In 1 Samuel 4, Israel went to battle against the Philistines. They were defeated, losing about 4,000 men (1 Samuel…
In 1 Samuel 1, a man named Elkanah from the hill country of Ephraim had two wives: Hannah (who was…
In Judges 21, the Israelites mourned the desolation of the tribe of Benjamin and sought the Lord's guidance (Judges 21:1-4).…
In Judges 17, Micah, a man from the hill country of Ephraim, returns 1,100 pieces of silver to his mother…
In Judges 16, Samson visits Gaza and sleeps with a prostitute. The Philistines plan to ambush him, but Samson escapes…
In Judges 12, the Ephraimites confronted Jephthah angrily for not calling them to battle, threatening to burn his house (Judges…
In Judges 11, Jephthah, a warrior from Gilead and the son of a prostitute, was driven away by his half-brothers…
In Judges 9, Gideon's son Abimelech persuades the people of Shechem to make him king by arguing that it's better…
In Judges 8, Gideon was criticized by the men of Ephraim for not including them in the battle against Midian,…
Judges 5 is the Song of Deborah, a victory hymn sung by Deborah and Barak after Israel’s triumph over King…
Judges 4 recounts how Israel once again turned from the Lord after Ehud’s death. In response, God allowed King Jabin…
Judges 3 describes how the Lord left certain nations in Canaan to test Israel. These foreign nations would help determine…
Joshua 24 - In Joshua 24, Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, summoning their leaders to present…
Joshua 23 - Joshua gives the people lots of encouragement but also many warnings. He knows that if they are…
Joshua 21 - This statement of God's promises is such an encouragement. Let's take a look back and review some…
Joshua 17 - Essentially, what is happening over this chapter is that the other half of Manasseh's tribe is being…
Joshua 15 - Joshua 15 details the land allocation for the tribe of Judah, highlighting Caleb's victories in Hebron and…
Joshua 14 - The rest of Joshua slows in pace with the land distribution becoming the focal point. However, we…
Joshua 11 - Let's set the backdrop. Joshua has just led Israel in defeating the cities in the south. News…
Joshua 7 - Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings…
Joshua 6 - Joshua 6 is one of the most vivid demonstrations of God’s power in the Old Testament. The…
Joshua 5 - There was a series of events that the Lord required of Joshua prior to conquering Jericho. Joshua…
Joshua 3 - In Joshua 3, the Israelites prepared to cross the Jordan River under Joshua's leadership. Early in the…
Joshua 2 - It would not be an easy task to get a view of Jericho. Spies were sent by…
Joshua 1 - The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years due to a lack of faith and a…
Deuteronomy 34 - So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the…
Ezekiel 22 - Spiritual sin = practical consequences. This is a fact. Though the OT and NT are under different…
Ezekiel 19 - In this elegy, Ezekiel mourns the lion cubs (kings of Judah) who were brought up by the…
Ezekiel 8 - The people thought that because the temple was located in Jerusalem, their shameful acts of sin were…
Acts 15 - The first question we want to know is, who was right and who was wrong between Paul…
Acts 13 - Paul and Barnabas visit multiple synagogues and work there way across the island of Cyprus from east…
Acts 6 - We really have two storylines going on here. We have a great leadership move and a great…
Lamentations 3 - The first 20 verses of Lamentations 3 recall the conditions that God has allowed to take place…
Lamentations 2 - In the second chapter of Lamentations, God expresses His hatred for sin. It's important for us to…
Leviticus 21 - This chapter primarily deals with the holiness of the religious leaders. We read that higher standards were…
Revelation 2 - Although these letters are addressed to specific congregations in the first century, I believe they are representative…
Jeremiah 38 - The brutality against Jeremiah is taken a step further. Led by officials, they inquired with the king…
Jeremiah 37 - If you have been following along in Jeremiah you may be confused at how the chapters skip…
Jeremiah 32 - This chapter essentially reiterates the destruction we've known will come upon Jerusalem and the peace and prosperity…
Jeremiah 27 - It is fascinating to me to see the way that God is handling wayward Judah in these…
Jeremiah 23 - In this chapter, we see God really target the people in positions of leadership among the Jews.…
Jeremiah 22 - God has a message and it will be delivered. It may not come the way we expected.…
Jeremiah 17 - Does the Bible encourage us to "follow our heart?" What we find in chapter 17 of Jeremiah…
2 Chronicles 35 - Armchair Quarterback (noun) a person who offers advice or an opinion on something in which they…
2 Chronicles 30 - Hezekiah wanted to do the right thing. He believed that Israel and Judah should come back…
2 Chronicles 29 - In the first month... There were many decisions that needed attention when coming into power as…
2 Chronicles 27 - The people continued in rebellion under Jotham. Although he was a faithful king, he did have…
2 Chronicles 23 - The drama surrounding this messianic promise is an interesting story. The offspring of David's line had…
2 Chronicles 22 - The family tree of Jehoshaphat and Ahab can get overwhelming. If you are reading and getting…
2 Chronicles 17 - Leadership has a trickle-down effect. Judah or Israel had not seen a king like Jehoshaphat since…
2 Chronicles 12 - Rehoboam did what was evil, because he did not determine in his heart to seek the…
2 Chronicles 10 - It seems like this whole situation began to unravel in such a short period of time.…
1 Chronicles 29 - 1 Chronicles 29:25 GNB The LORD made the whole nation stand in awe of Solomon, and…
1 Chronicles 28 - Loyalty of heart. I once had a pastor give me advice on how to preach a…
1 Chronicles 25 - Attention musicians! Does the name Asaph mean anything to you? Anyone....anyone.....Bueller? Although it might not mean…
1 Chronicles 22 - Though David served Israel in many ways, his primary role was as a military leader. He…
1 Chronicles 20 - "In the spring of the year..." Great military conquests were routinely conducted in the springtime. Most…
1 Chronicles 17 - I am drawn to David's actions over the second half of this chapter. As I read,…
1 Chronicles 16 - For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and he is to be feared…
1 Chronicles 14 - Following on the same theme from 1 Chronicles 13, we now see David correcting his previous…
1 Chronicles 13 - There is a strong theme of unity within the writings of Chronicles. Just as intensely as…
1 Chronicles 12 - The story of David's mighty men sounds a bit like a Hollywood blockbuster. In Chapter 11,…
1 Chronicles 11 - David's ascent to king was not as simple as three verses. In the book of 2…
1 Chronicles 10 - The Philistines Who were the Philistines? They were sea-faring people who immigrated from the island of…
1 Chronicles 9 - Psalms 99:5-6 ESV Exalt the LORD our God; worship at his footstool! Holy is he! 6…
Isaiah 56 - Here at the end of the chapter, we read that Israel's irresponsible leaders are the source of…
Isaiah 39 - The last verse of Chapter 39 is probably the most heavily scrutinized statement from Hezekiah. Many scholars…
Isaiah 32 - Isaiah's description of a true king is exactly what we all desire. He is righteous, just, and…
Isaiah 28 - Samaria is given a strong warning by Isaiah to begin the chapter. The problem was self-indulgence and…
Isaiah 20 - Let's first set the stage. Coming on the heels of Isaiah 19 and the oracle concerning Egypt,…
Isaiah 3 - Strong Christian leadership is important. Most likely during the time that Isaiah was writing this, the readers…
Colossians 2 - Think of it in these terms. Any philosopher, theologian, scientist, professor or quantum physicist, whether Christian or…
Ephesians 4 - And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as…
Galatians 6 - The problem in the Galatian church was two-fold. As we've already outlined, the Jewish Christians were loading…
Galatians 2 - As we read in Chapter 1 of Galatians, Paul's message that he was delivering to the Gentiles…
Exodus 38 - The values are given here for the exact weight of the gold, silver and bronze used in…
Exodus 32 - The first question I asked when reading this chapter was - what caused this? We read in…
Exodus 18 - The advice Jethro gave to Moses has been used in countless illustrations regarding delegation and leadership. The…
Exodus 17 - The team was assembled and ready to go! Joshua would lead the army into battle. This is…
Exodus 4 - Moses was uncertain about serving God, and his fears represent the same struggles many of us have…
1 Thessalonians 3 - Dear Thessalonica, I'm burdened for you. Love, Paul In this chapter, we get a glimpse into…
Jude 1 - Jude was one of four half-brothers of Jesus. In the Greek, the name Jude was synonymous with…
Job 34 - Elihu uses some quotes from Job to reiterate that God can do no wrong. Specifically, he uses…
Job 29 - What does it mean to reflect on the former times? We've all heard people talk about the…
Ezra 8 - This trek consisted of over 900 miles on foot. But also consider that there would have been…
Ezra 7 - There is an old tradition that claims that Ezra had the law memorized and only needed to…
Ezra 2 - Why was genealogy so important to the Jews? We see this many times in Scripture and often…
Matthew 26 - Judas Iscariot is an interesting person to study. There are so many questions that center around his…
Proverbs 29 - "Bloodthirsty men hate an honest person, but the upright care about him." Proverbs 29:10 HCSB "When the…
Proverbs 28 - "The one who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find…
Proverbs 16 - "A man's heart plans his way, but the LORD determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9 HCSB This passage…
1 Peter 5 - Peter is following up on his previous chapter on suffering. It's no surprise that in order…
Titus 2 - Years ago, I remember a conversation I was having with a group of teenagers when suddenly the…
Titus 1 - Parenting is not an easy task. It involves incredible commitment, unyielding problem-solving, and loads of diapers. Parenting…
2 Samuel 22 - My rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. These were the words David penned about God after…
2 Samuel 21 - King David was seemingly indestructible. He was a beast on the battlefield and a musician at…
2 Samuel 20 - Concubines, intestines, and a severed head being thrown over a wall! This chapter is not for…
2 Samuel 13 - What a mess here in 2 Samuel 13! It's hard to know where to begin. Amnon…
2 Samuel 10 - After David's men were humiliated by the Ammonites, a war was sure to break out. The…
2 Samuel 8 - In many ways, David is presented as the "anti-Saul" even though at times, their behavior does…