Monthly Archives: July 2020

Daily Bible Study

July 22, 2020 Bible Study Do Not Be Fooled By Those Who Say That Evil Is Good and that Good Is Evil

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 5-8.

Today’s passage contains three separate sections: the beginning is a conclusion to the Isaiah’s introductory vision, then the vision of Isaiah’s calling, finally Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the plot of Israel and Aram against Judah.  There are significant differences in the messages contained in each, yet I perceived an ongoing theme as I read them today.  I hope that I will be able to communicate that theme clearly in what I write next.

In the first part I see a judgement on much of Western Civilization.  God blessed the nations of Western Civilization and in return He asked that they deliver a crop of justice, that they live righteously in the world.  Instead the wealthy use that wealth to accumulate more wealth and to leave the poor in even worse straights than when they began.  God gave us blessings in order to help those less fortunate than ourselves.  If we instead spend those blessings purely on our own pleasure, God will judge us.

Isaiah speaks of those who mock God, say that evil is good, and that good is evil.  He warns us about those who will listen to what we say, but not understand what we mean and will watch what we do, but not learn anything from that either.  If they had not hardened their hearts, plugged their ears, and covered their eyes, they might understand with their hearts and turn to God.  Let us continue to speak God’s words to those who refuse to hear and pray to God that His Spirit come upon them so that they may turn to Him and be healed.

Those around us may see conspiracies in everything which happens and be frightened by the idea that powerful people are conspiring to take away their freedom and oppress them.  Let us not follow their example and be frightened by such things.  Instead, we should fear only God and rest assured that He will keep us safe.  I will focus on God’s instructions and strive to follow them, putting my trust in Him and knowing that those who strive to conspire to control the world are doomed to failure.

Daily Bible Study

July 21, 2020 Bible Study The Day Will Come When God Will Remove Conflict From This World

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Isaiah 1-4.

I love reading the writings of the prophet Isaiah.  In chapter 2, he conveys a promise from God the fulfillment of should be everyone’s desire.  In the last days, people from every nation will seek God’s teaching and will desire to walk according to His way.  God will mediate between nations and peoples.  When that day truly arrives nation will no longer fight against nation.  They will not even train for war.  Those of us who seek to follow God’s will for our lives should seek to live as if that day has come, but need to recognize that it has not yet come for those around us.  In today’s world, I want to point out that to the original readers this would have meant both nations as we understand them today and ethnic groups as well.  This prophecy tells us that all people are welcome to become part of God’s people.

After making the promise that the day will come when nations will no longer make war on each other, Isaiah condemns the people of Judah.  While they are rich and powerful, they have chosen to fill their land with idols and sin.  Instead of following God’s commands and living according to God’s directions, they have chosen to follow the practices of the pagans around them.  He tells them that they may now be powerful, rich, and proud, but soon God will humble them.  They will crawl into caves to hide from God’s judgement.  At the peak of their power and wealth, they abandoned God’s instructions and instead adopted the cultural norms of those who rejected God.  Instead of trusting God, they put their trust in human power, they put their trust in their government.  Rather than seek justice for all, they oppressed their neighbors and ridiculed their elders, they sneered at those who lived, or had lived, honorable lives.  Sound familiar?

They had brought destruction upon themselves and would pay the price for their sins.  In the middle of this warning of the destruction to come. Isaiah tells us that the godly will still be rewarded.  Destruction and suffering were coming for the people of Judah, but God would still protect those who remained faithful.  Destruction and suffering is coming to the people around us today, but God will still protect those who remain faithful.

 

Daily Bible Study

July 20, 2020 Bible Study Dedicate Yourself To Someone Who Will Dedicate Themselves To You

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Song of Solomon 1-8.

Usually I struggle with writing my post on the Song of Solomon, primarily because much of the imagery used in it does not resonate with me.  However, it provides an excellent guide on building a relationship.  The two lovers in this passage have a strong sexual attraction to the other.  It is not one-sided, both of the lovers desire the other above all others.  Dedicate yourself to someone who will dedicate themselves to you.  Further, it advises against becoming sexually active too soon, too young.  Wait until you are old enough to understand what you want in life.

Daily Bible Study

July 19, 2020 Bible Study Moderation In All Things, Including Being Good and Behaving Wisely

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Ecclesiastes 7-12.

I want to start with a verse which seems strange, chapter 7 verse  16, where the writer tells us that we should not be too good or too wise.  What does he mean by that? Is it possible to be too good or too wise?  Since I believe the answer to the second question is “No”, the answer to the first must be something other than the literal meaning of what he wrote.  I think the answer here is not acting as if you are better, or wiser, than other individuals.  Don’t try to run other people’s lives for them because you think you are better than they, or wiser than they.  Perhaps the writer also means that we should not present ourselves in a way which leads others to be afraid of acting naturally around us for fear of appearing wicked or foolish.  When we look at verses 16 through 18, it seems to be advice about doing all things in moderation.

The writer also warns us that no one can know everything that God has done and is doing in the world.  We may witness the wicked thrive and the righteous suffer, but the writer assures us that those who fear God will be better off than the wicked.  Everything is in God’s hands and we should strive for contentment in the lot which He has given us.

Daily Bible Study

July 18, 2020 Bible Study God Gives Us Good Times and Bad Times, and He Has a Purpose in Both

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Ecclesiastes 1-6.

While I find the Book of Ecclesiastes slightly depressing, I also find it very insightful.  When the writer tells us that we do not remember what happened in the past and that those in the future will not remember what we did, he is challenging us to break that pattern.  As a result of our failure to remember what happened in the past we think that we can reject the lessons which have been passed down to us from that past.  From time to time people think that they have come up with a new and better way to do things then have ever been thought of before.    If they had a better understanding of the past they would realize that they were mistaken.

The writer goes on to tell us that we should be content in the lot God has given us and take pleasure in it.  There is a balance in life.  I really like how the writer sums that up in the first eight verses of chapter three.  There is a time for everything.  There is a time for the good things in life and a time for those which are less pleasant.  We should not reject the times of laughter just because we experienced a time to cry, and we should not try to turn the time for grief into a time of dancing.  During the time of war and division we must remember that there will come a time for peace.

Daily Bible Study

July 17 2020 Bible Study

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 29-31.

The final three chapters of the Book of Proverbs consists of the conclusion of the proverbs of Solomon collected by King Hezekiah, the sayings of Agur (about whom we know nothing aside from these sayings, and who might not be an actual person), and the sayings of King Lemuel (about whom we also know nothing other than what is said here).

In the group of collected proverbs attributed to Solomon, there is a theme that tells us that the stability and well-being of a society and nation depends upon the people, and their government, being godly, righteous, and just.  When a society and/or its government become dominated by the wicked, justice disappears and the society will become unstable and fall.

Daily Bible Study

July 16, 2020 Bible Study Don’t Be In a Hurry To Spread Bad News

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 25-28.

Today’s passage resumes being a listing of individual proverbs.  In this case we are told that they are a collection of proverbs from Solomon which were collected by King Hezekiah.  There is one proverb which appears to me to have multiple applications.

Just because you’ve seen something,
don’t be in a hurry to go to court.
For what will you do in the end
if your neighbor deals you a shameful defeat?

The first application of this is that we should not be in a hurry to report negative information about others that we have observed.  This addresses specifically telling the court, or the government, but really it applies to telling anyone else.  It contains the hint that perhaps what we have seen is not as it appears; that perhaps there is more information of which we are unaware which changes the meaning of what we saw.  We should apply this both to spying on our neighbors for the government and to spreading gossip about them (please note that there are other places in the Bible where we are told to testify against those we know have committed crimes).  The full wording of this seems to imply having seen something which leads us to sue our neighbor.

There are so many proverbs in here that I would like to highlight, but you can read them directly for yourself.  However, I think it worth pointing out that there are two themes which this passage addresses in multiple proverbs.  The writer warns us repeatedly about being cautious in our interactions with fools.  Interactions with fools can lead us to becoming foolish ourselves, but failing to interact with them at all may lead them, and others, to believe that foolishness is wisdom.  The writer also warns us repeatedly against being lazy.

Daily Bible Study

July 15, 2020 Bible Study Doing God’s Will Does Not Lead to Us Being Blessed, It Is the Blessing

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 22-24.

Today’s passage contains the end of the section of single verse proverbs before changing over to a different format, almost as if the next section was written by a different writer.  Before I touch on the proverbs from the section ending (and some from the new section), I want to talk about an important piece of advice the new section begins with.   The writer advises us listen to the words of the wise and apply ourselves to instruction.  We should keep these sayings in our hearts and ready on our lips.  This advice applies not just to the proverbs, but to verses from the entire Bible.  We should seek to memorize many aspects of the Bible.  I was reminded of this the other night when the verse, “Taste and see that the Lord is good,” was what a friend needed to hear.  It was not that they did not know it, rather my saying it was an affirmation of their belief that it applied to the situation.

I could go on and on about these proverbs, but I want to focus on just a few today.  The writer tells us that humility and fear of the Lord leads to wealth.  An important aspect of that humility comes from the knowledge that no matter what divides us, no matter what you might think makes you better (or worse) than another, all of us have one thing in common: the Lord made us.  If you think you are worth more than others, you need to remember that they were important enough to God for Him to send His Son to dies on the cross.  If you think you are worth less than others, remember, God made you for a purpose, for His purpose, and that purpose is important to Him.  Finally, when you think about that wealth, remember that God does not value things the same way humans normally do and we should strive to learn to value what God values.  The writer tells us that the generous will be blessed, and that blessing is that they have helped others.  Feeding the poor does not cause us to receive blessings, rather doing so is a blessing in and of itself

Daily Bible Study

July 14, 2020 Bible Study Do Not Be a Chatterer Or a Gossip, And Do Not Spend a Lot of Time With Those Who Are

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 18-21.

As I wrote about yesterday’s passage, today’s passage also consists of individual proverbs strung together which makes it hard to write a blog entry about.  However, some of today’s proverbs continue the theme about the importance of watching what you say.  Today, the proverbs put more emphasis on not talking too much.  Whereas yesterday’s put more emphasis on being careful in what you say.  Although both contain references to both.  Really, today’s focus comes down to the fact that, no matter how carefully you try to choose your words wisely, if you say too much you will say something which you should not have said.  It also warns against hanging out with people who gossip and talk constantly.  In both cases, if you spend too much time with such people you will say something to them which when told to someone else will put you in a bad light and such people will, sooner or later, tell those things to someone else.

Daily Bible Study

July 12, 2020 Bible Study Anyone Can Reap the Benefits of Acting Wisely

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Proverbs 9-13.

Today’s passage continues the theme that Wisdom offers itself to all who will listen.  It does not take wealth, or special privilege to learn wisdom.  Of course, the same is true of Folly.  Foolishness offers itself to any who will take it.  Folly offers guilty pleasures but hides their true cost.  We live in an age where many speak of “privilege”, but the proverb writer reminds us that it does not take privilege to be wise and those born to privilege can be just as foolish as those born at a disadvantage.  More importantly, those born at a disadvantage can reap the benefits of wisdom if they so choose.  If you choose a life of self-discipline, good judgment, and wisdom you will reap the benefits they bring, no matter how much at a disadvantage you started out in life.