Podcasts about Hittites

07/19/2026 Jacob Kim   Judges 2:20-3:6   20 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he said, “Because this people have transgressed my covenant that I commanded their fathers and have not obeyed my voice, 21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died, 22 in order to test Israel by them, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord as their fathers did, or not.” 23 So the Lord left those nations, not driving them out quickly, and he did not give them into the hand of Joshua. 3 Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them, that is, all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan. 2 It was only in order that the generations of the people of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before. 3 These are the nations: the five lords of the Philistines and all the Canaanites and the Sidonians and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon as far as Lebo-hamath. 4 They were for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses. 5 So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods.

Joshua 3Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3 giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits[a] between you and the ark; do not go near it.” 5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” 6 Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they took it up and went ahead of them. 7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'” 9 Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. 10 This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. 11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. 12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” 14 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 15 Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground. 1. God goes before His people Joshua 3:1 NIV Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. Joshua 3:3, NIV3 … “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Joshua 3:4 NIV 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits[a] between you and the ark; do not go near it.” 2. God prepares His people before He moves them Joshua 3:5 NIV 5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” 3. Faith steps before it sees Joshua 3:7 NIV 7And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. Joshua 3:8 NIV 8Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'” Joshua 3:13 NIV 3 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” Joshua 3:15 NIVNow the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, Joshua 3:16 NIV 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. Joshua 3:17 NIV 17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground. Joshua 4:1-3 NIV When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, 2 “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, 3 and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight.” Joshua 4:6-7 NIVto serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?' 7 tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”

This recording is a condensed version of the sermon preached at the Land Dedication Service of Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mankato, Minnesota at Reserve Park on July 12, 2026. You can watch the full recording on our YouTube Channel.   Sermon Text: Numbers 13:17-33 (NKJV) Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 “and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 “whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 “whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath. 22 And they went up through the South and came to Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 Then they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. 24 The place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. 25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days. 26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 “Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 “The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.” 30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 “There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”   Theme: This Land Is God's Land

The world can be a scary place – so many things that strike fear in our hearts. And yet over and over again, God says "Do Not be Afraid." What does that mean? How does that work?   Spiders and Snakes I don't know about you but as I look around, it seems to me that the world can be a scary place. Take spiders and snakes – I mean, depending on where you live in this world, they are either dangerous or they're not. Here in Australia we are seriously over represented in the world's "top ten" list of most venomous creatures, so when I was growing up as a child I had good reason to be afraid of them. And still today, the idea of a spider crawling into my bed … ! It's one of the scariest thoughts I can come up with. Let me tell you a funny story. One of the most venomous snakes on the planet is the death adder – great name isn't it? When I was in the Army training to be an officer at the Royal Military College Duntroon, we were one day out doing some grenade practice and that meant you had to sit in bunkers and the person who was throwing the grenade would go out and throw their grenade. Now we had New Zealanders as well as Australians at the Royal Military College and in New Zealand there are no venomous animals at all, so when the Kiwis come across the ditch to Australia, they are petrified of our snakes and our spiders. Well one Kiwi, we'll call him Rock – I've got to tell you this death adder story. He went out of the bunker to go and throw his grenade and we had a dead death adder. So we positioned it in the bunker so he had to sit down right next to it when he came in. Well he came in and he sat down and he looked at it and I've got to tell you, his legs were going before his backside was up off the log and he was running out. We can laugh about it now but the world can be a scary place, especially with friends like me. In my defence I was a young man at the time. So this week we are starting a new series on the programme, it's called "Do Not be Afraid". There is a reason for that – there are lots of people in this world who spend much of their lives living in fear. Sometimes it's because they are living in a war zone – I mean there are plenty of people listening to this programme today who know that only too well. People in the Democratic Republic of Congo for instance, where there is war raging in parts right now – some of those people are sitting in their homes listening to this programme today wondering whether they will see tomorrow or next week or next year. Other times there are different life threatening things that happen. We can have a health scare. The morning I sat down to prepare this message was the morning of the funeral of a friend of mine. Now, he was just a couple of years older than me and he died suddenly of a heart attack. It's easy to be afraid – and it rocks our confidence. And yet other people, they just live lives with a real sense of dread. There is always something there for us to be afraid of or to dread. There is always something lurking out there. For me honestly, if I allowed it, I could be afraid of quite a few things. I mean, I have some things in my life right now that could cause me to experience fear – and that's the thing. It doesn't matter who we are or where we live or … whatever, we all go through times of fear. And that fear can rob us of life itself but time and time and time again, you read in God's Word, these words from God to His people. He says, "Do not be afraid." And He speaks them right at the time when the people He is talking to have every reason to be afraid. They have got people and circumstances coming against them and conspiring against them and they're experiencing fear and yet God wades in and says, "Do not be afraid." Now if God doesn't want me to be afraid when I have every reason to be afraid, you know something? I want to have a piece of His brand of confidence. Don't you think? I mean, think about it! What's the point of God saying, "Do not be afraid", when we have no reason to fear? It's right in the middle of our fear that we need His confidence. I definitely want that – how about you? Well, how can we have that confidence? That's a good question – that's what today's programme is about – that's what this whole four week series is about … "Do not be afraid." So I invite you to come on a journey with me. We are going to start that journey with an account of a time when God's chosen people, Israel, had every reason to be afraid. They were in exile – they had been living in the Promised Land for about five hundred years and yet they had struggled with God. They had worshipped idols and other gods and eventually the Lord their God lost His patience. So in around 586BC, the Babylonians, who were the dominant world power of the day, invaded Jerusalem. They destroyed the place – they destroyed the temple, the place where God's presence dwelt and they took this remnant of God's people back to Babylon as slaves. Talk about a crisis of confidence! Think about it – God made all these promises to Abraham and to Isaac and Jacob and then when Israel was enslaved in Egypt, He sent Moses and did amazing miracles and the whole Red Sea thing and the exodus and the manna from heaven … everything that got them to the Promised Land. And when they got there, with Joshua as their leader, they fought battle after battle against nation after nation that was bigger and stronger than Israel itself and yet God was with His chosen people and they took the land that God had promised them. And now … now Babylon wins! God's own temple is destroyed! Where is God? What happened? Are the Babylonian gods stronger than our God? They have a loss of confidence – it's a big thing. I mean we hear people talking about shareholder confidence and consumer confidence and that feeling when you go to sleep at night, you know, you get that falling sensation and you wake up in a panic, grabbing onto the bed. Confidence is the trust that the earth beneath our feet won't move. It's the trust that the stock market won't fall; it's the trust that the plane we are flying in won't fall off the sky; it's the trust that our governments will do the right thing – it's about trusting, whatever. And then, it's like the rug gets pulled out from under your feet and you lose confidence and panic and fear set in. Why? Because we no longer feel safe – we are no longer able to trust in the things that we have always trusted in. That's where Israel was – there was a complete loss of confidence in their God. Now He was punishing them but they couldn't quite see that. It was like they were flying in a plane at thirty two thousand feet above the ground and all of a sudden, all the engines are silent – panic, fear! And fair enough too! So what does God say to them right in the middle of their fear and panic ... what does God have to say? We are going to take a look at that next.   I am Your God So here is Israel in this scary, fearful place. They have in slavery, exiled in Babylon for the best part of three generations – that's a long time – so only a handful of Israel's elders who can even remember Jerusalem in its heyday. So what does God have to say to these people of His who are cowering in fear under the yoke of slavery? If you have got a Bible, grab it and open it up at Isaiah chapter 41, beginning at verse 8 – he says this: But you Israel, My servant Jacob whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, My friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth and called from its farthest corner, saying to you, "You are My servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off. Do not fear for I am with you. Do not be afraid for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My victorious right hand. See, the first thing that God does is He reminds them of His promises to Abraham. When Abraham stood in that Promised Land, centuries before, this is what God promised him – just flick back to Genesis chapter 15, verse 18: On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abraham, saying, "To your descendants I give this land; from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates, the land of the Kenites and the Kenizzites and the Kadmonites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Rephaim and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Girgashites and the Jebusites. See, God's promise is that God had chosen them; God had chosen Abraham, their ancestor, God had promised this land and God said, "I will do this." Notice it is all about God! Do not fear, I am with you; I am your God; I will strengthen you. I will help you; I will uphold you with My victorious right hand. The whole thing that God relies on here in talking to His people in their fear and in their despair, is not who they are or how strong they are or how clever they are, or how well they have done because they haven't, they are there being punished. No, He is saying to them, "Look who I am, My promise, I am your God, I am with you," but how does that help them? Isn't He the God who failed them seventy years earlier? Okay, so He sends them some prophet, Isaiah, to tell them this – BIG DEAL! And that may well be what you are going through right now. You look at your circumstances – they are so fearful! Okay, so God sends you some joker on the radio with a smooth voice who says "Do not be afraid", but how can you put your confidence in that? It was exactly the same problem that the Israelites had. Their circumstances, the Babylonians, looked so much bigger than their God. I mean, you think about it in your head and you know God is bigger than the things that we are confronting but in your heart, it's so hard to believe in your heart – the fear is destroying any confidence that you might have in God. God knew that – that's why He also said this to them: have a listen to this … this is powerful stuff! So let's pick it up in Isaiah chapter 40 – this is the chapter before the one we have been looking at, verse 18. Have a listen to what God says about Himself: To whom then were you likening God or what likeness compare with Him, an idol? A workman casts it and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains. As a gift one chooses mulberry wood – wood that will not rot – then seeks out a skilled artisan to set up an image that will not topple. Haven't you known? Haven't you heard? Hasn't it been told to you from the beginning? Haven't you understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches the heavens out like a curtain and spreads them like a tent to live in; who brings princes to nothing and makes rulers of the earth as nothing. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely are they sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when He blows upon them and they wither and the tempest carries them off like stubble. "To whom then will you compare Me, or who is My equal?" says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: Who created these? He who brings out their host and numbers them, calling them by name, because He is great in strength and mighty in power, not one of them is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the Lord and my right is disregarded by my God?" Haven't you known? Haven't you heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint and grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable." Do you see how powerful this is? God is saying, "Look, I am God. I created the whole shooting match. See those trillions of stars up there – lift up your eyes, have a look, who do you reckon put them there? I know the Babylonians worship them but I created them. They are out there every night because I tell them to march out there. This is Me who is talking to you – not some crummy idol like the stuff that Babylonians worship – I am bigger than your circumstances. It makes absolute sense to put your confidence in Me.' See, God is speaking this stuff into the hearts of His people when they are afraid; when they have no hope and no future, God comes along and says, "Do not be afraid. Not because of who you are; not because of your circumstances, no, do not be afraid because of who I am. I will come to help you; I will fight your battles for you; I will be your God; I will keep My promises to you."   A Part for God to Play The hardest thing I think in overcoming fear in life is actually getting to the point where we have a high level of confidence in God; in who God is, what He has done – His might and His power and His sovereignty. That all sounds great in theory but what about the practice; what about when the rubber hits the road, then what? See, I used to think it was up to me and I guess in part it is, but not completely. That's just as well because you and I, we're human. We can't conjure up confidence; we can't take this theory about who God is and let the theory somehow wipe away the fear because fear is real. Now, I need something more than that; I need something more than promises on paper and fortunately, that's exactly what God had planned too. He didn't want to leave it all up to us – He wants us to actually experience His peace – not our strength – but a "peace" and a "strength" that come from Him and Him alone. Let's pick up the rest of this story in Isaiah chapter 40, beginning at verse 28. This is what it says: Haven't you known? Haven't you heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable. Great, there was the theory again! But now, watch for what comes next! Verse 29: He gives power to the faint and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Do you see the point? The power and the strength, where do they come from – do you or I conjure them up? No, they come from God. He gives those things to us, why? Even youths will faint and be weary and the young and the strong will fall exhausted, but….." And here's the 'but' – the glorious, wondrous, powerful 'but,' "but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not grow faint." You know what it means to wait? It does not mean to wait with a bad attitude; it does not mean to wait with grumbling in our hearts and on our lips; it doesn't mean to stand there paralysed by fear either. No, it means to wait expectantly; to wait on God with the expectation that He is who He says He is and that He will do what He says He is going to do. To wait, right in the middle of our fear – boy that's hard – with our emotions on a rollercoaster; with our enemies around us; with our hearts cast down but with an expectation, never the less, that somewhere deep inside, that God is going to act. Who knows – will God give us victory over our enemies today? I don't know! I mean there were more Christians martyred in the twentieth century than in the whole two thousand years before that, combined. We all die sometimes – is He going to heal this cancer or let it take its course? I don't know! But this one thing I do know, that: those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they will mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. God is saying, indeed He is commanding us through His Word today, "Do not be afraid" instead, wait on Him. You know, when we are waiting in fear and when we are waiting in pain and when we are waiting and it is uncomfortable and unpleasant, we want to grumble and whinge and complain and blame everyone else and have bad stuff coming out of our mouths and have grumbling in our hearts … isn't that what we want to do? We don't like being uncomfortable; we don't like being afraid, we just want it all to finish – "God what are You doing? Come on, move along, let's get over this." But those who wait….who wait expectantly for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. See, come what may, if I am diagnosed tomorrow with terminal cancer, I still am going to put my confidence in God who has given me a life eternal with Him. Because Jesus said to His disciples when they were afraid…..listen to this, John chapter 14, verse 27: Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I don't give it to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not let them be afraid. And yet, so far as we know, each of these disciples, other than Judas, went on to do mighty things for God and then … then they died for their faith. So often, we are focused on the here and now but God's plan for my life and for your life is a life eternal. God's perspective is an eternal perspective and that … that my friend is why you and I can put our confidence in Him. When we are afraid ... when we are in this place that is so scary, we can go to His Word and say, "You know what it says – it says here that 'those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength'." You know, you never feel big; you never feel strong when you are waiting for God. When we are afraid we feel so small – you know, I think God means it to be that way. When we humble ourselves and we just come before God and say, "God, I can't do this. I don't know. I'm afraid; I don't know what to do next. I'm just going to wait on You. I'm just going to wait for You – I don't know what You are going to do – I don't know if You are going to show up, I don't know if You are going to talk, I don't know. I am going to put my faith in You and I am going to wait on You and I know my emotions are going to go up and down. I know it is going to be hard but I'm just going to wait for my God." That's an eternal perspective – that's a God perspective. Jesus had to put His faith in God. Jesus lay all His glory aside and He was there in the Garden of Gethsemane, just before He was crucified – struggling – He was afraid and He was hurting and He just put His trust in God. Do not be afraid. God gives us His peace; that's what this passage from Isaiah says: "Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength," the strength comes from God. The "mounting up with eagles" doesn't come because we flap a lot; it comes because we waited on God. The 'running and not being weary' comes from God. "Do not be afraid" – take God's peace from Him – go and wait ... just go and wait before Him and let Him pour His love and His peace into your life. It doesn't matter how big or bad or ugly the enemy is. It doesn't matter how fearful we are. It doesn't matter how dire the consequences of this particular situation might be. Why? Because God is the God who created the whole shooting match – every star in the sky, every part of creation -–God created it. God has an eternal perspective and when we wait on Him, He gives us His peace. That's the promise my friend! "Do not be afraid." Let your confidence rest in God Himself and then, let Him do the rest. Wait on the Lord and you shall renew your strength. Wait on the Lord and you shall mount up with wings like an eagle. That's the promise – it's a God thing!

God already gave you the land. The catch? You still have to walk on it. Joshua 1 on comfort, courage, and the cost of staying put. Click here to read the sermon A New Dawn, A New Day Joshua 1:1–9 Heavenly Father, Jesus, we come before you this Sunday morning, and we lift up your holy name. Jesus, we invite your presence, your Holy Spirit power, into this moment and into this place and into our lives and our hearts and our minds. Jesus, we pray prayers of gratitude for our children who came back from camp this week. We pray prayers of protection and grace over our youth who are headed off this week. We pray a prayer of clarity for Yates Baptist Church. Jesus, we ask in your holy name that you would give us clarity over confusion, that you would cast vision for the future of your church, and that that vision would lead us where division stirs. And finally, Jesus, we declare boldly this morning that whatever you may have in store for the future of Yates Baptist Church, we know that the very best days of the kingdom of Jesus Christ are still to come. The best is yet to come. And so, Jesus, we come before you this morning, and we give you the honor and the glory and the praise that is rightly due to your name. Jesus, we pray. Amen. Well, it is such a treat to be with you today, Yates Baptist Church. I want you to know the last time I was in this building was a few years ago, when I had the opportunity, as the head of the communications team for the Tri-West Baptist Network, to come in here. You hosted our annual meeting, and I got to give a report. So it is a very different experience being here preaching rather than giving a business meeting report. This is far more enjoyable, and I'm so glad to be with you today. Knowing that I'm going to be with you for the next three weeks helps me, because it allows me to preach a sermon series rather than try to squeeze everything together into one message. So we're going to get you to that meeting and that lunch earlier than you had hoped. That's the plan. So we're starting a series today called Onward. Onward. This series is going to be all about — and you can go ahead and throw that up on the screen, there we go — moving toward the uncharted. Moving toward the uncharted. We're going to be looking at the book of Joshua, and Joshua felt like an important book for where you are right now in the life of Yates Baptist Church. So before we jump into the first chapter of Joshua today, I wanted to start by looking back at the end of the Mosaic books. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy — those are the five books we call the Law, or the Pentateuch. These are the first five books of the Bible, and they are written by Moses. When we get to the end of Deuteronomy, Moses, after forty years leading the people through the wilderness, has died — before he was ever able to cross the Jordan River into the promised land. There's something powerful about that, because Moses was a good and faithful leader for the people of Israel, but Moses was not able to experience where the people of Israel were headed. Moses died before the people had stepped into all that God had for them. One of the things that is true in the life of every church is that there are changes, there are shifts that happen in churches. Any church older than seven years has probably had more than one pastor — it's just the nature of how that works. A church has a vision that is bigger than any one person. The church has a vision that is bigger than any one generation, because the church of Jesus Christ is multigenerational. It continues, and you and I are standing on the shoulders of the giants who have come before us, generations and generations and generations, and we get the opportunity to be the people the next generation stands on the shoulders of, to go even further. I'm so grateful for that. I'm so grateful that the kingdom of God never stops with a person or with a generation. For the people of Israel, they had been in the wilderness for forty years, and Moses had been leading them faithfully. When Moses dies, there is a moment of utter chaos and confusion for the people of Israel. Suddenly they find themselves in a spot where they don't know what to do, they don't know what's next, they don't know who to listen to, they don't know who to follow. And that's where we find ourselves at the beginning of Joshua chapter one. Today we're going to read Joshua chapter one, verses one through nine. If you have your Bibles with you, I want to encourage you to pull them out. If someone wants to give one to Keith, I know he didn't have his up here, but I want to make sure everyone has their Bible. I do want to say what a treat it is to be here with Keith. When I first moved to Durham, I moved here to pastor Durham Memorial Baptist Church on the east side of town, and for the three years I was there, I had the wonderful privilege of spending every Sunday with Keith's lovely wife, Kathy. That was an incredible joy to me, and I love, Keith, that you're still here — it's so, so meaningful to me. So let's go ahead and open up your Bibles. Joshua chapter one, verses one through nine — I'm going to be reading out of the Holman Christian Standard Bible, but whatever translation you're reading out of is just fine. After the death of Moses the Lord's servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, who had served Moses: "Moses My servant is dead. Now you and all the people prepare to cross over the Jordan to the land I am giving the Israelites. I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses. Your territory will be from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great Euphrates River — all the land of the Hittites — and west to the Mediterranean Sea. No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. I will be with you, just as I was with Moses. I will not leave you or forsake you. "Be strong and courageous, for you will distribute the land I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance. Above all, be strong and very courageous to carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do. Haven't I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." (Josh 1:1–9, HCSB) That's nine verses to start off the book of Joshua, and three times in nine verses we get the instruction from the Lord to be strong and courageous. [Addressing the person running the slides.] We're not ready for that yet, but you can come on back — thank you. Be strong and courageous. Hey, I do want to take a second — can we give it up for the AV volunteers in the back, for how they've had to handle everything today? Thank you so much. Yeah, we're not ready for that slide yet, but I appreciate it. So, Joshua chapter one, we get this important message: be strong, be courageous. Be strong, be courageous. Be strong, be courageous. And I'm wondering why it is that God would have to tell Joshua, this leader who's about to take over for Moses — why he would have to be told to be strong and courageous, be strong and courageous, be strong and courageous. And I want to just say, I think it is because to lead is hard. To lead into uncharted territory is impossible without God. And I wonder today — I wonder today, as you are preparing for an important meeting today and an important business meeting next week, as you prepare for today — are we a people who are afraid? Are we fearful? Are we full of doubt about what could be, about what might happen? Or are we a people who are strong and courageous? Are we a people who are ready to say there is more to do, there is more to come? The battle is not over yet, and it is time to be strong and courageous, because as long as the Lord has given breath in your lungs, you and I have work to do. The story's not over, and it's going to require that we are strong and courageous. Now, that is what I have always taken out of Joshua 1:1–9. If you've ever been involved in a church youth group, or you've ever been to a Bible study, or — strangely enough — if you've ever been a member of a sports team, Joshua 1:1–9 is not an unfamiliar passage of Scripture. And one of the things that can happen as we spend time with Scripture we're familiar with is that our familiarity can sometimes lead us to miss something that's right there on the page. Maybe this has been your experience — you've read over a passage of Scripture time and time again in your life, and something happens, whether you were at the right moment or it spoke into the right instance in your life, but something happens. You go back to that Scripture you maybe even know by heart, and suddenly something jumps out at you that never has before. And so, in this sermon that I have titled "A New Dawn, A New Day," I want to talk about what we see by looking at a principle and a promise. What we see by looking at a principle and a promise. Now see, there is a promise from God in Joshua chapter 1. In fact, there are a few promises. God is reasserting the promises he made to Moses, and he is letting Joshua know: the promises I made to Moses, those promises are true for you too, Joshua. These promises are not just for Moses. These promises are for you. But they're not just a promise — there's also a principle at play, and a principle is a foundational truth. A principle is a foundational truth. Maybe to put it a different way: a principle is a promise that is dependent on the user. A principle is a promise that is dependent on the user, meaning a principle is a truth that requires your obedience. And because of that, a principle can be a blessing or a curse. If you receive the promise, and the promise leads you to step out in obedience, then that promise has been a blessing. But if you receive the promise and do nothing with it, then the principle there is — man, that's kind of become a curse to you. So here's what I want to do this morning. I need three volunteers, and I'm going to go ahead and say this now, please take it in the loving way it's meant: I need three spry volunteers. I need three spry people. Come on up — who's ready? I need three people. If you make me start pointing at people, it's not going to go well. So, my friend right here in gray and black, I'm going to have you come on up. My friend over here in the blue shirt with the white stripe, come on up — I've got to have you come on up. And then, hey, my friend Matt Griffin is here — I'm going to have Matt come up. Come on, y'all. Oh, sir, I apologize, I'm sorry — all right, I'm going to have you stay there. I need one more volunteer who's ready to raise a hand. There we go, thank you, my friend, you can come on. Actually, you guys come on up on stage. Hey, I'm Rob. What's your name? Jeff — so good to have you come on up. And you are? Watson. Love that. And Matt, it's so good to see you — as I knock over this microphone stand. I'm going to have all three of you guys come over here. So — Matt, Jeff, Watson — Matt, Jeff, and Watson. Now, I want to take you back to the Scripture — in reading this passage recently, this is what jumped off the page to me. This is verse three: "I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses" (Josh 1:3, HCSB). I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses. So, Watson, you get to go first. I've given you — I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads. What's your first response? I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads. Okay, wonderful — are you staying right there? Okay, well, let's see it, come on. You've been given — Jeff, what about you? I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads. You're going to get moving. Matt, I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads. Where are you going? Come on. Now, thank you, thank you. By the way, give these guys a round of applause. [Congregation applauds.] Thank you so much. Okay, let's be honest here for a minute — can we be honest? How many of us have received this promise from the Lord, and we are the blessed, frozen, chosen? I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads. "God, thank you for this, that's so awesome. I'm so grateful, God, thank you that you've given me every —" but, man, I'm comfortable right here. Oh, man, I'm comfortable. I mean, there's air — come on, y'all, there's air conditioning. There's air conditioning, and it is too hot. Oh, man, and you know, I've got this thing in my back. Oh, all right. I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, and we are good right here. So let me tell you the principle. Let me tell you the principle here: "I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses" (Josh 1:3, HCSB). It's a promise, but it's not just a promise — it's a principle. Because if we are the frozen chosen, that's it. This is what we get. God's made a promise. God said, come on, I've given it to you, let's go. Thanks, God, doing great right here. And we get to the end of our lives, and despite the faithful promise of our God, we look around at what we've done for the kingdom, and we go, yep, I had it — God gave me all of this right here. It was a promise, but the promise turned into a curse, because we didn't do anything with it. Watson, I loved your reaction: "I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads" — well, let's dance in time then, come on, let's go. "I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads" — well, then there is no way you are stopping me from taking ground. "I've given you every place where the sole of your foot treads" — so get moving. Because I don't want us to come to the end of our lives and go, I could have gone so much further, I could have gone so much further, but the more comfortable I got, the easier it was to go, man, I'm going to take those steps tomorrow. I'm going to take that ground tomorrow. I'm going to have that conversation tomorrow. I'm going to invite that friend to church tomorrow. And tomorrow turns into tomorrow turns into tomorrow. I know I'm not the only procrastinator in the room, right? Come on, someone else there with me — you know what it's like to see your days turn into tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow. And you get to the end of a week, or a month, or a year, or a life, and this is all we've got. And the truth is: if God has promised Joshua to give him every place where the sole of his foot treads, just as he promised Moses (cf. Josh 1:3, HCSB), and Joshua were to stay still on the east side of the river, it's not just Joshua missing the opportunity. It's Joshua looking back at Moses's faithfulness and saying it didn't matter — because for all the steps you took, I'm not taking any. And that's the reality of the church. And by the way, this isn't unique to us. This has been the reality of every single generation of the church. Every single generation in the history of the church is constantly fighting against our human nature for safety and security and comfort. But God hasn't called you to that. He hasn't called us to that. God has called us out into the great wide open. God has called you to go further and do more and reach more people. Generation after generation of faithful believers who have gone before us have taken steps so that we could be right here in church. I say to you today, let's not come all this way just to stop. Let's not have come all this way just to make it this far. God has more for us. God has more for you. God has a bright future ahead — but the bright future ahead will not be easy, and it will not be safe, and it will not be comfortable. It will involve taking steps. And here's the truth — I did not do this for the sake of today's message. I went with a men's group Friday and Saturday up to Galax, Virginia, for a little two-day camping trip with some guys I know from another church. And yesterday morning, we decided, hey, let's go for a hike. I don't know if you can tell by looking at me, but I don't go on a lot of hikes. It's five and a half miles, and there's a significant amount of elevation change, but we're not running, right? It's not a race. So I'm like, yeah, we'll just take the whole morning and we'll do it. But every step was harder, and then it got to the point where all the muscles in the backs of my legs started clenching up. And the muscles are like, no, we're done. And you're like, well, we're not back to the car yet — so you're kind of grabbing your legs along the way, you're like, come on, we've got to go. And I wonder today how many of us, in our faith, need to just grab our legs — even though it's hard, even though it's not comfortable, even though it's pushing us further than we thought we could go — and just say, nope, God has given me every step, so I'm not stopping. Because here's the principle for Joshua: Joshua will only inherit what he inhabits. Joshua will only inherit what he inhabits. Let me put it to you another way — Joshua will only receive what he steps into. Right now, Durham, North Carolina, and the greater Triangle remains one of the fastest-growing areas in the country — second in the Southeast in growth behind the suburbs of Atlanta.1 But what makes this place unique, among all the other places you could be living, is a set of universities — regardless of which color blue you may wear — a collection of research and tech companies based here that is pulling in people from all around the world. Right now, there are more people coming from places in the world where Christianity is illegal, and those young adults are coming here to attend school or to work jobs. You are right now living in one of the few places on earth where, without leaving your zip code, you can impact the whole world. There's a student right now at Duke University who doesn't know Jesus, comes from a family that doesn't know Jesus, and comes from a country where people don't talk about Jesus — and God brought them to your doorstep. He brought them to you. Right now, there are teenagers in the vicinity of this church who are part of not just the least Christian, but the least faith-based generation in American history. In the history of the United States, "no religious affiliation" — the "nones," as we call them — has never been the predominant group within a generation, until my kids' generation. The largest and most rapidly growing religious affiliation in the United States among my children's generation is "none."2 And they're right here. They're right here. They live next door and across the street, and some of them are children in the developmental center. And they're part of families that don't know Jesus, that haven't heard the engaging and compelling story of what Christ has come to do for you and for me. You are right now in one of the most unique positions that any group of Christians has ever been in, in human history. The question is: are we going to stand right here and be comfortable, and watch the opportunity pass by? Are we going to find ourselves at the end of our lives with the Savior saying, "I brought them to you," and we say, "Yeah, but we were really comfortable"? God has given you a promise. I have already given it to you. I've already given you the land. I've already given you every step that you will take. Over the next two weeks, we're going to be hearing more about Joshua leading the people of Israel across the Jordan River and into the promised land. But for right now, at the end of Joshua chapter one, the people have not yet made that step. They have not yet stepped across the river. They have not yet crossed their lines of comfort and safety in order to follow God's vision and mission for their lives. What better place to end today's message than to leave us with this question? Just like Joshua and the people of Israel, we are standing on the shore of a river. We are standing on the border of where we have been and where we are going. Church — has God brought you this far just to come this far? Or is there a step to take? Is there a step to take that is worthy of the sacrifice of the generations behind us? Is there a step for us to take that says, it's not going to end here, but we are moving forward — even when it's not comfortable, even when there's no safety and security in it? Are we willing to be the kind of people who have enough faith to say, just like Joshua, we will only inherit what we inhabit? We will only receive what we live into. Church, how is God calling you to be obedient today? And are we taking those steps of obedience? Are we taking those steps like our lives depend on it? Are we taking those steps like our legacies depend on it? Are we taking those steps like the kingdom of heaven is in the balance? Because everything that we're about to read in the rest of the book of Joshua is incredible — beautiful stories of God's faithfulness. But here's what was true for Joshua, and here's what's true for you today: if Joshua didn't cross the river, he never would have seen any of it. We woke up this morning with breath in our lungs, which means God has purpose and mission for us. And I don't want you to miss it. I don't want you to miss it, because the best is yet to come. Let me pray for us. Heavenly Father, Jesus, we are so grateful for the power of your gospel. We are compelled by your Holy Spirit to take faithful steps of obedience, even when it's hard, even when it makes us uncomfortable, God. We are willing to take steps of obedience. So, God, when everything in us wants to pursue comfort, safety, security, God, will you give us the boldness to believe that the best is yet to come? Would we not make choices from a scarcity mindset, God? Would you give us an abundance mindset? Would we be a people who believe that you have placed us here and now to make a difference in the whole world? God, what could be more deserving of the name Yates than that we would go — that we would cross borders and lines of comfort and safety and security, that we might see those who are far from Christ become sons and daughters of the King? Jesus, we pray this in your name. Amen. Endnotes 1 The greater Research Triangle region (Raleigh–Durham–Chapel Hill) is widely recognized as one of the nation's fastest-growing metropolitan economies. The UNC Kenan Institute's "American Growth Project" ranks the Triangle's economy third-fastest-growing among the fifty largest U.S. metros and fourth-fastest among 150 extended metropolitan areas, while also noting that the Triangle is North Carolina's second-largest regional economy by GDP, behind Charlotte. Census-based analyses of metro population growth similarly place Raleigh–Cary in the national top tier — roughly tenth-fastest in recent rankings — and highlight that many of the country's fastest-growing metros are in the Southeast. These data support the general description of the Triangle as a leading growth center in the Southeast, though the sermon's specific claim that it is "second in the Southeast behind the suburbs of Atlanta" generalizes across the precision of the available rankings. 2 Recent survey data show that today's youngest adult cohort is the most religiously unaffiliated in recorded U.S. polling. The 2024 PRRI Census of American Religion reports that about 38–39 percent of Americans ages 18–29 identify as religiously unaffiliated ("nones"), a substantially higher share than among older generations. PRRI's breakdowns by age and gender likewise show that young adults — especially young women — have become significantly more likely to claim no religious affiliation over the past decade, rising from 32 percent in 2013 to 38 percent in 2024. The Pew Research Center's Religious Landscape Study finds that roughly 44 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds now identify as religiously unaffiliated, making the "nones" the single largest religious category in that age group and larger than any individual Christian tradition — a pattern not seen in older cohorts in prior survey waves. Works Cited Baptist News Global. "PRRI: Growth of the Religiously Unaffiliated Is Slowing." May 15, 2025. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://baptistnews.com/article/prri-growth-of-the-religiously-unaffiliated-is-slowing/. The Holy Bible, Holman Christian Standard Bible. 2004. Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers. "Markets with the Most Population Growth in 2025." RealPage Analytics, April 1, 2026. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://www.realpage.com/analytics/population-growth-markets-2025/. Pew Research Center. "Religious 'Nones' in America: Who They Are and What They Believe." January 23, 2024. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2024/01/24/religious-nones-in-america-who-they-are-and-what-they-believe/. Public Religion Research Institute. "2024 PRRI Census of American Religion." PRRI, April 14, 2026. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://www.prri.org/spotlight/2024-prri-census-of-american-religion/. Public Religion Research Institute. "Gen Z, Gender, and Religion." PRRI, March 4, 2025. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://www.prri.org/spotlight/gen-z-gender-and-religion/. "Southeast Metros Lead US Population Growth as National Gains Slow." Becker's Hospital Review, March 26, 2026. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/strategy/southeast-metros-lead-us-population-growth-as-national-gains-slow/. UNC Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise. "From Tobacco to High Tech: Manufacturing in the Piedmont Triad and the Research Triangle." March 18, 2025. Accessed July 12, 2026. https://kenaninstitute.unc.edu/commentary/from-tobacco-to-high-tech-manufacturing-in-the-piedmont-triad-and-the-research-triangle/. © 2026 Rob Stone. All rights reserved.

7/5/2026: Rev. Jacob Kim   No King in Israel: A Series in the Book of Judges (Part 2): Drive Out Your Idols, Or Else   Judges 1:22-2:5   English Standard Version     22 The house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and the Lord was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph scouted out Bethel. (Now the name of the city was formerly Luz.) 24 And the spies saw a man coming out of the city, and they said to him, “Please show us the way into the city, and we will deal kindly with you.” 25 And he showed them the way into the city. And they struck the city with the edge of the sword, but they let the man and all his family go. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites and built a city and called its name Luz. That is its name to this day. Failure to Complete the Conquest 27 Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and its villages, or Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages, for the Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that land. 28 When Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but did not drive them out completely. 29 And Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them. 30 Zebulun did not drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, or the inhabitants of Nahalol, so the Canaanites lived among them, but became subject to forced labor. 31 Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, or the inhabitants of Sidon or of Ahlab or of Achzib or of Helbah or of Aphik or of Rehob, 32 so the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land, for they did not drive them out. 33 Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, or the inhabitants of Beth-anath, so they lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless, the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became subject to forced labor for them. 34 The Amorites pressed the people of Dan back into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the plain. 35 The Amorites persisted in dwelling in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim, but the hand of the house of Joseph rested heavily on them, and they became subject to forced labor. 36 And the border of the Amorites ran from the ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela and upward. Israel's Disobedience 2 Now the angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, 2 and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.' But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done? 3 So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.” 4 As soon as the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept. 5 And they called the name of that place Bochim.[a] And they sacrificed there to the Lord.

In this preach, Dion van Breda reminds us that our lives leave a legacy for those who follow after us. Preaching from Joshua, we see that Joshua wanted the people to remember all that God had done for them, so that they would continue to follow Him faithfully even after Joshua was gone.Joshua 24: 1 - 18 (NIV)Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel, and they presented themselves before God.2 Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods. 3 But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the Euphrates and led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants. I gave him Isaac, 4 and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I assigned the hill country of Seir to Esau, but Jacob and his family went down to Egypt.5 “‘Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and I brought you out. 6 When I brought your people out of Egypt, you came to the sea, and the Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen as far as the Red Sea. 7 But they cried to the Lord for help, and he put darkness between you and the Egyptians; he brought the sea over them and covered them. You saw with your own eyes what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time.8 “‘I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought against you, but I gave them into your hands. I destroyed them from before you, and you took possession of their land. 9 When Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor to put a curse on you. 10 But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.11 “‘Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did also the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites, but I gave them into your hands. 12 I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove them out before you—also the two Amorite kings. You did not do it with your own sword and bow. 13 So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.'14 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”16 Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods! 17 It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our parents up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. 18 And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God.”

What's your golden calf? In this conversation, Dot and Cara dig into one of the most honest questions we can ask ourselves: have we quietly given something, or someone, the place that only God deserves? Drawing from Exodus 23, they walk through how to recognize an idol, why good things can end up in the wrong position, and what it really means to surrender something to God without the fear that He'll take it away. Pull up a chair, grab your Bible, and lean in with us.Got a question about today's episode or something else you'd like to hear us talk about on the show? Let us know! Episode RecapIntro (00:00)Write this down: Exodus 23:23-25, God's warning to Israel about worshiping the gods of the land they were entering (00:00)How do we even know if something is an idol? Cara asks the question most of us have probably wrestled with at some point (00:04:52)Dot's working definition: an idol is something you love more than God, depend on more than God, or find your worth and value in more than God (00:08:15)Cara shares how she realized time was her idol — not something she trusted more than God, but something that had quietly become the controlling factor in her life (00:08:29)Good things can become idols; it's not always the thing itself but the position it's holding in your heart (00:10:56)Surrendering an idol doesn't mean God will take it away — His heart is that you'd let go so you can actually enjoy the gift He gave you (00:12:11)Most idols form in seasons of waiting, just like the golden calf — the Israelites got tired of waiting for Moses and fashioned something to fill the gap (00:17:30)"I will become what I worship" — what holds your full heart and attention is quietly shaping who you are (00:19:36)What to do: ask yourself if you're willing to let it go, bring it to God, repent, and surrender it — He is the only one who can actually bring real value and purpose to your life (00:27:55)Are you interested in having Dot come and speak to your community? Email us at hello@dotbowen.com.Watch Write this Down! on YouTubeFind Dot Bowen on Instagram and Facebook This Episode's Scripture VerseExodus 23:23-25 (NASB 1977) — "For My angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites; and I will completely destroy them. You shall not worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their deeds; but you shall utterly overthrow them, and break their sacred pillars in pieces. But you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water; and I will remove sickness from your midst."

One of the more pivotal chapters. The people of God have moved to kadesh barnea The Lord spoke to Moses saying send men to spy out cannan Deut 1:19 Go up take possession and do not fear nor be afraid, but the people want to send in spies. Moses said let's go take it but they want to check it out first Now in numbers 13 this is what is happening V8 God changes The name from God saves to Yahweh saves so he is now Joshua. V17 go see what the land is and what the people and land is like, warriors or fortified cities, or camps and weak people Go and spy out from the bottom to the top Cut cluster of grapes, need a pole to carry and Eschol means cluster George Whitfield with out amplification could preach and Benjamin Franklin figured out 24000 people could hear him when he preached: Everything that is needed to live here it is flowing with milk and honey and God is right.  This is the report but However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. - Numbers 13:28 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan." - Numbers 13:29 All these people were Canaanite people and were descendants of Noah. God said he would punish them but was waiting on their sin to be full grown and He is going to use the Israelites to judge them 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it."31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are." - Numbers 13:30-31 They saying this land devours its inhabitants means they are always at war and there are giants in the land. They say these are like the Nephilim. Josh believes these are the great and mighty people of Seth.  They believe the Nephilim survived the flood and we cannot win against them. Ch 14 The people wept because the went through the wilderness and now are at the promised land and it is over since we cannot go in and do what God says to do.  They say we no longer trust God anymore Moses and Aaron fall on their face and worship God since they reject God and their leadership   Joshua and Caleb tear their clothes and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, "The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. - Numbers 14:7 The battle is between faith and fear.  Then all the congregation says to stone them with stones now But the glory of the Lord appeared int the tent 11 And the LORD said to Moses, "How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they." - Numbers 14:11-12         In spite of God had done they still don't believe.. God says He will disinherit them, destroy them and make a nation of Moses       We cannot be paralyzed and live in fear of the obstacles that are in the way of God's plans How many times do we have to see in Scripture and our lives God doing his will in spite of the obstacles and yet we still don't believe We must believe no matter what.  Remember what God says to Joshua after Moses dies and He says be strong and courageous and do my will and you will have success God had proved His supernatural power to the Israelites many times since they left Egypt. How easily we forget when we focus on the wrong things. "The will of God will never lead us where the grace of God can't provide for us or the power of God protect us. If our daily prayer is, 'Thy will be done,' and if we walk in obedience to God's will, then what is there to complain about? A complaining spirit is evidence of an ungrateful heart and an unsurrendered will. By our grumbling, we're daring to say that we know more than God does about what's best for His people!" (Warren Wiersbe) They allowed their fear to steal their faith and trust in God. Instead of trusting they grumbled. They wanted to return to Egypt, where they were slaves. Their old life is what they knew, but it is what God freed them from, now they keep wanting to return.             Why do people return to their old life? What causes them to do this? Focusing on circumstances and relying on their own ability, instead of focusing and relying on God and trusting Him.       They keep looking back instead of pressing on forward. Lot's wife looked back longing for her old life in Sodom, what happened to her?         Philippians 3:12-17 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.  13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind. 17 Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern. Proverbs 26:11, As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness. Instead of pressing on forward with the LORD, they kept wanting to return to their slavery, how foolish. Do the best to come up with the best we can conceive of God's greatness and then realize that it's infinitely greater than all we can ask or believe.. ATTEMPT great things for God and expect great results. God doesn't want our ability but our availability God was teaching the Israelites a basic lesson of the life of faith, namely, that the real power in the lives of God's people is God's power. As we trust and obey God, He releases His power through us. We are never adequate in ourselves, but God empowers the obedient and trusting. Jesus taught His disciples the same lesson when He multiplied the loaves and fishes— twice. 2Co 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, Power of intercession prayer 13 But Moses said to the LORD, "Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, 14 and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people. For you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. - Numbers 14:13-14                The failure of the Israelites grew out of unbelief (cf. Heb. 3:19). The majority failed to believe that God would give them the land of their enemies as He had promised.            "Like Pharaoh, they were hardening their hearts and ignoring God's clear command. Moses Intercedes              In verses 13-19 Moses intercedes again for the people. Similar to the last lesson, Moses appeals to the LORD's character and reputation. He repeated God's words back to Him-praying scripture. Not important that his name is great but God's glory is important Plead for God's grace Our prayers matter         "Here is a whole nation rescued from ruin by the effectual fervent prayer of one righteous man [cf. James 5:16]."            V17 Let your power be great This rebellion was a test for Moses, similar to the test that Abraham faced when God told him to sacrifice Isaac (Gen. 22) If He had actually done what He threatened to do, God could still have fulfilled His promises to Abraham, by destroying and dispossessing all the other living Israelites, and by sparing only Moses and his descendants. However, God could not have fulfilled the prophetic promises that He had given through Jacob (Gen. 49)—had He done so. There would have to be descendants of Judah, from whom a great ruler would come (Gen. 49:10), as well as some future for the other tribes.             Perhaps God meant that He would completely destroy that older generation of Israelites immediately, wiping them out in one blow, instead of gradually (cf. Exod. 32:10). Our sins can have irreversible consequences in our lives even though they are forgiven 20 Then the LORD said, "I have pardoned, according to your word.21 But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, 22 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, 23 shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. - Numbers 14:20-23 Children will inherit and will not be prey All but Joshua and Caleb will die in the desert and will not enter into His rest Leadership die immediately because they have the greater responsibility       This oath was fulfilled partially when Israel entered the Promised Land (cf. Josh. 2:9- 11), but it will be fulfilled completely when God consummates His dealings with Israel in the future.              The failure of the Israelites would not frustrate God's purpose to manifest His glory throughout the earth, through the seed of Abraham. Even though the present generation would die in the wilderness, Caleb (and Joshua, not mentioned here in v. 24 but in v. 30) would enter the Promised Land.          Though some take the number ten as a round number, the text does record ten times the Israelites tested God (v. 22) by complaining: At the Red Sea (Exod. 14:11-12) At Marah (Exod. 15:23) In the wilderness of Sin (Exod. 16:2) In the wilderness of Sin (Exod. 16:20) In the wilderness of Sin (Exod. 16:27) At Rephidim (Exod. 17:1-2) At Horeb (Exod. 32) At Taberah (Num. 11:1-3) At Kibroth-hattaavah (Num. 11:4-34) At Kadesh (Num. 14:1-3) "… this passage intends to show that the people failed to inherit the Promised Land and hence died in the wilderness without inheriting the blessing, not so much for a specific act of disobedience or for fear of the battles that lay ahead, but rather for the simple fact of their unbelief. They failed to trust in God."                   Next the people repent, now we will go. It is too late at this point.  Is this not scary to us.  The Lord has every right to say no.  The Lord does not have to save any of us.  It is a privilege not a right. The lesson is don't sin, live in faith and trust Him Two things, don't presume on Gods grace Don't try to do what God only can do They were only 3 days away. They could have been on their way to conquer the land, but they refused. This section of text teaches us important lessons about inadequacy and adequacy. The 10 spies, who did not want the Israelites to enter the land, felt inadequate (cf. John 15:5). In this, they were being realistic. However, they should have compensated for their feelings of personal inadequacy, by reminding themselves of God's complete adequacy (cf. 2 Cor. 12:9; Luke 1:37; Matt. 19:26; Phil. 4:13). 1Sailhamer, p. 388.            God was teaching the Israelites a basic lesson of the life of faith, namely, that the real power in the lives of God's people is God's power. As we trust and obey God, He releases His power through us. We are never adequate in ourselves, but God empowers the obedient and trusting. Jesus taught His disciples the same lesson when He multiplied the loaves and fishes— twice. Joshua 14 Josh's one of his favorite scriptures Just whipped everyone and now Joshua says it is time to conquer the land, won the major battles.  Joshua and Caleb are 45 years older than everyone else.  Took five years to get to this place. Caleb says give me the mountains and the giants and I will show you what I SAID 45 years ago about GOD is true and He will win the battle The old name was for the leaders of these people and now it is the mountains of God 6 Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. 8 But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God. 9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.' 10 And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. 11 I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. 12 So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said." 13 Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel. 15 Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba. (Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim.) And the land had rest from war. - Joshua 14:6-15

Professor Michael York rejoins the Garden. We are discussing the Hittites and how their lands became known as the Land of a Thousand Gods. From the Indo European roots to the creation myths, we cover their pantheon(s) and the influences upon them and that they influenced upon. Of course, we get the many kids of cides and human taboos. We also get into cataclysms and AI. It'll all make sense when you listen.

Study Passage:Then Joshua rose early in the morning and they set out from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. 2 At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3 and commanded the people, “As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. 4 Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.” 5 Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you.” 6 And Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.7 The LORD said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, tha they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'” 9 And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the LORD your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. 13 And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”14 So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), 16 the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. 17 Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.4 When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests' feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and laythem down in the place where you lodge tonight.'”19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. 21 And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?' 22 then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.' 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”

Look at Leviticus; Original languages of the bible; Hebrew - inventive written language; Letters with meaning; Additive letters; Aleph-tav = often untranslated; Lack of phonetics; Misinterpretation; Leprosy?; Understanding Rebekkah; Basic principles of the bible; Child-like understandings; Plagues of faith; Strength of women; Starving the mind; Child-raising; Traumatized by ideas; Reading with inspiration; "Holy"; Biblical beasts in Ezekiel; Chinese famines; "The Good Earth"; Repentance; Life-giving spirit; The Way of the World; Idolatry; Apostate church; Wages of unrighteousness; Covetousness; Reliance on Holy Spirit; Masoretic text; Logic of God and the bible; "Logos" = right reason, logical; Tree of Life; Darkening your eyes; Sabbath; Debating; vs finding the truth; "Tropes"; Rituals and forms; Pure Religion; Jots and tittles; Walking in faith; Gen 19:16; Why did Lot linger?; Cultivating a relationship with Holy Spirit; shin-lamad-shin-lamad-tav; Social welfare via government; Your need to obey government; Welfare snares; Biblical confusion; Word of God; Who's inspired?; Reading nature; "Humanity" for animals?; Reproductive rights?; Trusting in the Lord; "Idolatry"; Taking away neighbor's right to choose; Becoming merchandise; Accepting lies; 2 Kings 16:3, 2 Chronicles 28:3; Hivites, Canaanites, Hittites; Love vs authority; Passing through the fire; Freedom of religion?; Biblical harlot riding a beast?; Forcing neighbor; Abraham's smoking furnace and burning lamp; Cursing your children with debt; Context of the bible; Removing scales from your eyes; "gods"; Col 3:5; Following instructions?; No covetousness; Just weights and measures; Eph 5:5; "Whoremonger"; Tyrants; Practicing pure religion; 1 Cor 5:10; Fornication with world governments; Israelites in Egypt; Finding seekers of His kingdom and righteousness; Organizing in Tens; Ps 106:38; Ez 16:36; Placing your children in debt; Prov 2:16; Prov 20:16; Pledging your rights; Rebekkah = resh-biet-kuf-hey; Messaging in names; Divinely chosen wife/mother; Ensnare?; resh-biet-kuf; Daughter of Betheul; Sister of Leban; Wife of Isaac; Mother of Esau and Jacob; Binding others through marriage and influence; "Melchizedek"; Gen 24:21; Possessions of Abraham.

If you enjoy this episode, we're sure you will enjoy more content like this on The Occult Rejects.  In fact, we have curated playlists on occult topics like grimoires, esoteric concepts and phenomena, occult history, analyzing true crime and cults with an occult lens, Para politics, and occultism in music. Whether you enjoy consuming your content visually or via audio, we've got you covered - and it will always be provided free of charge.  So, if you enjoy what we do and want to support our work of providing accessible, free content on various platforms, please consider making a donation to the links provided below.  Thank you and enjoy the episode!Links For The Occult Rejectshttps://linktr.ee/theoccultrejectsOccult Research Institutehttps://www.occultresearchinstitute.org/Cash Apphttps://cash.app/$theoccultrejectsVenmo@TheOccultRejectsBuy Me A Coffeebuymeacoffee.com/TheOccultRejectsPatreonhttps://www.patreon.com/TheOccultRejectsCore historical / comparative sourcesEncyclopaedia Britannica. “moon worship.” Good for the broad comparative frame: lunar symbolism, death-rebirth, hunting vs. agrarian patterns, and why the moon is sometimes male and sometimes female.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “The moon,” in Nature Worship: Celestial Phenomena as Objects of Worship or Veneration. Good for lunar phases, magical timing, menstruation/tides, dangerous dark days, eclipse anxiety, and symbolic variation.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Celestial phenomena as objects of worship or veneration,” in Nature Worship. Useful for the broader claim that many hunting and gathering societies, and some pastoral and royal cultures, conceived the moon as male.MesopotamiaOracc / Ancient Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses. “Nanna-Suen.” Best core reference for the identity, names, and cultic status of the Mesopotamian moon god.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Sin.” Best quick reference for Nanna/Sin as moon god, his bull symbolism, Ur, fertility functions, and Nabonidus.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Enheduanna.” Useful if you want to reference the priestly/literary world attached to the cult of Nanna at Ur.EgyptEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Khonsu.” Strong for Khonsu as youth, moon god, Pyramid Text background, and Karnak.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Thoth.” Strong for Thoth as moon god of reckoning, learning, writing, and later Hermetic importance.The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Collections and bulletin material on Iah / Osiris-Iah and Egyptian lunar symbolism. Best for the more specialized lunar material beyond Khonsu and Thoth.Levant / Anatolia / Near EastEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Yarikh.” Best starting point for the Ugaritic / West Semitic moon god and the Nikkal marriage material.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Kushukh.” Best for the Hurrian moon god, oath function, iconography, and Hittite adoption.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Religions of the Hittites, Hattians, and Hurrians,” in Anatolian religion. Best broad source for Arma and the Hittite/Luwian/Hurrian lunar world.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Men.” Best source for the later Anatolian moon god, iconography, and possible tie to Mao.ArabiaEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Arabian religion.” Good for the broad astral background of pre-Islamic Arabian religion.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Pre-Islamic deities,” in Arabian religion. Essential for Wadd, ʿAmm, Ḥawl, and for correcting outdated claims about Almaqah and Syn.India and IranEncyclopaedia Britannica. “navagraha.” Good for Chandra/Soma in astrology and lived Hindu cosmology.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “nakshatra.” Best for lunar mansions, lunar months, and Chandra's mythic/calendar role.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “soma.” Essential for Soma as sacred drink and later lunar identification.Encyclopaedia Iranica. “Māh Yašt.” Best specialist source for the Iranian moon, lunar phases, and the “seed of the Bull” symbolism.Northern / Eastern EuropeBritannica Kids / Students. “Sól and Máni.” Good clean source for the Norse sibling pair and the male moon.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Mēness.” Best source for the Baltic moon god, renewal, prayer, and agricultural strength.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Slavic religion: Folk conceptions.” Essential for the masculine Slavic moon, kinship language, and lunar veneration.JapanEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Tsukiyomi.” Best short source for Tsukuyomi as moon god.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Izanagi.” Useful for the birth of Tsukuyomi from purification and the Shintō context.Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Ukemochi no Kami.” Best source for the separation myth involving Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu.Indigenous / circumpolar traditionsEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Oral literatures,” in Mythologies of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Best broad source for the Arctic male moon pursuing his sister the sun.Encyclopedia.com. “Igaluk.” Useful specialist entry for the Inuit moon god story.MesoamericaEncyclopaedia Britannica. “Aztec religion.” Best for the Teotihuacán fire myth and Tecciztécatl becoming the moon.Susan Milbrath. “The Moon in Meso-America.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Planetary Science (2020). Best specialist source for masculine moon material in Central Mexico and broader lunar roles in Mesoamerica.Qabalah / Jewish mysticism / occult sourcesHistorical Jewish mysticismEncyclopaedia Britannica. “sefirot.” Best concise source for the sefirot, including Yesod as “foundation.”Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Jewish mysticism,” in Judaism. Good for the broader Kabbalistic context.My Jewish Learning. “What Are the Sefirot?” Good readable support source for explaining sefirot on air.Western esoteric / occult QabalahDion Fortune. The Mystical Qabalah. Weiser, 2000. Strongest single occult source for Yesod as astral foundation, imaginal reservoir, and “treasure house of images” current.Aleister Crowley. 777 and Other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley. Weiser, 1986. Best for formal occult correspondences, including the Yesod-Moon scheme.Aleister Crowley. Magick Without Tears. New Falcon, 1991. Useful for Crowley's practical Qabalistic framing.Lon Milo DuQuette. The Chicken Qabalah of Rabbi Lamed Ben Clifford. Weiser, 2001. Good modern, readable summary of Yesod in Western occult terms.Israel Regardie. The Tree of Life: A Study in Magic. Weiser, 1972. Strong for Golden Dawn style Yesod/astral-plane framing.Gareth Knight. A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism. Weiser, 2001. Very useful for Yesod symbolism and the broader Tree of Life structure.Science / symbolism supportNASA Science. “Moon Phases.” Best source for the simple but important physical point that moonlight is reflected sunlight.NASA Science. “Eclipses.” Useful if you want a clean science-side reference when talking about eclipses before contrasting that with mythic fear and ritual response.Also want to remind people about the website, if you're into reading we have tons of information by multiple contributors, and we got t-shirts up on the site if you're interested. Fun fact, the art is all based on the eyeball. A

Turkey is one of those rare countries that genuinely straddles civilizations. Straddling Europe and Asia, it has absorbed the legacies of Hittites, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans and turned them into something entirely its own. Istanbul alone could occupy a lifetime. Add Cappadocia's surreal landscapes, the Roman grandeur of Ephesus, the thermal terraces of Pamukkale, and a cuisine that ranks among the world's finest, and you have a country of almost unreasonable richness. The tea is strong. The welcome is stronger.Love the pod? Get the guide! Out with each new podcast, we publish a guide to the country. Buy the TrodPod guide to Turkey for just $3: https://www.patreon.com/c/trodpod/shop. Better yet, become a TrodPod member for just $5 a month and access TrodPod guides to every country in the world, released weekly with each new podcast episode! Sign up now: https://www.patreon.com/trodpod/membershipThanks for all your support!TrodPod is Murray Garrard and Elle Keymer. Sound editing by Leo Audio Productions. Design and marketing by GPS: Garrard Powell Solutions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The books of Samuel begin during one of the most dramatic periods in ancient history. Long before Samuel anointed Israel's first kings, the ancient world experienced the Bronze Age Collapse—a period marked by drought, famine, earthquakes, invasions, population migrations, and the fall of great empires. In this episode, we explore the rise and fall of the Bronze Age world, the interconnected trade networks that united Egypt, the Hittites, Babylonia, and other great powers, and the events that led to their decline. We examine the archaeological evidence for prolonged drought in the eastern Mediterranean, the role of the Sea Peoples, the collapse of trade, and the emergence of the Iron Age. Finally, we connect these world-changing events to the biblical period of the Judges and consider how the collapse of the old world may have created the conditions for Israel's rise as a kingdom under Samuel, Saul, and David. If you'd like to support The History of the Bible, visit our Patreon Page. Your feedback is valuable to us! Share your thoughts and insights via our feedback form. Let us know how our podcast has impacted you or someone you know by filling out our impact form. If you have concerns about any information presented, please inform us via our correction form. #HistoryOfTheBible #BibleHistory #BookOfSamuel #Samuel #Saul #KingDavid #Judges #BronzeAge #BronzeAgeCollapse #IronAge #AncientIsrael #BiblicalHistory #BiblicalArchaeology #AncientNearEast #SeaPeoples #Philistines #Archaeology #OldTestament #BibleStudy #AncientWorld #AncientHistory #KingdomOfIsrael #DavidAndGoliath #AncientCivilizations #HistoryPodcast Sources The Holy Bible (ESV) ESV Study Bible ESV Archaeology Study Bible Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible (NIV) Rose Book of Bible Charts, Maps, and Timelines Satellite Bible Atlas by William Schlegel The Earth and Its Peoples: A Global History Biblical Archaeology Society – Bronze Age Collapse: Pollen Study Highlights Late Bronze Age Drought Biblical Archaeology Society Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology World History Encyclopedia – Bronze Age Collapse

Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.2 And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the Lord their God.4 Then stood up upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the Lord their God.5 Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless the Lord your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.6 Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.7 Thou art the Lord the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham;8 And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous:9 And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red sea;10 And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day.11 And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.12 Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.13 Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments:14 And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant:15 And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.16 But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments,17 And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not.18 Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;19 Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go.20 Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.21 Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.22 Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations, and didst divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan.23 Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.24 So the children went in and possessed the land, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their hands, with their kings, and the people of the land, that they might do with them as they would.25 And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.26 Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.27 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.28 But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the land of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies;29 And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them;) and withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.30 Yet many years didst thou forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands.31 Nevertheless for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.32 Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.33 Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly:34 Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them.35 For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works.36 Behold, we are servants this day, and for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are servants in it:37 And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins: also they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.38 And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal unto it.

13.1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. 5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. 6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord.7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.' 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord's. 13 Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?' you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.' 16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”

NKJV 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, 'The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, "I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt; 17 and I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey." ' 18 Then they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, 'The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now, please, let us go three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.' 19 But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand.

Study Passage: Joshua 1:1-9After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. 5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Now when these things were done, the princes came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands, doing according to their abominations, even of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.2 For they have taken of their daughters for themselves, and for their sons: so that the holy seed have mingled themselves with the people of those lands: yea, the hand of the princes and rulers hath been chief in this trespass.3 And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonied.4 Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of those that had been carried away; and I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice.5 And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the Lord my God,6 And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens.7 Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day.8 And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.9 For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.10 And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments,11 Which thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets, saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness.12 Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their wealth for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever.13 And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this;14 Should we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor escaping?15 O Lord God of Israel, thou art righteous: for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this.

864 They Will Heed Your Voice, A Guided Christian Meditation on Exodus 3:16-19 with the Recenter With Christ app The purpose of this podcast is to help you find more peace in  and connect with the true source of peace, Jesus Christ.  Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.  You can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tense or unrelaxing.  If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes.   Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation:   Breathe and direct your thoughts to connecting with God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate,  deflate. Scripture for Meditation Exodus 3 NKJV 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, 'The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, "I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt; 17 and I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey." ' 18 Then they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, 'The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now, please, let us go three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.' 19 But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand. 2 RSV 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, 'The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, "I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt; 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Per′izzites, the Hivites, and the Jeb′usites, a land flowing with milk and honey."' 18 And they will hearken to your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, 'The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, we pray you, let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.' 19 I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. Reflection on Scripture: God called Moses to listen to the voice of a burning bush in the wilderness and from the beginning God told him that the people would accept him and that the Pharaoh would not. God knew with precision what would be required to deliver His people from bondage and He told Moses all about it. This was an unknown blessing. Moses did not understand the blessing that he was given. He was given the answer for how it would pan out. Many times in our lives we take steps into what seems to be darkness to our eyes. There have been many times in my life and my ministry where I feel I have gotten only a small partial direction without any indication of what would happen. In fact my whole journey to become a Chaplain took me a total of 8 years and I had no assurance that my path would end in success as it has.  Invariably I suspect for most things God directs us to do we will not get clear direction on the outcome. DIcernment in and of itself is a valuable thing. After we are reasonably assured we have been given a direction the battle is not over. We have to just roger up and do the best we can and stay open to further guidance God gives us along the way. Moses was told the people would listen and that Pharaoh would only respond when compelled but many times Moses didn't know what was coming next.  God invites us into a relationship of trust. He had no such relationship with king of Epypt. So in this situation although it would be very challenging to be Moses, it would be far worse to be the king who opposed him, who opposed God. So the invitation stands to each of us. Do we respond to the call of the Lord or do we choose what our human passions desire? Do we bravely wade into the deep waters, sustained by a God of wonders or do we cower in fear hiding from the Lord? I know what I want that answer to be for me, what is left is actually doing it.  Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: I invite you to sit in silence feeling patient for your own faults and trials. Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life: This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast Final Question: If you consider the invitation and command to persevere in the faith, what change in your life does that bring to your mind?  FIND ME ON: Download my free app: Recenter with Christ Website - ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Voicemail - (602) 888-3795 Email: jared@christianmeditationpodcast.com Apple Podcasts - Christian Meditation Podcast Facebook.com/christianmeditationpodcast Youtube.com/christianmeditaitonpodcast Twitter - @ChristianMedPod

“Into the Water”Joshua 3:1-171 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3 giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits[a] between you and the ark; do not go near it.”5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”6 Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they took it up and went ahead of them.7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'”9 Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. 10 This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. 11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. 12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.”14 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 15 Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.CONNECT WITH USIf you have any questions or would like to get to know us further, head over to https://www.triumphlbc.org/connect and fill out our online connection card.ABOUT TRIUMPHTriumph wants to see the life and message of Jesus transform your heart, home, and city. To learn more visit https://www.triumphlbc.org/

“Into the Water”Joshua 3:1-171 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3 giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits[a] between you and the ark; do not go near it.”5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”6 Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they took it up and went ahead of them.7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'”9 Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. 10 This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. 11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. 12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.”14 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 15 Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16 the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.CONNECT WITH USIf you have any questions or would like to get to know us further, head over to https://www.triumphlbc.org/connect and fill out our online connection card.ABOUT TRIUMPHTriumph wants to see the life and message of Jesus transform your heart, home, and city. To learn more visit https://www.triumphlbc.org/

Ramesses and Hattusili (Part 2). After the marriage to a Hittite princess in Year 34, Ramesses II had much to offer his northern family. A visit from the King of Hatti's son, seeking food supplies, may relate to repeated hunger crises in Syria and Hatti. Pharaoh's support brought the two kingdoms closer together, although we must wonder if the Bronze Age Collapse has now begun... Finally a text known as the Bentresh Stela offers a fairytale memory of Ramesses' relations with Hatti. Music: Keith Zizza. Music: Luke Chaos. == Select References - Hattusili and Ramesses Brand, P. J. (2023). Ramesses II: Egypt's Ultimate Pharaoh. Bryce, T. (2003). Letters of the Great Kings of the Ancient Near East: The Royal Correspondence of the Late Bronze Age. Bryce, T. (2005). The Kingdom of the Hittites (2nd ed.). Divon, S. A. (2008). A Survey of the Textual Evidence for “Food Shortage” from the Late Hittite Empire. In The City of Emar Among the Late Bronze Age Empires (pp. 101--109). Online. Drews, R. (1993). The End of the Bronze Age. Edel, E. (1994). Die ägyptisch-hethitische Korrespondenz aus Boghazköi in babylonischer und hethitischer Sprache I. Hoffner Jr., H. A. (2009). Letters from the Hittite Kingdom. Kaniewski, D., et al. (2020). Climate Change and Social Unrest: A 6,000‐Year Chronicle From the Eastern Mediterranean. Geophysical Research Letters, 47. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL087496 Klengel, H. (1974). “Hungerjahre” in Hatti. Altorientalische Forschungen, 1, 165—174. Kuslu, Y., & Sahin, U. (2009). Water Structures in Anatolia from Past to Present. Journal of Applied Sciences Research, 5, 2109--2116. Nougayrol, E., et al. (1968). Ugaritica V. Owen, D. I. (1981). An Akkadian Letter from Ugarit at Tel Aphek. Tel Aviv, 8, 1--17. Online. Singer, I. (2011). The Calm Before the Storm: Selected Writings of Itamar Singer on the Late Bronze Age in Anatolia and the Levant. Select References - The Bentresh Stela Erman, A. (1883). Die Bentreschstele. Zeitschrift Für Ägyptische Sprache Und Altertumskunde, 21, 54–60. Kitchen, K. A. (1975). Ramesside Inscriptions Historical and Biographical (Vol. 2). Kitchen, K. A. (1993a). Ramesside Inscriptions Translated and Annotated: Notes and Comments (Vol. 2). Kitchen, K. A. (1993b). Ramesside Inscriptions Translated and Annotated: Translations (Vol. 2). Posener, G. (1934). À propos de la stèle de Bentresh. Bulletin de l'Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale, 34, 75--81. https://www.ifao.egnet.net/bifao/34/ Spalinger, A. (1977). On the Bentresh stela and related problems. Journal of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities, 8, 11--18. Online. Witthuhn, O., et al. (2015). Die Bentresch-Stele: Ein Quellen- und Lesebuch. Online. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NLT 7 Then the Lord told him, "I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live. 9 Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them.

858 I Have Heard Them Cry Out, A Guided Christian Meditation on Exodus 3:7-9 with the Recenter With Christ app The purpose of this podcast is to help you find more peace in  and connect with the true source of peace, Jesus Christ.  Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.  You can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tense or unrelaxing.  If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes.   Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation:   Breathe and direct your thoughts to connecting with God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate,  deflate. Scripture for Meditation Exodus 3 NIV The Lord said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. NLT 7 Then the Lord told him, "I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live. 9 Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. Reflection on Scripture: I want you to stop everything you are thinking and hone in on this call from the Lord. I am aware of your suffering is what he says to you. I know what you have been through. This scripture points out that he could tell you clearly, I know your victories and your setbacks. I know your heart. I know what you need. I know what it takes to craft you into the image I want from you. Not only do I know all these things but I am strong. I am strong enough to save you. I have that power. The greatest challenge of all the one we should be most desperate for is a forgiveness of our sin.  Each one of us has weakness within our mind and heart. Take this moment to turn from that weakness toward the strength God offers. Working with people in the most challenging of circumstances has shown me again and again that each of us have our own story with plenty of deep valleys. As an example It has been a few weeks since I put out an episode. I got sick then had a family member in the hospital and then someone I minister to in a professional context was in the hospital. So I have had many things up in the air. And at the end of all that I ended up traveling to support a family member and I am not at home to celebrate Mother's Day with my wife. At certain points I have been quite low recently. And yet I know that my struggle is knot unknown to God. He knows it. And he lets these things happen because he knows what is required to cause us to grow. He knows what is required for us to overcome. Please trust the one who has power to save.  Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: I invite you to sit in silence feeling patient for your own faults and trials. Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life: This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast Final Question: If you consider the invitation and command to persevere in the faith, what change in your life does that bring to your mind?  FIND ME ON: Download my free app: Recenter with Christ Website - ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Voicemail - (602) 888-3795 Email: jared@christianmeditationpodcast.com Apple Podcasts - Christian Meditation Podcast Facebook.com/christianmeditationpodcast Youtube.com/christianmeditaitonpodcast Twitter - @ChristianMedPod

Ezra 9 After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. 2 For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.” 3 As soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled. 4 Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles, gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice. 5 And at the evening sacrifice I rose from my fasting, with my garment and my cloak torn, and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the Lord my God, 6 saying: “O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. 7 From the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt. And for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plundering, and to utter shame, as it is today. 8 But now for a brief moment favor has been shown by the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a secure hold[b] within his holy place, that our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery. 9 For we are slaves. Yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia, to grant us some reviving to set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection[c] in Judea and Jerusalem. 10 “And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments, 11 which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land that you are entering, to take possession of it, is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness. 12 Therefore do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever.' 13 And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a remnant as this, 14 shall we break your commandments again and intermarry with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry with us until you consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape? 15 O Lord, the God of Israel, you are just, for we are left a remnant that has escaped, as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this.”

May 5, 2026Today's Reading: James 1:16-21Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 23:1-22; Luke 12:13-34“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:16-17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! Amen. The epistle of James does not mince words when it comes to the life of the Christian. James makes it abundantly clear that in our sanctified lives, we live as children of God. It is no surprise that many of the reformers reluctantly went to James. Even Luther struggled with James, but Luther also knew that God's word is unchangeable. In Exodus, God gives the promise to Moses to share with the people, “I will be your God and you will be my people.” (Exodus 6:7) God declares that He is the one who is bringing them out of slavery in Egypt and into a land of freedom flowing with milk and honey. Later, when they are in the wilderness, God delivers the Decalogue and reminds them again that He is their God and they are His people. His people do not live like the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, or the Egyptians, but His people live like children of God. When the people of the Old Testament do not live like children of God, He says to them, “You are not people and I am not your God.” (Hosea 1:9)In our sinfulness, we live like the world. We indulge in the pleasures of the flesh. We feed our minds with fantasies of immorality and ungodly conduct. We seek ways to massage God's word so that we can justify our behavior or someone else's behavior. In James, the mirror of the law exposes our sin and accuses us of not being God's children. In that behavior, we are not His people, and He is not our God. James does not leave us in despair. He reminds his hearers that all good things come from God. He writes in chapter 1:17, “....every perfect gift is from above,…” The perfect gift is a “complete” gift. The reader cannot help but connect what James writes here and what Christ says on the cross. It is “finished.” It is complete. The work is done, and it has come from above. Christ has fulfilled the law for us so that we are no longer slaves under the law. We are set free to live as children of God. He is our God, and we are His people. He gives to us His holy law, and we are free to live in His holy law without fear of the world's condemnation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, And humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone. (LSB 579:3)Rev. Timothy Davis

And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the house of the Lord, and his own house,2 That the cities which Huram had restored to Solomon, Solomon built them, and caused the children of Israel to dwell there.3 And Solomon went to Hamathzobah, and prevailed against it.4 And he built Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the store cities, which he built in Hamath.5 Also he built Bethhoron the upper, and Bethhoron the nether, fenced cities, with walls, gates, and bars;6 And Baalath, and all the store cities that Solomon had, and all the chariot cities, and the cities of the horsemen, and all that Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and throughout all the land of his dominion.7 As for all the people that were left of the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which were not of Israel,8 But of their children, who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel consumed not, them did Solomon make to pay tribute until this day.9 But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no servants for his work; but they were men of war, and chief of his captains, and captains of his chariots and horsemen.10 And these were the chief of king Solomon's officers, even two hundred and fifty, that bare rule over the people.11 And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh out of the city of David unto the house that he had built for her: for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places are holy, whereunto the ark of the Lord hath come.12 Then Solomon offered burnt offerings unto the Lord on the altar of the Lord, which he had built before the porch,13 Even after a certain rate every day, offering according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts, three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles.14 And he appointed, according to the order of David his father, the courses of the priests to their service, and the Levites to their charges, to praise and minister before the priests, as the duty of every day required: the porters also by their courses at every gate: for so had David the man of God commanded.15 And they departed not from the commandment of the king unto the priests and Levites concerning any matter, or concerning the treasures.16 Now all the work of Solomon was prepared unto the day of the foundation of the house of the Lord, and until it was finished. So the house of the Lord was perfected.17 Then went Solomon to Eziongeber, and to Eloth, at the sea side in the land of Edom.18 And Huram sent him by the hands of his servants ships, and servants that had knowledge of the sea; and they went with the servants of Solomon to Ophir, and took thence four hundred and fifty talents of gold, and brought them to king Solomon.

9. Guest: Eric Cline. Archaeologist Cline discusses the Amarna letters, focusing on the prolific correspondence of Rib-Hadda of Byblos. He characterizes these ancient conflicts as proxy wars between the Hittites and Egyptians. Cline notes that the regional dynamics of 3,400 years ago strikingly mirror contemporary Middle Eastern geopolitical struggles. 1922 HOLLYWOOD BLVD AND CAHUENGA

SCHEDULE JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW, 4-23-261902 DELONGPRE GARDENHere are your formatted segments:1. Guest: Anatol Lieven. Lieven discusses the Middle East crisis, noting Russia benefits from rising oil prices while China fears global economic instability. Future concerns include potential US retaliation against Europe regarding Ukraine aid and Greenland, alongside upcoming tariff negotiations between President Trump and Xi Jinping in Beijing. 12. Guest: Anatol Lieven. Lieven analyzes UK politics, characterizing Prime Minister Keir Starmer as a "dead man walking" due to record low popularity and scandals involving Lord Mandelson. Regarding Ukraine, he suggests they are achieving a qualified victory by holding the line, though long-term survival is threatened by manpower and funding shortages. 23. Guest: Grant Newsham. Retired Marine Colonel Newsham explains Japan's participation in the Balikatan combat exercises in the Philippines. This shift toward active military training under Prime Minister Takayichi aims to counter Chinese aggression. Beijing strongly opposes this enhanced US-Japan defense link, fearing its combined strategic capabilities. 34. Guest: Titus Techera. Techera reviews Project Hail Mary, calling it a family-oriented film celebrating space exploration and "manly professionalism". However, he highlights Hollywood's decline as streaming and private gaming erode the shared cinematic experience. He notes that traditional "boys' fantasies" have largely defected to digital platforms. 45. Guest: Evan Ellis. Ellis examines Peru's political turmoil surrounding a multi-billion dollar F-16 deal. An interim leftist government attempted to delay payments, potentially seeking Russian or Chinese alternatives. Despite the resignation of two key ministers in protest, the deal currently appears to be moving forward. 56. Guest: Evan Ellis. Ellis details spillover violence in Trinidad and Tobago, where drug flows and gangs necessitated a state of emergency. He addresses Venezuela's opposition leader Maria Corina Machado's delayed return to the country. Additionally, he discusses El Salvador's controversial mass trial of 486 alleged gang members. 67. Guest: Evan Ellis. Ellis discusses a suspicious car crash in Chihuahua, Mexico, that killed four officials, including two CIA personnel. He also covers a diplomatic rift between the US and Brazil involving mutual expulsions of police liaisons, sparked by tensions over former President Bolsonaro and the 2022 election. 78. Guest: Evan Ellis. Ellis reports Panama is seeing increased canal revenue due to Middle East instability, but faces Chinese retaliation for revoking a port concession. China is using economic leverage to punish Panama, pressuring major shipping companies and harassing Panamanian-flagged vessels to discourage resistance to its presence. 89. Guest: Eric Cline. Archaeologist Cline discusses the Amarna letters, focusing on the prolific correspondence of Rib-Hadda of Byblos. He characterizes these ancient conflicts as proxy wars between the Hittites and Egyptians. Cline notes that the regional dynamics of 3,400 years ago strikingly mirror contemporary Middle Eastern geopolitical struggles. 910. Guest: Eric Cline. Cline explores the letters of Abdi-Heba, the ruler of Jerusalem, who balanced local conflicts while appealing to the Egyptian Pharaoh for military aid. The correspondence reveals a world of backstabbing vassal politics and frequent requests for gold, which Egypt occasionally sent as gilded wood. 1011. Guest: Eric Cline. Using social network analysis, Cline maps connections between Bronze Age rulers, identifying messengers as critical "power brokers". He notes the difficulty of identifying specific Pharaohs in the letters. Finally, he discusses the archaeological significance of Byblos and the need for future excavations once regional peace allows. 1112. Guest: Eric Cline. Cline discusses the 1177 BC collapse of the globalized Late Bronze Age network due to drought, famine, and invasions. He emphasizes modern lessons from this collapse, including the need for innovation, resilience, and multiple backup plans to ensure societal survival when complex systems inevitably fail. 1213. Guest: Craig Unger. Unger argues Vladimir Putin is the primary beneficiary of the Middle East conflict as rising oil prices bolster Russia's economy. He describes Donald Trump as a Russian "asset" whose interests align with Putin's. Additionally, he discusses Melania Trump's unusual press conference denying Jeffrey Epstein connections. 1314. Guest: Veronique de Rugy. De Rugy warns of a looming debt crisis, suggesting the US is passively choosing inflation over necessary spending cuts or tax hikes. She argues that fiscal credibility cannot be restored without reforming Medicare and Social Security, and recommends deregulating healthcare to increase supply and lower costs. 1415. Guest: Mary Anastasia O'Grady. O'Grady criticizes the stalled transition to democracy in Venezuela, noting the Rodriguez siblings are "buying time" for their criminal regime. Despite the capture of Maduro, corrupt officials remain in power. She highlights the ongoing threat to opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and the lack of US focus. 1516. Guest: Cleo Paskal. Paskal reports on Super Typhoon Sinlaku's impact on US Pacific territories. She also discusses the fuel supply crisis in the Marshall Islands caused by the Strait of Hormuz closure. Finally, she details the withdrawal of a controversial UK deal to cede the strategic Chagos Islands to Mauritius. 16

Preview: Eric Cline discusses the Amarna letters, revealing Bronze Age diplomacy and proxy wars between Egypt and the Hittites. He analyzes the interconnected network's collapse in 1177 BC, offering modern lessons on innovation.1842

Joshua 1:1-9 [1] After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, it came to pass that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, saying: [2] “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them-the children of Israel. [3] Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. [4] From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory. [5] No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. [6] Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. [7] Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. [8] This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. [9] Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and magnified him exceedingly.2 Then Solomon spake unto all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and to the judges, and to every governor in all Israel, the chief of the fathers.3 So Solomon, and all the congregation with him, went to the high place that was at Gibeon; for there was the tabernacle of the congregation of God, which Moses the servant of the Lord had made in the wilderness.4 But the ark of God had David brought up from Kirjathjearim to the place which David had prepared for it: for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem.5 Moreover the brasen altar, that Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made, he put before the tabernacle of the Lord: and Solomon and the congregation sought unto it.6 And Solomon went up thither to the brasen altar before the Lord, which was at the tabernacle of the congregation, and offered a thousand burnt offerings upon it.7 In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him, Ask what I shall give thee.8 And Solomon said unto God, Thou hast shewed great mercy unto David my father, and hast made me to reign in his stead.9 Now, O Lord God, let thy promise unto David my father be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude.10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like.13 Then Solomon came from his journey to the high place that was at Gibeon to Jerusalem, from before the tabernacle of the congregation, and reigned over Israel.14 And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, which he placed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.15 And the king made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the vale for abundance.16 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.17 And they fetched up, and brought forth out of Egypt a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and fifty: and so brought they out horses for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, by their means.

What made the Hittites one of the great Bronze Age powers, and how did their empire survive on war, diplomacy and faith? Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Elena Devecchi to uncover ancient royal intrigue, lavish festivals, the 'Thousand God', and the world's oldest known peace treaty. From Hattusha's immense lion gates to secret archives and sacking Babylon, it's a dramatic deep dive into an empire that once stretched as far as Troy.MOREThe Bronze CollapseListen on Apple Listen on SpotifyTower of BabelListen on Apple Listen on SpotifyPresented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Aidan Lonergan, the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic SoundsThe Ancients is a History Hit podcast.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Study Passage: Numbers 13:1-33The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”

TEACHING TEXT:  Exodus 3:1-12,” Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” See the Power of God.Exodus 3:2-6,”4 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.”Charles Spurgeon - “Where God is present, the place becomes holy ground, though it be a desert and a bush.”Exodus 3:6,”6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.”Matthew Henry - “God's covenant-relation to us as our God is the best support in the worst of times, and a great encouragement to our faith in particular promises. When we are conscious to ourselves of our own great unworthiness we may take comfort from God's relation to our fathers,”Charles Spurgeon - “A sense of the divine presence will make a man cover his face in humility. The nearer we come to God, the more conscious we are of our own unworthiness.”Recognize who God is. Exodus 3:11-15,”11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” 13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.'”15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.' “This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation.”A. W. Tozer - “God exists in Himself and by Himself, and all other beings exist only because He wills that they should.”God extends the call. Exodus 4:1-11 “Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you'?” 2 Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied. 3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. 4 Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. 5 “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.” 6 Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, the skin was leprous[e]—it had become as white as snow. 7 “Now put it back into your cloak,” he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh. 8 Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second. 9 But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground.” 10 Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” 11 The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”Exodus 3:7-8,”7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—”Moses sees → resists → God still sends God answers every excuse except one: unwillingness Charles Spurgeon - “The Lord's eye is never closed to the sorrow of His people.”Ask God to reveal His power to you.Ask God to reveal His identity to you.Ask God to send you. GOD ALONE SUSTAINS  ...

Rabbi David Wolpe needs no introduction, but if you insist: He's a scholar in residence at the Maimonides Fund, Rabbi Emeritus at LA's Sinai Temple, and formerly a visiting scholar at the Harvard Divinity School (where, you know, Yael…never mind).This is a somewhat optimistic, thoughtful (well, at least Wolpe's part), conversation about why Jews are fine (when's the last time you saw a Hittite walking around?), whether the bible is true, how we can build stronger friendships with other communities, and if we should forgive Kanye….not to mention Mandy Patinkin.Happy Passover to our Jews, and Happy Easter to our Christians! Everyone else, have a wonderful and happy week, and thank you for listening!Also:* Jews like our clouds without silver lining.* Things are great! All things considered.* There's no such thing as a grown up.* The wrath of Jewish WhatsApp groups (you don't need to text him about every Swastika)* Wait, not everything in the bible is real?? A controversial sermon.* What makes the Exodus true? An interview with Rabbi Dr. Joshua Berman (but finish listening to this first)* Is AI good for the Jews?* How Jewish do you need to be?* Why did you become a Rabbi?* What to say to a young Jew who wants out?* Recommended reading: Testament of a Jew from Saragossa, by Eli Wiesel.* We live in a society where victimhood is power.* We need you!* Where have all the Hittites gone?* Can Judaism survive without a Tzar?* Which Jews can we kick out though?* Does Rabbi Wolpe forgive Kanye?* Can't finish without Pharoah Mandy Patinkin.NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!We'll be off next week, but if you miss us and want to help us grow, consider going to Apple Podcasts or Spotify and leave us a five star rating and a nice review. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askajew.substack.com/subscribe

The Hittite spirit of fear must be the first enemy we conquer to enter the Promise Land because it is the enemy that prevents us from engaging all the others. Be strong and of good courage — the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.---------SUBSCRIBE ▶️   Receive our latest videos:https://www.youtube.com/c/PastorSteve...ABOUTPastor, author and speaker Steve Berger is known for his straight talk in dealing with various hot-topic cultural issues that many pastors avoid. In 2021, he founded Ambassador Services International with his wife, Sarah. He serves on the Executive and Pastoral Advisory Boards for Promise Keepers International, and the Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast Board, and is Pastor Emeritus of One Church Home in Fairview TN. Whether preaching or writing, in great joy or pain, Steve longs to be a proclaimer of the grace and hope that Jesus came to offer. Since June of 1987, he has been married to Sarah, the love of his life, and together, they have four beautiful children and five grandchildren.LEARN MORE

Friday Bible Study (3/13/26) // Ezra 9 (ESV) // Ezra Prays About Intermarriage // 1 After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. 2 For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race[a] has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.” 3 As soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled. 4 Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles, gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice. 5 And at the evening sacrifice I rose from my fasting, with my garment and my cloak torn, and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the Lord my God, 6 saying:“O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. 7 From the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt. And for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plundering, and to utter shame, as it is today. 8 But now for a brief moment favor has been shown by the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a secure hold[b] within his holy place, that our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery. 9 For we are slaves. Yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia, to grant us some reviving to set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection[c] in Judea and Jerusalem.10 “And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments, 11 which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land that you are entering, to take possession of it, is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness. 12 Therefore do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever.' 13 And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a remnant as this, 14 shall we break your commandments again and intermarry with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry with us until you consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape? 15 O Lord, the God of Israel, you are just, for we are left a remnant that has escaped, as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this.”Footnotesa. Ezra 9:2 Hebrew offspringb. Ezra 9:8 Hebrew nail, or tent-pinc. Ezra 9:9 Hebrew a wallWebsite: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mbchicago.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ FOLLOW USFacebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  / mbc.chicago  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  / mbc.chicago  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  / mbc.chicago  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TO SUPPORT US Zelle to: info@mbchicago.org Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mbchicago.org/give⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Venmo: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://venmo.com/mbchurch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ DAF Donations: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://every.org/mbc.chicago⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PayPal: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://paypal.com/donate/?hosted_but...⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #Ezra #BookOfEzra #BibleStudy #BibleExplained #Bible #BiblicalStudies #BibleTeacher #WordOfGod #BiblicalLessons

A @Christadelphians Video: Inspiring and thought-provoking! Discover how modern archaeology consistently affirms the historical reliability of the Bible in this insightful expositional study. We explore outstanding discoveries that have turned skepticism into wonder, revealing the profound accuracy of Scripture down to the smallest detail. This presentation builds a powerful, evidence-based confidence that the Bible is not myth, but a truthful record—strengthening our trust in its greater spiritual promises.**Chapters:**00:00 - Introduction: The Unfolding Evidence of Archaeology01:21 - The Purpose of Archaeology & Building Trust in Scripture02:34 - The Hittites: A "Lost" Empire Rediscovered

1. Eric Cline discusses the Late Bronze Age through the lens of the Uluburun shipwreck, which represents the era's globalized trade network. The ship's cargo, including copper from Cyprus and tin from Afghanistan, highlights the interconnectedness of civilizations like the Egyptians, Hittites, and Mycenaeans. Cline explains that the collapse around 1177 BC was not caused by a single event but a "perfect storm" of factors, including drought, famine, earthquakes, and the Sea Peoples' migrations. This catastrophic sequence occurred so rapidly that societies lacked the time to recover, leading to a systemic failure of the ancient world's trade routes. (1)

5. The conversation details the collapse of the Hittite Empire in central Anatolia. Despite once being equal to Egypt, the Hittites suffered from poor leadership and internal rot, exacerbated by plagues and famine. Their capital, Hattusa, was eventually burned, possibly by local enemies rather than the Sea Peoples. While the main empire disappeared, "rump states" survived in northern Syria, becoming the Neo-Hittites mentioned in the Bible. Additionally, Cline mentions recent computer modeling that suggests the simultaneous collapse of the Hittites and the port city of Ugarit was sufficient to bring down the entire global trade network. (5)

8. In this final segment, Cline summarizes the rankings of ancient societies based on resilience definitions from the IPCC. He distinguishes between those that "transformed" (the antifragile Phoenicians and Cypriots), those that "adapted" or "coped" (Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon), and those that failed (the Hittites). He emphasizes the importance of geography, noting that major river systems like the Nile and Euphrateshelped Egypt and Mesopotamia survive the collapse. Cline's work illustrates that resilience involves more than just survival; it requires the agility to innovate in response to extreme impact events, offering lessons for contemporary global stability. (8)

Exodus 3:1-15Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!"And Moses said, “Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”  Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.  So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them.  So now, go.  I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.' ” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.' “This is my name forever,      the name you shall call me      from generation to generation."

Bernie Taylor of beforeorion.com rejoins the show to discuss Gobekle Tepe and Ephesus. But, as always with Taylor, he's got a swerve. We're talking Avionoids, whether Artemis was the goddess at “the Temple of Artemis”, what is Anatolia, and more. We talk lions, palm dates, Amazons, Herculean murders, hunter gatherers to agriculturalists, and Hittites! That's just a sampling. Plenty of zodiac and astronomy too. 

Share a commentStart with a brilliant agnostic surgeon, add a wife just as skeptical, and place them in a world where science felt sufficient and Scripture seemed suspect. Then introduce a disciplined promise: they'll examine the claims of Christianity with the same rigor they bring to medicine. What follows is a step-by-step rethinking of everything they assumed about origins, meaning, and truth.We walk through the evidence that first unsettled, then persuaded them. Patterns in biology and the cosmos reframed chance as an insufficient author; Psalm 19 gave voice to the sense that creation speaks continually. Archaeology undercut classroom myths by unearthing Hittites, Edomites, and cities like Petra, aligning the biblical record with the spade. Prophecy drew a line from ancient texts to a crucified Messiah, while John's portrait of the Logos made revelation feel personal, not abstract. And at the center stood the critical hinge: the resurrection. If Jesus truly rose, his words move from inspiring to binding. The fear-to-courage arc of the disciples, sealed by suffering and death, became difficult to dismiss as fiction.But evidence alone didn't make the difference. The turning point was discovering that Christianity is not a merit system; it is grace received, not goodness achieved. Verses from Titus, Timothy, Acts, and Romans reshaped assumptions about salvation and opened a path from belief to belonging. That path led Viggo and Joan to a costly coherence: turning down prestigious offers and sailing to Bangladesh to build a hospital, plant churches, and serve patients from royal families to the poorest neighbors. Along the way, they met people asking the same questions that launched their search: Where did we come from? Can God be known? Is forgiveness real?Join us for a story that blends rigorous inquiry with lived conviction, weaving themes of intelligent design, biblical reliability, the resurrection, and grace. If you're weighing big claims or wondering whether truth is worth the risk, this conversation offers clarity and courage. If it moves you, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review to help others find the show. What's the one question you want answered next?_____Stephen's latest book, Legacies of Light, Volume 2, is our gift for your special donation to our ministry. Follow this link for information or to donate:https://www.wisdomonline.org/mp/legaciesSupport the show

Share a commentStart with a brilliant agnostic surgeon, add a wife just as skeptical, and place them in a world where science felt sufficient and Scripture seemed suspect. Then introduce a disciplined promise: they'll examine the claims of Christianity with the same rigor they bring to medicine. What follows is a step-by-step rethinking of everything they assumed about origins, meaning, and truth.We walk through the evidence that first unsettled, then persuaded them. Patterns in biology and the cosmos reframed chance as an insufficient author; Psalm 19 gave voice to the sense that creation speaks continually. Archaeology undercut classroom myths by unearthing Hittites, Edomites, and cities like Petra, aligning the biblical record with the spade. Prophecy drew a line from ancient texts to a crucified Messiah, while John's portrait of the Logos made revelation feel personal, not abstract. And at the center stood the critical hinge: the resurrection. If Jesus truly rose, his words move from inspiring to binding. The fear-to-courage arc of the disciples, sealed by suffering and death, became difficult to dismiss as fiction.But evidence alone didn't make the difference. The turning point was discovering that Christianity is not a merit system; it is grace received, not goodness achieved. Verses from Titus, Timothy, Acts, and Romans reshaped assumptions about salvation and opened a path from belief to belonging. That path led Viggo and Joan to a costly coherence: turning down prestigious offers and sailing to Bangladesh to build a hospital, plant churches, and serve patients from royal families to the poorest neighbors. Along the way, they met people asking the same questions that launched their search: Where did we come from? Can God be known? Is forgiveness real?Join us for a story that blends rigorous inquiry with lived conviction, weaving themes of intelligent design, biblical reliability, the resurrection, and grace. If you're weighing big claims or wondering whether truth is worth the risk, this conversation offers clarity and courage. If it moves you, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review to help others find the show. What's the one question you want answered next?_____Stephen's latest book, Legacies of Light, Volume 2, is our gift for your special donation to our ministry. Follow this link for information or to donate:https://www.wisdomonline.org/mp/legaciesSupport the show

Which ancient civilisation was the best at surviving the Apocalypse, and which was the worst? Who were the Hittites, and what did they actually call themselves? Does the Bronze Age collapse serve as a warning to the modern world?  William and Anita are joined by Professor Eric Cline, author of 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed and After 1177 B.C.: The Survival Of Civilizations, to discuss how the end of the ancient "globalised" system serves as a chilling warning for our own interconnected world. Join the Empire Club: Unlock the full Empire experience – with bonus episodes, ad-free listening, early access to miniseries and live show tickets, exclusive book discounts, a members-only newsletter, and access to our private Discord chatroom. Sign up directly at empirepoduk.com  For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com. Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk Blue Sky: @empirepoduk X: @empirepoduk Editor: Charlie Rodwell Producer: Anouska Lewis Executive Producer: Dom Johnson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who were the ‘Sea Peoples'? Was the Bronze Age Collapse caused by a single catastrophic event? How did the Egyptians try to adapt to the changing climate? From the scientific evidence hidden in ancient pollen to the first historical mention of "Israel" and the rise of the Philistines, this episode uncovers how a global systemic collapse redrew the map of the ancient world. William and Anita are joined by Professor Eric Cline, author of 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed, and After 1177 B.C.: The Survival Of Civilizations, to explore how a series of catastrophes shattered the interconnected superpowers of the Pharaohs, Hittites, and Mycenaeans…  Join the Empire Club: Unlock the full Empire experience – with bonus episodes, ad-free listening, early access to miniseries and live show tickets, exclusive book discounts, a members-only newsletter, and access to our private Discord chatroom. Sign up directly at empirepoduk.com  For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com. Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk Blue Sky: @empirepoduk X: @empirepoduk Editors: Bruno Di Castri and Jack Meek Producer: Anouska Lewis Executive Producer: Dom Johnson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices