Daily Readings in the Bible 1 Chronicles 18-21
David was tempted to number the people of Israel (1 Chr. 21:1). Numbering the people was an act of pride and selfish ambition. To number the people indicated self reliance on a large army, instead of depending on the Lord to bring about victory in battle. Power and authority have corrupting capabilities, and pride was […]
Daily Readings in the Bible 2 Samuel 1-3
The Amalakites were a wicked and idolatrous people. They were a fierce race of nomads who inhabited the desert south of the Judean area towards Egypt. They were a cruel people who lived off raiding, robbing and murdering other tribes. They made life miserable for people who lived near them. When Israel had left the […]
Daily Readings in the Bible 1 Samuel 28-31
Saul’s reign as Israel’s king began with so much potential. He was head and shoulders above all the people, yet displayed humility. It wasn’t long before his reign began to go off the rails. He could have been the measuring stick by which all kings would have been measured. Instead he became a skeleton in […]
The Beauty and the Beast
I have a four year old daughter. She’s been watching Disney Princess movies since we brought her home from the hospital. At least that’s what it seems like. Of course, in my opinion, Easton is the greatest princess ever. But I digress. One Disney Princess movie stands out from the rest, besides Frozen, and that’s […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Joshua 16-18
In today’s reading we have an account of the inheritance of Joseph divided between his sons Ephraim and Manasseh. Ephraim’s allotment was a beautiful and fertile area. Howbeit, the difficulty of possessing the land included clearing out additional hill country and removing the Canaanites from the land. There was just one issue: “And they drave […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Deuteronomy 20-22
The Lord included punishments for those who broke His laws. The Old Testament Law provided three types of punishment: the death penalty for serious public sins against life, religion and the family; ‘cutting-off’ for grave private sins; and restoration for property offenses. Stoning seems to be the most common form of the death penalty in […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Deuteronomy 14-16
A Hebrew man could sell himself as a slave to pay any debt (Ex. 21:1-6; Lev. 25:39-45; Deut. 15:12-18). This type of voluntary slavery shouldn’t be confused with forced slavery, or the slavery of the Antebellum period. Moses said that such slaves were to be released after six years of service. In order for the […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Numbers 35-36
The Levites weren’t allowed to own any land in Canaan, because the Lord was their portion (Deut. 10:9). For this reason Israel was to designate specific cities for the Levites to live in (Num. 35:1-5). Those six cities were assigned to be “cities of refuge.” If an Israelite or stranger unintentionally killed a person, then […]
Daily Readings in the Bible Numbers 33-34
Taking possession of the Promised Land wasn’t going to be easy for Israel. They were going to have to drive out all the inhabitants of the land (Ex. 23:20-33). Not only were they to drive the inhabitants out, they would also need to destroy any semblance of the people’s religions and lifestyles. The Lord said, […]
The Plague, the Priest, and the Prescription
When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or bright spot, and it be in the skin of his flesh like the plague of leprosy; then he shall be brought unto Aaron the priest, or unto one of his sons the priests (Leviticus 13:2). The book of Leviticus […]