This outline focuses on what God wanted us to know about choices people made and how their decisions worked out for them, for their children, and their followers. This can save you from wrong choices:

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4

Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: ¹²To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things; Proverbs 2:11-12

There is no honor in recycling old mistakes, but we see Christians make the same bad choices God’s people made years ago and keep making, generation after generation.

We should always study directly from the Word of God. God’s Words are quick and powerful (Heb. 4:12), not the words of men. We’re told to hide God’s Word in our hearts (Ps. 119:11) to avoid sin and so that we can learn from others’ experiences:

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7

If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; ⁵Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. Proverbs 2:4-5

Some people can learn by reading about what happened to other people, some by talking to others about their experiences, and some people simply must grab the electric fence for themselves. You should strive to learn the Fear of the Lord and the mind of God from the Word of God as He intended without having to repeat every mistake for yourself.

God’s Simple Plan of Salvation

Salvation has always been by grace through faith (Rom. 4:3, Gal. 3:6, Jam. 2:23). God is a person who cares how your life works out:

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ⁶In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

God loved us enough to send His Son to die to suffer the punishment for our sins. He could then forgive our sins. He also inspired the Bible writers to teach us how to conduct our lives. You can hear God’s sorrow in having to chasten His people when they won’t obey:

O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever! Deuteronomy 5:29

God gave us free will. We can choose to disobey, but He holds us accountable for the choices we make:

And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul. Psalm 106:15

Learn from reading what God wrote instead of grabbing the electric fence! You will be judged on how well you received the Word of God:

I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. ⁴⁷And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. ⁴⁸He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. John 12:46-48

The Foundation of Christianity

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

We cannot worship God in truth unless we know who He is. We cannot worship Him with proper awe unless we understand that He created all things perfectly (Ge. 1:31) and keeps the universe running properly by the power of His word (He. 1:3, Col. 1:17). We approach Him in humility as we learn to honor Him properly (Mal 1:6).

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7

The stories of how men and women married and raised their children tell us what to do and what not to do in managing our families.

These lessons start with the lessons about God and about human nature which are found in the Book of Genesis.

From Creation to the Flood

This period is sometimes identified with a covenant or with a dispensation. The Bible is neither covenantal nor dispensational, the Bible is Holy.

Thinking in terms of covenants and dispensations may offer a framework to help you understand the mind of God, but remember that God wrote it all. The Bible includes covenants, dispensations, and much else. Forcing it to conform to the patterns of men is a mistake.

The Six Days of Creation

God is a God of order, purpose, and plan (Isa. 14:26-27 23:9 43:13 46:11, Jer. 4:28 Rom. 8:28). Genesis 1 teaches that God made everything, and it teaches that if God said it, then it’s so. The pattern “and God said … and it was so” is repeated 9 times. Here are some:

And God said, Let there be light and there was light. Genesis 1:3
And God said, Let there be a firmament[1] … and it was so. Genesis 1:6
And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered … and it was so. Genesis 1:9
And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass … and it was so. Genesis 1:11
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven … and it was so. Genesis 1:14
And God said, Let the waters bring forth … and God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:20
And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature … and it was so. Genesis 1:24

If God says something, it’s so. God created all things out of nothing, and it was all very good (Genesis 1:31). God gave us details about how it was done. He wrote “the evening and the morning, were the 1^st day (Ge. 1:5)” and so on (Ge. 1:8, 1:13, 1:19. 1:311:23). These were 24-hour days.

The Garden of Eden and the Creation of Mankind

The only thing in all creation that was “not good” was Adam being alone (Ge. 2:18). It was all “very good” after God formed Eve (Ge. 1:31).

Genesis 2 is a flashback which amplifies the account of God’s creation of mankind on the 6^th day of creation (Genesis 1:26-30). God made Eve for Adam (1 Cor. 11:8-9) to be his companion and help meet (Ge. 2:18, 21-22). Adam claimed Eve and named Eve the moment he saw her:

And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Genesis 2:23

How did he know she was what he wanted? Did Adam ask Eve what she wanted to be called? Did he name her to claim her as the Babylonians demonstrated ownership of Daniel and his companions by naming them?

Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs[2] gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego. Daniel 1:7

Why did God make men so possessive? How does that bless women?

As with all of God’s gifts, a man’s possessiveness and strength can be misused to harm women, but encouraging a husband’s possessiveness makes him want to protect, nourish, and cherish his wife and the children she bears as her greatest gift to him.

Adam and Eve were given a perfect life of fellowship with God and didn’t have to work very hard to find food (Ge. 1:29).

The Fall of Lucifer

Satan’s fall shows the sins of rebellion and of pride. Lucifer was among the best of God’s angels, but he wanted to usurp God’s role. He was fired for insubordination, disobedience, and wanting to take his boss’ job.

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! ¹³For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: ¹⁴I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Isaiah 14:12-14

The Fall of Man – Genesis 3

Having been punished for trying to become equal to God, Satan tempted Eve with the same independence he had sought. His first step was to throw doubt on the Word of God by asking Eve what God had really said:

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? ²And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: ³But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. Genesis 3:1-3

The serpent knew that Eve misquoted God (Gen. 2:16-17).

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: ⁵For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. ⁶And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. Genesis 3:4-6

Satan’s lie “ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” appealed to Eve. If she knew the difference between good and evil, she could decide what to do for herself instead of obeying her husband and God. She didn’t realize that when she sinned by disobeying God, knowing the difference between good and evil didn’t guarantee that she’d choose good. How many of us do wrong while knowing its wrong when we do it?

Adam was “with her” when she ate the fruit (Gen. 3:6), why didn’t he stop her? He’d been told to keep the garden which includes protecting it.

Eve wasn’t there when God told Adam about the fruit (Ge. 2:16-17), why didn’t he correct her when she misquoted God?[3] Adam lost his soft job keeping the garden and had to work hard to get enough to eat.

In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. Genesis 3:19

How would Eve eat? Women aren’t strong enough to hunt or farm without modern machinery; Eve ate by the sweat of Adam’s face. A woman had to persuade a man to feed her and her children to survive.

Has this worked out well for women? Did this give women an incentive to please their husbands (1 Cor. 7:34)? Did God expect men to stop feeding women when technology made it possible for women to get jobs and support themselves without a man’s help (1 Tim. 5:14)?

Read and meditate on Proverbs 19:13, 21:9, 21:19, 25:24, and 27:15. They show what happens if a man makes his wife unhappy. God warns men to nourish, appreciate, love, sanctify, and honor their wives as advised in Pr. 31:28-29 and as taught in the Song of Solomon.

Why should a man work to please his wife (1 Cor. 7:33) and make her happy? The wife in the Song of Solomon understands her husband’s desire for her (Song 7:10) and gets her mother’s advice how to stay married (Song 8:3). The Song shows how he tells her and her friends how much he appreciates and values her. Being valued helps her appreciate his physical pursuit (Song 1:2) and makes her like belonging to him.

There is no joy for a man this side of Heaven that compares with having his wife like belonging to him.

Cain and Abel – Genesis 4:1-16

Cain was jealous of Abel who served God properly by sacrificing the “firstlings of his flock (Ge. 4:4).” Cain offered God an unacceptable sacrifice “of the fruit of the ground (Ge. 4:3).”

Blood was the only acceptable sacrifice because Moses’ laws about flour, grain, oil, and other non-animal sacrifices hadn’t yet been given. God shed blood to atone for Adam and Eve’s sin when He killed animals to give them skins for clothing (Ge. 3:31). The uniqueness and necessity of blood sacrifice for dealing with sin was written down later:

without shedding of blood is no remission. Hebrews 9:22b

Cain was angry when God rejected his sacrifice; he had probably worked hard “by the sweat of his face” to grow what he gave. God knew that Cain knew that only a blood sacrifice could make up for his sins and said that Cain would be accepted if he obeyed (Ge. 4:7).

Cain chose to commit murder instead of obeying (Ge. 4:8).

How often are we tempted to be angry because God doesn’t run the universe in the way we prefer?

From the Flood to the Patriarchs

This period is identified with both a covenant and a dispensation. God gave us this material to teach us about fellowship with Him and about human behavior, not as either a covenant or dispensation.

Abraham (2 Chr. 20:7, Is. 41:8) and Moses (Ex. 33:11) chose to be God’s friends, but they both had to go through some hard experiences before deciding to do things God’s way.

Abraham stayed in Haran until his father died instead of going directly to Canaan (Ge. 12:1-3), and Moses murdered an Egyptian when he tried to free his people from Egypt before it was God’s time (Ex. 2:11-15). God wants all of His people to choose to be His friends and let Him direct their paths instead of going their own ways (Pr. 3:5-6):

Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. John 15:15

Jesus’ disciples were His friends because they had heard what His Father had told Him. Christians serve God, but we can be His friends. Are you willing to study God’s Word enough to be God’s friend by “knowing what your Lord doeth” and by letting Him direct your life?

As a believer, you can stand at the very border of His kingdom watching what’s going on inside, you can stay out in the fields doing His work and come in from time to time to serve His table, or you can claim your seat at His table that He offers you.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: John 1:12

God gives all true believers this power, but you have to choose to claim it. God created mankind for the sake of the very few who would choose not only to accept His offer of salvation but to work out their salvation to the point of choosing to know Him well enough to become His friends and let Him direct their paths (Pro. 3:5-6).

The choice is yours, and the choice you make shows everyone the place Christ occupies in your life.

Many prefer the form of Godliness without the power (2 Tim. 3:5) and hate true Christians whose lives show that they really belong to God. That’s why Paul wrote, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution (2 Tim. 3:12).” That promise is as unshakable as God’s promises concerning salvation and eternal life (Jn. 3:16-17).

Noah – Genesis 6

Noah found grace in the eyes of God (Gen. 6:8). He preached faithfully for 180 years and only his wife, his sons and their wives accepted his message.

The Bible says little of the wickedness Noah saw (Ge. 6:5) but we can be sure that pre-flood sins are being repeated today. All possible sins were explored long ago; there aren’t any new sins, only new forms of old sins:

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9

The Ark – Genesis 7

How could it hold all the animals? Were some of them babies? Did some animals sleep as if they were hibernating? The size and shape described in the Bible is known by naval architects to be extremely stable.

Was it possible for 4 men to build a wooden boat that big in 180 years? How many man-years went into building a clipper ship? Clippers were smaller but had much more complicated shapes. The wooden Roman grain ship the Apostle Paul sailed on had 276 people on board (Acts 27:37). How big do archaeologists think it was?

Men lived a long time and knew about brass and iron (Ge. 4:22). Could they have invented power tools to help build the ark?

The Flood – Genesis 7, 8

God’s flood washed the world clean. The continents were rearranged and everything was utterly changed. The land had all been gathered together into one place; now the continents were separated. God promised not to destroy the world with water ever again and gave the Rainbow as a sign of His promise (Ge. 9:13-17).

The Tower of Babel – Genesis 10, 11

Men rebelled against God’s command to populate the earth; they stayed in one place. When God changed their language, He changed not only the words, but the thought process behind their languages.

The Chinese migrated from the Middle East all the way to China. It is interesting that their traditional character for “boat” shows eight people inside and that their character for “sin” includes a snake. The atheistic Communist government has “simplified” the characters to eliminate these Biblical references, of course.

The Age of the Patriarchs

This is the period of the Palestinian covenant, the introduction of Moses’ law, and the Abrahamic covenant.

The Book of Job

Bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people (Ecc. 8:11); otherwise people would be good based on sight rather than on faith. Satan is in our back yard and learns our vulnerabilities. Satan is the accuser. The book shows 3 different worldly philosophies and wrong ideas about God. Intellect, reason, and faith are compared.

Job’s friends assumed that his suffering must be due to his sin. This is a common mistake; few people understand that God sends trials to show the glory of God and to draw His servants closer to Him.

And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? ³Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. John 9:2-3

He also sends trials to correct His people:

And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: ⁶For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. ⁷If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? ⁸But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Hebrews 12:5-8

Job’s friends could not imagine God using Job’s sufferings to demonstrate Job’s faith to glorify God:

That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: I Peter 1:7

Abram / Abraham

Abraham was a man of faith, his faith was counted to him for righteousness (Rom. 4:3, Gal. 3:6, Jam. 2:23). Righteousness through faith is not for Abraham alone but for all people of faith.

For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. Romans 4:13

And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:29

The Abrahamic Covenant

God gave the Jews the “oracles of God (Ro. 3:2)” and put them in the Middle East where travelers from “all nations (De. 29:24)” would see what happened to them. God expected them to bless other nations (Ge. 18:18, 22:18) by demonstrating the blessings of following God’s laws.

They disobeyed God’s laws by worshiping idols and sacrificing their children to heathen gods. Instead of watching God bless them as God had intended (Deut. 4:6-8), all nations saw their defeat and wondered at God’s anger (Deut. 29:21-28).

During the Black Death in Europe, Jewish laws about cleanliness protected them so well that their death rate was noticeably lower than among other groups in towns where they lived. The Jews hadn’t given God the glory or pointed out that everyone had access to their laws. They were accused of causing the plague because they seemed to be immune to it and were persecuted.

Although they have never gone back to idol worship since the captivity, Jews still don’t give God the glory. Would Jews be persecuted less if they said, “Of course we Jews do better than most people. God promised to take care of us, and He has. How else could Jews still be a people after so many years of persecution?”

God blessed “all nations” in spite of their disobedience by sending Jesus through Abraham’s family:

And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. Galatians 3:8

That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:14

Genesis 15 tells how God made a covenant with Abraham by passing a burning lamp between the pieces of the animals Abraham had killed for this purpose (Gen. 15:17).

English doesn’t have a word like the Hebrew word berith which the inspired words of the Bible use to describe God’s covenants and marriage vows. “Covenant” is the best word we have in English, but “covenant” suggests that we can break the covenant if someone else breaks it first.

The Hebrew berith is one-sided. Vine’s dictionary says berith came from a word that means “cut” or “divide” as Abraham divided his animals; it’s a promise by one person, not by two people.

It is the rendering of a Hebrew word meaning a “covenant” or agreement (from a verb signifying “to cut or divide,” in allusion to a sacrificial custom in connection with “covenant-making,” e.g., Gen. 15:10, “divided” Jer. 34:18-19). In contradistinction to the English word “covenant” (lit., “a coming together”), which signifies a mutual undertaking between two parties or more, each binding himself to fulfill obligations, it does not in itself contain the idea of joint obligation, it mostly signifies an obligation undertaken by a single person. … God enjoined upon Abraham the rite of circumcision, but His promise to Abraham, here called a “covenant,” was not conditional upon the observance of circumcision, though a penalty attached to its nonobservance. [emphasis added] Vine’s Dictionary

There are two points about berith. First, the party who made the promise would be cut in pieces if he didn’t keep the berith. Second, the berith was not based on what the other party did. In Genesis 15, Abraham accepted God’s offer of a berith and gave up his animals to provide blood to sanctify the promise. God walked between the pieces; that bound God to fulfill the berith even if Abraham or his descendantsdisobeyed God which is exactly what happened.

Marriage is the husband’s berith; he’s bound by his berith whatever she does. As Abraham, the weaker party, gave up his animals to provide the blood to seal his berith with God, the woman, as the weaker party (1 Pe. 3:7), gives up her innocence to provide the blood to seal her husband’s berith with her.

Kids used to say, “Cross my heart and hope to die,” which meant we’d rather die than break our promise. Kids may be closer to the mind of God than adults are (Mk. 10:15, Luke 18:17).

Sarah

Sarah obeyed her husband and called him “lord” in spite of his mistakes (I Peter 3:5-6). Genesis 12:10-20 tells us that Sarah was so beautiful that Abraham told her to tell everyone she was his sister because he feared that men would murder him to have her when he traveled to Egypt during a famine. Sure enough,

The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. ¹⁶And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels. Genesis 12:15-16

It never occurred to Pharaoh to ask Sarah if she wanted to come into his house any more than Adam asked Eve whether she wanted to be called “woman (Gen. 2:23)” when he named her or anyone asked Esther whether she wanted to belong to King Ahasuerus (Est. 2:8).

Pharaoh followed the custom of buying women from their owners when he “entreated Abram well for her sake.” Abraham’s servant gave Rebekah’s family “precious things (Gen. 24:53).” Jacob bought Rachel and Leah (Gen. 29:21). Jesus taught that wives should be given to their husbands (Lk. 17:27, 20:34).

Is it a good idea for men to buy wives as if they were commercial products offered for sale to anyone? What does “her price is far above rubies” mean (Pr. 31:10b)?

Pharaoh expected his new wife to be a virgin and was upset when he realized he’d been cheated:

And Pharaoh called Abram and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? ¹⁹Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. Genesis 12:18-19

This tells you a great deal about the “natural man.” Pharaoh thought nothing of taking Sarah “to wife” regardless of her wishes, the only thing wrong with his plan was that she was already married. Taking her would not have wronged her because a woman’s wishes meant nothing; the only wrong would have been against her husband who already owned her.

Christianity is the only faith that teaches that rape is a crime against the woman. Rape is considered wrong in other cultures and faiths because it’s a property crime against the man who owns her and reduces the amount he can demand as a bride price when he gives her to a husband (Gen. 29:21). Moses’ law treated rape as a property crime against the girl’s father as tradition required, but improved the outcome for her:

If a man find a damsel that is a virgin, which is not betrothed, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; ²⁹Then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel's father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his days. Deuteronomy 22:28-29

Not only did the rapist have to marry her, he lost his right to divorce her as Moses’ law permitted for men (De. 24:1-4, Mk. 10:4). Moses’ provision for a “bill of divorcement” also represented an improvement in a discarded wife’s situation. If a man just put her out, her status was ambiguous - no one else could marry her, and she might starve. If a man discarded his wife, the “bill of divorcement” make her status clear so that she could find another husband.

Divorce could only be declared by a husband; there was never any notion of a wife divorcing her husband.

Abraham later had enough faith to start to sacrifice his long-awaited son Isaac to the Lord:

By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ¹⁸Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: ¹⁹Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure. Hebrews 11:17-19

God had promised Abraham a child by Sarah. If Abraham could believe that God would raise Isaac from the dead, could he have believed that God would protect him from jealous men instead of lying about his wife? His faith probably wasn’t yet that strong nor when this happened again in Gerar (Gen 20:1-18) when the ruler showered him with wealth as Pharaoh had. Faith grows over time; we must be patient with others.

Hagar, Abraham’s Egyptian maid, was probably purchased on this visit to Egypt. When Sarai didn’t have a child, she asked Abraham to marry Hagar who became pregnant.

Sarai and Hagar clawed each other so bitterly that she asked Abraham to fix the situation when her idea went wrong (Ge. 16:5). The strife was so intense that it took an angel of the Lord to bring peace to that home (Gen. 16:9) and even then, it did not last after Sarah had a child so that Ishmael was no longer Abraham’s heir (Gen 21:8-15).

Lot – Genesis 13:10

He went down to the wicked cities of the plain (Ge. 13:10), he had visited Egypt and could not get Egyptian ways out of his heart. If he were not called “just Lot” in the New Testament, we’d doubt his salvation.

And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; ⁷And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: ⁸(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) II Peter 2:6-8

Ishmael

He was the result of Sarah’s plan of the flesh; Abraham let his wife persuade him to have a child by Hagar. God recognized Ishmael because he was Abraham’s child by a woman whom he had married (Ge. 17:20) as God recognized Keturah’s children (Gen. 25:1).

We don’t know how a marriage was sealed at that time, but we do know that Abraham promoted Ketuvah from concubine (1 Chr. 1:32) to wife. Gen. 25:6 tells us that there were at least two other women who had Abraham’s children who aren’t even named. Why does any woman think a man will marry her if she has his baby (Gen 29:31-35)?

Jealousies between the Jews and the Palestinians which go back to the troubles between Sarah and Hagar persist to this day. We should never try to fulfil God’s will before God’s time. If it’s too early, nothing can make it happen. When God’s time arrives, nothing can stop it.

Sodom and Gomorrah – Genesis 18

Abraham bargained with God (Ge. 18:23-32) by asking “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right (Ge. 18:25)?” This teaches us to mention God’s Word when we pray for Him to fulfil His promises.

Lot didn’t want to leave the city; his sons in law would not leave. His wife turned back and died.

Isaac (the miracle baby)

He was born long after his mother was too old to bear a child (Ge. 18:11). The experience with Hagar showed both Abraham and Sarah that it was not a good idea to try to get ahead of God’s plan. They had finally learned to let God direct their path, but conflict between Jews descended from Isaac and Palestinians descended from Ishmael continues to this day.

Life of Isaac

Mt. Moriah where God told Abraham to sacrifice is son Isaac as a burnt offering, God provided a lamb (Ge. 22). Abraham did not want Isaac to marry a local woman so he sent his servant to bring back a wife from someone in Abraham’s family.

Rebekah agreed to marry Isaac without meeting him. Giving herself to a man humbles a woman (De. 21:14, 22:29, Ez. 22:10-11). This can cause such powerful emotional reactions that losing her independence can be frightening, particularly if she hasn’t been warned.

We know that Rebecca had been warned because she veiled herself before meeting him (Ge. 24:64-65). It wasn’t the custom to veil women or Isaac wouldn’t have told her to say that she was his sister (Ge. 26:7). Why did she put on the veil? She’d been told that Isaac had plans and that his agenda would have a powerful emotional effect on her. She covered herself to get a little space.

The Bible teaches short engagements. Rebekah was engaged when she left Padan Aram to go to Canaan to marry Isaac but they hadn’t met so they weren’t tempted. He took her to wife a few hours after they met (Genesis 24:65-67). When David sent messengers to Abigail to “take her to wife,” she “hasted” after David’s messengers and “became his wife” (I Samuel 25:42).

Why do we ask our children to burn for months before they marry? We’re supposed to let them marry when they can’t contain (1 Cor. 7:9), making them wait when they’re in the same college or are able to get together easily is against the Word of God (Acts 15:10)! Protecting them is their parents’ job. No college can do this for their students.

Rebekah had a hard time becoming pregnant. Isaac had to pray to God for her to conceive (Ge. 25:21) even though God had promised him a child through his wife. This confirms the power and necessity of prayer.

How Marriage Works

His marriage shows how God-ordained marriage should work:

And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. Genesis 24:67

· Isaac supplied the tent. If a man’s offer to a woman doesn’t include food, clothing and shelter for her and her children, it isn’t Biblical.

· Marriage requires a vow and a taking. Isaac promised to marry whomever Abraham’s servant brought back and Rebekah promised to marry Isaac. They were married when he took her to wife.

· Isaac loved her and then she comforted him. God made women to be of great comfort to their husbands, but a wife cannot comfort her husband as God expects unless he first convinces her that he loves her as God expects of him as taught in the Song of Solomon.

Lack of Faith?

Like his father Abraham, Isaac had to travel to Gerar to escape a famine and feared that he would be killed for Rebekah’s sake. The local ruler wasn’t any happier about this deception than Pharaoh had been:

And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us. Genesis 26:10

Raping an unmarried woman would have been a light moment of pleasure because she had no right to her own body. Rebekah was married, so her rapist would have been guilty of a crime against her husband.

When Isaac asked his father about the lamb for the burnt offering, Abraham told him that God would provide (Gen 22:7-8). Isaac and Ishmael knew each other (Gen. 25:9), so Isaac knew the story.

Isaac knew that God’s promise was to be fulfilled through Rebekah his wife. Could it be that he knew that God would protect Rebekah as God had protected Sarah from Pharaoh? Did he expect to gain from the transaction as Abraham had gained (Gen. 26:11-16)?

Lessons for Today

A woman has to understand that although there are exceptions, a man will tend to take having sex with her very lightly unless he becomes emotionally involved with her, commits himself to her, and marries her before taking her. If she lets him have her before marrying her, he tends not to value her as much as she wants him to.

After Ruth asked Boaz to marry her, Naomi gave Ruth the best advice on getting married there is:

Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day. Ruth 3:18

A man will marry if he wants a woman badly enough and marriage is the only way he can have her. Giving a man rest outside of marriage is risky. Genesis 34 tells how Shechem raped Dinah, Jacob’s daughter, but fell in love with her and wanted very much to marry her.

On the other hand, 2 Samuel 13 tells how David’s son Amnon raped David’s daughter Tamar but hated her afterward and wanted nothing to do with her. Although David was angry and Moses law required that Amnon marry Tamar (Deu. 22:28-29), David did nothing about it. Absalom later murdered Amnon, and David did nothing about that. It seems that having multiple wives gave David more children than he was able to bring up in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).

Jacob

God promised that Jacob would continue the seed promise. God chose Jacob over his older brother Esau while they were both in the womb (Mal. 1:2, Ro. 9:13). They were fighting before they were born (Ge. 25:22).

Bought the birthright

Esau did not value his birthright so Jacob bought it (Ge. 25:29-34). God had promised it to Jacob, but Jacob did not trust God to just give it to him and tried to get it through lying cleverness. This showed lack of faith on his part and on his mother’s part.

Steals his father’s blessing from his brother Esau

Instead of learning from the trouble Abraham brought on himself by having a son by another wife, Isaac favored Esau even though God had told him Jacob was the chosen son. Rebekah favored Jacob (Ge. 25:28).

Rebekah did not trust God enough to speak with her husband about blessing Jacob as God had said or to let God remind Isaac that God had chosen Jacob. She decided to “help” God by helping Jacob steal the blessing through subtlety and lies. She told Jacob she would accept blame for whatever happened (Ge. 27:13).

What should she have done? Just prayed? If she prayed, should she have reminded God about His promise as Abraham reminded God of God’s concern for justice when arguing against destroying Sodom (Ge. 18:25)? Should she have talked to her husband about what God had said as Sapphira should have reminded her husband that lying to God wasn’t a good idea (Acts 5)?

Abraham and Sarah didn’t trust God for an heir, Hagar’s descendants have fought with Abraham’s descendants ever since. Rebekah’s scheme to steal the blessing worked in that Isaac blessed Jacob and God fulfilled His promise that His chosen people would come through Jacob, but Rebekah never saw her son again after he left to keep Esau from murdering him and Esau’s descendants fought Jacob’s descendants until Esau’s line died out. What should Rebekah have done?

This is a common dilemma –when do we leave things to God and when do we put “feet to our prayers” by taking action? God counts on His people to spread the Gospel so we are involved in advancing His program, but we must do it as He commands. If we can’t find people who will listen to the Gospel, shouldn’t we remind God that Jesus told us that the fields are white unto the harvest (Jn. 4:35), and ask Him to direct us to people who are ready to hear what God has given us to say about Him?

Jacob with Laban

Jacob meets his match in trickery (Ge. 29:25). Should he have been content with Leah? Leah was buried in the family tomb (Ge. 35:19, 49:31); Rachel was buried along the road. Whose life demonstrated faith in God, Leah (Ge. 29:31-35) or Rachel (Ge. 31:34-35)? Did God make a mistake in letting Laban trick Jacob? Or did God know the character of the two sisters and know which woman would make the best wife for Jacob?

And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul. Psalm 106:15

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ⁶In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

God doesn’t always direct our paths in the way we want Him to direct. Jacob got the woman he wanted, but did having 4 wives lead to peace in Jacob’s home? God protected him from Laban’s trickery and changing his wages (Ge. 31:7-9). God later protected him by telling Laban to leave him alone (Ge. 31:29). Shouldn’t Jacob have trusted God to choose his wife?

Jacob believes in Jehovah

Jacob wrestles with God (Ge. 32:24-32). This seems to have made him more willing to let God direct his path than before.

Jacob returns and meets with Esau

Returning home brought Jacob fearful situations – he was afraid that Esau would want to murder him with his 400 men (Ge. 32:6). He sent presents and his wives ahead of him. God protected Jacob. He knew God would protect him from his wrestling match before meeting Esau and from God protecting him from Laban. Did Jacob sending all those presents to Esau to calm him show lack of faith? Or was it a good idea? Was he trying to give some of what he had stolen back to Esau?

Although Esau said he was glad to see Jacob and they got along well enough to bury their father Isaac together (Ge. 35:29) , Esau evidently didn’t tell his family that he had made up with his brother Jacob – their bitter enmity ran on for generations.

Joseph

Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob’s favorite wife. His brothers were very jealous of him. Any grandmother will tell you that favoring some of your children over the others is a good way to get all of them hating each other, sometimes to the point of murder.

Joseph sold by his brothers – Genesis 37:18-36

This taught him how to deal with betrayal and he may have realized how his behavior had made his brothers so jealous. He was the favorite son of his father because Jacob did not learn from the mistake his father Isaac had made in favoring Esau over Jacob and his mother favoring him (Ge. 25:28). God wrote details like this “for our learning. (Ro. 15:4)”

Joseph flees from sin – Genesis 39:7-20

Children have to be taught to work faithfully and hard; Joseph’s parents must have taught him to be a good steward. Learning how to manage Potiphar’s household affairs helped prepare him for managing the kingdom. He shows how to handle temptation (2 Tim. 2:22). Fleeing temptation makes tempters angry, which often leads to criticism and lies about you. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you,…. (Mt. 5:11)

Joseph in prison – Genesis 39:20-23

The jailer turned management of the jail over to Joseph; this continued his education in managing Egyptian affairs. God prepared him for his eventual post. He did right in the prison and it still went bad. The men he helped forgot him (Ge. 40:23); this shows that we must be patient when faced with the ingratitude of men. God remembered him; it was not yet God’s time for Joseph to get out of jail.

Joseph as Prime minister

Humble yourself before God and He will lift you up (Lk. 14:11). If Joseph had been bitter when he spoke to Pharaoh, would he have been promoted? Pharaoh probably asked the jailer about Joseph and got a good report.

Joseph filled Pharaoh’s grain storehouses by taking food from the farmers who grew it. During the famine, he sold it back to them and enslaved them as the property of Pharaoh when their money was gone. Rulers generally seek power over other people. Joseph’s strategy ended up with Pharaoh owning all the land which had previously been owned by the people who farmed it. Has anything in government changed?

Did Joseph managing the famine so that Pharaoh owned all the land of Egypt, all the animals, and all the people make it easier for the Egyptians to think in terms of enslaving the Jews a few generations later (Ex. 1:8-14)?

And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore, so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine. ¹⁴And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. ¹⁵And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth. ¹⁶And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail. ¹⁷And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year. ¹⁸When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands: ¹⁹Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate. ²⁰And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh's. Genesis 47:13-20

Joseph’s brothers come for food

What goes around, comes around. What his brothers meant as evil, God turned to good (Ge. 45:4). His brothers did not recognize him and did not know that this powerful Egyptian understood Hebrew.

Joseph reveals himself to his brothers

A family reunion (Ge 45:5-15). His brothers didn’t believe that Joseph had really forgiven them and were afraid of what he might do to them when their father Jacob died (Ge. 50:15-21).

Joseph meets Jacob

God brought them all down to Egypt for the start of a 400-year refining period for His people (Ge. 46:5). They multiplied from 70 to over a million (Ge. 46:26).

From the Patriarchs to the Exodus

They endured many generations of slavery in Egypt (Ex. 1:11). God had said He would call His people from Egypt. They multiplied greatly which made the Egyptians afraid of them (Ex. 1:9-12). When God blesses us, other people are jealous and accuse us of cheating. Giving God the glory instead of taking credit for our success may help.

Egyptian Bondage

This is a picture of bondage of Sin and a picture of the deliverance of redemption through faith in Christ.

The Rise of Moses

He was taken into Pharaoh’s house, raised with his children, given the best education of the time to prepare him to write the Pentateuch. Note that Pharaoh’s daughter knowingly disobeyed her father in saving Moses’ life (Ex. 1:22, 2:6). We don’t know whether she was married or not, but she got involved with this infant.

Moses could have stayed an Egyptian, but when he was 40, he took the side of his people, murdered an Egyptian (Ex. 2:12-13), and fled for his life (Ex. 2:13-15). It wasn’t God’s time yet. Why did he try then?

Moses’ Preparation for Leadership

Moses spent the next 40 years tending sheep (Ex. 3:1). Is managing sheep any easier than managing people? Moses knew he was to lead his people out of Egypt, but he tried to start doing it before God was ready. If he had waited, he could have stayed in Egyptian luxury instead of tending sheep. Don’t get ahead of God!

Nobody likes waiting, but before God’s time, nothing can make it happen. When God’s time comes, nothing can stop it. God offers rewards for waiting:

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Eagles soar without flapping their wings very much. They can’t just go wherever or whenever they want; they must wait to ride the winds God sends. There are few joys that match riding God’s winds when His time comes after years and years of faith-driven preparation!

Moses at the Burning Bush - Exodus 3, 4:1-17

Moses heard the call of God, but he gave many excuses. God said that Moses would be as God to Aaron. This helped Moses, but he paid a terrible price. When he delayed in coming down from the mountain, Aaron lost confidence and made the golden calf. If Aaron had had a relationship with God directly, Aaron might not have done that.

Moses Returns to Egypt - Exodus 4:19-31

Moses surrendered to God’s call, then went to face his own people. He was afraid that they would not accept him. The Egyptians who knew he had murdered were dead, but his people would remember.

The Plagues – Exodus 5-12

The plagues were the judgement of God. Pharaoh could have been a vessel of God’s blessing but he resisted too long. Once he had gone past the limit God had set, God hardened his heart and he became a vessel of God’s wrath. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found (Is. 55:6). Now is the time. Each plague shamed a different Egyptian god, showing that God is the only true God.

The Passover – Exodus 13

The Passover lamb was a symbol of the coming of the perfect lamb of sacrifice. The angel spared everyone in the house because of the shed blood on the door. Compare this symbol, which had to be repeated every year, to Christ, whose sacrifice ended the necessity of further sacrifices (Heb. 9:28, 10:10).

Leaving Egypt – Exodus 12, 14

Deliverance, the Egyptians thrust them out and gave them a lot of wealth (Ex. 12:36).

From the Exodus to Crossing the Jordan

They spent the next 40 years wandering in the wilderness. How did God feed and water so many people? Logistics studies have calculated how much water and food were needed.

The Red Sea to Sinai

Egyptian pursuit, fear, crossing the Red Sea, praise, complaining, the mount troubled (Ex. 19). Look at what happened when God sent Moses to lead His people out of Egypt. God rolled back the sea, they crossed, God let the sea come back and drowned the Egyptians. God gave them water to drink and manna to eat, and spoke to them out of the fire. What happened then? Moses went up Mt. Sinai to get the 10 commandments that were “written with the finger of God (Ex. 31:18).”

And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us, for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. Exodus 32:1

Did they give God the glory? Did they want to relate to God? No, they said, “this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt.” Moses was away, but was God gone? No, God’s everywhere, God was with them, but they couldn’t see God’s man, so they thought God was gone. Were they worshipping Moses? They asked Aaron to make an idol, Aaron did, and they worshipped the golden calf.

God’s people later decided not to talk to God. Sometime later, Moses reviewed what had happened:

And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth. Now therefore why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, then we shall die. For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our God shalt say: and speak thou unto us all that the LORD our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it and do it. Deuteronomy 5:24-27

They asked “who has heard the voice of God and lived?” What a silly question, they had heard the voice of God and lived, but they’d sinned in worshiping the golden calf. Like Adam, they could’ve asked God’s forgiveness for worshiping the golden calf. They wouldn’t humble themselves, God couldn’t lift them up, so they were afraid to talk to God. They told Moses to talk to God and tell them what God said.

Giving the Law – Exodus 20:3-17, Deut. 5:6-21

The first 2 of the 10 commandments are the greatest. Although we Christians are no longer under the law, all of these commands except for keeping Saturday as the day of rest have been stated in the New Testament as commands to Christians. If we try to live under Moses’ law, we lose the benefits of belonging to Christ (Gal. 5:4).

Many Christians make a big deal about putting the 10 commandments in schools. Is it a good idea to teach everyone, “thou shalt not kill”? The 10 commandments are the basis of civilization; no tribe or family can live without these laws: don’t kill each other, don’t mess with each other’s stuff, don’t mess with each other’s women, don’t lie about each other. No group can live in peace without these laws.

The Tabernacle – Exodus 35, 36

God can give extremely detailed commands when He finds it necessary. The furniture pictures salvation and redemption.

The Seven Feasts – Leviticus 23

There were four in the spring and three in the fall. God knows how easily we forget and commanded these feasts to remind people of what He had done for them. Christians celebrate the Lord’s Supper because He commanded “this do in remembrance of me (Lk. 22:19, 1 Cor. 11:24) so that we won’t forget.

God’s desire for His people to remember everything He told us doesn’t change, but He commands different ways to remind us at different times:

Pesach or Passover, the 14^th day of the first month, to remember God delivering His people from slavery in Egypt. The death of the lamb reminded them of the blood price that must be paid for sin.

Matza or Unleavened Bread, the 15^th day of the first month, to remember the hasty escape from Egypt and His provision of food for them as they traveled.

Yom Habikkurim or First Fruits, 15^th day of the first month, to celebrate God’s gift of the harvest.

Pentecost or Feast of Weeks, 50 days after Passover, to give thanks for the end of the harvest and to remember receiving Moses’ law.

Rosh Hashana or Trumpets, 1^st day of the 7^th month. It celebrates the beginning of the religious year, and helps prepare for God’s judgment.

Yom Kippur or Atonement 10^th day of the 7^th month. This was a day for the nation to seek forgiveness.

Sukkoth or Feast of Tabernacles 15^th day of the 7^th month. People were to build booths to sleep in to remind themselves of the years of wandering in the wilderness.

The Offerings

The people were commanded to offer the best that they had to God. These sacrifices did not offer a permanent cure for sin (Heb. 10:4). The permanent cure came with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

Because the sacrifices were burned, people were tempted to offer damaged animals instead of their best. Malachi criticized them for this:

A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? ⁷Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. ⁸And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. Malachi 1:6-8

Sinai to Kadesh-Barnea – Num. 13:26, Deu. 9:23

Complaint (Ex. 16:8-9, 12, 17:3), unbelief, fear, and rejection of God’s promise to give them the victory. Rebellion when God said they had to wander in the wilderness, failure to conquer without God’s help.

Forty Years of Wandering

The punishment for unbelief was wandering in the desert until all the men of 20 years or older had died and been replaced (Num. 14:29). Biblical figures for population growth show that about 300 babies were born each day during those 40 years. How did they have so many babies when they were wandering?

The Death of Moses - Deuteronomy 32:48-52

A man of God goes home, Satan and Michael fought over his body, he paid heavily for not obeying God precisely (De. 34:4) but God had preserved his health throughout his life (De. 34:7). God gave him much and expected obedience in detail. God told Moses to “smite the rock” the first time the people needed water:

Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. Exodus 17:6

God later told Moses to speak to the rock. Moses was angry at the people and smote the rock instead:

Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. ⁹And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him. ¹⁰And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? ¹¹And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. Numbers 20:8-11

No matter how hard a time we have or how frustrated we get, God expects us to obey Him in detail. He expects us to keep our tempers and rule our emotions:

He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls. Proverbs 25:28

And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, ²⁵In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; II Timothy 2:24-25

No Christians should ever hurl angry words at anyone else – that’s reserved for 2 or 3 year olds.

the Jordan to the Reign of Saul

Rahab told Joshua’s spies that everyone in the land knew that God had blessed them and given them the victory over the Egyptians (Jos. 2:9-11). Was this like God putting fear into Laban so that he would not hurt Jacob?

Joshua

Joshua 1 and Joshua 24:15 show that Joshua was faithful to God for his entire life, but his faithfulness wasn’t passed on.

And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel. Judges 2:10

Joshua’s successors didn’t remind their children as God expected:

And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. Deuteronomy 6:7

God created feasts to remind them but they forgot anyway. Did they worship at the feasts, or just party? Once they had land, houses, and flocks, did they remember the God who had given them all these things? Are we any better at remembering God’s generosity to us?

Moses warned that the Jews would be carried into captivity unless they loved God with grateful hearts with thanks for everything He gave them:

Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things; ⁴⁸Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee. Deuteronomy 28:47-48

God’s People didn’t appreciate the blessings He had given them, so He took everything away. We often take His gifts for granted. “We never miss the water ‘til the well runs dry.” Strive for an Attitude of gratitude!

Jericho – Joshua 2, 6

Rahab believed, was joined to God’s people, and married into the line of Christ. The walls of Jericho came tumbling down (Jos. 6:5). Achan was punished for taking what belonged to God (Jos. 7:1) and his sin in the camp led the Israelites to defeat.

Individualistic Americans are unaccustomed to thinking in terms of collective responsibility, but that is taught by the prayers of Daniel (Dan. 9:4-19) and Nehemiah (Neh. 1:5-11) who confessed their own personal part in all the sins of all the earlier generations.

Defeat at Ai – Joshua 7:1-6

Their first attack failed due to not asking God’s help and because of sin in the camp. They suffered from overconfidence in their own strength instead of relying on God, just as Moses failed when he tried to free his people in his own strength without involving God.

The Conquest of the Land of Canaan

They enjoyed a victorious life when they obeyed and suffered defeat when they did not. Did they conquer all of the land? Ever?

The Repeated Cycle in the Book of Judges

Sin, defeat, slavery, supplication, salvation, then forgetting God and going back into sin. The usual period of rest was 40 years (Judges 3:11, 5:31, 8:28, 13:1), which was long enough for the people who remembered God’s victory to die without teaching their children. God summed up the period:

In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. Judges 21:25

Gideon

Gideon was afraid when God first approached him. He persisted in unbelief in spite of a victory over Baal (Jud. 6:30-32). He put out a fleece to test God (Jud. 6:36-40) not once, but twice. He had not learned that willingness is all that God requires of His servants:

And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. I Chronicles 28:9

For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not. II Corinthians 8:12

Gideon was weak but God could use him once he was willing:

But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; I Corinthians 1:27

God had him send away most of his army and kept only 300 men to show that God can give victory even to very few of His people. Although it is comforting to have others have the same desires we do, God does not need numbers to answer our prayers. One man and God make a majority:

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. ¹⁷Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. James 5:16b-17

Each of Gideon’s 300 men had 2 pitchers which concealed torches. They broke the pitchers to show their torches and gave a mighty shout in the night. Torches and the shout made the enemy think of many men. They thought they were surrounded by a larger army and ran away.

Some tribes were jealous of Gideon’s victory, but he used soft words to turn away their anger (Jud. 8:1-3). The people did not treat his family well after he died – they followed a son of one of his concubines who killed all but one of his 70 sons (Jud. 9:5).

How many Christians fail to start doing something for God because they don’t think they have everything the job will take? If there first be a willing mind…

Don’t worry about what you don’t have, just put out a fleece by starting. If it’s God’s will, God will give you what you need to get the job done as with Gideon, but you can’t do it in your own strength. You must give God the glory every step of the way and follow His leading or it won’t work. He is the head of the church and none other.

Samson

Samson won victories for God but was led astray by the lusts of his flesh. Remember, God may interact with a woman instead of with her husband!

Judges 13 tells how an angel told Manoah’s barren wife that she would bear a son who would be dedicated as a Nazarite from birth. That meant he was not supposed to cut his hair. The angel also told her that her son would free Israel from the Philistines.

Her husband didn’t believe her and asked the angel to come and tell him. The angel came, but once again addressed the woman while her husband wasn’t with her. She told her husband, who came and asked the angel what they were supposed to do for the child.

And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware. ¹⁴She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe. Judges 13:13-14

Pilate’s wife tried to warn him about a vision God sent her:

When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. Matthew 27:19

Have men become any better at listening when women speak of what God has told them?

Samson’s Temptation

Samson should have had nothing to do with a Philistine woman (Jud. 14:3), but he ignored his parent’s advice let his temptations rule him.

His experience with Delilah teaches an important lesson about men and women. Women expect their husbands to belong to them (Song 2:16, 6:3). Samson wouldn’t give his heart to Delilah:

And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? Judges 16:15a

Samson told her he loved her but he didn’t open his heart to her. He wasn’t hers. He said he loved her, he took her, but he wasn’t hers, he betrayed her. Many women have the same experience:

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. Proverbs 23:7

A man can buy food for a woman without giving his heart to her. Having taken Delilah, Samson scorned her by refusing to open his heart to her even after she asked him to. There’s a saying, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” we all know what she did after he scorned her.

Given that he wouldn’t belong to her, what good was Samson to her? Why not make some money selling him to the Philistines and become a national hero by helping them conquer one of their worst enemies?

There are many songs about “stand by your man.” Would Delilah have betrayed Samson if he’d been hers? What she did wasn’t nice, but who betrayed the other first?

Samuel

He was a prophet of God. His mother asked him of the Lord (1 Sam. 1:10-17). God spoke to him from his youth. He saw the example of Eli, but his sons did not follow God any better than Eli’s sons had.

The Book of Ruth – a Biblical Romance

Many sermons present Boaz as a type of Christ who redeemed Ruth, who was not of God’s people, into the body of believers. Boaz had nothing to do with Ruth joining God’s people; Ruth chose to follow God for herself before she met him. This is what Ruth said when Naomi told her to go back to her parents:

And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Ruth 1:16

Ruth accepted God in the New Testament manner; salvation is always by grace through faith:

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10:10

This wasn’t “easy believism.” Ruth not only talked the talk of following God, she walked the walk from Moab to Israel. Boaz wasn’t involved in her salvation or redemption; she chose to follow God.

Rahab the Harlot believed in God and is another foreign woman who became part of the line of Christ. God accepts all who call on Him:

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6

Naaman the Syrian swore allegiance to the LORD and sought Him through “two mules' burden of earth”:

And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD. II Kings 5:17

Ruth chose to follow God based on Naomi’s testimony. Naaman was harder to convince – he rejected Elisha’s instructions to bathe in the Jordan until his servants persuaded him:

And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? I I Kings 5:13

Naaman would gladly have done “some great thing;” works-based salvation comes naturally to fallen human beings. Salvation through faith and faith alone is hard to accept because like Naaman, most people would rather earn their way into heaven than admit that they can’t be good enough to satisfy God.

Naaman didn’t fully understand God’s free gift of salvation, of course. When Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, sought to profit by asking Naaman for a gift, Naaman thought that he was buying Elisha’s services in curing him (2 Kings 5:23). We don’t know whether Naaman learned that Gehazi was stricken with leprosy (2 Kings 5:27) as punishment for selling God’s services, but it was written down for our learning.

Casting Boaz as Ruth’s redeemer makes him the main character, but it’s the Book of Ruth, not the Book of Boaz. With Ruth as the main character, it reads as a romance novel - poverty stricken widow goes to a strange land to draw nigh to God (Jam. 4:8), works hard, marries a rich guy, becomes the great-grandmother of King David, and is listed in the genealogy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Mt. 1:5).

Ruth’s book also explains how an older woman instructed Ruth to help her get into a sound marriage. Naomi’s advice how to get married takes up a major part of the book whereas the older woman’s advice to her daughter how to stay married takes only one verse (Song 8:3).

Naomi gave the woman’s view of marriage as she told her daughters to go back to their families:

The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Ruth 1:9a

Women are smaller and weaker than men. In a society with no “safety net,” wives depend on husbands for food. Naomi wanted her daughters to have food, clothing, and shelter, to be sure, but she also wanted them to find comfort, rest, contentment, and security in knowing that they were valued and appreciated by their husbands as taught in the Song of Solomon. Many women experience this instead:

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. Proverbs 23:7

A man can buy food for a woman without giving his heart to her. Naomi wanted her daughters to find appreciative husbands who liked nourishing and cherishing them.

Experience shows that 80-90% of how a marriage works depends on how a man treats his wife, but 80% of that depends on how she sets her value by her conduct before marriage (Pr. 31:10). A man who thinks he might want to marry a good woman should think about how Boaz honored Ruth so that she wanted to marry him. A woman who wants to marry should consider Ruth’s Rules for marriage:

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God (Mt. 6:33)

Naomi’s testimony convinced Ruth that it was better to have God and no husband than a husband and no God. Naomi warned Ruth that she wouldn’t find a husband in Israel - Jews disliked Moabites. Since Ruth had no family in Israel, not having a husband risked starvation – there was no guarantee that any of Naomi’s relatives would feed Ruth because of her husband’s marriage to a non-Jew. Ruth’s faith was strong indeed, that’s one reason Boaz appreciated her.

Go where your husband goes

This is what Ruth said when Naomi told her to go back to her parents:

And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: ¹⁷Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me. Ruth 1:16-17

When Rebekah’s family asked if she was willing to travel far from home to be Isaac’s wife, she said, “I will go (Gen. 24:58).”

A woman should look in a mirror and watch herself say Ruth’s vow over and over while thinking about him. If she can’t promise it from the bottom of her heart, if she isn’t eager to be the tail on his kite, if his kite has no string, or if she isn’t eager to follow him wherever he goes all her days, don’t marry him.

How many wives wanted to spend 6 months heading west in a covered wagon? God expects you to go where your husband goes, so it’s on you to wait for a man who will lead you gently where God wants you to go.

Be Sure He Gives You Rest Ruth 1:9

Boaz gave Ruth rest the day they met. He fed her, gave her water when told that Ruth was a hard worker, and honored her walk with God:

Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens: let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn. Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger? Ruth 2:8-10

Boaz was kind to Ruth, he told the young men to leave her alone, and she asked why. Smart woman, Ruth, when a man’s nice to a woman, it’s a good idea to find out why, particularly when he tells other men to leave her alone. Ruth needed to know what Boaz had in mind, so she asked. Instead of ignoring her as men often do when women ask “Why?” he opened his heart, he told her why:

And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust. Ruth 2:11-12

Boaz cared for Ruth because she had shown salvation by trusting God enough to travel to a strange land where she had no hope of marrying. He respected her character; he valued her trust in God. That’s Biblical:

Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised. Proverbs 31:30

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

Why did Ruth go with Naomi after being told she wouldn’t find a husband? Ruth sought the kingdom of God first; it’s no surprise that all these things were added unto her.

Don’t Play Hard to Get, Be Hard to Get

When Ruth told everything that happened at the harvest party (Ru. 3:16), Naomi gave the best possible advice on getting married.

Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day. Ruth 3:18

Men haven’t changed since Boaz or since Adam. There’s a saying, “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that zing!” What’s the zing that makes marriage happen? The man can’t rest. If he has rest, why marry? If he can have her without marrying her, what would marriage give him that he doesn’t have? Why take the responsibility?

A woman must say, “Not unless we’re married, and I won’t marry you unless you grow up and get a job.” A man will marry if he wants her badly enough and marriage is the only way he can have her.

Some say that Ruth and Boaz were naughty out in the field when it was so dark that no one could know another (Ru. 3:14). That’s silly. If she’d given him rest, Boaz would have had no reason to run out the next morning and marry her (Ruth 4:4-5).

Get Advice from a Godly Grandmother

Ruth had been married, she knew what men were all about, but she took Naomi’s advice. Naomi told Ruth when to plant, that is, glean with Boaz; Naomi told Ruth when to pluck up that which was planted by crashing the party. Women need advice about men; they often mess up on their own.

When Naomi told Ruth to go to Boaz’ party without an invitation, Naomi told Ruth to dress up:

Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, Ruth 3:3a

Boaz showed that he respected Ruth the day they met, then it was OK for Ruth to look her best. Girls, it’s a bad idea to do anything special to attract a man’s attention at the beginning. Suppose it works, then what? What’ll you do when you’re too busy, or too tired, or too pregnant to do whatever attracted him? Unless a man comes after you the way God made you, God may not want to give you to him.

If you worry too much about your looks, a man can win your heart by saying you look good. Don’t we talk about a man “feeding her a line?” Seek to put on a meek and quiet spirit. A meek and quiet spirit is of great price in the eyes of God (I Peter 3:4), and the right man treasures it too.

Make Sure He Opens His Heart to You

It’s frightening for a man to open his heart to a woman so God wrote that it’s safe if he finds a virtuous woman:

The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:11-12

When Boaz opened his heart to Ruth and praised her Godliness, Ruth knew he respected her and valued her. He told the young men not to mess with her, he protected her, he gave her water and lunch, he provided for her; she began to rest near him and stayed with his people all through the harvest. He appreciated her asking for his coat and wanting him to keep her warm when she knew that winter was coming:

And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman. Ruth 3:10

Boaz was glad she wanted him to marry her. Why her? For her virtue, her character, everybody knew she was a virtuous woman. Boaz was a man of wealth; don’t you think other women were interested in him? Boaz knew Ruth “followedst not young men” she wasn’t dating around. Boaz knew Ruth sought God. God made women for men. Boaz knew that a woman who works hard, acts modestly, and seeks God makes a very good wife.

It didn’t occur to Boaz to marry her, but when she gave him the idea, he thought it was such a good idea that he hustled out and married her the very next day, just as Naomi had said. You’ll want to get to know a man, of course, but it’s a good idea to tell him up front that you want to marry and ask him to agree that the purpose of being together is to decide whether you and he will marry.

If a man won‘t agree to consider marrying a woman who tells him she wants to be God’s treasure for her husband, there’s no reason to date him at all. Why waste your time? Why risk the right man seeing you occupied with a loser and not pursue you?

The Reign of Saul

God’s people wanted a king in order to be like the nations and rejected God’s rule (1 Sam. 8:7). They had a point in that neither Eli’s sons nor Samuel’s sons had made good judges, but they didn’t realize that a king might be no better at training his sons than Samuel or Eli.

Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, ⁵And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. ⁶But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD. ⁷And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. I Samuel 8:4-7

The people persisted in wanting a king in spite of Samuel warning them of all the costs and burdens they would have to pay (1 Sam. 8:11-18). His warning should sound familiar to us. It ended on a sour note:

And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day. I Samuel 8:18

Is our government any better in terms of taking away our labor and our liberties? This is another example of God allowing people to choose to go their own way, but as always, they had to bear the consequences:

And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul. Psalm 106:15

Saul Becomes King

He was a handsome man of great potential (1 Sam. 9:2). The spirit of God was upon him and he prophesied (1 Sam. 10:11-12).

Saul’s Rejection as King

Saul rejected the word of God so God rejected him. If he had obeyed, God would have established his line instead of David’s. There are consequences for disobedience. Do we pay for our sins?

And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. I Samuel 13:13

Saul and Agag – 1 Samuel 15:8-23

Saul did not follow God’s command; Samuel had told Saul that God wanted Saul to kill Agag and he did not. That moment of unrepentant disobedience was when Saul was finally rejected. The kingly line would have stayed with his family if he had obeyed.

This conditional “Saulic covenant” did not come to pass. Moses foretold this. Saul should have had a handwritten copy of the law to remind him of the conditions God set for his family keeping the kingdom:

And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: ¹⁹And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: ²⁰That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. Deuteronomy 17:18-20

Saul’s heart was lifted above his brethren, he disobeyed God, and God took the kingdom from him. Eleven chapters later, Moses said in chapter 28 that the people staying in the land was conditioned on their obedience to the law God had given Moses God had Samuel repeat the warning before they insisted on having a king:

But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king. I Samuel 12:25

The Reign of David

Knowing that God had rejected him in favor of David, Saul was jealous of David and tried to kill him. Could Saul have overcome God’s purpose with respect to David once God had made up His mind?

David and Goliath – 1^st Samuel 17

This story is usually told as an account of a young man winning a battle through faith in God and better tactics, but there are other ways to see it.

And Jesse said unto David his son, Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp of thy brethren; ¹⁸And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge. I Samuel 17:17-18

This is a lesson in schmoozing the boss. Jesse wanted David to give 10 cheeses to the “captain of their thousand,” which would be a Lieutenant Colonel in the American army. Jesse wants his sons to get in good with their commanding officer. Do people play politics today? Jesse also sends along some home cooking because he suspects that Army chow isn’t very good. Where would he get that idea?

It can also be read as a story in family interaction and sibling rivalry. His brothers were angry about his coming to the camp even though their father had told him to come:

And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle. ²⁹And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause? I Samuel 17:28-29

When Samuel came to anoint one of Jesse’s sons to be King, he at first thought that Eliab was God’s chosen, but God had rejected Eliab (1 Sam. 16:7). Eliab had seen Samuel reject all of his other brothers and anoint David to be king (1 Sam. 16:13). What was Eliab thinking? If you knew that your younger brother was going to be King, President, or Prime Minister, wouldn’t you try to treat him kindly?

This is also a story of interaction between an army and a civilian who completed a contract to perform a service for the Government. David wanted to know what the reward would be for killing the giant:

And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God? ²⁷And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him. I Samuel 17:26-27

Having entered into the contract, David used only one of the 5 stones he’s picked up. He performed on time, under budget, and he didn’t get paid. Relations between Armies and civilians have been difficult throughout history. Has human nature changed? Only the technology. There couldn’t be much paperwork when writing by hand on clay tablets or parchments. In a modern army, David would need a stack of paperwork at least as tall as Goliath, and even then, he might not get paid.

David was told that the king would give his daughter to anyone who killed Goliath (I Samuel 17:25). Joshua 15:16 and Judges 1:12-13 tell of another father promising to give his daughter in marriage to a man who did something difficult. Is this a good deal for the girl?

Suppose some guy runs off and does the heroic deed. If her father’s honest, if her father honors his offer to the hero, he tells her, “You’re marrying this guy tomorrow.” A girl couldn’t eat unless some man fed her, there was no welfare, women weren’t strong enough to farm or hunt without machinery.

Although women were expected to do an immense amount of work guiding the house, preparing and preserving food, there were no paying jobs by which women could support themselves. If she’s smart enough to be obedient, she marries the guy sight unseen, or she’ll starve when her father dies and can no longer feed her.

David and Jonathan

This is an example of friendship, fidelity, and conspiring against Jonathan’s father. Jonathan’s sister Michael also knew that David would be king; she fell in love with him, and wanted to marry him. Saul told David that he could marry her if he brought him trophies from 100 dead Philistines. David brought him trophies from 200 dead Philistines and married Michael (1 Sam. 18:25-28). David eventually got to marry the king’s daughter but he had to do another heroic deed.

David on the Run

David did not kill Saul when he had two opportunities (1 Sam. 24:2-22). Saul said that David was a better man than he and swore that he would stop trying to kill David. David didn’t trust him and stayed in hiding; God gave him another chance to kill Saul which he rejected (1 Sam. 26:5-25).

David knew that God had chosen Saul to be king and that God had abandoned Saul because of his sin, but David also knew that God didn’t need any help clearing Saul out of the way so that David could be king. God taught David extremely valuable lessons during his time of running from Saul. We must wait for God’s time:

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Eagles soar without having to flap their wings much, but an eagle must wait for God to send a wind in the right direction. Moses didn’t want to wait to free his people so he murdered an Egyptian. Instead of waiting 40 years in the luxury of Egypt, Moses waited 40 years tending sheep on the back side of the desert.

Nothing can make it happen before God’s time. When God’s time comes, nothing can stop it. There are few joys that compare with soaring on God’s wind when we’ve waited many years in preparation.

David would have murdered Nabal except for Abigail, Nabal’s wife (1 Sam 25). She criticized her husband so sweetly that David married Abigail as soon as he had the opportunity.

Saul took Michael, David’s wife, and gave her to Phalti the son of Laish, which was of Gallim (1 Sam. 25:44). She had 5 sons whom David later killed (2 Sam. 21:1-10). Politics was a blood sport – choosing the wrong side was usually fatal. Are we any more civilized today?

David as King

He conquered Jerusalem and became king there. He didn’t offer his daughter in marriage to whomever took the city (2 Sam. 5:8, 1 Chr. 11:6). It doesn’t seem that he had any daughters who were old enough to marry.

David moved the Ark of God without asking God how to do it and Uzza died (2 Sam. 6:1-10). He later moved it properly. As with Moses, God expects His people to study so that we know how to obey in detail.

Although David accumulated gold and other materials to build the temple in Jerusalem, God did not let him build the temple because he was a man of war (1 Chronicles 17:4-12).

David’s Sins and their Consequences

David committed serous sins, but because he confessed and asked forgiveness, God said repeatedly that David was a man after God’s own heart. God forgives our sins completely if we confess. David’s family kept the kingdom because he confessed his sin and did his best to obey.

Ephesians 4:31-32 tells Christians to forgive each other as God forgives. God forgives completely; He forgets your sins (Ps. 103:12, Is. 43:25, Hebrews 10:17, Eph. 5:25-27). When God washes away your sins (Hebrews 9:14, 10:19-22), what’s left is perfect. Ephesians 5:1 commands, “Be ye therefore followers of God.” God treats you as perfect, so you must follow God and treat your spouse as perfect.

God doesn’t change (Mal. 3:6) so His offer to forgive our confessed sins and to clean us from “all iniquity (Hos. 14:2)” have always been available. What would have happened if Adam had confessed his sin instead of blaming Eve? How did that work out for him? Do men still tend to blame their wives when things go wrong?

Adultery and Murder

David should have been with the army. He saw a woman, got her pregnant, and murdered her husband to keep the secret, but God knew.

David knew he was wrong to commit adultery and get Bathsheba pregnant. He thought that murdering her husband would cover his sin. Sin cannot be hidden from God. God preserved the story for our learning. God also told Nathan the prophet. Nathan charged David with the sin:

And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. II Samuel 12:13

The Davidic covenant was as conditional as the Saulic covenant. If David had not confessed, God would have given the kingdom to someone else (I Sam. 12:25). Some scholars believe that the Davidic covenant was unconditional because of this passage:

And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. ¹⁴I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: ¹⁵But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. ¹⁶And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. II Samuel 7:12-16

That sounds unconditional, but God said that in Second Samuel, an entire book later than David’s confession and repentance described in First Samuel. When God said that, David had humbled himself enough to repent his sin and confess to God and to Nathan. God’s statement meant that David had fulfilled the conditions of the covenant. How many Christians fulfil God’s conditions of salvation or marriage?

David’s rule was interrupted during the captivity, but it will be restored when Christ, who was born from David’s line, returns and rules the nations with a rod of iron (Ps. 2:9, Rev. 2:27, 12:5, 19:15)

Numbering the People – 2 Samuel 24, 1 Chronicles 21

David wanted to know how the size, and thus the military power, of his kingdom compared to the nations round about. His men told him not to do it, but he ignored their advice, unlike the time he had consulted his leaders about moving the ark. Satan manipulating David is like Peter being sifted (Lu. 22:31). Be not ignorant of Satan’s devices!

God offered David a choice of punishments; he chose to be punished by God instead of being punished by other nations. Many died so his count was no longer worth anything. God brings our efforts to naught whenever what we try to do is against His purposes.

David and Absalom

David was too busy being King to be any better at fathering his children than Samuel or Eli had been. His oldest son Amnon (2 Sam. 3:2) raped Absolom’s sister Tamar (2 Sam. 13) and David did nothing, even though Moses’ law required Amnon to marry Tamar and care for her because he had raped her (Deu. 22:28-29).

A woman’s only protection was the men of a rape victim’s family avenging the attack on her by killing the rapist (Gen. 34:25-31). The command in Moses law for the rapist to marry the girl instead of being killed was a step toward reducing violence in society (Deu. 22:28-29).

As both king and as father of the rape victim, David should have forced Amnon to marry Tamar. He ignored the matter as Jacob would have preferred to ignore the rape of his daughter Dinah (Gen. 34:30).

When David did nothing, the duty of revenge fell to Absalom as revenging Dinah’s rape had fallen to her brothers. Absalom murdered Amnon and David treated it lightly (2 Sam. 13:32).

David’s Inaction

There may be another reason for David’s inaction besides being too busy to be an active father. It had become known that David had committed adultery with Bathsheeba and murdered her husband so he could have her. If he criticized Amnon for raping Tamar or Absalom for murdering Amnon, his sons would throw his crimes in his face.

How many Christian parents fail to warn their children about sins they committed? This appears to be particularly common with sexual sins, but parental silence makes it likely that their iniquities will be visited upon their children (Exo. 20:5, 34:7, Num. 14:18, Deu. 5:9).

We need to confess our failures as parents and as a society with respect to sexual morality. Daniel (Dan. 9:4-19) and Nehemiah (Neh. 1:5-11) show how it’s done – they confessed their own personal part in all the sins of all the earlier generations which had caused the captivity.

After his murder of Amnon was treated lightly, Absalom worked to get people on his side against David and David did nothing (2 Sam. 15). Sin grows, particularly when authorities like governors, pastors, or fathers don’t do anything about it.

David’s Foreign Wife

David never rebuked or criticized his son Adonijah, who tried to steal the kingdom from Solomon as David lay dying (1 Kings 1).

Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. ⁶And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bare him after Absalom. I Kings 1:5-6

What did their mother Maacah, the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur (2 Sam. 3:3), teach while their father neglected them? Was it a good idea for David to marry a woman who was not of God’s people? Neither of her sons turned out well. David should have known better than to marry a non-Jew; it had been treated as a capital crime in the days of Moses:

And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. ⁷And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; ⁸And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. Numbers 25:6-8

We criticize Solomon for marrying foreign wives who turned his heart away from God, but his father David set him an example of doing it:

For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. I Kings 11:4

Are modern Christians any better at keeping marriages pure?

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? II Corinthians 6:14

David did give his son Solomon some good advice:

And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. I Chronicles 28:9

There is a lesson in David’s advice to Solomon for all of us:

For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not. II Corinthians 8:12

No matter how much your parents, teachers, pastors, or bosses yearn for you to learn, they can’t teach you unless you’re willing to learn. It’s a waste of time for them to want you to have knowledge any more than you want it for yourself.

If you’re willing to serve God, don’t worry about what you don’t have, just start! Find someone who is serving God and help him or her. God will accept what you have and give you more as you show yourself to be a worthy steward of what God gave you at the beginning:

Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. I Corinthians 4:2

Serve God faithfully with what you have, and God will give you more.

The Reign of Solomon

Solomon’s years of obedience brought the peak of Israel’s wealth and Solomon’s extravagance and idolatry split the kingdom after he died.

Solomon’s Good Beginning:

Solomon asked for wisdom instead of asking for wealth or power, God gave him a double measure of both.

Now, O LORD God, let thy promise unto David my father be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude. ¹⁰Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great? ¹¹And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king: II Chronicles 1:9-11

God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore. I Kings 4:29

We should all ask God for wisdom to better serve Him:

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. James 1:5

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

Solomon Builds the Temple

Lily work (1 Kings 7:19, 22) meant doing a good job even when people will never see it, doing as unto the Lord regardless of men. These carvings were so high up in the temple that nobody could see them without a ladder, but the workers knew that God could see them and would be pleased. Solomon spent 7 years building the temple (1 Kings 6:37-38) and 13 years building his own house (1 Kings 7:1).

Solomon Leads the Nation in Worship and Praise

Solomon spoke of the importance of worship and the importance of obeying God. After he finished building the temple, God appeared to Solomon “by night” and gave him God’s unchanging formula how a nation must feel the punishment of God strongly enough to repent from falling away from God to return to His path:

And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; ¹⁴If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. II Chronicles 7:13-14

Revival has nothing to do with lost people, it’s up to God’s people to repent, accept guilt for the sins which have spread through society, and start obeying God themselves. Lost people will see Christians sharing God’s grace and forgiveness and want some of His grace for themselves. We must tell them how to get it, of course.

We claim to be Christians, which literally means, “Follower of the Savior of the World.” Have we mourned sin in our nation? Have we admitted our part in it because we haven’t warned our neighbors strongly enough? Have we begged God to show mercy on our land for our sake?

Selected Proverbs

Solomon did not know how to nourish and cherish a wife (Ecc. 7:27-28) even though he wrote the Song of Solomon. He didn’t write Proverbs 31.

The first 10 verses of Pr. 31 show that Mrs. Lemuel who is given credit in Pr. 31:1 was politically aware; Bathsheba wasn’t. When Adonijah tried to become king as David was dying, Bathsheba didn’t notice until Nathan the prophet warned her to ask David to make Solomon king (1 Kings 1).

Having fled with David when Absalom rebelled, Bathsheba knew that being on the wrong side was fatal, yet she did nothing to protect herself.

David’s counselor Ahithophel could have been Bathsheba’s grandfather. 2 Sam. 23:34 tells us of “Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite.” When David asked, he was told “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite (2 Sam. 11:3)?”

If Ahithophel was grandfather-in-law to Uriah whom David murdered, that could explain why “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom (2 Sam. 15:31).” If so, it’s another example of David’s sins causing him trouble. If her grandfather hanged himself when Absalom’s rebellion failed, Bathsheba must have been really naïve not to notice Adonijah’s plot to seize the throne. People knew that David had wanted Solomon to rule. Adonijah would have killed both Solomon and Bathsheba to secure his rule.

Adonijah asked Bathsheba to ask Solomon to let him marry Abishag the Shunammite who had warmed David when he “gat no heat (1 Kings 1:1-4).” She passed on the request, and Solomon killed Adonijah. Mrs. Lemuel would have told Adonijah not to be so stupid.

Overview of Ecclesiastes

Solomon described the vanity of human philosophies and the worthlessness of human works when compared with God’s plans and the Good Works God expects of His people (Eph. 2:10).

Solomon’s work was vanity and chasing after wind because he did it for himself: “I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards (Ecc. 2:4).” When a husband support his wife, children, and church, his work is not vain. Caring for a man’s family validates his work. Nothing straightens up a man like having a woman lean on him.

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

Vanity in the Next Generation

1 Kings 12 tells us how Solomon’s son Rehoboam spoke harshly to the people after Solomon died so that they rebelled. Solomon had realized that his son’s rule might not turn out well:

Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. ¹⁹And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity. Ecclesiastes 2:18-19

How many hard-working parents have built up prosperous businesses only to have them fall apart when passed to the next generation? This, too, is vanity and chasing after wind.

The Perils of Pride

What was the difference between Solomon and Nebuchadnezzar? Daniel quotes Nebuchadnezzar:

Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. ²I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me. ³How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation. Daniel 4:1-3

At that time, Nebuchadnezzar told everyone how much he appreciated everything God had given him. The rest of the chapter tells how Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of a tree that would be cut down and its stump be bound with a band of brass.

Daniel explained that the dream meant that Nebuchadnezzar would be driven out into the field and eat grass for seven years before his mind and his kingdom would be given back to him unless he repented. A year later, he didn’t give God thanks for what he had been able to do:

At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. ³⁰The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? Daniel 4:29-30

He spent the next seven years eating grass, but he did learn the lesson God wanted to teach him:

And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: Daniel 4:34

Solomon wrote of all the wonderful works he had done in Ecclesiastes 2:4. Did Solomon give God the glory for letting him build the temple? He called his works “vanity and chasing after wind,” but was he also expressing pride in what he had done? God doesn’t appreciate pride:

Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. James 4:6

Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. I Peter 5:5

Workmen found a copy of God’s Law which had been hidden for many years when King Josiah repaired Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem. Josiah was grieved that God’s Word had been neglected. God rewarded him for humbling himself:

And as for the king of Judah, who sent you to enquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard; ²⁷Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD. II Chronicles 34:26-27

Did Solomon give glory to God for what God had allowed him to do? Why didn’t God punish Solomon for his pride? Did God show mercy to Solomon for the sake of David his father?

How often do we thank God for giving us opportunities to labor together with Him (1 Cor. 3:9)? We must work hard to be good stewards of whatever He gives, but we must always remember that God gives the increase in home, businesses, or church (1 Cor. 3:7). The lesson of Nebuchadnezzar is that God isn’t pleased when we human beings claim credit for accomplishments that He brings about through us.

As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. I Peter 4:10

Overview of the Song of Solomon

Scholars debate whether the Song of Songs is literal or spiritual. That’s an empty argument because the Bible repeatedly uses marriage to illustrate God’s relationship to His people and uses God’s relationship to His people to describe marriage (Is. 1:21, Jer. 2:2, 3:6–12, Eze. 16, 23, Hos. 2).

In the New Testament, the same allegory is used for Christ and His bride, the Church. The Song cannot describe God's permanent, loving, joyful, and exclusive relationship with His people without also describing the pattern for a permanent, loving, joyful, and exclusive human marriage. It is both literal and spiritual.

1) The Song begins with the wife praising her husband (Song 1:2). Men don't seem to understand women very well; maybe having a wife praise her husband teaches him how to praise her in a way that she appreciates? Could praising her husband make a wife less likely to focus on what she doesn’t like? Feeling appreciated by his wife makes a man want to take care of her and appreciate her.

2) There is no criticism at all in the Song, only praise in mind-numbing detail. The man and wife are constantly looking for little things about each other to praise and appreciate. Their praise sounds odd to us, but you can re-word it to make sense for you. The lesson is that married people need constant praise, support, and affirmation from each other in detail. Praising God takes our minds off our problems; praising your spouse helps you forget day-to-day annoyances.

3) The husband is totally involved with his wife. He tells everyone that she's uniquely perfect:

My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her. Song 6:9

He's so focused on her that he doesn't see other women as women, only as people.

4) The wife is secure in knowing that her husband belongs to her:

My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies. Song 2:16

I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies. Song 6:3

How should a man behave to convince his wife that he belongs to her? By opening his heart to her when she needs to talk.

5) The wife recognizes and encourages her husband's desire for her:

I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me. Song 7:10

As Ruth accepted Naomi’s advice how to get married (Ru. 3:18), this wife followed her mother’s advice how to stay married (Song 8:2). Her mother points out that she has far more sexual capacity than he; she can drain off all the sexual energy God gives him. This convinces him that she belongs to him and makes it hard for other women to get his attention. If she sends him off to work loaded, on the other hand, he'll be tempted by other women and they might both be burned (Pr. 5:20, 6:27).

The entire Song deals with our human need to be appreciated. A man can't praise his wife in such detail without paying close attention to her. Marriages are based on communication; a woman communicates heart-to-heart, a man communicates belly-to-belly.

How many marriages would fail if husband and wife never, not ever, criticized each other and always looked for things to appreciate instead? That’s the essence of the Song.

the Nation Divided: Israel and Judah

A kingdom divided cannot stand (Mt. 12:25, Lk, 11:17). The northern tribes rebelled because Solomon spent too much money on buildings and did not take care of his people.

His son ignored the older men’s advice to speak softly to the people and spoke of raising their taxes instead (1 Kings 12:13-16). The rebels murdered the man Solomon had had put in charge of collecting taxes (1 Kings 12:18). All the northern kings were evil in spite of many warnings from God’s prophets.

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. Psalm 127:1

The Northern kingdom survived for hundreds of years after it split off from the Southern kingdom. God was extremely patient with them and sent many prophets to warn them. Eventually, however, God’s patience ran out, the kingdom was destroyed, and they were taken into captivity.

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Isaiah 55:6

God is patient and longsuffering, but there is a limit to His patience. You don’t want to go there.

Kings of Israel - Northern Kingdom: all bad

Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom, was so evil that he became a proverb. The phrase “Jeroboam the son of Nebat” coupled with “made Israel to sin” appears 12 times in First and Second Kings.

They worshiped other gods, especially the golden calves Jeroboam had set up. The kings committed murder, theft, and ignored God’s law. Since most of them were compared with Jeroboam, starting at the 12 phrases that reminded us of Jeroboam’s wickedness would be a good place to start a discussion of their sins: 1 Kings 16:26, 21:22, 22:52, 2 Kings 3:3, 10:29, 13:2, 14:24, 15:9, 15:18, 15:24, 15:28, 23:15).

Kings of Judah - Southern Kingdom: 8 good

Ponder the 8 good kings, what they did that pleased God, and where they fell short. Think about how they revived the nation and put off God’s punishment. It’s good to learn from people who tried to do right. Be sure to learn from what they did right and from their mistakes.

Several of these kings became proud when God blessed their righteous efforts. The Apostle Paul understood where credit belonged:

I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. I Corinthians 3:6

King Asa (2 Chr. 14-16) 911-870 BC

And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God: ³For he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves: ⁴And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. II Chronicles 14:2-4

Although Asa did well, God seeks whole-hearted dedication (2 Chr. 16:9). He sent a prophet to criticize Asa for relying on the king of Syria instead of relying on God (2 Chr. 16:7). Partial commitment to God is no commitment at all! (Luke 9:57-62; 14:25-33).

King Jehoshaphat (2 Chr. 17-20) 870-848 BC

And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; ⁴But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel. II Chronicles 17:3-4

He started well, but entered into a military alliance with Israel (2 Chr. 18:1). His son Jehoram married Athaliah the daughter of king Ahab and queen Jezebel of Israel. Jezebel led her husband in wickedness and her name has become a label for any extremely evil woman.

The marriage meant that Israel and Judah were no longer such mortal enemies and offered opportunities for cross-border trade, but it turned out to be the moral equivalent of poison (2 Chr. 22:10-12).

King Joash (2 Chr. 24) 835-796 BC

And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest. II Chronicles 24:2

When Jehoida died, Joash turned to idolatry (2 Chr. 24:15-27). Joash was willing to be led in doing good but when left to his own devices, he led in doing evil.

He had a form of godliness while Jehoida lived, but he lacked the power thereof (2 Tim. 3:5). When people who claim to be God’s people don’t show Godly fruits (Mt. 7:16, 7:20), we have grounds to wonder whether they belong to God at all.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, ²³Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

Joash did well under Jehoida’s guidance, but is Joash in Heaven?

King Amaziah (2 Chr. 25, 2 Ki. 14:1-20) 796-781 BC

This passage is the key to the partial success of his reign:

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, yet not like David his father: he did according to all things as Joash his father did. II Kings 14:3.

His father Joash was good under the leadership of Jehoida but wasn’t good on his own. It’s unfortunate that Jehoida failed to teach either Joash or his son Amaziah how to relate to God themselves after he died. They increased while he decreased, but hadn’t been taught to carry on.

God blessed Amaziah when he did right, but his success made him proud. He started an unnecessary fight with Joash, a wicked king of Israel, who was the grandson of Jehu, another wicked king of Israel. He was defeated (2 Chr. 25:17-24).

King Uzziah (2 Chr. 26) 781-740 BC

Sixteen years old was Uzziah when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. ⁴And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did. II Chronicles 26:3-4

His mother was a Jew, not a foreigner. Your spouse’s character has a profound effect on your children.

Uzziah certainly had a heart to seek God; how many 16-year-olds could withstand all the temptations of kingly power in a wicked nation? Those who seek God are blessed, (2 Chr. 7:14, Ps. 34:10, Jer. 29:13, Mt. 7:7, Rom. 3:10, Col. 3:1, Heb. 11:6).

Unfortunately, the prosperity and blessing God gave him because of his obedience made him proud: (2 Chr. 26:16). He forgot the lesson of King Saul (1 Sam. 13:13) and tried to enter the temple to take over the priest’s office (2 Chr. 26:19-21) and was stricken with leprosy.

King Hezekiah (2 Chr. 29-32) 716-687 BC

Hezekiah’s reign came just after the Assyrians defeated Israel around 722 BC and took many of its inhabitants into exile.

Hezekiah began to reign when he was five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah. ²And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done. II Chronicles 29:1-2

The rest of the chapter tells how he repaired and consecrated the temple, told the priests to consecrate themselves, renewed the sacrificial system, and drew the people back into worship. This shows how a determined leader can bring about revival.

He forgot the lesson of Joshua (Josh. 9:3-14) which ends “and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.” and didn’t ask God before showing the Babylonian envoys all his treasures (2 Kings 20:12-19). About 115 years later, the Babylonians returned and destroyed Jerusalem!

Babylonians were pretty good at keeping records – Ezra 4:9-22 tells how people who opposed Ezra’s efforts to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple suggested that if King Artaxerxes searched the files, he would find that Jerusalem had once been a very powerful city and would stop paying taxes to him if they rebuilt the walls. The search was made, records of Solomon’s power were found, and Artaxerxes ordered work to stop.

Biblical dates are inexact, but Solomon seems to have reigned from 970-930 BC and Ezra’s time was around 400 BC. The Babylonians kept records of Solomon’s reign for ~ 500 years. It’s easy to imagine bean counters checking the list of treasures taken from Jerusalem against the envoy’s inventory which was only 100 years old.

Thinking about managing and searching such large archives kept on clay tablets in the absence of paper or printing makes your head hurt. Bureaucracy is ever with us.

King Manasseh (2 Chr. 33:1-20) 697-642 BC

Manasseh was one of the most evil of the evil kings, but he’s listed here because he repented near the end of his life.

And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, ¹³And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD he was God. II Chronicles 33:12-13

When a sinner reforms, their actions change visibly:

And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the LORD, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the LORD, and in Jerusalem, and cast them out of the city. ¹⁶And he repaired the altar of the LORD, and sacrificed thereon peace offerings and thank offerings, and commanded Judah to serve the LORD God of Israel. ¹⁷Nevertheless the people did sacrifice still in the high places, yet unto the LORD their God only. II Chronicles 33:15-17

He didn't have time to draw the people back to temple worship instead of worshiping in the high places nor could he teach his son Amon, who became king after him, to do right. It’s comforting to read that God accepts any sinner who’s truly humble enough to beg forgiveness. God can tell the difference even if we can’t.

King Josiah (2 Chr. 34-35)) 640-609 BC

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left. ³For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images. II Chronicles 34:2-3

He started strong by putting away idols, restoring the temple, and drawing the people back to following God's Word, but he was killed in a battle he didn’t have to fight:

After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Charchemish by Euphrates: and Josiah went out against him. II Chronicles 35:20

God would have warned Josiah not to get into that fight if he’d asked. He was such a loss that “Jeremiah lamented for Josiah (2 Chr. 35:25).” His reign was the last chance for the people to repent – all later kings were bad until God’s patience ran out and Judah was carried into captivity.

How often do we proceed with our own plans without asking God? How often do our mistakes tarnish the witness we could have had? How many blessings have we lost from ignoring God’s warnings?

The Ministry of Elijah

He asked for a double portion of the blessing of Elijah (2 Kings 2:9-10). He “took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him (2 Kings 2:13).” Elisha had a willing mind and a pure heart to serve God, so God accepted what he had (1 Chron. 28:9, 2 Cor. 8:12) and added to him whatever else he needed to do God’s will.

The Major Prophets

All the prophets warned about spiritual decline in their nation to urge people to repent to avoid God’s punishment. Judah had periodic revivals, but both nations collapsed into idolatry and were carried into captivity. God is patient and forgiving, but there are limits.

And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Exodus 34:6

The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. Numbers 14:18

God doesn’t punish children for the sins of their parents (De. 24:16, 2 Kings 14:6), but parents’ sins affect their children. Some prisons have visiting areas with play spaces. I’ve watched fathers play with children during jail visits.

We’ve seen how David’s neglect of his sons led them into sin and caused David a great deal of trouble. A father’s neglect due to imprisonment doesn’t do his children any good.

God created us with the ability to choose our actions, but He holds us accountable for the results:

And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul. Psalm 106:15

Isaiah

Isaiah prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah, Jothan, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. He delivered God’s message to Hezekiah saying that he would be healed of his illness, would receive 15 more years of life, and would be delivered from the Assyrians. Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, one of the worst of the kings of Judah, during the 15 extra years God gave him. We know this because “Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem (2 Kings 21:1).”

The first section of Isaiah (1-39) is filled with God’s judgement of sinful men. Judah has sinned, the nations around them have sinned, the whole earth has sinned[4], and “the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now (Ro. 8:22).” God cannot allow sin to go unpunished forever, so judgement must come.

The second portion of Isaiah (40-66) declares hope; a Savior will come and redeem all mankind. Although all of the Old Testament foretells Christ, Isaiah has perhaps the most vivid OT references to His coming, His mission, His suffering, His victory, and the grace of God (Isaiah 53).

It’s fascinating to note the change of tone from condemnation to encouragement in Isaiah 40:1:

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Isaiah 40:1

God is a God of love and holiness (Eph. 6:4). His love makes Him want to comfort and nourish us; His holiness means that He cannot tolerate sin. God made mothers so that their love for their children illustrates His love and He made men so that fathers are more inclined to correct their children than mothers are.

God doesn’t tell mothers to be careful not to love their children too much, but He warns fathers:

And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4

Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged. Colossians 3:21

Finding the right balance between nurturing through love and admonition through correction for each child is one of the most difficult parts of being a parent or any leader. God added advice to His encouragement:

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Eagles fly without flapping their wings a lot; they soar on air currents that come from God. They can't go just any time they want; they have to wait for the wind to blow so they can ride it. If we wait for God to show us the right direction and go where His wind is blowing, we get a lot more done with less effort.

Jeremiah

Jeremiah is known as the “weeping prophet” because he was so broken up by God’s coming judgment on His people. Jeremiah gave his name to the “Jeremiad,” which means “A literary work or speech expressing a bitter lament or a righteous prophecy of doom.” Jeremiah spent 40 years proclaiming doom to a stubborn people. He ministered from the 13^th year of the rule of Josiah, the last good king, until into the captivity.

Like Jesus, Jeremiah was rejected by almost everyone, and emphasized the new covenant in the heart. He preached the backsliding, captivity, and restoration of God’s people. Because of the intensely personal nature of much of his book, we know more about Jeremiah as a person than about any other prophet.

Most of his preaching was directed at Judah although he also preached messages directed at the surrounding nations. He criticized both government and religious leaders. After Jerusalem was destroyed, Jeremiah chose to remain with the remnant who were left in the land. After Gedeliah, the regent appointed by the Babylonians was murdered, the remnant chose to go to Egypt and took Jeremiah with them in spite of his telling them not to go (41:7ff). His messages about the “queen of heaven” (44:17-21) show that women bear responsibility for their actions even when they are following their husbands.

Ezekiel

Ezekiel ministered to the Jewish captives in Babylon. He was carried there in the second deportation before the final destruction of Jerusalem. Part of his ministry foretold the final end of the city to the captives who were already there.

Ezekiel used many images to dramatize his message; these provide lessons to preachers of today. He served as a spiritual watchman, telling the people of their spiritual apostasy. He was critical of false shepherds who muddy the waters so that weak sheep cannot drink (Eze. 34:2-23).

Community leaders often visited his home to find out what God was saying to him; this may have started the custom of gathering at synagogues. While condemning the sins of both Judah and the surrounding nations, Ezekiel also prophesized that the people would return to their land.

The phrase “Thus saith the Lord GOD” appears 122 times and the phrase “son of man” 94 times out of the 206 times it’s found in the Bible in 20 different books. In contrast to Jeremiah, the material in Ezekiel is arranged in chronological order as the Lord gave it to him. His purpose was to remind the exiles of the sins that had brought them so low and to sustain their faith that God would restore their nation.

Chapters 16 and 23 are explicit erotic connotations to describe the permanent relationship of God with his people to the permanent marriage relationship between husband and wife.

Daniel

The book of Daniel is called an apocalypse, or “unveiling,” like Isaiah 24-27. These revelations were given at times when wickedness seemed to have conquered; the purpose was to encourage the people to sustain their faith in God. Daniel was taken captivity in the first deportation in 605 BC.

Like Moses, he was highly educated in the language and science of the ruling classes. The major theme of Daniel is the sovereignty of God over all of history including all nations and individuals.

In addition to laying out the future course of the tribulation and other events in the end times, Daniel told the Jews that they would return to the Promised Land. He named the specific number of years that had to pass before they could return. Because of its discussions of the end times, Daniel is a companion book to Revelation.

When he arrived in Babylon, Daniel was given the name Belteshazzar; this demonstrated to Daniel that the Babylonians had power over him just as Adam demonstrated that he had power over Eve by naming her. His wisdom and contributions to the kingdom were so notable, however, that the Babylonians often referred to him by his original name of Daniel. 9 of the 12 chapters of Daniel deal with interpreting dreams.

The Minor Prophets

The Minor Prophets are “minor” only in that their books are shorter than the books of the Major Prophets. These are the main points of each of their books.

Hosea

Hosea ministered to the Northern Kingdom during a time of outward economic prosperity which masked internal spiritual decay and moral corruption. As in the US, people have trouble admitting their need for God when they feel wealthy.

God directed Hosea to marry a woman named Gomer whose adultery was an illustration of the nation’s spiritual adultery in worshiping other gods. Gomer left her husband after bearing 3 children and ended up in a slave market. He redeemed her and she became a faithful wife to him. His message is that God abhors sin, destruction is inevitable, but God’s love and loyalty stand firm. He was a contemporary of Amos who ministered in Israel and of Isaiah and Micah who ministered in Judah.

Joel

This book is difficult to date because it does not mention any kings. Joel spoke after a swarm of locusts had eaten all the crops. God sent the natural disaster to bring His people to repent, but they would not, so Joel proclaimed that His future judgements involving heathen armies would make the locusts seem trivial by comparison.

Joel’s purpose was to persuade the people to repent in preparation for the “Day of the Lord,” which refers to the future time when God will pour out His wrath against heathen nations because of their abuses of the Jews. Joel emphasizes the sovereignty of God and promises redemption after God’s punishment.

Amos

Amos prophesized to the Northern Kingdom during the same time of prosperity as Hosea. He was not of a priestly line, he had been a shepherd before God called him. This reminds us that God can call whomever he chooses as long as the person is willing.

Amos spoke judgement against many foreign nations as well as against Israel. Since the nation was prosperous, he spoke of personal accountability and responsibility while promising future reconciliation. In contrast to Hosea, who was crushed by a sense of Israel’s unfaithfulness to God, Amos was outraged at their violence, injustice, and perversion of the righteousness of God.

Securing equal justice for all without respect of persons is part of true piety. “But let justice run down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” (5:24)

Obadiah

Obadiah announces God’s judgement against the Edomites, who were the descendants of Esau, because they participated in attacking Judah. They refused Israel passage (Nu. 20:14-21) and rejoiced over the destruction of Jerusalem (Ps. 137:7). He promises eventual victory for God’s people. The date is uncertain, but it appears to have been written after the destruction of Jerusalem.

Jonah

During the time of Jeroboam II (II Ki. 14:25), God told Jonah to preach that Nineveh would be destroyed unless the people repented; Jonah refused and fled in the opposite direction. Knowing that Nineveh would destroy his own people in the future, Jonah did not want to preach to them because he knew that if he did, they would repent and God would be merciful to them.

God drew him to Nineveh where he preached a great revival; this made him a very successful missionary. The book is filled with supernatural miracles such as the fish, the storm, and the gourd; understanding these details requires faith, not explanation. Jesus confirmed the authenticity of the account of Jonah being in the whale’s belly (Mt. 12:39-41, Lk. 11:29-30).

Knowing what Nineveh would do in the future, Jonah was not at all happy that they repented. Appreciation for the love of Christ should set every Christian’s goal to be to maximize God’s honor and glory. Jonah knew that it would glorify God for Nineveh to destroy Israel, and he knew that it would glorify God when the city repented. When God calls a man to do something, it’s a good idea to get with God’s program even if you do not think you will like the result.

God told Abraham that all nations would be blessed through him and his descendants (Gen. 18:18, 22:18, 26:4). Although Jonah was explicitly called to preach in a foreign land, his ministry wasn’t unique because God has always expected all of His people to make others want to know about God.

Lot didn’t win his sons in law for God when he lived in Sodom. Naomi taught her daughter-in-law Ruth enough about God that Ruth wanted to return to Israel to be with God’s people even though she’d been told she wouldn’t find a husband there, but this was rare. The Jews weren’t supposed to win others by preaching, they were supposed to demonstrate the benefits of following God’s laws so that other nations would want to learn about God (Deut. 4:6-8). The Queen of Sheba was attracted strongly enough by Solomon’s God-given glory to want to visit him.

The Jews didn’t follow God’s statutes, so they were hauled off into captivity. Instead of seeing God bless His people and wanting to learn about His statutes, other nations wondered at God’s anger (Deut. 29:21-28), but seeing His anger didn’t draw them to want to learn about Him.

We Christians aren’t supposed to attract others purely by sharing whatever gifts God has given us as the Jews were; we’re also supposed to tell others about Jesus. Are we doing any better than the Jews did? Are we giving God the glory when we share whatever God has given us?

If our garden yields in abundance, do we share the blessings of Christ with people round about as a means of giving the gospel? Do we share cuttings from our plants to beautify the neighborhood while talking of the wonders of God’s creation? Do we speak of His blessings on social media and at work if someone asks how you were able to do something? Do we share God’s gifts such as sewing, cooking, carpentry, knitting, car repair, teaching, and others when others need help whether saved or unsaved?

We go to church and sing, but are we praising or performing? Do we spread His word?

Micah

Micah preached against the abuse of the poor by the rulers in Jerusalem. He came from a poor background, and spoke mainly to poor people and always on their behalf. One third of the book defines the people’s sins, one third describes God’s retribution, and one third promises eventual reconciliation.

He defined true religion “to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God” (6:8), announced the birthplace of Christ (5:2), and promises that God forgets the sins of believers (7:18-19). Restoration comes in two phases: 1) after the captivity and 2) in the millennium. Jeremiah mentions Micah by name (Je. 26:18)

Nahum

100 years after Jonah preached revival to Nineveh, Nahum predicted the downfall of the city because they had gone back to wickedness. As a result, Babylon would destroy the city so that no trace would remain. This message would comfort the people of Israel who had recently been ravaged by Assyria.

Habakkuk

Habakkuk ministered during the final death throes of his nation. He predicted the coming invasion of the Chaldeans (1:6). The moral and spiritual decline mentioned in 1:2-4 is confirmed in II Kings 21-22.

His statement that the just shall live by faith (2:4) is quoted in Ro. 1:17, Gal. 3:11, and Heb. 10:38. He warns Judah of the coming judgement and comforts them by saying that God will then judge Babylon. v4 says that the just shall live by faith, v 14 says that the earth shall be filled with the glory of God, v 20 says that the Lord is in His holy temple.

Zephaniah

Zephaniah was the great great grandson of King Hezekiah. He ministered during the reign of King Josiah, the last good king of Judah. His purpose is to prepare for the day of the Lord and for revival under Josiah. This revival produced outward change but did not fully remove the inward heart of corruption. He predicts that God will judge both Judah (1:1-2:3) and the surrounding nations (2:4-3:7), and then restore His people (3:8-20).

Haggai

Haggai gave 4 messages: 1) get the people to get back to work on the temple (1:1-15), 2) remind the people that God was with them and that their temple would have more glory than Solomon’s (2:1-9), 3) affirm the blessings of Jehovah (2:10-19), and 4) anticipate a glorious future (2:20-23).

They had to build the temple because God’s blessings were contingent upon obedience. 50,000 Jews had returned from Babylon and started building the temple, but the work had stopped for about 10 years. As God had called Joshua to be strong, Haggai called on the rulers to be strong (2:4).

Zechariah

Zechariah also encouraged the Jews to rebuild the temple, but instead of harsh rebuke, Zechariah encouraged them gently. He also provides details of the last times. He predicts the 2^nd coming of Christ, His reign, His priesthood, His kingship, His humanity, His deity, His bringing peace, His rejection and betrayal for 30 pieces of silver, His return to Israel as the crucified one, and His being smitten by the Lord.

This book shows how God will draw His chosen people back to Him. (12:10-13) predicts that Jews will realize that Jesus was the Messiah and mourn for having killed him. (13:6) predicts that the wounds in His hands will be recognized for what they are.

The Apostle Paul wrote that the Gospel would be “unto the Jews a stumblingblock (1 Cor. 1:23)” because they would have to admit that the Messiah had come and they’d missed it and because they would have to admit that their lifetime of following Moses’ law had done them no good. Peter said “Not so, Lord: (Acts 11:8) when God told him to eat animals which were unclean to Jews. Giving up the Law was very hard for observant Jews.

Many Christians would rather be given a set of rules to follow instead of being guided by the Holy Spirit. Having decided to live according to rules, they are tempted to impose the rules they prefer onto neighbors or other church members.

Malachi

Malachi preached to the Jews who had returned to Israel from Babylon when Cyrus allowed them to return (Ezra 1). Although the Jews had learned some of what God was trying to teach them and never entered into explicit idolatry again, Malachi describes many of their sins which are common among Christians to this day. Even though He had liberated them from Babylonian captivity and brought them back, the Jews doubted His love and believed that there was no point in serving Him:

Your words have been stout against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? ¹⁴Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? Malachi 3:13-14

They despised His name as so many do today by using it as a swear word. Do we give our best to God or give Him our castoffs? Are we careful to always honor His name?

A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? ⁷Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. ⁸And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. Malachi 1:6-8

They defiled God’s covenant with them and with their wives. They scorned His law by ignoring it and doubted His punishment to the point that God would no longer accept their offerings.

And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand. ¹⁴Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant. ¹⁵And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. ¹⁶For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. Malachi 2:13-16

Although the Jews were committing many sins, Malachi’s strongest condemnation was of divorce and the breaking of marriage covenants as so many Christians do today. His message reminds us that God’s plan for getting servants is for His servants to bear children and bring them up as a “Godly seed” to serve Him.

There is no new thing under the sun (Ecc. 1:9)

God made the mating instinct very strong to hold couples together. Abimalech was upset when he found that Isaac had lied in saying that Rebekah was his sister, his comments remind us that men can be pretty casual about having sex:

And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us. Genesis 26:10

If she wasn't married, there would be nothing wrong in raping her; it would only be a light moment of pleasure. She had no right to her own body. Rebekah was married, though, so her rapist would have been guilty of a crime against her husband.

God reserves sex for marriage. A man will tend to take having sex lightly regardless of the woman’s wishes unless he's been taught to honor both marriage and women, starting with his mother. In Pr. 31:28-29, king Lemuel's mother taught her son to teach her grandchildren to respect and honor their mother.

If a father teaches his children to value, praise, appreciate, honor, and respect their mother by commanding it and by his example, they can learn from her. His sons can learn to nourish, cherish, respect, and honor their future wives and his daughters can learn to insist on respect from suitors and husbands.

If a father doesn't demand and teach respect for his wife, his sons grow up with no respect for women and see no reason not to let their mating urges run free. His daughters will want to hang around with men because God made women for men, but without seeing their father respect their mother, they won't know to demand respect and honor from men. This teaches them to act like toys. Horny men and boys are happy to play with toys and throw them away in favor of a younger, flashier model.

Leaders Help Parents Teach Their Children

The mating instinct is strong in both men and women; it's hard to teach young people to keep these desires under control. Parents have trouble teaching this effectively if spiritual leaders' and teachers' examples and teaching don't reinforce the message.

Ezra 10 tells how Jewish leaders ignored God’s commands about marriage. Their bad exmaples made it hard for ordinary people to take marriage seriously. Malachi tried to help his contemporary Ezra clean up the situation.

As Solomon said, there is no new thing under the sun (Ecc. 1:9), we keep recycling the same old sins, over and over. How many men raised in Christian homes have "lightly lien" with women outside marriage? Why don’t they respect women enough not to do that?

Have we learned anything from the repeated errors, omissions, suffering, repentance, and restoration of God’s people as described in the Old Testament?

These Old Testament accounts were written “for our learning,” but there was another important reason – to give us hope:

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4

We have hope because throughout the Old Testament, God tells us of His people falling into sin, repenting, and being delivered. The Book of Zachariah tells us that God will draw all of the Jews back to Him in the fullness of time. The fact that He has not written off His people in spite of their many sins gives us hope that He will keep us as His own in spite of our sins.

The message of Malachi closes with promises to the faithful:

For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. ²But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. ³And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts. ⁴Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. ⁵Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: ⁶And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. Malachi 4:1-6

This is the revival that we expect in the last days.

Whenever I read through the Old Testament I feel sorry for the Jews. The accounts of the actions of the Northern and Southern kings and the messages of the prophets are pretty pessimistic. Not having the New Testament, Jews do not have the message of hope Jesus offers those who believe in Him.

[1] The region of the air; the sky or heavens; the great arch or expanse over our heads, in which are placed the atmosphere and the clouds.

[2] Daniel reported to the “prince of the eunuchs.” Conquerors “recruited” captives into their bureaucracies. Family loyalties can be very strong, so it had been found prudent to deny captives the ability to form families to focus their loyalty on the administration.

[3] Some have no doubt that Eve added “neither shall ye touch it.” Others blame Adam, noting that Moses added “come not at your wives” to what God told him (Ex. 19:10-15) based on his flawed reasoning (He. 13:4). The Bible is silent on this detail. Asking a potential suitor who misquoted God sheds light on his attitude toward women.

[4] The surrounding nations were not as familiar with Jehovah as the Jews, but they knew enough about His commands to be held accountable for disobeying them.

Monday, June 28, 2021

Old Testament Survey – What God Gave “For Our Learning”

What God Gave “For Our Learning”

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