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Joshua 2:1-241 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.”4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.12 “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don't tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.”15 So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. 16 She said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.”17 Now the men had said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us 18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. 19 If any of them go outside your house into the street, their blood will be on their own heads; we will not be responsible. As for those who are in the house with you, their blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on them. 20 But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.”21 “Agreed,” she replied. “Let it be as you say.” So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.22 When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them. 23 Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua son of Nun and told him everything that had happened to them. 24 They said to Joshua, “The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us.”
Numbers 25 describes a significant event in Israel's history during their wilderness journey. It details how the Israelites, near the land of Moab, fell into idolatry and immorality, provoking God's anger and leading to severe judgment. The chapter also introduces Phinehas, a priest whose zeal for God's holiness played a key role in stopping a deadly plague. 1. The Sin of Israel (Numbers 25:1-3) “And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.” (Numbers 25:1-3, KJV) The Israelites were camped at Shittim, near Moab, before entering the Promised Land. While there, they engaged in sexual immorality with Moabite women, which led them to worship Baal-peor, a pagan god. Their idolatry and disobedience angered God, as they had broken their covenant with Him. 2. God's Judgment and the Plague (Numbers 25:4-9) “And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.” (Numbers 25:4) In response to Israel's sin, God commanded Moses to execute those who had participated in idolatry and immorality. A severe plague struck the nation as a divine punishment. While Israel mourned the destruction, an Israelite man named Zimri openly brought a Midianite woman named Cozbi into his tent in defiance of God's command. Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, acted decisively by taking a spear and killing both Zimri and Cozbi, stopping the plague. His swift action demonstrated his commitment to God's holiness. The plague ended after this, but by then, 24,000 Israelites had already died. 3. Phinehas' Reward (Numbers 25:10-13) “Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel… Wherefore say, Behold, I give unto him my covenant of peace.” (Numbers 25:11-12) God commended Phinehas for his zeal and granted him a covenant of peace. This covenant ensured that his descendants would always serve as priests. His action symbolized Israel's return to righteousness by purging sin from the camp. 4. The Midianites Become Enemies (Numbers 25:14-18) “Vex the Midianites, and smite them: For they vex you with their wiles, wherewith they have beguiled you in the matter of Peor…” (Numbers 25:17-18) Zimri, the Israelite man, and Cozbi, the Midianite woman, were leaders in their communities. Because of their role in leading Israel into sin, God commanded Israel to attack the Midianites. This set the stage for later conflicts between Israel and Midian. Lessons from Numbers 25 The story highlights the dangers of compromise. Israel's downfall began with a small compromise—associating with pagan nations—which led to full idolatry and divine judgment. God's holiness and justice are emphasized, showing that He does not tolerate sin, especially when His people turn away from Him. The passage also illustrates the importance of zeal for righteousness. Phinehas demonstrated that taking a stand for God's truth can restore His favor. Lastly, the consequences of sin are evident, as seen in the severe plague that claimed 24,000 lives. Conclusion Numbers 25 is a warning against spiritual and moral compromise. It highlights how Israel fell into sin through idolatry and immorality, leading to divine judgment. However, it also shows that repentance and zeal for God's holiness can restore His favor. The legacy of Phinehas serves as an example of standing against unrighteousness in a world that constantly tempts God's people to stray.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sendme-radio--732966/support.
INTRODUCTION . How can the physical and/or spiritual presence of God help believers learn to obey? 1 Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and he and all the sons of Israel set out from Shittim and came to the Jordan, and they lodged there before they crossed. 2 At the end of three days the officers…
Harav Chaim Kosman discusses the significance of Atzei Shittim and what role they played in the Mishkan, and highlights the importance of evaluating and adjusting our own shittos.
Joshua 2:1 (KJV) And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.Joshua 2:23-24 (KJV) So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them: 24 And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.
We're now the song of the Behema Gasa Tehora the large domesticated kosher animal. We already had the Song of the Ox, and therefore the commentaries say we're talking about the para , which is the female cow . She has a separate song: בְּהֵמָה גַּסָּה טְהוֹרָה אוֹמֶרֶת. הַרְנִינוּ לֵאלֹהִים עוּזֵּנוּ הָרִיעוּ לֵאלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב: (תהילים פא ב) Let us sing a song to God, our strength, let us sound the trumpet to the God of Yaakov. As always, we have to understand the meaning of the pasuk, and also why this animal (in our case today, the cow) is singing this song. Rav Chaim Kanievsky cites a pasuk in Shemuel א 7,12 that discusses how the cows brought the Aron Hakodesh back after it was in captivity. The cows sang a song, says the Gemara in Avoda Zara 24B, that God miraculously allowed them to sing, " Roni Roni Hashita/ Sing sing to the Aron of made out of Shittim wood . Rav Chaim Kanievsky points out that the cows sang this song of Rena . And that's why in our pasuk, it's a song of Rena, to our God, that is our strength. But let's go deeper. What exactly is going on of here? Why the cows? And what song are we singing? The Mabit tells us in Perek Shira the Hereinu is a double Rena . Why a double Rena ? We're going to sing the song for God's justice that turned into mercy , and we'll sing a song for God's mercy. Elohim always means justice. Hareinu Elohim/ we'll sing to Elohim. That means God's trait of justice, turned around into mercy. This pasuk is said on Rosh Hashanah, and this entire chapter is talking about the Shofar of Rosh Hashanah. So this is a Rosh Hashanah message that the cows are going to be singing. On Rosh Hashanah, we have Middat HaDin/God's judgement. How do we deal with the Middat HaDin? What do we do when it looks like we're in a precarious situation? The Bet Yosef, in Or HaChaim siman ר צב where it talks about why we use the term Yitzhak Yiranen/ Yitzhak sings a song, says Abraham symbolizes Hessed, Yitzhak symbolizes Din / justice , and Yaakov Avinu is the harmony of both of them. So Yitzhak sings the song when times are tough, the songs of accepting God's will. Where do we see this? When Avraham told Yitzhak in Bereshit 22,8, " You are going to be the Olah, " it says Yitzhak sang a song of Rena . Anytime there's a korban, there's a song. So Yitzhak Avinu says, I am the korban, and I'm going to sing the song of the Korban. I'm going to accept God's will, even though I'm the Korban. Our three Avot correspond to Kohen, Levi and Yisrael. So Yitzhak Avinu deals with God's justice and sings a song of Rena, which is accepting God's will. But what happens when you're in a difficult situation and you sing the song and you accept God's will? Kol Rena V'yeshua B'Olahalei Sadikim/In the tents of Sadikim there's a Kol Rena, they are singing, even in the most difficult of times, accepting the will of God. V'Yeshua, and Hashem saves them. Yitzhak was eventually saved. He wasn't offered as a korban. The knife was taken from his neck. In part, it was because of Yitzhak Yeranen/Yitzhak Sang , he accepted with Rena . And now we go a step further. Why did the Jewish people choose a golden calf? As we know, the para is the mother of the calf. in Rashi Bamidbar, 19, 22 explaining why we have a para Aduma, it says it atones for the sin of the golden calf, because he calf is the child of the para. Rashi brings a mashal to a maid-servant whose child dirtied the palace. And they say, "Let the mother clean up the dirt of the child." So too, "Let the Para come to clean up form the Egel." What was wrong with the Egel? What went wrong? The Ramban says that the Jewish people were in the desert. The desert is a desolate area, which symbolizes Middat HaDin, and they felt, not that they were worshiping the Egel, but they felt that since Moshe was gone, they needed to focus on something on God's throne, that you focus on during times of Din. In Yehezkiel 1,20 it says, The cow was on the left. Left is always justice, right is kindness. So therefore, Aharon Hakohen thought, let that destructive cow, the cow that gores, come be the one that's going to direct us when Moshe is gone . So the cow symbolizes justice and here the cow is going to tell us the secret. You made a mistake. In a time of justice, I'll tell you the secret. הַרְנִינוּ לֵאלֹהִים עוּזֵּנוּ הָרִיעוּ לֵאלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב: (תהילים פא ב) Sing the song of Rena to God, accepting His will. That's our strength. In Vayikra 23, 24, when talking about the shofar, Seforno quotes our pasuk and he says, it's time of justice. And what do we do? We want to be happy that God is our King. We give ourselves over to His will, and we're hoping that He's going to tilt the scale of justice and turn it into kindness, and will save us. And he quotes a pasuk, Hashem is my judge. Hashem is the One that sets the rules up, and therefore He will save us. So on Rosh Hashana we accept the will of God. We go with the approach of Rena . That's the secret of the cows. And that will bring us the ultimate salvation.
King Omri and Ahab are worse than all the kings before them: King Omri establishes Samaria Omri dies and his son Ahab takes his place Ahab is worse than his father and every king before him Ahab marries Jezebel and introduces Baal worship to Israel Ahab rebuilds Jericho in spite of the curse of YHWH Why the Baal cult was especially disgusting and morally degrading compared to the other cults of the time Hey! Don't go away yet! Also check out these other P40 sites: YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnh-aqfg8rw Ko-Fi - https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Website - https://www.p40ministries.com Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/p40ministries Contact - jenn@p40ministries.com Rumble - https://rumble.com/c/c-6493869 Books - https://www.amazon.com/Jenn-Kokal/e/B095JCRNHY/ref=aufs_dp_fta_dsk Merch - https://www.p40ministries.com/shop YouVersion - https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/38267-out-of-the-mire-trusting-god-in-the-middle Support babies and get quality coffee with Seven Weeks Coffee https://sevenweekscoffee.com/?ref=P40 This ministry is only made possible due to your generous support https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries
Numbers 22:1-6,Then the people of Israel set out and camped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho. 2 And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. 3 And Moab was in great dread of the people, because they were many. Moab was overcome with fear of the people of Israel. 4 And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will now lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, 5 sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the people of Amaw, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come out of Egypt. They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me. 6 Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.” Well, in Numbers chapter 22, we read that the Israelites have made it to the plains of Moab. Which was near the Jordan River. Near the city of Jericho. Near the long-anticipated promised land of Canaan. What this signals for us then, is the beginning of a transition, a passing over of the baton, from the first generation of Israelites who failed to trust God in the wilderness, to the second generation of whom God said, “They shall inherit the land.” And it's no coincidence that as bookends to this section of Scripture (Numbers 22-25), we find two contrasting men on either side. One, who like the first generation, seems to know a thing or two about God, seems to claim a sort of allegiance to him, yet proves, in time, to be far from him. His name is Balaam, and his story will run through chapters 22, 23, and 24. In chapter 25, we'll see the second man, Phinehas. A man who not only knows about Yahweh and has given his allegiance to Him, but demonstrates that allegiance through action.So the aim for this morning is to analyze these two men, asking, on one side, What are the marks of worldliness? (And we'll spend the majority of our time there,) and what are the marks of godliness? We'll then end with a look at a third question: what are the promises given to the godly? What are the marks of worldliness?What are the marks of godliness?What are the promises given to the godly?1. Worldliness (Balaam)So, first question: what are the marks of worldliness? We're asking because, as Christians, we believe that examples of worldliness like these are in Scripture for our benefit… That we might inspect them, and so learn from them of how not to be.Just as Paul says, regarding these Old Testament examples of worldliness, 1 Corinthians 10:6, …these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.”And in his very next sentence, he references this very narrative here involving Balaam, saying:We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did [that is, the people we'll meet this morning in Numbers 25] and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day.”Application, 1 Cor. 10:12, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.”The marks of worldliness are here to serve as lenses into our own hearts. Lenses through which to look and ask: Where do I see remnants of this yet dwelling in me?With that, let's take a look at Numbers 22. So, as Peter just read, Israel is in Moab, and they're not alone. The people of Moab and Midian are there as well, and they're in “great dread” and “overcome with fear” on account of mighty Israel's arrival. Balak, King of Moab, fears war with the Israelites. He knows he cannot defeat them by force. But, he thinks, “perhaps I can through sorcery.” Enter Balaam — the Gentile prophet for hire. In verse 6, King Balak sends his messengers to Balaam, saying, “Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me.” And whether its a show of flattery, or something he actually believes it, Balak says of Balaam what should never be said of anyone other than God. “For I know [Balaam] that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.” What follows can be a bit of a confusing story. Confusing because it can leave us a bit unsure of what to do with Balaam. What should we make of him? Is he godly? Is he worldly? At first glance, it can seem tough to tell. After all: Balaam is going to refer to God by his covenantal name, Yahweh. God himself is going to speak to Balaam and through Balaam for the good of his people. In challenging moments, Balaam is going to claim that he's under obligation to speak only what God tells him.Those sound like marks of godliness, right? Well, they're not. And that's going to become increasingly apparent throughout these chapters. In fact, we can begin to see that as early on as verse 8. After all, just put yourselves in Balaam's shoes for a moment, and ask yourself: How might I respond, were these messengers to show up at my door, and say, “Our Master Balak wants to hire you to curse Israel, for he knows that he whom you curse is cursed and he whom you bless is blessed,”?How might you, given all you know of what God has said and done concerning this people Israel, beginning in Genesis, and stretching all the way through Exodus, Leviticus, and this point in Numbers. What might you say to these men? “Get lost,” right? Israel is the apple of God's eye (Zech. 2:8). Israel is God's treasured possession (Ps. 135:4). The people with whom God has made a covenant. The people of whom God said, “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you, I will curse” (Gen. 12:3). You don't love God and curse his people, do you? That is not Balaam's response. But, rather, verse 8, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as the Lord speaks to me.” First Mark of WorldlinessWe're looking for marks of worldliness. Well, here's the first: Worldliness considers sin, ponders it, weighs it in a balance. It says, “Wait here a moment, while I calculate whether this is worth my disobedience to God.”It does not slam the door upon sin, as it ought. It does not resist sin at first sight, as it ought. Instead it demonstrates a deadly patience toward sin, allowing it to linger, and make its case, and then mull over its prospect.Where is this kind of mulling over the prospect most likely to happen in our lives today? I'd venture to say that's its most likely to happen with a screen open before you, and the thought beginning to work its way into your mind: Perhaps this click is worth my disobedience to God. Worldliness considers sin. Balaam should've slammed the door in the face of those men. Instead, he welcomed them in.Let's pick up the speed a bit. Second Mark of WorldlinessBalaam's going to inquire of God — “Should I curse this people?” God's going to give his response. And it's not complicated. Verse 12: “You shall not go with them. You shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.” End of story, right? Not exactly. Balaam will turn away this first group of messengers, but King Balak will simply send back more, and with an even sweeter offer, in verse 16:“Let nothing hinder you from coming to me [Balaam], for I will surely do you great honor, and whatever you say to me I will do. Come, curse this people for me.” But Balaam's already got his answer, right? God has told him clearly not to go. So why does Balaam say this, in verses 18-19?“Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the command of the LORD my God to do less or more. So you, too, please stay here tonight, that I may know what more the LORD will say to me.”What more? God has given you his answer Balaam — What more need he say?Do you see what's going on here? Balaam is feigning ignorance. Pretending he actually does not know what God wants of him… Sure, God said not to go the first time, but what about now? Perhaps there's a chance he's changed his mind. Perhaps there's more nuance to his answer. Perhaps there's more that needs to be considered before I completely shut the door here.Here's a second mark of worldliness. Worldliness pleads ignorance. It claims: I just don't know what God thinks about this thing. I just don't know what God thinks about me sleeping with my boyfriend. I just don't know what God thinks about me going to this party. I just don't know what God thinks about me cheating on this test.The fact is, most of us know all too well what God thinks about these things, and many others — we just doesn't like it. Least not by nature. And so, we play pretend. We shut our eyes and stop our ears, and say, “Well, since I really can't know for sure…” Second mark of worldliness. Worldliness pleads ignorance.And like the kid who just keeps shaking up the eight-ball till he finally gets the answer he wants, Balaam is just going to keep “inquiring of God,” as if he didn't know any better, till God finally lets him go. And God will. God will give him over to what he truly wants. “Balaam, you want to go, you can go,” but, verse 20, “You can only do what I tell you.”Third Mark of WorldlinessNow, just a show of hands quick: You ever experience a bit of car trouble while out on the road? Flat-tire, over-heated engine, the kind of thing that forces you to pull over on the side of the road? It's amazing, even in our “post-Christian” age, people still tend to attribute that kind of thing to an act of God. “An act of God prevented me from making it to my intended destination.” Well, at this point of the story, Balaam is going to experience not a bit of car trouble, but a bit of donkey trouble. Three-times over, his donkey is going to prevent him from making progress toward the plains of Moab. And amazingly, Balaam is never once going to consider that it may actually be God whose preventing his progress. His donkey will. In fact, unlike Balaam, the donkey is going to see the angel of the LORD standing in his way with sword drawn, and that's the reason he's going to stop these three times.During stop number 3, God's going to do something remarkable. In verse 28, he's going to open the mouth of Balaam's donkey to speak to him. God can use Balaam, a prophet-for-hire as his mouthpiece, and he can even use a donkey to do the same. God then opens Balaam's eyes to finally see what's in front of him. Verse 31, “Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand.”Jump down to the middle of verse 32: “Behold [says the angel], I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live.”And now, just consider all that Balaam has experienced of God up to this point: God has spoken to him, twice. God has opened the mouth of his donkey. God has revealed an angel to him. In just a short while, God himself is going to speak through him. And God's even going to use him to bless his people. But you know what's really alarming? None of these experiences will ultimately change Balaam's heart.Sure, Balaam's going to be humbled in verse 31 — Frightened by this angel, he'll not dare go beyond what God says to him, for fear of his life.Balaam's going to be grieved in verse 34 — confessing his sin of ignorance (I didn't know the angel was there) but not his rebellion (I shouldn't have even been there in the first place). Balaam's even going to show some interest in God's people — 23:10, “Let me die the death of the upright, and let my end be like his [meaning Israel's]” None of it will fundamentally change Balaam. Like the parable of the soil and the weeds, Balaam's apparent interest in God will be choked out by the cares of this world.Balaam's EndAnd that's not conjecture. Scripture tells us that Balaam's last act, following these events, did not involve a dedication of his life to God. But a back-door method for getting paid. The advising King Balak and the women of Moab — “Look, you can't curse Israel, but you can seduce them.” As Numbers 31:16 reads, “…on Balaam's advice, the women of Midian caused the people of Israel to act treacherously against the Lord in the incident of Peor, and so the plague came among the congregation of the Lord.” As 2 Peter 2:15 reads, Balaam did this because he loved gain from wrongdoing. Third, and most alarming mark of worldliness: Worldliness can experience God and go on unmoved. Brothers and sisters, beware of heart-absent Christian activity. In your Bible reading, prayer, church life — beg God to awaken you to his glory. Plead with God to change you from one degree of glory to the next. Ask God, “Father, show me your glory through this act of worship before you.” What are the marks of worldliness?Worldliness considers sin, feigns ignorance, and can even go on unmoved by the experience of God.So, that's Balaam. Our portrait of worldliness. Far more briefly now, we'll look at Phinehas, and he as a portrait of godliness.2. Godliness (Phinehas)Turn with me over to chapter 25, and see that it opens with the Balaam-incited episode between the sons of Israel and the daughters of Moab and Midian. Verse 1, “While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor.”They were seduced into idolatry.God's response to this peoples' sin, just as in other times, was righteous wrath. Plague breaks out. Verse 9 tells us that 24,000 Israelites died in this incident — likely finishing off the remainder of that first generation of Israelites of whom God said would not enter the land but die in the wilderness.Now, 24,000 is a large number. But it would've been even larger had it not been for Phinehas. Again, we're looking for marks of godliness, and what we'll see in Phinehas is essentially the opposite of what we saw in Balaam. It begins with the disturbing scene of verse 6: “And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting.”Israelites are literally dropping left and right because of the plague. Mourners have gathered near the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. And in the sight of everyone, this man Zimri takes a Midianite woman in his hand and leads her to his chamber, nonchalantly walking past the Holy Tabernacle of God as they do so. Worldliness considers sin, yes? Godliness does not — but strikes it down from the start. So, verse 7: “When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand.”He does not consider following suit and he too grabbing the hand of a Midianite woman. He grabs his spear instead. First Mark of Godliness: Godliness opposes sin from the start.And why does he? What's so wrong about taking this Midianite woman? Maybe Zimri really likes her. Maybe she likes him. Maybe it's really no big deal. Worldliness feigns ignorance, yes? Godliness doesn't. God has said, Ex. 20:2-3, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me.” Yet this man is bowing down to these Midianite gods.God has said, Numbers 15:30, “But the person who does anything with a high hand, whether he is native or a sojourner, reviles the Lord, and that person shall be cut off from among his people.” Yet this man is carrying out his sin in the sight of the whole camp, and without a care.God has said to Moses and Aaron, Num. 3:38, “guard the sanctuary…protect the people of Israel. And any outsider who [comes] near [they are] to be put to death.” Yet this man is bringing a Midianite woman right past the Holy sanctuary, threatening to defile it as they pursue their end.Worldliness feigns ignorance, yes? Godliness responds to God's word. Phinehas knows what God had to say about these things. So, again, he takes his spear. Lastly, Worldliness experiences God and goes on unmoved, yes? Phinehas, as Aaron's grandson, member of this second generation of Israelites, had seen all that God had done, heard all that God had said, throughout the years of the wilderness wanderings. And he did not go unmoved by them. He became captivated by the glory of God through them, and jealous for the spread of his glory in the world. As we read in 25:11, Phinehas did what he did out of jealousy for God's name. His heart won over to God's.What are the marks of godliness?Godliness opposes sin from the start.Godliness responds to God's word.Godliness is jealous for God.3. PromisesSo, we've got Balaam and worldliness on one side. Phinehas and godliness on the other. In between, promises given to the godly. Briefly, one of the most encouraging things to note regarding these God-given oracles of Balaam in chapters 23-24 is that for the most part, they're simply reaffirming the promises God has already made to this people before. For example: To Abraham he said, Gen. 22:17,“I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore.”Numbers 23:10,“Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel.”Ex. 29:45,“I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God.” Numbers 23:21 reads,“The Lord their God is with them, and the shout of a king is among them.”Gen. 22:17,“…Your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies”Num. 24:8,“God brings him out of Egypt…he shall eat up the nations, his adversaries,”The fact that God is reiterating his promise here should greatly encourage us. For though this first generation has proven faithless, God remains faithful. His promises still stand though the first generation failed to receive them. For, as 23:19 states,“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” God never fails to keep his promises. Which means that, as his new covenant people, when Jesus says things to us, like John 10:27-30: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand..” And we think, “well, yeah, but what about my inadequacy? My failings? My sin? Won't my shortcomings erode God's promise to me? In the midst of such worry and anxiety, we remember:“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” A Coming KingNow, I had said that most of these promises simply reaffirm the promises God has already made to this people. But what brings us to the table this morning is the introduction of a new promise here in Numbers. The promise of a coming king.In 24:17, we read:“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth. Edom shall be dispossessed; Seir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed. Israel is doing valiantly. And one from Jacob shall exercise dominion and destroy the survivors of cities!”This coming king will rise up out of Jacob. This coming king will crush the enemies of God's people. And indeed, he already has. And in this season of Advent, we're waiting for him once more. What brings us to the table this morning is the reality that King Jesus has come and disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame. He has crushed our greatest enemy, death itself, through his own death and resurrection, in which robbed the grave and stole Hell's keys, and now bids us all, “Come to me, and I will give you eternal life.” This meal which represents Jesus' broken body and shed blood is a meal for those who love this King Jesus. So if you're here today and you've trusted in Jesus, then we invite you to take and eat. If you've not put your trust in Jesus, we ask that you'd let the elements pass for now, but encourage you in this moment, turn to Jesus and receive this King and his promises offered to you.
Timothy Mahoney and Dr. Deborah Hurn close their discussion on Deb's favored theory for the location of Sodom. The two delve deeper into the important question of whether Tall el-Hammam, believed by some to be Sodom, is actually Sodom or a different Biblical location called Abel-Shittim, potentially linked to Joshua's Conquest. ➡️ HELP US FUND THE NEXT FILM
Joshua 3 Israel Crosses the Jordan 1Then 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. 2At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3and 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. 4Yet 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.” 5Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6And 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. 7The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8And 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.'” 9And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10And 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. 11Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. 12Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. 13And 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.” 14So 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, 15and 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), 16the 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. 17Now 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.
Pastor Dave shared an inspiring message about the power of faith, highlighting underdog stories like that of Kurt Warner and Rahab. He emphasized that despite life's challenges and setbacks, faith can lead to unexpected victories and fulfillment of dreams. Using Rahab as an example, he illustrated how trusting in God can transform one's life, taking her from a life of shame to becoming an ancestor of Jesus. The sermon encouraged everyone to keep pursuing their dreams and not to give up, reminding them that faith empowers them to overcome obstacles and achieve their destinies.Joshua 2:1- 5 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.”8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyedJohn 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”1 John 5:4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.Joshua 2:12-14 “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don't tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.”Matthew 1:5-65 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David.Hebrews 11:31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.Philippians 4:1313 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Pastor Dave shared an inspiring message about the power of faith, highlighting underdog stories like that of Kurt Warner and Rahab. He emphasized that despite life's challenges and setbacks, faith can lead to unexpected victories and fulfillment of dreams. Using Rahab as an example, he illustrated how trusting in God can transform one's life, taking her from a life of shame to becoming an ancestor of Jesus. The sermon encouraged everyone to keep pursuing their dreams and not to give up, reminding them that faith empowers them to overcome obstacles and achieve their destinies.Joshua 2:1- 5 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.”8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyedJohn 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”1 John 5:4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.Joshua 2:12-14 “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don't tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.”Matthew 1:5-65 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David.Hebrews 11:31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.Philippians 4:1313 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
In today's reading, Micah 6:1-8, an imaginary court case revolves around the two great commandments: to love God and neighbour. May the Lord bless you as you receive his word. Israel, listen to the Lord's message. He says to me, “Stand up in court. Let the mountains serve as witnesses. Let the hills hear what you have to say.” Hear the Lord's case, you mountains. Listen, you age-old foundations of the earth. The Lord has a case against his people Israel. He is bringing charges against them. The Lord says, “My people, what have I done to you? Have I made things too hard for you? Answer me. I brought your people up out of Egypt. I set them free from the land where they were slaves. I sent Moses to lead them. Aaron and Miriam helped him. Remember how Balak, the king of Moab, planned to put a curse on your people. But Balaam, the son of Beor, gave them a blessing instead. Remember their journey from Shittim to Gilgal. I want you to know that I always do what is right.” The people of Israel say, “What should we bring with us when we go to worship the Lord? What should we offer the God of heaven when we bow down to him? Should we take burnt offerings to him? Should we sacrifice calves that are a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams? Will he take delight in 10,000 rivers of olive oil? Should we offer our oldest sons for the wrong things we've done? Should we sacrifice our own children to pay for our sins?” The Lord has shown you what is good. He has told you what he requires of you. You must act with justice. You must love to show mercy. And you must be humble as you live in the sight of your God. This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. As you journey on, go with his blessing: Guide us waking, O Lord, and guard us sleeping, that awake we may watch with Christ, and asleep rest in his peace. May Almighty God bless, preserve, and keep us, this day and forevermore. Amen.
Joshua 2 Rahab Hides the Spies 1And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” 4But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. 7So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out. 8Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof 9and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. 12Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign 13that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” 14And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.” 15Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was built into the city wall, so that she lived in the wall. 16And she said to them, “Go into the hills, or the pursuers will encounter you, and hide there three days until the pursuers have returned. Then afterward you may go your way.” 17The men said to her, “We will be guiltless with respect to this oath of yours that you have made us swear. 18Behold, when we come into the land, you shall tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's household. 19Then if anyone goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his own head, and we shall be guiltless. But if a hand is laid on anyone who is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head. 20But if you tell this business of ours, then we shall be guiltless with respect to your oath that you have made us swear.” 21And she said, “According to your words, so be it.” Then she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window. 22They departed and went into the hills and remained there three days until the pursuers returned, and the pursuers searched all along the way and found nothing. 23Then the two men returned. They came down from the hills and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and they told him all that had happened to them. 24And they said to Joshua, “Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land melt away because of us.”
Father in heaven, thank you for this moment. We are here by your grace! Your Word open before us and your Spirit active in us. Speak to us, we pray, in Jesus's name, amen.Today we're starting a new series in the Old Testament book of Numbers, and I just want to go ahead and tell you that this book is going to surprise you. If you've read the Book of Numbers before you may have noticed that, unsurprisingly, there's a lot of numbers. There are two big census reports of Israel in Chapter 1 and Chapter 26, and there's also a few parts that might be a little hard to understand, but mainly, this book is packed with action and suspense … There is conflict and resolution, obedience and rebellion, espionage and war, celebration and complaint, blessings and curses — There is meat that falls from the sky, the ground that swallows men alive, a rock that gushes water, poisonous snakes that kill people, and a donkey that talks. It's an amazing book, and the main point overall is that we might learn how to live with God on the road. The ultimate goal of everything (and I mean everything) is that God's glory be magnified in our hearts being satisfied in all that he is for us in Christ — and that means that God is our God and we are his people, and he is with us forever. That's what heaven is! That's home, Christian! But we're not there yet. For right now, we are on the road, we're still on a journey, and the Book of Numbers is meant to help us. We're gonna be in this book over the next 11 weeks, and what I'd like to do today is give you a short introduction to this book as a whole. And I want to tell you three things that the Book of Numbers is gonna help you do (and this goes for everyone, but I'm especially thinking about those of you who heard we were doing a series on Numbers and thought, “Oh man, Numbers??”. Here are three things you can prepare to do in response to this book:Enter the wildHear the wordHeed the warningAnd before we look closer at these three things, I want to make sure we're all on same page when it comes to the storyline. For the last several years we've been working our way through the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. Numbers is book #4 of 5, and it only makes sense if we understand it in the context of these other books. So let's back up for a second and remember where we are.GenesisEverything starts in Genesis 1:1 — “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” God is the First Cause. He's the Unmoved Mover. He is dependent on nothing, but all things are dependent upon him, which magnifies his glory. After Adam's fall into sin, the entire world was corrupted and broken, but God, by his grace, was determined to have a people who lived under his blessing. And so he chose Abraham and blessed him — God said: I will bless you and make you a blessing; through your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed, and your descendants will be as many as the stars (Genesis 12:1–3; 15:5–6). And God also promised him a certain land — the land of the Canaanites (Gen. 12:7; 15:18–21; 26:1–5; 28:4; 35:12). God repeats this promise to Isaac and then to Jacob. Jacob's name is changed to Israel, and he has 12 sons.Exodus Fast-forward to the Book of Exodus, and all the children of Israel had migrated to Egypt because of a famine; they had grown in number, which threatened Pharaoh, so he makes them slaves, but then God raises up Moses to lead the people out of Egypt in the exodus. God does this dramatically, through many signs and wonders, executing judgment on the false gods of Egypt (see Num. 33:4). The people of Israel escape, through the Red Sea, and they journey to Mount Sinai. And Mount Sinai is the place where God comes down on the mountain to speak with Moses. God gives Israel the law and instructions for the tabernacle, which will be God's dwelling place among his people. God will be with his people, but how? That's the vital question that emerges in the story. How will this Holy God, Creator of all things, dwell with this sinful people? — because one thing that becomes clear by the end of the Book of Exodus is that the people of Israel are sinful. They grumble about almost everything. They're bent away from God. So how can a people like that have a relationship with this God? Leviticus That's the big question that Leviticus takes on, and the answer is atonement. The Day of Atonement is the center of the Book of Leviticus, and Leviticus is the center of the Torah. Through blood sacrifice, the people's sins can be forgiven and they can worship God — they can live with God's presence at the center of their lives! God makes a way for sinners to be close to him, and this is all pointing to the gospel of Jesus Christ. That's Leviticus.NumbersAnd now here is Numbers. For location and timing, Numbers opens and the people of Israel are still in the wilderness of Sinai. This is continuing the Book of Exodus. Numbers 1 picks up where Exodus 40 left off. So Leviticus comes between Exodus and Numbers because of its theme, but in terms of timing, Numbers happens right after Exodus. The people of Israel had built the Tabernacle and received the law, and now they're just about to set out on a journey from the wilderness of Sinai to the Promised Land (that same land that God promised Abraham back in Genesis).They're leaving from where they are (Mount Sinai) to go to their promised home, but they don't want to leave the presence of Yahweh. That's the whole point of the Tabernacle — it's a mobile dwelling place for God. The people must have God go with them — as a cloud by day and fire by night. And this is the answer to Moses's prayer going back to Exodus 33. Remember God promised Moses, “My presence will go with you”, and Moses said to God — one of the high points of Scripture — Moses said,“If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?” 17 And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do …” (vv. 15–17)So the Book of Numbers focuses in on God's holy presence going with his people, even as they go deeper into the wilderness. That's where we are.Three things this book will help you do …1. Enter the WildBack in 1992 there was a guy named Chris McCandless who died of starvation in an abandoned bus on Stampede Trail in Alaska. If you've seen the movie or watched the documentary or read the book, you know the story. He graduated at the top of his class at Emory University, but gave away all his money and accomplishments to become a vagabond, and he ended up hitchhiking to Alaska — because he wanted to be deep in the wild. He wanted the adventure of the wilderness and it killed him, and he's been criticized for this. Apparently, he was ill-prepared and under-equipped for where he went. He went hiking and didn't even have a map, and sadly, if he did have a map he would have seen that he wasn't as remote as he thought. With a map, he could have easily walked out from where he was to safety. So this a tragic story — it was an avoidable death in the wilderness.And we're actually gonna see this same thing in the Book of Numbers. The people of Israel are also in the wilderness — but it's not because they want to be — they're in the wilderness because God leads them there to test them, because he wants their faith. All they have to do is trust him, but they don't, and therefore a whole generation of Israel does not make it out alive. A big part of the story of Numbers is a whole generation of people dying an avoidable death in the wilderness. That's what the wild can do to you. And this is important for us because, similar to Israel, we as Christians are currently in the wild. It might not feel like we are, but it's true. Notice in verse 1 we're told that the story of Numbers is taking place after God rescued his people from Egypt. The events of this book are after salvation but before making it home. The in-between. That's where the wilderness is, and that's where we are.As Christians, we also live after salvation and before making it home. Jesus has rescued us — he has died for us and been raised from the dead, we are free in him — but we're not in heaven yet. This is the in-between. We need to recognize that we've entered the wild … and not all of us make it out.And I'm just being honest with you. I've been a Christian long enough to know some tragic stories of people who fall away … and it's all avoidable. But how? We've entered the wild, and now we ask: How do we make it through the wild?2. Hear the WordNow in our English Bibles, we call the Book of Numbers Numbers, but in the Hebrew Bible it's known as bĕmidbar — which means “in the wilderness.” Those are the very first words of Numbers in the Hebrew Bible. The book starts: “In the wilderness Yahweh spoke to Moses.”And one fascinating little detail in the Hebrew that we can't see in English is that the words for “wilderness” and “spoke” in that first sentence sound the same. The Hebrew word for “wilderness” (or desert) is midbar; and the Hebrew word for “spoke” (or word) is dibbur — midbar … dibbur. This would be like us saying wild and word. Wild … word. They kinda sound the same.And ancient Jewish interpreters picked up on the wordplay here — that the words just don't sound the same, but they're closely connected in this story. And this connection is made plain in the Book of Deuteronomy, the book right after Numbers.In Deuteronomy Chapter 8, reflecting back on the Book of Numbers, Moses says:2 And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. 3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.I want you to get this, and this is a little bit of spoiler, but here it goes: the only way that Israel can live in the wild is to listen to the word. And if we had to capture that in a single idea it would be the idea of guidance. I think that's what we could call the overall theme of the Book of Numbers. If Genesis is Beginnings, Exodus is Rescue, Leviticus is Atonement, Numbers would be Guidance. That's what it means when God's presence goes with his people. Where God guides, the people go. And that includes literal direction in this story, but it's also more than that. God's guidance is moral — he is showing his people how to live together as his people, under his care, trusting him everyday. That's what guidance is for.Need Guidance?Anybody in here need any guidance? Do you think our lives in this world, in the in-between, need to be guided by God?Absolutely. This is why God has given us the Bible — we have his word to us in Holy Scripture!Look, we have get over our worry about legalism when it comes to daily Bible reading. Can we just grow up out of that? Settle this: reading the Bible is not what makes God love you. Okay? Settled. And, now … I don't know how you survive as a Christian without reading the Bible.We need God's word for the life of faith like we need oxygen. Don't think about Bible reading as a duty, but think: Do I want to breathe?You're not reading just to read; you're not trying to check a box, but you need to know how to live in this world. You need to hear from God on how to live in the wild! We need God's guidance! And there's a book for that. God has given us his word.Church, hear the word. 3. Heed the WarningThe Book of Numbers can be divided up or outlined in a couple of different ways, and one way is to see the book as really the story of two generations. The first generation goes from Chapter 1 through 18; and the second generation from Chapter 20 through 36.The second generation is faithful and they make it to the Promised Land, but the first generation is faithless and they die in the wilderness. Numbers is a fascinating book in and of itself, but then we also have the New Testament, and in the book of 1 Corinthians Chapter 10, the apostle Paul makes some comments about the Book of Numbers that are pretty important. In 1 Corinthians 10 most English Bibles put a little heading there that says something like “Warning Against Idolatry” because that's what Paul is doing. He gives a warning, and look where he goes:In verses 1–5 he talks about that first generation in Numbers. God had rescued them from Egypt; they had seen God's provision, nevertheless, verse 5: “with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.” That was the first generation — we're gonna study all about this over the next several weeks. But notice what Paul says in verse 6.1 Corinthians 10:6,“Now these things took place [the events in Numbers — these things took place] as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did.”Again, look at verse 11: “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.”And that word for “instruction” could also be translated as “warning.” Paul is saying that the purpose of this book — the reason the events of Numbers were written down — was so that we Christians would read it as a cautionary tale! Verse 12: “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.”According to the apostle Paul, this is the attitude we should bring to this book. Sober up, church! Listen closely! Take heed! Do not be like the first generation in Numbers.In short, flee idolatry. Flee IdolatryPaul mentions idolatry twice here, in verse 7 and verse 14. And that tells us that, fundamentally, Israel's problem of unbelief in Numbers was a failure to obey the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3).That was the real reason behind all their grumbling and suspicion — they didn't worship the true God! And this all comes to light in Numbers 25.Numbers 25 is the last event of the first generation, (right before Chapter 26 gives us the census for the new generation). And in Chapter 25, this is verse 1:“While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor.”Now this is eerily similar to Exodus 32 when Israel made the golden calf, except this is worse! In Exodus 32, the people clearly break the second commandment, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image” (Exodus 20:4), but here in Numbers 25 they're not making images, they are literally putting other gods before Yahweh!It's like Numbers has pulled back the layers and got to the real issue. The people of Israel have not learned from their sin in Exodus 32, but they've doubled down in it. They've dug in their heels to make clear they want other gods besides Yahweh — which is disgusting and ridiculous and terrifying.We don't want to do that! We must flee idolatry! And in the Book of Numbers, we're gonna learn how to flee. We are going to heed Paul's warning and we're going to reject idolatry.And so we should expect a kind of testing through this book over the next several weeks.And I want to invite all of us, through this series, to open our hearts to God, and ask him to search us. We want him to expose any idols we might be harboring. Is there anything that we might want more than God?Questions to ConsiderAnd to get us started with that heart attitude, I'd like to close with some self-assessment questions. And I know this is a little different. We've never done this before, but this is an intro sermon. I want us to prepare for this book, and so here are a few questions for us to think about…(1) When it comes to entering the wild …Do you demonstrate a recognition that this world is not your home? How does your life show that you're on a journey to heaven?(2) When it comes to hearing the word …Are you determined to love what God loves and to do what God says? How often do you look to God for guidance?(3) When it comes to heeding the warning …Is Jesus your all-consuming passion and all-satisfying treasure? If he's not, who is?The TableThe Book of Numbers is a kind of call to action. It's an “on your feet” book, but the action is faith, and faith is the empty-handed embrace of who God is. We bring nothing to him, and this Table reminds us of that.We come to him, hands open, to receive his grace, to lean on his mercy, to rest in his love, which he has shown us most vividly in the death of Jesus for us. This Table reminds us of that, and we give God thanks for the gospel.
Preacher: Andy Bauer Date: 9/29/24 Series: More Than Conquerors Key Scriptures: Joshua 2:1–16 (ESV) 1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5 And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out. 8 Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof 9 and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11 And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign 13 that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” 14 And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.” 15 Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was built into the city wall, so that she lived in the wall. 16 And she said to them, “Go into the hills, or the pursuers will encounter you, and hide there three days until the pursuers have returned. Then afterward you may go your way.”
https://www.bible.com/events/49323506 Church of the Nazarene: Harrisonburg Campus Joshua Part 3 Joshua 3 & 4 Joshua 3:1-3 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. After three days the officers went throughout the camp, giving orders to the people: “When […]
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Joshua 3 And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host; And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore. And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the LORD will do wonders among you. And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people. And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee. And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan. And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God. And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites. ...
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Joshua 2 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate. And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. ...
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Numbers 25 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel. And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baal-peor. And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, ...
Rahab Hides the Spies Jos 2:1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. Jos 2:2 And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. Jos 2:3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. Jos 2:4 And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: Jos 2:5 And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. Jos 2:6 But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. Jos 2:7 And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate. Jos 2:8 And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; Jos 2:9 And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
Daily Dose of Hope June 6, 2024 Day 5 of Week 10 Scripture: Numbers 22-25; Luke 1 Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that goes along with the New Hope five day a week Bible reading plan. Let's get right into our Scripture for today. We are about two-thirds through the book of Numbers. You are doing great. I know this isn't the easiest book to read and digest. But it is still God's Word and we need to read it and understand it. Today's reading is quite fascinating to me. The story of Balaam doesn't involve Moses, Aaron, or any specific Israelites and yet is lasts several chapters. In case you didn't quite get it (because I didn't at first), Balaam was a seer, or a prophet for hire. The king of Moab has been keeping up with Israel's conquests and is very fearful. He knows its only time before it's the Moabites turn. Thus, the king of Moab, Balak, hires Balaam to curse Israel. The king knows he can't win in a physical battle but maybe he can make sure that the Israelites are cursed and that will give him an upper hand. But Balaam realizes there is no way he can curse Israel. First, God tells him not to. Then, he physically prevents him from doing so by sending an angel to block his path. Finally, God gives the donkey speech so that Balaam knows he means serious business! In the end, Balaam does not curse Israel but actually blesses Israel. The blessing restates God's promise to Israel, that they will conquer their enemies and settle in Canaan. In chapter 25, we find the Israelites camping at Shittim. While there, the men begin to have sex with the Moabite women and worship their gods. I don't think this would have gotten a mention in Scripture if it were just a few rogue philanderers. Rather, the impression is given that this was an epidemic. God is justifiably enraged and orders Moses to have all those who engaged in this activity killed. Literally, as people were weeping in penitence near the Tent of Meeting, an Israelite man very openly brings a Midianite woman into his tent. The son of the priest, Phinehas, sees this and kills them both with his sword. This puts an end to the immorality and Baal worship but by this time, 24,000 had been killed. I'm not even sure what to say about this, except for the fact that we are sinful and broken people. When I hear people say how bad things have gotten in the current day, I'm always a bit confused. You mean we used to be righteous and obedient? No, our sinfulness runs pretty deep. Maybe the popular forms of sin have changed throughout generations but humans have always been broken. That's why we need a savior, then and now. That leads us nicely into our New Testament reading. We are starting the Gospel of Luke today. Luke 1 starts with what Bible scholars consider a very well-written prologue. Luke speaks highly of those writers who have gone before him. Many ancient writers would start by disparaging others who wrote on the topic, but Luke does the opposite. He also very intentionally creates credibility for his account. While he was not an eyewitness, he makes it clear that gathered is from people who were. He also did a thorough investigation himself. This isn't sloppy scholarship but clear, well-researched authoritative writing. Luke was orderly and very careful in his work. But my question has always been, who is Theophilus? Most likely, this would have been a believer (his name means lover of God) who financed the cost of Luke's research and writing. Considering the title, “most excellent,” this was probably someone with some rank and respect. Or, it could be that Theophilus was simply someone who was questioning about Jesus and Luke wanted to provide an account that encouraged and convinced him of the validity of Jesus, that these events surely have been fulfilled among us. The bulk of this first chapter is part of what we consider the Christmas story. There is the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth, who become John the Baptist's parents. There is Mary's story, a young girl who shows exceptional faith and courage when told that she would become pregnant by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Savior of the world. I know this is Scripture that is quite familiar. I would encourage you to read it again. Try to read it with fresh eyes. What stands out to you? What do you see that you possibly never noticed before? Blessings, Pastor Vicki
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Exodus 38 And he made the altar of burnt offering of shittim wood: five cubits was the length thereof, and five cubits the breadth thereof; it was foursquare; and three cubits the height thereof. And he made the horns thereof on the four corners of it; the horns thereof were of the same: and he overlaid it with brass. And he made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the basons, and the fleshhooks, and the firepans: all the vessels thereof made he of brass. And he made for the altar a brasen grate of network under the compass thereof beneath unto the midst of it. And he cast four rings for the four ends of the grate of brass, to be places for the staves. And he made the staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with brass. And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar, to bear it withal; he made the altar hollow with boards. And he made the laver of brass, and the foot of it of brass, of the lookingglasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And he made the court: on the south side southward the hangings of the court were of fine twined linen, an hundred cubits: Their pillars were twenty, and their brasen sockets twenty; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. ...
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Exodus 37 And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it: And he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown of gold to it round about. And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it. And he made staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark. And he made the mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half was the length thereof, and one cubit and a half the breadth thereof. And he made two cherubims of gold, beaten out of one piece made he them, on the two ends of the mercy seat; One cherub on the end on this side, and another cherub on the other end on that side: out of the mercy seat made he the cherubims on the two ends thereof. And the cherubims spread out their wings on high, and covered with their wings over the mercy seat, with their faces one to another; even to the mercy seatward were the faces of the cherubims. And he made the table of shittim wood: two cubits was the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof: ...
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Exodus 30 And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD. ...
Pastor Damaris Solis brings this week's message, “My Legacy." Key Verse: Joshua 3:1–16 "Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 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. 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 between you and the ark; do not go near it.” Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.” 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. 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. 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.' " Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the LORD your God. 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. See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 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.” So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 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, the water from upstream stopped flowing." Sermon Topics: Legacy, Presence, Trust Time Stamps: 00:00: Intro 00:30: Welcome 04:43: Joshua 3:1–16 08:23: My Legacy
église AB Lausanne ; KJV Exodus 27 And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits. And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass. And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, and his shovels, and his basons, and his fleshhooks, and his firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass. And thou shalt make for it a grate of network of brass; and upon the net shalt thou make four brasen rings in the four corners thereof. And thou shalt put it under the compass of the altar beneath, that the net may be even to the midst of the altar. And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with brass. And the staves shall be put into the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar, to bear it. Hollow with boards shalt thou make it: as it was shewed thee in the mount, so shall they make it. And thou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be hangings for the court of fine twined linen of an hundred cubits long for one side: And the twenty pillars thereof and their twenty sockets shall be of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. ...
Scripture Passage: Joshua 2 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your The post Rahab appeared first on IBC Saginaw.
Man-child, Planet X, Revival, X Babylon David Eells - 4/17/24 (audio) Study of Isaiah chapters 11-14 Isa 11:1 And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots shall bear fruit. The Branch in our day is the David Man-child reformers. - Jer 23:4-6 And I will set up shepherds over them, who shall feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be lacking, saith Jehovah. 5 Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is his name whereby he shall be called: Jehovah our righteousness. Notice: "our Righteousness" Speaks of a corporate body. Jer 33:15-16 In those days, and at that time, will I cause a Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely; and this is the name whereby she shall be called: Jehovah our righteousness. Notice also "our" points to a corporate body. Also now this person is called a "she" whereas in the first text they were a "he". She is used many times to point to a corporate body. These differences are correct but the translators didn't understand this method of Identifying a corporate body and changed the wording to suit their ignorance. Isa 11:2 And the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah. Tubby's revelation in a dream he had years ago where he said to me you remind me of a person I read about and then he quoted Isa 11: 2-5. Representing the David Man-child reformers. Many believe this text to be speaking of Jesus but the only way this fits is when you see that Jesus will return in a corporate body. Isa 11:3 And his delight shall be in the fear of Jehovah; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither decide after the hearing of his ears; I.e. he walks in the Spirit. Isa 11:4 but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. Jesus did not do this. This is the Man-child in whom Jesus lives in our day fulfilling the second part of verse 2 - Isa 61:2 to proclaim the year of Jehovah's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn. Psa 89:20-23 I have found David my servant; With my holy oil have I anointed him: 21 With whom my hand shall be established; Mine arm also shall strengthen him. 22 The enemy shall not exact from him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him. 23 And I will beat down his adversaries before him, And smite them that hate him. Isa 11:5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins. Isa 11:6 And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. The predatory leaders will be subdued. This little child is the Soloman Man-child type who followed the warrior David Man-child anointing - had a peaceful Kingdom according to 1Ki 5:4, 4:24 Isa 11:7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. I had a dream in 2007 of being in a Refuge with beasts identified by Peter as the Gentile Church fleeing to the refuge. In this dream there was peace between these animals. Isa 11:8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea. In Zion mountain there will be no enmity. All of those who were born beasts will be at peace with one another. Isa 11:10 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples, unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting-place shall be glorious. His resting place is Zion, the Bride. Isa 11:11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord will set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, that shall remain, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. After the first time when the Jews returned, the Christians then return from Beast captivity to repeat history.. Isa 11:12 And he will set up an ensign for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. As a repeat of history the Christians will be drawn out of captivity to the whole world to stand on their land of the promises. Isa 11:13 The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and they that vex Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. Apostates cease persecutions of the Spirit filled people, represented by Judah, when judged and make peace. Isa 11:14 And they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines on the west; together shall they despoil the children of the east: they shall put forth their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them. In unity they will conquer their factious brethren. Isa 11:15 And Jehovah will utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his scorching wind will he wave his hand over the River, and will smite it into seven streams, and cause men to march over dry-shod. After the Passover that strikes the Egyptians, as a type of the world, God's people escape Egypt through the Red Sea, which destroys Pharaoh's army. Then they go into the wilderness tribulation. Isa 11:16 And there shall be a highway for the remnant of his people, that shall remain, from Assyria; like as there was for Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt. This is the Highway of holiness that leads to Zion. Isa 12:1 And in that day thou shalt say, I will give thanks unto thee, O Jehovah; for though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away and thou comfortest me. Comfort ye my people from the beast chastening. Isa 40:1-3 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem; and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she hath received of Jehovah's hand double for all her sins. 3 The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of Jehovah; make level in the desert a highway for our God. Isa 12:2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for Jehovah, even Jehovah, is my strength and song; and he is become my salvation. They will learn of God's way of salvation and provision in the wilderness tribulation. Isa 12:3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. A love of the Word will come to them. Isa 12:4 And in that day shall ye say, Give thanks unto Jehovah, call upon his name, declare his doings among the peoples, make mention that his name is exalted. Revival spreads geometrically Isa 12:5 Sing unto Jehovah; for he hath done excellent things: let this be known in all the earth. The Great Commission will finally be sent to all the earth. Isa 12:6 Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion; for great in the midst of thee is the Holy One of Israel. Jesus' fruit and power is manifestation in His people. Isa 13:1 The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see. The Fall of Babylon DS in the time of the Man-child. Isa 13:2 Set ye up an ensign upon the bare mountain, lift up the voice unto them, wave the hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles. Man-child brings fruitless Kingdom of God into the nobility of Christ. Isa 13:3 I have commanded my consecrated ones, yea, I have called my mighty men for mine anger, even my proudly exulting ones. The Alliance of nations, Cyrus' Media-Persians arise to destroy Babylon DS. Isa 13:4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains, as of a great people! the noise of a tumult of the kingdoms of the nations gathered together! Jehovah of hosts is mustering the host for the battle. God is raising up the Alliance, a true one world order. Isa 13:5 They come from a far country, from the uttermost part of heaven, even Jehovah, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land. Here is an example of use of "uttermost heaven": Mat 24:31 And he shall send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Heaven starts on all the earth, The Kingdom of heaven is among you or within you. Isa 13:6 Wail ye; for the day of Jehovah is at hand; as destruction from the Almighty shall it come. The Brides day of the Lord is at the end of their personal tribulation is to judge those who afflicted them by the wrath of God.. Then the Churches tribulation begins the seven years. Isa 13:7 Therefore shall all hands be feeble, and every heart of man shall melt: The wicked will fear and pass away. Isa 13:8 and they shall be dismayed; pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman in travail: they shall look in amazement one at another; their faces shall be faces of flame. They will be in the fire of God's wrath. Isa 13:9 Behold, the day of Jehovah cometh, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger; to make the land a desolation, and to destroy the sinners thereof out of it. This is the judgment of the enemies of the Bride. Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light; the sun shall be darkened in its going forth, and the moon shall not cause its light to shine. Planet X / Nibiru comes as the hand of God to finish off Babylon DS and faction against the Bride and Church. Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity: and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. A worldwide judgment on the Kingdom of Satan and his haughty proud DS and factions against the Bride. Isa 13:12 I will make a man more rare than fine gold, even a man than the pure gold of Ophir. The golden vessels of the house of God shall survive but not the tares among them. Isa 13:13 Therefore I will make the heavens to tremble, and the earth shall be shaken out of its place, in the wrath of Jehovah of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger. Planet X Nibiru shakes heaven and earth at the time of the Man-child anointing. Heb 12:25-28 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not when they refused him that warned them on earth, much more shall not we escape who turn away from him that warneth from heaven: Only the repentant are guaranteed to escape P-X. 26 whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more will I make to tremble not the earth only, but also the heaven. 27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that have been made, that those things which are not shaken may remain. 28 Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe: Hag 2:21-23 Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth; 22 and I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them (comparing the fall of Pharoah and his DS army); and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. 23 In that day, saith Jehovah of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith Jehovah, and will make thee as a signet; for I have chosen thee, saith Jehovah of hosts. Zerubbabel, the first fruits MC whose name means "Born from Babylon". Signet is a sign of authority as was given to Mordecai and Joseph. Isa 13:14 And it shall come to pass, that as the chased roe, and as sheep that no man gathereth, they shall turn every man to his own people, and shall flee every man to his own land. The DS are fleeing. Klaus Schwab, a top general in Satan's DS army, WEF, was just taken from his adrenochrome to go to Gitmo. The angel told me many of the elite were fled to the Antarctic city, and the angels dropped it on them. It was Sodom and Gomorrah. Isa 13:15 Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is taken shall fall by the sword. All their home nations will kill the DS. Isa 13:16 Their infants also shall be dashed in pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be rifled, and their wives ravished. (The nations are angry because the DS Kazarians have killed millions of them. It will all be revealed in the declass during the days of darkness. The nations will be infuriated.) Isa 13:17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who shall not regard silver, and as for gold, they shall not delight in it. The DS will not be able to buy their way out of this. The vengeance of God is in the Alliance under Cyrus of Media-Persia, represented by Trump and the Alliance. Isa 13:18 And their bows shall dash the young men in pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children. The White Hats and the Red Hats will destroy them. This came to pass. Their demonized and perverted children born to their sex slaves underground and experimented on were permitted to die. They found they could not live in daylight. Isa 13:19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans' pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. These are two members of the same Dragon; Religious and political. Religious Babylon is full of demons. Rev 18:2-3 And he cried with a mighty voice, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, and is become a habitation of demons, and a hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird. 3 For by the wine of the wrath of her fornication all the nations are fallen; and the kings of the earth committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth waxed rich by the power of her wantonness. The DS also are the worst of Sodom and Gomorrah. The hatred against Hitler and his Gestapo was nothing compared to hatred against the DS. Their crimes against humanity cover the earth. Isa 13:20 It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there. True Shepherds depart from religious Babylon. Rev 18:4-5 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come forth, my people, out of her, that ye have no fellowship with her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues: 5 for her sins have reached even unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Isa 13:21 But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there. Rev 18:2... Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, and is become a habitation of demons, and a hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird. Isa 13:22 And wolves (Predatory Pastors) shall cry in their castles (Churches), and jackals (Fornicator pastors) in the pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged. Isa 14:1 For Jehovah will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the sojourner shall join himself with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. The apostate leadership of the Church will be declassed and come to disrepute for their lusts and especially for their cooperation with the depopulationists vaccine murders in their Churches. Isa 14:2 And the peoples shall take them (The sojourners), and bring them to their place; and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of Jehovah for servants and for handmaids: and they shall take them captive whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors. One third of the factious will survive and serve God's people. Isa 14:3 And it shall come to pass in the day that Jehovah shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy trouble, and from the hard service wherein thou wast made to serve, Freedom will be secured for the remnant who have served Babylon DS. Isa 14:4 that thou shalt take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! 5 Jehovah hath broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers; As the King of Babylon was killed by the Medo-Persians so are they now killing the elite Satanists of DS. The Lord's angels are executing the factious in Church and state as Satan falls from heaven. Isa 14:6 that smote the peoples in wrath with a continual stroke, that ruled the nations in anger, with a persecution that none restrained. The DS Kazarians made their money off of faction, constant wars, drugs that kill, etc.. Isa 14:7 The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing. The Dragon of both factions is overthrown by Cyrus and the Man-child Davids. Soloman, the prince of peace will rule. The people shall rejoice!! Isa 14:8 Yea, the fir-trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid low, no hewer is come up against us. 9 Sheol from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming; it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. 10 All they shall answer and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us? The dead receive the Dragon of Babylon's factious people. Isa 14:11 Thy pomp is brought down to Sheol, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and worms cover thee. Isa 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O day-star, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, that didst lay low the nations! Rev 12:7-11 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels going forth to war with the dragon; and the dragon warred and his angels; 8 and they prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast down, the old serpent, he that is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world; he was cast down to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him. 10 And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying, Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down (Both factions), who accuseth them before our God day and night. 11 And they (the saints) overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony; and they loved not their life even unto death. The faith of the saints causes the angels to fight for them. Isa 14:13 And thou saidst in thy heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; and I will sit upon the mount of congregation, in the uttermost parts of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High. 15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to Sheol, to the uttermost parts of the pit. The Devil is like all of his factious children, eaten up with ego to be their own god and rule over the Bride. They are falling into Sheol with their angel principalities. Isa 14:16 They that see thee shall gaze at thee, they shall consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; The Devil's factions of Church and state constantly shook and plundered those Kingdoms but they are falling into Sheol. Isa 14:17 that made the world as a wilderness, and overthrew the cities thereof; that let not loose his prisoners to their home? The judgments upon them will create the wilderness for a world-wide Church. Isa 14:18 All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house. 19 But thou art cast forth away from thy sepulcher like an abominable branch, clothed with the slain, that are thrust through with the sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a dead body trodden under foot. (They don't get a memorial sepulcher? Are they fed to the sharks like the DS did with their children and enemies? Isa 14:20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, thou hast slain thy people; the seed of evil-doers shall not be named for ever. These traitors of their own people will reap what they sow, except for the elect among them who will repent. Isa 14:21 Prepare ye slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers, that they rise not up, and possess the earth, and fill the face of the world with cities. The children inherit the demons of their fathers which is a terrible curse on the world. God destroyed them all in the time of Noah for the same reason. 22 And I will rise up against them, saith Jehovah of hosts, and cut off from Babylon name and remnant, and son and son's son, saith Jehovah. Isa 14:23 I will also make it a possession for the porcupine, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith Jehovah of hosts. The porcupine Christians and state draw their spears against all. Isa 14:24 Jehovah of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely, as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand: 25 that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulder. (In Joel 2 and elsewhere they were destroyed when they came against the Bride, Jerusalem. All should go down the Highway of Holiness to hide in Righteous Zion from the Beast. Isa 14:26 This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations. (This is a world-wide happening. Isa 14:27 For Jehovah of hosts hath purposed, and who shall annul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back? As we can see, history must repeat for the Lord commands it in Ecc 1:9-10 That which hath been is that which shall be; and that which hath been done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. 10 Is there a thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been long ago, in the ages which were before us. Isa 14:28 In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden. 29 Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of thee, because the rod that smote thee is broken; for out of the serpent's root shall come forth an adder, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent. So basically God is saying to Israels enemy don't be happy because your time is coming. Isa 14:30 And the first-born of the poor shall feed, and the needy shall lie down in safety; and I will kill thy root with famine, and thy remnant shall be slain. It appears this is happening but that does not mean that the one who executes it is righteous. Isa 14:31 Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou art melted away, O Philistia, all of thee; for there cometh a smoke out of the north, and there is no straggler in his ranks. 32 What then shall one answer the messengers of the nation? That Jehovah hath founded Zion, and in her shall the afflicted of his people take refuge. When Zion is righteous they represent the Bride as a place of refuge from the beast kingdoms and P-X. Joel 3:16-21 And Jehovah will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake (Planet X Nibiru is coming): but Jehovah will be a refuge unto his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel. 17 So shall ye know that I am Jehovah your God, dwelling in Zion my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more. 18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah shall flow with waters; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of Jehovah, and shall water the valley of Shittim. 19 Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence done to the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land. 20 But Judah shall abide forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation. 21 And I will cleanse their blood, that I have not cleansed: for Jehovah dwelleth in Zion. So run to Zion's refuge and enter through holiness. Jer 4:6 Set up a standard toward Zion: flee for safety, stay not; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction. Zion represents the obedient holy people who are not under the curse. For this reason unholy people are purged from her so that she is a spotless blemishless Bride.
And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. - Joshua 2:1
And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. - Joshua 2:1
Join us for one of the Powerful OutPouring to celebrate Easter - Resurrection Weekend! We dive and dive into the Word of God to Begin and End, with The Power of Resurrection and, Understand The MOVE of God! Allow yourself to move with God …. 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. Exodus 24 15 When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, 16 and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud. 17 To the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. 18 Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights. The call begins in your mother's womb Jeremiah 1 5a “Before I formed you in the womb I knew[a] you, before you were born I set you apart; Exodus 40 - setting up Tabernacle represents life 34 The Glory of the Lord 34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; 37 but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted. 38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels. *We do not own the right to any music - we are using for worship only and not for profit*
Shmos 25:21 and 26:15
Joshua 3Then 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. At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 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. 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.” Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 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.The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 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.'” And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 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. Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. 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. 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, 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), 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. 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. Sermon Questions:1. Where in your life are you facing something that feels impossible? What causes confusion, chaos, or hopelessness?2. When have you expereinced God doing the seeming impossible in your life?3. At what point has God felt like 'dry ground' on which you could stand?4. Where to do you see Jesus at work in your life recently?5. What might following Jesus look like today and what intimidates you about following him in that way?
Joshua 2: 1-6, 8-14, 18, 21And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you…Behold, when we come into the land, you shall tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's household.“And she said, “According to your words, so be it.” Then she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.Sermon Questions:1. What is one expectation you have about God, how He operates, or works?2. If you met Jesus in person today, how would you expect him to react to you?3. What are some things God has done in your life?4. What's one area of weakness you typically cover up? How could God use that to welcome you/others?5. Pray for one person, who you wouldn't naturally expect, to meet Jesus. And then pray that He would use you to help that person meet Him.
QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Gather ‘round, ye children, comeListen to the old, old storyOf the pow'r of death undoneBy an infant born of glorySon of God, Son of Man. So sing out with joy for the brave little boyWho was God, but He made Himself nothingHe gave up His pride and He came here to die like a man.”~ Andrew Peterson, “Gather ‘Round, Ye Children, Come” “Now the same Spirit dwelling in Christ's heart in heaven, that does in yours here, and always working in his heart first for you, and then in yours by commission from him; rest assured, therefore, that that Spirit stirs up in him bowels of mercy infinitely larger towards you than you can have unto yourselves.”~ Thomas Goodwin, The Heart of Christ in Heaven Towards Sinners on Earth “As Bunyan says, describing his first and illusory conversion, ‘I thought there was no man in England that pleased God better than I.' Beaten out of this, we next offer our own humility to God's admiration. Surely He'll like that? Or if not that, our clear-sighted and humble recognition that we still lack humility. Thus, depth beneath depth and subtlety within subtlety, there remains some lingering idea of our own, our very own, attractiveness. It is easy to acknowledge, but almost impossible to realize for long, that we are mirrors whose brightness, if we are bright, is wholly derived from the sun that shines upon us. Surely we must have a little - however little - native luminosity?”~ C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves “If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”~ Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit, by J.R.R. TolkienSERMON PASSAGEMicah 6:1-8 (ESV)1 Hear what the Lord says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the Lord, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel.3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”6 “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Old Testament: Micah 4–7 Micah 4–7 (Listen) The Mountain of the Lord 4 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it,2 and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law,1 and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.3 He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore;4 but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.5 For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever. The Lord Shall Rescue Zion 6 In that day, declares the LORD, I will assemble the lame and gather those who have been driven away and those whom I have afflicted;7 and the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore. 8 And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor?10 Writhe and groan,2 O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued; there the LORD will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. 11 Now many nations are assembled against you, saying, “Let her be defiled, and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”12 But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze; you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote3 their gain to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth. The Ruler to Be Born in Bethlehem 5 4 Now muster your troops, O daughter5 of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.2 6 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men;6 they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod at its entrances; and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and treads within our border. A Remnant Shall Be Delivered 7 Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which delay not for a man nor wait for the children of man.8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which, when it goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.9 Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries, and all your enemies shall be cut off. 10 And in that day, declares the LORD, I will cut off your horses from among you and will destroy your chariots;11 and I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds;12 and I will cut off sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more tellers of fortunes;13 and I will cut off your carved images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands;14 and I will root out your Asherah images from among you and destroy your cities.15 And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance on the nations that did not obey. The Indictment of the Lord 6 Hear what the LORD says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.” What Does the Lord Require? 6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?7 Will the LORD be pleased with7 thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,8 and to walk humbly with your God? Destruction of the Wicked 9 The voice of the LORD cries to the city— and it is sound wisdom to fear your name: “Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!910 Can I forget any longer the treasures10 of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is accursed?11 Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights?12 Your11 rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.13 Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow, making you desolate because of your sins.14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied, and there shall be hunger within you; you shall put away, but not preserve, and what you preserve I will give to the sword.15 You shall sow, but not reap; you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil; you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.16 For you have kept the statutes of Omri,12 and all the works of the house of Ahab; and you have walked in their counsels, that I may make you a desolation, and your13 inhabitants a hissing; so you shall bear the scorn of my people.” Wait for the God of Salvation 7 Woe is me! For I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been gleaned: there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig that my soul desires.2 The godly has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among mankind; they all lie in wait for blood, and each hunts the other with a net.3 Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul; thus they weave it together.4 The best of them is like a brier, the most upright of them a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, of your punishment, has come; now their confusion is at hand.5 Put no trust in a neighbor; have no confidence in a friend; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms;146 for the son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.7 But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. 8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me.9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication.10 Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets. 11 A day for the building of your walls! In that day the boundary shall be far extended.12 In that day they15 will come to you, from Assyria and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt to the River,16 from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.13 But the earth will be desolate because of its inhabitants, for the fruit of their deeds. 14 Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance, who dwell alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land;17 let them graze in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old.15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them18 marvelous things.16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hands on their mouths; their ears shall be deaf;17 they shall lick the dust like a serpent, like the crawling things of the earth; they shall come trembling out of their strongholds; they shall turn in dread to the LORD our God, and they shall be in fear of you. God's Steadfast Love and Compassion 18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our19 sins into the depths of the sea.20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old. Footnotes [1] 4:2 Or teaching
Old Testament: Micah 4–7 Micah 4–7 (Listen) The Mountain of the Lord 4 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it,2 and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law,1 and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.3 He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore;4 but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.5 For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever. The Lord Shall Rescue Zion 6 In that day, declares the LORD, I will assemble the lame and gather those who have been driven away and those whom I have afflicted;7 and the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore. 8 And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor?10 Writhe and groan,2 O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued; there the LORD will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. 11 Now many nations are assembled against you, saying, “Let her be defiled, and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”12 But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze; you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote3 their gain to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth. The Ruler to Be Born in Bethlehem 5 4 Now muster your troops, O daughter5 of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.2 6 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men;6 they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod at its entrances; and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and treads within our border. A Remnant Shall Be Delivered 7 Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which delay not for a man nor wait for the children of man.8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which, when it goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.9 Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries, and all your enemies shall be cut off. 10 And in that day, declares the LORD, I will cut off your horses from among you and will destroy your chariots;11 and I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds;12 and I will cut off sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more tellers of fortunes;13 and I will cut off your carved images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands;14 and I will root out your Asherah images from among you and destroy your cities.15 And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance on the nations that did not obey. The Indictment of the Lord 6 Hear what the LORD says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.” What Does the Lord Require? 6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?7 Will the LORD be pleased with7 thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,8 and to walk humbly with your God? Destruction of the Wicked 9 The voice of the LORD cries to the city— and it is sound wisdom to fear your name: “Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!910 Can I forget any longer the treasures10 of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is accursed?11 Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights?12 Your11 rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.13 Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow, making you desolate because of your sins.14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied, and there shall be hunger within you; you shall put away, but not preserve, and what you preserve I will give to the sword.15 You shall sow, but not reap; you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil; you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.16 For you have kept the statutes of Omri,12 and all the works of the house of Ahab; and you have walked in their counsels, that I may make you a desolation, and your13 inhabitants a hissing; so you shall bear the scorn of my people.” Wait for the God of Salvation 7 Woe is me! For I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been gleaned: there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig that my soul desires.2 The godly has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among mankind; they all lie in wait for blood, and each hunts the other with a net.3 Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul; thus they weave it together.4 The best of them is like a brier, the most upright of them a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, of your punishment, has come; now their confusion is at hand.5 Put no trust in a neighbor; have no confidence in a friend; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms;146 for the son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.7 But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. 8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me.9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication.10 Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets. 11 A day for the building of your walls! In that day the boundary shall be far extended.12 In that day they15 will come to you, from Assyria and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt to the River,16 from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.13 But the earth will be desolate because of its inhabitants, for the fruit of their deeds. 14 Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance, who dwell alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land;17 let them graze in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old.15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them18 marvelous things.16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hands on their mouths; their ears shall be deaf;17 they shall lick the dust like a serpent, like the crawling things of the earth; they shall come trembling out of their strongholds; they shall turn in dread to the LORD our God, and they shall be in fear of you. God's Steadfast Love and Compassion 18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our19 sins into the depths of the sea.20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old. Footnotes [1] 4:2 Or teaching
Morning: Micah 6–7 Micah 6–7 (Listen) The Indictment of the Lord 6 Hear what the LORD says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.” What Does the Lord Require? 6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?7 Will the LORD be pleased with1 thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,2 and to walk humbly with your God? Destruction of the Wicked 9 The voice of the LORD cries to the city— and it is sound wisdom to fear your name: “Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!310 Can I forget any longer the treasures4 of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is accursed?11 Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights?12 Your5 rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.13 Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow, making you desolate because of your sins.14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied, and there shall be hunger within you; you shall put away, but not preserve, and what you preserve I will give to the sword.15 You shall sow, but not reap; you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil; you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.16 For you have kept the statutes of Omri,6 and all the works of the house of Ahab; and you have walked in their counsels, that I may make you a desolation, and your7 inhabitants a hissing; so you shall bear the scorn of my people.” Wait for the God of Salvation 7 Woe is me! For I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been gleaned: there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig that my soul desires.2 The godly has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among mankind; they all lie in wait for blood, and each hunts the other with a net.3 Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul; thus they weave it together.4 The best of them is like a brier, the most upright of them a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, of your punishment, has come; now their confusion is at hand.5 Put no trust in a neighbor; have no confidence in a friend; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms;86 for the son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.7 But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. 8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me.9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication.10 Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets. 11 A day for the building of your walls! In that day the boundary shall be far extended.12 In that day they9 will come to you, from Assyria and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt to the River,10 from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.13 But the earth will be desolate because of its inhabitants, for the fruit of their deeds. 14 Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance, who dwell alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land;11 let them graze in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old.15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them12 marvelous things.16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hands on their mouths; their ears shall be deaf;17 they shall lick the dust like a serpent, like the crawling things of the earth; they shall come trembling out of their strongholds; they shall turn in dread to the LORD our God, and they shall be in fear of you. God's Steadfast Love and Compassion 18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our13 sins into the depths of the sea.20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old. Footnotes [1] 6:7 Or Will the Lord accept [2] 6:8 Or steadfast love [3] 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain [4] 6:10 Or Are there still treasures [5] 6:12 Hebrew whose [6] 6:16 Hebrew For the statutes of Omri are kept [7] 6:16 Hebrew its [8] 7:5 Hebrew bosom [9] 7:12 Hebrew he [10] 7:12 That is, the Euphrates [11] 7:14 Hebrew of Carmel [12] 7:15 Hebrew him [13] 7:19 Hebrew their (ESV) Evening: Revelation 12 Revelation 12 (Listen) The Woman and the Dragon 12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule1 all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Satan Thrown Down to Earth 7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers2 has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood3 on the sand of the sea. Footnotes [1] 12:5 Greek shepherd [2] 12:10 Or brothers and sisters [3] 12:17 Some manuscripts And I stood, connecting the sentence with 13:1 (ESV)
Old Testament: Joel 1–3 Joel 1–3 (Listen) 1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: An Invasion of Locusts 2 Hear this, you elders; give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers?3 Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation. 4 What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. 5 Awake, you drunkards, and weep, and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.6 For a nation has come up against my land, powerful and beyond number; its teeth are lions' teeth, and it has the fangs of a lioness.7 It has laid waste my vine and splintered my fig tree; it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down; their branches are made white. 8 Lament like a virgin1 wearing sackcloth for the bridegroom of her youth.9 The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of the LORD. The priests mourn, the ministers of the LORD.10 The fields are destroyed, the ground mourns, because the grain is destroyed, the wine dries up, the oil languishes. 11 Be ashamed,2 O tillers of the soil; wail, O vinedressers, for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.12 The vine dries up; the fig tree languishes. Pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up, and gladness dries up from the children of man. A Call to Repentance 13 Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Go in, pass the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God! Because grain offering and drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. 14 Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. 15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and as destruction from the Almighty3 it comes.16 Is not the food cut off before our eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God? 17 The seed shrivels under the clods;4 the storehouses are desolate; the granaries are torn down because the grain has dried up.18 How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because there is no pasture for them; even the flocks of sheep suffer.5 19 To you, O LORD, I call. For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and flame has burned all the trees of the field.20 Even the beasts of the field pant for you because the water brooks are dried up, and fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness. The Day of the Lord 2 Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near,2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. 3 Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them. 4 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses they run.5 As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. 6 Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale.7 Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths.8 They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted.9 They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls, they climb up into the houses, they enter through the windows like a thief. 10 The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.11 The LORD utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it? Return to the Lord 12 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly;16 gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber. 17 Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep and say, “Spare your people, O LORD, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations.6 Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” The Lord Had Pity 18 Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.19 The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard7 into the eastern sea, and his rear guard8 into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21 “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!22 Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. 23 “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. 24 “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.25 I will restore9 to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. 26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame. The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit 28 10 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. 30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls. 11 The Lord Judges the Nations 3 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, 3 and have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it. 4 “What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily. 5 For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples.12 6 You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their own border. 7 Behold, I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will return your payment on your own head. 8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the LORD has spoken.” 9 Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war;13 stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up.10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” 11 Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD.12 Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 16 The LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the LORD is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel. The Glorious Future of Judah 17 “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it. 18 “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk,
Old Testament: Joel 1–3 Joel 1–3 (Listen) 1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: An Invasion of Locusts 2 Hear this, you elders; give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers?3 Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation. 4 What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. 5 Awake, you drunkards, and weep, and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.6 For a nation has come up against my land, powerful and beyond number; its teeth are lions' teeth, and it has the fangs of a lioness.7 It has laid waste my vine and splintered my fig tree; it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down; their branches are made white. 8 Lament like a virgin1 wearing sackcloth for the bridegroom of her youth.9 The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of the LORD. The priests mourn, the ministers of the LORD.10 The fields are destroyed, the ground mourns, because the grain is destroyed, the wine dries up, the oil languishes. 11 Be ashamed,2 O tillers of the soil; wail, O vinedressers, for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.12 The vine dries up; the fig tree languishes. Pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up, and gladness dries up from the children of man. A Call to Repentance 13 Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Go in, pass the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God! Because grain offering and drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. 14 Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. 15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and as destruction from the Almighty3 it comes.16 Is not the food cut off before our eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God? 17 The seed shrivels under the clods;4 the storehouses are desolate; the granaries are torn down because the grain has dried up.18 How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because there is no pasture for them; even the flocks of sheep suffer.5 19 To you, O LORD, I call. For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and flame has burned all the trees of the field.20 Even the beasts of the field pant for you because the water brooks are dried up, and fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness. The Day of the Lord 2 Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near,2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. 3 Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them. 4 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses they run.5 As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. 6 Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale.7 Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths.8 They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted.9 They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls, they climb up into the houses, they enter through the windows like a thief. 10 The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.11 The LORD utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it? Return to the Lord 12 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly;16 gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber. 17 Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep and say, “Spare your people, O LORD, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations.6 Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” The Lord Had Pity 18 Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.19 The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard7 into the eastern sea, and his rear guard8 into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21 “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!22 Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. 23 “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. 24 “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.25 I will restore9 to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. 26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame. The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit 28 10 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. 30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls. 11 The Lord Judges the Nations 3 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, 3 and have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it. 4 “What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily. 5 For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples.12 6 You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their own border. 7 Behold, I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will return your payment on your own head. 8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the LORD has spoken.” 9 Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war;13 stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up.10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” 11 Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD.12 Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 16 The LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the LORD is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel. The Glorious Future of Judah 17 “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it. 18 “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk,
Everyone and their mom has been talking about Doug Wilson and the "Moscow mood." Kevin DeYoung wrote an article...Doug responded...then Owen Strachan wrote an article. Ugh! So much writing, so little action! This week we have on our friend Dan Samms - Pastor at Restoration Church in Ohio and proprietor of the Underground Seminary - to talk through these articles. What "mood" should we have right now? Listen now to find out. Hope you're feeling spicy! RESOURCES & SCRIPTURE Numbers 25:1-18 (The Zeal of Phinehas) Kevin DeYoung's article Doug's response Owen's article GRAB OUR NEWEST SHIRT! All throughout the Scripture we're admonished to raise our children in God-honoring ways. The Lord has tried to teach us time and time again that education is warfare. Grab our latest tee to show the principalities and powers that you know what's up. You see past their schemes, and you won't back down. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are the children of one's youth (Ps 127), and we won't relent fashioning them until they're straight and true in word and deed. Snag our Education is Warfare shirt today! Proceeds of this shirt sale go to support New Saint Andrew's College in the US and King Alfred Academy in Canada! CREDITS Audio Post Production by Jaeger WincklerJaeger is a student at New Saint Andrew's College in Moscow, ID. For work, he and some friends run Amphibian Creative LLC, a small creative agency. He also teaches piano and voice for Bohnet Music Academy. In his free time, he enjoys reading, playing the piano and harmonica, and composing music for films. If you'd like audio help or just want to talk about sound (oh, the irony), feel free to contact him at amphibiancreative.co.
Morning: Joel 1–3 Joel 1–3 (Listen) 1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: An Invasion of Locusts 2 Hear this, you elders; give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers?3 Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation. 4 What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. 5 Awake, you drunkards, and weep, and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.6 For a nation has come up against my land, powerful and beyond number; its teeth are lions' teeth, and it has the fangs of a lioness.7 It has laid waste my vine and splintered my fig tree; it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down; their branches are made white. 8 Lament like a virgin1 wearing sackcloth for the bridegroom of her youth.9 The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of the LORD. The priests mourn, the ministers of the LORD.10 The fields are destroyed, the ground mourns, because the grain is destroyed, the wine dries up, the oil languishes. 11 Be ashamed,2 O tillers of the soil; wail, O vinedressers, for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.12 The vine dries up; the fig tree languishes. Pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up, and gladness dries up from the children of man. A Call to Repentance 13 Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Go in, pass the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God! Because grain offering and drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. 14 Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. 15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and as destruction from the Almighty3 it comes.16 Is not the food cut off before our eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God? 17 The seed shrivels under the clods;4 the storehouses are desolate; the granaries are torn down because the grain has dried up.18 How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because there is no pasture for them; even the flocks of sheep suffer.5 19 To you, O LORD, I call. For fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and flame has burned all the trees of the field.20 Even the beasts of the field pant for you because the water brooks are dried up, and fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness. The Day of the Lord 2 Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near,2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. 3 Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them. 4 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses they run.5 As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. 6 Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale.7 Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths.8 They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted.9 They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls, they climb up into the houses, they enter through the windows like a thief. 10 The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.11 The LORD utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it? Return to the Lord 12 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly;16 gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber. 17 Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep and say, “Spare your people, O LORD, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations.6 Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” The Lord Had Pity 18 Then the LORD became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.19 The LORD answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. 20 “I will remove the northerner far from you, and drive him into a parched and desolate land, his vanguard7 into the eastern sea, and his rear guard8 into the western sea; the stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things. 21 “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things!22 Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. 23 “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. 24 “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.25 I will restore9 to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. 26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame. The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit 28 10 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. 30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls. 11 The Lord Judges the Nations 3 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, 3 and have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it. 4 “What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily. 5 For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples.12 6 You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their own border. 7 Behold, I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will return your payment on your own head. 8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the LORD has spoken.” 9 Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war;13 stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up.10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” 11 Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD.12 Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 16 The LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the LORD is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel. The Glorious Future of Judah 17 “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it. 18 “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk,
Joshua 3:1-17 "Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 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. 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 between you and the ark; do not go near it.” Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” 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. 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. 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.' ” Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. 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. See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 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.” So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 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, 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. 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."
For today’s installment of our Advent Meditation series, our brother Ted Kennedy provides commentary on Jl 3:9-18. Take a listen or click here to download. Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war; stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD. Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. The LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the LORD is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel. “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it. “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the streambeds of Judah shall flow with water; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the LORD and water the Valley of Shittim. Jl 3:9-18
With family: 1 Chronicles 29; 2 Peter 3 1 Chronicles 29 (Listen) Offerings for the Temple 29 And David the king said to all the assembly, “Solomon my son, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced, and the work is great, for the palace will not be for man but for the LORD God. 2 So I have provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able, the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, besides great quantities of onyx and stones for setting, antimony, colored stones, all sorts of precious stones and marble. 3 Moreover, in addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God: 4 3,000 talents1 of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, for overlaying the walls of the house,2 5 and for all the work to be done by craftsmen, gold for the things of gold and silver for the things of silver. Who then will offer willingly, consecrating himself3 today to the LORD?” 6 Then the leaders of fathers' houses made their freewill offerings, as did also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king's work. 7 They gave for the service of the house of God 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics4 of gold, 10,000 talents of silver, 18,000 talents of bronze and 100,000 talents of iron. 8 And whoever had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in the care of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9 Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly. David Prays in the Assembly 10 Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. 12 Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. 13 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. 14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. 15 For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding.5 16 O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. 18 O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. 19 Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.” 20 Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the LORD your God.” And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the LORD and to the king. 21 And they offered sacrifices to the LORD, and on the next day offered burnt offerings to the LORD, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams, and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. 22 And they ate and drank before the LORD on that day with great gladness. Solomon Anointed King And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and they anointed him as prince for the LORD, and Zadok as priest. 23 Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king in place of David his father. And he prospered, and all Israel obeyed him. 24 All the leaders and the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David, pledged their allegiance to King Solomon. 25 And the LORD made Solomon very great in the sight of all Israel and bestowed on him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel. The Death of David 26 Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 27 The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 28 Then he died at a good age, full of days, riches, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place. 29 Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of Samuel the seer, and in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet, and in the Chronicles of Gad the seer, 30 with accounts of all his rule and his might and of the circumstances that came upon him and upon Israel and upon all the kingdoms of the countries. Footnotes [1] 29:4 A talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms [2] 29:4 Septuagint; Hebrew houses [3] 29:5 Or ordaining himself; Hebrew filling his hand [4] 29:7 A daric was a coin weighing about 1/4 ounce or 8.5 grams [5] 29:15 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew hope, or prospect (ESV) 2 Peter 3 (Listen) The Day of the Lord Will Come 3 This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, 2 that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, 3 knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4 They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5 For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6 and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 7 But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. 8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you,1 not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies2 will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.3 11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Final Words 14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. Footnotes [1] 3:9 Some manuscripts on your account [2] 3:10 Or elements; also verse 12 [3] 3:10 Greek found; some manuscripts will be burned up (ESV) In private: Micah 6; Luke 15 Micah 6 (Listen) The Indictment of the Lord 6 Hear what the LORD says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD.” What Does the Lord Require? 6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?7 Will the LORD be pleased with1 thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,2 and to walk humbly with your God? Destruction of the Wicked 9 The voice of the LORD cries to the city— and it is sound wisdom to fear your name: “Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!310 Can I forget any longer the treasures4 of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is accursed?11 Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights?12 Your5 rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.13 Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow, making you desolate because of your sins.14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied, and there shall be hunger within you; you shall put away, but not preserve, and what you preserve I will give to the sword.15 You shall sow, but not reap; you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil; you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.16 For you have kept the statutes of Omri,6 and all the works of the house of Ahab; and you have walked in their counsels, that I may make you a desolation, and your7 inhabitants a hissing; so you shall bear the scorn of my people.” Footnotes [1] 6:7 Or Will the Lord accept [2] 6:8 Or steadfast love [3] 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain [4] 6:10 Or Are there still treasures [5] 6:12 Hebrew whose [6] 6:16 Hebrew For the statutes of Omri are kept [7] 6:16 Hebrew its (ESV) Luke 15 (Listen) The Parable of the Lost Sheep 15 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. The Parable of the Lost Coin 8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins,1 if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.' 10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The Parable of the Prodigal Son 11 And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.' And he divided his property between them. 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to2 one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”' 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'3 22 But the father said to his servants,4 ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate. 25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!' 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'” Footnotes [1] 15:8 Greek ten drachmas; a drachma was a Greek coin approximately equal in value to a Roman denarius, worth about a day's wage for a laborer [2] 15:15 Greek joined himself to [3] 15:21 Some manuscripts add treat me as one of your hired servants [4] 15:22 Or bondservants (ESV)
With family: 2 Kings 24; Hebrews 6 2 Kings 24 (Listen) 24 In his days, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years. Then he turned and rebelled against him. 2 And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldeans and bands of the Syrians and bands of the Moabites and bands of the Ammonites, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by his servants the prophets. 3 Surely this came upon Judah at the command of the LORD, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he had done, 4 and also for the innocent blood that he had shed. For he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the LORD would not pardon. 5 Now the rest of the deeds of Jehoiakim and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 6 So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers, and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place. 7 And the king of Egypt did not come again out of his land, for the king of Babylon had taken all that belonged to the king of Egypt from the Brook of Egypt to the river Euphrates. Jehoiachin Reigns in Judah 8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. 9 And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done. Jerusalem Captured 10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it, 12 and Jehoiachin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself and his mother and his servants and his officials and his palace officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign 13 and carried off all the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold in the temple of the LORD, which Solomon king of Israel had made, as the LORD had foretold. 14 He carried away all Jerusalem and all the officials and all the mighty men of valor, 10,000 captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained, except the poorest people of the land. 15 And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon. The king's mother, the king's wives, his officials, and the chief men of the land he took into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. 16 And the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon all the men of valor, 7,000, and the craftsmen and the metal workers, 1,000, all of them strong and fit for war. 17 And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah Reigns in Judah 18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 19 And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 20 For because of the anger of the LORD it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he cast them out from his presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. (ESV) Hebrews 6 (Listen) 6 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 and of instruction about washings,1 the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits. 4 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. 7 For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. 8 But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned. 9 Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things—things that belong to salvation. 10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do. 11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. The Certainty of God's Promise 13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham,2 having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Footnotes [1] 6:2 Or baptisms (that is, cleansing rites) [2] 6:15 Greek he (ESV) In private: Psalm 143; Joel 3 Psalm 143 (Listen) My Soul Thirsts for You A Psalm of David. 143 Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my pleas for mercy! In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!2 Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you. 3 For the enemy has pursued my soul; he has crushed my life to the ground; he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.4 Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled. 5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands.6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah 7 Answer me quickly, O LORD! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.8 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. 9 Deliver me from my enemies, O LORD! I have fled to you for refuge.110 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground! 11 For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble!12 And in your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies, and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul, for I am your servant. Footnotes [1] 143:9 One Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts To you I have covered (ESV) Joel 3 (Listen) The Lord Judges the Nations 3 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, 3 and have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it. 4 “What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily. 5 For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples.1 6 You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their own border. 7 Behold, I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will return your payment on your own head. 8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the LORD has spoken.” 9 Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war;2 stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up.10 Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” 11 Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD.12 Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 16 The LORD roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the LORD is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel. The Glorious Future of Judah 17 “So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it. 18 “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the streambeds of Judah shall flow with water; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the LORD and water the Valley of Shittim. 19 “Egypt shall become a desolation and Edom a desolate wilderness, for the violence done to the people of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.20 But Judah shall be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem to all generations.21 I will avenge their blood, blood I have not avenged,3 for the LORD dwells in Zion.” Footnotes [1] 3:5 Or palaces [2] 3:9 Or Consecrate a war [3] 3:21 Or I will acquit their bloodguilt that I have not acquitted (ESV)
What I found inspiring were two Scripture readings, one from the prophet Micah, where the reader faced the line, “O my people, remember what happened from Shittim to Gilgal that you may know the saving acts of the Lord,” and she slowed down when she saw “Shittim” and got traction and very carefully pronounced it “shi-team.” I was the only one in the sanctuary immature enough to enjoy this moment. There were no 13-year-old boys there, just me. I could tell from her voice that the reader had been dreading this for an hour, trying to decide between “shy-tim” and “shi-team” and fearing that she'd slip and pronounce it phonetically and a marble angel would fall and crash and red lights would flash and people would require treatment for post-traumatic stress. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit garrisonkeillor.substack.com/subscribeThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5893629/advertisement
Micah 1–7 Micah 1–7 (Listen) 1 The word of the LORD that came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. The Coming Destruction 2 Hear, you peoples, all of you;1 pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it, and let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.3 For behold, the LORD is coming out of his place, and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.4 And the mountains will melt under him, and the valleys will split open, like wax before the fire, like waters poured down a steep place.5 All this is for the transgression of Jacob and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? Is it not Jerusalem?6 Therefore I will make Samaria a heap in the open country, a place for planting vineyards, and I will pour down her stones into the valley and uncover her foundations.7 All her carved images shall be beaten to pieces, all her wages shall be burned with fire, and all her idols I will lay waste, for from the fee of a prostitute she gathered them, and to the fee of a prostitute they shall return. 8 For this I will lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make lamentation like the jackals, and mourning like the ostriches.9 For her wound is incurable, and it has come to Judah; it has reached to the gate of my people, to Jerusalem. 10 Tell it not in Gath; weep not at all; in Beth-le-aphrah roll yourselves in the dust.11 Pass on your way, inhabitants of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame; the inhabitants of Zaanan do not come out; the lamentation of Beth-ezel shall take away from you its standing place.12 For the inhabitants of Maroth wait anxiously for good, because disaster has come down from the LORD to the gate of Jerusalem.13 Harness the steeds to the chariots, inhabitants of Lachish; it was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion, for in you were found the transgressions of Israel.14 Therefore you shall give parting gifts2 to Moresheth-gath; the houses of Achzib shall be a deceitful thing to the kings of Israel.15 I will again bring a conqueror to you, inhabitants of Mareshah; the glory of Israel shall come to Adullam.16 Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair, for the children of your delight; make yourselves as bald as the eagle, for they shall go from you into exile. Woe to the Oppressors 2 Woe to those who devise wickedness and work evil on their beds! When the morning dawns, they perform it, because it is in the power of their hand.2 They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them away; they oppress a man and his house, a man and his inheritance.3 Therefore thus says the LORD: behold, against this family I am devising disaster,3 from which you cannot remove your necks, and you shall not walk haughtily, for it will be a time of disaster.4 In that day they shall take up a taunt song against you and moan bitterly, and say, “We are utterly ruined; he changes the portion of my people; how he removes it from me! To an apostate he allots our fields.”5 Therefore you will have none to cast the line by lot in the assembly of the LORD. 6 “Do not preach”—thus they preach— “one should not preach of such things; disgrace will not overtake us.”7 Should this be said, O house of Jacob? Has the LORD grown impatient?4 Are these his deeds? Do not my words do good to him who walks uprightly?8 But lately my people have risen up as an enemy; you strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly with no thought of war.59 The women of my people you drive out from their delightful houses; from their young children you take away my splendor forever.10 Arise and go, for this is no place to rest, because of uncleanness that destroys with a grievous destruction.11 If a man should go about and utter wind and lies, saying, “I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,” he would be the preacher for this people!12 I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob; I will gather the remnant of Israel; I will set them together like sheep in a fold, like a flock in its pasture, a noisy multitude of men.13 He who opens the breach goes up before them; they break through and pass the gate, going out by it. Their king passes on before them, the LORD at their head. Rulers and Prophets Denounced 3 And I said: Hear, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel! Is it not for you to know justice?—2 you who hate the good and love the evil, who tear the skin from off my people6 and their flesh from off their bones,3 who eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them, and break their bones in pieces and chop them up like meat in a pot, like flesh in a cauldron. 4 Then they will cry to the LORD, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have made their deeds evil. 5 Thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry “Peace” when they have something to eat, but declare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths.6 Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without divination. The sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be black over them;7 the seers shall be disgraced, and the diviners put to shame; they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God.8 But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin. 9 Hear this, you heads of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who detest justice and make crooked all that is straight,10 who build Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity.11 Its heads give judgment for a bribe; its priests teach for a price; its prophets practice divination for money; yet they lean on the LORD and say, “Is not the LORD in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us.”12 Therefore because of you Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the house a wooded height. The Mountain of the Lord 4 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it,2 and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law,7 and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.3 He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore;4 but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.5 For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever. The Lord Shall Rescue Zion 6 In that day, declares the LORD, I will assemble the lame and gather those who have been driven away and those whom I have afflicted;7 and the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore. 8 And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor?10 Writhe and groan,8 O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued; there the LORD will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. 11 Now many nations are assembled against you, saying, “Let her be defiled, and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”12 But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze; you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote9 their gain to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth. The Ruler to Be Born in Bethlehem 5 10 Now muster your troops, O daughter11 of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.2 12 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men;6 they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod at its entrances; and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and treads within our border. A Remnant Shall Be Delivered 7 Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which delay not for a man nor wait for the children of man.8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples,
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