For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

Proverbs 18:23-24

    There are two aspects to the part of the proverb which says that those with unreliable friends will come to ruin. The first is that if you spend most of your time with unreliable people, whom you think are your friends, when trouble strikes you will have no one to aid you in dealing with your problems. The second is that if you hang out with unreliable people trouble will soon find you. However, there are people who will be your friend and stand by you when times are bad. Seek out such people.

Psalm 8:1-9

    This psalm reminds me of how great this universe is. Every time I look at the night sky I am reminded of the greatness of God. He made the moon, the planets, and the stars and put them in their positions. Yet, He nevertheless cares about individual people. He cares about each and every person. More than that, He has given people power over His creation that is subordinate only to His own. When I consider nature around me I am reminded that our God is majestic and powerful. Praise His holy name!

Acts 27:21-44

    Everyone on the ship carrying Paul had been busy fighting the storm for several days, including the passengers. In that time, none of them had time to eat (it is not clear if they ate at all during the storm, but one would think they must have eaten at least a little bit). They were beginning to despair (that is me reading between the lines). Paul called them all together, reminded them that he had warned them against setting out, then he told them that God had revealed to him that everyone on the ship would survive the coming shipwreck. A short time after this, the sailors attempted to abandon ship in the middle of the night, leaving the passengers to their fate. Paul warned the Roman commander against allowing them to do so. Just as dawn was breaking, Paul reminded everyone that God had said they would all survive and got them all to eat. When the sun came up, they saw an beach and attempted to run the ship aground on it.
    In this account, Paul’s reminder that he had warned against leaving Fair Haven was not an “I told you so.” Rather, Paul was reminding them of his previous, accurate prediction in order to lend weight to his current prediction. This is an important point. We should avoid telling people “I told you so,” except in circumstances where it is critical that this time they take our advice. Be very careful to listen to God before using this tactic.

1 Chronicles 9-10:14

    This passage starts with the genealogy of some of those who returned from the Babylonian Exile. Here we come to understand why the writer has spent so much time on genealogies so far. He was setting up the record to show how those who returned from the Exile were able to trace their ancestry back to Jacob. The writer then concludes his genealogy with the genealogy of Saul’s descendants.
    Then the writer begins telling the history of which most of the rest of this book is composed. He starts with the death of Saul. The part of this I want to highlight today is the response of the people of Jabesh-gilead to the Philistines displaying Saul’s remains. The first act of Saul as king was to mount a rescue of the city of Jabesh-gilead from an enemy who wanted to mutilate all the men living in that city. The people of that city showed their gratitude by mounting a raid to retrieve the remains of Saul and his sons. They then respectfully buried those remains. This shows us that despite his flaws, Saul did some good things as king of Israel.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

Proverbs 18:23-24

    Most “friends” are unreliable and anyone who has too many of them will come to ruin. However, there are people who will be a friend who is closer than family. When you find the latter, treasure them.

Psalm 8:1-9

    Whenever I read this psalm I am reminded of how majestic the night sky is…and whenever I look at the night sky I am reminded of this psalm. When I see the night sky I think of God’s glory and majesty. In the wonderful universe which God created, mankind is insignificant and small. Yet God gave them charge over His creation. God’s majesty fills the earth and we can witness it wherever we look.

Acts 27:21-44

    The ship transporting Paul was driven before the storm for two weeks to the point where those on the ship had given up hope of surviving. Paul addressed to crew and passengers telling them that he had warned them against setting sail. Then he told them that they would all survive, although the ship would be wrecked. A short time later, Paul warned the soldiers not to let the sailors abandon ship. As we read this passage, we see the hand of God in preserving the life of those on the ship. Let us remember that when things seem hopeless, God is still there for us. He will bring us through as long as we trust in Him.

1 Chronicles 9-10:14

    Today’s passage finishes up the genealogies by recounting some of the people who returned to the land of Israel after the Babylonian Exile. It then begins telling the story of the kingdom of Israel with the account of Saul’s death. We are reminded that for all of the great things he accomplished Saul died because he was unfaithful to God. The passage takes special note of the fact that he consulted a medium rather than seeking God’s guidance. This is a reminder that we should seek God’s guidance for the important decisions in our lives and be careful not to base those decisions on the advice of those who do not honour Him.

     I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

1 Chronicles 9-10:14

     Today’s passage begins by listing some of the families which returned to Jerusalem following the Babylonian exile. It tells us that there were descendants of the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, Manasseh, and Levi. It specifically lists a few of the descendants of Levi and Benjamin, while telling us that there were a larger number of them who returned. The passage then goes on to give a more detailed list of priestly and Levitical families who returned.
     The passage concludes the genealogies by giving the family tree of King Saul (including some of his descendants) and then telling the story of his death. The passage repeats how Saul killed himself after he was wounded in battle against the Philistines. He did this in order to avoid being taken captive by the Philistines. Saul and three of his sons died in this battle and the Philistines took their bodies to hang on their city walls. The men of Jabesh-gilead retrieved the bodies of Saul and his sons and gave them a proper burial.

Acts 27:21-44

     Finally, after everyone had gone a long time without eating, Paul called everyone together and told them that God had told him that, while the ship would be lost, everyone on board would survive. He finished by telling them that the ship would run aground on an island. That night the sailors started taking soundings and discovered that the ship was entering ever shallower water. They dropped some anchors in an attempt to slow the ship. Then the sailors lowered the lifeboat and pretended that they were going to drop anchors from it. Paul warned the soldiers that if the sailors left the ship everyone else would die. The soldiers responded by cutting the lifeboat loose before the sailors could get into it.
     In the morning Paul urged everyone to eat. After doing so, he blessed them all and ate something himself. Thus encouraged everyone ate something, after which they threw the last of the food stuff into the sea. At daybreak the sailors saw a sandy beach and attempted to run the ship aground there. However, on the way to the beach the ship got hung up on some rocks. The soldiers were going to kill the prisoners, but their commander wanted to spare Paul’s life and so ordered them to allow the prisoners to live. The commanding officer ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and swim to shore. He then told everyone else to grab on to planks and other pieces of the ship. In this manner, everyone got to shore safely.

Psalm 8:1-9

     What a wonderful psalm of praise, but it is more than that. It tells us some things about God and about our relationship with God. I like the NIV translation of verse 2:

Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
God has used the praise of children and infants, the weakest among us, to create a stronghold against His enemies. God uses weakness to overcome the strong. Then we come to the part that should humble us all. When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—
the moon and the stars you set in place—
what are mere mortals that you should think about them,
human beings that you should care for them?[c]
Yet you made them only a little lower than God[d]
and crowned them[e] with glory and honor.
You gave them charge of everything you made,
putting all things under their authority—
Reading that reminds me of the hymn “This Is My Father’s World. That song has much that touches my heart, but this line is the one that strikes close to my heart today. “This is my Father’s world. O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.

Proverbs 18:23-24

     When we read the first of these proverbs, let us always remember the line I closed out my devotions on psalms today: “God is the ruler yet.” The second proverb tells us that some friends are unreliable and will bring us to ruin. Let us strive to be the type of friend who sticks closer than a brother.