my burg

Bible reading for weekend Nov 12 -- 14 Nov 11 -- Amos 1 and Psalm 144 Nov 12 -- Amos 2 and Psalm 145 Nov 13 -- Amos 3 and Psalms 146-147  ================ "'I will strike the winter house along with the summer house, and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall come to an end,' declares the LORD." (Amos 3:15).   FOR THREE TRANSGRESSIONS, AND FOUR (ch 1-2) . Amos (along with his contemporary, Isaiah) was one of the earliest writing prophets in Israel. It was an affluent time in both Judah and Israel (ca 790-750 BC), but there was also violence and oppression. Border conflicts among the nearby nations resulted in land seizure, enslavement, and unjust treatment of prisoners. Each of these nations, along with Judah and Israel, are called out. "For three transgressions, and four..." was a poetic way of saying, "I've got three things against you... no, wait, make that four." In other words, God had a list of their sins and it was ...

Bible reading for Nov 8 -- 9  Nov 8 -- Hosea 14 and Psalm 139 Nov 9 -- Joel 1 and Psalms 140-141  ================ "Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the LORD are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them." (Hosea 14:9)  ONE LAST APPEAL (Hos 14). "Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God..." (v 1). Hosea calls upon the nation to seek from God the forgiveness and healing that comes only from the Lord. They are to abandon their trust in idols and in other nations, and to find shelter in the Lord. God promises: "I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them. I will be like the dew to Israel..." (vv 4-5). They will blossom, and take root, and spread out, and be beautiful, and will flourish, and bear fruit (vv 5-7). And this is true of believers both then and now: "It is I who answer and look after you. I am like an...

Bible reading for weekend September 24 -- 26 Sep 24 -- Ezekiel 27 and Psalms 75-76 Sep 25 -- Ezekiel 28 and Psalm 77 Sep 26 -- Ezekiel 29 and Psalm 78:1-39 ================   "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared." (Ezekiel 28:12-13) I am out of town for a few days, but I'll continue to send you the reading schedule and point you to the NET Bible notes on Ezekiel by Dr. Thomas Constable.         ================    "For not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up, but it is God who executes judgment,...

  Bible reading for weekend Aug 13 -- 15 Aug 13 -- Jeremiah 41 and Psalm 17 Aug 14 -- Jeremiah 42 and Psalm 18 Aug 15 -- Jeremiah 43 and Psalm 19 ================    "Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Do not fear him, declares the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in your own land."  (Jeremiah 42:11-12) YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE (ch 41-43) . These chapters are an historical postlude to the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. The newly-appointed governor, Gedaliah, is murdered by Ishmael and his companions, incited by the Ammonites. Captives are taken. Johanan, a Jewish leader, intervenes and defeats Ishmael, frees the captives, but they now face the problem of what the Babylonian authorities may do. The people ask Jeremiah to pray for them, which he does, and the Lord gives promise of safety for them in the land and calls them to trust in...

Bible reading for weekend July 16 -- 18 July 16 -- Jeremiah 12 and Matthew 26 July 17 -- Jeremiah 13 and Matthew 27 July 18 -- Jeremiah 14 and Matthew 28 ================    "I have forsaken my house; I have abandoned my heritage; I have given the beloved of my soul into the hands of her enemies." (Jeremiah 12:7) THE LORD'S HERITAGE (ch 12-14). These messages from God through Jeremiah are delivered over a period of forty years, and Jeremiah here wants the Lord to execute his judgment, already! (12:1-4) Not only was Jeremiah the target of political opponents, he also suffered the loss of family support (12:5-6). He's ready to see the judgment program move forward. But God is patient and longsuffering, and several times he refers to his people as "my heritage" (or, "inheritance")(12:7-9, 14-15). The Lord loved the people of Israel and Judah -- the "beloved of his soul" -- and he brought them close to himself "that they might be for me...

Bible reading for weekend March 8 -- 9 Mar 8 -- Job 37 and 2 Corinthians 7 Mar 9 -- Job 38 and 2 Corinthians 8 "Do you know the ordinances of the heavens? Can you establish their rule on the earth?" (Job 38:33) ELIHU FINISHES (ch 37) . Elihu finishes his speech, and in these last two verses he speaks of several of God's attributes: "The Almighty -- we cannot find him; he is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate. Therefore men fear him; he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit" (vv 23-24). God is omnipotent and great in power; he is infinite and inscrutable, that is, beyond our full comprehension; and he is completely righteous, with an impeccable standard of justice. Again, Job and his friends have only been considering a limited view of God, specifically his temporal judgments in human affairs. Elihu's conclusion is that our knowledge of God -- and our lack of knowledge about him -- should lead us to humble o...

Bible reading for weekend March 5 -- 7 Mar 5 -- Job 34 and 2 Corinthians 4 Mar 6 -- Job 35 and 2 Corinthians 5 Mar 7 -- Job 36 and 2 Corinthians 6 "Behold, God is great, and we know him not; the number of his years is unsearchable. For he draws up the drops of water; they distill his mist in rain, which the skies pour down and drop on mankind abundantly." (Job 36:26-28)  GOD WILL BE JUSTIFIED (ch 34)  Elihu continues his speech.  God will not act unjustly. In the end his will and his actions will be seen as true and just. "Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written, 'That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged'" (Rom 3:4). Some have used the argument that the existence of evil in the world negates the existence of God by showing either his lack of power or his lack of goodness. Evil has not been destroyed, so God must not exist. But the important word "yet" must be inserted. Evil has not yet been de...

Bible reading for March 3 -- 4 Mar 3 -- Job 32 and 2 Corinthians 2 Mar 4 -- Job 33 and 2 Corinthians 3 "'He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit, and my life shall look upon the light.' Behold, God does all these things, twice, three times, with a man, to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be lighted with the light of life."  (Job 33:28-30) A YOUNGSTER SPEAKS UP (ch 32). Sometimes during a big debate or argument -- whether on a personal level, say, between marriage partners, or on a national scale between political parties -- we begin to realize that both sides in the debate are wrong. In today's chapter we are introduced to a new character in the drama, a young man named Elihu. He brings a different perspective, and speaks with passion. Age, experience, position, and reputation do not in themselves produce wisdom -- sometimes students know more than their teachers (Ps 119:99). We don't know much about Elihu, but he is not included in ...

Bible reading for February 24 -- 25 Feb 24 -- Job 24 and 1 Corinthians 11 Feb 25 -- Job 25-26 and 1 Corinthians 12 "Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?" (Job 26:14) TO A MAN WITH A HAMMER (ch 24). Job's friends have one paradigm they're working with: if you are suffering, then you are being judged and need to repent. This is a case of the popular saying, "to a man with a hammer everything looks like a nail." Job's friends are locked into a worldview, a narrative, about the reason for suffering. Job raises the question of the silence and seeming inactivity of God to bring judgment against evil. In other words, the problem is not just, why do the innocent suffer, but also why do the guilty not suffer (24:1, 12)? As we read Job's examples and descriptions of injustice, take time to ponder. This has been a question that has bothered believers and unb...

Bible reading for July 6.  Joshua 8. "And there, in the presence of the people of Israel, he wrote on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written." (Joshua 8:32)  ESTABLISHING GOD'S RULE. The second city to fall, one larger than Jericho, was Ai. Joshua used tactics that built upon their previous failure. Afterwards the inhabitants are put to death but the livestock spared.*  Joshua builds an altar, sacrifices are made, and God's law is copied on stone and read to the people. This signified that the pagan land, full of idols, was now to be guided by the law of God. It was the formal establishment of God's visible reign over that land. Some have felt that a good summary of the Bible story-line is that God in stages is re-establishing his visible and glorious rule over creation which was lost in the fall of man. This re-establishment of his kingdom will be consummated at the return of Christ. This is, of course, why we pray, "Our Father...

Bible reading for June 10.  Deuteronomy 15.  "You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake." (Deuteronomy 15:10) SABBATICAL YEAR. Every seventh year all Israelites were commanded to remit [or, release, cancel ] their debts toward one another. Hebrew slaves were indentured only until that time, and at the Feast of Booths (Deut 31:10) they were to be released. And with this action a spirit of generosity was to prevail (vv 7-14). The Lord promised his blessing upon them for this (vv 6, 18; cf Prov 11:24-26). The Israelites were to remember their slavery in Egypt and to be sensitive toward others in need. They were not to be hardhearted or miserly toward the poor and the indebted.  GENEROSITY.  Christians are to have open hearts and open hands toward one another and toward those in need. We have received a blessing tha...