Podcasts about Ahaz

Fr. Mike talks about how we see both an abundance of faith, and a great lack of faith in our readings today. While the widow Elisha visits shows us a beautiful example of walking in faith, king Ahaz fails to repent as he falls deeper into sin. Today's readings are 2 Kings 4, 2 Chronicles 28, and Psalm 127. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Guest Speaker Tom Madden teaches that the greatest legacy a father can leave is not wealth, success, or achievement, but a life devoted to God that influences future generations. Drawing from the lives of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, he warns of the consequences of drifting from God while encouraging fathers to lead their families in faith, prioritize the house of God, and model the love of the Heavenly Father. He concludes by reminding listeners that God can use one committed person to spark revival and leave a lasting spiritual legacy. 

Praying with Biblical Characters

In this episode, we explore a most personal and intimate moment in the book of Isaiah, Isaiah 8:11-18. Unlike many prophetic passages that focus primarily on public proclamation, this section reads almost like a private journal entry or poetic diary of God speaking directly and personally to Isaiah about Isaiah himself.Isaiah tells us that “the Lord spoke to me with a strong hand upon me,” revealing the weight, gravity, and deeply personal nature of this encounter. In the middle of political chaos, fear, and spiritual compromise during the reign of Ahaz, God does not merely give Isaiah information — He gives him a personal encounter to guide his relationship with the Lord.This passage becomes even more powerful when we remember the historical setting. The temple in Jerusalem - the very place where Isaiah once encountered the holiness and glory of God in Isaiah 6 - had become corrupted by pagan worship and foreign altars under Ahaz's leadership. The sacred space that once represented God's presence among His people had been overtaken.So where could Isaiah go now? Where could a faithful prophet find refuge when the nation, leadership, and religious system were collapsing around him?God's answer is deeply personal: “The Lord of hosts, Him you shall regard as holy....He will be as a sanctuary/dwelling.” The Lord Himself would become Isaiah's sanctuary, refuge, dwelling place, and source of security.We explore how difficult this kind of trust truly is. External pressures, fear, isolation, rejection, and uncertainty make it incredibly hard to rest in God as our dwelling place. Yet even Isaiah — a prophet with a deeply formed life of obedience and intimacy with God — still needed this word spoken afresh into his situation.From there, we connect Isaiah's experience to Jesus in John 16:31–33. As Jesus forecasts to His disciples His coming abandonment, betrayal, and suffering, He models the same posture Isaiah was called to embrace. Though His disciples would scatter and leave Him alone, Jesus immediately turns to the Father as His refuge: “Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me," and then turns to the Father in prayer.In both Isaiah and Jesus, we discover a profound biblical pattern: when earthly structures fail, when people abandon us, and when familiar places of safety collapse, God invites His people to find their home, refuge, strength, and intimacy in Him alone.Key Passages: Isaiah 8:11–18John 16:31–33Explainer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Video⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on how to use ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.biblehub.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.blueletterbible.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Leave us a question or comment at our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website podcast page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

As we work through the Book of Isaiah, we are increasingly seeing Christ's kingdom come into focus. Today, we look at Isaiah 7, we're going to study a spectacular prophecy that we usually talk about the miraculous birth of Jesus and how we know that, indeed, Jesus is the long-awaited King of the Jews.  DISCUSSION AND STUDY QUESTIONS: 1.    Verse 1 mentions King Ahaz? What was he and what kind of king was he? 2.    In verses 1 & 2, what was the setting that was troubling Ahaz? What was Ahaz's response in verse 2?  3.    What was the gist of the Lord's words for Ahaz in verse 4-9? Why do you think the Lord would have this message for Ahaz?  4.    If the Lord were to give such a practical promise to you, what would be your response? From your study of the next few verses, what was Ahaz's response (specifically verse 12)? This seems like it might be a righteous response, why wasn't it? What in his character produced this kind of response?  5.    What reply does the Lord give to Ahaz in verses 13 to 16? What was the gist of this prophecy? Who was the near fulfillment of this promise? Who is the ultimate fulfilment? How was He a fulfillment of these prophecies? 6.    Read over the rest of this passage, what kinds of things does the Lord promise to Ahaz? Would these be fulfilled in Ahaz's days? According to the podcast, when would they be fulfilled?  7.    The podcast mentions that Isaiah's son Shear-jashub means "the remnant shall return". What might be the significance of Isaiah bringing Shear-jashub to this meeting with Ahaz and then giving these prophecies?  8.    When you think of the desolation that Judah was going to experience, what kind of hope would these promises give to those people in the exile? What kind of hope does it give to us today?  Check out our Bible Study Guide on the Key Chapters of Genesis! Available on Amazon just in time for the Genesis relaunch in January! To see our dedicated podcast website with access to all our episodes and other resources, visit us at: www.keychapters.org. Find us on all major platforms, or use these direct links: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6OqbnDRrfuyHRmkpUSyoHv Itunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/366-key-chapters-in-the-bible/id1493571819 YouTube: Key Chapters of the Bible on YouTube. As always, we are grateful to be included in the "Top 100 Bible Podcasts to Follow" from Feedspot.com. Also for regularly being awarded "Podcast of the Day" from PlayerFM. Special thanks to Joseph McDade for providing our theme music.   

Why do you feel so alone right now? Most of us, even on our most ordinary day, carry around a quiet fear that we are facing what we are facing by ourselves. And the answer the Bible gives to that fear is one of the most surprising things in all of scripture.In this sermon, Dr. Dennis Episcopo opens our brand new series Counterfeit Kings with the story of a scared, lonely king named Ahaz, three enemy armies marching toward his city, and the prophet God sent to meet him at the waterworks of Jerusalem.The story is in Isaiah 6 and 7. King Ahaz is one of the worst kings in the Bible. He even sacrificed his own son on a pagan altar (2 Kings 16). And yet, when his world is closing in and three nations have lined up against him, God does not abandon him. God sends Isaiah, the greatest preacher of the eighth century, to meet him at the upper pool with one message: you are not alone, but you have to trust me.Dr. Dennis Episcopo unpacks something here that most of us miss. Isaiah brings his son to the meeting. The boy's name is Shear Jashub, which means "a remnant will return." Isaiah is preaching a sermon just by showing up with his child. And then God gives Ahaz a sign that will echo across the next 700 years of history: a virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he will be called Immanuel, God with us (Isaiah 7:14, fulfilled in Matthew 1).Two children. Two names. One message. You are not alone.Then Dr. Dennis Episcopo turns the corner from ancient history into right now. The message Ahaz needed is the same one a lot of us need today. God is with you in the thing you cannot solve. But you have to trust him, because Isaiah 7:9 also says, "Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm." Faith is the door God invites you to walk through.And here is where the gospel becomes the only thing that has ever actually worked. Most of us look at "just trust Jesus" and call it too simple. But Jesus told his disciples that following him would cost everything: deny yourself, pick up your cross daily, follow me (Luke 9:23). The fruit of a real Christian is self denial, cross bearing, and loyal trust. Imposters will not pay that price.At the cross, the old you gets crucified, and Jesus rises up to live his life through you. That is why Dr. Dennis Episcopo's life verse is Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." If you are exhausted from white knuckling your way through a season that keeps breaking you, this is the message you needed today.

Broken Promises Hosea 1-2:13 The word of the LORD that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. 2 When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD.” 3 So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. 4 And the LORD said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.” 6 She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him, “Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. 7 But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the LORD their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.” 8 When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. 9 And the LORD said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.” 10  Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.” 11 And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel. -- 2  Say to your brothers, “You are my people,” and to your sisters, “You have received mercy.” 2  “Plead with your mother, plead— for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband— that she put away her whoring from her face, and her adultery from between her breasts; 3  lest I strip her naked and make her as in the day she was born, and make her like a wilderness, and make her like a parched land, and kill her with thirst. 4  Upon her children also I will have no mercy, because they are children of whoredom. 5  For their mother has played the whore; she who conceived them has acted shamefully. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.' 6  Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, so that she cannot find her paths. 7  She shall pursue her lovers but not overtake them, and she shall seek them but shall not find them. Then she shall say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for it was better for me then than now.' 8  And she did not know that it was I who gave her the grain, the wine, and the oil, and who lavished on her silver and gold, which they used for Baal. 9  Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my wine in its season, and I will take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness. 10  Now I will uncover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and no one shall rescue her out of my hand. 11  And I will put an end to all her mirth, her feasts, her new moons, her Sabbaths, and all her appointed feasts. 12  And I will lay waste her vines and her fig trees, of which she said, ‘These are my wages, which my lovers have given me.' I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall devour them. 13  And I will punish her for the feast days of the Baals when she burned offerings to them and adorned herself with her ring and jewelry, and went after her lovers and forgot me, declares the LORD. I. To obey God we must surrender to God. II. One must obey God to understand the things of God. III. To obey God we must be honest with God and with ourselves. If every member of my church were just like me, what would we be like?

Take it from me, when God tells you to do something you should just go ahead and do it. It will work in your benefit. Ahaz didn't do as God requested and it meant something for the nation of Judah. Andrew and Robert read through Isaiah 7 to get the full story on God's Promises and Assurances.Send us Fan MailSupport the showQuestions or Comments? Please reach out to us through email at questions@truewisdom.info or on Twitter/X @truewisdom_podGive instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. Proverbs 9:9-10The Key Principles of Effective Bible Study is a resource that we reference in many of our episodes. It is explained in a series of podcasts found at Rightly Divide.God's Precious Word is a condensed, 9-part series, based on the same document.Other Resources:— e-Sword Bible Software— MySword Bible Software— Blue Letter Bible Study Site— "Knowing the Bible" Bible MapsWe pray that these resources will be very helpful to you in your Bible Studies overall.

Jeff Hendrix on Isaiah 7 & 9: With a little bit of the Advent season in our summer series. We continue our Isaiah series with Immanuel, God with us. Looking at the situation that Ahaz found himself in, and God giving a sign that was not asked for. Today we find ourselves living in the darkest parts...the forgotten parts...where Christ began his ministry and God came to live among us.

Today we begin our study of Isaiah! Isaiah is an incredibly important book in the Bible and today we'll give a quick overview of the book of Isaiah and his message to us repentance and faithfulness to our faithful God. Join us! DISCUSSION AND STUDY QUESTIONS: 1.    The name "Isaiah" means "The Lord is salvation". According to the podcast, why is that a great summary of the Book of Isaiah? How does God's covenant relate to the theme that the Lord is our salvation? 2.    Based on the podcast, what is a prophet? Likewise, what is the "office" of a prophet? Do you remember what the podcast said was the difference between "foretelling" and "forthtelling"? What are those differences? What were these differences for?  3.    Verse 1 tells us that Isaiah prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Generally speaking, what was going on during this time?  4.    Read over verse 2. What does this verse mean? Why do you think that the Lord has Isaiah begin on this point here?  5.    In verse 3, who is the "Israel" that is being spoken about? What do we learn about them from this verse?  6.    Read over verses 4 to 6. In verse 4, how were the people weighed down in iniquity? In verses 5 & 6, what was the result of their sin?  7.    Verse 9 & 10 makes the amazing comparison between Israel and Sodom and Gomorrah. From what you know about Genesis 19, what happened in Sodom and Gomorrah? Why is verses 7 to 9 warning the people that they are at risk of the same judgment as those infamous cities?  8.    In verses 11 to 15, what religious acts were rejected by the Lord? Why did He reject them? In our world today, how might a person have a similar mindset in their religion and likewise be rejected by the Lord?  9.    Clearly Israel has been rebelling against the Lord and they are about to face His judgment. Yet the Lord gives them a path of repentance in verses 16 & 17. What does He tell them to do? Why? What would it take for them to carry out this kind of righteous pursuit from now on?  10.    Verse 18 is a heartwarming verse reflecting God's heart for His people. What does He tell them? In verse 19, what does He promise them?  11.    Verses 21 to 23 return to the theme of Israel's sin. What sinful things were the people doing? What righteous things were they not doing?  12.    In verse 25 & 26, what is the relationship between God's judgment and their purification? Why would we want to submit to this kind of "refining fire" in our own life?  13.    In verse 27, when God redeems His people, by what means will He redeem them?  14.    In verses 28 to 31, what will be the fate of those who are not redeemed? In light of their sins, why is this fate "just" and deserved?  Check out our Bible Study Guide on the Key Chapters of Genesis! Available on Amazon just in time for the Genesis relaunch in January! To see our dedicated podcast website with access to all our episodes and other resources, visit us at: www.keychapters.org. Find us on all major platforms, or use these direct links: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6OqbnDRrfuyHRmkpUSyoHv Itunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/366-key-chapters-in-the-bible/id1493571819 YouTube: Key Chapters of the Bible on YouTube. As always, we are grateful to be included in the "Top 100 Bible Podcasts to Follow" from Feedspot.com. Also for regularly being awarded "Podcast of the Day" from PlayerFM. Special thanks to Joseph McDade for providing our theme music.   

In this episode, we explore Isaiah 8:1–11 and the looming invasion of Judah by Assyria during the reign of Ahaz. We examine the prophetic role of Isaiah and even Isaiah's wife as living signs announcing God's coming judgment upon Judah's rebellion and misplaced trust. The Assyrian armies would overflow the land like an overflowing river, bringing devastation and loss. Yet remarkably, the land is still called the land of “Immanuel” — “God With Us.”Why? Because judgment would not be the end of the story.Even in the midst of discipline, God remained faithful to His covenant promises. Judah would be shaken, but not utterly destroyed. Beneath the warnings of Isaiah stands a portrait of a God who is patient, long-suffering, and committed to working with His people across generations. Rather than impulsively abandoning His people because of their failures, God continues to move them along His redemptive and developmental path.This episode challenges many common assumptions about the “God of the Old Testament.” Instead of a harsh, reactionary deity, Isaiah presents a God who remains present with deeply flawed people, patiently confronting, correcting, and preserving them for the sake of His promises and their growth.Finally, we connect Isaiah's Immanuel prophecy to Jesus — “God With Us” in the flesh. Just as God remained with Judah in their brokenness and willingly worked with those who were open to him, Jesus enters the lives of sinners, sufferers, and those who have gone off course and hangs out with those who were open to him. He remains with us, not to leave us where we are, but to strengthen us so that we might remain with Him.Key Passages:Isaiah 8:1-11Matthew 1:22-23Explainer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Video⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on how to use ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.biblehub.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.blueletterbible.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Leave us a question or comment at our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website podcast page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

What happens when a king refuses to be fathered by God? In this episode, we step into the historical world of Isaiah 7 by tracing the story through the political and spiritual timeline of 2 Kings 16:1–18. Rather than treating Isaiah's encounter with King Ahaz in isolation, we reconstruct the sequence of events surrounding the Syro-Ephraimite crisis—when Syria and Northern Israel threaten Judah—and examine how Ahaz responds under pressure.As the narrative unfolds, a troubling pattern emerges. Instead of trusting the Lord, Ahaz reaches out to Assyria for help, forging a political alliance that becomes something far more corrupt: a counterfeit father-son relationship between a king and a sovereign. In a shocking act of allegiance, Ahaz models himself not after the God of Israel, but after the king of Assyria—reordering worship, reshaping the temple, and redefining his identity as a son of another King.Against this backdrop, Isaiah offers Ahaz a sign: a young woman will conceive and bear a son, and before the child matures, the very enemies Ahaz fears—Syria and Northern Israel—will be laid waste by Assyria. This sign is not merely predictive—it contains a developmental dynamic. It places Ahaz within a timeline of trust, inviting him to align himself with God's unfolding purposes rather than grasp for security in an alliance with Assyria against Syria and Northern Israel.But Ahaz refuses.In this episode, we explore how Ahaz functions as a tragic foil—a failed son of David who rejects the Father's provision, protection, and pathway for growth. His story exposes a deeper pattern in Israel's kingship: a repeated inability to live faithfully within the relational framework of the Davidic covenant.And then we turn to Jesus.Where Ahaz grasped for security, Jesus entrusted himself to the Father. Where Ahaz aligned with empire, Jesus walked the path of obedient sonship. As the true Son of David, Jesus embodies what every king before him failed to become—a fully faithful, fully participatory Son who lives with God in perfect dependence and trust.In this light, Jesus is not just the fulfillment of prophecy—he is the completion of a developmental trajectory. He becomes the true “sign” that God is with His people—not merely in promise, but in lived, embodied reality.Key Passages:2 Kings 16:1-10Isaiah 7:10-16Matthew 1:20-25Explainer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Video⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on how to use ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.biblehub.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.blueletterbible.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Leave us a question or comment at our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website podcast page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Send us Fan MailThe Bible Project Daily Podcast is an in-depth, daily study of the entire Bible, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Episode Notes:  God's Amazing Grace. (2 Kings 21: 1-26)Several days ago, we looked at a king named Ahaz and asked the question: “How low can one go?” Up to that point in 2 Kings, Ahaz was the worst king Israel had ever had. He made alliances instead of trusting the Lord. He changed the worship. He embraced idolatry. And in the most horrifying moment of his life, he sacrificed his own infant son in the fire. How low can you go? Well… keep reading because the Bible introduces us to another king, a king who somehow manages to go even lower. His name is Manasseh, and what he does is so dark, so hideous, so spiritually twisted, that you almost want to say, “Viewer discretion advised.” You'll see it by the end of the chapter. It's a truth about the human condition. A truth about sin and a truth about grace, and I genuinely believe most Christians underestimate it. So, let's walk through the passage.Support the showFollow and support me on Patreon.Jeremy McCandless | Creating Podcasts and Bible Study Resources | PatreonTo receive my weekly newsletter and keep up to date with all five of my podcasts, subscribe at:Jeremy McCandless | SubstackCheck out my other Podcasts.The Bible Project: https://thebibleproject.buzzsprout.comHistory of the Christian Church: https://thehistoryofthechristianchurch.buzzsprout.comThe L.I.F.E. Podcast: (Philosophy and current trends in the Arts and Entertainment Podcast).https://the-living-in-faith-everyday-podcast.buzzsprout.comThe Renewed Mind Podcast. My Psychology and Mental Health Podcast:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2568891The Classic Literature Podcast:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2568906To visit my Author page on Amazon and view my entire back catalogue of books on both Amazon and Kindle and now also on Audible, Visit:Amazon.com: Jeremy R Mccandless: books, biography, latest update

Ahaz's reign was marked by fear, idolatry, and political maneuvering. His story is tragic, the outcome of unbelief disguised as strategy. But in the midst of it all, God offered a sign. The story of Ahaz confronts us with a question: Where do you turn when fear and anxiety take hold?

Today's readings.. (Joshua 1), (Isaiah 7, (1 Thessalonians 3,4)All 3 of our readings today provoke serious meditation about human reactions to God. We started reading Joshua and saw God's challenge to him to take his people over the Jordan.  He is told, “Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land … [1 v.5,6] In Isaiah (ch. 7] the prophet is told to “Go and meet (king) Asa” [v.3] and encourage him to face the threats from the north.  He is to tell him, “Be careful, do not fear, and do not let your heart in faint …” [v.4]  Then the king is bluntly warned, “If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.” [v.9]  It is not possible to have a sort of half-faith!  Ahaz feels he is putting God to the test if he asks with a full expectation God will preserve him, he says, “I will not ask, I will not put the Lord to the test” [v.12]  Because of his lack of faith the LORD then gives, through Isaiah, messages to him of bad times to come when, among other things, “all the land will be briers and thorns” [v.24]In the New Testament we started to read Paul's 1st letter to the Thessalonians and saw how he is commending them on “how you turned … to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” [v.9,10] These words as so meaningful for us today; let us be “firm in faith” that God means what he caused his servants such as Paul to write.   May we, with full conviction in the word of God, “wait for his son from heaven' sensing that “wrath” will soon be coming on our world because it has reached the stage of near total godlessness. Let us not neglect our regular Bible reading as it lays the foundation to being “firm in faith” and to “be strong and courageous” both now – and even more – when the promised “wrath to come” actually happens and the dramas we will read of tomorrow in Paul's words actually takes place.

Hezekiah began to reign when he was five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah.2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done.3 He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of the Lord, and repaired them.4 And he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them together into the east street,5 And said unto them, Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify now yourselves, and sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the holy place.6 For our fathers have trespassed, and done that which was evil in the eyes of the Lord our God, and have forsaken him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of the Lord, and turned their backs.7 Also they have shut up the doors of the porch, and put out the lamps, and have not burned incense nor offered burnt offerings in the holy place unto the God of Israel.8 Wherefore the wrath of the Lord was upon Judah and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to trouble, to astonishment, and to hissing, as ye see with your eyes.9 For, lo, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this.10 Now it is in mine heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that his fierce wrath may turn away from us.11 My sons, be not now negligent: for the Lord hath chosen you to stand before him, to serve him, and that ye should minister unto him, and burn incense.12 Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Amasai, and Joel the son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohathites: and of the sons of Merari, Kish the son of Abdi, and Azariah the son of Jehalelel: and of the Gershonites; Joah the son of Zimmah, and Eden the son of Joah:13 And of the sons of Elizaphan; Shimri, and Jeiel: and of the sons of Asaph; Zechariah, and Mattaniah:14 And of the sons of Heman; Jehiel, and Shimei: and of the sons of Jeduthun; Shemaiah, and Uzziel.15 And they gathered their brethren, and sanctified themselves, and came, according to the commandment of the king, by the words of the Lord, to cleanse the house of the Lord.16 And the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord, to cleanse it, and brought out all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of the Lord into the court of the house of the Lord. And the Levites took it, to carry it out abroad into the brook Kidron.17 Now they began on the first day of the first month to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month came they to the porch of the Lord: so they sanctified the house of the Lord in eight days; and in the sixteenth day of the first month they made an end.18 Then they went in to Hezekiah the king, and said, We have cleansed all the house of the Lord, and the altar of burnt offering, with all the vessels thereof, and the shewbread table, with all the vessels thereof.19 Moreover all the vessels, which king Ahaz in his reign did cast away in his transgression, have we prepared and sanctified, and, behold, they are before the altar of the Lord.20 Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the Lord.21 And they brought seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats, for a sin offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the priests the sons of Aaron to offer them on the altar of the Lord.22 So they killed the bullocks, and the priests received the blood, and sprinkled it on the altar: likewise, when they had killed the rams, they sprinkled the blood upon the altar: they killed also the lambs, and they sprinkled the blood upon the altar.23 And they brought forth the he goats for the sin offering before the king and the congregation; and they laid their hands upon them:24 And the priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all Israel: for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel.25 And he set the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the prophet: for so was the commandment of the Lord by his prophets.26 And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets.27 And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the Lord began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel.28 And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.29 And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves, and worshipped.30 Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.31 Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the Lord, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of the Lord. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a free heart burnt offerings.32 And the number of the burnt offerings, which the congregation brought, was threescore and ten bullocks, an hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord.33 And the consecrated things were six hundred oxen and three thousand sheep.34 But the priests were too few, so that they could not flay all the burnt offerings: wherefore their brethren the Levites did help them, till the work was ended, and until the other priests had sanctified themselves: for the Levites were more upright in heart to sanctify themselves than the priests.35 And also the burnt offerings were in abundance, with the fat of the peace offerings, and the drink offerings for every burnt offering. So the service of the house of the Lord was set in order.36 And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly.

Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: but he did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord, like David his father:2 For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim.3 Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the abominations of the heathen whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.4 He sacrificed also and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.5 Wherefore the Lord his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter.6 For Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah an hundred and twenty thousand in one day, which were all valiant men; because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers.7 And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maaseiah the king's son, and Azrikam the governor of the house, and Elkanah that was next to the king.8 And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.9 But a prophet of the Lord was there, whose name was Oded: and he went out before the host that came to Samaria, and said unto them, Behold, because the Lord God of your fathers was wroth with Judah, he hath delivered them into your hand, and ye have slain them in a rage that reacheth up unto heaven.10 And now ye purpose to keep under the children of Judah and Jerusalem for bondmen and bondwomen unto you: but are there not with you, even with you, sins against the Lord your God?11 Now hear me therefore, and deliver the captives again, which ye have taken captive of your brethren: for the fierce wrath of the Lord is upon you.12 Then certain of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, and Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against them that came from the war,13 And said unto them, Ye shall not bring in the captives hither: for whereas we have offended against the Lord already, ye intend to add more to our sins and to our trespass: for our trespass is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel.14 So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the congregation.15 And the men which were expressed by name rose up, and took the captives, and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among them, and arrayed them, and shod them, and gave them to eat and to drink, and anointed them, and carried all the feeble of them upon asses, and brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brethren: then they returned to Samaria.16 At that time did king Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him.17 For again the Edomites had come and smitten Judah, and carried away captives.18 The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country, and of the south of Judah, and had taken Bethshemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof: and they dwelt there.19 For the Lord brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the Lord.20 And Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not.21 For Ahaz took away a portion out of the house of the Lord, and out of the house of the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but he helped him not.22 And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz.23 For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.24 And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem.25 And in every several city of Judah he made high places to burn incense unto other gods, and provoked to anger the Lord God of his fathers.26 Now the rest of his acts and of all his ways, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.27 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, even in Jerusalem: but they brought him not into the sepulchres of the kings of Israel: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.

Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok.2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the Lord. And the people did yet corruptly.3 He built the high gate of the house of the Lord, and on the wall of Ophel he built much.4 Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.5 He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him the same year an hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. So much did the children of Ammon pay unto him, both the second year, and the third.6 So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.7 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.8 He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.9 And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.

What do you do when the pressure is real, the threats are mounting, and every option feels like a compromise?In this episode, we step into the political and spiritual crisis of Isaiah 7:1–8, where the prophet Isaiah confronts King Ahaz at a moment of national panic. The expanding empire of Assyria looms large, pushing smaller kingdoms into desperate alliances. Northern Israel and Syria attempt to form a coalition to resist Assyria—and when Ahaz refuses to join them, they turn against Judah itself.Into this volatile situation, Isaiah delivers a strikingly counterintuitive word: Do not be afraid. Do not act impulsively. Trust the Lord.We explore the historical backdrop of this moment—the geopolitical pressure, the fragile alliances, and the very real fear gripping Judah. But more importantly, we unpack Isaiah's theological challenge to Ahaz: Will you trust in political strategy, or in the covenant promises God made to David?Isaiah warns that Northern Israel will fall. He assures Ahaz that Judah can stand—but only if its king stands firm in faith. The real issue is not military strength, but spiritual posture. Trust leads to stability; fear leads to collapse.From there, we move forward into the Gospel of Matthew, where Isaiah 7:14 is quoted in connection to the birth of Jesus Christ. We examine how Matthew draws on this moment in Isaiah's day as a theological pattern. The question remains the same across both contexts: Will we trust God's presence and promises, or turn to lesser securities?We close by bringing this ancient confrontation into the present. In a world full of pressure, uncertainty, and complex problems, the call of Isaiah still stands: Remain calm. Trust the Lord. Stand firm—and you will stand at all.This episode invites you to locate your own “Ahaz moment”—and choose faith over fear.Key Passages:Isaiah 7:1-8Matthew 1:20-25Explainer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Video⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on how to use ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.biblehub.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.blueletterbible.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Leave us a question or comment at our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website podcast page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your Hosea Scripture Journal now. Our shout-out today goes to Charles Donahue from Keene, NH. Thanks for your partnership in Project23. Our text today is Hosea 1:1. The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. — Hosea 1:1 How does a nation drift away from God? Not all at once. Not in one dramatic moment. It happens slowly. Quietly. Over time. One generation compromises. The next generation forgets. Eventually, a culture that once knew God barely remembers him at all. That's the moment Hosea steps into. This opening verse may read like a simple historical note, but it tells us something important. Hosea ministered during the reigns of several kings in Judah—Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah—and during the reign of Jeroboam II in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. By this time, the nation had already been divided for nearly two hundred years. The Northern Kingdom kept the name Israel, while the Southern Kingdom became Judah. Hosea's message was directed mainly toward Israel. And at first glance, things looked strong. Under Jeroboam II the nation experienced economic growth and military success. Borders expanded. Trade increased. Life appeared stable. But spiritually, the nation was collapsing. Idolatry filled the land. Baal worship spread through the culture. Religious activity still existed, but true devotion to God had largely disappeared. In that moment, God raised up a prophet. In the Old Testament, prophets were not primarily predictors of the future. They were messengers sent by God to speak truth to God's people—confronting sin, warning of consequences, and calling the nation back to covenant faithfulness. Hosea was that voice. And history shows a pattern: when a nation begins drifting from God, God sends a warning before judgment comes. He sends truth before consequences. He sends a voice before collapse. So pause today and examine your own life. Spiritual drift rarely feels dramatic while it's happening—but small compromises can quietly move our hearts further from God than we realize. Take a moment today to ask God where drift may be happening in your life, and take one small step back toward him. DO THIS: Take five quiet minutes today and ask God to reveal one area where you may be drifting spiritually—and make one intentional step toward him. ASK THIS: Where in your life might spiritual drift be happening without you noticing it? What small compromise today could slowly move your heart away from God? What is one simple step you could take today to move closer to him? PRAY THIS: Father, help me recognize the places where I may be drifting from you. Draw my heart back toward faithfulness and truth. Amen. PLAY THIS: "The King Is Coming"

Choosing Faith Over Fear: The Example of King HezekiahWhen impending doom arrives at your doorstep, what is your first move? In this session, we contrast the legacy of two kings: Ahaz, who sought help from the world, and his son Hezekiah, who chose to rely solely on the faithfulness of God.We look at the moment Hezekiah received a letter of threat from the Assyrian army and, instead of panicking, literally laid it out before the Lord in the temple. We also explore Hezekiah's personal battle with illness and how his immediate recourse was prayer. Whether you are facing a "Sennacherib" in your professional life or a personal health battle, this message is a reminder that God is faithful to give us exactly what we need, exactly when we need it.Key Highlights:The Legacy of Choice: Comparing the fear-based decisions of King Ahaz with the faith-based leadership of Hezekiah.The Power of Prayer: How one man laying a letter before God resulted in a supernatural victory over 185,000 men.A Personal Testimony: Finding God's faithfulness in the midst of a battle with leukemia.Wants vs. Needs: Realizing that God's timing and provision are perfect, even when they don't align with our immediate desires.Key Scriptures:2 Kings 18 & 19 – The account of King Hezekiah and the Assyrian invasion.2 Kings 20 – Hezekiah's illness and the 15-year promise.Isaiah 38 – Getting your house in order and the power of prayer.#KingHezekiah #FaithOverFear #BiblicalLeadership #PowerOfPrayer #GodIsFaithful #ScriptureStudy #TrustingGod0:00 - Intro: The Best Part of the Day0:14 - King Ahaz vs. King Hezekiah: A Contrast in Faith0:53 - Sennacherib and the Assyrian Threat1:17 - Laying the Letter Before the Lord1:37 - The Reality of the Spiritual Realm: 185,000 Defeated1:53 - Hezekiah's Illness: "Get Your House in Order"2:07 - The Prayer for Healing and the 15-Year Promise2:22 - The Choice: Do We Believe God is Who He Says He Is?2:38 - Real Reliance: Applying the Word to Personal Struggles2:50 - Faith in the Battle: A Personal Testimony with Leukemia3:00 - God's Provision: What We Need vs. What We Want3:10 - Closing: God is Good

King Hezekiah didn't inherit a legacy of faith—he inherited a mess. His father, Ahaz, led Judah deep into idolatry, even turning good things—like the bronze serpent from Book of Numbers 21—into objects of worship. But Hezekiah refuses to follow that path. From the very beginning of his reign, he takes bold, decisive action to turn the nation back to the Lord. In this episode, discover what it looks like to lead with conviction, tear down what's corrupt, and pursue true faith in the face of a broken past.

May 4, 2026Today's Reading: Isaiah 12:1-6Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 21:1-24; Luke 12:1-12“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! Amen. The people of Judah were in a precarious position. They had watched the Northern Kingdom be completely destroyed by the Assyrian army. Families were separated. The places of worship had been desecrated with idols of false gods. The identity of the Northern Kingdom was gone. King Ahaz refused to listen to God through the prophet Isaiah. King Ahaz had his own plans to protect his people. Ahaz looked to the formidable army of Egypt for protection against Assyria. The very nation that God had freed His people from enslavement, Ahaz cut a deal with and went back to their historic slavemaster. In the previous chapters, Isaiah reminds his hearers of God's attitude towards arrogance and pride. God hates the prideful nature of man. He despises the arrogance of His people and the arrogance of the pagan nations around His people. In their idolatry, they have committed adultery against God. They have had affairs with other gods and lusted after their own hearts' desires. In the worst of times, they still pursued their own hearts and their false gods.In our sin, we fall into the trap of arrogance and pride. We see our accomplishments and what we are capable of achieving. Our electronic advancements and technological advancements give us every answer in the palm of our hands. We can find endless entertainment, both good and bad, with a few swipes of the finger. It can seem as if nothing is out of our reach. Isaiah's words in chapter 12 speak to the remnant that was left behind. The few that remained faithful to God. The epitome of that remnant is found in Jesus Christ. Christ is Israel reduced to one. The final sacrifice, the final King, the final prophet. Christ fulfills all aspects of God's holy law. In faith, you hold fast to the promise that Christ has completed the work for your salvation. Sin, satan, and the world will work tirelessly to turn you away from the work of Christ and point you to your work. In faith, you are held fast to Christ's work and His salvation for you. He has become your salvation. He has completed the work for you. He has paid the price for your sins. He has conquered death for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Though Satan's wrath Beset our path And worldly scorn assail us, While You are near, We shall not fear; Your strength will never fail us, Your rod and staff will keep us safe And guide our steps forever; Nor shades of death Nor hell beneath Our lives from You will sever. (LSB 714:2)

This podcast gives a few examplesof how the Messenger Malach מַלְאַ֧ךְ in the Hebrew Bible represented or “was” the One  who Sent him See also, podcast #130 “Agency in the Bible: The Human Person Jesus “was” the Father”https://youtu.be/s8FqSysuUGY Theprinciple or practice of the מַלְאַ֧ךְ malach messenger, the one sent. Understanding the Messenger principle is crucial to understanding how many “persons” God is. TheMessenger principle, both as a concept and a reality, means that a person's messenger—theone sent—is regarded as the sender himself.  The proverbialHebrew statement about the Messenger Principle is “השליח שווה לשולחו”the one sent (a messenger) is equal to his sender.” The equality of the onesent to his sender is neither an equality of essence nor of individual one-to-oneidentity. Everyone understood that the messenger was not literally the sameperson nor the same being as the sender. Rather, the messenger was given thesender's full authority to speak and act on his behalf. The messenger carried authorityfrom the sender and was therefore to be regarded as the sender himself. Old Testament scholar John Walton highlights aspects of messenger/agency in the ZondervanIllustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary when discussing the firstappearance of the angel (messenger) of Yahweh in Genesis 16 (to Hagar in thewilderness). Walton explains:In the ancient world direct communication between important parties was ararity. Diplomatic and political exchange usually required the use of anintermediary, a function that our ambassadors exercise today. The messenger whoserved as the intermediary was a fully vested representative of the partyhe represented. He spoke for that party and with the authority of thatparty. He was accorded the same treatment as that party wouldenjoy were he there in person. While this was standard protocol,there was no confusion about the person's identity (emphasis mine).[1] Judges11:12Jephthahsent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying,"What is between you and me, that you have come to me tofight against my land?"   וַיִּשְׁלַ֤ח יִפְתָּח֙ מַלְאָכִ֔ים אֶל־מֶ֥לֶךְ בְּנֵֽי־עַמּ֖וֹן לֵאמֹ֑רמַה־לִּ֣י וָלָ֔ךְ כִּֽי־בָ֥אתָ אֵלַ֖י לְהִלָּחֵ֥ם בְּאַרְצִֽי׃ 2 Kings3:7  (King Jehoram son of Ahaz after Ahabdied and Moab revolted)Then he(Jehoram) went and sent to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying, "Theking of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me tofight against Moab?" And he said, "I will go up; I am as youare, my people as your people, my horses as yourhorses."   וַיֵּ֡לֶךְ וַיִּשְׁלַח֩אֶל־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֙ט מֶֽלֶךְ־יְהוּדָ֜ה לֵאמֹ֗ר מֶ֤לֶךְ מוֹאָב֙ פָּשַׁ֣ע בִּ֔יהֲתֵלֵ֥ךְ אִתִּ֛י אֶל־מוֹאָ֖ב לַמִּלְחָמָ֑ה וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֶעֱלֶ֔הכָּמ֧וֹנִי כָמ֛וֹךָ כְּעַמִּ֥י כְעַמֶּ֖ךָ כְּסוּסַ֥י כְּסוּסֶֽיךָ׃ 1 Samuel 16:19Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and he said, "Send to meyour son David who is with the flock."    וַיִּשְׁלַ֥ח שָׁא֛וּל מַלְאָכִ֖יםאֶל־יִשָׁ֑י וַיֹּ֕אמֶר שִׁלְחָ֥ה אֵלַ֛י אֶת־דָּוִ֥ד בִּנְךָ֖ אֲשֶׁ֥רבַּצֹּֽאן׃ Isa7:10AndYHVH continued speaking to Ahaz, saying,   וַיּ֣וֹסֶף יְהוָ֔ה דַּבֵּ֥ר אֶל־אָחָ֖זלֵאמֹֽר׃  

Royal infidelities continue in the period from Jehoram to Ahaz. This era is probably one of the most frightening in the history of the divided kingdom as the line of David is nearly snuffed out due to a bad marriage, but God's protection carries Judah through such dark times. Yet, the kingdom continues to spiral out of control under the evil king Ahaz. Enjoy this sample from Lesson 9, "Royal Infidelity: Jehoram to Ahaz (2 Chron 21-28)" from Dr. Nick's ten-part course, "1-2 Chronicles: The Kingdom of the Lord." Anyone can join our community of students and stream the entire audio lesson and full course (and other courses too!) whenever they wish.

In this episode, Pastor Cindy shares about dreams and repeated late-night smoke-alarm incidents as a prophetic “alarm” that spiritual warfare is present but restrained by the body of Christ and the blood of Jesus. Turning to Hezekiah in 2 Chronicles 29–32, she describes how Hezekiah reversed his father Ahaz's evil by restoring the temple, cleansing worship, renewing covenant, and urging God's people not to neglect their calling, especially during transition. Reformation, she warns, alerts the enemy, illustrated by the Assyrian king's intimidation, taunts, and “did God really say” lies. Hezekiah's strategy included shutting off water (closing enemy access), strengthening defenses, preparing resources, and encouraging courage; Isaiah and Hezekiah prayed and God sent an angel to defeat the enemy. The message distinguishes “open doors” (misalignment like disobedience, unforgiveness, anger) from oppression, then leads prayers to close doors, break demonic assignments, and declare restoration, favor, provision, and breakthrough. Scripture references: 2 Peter 1:5–7, Isaiah 43:19, 2 Chronicles 29:1–2, 2 Chronicles 29:6–9, 2 Chronicles 29:10–11, 2 Chronicles 29:17, 2 Chronicles 29:18, 2 Chronicles 29:25–30, 2 Chronicles 29:36, 2 Chronicles 32:1–7, 1 Samuel 30:6, Joshua 1:9, 2 Chronicles 32:10–15, 2 Chronicles 28:23–25, 2 Chronicles 32:20–23, Romans 8:28   Order your copy of Cindy's new book, FROM VISION TO VICTORY Check out Cindy's TV show, CINDY STEWART LIVE. You can register for the 6-week, self paced e-course at COMPELLED TO CHANGE.  Please email Cindy with any questions or comments to cindy@cindy-stewart.com. She'd love to hear from you.  Pastor Cindy's Website  Pastor Cindy's Facebook  Pastor Cindy's Instagram Gathering Website  Gathering Facebook   Produced by  KB PODCASTS Podcast music from SOUNDSTRIPE.COM  

Ahaz's foolish decision to trust in his own plan instead of trusting in the power and the promise of God led Judah into some dark days. In this passage we get a taste of the days that were ahead of Judah, but we also remember the promise that God does not abandon his people. In that day, He is still with them.

Garth Heckman The David Alliance TDAgiantSlayer@Gmail.com      2 Kings 22 2 Chronicles 32 ISAIAH 22   2 Kings 18:5 "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.”   Hezekiah's reign was defined by a radical, almost stubborn reliance on God during a time of national crisis.   He became king after one of Judah's worst rulers, **Ahaz**, (HIS FATHER!) who had plunged the nation into idolatry. Hezekiah reversed the spiritual direction of the nation.   How does this happen… a 25 year old in the prime of life, sex drive, life drive and power… how did he turn out completely different from his father? Well… he had a mom called Abijah the daughter of the prophet Zechariah… Now I don't know why she married him, but she did. Ahaz's wickedness—idolatry, child sacrifice, and alliances with pagan powers (2 Kings 16)—developed or became evident during his reign, but he was likely already crown prince or young king when the marriage was arranged. Ancient betrothals or marriages could occur in youth (Ahaz was around 20 when he became king, and Hezekiah was born when Ahaz was quite young), often before a person's full character was manifest or before major moral failings were public.   Beside the point… King Hezekiah was a complete 180 from his father… Mom did something right!    Our tendency is to think that when we are genuinely faithful to God we will be immune from attack. The experience of Hezekiah and countless other men and women of God tell us otherwise.   He does everything right in the face of unbelievable circumstances… truly an uphill demonic battle and for his faithfulness and troubles he gets attacked from the worst enemy in the world.

Ahaz is in a pickle: Judah is being attacked on literally every side God brings an encouraging prophecy to Ahaz and tells him to ask for a sign, but Ahaz refuses Ahaz begs the king of Assyria for help - in a similar fashion as one would pray to God Ahaz completely shutters the temple to God and replaces it with idols Why idolatry breeds selfishness, which, in turn breeds violence Hey! Look at this other P40 content! YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnh-aqfg8rw Ko-Fi - https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Website - https://www.p40ministries.com Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/p40ministries Contact - jenn@p40ministries.com Rumble - https://rumble.com/c/c-6493869 Books - https://www.amazon.com/Jenn-Kokal/e/B095JCRNHY/ref=aufs_dp_fta_dsk Merch - https://www.p40ministries.com/shop YouVersion - https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/38267-out-of-the-mire-trusting-god-in-the-middle Check out LifeAudio for other faith-based podcasts on parenting, studying Scripture, and more: www.lifeaudio.com Become a member to gain access to The Bible Explained on Fridays: https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Support babies and get quality coffee with Seven Weeks Coffee https://sevenweekscoffee.com/?ref=P40 Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Pastor Adam BowersIn this message from 2 Chronicles 29:18 to 30, Pastor Adam Bowers takes a deep dive into how King Hezekiah restored the temple after his father Ahaz allowed it to fall into ruin. This powerful Bible teaching explores three key expressions of biblical worship that still apply to Christians today: tools of worship, sacrificial worship, and musical worship. After years of neglect, Hezekiah reopened the temple, called the priests and Levites to purify it, and restored the instruments, furniture, and sacred items that had been discarded. Their care for the tools of worship showed their reverence for God. What does that mean for the church today? From musical instruments and technology to communion elements and Bibles, how we care for what we use in worship reflects how we honor God. The people also offered sacrifices, not leftovers but the best of what they had. While we no longer bring animal sacrifices, Romans 12 and Romans 15 remind us that we worship through sacrificial giving, serving, investing in others, and offering our whole lives to God. Finally, worship in Jerusalem was filled with music. Cymbals, harps, lyres, trumpets, and voices joined together as the people praised the Lord with the Psalms of David and Asaph. Their organized, joyful praise followed repentance and sacrifice. If you are searching for a sermon on 2 Chronicles 29, a Bible study on Hezekiah, or a message about true worship and sacrifice, this teaching will help you understand what it means to honor God with reverence, generosity, and praise. Join us as we rediscover what real worship looks like and respond by offering our lives to God.

Part 18 of the series in 1 and 2 Chronices. The reigns of Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham and Ahaz - ups and downs in Judah.

A new King of Judah is introduced: Ahaz is one of the worst kings in Judah's history Ahaz sacrifices his own children by burning them alive God's heart for children in the Levitical laws What God feels about abortion Be sure to click every link: YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnh-aqfg8rw Ko-Fi - https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Website - https://www.p40ministries.com Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/p40ministries Contact - jenn@p40ministries.com Rumble - https://rumble.com/c/c-6493869 Books - https://www.amazon.com/Jenn-Kokal/e/B095JCRNHY/ref=aufs_dp_fta_dsk Merch - https://www.p40ministries.com/shop YouVersion - https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/38267-out-of-the-mire-trusting-god-in-the-middle This episode is sponsored by Trinity Debt Management. If you are struggling with debt, call Trinity today. Trinity's counselors have the knowledge and resources to make a difference. Our intention is to help people become debt-free, and most importantly, remain debt-free for keeps! If your debt has you down, we should talk. Call us at 1-800-793-8548 | https://trinitycredit.org TrinityCredit – Call us at 1-800-793-8548. Whether we're helping people pay off their unsecured debt or offering assistance to those behind in their mortgage payments. https://trinitycredit.org Check out LifeAudio for other faith-based podcasts on parenting, studying Scripture, and more: www.lifeaudio.com Become a member to gain access to The Bible Explained on Fridays: https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Ahaz wouldn't ask for a sign, but the Lord gave him one anyway; a son born of a virgin whose name would be Immanuel, God with us.

“The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast.” Zephaniah 1:14 Zephaniah speaks at the precise moment when Judah's long experiment with compromise reaches its breaking point. This is not a story of transferred allegiance, but of accommodation. Judah still carries the Lord's name and maintains His Temple, but they have woven other gods into the fabric of daily life. This is YHWH-plus religion. It presents itself as a sophisticated, tolerant "synthesis," but it is far more dangerous than honest paganism. Judah's elites swore by the LORD and by Milcom in the same breath (Zeph. 1:5), treating God's Word as negotiable opinion rather than final authority. Zephaniah begins with a rare four-generation genealogy, tracing his line back to King Hezekiah. As a royal cousin to King Josiah, he is a "Corrective Branch" of the family tree. While the ruling line under Manasseh and Amon sought power through foreign alliances, Zephaniah's branch had been preserving the "Unbroken Chain." Even his father's name, Cushi ("The Ethiopian"), hints at the persistent "Cushite" thread in the Bible - from the Queen of Sheba's quest for wisdom to the faithful Ebed-Melech in Jeremiah. It is a reminder that while Judah's heart was narrowing, the Word was already reaching for the ends of the earth. The shadow behind this book is Manasseh. His fifty-five-year reign was not a mere slide into sin, but a violent overwriting of the Covenant. He did not just shut the Temple, as did Ahaz; he occupied it with idols, training a generation to live comfortably inside compromise and contradiction. Though his late repentance was real, he had already "filled Jerusalem with innocent blood," silencing the voices that refused to compromise. Zephaniah's own name - meaning “YHWH has hidden” - is a bridge across these dark years. He is the voice of the "hidden seed," the remnant God treasured during the long silence of the Manasseh era. The fact that the Book of the Law had to be "found" in the Temple is the ultimate indictment: the Word was functionally lost in a nation that only claimed to honor it. Zephaniah declares judgment as irreversible because compromise has hardened into identity. Judah's people convinced themselves that “the Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill” (Zeph. 1:12). They believed God had become a silent partner in His own universe, neither acting nor speaking decisively. Indifference had hardened into theology. Zephaniah announces "the day of the Lord" to shatter that illusion. Divine judgment is the public demonstration that history is not self-governing; God will intervene. Yet the call to "seek" remains open to the humble - those who let the Word judge them instead of editing the Word to match their preferences. Zephaniah's message speaks to our present as well as his own. Today's threat isn't atheism. It is Christian indifference in the face of compromise and the relocation of authority outside God's word. A community can retain sacred vocabulary and religious formalism while quietly shifting its trust to cultural approval and the word of man. When God's Word becomes negotiable, it is often not denied in theory, neutralized in practice. Renewal must begin where Josiah began: with the recovery of the Word as authoritative Truth. Zephaniah stands as a compact argument that divided allegiance is unsustainable, that compromise is apostasy, and that hope survives only where God's word is the believer's final Voice. For us, too, the Day of the LORD is imminent. Let us "set our house in order."

“The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast.” Zephaniah 1:14 Zephaniah speaks at the precise moment when Judah's long experiment with compromise reaches its breaking point. This is not a story of transferred allegiance, but of accommodation. Judah still carries the Lord's name and maintains His Temple, but they have woven other gods into the fabric of daily life. This is YHWH-plus religion. It presents itself as a sophisticated, tolerant "synthesis," but it is far more dangerous than honest paganism. Judah's elites swore by the LORD and by Milcom in the same breath (Zeph. 1:5), treating God's Word as negotiable opinion rather than final authority. Zephaniah begins with a rare four-generation genealogy, tracing his line back to King Hezekiah. As a royal cousin to King Josiah, he is a "Corrective Branch" of the family tree. While the ruling line under Manasseh and Amon sought power through foreign alliances, Zephaniah's branch had been preserving the "Unbroken Chain." Even his father's name, Cushi ("The Ethiopian"), hints at the persistent "Cushite" thread in the Bible - from the Queen of Sheba's quest for wisdom to the faithful Ebed-Melech in Jeremiah. It is a reminder that while Judah's heart was narrowing, the Word was already reaching for the ends of the earth. The shadow behind this book is Manasseh. His fifty-five-year reign was not a mere slide into sin, but a violent overwriting of the Covenant. He did not just shut the Temple, as did Ahaz; he occupied it with idols, training a generation to live comfortably inside compromise and contradiction. Though his late repentance was real, he had already "filled Jerusalem with innocent blood," silencing the voices that refused to compromise. Zephaniah's own name - meaning “YHWH has hidden” - is a bridge across these dark years. He is the voice of the "hidden seed," the remnant God treasured during the long silence of the Manasseh era. The fact that the Book of the Law had to be "found" in the Temple is the ultimate indictment: the Word was functionally lost in a nation that only claimed to honor it. Zephaniah declares judgment as irreversible because compromise has hardened into identity. Judah's people convinced themselves that “the Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill” (Zeph. 1:12). They believed God had become a silent partner in His own universe, neither acting nor speaking decisively. Indifference had hardened into theology. Zephaniah announces "the day of the Lord" to shatter that illusion. Divine judgment is the public demonstration that history is not self-governing; God will intervene. Yet the call to "seek" remains open to the humble - those who let the Word judge them instead of editing the Word to match their preferences. Zephaniah's message speaks to our present as well as his own. Today's threat isn't atheism. It is Christian indifference in the face of compromise and the relocation of authority outside God's word. A community can retain sacred vocabulary and religious formalism while quietly shifting its trust to cultural approval and the word of man. When God's Word becomes negotiable, it is often not denied in theory, neutralized in practice. Renewal must begin where Josiah began: with the recovery of the Word as authoritative Truth. Zephaniah stands as a compact argument that divided allegiance is unsustainable, that compromise is apostasy, and that hope survives only where God's word is the believer's final Voice. For us, too, the Day of the LORD is imminent. Let us "set our house in order."

“The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast.” Zephaniah 1:14 Zephaniah speaks at the precise moment when Judah's long experiment with compromise reaches its breaking point. This is not a story of transferred allegiance, but of accommodation. Judah still carries the Lord's name and maintains His Temple, but they have woven other gods into the fabric of daily life. This is YHWH-plus religion. It presents itself as a sophisticated, tolerant "synthesis," but it is far more dangerous than honest paganism. Judah's elites swore by the LORD and by Milcom in the same breath (Zeph. 1:5), treating God's Word as negotiable opinion rather than final authority. Zephaniah begins with a rare four-generation genealogy, tracing his line back to King Hezekiah. As a royal cousin to King Josiah, he is a "Corrective Branch" of the family tree. While the ruling line under Manasseh and Amon sought power through foreign alliances, Zephaniah's branch had been preserving the "Unbroken Chain." Even his father's name, Cushi ("The Ethiopian"), hints at the persistent "Cushite" thread in the Bible - from the Queen of Sheba's quest for wisdom to the faithful Ebed-Melech in Jeremiah. It is a reminder that while Judah's heart was narrowing, the Word was already reaching for the ends of the earth. The shadow behind this book is Manasseh. His fifty-five-year reign was not a mere slide into sin, but a violent overwriting of the Covenant. He did not just shut the Temple, as did Ahaz; he occupied it with idols, training a generation to live comfortably inside compromise and contradiction. Though his late repentance was real, he had already "filled Jerusalem with innocent blood," silencing the voices that refused to compromise. Zephaniah's own name - meaning “YHWH has hidden” - is a bridge across these dark years. He is the voice of the "hidden seed," the remnant God treasured during the long silence of the Manasseh era. The fact that the Book of the Law had to be "found" in the Temple is the ultimate indictment: the Word was functionally lost in a nation that only claimed to honor it. Zephaniah declares judgment as irreversible because compromise has hardened into identity. Judah's people convinced themselves that “the Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill” (Zeph. 1:12). They believed God had become a silent partner in His own universe, neither acting nor speaking decisively. Indifference had hardened into theology. Zephaniah announces "the day of the Lord" to shatter that illusion. Divine judgment is the public demonstration that history is not self-governing; God will intervene. Yet the call to "seek" remains open to the humble - those who let the Word judge them instead of editing the Word to match their preferences. Zephaniah's message speaks to our present as well as his own. Today's threat isn't atheism. It is Christian indifference in the face of compromise and the relocation of authority outside God's word. A community can retain sacred vocabulary and religious formalism while quietly shifting its trust to cultural approval and the word of man. When God's Word becomes negotiable, it is often not denied in theory, neutralized in practice. Renewal must begin where Josiah began: with the recovery of the Word as authoritative Truth. Zephaniah stands as a compact argument that divided allegiance is unsustainable, that compromise is apostasy, and that hope survives only where God's word is the believer's final Voice. For us, too, the Day of the LORD is imminent. Let us "set our house in order."

THE PROPHET ISAIAH lived through turbulent times, with kings of Judah who ranged from the good (Hezekiah, Jotham. Uzziah) to the evil (Ahaz, Manasseh, Amon).  In Isaiah 7, the prophet is sent to Ahaz by God with a word about the invasion of his land by the combined forces of Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel. This was despite the fact that Ahaz “made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering” (2 Chr. 28:3, ESV), a reference to the sacrifice of children to Molech. God gave Ahaz a sign, an already-but-not-yet prophecy:  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. (Isa. 7:14–16, ESV)This was a promise that Judah would not be conquered by his northern neighbors, but it was also a promise that a virgin in the future (Mary) would give birth to “God with us”—the meaning of the name Immanuel. Sharon's niece, Sarah Sachleben, has been diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer, and the medical bills are piling up. If you are led to help, please go to GilbertHouse.org/hopeforsarah. Our new book The Gates of Hell is now available in paperback, Kindle, and as an audiobook at Audible! Derek's new book Destination: Earth, co-authored with Donna Howell and Allie Anderson, is now available in paperback, Kindle, and as an audiobook at Audible! If you are looking for a text of the Book of 1 Enoch to follow our monthly study, you can try these sources: Parallel translations by R. H. Charles (1917) and Richard Laurence (1821)Modern English translation by George W. E. Nickelsburg and James VanderKam (link to book at Amazon)Book of 1 Enoch - Standard English Version by Dr. Jay Winter (link opens free PDF)Book of 1 Enoch - R. H. Charles translation (link opens free PDF) The SkyWatchTV store has a special offer on Dr. Michael Heiser's two-volume set A Companion to the Book of Enoch. Get both books, the R. H. Charles translation of 1 Enoch, and a DVD interview with Mike and Steven Bancarz for a donation of $35 plus shipping and handling. Link: https://bit.ly/heiser-enoch Follow us! • X: @gilberthouse_tv | @sharonkgilbert | @derekgilbert• Telegram: t.me/gilberthouse | t.me/sharonsroom | t.me/viewfromthebunker• YouTube: @GilbertHouse | @UnravelingRevelation | @thebiblesgreatestmysteries• Facebook.com/GilbertHouseFellowship Thank you for making our Build Barn Better project a reality! We truly appreciate your support. If you are so led, you can help out at GilbertHouse.org/donate. Get our free app! It connects you to these studies plus our weekly video programs Unraveling Revelation and A View from the Bunker, and the podcast that started this journey in 2005, P.I.D. Radio. Best of all, it bypasses the gatekeepers of Big Tech! The app is available for iOS, Android, Roku, and Apple TV. Links to the app stores are at www.gilberthouse.org/app/. Video on demand of our best teachings! Stream presentations and teachings based on our research at our new video on demand site! Gilbert House T-shirts and mugs! New to our store is a line of GHTV and Redwing Saga merch! Check it out at GilbertHouse.org/store! Think better, feel better! Our partners at Simply Clean Foods offer freeze-dried, 100% GMO-free food and delicious, vacuum-packed fair trade coffee from Honduras. Find out more at GilbertHouse.org/store. Our favorite Bible study tools! Check the links in the left-hand column at www.GilbertHouse.org.

This series shows the lessons we can learn, both good and bad, from the Kings of the Old Testament. Today, Pastor Terry shares about King Jotham and King Ahaz. Have you been blessed by this message? Please bless us back by clicking like, sharing and commenting on our messages. If you need prayer, leave a message below or call us at 314-303-2141 and we will pray for you. Would you like to know more about becoming a Christian? Click here: http://summitchurch.us/Becoming-a-Christian If you would like to help support us financially, go to http://summitchurch.us/Giving

THE PROPHET ISAIAH lived through turbulent times, with kings of Judah who ranged from the good (Hezekiah, Jotham. Uzziah) to the evil (Ahaz, Manasseh, Amon).In Isaiah 7, the prophet is sent to Ahaz by God with a word about the invasion of his land by the combined forces of Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel. This was despite the fact that Ahaz “made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering” (2 Chr. 28:3, ESV), a reference to the sacrifice of children to Molech.God gave Ahaz a sign, an already-but-not-yet prophecy: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. (Isa. 7:14–16, ESV)This was a promise that Judah would not be conquered by his northern neighbors, but it was also a promise that a virgin in the future (Mary) would give birth to “God with us”—the meaning of the name Immanuel.

We trace Judah's fall under Ahaz—idolatry, closed temple, failed alliances—and the swift, grounded reform of Hezekiah, who reopens the doors, restores worship, and leads a nation back to covenant. Practical steps close the episode: Scripture, prayer, praise, and costly, honest change.• Ahaz's idolatry and national humiliation• Prophetic rebuke and mercy toward captives• Foreign help fails and pride deepens• Hezekiah opens the temple and repairs• Consecration of priests and Levites• Sacrifice, music, and communal worship restored• Practical habits to return to God• Repentance as reopening, not performanceToday's the day to get back on track.Send Mike a quick message! (If you seek a reply, instead please contact through Outloudbible.com) Support the showCheck out outloudbible.com for helpful study resources, and to discover how to bring the public reading of God's word to your church, conference, retreat, or other event.

By David Chornomaz - The message explores the life and reign of King Hezekiah, highlighting his exceptional leadership and spiritual reforms in Judah after inheriting a legacy of corruption from his father, Ahaz. Despite some flaws, Hezekiah's reign is celebrated for its positive influence, humility, and commitment to

Isaiah 7:10-17 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 "Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven." 12 But Ahaz said, "I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test." 13 And he said, "Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when He knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!"   Key Words: Ask, Sign, House, David, Virgin, Bear, Immanuel Keystone Verses: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)     DOWNLOAD BULLETIN

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251222dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 Look to the Sign We live in a world that constantly demands signs. Politicians promise change, and we look for signs that things will improve. Doctors give us a diagnosis, and we want signs that treatments will work. Even in our spiritual lives, we sometimes find ourselves asking God for signs as proof that he is with us, proof that he hears us and will help us. King Ahaz, the king of Judah, was in a difficult spot when Isaiah spoke the words of our Bible reading for today. Powerful armies threatened him. God offered him a sign of his faithfulness, but Ahaz doubted God. God’s promise did not depend on Ahaz’s faith. The Lord himself gave the sign: a virgin would conceive and give birth to a son, and his name would be Immanuel, “God with us.” Centuries later, Matthew's gospel revealed how wonderfully God kept that promise. The virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus, and in him God truly was with us, not just in spirit, not only in power, but in the flesh. He came to stand in our place, to live the perfect life we could not, and to die the death our sins deserved. The ultimate sign of God’s faithfulness is the cross and the empty tomb. What does this mean for us? It means we never need to doubt whether God is with us. Whatever troubles surround us—health concerns, family struggles, financial stress, or guilt from our sins—God has already given us the sign. In Jesus, he is with us. And if he is with us, then who can be against us? So, when doubts creep in, return to the sign God has given. Look to the manger, the cross, and the empty tomb. There you see Immanuel, God with us, God with you. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to be my Immanuel. When I am afraid or tempted to doubt, turn my eyes back to you and the sign of your love. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

In 735 BC Isaiah gave a prophecy to king Ahaz about a young woman giving birth to a boy called Immanuel—a prophecy that seemed to be fulfilled with the birth of Hezekiah and the destruction of Aram and Samaria. But there was to be a much deeper fulfillment of this prophecy—as deep as Sheol, as high as heaven—because the testimony of JESUS is the spirit of prophecy.

Isaiah 7:10-16Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19Romans 1:1-7Matthew 1:18-25Phil Aud+Fourth Sunday of Adventwww.allsoulsknoxville.comAll Souls Substack865-214-6682100 W 5th Ave., KnoxvilleSundays @ 10:30amSupport the show

Gospel Matthew 1:1-17 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile. After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ. Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Christ, fourteen generations. Reflection If you happen to be a lecture in a parish, and comes your turn to be the reader you're hoping is not this reading. It's so interesting because people say, well, why does this matter? And it does matter essentially to understand how God is working in your life, and in my life. He's so connected to the ordinary. You're listening to a kind of an ancestral.com report about who your relatives are. And it's interesting and curious to think that your generations go back, but can you realize that what God is saying is, from the beginning of time, I have been working with ordinary people in ordinary circumstances, slowly enabling them to grow and evolve and change until they were ripe and ready to receive the most extraordinary gift. Mary, being infused with the Holy Spirit and giving birth to Jesus. It happened naturally. It continues to grow and happen naturally. I look back at the generations in my family and they were different than I am, and each generation somehow learns from the generation before. That's the process of evolving into the people that God calls us to be. The family that ultimately is the final goal is you living in God with God and feeling those around you. Closing Prayer Father, it's hard for us to realize that these things, marvelous things that you have accomplished in the world, were done in such a simple, ordinary, human way. It's all about us understanding how human you are and how your humanity, when it is directed toward us, awakens in us something so natural that we cannot not be drawn to your beauty, your wonder, your grace that comes to us through most ordinary ways. And we ask this in Jesus' name, Amen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“When they say to you, ‘Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers'… should not a people inquire of their God?” In the dark days of Ahaz, Judah turns to superstition and political schemes instead of trusting the Lord. The result is gloom, fear, and thick darkness. Yet into that same darkness Isaiah speaks a breathtaking promise: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” In part 7 of our special 12-part series connecting Old Testament prophecy to New Testament fulfillment, we follow the movement from judgment to hope; from stumbling over the stone of offense to the dawning of a great light in Galilee of the nations. The promised Child, the Son who is given, will be God himself.  The Rev. John Shank, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Edwardsville, IL, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Isaiah 8:19–9:7.  To learn more about Trinity in Edwardsville, visit trinitylutheranministries.org. This Advent series begins by covering the last Old Testament prophet, Malachi, and then spends twelve episodes alternating between Old Testament prophecy and New Testament fulfillment, tracing God's promises from Isaiah to the birth of Christ. The series explores Emmanuel's promise, the Davidic King, John the Baptist as forerunner, and reaches its climax with the Nativity. The final episodes examine the Suffering Servant, the shadow of the cross in Christ's infancy, Isaiah's Messianic mission statement, and John's declaration that "the Word became flesh."  Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God's Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

Notes Matthew 1:18-25 Isaiah 7:10-16 Romans 1:1-7 Summary In this episode of the Pulpit Fiction Podcast, hosts Robb and Eric discuss the readings for the fourth Sunday of Advent, focusing on Matthew 1:18-25, Isaiah 7:10-16, and Romans 1:1-7. They explore the significance of Joseph's role in the birth of Jesus, the prophetic message of Isaiah regarding Emmanuel, and the implications of Paul's letter to the Romans. The conversation emphasizes themes of faith, the importance of trusting in God, and the call to action for believers during the Advent season. Takeaways The birth of Jesus is a significant event in the Gospel of Matthew, focusing on Joseph's role. Joseph's righteousness is highlighted as he chooses compassion over the law. Isaiah's prophecy about Emmanuel emphasizes God's presence with us. Advent is a time of waiting and preparation, calling for active faith. The third way of trusting in God amidst challenges is crucial. The names of Jesus carry deep meaning and significance. Paul's letter to the Romans connects the promise of God to all people. The role of adoptive fathers is an important theme in the narrative. Faith in God calls us to action and advocacy for justice. The conversation encourages a deeper understanding of scripture and its application.  Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Advent and the Gospel Readings 06:57 Exploring Matthew 1:18-25 - The Birth of Jesus 25:48 Isaiah 7:10-16 - The Prophecy of Emmanuel 27:31 The Context of Isaiah and Ahaz 30:05 The Third Way: Trusting in God 33:22 Vulnerability and the Sign of a Child 39:17 Active Faith in a Troubled World 44:34 Eschatology and the Promise of Christ

In this episode, Greg and Nathan continue in their series, Promised & Fulfilled, the hosts journey into one of the most iconic and debated prophecies in Scripture: Isaiah's promise of a virgin-born son called Immanuel—“God with us.” Greg and Nathan unpack the drama of Isaiah 7:14 against the backdrop of the Syro-Ephraimite crisis, where King Ahaz faced political panic and spiritual compromise. Into that moment, God offered a sign—a child whose birth would speak both judgment and hope. But how does this ancient promise connect to the quiet, miraculous arrival of Jesus in Bethlehem centuries later? Drawing from Isaiah 7:14 and Matthew 1:22–23, the episode explores: The historical setting of Ahaz and the looming threats of Syria and Israel The meaning of the Hebrew ‘almah and the Septuagint's use of parthenos (“virgin”) How Matthew reads Isaiah's words as ultimately fulfilled in Christ The rich theme of typology and the possibility of dual fulfillment—one child in Ahaz's day, another in the fullness of time Thoughtful, accessible, and rooted in Scripture, this episode invites listeners to behold the wonder of Immanuel—God with us—promised in prophecy and fulfilled at Christmas.

Matthew 1:1–17 - [1] The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. [2] Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, [3] and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, [4] and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, [5] and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, [6] and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, [7] and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, [8] and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, [9] and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, [10] and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, [11] and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. [12] And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, [13] and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, [14] and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, [15] and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, [16] and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. [17] So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations. (ESV)   THE EVENING MINDSET IS COMING! Beginning January 1 - 2026 - A new DAILY podcast will be available to help you wind down, reset your mind on God’s truth, and prepare for a night of rest and rejuvenation. “The Daily Mindset” will launch on the podcast player of your choice on January 1, 2026. Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode: https://EveningMindset.com