Tag Archive | #Read the Bible in 2024

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 247

Sep4

Day 247 – Reading – EZEKIEL 25 – 27

Read the Scriptures.  Meditate on what the prophets were saying.

EZEKIEL 25.

With the total judgment and destruction of Jerusalem, Ezekiel now proclaims judgment on seven other nations in the following eight chapters (like Jeremiah 46-51).  Chapter 25 covers four of them, known for their jealousy and vindictive hate of Israel.  

Ammonites.  (Distantly related to Israel [along with Moab] through Abraham’s nephew Lot.)  They are judged especially because of their glee at the destruction of God’s temple and the exile of God’s people to Babylon.   The LORD  tells them through this prophecy that they will be conquered and assimilated into “the people of the East” (the Arabian people). 

“Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within your soul against the land of Israel … therefore, I have stretched out My hand against you, and will hand you over to the nations.  THEN YOU WILL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD.”

Moabites. (Descended from Lot.) They are also judged for saying Judah was not chosen by God, but a people like all peoples. They are also to be absorbed into the Arabian tribes.

Edomites. (Descendants of Israel’s brother Esau.) Edom was south of Ammon, Moab, and the Dead Sea. David had almost annihilated them. Their revenge was hostility to Israel… constantly. They cheered the Babylonians when Israel was defeated and exiled.  Much later, the Jewish forces under Judas Maccabeus fully conquered Edom.  They also were absorbed into the Arab peoples.

Philistines.  Because the Philistines acted revengefully “with malice of soul” to destroy Israel in never-ending enmity, God was going to destroy them (as well as the Cretons who joined them on the coast) via the Babylonians.

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Ezekiel 26.

The prophet again announces the day Jerusalem was captured. On the eleventh year, first day (of Jehoiachin’s captivity) (and Ezekiel’s).

Tyre. It was situated north of Israel on a well-fortified island. Known for fishing, it became a “world power” in shipping and trading throughout the Mediterranean.  It was King Hiram who helped David and Solomon with Cedar wood and supplies for building the Temple and the King’s Palace.  Later, they were guilty of selling Jews into slavery. 

God would use several nations (in waves) to destroy this power: the Babylonians, Alexander the Great, and finally, the Greeks in a devastating attack.   It takes three chapters for Ezekiel to write out the judgment on them.  

When Jerusalem was conquered, Tyre said, “Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to ME. I shall be replenished now that she is laid waste.”

And so God said, “I am against you, O Tyre, and will bring up many nations against you, as a sea brings up its waves.  They will destroy the WALLS of Tyre and break down her TOWERS, and I will SCRAPE HER SOIL and make her a BARE ROCK, and she will never be rebuilt.  And her daughters on the mainland shall be killed by the sword. 

Then they will KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD.”

“(First) I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon… and he will kill with the sword.” 

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Ezekiel 27.

This whole chapter is a lamentation for Tyre, as a great ship destroyed on the high seas.   

Verses 3-9 describe the building of that ship. 

Verses 10-25 describe the merchants who did business with Tyre.

Verses 26-27 describe the shipwreck.

Verses 28-35 describes the merchants bemoaning the loss of her commerce.

“The merchants among the peoples hiss at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.”

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(Although God judges [disciplines] Judah and Jerusalem, His heart is still wholly on them.  And when surrounding nations jump and clap with glee, and plan how they will ransack her for their own benefit, God turns his wrathful judgment on THEM.

This reminds me of a protecting shepherd, who runs with vengeance upon any animal that taunts or attacks his sheep.  Thank you for caring for me so much, even when I foolishly wander off.  Thank you for “walking with me through the Valley of the Shadow of Death.”  Thank You for the promise of eternity with YOU!)

 

 

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 220

Aug8

Day 220 – Reading – Jeremiah 4 – 6

Read today’s Scriptures … ANYWHERE you find yourself this summer.

Stay in the WORD!

Jeremiah 4.

This chapter opens with a call to RETURN to the LORD in truth.  Are they able to remove the “detestable things” from His presence, and “circumcise” or cleanse their hearts?   If not … God’s wrath will go out like fire and burn with a flame no one can quench, and consume them. 

Jeremiah then predicts that destruction and disaster will come from the north (Babylon).  A lion … a destroyer of nations has set out … to make your land a waste and your cities into ruins.  (Babylon is often symbolized by a winged lion.)  Judah’s kings, officials, priests, and prophets will be appalled and terrified.

“Woe to us, for we are ruined,” will be the cry as the speeding horses and chariots appear.   And Jeremiah cries again for the LORD, “O Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil, that you may be saved!”

“I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.  I looked at the mountains, and behold, THEY WERE QUAKING AND THE HILLS MOVED TO AND FRO.  I looked … and all its cities were laid in ruins before the LORD’s fierce anger.

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Jeremiah 5.

God wants his servant to run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, to look (if he can) for a man who does justice and seeks truth, so the LORD may pardon the city.

But the result is: They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent.

Then Jeremiah said, “These are only the POOR; they have no sense; for they do not know the way of the LORD, the justice of the LORD.  I will go to the GREAT and speak to them. They KNOW the way of the LORD. 

But, they ALL alike had broken the yoke and burst the bonds. And all say to the LORD, “He will do nothing; no disaster will come upon us, nor shall we see sword or famine.  The prophets will become wind; the word is not in them.”

The LORD’s answer?  “Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O House of Israel.”  “As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.

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Jeremiah 6.

And again, impending disaster for Jerusalem!

“Flee for safety, O people of Benjamin in the midst of Jerusalem!”

“Blow the trumpet … raise a signal for disaster looms out of the north and great destruction.”

“This is a city that must be punished; there is nothing but oppression within her.”

“Be warned, O Jerusalem, lest I turn from you in disgust…”

“Therefore I am full of wrath; I am weary of holding it in. Pour it out upon the CHILDREN in the street, upon the YOUNG MEN, both HUSBAND AND WIFE, the ELDERLY and the VERY AGED!””

“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. 

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WOW. What horrible disaster.  Sometimes I think that this very same disaster is coming upon the United States. Because we have not repented of the despicable ways we follow. Because we have neglected and rejected God, and played around with science and occult and technology as our “gods.”

O LORD, we are helpless! Please cleansed our hearts and minds. Turn us to You, our Savior and Redeemer!

 

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 219

Aug7

Day 219 – Reading – Jeremiah 1 – 3

Read today’s Scriptures … ANYWHERE you find yourself this summer. Stay in the WORD!

Jeremiah.

Jeremiah was a priest before he was a prophet, but God called him to that office. Jeremiah thought himself too young, and like Moses before him, said, “I do not know how to speak.”  His excuse was youth, whereas Moses’ was that he stuttered.  In both cases, the LORD overruled their objections. “I will be with you.”

Jeremiah’s ministry lasted for 50 years or more (through Judah’s last 5 kings). It began in the 13th year of King Josiah’s 31-year reign (before he began his reforms), and lasted beyond the fall of Jerusalem.

Jeremiah was first carried along into captivity to Egypt, and then, when Egypt fell, to Babylon.  His last words written were about the captive King of Judah, Jehoiachin, who was freed from a Babylonian prison after 31 years, and “every day of his life dined regularly at the king’s table, and got an allowance for his needs.“

Jeremiah would have been between 85 and 90 years old. (A tough old guy!)

Jeremiah prophesied about the coming invasion from Babylon, and pleaded for the people to turn from their wickedness and seek the LORD. He especially preached against sin, religious hypocrisy, adultery, and injustice to the poor and helpless.  And when invasion was inevitable, he begged the people to submit and not to resist the Babylonians, to prevent total destruction.

Jeremiah’s contemporaries were Zephaniah and Habakkuk, and later, Ezekiel and Daniel.

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Jeremiah 1.

Jeremiah’s story begins with God’s beautiful statement, “I knew you in the womb before you were born… and I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Jeremiah’s response (like Moses) was, “Ah, Lord GOD! I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.”

“Don’t be afraid. I am with you to deliver you,” declared the LORD. Then the LORD put out His hand and touched Jeremiah’s mouth, “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.”

Okay, Jeremiah. No excuse now.

Then God gives Jeremiah a couple of “vision tests.”  “What do you see? (an almond branch).  What do you see now?” (a boiling pot). The new prophet passed the tests. 

And then, the LORD ordered, “Dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I commanded you. Don’t be dismayed by them. Behold, this day I make YOU, a “fortified city,” “an iron pillar,” and “bronze walls” against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, priests, and people. They will fight you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I AM with you.”

WOW! Jeremiah was “royally” armored and commissioned.

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Jeremiah 2.

Then comes Jeremiah’s first Word from the Lord to Jerusalem.  It starts with memories of love and devotion. 

  • “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed Me in the wilderness… Israel was holy to the LORD, the first fruits of the harvest.”
  • “What wrong did your fathers find in me that they went far from me, and went after worthlessness, and became … worthless.”
  • “I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things….  But when you came in, you defiled My land and made My heritage an abomination.
  • “The priests didn’t seek Me…. those who handled the law, did not know Me…. the shepherds transgressed against Me…. Therefore I will contend with you.”

(This reminds me of Revelation 2:4-5 when Ephesus “lost their first love” for God and He urged them to return.)

  • “My people have committed two evils.   1) They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and 2) they hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
  • “And now, what do you gain by going to Egypt to drink the waters of the Nile? Or what do you gain by going to Assyria to drink the waters of the Euphrates? 

When they heard of Babylon, they sought help in Egypt and  Assyria.

  • You shall be put to shame by Egypt as you were by Assyria.  From Egypt, too, you will come away with your hands on your head, for the LORD has rejected those in whom you trust, and you will NOT prosper by them.”

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Jeremiah 3.

The LORD speaks a message against Israel (north) as well as Judah (south).  He speaks of their idolatry as adultery, a woman’s promiscuousness against her husband.   She is defiled by many lovers.  She has polluted the land with her vile whoredom.  

(Remember all those horrible kings in Israel. Not one was good. Remember the golden calves, the statues of Baal and Asherah, the pagan prophets.  This is how Israel in the north went crazy. This is what caused her ultimate demise.

And yet, the LORD proclaims to Israel,

  • “RETURN, faithless Israel. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful. 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.
  • “RETURN, O faithless children, for I am your master; I will take you, one from a city  and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” 

Then God says, through Jeremiah, that Israel’s sister Judah SAW Israel’s whoredom, “yet she did not fear, but went too, and played the whore. She did not return to me with her whole heart, but in pretense.”

“Faithless Israel” has shown herself more righteous than “treacherous Judah,” said the LORD.

In that “Day of the LORD,” when the Messiah will reign in Zion, God promises to give them GOOD shepherds, and they will multiply and increase. 

And – this is interesting, in the Kingdom of Messiah…

The Ark of the Covenant of the Lord will not come to mind,

or be remembered,

or missed;

and it shall not be made again.” 

WOW!

  • So, where is the Ark of the Covenant? 
  • NO, it’s not in some gigantic warehouse in Washington D. C. from an Indiana Jones movie. 
  • Did it get melted down and/or carried off to Babylon? 
  • Was it in that simple Temple that the returnees built? 
  • Was it in Herod’s rebuilt Temple in the days of Jesus?
  • Did it get destroyed (melted) when Titus destroyed the city in 70 A.D.? 
  • Some say that Jeremiah or another prophet hid or buried it so it couldn’t be taken to Babylon. 
  • If so, that’s a mighty good hiding job! 
  • Surely archeologists would have discovered it by now.

All we know is what Jeremiah recorded here, that in the Millennium, there will be NO ARK OF THE COVENANT, because Jerusalem, herself, shall be called the “throne of the LORD.”  

The Ark of the Covenant, “representing” the presence of God, will NOT be needed then, for God will be there, Himself, in person.

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 170

Jun19

Day 170.  Reading Ecclesiastes 1 – 6

 
Read Today’s Scriptures.
What truth about God stays in your mind?
 

Ecclesiastes 1.

Written by wise King Solomon in his latter years, perhaps after trying everything to find peace and happiness.  He had enough wealth to buy anything, but did it satisfy? And it seems his wisdom failed him, too, because he strayed from the Law of God. 

“Ecclesiastes” means the “Preacher,” or one who gathers a group or congregation of people together to hear a message. Older Solomon here is passing down what he’d learned about “life” to the younger generation.  And what has he discovered? Everything in human life is “vanity,” “vapor & smoke.”  It is all “meaningless.” 

A downer, right?

  • Verse 2. “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” 

He says, “I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem, and I applied my heart to seek and search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven.  It is an unhappy business.”

He continues, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge. And I applied my heart to know wisdom … and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is a “striving after the wind.”  In much wisdom is much vexation…”

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Ecclesiastes 2.

First, Solomon, the Preacher, decides to test “pleasure and enjoyment.”  (And he had the wealth to buy anything he desired.)

  • First, he searched for ways to cheer his body with wine.
  • Then, he made great works, built houses, planted vineyards for himself, made gardens, and parks, and orchards.
  • He made pools of water for himself.
  • He acquired a multitude of slaves to serve him.
  • He gathered for himself silver and gold, the treasure of kings and provinces.
  • He got male and female singers to entertain him.
  • He acquired many concubines (women) to “serve” him.
  • He became great and surpassed all who were before him.
  • Whatever his eyes desired, he did not keep from them.  He held back no pleasure from his heart.

And what did all this get him?  “Behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.”

Next, Solomon tested wisdom, and… MADNESS AND FOLLY. What??  He discovered being wise is better, but in the end … both the fool and the wise man experience tragedy.  And both are eventually forgotten.

He thought about all the works he had done … and hated them.  Why?  Because another would enjoy them after he was gone.  Whether a wise man or fool, HE would enjoy the things Solomon left behind, not having worked a minute for it!!  “Vanity and a great evil!“

And so  what did Solomon decide?  “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil.”  (This is a simple, family man with a job…better off that a wealthy, wise king.)

BUT … he DOES ACKNOWLEDG GOD.  “But this is also from God. Apart from Him, who can eat or have enjoyment?  For the one who pleases Him, God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy….”

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Ecclesiastes 3.

This chapter gives a familiar list of opposite things for which there is a “season” or time. 

  • birth, death
  • planting, harvesting 
  • killing, healing
  • breaking down, building up
  • weeping, laughing
  • mourning, dancing
  • cast away stones, gathering stones
  • embracing, not embracing
  • seeking, losing
  • keeping, throwing away
  • tearing, sewing
  • silence, speaking
  • love, hate
  • war, peace.

“God has made everything beautiful in its time.  Also, He has put eternity into man’s heart….”

And, “All (man and beasts) are from the dust, and to dust all return.”

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Ecclesiastes 4.

Solomon also writes of the evil and oppression that he has seen “under the sun.”

The lonely, vulnerable person who has no one, no family or friend, is worse off.  For TWO can help each other if one falls, TWO can keep warm together, and TWO can stand against an attacker.

Better to be a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king who no longer knew how to take advice.

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Ecclesiastes 5.

And then a caution:  “Guard your steps when you go to the house of God.”  “Be not rash with your mouth, no let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God. Let your words be few.  God is the One you must fear.”

Next, Solomon (the wealthiest man alive then) talks about MONEY.  “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income.”

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Ecclesiastes 6.

This statement is truly sad, for it shows Solomon’s dissatisfied heart.  “If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life’s good things …I say that a stillborn child is better off than he!”  EVEN IF THIS MAN LIVES 2,000 YEARS, he still has to die and go to the grave like everyone else. (Oh, boo-hoo, Solomon!)

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(I think, like sometimes Solomon does, that uber wisdom and wealth are NOT a blessing. The person who lives a simple life with a job and a family is WAY better off. 

THANK YOU, LORD, for the simple life you have given me. YOU are wise, and good.)

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Day 38

Feb7

Day 38.  Reading Exodus 25 – 27. 

Read the scripture for today. What do you learn about God? Share what you learn with others.

Exodus 25.

Besides the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments, God gave Moses a set of “blueprints.”

Moses was to ask the people of Israel to contribute to building a “sanctuary for God, that He might live with them.” Wow!  It wasn’t an arbitrary “bill.” They were to give as their hearts moved them. God listed the materials needed: gold, silver, bronze, blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, fine linen, goat’s hair, tanned rams’ skins and goatskins, acacia wood, oil, spices, onyx, and other precious stones. 

WHERE WERE THE EX-SLAVES TO GET THESE EXOTIC ITEMS IN THE DESERT???   (God never asks us for what we cannot give.)

Remember Exodus 12:35-36.

  • “The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and clothing. And the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians so that they let them have what they asked. Thus, they plundered Egypt.“

God showed Moses exactly how to build the Tabernacle and all its furniture.  Inside the inner part of the tent (the Holy of Holies) was the Ark of the Covenant (or Testimony). “There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.”

In the next room out (the Holy Place), Moses was to make three items, each representing how God would interact with His people: the Table for Bread, the Golden Lampstand, (and later described, the Alter of Incense.) And all these had utensils to be used with them.

Exodus 26.

Next comes a detailed description of the construction of the very movable two-room Tent containing that sacred furniture. It was made of wood-plated poles with rings to hold up the embroidered cloth panels made with loops and clasps. Layers of tanned skins of different types would make it completely waterproof.  All this could be assembled and unassembled as Israel journeyed through the desert.

Exodus 27.

Outside the Tent and just inside the gate to the courtyard surrounding it was the Bronze Altar for sacrifices. (Later described, between this altar and the Tent was the “Laver” to wash the hands of ministering priests before entering the Tent).

All the courtyard posts, bases, and bars were bronze or silver (150 ft long x 75 ft wide x 7.5 ft tall). The sturdy cloth hangings were made of fine twined linen. The linen at the gate was embroidered with blue, scarlet, and purple yarn. 

God gave Moses a recipe for the oil to be used in the Golden Lampstand (and later, a unique recipe for the incense to be used only on the Alter of Incense and the Priest’s sensors). 

It was almost unimaginable in beauty and glory. How would they ever make such a wonderful place? 

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Tomorrow, the priests’ garments and the consecration of priests with the many offerings.

 

Journaling through the Bible Chronologically in 2025, Days 33 & 34 (Part 2)

Feb3

Day 34. Reading in Exodus 13 – 15. 

Read the scripture for today. What do you learn about God? Share what you learn with others.

Exodus 13.

Israel is out of Egypt! 

While it is fresh in their minds, the LORD instructs Moses to “consecrate to Me all the firstborn of Israel, man and beast. They are mine.”  Because God had spared these on the night of the tenth plague, they were HIS.  (Did they wonder what this commandment would involve? What would God do with them?)

And when they came into the promised land, they were to continue this practice. Every firstborn male (man and creature) was to be set apart for the LORD. (Donkeys were to be exchanged for lambs.)  God would not “kill” these firstborn boy children (whew). No, the people were to “redeem them” (buy them back) for a later established amount. (See Mary/Joseph doing this for infant Jesus in Luke 2:22-23)  Every time the people consecrated and redeemed their babies, they would remember HOW the LORD brought them out of Egypt. 

Another annual observance was instituted to remind them of that night and that journey. Not only were they to celebrate a Passover feast, they were also to eat only unleavened bread, like what they ate on that night of escape, for seven days. All to remember their deliverance! (Also, to point a later generation to the sinless Lamb of God, sacrificed for their salvation.)

Interestingly, God did not lead His newly freed people directly to the promised land. This would have caused them to travel through the land of the Philistines. They were not ready for war. They might have been scared out of their minds and wanted to return to Egypt.  Instead, the LORD led them into the wilderness and towards the Red Sea. He had a lot of things to teach these ex-slaves first. 

The LORD went before them as the ultimate leader and guide. He appeared as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He was their shade from the heat and a light and warmth in the cool desert darkness. Ever-present beacons of an Almighty and loving, promise-keeping God.

Exodus 14.

The LORD instructed Moses to lead the people in a circle and make their camp near a town with their backs to the Red Sea. It would look like they were trapped between “a rock and a hard place.” God told Moses that He had hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would pursue them. “But I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his armies.  Egypt will KNOW that I AM the LORD.”

Meanwhile, the weight of the loss of all the people of Israel dawned on Egypt when they looked at their fields,  construction sites, empty kitchens, and piling laundry. “What have we done that we have let Israel go from serving us!”

Pharaoh had monitored where the mass of ex-slaves was moving. When he learned they were backed up against the Red Sea, a sly smile came to his haggard face.  “Hahaha. They are trapped!”  God made Pharaoh’s heart like granite, and he, with all his horses and chariots and horsemen and army, pursued Israel … and overtook them, encamped by the sea.

The people freaked out! 

“Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us?  Didn’t we say to leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians? We would have been better off serving them than to die in the wilderness.”

Moses tried to calm them with words from the LORD. “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will work for you today. The Egyptians that you see today, you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Can you imagine their terror, with the sea lapping at their heels and that massive hoard of armed and wicked chariots and soldiers charging fast right at them??? WOW!

Could the Israelites now see the whites of the eyes of the armies of Pharaoh? Could they see his evil grimace and raging eyes as he charged them???

“What are you waiting for, Moses? Lift your staff and stretch it out over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea ON DRY GROUND.”

And as Moses turned to obey, the pillar of cloud rose and moved between Israel and the enemy hoard.  Blinded, they screeched to a halt. And as the night fell, the pillar became fire: a light to Israel but pitch blackness to the army.

All night, an east wind blew, heaping up water to the left and right and making a wide pathway through the sea as dry as desert sand.  And Israel went down that path, through the walls of water and up to the ground on the other side. 

At daybreak, the pillar lifted, and the army of Pharaoh pursued Israel.  As soon as the last Israelite stepped on the other shore, the wheels of chariots began to sink into a mire of mud as the water began to leak. They and the horseman tried to turn back, but in the confusion, horses and men fell and were trampled. Confusion and panic grew.

Moses then stretched out his staff over the sea again.  The walls of water smashed together, covering the mad king with all his hosts. Not one escaped. 

Israel “saw the great power of the LORD used against the Egyptians, and they feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and His servant Moses.”

Exodus 15.

So, Moses wrote a song about the event. He and the people sang the song. Then Moses and Aaron’s sister, the prophetess Miriam (with a tambourine in her hand), led the women out dancing and singing the refrain. Wow. What a sight and sound!

  • I will sing to the LORD, for He has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider, He has thrown into the sea!
  • The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.”

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Then reality crashed on the crowd. A three-day journey from the Red Sea used all the freshwater they’d brought. They were thirsty. They came to a water hole, but it was bitter and brackish. (think stagnant)

The people grumbled (a habit they would exhibit ALL their days in the desert). “What shall we drink,” they groaned.

Moses looked to God, and the LORD showed him a dead tree branch.  Moses threw it into the water, and the water … became pure and clean and sweet!! 

As they were filling their water skins, the LORD spoke and made for them a STATUTE and a RULE, testing them. 

“IF you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in His eyes, and give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, THEN I will put none of the diseases (plagues) on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I AM the LORD, your healer.”

Then, surprisingly, the masses of Israel moved to Elim, an oasis with twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. And they camped by the water.

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Tomorrow = next disaster (or test).

 

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 365 – the last day!

Dec31

   Day 365—We are in the LAST month of Bible reading for the year, studying THE REVELATION to John.

Day 365 – Revelation 19 – 22 (Rejoicing in Heaven, 1,000 years, Satan defeated, new Heaven/Earth, new Jerusalem, River & Tree of Life, Jesus is coming)

Revelation 19.

“Hallelujah! Salvation, and glory, and power belong to our God, for His judgments are true and just.”

“Praise our God, all you His servants, you who fear Him, small and great.”

“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give Him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His Bride has made herself ready: it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure.”  Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

Then John saw a white horse ridden by One called “Faithful and True.” His eyes are like a flame of fire and on His head are many diadems. He has “a name written that no one knows but Himself.”

He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is “The Word of God.”  This One will defeat the nations and rule them. He will “tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.”  On his robe and on his thigh, He has a name written, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”

And the “armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white a pure” (the saints) were following Him on white horses.

“I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against Him who was sitting on the horse and against His army. The beast was captured, and the false prophet, who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the Mark of the Beast and those who worshipped its image.  THESE TWO WERE THROWN ALIVE INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE THAT BURNS WITH SULFER.”

Revelation 20.

Then John saw an angel holding the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. “And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it, and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer.” (Until the thousand years have ended, and he is released for a LITTLE while.)

Then John saw the thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. (It’s when Israel’s promised King will reign on the actual earth from Jerusalem.  (A promise fulfilled to the Jews.)

After that, Satan will be released to try to deceive men again, and there will be a great war until fire from Heaven comes down and consumes them. THEN THE DEVIL WILL BE THROWN INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE AND SULFUR AND WILL BE TORMENTED DAY AND NIGHT FOREVER AND EVER!”

Next comes “the Great White Throne Judgment,” when all the dead will stand before God’s throne. Books will be opened and the dead will be judged by WHAT THEY HAVE DONE, as written in the books.  “If anyone’s name was not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.“. 

Revelation 21.

John then saw a NEW heaven and a NEW earth.  He saw “the Holy City” descending out of heaven from God, like a bride adorned for her husband.  GOD IS GOING TO DWELL WITH MEN, AND THEY WILL BE HIS PEOPLE, AND HE THEIR GOD. 

All tears will be wiped away. There won’t be death, no mourning, no crying, and no more pain.  All things will be made new. 

Then, an angel showed John the Holy City, Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven from God. It was radiant like the most rare jewel, crystal clear like a diamond.  It had a high wall with twelve gates. Inscribed on each gate was the name of one of the twelve sons of Israel.  The wall had twelve foundations made of twelve precious jewels, with each of the twelve apostles’ names on them. 

The angel with John measured the city. It was a perfect 1,500-mile cube (about 2 million square miles in volume). It mirrored the configuration of the Most Holy Place in the temple.  It was made of pure gold, transparent as glass. 

There was NO TEMPLE because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were the temple.

There was NO SUN OR MOON because the glory of God and the lamp of the Lamb gave it light.

There was NOTHING UNCLEAN, ONLY those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life are allowed to enter the city.

Revelation 22.

The angel then showed John the pure, crystal-clear river of the Water of Life flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.  It flowed through the middle of the street of the city. Growing on either side was the Tree of Life with twelve kinds of fruits, one for each month.

The servants of God and the Lamb will worship  Him.  And they will SEE HIS FACE. (see 1 John 3:2)

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John then signs his name. “I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things.”   

The angel told John, “Do NOT seal up the words of the prophecy of this book (like the prophet Daniel was told to do in Daniel 8:26, 12:4-10), “for the time is near.”

“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 

“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

The Spirit and the Bride say, COME!

Let the one who hears (reads) say, COME!

He who testifies to these things (Jesus) says, SURELY I AM COMING SOON.

John says, AMEN. COME, LORD JESUS!

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We did it. What a glorious trip through the Word of Almighty God, from pure beginning to purity restored.  Glory, hallelujah!

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, days 363-364, Part B.

Dec30

 Day 363-364—We are in the LAST month of Bible reading for the year, studying the LETTERS of the Apostles.

NOTE: Usually, Sunday’s and Monday’s studies are posted together, but because these readings are so long, I will post them separately.

Day 364, Part B – Revelation 12 – 18 (Woman & dragon, Satan cast down, the Beast, 3 visions, 7 plagues, 7 bowls of wrath, 666, Babylon falls, Yay!)

This section of Revelation is filled with symbols and allegories. The people in the churches of John’s day would probably have understood their meanings more than we do. The sequence of events is not necessarily linear but often overlapping & repeating.

Revelation 12.

This chapter pictures Satan attempting to destroy the infant of a woman with a crown of 12 stars. But the child is taken to heaven and his throne before the Dragon can kill him. The woman (Israel?) is protected by God in the wilderness.

There is a great war in heaven. Michael and the angels fight against the dragon and his angels (demons). Michael’s army wins and throws the great dragon (that ancient serpent, the devil, Satan) down to earth with his angels.  Satan, “the accuser of the brethren” (remember Job?), is thrown down and mad. 

“WOE to the earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath because he knows his time is short.“

Revelation 13.

Then, an ugly, multiheaded, powerful “beast” emerges from the sea. (He looks a little like the beast in Daniel’s vision of end times.)  To this beast (Antichrist), the dragon gives his power, throne, and great authority.  The people of the earth worship the dragon and worship the beast. The beast speaks great blasphemies against God, His name, and His Temple.   The beast was “allowed” to make war on the saints and conquer them. All on the earth worshiped it, EXCEPT those whose names were written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Then a second beast emerges from the sea, looking like a lamb, but speaking like the dragon. This beast can do miracles and deceive the people of Earth into worshiping the Beast. It has them make a statue of the Beast and he enables it to speak too.  It makes all who live on Earth to get the MARK on their forehead or hand, or they cannot buy or sell anything. 

The mark? 666 is “the number of a man.” In John’s time, this was clearly NERO.

  • And so, now there is an unholy trinity: the Dragon/false prophet, the Beast/Antichrist, and the miracle-working second Beast. 
  • NOTE: Even the required Mark of the Beast is a foul imitation of God’s command in Deuteronomy 6:4-8 to Love the LORD, the ONE TRUE GOD, with all their hearts, soul, and strength. They were to teach His Words to their children and…” bind them as a sign on your HAND, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes (FOREHEAD).” (Their actions and thoughts.)

Revelation 14.

The victory is at hand!!

The Lamb of God stands on Mount Zion and with Him, the 144K evangelists, with HIS name on their foreheads. John heard thunderous singing, like a gazillion harps singing a new song.  An angel comes from the temple and flies overhead, proclaiming the Eternal Gospel. “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgement has come.”

A second angel proclaims the good news, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality!”

A third angel proclaims, “If anyone worships the Beast & its image and receives the mark, he also will drink the WINE of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger.” And they will be tormented hell with the sulfur and smoke of the torment forever and ever with no rest, day or night.

Here, John inserts, “a call for ENDURANCE of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.”

Then John sees Jesus with a sharp sickle. He swings the sickle across the earth, and the earth is reaped.

Another angel with a sharp sickle goes to the “VINE of the earth” because its grapes are ripe.  So this angle swings his sickle and reaps the grapes and throws them into the winepress of the Wrath of God.  “And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and the blood from it flowed from the winepress as high as a horse’s bridle for 184 miles.”

  • This reminds me of the Battle Hymn of the Republic. “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. He is tramping out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored.”
  • Also, if you reread Mark 14:34-36 (and passages in Matthew & Luke), you will see that JESUS drank that cup of Almighty God’s WRATH for us, when he died on the cross, PUNISHED FOR OUR SINS. This scene in Heaven portrays God’s wrath on those WHO REFUSED THIS SO GREAT SALVATION.

Revelation 15.

Next, John saw a great and amazing sign in heaven, “Seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is FINISHED.”

First, there was a vast “sea” of what looked like fiery glass. By it were those who overcame the Beast and with harps, they sang the song of Moses and the Lamb. “Great and amazing are Your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations…”

Then, out of the Sanctuary came the seven angels with seven plagues in seven golden bowls, FULL OF THE WRATH OF GOD, who lives forever and ever.

Revelation 16.

John heard, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God!”

  • First bowl: harmful and painful sores on those who bore the Mark of the Beast.
  • Second bowl: blood into the seas, killing every living creature in them.
  • Third bowl: blood into the rivers and springs of water.
  • Fourth bowl: on the sun so it scorched people with fire. (The people did not repent and give God glory but cursed the name of God.)
  • Fifth bowl: darkness on the Beast and his kingdom. People gnawed their tongues in anguish and cursed the God of heaven, but they did not repent.
  • Sixth bowl: into the river Euphrates, so it dried up and prepared the way for the great kings and hoards from the East.  The dragon, beast, and second beast opened their mouths, and demonic spirits like frogs came out, going abroad to assemble all the kings of the world to assemble for battle at the place, ARMAGEDDON.
  • Seventh bowl: into the air, and a loud voice came out of the Temple, from the Throne, saying, “IT IS DONE!”  There came lightning, thundering, and a great earthquake so destructive that the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell.  Every island fled away, and no mountains could be found.  Great hailstones, weighing 100 pounds, fell on the people.  AND THEY CURSED GOD!

Revelation 17.

Then, the seventh angel took John to view “The Great Prostitute” and her judgment. She was seated “on many waters,” picturing her rule over the peoples of many nations.  Written on her forehead was a name of mystery: “BABYLON” (code name: Rome).  She also sat on seven hills (again, Rome). She was drunk with the blood of the saints martyred for Jesus. The angel also explains the heads/horns of the Beast as kings who make war on the LAMB. 

The Lamb of God defeats them all, for He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Revelation 18.

Then, with the calls of angels, the announcement of Babylon’s fall is made known. 

“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great! She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.”

All the kings of the earth weep and wail for her fall.

“Alas, alas! You great city, you mighty city, Babylon! For in a single hour, your judgment has come.”

And all the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, for no one buys their cargo.

All the shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors on the sea stood far off and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning.

“Alas, alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth, For in a single hour, she has been laid waste.”

And a mighty angel took up a huge millstone and threw it into the sea saying, “So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence and will be found no more.”

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(WHEW, that was hard!)

Tomorrow, rejoicing in Heaven!

 

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, days 363-364

Dec29

   Day 363-364—We are in the LAST month of Bible reading for the year, studying the LETTERS of the Apostles.

NOTE: USUALLY, Sunday’s and Monday’s studies are posted TOGETHER,  but because these readings are so long, I’ll post them SEPARATELY, today AND Monday. 

Day 363, Part A – Revelation 6 – 11 (Aspects of the Great Tribulation, the seven seals, 144K of Israel sealed, seven trumpets, two witnesses)

Revelation 6.

When Jesus, the Lamb, opens the first seals on the scroll, we see the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse emerge, one after another, bringing antichrists, war, famine, and death to the earth. The fifth seal reveals those who had already been martyred, crying for God to avenge their deaths. The sixth seal brings great earthquakes and changes in the heavens, causing the people on Earth to cry and hide in terror.

Revelation 7.

Then there is a pause while an angel of God descends and “seals” 144K of Israel (12K from each tribe) to give them authority and protection to proclaim salvation saved in the Tribulation, having “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

Revelation 8.

When Jesus, the Lamb, opened the seventh seal, there was absolute silence in heaven for a half hour. Then, an angel came to stand by the altar with a gold censer filled with incense and “the prayers of God’s people.” The smoke from it rose before God.  Then, the angel filled the censer with fire and hurled it on the Earth. There were peals of thunder, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

Next, angels with seven trumpets began to blow them, one at a time. At the first trumpet, hail and fire (and blood) were thrown onto the earth burning up a third of the vegetation. The second blast sent a vast burning mountain into the sea, turning a third into blood and killing a portion of sea creatures. With the third trumpet, a great star fell like a torch onto a third of the rivers, poisoning them. At the fourth trumpet, the sun, moon, and stars lost a third of their light.  “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth!“

Revelation 9.

At the fifth trumpet, John saw a star (angel) who was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.  He opened the shaft, and there arose from it smoke like a great furnace that darkened the sun. And from it came creatures like locusts and scorpions to kill and torment the people on earth for five months. (the 144K were spared this)  People longed for death but couldn’t. These creatures had a “king.” It was Apollyon himself.

At the sixth trumpet blast, God released the four angels, bound up at the Euphrates River. They were released and went in four directions, killing a third of mankind with plagues. 

“But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, DID NOT REPENT of the works of their hands, or give up worshiping demons and idols, nor did they repent of their murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, or thefts.”

Revelation 10.

After that, a mighty angel descended from the clouds and set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. In his hand was a little scroll, opened.  And he roared like a lion or many peals of thunder, reading from the scroll.  But a voice told John NOT TO WRITE DOWN what it said.  Then the voice told John to go over, take the scroll, and eat it (like Ezekiel did in 3:1). It would be sweet in his mouth but bitter in his stomach.  John obeyed.  

Revelation 11.

John is then told to measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there.  He is also told about God’s TWO WITNESSES, clothed in sackcloth, who will prophesy for three and a half years.  No one can harm them for that time. They will have the power to stop it from raining during that time, turn the earth’s waters into blood, and strike the Earth with all kinds of plagues. 

(Many people believe, from the description of their powers, that these two men are Elijah and Moses.)

At the end of those 3.5 years, the “beast that rises from the bottomless pit” will kill them.  All the world will see. Their dead bodies will lay in the street. People will refuse to bury them but rather rejoice over them, make merry, and exchange presents at their death BECAUSE they had been a torment to them. However, after 3.5 days, a breath of life from God will enter them and they will arise.  And God will call them from Heaven, “Come up here!”  And they will go up to heaven in a cloud as their enemies watch. 

At that, a great earthquake will cause a tenth of the Great city to fall, killing 7K people and terrifying the rest. 

Finally, the seventh trumpet is blown. And, as a prelude, loud voices in heaven proclaim, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, an He shall reign forever and ever!”

Everyone falls on their faces and worships God, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for You have taken Your great power and begun to reign….” 

Then….. God’s temple in heaven was opened. The Ark of His covenant was seen within His temple!

And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail. And a great sign appeared in heaven……….

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Day 364, Part B – Revelation 12 – 18  === See tomorrow.

2024GOAL – Reading Through The Bible Chronologically, day 362

Dec28

   Day 362—We are in the LAST month of Bible reading for the year, studying THE REVELATION of JESUS CHRIST to John.

Day 362 – Revelation 1 – 5 (Meeting the reigning Jesus, His messages to 7 churches, into the throne room.)

John, an old man, and the last surviving apostle, is in exile on the prison island of Patmos (think Alcatraz) for his faithful preaching of the gospel. The churches he wrote to before are feeling the persecution and have begun to decline. This is a message of hope.

Revelation promises a blessing for reading it and ends with a warning about tampering with it.

1:3 “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.”

22:18-19 “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”

Revelation 1.

A glorious introduction reveals the author and the recipient of the “revelation” letter.  It describes the Eternal triune God who was, is, and is to come. It depicts Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, firstborn from the dead, and ruler of kings on earth, the One who LOVES us, has FREED us from our sins, and MADE us a kingdom and priests.  TO HIM BE GLORY AND DOMINION FOREVER AND EVER!  And He is coming soon, in the clouds, as he left.

John explains he was “in the Spirit” when he received this revelation and ascended to heaven.

(It makes me think of Paul’s experience in 2 Corinthians 12:1-4, except Paul was NOT allowed to speak of what he saw.)

In John’s experience, Jesus told him to ‘write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches.” 

Then John attempts to describe the glorified Jesus Christ.  I saw “One like a son of man, clothed with a long robe with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and His voice was like the roar of many waters.”

WHEN I SAW HIM, I FELL AT HIS FEET AS THOUGH DEAD.

And what were Jesus’ first words to His beloved disciple?  “Fear not. I am the living one. I died, and behold, I am alive forevermore.” He tells John what to write: “The things that you have seen, those that are, and those that are to take place after this.”

Then, Jesus begins his messages to each of the seven churches in Asia Minor, listed in the route the “book” would be circulated, beginning with Ephesus (John’s church).

Revelation 2 – 3.

There is a pattern to the messages. First, Jesus identifies Himself in a certain way. Then, He lists the good things (if any) that are found in that church. Next, He raises a concern – what has gone wrong in that church, either with their own hearts or with the entrance of some false doctrine. Lastly, Jesus promises them a reward if they “conquer” (overcome the sin/threat and persevere to the end).

He does this with Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.  Smyrna is a church under deep persecution and poverty, and Jesus states nothing wrong with them, while He says nothing good about Laodicea, giving only a warning to change while there is still time. 

Revelation 4.

John dutifully writes every word he hears, and then he looks up and sees an open door into heaven! (WOW!) He hears a voice saying, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must take place.” 

IMMEDIATELY, John, in the Spirit, was IN THE THRONE ROOM OF GOD!  And oh, what a sight that was.  He tries to describe the One seated on the throne and the throne in terms of radiant jewels – jasper, carnelian, emerald.

He describes 24 elders (maybe representing the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles) clothed in white with golden crowns.  He tries to describe the sounds and sights – flashes of lightning, peels of thunder, torches of fire, and in front, a reflecting pavement of crystal-clear glass.  There were “strange-looking living creatures” around the thrown who never stopped singing, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, IS THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND IS AND IS TO COME!”

Everyone falls on their faces and worships Him, saying, “Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

Revelation 5.

Then John saw that the One on the throne was holding a scroll.  And angel shouted, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break the seals?”

No one was found in heaven, on earth, or under the earth, and John began to weep loudly.  But one of the elders said, “Weep no more; behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered so that HE can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

But instead of a Lion, John saw a Lamb with a bloody throat as if it had been killed.  It was Jesus, and HE took the scroll.  When that happened, all the creatures and elders sang a new song.

“Worthy are YOU to take the scroll and to open its seals, for You were slain, and by Your blood, You ransomed people for God, from every tribe and language and people and nation, and You have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

At that, all around the throne and in heaven, myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands of angels broke into praise and worship.

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and glory and blessing.”   “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” 

And all fell down and worshiped.

(Can you imagine being John??)