because they saw that he had wisdom from God to administer justice (1 Kings 3:28).
*****
1 Kings 6:1 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel . . . [Solomon] began to build the temple of the Lord.
On their way to the Promised Land, God’s people worshiped at a special tent called the tabernacle. It worked well for many years because it was portable, and God’s people were on the move. But the tabernacle was centuries old, by now, and God’s people were settled in the Promised Land. It was time for something better.
My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. But the Lord said to my father David, You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name (1 Kings 8:17-19), said Solomon.
With the help of God’s Spirit, David made plans for the temple (1 Chronicles 28:19), and gathered materials including wood, stone, iron, bronze, silver, gold and precious stones—all in large quantities (1 Chronicles 29:2). Since David was still alive at this time, he commissioned Solomon to carry out the work (1 Chronicles 28:20).
The temple itself wasn’t big: about ninety feet long, thirty feet wide, and forty-five feet high (1 Kings 6:2). But other structures were added, along with courtyards, that made it very impressive. It took thousands of workers (1 Kings 5:13-16) seven years to finish the task (1 Kings 6:38), and it was one of the greatest buildings of the ancient world.
Upon its completion God showed his approval in two important ways. First, When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple (1 Kings 8:10-11).
This also happened at the tabernacle many years earlier. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35). In both cases this was clear and convincing proof of God’s approval.
Second, God showed his approval by sending fire to consume Solomon’s sacrifice (2 Chronicles 7:1), as he also did for Moses at the tabernacle (Leviticus 9:24). It was important for God’s people to know that the temple was pleasing to God, and that he wanted to be approached in this way.
Solomon’s temple stood for many years but was destroyed by the Babylonians (2 Kings 25:8-9), around 586 BC. Another temple was built in its place, but it was destroyed by the Romans a few decades after Christ. The problem with earthly temples is that they can be destroyed.
Likewise, Jesus said of himself, Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days (John 2:19). The temple of his body was destroyed on the cross, and his resurrection proved that God accepted his sacrifice. We no longer need a building to worship God, nor do we need to offer sacrifices. We come to God through faith in Jesus Christ, who is our temple and our sacrifice.
And because the church is united to Christ, it’s his temple on earth. As the glory of God filled the temple in the Old Testament, so Jesus gave his Spirit to the church on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). God is no longer found in a temple of stone, but among his gathered children.
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? (1 Corinthians 3:16), wrote Paul. And where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them (Matthew 18:20), said Jesus. Every Christian has the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19), and God’s Spirit is uniquely present whenever we gather for worship.
Reflection and Review
- Why are motives important to God?
- Why should we ask God for what he wants to give us?
- How is Jesus like a temple?
Lesson 82
1 Kings 10:1 When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.
If Sheba was in modern day Yemen, the trip was over twelve hundred miles. The queen came with her questions but also with a caravan of merchandize. When she heard Solomon’s wisdom, and saw his wealth, she was overwhelmed.
The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your people must be! (1 Kings 10:6-8), she said. Then she gave the king her treasure but, in return, Solomon gave her even more (1 Kings 10:10, 2 Chronicles 9:12).
The Queen of Sheba recognized Solomon’s wisdom, but many overlook the wisdom of Christ. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here (Matthew 12:42), said Jesus.
Even those who are naturally dull can become eternally wise by following Jesus Christ. Christ has become for us wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:30), wrote Paul. This is the highest wisdom there is and surpasses the wisdom of Solomon.
*****
1 Kings 11:1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women.
Solomon had wisdom from God but he didn’t always apply it to himself. Instead of following the pattern for marriage established at creation (Genesis 1:27), Solomon took many wives. This was a practice of kings to stabilize relationships with surrounding nations. When a king’s daughter was given to a foreign king, the two kingdoms were less likely to go to war.
1 Kings 11:2 They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.
One of the greatest threats to God’s people was losing their distinction through intermarriage. Even before they reached the Promised Land, some Israelite men were having sex with foreign women, and worshipping their gods (Numbers 25). God’s anger burned so fiercely that twenty-four thousand perished.
Solomon may’ve thought the command against intermarriage didn’t apply to him because, as the king, his situation was unique. This is a common way of thinking whenever we face temptation. Because our situation is unique, we think God will overlook our behavior, or make an exception for us. But God knows our situation is never unique.
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13), wrote Paul. God is willing to help, and would’ve helped Solomon too, if he was willing to obey.
1 Kings 11:2b Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.
Solomon took many wives for political reasons, but also for sexual pleasure. This was so important to him that he had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines (1 Kings 11:3). If Solomon slept with a different woman every night, it would take about three years to see each one again. He may have pleased himself but he denied most of them any hope of a meaningful relationship. It was a very selfish practice.
1 Kings 11:4 As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods.
Solomon’s heart didn’t turn to other gods all at once, but by degrees. At first he probably found the worship of foreign gods to be repulsive. But, for the sake of his wives, he was willing to put up with it. After many years, however, Solomon grew accustomed to the worship of foreign gods, and the situation seemed normal to him. With the passing of even more time, the worship of foreign gods not only seemed normal, but desirable. After all, shouldn’t everyone be allowed to worship according to their conscience?
Finally, the worship of foreign gods was not only good for others, but also good for Solomon. If the God of Israel had richly blessed him, perhaps the other gods would bless him even more. The human heart seldom turns away from God all at once, but usually by degrees.
1 Kings 11:5-8 He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. . . . Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
Solomon didn’t abandon God completely, but added other gods to his religion. This is not unusual. When different religions come into contact they often blend together in a process called syncretism.
Christians in Corinth were invited to eat at pagan temples and some accepted the invitation. But You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21), wrote Paul.
Many Christians read the Bible but also read their horoscope. They believe in heaven and hell, but also in reincarnation. I met a girl at a bookstore who referred to herself as a Christian Buddhist. This may be fashionable but it’s not Christianity. If we don’t limit our religion to the Bible it will contradict the Bible. Believers should always be on guard against syncretism.
1 Kings 11:9 The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.
Solomon grew up with the knowledge of God, and encountered God on two occasions (1 Kings 3:5, 9:2). This is a privilege given to few, and made Solomon’s guilt even worse. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked (Luke 12:48), said Jesus.
Encountering God is a gift from him, but it’s no guarantee against turning away. Many who’ve experienced God deeply in the past aren’t living for him now. It’s not enough to rely on the past; we must seek his face always (Psalm 105:4), wrote the Psalmist.
When we consider Solomon’s wisdom, and his encounters with God, we should be shocked by his apostasy and fear for our souls. If Solomon turned away from God, what might happen to us? [W]ork out your salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), wrote Paul. The Bible gives us enough assurance to be secure, but never enough to be careless.
1 Kings 11:13 I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.
Solomon led the nation to its peak but it was brief. Whenever God’s word contradicted his personal judgment, Solomon rejected God’s word and followed his personal judgment (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). This made him successful for a while but not for very long. God split the kingdom after he died and all his gains were lost. God’s work must be done God’s way in order to have lasting results.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Solomon turn away from God?
- Why is Solomon’s apostasy alarming?
- Why was Solomon’s success so brief?
Lesson 83
1 Kings 12:1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king.
After Solomon died, his son Rehoboam ruled in his place. His father’s success was financed through heavy taxation and the people were feeling oppressed. They hoped the installation of a new king would be an opportunity to negotiate something more agreeable.
1 Kings 12:2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this . . . he returned from Egypt.
Jeroboam was an important leader in Solomon’s labor force (1 Kings 11:28), and he received word from the prophet Ahijah that he’d rule over most of Israel (1 Kings 11:29-39). Solomon didn’t like this prophecy so he tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt (1 Kings 11:40). When Solomon died, Jeroboam returned to fulfill his destiny. He was a serious threat to Rehoboam.
1 Kings 12:4 [The people said to Rehoboam] Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten [it] and we will serve you.
Rehoboam promised to respond within three days, which would give him time to consult his advisors. Those who served his father encouraged the new king to answer the people favorably. If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants (1 Kings 12:7), they said.
These men understood that the purpose of power is to serve. [W]hoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave (Matthew 20:26-27), said Jesus. Rehoboam needed to serve the people if he wanted to succeed. But that’s not what he had in mind.
1 Kings 12:8 Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.
These young men weren’t familiar with the daily pain and misery of ordinary Israelites. They were children of privilege who wanted to live in the manner to which they had grown accustomed. Solomon was the greatest king they’d ever known and his authority was absolute. If Rehoboam appeared weak he might never recover. Instead of giving into the people, he should be stronger than his father.
1 Kings 12:13 The king answered the people harshly. . . . My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.
Scorpions seem to refer to a brutal kind of lash. Rehoboam’s policies would be harsher than his father’s, and the punishment for breaking them would also be worse. He wasn’t the kind of king who was willing to negotiate.
1 Kings 12:16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse’s son? . . . So the Israelites went home.
This was nothing short of catastrophic for Rehoboam and the nation. The glorious kingdom was now divided, north and south, never to be united again. Instead of one powerful nation, they became two weaker nations, less able to defend themselves. It was a breach that would never be healed.
Rehoboam was an inexperienced leader and apparently insecure. He viewed the challenge to his leadership as a threat which caused him to overreact. If he had listened to the people, and made a few concessions, the nation would’ve been saved. Instead of a weakness, his loving concern would’ve been a strength.
1 Kings 12:20 When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.
The prophecy given to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:29-39) was coming true, but it also had conditions. If you do whatever I command you and walk in obedience to me and do what is right in my eyes by obeying my decrees and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you (1 Kings 11:38). But Jeroboam wouldn’t be faithful to God, and things would turn out badly.
1 Kings 12:26 Jeroboam thought to himself, The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David.
The southern kingdom (Judah) and the northern kingdom (Israel) were politically distinct but shared a common religion. Since the temple was in Judah, faithful Israelites would travel there at least three times a year, as the law of God required (Exodus 23:17).
This shouldn’t have been a problem, but Jeroboam was convinced that a common religion would cause the Israelites to give their allegiance back to Judah, and he would be killed for treason. So, instead of trusting God, he changed the nation’s religion.
1 Kings 12:28-29 [Jeroboam] made two golden calves. He said to the people, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt. One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan.
Bethel and Dan were at the southern and northern ends of Israel, so the people wouldn’t have to go all the way to Jerusalem to worship. Jeroboam also appointed a priesthood, and planned a yearly festival. His religion was similar to the Jewish religion, but it wasn’t in the Bible. It was, in fact, idolatry.
Most of the northern kingdom followed Jeroboam, but not everyone. Some abandoned their property and went to live in Judah, so they could worship God according to his word (2 Chronicles 11:13-16). They’re like Christians who leave a church because the church has left the word of God. We are not free to worship God any way we choose, but only according to his word. The further we stray from the word of God, the further we stray from Christ.
Reflection and Review
- How did Rehoboam misunderstand the purpose of leadership?
- Should leaders try to be popular?
- Why did Jeroboam change Israel’s religion?
Lesson 84
1 Kings 13:1 By the word of the Lord a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering.
Since the northern kingdom departed from biblical religion, God could’ve turned his back on them. Instead, he reached out to his people through a series of prophets. The first one isn’t named but is simply called a man of God.
As Jeroboam stood by the altar, the man of God from Judah began to speak. Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you (1 Kings 13:2).
This man risked his life by interrupting a religious service led by King Jeroboam. He mentioned a future king, named Josiah, who would demolish the altar Jeroboam built (2 Kings 23:15). Josiah ruled about three hundred years after Jeroboam, and did what the man of God foretold. Telling the future is easy for God because he knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10).
1 Kings 13:3 That same day the man of God gave a sign: This is the sign the Lord has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out.
To show that his distant prophecy would be fulfilled, the man of God foretold something that would happen that very day. But the man of God was being a nuisance, so Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar and said, Seize him! Immediately the hand he stretched out shriveled up, the altar split apart, and the ashes poured out—just as the prophet foretold.
The prophet was clearly speaking for God, so the king asked for his hand to be restored. As soon as the prophet prayed, the king’s hand was healed. After all this, we might expect the king to abandon his false religion and lead God’s people in true religion. Instead, he tried to bribe the man of God with a gift. If he could win the prophet’s support, it would add credibility to the king’s new religion.
To his many other sins Jeroboam added stubbornness. He determined his course of action and would continue at any cost. Even when God made his will clear, Jeroboam wouldn’t change.
If we condemn Jeroboam, however, we must also condemn ourselves, because there’s an obstinate streak in all of us. Even when God’s will is clear to us, we often go against it. All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people (Isaiah 65:2), said God. Jeroboam was wrong to be stubborn, and so are we sometimes.
1 Kings 13:11 Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day.
The old prophet’s sons seem to have been at the sacrifice and witnessed the events. They knew their father would be interested, so they quickly brought him the news. The old prophet wanted to meet the younger man of God, so he mounted his donkey and went after him. Then he invited him home to eat.
The younger man of God was hungry, and would’ve gone home with the old prophet, but God had told him earlier not to eat or drink in that place. The old prophet answered, I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord: Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water (1 Kings 13:18). But the old prophet was lying.
He probably wanted to spend time with the younger man of God and hear everything God was saying to him. Since everyone lies a little, what could possibly happen? The younger man of God believed the older prophet and went back to his house. But while they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet.
This is what the Lord says: You have defied the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors (1 Kings 13:21-22).
Many families owned a burial place but those who died away from home were usually buried where they died. The old prophet was telling the younger man of God that he wouldn’t make it home that day.
This is a very strange story but it reveals the low level of godliness even among the religious leaders. The king was leading a false religion, the old prophet was a liar, and the younger man of God allowed himself to be deceived to satisfy his appetite—all on the same day!
One of God’s best gifts to his people are religious leaders who are faithful to what God says. But even good religious leaders can fail both privately and publicly. Since the beginning, in fact, there’s only been one religious leader with a perfect record. I always do what pleases [my Father] (John 8:29), said Jesus. He’s the only religious leader who’s completely trustworthy.
1 Kings 13:23 When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him.
It must’ve been a strange parting. They both knew God and were able to hear his voice. The older prophet must’ve felt terrible, and the younger man of God must’ve felt foolish. He began the journey home but didn’t get very far before he was killed by a lion. The older prophet buried him and asked to be buried in the same place (1 Kings 13:31).
Perhaps the reason neither man is named is because they both fell short of what God required. [A]ll have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), wrote Paul. This is why we need to be saved. If the prophets fell short, how much more do we? Whoever hopes to get to heaven on their own will be very disappointed. But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Acts 2:21), said Peter.
Reflection and Review
- How do we know all the Bible’s prophecies will be fulfilled?
- If Jeroboam knew he was wrong, why didn’t he change?
- What do the man of God and the old prophet teach us about religious leaders?
Lesson 85
1 Kings 14:1 At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill.
If Abijah was Jeroboam’s firstborn son, he was also the crown prince. Jeroboam was so concerned for his son that he sent his wife to the prophet Ahijah, hoping for a good word from God. Ahijah was old and blind, but God was still using him. God told Ahijah that Jeroboam’s wife was on her way, and what she should tell her husband.
Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I raised you up from among the people and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes. You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have aroused my anger and turned your back on me (1 Kings 14:7-9).
Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel—slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone. Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds will feed on those who die in the country. . . . As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die (1 Kings 14:10-12).
[Furthermore] the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their ancestors and scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they aroused the Lord’s anger by making Asherah poles. And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit (1 Kings 14:15-16).
From Jeroboam we learn that one person can lead millions into sin. Jeroboam’s son died, and all the prophet’s other words were fulfilled in due time (1 Kings 15:25-30), including the nation’s dispersion. Since God holds us responsible for the sins we lead others to commit (Matthew 18:6), as well as our own sins, our guilt may have no limit. We should always keep in mind the affect our sin will have on others, as well as on ourselves.
We should also notice that leadership matters. Jeroboam led millions into sin, but Christ has led even more into righteousness. Jeroboam’s kingdom was dispersed, but Christ’s kingdom is being gathered from all over the world. Jeroboam’s kingdom was filled with disgrace, but Christ’s kingdom will be filled with honor. No matter what we’ve done in the past, we can be part of Christ’s kingdom if we’ll simply receive him as our Lord (Colossians 2:6). As goes the king, so goes the kingdom.
*****
1 Kings 14:25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem.
Rehoboam allowed evil to flourish in Judah (1 Kings 14:23-24), so God sent the king of Egypt to attack them. This is what the Lord says, You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon you to Shishak (2 Chronicles 12:5). God is under no obligation to protect those who abandon him.
When Rehoboam heard this, he humbled himself and said, The Lord is just (2 Chronicles 12:6). Then God softened the punishment and said, My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. They will, however, become subject to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands (2 Chronicles 12:7-8).
Rehoboam loved freedom so much that he wanted to be free from God. But when he was free from God, there was no one to protect him from King Shishak. So instead of serving the King of heaven, he had to serve the king of Egypt. That’s how it is with us.
If we serve God, he’ll protect us from the evil one (Matthew 6:13). But if we won’t serve God, there’s no one to protect us from the one who hates us most. Perfect freedom is serving the God who loved us enough to die for us. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36), said Jesus. Truest freedom is living the way God created us to live.
*****
1 Kings 16:15 Zimri reigned in Tirzah seven days.
Zimri had the shortest reign of all the kings of Israel. He began by killing the previous king, and taking the throne for himself. To reduce the odds of retaliation, he also killed the previous king’s extended family. But when General Omri heard what Zimri had done, he marched on the capital city. Sensing certain defeat, Zimri went into the royal palace, set it on fire, and perished in the flames.
Zimri thought it was better to die by fire, than to fall into the hands of Omri. He may’ve been right, but he wasn’t mindful of the flames of hell below, where the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:48), said Jesus. Zimri thought his suffering would be brief, only to discover that it will never end. Few people like the idea of hell, but it’s so important to Christianity that Jesus taught about it frequently. Jesus didn’t die to save us from a mild discomfort, but from the worst conceivable agony.
*****
1 Kings 16:23 Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned twelve years.
One of his greatest achievements was the purchase of a hill called Samaria, which became the capital city. It was centrally located and rose three hundred feet above the surrounding area. This made it difficult to attack, and helped stabilize the nation. In fact, Omri was so successful militarily that, many years later, Assyrian records still referred to Israel as the house of Omri.
In spite of his many achievements, the Bible gives little space to Omri, and concludes that he did evil in the eyes of the Lord (1 Kings 16:25). Omri reminds us that the judgment of history is nothing compared to the judgment of God. Omri was applauded by many in his day, but nobody cares today. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever (1 John 2:17), wrote John.
*****
1 Kings 16:29-30 Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him.
Ahab’s worst offense was leading the nation to worship Baal instead of God. He even built a temple to Baal in the capital city. Ahab did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him (1 Kings 16:33).
We’d expect God to pour out his wrath but, instead, he graciously sent his prophets. This is because God is patient with us, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), wrote Peter. We ought to be amazed by the patience of God, but never put it to the test. Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning (1 Corinthians 15:34), wrote Paul.
Reflection and Review
- Why was Jeroboam’s sin so bad?
- Why did Rehoboam have to serve the king of Egypt?
- Why was Omri a failure?
Lesson 86
1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.
Ahab and his wife Jezebel were making Baal worship the official religion of Israel. Rather than turn away from his people, God sent the prophet Elijah to turn them back to him. Elijah’s name means the Lord is my God, and that was the heart of his message.
To show his people the foolishness of serving Baal (the god of crops and fertility) God sent a drought that would last three and a half years (James 5:17). Most people can live a few weeks without food, but only a few days without water. God can get our attention anytime by turning off the water. Whenever we take a drink of God’s water, we should thank him for the rain.
1 Kings 17:2-4 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.
Elijah would have to hide for the next few years because of the king’s wrath. God sent him to a brook that would flow for some time, and commanded the ravens to feed him. Twice a day they brought Elijah bread and meat, and he drank water from the brook (1 Kings 17:6). God can provide for his people even in difficult times. Regardless of economic conditions, we should always look to God as our provider.
1 Kings 17:8-9 Then the word of the Lord came to him: Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.
After the brook dried up, God sent Elijah to a town outside the boarders of Israel. There he saw a widow gathering sticks, and asked her for bread and water. She was so poor, however, that she was preparing her final meal, so she and her son could eat it and die.
Elijah said to her, Do not be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son (1 Kings 17:13).
The prophet’s request seems selfish at first. Would he really deny a poor widow and her son part of their final meal in order to feed himself? Not actually. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land (1 Kings 17:14), he said.
All the widow had was a little flour and oil, but Elijah assured her that God would replenish it until the drought was over. She obeyed the prophet’s word, and God kept his promise. Her food supply never ran out (1 Kings 17:15).
We too should give to God while hoping to receive from him. Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine (Proverbs 3:9-10), says Proverbs.
God is generous with us, and wants us to be generous with him. Giving to God acknowledges that he is the source of all we have, and that we trust him for the future. Regardless how little we have, we can always give some away.
*****
1 Kings 17:17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill.
This would be a concern to any parent but, since the boy was her only child, the situation was even more serious. And because she was a widow, her son was her only hope of support in old age. But the child’s condition grew worse and he died. She said to Elijah, What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son? (1 Kings 17:18).
The woman’s reply is interesting for two reasons. First, she blamed Elijah for the death of her son. Since God is over everything, and Elijah represented God, the death of her son was Elijah’s fault. Her logic wasn’t fair to Elijah but, when people are angry at God, they may lash out at his ministers.
The woman’s reply is also interesting because she was reminded of her sin. We don’t know what her sin was, but it must’ve been serious if she thought it was related to the death of her son. David’s sin with Bathsheba caused the death of their son (2 Samuel 12:14), so she may have been right. But probably not.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16), wrote John. God punished Jesus for our sins, so that he could look with favor on us. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Jeremiah 31:34), said God.
Since we never know infallibly what God is doing, it’s not always wise to connect particular suffering with any particular sin. It’s better to confess all our sins (1 John 1:9), and focus on God’s love for us in Christ Jesus.
1 Kings 17:19 Give me your son, Elijah replied.
Elijah took the boy into a room, where he could earnestly pray for him, and the boy’s life returned. What a joy for his mother to receive her son alive again!
This miracle anticipates the raising of the widow’s son by Jesus (Luke 7:11-17), and the general resurrection at the end of the age. [F]or a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned (John 5:28-29), said Jesus.
It’s not enough to think that our souls will go to heaven or hell when we die. That is certainly true, but the day is coming when all the dead will be reunited with their bodies forever. The lost will suffer in their bodies forever, and the righteous will flourish in their bodies forever.
The pleasure and pain we experience now reminds us of the pleasure or pain we’ll experience then. This is terrible news for the lost, but wonderful news for the righteous. [Y]ou will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand (Psalm 16:11), wrote David.
Reflection and Review
- What can we learn from the widow about giving to God?
- Why did the loss of her son remind the widow of her sins?
- Why is the general resurrection important to everyone?
Lesson 87
1 Kings 18:1 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.
The land was parched, because of the draught, but the nation hadn’t returned to God. God was about to make it rain again, but he wanted the people to know that it was from him, not from Baal. So Elijah challenged the king to meet him on Mount Carmel with hundreds of false prophets and many others. We should imagine thousands of people who followed a false religion, and Elijah as the only one speaking for God.
Here we see that truth is not determined by majority opinion. Most people have no reason for their beliefs except that others believe them too. They go along with the majority, believing the majority is usually right. But God alone is always right. If everyone in the world disagrees with God, then everyone in the world is wrong. It’s not easy to stand with God against the majority, but Elijah was a man of character.
1 Kings 18:21 Elijah went before the people and said, How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.
The Israelites had a long history of believing in God, but also believing in other gods. But the other gods weren’t helping very much, and now God’s people were wondering what to do. Elijah told them to stop wavering and make up their minds.
Christians also waver between serving God and other possibilities. We accept Jesus as Lord, but we also accept the values of our culture, even when they disagree with Jesus. Instead of following the Lord wholeheartedly, we might follow him halfheartedly, or even less. We’re like someone with a foot in two boats. Unless we make up our minds, we’ll end up in the water. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do (James 1:8), wrote James.
1 Kings 18:22-23 Then Elijah said to them, I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us.
To demonstrate who the real God was, Elijah proposed a sacrifice. He and the prophets of Baal would each prepare a bull, put it on wood, but not start a fire. Then they’d pray, and whatever deity answered with fire was God.
The prophets of Baal went first. They called on Baal and danced around the altar from morning until noon. When there was no response, Elijah began to taunt them. Shout louder! he said. Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.
So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. . . . But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention (1 Kings 18:27-29).
Then Elijah built an altar with stones, and dug a trench around it. He cut up the bull, laid it on the wood, and had water poured on the sacrifice until the trench was full.
Then he offered a simple prayer, and the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God! (1 Kings 18:38-39).
This was an awesome display of God’s power which seemed to win the day. God revealed himself so clearly that it was hard not to believe. We might wish that God would do this more often but, ordinarily, God calls us to believe in him due to his revelation in nature, Scripture, conscience and Christ. The evidence is conclusive, so there’s no excuse for not believing (Romans 1:20).
1 Kings 18:40 Then Elijah commanded them, Seize the prophets of Baal. Do not let anyone get away! They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.
This may seem a little harsh, but it was actually less than what the law of God required. The full penalty would’ve required the destruction of entire towns (Deuteronomy 13:12-18).
It’s a serious thing to teach a false religion, and God hates it. To lead anyone away from the truth of God is no longer a capital crime, but it’s still a serious sin. If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea (Matthew 18:6), said Jesus.
1 Kings 18:41 Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
God had promised rain (1 Kings 18:1), and Elijah knew it was coming (1 Kings 18:41), so he began to pray. Go and look toward the sea, he told his servant. And he went up and looked. There is nothing there, he said (1 Kings 18:43).
Seven times Elijah told him to go back and look and, on the seventh time, he saw a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising out of the sea. Then the sky grew black with clouds, the wind picked up, and a heavy rain began to fall.
Here we learn the importance of prayer for bringing about the will of God. God does’t need our prayers but likes to use them to bring about what he has promised. God’s will is to bring about his kingdom, so Jesus taught us to pray, your kingdom come (Matthew 6:10). God could bring his kingdom without our prayers, but he prefers to use our prayers to bring his will to pass. Whenever we understand the will of God, we should pray for God to do it.
1 Kings 18:46 The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
Jezreel was about sixteen miles away but, empowered by God, Elijah ran ahead of Ahab’s chariot. He must’ve been thrilled over the defeat of Baal in the presence of the king and thousands of others. Now God was sending rain to show his approval. God was using Elijah to turn the nation around. It was the finest moment of his life so far.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it hard to stand for God against the majority?
- How does God usually reveal himself?
- Why did Elijah pray for rain if he knew it was on the way?
Lesson 88
1 Kings 19:1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
Since a triumph like this could only come from God, Elijah probably assumed that Queen Jezebel would come over to God’s side. The King and Queen would lead the nation in a revival, and true worship would be restored. It could even spread to the ends of he earth. Elijah must have been amazed at what God was doing through him.
1 Kings 19:2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.
This was the opposite of what Elijah was expecting. The demonstration of God’s power and blessing were so obvious they couldn’t be denied. Elijah should’ve become an advisor to the king and queen as they reformed the nation. Instead, the queen was determined to kill him, just as she had killed other prophets of God (1 Kings 18:4).
We might assume that people want the truth about God, and all we have to do is tell them. The heart is so corrupt, however, that we’d rather suppress the truth by [our] wickedness (Romans 1:18) than believe in the God of the Bible. That’s what Jezebel did, and that’s what we do by nature. Sinners don’t want a holy God who punishes sin and makes demands on them. That’s a truth we’d rather suppress.
1 Kings 19:3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.
There wasn’t much else he could do. When you fight with all you have, but it’s not enough, all you can do is run. Instead of being the winner, Elijah became the loser. The ecstasy of victory became the agony of defeat.
The battle for truth won’t be won until Christ returns. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against . . . the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12), wrote Paul. Satan won’t give up and neither should we. God will help us win some battles but, like Elijah, we may have to run for our lives sometimes.
1 Kings 19:4 [Elijah] came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die.
This is the prophet at his lowest. He’d been running for days, to escape the wrath of Jezebel, and was exhausted. The trauma of his struggle was so great, in fact, that it took away his will to live. I have had enough, Lord . . . Take my life, he said.
Godly leaders aren’t exempt from feelings of despair. Moses (Numbers 11:15), Job (Job 6:8-9) and Jonah (Jonah 4:3) also prayed for death, but God had a future for each of them. As long as God keeps us alive, he has a reason for us to live.
1 Kings 19:5-6 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, Get up and eat. He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
This happened a second time and, strengthened by the food, Elijah traveled another forty days until he reached Mount Sinai. That’s where God met with Moses and established his covenant with Israel (Exodus 19-20). Elijah was hoping to find God there as well.
1 Kings 19:9 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: What are you doing here, Elijah?
Elijah poured out his complaint to God, and the Lord displayed his power. [A] great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:11-12).
God wasn’t working in the dramatic way Elijah longed for, but he was still speaking. If Elijah would pay attention, he could still be used by God. This is not an invitation to listen to the voices in our heads, but a reminder to listen to what God has said in his word. We might wish for mighty acts, but God’s word is always mighty. Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:29), wrote Jeremiah. As long we are listening, we can still be used by God.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Jezebel reject God?
- Why do some people pray to die?
- How does God speak to us?
Lesson 89
1 Kings 21:1 Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite.
Naboth lived in Jezreel and owned a vineyard that was close to Ahab’s palace. Ahab wanted to buy Naboth’s vineyard to use as a vegetable garden, and was willing to pay whatever Naboth asked, or to give him a better vineyard. But Naboth wanted to keep the vineyard in his family since that’s what God required. The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers (Leviticus 25:23), said God.
God gave the land to Israel by tribes (Joshua 13-21), and family property was to be passed down from generation to generation. Naboth could obey God, or sell his vineyard, but he couldn’t do both. It took a measure of courage, but he said Yes to God, and No to the king.
1 Kings 21:4 So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors. He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat.
It’s inappropriate for kings to pout but that’s what Ahab did. He couldn’t have what he wanted so he lay on his bed and sulked. When his wicked wife, Jezebel, discovered the reason for his mood she said, Cheer up. I’ll get you the vineyard (1 Kings 21:7).
Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians (1 Kings 16:31), so she had an idea of how kings should rule. Pagan kings often took whatever land they wanted because, theoretically, it all belonged to them. Jezebel had no concern for God, or Naboth, but only for what she wanted. So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, placed his seal on them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city with him (1 Kings 21:8).
Jezebel wrote that Naboth should be accused of cursing God and the king, and then be stoned to death. The sentence was carried out, and Naboth’s sons were also killed (2 Kings 9:26), to eliminate their claim on the land.
1 Kings 21:15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, Get up and take possession of the vineyard.
But that very day God sent the prophet Elijah to meet Ahab at his newly acquired vineyard. And Elijah came with a word from God. I will wipe out your descendants and cut off from Ahab every last male in Israel . . . . [and] dogs will devour Jezebel (1 Kings 21:21-23), he said.
Ahab killed Naboth and his sons so, God would kill Ahab and his sons—and dogs would eat his wife. Sometime later Ahab’s sons were slaughtered, and their heads were put into baskets (2 Kings 10:7). Jezebel was thrown from an upper room and trampled to death by horses. [W]hen they went out to bury her, they found nothing except her skull, her feet and her hands (2 Kings 9:35). The rest was eaten by dogs (2 Kings 9:36), just as the prophet foretold.
Naboth suffered injustice but his story isn’t over. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:10), said Jesus. Naboth will probably have a better vineyard in God’s kingdom than he ever had before. He’ll show us around and tell us more about Ahab and Jezebel, but they won’t be there to talk about him. We may suffer injustice now, but Christ will make it right in the age to come.
*****
1 Kings 22:3 The king of Israel had said to his officials, Don’t you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?
Ramoth Gilead was about twenty-eight miles east of the Jordan River, and rightly belonged to the nation of Israel. It was taken over by the Arameans and Ahab wanted to take it back. He requested help from Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, who agreed go with him. But Jehoshaphat wanted to consult the Lord, so Ahab gathered four hundred prophets, who all agreed that God would give them victory. Zedekiah, son of Kenaanah, made iron horns declaring, This is what the Lord says: With these you will gore the Arameans until they are destroyed (1 Kings 22:11).
But Jehoshaphat wasn’t convinced. He thought these prophets were only telling the king what he wanted to hear, so he asked for a more reliable prophet. Then Ahab called for Micaiah, son of Imlah, who was encouraged to agree with what the other prophets said. But Micaiah was a man of conviction who only cared what God said. I saw all Israel scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd (1 Kings 22:17), he declared. In other words, the king would be killed and his army would be scattered.
1 Kings 22:24 Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah went up and slapped Micaiah in the face.
To be publicly slapped in the face is very insulting, and Micaiah may have blushed. Then King Ahab had Micaiah thrown in prison until he returned from battle. If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken through me, said Micaiah. Then he added, Mark my words, all you people!
1 Kings 22:29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, wanted to hear from a true prophet. But, when he did, he ignored the prophet’s words and went to battle anyway. This is how many people listen to sermons. They want to know what God says, not to obey him, but to see what he thinks about their plans.
1 Kings 22:30 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will enter the battle in disguise, but you wear your royal robes.
Ahab was concerned that Micaiah’s prophecy might come true so, instead of wearing his royal robes, he went to battle in disguise. King Jehoshaphat agreed to wear the royal robes, and nearly died as a result.
Meanwhile, someone drew his bow at random and hit the king of Israel between the sections of his armor (1 Kings 22:34). Ahab told his chariot driver to get him out of the battle, but he remained propped up in his chariot so his soldiers wouldn’t lose heart. The battle raged all day long, but the king’s bleeding wouldn’t stop. That evening Ahab died, just as Micaiah foretold.
The random shot of an arrow wasn’t random to God. An inch to the left or the right and the arrow would’ve struck the king’s armor. But God directed the arrow to its mark so the king would die as he decreed. No amount of protection can save a man whom God has decided to kill.
Ahab was one of the wickedest kings Israel ever had. Along with his wicked wife, Jezebel, he led God’s people to worship Baal. He partly believed in God, but never truly turned to him. The purpose of God’s patience is to lead us to repentance (Romans 2:4). But if we won’t repent, all that is left is judgment.
Reflection and Review
- Why was Naboth persecuted?
- Why was Jezebel so evil?
- Why didn’t Jehoshaphat listen to Micaiah?
Lesson 90
2 Kings 1:2 Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself.
Ahaziah, the son of Ahab and Jezebel, ruled the northern kingdom of Israel from 853 to 852 BC, and did evil in the eyes of the Lord (1 Kings 22:52). He fell from an upper room and was injured so severely that it wasn’t clear if he would live or die. But, instead of turning to God, he sent messengers to consult with the god of Ekron, to see if he would recover.
Some people respond to hardship by turning to God, others by turning away from him, and others by ignoring him. On one floor of a hospital there may be someone who’s praising God, another who’s cursing God, and another who’s ignoring God. Suffering doesn’t change our view of God so much as it reveals it. Ahaziah thought the God of Israel was irrelevant, so he didn’t bother to consult him.
2 Kings 1:3 But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Go up and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?
The king’s messengers didn’t make it the few days journey to Ekron, because God sent the prophet Elijah with the answer to Ahaziah’s question. It seemed that God was reaching out to Ahaziah, even though Ahaziah wasn’t reaching out to God.
2 Kings 1:5 When the messengers returned to the king, he asked them, Why have you come back?
The messengers weren’t expected for several days, so the king was surprised to see them. They explained their meeting with Elijah and gave the king his answer: You will certainly die! (2 Kings 1:6). It wasn’t the answer Ahaziah wanted since he was still in his early twenties. But long life isn’t promised to anyone—only certain death. [P]eople are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:27), says Hebrews.
At least Ahaziah could use his remaining time to prepare to meet the Almighty. [I]f someone who is wicked repents, that person’s former wickedness will not bring condemnation (Ezekiel 33:12), said God. This was an opportunity that could lead to eternal life. But the wicked often refuse to repent even when they’re dying. So, instead of turning to God, Ahaziah sent fifty men to arrest Elijah.
2 Kings 1:9-10 The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, Man of God, the king says, Come down! Elijah answered the captain, If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men! Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.
Word of this got back to Ahaziah but he was unfazed. He sent another fifty men and got the same results. Then he sent another fifty men but the captain approached the prophet differently. He fell on his knees and begged Elijah for his life, and for the lives of his soldiers. So Elijah spared their lives and went to see the king. Then the king died just as Elijah predicted.
It’s unfortunate that a hundred soldiers had to die because the king was stubborn, but people often suffer because of their leaders. This is true for nations, organizations and families. [God] punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents (Exodus 34:7), recorded Moses.
Ahaziah was the wicked son of Ahab. If Ahab had followed God, and taught his children well, his son’s future might’ve been different. But, since Ahab rejected God, and worshipped a false god, that’s what his son did too. Everything we do, whether good or evil, ripples out to those around us.
*****
2 Kings 2:1 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.
Some time earlier God told Elijah to anoint Elisha to succeed him as a prophet (1 Kings 19:16). When Elijah found him, Elisha was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen (twenty-four in all) which shows he was a person of wealth.
Elijah threw his cloak around Elisha to show his prophetic ministry was being passed on to him. Elisha kissed his parents goodbye and prepared a feast by slaughtering his oxen and cooking them on his plowing equipment. Then he became Elijah’s servant.
This reminds us that the call of God is more important than anything else in life. When Jesus called Matthew from his tax collecting business, Matthew got up, left everything and followed him (Luke 5:28).
We may have to leave everything to follow Christ, but probably not. We can serve by preaching his word, raising children, waiting tables, or any legitimate occupation. Thinking of our job as a way to serve Christ elevates it to the highest possible level.
Reflection and Review
- How does suffering affect our view of God?
- How does God punish children for the sins of their parents?
- Why is it helpful to see our jobs as a way to serve Christ?
Lesson 91
2 Kings 2:2 Elijah said to Elisha, Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel. But Elisha said, As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.
Elisha was aware that God would soon take Elijah away and was determined to stay by his side. Elijah may’ve wanted to be alone with God, but Elisha was determined to be a witness. So they went together to see the company of the prophets (2 Kings 2:3) at Bethel and Jericho. These were probably religious communities that looked to Elijah for leadership during this time of apostasy. Elijah was stopping by to say farewell.
2 Kings 2:6 Then Elijah said to him, Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.
Again Elisha refused, and they walked together to the Jordan River, followed by fifty men from the company of the prophets. When they got to the river, Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground (2 Kings 2:8).
This was an important miracle for Elijah’s disciples to see because it put Elijah in the same category as Joshua who also parted the Jordan River (Joshua 3:9-17). It also identified him with Moses who parted the Red Sea (Exodus 14:15-22). They could be confident the instruction they received from Elijah was truly from God.
The religion of the Bible is not only theological but also historical. More than mere assertions, it tells of real events with real witnesses. The fifty men who observed Elijah’s final miracle would be enough to overcome any unbelief the religious community may’ve had. They would also be emboldened to share their faith.
The ministry of Jesus Christ was also authenticated by miracles done before many witnesses. Some people are willing to die for what they believe is true, but few are willing to die for what they know is false. The disciples were in a position to know if Jesus was a fake, and none of them believed that. They saw his miracles and were willing to die for the truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (Matthew 14:33).
2 Kings 2:9-10 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you? Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit, Elisha replied. You have asked a difficult thing, Elijah said, yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.
To carry out his ministry, Elisha wanted twice the spiritual power that Elijah had. Elijah established the condition that Elisha would have to see his departure in order to receive his request. But he didn’t rebuke Elisha for wanting such a thing.
Likewise, your Father [will] give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13), said Jesus. By paying attention to Christ, and asking for more of his Spirit, we too can do the work of our Master. [B]e filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), said Paul. And, apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5), said Jesus. Effective ministry can only take place with the help of the Holy Spirit.
2 Kings 2:11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
In one of the most dramatic scenes in the Bible, the prophet was taken into heaven by a chariot of fire drawn by horses of fire. Elijah was one of only two people in the Old Testament who were taken into heaven without dying. The other was Enoch, who walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away (Genesis 5:24).
Elijah and Enoch remind us of what will happen to believers when Jesus Christ returns. [W]e who are still alive and are left will be caught up . . . in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17), wrote Paul. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other (Matthew 24:31), said Jesus. Christians should live like birds on a branch, ready to fly away at any moment.
2 Kings 2:13 Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.
This was the same cloak that Elijah had put on Elisha when he was first called to the prophetic ministry (1 Kings 19:19). It was also the cloak that Elijah just used to part the Jordan River (2 Kings 2:8). As Elijah was going into heaven he dropped the cloak for Elisha. After seeing his master go into heaven, and recovering his cloak, Elisha promptly used it.
2 Kings 2:14 He took the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and struck the water with it. Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah? he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.
Elisha’s first miracle assured him (and others) that The spirit of Elijah [was] resting on Elisha (2 Kings 2:15). The passing of Elijah’s cloak symbolized the succession of ministry. Elisha was now the lead prophet of Israel, and would do even more miracles than Elijah.
*****
2 Kings 2:23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered at him.
The boys were probably in their teens and there were at least forty-two of them (2 Kings 2:24). They were a physical threat to Elisha and were clearly disrespectful. Get out of here, baldy! they said. Get out of here, baldy! (2 Kings 2:23b).
Elisha was either going bald or had shaved his head. Either way, the boys were insulting a man of God and, therefore, God himself. So Elisha called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys (2 Kings 2:24).
It’s not clear if they lived or died, but youthfulness is no excuse for wickedness. God knows that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21), and he called these youth to account. Not all young people are equally wicked but there are no innocent youth. The most vile adults on earth began as beautiful babies.
A church was having a service for parents to dedicate their children to God. Someone asked if they could pin white roses on the children to symbolize their purity. The pastor said they could use any color rose they wanted as long as it was black. Children need to repent and follow Jesus Christ as soon as they are able, or they too will come under his wrath (John 3:36).
Reflection and Review
- Are miracles still important to establish the Christian faith?
- How does the Holy Spirit empower us for ministry?
- Are children naturally good or evil?
Lesson 92
2 Kings 3:5 [T]he king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
For some time the Moabites were forced to pay a yearly tax to Israel of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams (2 Kings 3:4). When Israel’s king died, however, the king of Moab asserted his independence by refusing to pay the tax.
Joram, the new king of Israel, set out at once to subdue the Moabites. He recruited the kings of Judah and Edom to go with him but, on their way across the desert, these three armies ran out of water. They were in serious danger when they consulted the prophet Elisha, who assured them of God’s help.
For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink (2 Kings 3:17). The following morning the water flowed until all the land was filled. But God was doing even more.
When the Moabites saw the water on the reddish soil, in the light of the morning sun, it looked like blood to them. They thought the armies had turned on each other and filled the land with their blood. They rushed to the plunder, only to be slaughtered by the Israelites, who were very much alive. Israel then advanced to conquerer many towns.
2 Kings 3:26-28 When the king of Moab saw that the battle had gone against him . . . . he took his firstborn son, who was to succeed him as king, and offered him as a sacrifice on the city wall. The fury against Israel was great; they withdrew and returned to their own land.
The conclusion to this story is completely unexpected. The Israelites were victorious until the king of Moab sacrificed his son to a pagan god. Then his army rallied and Israel was forced to retreat. Moab’s god seemed to defeat the God of Israel, and Moab remained independent.
This was not the desired outcome but it gives credibility to the whole account. If the story was fictitious it would have a different ending. By including the embarrassing facts, the writer gives us reason to believe the whole story, including God’s supply of water in the desert.
This story is also supported by an artifact known as the Moabite Stone. It’s an engraved rock about four feet high, two feet wide, and two inches thick. It has a curved top and is housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The inscription includes an account of this battle including Moab’s victory. It mentions other people and places in the Bible, and belongs to this exact period of time. It’s widely received as corroborating documentation of the biblical record from the king of Moab himself.
The Bible authenticates this story by including the embarrassing facts, and the king of Moab authenticated this story by writing it in stone. The Bible is reliable in all its parts because it is the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16).
*****
2 Kings 4:1 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.
This dear woman was in a difficult situation. In spite of her husband’s commitment to God, he hadn’t prospered financially. His devotion, in fact, may’ve kept him from earning as much as could. Or he may’ve been so generous that he became poor. Then he found himself in debt, and died prematurely, leaving his family in financial distress.
All this woman had in her house was a little jar of olive oil, so Elisha told her to borrow as many empty jars as she could. Then she was to go into her house and pour the oil from her little jar into all the other jars until they were all full.
2 Kings 4:6-7 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, Bring me another one. But he replied, There is not a jar left. Then the oil stopped flowing. She went and told the man of God, and he said, Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.
God knows the burden of crushing debt and is able to deliver us. The fault may belong to us, or to someone else, or it may be circumstantial. In any case, we should pray for God’s help and do all that we can to pay our debts.
But there’s another debt we can never repay, and that’s our debt of sin. Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48), said Jesus. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them (James 4:17), wrote James. Every bad thing we do, and every good thing we fail to do, puts us further into God’s debt.
This is the problem the gospel is meant to solve. What we couldn’t do for ourselves, Jesus did for us. We owed a debt we couldn’t pay; he paid a debt he didn’t owe. As the oil was poured out to pay the widow’s debt, so the blood of Christ was poured out to pay our debt of sin. Instead of being in debt forever, Christ has made us eternally rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).
*****
2 Kings 4:8 One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat.
The woman and her husband built a guest room for Elisha, but all was not well. She was childless, and he was old. It was only a matter of time before the wealthy woman became a lonely widow. Elisha informed the woman that she would give birth and, within a year, she was holding a baby. But, a few years later, the boy developed a headache and died. So Elisha went to his room to raise him from the dead.
2 Kings 4:34-35 Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out on him, the boy’s body grew warm. Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.
Resurrections aren’t very common in the Bible, but they’re important because they anticipate the general resurrection at the end of the age (John 5:28-29). Jesus raised three people from the dead, and even raised himself (John 10:18). The one who believes in me will live, even though they die (John 11:25), he said.
At the moment of death, all who believe in Jesus Christ go to be with him in heaven. [We] prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8), wrote Paul. But this is an in-between stage before we are raised physically. [H]e will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body (Philippians 3:21), wrote Paul again.
This is a wonderful promise for anyone who’s ever wanted a glorious body. How strong do you want to be? How smart do you want to be? How attractive do you want to be? How well do you want to sing or dance? We believe in the resurrection of the body and everlasting life in the age to come (Apostles Creed, paraphrased).
Reflection and Review
- Why is the Moabite Stone important?
- How can we pay our debt of sin?
- Should believers look forward to a glorious body?
Lesson 93
2 Kings 5:1 Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram.
In the political order, Naaman was probably second only to the king. He was a valiant man and highly regarded because of his many victories. But even the strongest are frail and, one day, Naaman noticed a patch of skin that was different from the rest. He may’ve treated it with balm and hoped it would go away but it didn’t. The condition grew worse, in fact, and began to spread. Naaman likely went to an expert who confirmed his deepest concern. It was leprosy. This meant the end of Naaman’s career, and even his family life, since he’d probably have to live in isolation until he died.
2 Kings 5:2 Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife.
It was a terrible day when this little girl was captured, and she must’ve wondered why God allowed it to happen. But nothing happens by accident, and God had important work for her. When she learned of Naaman’s condition, she told his wife the prophet Elisha could heal him. Her child-like faith seems simplistic, but God would use her witness in a very big way. Whenever bad things happen to us, we should be alert to how God may want to use us.
2 Kings 5:4 Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said.
The words of a little girl from Israel were now the subject of conversation between a king and his commander. Naaman’s situation was desperate and, since there was no hope for him in Aram, the king encouraged Naaman to go to Israel. He also gave him a letter to Israel’s king.
Some people only seek God when they’re desperate, but seeking God is never a bad idea. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13), said God. Our prayers won’t always be answered the way we want, but God will always do what is best. And nothing in the world compares to having God himself.
2 Kings 5:6 The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.
Israel's king was alarmed. Miracles aren’t available on demand so, by expecting a miracle, the king of Aram seemed to be starting a fight. But Elisha wasn’t concerned at all. Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel (2 Kings 5:8), he said. So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house (2 Kings 5:9).
This was an important moment for Naaman. He came a long way and his hopes were high. He even imagined what would happen next. Elisha would wave his hand over the spot, call on God, and cure him of the leprosy (2 Kings 5:11). But that didn’t happen.
Elisha didn’t even come to the door. His messenger simply told Naaman to wash in the Jordan seven times. Naaman was so insulted that he left in a rage and mocked the Jordan River. But his servants calmed him down and he went to the Jordan and did what he was told. When he came out, his skin was completely restored.
God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble (James 4:6), wrote James. If Naaman remained proud, he wouldn’t have received a thing. But, when he humbled himself, and obeyed Elisha, God gave him what he wanted. Whoever wants to receive from God will be helped by a little humility.
2 Kings 5:15 Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.
Naaman was a changed man. He wasn’t just healed; he was converted. He confessed that Israel’s God existed, and that all other gods did not. This was a bold profession of faith but Naaman went even further. [P]lease accept a gift, he said. He had 750 pounds of silver, 150 pounds of gold, and ten sets of clothing (2 Kings 5:5). This was an extreme amount of wealth, but seemed like very little compared to his life.
2 Kings 5:16 The prophet answered, As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing. And even though Naaman urged him, he refused.
Elisha could have used the money to build a school, a house, or any number of things. But he refused to accept it because he didn’t earn it. God did the miracle, not Elisha. He may’ve also feared that Naaman would think his motives were mixed. You cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24), said Jesus.
Success in ministry isn’t determined by income, but by faithfulness. Christian ministers should be paid (1 Corinthians 9:14), but should be careful to handle financial matters with complete integrity, so they don’t discredit the gospel.
2 Kings 5:17 [I] will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord.
As Naaman thought about his future, he resolved never to sacrifice to pagan gods again. But he had a problem. Part of his royal duty was to escort the king of Aram to a pagan temple and bow down. For this he wanted forgiveness. Go in peace, Elisha said (1 Kings 5:19).
This was quite a concession in light of the second commandment. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything . . . . You shall not bow down to them (Exodus 20:4-5). But Elisha’s consent seems to imply God’s consent as well. If so, it shows God’s understanding toward those who want to follow him, even if they do so imperfectly.
He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust (Psalm 103:9-14), wrote David.
2 Kings 5:19-20 After Naaman had traveled some distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him.
Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, was astonished that Elisha declined a fortune, without a second thought. Surely it was meant to be a blessing for their many years of faithful service! So Gehazi went after Naaman and requested a gift, which Naaman was happy to give. But when Gehazi returned, Elisha said to him, Naaman’s leprosy will cling to you and to your descendants forever (1 Kings 5:17). Gehazi put money ahead of God, and it cost him everything.
Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul. Money is so powerful that people will do almost anything for more of it, even at the cost of their souls.
One man stole a bag of coins and put it into his backpack. To avoid the police he jumped in a river and tried to swim to the other side. But the coins weighed more than he thought, and he sunk to the bottom and died. First he got the money, then the money got him. That’s what happens to everyone who puts money ahead of God.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Elisha allow Naaman to participate in paganism?
- Is it wrong for Christian ministries to ask for money?
- Is it wrong for Christians to pursue wealth?
Lesson 94
2 Kings 6:2 Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.
Elisha’s disciples wanted to build a meeting place near the Jordan River. As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. Oh no, my lord! he cried out. It was borrowed! (2 Kings 6:5). Elisha threw a stick near where the axhead fell, and it floated to the surface. It was an amazing recovery.
This miracle violates the laws of nature, but that’s what miracles do. It was no more difficult for God to make the axhead rise in the water, than for Jesus Christ to walk on the water (John 6:16-24). Violating the laws of nature isn’t a challenge for God, since he created the laws of nature, and can pause them whenever he likes.
*****
2 Kings 6:8 Now the king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers, he said, I will set up my camp in such and such a place.
But every time he set up his camp, the prophet Elisha informed the king of Israel where the king of Aram was staying. The king of Aram thought one of his officers might be an enemy spy, but then he learned the problem was Elisha. So, during the night, the king of Aram sent his soldiers to surround the town where Elisha was staying. The next morning, Elisha’s servant saw the town surrounded, and feared for his life.
2 Kings 6:16 Don’t be afraid, the prophet answered. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.
Then Elisha prayed that his servant’s eyes would be opened and, when they were, he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:17). Elisha wasn’t afraid of enemy soldiers because he saw heavenly soldiers. There’s always more to life than meets the eye.
Angelic armies gave courage to Elisha, and also to Jesus Christ at the time of his arrest. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? (Matthew 26:53). A Roman legion could be as many as six thousand soldiers, so Jesus was claiming access to over seventy-two thousand angels.
Not only that, but angels watch over believers as well. Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14), asks Hebrews. God can protect us himself, of course, but he also likes to use angels. Whenever we’re afraid we can ask God to send angels to protect us.
2 Kings 6:18 As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, Strike this army with blindness. So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked.
Then Elisha led them to the King of Israel, who suggested killing them. But Elisha told the king to give them food instead. So he prepared a great feast for them, and after they had finished eating and drinking, he sent them away, and they returned to their master. So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory (2 Kings 6:23).
This was a strange way to settle a war but it worked. If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink (Romans 12:20), wrote Paul. Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you (Luke 6:27), said Jesus. If you show kindness to your enemies, they’ll find it harder to oppose you.
*****
2 Kings 6:24 Some time later, Ben-Hadad king of Aram mobilized his entire army and marched up and laid siege to Samaria.
The capital city of Israel was under siege and the famine was causing such hunger that people were eating their children. The God of Elisha did miracles in the past but where was he now? May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of Elisha . . . remains on his shoulders today! (2 Kings 6:31), said the king.
Widespread hunger was making the king angry at God but, since God was out of reach, he directed his anger at God’s representative. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God (Romans 8:7), wrote Paul. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you (John 15:20), said Jesus. We shouldn’t be surprised when God’s enemies lash out at his people.
2 Kings 6:32 Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him.
Israel’s king arrived with an officer ready to remove Elisha’s head. But his life was spared because Elisha predicted relief the following day. When the officer doubted the prophet’s word, Elisha said, You will see it with your own eyes . . . but you will not eat any of it! (2 Kings 7:2).
The next morning four Israelite men decided to surrender. But when they got to the enemy’s camp they found it abandoned. God caused the Arameans to hear the sound of horses and chariots the previous night. They thought Israel had hired foreign armies so they ran for their lives and left their supplies behind. When word got back to the city, the people ran out and found more than enough for everyone. The king’s officer saw it with his eyes, but was trampled to death by the people. The prophet’s word to the officer was fulfilled, despite his unbelief.
Christians can also be prone to unbelief even while reading the Bible. How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! (Luke 24:25), said Jesus. No one has ever had greater confidence in the Bible than Jesus Christ (Luke 16:17), and this should be true of his people.
Christians believe the Bible, in all its parts, because that’s what Jesus believed. Whoever doesn’t believe the Bible in all its parts thinks they know better than Jesus. Anyone who leads us away from the Bible leads us away from Christ. Doubting the Bible is never wise; according to Christ it is foolish.
*****
2 Kings 9:6 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anoint you king over the Lord’s people Israel.
Elisha sent a young prophet to anoint Jehu as the new king of Israel. Almost at once, Jehu sought to eliminate Baal worship from the nation. He pretended to host a sacrifice to Baal, and summoned every prophet, priest, and servant of Baal to attend. When they crowded into Baal’s temple, Jehu commanded his guards to kill them, and not one escaped. The temple was then torn down and it became a public toilet. The Lord said to Jehu . . . you have done well in accomplishing what is right in my eyes (2 Kings 10:30).
God’s approval of this event reveals his hatred of idolatry. Since God is our Maker (Psalm 95:6), and our sustainer (Acts 17:25), he alone is to be worshipped. This is made clear in the first commandment. You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3). If we love anything more than God, we are guilty of idolatry.
A church was having a rummage sale and a man donated his classic motorcycle. When someone asked why, he said, I truly loved that motorcycle, but I wanted God to know that I love him even more.
Reflection and Review
- If God can take care of us himself, why does he also use angels?
- Are unbelievers neutral toward God?
- Why is it foolish not to believe the Bible?
Lesson 95
2 Kings 11:1 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family.
Queen Athaliah led the southern kingdom of Judah from 841 to 835 BC, and was one of the wickedest rulers to ever take the throne. She was the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, from whom she learned to worship Baal. She married Jehoram (king of Judah) to strengthen ties between the northern and southern kingdoms.
Jehoram died when he was forty years old, and was succeeded by their son Ahaziah, who ruled just a year before he was captured and put to death (2 Chronicles 22:1-9). This was Athaliah’s opportunity to seize power, which she did by killing her grandchildren, so they couldn’t challenge her claim to the throne. This was more than raw ambition; it was a demonic assault on God’s plan for Messiah to come from the line of David (2 Samuel 7:16, Matthew 1:1). Athaliah’s attack on the royal family was an attack on God’s plan of salvation.
2 Kings 11:2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes, who were about to be murdered.
Joash was an important child because he was the son of Ahaziah (the previous king) and, therefore, a descendent of King David. Jehosheba acted courageously and was probably encouraged by her husband, Jehoiada. He was an influential priest who knew the importance of having a descendent of David on the throne.
Athaliah’s massacre of the heirs to David’s throne, reminds us of Herod’s massacre of Bethlehem’s children to eliminate Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:16). In both cases God intervened to preserve his future king. There is no . . . plan that can succeed against the Lord (Proverbs 21:30), says Proverbs. Many have tried, but all have failed.
2 Kings 11:3 [Joash] remained hidden with his nurse at the temple of the Lord for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.
Athaliah was queen of Judah for six years while little Joash grew. Then, at just the right time, Jehoiada arranged for the young boy to be crowned king. Joash was surrounded by guards and brought in front of the temple. In the presence of many witnesses, Jehoiada put a crown on the young man’s head. [T]he people clapped their hands and shouted, Long live the king! (2 Kings 11:12).
When Athaliah heard the commotion she went to investigate. Then Athaliah tore her robes and called out, Treason! Treason! (2 Kings 11:14). Jehoiada ordered her execution and she was removed from the temple grounds and put to death.
2 Kings 11:17-18 Jehoiada then made a covenant between the Lord and the king and people that they would be the Lord’s people. . . . All the people of the land went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols to pieces and killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altars.
As Jehu defeated Baal worship in Israel (the northern kingdom), so Jehoida defeated it in Judah (the southern kingdom). Jehoiada’s faithfulness kept Judah from turning away from God completely. Through his courageous work, the worship of God was reestablished, and idolatry was restrained. Jehoiada’s contribution was so great, in fact, that He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple (2 Chronicles 24:16).
King Joash was faithful to God only as long as Jehoiada lived. When his godly uncle died, Joash turned to idols. This proved disastrous for Joash and the nation. From Joash we learn that every religious advantage is no guarantee of faithfulness.
The apostasy of Joash got the attention of Zechariah, Jehoiada’s son. He preached to the people saying, This is what God says: Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you (2 Chronicles 24:20).
Joash didn’t like this kind of preaching so he ordered the execution of Zechariah, the son of Jehoida. Wicked Joash killed the son of the man who saved him as a baby and made him king. As Zechariah lay dying he said to Joash, May the Lord see this and call you to account (2 Chronicles 24:22). Within a year, Joash was murdered (2 Chronicles 24:25).
This story has many twists and turns, heroes, villains and lessons. The battle against evil is never won in this age, but only fought. The day is coming, however, when Christ will put all his enemies under his feet (1 Corinthians 15:25). Even so, Come, Lord Jesus (Revelation 22:20), wrote John.
Reflection and Review
- Are men better leaders than women?
- Why did Joash finish badly?
- How do believers fight evil today?
Lesson 96
2 Kings 14:1 In the second year of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah began to reign.
Amaziah ruled the southern kingdom of Judah from around 796 to 767 BC. He had some good qualities, but his reign was marred by an act of idolatry. When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them. The anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who said, Why do you consult this people’s gods, which could not save their own people from your hand? (2 Chronicles 25:14-15).
The prophet’s logic was clear. If the local gods couldn’t save their own people, why would a conquering king bow down them? Amaziah may’ve thought he was victorious because the local gods changed sides, and bowed down to them to give thanks. Nevertheless, The anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and he was later put to death (2 Kings 14:19).
God is a real person, with real emotions, one of which is jealousy. Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God (Exodus 34:1), wrote Moses. And The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath (Nahum 1:2), wrote Nahum. Amaziah thought he received additional help from other gods, but only inflamed the jealous wrath of God Almighty.
This may seem like ancient superstition but whole segments of Christianity do the same thing. Instead of praying to God alone, they encourage believers to bow down to various statues or images. Many think they’re receiving additional help, but all they’re really doing is inflaming God’s wrath. It’s a dangerous thing to be loved by a God whose name is Jealous. We must pray to him alone.
*****
2 Kings 15:1 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign.
Azariah is more famously known as King Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26:1). Azariah was likely his personal name, and Uzziah was likely his throne name. Uzziah ruled the southern kingdom of Judah for fifty-two years, from around 791 to 739 BC. He ruled alongside his father at first, and alongside his son near the end.
2 Kings 15:3 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.
And As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success (2 Chronicles 26:5). Uzziah had financial success, military success, and many successful building projects. [H]is fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful (2 Chronicles 26:8).
The Bible makes a connection between righteousness and success. He holds success in store for the upright (Proverbs 2:7), says Proverbs. This is a good incentive to be righteous, but we shouldn’t press the idea too far. Success can be a sign of God’s favor, but it’s not a sure sign of God’s favor. The wicked may also prosper (Psalm 73:3), and many false religions have prospered.
The best indication of success isn’t the size of our house, or the extent of our reputation, but what God says to us on Judgment Day. If we live to hear him say, Well done, good and faithful servant! (Matthew 25:21), we’re on the road to success. If we live for anything else, we’re on the road to misery. We should never consider ourselves to be successful until after Judgment Day.
(2 Chronicles 26:16) But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall.
The problem with too much earthly success is that it can lead to pride, which often leads to a fall. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18), says Proverbs. You save the humble, but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low (2 Samuel 22:28), said David.
Uzziah wasn’t content with political power; he wanted religious power too. He went into God’s temple to burn incense, which was something only priests were allowed to do (Numbers 3:10). Risking their lives, some of the priests followed the king into the temple and opposed him to his face. When he refused to back down God struck with him with leprosy. Uzziah lived in isolation the rest of his life and was banned from the temple of God (2 Chronicles 26:21).
From Uzziah we learn that starting well is no guarantee of finishing well. When he lived righteously, God gave him success. But when he was filled with pride, he had a tragic fall. It’s better to struggle throughout our lives than succeed at the cost of our souls. Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil (Proverbs 15:16), says Proverbs.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it wrong to bow down to statues or images?
- What does it mean to be successful?
- Why is pride so dangerous?
Lesson 97
2 Kings 18:1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
Hezekiah began to rule as king when he was twenty-five years old. He led the southern kingdom of Judah from around 715 to 686 BC, twenty-nine years in all. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 18:3) by getting rid of idolatry and reestablishing the worship of God. Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him (2 Kings 18:5).
Hezekiah’s greatest strength was simple trust in God. It was severely tested but served him well throughout his life. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6), says Proverbs. God wants his people to cultivate simple trust in him.
2 Kings 18:10 Samaria was captured in Hezekiah’s sixth year, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel.
This event was catastrophic and probably reinforced Hezekiah’s reliance on God. Samaria was the capital city of Israel, and it’s fall to the Assyrians in 722 BC was the end of the northern kingdom.
The northern kingdom of Israel had split from the southern kingdom of Judah in 931 BC. Over the next two hundred years, or so, the northern kingdom of Israel had twenty kings, none of them good. So God allowed them to be destroyed by the Assyrians, just as Moses foretold. The Lord will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your ancestors. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone (Deuteronomy 28:36), he wrote.
This proved to Hezekiah that God doesn’t make idle threats. If the southern kingdom of Judah obeyed God, they’d enjoy his blessing. If not, they’d be exiled too. Now that the northern kingdom was destroyed, in fact, there was no geographical buffer between Assyria and Judah. Hezekiah needed God’s protection more than ever.
2 Kings 18:13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
In spite of Hezekiah’s obedience to God, the king of Assyria invaded Judah and captured many towns. Hezekiah gave him a fortune to withdraw but it wasn’t enough. The king of Assyria wanted to capture Jerusalem too. So Hezekiah prayed: Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, Lord, are God (2 Kings 19:19).
Isaiah the prophet was aware of Hezekiah’s prayer and sent a reply. [T]his is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it. By the way that he came he will return; he will not enter this city, declares the Lord (2 Kings 19:33-34). This was a wonderful promise that would quickly come to pass.
2 Kings 19:35-36 That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew.
This event is so important that the Bible records it three separate times (2 Chronicles 32:20-21, Isaiah 37:36). It was also recorded by the Greek historian Herodotus (fifth century BC), who attributed it to an outbreak of the bubonic plague. We also have corroboration from the king of Assyria himself.
The Sennacherib prism is on display in The British Museum and, while it doesn’t mention the loss of soldiers, it claims to have captured forty-six towns in Judah, taken a fortune in silver and gold, and shut up Hezekiah like a caged bird. This is consistent with the biblical account, including the fact that he didn’t conquer Jerusalem.
2 Kings 19:37 One day, while [Sennacherib] was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword.
The man who put so many to the sword, died by the sword of his sons. Pagan gods are of little help at the time of death, and Nisrok was no exception. But Jesus gives eternal life to all who believe. Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life (John 6:37), he said. Only the true and living God has power over death.
2 Kings 20:1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.
Hezekiah was still a young man, and didn’t want to die, so he prayed earnestly and wept bitterly (2 Kings 20:3). God spoke to the prophet again saying, Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you (2 Kings 20:5).
This is very interesting because we don’t expect God to change his mind. God is not human . . . that he should change his mind (Numbers 23:19), said Balaam. And all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:16), wrote David. And [we are] predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul.
These verses might suggest that human choice and behavior have little influence with God since everything has been determined. But other verses should also be considered. If I tell a righteous person that they will surely live, but then they trust in their righteousness and do evil, none of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered; they will die for the evil they have done. And if I say to a wicked person, You will surely die, but they then turn away from their sin and do what is just and right. . . that person will surely live (Ezekiel 33:13-15), said God.
Nineveh’s response to the preaching of Jonah is a good example. Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown (Jonah 3:4), he said. But the city of Nineveh turned from their sin and called on God. When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened (Jonah 3:10), wrote Jonah.
It’s difficult to reconcile the unchanging plan of God with his willingness to change based on our response to him. But this only shows that we’re dealing with a personal God, not impersonal fate. God and his plan are both unchanging, but he changes his plans based on our response to him. Since this is beyond our comprehension we’re tempted to accept one set of verses against the other. It’s better to hold both together and admit there are some things we won’t understand until the age to come.
2 Kings 20:7 Then Isaiah said, Prepare a poultice of figs. They did so and applied it to the boil, and he recovered.
God told Isaiah that King Hezekiah would be healed (1 Kings 20:5), so we might expect a miracle. But Isaiah called for some figs to be applied to the boil, and Hezekiah recovered within a few days (2 Kings 20:8). We don’t have to choose between God and other remedies, since God often uses other remedies to heal. There’s nothing inconsistent about taking medicine and asking God to heal.
Reflection and Review
- What extra-biblical records confirm Assyria’s withdrawal from Jerusalem?
- If Hezekiah was so godly, why was he tested so severely?
- Why is God hard to understand?
Lesson 98
2 Kings 21:1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years.
Manasseh was the king of Judah from 696 to 642 BC. His reign of fifty-five years likely included several years of co-regency with his godly father Hezekiah. Unlike his father, however, Manasseh did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 21:2). This included worshipping false gods, desecrating the temple, killing innocent people, sacrificing his children, practicing witchcraft, consulting mediums, and leading the nation astray (2 Kings 21:1-9, 2 Chronicles 33:1-9). He was a very bad man.
Children of godly parents often grow up to be godly adults (Proverbs 22:6), but the opposite may also occur. Instead of following God, some do everything he forbids. By pursuing freedom from God, however, they become Satan’s slaves. That’s what happened to Manasseh. The commanders of the king of Assyria . . . took Manasseh prisoner, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon (2 Chronicles 33:11).
He deserved nothing less, of course, but the long walk to Babylon gave Manasseh time to think. He rejected the God of his father to do whatever he liked. Now he had a hook in his nose and was being led to a foreign land. Once he sat on a throne, now he was a beast. Once he was in charge, now he was enslaved. Perhaps his dad was right about God after all.
(2 Chronicles 33:12) In his distress [Manasseh] sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors.
When Manasseh’s road of rebellion became a dead end, he turned to the Lord. And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God (2 Chronicles 33:13).
Children raised in godly homes may reject their parents’ faith because they aren’t sure it’s true. Many put it to the test by breaking God’s commands and living for themselves. As long as things go well they may never change. When things go badly, however, some return to the God of their parents. It’s better to start badly and finish well, than to start well and finish badly.
Manasseh is one of the best examples of God’s grace in the Bible. He not only ruined his own life, but the lives of many others. There was little he wasn’t guilty of, and God was under no obligation to save him. But God heard his prayer and made him a trophy of grace. For it is by grace you have been saved . . . not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9), wrote Paul. Manasseh proves that no one is too bad to be saved if they’re willing to repent.
(2 Chronicles 33:15-16) [Manasseh] got rid of the foreign gods and removed the image from the temple of the Lord, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem; and he threw them out of the city. Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it, and told Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel.
Manasseh was a changed man. We don’t become good in order to be saved, but once we’re saved we’ll want to be good. I will show you my faith by my deeds (James 2:18), wrote James. Having served the devil for many years, Manasseh spent the rest of his life serving God.
Godly parents ought to be encouraged by this story, and trust the long arm of God’s grace for their own wayward children. At his worst, Manasseh seemed out of God’s reach. But he never forgot his father’s faith, and found his way back to his father’s God. Many others have done the same.
The story is told of a Spanish father, and his teenage son, whose relationship was strained. The son ran away from home, and his father went searching far and wide. Then he put an ad in the paper that read: Dear Paco, meet me in front of the newspaper office at noon. All is forgiven. I love you. At noon, the following day, eight hundred Pacos showed up (Ernest Hemingway, paraphrased). The world is filled with wayward children who want to return to their heavenly Father, and God is so gracious that he longs to receive them back.
Reflection and Review
- What are the advantages of being raised in a godly home?
- What are the disadvantages of being raised in a godly home?
- How can godly parents help their wayward children?
Lesson 99
2 Kings 22:1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years.
Josiah led God’s people from around 640 to 609 BC, and implemented greater reform than any king before or since. Since the previous king was wicked, the nation was apostate. The temple was used for male prostitution (2 Kings 23:7), and children were being sacrificed (2 Kings 23:10). The days were extremely dark, and the time had come for godly leadership.
2 Kings 22:8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.
God’s word had been missing for many years and no one seemed to notice. The priesthood remained, and there was religious activity, but there was no Bible. Then, while the temple was being repaired, God’s word was rediscovered.
This would be hard to imagine if it wasn’t so common today. Many churches have busy leaders who do everything but teach God’s word. As a result, most people don’t know the Bible and do what it forbids.
The apostles are a better example. When they were asked to do other things they replied, we will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word (Acts 6:4). This is the first duty of Christian ministers and their most important service to the church.
2 Kings 22:11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes.
Josiah was alarmed by the terrible threats of punishment found in God’s word. The Lord will send on you curses, confusion and rebuke in everything you put your hand to, until you are destroyed and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in forsaking him. . . . Because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you . . . you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you. . . . You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. In the morning you will say, If only it were evening! and in the evening, If only it were morning! (Deuteronomy 28:20-67). Since much of this had already happened to the northern kingdom of Israel, Josiah knew it could happen to them as well.
Jesus Christ was also very threatening. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire (Matthew 7:19), he said. And Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41), he’ll say to many.
An important idea that led to my conversion was the possibility of waking up in hell and never getting out. Jesus is the most credible person who ever lived, and he threatened me with eternal fire. I could either force the idea out of my mind, or repent of my sins and follow him. The severity of his threat helped me to make the right decision.
2 Kings 22:13 Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and for all Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord’s anger that burns against us because those who have gone before us have not obeyed the words of this book; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written there concerning us.
Josiah sent representatives to the prophet Huldah to see if there was any hope. But her answer wasn’t encouraging. This is what the Lord says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people, according to everything written in the book . . . . Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and aroused my anger by all the idols their hands have made, my anger will burn against this place and will not be quenched (2 Kings 23:16-17), she said.
No matter what we’ve done individually, we can turn to Christ and be saved. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Hebrews 8:12), said God. But the collective sins of the nation had reached a point where God’s wrath wouldn’t be turned away. They could still be saved individually, but the nation would suffer disaster.
It’s helpful to understand that God deals with individuals as well as nations. God reigns over the nations (Psalm 47:8), wrote the Psalmist. Whenever a nation becomes corrupt, God is free to pour out his wrath (Genesis 15:16). He did this to Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and to many others. We ought to be concerned for ourselves, but also for our nation.
2 Kings 23:1 Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
After hearing God’s word they also agreed to serve him. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12), says Hebrews. The word of God is powerful for changing people’s lives.
The early church also grew through the power of God’s word. [T]he word of God spread (Acts 6:7). [T]he word of God continued to spread (Acts 12:24). The word of the Lord spread (Acts 13:49). And, the word of the Lord spread widely (Acts 19:20), wrote Luke. God’s church fulfills its mission through the power of his word.
2 Kings 23:29 Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo.
Josiah was under forty years old and his death seemed premature. Why didn’t God preserve him to continue reforming the nation? God’s ways don’t always make sense to us, but Josiah is remembered as one of the finest kings to lead the nation, and he died a servant of God. Who could ask for anything more?
Reflection and Review
- Why was Josiah alarmed when the Bible was read to him?
- How do we know God’s threats will be fulfilled?
- Why should we care about the sins of our nation?
Lesson 100
2 Kings 23:31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.
Second Kings concludes with the account of four kings who ruled in quick succession, each of them evil. Jehoahaz was the son of King Josiah, and ruled for just three months after his father’s death in 609 BC. After doing evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 23:32), he was dethroned by Pharaoh Necho and taken to Egypt.
Jehoahaz may’ve dreamed of a long and glorious reign in which he’d build a mighty kingdom. But all his dreams were dashed by circumstances beyond his control. He reminds us how easily our dreams can be destroyed, and that the only wise course is to seek first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). Then we’ll flourish forever regardless what happens now.
*****
2 Kings 23:36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.
Jehoiakim also did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 23:37). When the prophet Jeremiah was read to him, he took the scroll and threw it into a fire (Jeremiah 36:23). But the prophet’s words came true when the king of Babylon attacked Jerusalem, raided the temple, and carried Jehoiakim into exile (Jeremiah 36:29, 2 Chronicles 36:6).
The Bible is the most hated book on earth, but also the most loved and widely read. Haters of God reject the Bible, and even commit to flames, but can’t stop it from coming true. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever (Isaiah 40:8), wrote Isaiah.
*****
2 Kings 24:8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months.
Shortly after he came to the throne, Jehoiachin surrendered to King Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:12). He too was taken to Babylon, with ten thousand others, leaving only the poorest behind (2 Kings 24:14). He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father had done (2 Kings 24:9).
There was little Jehoiachin could’ve done politically, since he was only eighteen years old, but he certainly could’ve prayed. Some people only turn to God when life is hard, but Jehoiachin wouldn’t even do that. Like many before and since, he wanted nothing to do with God.
Under King David the nation of Israel became a dominant force, and Solomon took it to its greatest height. But, when Solomon died, in 931 BC, the nation split and never reunited. The northern kingdom of Israel fell to the Assyrians in 722 BC, and the southern kingdom of Judah would fall to the Babylonians in 586 BC. As long as God’s people followed God, they prospered. But when they turned away from God, there was no one to protect them.
*****
2 Kings 24:18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.
Zedekiah was the last to rule the kingdom of Judah before it was destroyed. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord (2 Kings 24:19), and also in the eyes of Nebuchadnezzar, by rebelling against him.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, responded to Zedekiah’s revolt by surrounding the city of Jerusalem and cutting off the food supply. Then he broke through the city walls and captured Zedekiah. He killed Zedekiah’s sons in front of him and then put out his eyes. The last thing Zedekiah was the execution of his sons (2 Kings 25:7).
The Babylonians burned down the temple and other buildings in Jerusalem. They destroyed the city walls and took most of the people into exile. Only the poorest were left behind to work the fields (2 Kings 25:12). The Promised Land was God’s gift to his people on the condition of obedience. When they turned away from God, he rightly kicked them out.
Some of the kings who led God’s people were better than others, but most were terrible. Instead of leading God’s people to worship him, they led God’s people away from him. The results were catastrophic but the point is clear: as goes the king, so goes the kingdom.
All the kings’ failures remind us of our need for a better king. If only God’s people had a king who was perfectly righteous and mighty, the kingdom of God would flourish as never before. This is our greatest need, and this is what God has provided in the person of Jesus Christ. Soon he’ll return, and his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:33), wrote Luke.
Reflection and Review
- Do you ever hope everything in the Bible won’t come true?
- Why are so many leaders evil?
- What kind of king will Jesus be?
Lesson 101
1 Chronicles 1:1-4 Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, Noah. The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham and Japheth.
First and Second Chronicles were originally one book. The author isn’t identified but may’ve been Ezra the priest, writing around 450 BC, for those who returned from Babylonian exile. It was a difficult time, for many reasons, and the Chronicler wanted to assure God’s people that God was still with them.
Much of the content of First and Second Chronicles is also found in First and Second Kings, so is not repeated here. What follows is unique to Chronicles and reveals God’s remarkable faithfulness.
2 Chronicles 20:1 After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.
It was an ordinary day when Jehoshaphat awoke, but he quickly learned that a vast army was marching toward Jerusalem, and were only a day away. Most kings would’ve used that time to get their army ready, but Jehoshaphat thought of something even more important. He proclaimed a fast, and turned to God in prayer.
Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? . . . Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you (2 Chronicles 20:6-13).
This was not the first time Jehoshaphat prayed. The depth, sincerity and spontaneity of his words show that he was familiar with prayer, and with the God who saves. Jehoshaphat didn’t wait for disaster to strike before he learned to pray. He knew how to pray when disaster was at his door.
2 Chronicles 20:14-17 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah . . . . This is what the Lord says to you: Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. . . . You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you.
Jehoshaphat may’ve slept lightly that night but the following morning he set out with his army and a choir. He put the choir in front of the army and, as they marched, they sang. Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever (2 Chronicles 20:21). If the army joined in, it was an amazing time of worship.
2 Chronicles 20:22 As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir.
It’s not clear who was doing the ambushing, but all three armies turned on each other, and completely destroyed each other. By the time the choir arrived, not a man was left standing. And the plunder was so great it took three days to gather.
From this we learn that praise is a powerful weapon. God’s people praised the Lord on their way to the battle, and didn’t have to lift a sword. As they gave praise to God, God worked on their behalf. We can fight our battles alone or enlist God’s help through prayer and praise.
*****
2 Chronicles 36:23 This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord their God be with them.
Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in 586 BC, and the Jews were taken into exile because of their sin. But, through the prophet Jeremiah, God promised they’d return. When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back (Jeremiah 29:10), he said.
Cyrus, king of Persia, defeated the Babylonians in 539 BC, and allowed God’s people to go back home. The God who brought his people out of Egypt, and gave them the Promised Land, now brought them out of Babylon, and gave it back to them. God is the one who saved them. God is the one who kept them. And God is the one who brought them home.
This is also what God is doing for the church. We are foreigners and exiles (1 Peter 2:11), living in a world that’s not our home. The world opposes the church, and even hates the church (John 15:19), but hasn’t overcome the church. God is the one who saved us. God is the one who’s keeping us. And God is the one who will bring us home.
Reflection and Review
- How can we learn to pray?
- Why is praising God helpful?
- How has God kept you in the faith?
Lesson 102
Ezra 1:1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing.
The book of Ezra was likely written by Ezra the priest, [and] teacher of the Law (Ezra 7:11) around 430 BC. It tells how God’s people returned from Babylonian exile, rebuilt the temple, and struggled to live God’s way. It’s a story of starting over that covers nearly a hundred years, from 538 to 433 BC.
Ezra 1:5 Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites—everyone whose heart God had moved—prepared to go up and build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.
Cyrus, king of Persia, defeated the Babylonians, and allowed the Jews to go home (Ezra 1:2-4). The generation that went into exile had mostly died, and a new generation had taken its place. They were born in Babylon, and were comfortable there, so those who returned to the Promised Land were only about fifty thousand (Ezra 2:64-65). The reason they returned was because God moved their hearts. This is truly remarkable.
The reason they left family and friends is because God moved their hearts. The reason they left the comfort of home is because God moved their hearts. And the reason they left safety and security is because God moved their hearts.
This, in fact, is why many people do what they do for God. It’s why some become missionaries, serve an important cause, or give financial support. God moved the heart of Cyrus to allow the Jews to go home (Ezra 1:1), and he moved the hearts of his people to make the journey back. When God wants to do something great, he often begins by moving our hearts.
Ezra 3:6 On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord.
Shortly after God’s people arrived back in the Promised Land, they gathered in Jerusalem, built an altar and began to sacrifice daily. This was important because without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22), says Hebrews. No sacrifice had been offered for nearly seventy years because they were living in Babylon. Now, at last, sacrificial blood was being spilt again.
This was a great relief to their collective conscience, but is only a little comfort compared to what Christians enjoy. All the animals ever sacrificed merely pointed ahead to Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). And, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10), says Hebrews. Christians no longer sacrifice animals (Hebrews 10:18), but remember what Christ has done for us, as we confess our sins to him (1 John 1:9).
Ezra 3:10-11 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord . . . . all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
After building the altar, God’s people started work on the temple itself. When the foundation was laid they gave a great shout, but those who had seen the earlier temple began to weep. They wept so loudly, in fact, that no one could distinguish between the sound of joy and the sound of weeping (Ezra 3:12-13).
The new generation was excited about the temple, but the old generation was discouraged by how badly it compared to the previous temple. They were wrong to be discouraged, however, since this temple would also bring glory to God. They should’ve been thankful for the honor of serving God, but were discouraged by comparing their work to another.
Churches can also be discouraged by comparing themselves to other churches. The church of Jesus Christ is always growing, declining and being rebuilt. The important thing is not the size of the church, but its faithfulness to God. It’s always an honor to serve the Lord of the church.
Ezra 4:4 Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.
Whenever God’s people try to do something great for God, they will be opposed. But God is greater than the opposition and, in this case, actually made them pay for it. Their expenses are to be fully paid . . . so that the work will not stop (Ezra 6:8), decreed the king of Persia. Furthermore, I decree that if anyone defies this edict, a beam is to be pulled from their house and they are to be impaled on it (Ezra 6:11-12).
God’s people must have been amazed. When there was little they could do themselves, God made their enemies pay for the temple or die. The temple was being rebuilt, not because God’s people were great, but because their God was great.
Ezra 6:15 The temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
This was about twenty years after the project began, and was a milestone for the people of God. There was a great celebration because the Lord had filled them with joy by changing the attitude of the king . . . so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God (Ezra 6:22).
Great things are often accomplished by people working together for years. Some were masons, others were engineers, and others were simply helpers. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah also helped the project through their preaching (Ezra 5:1). The important thing, in any work of God, is for everyone to do what they can.
A little girl sat on the steps of a new church building, and a gentleman paused to admire it. She explained that she was involved in the project because her dad was a worker and she brought his lunch. It takes many people to do God’s work, and everyone is important.
Reflection and Review
- Has God ever moved your heart?
- Why did God require blood for sin?
- How are you serving God now?
Lesson 103
Ezra 7:6 [Ezra] was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given.
About eighty years after the Jews returned from Babylonian exile, Ezra returned with a few thousand more of his countrymen. He was a priest, and a capable teacher of God’s word. Even though the temple had been rebuilt, God’s word wasn’t being carefully followed. Ezra received permission from the king of Persia to return to Israel and strengthen God’s people in their faith. Ezra wanted the people of God to conform their lives to the word of God so they would enjoy the blessing of God.
Ezra 7:10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.
Ezra was an effective minister of God’s word for three reasons. First, he was a devoted student. We should think of him getting up early, staying up late, and pouring over Scripture until he knew it forward and backward. Second, he applied the Bible to himself. He didn’t read it for knowledge alone, but to conform his life to God’s will. Third, he taught God’s word to others. He wanted all God’s people to receive the riches of the Bible. This kind of minister can be a great blessing to God’s people in any generation.
Ezra 7:15 Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his advisers have freely given to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem.
The king of Persia not only gave Ezra permission to return to Jerusalem, but sent him back with a fortune. While the temple was being rebuilt Haggai prophesied, I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord Almighty. The silver is mine and the gold is mine, declares the Lord Almighty (Haggai 2:7-8).
God’s people had little money themselves, but God provided for his work in other ways. The God of heaven and earth is never short of cash.
Ezra 7:27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart to bring honor to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way.
It seemed strange that a foreign king would finance God’s work in Jerusalem, but Ezra saw it as a sign of God’s power. God is sovereign over the hearts of kings, and can make them sympathetic to his will. In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him (Proverbs 21:1), wrote Solomon.
Ezra 9:1-2 After these things had been done, the leaders came to me and said, The people of Israel, including the priests and the Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the neighboring peoples with their detestable practices. . . . They have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, and have mingled the holy race with the peoples around them.
About four months after Ezra returned to Jerusalem, a serious problem was brought to his attention. Some of God’s people had married pagans. This was a clear violation of God’s word. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your children away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you (Deuteronomy 7:3-4), wrote Moses.
The situation was so serious that Ezra tore his clothes, pulled out his hair, and prayed (Ezra 9:3). A crowd gathered, joined him in prayer, and agreed to put away their wives. Women and children were sent away from their homes, their husbands, and their fathers, so that the purity of God’s people could be preserved. It was a drastic and painful solution to a very serious problem.
Like the ancient people of God, Christians are only allowed to marry in the faith (1 Corinthians 7:39). Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? (2 Corinthians 6:14-15), wrote Paul.
But, unlike the ancient Israelites, Christians who are married to an unbeliever shouldn’t seek a divorce. If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him (1 Corinthians 7:12-13), wrote Paul. Getting married is easy; staying married is difficult; staying happily married is the challenge of a lifetime.
Reflection and Review
- Why was Ezra an effective minister?
- How did God provide for the temple?
- Why did God forbid marrying pagans?
Lesson 104
Nehemiah 1:1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hakaliah.
The book of Nehemiah begins around 445 BC, about ten years after the close of the book of Ezra, and was likely written by Ezra the priest around 430 BC. Many of the Jews had returned from exile, and were living in and around Jerusalem. The temple had been rebuilt, but the city walls were still in ruins, exposing the people to constant danger. Nehemiah held the high position of cupbearer to the king of Persia when he received news about the poor condition of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 1:2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.
When Nehemiah learned that the city was still in disrepair, he mourned and fasted several days. Then he prayed that God would give him favor with the king of Persia, so that he could return to Jerusalem and help his people.
If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it (Nehemiah 2:5), he said. The king granted his request and even provided materials for the project. Nehemiah attributed this to the gracious hand of God being upon him (Nehemiah 2:8).
Nehemiah 2:11-12 I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.
Nehemiah didn’t want his plans to be known prematurely because he didn’t want Jerusalem’s enemies to learn of it before the project began. He examined the walls at night, to avoid detection, and then brought his plan to God’s people. Let us start rebuilding (Nehemiah 2:18), they said. But it wasn’t long before they met resistance.
Nehemiah 4:7-8 [W]hen Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it.
Israel’s enemies weren’t content to sit and watch as the city was being rebuilt. And because they had an army, (Nehemiah 4:2) they were a serious threat. Just because God is involved in a project doesn’t mean there won’t be problems. But Nehemiah was a man of faith, and knew how to respond.
Nehemiah 4:9 [W]e prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
They didn’t just pray to God, or just post a guard, but prayed to God and posted a guard. They also armed the laborers, who worked even harder than before. They prayed as though everything depended on God, and worked as though everything depended on them. This is the surest way to success.
Some people are willing to pray like everything depends on God, but aren’t willing to work very hard. Others are willing to work like everything depends on them, but aren’t willing to pray very hard. But when God’s people are willing to pray like everything depends on God, and work like everything depends on them, success can’t be far away.
Nehemiah 5:1 Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews.
In addition to the external threat, there was also an internal threat. Some of God’s people were going into debt because working on the wall gave them less time to work at their jobs. And some of the rich were growing richer by charging interest for loans. This was more than oppressive; it was forbidden by God.
Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest (Deuteronomy 23:19), wrote Moses. Even among God’s people, some were willing to exploit their neighbors. Nehemiah was angry at those who oppressed their fellow Jews, and they agreed to restore what had been wrongly taken. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10), wrote Paul.
The building project was threatened from within and without. But Nehemiah provided good and godly leadership to see the task completed in just fifty-two days (Nehemiah 6:15). It must’ve seemed like a miracle, but the work wasn’t over. Now that the city was secure, it was time to build up the people.
Nehemiah 8:1 They told Ezra the teacher of the Law to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded for Israel.
They built a platform for the occasion, and Ezra read from God’s word for several hours, while the people listened attentively. As they listened, they understood how badly they had sinned, and began to weep. They agreed with God against themselves, and were starting to be renewed.
Ezra is a good example to those who teach and preach God’s word. The preacher’s job isn’t to entertain the people, or tell them something new, but to clearly proclaim God’s word to them. He’s to keep the people of God and the word of God together. It’s the people’s job to listen attentively, and conform their lives to what the Bible says. This is how the church of God is constantly renewed.
Nehemiah 8:10 Nehemiah said, Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
It was good for God’s people to grieve their sins, but Nehemiah didn’t want them to be overcome with grief. God had done great things for them, and they were turning back to him. This was reason to rejoice. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4), wrote Paul.
It’s important for God’s people to rejoice in the Lord, because he gives or withholds the ability to enjoy everything else. All other joys are derivative; God alone is the source. The more we rejoice in the Lord, the more we’ll enjoy all that he gives. This is nothing less than the key to happiness.
Nehemiah 13:6-7 [I]n the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission and came back to Jerusalem.
After leading God’s people for twelve years, Nehemiah went back to Babylon for some time. We don’t know how long he was gone but, when he returned, the situation had declined. The temple was being misused, the Sabbath was being broken, and God’s people were marrying pagans again.
Nehemiah was so angry about the mixed marriages that he rebuked them and called curses down on them. [He] beat some of the men and pulled out their hair (Nehemiah 13:25). Nehemiah’s reaction was so severe that he likely surprised many. He was a forceful leader who wasn’t afraid to hurt people’s feelings.
There’s no place for physical punishment in the church, of course, but when Titus was dealing with unruly Christians, Paul wrote that he should rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith (Titus 1:13). Ordinarily, the Lord’s servant . . . must be kind to everyone (2 Timothy 2:24). But he must also be willing to rebuke if necessary.
Nehemiah reminds us of the value of powerful leadership. When he was gone, the city fell into sin. When he returned, things were set right. Good and godly leaders are a gift to the church, and ought to be highly regarded. Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account (Hebrews 13:17), says Hebrews.
Reflection and Review
- Why do prayer and work lead to success?
- Why is it important to rejoice in the Lord?
- Why should good and godly leaders be highly regarded?
Lesson 105
Esther 1:1 This is what happened during the time of Xerxes, the Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush.
The book of Esther is named after a Jewish girl who became the queen of Persia, and delivered her people from a plot to destroy them. The author isn’t named, but probably wrote from Persia around 460 BC, to explain the origin of the festival of Purim, which commemorates this event. The book of Esther is unique because it doesn’t mention God by name, but highlights his providential care in a series of remarkable coincidences. Even when God is silent, he is caring for his people.
Esther 1:10-12 On the seventh day, when King Xerxes was in high spirits from wine, he commanded . . . to bring before him Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown, in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles, for she was lovely to look at. But when the attendants delivered the king’s command, Queen Vashti refused to come. Then the king became furious and burned with anger.
The King and Queen were hosting separate banquets when Xerxes decided to parade his beautiful wife before his many guests. By refusing to comply, Vashti disrespected her husband and publicly embarrassed him. The king consulted with his advisors, and they recommended Vashti be removed as queen, so that women everywhere wouldn’t disrespect their husbands.
High position comes with responsibility, and a single misstep can cause a fall. We might imagine life is better near the top, but many have found this isn’t always so. Instead of envying people above us, we ought to cultivate contentment, for godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6), wrote Paul.
Esther 2:2 Then the king’s personal attendants proposed, Let a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king.
These were added to his harem so that he might have his choice among many. Esther had a lovely figure and was beautiful (Esther 2:7), so she was also added to the king’s harem. After a year of beauty treatments she slept with the king (Esther 2:14), and he preferred her over the others. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti (Esther 2:17).
Esther appears to have gained her royal position through moral compromise. The Bible doesn’t condemn or condone her behavior, but simply states the facts. It’s never right to disobey God, of course, but God is so great that he’s able to bring good out of evil—even the evil of our sin. This is not a reason to sin, of course, but a reason to glorify God who always works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28).
Esther 3:1 After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles.
Haman was a descendent of Agag, king of the Amalekites, an ancient enemy of Israel. By the order of King Xerxes, people were to honor Haman by kneeling in his presence. But Esther’s cousin (Mordecai) refused to kneel because of the ancient hostility, or because he thought such honor was due to God alone. Mordecai was also Esther’s guardian because, after her parents died, he raised her (Esther 2:7).
Honor was important to Haman and, when he learned that Mordecai was a Jew, he determined to kill all the Jews in the kingdom (Esther 3:6), not just Mordecai. Since Esther hadn’t revealed her Jewish ethnicity, Haman unknowingly set in motion a plan that, if carried out, would kill the king’s wife.
Esther may’ve planned to hide her ethnicity, but Mordecai urged her to go directly to the king. This was complicated since, on pain of death, no one was allowed into the king’s presence without an invitation, including the king’s wife (Esther 4:11). Exceptions were made, but it was risky.
Mordecai said to her, Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this? (Esther 4:13-14).
Esther could do the right thing, and possibly die, or she could do the wrong thing, and possibly die. Neither option was agreeable but perhaps God had made her queen for this very occasion. She was entrusted by God with high position and dare not fail now. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked (Luke 12:48), said Jesus.
Reflection and Review
- Was Vashti wrong to disobey her husband?
- Should Esther have slept with the king?
- Why is the world such a dangerous place?
Lesson 106
Esther 5:1-2 Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.
Instead of making her request at once, Esther invited both the king and Haman to a banquet. Haman felt honored to be included but, afterward, he encountered Mordecai who disrespected him again. Not content to wait for the killing of all the Jews, Haman planed to execute Mordecai early. He even set up a pole on which to impale him (Esther 5:14).
Esther 6:1-2 That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him. It was found recorded there that Mordecai had exposed . . . two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, who had conspired to assassinate King Xerxes.
This episode occurred years earlier, but was never brought to the king’s attention. Xerxes didn’t know that Mordecai was Jewish, and ordered Haman to publicly honor him. Haman was to lead Mordecai throughout the city on horseback while proclaiming, This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor! (Esther 6:11). Haman was embarrassed and alarmed as things began turning against him. How could be put to death a man who saved the king’s life?
Here we see the invisible hand of God working on behalf of his people. God is the one who kept the king awake, so he’d request the record of his reign be read to him, so he’d discover what Mordecai had done for him. God wasn’t working miraculously, but he was working providentially. This, in fact, is how God normally works.
God takes center stage, sometimes, but usually works behind the scenes. Either way, he’s in control of everything that happens. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered (Matthew 10:29-30), said Jesus. Our heavenly Father is always in control, so we needn’t be afraid.
Esther 7:1-2 So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther’s banquet, and as they were drinking wine on the second day, the king again asked, Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted.
When the King learned that Esther was Jewish, he became so angry at Haman (for his plan to kill the Jews) that he left the room to think. Haman fell on the couch, where Esther was reclining, and begged for his life. When the king returned, it appeared that Haman was molesting Esther, and Haman’s fate was sealed. He was impaled on the pole on which he planned to impale Mordecai.
Then Mordecai was given Haman’s position and began to defend the Jews. Since the first decree couldn’t be repealed, Mordecai and Xerxes wrote a new decree, permitting the Jews to defend themselves (Esther 8:11). Some attacks were made, but God’s people were victorious. Mordecai made the next two days a holiday, to be celebrated every year with feasting and gifts (Esther 9:20-22). This is the origin of the festival of Purim.
Notice the many coincidences that made this outcome possible. Coincidentally, Esther became queen. Coincidentally, Mordecai discovered a plan to assassinate the king. Coincidentally, the king was sleepless shortly before Haman planned to have Mordecai killed. Coincidentally, the account read to the king was the record of Mordecai saving his life. Taken together, all these coincidences are a conspicuous providence.
Esther 10:3 Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews, and held in high esteem by his many fellow Jews, because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews.
Mordecai was faithful to God, faithful to God’s people, and faithful to the king. As a result, he was promoted to the highest position under King Xerxes. It may’ve seemed like a dream, but it was real.
Likewise, those who are faithful to Jesus Christ will also be promoted. Imagine him saying to you, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness! (Matthew 25:21). If it seems like a dream to us, it’s one that will never end. Now is the time to be faithful.
Reflection and Review
- Have you ever received a conspicuous providence?
- Is every coincidence significant?
- Why is faithfulness important?
Lesson 107
Job 1:1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job.
Job may’ve lived around 2100 BC, but his story was written down many years later, perhaps around 500 BC. It takes place in the land of Uz, which was just outside the land of Israel. If God is fair, why do the righteous suffer? That’s the concern of this book. The problem is not entirely solved, but insights are provided.
Job 1:6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.
We seldom think of Satan in heaven, but here he appears with angels in the presence of God. Satan will be thrown into hell for ever and ever (Revelation 20:10), but currently roams the earth (Job 1:7), and even appears before God. God and Satan even talk.
Job 1:8 Then the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job?
At the time of this conversation, Job’s life was going well. He had seven sons, three daughters, and enough livestock to make him the wealthiest person around (Job 1:3-4). He wasn’t only rich, however, but also righteous. The Lord said to Satan, There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil (Job 1:8b). Job was rich, righteous, and greatly blessed by God.
Job 1:9-11 Does Job fear God for nothing? Satan replied. Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.
There are five important things we should learn from this conversation. First, we have an enemy. We expect to be punished for our sins and rewarded for our righteousness, but it’s not that simple. There’s a powerful evil being who delights to see the righteous suffer.
Second, God is our protector. He put a hedge around Job and everything he had (Job 1:10). A proper hedge can be an effective means to keep outside what doesn’t belong inside. God can surround us with a hedge and protect us from all harm.
Third, our lives are not private. Job’s ordeal is played out in the presence God, Satan and angels. To this the New Testament adds, a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1), those who’ve gone to heaven before us. Any sense of privacy is pure illusion. God and many witnesses see everything we do.
Fourth, hardship reveals our loyalty. Satan thought Job’s first loyalty wasn’t to God, but to Job. He thought Job was serving God because of what he got from God, not because he was loyal to God. If God took away Job’s prosperity, Job would turn away from God. This is the heart of the issue.
Fifth, Satan wants us to curse God. [S]tretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face (Job 1:11), said Satan. God is the object of more and greater cursing every day than any other being in the universe. Some people even curse God for the pleasure it makes them feel. Even the righteous are tempted to curse God sometimes. This was Satan’s goal for Job, and also for us.
Job 1:12 The Lord said to Satan, Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.
Satan is the enemy of God, of course, but also of God’s people, and everyone made in God’s image. Since he can’t attack God directly, he attacks the people God loves. Every disease, sorrow, pain, murder, torture, war and death can be traced, directly or indirectly, back to Satan.
But Satan is under God’s control. He was free to destroy all that Job had, but not the man himself. [O]n the man himself do not lay a finger, said God. Satan’s power is greater than any human power, but is nothing compared to the power of God. Satan’s power is awesome, but he’s on a leash. God’s leash.
Job 1:13-19 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, a messenger came to Job and said, The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!
The day began like any other day. Job probably got out of bed and thanked God for all the blessings he enjoyed. Perhaps he had eggs for breakfast, and planned to join the celebration at his son’s house later that day. It was nice to have the family together, enjoying the abundance God had provided.
But in just a few minutes Job went from riches to rags. One after another the messengers came with news of catastrophic loss: oxen, donkeys, servants, sheep and camels were all suddenly gone. Then, worst of all, the loss of his dear children. Seven sons and three daughters died when the house collapsed on them. How does a man of God respond to such a disaster?
Reflection and Review
- Why do bad things happen to God’s people?
- Why does Satan want to hurt us?
- How would you respond if you were Job?
Lesson 108
Job 1:20-21 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.
Job, of course, was devastated. But he chose to worship God instead of cursing him. Praising God in heaven is easier than praising God on earth. And praising God when things go right is easier than praising him when things go wrong. By worshipping God in the midst of loss, Job brought more glory to God than angels above.
Job was able to respond this way because he understood two important things. First, everything he had on earth was only temporary. Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart, he said. He came into the world with nothing, and would leave with nothing. The important thing was that he still had God.
Second, Job understood that God was in control of his loss. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, he said. Job wasn’t in the hands of fate, chance or the devil. He was in the hands of a good and loving God who is always worthy of praise. So even in the midst of loss, Job gave praise to God.
Job 1:22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
Whenever evil strikes it seems like God isn’t doing his job, or is doing it rather badly. If the disaster is overwhelming, in fact, we might even think that God is evil. No matter how things appear, however, we must trust that God is good, and is doing something good for us.
A child begged his father not to take him into surgery, but the father did anyway because it was best for the child. He wasn’t trying to hurt the child, but to help the child. God may have to hurt us in order to help us, but he will never harm us. No matter how great the affliction, we can never charge God with wrongdoing. We should praise him, in fact, for the good he’s doing, even if we can’t understand it.
Job 2:1-6 On another day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. And the Lord said to Satan, Where have you come from? Satan answered the Lord, From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.
Then the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.
Skin for skin! Satan replied. A man will give all he has for his own life. But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to Satan, Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.
Job did so well in his first round of testing that God honored him with a second. In the first round, Satan was allowed to destroy all that belonged to Job, but not his health. Now he was free to destroy even that. This was a staggering test because, apart from health, there’s little in the world that can even be enjoyed.
Job 2:7-9 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!
Perhaps the only reason Satan didn’t take Job’s wife, along with his children, is because he wanted to speak to Job through her. This is the only time she’s quoted in the Bible, and it doesn’t reflect well on her. But she lost everything too. And, as the mother of ten dead children, her pain may’ve been worse than Job’s.
Job’s wife told him to Curse God and die, but Job wouldn’t do either. Some are willing to curse God, and some are willing to kill themselves, but Satan’s joy is most complete when people curse God and then kill themselves. We don’t know how often this occurs but this was Satan’s will for Job. Here we see the evilness of Satan, and his perfect will for each of us.
Job 2:10 Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?
Job was the kind of person who did what was right because it was right, not because it worked. He was loyal to his Maker because it’s always right to be loyal to your Maker.
A middle-aged man was taken to the hospital with neck pain. Soon he was paralyzed and unable to speak. Over many years he recovered his speech, but always needed a wheel chair. His son was angry at God and asked his father why he wasn’t angry too. Why should I accept good from God and not trouble? he said. God is to be honored for who he is, not only for what he gives.
Job 2:11-13 When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.
When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.
The presence of friends must’ve been a comfort to Job, at least for awhile. They showed their sensitivity by sitting with him in silence. This isn’t always easy. We’re uncomfortable with people in pain and want to say something helpful. We’re tempted to say, I know what you’re going through, I know how you feel, or something theological. But most of the time we don’t know what they’re going through, how they feel, or how it relates to God. It’s wiser to show our concern by simply being present, and saying very little.
Reflection and Review
- Why did Job praise God?
- What is Satan’s will for us?
- How can we comfort friends who are suffering deeply?
Lesson 109
Job 3:1 After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.
He was, after all, human. Job wasn’t cursing God, as the devil intended, but only the day of his birth. The loss of health, wealth and family were so overwhelming that he wished he’d never been born. Life in a fallen world is so painful, at times, that many have come to the same conclusion.
The best remedy for this is a vivid view of the age to come. The Apostle Paul was familiar with suffering, but also with heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2-4). When he compared the two he was greatly encouraged. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Romans 8:18), he said. The worst possible life on earth is nothing compared to the glory that will be ours forever. This is a great encouragement to all who suffer in faith.
Job 3:25 What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me.
Believing in God is no guarantee against losing everything. If we think nothing bad can happen to us, because we believe in God, then we’ll stop believing in God when something bad happens to us. Faith knows that God is always in full control (Matthew 10:29-31), and won’t allow anything to happen to us, that’s not for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). This kind of faith enjoys the best, endures the worst, and glorifies God in everything.
Job 10:3 Does it please you to oppress me, to spurn the work of your hands?
Job didn’t have a Bible, so it’s no surprise he drew some wrong conclusions. His suffering made him think of God as an oppressor who enjoyed watching his servant suffer. Suffering can deepen our knowledge of God, but it can also distort our theology. We might conclude that God is good but not entirely powerful, or that he’s powerful but not entirely good. But the Bible insists that God is all good, and all powerful, and allows suffering to make us like Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28-29).
Job 19:25-27 I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!
Throughout his suffering Job’s faith went up and down, but this was a high point. He looked ahead to a time when he’d see his redeemer on earth. Without fully understanding, Job looked forward to the redemption Christ would provide, to his second coming, and to the resurrection of believers (John 5:28-29). Even if we lose everything, we’ll receive much more in the age to come. This is our greatest comfort in times of loss.
A young lady earned a doctorate in literature and became a university professor. She was a brilliant wordsmith until a brain tumor eroded her ability to think and speak. Toward the end of her life she only quoted Scripture. Her last words were, I know that my redeemer lives.
Job 23:10 [W]hen he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
Job was starting to see his hardship as a form of purification. Gold must go through fire for dross to be removed, and Christians must go through suffering for their faith to be purified. The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart (Proverbs 17:3), says Proverbs.
Job 38:1 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm.
After thirty-five chapters of speeches from Job and his friends, God finally speaks. But God didn’t provide the answer Job or his friends were looking for. Instead of explaining why a good and powerful God would allow the righteous to suffer, God reminded them that his wisdom is beyond our comprehension.
Children can’t understand everything their parents do, so we shouldn’t expect to understand everything God does. What we know of his goodness, power and wisdom is enough for us to trust him.
Job 42:5-6 My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
Throughout his story, Job insisted that he was a pretty good person. And, compared to everyone else, he was. But even though he was the most righteous person around (Job 1:8), Job was still a sinner who fell short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). It wasn’t until he saw himself in the light of God’s glory that he could say, I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
This is why it’s never wise to compare ourselves to other sinners. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise (2 Corinthians 10:12), wrote Paul. Most people think they’re better than average, but God’s standard is perfection (Matthew 5:48). When we compare ourselves to other sinners, we think too much of ourselves. It’s only when we see ourselves in the light of God’s holiness that we can say with Job, I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.
Job 42:12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.
God gave Job twice as much as he had before, and many more years to enjoy it. Whenever we go through difficult times, we might think they’ll never end. But they usually do. We went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance (Psalm 66:12), wrote the Psalmist. Suffering is never the last word for the people of God. Even if we suffer to death, we’ll awake to eternal joy. Tough times never last but tough people do.
Reflection and Review
- How does suffering affect our faith?
- How does faith help us through suffering?
- Why did Job despise himself and repent?
Lesson 110
Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked.
The book of Psalms is a collection of prayers and praise that were set to music and used for worship by the people of God. King David authored many of them but Asaph, Solomon and Moses were also authors, along with a few others.
Various Psalms date from between 1500 and 500 BC, and the book was put into its final form in the 300’s BC. The book of Psalms expresses the full range of religious emotions, from breathtaking highs to suffocating lows. It reflects the religious feelings of believers in all circumstances, throughout the ages.
The first word of the first verse of the first Psalm is the word blessed. The Hebrew word can also be translated happy, so the point of the first psalm is to direct our feet into the way of happiness. All men seek happiness. There are no exceptions. However different the means they may employ, they all strive towards this goal.
The reason some people go to church is to be happy, and the reason some people stay home is to be happy. The reason some people get married is to be happy, and the reason some people get divorced is to be happy. I’ve been on several diets, over the years, and I always start because I think that being thinner will make me happy. But when I get hungry enough, I think that eating will make me happy. Whether I eat or starve, I do both for the same reason. Psalm one tells us how to be happy in God.
Psalm 1:1b [He] does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers.
Few things will influence our lives for good or evil more than those around us. This is why parents are concerned about what kind of friends their children make. I was thirteen years old when I began to run with the wrong crowd, and my mother expressed her concern. I said, The reason I run with them is to be a good influence. But I was lying through my teeth and she knew it. She shook her head and said, Tell me who you run with, and I’ll tell you who you are.
A young lady was also going out with the wrong crowd, and told her parents the same lie. They said, If you’re going out with unbelievers make the ratio three to one: three friends who are on the right track for every one who is not. That’s good advice. The sinful nature is so powerful that it’s easier to be influenced toward evil, than to influence others toward good. Your best friends are the ones who bring out the best in you.
Psalm 1:2 . . . whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.
We don’t know the author of Psalm One, but he clearly loved the Bible. He didn’t merely read the Bible, he made it his meditation. A good way to meditate on God’s word is by committing it to memory. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119:11), wrote the Psalmist. As we memorize the word of God, it sinks into our soul, and helps us throughout the day.
Psalm 1:3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.
Israel’s climate is mostly hot and dry, so it’s not always easy to make things grow. But, along the Jordan River, everything grows nicely because of the constant water supply. The writer is saying, poetically, the closer you are to God, the more you’ll flourish.
A young missionary who’d later die for his faith these words: I walked out on the hill just now and it is exalting. It is delicious to stand and be embraced by the shadow of a friendly tree with the wind tugging at your coattail and the heavens tugging at your heart. To gaze and glory and give oneself again to God. What more could a man ask. The fullness, pleasure, and sheer excitement of knowing God on earth (Jim Elliot). This is the kind of spiritual flourishing that God wants for all of us.
Psalm 1:3b . . . whatever they do prospers.
Prosperity doesn’t come easily in a fallen world. Some people prosper financially, but their relationships are a mess. Others prosper relationally, but their finances are a mess. Others prosper outwardly, but inwardly they’re a mess. And some people are just a mess. But here we learn that prosperity often comes from knowing God’s word, and being among his people.
Whenever you buy something that requires assembly, it’s wise to read the instructions. Otherwise you may assemble it incorrectly, and it won’t work the way it should. God knows how life is supposed to work, and has revealed it in his word. It’s the only way to true prosperity.
Psalm 1:4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
In some places wheat and chaff are still separated the way they were in the Bible. Both are tossed into the air and, because the chaff is lighter, the wind blows it off to the side. The wheat is stored in a barn, and the chaff is burned in a fire.
John the Baptist used this image to describe how Christ will separate the righteous from the wicked. [H]e will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:12), he said. They’re together now, but will be sorted out in the end.
Psalm 1:5-6 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
The first word in this Psalm is blessed, and the last word is destruction. Those who belong to Jesus Christ will enjoy eternal blessedness, and those who die apart from Christ will endure eternal destruction. This Psalm teaches us how to be happy in this life, and in the one to come.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it important to be happy in God?
- How is the Bible like an owner’s manual?
- Do God’s people always prosper?
Lesson 111
Psalm 2:11 Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling.
We don’t normally celebrate God’s rule with trembling, but that’s the response called for by this text. David is speaking to kings, before whom ordinary people trembled. Since kings held the power of life and death, it could be a dreadful thing to stand in their presence. How much more the king of all the earth?
A proper response to God includes both celebration and trembling. [T]remble before him, all the earth (Psalm 96:9). My flesh trembles in fear of you; (Psalm 119:20). Do not be arrogant, but tremble (Romans 11:20). And work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), wrote Paul.
The Bible gives us enough assurance to be secure, but never enough to be careless. Excessive assurance will cause a person to be spiritually lax, and insufficient assurance will cause a person to be spiritually tense. Sufficient assurance allows us to celebrate the rule of God with trembling.
Psalm 4:8 In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
David had powerful enemies and, on occasion, he had to run for his life. He needed God’s protection while he was awake, but even more while he slept. Instead of sleeping lightly, he committed himself to God’s care, knowing that God alone could make him dwell in safety.
For those who live in fear, nothing is more precious than feeling secure, and none are safer than those who trust in God. Being a Christian doesn’t mean you won’t be murdered at midnight, but that you won’t be murdered by chance, because God will preserve your life until he calls you home.
Psalm 8:3-4 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
When we consider the expanse of the universe, it’s easy to feel insignificant by comparison. Even our planet is tiny compared to many others. But earth is the place of God’s special work. It’s where he sent his Son to live and teach. These are the people for whom he died. And this is where he’ll live in the future. The vastness of the universe shouldn’t make us feel insignificant, but compel us to worship the God who made it, and who numbers the hairs of our heads (Matthew 10:30).
Psalm 10:1 Why, Lord, do you stand far off Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
There are times in life when God seems remarkably close. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken (Psalm 16:8). But as for me, it is good to be near God (Psalm 73:28). And, The Lord is near to all who call on him (Psalm 145:18), wrote the Psalmists.
But there are other times when God seems painfully absent. Lord, do not forsake me; do not be far from me (Psalm 38:21). Why do you hide your face and forget our misery? (Psalm 44:24). Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me? (Psalm 88:14), wrote the Psalmists also.
The felt presence of God, and the felt absence of God, are both legitimate feelings expressed in God’s word. They’re powerful, and often undeniable, but are not our most reliable guide. Regardless of what we’re going through, we should always trust in the promise of Christ. I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20), he said. God wants us to live by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7), more than by our feelings.
Psalm 14:1 The fool says in his heart, There is no God.
God is self-evident from the world he created (Romans 1:20), and whoever disagrees is a fool. The conviction may be philosophical, or merely practical, but it’s the prevailing view of many. And, yet, God refuses to go away.
A young atheist was going through a difficult time and found himself angry at God. He had to remind himself that it didn’t make sense to be angry at God because he didn’t believe in God. But pain makes us think about God whether we believe in him or not. Many who hit their thumb with a hammer mention God instinctively. So why doesn’t everyone admit they believe in God?
The answer is that God is inconvenient. Saying yes to him means saying no to ourselves. The good news of atheism is that there is no Judgment Day, so we can live as we please now. This is very appealing, even if it isn't true.
But those who’ve come to God through faith in Jesus Christ are normally happier than atheists for several reasons. First, they’ve resolved their guilt through faith, repentance and forgiveness. Second, they’re not afraid of death because they have eternal life. Third, they’re more optimistic because they believe that God is good. Fourth, they have better relationships because they’ve learned to love and forgive. And fifth, they’re less worried about this life because they’re looking forward to the next.
Those who argue against God argue against the very one who gives them the ability to argue at all. They’re like a little girl who’s able to slap her father’s face, only because he holds her up. Apart from sin, everyone would believe in God immediately and without argument.
Psalm 16:11 [Y]ou will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
King David knew pleasure, and saw it as a gift from God. This helped him look forward to the age to come when he he’d enjoy eternal pleasures at God’s right hand. The greatest pleasures on earth are only a foretaste of what the righteous will enjoy forever.
The devil wants us think that God is against pleasure, but this is contrary to Scripture and reason. When God created Adam and Eve, he put them in the Garden of Eden, a place of sensual bliss. He also gave them physical senses to enjoy all that he made: the beauty of nature, the taste of food, the sound of birds, the sense of touch, and the smell of lilacs in bloom. To this he added the joy of his presence to make us glad (Psalm 21:6). It can even be argued that we were made for pleasure—the pleasure of God and creation.
But pleasure is so powerful it can destroy us if we’re not careful. Many who were once rich have died penniless due to an excessive pursuit of pleasure. Others have lost their health or reputations. The proper use of pleasure is to enjoy it within the limits God has set. God should be our highest pleasure, and his commandments our first concern. Then we’ll enjoy pleasure as he intends, and look forward to eternal pleasures at his right hand.
Psalm 19:7 The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
David found God’s word to be his most reliable guide. It was more trustworthy than advice from his friends, or even of his own conclusions. Even today, the Bible should be trusted above all else.
A military aircraft was returning from a mission and, due to a tailwind, arrived home sooner than expected. Their instruments showed the airbase was directly below them, but their instincts told them otherwise. Instead of trusting their instruments, they relied on their instincts, and never made it home. Our most reliable guide to heaven isn’t our instincts, but what God has said in his word.
Reflection and Review
- Why should everyone tremble before God?
- Why doesn’t everyone believe in God?
- What’s the danger of too much pleasure?
Lesson 112
Psalm 22:1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
These are haunting words to pray, but David was desperate, and felt abandoned by God. He was being attacked by ruthless men and God seemed strangely absent. David trusted God, served God, and worshipped God. But where was God when David needed him most?
Some people think that life with God is uniformly joyful, but nothing could be further from the truth. There are moments of delight, but also of despair. Jesus himself quoted this verse while he hung on the cross. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46), he said.
Jesus’ fellowship with the Father had never been interrupted because Jesus never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). But when he bore the penalty for our sins on the cross, God apparently withdrew all sense of his favor. By quoting the first verse of this Psalm, Jesus drew attention to the whole Psalm, which parallels his crucifixion in many ways.
Psalm 22:7 All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
As Jesus hung on the cross, the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him (Mark 15:31). Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads (Matthew 27:39). The parallel is undeniable. David and Jesus both experienced public ridicule and mocking.
Psalm 22:13 Roaring lions that tear their prey open their mouths wide against me.
David’s opponents reminded him of a lion tearing its prey. And before Jesus was crucified, his flesh was torn from the lashing he received (John 19:1).
Psalm 22:14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint.
Crucifixion could lead to the dislocation of bones, as victims hung on the cross for hours before they died. The gospels don’t mention this explicitly, but it’s certainly possible that some of Jesus’ bones came out of joint as he hung on the cross.
Psalm 22:15 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
If you’ve ever been extremely thirsty you know what this is like. The tongue sticks to the roof of the mouth as if it’s seeking moisture. As Jesus hung on the cross he was parched and said, I am thirsty (John 19:28).
Psalm 22:16 Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet.
David’s enemies were like dogs biting his hands and feet. But the word pierce reminds us of the piercing of Jesus’ hands and feet when he was nailed to the cross. Even after he rose from the dead, Jesus’ hands had holes in them (John 20:27). But he was pierced for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5), said Isaiah. And They will look on me, the one they have pierced (Zechariah 12:10), Zechariah foretold.
Psalm 22:17 All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me.
Crucifixion was meant to humiliate so victims were normally naked. All Jesus’ bones were on display and, as he looked down from the cross, he saw his enemies gloating in triumph. We can imagine his shame and humiliation as his enemies stared at his naked, bony, crucified body.
Psalm 22:18 They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.
The parallel here is extraordinary. When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. Let’s not tear it, they said to one another. Let’s decide by lot who will get it (John 19:23-24). So they divided Jesus’ clothes, and cast lots for his garment, just as David described.
Psalm 22:26 The poor will eat and be satisfied.
The Psalm begins somberly, but ends triumphantly. It speaks of a meal for the poor that will leave them completely satisfied. This reminds us of the meal Jesus ordained the night before his death (Luke 22:17-19). For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death (1 Corinthians 11:26), he said. Jesus gave his body and blood, so we could feast on him through faith.
Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord.
After Jesus rose from the dead he told his followers to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). They spread out far and wide, preaching the gospel wherever they went. Two thousand years later, people around the world gather each week to remember Christ, and turn to him in faith.
Psalm 22:31 They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!
This is the last verse of the Psalm and reminds us of Jesus’ last words from the cross: It is finished (John 19:30). This is a close parallel to He has done it! When Jesus died on the cross, his work of redemption was complete.
Psalm 22 sounds like an eyewitness account of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, so we have to remind ourselves that David wrote this Psalm about a thousand years before Christ was born. By quoting the first verse of this Psalm, Jesus gave us a glimpse of what he was going through on the cross. And because the Psalm ends well, he was pointing to the good that would come as a result. This kind of prediction and fulfillment are a clear indication of divine authorship.
Reflection and Review
- How did this Psalm help Jesus prepare for his crucifixion?
- Did God actually forsake Jesus?
- Why did Jesus have to suffer so much?
Lesson 113
Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
The twenty-third Psalm was written by David about three thousand years ago, and may be the most loved poem in the world. He spent his youth as a shepherd, so he had a good idea of what sheep are like: stubborn, nearsighted, no sense of direction, mostly defenseless, and not very smart. In a flash of insight David realized that people are a lot like sheep, and that even he needed someone to watch over him.
This is surprising because David was one of the most capable people who ever lived. He was a gifted poet and musician, a lethal warrior, and a remarkable leader. If anyone had reason to feel self-sufficient, it should’ve been David. But David felt dependent on God, and became one of the greatest people who ever lived.
Psalm 23:2-3 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.
This is the life we long for: an everyday stroll down to the riverside to picnic and relax. It’s a life of leisure, the purpose of which is to know and love our Shepherd.
The patriarch Jacob was also a shepherd, and was moving his flocks to another town. The journey was long, but he was patient, and refused to drive the sheep too hard. If they are driven hard just one day, all the animals will die (Genesis 33:13), he said. God is a gentle shepherd who knows how to care for his sheep. Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest (Mark 6:31), said Jesus.
Psalm 23:3 He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
A good shepherd cared for his sheep by keeping them on the right path. The only way for a sheep to get into serious trouble was to go his own way. This was a bad idea because, in the eyes of a wolf, sheep are just lamb chops waiting to happen.
Years ago I was walking along a path when I was surprised by a large dog. He was tied up to a tree and, when he saw me coming, he actually hid behind it. But the moment I was within striking distance, he lunged at me and nearly got my throat. Thankfully his leash ran out, and he fell in a heap. But it’s not hard to imagine what might’ve happened if I wasn’t on the path.
Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
We can imagine David passing through a valley where bandits were known to attack, especially after sunset. David wondered how he’d defend himself, and began to feel afraid. Then he remembered that God was with him. This brought him comfort, courage and confidence.
On our journey to heaven we may walk through valleys of fear, depression, rejection, guilt, addiction, unemployment, confusion, sickness, poverty, pain, and other effects of living in a sin-cursed world. But God is with us in every valley, and is leading us to a place where there’ll be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (Revelation 21:4). Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).
Psalm 23:4b . . . your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
David was familiar with the rod and staff, which he used to coral his sheep, and comfort them. They were an extension of his personal touch, to remind his sheep that he was there for them.
A shepherd was watching his flock in a place that was torn by war. Whenever a shot rang out the sheep would tremble uncontrollably. Then he’d reach out his staff and touch each one as if to say, Don’t be afraid; I am here for you. We can also comfort others by saying, Don't be afraid; God is here for you.
Psalm 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Here there is a change of imagery. David is no longer a wandering sheep, but a guest of honor at a heavenly banquet. A good host would welcome his guests by filling their cups and anointing their foreheads with oil. Isaiah spoke of a banquet at the end of the age, where God himself will be the host, and we will be his guests (Isaiah 25:6). He will fill our cups, anoint our heads and say, Welcome home my child.
But as someone capable of both adultery and murder, David seems optimistic about his reception at the heavenly banquet. I’d be happy to slip in quietly and take a place near the back. If there was a place for the most unworthy, I’d be happy to sit there. But that’s not what the Bible teaches.
[Y]ou will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:11), wrote Peter. When you walk through heaven’s door there’ll be shouts of praise to God for his amazing grace, and for the blood of Christ which makes the foulest clean. God himself will be your host, filling your cup, anointing your head, and rejoicing at your arrival.
Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
My wife and I used to look at new home magazines and discovered we have similar taste. We both like anything over two million dollars. But can you imagine God’s house?
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am (John 14:2-3), said Jesus.
A young lady was hospitalized for depression. She never took her eyes off the ground and rarely spoke word. Then, one day, she was assigned a doctor with an unusual last name. He introduced himself as Dr. Heaven.
That was his real name and it helped change her thoughts. She stopped worrying about this life, and began to think of the one to come. She took her eyes off her problems, and put them on God. Within five weeks she was released from the hospital and went on to become a successful teacher. Regardless what happens in this life, we’ll dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Reflection and Review
- How are people like sheep?
- How can the valleys of life strengthen our faith?
- What should we expect when we arrive in heaven?
Lesson 114
Psalm 25:11 For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
David didn’t request forgiveness because God is forgiving, loving or merciful, but For the sake of [his] name. This idea appears more than once: forgive our sins for your name’s sake (Psalm 79:9), wrote Asaph. And, your sins have been forgiven on account of his name (1 John 2:12), wrote John.
God’s name is glorified by forgiving our sins because it enhances his reputation as the God who forgives. The greater our sins, in fact, the more God is glorified by forgiving them. It’s one thing to forgive gossip and unkindness, but quite another to forgive murder, rape and blasphemy.
But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Nehemiah 9:17), said the Levites. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him (Daniel 9:9), wrote Daniel. God wants to be known as forgiving, so he’s willing to forgive anyone for anything, if they come to him through faith in Jesus Christ (1 John 1:9).
If God only forgave little sins, or few sins, he couldn’t be known as very forgiving. Everyone on earth forgives sins that are little or few. But if God forgives the worst possible repeat offenders, who believe in Jesus Christ, then he deserves a reputation as the God who forgives sinners. Once we’ve done our worst, and there’s no other reason for God to forgive, we should pray like David. For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Psalm 27:8 My heart says of you, Seek his face! Your face, Lord, I will seek.
David wasn’t content to go through religious motions; he wanted to encounter God. He wanted to be so close to God that it was like seeing his face. This is a longing for closeness. Think of your mother’s face, or your father’s face, or your spouse’s face. We seldom look at a person’s face for long unless we’re committed to them.
More than a few grandparents have put pennies in their hand, so the grandkids could pry their fingers open, grab the pennies, and run away. It’s a wonderful game, but it’s also how some people pray. They don’t seek God for himself, but for what he has in his hand. It’s not wrong to pray for our needs, but we should also seek God’s face. Our heart’s deepest desire isn’t what we can get from God, but for more of God himself.
Psalm 29:11 [T]he Lord blesses his people with peace.
The biblical idea of peace is broader than the absence of conflict. It’s more like things as they’re supposed to be. Imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your body. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your heart. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be in your mind, at home, at work, and at church. Then imagine things as they’re supposed to be throughout the whole world because, one day, the peace of God will permeate every molecule of his creation. Sin has made a mess of things but Christ is making it right. Even now, he blesses his people with peace.
Psalm 31:19 How abundant are the good things that you have stored up for those who fear you.
For many years David lived with little, but he later received an abundance of things that God had stored up for him: power, privilege, health, wealth, friends, family and more. David wasn't unique in this way. God is storing up things for everyone who fears him, and he wants us to be aware of it.
When my children were small, their grandmother stored up things under her bed for them. Some were for birthdays, some were for Christmas, and some were just for fun. They weren’t allowed to look under her bed, but I think they used to dream of all that was being stored up for them. And so should we.
Some of our hearts’ desires have been planted by God because he plans to fulfill them. It may happen suddenly, gradually, or not until eternity. But the gifts of God will come, and they will be abundant.
Psalm 32:5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
David didn’t identify the sin he committed, but he acknowledged the difficulty of coming to repentance. Instead of confessing his sin, and requesting forgiveness, he wanted to ignore the fact that he did something wrong. He may’ve justified his sin, or put it out of his mind, but he couldn’t go forward with God until he owned up to it. Then he confessed his sin, and God forgave him.
A woman took part in a bank robbery in which an officer was shot and killed. She changed her identity and avoided arrest for twenty-three years. But her first thought every morning, and her last at night, was of the man who was killed. She took a class on depression but found no relief. So, more than two decades later, she turned herself in to authorities. I have had to examine my conscience and accept any responsibility I have, she said.
If our conscience is working properly we’ll have feelings of guilt whenever we break God’s law. The purpose of these feelings is not to make us miserable, but to bring us back to God. As soon as we confess, God will forgive. Then our feelings of guilt will gradually subside. There’s no other way to go forward with God.
Psalm 34:3 Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.
David wasn’t content to be a solitary worshipper but wanted others to join him. He was so concerned for God’s glory that he wanted to enlarge the circle of praise as far as he could. This should be the attitude of every church, and every true believer in Jesus Christ. Christianity isn’t a solitary religion, but one that gathers corporately, and invites others to glorify the Lord with us.
A nobleman built a church for his village but didn’t include any lights. He gave each family lamp and reminded them that it would be a little darker whenever they didn’t attend. We ought to invite others to church and we ought to go ourselves.
Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
David’s relationship with God was so delicious, that he wanted others to taste for themselves. As the tongue tastes food, we can experience God by drawing near to him. And, when we do, we’ll discover that he is good.
There’s almost nothing better to me than a ripe watermelon on a hot summer day. Several years ago I ate one all by myself. Watermelon proves to me that God is good because only a good God would invent something that delicious. But God and watermelon also have this in common: the closer you get to the heart, the better they are. Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Psalm 36:8 [Y]ou give [us] drink from your river of delights.
A college I attended had a river nearby, where we liked to swim in the spring. There was a tree on the bank, with a rope-swing attached, that was often in use. We’d swing over the river, flip in the air, and splash down in the water. It was, to us, a river of delight.
This is only a foretaste of what’s to come. In the last chapter of God’s word we read of the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God (Revelation 22:1). In glorified bodies we’ll swing, flip and laugh to our hearts content. Whatever is delightful in this age, is only a foretaste of what’s to come.
Reflection and Review
- Why does God like to forgive?
- What does it mean to seek God’s face?
- Why is hard to confess our sins?
Lesson 115
Psalm 51:1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
After committing adultery with Bathsheba, and having her husband killed, David’s initial impulse was not to ask for mercy, but to run away from God. So God sent the prophet Nathan to bring him back. Then David wrote this remarkable Psalm of repentance, which begins with a plea for mercy. David didn’t shift the blame for his behavior, like Adam and Eve. Nor did he blame God for making him a sexual being, or Bathsheba for bathing in plain sight. He simply begged for mercy.
We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy (Daniel 9:18) wrote Daniel. You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy (Micah 7:18), wrote Micah. And The Lord is full of compassion and mercy (James 5:11), wrote James. Serious sinners need to know that God is the most merciful being in the universe, even to the worst of us.
Psalm 51:2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
Sin is so unnatural that, if our conscience is working properly, we’ll feel dirty whenever we do wrong. We can bathe ourselves in water, and use the strongest soap, but the sense of being defiled won’t go away until we’re cleansed by God.
In the event of robbery, banks have included permanent dye with the money. When the crooks reach for the cash, their hands are instantly marked. They can use every kind of detergent, and scrub until they’re raw, but the dye won’t come off. Their guilt is clear for everyone to see.
Apart from the cleansing work of Christ, every sin we commit leaves a permanent stain on our soul. They can’t be removed by time, regret, remorse, sacrifice, service, or anything other than the blood of Christ. But the blood of Jesus . . . purifies us from all sin (1 John 1:7), wrote John.
Psalm 51:3 I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
Whenever David looked in the mirror, he saw an adulterous murderer looking back at him. He was a very important person, lived in a beautiful home, and had accomplished many things. But he didn’t like himself. And people can't be happy unless they’re happy with themselves.
Many have done such terrible things, in fact, that they wish they’d never been born. Some have even killed themselves due to the pain of their guilt. But the purpose of guilt isn’t to make us hate ourselves; it’s to lead us to the one who can wash our guilt away, and give us a glorious future.
Psalm 51:4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.
David sinned against Bathsheba in the act of adultery, and against her husband by arranging his death. But he claimed to sin primarily against God. Some people think sin is okay, if no one gets hurt, but that never happens. God is always hurt by our sin.
This is why forgiveness is never complete until we’re forgiven by God. We should ask forgiveness from those we’ve offended but, even if the whole world forgives us, we’re never completely forgiven until we’re forgiven by God.
Psalm 51:5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
As David looked back on his life, he couldn’t recall a time when he wasn’t a sinner. He concluded that his sinfulness began the moment he was conceived. This is true for everyone because we’re all descendants of Adam and Eve—the first human sinners. Their righteous natures were corrupted by sin and passed down to their children. That’s why The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure (Jeremiah 17:9), wrote Jeremiah.
It’s so bad, in fact, that we’re not only sinners by nature, but also by choice. Not everyone is inclined toward music, or athletics, but we’re all inclined toward sin. It’s such a part of our nature that we not only enjoy it, but do it with skill. In this regard, we have more in common with the devil than we do with Jesus Christ. But our Savior took our penalty so we could be forgiven.
Psalm 51:7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Hyssop is a small plant that could be dipped in water, and used in a cleansing ceremony (Numbers 19:17-19). David was convinced that if God would cleanse him, he’d be whiter than snow. The words translated Cleanse me, can even be translated Un-sin me. God’s forgiveness is so complete, it’s like we never even sinned.
David learned that murder is a difficult thing to get over, and those who abort their babies often struggle terribly. But God is so good that he not only wants to forgive us, but longs to help us recover. That is why he offers to un-sin us.
Psalm 51:13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.
After asking God to forgive him, David wondered if anything good could come from his sin. Then he recalled that others struggle with sin and, if he could find his way back to God, he could help others do the same. By writing this Psalm, in fact, David has helped countless sinners come back to God.
We even find comfort in David’s sin, because if God can forgive him, then he can forgive us. God used David’s sin to demonstrate the extent of his forgiveness so that other sinners wouldn’t lose heart. God is willing to forgive our sin and even use it for good somehow.
Reflection and Review
- Why do we feel dirty when we sin?
- Why does sin hurt God?
- How did God use David’s sin for good?
Lesson 116
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.
Life is seldom carefree outside of Eden. We’re concerned about our money, our marriage, our health, our kids, our jobs, our parents, the economy, aging, war, death and more. Too many cares weigh us down, and will break us if we’re not careful. Instead of carrying the burdens of life ourselves, God invites us to cast our cares on him.
A man was buying plywood at a home improvement store, and stacking it on the roof of his car. There was no problem, at first, and the car seemed to handle it fine. But fifty sheets later his roof caved in, and his car was completely destroyed.
Our problems seem quite manageable one at a time. But if they are stacked high enough they’ll crush us. Casting our cares on the Lord isn’t just good advice, it may be the only way to survive. Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.
Psalm 56:3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
David’s life was in serious danger as he fled from his enemies. If they had their way, his life would soon be over. David was rightly afraid, but he refused to let his fear overwhelm him. Instead, he put his trust in God.
Trusting God is easy when the bills are paid, the job is secure, and your health is holding up. But we know from Scripture, and experience, that terrible things happen to God’s holy people sometimes. Trusting God isn’t believing nothing bad will ever happen, but that God is always in control, and is up to something good (Romans 8:28).
Imagine a veterinarian who wants to free a bear caught in a trap. First he has to shoot it with a tranquilizer, which the bear perceives as an attack. By thrashing around, the bear only makes things worse. If the bear understood the veterinarian was trying to do it good, it could relax. That’s what David did whenever he was afraid. When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
Psalm 65:3 When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.
Everyone sins, every day, but some days are worse than others. If the world, the flesh and the devil conspire, we can find ourselves doing things we never thought we’d do.
I swam in the ocean, years ago, and tried to body surf. But instead of riding on top of the wave, it dragged me along the bottom. I was absolutely powerless, and came up a bloody mess. That’s what overwhelming sin is like. It drags us along the bottom and makes a mess of us.
God’s answer to overwhelming sin is overwhelming forgiveness. We come to him in terrible shape and he makes us new again. [H]e does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities (Psalm 103:10). What we need the most from God, he gives us through his Son. Your sins are forgiven. . . . Your faith has saved you; go in peace (Luke 7:48-50), he said.
Psalm 69:14 Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink.
David was having a terrible time and feared for his life. Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up or the pit close its mouth over me (Psalm 69:15), he wrote. There are times when death comes near and only God can save us.
Two men were walking an Alaskan shoreline, when one stepped into quicksand. A helicopter was sent to lift him out, but the pain was so intense they had to stop. Soon he was up to his armpits, and the tide was coming in, so they tried again and, this time, it worked. Whether our quicksand is real, or metaphorical, we can call to God for help. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death (Psalm 68:20).
Psalm 73:25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
One of the first and favorite words of children is the word mine. We like stuff, we need stuff, and many spend their whole lives getting more stuff. This makes us happy for awhile, but it doesn’t always last.
A minister was having lunch with a wealthy man who was troubled in his heart. I have everything I need to be happy but I’m miserable as hell, he said. Later, that day, the minister sat with man who lost his wife and was caring for his ailing sister. I don't have two nickels to rub together, but I’m the happiest person I know, he said.
No one in the Bible was happy all the time, but if there’s a secret to happiness it’s probably this: Delight yourself in God, for he gives or withholds the ability to enjoy everything else. God may give you everything in the world except the ability to enjoy it. Or, he may give you little with the ability to enjoy it greatly.
This is important to know when we’re young, but especially with age, when earthly pleasures slip away. If we delight ourselves in God, we’ll enjoy whatever is left, and look forward to the best.
Psalm 73:26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Many have gathered a fortune only to lose it later on. Some have gathered another fortune only to lose it as well. But whoever has God has an eternal treasure that can never be lost. He is our portion forever.
A wealthy and powerful prince disguised himself and went on a journey to find a bride who would love him for who he was. His disguise was so convincing, in fact, that most wanted nothing to do with him. Then, at last, he found a bride who loved him deeply and sincerely.
When they returned to his kingdom, she was amazed by his power, privilege and possessions, which now belonged to her as well. This is the future of all who belong to Jesus Christ. Whoever loves Christ for his own sake will have everything else thrown in. But Christ himself is our portion forever.
Reflection and Review
- How does faith overcome fear?
- Is there a secret to happiness?
- What is the best part of heaven?
Lesson 117
Psalm 78:4 [We] will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.
The person who wrote this had no idea how many generations he would influence with his advice. Three thousand years later, God is stilling using his words to inspire parents to pass down their faith to the next generation.
This is what God had in mind when he chose Abraham to be the father of the nation of Israel. For I have chosen him so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord (Genesis 18:19), said God. Abraham taught Isaac, Isaac taught Jacob, Jacob taught his children, and so forth. Over time, a nation of believers was formed.
Likewise, Moses taught the Israelites to pass down God’s many words to their children. [Talk] about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up (Deuteronomy 11:19), he said. Likewise, Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it (Proverbs 22:6), says Proverbs.
As a third generation believer, my wife is a good example of this. Her grandparents came to Christ shortly after they were married, and raised their children in the faith. Then my wife’s parents raised their children in the faith, and we raised our children in the faith. Today there are four generations of Christians who trace their heritage to one set of godly grandparents who’ve gone to be with the Lord.
When our children were small, we read a chapter of the Bible together almost every day. Most of the time they didn’t know what it meant, but we finished the whole Bible in about four years. Then we started over. When they were in their teens I allowed them to read on their own, but we got together once a week to discuss what they had learned.
The reason I did this was not only to teach my children, but to teach them how to teach their children. By God’s grace there could be several generations who arrive in heaven because we told the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.
Psalm 90:12 Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Most tombstones have a date-of-birth and a date-of-death, separated by a little dash. A million years from now all that will matter is what you did with your dash. If you live to be ninety years old, you’ll spend over thirty-two thousand days doing something. You can spend those days for yourself or for the Lord. But how you spend your days is how you spend your life.
No one knows when their life will end but, if you want a hopeful estimate, subtract your age from ninety, and multiply that by three hundred sixty-five. Then purchase that many marbles and put them into a container. Removing a marble a day will help you keep track of how many days you might have left. But there are no guarantees.
When I was a kid, I jumped belly first into an large inner tube and got wedged in the middle. My face was against the rubber and I couldn’t move or breathe. My friends were swimming nearby, and I could hear them playing, but they didn’t know I was dying. I still remember thinking, I didn’t expect to die today; I’m only nine years old! Somehow I wiggled free, but I learned the end is always near. Only this life will soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.
Psalm 100:3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his.
The first duty of creatures is to find their Maker and obey him. We didn’t make ourselves, and don’t belong to ourselves. We were made by God and, therefore, we are his. Turning away from God is nothing short of criminal.
Imagine building the house of your dreams on a perfect piece of property. Imagine a stone exterior, hardwood floors, a finished garage, and more. But the day you planned to move in the locks were changed, and someone else was living there. That’s how God must feel when we take the life he made for himself and lock him out. Repentance is giving our lives back to God and letting him live within us—not as a visitor but as the rightful owner (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Our life doesn’t belong to us; it belongs to the one who made us.
Reflection and Review
- How can we pass down our faith to our children.
- How can we make every day count for God?
- Why does God have the right to govern our lives?
Lesson 118
Psalm 103:10 [H]e he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
A nomadic youth got into a fight with his friend, and hit him so hard that he killed him. The law of the land was life for a life, so the boy was in serious trouble. But instead of running away, he ran a day and a half back to the tribal chief. He admitted his crime and begged the chief to protect him. And the chief agreed.
But, when boys’ accusers arrived, they told the chief something he didn’t know. The boy who was killed was the chief’s only son. The chief was visibly shaken, but after a moment to think he said, Then the one who killed my son will become my son, and all that I have will be his.
This, of course, is nothing less than gospel. God sent his Son into the world and we killed him. But if we return to God, he’ll forgive our sins, and that all he has will be ours.
Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him.
We can imagine David lying under a starry sky, amazed at the expanse above. He may’ve been in awe at the power of God, but that’s not what gripped his heart. What moved him most was the fact that God’s love for him was higher than the heavens above.
This is a little surprising because David did many things to make himself unlovely to God. He was a sinner, like everyone else, and there was nothing of which he wasn’t capable. Yet, somehow, he came into a special relationship with God, and knew that he was the object of infinite love.
If you had a spaceship that could travel the speed of light, you’d pass the moon in just over a second. About eight and a half minutes later you’d pass the sun. To get to the next galaxy would take twenty-five thousand years, and to get to the edge of the universe would take ninety-three billion years. Imagine God stretching out his hands from one end of the universe to the other. That’s how much he loves us.
Psalm 103:12 [A]s far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Whenever David thought about God, he was reminded of his sin, because God is against sin. But a thousand years later Christ would go to the cross so we could be forgiven (Colossians 2:13). Christ’s work was so effective that David could say in advance, as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
The distance from the North Pole to the South Pole is over twelve thousand miles, but the distance from east to west is harder to measure because there aren’t any poles. David was saying that God has removed our sins completely and forever--as far as the east is from the west.
Psalm 104:5 He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.
For many years this verse was used to support the idea that the sun revolves around the earth. If the earth can never be moved, then it can’t revolve around the sun. When science showed the earth does, in fact, revolve around the sun some people lost their confidence in the Bible.
But the Psalmist wasn’t making a scientific argument for an earth-centered universe. He was saying poetically that God made the world a stable place in which to live. By overstating what the Bible teaches, the church embarrassed itself and gave the world a reason to doubt God’s word.
If God is the author of nature and Scripture, they can’t contradict each other. When they appear to contradict, we are misunderstanding nature, Scripture, or both. Contradictory opinions don’t need to be settled at once, but can be held in tension until more information becomes available.
We can think of nature and Scripture as two books from the same author, both requiring interpretation. With time, our knowledge of each continues to improve. Christians must be careful not to make the Bible say what it doesn’t, or yield to scientific theories that oppose it. Scientific theories come and go, but the word of our God endures forever (Isaiah 40:8), wrote Isaiah.
Psalm 106:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Whenever you feel depressed, make a list of one hundred things for which you can be thankful. If you slept inside, on a bed, with a pillow and a blanket, that’s four. If you used a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and shampoo, that’s eight. If you had coffee with sugar and cream in your favorite mug, that’s twelve. The more we’re thankful for what we have, the less we’ll be bothered by what we don’t have.
A pastor went to a leper colony where he led a worship service and took song requests. One lady raised a fingerless hand and said, Let’s sing Count your many blessings. Count them one by one. Count your many blessings and see what God has done. Even with a fingerless hand we can Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it important to know God loves us?
- Why is it important to know we’re forgiven?
- Why do the Bible and science seem to disagree sometimes?
Lesson 119
Psalm 116:14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.
Making and fulfilling vows was an important expression of faith in the Old Testament. Jacob said, If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God . . . and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth (Genesis 28:20-22).
When Hannah wanted a baby she said, Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life (1 Samuel 1:11).
But there is a problem with vows: most people are better at making them than keeping them. Many have promised to do something if God would answer their prayer, but when God answered their prayer they didn’t fulfill their vow.
Imagine a man lost in the woods who prayed, Lord, if you save me, I’ll give you my life. Then he heard children playing and, by walking in their direction, he found his way out. Later he wondered if God really answered his prayer, or if it was just a coincidence. Since he couldn’t be sure, he decided the vow wasn’t binding, and went on living as before.
It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it (Ecclesiastes 5:5), wrote Solomon. Oaths and vows were so abused, in fact, that they’re never taught in the New Testament as an expression of Christian faith. They’re not forbidden, but they’re not encouraged either.
Shortly after I believed, a minister encouraged me to vow that I’d read four chapters of the Bible a day. I wanted to please my heavenly Father, so I made the vow and kept it—for about a week. If I hadn’t made the vow I wouldn’t have been guilty of sin, but since I made the vow I was.
Breaking a vow is a serious sin, but it’s handled like every other sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), wrote John. It’s not wrong to tell God what you’d like to do for him but, because of human weakness, it’s better not to vow.
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Psalm 119:1 Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.
This psalm is the longest chapter in the Bible, and is a celebration of God’s word. It begins with the word blessed, which occurs over two hundred times in the Bible, and refers to the happiness of those who belong to God and follow his ways. The ways of God aren’t always easy, but they’re always best for us, and lead to our greatest happiness. Human sorrow is the result of disobeying God, not the result of obeying him.
Psalm 119:11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
Few things are more helpful to resisting sin than committing God’s word to memory. Satan wanted Jesus to turn stones into bread but Jesus replied, It is written: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). Then Satan urged him to throw himself off the temple but Jesus replied, It is also written: Do not put the Lord your God to the test (Matthew 4:7). Then Satan urged Jesus to worship him, but Jesus replied, Away from me, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only (Matthew 4:10).
Three times Jesus was tempted by the Devil, and three times Jesus quoted God’s word. By committing God’s word to memory, we’re able to use it against Satan whenever we’re tempted to sin.
Psalm 119:14 I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
Likewise, The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold (Psalm 119:72). And, God’s word is more precious than gold, than much pure gold (Psalm 19:10), wrote the Psalmists.
An archaeologist uncovered five million dollars worth of jewelry, from the fifteenth century, just a foot and a half beneath the floor of a cottage. The owners never worried about the economy, medical bills, or having enough to eat because they were so rich.
They died, of course, and the cottage was occupied by others for hundreds of years. Many sat at the kitchen table, wondering how to pay their bills, while a fortune lay just beneath their feet. Whoever has a Bible, but doesn’t read it, is sitting on buried treasure. Whoever reads it often is richer than a king.
Psalm 119:16 I will not neglect your word.
Like everyone else, the writer had commitments that competed with his desire to study God’s word. Instead of rising early, and staying up late, he may’ve been tempted to get extra sleep. But he resolved not to neglect God’s word, regardless of other commitments.
If a minister stood in front of a church, and tore out pages of the Bible, many would object. But unless we study every page of the Bible, we may as well tear it out. Everyone who believes the Bible should be able to say with conviction, I will not neglect your word.
Reflection and Review
- What are some benefits of memorizing Scripture?
- How does the Bible enrich our lives?
- Why do people neglect God’s word?
Lesson 120
Psalm 119:18 Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
It’s impossible to fully understand the Bible without divine assistance. Jesus’ disciples were often confused by what he had to say (Luke 18:34). But after he rose from the dead, Jesus opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures (Luke 24:45), wrote Luke. The Bible is a difficult book (2 Peter 3:16), and we need God’s help to understand it.
My family and I studied a drawing, years ago, that left me unsettled. All I could see was a random assortment of dots, colors and lines. They saw a clear and distinct image, and were surprised that I couldn’t. Likewise, we’ll miss much of the Bible without God’s help. Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
Psalm 119:24 Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors.
Legal counselors can help us with a lawsuit; financial counselors can help us with our budget; and family counselors can help us get along. Many spend a great deal of money to speak with a counselor, but how much would you pay for an hour with God?
Your Maker understands you better than you understand yourself, and his counsel is free. Rejecting his word often leads to problems, and obeying his word often leads to peace. Many who read and follow the Bible find it better than many counselors. A Bible that’s coming apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.
Psalm 119:34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law.
Even the writers of Scripture found the Bible hard to understand. The Apostle Peter said of the Apostle Paul, His letters contain some things that are hard to understand (2 Peter 3:16). We can imagine Peter reading Paul and saying, What does he mean by that? But, if we’re willing to persevere, we can make steady progress.
Those who practice an instrument, fifteen minutes a day, will eventually learn the instrument. They won’t become masters, but they’ll learn how to play. Likewise, those who read a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, will eventually learn the Bible. If done repeatedly, they’ll read it more than a dozen times in the course of an average life. The most important things aren’t always easy, but they’re always worth the effort.
Psalm 119:60 I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands.
Many have calmed themselves by planning to obey in the future. They permit themselves to sin in the present because they plan to obey eventually. But delayed obedience is nothing more than disobedience. If you tell your child to do something, and they wait ten minutes to do it, they’ve been disobedient for ten minutes. Since the writer understood this, he resolved to hasten and not delay to obey the Lord.
Psalm 119:102 I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me.
One dear lady started a book but put it down because she found it boring. Then she met the author and fell in love with him. When she read his book again, she found it full of things that taught her more about her beloved. That’s how it is with the Bible. The more we love God, the more we’ll enjoy his word.
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
Electric lights didn’t exist when the Bible was written, so darkness was taken seriously. If you were out on a cloudy night, and didn’t have an oil lamp, you could be lost until morning. Oil lamps weren’t very bright, but provided enough light to take the next step. That’s what the Bible does for us until we’re safely home. It’s a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.
Psalm 119:164 Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws.
The writer was so in love with God’s word that he wanted to praise him seven times a day for it. Perhaps he praised God when he got up, on his way to work, during lunch, on his way home, at dinner, before he went to bed, and whenever he woke up at night.
Praising God is a wonderful way to overcome sorrow and make us thankful. Nothing is more effective at banishing gloom than habitual praise. The more we learn to praise the Lord, the more we’ll enjoy him. The more we enjoy him, the more we’ll enjoy our lives.
Reflection and Review
- Why is the Bible hard to understand?
- What helps you understand the Bible?
- Have you ever sensed that God himself was teaching you?
Lesson 121
Psalm 119:176 I have strayed like a lost sheep. Seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commands.
This is a shocking conclusion to the longest chapter in the Bible, especially from someone who loved God and was spiritually mature. As much as the writer studied the Bible, and tried to follow it, he found himself wandering away from God. This side of heaven there will always be a part of us that wants to stray. What a wretched man I am! (Romans 7:24), wrote Paul.
Thankfully, the good shepherd will not forsake us even when we wander. He’ll come looking for us, and bring us into his fold again (Matthew 18:12-14). He’s the one who saves us, and also the one who keeps us (John 10:28).
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Psalm 130:5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits.
Few things are more important to an obedient life than learning to wait for God. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord (Psalm 27:14), wrote David. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning (Psalm 130:6), wrote the Psalmist. And, Blessed are all who wait for him! (Isaiah 30:18), wrote Isaiah.
One of the scariest moments in a trapeze act is when the flyer lets go of his trapeze and waits for the catcher to catch him. Both agree the flyer must never try to catch the catcher, but must wait for the catcher to catch the flyer. That’s how it is with God sometimes. We might be waiting for a spouse, a promotion, or something only God knows. Waiting isn’t easy, but it’s how we show our faith. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Psalm 131:2 I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.
Weaning occurred around age three and was a rite of passage from infancy to childhood. It changed the relationship between a child and their mother. Before they’re weaned, children love their mother for who she is, but also for what they receive from her. After weaning, children love their mother without receiving her breast.
This is how David saw himself with God. He was less concerned with what he received from God than simply to be with God. David continued to make requests, but was content to be in God’s presence. He was like a weaned child sitting with his mother.
Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life.
David avoided sword and spear many times throughout his life. He must’ve been surprised, at times, to find he was still alive. As he thought about this, he gave credit to God. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death (Psalm 68:20), he wrote.
A lady was cleaning the balcony of her ninth floor apartment when she toppled over the railing. She fell a hundred feet but landed in a canopy above the entry.
A young man wasn’t wearing his seatbelt when his car flipped over. He was catapulted into the air and landed in some power lines. But they were insulated and he was rescued without injury.
God is the giver of life, and also the one who preserves it. Every day we should give him another reason to keep us alive.
Psalm 139:20 They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name.
Throughout the Psalms, God’s people sing praises to his name (Psalm 7:17), declare his name (Psalm 22:22), trust in his name (Psalm 33:21), exalt his name (Psalm 34:3), hope in his name (Psalm 52:9), fear his name (Psalm 61:5), love his name (Psalm 69:36), call on his name (Psalm 80:18), glorify his name (Psalm 86:12), rejoice in his name (Psalm 89:16) and extol his name (Psalm 145:2). But it’s characteristic of the wicked to misuse God’s name.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name (Exodus 20:7), wrote Moses. Ordinary profanity is a terrible sin (Ephesians 4:19), but it’s immeasurably worse to misuse God’s name. And anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death (Leviticus 24:16), said God. This should no longer be enforced (Hebrews 8:13), but it reveals the seriousness of misusing God’s name.
God’s name should never be used as an exclamation, a casual expression, and certainly not as a curse. God’s name should only be used with the highest reverence, as when we are speaking directly to him. To misuse God’s name in anyway puts us in league with the devil--your adversaries misuse your name.
Reflection and Review
- Why is it important to wait for God?
- Have you ever nearly died?
- Why is misusing God’s name a terrible sin?
Lesson 122
Proverbs 1:1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel.
Solomon was the king of Israel in the tenth century BC, and led the nation to its height. His intellect was nothing short of extraordinary. God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. . . . He spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and five.
He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles and fish. From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom (1 Kings 4:29-34). Solomon is one of the most remarkable people who ever lived, and to learn from him is not a small privilege.
The book of Proverbs is a collection of wisdom sayings gathered from the school of life. They’re general principles of how the world works, and the fastest route to practical wisdom. Others contributed to the book of Proverbs such as Agur (Proverbs 30:1) and Lemuel (Proverbs 31:1), but the largest contributor seems to be Solomon.
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that asks, How do we know what we know? Do we know things are true by induction, deduction, abduction, intuition, or some other way? It’s an important question because, unless we understand how we know something, how can we be sure that we really know it? According to this verse, true knowledge begins with the fear of God—the intuition that he exists and is to be obeyed.
To deny this truth leads to irrationalism because without an ultimate mind the logic system of every mind is equally valid, and there’s no basis for a common rationality. Without belief in God there can be no right or wrong, only preferences. There can be no absolute truth, only your truth and my truth. The rejection of God is, therefore, the loss of reason. This is why the world is so confused.
When I was a child I learned the alphabet. Then I learned to read words. Then I learned to read sentences. Now I read books. In a way, the alphabet became for me the beginning of knowledge. But, according to this verse, there’s something even more basic to knowledge than the alphabet: the fear of God. A child who fears God knows more about ultimate reality than a university professor who doesn’t fear God.
Proverbs 2:14 [Wicked Men] delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil.
One of the most shocking things I’ve ever read is a quote from a wicked man who said, I thank God, in whom I do not believe, that I’m able to do all the evil in my heart. There is something in the unconverted heart that rejoices not only in the pleasure of sin, but also in the perverseness of sin.
A classic example comes from Saint Augustine who recounts an episode from his youth. There was a pear tree close to our own vineyard, heavily laden with fruit, which was not tempting either for its color or for its flavor. Late one night . . . a group of young scoundrels, and I among them, went to shake and rob this tree.
We carried off a huge load of pears, not to eat ourselves, but to dump out to the hogs . . . . Doing this pleased us all the more because it was forbidden. . . . [I had] no inducement to evil but the evil itself. It was foul, and I loved it. I loved my own undoing. . . . seeking nothing from the shameful deed but shame itself (Confessions, book two, chapter four.)
Augustine was stealing pears, not because he needed pears, but because he delighted in stealing. To enjoy evil simply because it’s evil is to enjoy evil for its own sake. This underscores the depth of our depravity and need for conversion.
Before knowing Christ, wickedness brings us joy, but now it brings us grief. The righteous still sin, but are almost unwilling, and despise themselves while they’re sinning. This is different from those who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil.
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
The highest court of appeal, for most people, is what makes sense to them. One of the greatest challenges of faith, therefore, is submitting to God when his ways don’t make sense to us. This is the essence of faith, and is not unreasonable. It’s simply acknowledging that God knows better than we do.
When I was twelve years old I went hunting with my Dad and followed him into the woods. On our way out he turned right, but my instincts told me to go left. And when he turned left, I was sure we should go right. There were times I wanted to abandon my dad and go my own way. But I’m glad I didn’t because we came out at just the right place. That’s how it is with God. If we trust him more than we trust ourselves, he will make our paths straight, and keep us from going in circles.
Reflection and Review
- Why is the fear of the Lord the beginning of knowledge?
- Why do people rejoice in the perverseness of evil?
- Why should we trust God more than we trust ourselves?
Lesson 123
Proverbs 3:9-10 Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
This is one of the great promises of God regarding our money. The language is agrarian but the principle clear: if we are generous with God, he’ll be generous with us. Giving to God is an important act of worship and obedience, but also a way of being blessed. Many have found that God faithfully meets their needs, as they faithfully honor God with their money.
But there are false ministers who abuse the Bible’s teaching to raise money for themselves. The worst example I’ve seen was a preacher on television who asked people to use their credit cards to give a thousand dollars. In return he promised that God would bless them financially, especially those who were in debt. Your credit card got you into debt, and your credit card can get you out of debt, he said.
But even the worst examples don’t negate the biblical truth that if we are generous with God, he’ll be generous with us. The best financial advice I know is to save ten percent, give ten percent, and live on the rest. How much we give us up to us (2 Corinthians 9:7a), but God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7b), wrote Paul.
Proverbs 3:33 The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.
Some homes are filled with happiness, harmony and joy. Others are filled with hatred, rage and despair. Some homes are unusually happy. Others are so miserable that no one wants to be there. Our misery or happiness may have various causes but, on balance, righteousness brings a blessing, and wickedness brings a curse.
This is why it’s so important for the righteous to guard their hearts and homes from wickedness. If your home is not as happy as it could be, start by cleansing your heart of everything impure. Then remove from your house anything that belongs to you, but doesn’t bring glory to God. Then be careful what comes into your home electronically. If Jesus feels at home in your house, he will bring a blessing. If not, all that’s left is a curse.
Proverbs 4:18 The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
The elderly are sometimes described as living in their sunset years. This is a pleasant way to describe life’s end, since few things are more beautiful than a painted sky at the day’s close. If you complete the analogy, childhood is morning, adulthood is afternoon, and retirement is evening.
But that’s not the image we find here. For those who belong to God, all of life is morning, and the day of death is high noon. We don’t ride off into the sunset, but step into a brighter light.
This is what we find at the end of the Bible. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there (Revelation 21:23-25), wrote John. Christianity a faith of radical optimism, not because there are no hardships, but because our story ends well, and then goes on forever.
Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
Whatever you allow into your heart affects every part of your life. This is true of love, joy and peace, as well as hatred, bitterness and wrath. One of the most important things we can ever do is to protect our heart from evil.
An American soldier on foreign soil didn’t know he was in danger, but a professional sniper had his heart in the crosshairs. The sniper gently squeezed the trigger and the bullet hit its mark. The soldier went down, but was able to get back up again, because he was wearing protective armor. Since we’re always in the devil’s crosshairs, guarding our heart is life or death.
Proverbs 4:27 Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.
Our sinful nature is like a dog on a leash, trying to pull us off the path. He’s a big dog, curious about everything, and pulls hard right and left. Our job is to control the dog and make it obey. If we don’t control our sinful nature, it’ll control us, and take us where we don’t want to go. That’s about as silly as a dog walking its owner.
Proverbs 6:32 [A] man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself.
There are a number of proverbs that deal with the subject of adultery, perhaps because it ran in Solomon’s family. King David was Solomon’s father, and started out as a humble shepherd who followed the Lord with all his heart. God blessed him and gave him success leading the nation.
But a major turning point in David’s life was an act of adultery with a woman named Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:2-4). Prior to that event, David’s life was characterized by victory and success. But, after that event, he experienced hardship and failure. Solomon knew from his father’s experience that few things are more destructive than adultery and, by extension, all sexual sin.
The sexual impulse is one of the strongest in human nature, however, and isn’t always subject to reason. Many who know the risks are often sexually reckless, and may even believe sex is worth dying for. Others keep their body from adultery but commit it in their mind on a regular basis.
Many wives are hurt to find their husbands looking at pornography, any many husbands are hurt to learn their wives want someone else. The biblical ideal is an exclusive union between husband and wife, in a covenant of marriage, committed for life. That ideal has never been improved, and is worth a little self-control.
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
People who are wise think about the future. The farmer who puts off caring for his crops until the day before the harvest isn’t wise. The student who puts off studying until the night before the exam isn’t wise. And the athlete who puts off training until the day before the event isn’t wise. But the person who doesn’t get ready for Judgment Day is the biggest fool of all. Wisdom uses every day to get ready for the future. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Reflection and Review
- How much money should we give to God?
- How can we make our homes happier?
- How can we prepare for Judgment Day?
Lesson 124
Proverbs 10:9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.
The idea of integrity includes honesty, truthfulness, decency, righteousness and trustworthiness. Hananiah is given little space in the Bible, but his character is summarized nicely: he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most people do (Nehemiah 7:2). This is something to aim for.
A professor said to his students, I’m giving two tests today: one is trigonometry and the other is integrity. I hope you pass them both. But if you have to fail one, fail trigonometry. There are many good people who can’t pass trigonometry. But there are no good people who can’t pass integrity.
This agrees with King David who prayed, I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity (1 Chronicles 29:17).
Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the Lord brings wealth.
Getting money from God isn’t the point of the Bible, but neither is God against people acquiring wealth. Solomon’s wealth was legendary, and he saw it as a blessing from God. We too should be thankful for whatever God has given to us.
I don’t have Solomon’s bank account, but I sleep on a better mattress every night. I don’t have a personal orchestra, but I have access to better music at the touch of a button. I don’t have a personal chef, but I have a refrigerator, a microwave, and a grocery store near my house. I don’t have a stable of horses, but I have a little truck that tops sixty miles an hour. I don’t have a palace, but I have climate control, indoor plumbing, and hot running water. God is the source of our wealth, and he should be praised for all that he’s given.
Proverbs 10:24 What the wicked dread will overtake them; what the righteous desire will be granted.
A common dream we have as children, and even as adults, is to be chased by a beast we can’t escape. We’re running against the wind, up a hill, or are falling down as the beast gets closer and closer. We tend to wake up in time and are glad it was just a dream. But the nightmare of waking up in hell will never end. And who knows how demons will torment the lost forever?
Heaven is just the opposite: what the righteous desire will be granted. There are at least four universal desires: physical beauty, financial freedom, loving relationships, and a higher purpose. Imagine the best possible you, in the best possible place, with the best possible people, and the best possible God. God’s answer to every request in heaven is Yes, and his answer to every request in hell is No.
Proverbs 13:9 The light of the righteous shines brightly.
Jesus may’ve been thinking of this when he called his disciples the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). [L]et your light shine before others (Matthew 5:16), he said. My friend bought a lamp to help him work on his car, but it kept falling to the ground. When he picked it up for the third time he said, I bought you to shine for me. In a world that’s darkened by sin, Jesus wants us to shine. Whenever we speak to another person we should try to brighten their day.
Proverbs 14:15 The simple believe anything.
Part of the fun of raising kids is telling them that chocolate milk comes from brown cows, and that the moon is made of cheese. Gullibility is normal in children but, if we never grow out of it, we become superstitious and give people money to tell us our fortunes.
Others are so skeptical they refuse to believe almost anything. A good example are those who refuse to believe the earth is round because it seems to be flat. They won’t believe the evidence because they don’t want to be wrong. But skepticism leads to wrong conclusions just as often as gullibility since both are ways to avoid thinking.
The biblical approach to wisdom takes the middle way of discernment. It reviews the evidence carefully, then draws conclusions. The gullible require no evidence at all; and no amount of evidence will ever convince the skeptics. But Christianity is a reasonable faith based on sufficient evidence. It invites us to check the facts and make our decision in light of them.
Proverbs 14:26 Whoever fears the Lord has a secure fortress.
This verse speaks to our need for security and protection from all who would harm us. Life can be threatening, and we need a place of safety where we can flee for refuge. Herod the Great built Masada for this very purpose. Imagine twenty acres on top of a high rock, with luxurious accommodations, and apparently impregnable. It was, no doubt, one of the safest places on earth.
About a thousand Israelites fled to Masada before the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70. Imagine their dismay as they watched the Romans build a battering ram over the course of several months. The wall was eventually breached and the Romans marched in only to find that most of them had already died from suicide. God alone is a secure fortress in whom we can live and never die.
Reflection and Review
- What are the benefits of integrity?
- How should Christians use discernment?
- How does God keep us safe?
Lesson 125
Proverbs 14:31 [W]hoever is kind to the needy honors God.
My mother was a God fearing woman, which is why I was surprised the first time I heard her cuss. With six kids, and a part-time job, she had little time to spare. Saturdays were precious because that’s when she did the housework.
One Saturday morning she was catching up on laundry, when a needy person pulled into the driveway. This dear lady was going through a difficult time and, even though they weren’t close friends, she found my mom to be supportive. But when my mother saw her car, I heard her quietly say, oh spit (slightly revised).
But what she did next made an even bigger impression. She put down the laundry, got out some refreshments, and gave this dear lady a couple hours of time and attention. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, and I’ll never forget it. [W]hoever is kind to the needy honors God.
Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.
This is a comfort to us when we’re being good but not when we’re misbehaving. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account (Hebrews 4:13), says Hebrews.
When I was growing up we had a picture above the fireplace of a lady whose eyes followed you everywhere. If you were standing by the door, her eyes were on you. If you were sitting on the couch, her eyes were on you. And if you looked at her from the stairway, her eyes were still on you.
I didn’t like that picture much and, if we’re honest, there are times we’d rather avoid the relentless gaze of God. He sees you when you are sleeping; he knows when you are awake; he knows if you’ve been bad or good so be good for goodness’ sake.
When my daughter was in middle school she played the clarinet and, in the band room, was an enormous drum that she always wanted to try. So she stayed after school one day and, assuming the teacher had left, she pounded the drum with all her might. You can imagine her surprise when the teacher stepped out of her office and said, Sarah, what are you doing? And wouldn’t we be surprised, the next time we misbehaved, if a voice from heaven said, What are you doing?
Proverbs 17:3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart.
When silver and gold are melted, impurities rise to the surface. Then they’re removed to make the metal purer. Silver melts at 1763 degrees Fahrenheit, and gold melts around 1948 degrees Fahrenheit. God may turn up the heat in our lives to purify our hearts. When the impurities rise to the surface, we should let God remove them, so we’ll become more like Christ. God wants our hearts to be so pure that, when he looks at them, he sees his own reflection. That’s the purpose of our trials.
Proverbs 17:25 A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to the mother who bore him.
Almost nothing is more important to Christian parents than seeing their children live for God. And nothing weighs more heavily on them than seeing their children serve the devil. But, even with excellent training, children make their own choices. Some turn out beautifully and others go astray.
A disappointed mom wrote the following. How does a parent, who has prayed daily, deal with the rebellion of a child? How does a loving parent accept the rejection of her offspring? How does a parent keep from giving up hope? Why do children see loving parents as their enemies? Why are these children choosing the wrong path? Why are they so selfish?
These are excellent questions that don’t have easy answers. But if earthly parents feel this way, how much more our heavenly Father? How he must rejoice whenever we do well, and grieve whenever we go astray. We should pray for our children often, but not forget that we are children too. Every day we have the opportunity to make our Father proud, or to break his heart.
Proverbs 18:9 One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys.
Vandalism costs the United States hundreds of millions of dollars per year. Windows are broken, buildings are burned, and property is defaced. But those who are lazy cost the public even more. By withholding their contribution to society, they rob the government of taxes, and steal from their neighbors. Everyone on earth owes it to God, country and neighbor to be as productive as they can be. To the degree we’re not doing our best, we’re in league with one who destroys.
Proverbs 18:21 The tongue has the power of life and death.
With our tongues we kill and make alive; we resurrect and send to the grave. A few good words can give us hope, and a few bad words can fatally wound.
A young lady took her own life. She left an unfinished note with just two words: He said. We don’t know what he said, but it was painful enough to put her over the edge. Our deepest suffering often comes, not from what others do to us, but from what they say to us—or say about us.
But many have found that words can also give life. I was going through a difficult time, many years ago, when I made a new friend named Dave. He was smart and outgoing, and did me a greater favor than he’ll ever know. Whenever he saw me he shook my hand, looked me in the eye, and said, You’re great. I have no idea why he said it, or why he said it so often. But those words were life to me. And when I meet him in heaven I’m going to shake his hand, look him in the eye and say, You’re great!
Reflection and Review
- How do you feel about the needy?
- How do you respond to trials?
- Why do people say hurtful things?
Lesson 126
Proverbs 22:24 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered.
Anger management is an important theme in Proverbs because it’s so important to life. Everyone becomes angry at times, and anger itself is not a sin (Ephesians 4:26). But uncontrolled anger can ruin everything, and may even be demonic.
After King Saul drifted away from God, the Spirit of God departed from him and an evil spirit . . . tormented him (1 Samuel 16:14). To get relief, Saul had the young man David play his musical instrument. But the evil spirit troubled Saul again and, filled with rage, he hurled his spear across the room at David (1 Samuel 18:10-11, 19:9-10). The devil is filled with fury (Revelation 12:12), and whenever a sinner becomes furious, the situation may be demonic.
Venting our rage may feel good, but it’s not a sign of wisdom. Fools give full vent to their rage (Proverbs 29:11), says Proverbs. A young man wasn't happy with his golf shot so he swung his club at a nearby bench. The club snapped, ricocheted back, pierced his heart and he died.
Another man was having trouble at his bank, trying to cash a check at the drive-through window. He was told that he’d have to come inside but, since the lobby was closed, he’d have to come back the following day. He wanted to settle it then, however, so he drove his truck into the lobby and asked to close his account.
Anger is a brief insanity that’s obvious to everyone except the person who’s angry. It makes people feel powerful but has the opposite effect. It destroys reputations as well as relationships. Anger is so destructive, in fact, that we shouldn’t even associate with those who have anger issues. Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered.
Proverbs 22:29 Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings.
Solomon had many employees, and whenever he needed to fill a position he’d search for the best cook, gardener, builder, or whatever he needed. The most skillful workers were promoted to serve the king, and were likely paid what they deserved.
A good strategy for work is to find something you’re good at and never stop improving. One lady was passed over for a promotion and complained that she had twenty-six years experience. Her supervisor explained that she had one year of experience, twenty-six times. It’s not enough to do the same thing over and over. We should have a strategy for improvement.
My wife is a dental hygienist who truly loves her job. She’s been cleaning teeth for over thirty years and still comes home excited about how much plaque she removed. If that’s not strange enough, in her spare time she reads dental hygiene magazines, takes dental hygiene courses, watches dental hygiene videos, and keeps up on the latest products. She’s adored by her employer and is paid very well.
Proverbs 23:19 Set your heart on the right path.
The text doesn’t say, Set your feet on the right path but, Set your heart on the right path. Wherever the heart goes, the feet will eventually follow. It may take a week, a month, a year or even longer. But eventually the feet will follow the heart.
Solomon’s rule as king started out extremely well. God appeared to him twice (1 Kings 11:9) and gave him wonderful promises. But Solomon’s preoccupation with worldly success led to the neglect of his soul and a pattern of compromise. By the end of his life he was building temples to foreign gods. There’s something in the best of us that wants to leave the God we love. Unless we keep our heart on the right path, it’ll lead us to the land of regret.
Proverbs 26:4-5 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.
These two sayings are helpful for understanding how proverbs work. They’re not promises that always come true, or commands to be obeyed in every situation. Proverbs are short sayings that often apply, but not always. There is a time to answer a fool, so he doesn’t think he’s wise. But there’s also a time not to answer a fool, so you don’t become like him. Proverbs are a fast path to wisdom, but it takes wisdom to know which proverb to apply in any situation.
Reflection and Review
- How do you control your anger?
- What are some ways to succeed at work?
- How is a proverb different than a promise?
Lesson 127
Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
I watched my dad sharpen steak knives at the table when I was a child. He’d run the blade across the sharpening rod, back and forth, until the dull knife became sharp again. As steel sharpens steel, good friends can make each other better.
One of God’s best gifts to me was a roommate who was totally committed to Jesus Christ. We were both in our early twenties, and his example of commitment and sacrifice raised my standards considerably. His greatest strength was prayer, and mine was Bible study. We truly sharpened each other in our devotion to Christ.
Likewise, one of the best gifts you can give yourself is a friend who helps you grow in your faith. You can both commit to reading a chapter of the Bible, almost every day, and underlining whatever you find interesting. Then get together, once a week, and discuss what you have learned. You’ll be surprised how much you sharpen each other’s devotion to Jesus Christ.
Proverbs 28:13 Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
No one wants to appear as bad as they are, so nothing comes more naturally than concealing our sins. We don’t have to reveal everything to everyone, but we should be honest with God at all times. This will mean agreeing with God against ourselves so we can receive his mercy.
One dear lady had a seven-year affair with a married man that ended when he left her for a younger woman. She was so depressed that she went to a psychiatrist for counseling and medication, but only spiraled downward. She blamed the world for her misery, and rejected any sense of guilt or responsibility. As a result, her life became a bottomless pit. But if we confess our sins, and renounce them, God will smile on us and help us live a new life.
Proverbs 28:26 Those who trust in themselves are fools.
Self-assurance can be a strength, but also a terrible weakness. I was getting my hair cut, some time ago, and the subject of religion came up. I asked the lady if she trusted in Christ and she said, No, I only trust myself. Her answer sounded good, but I wondered if it was true. Did she trust herself enough to cut her own hair? Probably not.
If I have a medical problem, I need a trustworthy doctor. If I have a legal problem, I need a trustworthy attorney. If I have a sin problem, I need a trustworthy Savior. Jesus Christ is the most trustworthy person who ever lived, and he died to save us from our sins (Matthew 1:21). Whoever trusts in him will be saved but, Those who trust in themselves are fools.
Proverbs 29:23 Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.
Proud people think the way to attain honor is by promoting themselves. They boast of their achievements and seek affirmation. This works for a while but usually not for long. God opposes the proud (James 4:6), wrote James.
King Herod put on his royal robes and gave a public address. The speech was so well received that the people shouted, This is the voice of a god, not of a man (Acts 12:22). Herod enjoyed the praise so much that, instead of giving glory to God, he kept it for himself. As a result, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died (Acts 12:23).
Herod was eaten by worms before he died, and most are eaten by worms after they die. We can step on the worms, but the worms win. That’s why pride is such a foolish thing. It’s the only disease that makes everyone sick except the one who has it. But if we humble ourselves under the hand of God, he will lift us up in due time (1 Peter 5:6). The proud prefer their honor now; the humble wait to be honored by God.
Proverbs 29:27 The righteous detest the dishonest; the wicked detest the upright.
The deepest divide in the world isn’t between the sexes, or the races, but between the righteous and the wicked. If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you (John 15:18-19), said Jesus.
The divide between the righteous and the wicked often appears in culture wars. Believers want the world to honor God, and the wicked want the world to be free from God. Conflicts arise in politics, the media, schools, at work, and even in homes. As a result, the gospel is often marginalized.
Believers should remember that the goal of Christianity isn’t to take over governments, or even cultures. It’s to preach the gospel everywhere, for the salvation of those who believe. Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked (Daniel 12:10), wrote Daniel.
Proverbs 30:8 [G]ive me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.
Until recently the human diet has been fairly simple. Many have lived on bread and fish, fruits and vegetables, and whatever else could be gathered. Food for the day was seldom assumed or taken for granted. But this has changed dramatically. No one in the Bible could’ve imagined today’s grocery store, or the abundance we enjoy.
Thank you God for hamburger, ketchup, pickles, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Thank you also for apples, oranges, strawberries and bananas. Thank you also for milk: one percent, two percent, fat-free or whole. Thank you also for orange juice, grape juice, and even cranberry juice. Thank you also for cookies and chips and ice-cream. And finally, Lord, thanks for daily bread—with peanut butter and jelly, of course.
Reflection and Review
- How can we help friends grow in their faith?
- Why is it foolish to be proud?
- Why should we be thankful for our food?
Lesson 128
Ecclesiastes 1:1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem.
The author of Ecclesiastes doesn’t identify himself by name, but King Solomon is the most likely candidate. He probably wrote around 950 BC to help God’s people understand some of life’s frustrations. Ecclesiastes is written from the perspective of someone who believes in God, but doesn’t seem to love God. The tone is bleak, therefore, but numerous insights can be gleaned.
Ecclesiastes 1:2 Meaningless! Meaningless! says the Teacher. Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.
An important difference between people and beasts is that people can’t be happy without meaning. Cows don’t ask the meaning of life, or why they were born, but people often do. And many find the answer elusive. A wealthy man was asked what he learned from his success that he wished he knew when he was young. He said, When you get to the top, nothing is there.
But if he’d gone all the way to the top, he would’ve found God. Apart from him, everything else is pointless. The meaning of life is that there is a life-giver, to whom we owe our life. It’s only through loving and serving God that we find ultimate meaning and purpose.
Ecclesiastes 1:14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
The little phrase under the sun occurs over two dozen times throughout Ecclesiastes, and contrasts with what’s above the sun, namely God. Apart from God, our earthly activities are meaningless, like chasing after the wind.
Imagine a little boy blowing bubbles and chasing after them. It’s fun, of course, but they quickly pop and he must chase another. That’s how many people live. They chase money, pleasure, romance, and success but none of them bring lasting satisfaction. That only comes from pursuing God.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has also set eternity in the human heart.
Because we’re made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and because God is eternal (Genesis 21:33), people know in their hearts that they will live forever. That, of course, is a very long time.
If God told a little bird to gather every grain of sand on Earth and carry it to the Moon, then take both to Venus, then all three to Saturn, and so forth, by the time that little bird gathered up the entire universe, it would be 9:35 in the morning, on the first day of eternity.
That’s why the most important thing we can do is secure the salvation of our souls. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? (Mark 8:36), said Jesus. And, [some] will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life (Matthew 25:46), he said. We ought to be the most concerned about where we’ll spend the longest, not just the next few years.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
Few things on earth are more helpful than money, but there’s a limit to what money can buy. A wealthy banker lived in a mansion, and pursued wealth above everything else. Among other things, he wanted to buy the property around his home, as far as he could see. But the people living there hated him, and refused to sell their land to him. Years past, and the man became so miserable that he took his own life.
The desire for wealth isn’t evil in itself, but reflects the fact that we were made for more. This is why heaven is described as a place of inconceivable wealth, where even the street is made of gold (Revelation 21:21). God is the source of infinite wealth, and whoever has him will have everything else (Revelation 21:7).
Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.
We don’t look forward to funerals but we can certainly learn from them. There we see that all our earthly dreams will come to an end some day. Sooner or later we’ll take our place in the coffin and people will talk about us. Even if they say nice things, we won’t be there to enjoy it. We’re all destined to die once, and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:27), says Hebrews. Funerals help us keep the end of life in view.
As part of his medical training a doctor watched many people die, and knew the symptoms well. He was checking a patient who barely had a pulse, and whose blood pressure was dropping steadily. His eyes were as blank as billiard balls and he thought he’d check the retinas—but he was shocked by what he saw. As he looked into the eyes of a man who was ready to die, he saw a clear reflection of himself. Who can live and not see death, or who can escape the power of the grave? (Psalm 89:48), wrote the Psalmist. Those who are wise live each day preparing for their last.
Ecclesiastes 7:10 Do not say, Why were the old days better than these? For it is not wise to ask such questions.
The old days are often better than our declining years, but not as good as the future. Forgetting what is behind . . . God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14), wrote Paul. Regardless how great the past, the future is better by far for those who follow Christ.
An old preacher stood at the door shaking hands with people after the service. He said the same thing to almost everyone. Just keep going. Just keep going. Just keep going. There are better things ahead than anything left behind.
Reflection and Review
- Why do people care about meaning?
- Why is it good to go to funerals?
- What do you think about the past?
Lesson 129
Ecclesiastes 7:20 Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.
This idea is so important it’s repeated several times throughout the Bible. Who can say, I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin? (Proverbs 20:9). [A]ll have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And, If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8), wrote John. We aren’t sinners because we sin, we sin because we’re sinners.
This wasn’t always the case. Our first parents were without sin until they ate the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:6). At that point human nature became so corrupt that every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood (Genesis 8:21), wrote Moses. Now we’re sinners by nature and by choice. It’s who we are and what we do.
But Jesus Christ is saving us. We’ve been saved from the penalty of sin (John 5:24). We are being saved from the power of sin (1 Corinthians 1:18). And we will be saved from the presence of sin (Revelation 21:27). [Y]ou are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21), said the angel.
Ecclesiastes 8:8 [N]o one has power over the time of their death.
A normal life-span, according to the Bible, is between seventy and eighty years (Psalm 90:10). But these aren’t guaranteed. Some are cut down by war, others by disease, and others in surprising ways.
One man thought he was safe in bed when an airplane crashed through his roof. Another was driving his car when a deer jumped through his window and punctured his neck with an antler. Another was standing in his own front yard when he was struck by lightning. Instead of trying to live longer, we should prepare to meet our Maker.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.
God doesn’t want us to live half-heartedly. He sets a task before each one, and wants us to do it with vigor. God is honored when we live to the fullest, serving him with all our might.
If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well (Martin Luther King Jr.).
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord (Colossians 3:23), wrote Paul.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.
We naturally think the fastest person is the one who wins the race, the strongest person is the one who wins the battle, and the most intelligent are those who become rich. But this isn’t always true.
The fastest person on earth might live in a remote village, unknown to the rest of the world. The best soldier might die from a sniper’s bullet, and the most brilliant might be poor if the world isn’t ready for their ideas.
Only when God matches our gifts with the right opportunities will we encounter success. When we understand that gifts and opportunities are both from God, we’ll give him all the glory and keep none for ourselves.
Ecclesiastes 10:18 Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.
The Bible condemns laziness repeatedly. Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing (Proverbs 20:4). A little sleep, a little slumber . . . and poverty will come on you like a thief (Proverbs 24:33-34), says Proverbs.
The greatest condemnation of laziness came from Jesus Christ himself. You wicked, lazy servant! . . . throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:30), he said. God’s people shouldn’t be lazy, especially regarding his kingdom.
An old farmer died and willed all that he owned to the devil. The town agreed to honor his wish by doing nothing with his possessions. Years later the house was broken down, the tractor was rusted through, and the field was covered with weeds. If you want to give your life to the devil, just do nothing at all.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
Some sins are open for everyone to see; others wait for Judgment Day. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known (Luke 12:2), said Jesus. Time doesn’t erase what was done in the past.
One lady stole some cigarettes when she was eighteen years old, and failed to pay the court. Twenty-two years later she was getting off a cruise ship when she was arrested and thrown in jail. Officials were looking for terrorists but, when they saw the warrant for her arrest, they simply did their job. Whoever believes in Jesus Christ won’t be condemned (Romans 8:1), but every hidden thing will be brought into judgment.
Reflection and Review
- How long should we plan to live?
- What’s wrong with being lazy?
- Why should believers care about Judgment Day?
Lesson 130
Song of Songs 1:1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.
This book celebrates romantic love as one of God’s best gifts to us. It was probably written by Solomon around 950 BC. The title means it’s the best of songs, which is appropriate given the rapturous experience it describes. The language is surprisingly sensuous, but its inclusion in the Bible shows God’s approval of sexual expression in marriage. It’s never quoted in the New Testament, or even alluded to, but marital love does reflect the love of Christ for his church (Ephesians 5:32).
Song of Songs 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love is more delightful than wine.
Most of the song is written from the perspective of the woman, and here she expresses her powerful longing for the affection of her husband. She’s not passive or shy, but surprisingly forward and clear.
This reminds us of Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, shortly after they were created. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame (Genesis 2:25), wrote Moses. God designed them for physical union, and they were happy being naked. After they sinned they covered themselves with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7). But, at first, they were uninhibited. This is God’s ideal for marriage.
Song of Songs 2:15 Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards.
Foxes are pests that will destroy a vineyard if they’re not stopped. Loving relationships are also destroyed by little problems, if they’re not resolved. Relationships aren’t only ruined by big problems, but by many little problems if they are not settled in a timely way.
Husbands and wives should be open with each other about the little ways they annoy each other. Neither should assume the other knows what’s troubling them, for that isn’t fair or reasonable. Little annoyances must be expressed without nagging (Proverbs 21:19), and then resolved. By eliminating little problems quickly, good relationships can become even better.
Song of Songs 4:1 How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are doves. Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from the hills of Gilead.
Several times the husband extols the beauty of his wife with images that don’t translate well into other cultures. But both are apparently beautiful, and he gives her the approval that she desires.
Relationships only flourish through positive reinforcement. One study showed that it takes nine compliments to offset every criticism. This is why few things are more important to being happily married than expressing appreciation. Find the best qualities in your spouse and reinforce them constantly.
Song of Songs 4:16 Let my beloved come into his garden and taste its choice fruits.
Again the woman is surprisingly forward in her request for sex. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife (1 Corinthians 7:3-4), wrote Paul. Sexual attentiveness often leads to happiness.
Song of Songs 7:10 I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.
The exclusive nature of this couple’s relationship gave them reason to rejoice. She belonged to him alone, and he belonged to her alone. That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh (Genesis 2:24), wrote Moses.
Many find happiness in marriage they couldn’t find anywhere else. It’s the most binding of all human relationships, and provides security where love can flourish. That’s why marriage often begins with vows to love, honor and cherish until death.
A Christian man married a delightful young lady who was struck by lightning on their honeymoon. She was paralyzed but, due to their vows, the marriage was secure and they remained together until she died, thirty-nine years later (BB Warfield and Annie Kinkaid). Marriage is a commitment for life, and should never be entered into without this kind of resolve.
Song of Songs 8:7 Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away. If one were to give all the wealth of one’s house for love, it would be utterly scorned.
Love is so strong it can’t be quenched, and is better than wealth by far. It’s why Jesus left his throne in heaven to die on a cross for our sins. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us (1 John 3:16), wrote John.
Even the best marriage is a only a faint reflection of the love Christ has for his bride. There’ll be no marriage in the age to come (Matthew 22:30), because the church will be married to Christ. [A]s a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you (Isaiah 62:5), wrote Isaiah. The deepest longing of our hearts will be fulfilled, and our passionate love will never fade.
Reflection and Review
- Why is marriage the best context for romantic love?
- Why should little problems be settled quickly?
- How can sinners stay happily married?
Lesson 131
Isaiah 1:1 The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
The prophet Isaiah wrote the book that bears his name from around 740 to 680 BC. He apparently spent most his life in Jerusalem, and is considered by many to be the greatest of the writing prophets because of the depth, breath and beauty of his work. He has been called the fifth evangelist (after Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) for his depiction and explanation of the Messiah’s death (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). He may also have died a martyr by being sawed in half (Hebrews 11:37).
The Dead Sea Scrolls (discovered in 1947) include a nearly complete scroll of Isaiah from before 100 BC. Before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the earliest copy of Isaiah was from around AD 935—over a thousand years later.
Since Isaiah wrote around seven hundred years before Christ, and since our earliest copy of Isaiah was from around nine hundred years after Christ, critics assumed the biblical text was corrupt due to so many years of copying.
But scholars found the earlier and later copies of Isaiah to be nearly identical. Most differences were due to spelling, and no differences affected the meaning of the text. This is because the biblical texts were copied by professionals who believed they were preserving the very words of God. The text of Scripture we have today is extremely reliable.
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Isaiah 6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple.
The death of a king was an anxious moment for God’s people, since other nations might view it as a good time to attack. But after the death of godly King Uzziah, the prophet had a vision of the eternal king sitting on his throne. Whenever life is uncertain, we should think of the one who sits on heaven’s throne, ruling over all.
The king Isaiah saw was so majestic that the train of his robe filled the temple. We don’t have much experience with royal trains today, but we are familiar with bridal trains. Some are longer than others, but the longest bridal train on record is over a mile long. Isaiah doesn’t tell us the exact length of God’s train, but it was so long that it filled his temple. In other words, God’s majesty is unsurpassed by any earthly king.
Isaiah 6:2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
The seraphim are heavenly beings not mentioned by name outside this passage, but may correspond to the living creatures mentioned elsewhere (Revelation 4:8). Their name probably means burning ones, and may be due to their closeness to God, who’s a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29).
They probably covered their faces because they couldn’t withstand the brightness of God, and they may’ve covered their feet because they were dirty. The seraphim remind us that heavenly creatures exist, about whom we know very little. There’s more to the spiritual realm than we can imagine.
Isaiah 6:3 And they were calling to one another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty.
Holiness includes the ideas morality and separation, but is fuller than both ideas combined. Holiness is so closely identified with God, in fact, that to say holy, holy, holy is nearly the same as saying God, God, God. God is never called three-times anything in the Bible other than holy, holy, holy. This is terrible news for sinners, because God’s holiness and human sinfulness are completely incompatible.
Isaiah 6:4-5 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. Woe to me! I cried. I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.
In the previous chapter Isaiah pronounced a series woes on the wicked. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20). Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes (Isaiah 5:21). Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine (Isaiah 5:22), he said. But after coming into the presence of God the prophet cried out, Woe to me! . . . I am ruined!
Isaiah was a pretty good person compared to many others. But, in the presence of God, he saw himself for who he really was—a sinner exposed to wrath. The closer we are to God, the more we’ll feel our sin. The further we are from God, the more we’ll feel righteous. The righteous know they are wicked, and the wicked think they are righteous.
Job had a similar experience when he encountered God. My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes (Job 42:5-6). Likewise, Peter said to Jesus, Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! (Luke 5:8). Sin is so common it doesn’t normally bother us but, in the presence of a holy God, it becomes our greatest concern.
There may’ve been several areas in which Isaiah fell short, but the sin that troubled him most was his speech. For I am a man of unclean lips, he said. We don’t think of inappropriate speech as a terrible sin, but Jesus did. Everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:36-37), he said.
Since Isaiah spoke for God, he was even more accountable (James 3:1). If a surgeon wouldn’t mix clean and unclean instruments, a prophet shouldn’t mix clean and unclean words.
Isaiah 6:6-7 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.
Sinners can’t approach a holy God apart from sacrifice but, thankfully, there was an altar in God’s presence. The sacrifice isn’t mentioned, but the purpose of the sacrificial system was to point ahead to the sacrifice of Christ. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul.
By taking a coal from the altar, and applying it to the prophet’s lips, the angel was showing that God’s provision was sufficient for the prophet’s wicked speech. Likewise, the sacrifice of Christ is sufficient for the wickedest things we’ve ever done.
Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? And I said, Here am I. Send me!
With his sin atoned for, the prophet was in a position to speak for God to others. He’d spend the rest of his life proclaiming the holiness of God, the problem of sin, and the coming remedy of Jesus Christ. The church has a similar task but enjoys the advantage preaching after the death and resurrection of Christ. Preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ is the glory and honor of the church.
Reflection and Review
- Why are the Dead Sea Scrolls important?
- Why was Isaiah concerned about his sin?
- Why did Isaiah want to tell others about God?
Lesson 132
Isaiah 13:19-20 Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the pride and glory of the Babylonians, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations.
Babylon was one of the greatest cities of the ancient world and for it to destroyed was almost unthinkable. But, in 539 BC, Babylon was overthrown by Cyrus the Great and eventually ceased to exist as anything like a glorious city.
But if you go to Babylon today you’ll find that it’s not completely abandoned. There’s some restoration going on and a few tourists to be seen. This has caused some to wonder if this prophecy has been fulfilled or if we should still be waiting. The answer is found in Isaiah’s use of prophetic hyperbole.
Hyperbole is intentional exaggeration in order to make a point. If we say Joe is older than dirt, or Mary never stops talking, we don’t mean to be taken literally. Isaiah was simply predicting that Babylon would never rise again. That has been the case for thousands of years, and is a stunning fulfillment of prophecy.
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Isaiah 20:2 [God said to Isaiah] Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet. And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot.
This is one of the most bizarre episodes in the Bible. God told Isaiah to walk naked through Jerusalem for a period of three years. Just as my servant Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years . . . so the king of Assyria will lead away stripped and barefoot the Egyptian captives . . . with buttocks bared (Isaiah 20:3-4), said God.
The purpose of this prophetic action was to warn the Jews to look to God for protection, not to Egypt, since Assyria would defeat the Egyptians. But we also see how embarrassing the prophetic ministry could be. Speaking for God was an honor, of course, but when God wanted to make his point graphically, the prophet was not allowed to decline. We can only imagine his embarrassment and that of his wife and children.
This also reminds us of the humiliation of Jesus Christ as he hung on the cross. We know that he was naked because the soldiers gambled for his clothing, including his undergarment (John 19:23-24). Since crucifixion was meant to degrade, it’s unlikely he was left with even a stitch to cover himself. Imagine hanging fully exposed before friends, family and foes. To God’s wonderful qualities of power, love and justice, we must also add humility.
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Isaiah 23:1 A prophecy against Tyre: . . . Tyre is destroyed and left without house or harbor.
Tyre was an important seaport on the Mediterranean, which included an island about a half mile offshore. If the mainland was attacked, residents could flee to the island for protection. This made Tyre feel invincible and, for many years, it was.
Nebuchadnezzar took the mainland in 572 BC, but he couldn’t take the island even though he tried for another fifteen years. Eventually, the people on the island went back to the mainland. So how could Tyre ever be destroyed as the prophet foretold?
Many years after Nebuchadnezzar failed, Alexander the Great conquered the mainland, and used the ruins to build a road out to the island. The prophet Ezekiel caught a glimpse of this and wrote: they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea (Ezekiel 26:12). After taking the island-city in 332 BC, Alexander crucified two thousand people, and sold thirty thousand others into slavery. Tyre was destroyed and left without house or harbor, just as Isaiah foretold.
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Isaiah 29:13 These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
The temple was open, prayers were being offered, and songs were being sung, but few were drawing near to God with their hearts. They had a form of godliness (2 Timothy 3:5), but it wasn’t from within. This is so often the case that Jesus applied this verse to the people of his day (Matthew 15:8). And it may apply to us as well.
It’s easier to worship God outwardly than it is to worship him inwardly. Many churches have excellent attendance, but little devotion. You have forsaken the love you had at first (Revelation 2:4), said Jesus. You are always on their lips but far from their hearts (Jeremiah 12:2), wrote Jeremiah.
Christian hearts won’t be filled with love on Sundays unless it’s cultivated throughout the week. When we gather for worship, we must lift our hearts to God as he desires. It takes more energy to get a plane in the air than to keep it there, so we must make the effort to worship God from our hearts until it comes naturally.
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Isaiah 32:8 But the noble make noble plans, and by noble deeds they stand.
The culture of Isaiah’s day was so corrupt that many were doing little or nothing for God. They were growing old without any godly accomplishments. But this is never acceptable to those who are noble. Noble people make noble plans, and by noble deeds they stand.
Here we see the importance of both planning and doing. Some people do without planning, others plan without doing. But noble people make noble plans and do them.
For many years I had deeds but not plans. I was living for God but didn’t have a clear direction for my life. I was twenty-five years old, and nearly broke, when I was suddenly gripped by the fear that life was passing me by. So I drew a line on a piece of paper with the my age at one end and the number seventy at the other.
Then I wrote down what I wanted to accomplish, when I wanted to accomplish it, and what I’d have to do to see it happen. Then I began to work my plan. I’ve revised it several times but have accomplished many things. Planning and doing is how we make the most of our lives for God.
Reflection and Review
- What is prophetic hyperbole?
- How do we know that God is humble?
- Why is it important to make noble plans?
Lesson 133
Isaiah 34:4 All the stars in the sky will be dissolved and the heavens rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree.
Isaiah foresaw the destruction of the universe as a result of our sin. Sin brought a curse on the earth (Genesis 3:17-20) that spread like a virus, and God’s judgment will be so severe that it will reach the furthest star. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare (2 Peter 3:10), wrote Peter.
Aristotle (384-322 BC) taught the universe is eternal in both directions and, for many years, that was the accepted theory. But now it’s thought the universe had a beginning (the big bang) and that it will have an end (the big crunch). This is more consistent with the Biblical view. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). And in the end, all the starry host will fall.
But that’s not the end of the story. [W]e are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13), wrote Peter. [T]he new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me (Isaiah 66:22), said God. God will create a whole new world, perhaps with the same materials. Then the curse will be reversed, and the new creation will last forever. This is the biblical view of the future.
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Isaiah 35:10 Everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Although God’s people would go through difficult times, they had everlasting joy to look forward to. Everlasting happiness would be enough, but God has promised joy. Joy surpasses happiness as far as happiness surpasses sorrow. And a million years of joy wouldn’t be as joyful, if we thought it would ever end. But it won’t.
My Grandpa was riding in my uncle’s speed boat when he smiled so widely that his false teeth flew into the lake. His joy went away with his teeth, but in the age to come our joy will never end. Think of the happiest moment of your life and double it twice. If that’s what you have to look forward to, you can enjoy it now. Everlasting joy will crown [our] heads.
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Isaiah 41:13 For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.
On your first day of school your mother probably held your hand as she brought you into class. She helped you meet the teacher, and find your desk, but then she had to go. God never does that. From cradle to grave he holds your hand and helps you along the way. He doesn’t want you to be afraid, but to hold his hand tightly through every stage of life.
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Isaiah 42:3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
This describes the gentleness that Jesus would show to those who were bruised by sin, and whose smoldering wick of faith was about to go out. He wouldn’t rebuke or reject them, but nurture and assure them.
A sinful woman came to Jesus and washed his feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, kissed them, and poured perfume on them. Some were repulsed by her behavior, but Jesus said, Your sins are forgiven. . . . Your faith has saved you; go in peace (Luke 7:48-50).
That’s what Jesus says to every broken person who looks to him in faith—no matter how badly they’ve failed in the past, are failing in the present, or will fail in the future. Instead of breaking those who are bruised by sin, Jesus heals them. Instead of snuffing out the smoldering wick of faith, he fans it into flame. This is the kind of ministry Jesus had in the past, and continues to have today.
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Isaiah 44:28 [The Lord] says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, Let it be rebuilt, and of the temple, Let its foundations be laid.
About a hundred fifty years before Cyrus became the king of Persia, the prophet Isaiah identified him by name, making this one of the most remarkable prophecies in the Bible. God can foretell the future because he planned it long ago. [We’ve] been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:11), wrote Paul. Nothing happens by chance, including the rule of kings.
The early Jewish historian, Josephus, claimed that Cyrus was informed about the prophecies concerning him (Antiquities of the Jews, XI.1.2). The prophet Daniel was a high ranking official living in Babylon at this time, and may’ve had a scroll of Isaiah which he showed to Cyrus. Whether or not this happened, Cyrus took action.
This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel (Ezra 1:2-3).
Cyrus’ decree is corroborated by an artifact known as the Cyrus Cylinder, which was found in AD 1879, and is housed in The British Museum. It doesn’t mention the Jews by name, but states Cyrus’ policy of allowing displaced peoples to return home, and to restore their temples. So God’s people were allowed to return to their homeland, just as Isaiah foretold.
Isaiah 48:17 I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
Children know little about the world, and rely on their parents to guide them. If their parents are wise, they can be a tremendous help. One of the things that persuaded me to follow Christ was the idea that he was more qualified to run my life I was. Since he created the universe, and had kept it running for years, perhaps he could also run my life. This seems obvious to some, but not to everyone.
When a young man asked Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus said, Sell everything you have . . . . Then come, follow me. He should’ve been delighted, but went away sad, because he was very wealthy (Luke 18:18-23). But now he’s been sad for thousands of years because Jesus was actually right. Faith is believing that Jesus knows best, and will lead us in the way that’s best for us.
Reflection and Review
- What is the future of the universe?
- How should the church treat sinners?
- Why was Cyrus important?
Lesson 134
Isaiah 52:13 See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.
This begins a passage describing the suffering, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and what it means for his people. It’s so vivid that it’s often been called the fifth gospel. It was so important to the writers of the New Testament that they quote or refer to it over thirty times. It’s so precise that it’s difficult to believe it was written over seven hundred years before the event it describes. But this simply proves what God said elsewhere. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come (Isaiah 46:10).
Isaiah 52:14 [H]is appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness.
This is a description of Jesus Christ after he was flogged. Jewish floggings were limited to forty lashes (Deuteronomy 25:3), but the Romans could lash without limit. The whips were made of leather, with metal and bone attached, for the purpose of tearing off flesh. Floggings were so severe that many didn’t survive.
The gospel writers show remarkable restraint when describing the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. They simply say he was flogged and crucified (Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15). Since their original readers were familiar with flogging and crucifixion, no more description was needed.
But Isaiah wrote before the practice of Roman flogging and crucifixion, so he included what the gospel writers left out. Jesus was so marred and disfigured that he barely seemed human. This is how he appeared as he hung on the cross.
Isaiah 52:15 [H]e will sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him.
The covenant between God and Israel was ratified when Moses sprinkled animal blood on the people and said, This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you (Exodus 24:8). But that only anticipated the blood of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah speaks of the blood of the new covenant (1 Corinthians 11:25), shed by Jesus Christ for all nations (Matthew 28:19), not just Israel. [W]ith your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5:9), wrote John. This included kings.
Kings have great authority, and speak with great authority, until they meet a greater king. Then they shut their mouths out of respect. Countless kings and political leaders have acknowledged Jesus Christ as King of kings (Revelation 17:14), and shut their mouths before him.
Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed our message . . . ?
The gospel has spread around the world but most people reject it. John and Paul referred to this verse to explain this surprising reaction.
Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: Lord, who has believed our message (John 12:37-38), wrote John.
But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our message? (Romans 10:16), wrote Paul.
Since Jesus died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2) we might expect the whole world to believe in Jesus Christ. But this has never been the case and God is not surprised. Christianity is a global religion but, compared to the whole, only a few truly believe (Matthew 7:14).
Isaiah 53:2 He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
Whenever the Bible speaks of a person’s appearance, it’s usually positive. Sarai was a very beautiful woman (Genesis 12:14). Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful (Genesis 29:17). Joseph was well-built and handsome (Genesis 39:6); David had a fine appearance and handsome features (1 Samuel 16:12). And, there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom (2 Samuel 14:25).
But the Bible tells us nothing of Jesus’ appearance except that he had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. This may be the politest way to say that Jesus was homely. He had no beauty. There was nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. This contradicts most depictions of Christ in art and film.
Since Jesus was homely, he wouldn’t be singled out as a natural leader, or receive the special attention given to those with a good appearance. Whenever he opened his mouth he’d have to overcome a bias against him. This made him less inclined to seek the approval of anyone other than his heavenly Father.
Reflection and Review
- What was Christ’s condition as he hung on the cross?
- Why don’t more people believe in Jesus Christ?
- Why is Jesus Christ often portrayed as handsome?
Lesson 135
Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised.
Some people stare at those who are suffering to satisfy their curiosity; others turn away to avoid the pain. As Jesus hung on the cross some people stared, and others turned away. But since he was a man of suffering, Jesus can relate to us whenever we suffer. He doesn’t turn away from us, or stare out of curiosity. He looks on us with compassion and enters into our pain. The reason he can do this is because he knows what it is to suffer.
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
The fact that Jesus died on a cross was proof, for some, that he wasn’t the Messiah: anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse (Deuteronomy 21:23), wrote Moses. The fact that Jesus was hung on a pole proved that he wasn’t blessed by God, but cursed by him. But he became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13), wrote Paul. The pain and suffering Jesus endured wasn’t for sins he committed, but for sins we committed. Jesus was under God’s curse, but he was there for us.
Isaiah 53:5 [H]e was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.
The piercing of his hands and feet was visible to all, but the crushing h