Tag Archive | Israel

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, days 245 & 246

Sep2

    Days 245 & 246—We are in the NINETH month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and the prophecies of Ezekiel.

NOTE: Sundays and Mondays are posted together.

    Day 245– Ezekiel 21 – 22 (The sharp & polished “sword” of Babylon judging Jerusalem/Judah, the end of turban and crown in Israel, bloody sins in Jerusalem returns upon her.)

Ezekiel 21. Ezekiel is to “groan with breaking heart and bitter grief: before the people because God is “drawing a sword against all flesh from the north to the south…“to cut off from you both RIGHTEOUS and WICKED.”

God is to judge the RIGHTEOUS?

Remember in Genesis when Abraham prayed the wicked city of Sodom would be spared judgment because his nephew, Lot, lived there. God agreed to spare it if just TEN RIGHTEOUS people could be found there.  Well, Lot was the only one, and God saved him and his immediate family but destroyed the city.  IN EZEKIEL 22:30, God said He looked for ONE RIGHTEOUS MAN in Jerusalem that He should not destroy the city…but He found NONE. No, not one. (Romans 3:10-14)  Wow.

And now God (the swordsman) is using Babylon as His sharp and polished sword (21:19) to “slaughter” the wicked.   God especially speaks against Judah’s last king, Zedekiah. “And you, O profane wicked one, prince of Israel, whose day has come, the time of your punishment.”

God also says, “Remove the turban and take off the crown.  Things shall not remain as they are. A ruin, ruin, ruin, I will make it. This also shall not be until HE comes, the One to whom judgment belongs, and I will give it to HIM.”  This says that neither the office of king or priest will be fully restored after captivity….until the Messiah takes BOTH.   This judgment begins “the times of the Gentiles.”

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Ezekiel 22.  In verses 4-13, God, through Ezekiel, lists more than 17 kinds of sin condemning Jerusalem (their blood-guiltiness). More are listed in verses 25-29.

God tells Ezekiel (and us) that “the house of Israel has become dross to me, like bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the furnace when you smelt silver.”  All are to be melted and burned off.  And so, “I have poured out my indignation upon them. I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath. I have returned their way upon their heads, says the Lord GOD.”

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    Day 246 – Ezekiel 23 – 24 (More metaphors, dark, bloody, and a shared grief)

Ezekiel 23. This is a dark chapter, with an obscene metaphor for the capital cities of Israel: Samaria & Jerusalem, and how they acted as lewd, adulterous wives of the Lord in their idolatry.

God gives Samaria the name Oholah and Jerusalem the name Oholibah. Both “played the whore” in a spiritual sense, seeking fulfillment and security from other nations and their idols. And as “Oholah” was taken into Assyrian captivity, “Oholibah” learned nothing and lusted after the pagan power of Egypt and Babylon, and will be taken away too.  Some parts of the chapter portray spiritual unfaithfulness in graphic sexual terms.

God, therefore, stirred up these cities’ “lovers” to deal with them in fury, God’s fury for being so shamed when He was a faithful and loving “husband.” These nation-lovers will “cut off the noses and ears of the unfaithful “wives,” and the survivors will be burned with fire.”  “They will “strip them of their clothes and take their beautiful jewels.”object lesson  And so, God will put an end to their lewdness and their whoring brought on them because they defiled themselves with idols.”

In Verses 36-49, God tells Ezekiel how to judge Oholah and Oholibah, first with their “nation-lovers” whom they pursued, turning to them and using them brutally as whores.

For thus says the Lord God, “Thus will I put an end to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not commit lewdness as you have done. And they shall return your lewdness upon you, and you shall bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry, and you shall know that I am the LORD GOD.”

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Ezekiel 24.  In this chapter, God sends word to Ezekiel (900 miles away in Babylon) that right then, the city of Jerusalem is under siege by the king of Babylon.  God compares the inhabitants of Jerusalem to bloody pieces of meat ready for the boiling cauldron. God gives the harsh proclamation, “I will not go back; I will not spare; I will not relent; according to your ways and your deeds, you (Jerusalem) will be judged.”

Then Ezekiel performs another harsh “object-lesson.”  His wife dies, but he is not allowed to mourn or weep. He can sigh, but not aloud, and make NO MOURNING for the dead. This is an example to the Jews in Babylon not to mourn the fall of Jerusalem because this is the just judgment of God on their wickedness. 

God told him to say, “Thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the yearning of your soul, and your sons and your daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword.” And you shall do as I have done… you shall not mourn or weep.

Then God tells Ezekiel that when it is completed in Jerusalem, He will send a fugitive to report the news.  On that day, Ezekiel can open his mouth to speak, for after the previous judgment, he was mute (there was no more need to preach judgment) – although he was allowed to prophesy against other nations.

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 236

Aug23

    Day 236—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading: Israel’s history and Jeremiah’s prophecy.

    Day 236 – Jeremiah 51 – 52 (Judgment on Babylon, Recap of Jerusalem’s fall)

Jeremiah 51. The judgment and destruction of Babylon is continued in this lengthy chapter.

Jeremiah predicts Babylon’s coming destruction even as it still takes captives of the lands around it. THEN, come those encouraging words….“For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken by their God, the LORD of hosts…”  (Remember that all this was to happen WHILE the exiles of Judah were still in captivity in Babylon. It would have been terrifying to experience except for the words of prophets like Jeremiah, who told them it would happen and that they would not be forsaken by God and would be returned to their land.)

And here’s how it will end for Babylon: “The LORD has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because His purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, for that is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance for His Temple.”

Verses 20-23 show how God uses Cyrus of Persia (& Medes) as His war club. “You are my hammer and weapon of war: 1) with you I break nations in pieces;

2) with you, I destroy kingdoms;

3) with you, I break in pieces the horse and his rider;

4) with you, I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;

5) with you, I break in pieces man and woman;

6) with you, I break in pieces the old man and the youth;

7) with you, I break in pieces the young man and the young woman;

8) with you, I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock,

9) with you, I break in pieces the farmer and his team;

10) with you, I break in pieces governors and commanders.   

I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, declares the LORD.”

“Then the heavens and the earth and all that is in them shall sing for joy over Babylon, for the destroyers shall come against them from the north, declares the LORD. Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel, just as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.”

AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER IS A NOTE FROM JEREMIAH. He wrote in a book all the disasters that would come upon Babylon, and he gave the book to Seraiah when he went with Zedekiah, king of Judah to Babylon. Jeremiah’s instructions to Seraiah were to read all the words of the book about the disasters that would come to Babylon and how the LORD would eventually–surely–cut them off.

And when Seraiah finished reading Jeremiah’s book to all the people, he was to tie a stone to it, throw it into the Euphrates River, and say, “Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her.”

(What encouragement to the wounded, bedraggled captives! Although they must wait 70 years.)

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Jeremiah 52. NOTE THE FINAL ENDS TO THE LAST TWO KINGS IN JUDAH. THEY ARE QUITE DIFFERENT!

This closing chapter recounts the fall of Jerusalem under Zedekiah, the final king of Judah. When Jerusalem’s walls are breached, and the Chaldeans pour into the city, Zedekiah, his family, and his officials escape and make a run to cross the Jordan River. They are captured in the plains of Jericho, sentenced by Nebuchadnezzar, and all are slaughtered in Zedekiah’s sight. His eyes are then put out, and he is taken to Babylon blind and in chains to rot in prison until he dies.

All in Jerusalem is broken and burned. It’s treasures are carried away, and a few of the very poorest are left to tend the fields.

Then comes Jeremiah’s paragraph of hope. It’s about king Jehoiachin, the next-to-the-last king of Judah. After three months of reign, he listened to Jeremiah’s word from the LORD and SURRENDERED to the Chaldeans. He was taken captive to Babylon.

After Nebuchadnezzar died, the next king of Babylon…..

“GRACIOUSLY FREED Jehoiachin and brought him out of prison. He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king according to his daily need, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.”

What a difference in the “ends” of the two last “evil” kings of Judah! And why? Because ONE of them–just as evil as the other–obeyed the LORD.

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 223

Aug10

    Day 223—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and prophecy.

    Day 223 – Jeremiah 14 – 17 (Terrible drought, false prophets, no turning back, famine-sword-death, trust & the Sabbath) These chapters reveal the sternness of the Lord, the pleading and depression of Jeremiah, an a glimmer of hope for the obedient.

Jeremiah 14 begins with a dire picture of drought and famine and Jeremiah pleading for God to relent.  ONCE AGAIN, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not pray for the welfare of this people. Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”

Jeremiah then points out FALSE prophets who say Judah will not see those things, and God responds, “I did not send them, nor did I command them to speak. They are prophesying a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds.” 

The rest of the chapter is either Judah or Jeremiah for Judah pleading for God to relent, even acknowledging their wickedness. They tell God they know the false gods cannot bring rain; only He can!

 

Jeremiah 15.  Here, God responds to their pleading. It’s too little, too late. “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would NOT turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight.”   “I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem.”  See 2 Kings 2:2-7, 10-15

Jeremiah is overcome with grief at this and wishes he had not been born.

God reminds him of His promised protection for the remnant of Judah who obeys.

Still,  Jeremiah, in self-pity, asks God not to fail him like a streambed that’s dried up.  God reprimands his prophet for feeling sorry for himself and tells him to repent.  He does, and God promises to protect him.

 

Jeremiah 16.  God tells Jeremiah NOT to take a wife and have children because those who are born then will suffer deadly diseases, perish by the sword, and by famine.  Both great and small shall die in the land. They shall not be buried or lamented.

When the people ask why these predictions, Jeremiah is to say, “Because your fathers have forsaken me and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, AND because YOU have done worse than your fathers.”   ” Therefore, I will hurl you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known, and THERE you SHALL SERVE OTHER GODS DAY AND NIGHT, for I will show you no favor.”

HOWEVER….. for the faithful remnant, the LORD promises restoration.  And their deliverance from Babylon will be greater than their former deliverance from Egypt.  And such deliverance will result in Israel never again turning to idols. They will entirely and permanently renounce idolatry.

 

Jeremiah 17. After that vision of hope, the passage turns again to their horrendous sins of idolatry, depending on their own flesh, and dishonesty in gaining wealth.

Thus says the LORD:
Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the LORD."

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose trust is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.

The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately sick;
who can understand it?
I the LORD search the heart
and test the mind,
to give every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his deeds."

"Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed,
save me, and I shall be saved,
for you are my praise." (Jeremiah)

Then the LORD tells Jeremiah to go to the gates of Jerusalem, and remind the people of the importance of “keeping the Sabbath Day holy unto Him.”  He tells them the results of their hearing and obeying His words (blessings) or NOT listening and keeping the day holy (destruction). 

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 222

Aug9

    Day 222—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading: Israel’s history and Jeremiah’s prophecy.

    Day 222 – Jeremiah 10 – 13 (Idols & the Living God, Judah breaks covenant, Jeremiah & God, a loincloth)

Jeremiah 10 writes of the stupidity of fashioning your own idols of wood, silver, and gold, of dressing them up and taking them where you go. How foolish! They can neither do good or evil. Unlike the LORD.

There is NONE like Him. He is the true God, He is the living God and the everlasting King. He is the one who formed all things. The LORD of hosts is His name.

 

Jeremiah 11 tells again how God is righteous, caring for His own people and promising them the land of milk and honey if they would but obey His voice. And THEY did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart.  And so, the LORD is bringing disaster upon them.

Again God tells Jeremiah, “Do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer on their behalf, for I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their trouble.”

 

Jeremiah 12. Jeremiah now argues with God about why the wicked still prosper, seeming foolish because he could not see their end and in judging God.  But God reminds him of the invaders coming, overwhelming the land like a flood.  Both the Babylonians and God’s sword of condemnation are the same.

But, God, ever so merciful, says, “After I have plucked them up, I will again have compassion on them, and I will bring them again, each to his heritage and each to his land.”   

In His compassion, God even promises the other nations, “And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, “as the LORD lives,” even as they taught my people to swear by Baal, then they shall be built up in the midst of my people.”

 

Jeremiah 13. God gives Jeremiah an object lesson.  He is to go buy a linen loincloth, wear it for a few days, then take it off, go to the Euphrates, and hide it there.  After many days, he was to go and dig it up. But it was spoiled and good for nothing.  God said THIS was His spoiling the “great pride” of Judah, who stubbornly followed their own heart and went after other gods. 

Since a loincloth clung close to a person’s skin, so God made the house of Judah cling to Him that they might be His people, a name, a praise, and a glory. But they would not listen. 

Then God gives the message, “Hear and give ear; be not proud, for the LORD has spoken. Give glory to the LORD your God before He brings darkness… before your feet stumble on the twilight mountains, and while you look for light, He turns it into gloom and makes it deep darkness.”

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 221

Aug8

    Day 221—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and prophecy (Jeremiah).

    Day 221 – Jeremiah 7 – 9 (God’s ultimatum, the people’s response, & dire results, Jeremiah’s grief for the people & God’s response)

Jeremiah 7.  The “faithless” people of Judah were holding the Temple of the LORD as a kind of “lucky charm,” thinking that as long as they worshiped God in the Temple, they could do whatever abomination they wanted outside the premises.

“Don’t trust in these deceptive words, ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD,” to keep you from exile.” No!  God wants heart evidence of repentance.

“Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place.”   

“For if you TRULY amend your ways and deeds, if you TRULY execute justice one with another, if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm…. THEN I will let you dwell in this place.”

However, God knows their hearts.

“Behold you trust in those deceptive words (the Temple, the Temple) to no avail. will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known (all those 10 commandments) and then come and stand before ME in this house and say, “We are delivered!” — only to go on doing all these abominations?

“Has this house, which is called by My name, BECOME A DEN OF ROBBERS IN YOUR EYES?“

And then God gives Jeremiah instructions concerning them. “As for you, do NOT pray for this people or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do NOT intercede with me, for I will not hear you.”

Wow, that is truly serious for God to tell him that there are people beyond prayer.

Jeremiah 8. The LORD tells His prophet that the land of Judah will be covered with their bones like dung. And death shall be preferred to life for all the Remnant that remains. Then Jeremiah mourns the unrepentance of the people of Judah.

“Why has this people turned away in perpetual backsliding…they refuse to return.”

“I mourn, and dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why, then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored? Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people.”

Jeremiah 9. The “weeping prophet” continues to mourn for the people and the land that will be desolate and destroyed. “I will take up weeping and wailing for the mountains, and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness, because they are laid waste…”

“WHY???” asks the sorrowful prophet, and God answers.

“Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them and have not obeyed my voice or walked in accord with it, but have stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Baals,”

And so, God says He will feed them with bitter food and give them poisonous water and scatter them among the nations and send the sword after them till they are consumed. I will punish ALL those who are circumcised merely in the flesh — all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in heart.”

EXTRA: Read God’s words in 9:23-24 about what a person should be boasting about, and compare with how Paul uses this in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 220

Aug7

    Day 220—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and prophecy.

    Day 220 – Jeremiah 4 – 6 (Continuous judgment is prophesied on Judah for their rejection of the LORD)

Jeremiah 4. This chapter begins with God holding out hope to Judah, if they would repent, turn from their wickedness, and “return to Him.” 

“Remove your detestable things from my presence…. and swear ‘As the Lord lives,’ in truth, justice, and righteousness.”

“Break up your fallow ground, and sow NOT among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the LORD: remove the foreskin of your hearts, O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds.” 

“O Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil, that you may be saved. How long shall your wicked thoughts lodge within you?”

And yet, they will not, so the destruction God forewarned about will surely come. 

 

Jeremiah 5. An offer of hope is held out if ONE just man can be found.

“Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; look and take note! Search her squares to see if you can find a man, one who does justice and seeks truth that I may pardon her.”

But none can be found.  “They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent.”   

“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes, but see not, who have ears, but hear not. Do you not fear me?’ declares the LORD. Do you not tremble before me?”

“But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone away. They do not say in their hearts, ‘Let us fear the LORD our God.’

And the LORD’s response?  “Shall I not punish them for these things, declares the LORD, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation like this?”

 

Jeremiah 6. The prophet writes of impending disaster for Jerusalem, calling for the people to be warned. “This is a city that must be punished; there is nothing but oppression within her.”

“Behold their ears are uncircumcised, they cannot listen; behold the Word of the LORD is to them an object of scorn; they take no pleasure in it.  Therefore, I am full of the wrath of the LORD; I am weary of holding it in.”

Therefore, hear, O nations, and know, O congregation, what will happen to them. Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people, the fruit of their devices, because they have not paid attention to my words, and as for my law, they have rejected it. 

 

Read the horrific details of the destruction of Jerusalem and its people in these chapters and know why Jeremiah cries “My anguish, my anguish! I write in pain! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent, for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. Crash follows hard on crash; the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are laid waste, my curtains in a moment. How long must I see the standard and hear the sound of the trumpet?” 4:19-21

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 219

Aug6

    Day 219—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with  Israel’s history and Jeremiah’s prophecy.

    Day 219 – Jeremiah 1 – 3 (the “weeping prophet” prophesies for 50 years, during the last 5 kings of Judah, and beyond the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon where he writes his last words of the book)

Jeremiah 1. Jeremiah is a young priest when God calls him to be a prophet to the nations.  At first, Jeremiah refuses, saying he is too young (20-25) and doesn’t know how to speak (much like the great leader Moses in Exodus 3).

But God, in both men, will take no excuses. He will empower Jeremiah and be with him to deliver him. And like Isaiah, the LORD then touches Jeremiah’s mouth, but with His hand, not a burning coal.

Right away, God tells Jeremiah that kings of the north will come and “set their thrones” at the entrance of Jerusalem. Disaster will come because Judah has forsaken Him.  And to Jeremiah, “But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything I command you.”  “They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.”

Jeremiah 2. His first action was to go through Jerusalem and tell them about how it used to be. How they used to love God and follow Him. How Israel was holy to the LORD.  Then, that heartbreaking question Jeremiah was to ask them,

“What wrong did your fathers find in me that they went far from me, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless? 

The wrong was NOT on God’s part but on theirs.

“Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed TWO EVILS;  they have FORSAKEN ME, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns FOR THEMSELVES…broken cisterns that can hold no water.”

Jeremiah 3. Through Jeremiah, God accuses his people of being harlots, whores with many lovers. Because of this pollution in the land, God has withheld the rain. Yet they refuse to be ashamed.

Jeremiah is to tell Judah to see how “faithless Israel” turned from God and would not return. And how God sent her away with a divorce decree… “because she took whoredom lightly.” (idolatry) “Treacherous Judah” is even worse!

And yet, God’s heart is one of forgiveness if His people will return to Him in repentance.

“Return, faithless Israel, declares the LORD. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the LORD; I will not be angry forever. Only ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR GUILT, THAT YOU REBELLED AGAINST THE LORD YOUR GOD, and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree; and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the LORD. Return, O faithless children, declares the LORD.”

When Israel finally repents, God will restore their land and bless them. There will be shepherds to teach them the truth, God’s own presence will be on the throne in Jerusalem (NOT the Ark of the Covenant), all nations will gather to His presence, and they will no more stubbornly follow their own evil hearts.

NOTE: It’s unknown when/where the Ark of the Covenant went.  Did the Babylonians take it? Did it come back 70 years later when the exiles returned? Some say that Jeremiah hid it before the Babylonians took the city.

Whichever… verse 16 of this chapter states, “And when you have multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, declares the LORD, they shall no more say, “The ark of the covenant of the LORD.” It shall not come to mind or be remembered or missed; it shall not be made again.”

(Indiana Jones aside, we are not to look for it.)

1 Corinthians 3:16 states that today, believers are God’s temple, and He dwells in them by His Spirit.

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, days 217 and 218

Aug5

    Day 217 & 218—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and prophecy. NOTE: Sundays and Mondays are posted together.

    Day 217 – 2 Kings 22 – 23, 2 Chronicles 34 – 35 (King Josiah’s reign, reforms, and death. Pharoah Neco)

2 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 34. After the disastrous reigns of Manasseh and Amon, the 8-year-old Josiah becomes king and reigns for 31 years.  He does what was right in God’s sight. (This reminds me of King Joash who began at 7 and was a good king, until the end. 2 Kings 11)

Josiah orders the clean up and repair of the Temple (the previous kings had put in all kinds of idols and paraphernalia). During the cleanup, the Book of the Law is discovered, and when read to Josiah, he tore his clothes and repented.  “Great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.”

The prophetess Huldah tells him that, indeed, all the terrible judgments of God WILL come upon Judah and Jerusalem, but because of Josiah’s heart for good, they will not happen until after his death.

2 Kings 23 and 2 Chronicles 35. So Josiah turns Jerusalem and Judah upside down, instructing all the people to walk after the LORD, and to keep His commandments with all their heart and soul, and to obey all the words written in the book. And he destroys, grinds to dust, burns, and kills all who were involved in pagan idol worship. He also puts away any medium or necromancer and other abominations. (A thorough housecleaning.)

And he restored the ceremony of Passover and Unleavened Bread according to all he read.

Unfortunately, at the end of the 31 years, Josiah sees Egypt’s Pharoah Neco going to attack and fight with the Assyrians and thinks to join the fray.  Neco tries to persuade him to go back, but Josiah refuses, and he is shot. He dies in Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 35:22) says the message from Neco was from the LORD.  “nevertheless Josiah did not turn away from him, but disguised himself in order to fight with him. He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God but came to fight in the plain of Megiddo.  And the archers shot King Josiah.”

All Jerusalem lamented him. Even the prophet Jeremiah wrote a lament about him.

2 Kings 23:31-37. Josiah’s evil son, Jehoahaz, reigned in his place for 3 months. Neco carried him off to Egypt till he died. Then the Pharaoh made Eliakim, another of Josiah’s sons, king in his place and re-named him Jehoiakim. This king paid silver and gold tribute to Neco.

Jehoiakim reigned 11 years and did what was evil in the LORD’s sight.

(The end of Judah and Jerusalem is near.)

   

   Day 218 – Zephaniah 1 – 3 (Prophecy in King Josiah’s time, but before all his reforms, lingering wickedness from Manasseh and Amon triggering the severe judgment prophesied, the Day of the Lord warning “is near”)

Zephaniah 1.  Zephaniah is a prophet of royal blood, the great-great grandson of Hezekiah.  He begins with the coming judgment on the remaining Southern Kingdom of Judah.  Although reform comes during King Josiah’s lifetime, it is too little, too late, and doesn’t outlast him.

The first verses are sweeping, including all the earth, then narrow to Judah, beginning with the wicked sons of the king.  The last verses seem to speak of the quickly coming invasion by Babylon, as well as echoing that great still future Day of judgment.

Zephaniah 2.  In the first verses of this chapter, God mercifully invites His people to repent, to entreat the favor of the LORD.  Then, although God uses the neighboring peoples to punish His people, they do not go unjudged – Philistia, Moab, Cush, and Nineveh.

Zephaniah 3.  Then, the prophet returns to Jerusalem, the city of their God, who has no excuses for their wickedness. “She listens to no voice; she accepts no correction; she does not trust in the LORD; she does not draw near to her God.  Her officials are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves. Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men; her priests profane what is holy.  The LORD within her is righteous, He does no injustice….. but the unjust knows no shame.”

Then follows the destruction of the city and land, the nations of the world, reminding me of Daniel’s prophecies.

In verses 9-20, the prophecy changes to blessing and restoration of God’s people and the nations.  God will gather a people of one pure language to call on His name.  It will be a humble and lowly people who see refuge in the name of the LORD.  They will do no injustice and speak no lies.

“Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.”

“The LORD your God is in your midst,

a might one who will save;

He will rejoice over you with gladness;

He will quiet you by His love;

He will exult over you with loud singing.”

“At that time, I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord.”

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 213

Jul31

    Day 213—We are at the end of the seventh month of Bible reading, and we are finishing the book of Isaiah.

    Day 213 – Isaiah 64 – 66. (God’s mercy for those who remember Him, judgment & salvation, new heavens/earth, the contrite, God’s glory)

Chapter 64 continues extolling God’s mercy.

“From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides You, who acts for those who wait for him”

The sinfulness of all mankind.  

“We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.”  “There is no one who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to take hold of you…”

Begging for forgiveness.

“But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of Your hand. Be not so terribly angry, O LORD, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, PLEASE LOOK, we are all your people.”

 

Chapter 65. God responds, offering salvation to Gentiles.

“I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me.  I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,” to a nation that was not called by my name.”

God lists the abhorrent sins of His own people.

“I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks; who sit in tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat pig’s flesh, and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels; who say, “Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.”

THESE ARE A SMOKE IN MY NOSTRILS….”

God’s plans for the future – new heavens and earth, a millennial kingdom. 

“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind.  But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy and her people to be a gladness.”

“The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and DUST SHALL BE THE SERPENT’S FOOD.  (Genesis 3:14)

 

Chapter 66.  The humble and Contrite in Spirit are honored.

“Thus says the LORD; Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool;”   “But this is the one to whom I will look; he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”

Jerusalem is pictured as a gracious mother.

“Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her….that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breast; that you may drink deeply with delight from her glorious abundance.  For thus says the LORD: “Behold I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream.”

And a final word of JUDGMENT and the GLORY of the LORD.

” For behold, the LORD will come in fire, and His chariots like the whirlwind, to render His anger in fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire will the LORD enter into judgment, and by His sword, with all flesh; and those slain by the LORD shall be many. ” “For I know their works and their thoughts, and the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see My Glory.”

For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the LORD, so shall your offspring and your name remain (Israel). From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, ALL FLESH shall come to worship before Me, declares the LORD.”

‘

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 192

Jul10

    Day 192—We are in the SEVENTH month of Bible reading. Praise God! Today we read in another of the “minor prophets.”

    Day 192 – Amos 1 – 5. (Judgment on Israel and her surrounding nations)

The northern kingdom of Israel, under the rule of its evil kings, has become fat, proud, and merciless.  

God sends Amos from Judah to pronounce judgment on Israel in the days of King Jeroboam the 2nd for their idol worship and their lack of justice and cruelty to the poor. 

Interestingly, God’s judgments by Amos begin with the nations around Israel, but they circle closer and closer to the center of the “target,” His own people.

Amos uses the verbal device “for three transgressions, and for four, I will punish.”  It means their “cup of iniquity” was full at #3, overflowing at #4, and ripe for judgment.

       Damascus (Syria). God will punish and send fire to the houses of Hazael and Ben-hadad for their cruelty and greed.

       Gaza (Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron: the Philistines). God will devour their strongholds and cut off the people and kings, and they will perish because they delivered God’s people to Edom.

       Tyre. God will also send fire to this country and devour them for their betraying God’s people to Edom.

       Edom. The second, closer circle begins now. God’s anger was against Edom for pursuing God’s own people with the sword and without mercy.

       Ammonites. God also will send fire, devastation, and exile on them for their cruelty and greed.

       Moabites. The same as with Ammon. But Moab “will die amid uproar.” God will cut off its king and all the princes.

       Judah.  Even the southern kingdom of Judah, God’s own people, does not escape judgment.  But their sin is worse. “They have rejected the law of the LORD and not kept His statutes.” Fire and destruction will devour Judah and Jerusalem.

       And finally, Amos comes to Israel.

God will judge them for the selfish way they’ve treated the poor and needy while living rich in their own homes. They have profaned God’s holy name by incest and sexual sin.

God lists all the good He has done for Israel, but they turned and despised Him.  And so, God will “press them down in their place, make them inadequate to fight enemies, fearful enough to flee away naked.” 

God’s heart was toward them. “You only, have I known of all the families of the earth…”   “Therefore… and adversary shall surround the land and bring down your defenses, and your strongholds shall be plundered.”

Amos tells them, “The LORD has sworn by his holiness that the days are coming upon you when they shall take you away with hooks.”

God reminds them of all the past warnings he sent them, yet “you did not return to me.”  And now, the verdict has come.  “Therefore this I will do to you, O Israel…. prepare to meet your God.”

He pleads with them, “Seek me and live.”  “Seek the LORD and live.”   “Seek good and not evil that you may live; Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”

But they do not turn, and the LORD says, “I will send you into exile beyond Damascus.” (the Assyrians)