The Field is the World (Matt. 13:38)

Imagine the pain in Hosea’s family. We need this kind of imagery to grasp an inkling of the pain of God over His people’s treachery to Him. They’d attributed their blessings to their “lovers” - was this not the idols of the nations round about them? - and not to God who had actually given them (Hosea 2:4, cf., 2:8). Their heart was taken away from Him by their excess indulgence and idolatry (Hosea 4:11). So He determined to make them feel the same kind of betrayal in their marital and parental relationships. (Hosea 4:13) Are we experiencing a similar judgment? It seems so. A quick look at statistics shows Americans are having affairs and divorces at incredible rates. The hook up culture is rampant and shameless among our youth. It sounds as if people have reconciled themselves to the idea that committed marriages and stable homes and self control are unattainable ideals. But this hides enormous pain and shame. How could it not?

Are there, as 1 John 2:18 states, "many antichrists?" Even as he acknowledges that "antichrist shall come"—they know something about the coming beast of Revelation 13—he talks about many antichrists. Is this a hint that Satan always has someone prepared, in case the opportunity for his end-time gambit arises? Possibly Ezekiel 28's mysterious reference to the "Prince of Tyre" who is "wiser than Daniel" (28:3), incredibly wealthy and megalomaniacal enough to call himself God (Ezekiel 28:2, see 2 Thessalonians 2:4) is an example. God goes on to address the "King of Tyre" in Ezekiel 28:11-19, who seems to be the power behind this "Prince" (See John 8:44). Comparing Ezekiel 28 with Isaiah 14, it appears there's a power behind Babylon (14:4) at that time. If so, who is the puppet prepared to be the antichrist of our day?

Is God willing to let His people suffer on earth in order to declare His message? (Romans 8:36) For the answer, we need look no further than Ezekiel, who, when his wife died, he was told not to mourn. This was symbolic of God's destruction of His Temple, the desire of His people's eyes, in which they trusted as the signal of His favor and an assurance that He wouldn't allow them to be taken.

God was looking for a man to stand in the gap (Ezekiel 22:30) and found none. Yet Ezekiel was begging God for mercy in Ezekiel 9:8, Jeremiah was rebuked for praying for Judah (Jeremiah 7:16, 11:14, 14:11). Were they not standing in the gap? I can only conclude that God was looking for a CATEGORY of intercessor. Someone not of the ruling or priestly or prophet class. 180. Day 180: Ezekiel 24-26 -Is God willing to let His people suffer on earth in order to declare His message? (Romans 8:36) For the answer, we need look no further than Ezekiel, who, when his wife died, he was told not to mourn. This was symbolic of God's destruction of His Temple, the desire of His people's eyes, in which they trusted as the signal of His favor and an assurance that He wouldn't allow them to be taken.

In 21:27 is God promising that there will be no true Jewish King until Messiah? This seems to be the case, as Zerubbabel and those following him were merely governors under another world power (Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome)

Sandwiched between two interesting Old Testament Parables is a theodicy by God Himself - the people say His ways are not equal because, they say, the fathers eat sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge. It is by our own iniquity that we are judged and the soul that sinneth, it shall die, He says. Does the father put the son in a bad position by his iniquity? Yes, except the son also has the opportunity to see the father's wickedness and turn from it. Here God states that He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked in their sins; He has pleasure in their repentance (18:23, 32; Luke 15:7, 10)

The two parables today tell two stories in a viscerally shocking way. Judah’s unfaithfulness to Jehovah and the rulers’ betrayal of Babylon. Who could forget these? They’re so like Nathan’s “thou art the man.” To David.

With hindsight it’s easy for us to see where this is headed. But how confused must these people have been, with prophets telling them peace would surely come?

Shouldn’t I spend more time mourning about the corruption in my nation? Obviously God’s actions with Judah show that to be the proper response.

Ezekiel sees incredible visions, including the likeness of God enthroned. He’s also greatly humbled, having to weigh out his food, lie on his side, and cook with excrement. Is God humbling him as an example to Judah?

To what purpose is the end note of Jeremiah, that Jehoiachin was shown kindness by the king of Babylon? God’s mercy shown even in judgment?

Why does 47:10's warning against deceitful service to the Lord, and unwillingness to execute bloody justice, appear in the midst of a lament over Moab? Because all this judgment being pronounced against Moab would be executed by God's people. In our day, one of the most difficult critiques of God's Word is the Israelites' so-called genocide against the Canaanites. Seen through the lens of an unbeliever, it does seem cruel; and yet it was part of God's calling on the Israelites to execute this judgment. (Gen. 15:16)

What “great things” did Baruch seek for himself? (Jeremiah 45:5) I think about this little passage a lot, compared to its size, and I don’t know the answer. I suspect Baruch expected to be vindicated after having been faithful as the scribe of Jeremiah. Maybe more than that, he expected to hold some position of high honor or material reward when Jeremiah’s predictions were all proven right. God’s word to him here reminds us all that we are creatures of our own times, and though we may be faithful to our calling, if that calling is during a time of decline or chastisement, we can expect only preservation for the purposes of God. (Romana 8:36) Not an earthly destiny conformed to our own selfish ambitions.

Gedeliah, governor of Judaea under Nebuchadnezzar, was set to rule modestly and according to God’s plan for the Jews. Why then was he killed, and his avengers likewise set up for judgment? It seems that by this time no one knows who to believe, which makes sense, because we know God says the kings, princes, prophets, priests and all the people were corrupt. (32:32) Moreover the good Gedeliah refused good intelligence (40:16) and the suspicious Johanan refused to believe the word of the Lord they had pledged to follow (43:2-4, 42:2). What confusion! Are we not even now in such a day of confusion? God’s people who want to do good are gullible; the more suspicious refuse to be led by God. The wicked deceive and destroy. Ultimately this is more of the Lord’s chastisement until we learn to seek His face.

Why does king Zedekiah call for Jeremiah, to hear his prophecy, only to disregard it? Maybe he also knew of Ezekiel’s prophecy in 12:13 that he would not see Babylon though he would die there. Jeremiah’s prediction in 34:5 was that he would not die by the sword though he would not escape. If he had surrendered, his house would have lived according to Jeremiah 38:17. But truly a net was spread over him.

Was God prepared to restrain His judgment if the people had repented? (Jeremiah 36:2,3) Yes. This shows there is always hope while judgment has not yet fallen, as the Ninevites somehow understood (Jonah 3:9, cf., Joel 2:14). While we definitely have those in our country who would burn the scroll as Jehoiakim did, we also have those who would tremble at His Word.

Jeremiah has had a tragic message to deliver, and now he’s shut up in prison for doing it. How hard must it have been to buy the field in obedience to the word of the Lord in the face of all this? And yet it seems this is the reason he receives the encouraging revelation of the next two chapters: there will be return and restoration, they will have a new heart and God will be their God with an everlasting covenant, (Jeremiah 32:37-42), Jerusalem will be a name of joy and praise, (Jeremiah 33:9), and God’s people will never be cast away, (Jeremiah 33:25/Romans 11:1).

In a situation in which they are hearing prophets, priests and kings telling them one thing and young Jeremiah telling them the other, how are the people to evaluate who is faithfully sharing God’s Word? By watching the short term outcome of Jeremiahs vs. that of zedekiah, ahab and shemeiah.

What would have happened if the authorities had listened to Jeremiah and ignored the lying prophets like Hananiah, who recklessly broke the wooden yoke God instructed Jeremiah to make for himself? God told Jeremiah that if they listened and turned away from the evil, He Himself would turn from what He planned to do to them. This is an astonishing and hope-giving revelation for anyone experiencing the chastisement or judgment of God. This was a major turning point in the Old Testament, leading to the captivity of Israel for 70 years and their essential end as an independent kingdom. 163. Day 163: Jeremiah 29-31 -In a situation in which they are hearing prophets, priests and kings telling them one thing and young Jeremiah telling them the other, how are the people to evaluate who is faithfully sharing God’s Word? By watching the short term outcome of Jeremiahs vs. that of zedekiah, ahab and shemeiah.

God’s case against the prophets is an open-and-shut one: “But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.” (‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭23:22‬) But did not Jeremiah himself do all this from the 13th year of King Josiah? (Jeremiah 25:3) God had told Jeremiah they would fight against him, (Jeremiah 1:19), so why did He not call a sufficient number In unity to cause the people to hear His words? This makes me think of the statement of Jesus over Bethsaida and Chorazin in Matthew 11:21.

Who couldn’t sympathize with the wails of Jeremiah in Jeremiah 20:7-18? We have the full picture of what happened and why, but he had a love for his nation and it brought him deep grief to pronounce such judgment. He was despised and suffered because his contemporary “prophets” and priests anticipated only good and blessing despite their treachery against their calling.

At a time when God is about to bring judgment on his unrepentant people, does He look forward to the church age in Jeremiah 16:19?

From begging God to visit his wrath on the heathen rather than his people, Jeremiah seems to have come around to God’s point of view in chapter 12. God reminds him again that he won’t listen to prayer on their behalf (Jeremiah 11:14) and Jeremiah actually longs to see judgment on them. (Jeremiah 11:20) Does he not see in chapter 12 that the Lord is righteous and the people wicked? Do verses 15-17 anticipate not just the regathering from Babylonian captivity but even the destruction in 70 A.D.?

Jeremiah’s reaction to his own prophecy is in 10:23-25. He cannot see how the people can be held responsible since they do not direct their own steps. (v. 23). He begs for restraint in judgment (v. 24). He blames the heathen, wondering how God can use brutish men (v. 22) to punish His own people, even though they have also become brutish.!(v. 21) Is this not a preview of Habakkuk 1:12? [“Art thou not from everlasting, O Lord my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O Lord, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction.”‭‭ (Habakkuk‬ ‭1:12‬)]

To this point Jeremiah has condemned the Kings, princes, priests, prophets and people for idolatry, immorality and injustice. Although the earlier chapters are thought to be written later, they speak of events that had been ongoing for some time by the days of Josiah. (Jeremiah 3:6) How had the people been so thoroughly led astray in the days of Manasseh and Amon? How was it still able to continue during Jeremiahs reform?

What if God brings calamity after calamity on a nation and the people say, “it is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword or famine”? (Jeremiah 5:12) 155. Day 155: Jeremiah 7-8 -To this point Jeremiah has condemned the Kings, princes, priests, prophets and people for idolatry, immorality and injustice. Although the earlier chapters are thought to be written later, they speak of events that had been ongoing for some time by the days of Josiah. (Jeremiah 3:6) How had the people been so thoroughly led astray in the days of Manasseh and Amon? How was it still able to continue during Jeremiahs reform?

Jeremiah has had a tragic message to deliver, and now he’s shut up in prison for doing it. How hard must it have been to buy the field in obedience to the word of the Lord in the face of all this? And yet it seems this is the reason he receives the encouraging revelation of the next two chapters: there will be return and restoration, they will have a new heart and God will be their God with an everlasting covenant, (Jeremiah 32:37-42), Jerusalem will be a name of joy and praise, (Jeremiah 33:9), and God’s people will never be cast away, (Jeremiah 33:25/Romans 11:1).

Why does God make the point about re-marrying someone who has been divorced for unfaithfulness? Because that’s the point at which it doesn’t fit the picture that he gives: idolatry is unfaithfulness and yet God tells us to break up the rough ground of our hearts to return to him and he will except us and restore us even if it’s a small remnant one of the city to other family, he will give us pastors after his own heart. Hope is always available.

What is God’s case against His people? That by comparison the complainers in the wilderness wanderings were holiness to the Lord. They have forsaken Him, the fountain of Living Waters, and have hewn broken cisterns that hold no water, saying to the things they create, “you are my father” even while God’s chastisement on them goes unnoticed.

Knowing the coming captivity (Isaiah 39:6-7) and destruction of Jerusalem is a great burden. Before the question is even asked, God answers the thoughts of the heart: the One Whose throne is Heaven itself, whose footstool is the whole earth, is not diminished by the destruction of the Temple, or by the ceasing of sacrifice to Him, especially by those who don’t listen to Him and spew hypocrisy. He’s going to appear before all the earth, consume His enemies and create a new heaven and new earth. How could we imagine Him to be so small that the house Built by David’s son could contain Him? (2 Chronicles 6:18)

 Would there have been any way for a contemporary reader to perceive that the division between themes in Isaiah 61:2 at the comma before “and the day of vengeance of our God would last 2,000 years?

Looking at Isaiah 56:3-7, I am thinking: do the Persians who learn to fear God represent the strangers joined to Israel? (Esther 8:17) Does Daniel not exemplify the eunuch given an everlasting name that shall not be cut off? Does the church represent the “others” called to the feast in Isaiah 56:8-9? (Acts 10:12-13)

"The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God."  ‭‭(Isaiah‬ ‭52:10‬ ‭KJV‬‬) Could this be said to be the Matthew 24:14 of the Old Testament? Taken together with Isaiah 53:1, we can see that "the arm of the Lord" is another name for Jesus. And literally the last phrase can be read, "all the ends of the earth shall see Yeshua Elohim."

Could there be a more vivid image than Isaiah 49:16? Especially in the light of crucifixion being one of the best known identifiers of Jesus of Nazareth. (See Psalm 22:16, Zechariah 13:6) The grief over having missed their messiah will be deep. (Zechariah 12:10) But the reconciliation will be the celebration of the world.

 Is this the beginning of a theme? The authentic people of God (Jacob My servant and Israel whom I have chosen, Isaiah 44:1) vs Babylon, chosen for a temporary purpose (I was worth with my people, Isaiah 47:6), Jehovah VS. Idols, deliverance from God VS self-righteousness. It carries all the way through with respect to Babylon, and seems to be manifested most clearly in the Catholic Church in our day. (See Revelation 18:7/Isaiah 47:8)

Isaiah quotes the Lord, "Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them." (Isaiah‬ ‭42:9‬) What does he mean specifically? He's probably referring to the prediction that came to pass regarding the Assyrian army and Sennecherib, and encouraging the reader to have faith based on that that all he predicts will occur. That includes the description about Christ that opens the chapter, (Isaiah 42:1-4), but also the pouring out of the Spirit (Isaiah 44:3), the blotting out of their transgressions, (Isaiah 44:22), and the destruction and rebuilding of Jerusalem, (Isaiah 44:28). The Cyrus prophecy is so specific that it's probably the inspiration for the whole Deutero-Isaiah heresy. But for us it all follows suit: if Isaiahs prophecy was fulfilled regarding Cyrus, and the first advent of Jesus, it will be fulfilled in Israel's regathering (Isaiah 11:11), Christ's second coming and Armageddon (Isaiah ...

I've reached the transition from part 1 to part 2 of Isaiah. Sixty-six chapters, and divided just as the Old and New Testaments are, at 39, with Hezekiah's pitiful failure to care for the generations to follow him. In spite of this announcement of destruction, loss and captivity, Isaiah looks forward to another day, some 720 years later, when John the Baptist would prepare the way for the LORD, (Isaiah 40:3), so that the people might "behold your God" (v. 9). It is because He is the First (Isaiah 41:4, 27) that He can declare for us things to come. (Isaiah 41:22) He made it so clear, and Isaiah was a treasured book of the Jews. How could they have missed Jesus? How could John the Baptist's message have been so mysterious to them? 

Although secular history downplays the supernatural side of this, there is no choice but to admit it occurred since it was confirmed in ancient pagan history as well. Herodotus attributed the aborted siege to mice gnawing through bowstrings and straps . Josephus to a plague. Sennacherib’s own history simply omits Jerusalem from all the boasting about conquering 43 cities and taking >200,000 captives. What would the world be like if Assyria had captured Jerusalem? speculates historynet.com. No Judaism, no Islam, no Christianity, they reason.  I wonder if they somehow assume that would be a beneficial outcome. Given how brutal the Chaldeans and Assyrians were , I'm not sure how non-Christians could reach that conclusion. 

Is the seemingly shallow reading of Isaiah 32:5 not really shallow at all? The section is all about contrasting rest in an alliance with Egypt (against invading Assyria) with rest in the LORD. Trusting to His grace. Looking forward to His redemption of earth and personal reign in righteousness. Suffering by the comparison was that day (and likewise OUR day) of flattering, deceptive language, of words used to conceal the true motive, and of dim minds, short sightedness, and selective hearing. To change all of that will take not just an education but the pouring out of God's Spirit. (Isaiah 32:15, Joel 2:28-29, Acts 2/Zechariah 12:10) We wait for that with great anticipation — but we must also remember God's much longer, more patient wait, which is the salvation of so many before the time is up. (Isaiah 30:18/2 Peter 3:15)

Even in isolation from the rest of this context I have felt Isaiah 26:20 could be about the Rapture; but in the context of these four chapters does it not seem all the more clear? Hail (Isaiah 28:17, Revelation 16:21), besiegement of Jerusalem, (Isaiah 29:3, Luke 21:20) with deliverance from God Himself (v. 8). Could Isaiah 26:19 be about the resurrection and rapture of the dead and 20 be about the rapture of the living, with 21 foretelling the 2nd coming and Armageddon?

Are we close to this day? Can you feel it? When the fulness of the gentiles come in, and the veil is taken away from the Jews in a moment, they see the Pierced One and mourn over having missed Him, he wipes away all tears, and they exult: this is our God! We have waited for Him! We will be glad and rejoice in His Yeshua!

So much of what is being described in these chapters is beyond my historical and geographical grasp. How much has been fulfilled? How much (like Isaiah 17:1, 19:18-25) still await fulfillment? How close are we? Recent events seem portentous, as modern  Persia uses money given to them by the US to get a terrorist group to fire rockets into Israel. Might we not be on the brink?

I was fixated by this verse: "I have commanded my sanctified ones, I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness." Who are these? At first I imagined the "burners" of Chapter 6 who cry to one another about His holiness, even when there's no one to challenge. But is this not broader? Those who rejoice in His Highness? Is that not the Church as well? Will there be more for us to do in our mission on the Day of the LORD than simply following on white horses? (Revelation 19:14, Psalm 149:6-9, Jude 1:14)

 If the casting aside of Israel resulted in the salvation we see being brought to the world, what is the restoration of faith in the Resurrected Messiah going to look like? (Romans 11:15) It’s like the resurrection of a nation. (Ezekiel 37:14) It appears that Isaiah 12 describes this.

In light of the complaint above, is what Isaiah is being commissioned to do simply declaring the truth? Is Isaiah 6:8-13 not just Isaiah's calling, but the rationale for this book itself, all sixty-six chapters of it? There's so much gospel in it, so much hope, and yet, the command is not to "make disciples of all nations" but to "make the heart of this people fat and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes" - but is it that message of offered salvation and extended hope that puts them to sleep? Is the appeal to them to wash… [and be] white as snow" (Isaiah 1:16, 18) the agent of resistance? "The same sun that softens the wax hardens  the clay," as the saying goes?

 What a great question - "who asked you to come walk on the floors in My House?" ( Isaiah 1:12) What is the point of being a priest, making sacrifices, burning incense, if you don't really fear God at all? Aren't we in a time like this now? American evangelical Christianity is flirting with some very non-Christian ideas, and why? Because the Christian ones are alienating the world, and we're being blamed for their reaction. We'll get better judges and counsellors if we submit to His washing (Isaiah 1:16-19). Although it was a promise to Israel, it's also a principle: Walk in the light of the Lord (Isaiah 2:5) and give up on hero-worship. (Isaiah 2:22) Like God's threat to Israel, we're taking our advice from the immature, (Isaiah 3:4), the obscene and arrogant (Isaiah 3:9). Our children are being taught to admire entertainers who are given a platform to speak on social and moral issues and have no self-awareness about how exaggerated their pretenti...

How was it going to come to pass that the monarchy would end with the king of Judah seeing the king of Babylon (Jeremiah 32:4) but not Babylon itself (Ezekiel 12:13), though he would die there? It must have seemed contradictory, but it was all predicted beforehand. In fact, this may have been part of what was contemptuously cut up and thrown into the fire (Jeremiah 36:23-25). How could they have missed the fulfillment of the 350 year-old prophecy made by the unnamed Judean prophet in 1 Kings 13? 

Did God delay judgment on a nation because of the intercession of just one man?

What is the Rab-Shakeh's assumption? That Hezekiah's actions in tearing down the high places betray a crass political motive: ensure the people come to the Royal city to worship. (2 Kings 18:22) It's actually a uniquely faithful act on the part of Hezekiah among the Judean kings to this point (2 Kings 18:4-6). And yet, is Hezekiah's hope (2 Kings 19:4) and prayer (2 Kings 19:15-19) for deliverance based on the faithfulness of people? No; it's on the reputation of the LORD, His own glory, that Hezekiah knows to be the best appeal; for until he had torn them down, Judah had persistently  maintained high places and groves. It's notable that this section is reproduced not just in the parallel account in 2 Chronicles 32 but in Isaiah 37-39. God knew generations of believers would rejoice over the day the blasphemy and pride of a mighty human kingdom was answered in one night by a single angel able to decimate the army of a world empire. It really puts Matthew 26:53 i...

How could we understand it if we read Exodus then skipped everything between and read these two chapters? What could possibly have convinced a nation that had been literally created by a series of miracles to abandon the true God and so debase themselves for the very paganism they had escaped? The intervening chapters of the Bible, then, are a cautionary account for the Body of Christ in 21st Century America. Influential fools have convinced many to envy and mimic the nations of Europe, who are further regressed than we are. The children and grandchildren of zealous believers take pride in what is objectively shameful. Our contemporaries dismiss the mighty works of God in our history as puritanical, superstitious, restrictive and bigoted. We desperately need a fresh move of God's Spirit.

Isaiah 6 begins, "in the year that King Uzziah died, I saw also the LORD, high and lifted up…" Why is the vision connection with the death of Uzziah? Uzziah and his father Amaziah seem to be good kings, but both made foolish mistakes: Amaziah attempted to unify Israel again by conquering the Northern kingdom and was defeated. Uzziah intruded into the Temple to burn incense (2 Chronicles 26:16-21) and was struck with leprosy. His son Jotham became the ruler at that time, and although both kings were evaluated as having done that which is right in the sight of the Lord, 2 Kings 15:34), the Lord began to send Assyria against Judah at that time. Although they had generally good leadership, all was not well in Judah. I think Isaiah's note may indicate a turning point, as he was told to tell the people they were not listening to God. (Isaiah 6:9-13)

 Under what circumstances is it the best and godliest course of action to overthrow a monarch? Have soldiers execute a woman with swords? Circumvent the normal donation methodology of the people? When these kinds of things are happening in Israel and Judah, you know things have gone from bad to worse. It takes courageous, decisive people like Jehosheba (2 Kings 11:2), Jehoiada (2 Kings 11:4-12, 15, 17) and Jehoash, King of Judah (2 Kings 12:7,9) to restore some order; still, it's a time of confusion, a time when things that must be done to correct cours e would not ordinarily be the right thing to do. Perhaps this is part of the apparent ambiguity in Elisha's lesson to Joash, King of Israel: beat the ground with arrows. Nope, you only beat the ground three times. You should've done it five or six times. When everything is in a bad place, it's hard for people to know what to do. It makes me think of a situation yesterday in the city of Plano, where our ministry is headqu...

Jehu is enigmatic. He's decisive, courageous and dynamic, but he doesn't maintain his faithfulness to God. He instead worships  Jeroboam's  idols. (2 Kings 10:31) Why? Perhaps for the same mercenary reason as  Jeroboam himself (1 Kings 12:26-28). It's a reminder to myself and anyone who starts strong but is tempted to settle into compromise that strong beginning aren't as important as strong endings.

When I think about all Elijah's and Elisha's renowned miracles and their feud with and scorn for the house of Ahab, it makes me wonder: why would Judah be so cozy with Ephraim? Why would Jehoshaphat's son marry Ahab's daughter after hearing Elijah's rebuke in 2 Kings 3:14? 

How much of God's blessing does pride keep us from? The story of Naaman's healing seems so out of place: Syria is the aggressor against Israel only one chapter later (2 Kings 6:8-24). Why does the captured servant girl name Elisha? Why does Naaman believe her? Why is Elisha willing to heal him? Why do his servants ultimately convince him to humble himself and be healed? It is evidence of the design of the Bible as a unified message. In Luke 4, after announcing His ministry and receiving the people's acclamation at the Nazareth Synagogue, Jesus tells this story, highlighting the irony of a foreigner's healing in contrast to the rejection of Jesus (Luke 4:28-30).

Were these "little children" a threat to Elijah? Most likely they were, and our translation makes it ambiguous. In Genesis 34:19, the same word is used for Shechem, the young man who slept with Dinah, Jacob's daughter. In 1 Kings 3:7, Solomon, who has just been made king, calls himself a "little child" yet we learn he reigns a total of 40 years, (1 Kings 11:42), and Rehoboam was 41 when he began to reign. (1 Kings 14:21) So if there were 42 young men pursuing and mocking Elisha, they were certainly a threat, just as the captains of fifties had been to Elijah in 1 Kings 1:9-15.

With a father like Abijam, a grandfather like Rehoboam, where did Asa's devotion to the Lord come from? What a an indication of God's grace that his reign lasted 41 years.

The story of the unnamed prophet of Judah in 1 Kings 13 is amazing, but also confusing. Why did he listen to the lying Israelite prophet? Did he seek counsel of the Lord but ask the wrong question? (Is the man a prophet?) Why does God speak true prophecy through the man who had been the deceiver? Why is judgment against this prophet so swift and sudden when the prophecy against the idolatrous altar causing the whole land to apostasize takes about 350 years to fulfill? (2 Kings 23:15-20) For me it is a warning about uncritically receiving someone else's "word from the Lord" for my life.

Did Rehoboam choose (1 Kings 12:8) to answer the people roughly at the advice of his peers, or did God ordain that he do so? (1 Kings 12:15) Both, it seems. I don't see things like this as a "You will say to me then, 'Why does he still find fault? For who has ever resisted his will?'"  situation (Romans 9:19) as both descriptions really are true. It's always our free choice to resist God's prescriptive, revealed will; never by our own independent desire that we have a will to do His good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13)

With all his fabulous wealth and understanding, does Solomon have any grasp of the fact that in doing business with the canaanites, in taking a wife from Egypt, in multiplying horses to himself and bringing them from Egypt, he's doing what the king is expressly forbidden to do in Deuteronomy 17:14-20? As he's beautifying Israel, building alliances, gaining fame and wealth, he's also laying a trap for himself.

From whence comes Solomon's boldness to ask for so much forgiveness and mercy from the God who slew Nadab and Abihu, the rebellion of Korah, the unfaithful at Ba'al-Peor, the breach of Uzzah, and even the catastrophic circumstances that led to his own reign? It is prophetic and can only have been inspired by the God who would fulfill all these requests and so prove that the Old Testament, like the New, is saturated with grace.

There is a consistent vocabulary in the Garden of Eden, (Genesis 2), the Tabernacle, (Exodus 24-27), and the Temple (1 Kings 5-7). Flowers, trees, cherubim guardians. Why were the tabernacle's instructions so exacting, so obviously by divine revelation, and the Temple's conveyed by narrative: "this is what Solomon did"? Israel is in a period of unique grace during this time.

  By the time 1 Kings is written, the practice of sacrificing in the high places is repeatedly noted as a qualification on any king’s zeal for the Lord (2 Kings 12:3; 14:3-4; 15:4,14,35; 22:43). Leviticus 17 forbade the practice of offering sacrifices anywhere besides the Tabernacle. (Lev. 17:2-6) It had been the practice of the heathen nations they drove out to sacrifice in high places and they were commanded to destroy them, (Numbers 33:52, Deuteronomy 12:3). And yet in the city of Gibeon (possibly named after the high place, 1 Kings 3:4) Solomon offers an extravagant sacrifice and the Lord is pleased. (1 Kings 3:5-14) More is going on in the story of the Gibeonites than meets the eye, apparently. In Nehemiah 3:7, they return to the land after captivity with the Israelites and help to build the wall. How could God be so pleased with a sacrifice in a high place undoubtedly formerly dedicated to a Hive deity in a city inhabited by a people the Lord had commanded Israel to extermina...

The conspiracy and intrigue in 1 Kings  1-2 are disturbing. Was everything described justified? I doubt it. But it's a reminder that, despite David's powerful personality, despite how beloved (the meaning of his name) he was (2 Samuel 23:1), the 40 years of his reign, and the 40 years of Saul's reign before him, (Acts 13:21), were tumultuous ones, and were not too far removed from the chaotic time of the Judges. David's kingdom laid a good if flawed foundation, despite the civil war with Absalom, and Solomon's actions, right or wrong, are recorded so that we know neither man is the King Israel longs for.

In any such narrative in which the anger of? Let all God's people during this dark time seek mercy from the Father of mercy and God of all comfort, (2 Corinthians 1:3), whose seat of mercy is between the cherubim (Isaiah 37:16) and is "The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin" ( ‭‭Exodus‬ ‭34:6-7‬) Israel's present unbelief creates the opportunity for the reconciliation of the rest of the world (Romans 11:16), and, like the Gibeonites, Gentiles have been grafted in and enjoy the new covenant, we can count on God's faithfulness even though there is no example of human faithfulness.

 Part of God's stated intent in His covenant with Abram was to judge the Amorites. (Genesis 15:16-21) Yet the rash treaty the invading Israelites made with the Gibeonites in Joshua 9 was upheld because they swore by the LORD. (Joshua 9:18) After the big mistake, they did not compound their mistake by another; and here, some 400 years later, God is still enforcing that agreement. As difficult as this passage is, does that not give us great comfort, knowing that God swore to His covenant with Abraham by Himself (Genesis 22:16, Hebrews 6:13)? Yes, this is said to be our sure and steadfast anchor for the soul, as Christ is already in the heavenly Holy of Holies, ensuring our place with God. (Hebrews 6:18-20)

David's kingdom is restored to him, but is it ever the same again? In addition to losing two sons, there is division and infighting. As Joab did to Abner, so he does to Amasa. Is the issue of Ziba and Mephibosheth solved? Unity is precious. Once a leader who has captured the hearts of his people has become tarnished, how can that unity be restored?

 After a long struggle with passivity, how does David now so effectively differentiate between what to passively accept as God’s chastisement (the cursing of Shimei, 2 Samuel 16:10) and work against (his prayer against the counsel of Ahithophel which God answered—2 Samuel 15:31-32)? We don’t have to wonder in the dark about David’s thought process, even if the narrative doesn’t provide it. Psalms 38 and 51 reveal the brokenness David feels. He begged God not to take His Holy Spirit from him, as He did from Saul - he knew it was possible, and that God had even sent an evil spirit to harass Saul. I tried to imagine the enormous pressure on Saul. Imagine the pressure David is under here. He’s being confronted with opportunities that could be help or hindrance; he has to make rapid decisions about thorny issues. He entrusts himself to the Lord. What else can he do?

Even after the well-taken rebuke from God through Nathan and Joab, does David still lack objectivity? What is making him so passive that for the second time, it takes a story to get him to make a decision? The woman of Tekoa brings up the Avenger of Blood. That's essentially the role Absalom played, though it was against his own half-brother. David seems to be seeing it from the other side, that Absalom was guilty of manslaughter against Amnon, and he was likely to lose two of his sons. To avoid that point at which she was driving, he's forced again into the better of two difficult decisions. Then Joab himself was forced into a difficult decision when Absalom burns his barley field. It was too late to recover Absalomby that time. Still, as he goes into exile, David asks God to use the counsel of Hushai to defeat the counsel of Ahithophel, who was Bath-Sheba's grandfather.

David's sin had been in secret. Wasn't it his desperation to keep it secret that led to compounding treacherous adultery against a faithful subordinate (2 Samuel 11:11) with a treacherous conspiracy to murder him? God exposes the secret and ensures the judgment against David is public and far more shameful. David's idleness led to his sin, and he seems to accept the rebuke of Joab in 2 Samuel 12:28; yet in 2 Samuel 13:7 he is absent again and "sending" Tamar to Amnon instead of going with her. Balancing his responsibility to his kingdom, his responsibility to his family and his enjoyment of the rest God had provided does not come easily to David. He was closer to God while on the run.

How often do we receive an answer to prayers (2 Samuel 7:1) then eventually use the requested blessing in sin against God? David's kindness to Mephibosheth is a beautiful picture of God's kindness to us (see parallels between 2 Samuel 9 and Psalm 23), but in the next 2 chapters David is shown to be a passive "sender" of messages rather than the active defender of the kingdom he is in chapter 8. His idleness brings him the temptation of Bath-Sheba, and the deep, treacherous conspiracy to cover it up.

  So much in these three chapters is rich with potential for application for me and my family. First is the joyful dancing David exhibits while bringing the Ark to Jerusalem. I’ve read this passage many times, and understand that the Uzzah passage is a common sticking point. It was for David!  David was angry about Uzzah (2 Samuel 6:8)  "And David was afraid of the LORD that day, and said, How shall the ark of the LORD come to me?" (2 Samuel 6:9 KJV) So the way it’s rendered, it says “David was afraid.”  Are there two ways to read this text?  You could also read the (proper) fear of the LORD into this passage. Either one works, to be honest. Where did the “new cart” (2 Samuel 6:3) come from? Not from the Law; that’s the Philistine way to transport the Ark. (1 Samuel 6:7) David and the people were being careless of how they transported the Ark of the Covenant. But then asked how he could get the Ark to him. (2 Samuel 6:9) It doesn’t formally say that the priest...

Is David the king who can unite Israel? (2 Samuel 3:17-18, 36) The writer of Samuel is careful to detail these events playing out in such a way that David's opposition is removed but David himself does not have to act in violence. As David himself puts it, "the LORD… has redeemed  my soul out of all adversity." (2 Samuel 4:9) Although there are factions among the tribes, Israel as a whole wants unity,  of war and division. David endured the jealous aggression of Saul for years without going on the offensive and now God is loosing, ransoming him from the tribulation he's been through while David stands still to see the deliverance of the LORD. (Exodus 14:13)

In addition to being Saul's general, Abner is his cousin. (1 Samuel 14:50) in taking ish-bosheth to a city of Benjamin, Abner is leveraging an old division that was the cause of an earlier civil war in Israel (Judges 20). Ephraim, likewise had grievances reaching back to the days of the Judges (Judges 8). David's kindness to the men of Jabesh-Gilead who buried Saul (1 Samuel 31:16, 2 Samuel 2:5-6) was genuine. Is it not likely that the careful recording of it before this division was strategic?

If the book of Judges ended with a big question mark as to whether a king could unite the nation and get them to observe the Law, the book of 1 Samuel certainly seems to extend that question. Samuel, the last of the judges, has died leaving no suitable successor (1 Samuel 8:5). Saul and his 3 oldest sons have just been killed. David has defected to the Philistines and only recently returned. As far as the people know, the priesthood has been exterminated. Hasn't the whole idea of a monarchy been a disaster? Saul has spent years pursuing the captain of his own army while acting like a madman, and even seeking guidance in necromancy. But things aren't all as they seem. The High Priest's son is still alive, effectively serving as High Priest, giving counsel to David. Even the king of Philistia swears by the LORD's name, while Saul has named a younger son after Baal. (1 Chronicles 8:33)

The extent to which Saul will go in his own desperation is astonishing. Even knowing that David will be king (1 Samuel 24:20, 26:25), even after having repented of pursuing David once, he does so again. Why engage in such a hopeless pursuit? It gets increasingly hopeless, and Saul gets increasingly desperate, as the story continues, to the point at which he is violating his own law (Romans 2:1) and consulting with one who has a familiar spirit because God has abandoned him. At this point Sauls actions mirror the vain efforts of the Devil, while David continues to believe that God is a faithful rewarder of those who who seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6)

In 1 Samuel 24:5, David shows unbelievable restraint that leaves vengeance entirely to the LORD (Deuteronomy 32:35), trusting to His good plan, despite all the adversity he was facing. (See Psalm 57) Then in chapter 25, when David is provoked and is about to take vengeance for himself, God uses Abigail to stop him (1 Samuel 25:33-34) teaching David that when we take matters into our own hand, even against the actions of the fool, innocents suffer. It's a lesson kings greatly need to learn. Do these stories' inclusion in this order hint that David had instructed the writer of the books of Samuel to drive at that point?

Is there no limit to how far Saul will go in rebellion against the Lord? He killed the lineage and family of the High Priest just because he gave food, shelter and a weapon to David. The outcome is that the escaped son of the High Priest becomes the new High Priest and travels with David, giving David a way to inquire of the Lord. Saul's jealous ambition has made him a tyrant worse than those of the surrounding enemy nations. We should fear when we go against the Lord's revealed will: what will be the end of this decision? With nothing to restrain Saul, it got as bad as it could be.

How unstable is Saul at this point? It is shocking when he first attempts to murder David in 1 Samuel 18:11. He tries it again in 1 Samuel 19:9-10. He has his own daughter  afraid to tell him the truth in 1 Samuel 19:17 and makes an attempt to murder his own son in 1 Samuel 20:33, all in an effort to thwart the revealed will of God, compare 1 Samuel 13:14 and 1 Samuel 15:26-28 with 1 Samuel 20:31. There is no one to restrain him and the evil spirit has gained the upper hand over his tormented soul at this point. When he admits he has "played the fool and erred exceedingly" in 1 Samuel 26:21, it is a great understatement. Comparing Saul and Solomon again: "For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere." (James 3:16-17)

Was shepherding a flock better preparation for the battle with Goliath than being a man of war from his youth? In this case, yes. David was a wise interpreter of what had actually happened (1 Samuel 17:37) and did not credit himself for the strength or cunning to defeat the animals. Yet it convinced him that God would deliver him from Goliath; so much so that he predicted what would happen. Saul, by contrast, misinterpreted the people's exaggerations of both his and David's exploits as undervaluing him, ignoring the fact that God was the one who wrought salvation, as he had once observed (1 Samuel 11:13).

What really happened to Saul? In chapters 10 & 11, the Spirit of the Lord came upon him. He prophesied, (1 Samuel 10:9-11);  he acted decisively and courageously (1 Samuel 11:6-7). He was magnanimous in victory. (1 Samuel 11:13) But then he presumptuously offered the sacrifice Samuel was to offer, he made a rash vow that almost resulted in Jonathan's death, and he fell short of full obedience in victory over the Amelekites. Amalek is said to be symbolic of the flesh, a grandson of Esau, (Genesis 36:12), who despised the spiritual birthright, (Genesis 25:34, Hebrews 12:16). God vowed to utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven, Exodus 17:14, and called Saul to be the executor of this judgment. Sauls incomplete obedience is complete disobedience, and shows just how protective we are of the flesh, which we're to make no provision for (Romans 13:14). As 2 Peter 2:20 says, the latter end of someone entangled again and overcome by the flesh is worse than the ...

Can you feel the pressure on Saul? I know these stories are meant to build a case against Saul, but to wait for Samuel a week while 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horsemen are gathering against your poorly armed and trembling 3,000 men would be difficult. And Samuel himself was not High Priest (1 Samuel 14:3), although perhaps Samuel brought Ahiah with him. Saul had one wife, (1 Samuel 14:50), in contrast to David's 8+ wives and Solomon's hundreds. Did he write himself a copy of the scriptures as he was commanded? It's hard to forget the great confusion out of which the monarchy arose. The rash vow in 1 Samuel 14:24 and willingness to slay his own son over it is another example of his self centeredness.

What is different between the humility of Saul and the humility of Solomon? Saul protested that he was from the least of the houses of Benjamin, smallest of the tribes, (1 Samuel 9:21) and hid himself among the stuff (1 Samuel 10:22) rather than be anointed king. But God gave him a new heart and changed him into another man. (1 Samuel 10:6). Solomon confessed he felt like a little child and didn't know how to rule, but asked for wisdom, that God's purpose might be fulfilled. God is displeased when our self-doubt causes us to doubt his purposes. It's not a virtuous but a self centered move to hide and resist God's call. It's how Moses angered the Lord in Exodus 4:13.

The people's desire for a king is a rejection of the LORD, (1 Samuel 8:7), but a king was anticipated in the Law (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). Were the people aware of this passage? Was Samuel? God's foreknowledge and previously revealed will against a specific situation He would not have preferred became the avenue of the monarchy out of which Christ was born King of the Jews. (Matthew 2:2)

Do the Philistines have a more authentic understanding of the nature of God than the Israelites at this point? They are ignorant and confused, but Israel thought "it", (not "He"), would save them (1 Samuel 4:3).

 A list of High Priests in 1 Chronicles 6:1-15 does not contain Eli’s name. Is this because of the judgment? Why is the Tabernacle called the Temple (1 Samuel 1:9, 3:3; Tabernacle in 2:22). It's still the period of the Judges. Is Eli serving as both High Priest and Judge? Samuel, as his adopted son, though of Ephrathite heritage, (1 Samuel 1:1), takes over. Samuel will become the last Judge and the first prophet. Is he also High Priest after Eli? What about his biological parents, Elkanah and Hannah? Hannah’s act of faith in giving Samuel to the Lord and her prayer of praise mark her out as unique in this dim period of Israel’s history when there was little new revelation being given. (1 Samuel 3:1) Elkanah’s name means “God has possessed.” The names of his lineage get progressively more meaningful with each generation. Contrast the godly but barren Hannah, accused of drunkenness, with the privileged spiritual leader who allows his progeny to disgrace the office and extort the peop...

  There’s a lot to think about on Day 90 of the Bible reading plan as we complete Judges and section that maintains parity between the Hebrew Canon and traditional Protestant Canon. How did it get to the point of near-extermination of one of the tribes of Israel? (As the people asked in Judges 21:3) We have to imagine that this is the result of: Winning the war but losing the peace ( Day 83 ) Failing to thoroughly pass along their laws and experiences ( Day 74 ), leading to ignorance about: The penalty for rapists (Deuteronomy 22:20-26), homosexuals (Leviticus 18:22-30) and what a city is to do with the accused when a murder inquest is made (Deuteronomy 19:12-13). The fall of Sodom in Genesis 18, which mirrors the beginning of this story. The fall of Ai in Joshua 5, which mirrors the ending of this story. Joshua’s generalization of the principle learned at Ai, expressed in Joshua 22:11-20 on the occasion of their construction of a memorial altar at the border of the Promised Lan...

 Why does the Levite perform such a barbaric act to send a message to all Israel? There’s so much confusion at this time, but the story is so close to Genesis 19:4-8 that the Levite must understand that Israel’s apostasy is almost complete. Travel is different today, but the Law is full of commands to be hospitable to strangers (Exodus 22:21, 23:9; Leviticus 19:10, 33-34; Deuteronomy 10:19). This horrifying story has no one who consistently shows pity - even the hospitable Ephraimite was willing to sacrifice his virgin daughter, (Judges 19:24), as Lot was (Genesis 19:8). The story is meant to horrify us-in doing what is right in our own eyes, (Judges 17:6), we lose compassion and all sense of what is right. We’re not too far from this today. Modern people in their pride have banished God’s Word from public life and feel confident that they can create a framework that is enlightened, compassionate and just. It’s predictable that it will descend into darkness, mercilessness and injus...

  Does the theory that Samson’s life is a picture of Israel hold up over his marriage & annulment/divorce, later dalliance with a prostitute then enticement by Delilah, and captivity? The idolatry (which is often pictured as fornication/adultery/illicit sex in the Old Testament) is obvious in Judges. In the later history it isn’t always as obvious. For instance, you’d think that the reign of Josiah was a golden age. He was the best king Judah ever had (2 Kings 23:25), and yet the great apostasy that brought on the ultimate captivity came during Josiah’s reign. (Jeremiah 1:2, 25:3) So although there were cycles of comparatively better or worse leadership, there was always a lot of secret idolatry. (2 Kings 17:7-23) If the theme of Judges is “the need for a king” and the theme of I & II Samuel,I & II Kings are the rise and demise of the kingdom, what is Samson, the last of 12 judges, showing us? There is a need for a king—when Samson is at his best, he’s still deli...

The older I get, the more the story of Samson bothers me. Why is so much of Judges devoted to his story, while an earlier judge who kills 2/3rds as many Philistines in a similar way merits only a brief mention? Why is he constantly chasing Philistine women around, when the command not to intermarry is so clear and he's set apart from God for purity before his birth? Why is his mother not named in the narrative, even though she seems to be the parent with any spiritual discernment? Why is the angel so shy about his name? Is it a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ? (He says his name is "secret" which could be translated "wonderful" - see Isaiah 9:6) He's in a short list with Isaac, John the Baptist and Jesus Himself of pre-announced births, but his life seems to mark a severe downturn in the already-depressing story of the Judges.

Since its predictions came to pass (Judges 9:20), is it not fair to say that Jotham's parable is a divinely-inspired prophecy? I've always thought it was insightful; but the more I think about it the more I get out of it. The productive trees are unwilling to stop doing what they're good at in order to assume leadership. It's common for diligent people to feel this way, but it makes room for those "vain and light persons" (Judges 9:4) to assume power by blind ambition and through cronyism (Judges 9:3).

  We’ve already seen that something is wrong with Israel’s diligence in conquering the land and driving out the people of Canaan. Something is wrong with their central worship. In these chapters, is something wrong with their internal unity? The men of Ephraim threatened Gideon and his army. (And Gideon was from the tribe of Manasseh, the brother of Ephraim!) The  men of Succoth and Penuel refused to feed them while they were in the process of delivering Israel from the Midianites. (Midian means "strife") It seems Gideon unified the nation, yet for all his refusal to be made king, he names the son of his concubine “My father is king” (Judges 8:31) and led the land into an idolatrous divination regarding the golden ephod he made. Once Gideon dies, the people turn again to Baal, and Gideon’s very nickname came from his destruction of the altar to Baal in Judges 6:25-32.

  Do things seem strange in these next few chapters? Shamgar, the third judge, got mentioned in the final verse of Chapter 3, and then there’s this reference to evil arising again once Ehud  is dead. Ehud, of course, is the second  judge, so what a strange point to make, that Shamgar arises after  Ehud, but it’s after the death of Ehud that the Israelites returned to evil after Ehud’s death. Shamgar is not a Hebrew name, and calling him “Son of Anat” could very well be a reference to the Canaanite goddess Anat, who was the consort of Ba’al. Then there’s Deborah, who is said to be a prophetess. Why is a woman judging Israel? And Barak refuses to go to war without her. Even Deborah appears to recognize the shame of his reluctance to take leadership. (See Genesis 3:16) When Gideon is called, the angel instructs him to build an altar made from the scraps of the Asherah poles and the altar of Ba’al, then offer the bullock he uses to tear it down as a burnt offering. Un...

  From passages like Judges 1:19, 21, 27, 29-35, 2:1-3, 10-15, 20-23, 3:3-7 can we conclude that Israel "won the war but lost the peace", as we say? I think the whole idea that we’re people who are too short-sighted to be naturally aligned with God’s vision is a profound one, and one that should motivate me more to be filled with His Spirit, Eph. 5:18), so that I’m aware of the opportunities He presents to me, (John 5:20), willing to do what pleases Him, (Philippians 2:12-13) and resistant to every form of temptation (Galatians 5:16) including that of slackness. (Joshua 18:3) Meanwhile one implication of the Exodus that I hadn’t considered in quite this way before: the world wants our firstborn . God prompts us to prepare them by telling them the story of our faith: Exodus 10:2, 12:26, 13:8-14; Deuteronomy 4:5-14, 6:2-25, 11:18-23; 32:44-47; Joshua 4:5-7. How can I memorialize what God has done in my life for future generations of our family in a meaningful way?

The altar "Ed" and Joshua's stone at Shiloh were set up to commemorate the people's pledge to serve the Lord only. While they did, God blessed them and fought for them, and they could boldly say that no good promise He made them failed. What a witness to future generations. Did they quickly forget the other side of Joshua's promise? (Joshua 23:15-16) Not in the lifetime of Joshua and his contemporaries, (Joshua 24:31), but extending faithfulness beyond them was the point. How can I extend what I have witnessed of God's faithfulness beyond the lifetime of my contemporaries?

After 45 years on the march (Joshua 14:10), settling into the land with no remaining enemies must have been amazing. They could then look back and say that every promise of God had been fulfilled. I think the only comparative statement is when Solomon claims to have rest on every side. (1 Kings 5:4; 1 Chronicles 22:9; 2 Chronicles 14:7) By contrast, Paul has no rest, but trouble on every side: fightings without, fears within. (2 Corinthians 7:5). If God's calling for me is suffering and trouble, spiritual warfare, is it laziness, cowardice or idolatry to long for that peace and rest?

Does it seem anticlimactic to have such a matter-of-fact statement about the placement of the Tabernacle and the victory over the land? What about the ceremony to set it up? What about the offerings and the presence of God? Did the cloud come over the location? Did smoke fill the Holy place? Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but it seems to me that their slackness to take full possession of the land was associated with their slackness in worship. The Tabernacle will be here for hundreds of years, until its capture by the philistines in 1 Samuel 4 at the end of Saul's reign. So it was to be the center of their religious life, where offerings were to be made and the priesthood was to minister.

As Joshua begins to assign the inheritance after God's instructions in chapter 13 and delegate the tribes to take possession of their lands, we begin to see the first pockets of failure in Joshua. (Joshua 13:13, 15:63, 16:10, 17:12-13, 16) Was it because they had too much dependence on their human leader and not enough dependence on the Lord?

Did Caleb's bold request (Joshua 14:12) inspire Othniel? (Joshua 15:16-17) Did it inspire Achsah's? (Joshua 15:19) Did she see in his offer of his daughter  to the man who took  Debir a desire to get a courageous and faithful husband for his daughter and to ultimately give  Debir to his daughter , and then ask for more , out of confidence that he was predisposed to give her what she wanted? How many things do I miss out on because I think my Father has given me enough and so I fail to ask?  (Luke 11:9-13; Romans 8:32)

  With the benefit of knowing the rest of the story we understand what God is anticipating in Joshua 13:1-6, when pointing out Joshua’s age and the great number of Canaanite nations remaining to be driven out. Joshua had led the defeat of 31 kings (Joshua 12) and Ussher estimates the book of Joshua to cover 27 years. Judges follows and covers 305 years of rapid decline. The Canaanites and Philistines figure prominently in the stories of Judges. Joshua is so devoted to the Lord, so courageous and industrious… if he fell short, what do we need to learn from this? First, to see the great example of Joshua’s instant obedience: he left nothing undone of what God through Moses had commanded him. (Joshua 11:15) It wasn’t because he was disobedient or reluctant to do what he was called to do. (Compare with Jesus’ statement in John 17:4) We must learn also from the great devotion of Joshua. When the Tent of Meeting was set up, Moses had  to go in and out, to convey God’s directions to...

Was it the heart to do all that he'd been commanded to do (Joshua 11:15) that moved Joshua to ask the Lord to hold the sun so that the army could make a 25-mile journey and destroy their enemies in a single day? It stands in stark contrast to the apathy of Jehoash in 2 Kings 13:14-19 which angered Elisha. May we all recognize the spiritual battle we are in and seek the spirit of Joshua.

Did the Gibeonites survive because of their deception? It seems that they did; even after the Babylonian Captivity a Gibeonite is mentioned in Nehemiah 3:7. In 2 Samuel 21 we see that the princes of the congregation were right to spare them after having made the mistake of not seeking the Lord's counsel and swearing in His name, for when Saul tried to destroy them, he brought a famine on Israel. So by God's mercy it seems they were fully incorporated into Israel.

Isn't the Gilgal incident empirical proof that the Israelites were not teaching their children as they'd been commanded? (In Exodus 10:2, 13:8-14; Deuteronomy 4:5-14, 6:2-25, 11:18-23; 32:44-47) So when Joshua makes the commandment concerning the stones from Jordan in Joshua 4:5-7, the literal object-lesson would have been part of a huge (risky and costly) lesson for the Israelite children. After crossing over Jordan, the fighting men are circumcised (risking vulnerability Genesis 34:13-29), they celebrate Passover, the Manna ceases (their food source for their entire lives) and they have a supernatural victory over the first fortified city in Canaan.

Why are we not told the names of these two faithful spies, but are told the name of the two faithful spies of Numbers 13-14? Rahab is recognized as the more important person here. She's the first recorded Gentile convert to Judaism and becomes the mother of Boaz, (Matthew 1:5), the redeemer of Ruth and grandfather of King David.

How much time does the book of Deuteronomy cover? My Scofield Reference Bible has the same date for the whole thing, and I'm inclined to accept that it's essentially one long sermon from Moses just before he dies and the Israelites pass over Jordan. That would make almost 25% of the Torah just Moses' final exhortations to the children of Israel. The Gospel accounts of the final week of Christ's life make up about a third of the Gospels. Like Moses' teachings here, the final chapters of the Gospels give the Disciples promises, warnings and prophecies about their future, and form the basis of the rest of the New Testament. The Torah is the Law is Israel, her "Constitution," as a nation, and the basis for the allegations made by the Prophets against her when she violated them, (as recorded in the "Writings").  So this is another way Jesus was a " prophet like Moses. "

I wonder how modern Jews feel when they read this section? It all came to pass just as God revealed through Moses - after conquering the land and settling down they quickly turned aside into idolatry (Judges 17). Yet He also anticipates the new covenant of Ezekiel 36:24-33 & Jeremiah 31:31-34 in Deuteronomy 30:6 after a dispersion and regathering.

Did Israel recognize these curses as they were happening to them? (Maybe not: see 2 Kings 22:8-13 ) Are we experiencing similar curses and attributing them to other things besides God's chastisement? Studies show that our food is less nutritious than it used to be . More people have allergies   and asthma . Food-borne illnesses are on the rise. New pathogens are constantly entering the human population like COVID-19, AIDS, Zikavirus, Ebola, SARS. Going from the text's prediction of curses on the fruit of the womb, I attempted to find out whether or not miscarriages are on the rise, but I don't seem to be able to get that data. Infertility is definitely on the increase . Even before the pandemic, anxiety and depression as well as suicide were skyrocketing in American youth. This all runs counter to our prideful assumptions that one day we'll vanquish all war and disease through modern progress and technology.

The book of Deuteronomy is nearing its conclusion. The Torah is coming to an end. Moses is anticipating the end of his life. The wilderness wandering is about to be over. In these last few chapters, why are these specific commandments given? In order to prepare his people to be God's special nation in the promised land, Moses is careful to describe the way family lines are to be preserved (helping us to understand the book of Ruth, the lineage of David and Christ Himself). He gives them the ritual for presenting the first offerings of the fruit of the land to God, including a recitation to help them understand their relationship to God, and another, asking Him for acceptance and blessing. And he begins the curses and blessings pronounced over the people that they are to endorse with their "amen." It's interesting that one curse has to do with idolatry (their relationship with God); the rest are all about living peacefully, respectfully and with integrity in their rela...

How many of the regulations in chapters 23-24 were “for the hardness of your hearts” (Mark 10:5)? God’s mercy to the slave, (Deut. 23:15), the divorced woman, (Deut. 24:2), the newlywed, (Deut. 24:5), taking surety  from the working poor, (Deut. 24:6, 10-13), and leaving gleanings for the poor, widows, orphans and strangers, (Deut. 24:17-21) were also remarkably merciful to the powerless in the ancient world, showing the merciful nature of God. The Law itself has always been a witness to God's grace as well as our condemnation. (Deuteronomy 4:8 / Romans 7:12-14)

How was Israel required to "put away evil" from among them? By taking responsibility in every case rather than "hiding themselves" (Deuteronomy 21:1-4), by acknowledging their limitations in making judgments, by showing mercy in judgment but being consistent with harsh penalties. No one would be emboldened by lax enforcement.