Category Archives: Bible

Josiah mistook his own will for God’s will–and it cost him his life. (2 Kings 23:29-30, 2 Chronicles 35:20-25) Josiah was a king of Judah noted for having restored the proper worship of Yahweh and for eliminating idols throughout the … Continue reading →

David wanted to build God a temple. He told the prophet Nathan about his plans and Nathan happily lets him know that it sounds like a great idea to him. Only later, after God talked to Nathan, did Nathan have … Continue reading →

When Moses murdered an Egyptian, it was an example of good intentions gone wrong. Moses witnessed one of his fellow Israelites being abused by an Egyptian overseer. Appalled at the injustice of it all, he sought to right the wrong … Continue reading →

Ezekiel was God’s prophet to his people in Babylonian exile. God used him to speak his words and also used him to illustrate those words, whether by odd behavior (such as laying siege to a brick with toys) or making … Continue reading →

When facing problems that won’t leave, God is still near. An otherwise unknown author named Asaph wrote a Psalm reflecting the darkness that sometimes afflicts the human heart. He opens his poem by writing, I cried out to God for … Continue reading →

Naaman learns that healing doesn’t take much faith. Naaman was a general in the Syrian army. One of his servants, a girl, had been captured and enslaved from Israel. One day she told Naaman’s wife about a prophet in Israel … Continue reading →

According to Jesus in Matthew 5:1-16, the poor in spirit are blessed. In the message that Jesus preached on a mountainside, sometimes referred to as the Sermon on the Mount, he gives a series of statements known as the beatitudes, … Continue reading →

Doing what God asks you to do may not work at first or the way you expected. When Moses reluctantly returned to Egypt, he knew what his job was supposed to be. He was supposed to go to the Pharaoh … Continue reading →

Accepting God’s will does not mean no complaining. Feeling the need to complain when things don’t go as you’d like is part of being a normal human being; and it is important to be honest with God rather than to … Continue reading →

Renewing your strength even when you’ve got nothing left to give is hard. But God is often all about hard. Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is … Continue reading →