Isaiah 40
Isaiah 40 - The theme of chapters 7-39 focuses directly on the punishment of God. It's easy to read this chapter and become discouraged. We must remember that God's heart was not to needlessly punish his people ...
Isaiah 39
Isaiah 39 - The last verse of Chapter 39 is probably the most heavily scrutinized statement from Hezekiah. Many scholars are split on the correct interpretation of this verse. Surprising to me, most tend to agree that ...
Isaiah 38
Isaiah 38 - Let's review what's happened thus far and what will happen in the future. Assyria has built the strongest military the world has ever seen and has destroyed both Aram as well as Israel. Judah ...
Isaiah 37
Isaiah 37 - Much of what Isaiah has written leading up to this point has been about the rebellion of God's people. They were living like they really didn't trust the Lord, and continually went back to ...
Isaiah 36
Isaiah 36 - The goal of the enemy is to render us hopeless in the face of our circumstances. The world, Satan, and even our own hearts influence our minds to these dark places. Even though the ...
Isaiah 35
Isaiah 35 - The promise at the end of the chapter is beautiful. There will be no lion there, and no vicious beast will go up on it; they will not be found there. But the redeemed ...
Isaiah 34
Isaiah 34 - The idea of this chapter is that the Lord will conquer all who oppose Him. There is no question about it. Within the text, the language is bold and abrasive. Divine wrath will be ...
Isaiah 33
Isaiah 33 - The book of Isaiah is very clear. Trust in nations; destruction. Trust in God alone; deliverance. The irony is that God would use nations to humble His people, but He would command them not ...
Isaiah 32
Isaiah 32 - Isaiah's description of a true king is exactly what we all desire. He is righteous, just, and a source of protection and support. This king would contrast many other kings that ruled in ancient ...
Isaiah 31
Isaiah 31 - God had willed captivity for His people. He also willed restoration. When we must go through a season of captivity in order to receive restoration, we tend to resist. We want to take the ...
Isaiah 30
Isaiah 30 - The people resisted God's counsel, and instead, they received His judgement. It sounds harsh, but remember, we live under the New Covenant. There should be an aspect to this that is somewhat foreign since ...
Isaiah 29
Isaiah 29 - I can remember times in my life when I was simply neglecting the spiritual wisdom of God. Like a nagging fly that kept landing on me, I swatted those thoughts out of my mind ...
Isaiah 28
Isaiah 28 - Samaria is given a strong warning by Isaiah to begin the chapter. The problem was self-indulgence and a lack of true wisdom. He then turns to Judah in verse 7 and gives warning that ...
Isaiah 27
Isaiah 27 - This chapter, as a whole, is about the destruction of Israel's enemies. The smaller story line, however, is the enemy within. For Israel, they would not experience the punishment of the enemies around them, ...
Isaiah 26
Isaiah 26 - Disease. Affliction. Poverty. The kingdom of man wrestles with the birth pains of this world. The city of God, however, is strong and unwavering. "Go into your houses, my people, and shut the door ...
Isaiah 25
Isaiah 25 - Following a chapter on the destruction and judgment of God, we read a deeply personal appeal to His faithfulness. It almost reads like a prayer, and this is significant. When we face trials, struggles, ...
Isaiah 24
Isaiah 24 - The somber truth is that our world is headed for judgment. In the end, God will reign. Although much of humanity believes we are self-sufficient and in control of our own destiny, reality tells ...
Isaiah 23
Isaiah 23 - Babylon was the great city along the eastern side of the ancient world and Tyre was considered the great city of the west. Tyre was known for their fabulous wealth - a benefit to ...
Isaiah 22
Isaiah 22 - How do you handle the immense spiritual burdens of others? Isaiah wept over Israel. You can feel his raw emotion in verse 4. He refuses comfort in his mourning because of his bitter sadness. ...
Isaiah 21
Isaiah 21 - A shared truth sticks out over the past few chapters of Isaiah. All the main players surrounding Judah (Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, and Ethiopia) are under the authority of God. The domino effect that occurred ...
Isaiah 20
Isaiah 20 - Let's first set the stage. Coming on the heels of Isaiah 19 and the oracle concerning Egypt, we now see the unfolding of God's judgment. King Sargon of Assyria orders his commander to invade ...
Isaiah 19
Isaiah 19 - What do we use to replace God in our lives? It's really a thought-provoking question. The temptation is to brush it aside, or minimize it. But when given proper thought, and approached with humility, ...
Isaiah 18
Isaiah 18 - I believe that chapter 18 is an expansion of Isaiah 17:12-14. The flow between the two chapters speaks to the hand of God being involved in all details of future events. Although there is ...
Isaiah 17
Isaiah 17 - Mount Hermon was a massive ridge north of Damascus After focusing on the nations to the south, this prophecy shifts to the northern borders...
Isaiah 16
Isaiah 16 - Though Moab's nation was broken to pieces, they had far more hope through Salvation than did Babylon or Philistia. The language describing the destruction of Moab offers much hope. In fact, we read in ...
Isaiah 15
Isaiah 15 - Moab was the region on the east side of the Dead Sea. The total land surface would have been about 30 miles long and 30 miles wide. As compared to the nation of Edom, ...
Isaiah 14
Isaiah 14 - There are some deep theological principles at work in this chapter. There is also some controversy as to the correct translation of the phrase, “Oh Lucifer, Son of the morning” in verse 12. Many ...
Isaiah 13
Isaiah 13 - Chapters 7-12 were Messianic in nature and now in Chapter 13 of Isaiah turns to the surrounding Gentile regions. Isaiah reiterates that God knows of the destiny of Babylon, Assyria, and every nation in ...
Isaiah 12
Isaiah 12 - Isaiah 12:1 is a mirror image of Paul's writing in Romans 6:17. Compare the two passages. Then you will say on that day, "I will give thanks to You, O LORD; For although You ...
Isaiah 11
Isaiah 11 - There is a good point here to be made about the wrath of God. Many skeptics are quick to point out God's wrath, especially in the Old Testament. Of course, we have all heard ...
Isaiah 10
Isaiah 10 - 'Woe" is a dangerous word in Scripture. Chapter 10 kicks off with God using this word as a warning of the severe consequences to come. It is the deprivation of the poor and ...
Isaiah 9
Isaiah 9 - Here we get a description of Jesus as a child, son, and eventually, prince. He is called the Prince of Peace. He follows in His Father’s footsteps. The God of peace will soon crush ...
Isaiah 8
Isaiah 8 - There are many prophecies to sort through in this text. First, we have the prophecy of Samaria falling to Assyria. This was written in verse 4 and would occur in 722 BC. Verses 5-10 ...
Isaiah 7
Isaiah 7 - War has broken out and Jerusalem is under attack. Amazingly, God shows King Ahaz mercy by commanding him to stay calm and courageous, even though he was a terribly immoral king. The Lord sends ...
Isaiah 6
Isaiah 6 - The first 5 chapters of Isaiah outline his prophecies, but do not establish his calling. In chapter 6 we read the details of God's calling for Isaiah. In many ways, Isaiah filled a role ...
Isaiah 5
Isaiah 5 - Six woes are given to the nation of Israel starting in verse 8. The woes include greed, debauchery, unbelief, perversion, arrogance, and injustice. "To these sins are added prophecies of judgment: desolation, captivity or ...
Isaiah 4
Isaiah 4 - Isaiah 4:2 describes the Branch of the Lord. The time is coming when the LORD will make every plant and tree in the land grow large and beautiful. All the people of Israel who ...
Isaiah 3
Isaiah 3 - Strong Christian leadership is important. Most likely during the time that Isaiah was writing this, the readers were under the leadership of King Uzziah. He was a wise and godly king, however, a time ...
Isaiah 2
Isaiah 2 - The first five verses of this chapter relate to the future Messiah and hint at the admission of the Gentiles to that kingdom. From there, the prophecies take a dramatic twist as they describe ...
Isaiah 1
Isaiah 1 - The book of Isaiah is full of prophecy. Hebrew poetry used a literary style called parallelism, much like a modern-day analogy. In the first several verses, we see the parallels being drawn. "An ox ...
Colossians 4
Colossians 4 - A very practical and important set of instructions are given here by Paul on how we should act toward nonbelievers. Act wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. 6 Your speech should ...
Colossians 3
Colossians 3 - Ironically, the ethics listed here in Colossians 3 are not foreign to the Jewish law. No one who grew up learning the law of Moses would scoff at the morality prescribed here by Paul. ...
Colossians 2
Colossians 2 - Think of it in these terms. Any philosopher, theologian, scientist, professor or quantum physicist, whether Christian or not, has borrowed their wisdom and knowledge from God. Without God, there is no logic or reason. ...
Colossians 1
Colossians 1 - Who has ever seen God? Jesus answered this question. "Lord," said Philip, "show us the Father, and that's enough for us." 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been among you all this time ...
Philippians 4
Philippians 4 - As I introduced in my commentary on Philippians 1, we read in Chapter 4 that this church was the only one to form a contractual friendship with Paul. There was an active relationship of ...
Philippians 3
Philippians 3 - Have you ever met someone who always tries to one-up you? No matter how the story goes, they always pull the trump card with some experience or credential that's bigger and better. It's not ...
Philippians 2
Philippians 2 - Paul's opening in Philippians 2 follows a delicate and precise structure. He opens with "Therefore" and unfortunately the breakup of these chapters forces us to lose part of the context if we don't go ...
Philippians 1
Philippians 1 - He who began a good work... Paul qualifies the promise of God completing a good work with a specific view. He says “in view of your participation in the Gospel from the first day ...
Ephesians 6
Ephesians 6 - It all begins with Psalm 82:1. God presides in the heavenly council; in the assembly of the gods he gives his decision: Psalms 82:1 GNB That word gods is translated from the Hebrew word ...
Ephesians 5
Ephesians 5 - For this reason, it says, "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you." I’ve researched this phrase, and it must have been familiar to those he was writing to. ...
Ephesians 4
Ephesians 4 - And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building ...
Ephesians 3
Ephesians 3 - It's one of my favorite prayers in Scripture. Ephesians 3:14-21. Once you really see and experience how much Jesus loves you, everything will begin to change. The love of Christ is wide enough to ...
Ephesians 2
Ephesians 2 - Many of us today live under the illusion that we simply can’t change. Hidden deep under a “that’s just the way I am” attitude is a deadliest of all sins - human pride. It’s ...
Ephesians 1
Ephesians 1 - The readers of this letter in Paul's day would have received a rolled up scroll that required unrolling before reading. It was important to quickly see who the writer was and what the letter ...
Galatians 6
Galatians 6 - The problem in the Galatian church was two-fold. As we've already outlined, the Jewish Christians were loading laws on top of grace. However, this was causing a huge divide in the church. Here in ...
Galatians 5
Galatians 5 - The fruit of keeping the law is exposed here in Galatians 5. According to Paul, the devotion to the law was leading to a cold, empty legalism. They were "biting and devouring one another." ...
Galatians 4
Galatians 4 - I admit that sometimes I get so caught up in my own wants and needs that I miss the bigger picture. We all tend to gravitate toward a "me first" attitude even if we ...
Galatians 3
Galatians 3 - Correction is tough. Nobody wants to be corrected. It can be humiliating and degrading. Furthermore, the person who is doing the correcting usually comes across as arrogant or "holier than thou." Anytime we are ...
Galatians 2
Galatians 2 - As we read in Chapter 1 of Galatians, Paul's message that he was delivering to the Gentiles came straight from God. In so many words, he was establishing that he was not the apostles' ...
Galatians 1
Galatians 1 - Just like we see today in the political sphere, Paul was battling against two extreme views within the Christian movement. There were the Judaizers who were local Christians (Gentiles) that had succumbed to the ...
Exodus 40
Exodus 40 - The glory of God came down and dwelled in the constructed tent. Previously, when God came near to the people, they were terrified. Now, they are overjoyed at His presence. They have been obedient ...
Exodus 39
Exodus 39 - At the end of the chapter, Scripture tells us that everything God had commanded, the children of Israel completed. The construction went without a hitch. We see no evidence of an argument or distraction. ...
Exodus 38
Exodus 38 - The values are given here for the exact weight of the gold, silver and bronze used in construction. The GoldCommentators differ in their opinion of just how much gold was actually used. The weight ...
Exodus 37
Exodus 37 - Let's take a moment to briefly summarize what makes this chapter so fruitful. We have the Holy Spirit, working among the people, filling them with gifts to craft together the elements that God had ...
Exodus 36
Exodus 36 - Can you believe it? I don't recall very many stories in the Bible where a cheerful giver was giving so much that they had to be restrained. Exodus 36:3-5 NASB They received from Moses ...
Exodus 35
Exodus 35 - Think upon the skills that were required of a master craftsman. Obviously, the person would be gifted in craftsmanship, but according to Scripture, that trait is not enough. Craftsmanship alone has a tendency to ...
Exodus 34
Exodus 34 - The term glory is not really an accurate depiction of what Moses asked for and received from God. We tend to associate the word "glory" with majestic light. A lot of times it has ...
Exodus 33
Exodus 33 - Perseverance. Can you imagine being Moses? On one hand, he is a spiritual leader for these obstinate people. He lives among them. He leads them. He loves them. On the other hand, the Lord ...
Exodus 32
Exodus 32 - The first question I asked when reading this chapter was - what caused this? We read in the very first verse that it was because of a delay. How many times have we allowed ...
Exodus 31
Exodus 31 - At the end of the chapter, God reminds Israel of the third sign of their covenant - the Sabbath. Overall, these signs were established as a reminder of the great provision of God, and ...
Exodus 30
Exodus 30 - The ability to come before God is an opportunity, not a right. Aaron was given the duty of burning sweet incense at morning and at twilight on this smaller altar. To us it may ...
Exodus 29
Exodus 29 - From the beginning we get a glimpse of God's design for sacrifice. Consecration. This word was translated 'hallow' and meant distinct, holy, and set aside for God's purposes. Most of us probably think of ...
Exodus 28
Exodus 28 - "You shall make on its hem pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet material, all around on its hem, and bells of gold between them all around: Exodus 28:33 NASB You may ask, why ...
Exodus 27
Exodus 27 - "You shall charge the sons of Israel, that they bring you clear oil of beaten olives for the light, to make a lamp burn continually. Exodus 27:20 NASB Light is the essence of God. ...
Exodus 26
Exodus 26 - "You shall make a screen for the doorway of the tent of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver. 37 "You shall make five pillars of ...
Exodus 25
Exodus 25 - The ark, and later the tabernacle, would be constructed from the wood of the acacia tree. It was a hard-grained wood that was a natural insect repellent and dark orange in color. Because of ...
Exodus 24
Exodus 24 - What does the manifestation of God look like? For Moses and these others, they received a small glimpse of His glory. The description, as in Revelation as well, hardly does it justice. In fact, ...
Exodus 23
Exodus 23 - "You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. Exodus 23:1 NASB "Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill ...
Exodus 22
Exodus 22 - I am most struck by verses 22 and 25 in this chapter. God has, from the beginning, always had special feelings toward the orphaned, the widowed, and the poor. If anyone wanted to set ...
Exodus 21
Exodus 21 - God, through His law, established some basic truths that the people were to follow. It's interesting how things are viewed somewhat differently today. During a less civilized time, and without the indwelling Holy Spirit ...
Exodus 20
Exodus 20 - The 10 Commandments illustrate the vertical and horizontal obedience that God desired for humanity. Jesus came to fulfill and (in many ways) raise the standard of the law. Mount Sinai was a particular summit ...
Exodus 19
Exodus 19 - When I read how the people trembled with fear at the thunder and lightning, I think about the lion from the Wizard of Oz and how terrified he was. I also wonder if we ...
Exodus 18
Exodus 18 - The advice Jethro gave to Moses has been used in countless illustrations regarding delegation and leadership. The practicality of his advice is a step toward the ultimate goal - individual accountability. Teaching people the ...
Exodus 17
Exodus 17 - The team was assembled and ready to go! Joshua would lead the army into battle. This is the first we've heard of Joshua but, of course, it wouldn't be the last. His training here ...
Exodus 16
Exodus 16 - I've had the opportunity over the years to witness many young people and adults get confronted with the Gospel and respond to the call. In most of those situations, the moment their hearts are ...
Exodus 15
Exodus 15 - The structure of this song can be broken up into four sections with a one-line closing declaration. The first stanza briefly mentions the powerful victory of the Lord. Stanza two mocks the enemy's failed ...
Exodus 14
Exodus 14 - Like the Canaanites, ancient Israel thought of the sea as an uncontrollable beast. At creation the Lord hovered over the waters of chaos. At the flood, the raging waters engulfed the sinful generation that ...
Exodus 13
Exodus 13 - The way God led was definitely the "road less traveled." The people did not go directly toward Canaan. There were traditionally three main routes from Egypt to Asia. The most ...
Exodus 12
Exodus 12 - The Passover is a powerful event in both Jewish tradition as well as Christianity. One major difference, obviously, is that the Jews rejected Jesus as the Messiah. It's tradition when the Jews celebrate the ...
Exodus 11
Exodus 11 - It's agreed upon by scholars that the first three verses of this chapter be read in the past tense. This means as the plague of darkness swept over the land, God began to prime ...
Exodus 10
Exodus 10 - In verse 3, Moses asks Pharaoh how long he will go before humbling himself. This seems to be a contrast to the many verses thus far which have outlined God's hardening of Pharaoh's heart. ...
Exodus 9
Exodus 9 - Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail. Exodus 9:26 NASB There are many instances of this same theme in Scripture. Here in Exodus, it reminds ...
Exodus 8
Exodus 8 - Pharaoh was so hardened that even when the supernatural evidence was directly before him, he refused to acknowledge it. Notice that God not only sends Moses and Aaron to testify to His power, but ...
Exodus 7
Exodus 7 - The hardening of Pharaoh's heart was something God had reminded Moses of time and time again. We read it in Exodus 4, Exodus 7, and twice in Exodus 14. The hardening of the heart ...
Exodus 6
Exodus 6 - Leap of faith. Failure. Encouragement. Repeat. This pretty much sums up the journey of Moses. Likewise, it may sum up our spiritual lives. God not only reminds Moses of His promises, but He gives ...
Exodus 5
Exodus 5 - This is just the beginning of Moses' journey and, understandably, he's ready to give up. We often feel like this. God calls us to something, and we try and follow through the best of ...
Exodus 4
Exodus 4 - Moses was uncertain about serving God, and his fears represent the same struggles many of us have today. God was asking for Moses to go all in, and his hesitancy can be categorized into ...
Exodus 3
Exodus 3 - God shows His character to Moses by both coming down to him and promising to be present with him. We read the details in verses 8 and 12. "So I have come down to ...
Exodus 2
Exodus 2 - He was given the name of Moses by Pharaoh's daughter because she "drew him out of the water." It Hebrew his name means "one who draws out." This would be a common theme in ...
Exodus 1
Exodus 1 - The bitter labor that was given to Israel actually made them multiply and grow. In the future, when the Passover celebration would be established, the bitter herbs would come to represent the bitterness of ...