John 17
Jesus Prays for Himself
After Jesus said this, He looked toward heaven and prayed:
"Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may Glorify You.
For You granted Him Authority over all people that He might give Eternal Life to all those You have given Him.
Now this is Eternal Life: that they may know You, the Only True God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.
I have brought You Glory on earth by completing the work You gave Me to do.
And now, Father, Glorify Me in Your presence with the Glory I had with You before the world began.
Jesus Prays for His Disciples
"I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world.
They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they have obeyed Your Word.
Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You.
For I gave them the Words You gave Me and they accepted them.
They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.
I pray for them.
I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given Me,
for they are Yours.
All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine.
And Glory has come to Me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but
they are still in the world, and I am coming to You.
Holy Father, protect them by the power of Your Name—the Name You gave Me—so that
they may be One as We are One.
While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that Name You gave Me.
None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.
"I am coming to You now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of My joy within them.
I have given them Your Word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one.
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.
Sanctify them by The Truth; Your Word is Truth.
As You sent Me into the world, I have sent them into the world.
For them I Sanctify Myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
Jesus Prays for All Believers
"My prayer is not for them alone.
I pray also for those who will believe in Me
through their message, that all of them may be One, Father, just as You are in Me
and I am in You.
May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me.
I have given them the Glory that You gave Me, that they may be One as We are One:
I in them and You in Me.
May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.
"Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I Am, and to see My Glory, the Glory You have given Me because You loved Me before the creation of the world.
"Righteous Father, though the world does not know You, I know You, and they know that You have sent Me.
I have made You known to them, and will continue to make You known in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them."
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Overcome
The New Jerusalem
Revelation 21
Then I saw a New Heaven and a New Earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
"Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
He who was seated on the throne said,
"I am making everything New!"
Then he said,
"Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."
He said to me:
"It is done.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End.
To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.
He who Overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me,
"Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb."
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the
Holy City,
Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God.
It shone with the glory of God,
and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel,
like a jasper,
clear as crystal.
It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
There were three gates on the east,
three on the north,
three on the south and
three on the west.
The wall of the city had twelve foundations,
and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using.
The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.
The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.
The first foundation was jasper,
the second sapphire,
the third chalcedony,
the fourth emerald,
the fifth sardonyx,
the sixth carnelian,
the seventh chrysolite,
the eighth beryl,
the ninth topaz,
the tenth chrysoprase,
the eleventh jacinth,
and the twelfth amethyst.
The twelve gates were twelve pearls,
each gate made of a single pearl.
The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.
The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Revelation 21
Then I saw a New Heaven and a New Earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
"Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.
They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
He who was seated on the throne said,
"I am making everything New!"
Then he said,
"Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."
He said to me:
"It is done.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End.
To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.
He who Overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me,
"Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb."
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the
Holy City,
Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God.
It shone with the glory of God,
and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel,
like a jasper,
clear as crystal.
It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
There were three gates on the east,
three on the north,
three on the south and
three on the west.
The wall of the city had twelve foundations,
and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using.
The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.
The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.
The first foundation was jasper,
the second sapphire,
the third chalcedony,
the fourth emerald,
the fifth sardonyx,
the sixth carnelian,
the seventh chrysolite,
the eighth beryl,
the ninth topaz,
the tenth chrysoprase,
the eleventh jacinth,
and the twelfth amethyst.
The twelve gates were twelve pearls,
each gate made of a single pearl.
The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.
The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Jerusalem the Praise of the Earth: Zion
Zion's New Name
For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet,
till her righteousness shines out like the dawn,
her salvation like a blazing torch.
The nations will see your righteousness,
and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.
You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand,
a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
No longer will they call you Deserted,
or name your land Desolate.
But you will be called Hephzibah,
and your land Beulah;
for the LORD will take delight in you,
and your land will be married.
As a young man marries a maiden,
so will your sons marry you;
as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride,
so will your God rejoice over you.
I have posted watchmen on your walls,
O Jerusalem;
they will never be silent day or night.
You who call on the LORD,
give yourselves no rest,
and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem
and makes her The Praise of the Earth.
The LORD has sworn by his right hand
and by his mighty arm:
"Never again will I give your grain
as food for your enemies,
and never again will foreigners drink the new wine
for which you have toiled;
but those who harvest it will eat it
and praise the LORD,
and those who gather the grapes will drink it
in the courts of my sanctuary."
Pass through, pass through the gates!
Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!
Remove the stones.
Raise a banner for the nations.
The LORD has made proclamation
to the ends of the earth:
"Say to the Daughter of Zion,
'See, your Savior comes!
See, His reward is with Him,
and His recompense accompanies Him.' "
12 They will be called the Holy People,
the Redeemed of the LORD;
and you will be called Sought After,
the City No Longer Deserted
For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet,
till her righteousness shines out like the dawn,
her salvation like a blazing torch.
The nations will see your righteousness,
and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.
You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand,
a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
No longer will they call you Deserted,
or name your land Desolate.
But you will be called Hephzibah,
and your land Beulah;
for the LORD will take delight in you,
and your land will be married.
As a young man marries a maiden,
so will your sons marry you;
as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride,
so will your God rejoice over you.
I have posted watchmen on your walls,
O Jerusalem;
they will never be silent day or night.
You who call on the LORD,
give yourselves no rest,
and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem
and makes her The Praise of the Earth.
The LORD has sworn by his right hand
and by his mighty arm:
"Never again will I give your grain
as food for your enemies,
and never again will foreigners drink the new wine
for which you have toiled;
but those who harvest it will eat it
and praise the LORD,
and those who gather the grapes will drink it
in the courts of my sanctuary."
Pass through, pass through the gates!
Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!
Remove the stones.
Raise a banner for the nations.
The LORD has made proclamation
to the ends of the earth:
"Say to the Daughter of Zion,
'See, your Savior comes!
See, His reward is with Him,
and His recompense accompanies Him.' "
12 They will be called the Holy People,
the Redeemed of the LORD;
and you will be called Sought After,
the City No Longer Deserted
Isaiah 61
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the LORD
for the display of his splendor.
They will rebuild the ancient ruins
and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
that have been devastated for generations.
Aliens will shepherd your flocks;
foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
And you will be called priests of the LORD,
you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
and in their riches you will boast.
Instead of their shame
my people will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace
they will rejoice in their inheritance;
and so they will inherit a double portion in their land,
and everlasting joy will be theirs.
"For I, the LORD, love justice;
I hate robbery and iniquity.
In my faithfulness I will reward them
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
Their descendants will be known among the nations
and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
that they are a people the LORD has blessed."
I delight greatly in the LORD;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise
spring up before all nations.
because the LORD has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the LORD
for the display of his splendor.
They will rebuild the ancient ruins
and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
that have been devastated for generations.
Aliens will shepherd your flocks;
foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
And you will be called priests of the LORD,
you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
and in their riches you will boast.
Instead of their shame
my people will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace
they will rejoice in their inheritance;
and so they will inherit a double portion in their land,
and everlasting joy will be theirs.
"For I, the LORD, love justice;
I hate robbery and iniquity.
In my faithfulness I will reward them
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
Their descendants will be known among the nations
and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
that they are a people the LORD has blessed."
I delight greatly in the LORD;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise
spring up before all nations.
Melchizedek
Hebrews 5
Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.
He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness.
This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.
No one takes this honor upon himself;
he must be called by God, just as Aaron was.
So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest.
But God said to him,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father."
And he says in another place,
"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."
During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Warning Against Falling Away
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.
In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again.
You need milk, not solid food!
Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.
He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness.
This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.
No one takes this honor upon himself;
he must be called by God, just as Aaron was.
So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest.
But God said to him,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father."
And he says in another place,
"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."
During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Warning Against Falling Away
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.
In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again.
You need milk, not solid food!
Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews 4
Hebrews 4
A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God
Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it.
For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.
Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
"So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world.
For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words:
"And on the seventh day God rested from all his work."
And again in the passage above he says,
"They shall never enter my rest."
It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience.
Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today,
when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts."
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.
There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;
for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his.
Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.
For the word of God is living and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,
joints and marrow;
it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
Jesus the Great High Priest
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God,
let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God
Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it.
For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.
Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
"So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world.
For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words:
"And on the seventh day God rested from all his work."
And again in the passage above he says,
"They shall never enter my rest."
It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience.
Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today,
when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts."
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.
There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;
for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his.
Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.
For the word of God is living and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,
joints and marrow;
it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
Jesus the Great High Priest
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God,
let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 3 - One Greater than Moses
Jesus Greater Than Moses
Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.
He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house.
Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself.
For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.
Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future.
But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.
Warning Against Unbelief
So, as the Holy Spirit says:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
But encourage one another daily,
as long as it is called Today,
so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.
We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.
As has just been said:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion."[
Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?
And with whom was he angry for forty years?
Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert?
And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed?
So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.
He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house.
Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself.
For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.
Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future.
But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.
Warning Against Unbelief
So, as the Holy Spirit says:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
But encourage one another daily,
as long as it is called Today,
so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.
We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.
As has just been said:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion."[
Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?
And with whom was he angry for forty years?
Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert?
And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed?
So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
Hebrews 2
We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?
This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.
God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Jesus Made Like His Brothers
It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.
But there is a place where someone has testified:
"What is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the angels;
you crowned him with glory and honor
and put everything under his feet."
In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him.
Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him.
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
In bringing many sons to glory,
it was fitting that God,
for whom and through whom everything exists,
should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family.
So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers.
He says,
"I will declare your name to my brothers;
in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises."
And again,
"I will put my trust in him." And again he says,
"Here am I, and the children God has given me."
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—
and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants.
For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted
For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?
This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.
God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Jesus Made Like His Brothers
It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.
But there is a place where someone has testified:
"What is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the angels;
you crowned him with glory and honor
and put everything under his feet."
In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him.
Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him.
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
In bringing many sons to glory,
it was fitting that God,
for whom and through whom everything exists,
should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family.
So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers.
He says,
"I will declare your name to my brothers;
in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises."
And again,
"I will put my trust in him." And again he says,
"Here am I, and the children God has given me."
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—
and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants.
For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted
Hebrews 1
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
For to which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father"? Or again,
"I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son"?
And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
"Let all God's angels worship him."
In speaking of the angels he says,
"He makes his angels winds,
his servants flames of fire."
But about the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy."
He also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be changed.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end."
To which of the angels did God ever say,
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet"?
Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
For to which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father"? Or again,
"I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son"?
And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
"Let all God's angels worship him."
In speaking of the angels he says,
"He makes his angels winds,
his servants flames of fire."
But about the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy."
He also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be changed.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end."
To which of the angels did God ever say,
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet"?
Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
Read the Book of John
"All this I have told you so that you will not go astray.
They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.
They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.
I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.
The Work of the Holy Spirit
"Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'
Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me;
in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
"In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me."
The Disciples' Grief Will Turn to Joy
Some of his disciples said to one another,
"What does he mean by saying, 'In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,' and 'Because I am going to the Father'?"
They kept asking, "What does he mean by 'a little while'? We don't understand what he is saying."
Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, "Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, 'In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me'?
I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.
A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.
So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.
In that day you will no longer ask me anything.
I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.
Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
"Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.
In that day you will ask in my name.
I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf.
No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."
Then Jesus' disciples said,
"Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech.
Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions.
This makes us believe that you came from God."
"You believe at last!"
Jesus answered.
"But a time is coming, and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home.
You will leave me all alone.
Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.
In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart!
I have overcome the world."
They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.
They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.
I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.
The Work of the Holy Spirit
"Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'
Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me;
in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
"In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me."
The Disciples' Grief Will Turn to Joy
Some of his disciples said to one another,
"What does he mean by saying, 'In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,' and 'Because I am going to the Father'?"
They kept asking, "What does he mean by 'a little while'? We don't understand what he is saying."
Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, "Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, 'In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me'?
I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.
A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.
So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.
In that day you will no longer ask me anything.
I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.
Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
"Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.
In that day you will ask in my name.
I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf.
No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."
Then Jesus' disciples said,
"Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech.
Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions.
This makes us believe that you came from God."
"You believe at last!"
Jesus answered.
"But a time is coming, and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home.
You will leave me all alone.
Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.
In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart!
I have overcome the world."
Saturday, March 22, 2008
The Great American Experiment
Lesson 10 - The American Experiment: Stepping Stones
I. Introduction – God's design for the state – How close was the American Experiment?
A. Three rules: Won't deify America; won't deify Founders; won't cast stones
B. Basis for the three branches - Isaiah 33 – Lawgiver, Judge, and King
C. Early educational system – Instilling principles of Biblical Christianity
1. Primer and NEA – Biblical doctrine and prayer were essential to education
2. Founding and original mottos of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia
II. Foundations of Religion and Morality – Basis for Freedom and Liberty
A. Dr. Tackett's personal journey – America 101
1. Murals in Capital rotunda
2. Revelation 2:5 - Remember, Repent and Return
3. Washington's Farwell address
B. Foundations of this country - Religion and Morality
1. Consistent theme in virtually all of the Founder's writings
2. They saw a strong connection between virtue and liberty
C. Purpose of Civil Magistrate - Punish evil and condone good – Romans 13
III. Foundations of Law
A. Blackstone – Valid human laws must be based upon God's laws
B. Influence of Darwin radically changed law in America – Case study methodology
1. Legal Positivism – The state is the authority for determining right and wrong
IV. The Larger Story
A. Original charters and constitutions – Acknowledgment of God's authority and recognition that the state was subject to and accountable to God
B. Pilgrims intent – "preserving and propagating the truth and liberties of the gospel"
C. Historical revisionism – Founders depicted as Deists and secularists; stripping God and Christianity from all historical accounts; pursuing a secular basis for law
V. Conclusion – How has this happened?
A. Men have forgotten God
B. Cycle of Nations – Hosea 13:6 – Judgment and destruction upon proud nations
C. Jesus removing the lamp stand – Our hope: Light always overtakes darkness
For this tour we will remain in the southwest sector of the compass long enough to examine a special sub-category of our last topic of discussion: the design of the state. In particular, we want to take a brief look at the question, "What should God'sminister on earth (Romans 13:4) look like? What is a proper form for this agency that is divinely appointed and commissioned to administer justice, punish evil, and encourage goodness among its citizens or subjects?" We will approach this task by considering the American Experiment.
Themes
From the beginning, Dr. Tackett lays down three ground rules for this study: first, we will not seek to deify America; and second, we will not seek to deify the Founding Fathers (the third ground rule will be dealt with at the end of the lesson). Having established these guidelines, he hastens to point out that there are compelling reasons for giving special attention to the subject of this tour. The American Experiment has the potential to prove unusually conducive to a deeper understanding of God's design for the state precisely because it is unique in the history of the world. Here on these shores, and here alone, people with a strong Christian worldview have been afforded an unparalleled opportunity to create from scratch what they considered an ideal system of government – a system designed in careful conformity with the principles outlined in Lesson 9.
We begin by establishing the biblical character of that worldview. The NewEngland Primer, the second best-selling book (after the Bible) of the colonial era, provides an intriguing window into the attitudes of early Americans. In particular, it reveals an outlook and a way of life powerfully shaped by the teachings of Scripture. The pervasiveness of this outlook is further demonstrated in statements made by America's early political leaders, legal and social architects, and educational pioneers – people like Benjamin Rush, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, Charles Carroll, Noah Webster, and the founders of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia Universities. In spite of the fact that not all of them were practicing Christians, these luminaries agreed with President John Adams that the success of America's republican form of government would prove directly dependent upon the virtue and morality of her people, and that virtue and morality are necessarily founded upon religion – by which all meant the Christian religion. All of these early thinkers were convinced that the state must be held accountable to the authority of a higher ethical and spiritual standard – the "Natural Law" or the "Law of Nature's God" – if the human rights abuses they had observed in Europe and throughout history were to be hopefully avoided on this continent.
Tragically, however, America is quickly turning away from these principles. It is hard to put a finger on the exact reasons, but one clear element came as Darwinian evolutionary theory made its influence felt in the field of law. In 1869, Harvard Law School Dean Christopher Langdell advanced the view that law is not based upon the transcendent standard of "Nature's God," but is rather a fluid and constantly mutating body of "doctrine," a set of purely human ideas that inevitably change "by slow degrees." In other words, law and ethics, like biological species, are continually "evolving." Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes expanded on this theme by declaring that the law is "simply an embodiment of the ends and purposes of a society at a given point in its history," thus effectively granting to the state the power to establish society's ethical norms. John Dewey implemented these ideas in the realm of public education. "There is no God," said Dewey (nicknamed "The Architect of Modern Education"), "and there is no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of traditional religion."
These statements, says Dr. Tackett, bring us to the present moment. Today, America has largely forgotten God and denied the validity of her biblically based Christian roots. As a result, we see the power of the state expanding in our time. This, too, is a manifestation of the perennial Cosmic Battle, which is always fought most fiercely in the social realm. Ultimately, we must face the fact that the American Experiment is likely to fail altogether if we do not take intentional and deliberate steps to salvage it. This is a task which falls primarily on the shoulders of Christian people. As believers, we need to remember God's call to prayer and repentance in 2 Chronicles 7:13-14. There is nothing to be gained, says Dr. Tackett, by casting blame on non-Christians (this is the third ground rule for our study).
Points to Watch for
This last point should be kept in mind throughout the entire discussion. From beginning to end, Dr. Tackett seeks to communicate the thought that the American Experiment makes sense only when understood as the brainchild of Christians who operated on the basis of a biblical worldview. Just as the experiment was instigated by believers, so it must be carried on by believers – believers who care deeply and passionately about their country – if it is to survive and continue to succeed.
Discussion Questions
• Here are some of the key items: Early American educational system; the New England Primer and "play not with bad boys"; Harvard rules and Columbia's seal; Dr. Tackett's journey in Washington D.C.; Washington's Farewell Address; the foundations of religion and morality; the myriad of quotes from Washington, Adams, Benjamin Rush, Daniel and Noah Webster, and others; the basis of the phrase "the law of nature"; Blackstone's Commentaries on the Law; Delaware's oath of office, good law is based upon God's law; the evolution of law in America; Elliot and Langdell at Harvard and the removal of Blackstone and the institution of the case method; Benjamin Franklin's address to the Constitutional Convention; Lincoln's call for fasting, humiliation and prayer; the call for our involvement.
• It was during a re-enactment of Washington's Farewell Address, says Dr. Tackett, that he was struck by the "sinking feeling" that he had been "lied to." What "lies" does he have in mind, and how do they fit the pattern of the other lies we've encountered during the course of our worldview tours? Have you been subjected to such lies yourself? (The heart of the lie is contained in Bishop Paul O'Brien's ( Universal Life Church) statement that "The United States was started by men we today would call pagans … [and] Deists." The motive behind the lie is the same one we have observed in our discussions of philosophy, science, and history: exclude God from the system – i.e., construct a cosmic cube with a closed lid – and man can regard himself as free to do whatever he wants. He is no longer accountable to a higher authority.)
• Name some of the early sources for the idea of "the laws of Nature and of Nature's God" referenced by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Why was this concept so important to the founders of the American system of government? What risks do we run in replacing this idea with Langdell's notion of "evolving law?" (Contrary to much popular opinion, the "natural law" was not primarily a Deistic concept. It was extremely important to the theologians of the Protestant Reformation; consider, for example, The SecondHelvetic Confession, Chapter XII: "This law was at one time written in the hearts of men by the finger of God" [based upon Paul's teaching in Romans 2:14, 15]. It is a prominent theme in the writings of Sir Edward Coke [1552-1634] and John Locke [1632-1704], both of whom tied their ideas of "natural law" securely to thewill of God. Locke made special use of it in arguing against the "Divine Right of Kings." It was this aspect of the theory that made it particularly appealing to Jefferson and the other founders, who saw in it a re-affirmation of the truth that rulers must be held accountable to a higher authority. If we jettison the "natural law" and put ethics in the hands of the state, we run the risk of re-incurring the very dangers that Locke and Jefferson were resisting: tyranny and totalitarianism.)
• What did John Adams mean when he affirmed that "… Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other"? What does this imply about the foundations of the American Experiment and the basic structure of the system of government it established? (In essence, Adams was agreeing with Franklin, who claimed, "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom." In other words, the American Experiment was based upon the assumption that people who accept the Christian worldview are capable of governing themselves internally where ethical and moral issues are concerned. Thus, conceptually speaking, the architects of America's early government structure envisioned the Republic supported by a foundation of common morality, and morality resting on the bedrock of religion and Christian faith.)
• Why, according to Dr. Tackett, is it in vogue to hate America today? To what extent is this hatred justifiable, and to what extent is it a manifestation of the Cosmic Battle? (As Christians, we must not be afraid to admit that the history of this nation has been anything but perfect. Not only should we be the first to acknowledge the sins of the past and the present – we should also lead the way to repentance, reformation, and the renewal of the Founders' vision. At the same time, we should not be ignorant of the larger spiritual dimension of the cultural struggle we are facing today. America may not be pure and blameless, but her form of government has been built upon a foundation that was laid firmly and securely upon a biblical worldview and the concept that man and the state must be held accountable to a higher law. It is this, says Dr. Tackett, that has inspired the lion's share of the hatred currently directed toward the American Experiment.
• What should we do when Adams's assumptions no longer appear to be valid – that is, when it becomes evident that Americans can no longer be characterized as a "moral and religious people" as he understood the phrase? How do we apply the Founders' ideas to a "multicultural" America where a flood of moral and spiritual perspectives – e.g., Buddhism, spiritism, Islam, Native American religions, and Wicca – have become part of the cultural fabric? (This, in a sense, is the crux of the entire discussion; for Dr. Tackett tells us again and again that we have in fact come to a place where the Christian God has been largely forgotten in American public life. Our response to this situation is crucial. We will accomplish nothing by striking out in anger against those who no longer share our Christian worldview. Instead, we must take upon ourselves the burden of praying, repenting, caring, and actively working to salvage the experiment. Most of all, we must resist the temptation to take our freedoms for granted.)
Revisionist History: Bradford and the Pilgrims
In his introduction to Governor William Bradford's Letter Book,1 John C. Kemp, Associate Director of Colonial Interpretation at Plymouth Plantation, rightly contends that this "little treasure trove of documents and letters to and from Plymouth Colony in the 1620s" – a collection of source material that Bradford himself never intended to publish – casts a valuable light on the story of New England's earliest settlement. Unfortunately, he obscures that light by twisting the significance of these documents to serve his own ends.
Kemp's thesis, stated broadly, is that Bradford himself was America's first writer of revisionist history. In the Letter Book, he tells us, we see the plain, unadorned facts of Plymouth's early history laid bare in such a way that we can no longer take seriously the "Calvinist vision" and "polemical Predestinarianism" that inform and animate Bradford's account of the same events in Of Plymouth Plantation. By studying these letters, he suggests, we may free ourselves at last from the "subtle power of the mythical Pilgrim" whose image has been foisted upon the American consciousness by Bradford and his uncritically patriotic interpreters. It's a remarkable argument – less for its cleverness than for the blatant violence it does to the obvious truth.
For example: Kemp says that pilgrims are conspicuously absent from the documents contained in Governor William Bradford's Letter Book. That's because the colonists who came over on the Mayflower never really considered themselves to be any such thing: "That part of the story, the idealizing of colonists into Pilgrims (Pilgrims with a capital 'P'), occurred in the late 18 th and 19 th centuries."2
Apparently forgetting that he is supposed to be talking about Bradford and his "17 th-century biases," Kemp informs us that America's "Pilgrim heritage" is largely the fabrication of men like John Quincy Adams and Daniel Webster. Webster, we learn, "did much to popularize the Pilgrim Fathers" as "uniformly hard-working, right-minded, freedom-loving proponents of the virtues upheld in Victorian Boston throughout the 19 th century and well into the 20 th." The problem is that "these are not the struggling, precariously disorganized, and contentious people we find in the Letter Book."3
One has to wonder whether Kemp has actually read Bradford's account of the founding of New England. The settlers described in Of Plymouth Plantation are certainly hard-working, right-minded, and pious. But they are not uniformly so. What's more, Bradford is brutally honest about portraying his fellow colonists precisely as a "struggling, disorganized, and contentious" lot. That's because he wants us to see "the infinite qualitative difference between the human and the divine." Of Plymouth Plantation, says Francis Murphy,
affirms the possibility of grace without losing sight of the fact that man is fallen, that he is both creature as well as creator, and that he depends utterly on God's help for salvation … It is part of Bradford's genius to show us dramatically the struggle of Puritan piety to survive in difficult circumstances, often caused by themselves, and to describe the complex motives that underlie all human action.4That's not to mention that the Mayflower emigrants did in fact think of themselves as "pilgrims" in the best biblical sense of the word. As early as their sojourn in Leyden, the Scrooby Separatists were interpreting their difficult circumstances in terms of the language of Hebrews 11:13-16: "They knew they were pilgrims, and looked not much on those things, but lift up their eyes to the heavens, their dearest country, and quieted their spirits."5
In similarly skewed fashion, Kemp argues that Governor William Bradford's Letter Book makes it clear that the Plymouth colonists had little concern for the welfare of their Native American neighbors. Indians, like Pilgrims, are never mentioned in these documents, says Kemp. Why not? It's a bad reason, a very meaningful omission. In fact, after all the lofty words about friendship and Christian love when the colony began, the colonists' lack of concern for their Pokanoket or Wampanoag neighbors just a few years later says a great deal about colonialism. Colonists don't like to think about the people they are colonizing.6
But how are we to reconcile this statement with Bradford's many expressions of indebtedness to Samoset, Hobomok, and Squanto? His heartfelt grief on the occasion of Squanto's death? Or his detailed descriptions of relations with Massasoit, the Wampanoag chief who kept his treaty with the Plymouth settlers for over forty years? Even when compelled to use force against openly hostile Native Americans, as in the case of Wituwamat and Pecksuot, Bradford always did so reluctantly, bearing in mind the words of his pastor, John Robinson, who had written from Leyden: "Oh! How happy a thing had it been, if you had converted some, before you had killed any!"7
The fact of the matter is that there is another reason – a very simple and straightforward reason – for the glaring "omissions" Kemp has noted. Most of the documents contained in Bradford's Letter Book are examples of business correspondence. They deal primarily with finances, accounts, inventories, and the profits the London Adventurers hoped to receive from Plymouth colony. It's not surprising that writings of this nature should have little to say about the spiritual idealism of "pilgrims" or the day-to-day challenges of maintaining relations with indigenous tribesmen. What can have driven a responsible scholar like Mr. Kemp to promote such blatant misrepresentations of the facts? Lacking an explanation from his own pen, we are left to speculate. But given the spirit of the times in which we live, it seems reasonable to suppose that his motives might be similar to those of the school textbook writers who have seen fit to edit phrases like "In the name of God, Amen" out of the Mayflower Compact. Like them, Kemp understands that the prize to the victors in the battle over history is power: power to control the present and shape the course of the future. This is the power of historical revisionism, fiddling with the past to control beliefs in the present.
1Governor William Bradford's Letter Book, Introduction by John C. Kemp ( Bedford, Massachusetts: Applewood Books, 2001), iii-x.
2 Ibid., iii. 3 Ibid., vii. 4 Francis Murphy, Introduction to William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620-1647 (New York: Modern Library College Editions, 1981), xvii, xix.
5 William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 50. "It was owing to this passage, first printed in 1669, that the Mayflower's company came eventually to be called the Pilgrim Fathers." (Samuel Eliot Morison, footnote 4.)
6 Kemp, iii.
7 Cited in Gary D. Schmidt, William Bradford: Plymouth's Faithful Pilgrim ( Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1999), 133.
From The Truth Project Lesson 10
I. Introduction – God's design for the state – How close was the American Experiment?
A. Three rules: Won't deify America; won't deify Founders; won't cast stones
B. Basis for the three branches - Isaiah 33 – Lawgiver, Judge, and King
C. Early educational system – Instilling principles of Biblical Christianity
1. Primer and NEA – Biblical doctrine and prayer were essential to education
2. Founding and original mottos of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia
II. Foundations of Religion and Morality – Basis for Freedom and Liberty
A. Dr. Tackett's personal journey – America 101
1. Murals in Capital rotunda
2. Revelation 2:5 - Remember, Repent and Return
3. Washington's Farwell address
B. Foundations of this country - Religion and Morality
1. Consistent theme in virtually all of the Founder's writings
2. They saw a strong connection between virtue and liberty
C. Purpose of Civil Magistrate - Punish evil and condone good – Romans 13
III. Foundations of Law
A. Blackstone – Valid human laws must be based upon God's laws
B. Influence of Darwin radically changed law in America – Case study methodology
1. Legal Positivism – The state is the authority for determining right and wrong
IV. The Larger Story
A. Original charters and constitutions – Acknowledgment of God's authority and recognition that the state was subject to and accountable to God
B. Pilgrims intent – "preserving and propagating the truth and liberties of the gospel"
C. Historical revisionism – Founders depicted as Deists and secularists; stripping God and Christianity from all historical accounts; pursuing a secular basis for law
V. Conclusion – How has this happened?
A. Men have forgotten God
B. Cycle of Nations – Hosea 13:6 – Judgment and destruction upon proud nations
C. Jesus removing the lamp stand – Our hope: Light always overtakes darkness
For this tour we will remain in the southwest sector of the compass long enough to examine a special sub-category of our last topic of discussion: the design of the state. In particular, we want to take a brief look at the question, "What should God'sminister on earth (Romans 13:4) look like? What is a proper form for this agency that is divinely appointed and commissioned to administer justice, punish evil, and encourage goodness among its citizens or subjects?" We will approach this task by considering the American Experiment.
Themes
From the beginning, Dr. Tackett lays down three ground rules for this study: first, we will not seek to deify America; and second, we will not seek to deify the Founding Fathers (the third ground rule will be dealt with at the end of the lesson). Having established these guidelines, he hastens to point out that there are compelling reasons for giving special attention to the subject of this tour. The American Experiment has the potential to prove unusually conducive to a deeper understanding of God's design for the state precisely because it is unique in the history of the world. Here on these shores, and here alone, people with a strong Christian worldview have been afforded an unparalleled opportunity to create from scratch what they considered an ideal system of government – a system designed in careful conformity with the principles outlined in Lesson 9.
We begin by establishing the biblical character of that worldview. The NewEngland Primer, the second best-selling book (after the Bible) of the colonial era, provides an intriguing window into the attitudes of early Americans. In particular, it reveals an outlook and a way of life powerfully shaped by the teachings of Scripture. The pervasiveness of this outlook is further demonstrated in statements made by America's early political leaders, legal and social architects, and educational pioneers – people like Benjamin Rush, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, Charles Carroll, Noah Webster, and the founders of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia Universities. In spite of the fact that not all of them were practicing Christians, these luminaries agreed with President John Adams that the success of America's republican form of government would prove directly dependent upon the virtue and morality of her people, and that virtue and morality are necessarily founded upon religion – by which all meant the Christian religion. All of these early thinkers were convinced that the state must be held accountable to the authority of a higher ethical and spiritual standard – the "Natural Law" or the "Law of Nature's God" – if the human rights abuses they had observed in Europe and throughout history were to be hopefully avoided on this continent.
Tragically, however, America is quickly turning away from these principles. It is hard to put a finger on the exact reasons, but one clear element came as Darwinian evolutionary theory made its influence felt in the field of law. In 1869, Harvard Law School Dean Christopher Langdell advanced the view that law is not based upon the transcendent standard of "Nature's God," but is rather a fluid and constantly mutating body of "doctrine," a set of purely human ideas that inevitably change "by slow degrees." In other words, law and ethics, like biological species, are continually "evolving." Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes expanded on this theme by declaring that the law is "simply an embodiment of the ends and purposes of a society at a given point in its history," thus effectively granting to the state the power to establish society's ethical norms. John Dewey implemented these ideas in the realm of public education. "There is no God," said Dewey (nicknamed "The Architect of Modern Education"), "and there is no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of traditional religion."
These statements, says Dr. Tackett, bring us to the present moment. Today, America has largely forgotten God and denied the validity of her biblically based Christian roots. As a result, we see the power of the state expanding in our time. This, too, is a manifestation of the perennial Cosmic Battle, which is always fought most fiercely in the social realm. Ultimately, we must face the fact that the American Experiment is likely to fail altogether if we do not take intentional and deliberate steps to salvage it. This is a task which falls primarily on the shoulders of Christian people. As believers, we need to remember God's call to prayer and repentance in 2 Chronicles 7:13-14. There is nothing to be gained, says Dr. Tackett, by casting blame on non-Christians (this is the third ground rule for our study).
Points to Watch for
This last point should be kept in mind throughout the entire discussion. From beginning to end, Dr. Tackett seeks to communicate the thought that the American Experiment makes sense only when understood as the brainchild of Christians who operated on the basis of a biblical worldview. Just as the experiment was instigated by believers, so it must be carried on by believers – believers who care deeply and passionately about their country – if it is to survive and continue to succeed.
Discussion Questions
• Here are some of the key items: Early American educational system; the New England Primer and "play not with bad boys"; Harvard rules and Columbia's seal; Dr. Tackett's journey in Washington D.C.; Washington's Farewell Address; the foundations of religion and morality; the myriad of quotes from Washington, Adams, Benjamin Rush, Daniel and Noah Webster, and others; the basis of the phrase "the law of nature"; Blackstone's Commentaries on the Law; Delaware's oath of office, good law is based upon God's law; the evolution of law in America; Elliot and Langdell at Harvard and the removal of Blackstone and the institution of the case method; Benjamin Franklin's address to the Constitutional Convention; Lincoln's call for fasting, humiliation and prayer; the call for our involvement.
• It was during a re-enactment of Washington's Farewell Address, says Dr. Tackett, that he was struck by the "sinking feeling" that he had been "lied to." What "lies" does he have in mind, and how do they fit the pattern of the other lies we've encountered during the course of our worldview tours? Have you been subjected to such lies yourself? (The heart of the lie is contained in Bishop Paul O'Brien's ( Universal Life Church) statement that "The United States was started by men we today would call pagans … [and] Deists." The motive behind the lie is the same one we have observed in our discussions of philosophy, science, and history: exclude God from the system – i.e., construct a cosmic cube with a closed lid – and man can regard himself as free to do whatever he wants. He is no longer accountable to a higher authority.)
• Name some of the early sources for the idea of "the laws of Nature and of Nature's God" referenced by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Why was this concept so important to the founders of the American system of government? What risks do we run in replacing this idea with Langdell's notion of "evolving law?" (Contrary to much popular opinion, the "natural law" was not primarily a Deistic concept. It was extremely important to the theologians of the Protestant Reformation; consider, for example, The SecondHelvetic Confession, Chapter XII: "This law was at one time written in the hearts of men by the finger of God" [based upon Paul's teaching in Romans 2:14, 15]. It is a prominent theme in the writings of Sir Edward Coke [1552-1634] and John Locke [1632-1704], both of whom tied their ideas of "natural law" securely to thewill of God. Locke made special use of it in arguing against the "Divine Right of Kings." It was this aspect of the theory that made it particularly appealing to Jefferson and the other founders, who saw in it a re-affirmation of the truth that rulers must be held accountable to a higher authority. If we jettison the "natural law" and put ethics in the hands of the state, we run the risk of re-incurring the very dangers that Locke and Jefferson were resisting: tyranny and totalitarianism.)
• What did John Adams mean when he affirmed that "… Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other"? What does this imply about the foundations of the American Experiment and the basic structure of the system of government it established? (In essence, Adams was agreeing with Franklin, who claimed, "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom." In other words, the American Experiment was based upon the assumption that people who accept the Christian worldview are capable of governing themselves internally where ethical and moral issues are concerned. Thus, conceptually speaking, the architects of America's early government structure envisioned the Republic supported by a foundation of common morality, and morality resting on the bedrock of religion and Christian faith.)
• Why, according to Dr. Tackett, is it in vogue to hate America today? To what extent is this hatred justifiable, and to what extent is it a manifestation of the Cosmic Battle? (As Christians, we must not be afraid to admit that the history of this nation has been anything but perfect. Not only should we be the first to acknowledge the sins of the past and the present – we should also lead the way to repentance, reformation, and the renewal of the Founders' vision. At the same time, we should not be ignorant of the larger spiritual dimension of the cultural struggle we are facing today. America may not be pure and blameless, but her form of government has been built upon a foundation that was laid firmly and securely upon a biblical worldview and the concept that man and the state must be held accountable to a higher law. It is this, says Dr. Tackett, that has inspired the lion's share of the hatred currently directed toward the American Experiment.
• What should we do when Adams's assumptions no longer appear to be valid – that is, when it becomes evident that Americans can no longer be characterized as a "moral and religious people" as he understood the phrase? How do we apply the Founders' ideas to a "multicultural" America where a flood of moral and spiritual perspectives – e.g., Buddhism, spiritism, Islam, Native American religions, and Wicca – have become part of the cultural fabric? (This, in a sense, is the crux of the entire discussion; for Dr. Tackett tells us again and again that we have in fact come to a place where the Christian God has been largely forgotten in American public life. Our response to this situation is crucial. We will accomplish nothing by striking out in anger against those who no longer share our Christian worldview. Instead, we must take upon ourselves the burden of praying, repenting, caring, and actively working to salvage the experiment. Most of all, we must resist the temptation to take our freedoms for granted.)
Revisionist History: Bradford and the Pilgrims
In his introduction to Governor William Bradford's Letter Book,1 John C. Kemp, Associate Director of Colonial Interpretation at Plymouth Plantation, rightly contends that this "little treasure trove of documents and letters to and from Plymouth Colony in the 1620s" – a collection of source material that Bradford himself never intended to publish – casts a valuable light on the story of New England's earliest settlement. Unfortunately, he obscures that light by twisting the significance of these documents to serve his own ends.
Kemp's thesis, stated broadly, is that Bradford himself was America's first writer of revisionist history. In the Letter Book, he tells us, we see the plain, unadorned facts of Plymouth's early history laid bare in such a way that we can no longer take seriously the "Calvinist vision" and "polemical Predestinarianism" that inform and animate Bradford's account of the same events in Of Plymouth Plantation. By studying these letters, he suggests, we may free ourselves at last from the "subtle power of the mythical Pilgrim" whose image has been foisted upon the American consciousness by Bradford and his uncritically patriotic interpreters. It's a remarkable argument – less for its cleverness than for the blatant violence it does to the obvious truth.
For example: Kemp says that pilgrims are conspicuously absent from the documents contained in Governor William Bradford's Letter Book. That's because the colonists who came over on the Mayflower never really considered themselves to be any such thing: "That part of the story, the idealizing of colonists into Pilgrims (Pilgrims with a capital 'P'), occurred in the late 18 th and 19 th centuries."2
Apparently forgetting that he is supposed to be talking about Bradford and his "17 th-century biases," Kemp informs us that America's "Pilgrim heritage" is largely the fabrication of men like John Quincy Adams and Daniel Webster. Webster, we learn, "did much to popularize the Pilgrim Fathers" as "uniformly hard-working, right-minded, freedom-loving proponents of the virtues upheld in Victorian Boston throughout the 19 th century and well into the 20 th." The problem is that "these are not the struggling, precariously disorganized, and contentious people we find in the Letter Book."3
One has to wonder whether Kemp has actually read Bradford's account of the founding of New England. The settlers described in Of Plymouth Plantation are certainly hard-working, right-minded, and pious. But they are not uniformly so. What's more, Bradford is brutally honest about portraying his fellow colonists precisely as a "struggling, disorganized, and contentious" lot. That's because he wants us to see "the infinite qualitative difference between the human and the divine." Of Plymouth Plantation, says Francis Murphy,
affirms the possibility of grace without losing sight of the fact that man is fallen, that he is both creature as well as creator, and that he depends utterly on God's help for salvation … It is part of Bradford's genius to show us dramatically the struggle of Puritan piety to survive in difficult circumstances, often caused by themselves, and to describe the complex motives that underlie all human action.4That's not to mention that the Mayflower emigrants did in fact think of themselves as "pilgrims" in the best biblical sense of the word. As early as their sojourn in Leyden, the Scrooby Separatists were interpreting their difficult circumstances in terms of the language of Hebrews 11:13-16: "They knew they were pilgrims, and looked not much on those things, but lift up their eyes to the heavens, their dearest country, and quieted their spirits."5
In similarly skewed fashion, Kemp argues that Governor William Bradford's Letter Book makes it clear that the Plymouth colonists had little concern for the welfare of their Native American neighbors. Indians, like Pilgrims, are never mentioned in these documents, says Kemp. Why not? It's a bad reason, a very meaningful omission. In fact, after all the lofty words about friendship and Christian love when the colony began, the colonists' lack of concern for their Pokanoket or Wampanoag neighbors just a few years later says a great deal about colonialism. Colonists don't like to think about the people they are colonizing.6
But how are we to reconcile this statement with Bradford's many expressions of indebtedness to Samoset, Hobomok, and Squanto? His heartfelt grief on the occasion of Squanto's death? Or his detailed descriptions of relations with Massasoit, the Wampanoag chief who kept his treaty with the Plymouth settlers for over forty years? Even when compelled to use force against openly hostile Native Americans, as in the case of Wituwamat and Pecksuot, Bradford always did so reluctantly, bearing in mind the words of his pastor, John Robinson, who had written from Leyden: "Oh! How happy a thing had it been, if you had converted some, before you had killed any!"7
The fact of the matter is that there is another reason – a very simple and straightforward reason – for the glaring "omissions" Kemp has noted. Most of the documents contained in Bradford's Letter Book are examples of business correspondence. They deal primarily with finances, accounts, inventories, and the profits the London Adventurers hoped to receive from Plymouth colony. It's not surprising that writings of this nature should have little to say about the spiritual idealism of "pilgrims" or the day-to-day challenges of maintaining relations with indigenous tribesmen. What can have driven a responsible scholar like Mr. Kemp to promote such blatant misrepresentations of the facts? Lacking an explanation from his own pen, we are left to speculate. But given the spirit of the times in which we live, it seems reasonable to suppose that his motives might be similar to those of the school textbook writers who have seen fit to edit phrases like "In the name of God, Amen" out of the Mayflower Compact. Like them, Kemp understands that the prize to the victors in the battle over history is power: power to control the present and shape the course of the future. This is the power of historical revisionism, fiddling with the past to control beliefs in the present.
1Governor William Bradford's Letter Book, Introduction by John C. Kemp ( Bedford, Massachusetts: Applewood Books, 2001), iii-x.
2 Ibid., iii. 3 Ibid., vii. 4 Francis Murphy, Introduction to William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620-1647 (New York: Modern Library College Editions, 1981), xvii, xix.
5 William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 50. "It was owing to this passage, first printed in 1669, that the Mayflower's company came eventually to be called the Pilgrim Fathers." (Samuel Eliot Morison, footnote 4.)
6 Kemp, iii.
7 Cited in Gary D. Schmidt, William Bradford: Plymouth's Faithful Pilgrim ( Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1999), 133.
From The Truth Project Lesson 10
Monday, March 17, 2008
The King of kings
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said,
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father
and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Then Jesus came to them and said,
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father
and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Sunday, March 16, 2008
A psalm of David
The Lord Jesus prays to God the Father
Psalm 23
The LORD is My Shepherd, I shall not want;
He makes Me lie down in green pastures,
He leads Me beside still waters;
He restores My soul.
He leads Me in the path of righteousness
for His name's sake.
Though I walk
through the valley of the Shadow of Death,
I will fear no evil,
for Thou art with Me;
Thy rod and Thy staff,
they comfort Me.
Thou preparest a table before Me
in the presence of My enemies.
Thou anointest My head with oil;
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and Mercy shall follow Me
all the days of My life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
Psalm 23
The LORD is My Shepherd, I shall not want;
He makes Me lie down in green pastures,
He leads Me beside still waters;
He restores My soul.
He leads Me in the path of righteousness
for His name's sake.
Though I walk
through the valley of the Shadow of Death,
I will fear no evil,
for Thou art with Me;
Thy rod and Thy staff,
they comfort Me.
Thou preparest a table before Me
in the presence of My enemies.
Thou anointest My head with oil;
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and Mercy shall follow Me
all the days of My life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Peace shall be between them both.'
Zechariah 6:12-13
Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says:
'Here is the Man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.
It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne.
And He will be a priest on His throne. And the Counsel of Peace shall be between them both.'
John 15:1-5
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says:
'Here is the Man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.
It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne.
And He will be a priest on His throne. And the Counsel of Peace shall be between them both.'
John 15:1-5
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
God will again choose Jerusalem
Haggi 2:6-8
"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.
I will shake all nations, and the Desired of All Nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,'
says the LORD Almighty.
Zechariah 1:12-17
Then the angel of the LORD said,
"LORD Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?"
So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.
Then the angel who was speaking to me said,
"Proclaim this word: This is what the LORD Almighty says:
'I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, but I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I was only a little angry, but they added to the calamity.'
"Therefore, this is what the LORD says:
'I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,' declares the LORD Almighty.
"Proclaim further: This is what the LORD Almighty says:
'My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.' "
Zechariah 2: 7-13
"Come, O Zion! Escape, you who live in the Daughter of Babylon!"
For this is what the LORD Almighty says:
"After he has honored me and has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye-
I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me.
"Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion.
For I am coming, and I will live among you,"
declares the LORD.
"Many nations will be joined with the LORD in that day and will become my people.
I will live among you and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.
The LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem.
Be still before the LORD, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling."
"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.
I will shake all nations, and the Desired of All Nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,'
says the LORD Almighty.
Zechariah 1:12-17
Then the angel of the LORD said,
"LORD Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?"
So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.
Then the angel who was speaking to me said,
"Proclaim this word: This is what the LORD Almighty says:
'I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, but I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I was only a little angry, but they added to the calamity.'
"Therefore, this is what the LORD says:
'I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,' declares the LORD Almighty.
"Proclaim further: This is what the LORD Almighty says:
'My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.' "
Zechariah 2: 7-13
"Come, O Zion! Escape, you who live in the Daughter of Babylon!"
For this is what the LORD Almighty says:
"After he has honored me and has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye-
I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me.
"Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion.
For I am coming, and I will live among you,"
declares the LORD.
"Many nations will be joined with the LORD in that day and will become my people.
I will live among you and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.
The LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem.
Be still before the LORD, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling."
Monday, February 25, 2008
there we sat
JERUSALEM
By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat,
sat and wept,
as we thought of Zion.
There on the poplars
we hung up our lyres,
for our captors asked us there for songs,
our tormentors, for amusement,
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion."
How can we sing a song of the Lord on alien soil?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand wither,
let my tongue stick to my palate
if I cease to think of you,
if I do not keep Jerusalem in memory
even at my happiest hour…
(Psalm 137:1-6)
By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat,
sat and wept,
as we thought of Zion.
There on the poplars
we hung up our lyres,
for our captors asked us there for songs,
our tormentors, for amusement,
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion."
How can we sing a song of the Lord on alien soil?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand wither,
let my tongue stick to my palate
if I cease to think of you,
if I do not keep Jerusalem in memory
even at my happiest hour…
(Psalm 137:1-6)
Trees
Review of the "trees" Bible study shows that God uses the "trail of the trees" to reveal a some of the future/prophecy of the New Jerusalem and His Glory.
Trail of Trees
Let me explain the reason I am going for all the trees in the Bible. I believe the trees are sort of like a powerpoint presentation. God shows us the importance of the entire Bible and the Trees are a Thread of Truth or a trail.
So I am calling this study the Trail of Trees.
In mentioning the curse of those who hang from a tree, and the Cross of Christ I am getting ahead of myself so lets go back to the beginning.
Here we start with Genesis. The first reference of trees in the Bible.
Genesis 1:11-12
Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so.
The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 2:9
And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Genesis 2:16-17
And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
The Fall of Man
Genesis Chapter 3
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"
The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this,
"Cursed are you above all the livestock
and all the wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust
all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel."
16 To the woman he said,
"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you."
17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'
"Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return."
20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23 So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life
Ezekiel 47 (see verse 12) healing of the nations
The River From the Temple
1 The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side.
3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, "Son of man, do you see this?"
Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Great Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt.
12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing."
The Boundaries of the Land
13 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land for an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel, with two portions for Joseph.
14 You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore with uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will become your inheritance.
15 "This is to be the boundary of the land:
"On the north side it will run from the Great Sea by the Hethlon road past Lebo Hamath to Zedad, 16 Berothah and Sibraim (which lies on the border between Damascus and Hamath), as far as Hazer Hatticon, which is on the border of Hauran.
17 The boundary will extend from the sea to Hazar Enan, along the northern border of Damascus, with the border of Hamath to the north. This will be the north boundary.
18 "On the east side the boundary will run between Hauran and Damascus, along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of Israel, to the eastern sea and as far as Tamar. This will be the east boundary.
19 "On the south side it will run from Tamar as far as the waters of Meribah Kadesh, then along the Wadi of Egypt to the Great Sea. This will be the south boundary.
20 "On the west side, the Great Sea will be the boundary to a point opposite Lebo Hamath. This will be the west boundary.
21 "You are to distribute this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel.
22 You are to allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the aliens who have settled among you and who have children. You are to consider them as native-born Israelites; along with you they are to be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
23 In whatever tribe the alien settles, there you are to give him his inheritance," declares the Sovereign LORD.
Revelation 22 (healing of the nations) The last mention of “trees” in the Bible
The River of Life
1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
2down the middle of the great street of the city.
On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
6The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."
Jesus Is Coming
7"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me.
9But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!"
10Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.
11Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."
12"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.
13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
14"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.
15Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."
17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
18I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.
19And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
20He who testifies to these things says,
"Yes, I am coming soon."
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.
Trail of Trees
Let me explain the reason I am going for all the trees in the Bible. I believe the trees are sort of like a powerpoint presentation. God shows us the importance of the entire Bible and the Trees are a Thread of Truth or a trail.
So I am calling this study the Trail of Trees.
In mentioning the curse of those who hang from a tree, and the Cross of Christ I am getting ahead of myself so lets go back to the beginning.
Here we start with Genesis. The first reference of trees in the Bible.
Genesis 1:11-12
Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so.
The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 2:9
And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Genesis 2:16-17
And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
The Fall of Man
Genesis Chapter 3
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"
The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this,
"Cursed are you above all the livestock
and all the wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust
all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel."
16 To the woman he said,
"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you."
17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'
"Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return."
20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23 So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life
Ezekiel 47 (see verse 12) healing of the nations
The River From the Temple
1 The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side.
3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, "Son of man, do you see this?"
Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Great Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt.
12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing."
The Boundaries of the Land
13 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land for an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel, with two portions for Joseph.
14 You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore with uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will become your inheritance.
15 "This is to be the boundary of the land:
"On the north side it will run from the Great Sea by the Hethlon road past Lebo Hamath to Zedad, 16 Berothah and Sibraim (which lies on the border between Damascus and Hamath), as far as Hazer Hatticon, which is on the border of Hauran.
17 The boundary will extend from the sea to Hazar Enan, along the northern border of Damascus, with the border of Hamath to the north. This will be the north boundary.
18 "On the east side the boundary will run between Hauran and Damascus, along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of Israel, to the eastern sea and as far as Tamar. This will be the east boundary.
19 "On the south side it will run from Tamar as far as the waters of Meribah Kadesh, then along the Wadi of Egypt to the Great Sea. This will be the south boundary.
20 "On the west side, the Great Sea will be the boundary to a point opposite Lebo Hamath. This will be the west boundary.
21 "You are to distribute this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel.
22 You are to allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the aliens who have settled among you and who have children. You are to consider them as native-born Israelites; along with you they are to be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
23 In whatever tribe the alien settles, there you are to give him his inheritance," declares the Sovereign LORD.
Revelation 22 (healing of the nations) The last mention of “trees” in the Bible
The River of Life
1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
2down the middle of the great street of the city.
On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
6The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."
Jesus Is Coming
7"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me.
9But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!"
10Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.
11Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."
12"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.
13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
14"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.
15Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."
17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
18I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.
19And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
20He who testifies to these things says,
"Yes, I am coming soon."
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Esther
Read The Book of Esther using this symbolic imagery.
Hebrew name Hadassah means- “Myrtle”
Esther means “Star”- A church within a church, The Bride of Christ. The church within us.
Vashti-Independent , Rebellious Spirit of Mankind.
Mordecai-Holy Spirit Revealing Truth
Hamon-Flesh, Natural Man
Shushan-Lily City, City on a hill that cannot be hidden
The king – How do we approach The King?
"If it please the Lord"
"For a time such as this."
"If I perish, I perish."
The names below are the advisors to the king, and they represent worldly attitudes and views.
7 Eunuchs
Mehuman- I have been faithful
Biztha - I have served you, you owe me a bit
Harbona - My own decisions
Bigtha - In the winepress through many afflictions
Abagtha - Father of the wine press
Zethar - I’ll bring you out on top
Careas – Bound one
Advisors
Carshena – Change thou the Lamb
Shethar – I’ll search out your answers
Admatha - Unrestrained or without discipline
Tarshish - It will cause poverty, or will
Meres – Worthy, you deserve more honor
Marsena – Bitter or cancerous
Memucan – Their poverty, what will your decision cost?
• A TYPE is a person, thing or event that represents another, especially another that is to come in the future.
• An ALLRGORY is a story in which people, things and happenings have symbolic significance, not merely a literal one. Usually morally instructive.
Hebrew name Hadassah means- “Myrtle”
Esther means “Star”- A church within a church, The Bride of Christ. The church within us.
Vashti-Independent , Rebellious Spirit of Mankind.
Mordecai-Holy Spirit Revealing Truth
Hamon-Flesh, Natural Man
Shushan-Lily City, City on a hill that cannot be hidden
The king – How do we approach The King?
"If it please the Lord"
"For a time such as this."
"If I perish, I perish."
The names below are the advisors to the king, and they represent worldly attitudes and views.
7 Eunuchs
Mehuman- I have been faithful
Biztha - I have served you, you owe me a bit
Harbona - My own decisions
Bigtha - In the winepress through many afflictions
Abagtha - Father of the wine press
Zethar - I’ll bring you out on top
Careas – Bound one
Advisors
Carshena – Change thou the Lamb
Shethar – I’ll search out your answers
Admatha - Unrestrained or without discipline
Tarshish - It will cause poverty, or will
Meres – Worthy, you deserve more honor
Marsena – Bitter or cancerous
Memucan – Their poverty, what will your decision cost?
• A TYPE is a person, thing or event that represents another, especially another that is to come in the future.
• An ALLRGORY is a story in which people, things and happenings have symbolic significance, not merely a literal one. Usually morally instructive.
when I make atonement
Ezekiel 16: 49 -62
" 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom:
She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.
They were haughty and did detestable things before me.
Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.
Samaria did not commit half the sins you did.
You have done more detestable things than they, and have made your sisters seem righteous by all these things you have done.
Bear your disgrace, for you have furnished some justification for your sisters. Because your sins were more vile than theirs, they appear more righteous than you. So then, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, for you have made your sisters appear righteous.
" 'However, I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and of Samaria and her daughters, and your fortunes along with them, so that you may bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you have done in giving them comfort.
And your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to what they were before; and you and your daughters will return to what you were before. You would not even mention your sister Sodom in the day of your pride, before your wickedness was uncovered. Even so, you are now scorned by the daughters of Edom and all her neighbors and the daughters of the Philistines—all those around you who despise you. You will bear the consequences of your lewdness and your detestable practices, declares the LORD.
" 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will deal with you as you deserve, because you have despised my oath by breaking the covenant.
Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.
Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your sisters, both those who are older than you and those who are younger.
I will give them to you as daughters, but not on the basis of my covenant with you. So I will establish my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD.
Then, when I make atonement for you for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your humiliation, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
" 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom:
She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.
They were haughty and did detestable things before me.
Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.
Samaria did not commit half the sins you did.
You have done more detestable things than they, and have made your sisters seem righteous by all these things you have done.
Bear your disgrace, for you have furnished some justification for your sisters. Because your sins were more vile than theirs, they appear more righteous than you. So then, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, for you have made your sisters appear righteous.
" 'However, I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and of Samaria and her daughters, and your fortunes along with them, so that you may bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you have done in giving them comfort.
And your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to what they were before; and you and your daughters will return to what you were before. You would not even mention your sister Sodom in the day of your pride, before your wickedness was uncovered. Even so, you are now scorned by the daughters of Edom and all her neighbors and the daughters of the Philistines—all those around you who despise you. You will bear the consequences of your lewdness and your detestable practices, declares the LORD.
" 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will deal with you as you deserve, because you have despised my oath by breaking the covenant.
Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.
Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your sisters, both those who are older than you and those who are younger.
I will give them to you as daughters, but not on the basis of my covenant with you. So I will establish my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD.
Then, when I make atonement for you for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your humiliation, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
Sunday, February 17, 2008
...each go to his own land
Jeremiah 51
This is what the LORD says:
"See, I will stir up the spirit of a destroyer
against Babylon and the people of Leb Kamai.
I will send foreigners to Babylon
to winnow her and to devastate her land;
they will oppose her on every side
in the day of her disaster.
Let not the archer string his bow,
nor let him put on his armor.
Do not spare her young men;
completely destroy her army.
They will fall down slain in Babylon,
fatally wounded in her streets.
For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the LORD Almighty,
though their land is full of guilt
before the Holy One of Israel.
"Flee from Babylon!
Run for your lives!
Do not be destroyed because of her sins.
It is time for the LORD's vengeance;
he will pay her what she deserves.
Babylon was a gold cup in the LORD's hand;
she made the whole earth drunk.
The nations drank her wine;
therefore they have now gone mad.
Babylon will suddenly fall and be broken.
Wail over her!
Get balm for her pain;
perhaps she can be healed.
" 'We would have healed Babylon,
but she cannot be healed;
let us leave her and each go to his own land,
for her judgment reaches to the skies,
it rises as high as the clouds.'
" 'The LORD has vindicated us;
come, let us tell in Zion
what the LORD our God has done.'
"Sharpen the arrows,
take up the shields!
The LORD has stirred up the kings of the Medes,
because his purpose is to destroy Babylon.
The LORD will take vengeance,
vengeance for his temple.
Lift up a banner against the walls of Babylon!
Reinforce the guard,
station the watchmen,
prepare an ambush!
The LORD will carry out his purpose,
his decree against the people of Babylon.
You who live by many waters
and are rich in treasures,
your end has come,
the time for you to be cut off.
The LORD Almighty has sworn by himself:
I will surely fill you with men, as with a swarm of locusts,
and they will shout in triumph over you.
"He made the earth by his power;
he founded the world by his wisdom
and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.
When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;
he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain
and brings out the wind from his storehouses.
"Every man is senseless and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
His images are a fraud;
they have no breath in them.
They are worthless, the objects of mockery;
when their judgment comes, they will perish.
He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,
for he is the Maker of all things,
including the tribe of his inheritance—
the LORD Almighty is his name.
"You are my war club,
my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter nations,
with you I destroy kingdoms,
with you I shatter horse and rider,
with you I shatter chariot and driver,
with you I shatter man and woman,
with you I shatter old man and youth,
with you I shatter young man and maiden,
with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
with you I shatter governors and officials.
"Before your eyes I will repay Babylon and all who live in Babylonia for all the wrong they have done in Zion," declares the LORD.
"I am against you, O destroying mountain,
you who destroy the whole earth,"
declares the LORD.
"I will stretch out my hand against you,
roll you off the cliffs,
and make you a burned-out mountain.
No rock will be taken from you for a cornerstone,
nor any stone for a foundation,
for you will be desolate forever,"
declares the LORD.
"Lift up a banner in the land!
Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
summon against her these kingdoms:
Ararat, Minni and Ashkenaz.
Appoint a commander against her;
send up horses like a swarm of locusts.
Prepare the nations for battle against her—
the kings of the Medes,
their governors and all their officials,
and all the countries they rule.
The land trembles and writhes,
for the LORD's purposes against Babylon stand—
to lay waste the land of Babylon
so that no one will live there.
Babylon's warriors have stopped fighting;
they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
they have become like women.
Her dwellings are set on fire;
the bars of her gates are broken.
One courier follows another
and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
that his entire city is captured,
the river crossings seized,
the marshes set on fire,
and the soldiers terrified."
This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
"The Daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor
at the time it is trampled;
the time to harvest her will soon come."
"Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has devoured us,
he has thrown us into confusion,
he has made us an empty jar.
Like a serpent he has swallowed us
and filled his stomach with our delicacies,
and then has spewed us out.
May the violence done to our flesh be upon Babylon,"
say the inhabitants of Zion.
"May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,"
says Jerusalem.
Therefore, this is what the LORD says:
"See, I will defend your cause
and avenge you;
I will dry up her sea
and make her springs dry.
Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
a haunt of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,
a place where no one lives.
Her people all roar like young lions,
they growl like lion cubs.
But while they are aroused,
I will set out a feast for them
and make them drunk,
so that they shout with laughter—
then sleep forever and not awake,"
declares the LORD.
"I will bring them down
like lambs to the slaughter,
like rams and goats.
"How Sheshach will be captured,
the boast of the whole earth seized!
What a horror Babylon will be
among the nations!
The sea will rise over Babylon;
its roaring waves will cover her.
Her towns will be desolate,
a dry and desert land,
a land where no one lives,
through which no man travels.
I will punish Bel in Babylon
and make him spew out what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
And the wall of Babylon will fall.
"Come out of her, my people!
Run for your lives!
Run from the fierce anger of the LORD.
Do not lose heart or be afraid
when rumors are heard in the land;
one rumor comes this year, another the next,
rumors of violence in the land
and of ruler against ruler.
For the time will surely come
when I will punish the idols of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced
and her slain will all lie fallen within her.
Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
will shout for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north
destroyers will attack her,"
declares the LORD.
"Babylon must fall because of Israel's slain,
just as the slain in all the earth
have fallen because of Babylon.
You who have escaped the sword,
leave and do not linger!
Remember the LORD in a distant land,
and think on Jerusalem."
"We are disgraced,
for we have been insulted
and shame covers our faces,
because foreigners have entered
the holy places of the LORD's house."
"But days are coming," declares the LORD,
"when I will punish her idols,
and throughout her land
the wounded will groan.
Even if Babylon reaches the sky
and fortifies her lofty stronghold,
I will send destroyers against her,"
declares the LORD.
"The sound of a cry comes from Babylon,
the sound of great destruction
from the land of the Babylonians.
The LORD will destroy Babylon;
He will silence her noisy din.
Waves of enemies will rage like great waters;
the roar of their voices will resound.
A destroyer will come against Babylon;
her warriors will be captured,
and their bows will be broken.
For the LORD is a God of retribution;
he will repay in full.
I will make her officials and wise men drunk,
her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep forever and not awake,"
declares the King, whose name is the LORD Almighty.
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"Babylon's thick wall will be leveled
and her high gates set on fire;
the peoples exhaust themselves for nothing,
the nations' labor is only fuel for the flames."
This is the message Jeremiah gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah king of Judah in the fourth year of his reign. Jeremiah had written on a scroll about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. He said to Seraiah, "When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. Then say, 'O LORD, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither man nor animal will live in it; it will be desolate forever.'
When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates.
Then say, 'So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring upon her. And her people will fall.' "
The words of Jeremiah end here
This is what the LORD says:
"See, I will stir up the spirit of a destroyer
against Babylon and the people of Leb Kamai.
I will send foreigners to Babylon
to winnow her and to devastate her land;
they will oppose her on every side
in the day of her disaster.
Let not the archer string his bow,
nor let him put on his armor.
Do not spare her young men;
completely destroy her army.
They will fall down slain in Babylon,
fatally wounded in her streets.
For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the LORD Almighty,
though their land is full of guilt
before the Holy One of Israel.
"Flee from Babylon!
Run for your lives!
Do not be destroyed because of her sins.
It is time for the LORD's vengeance;
he will pay her what she deserves.
Babylon was a gold cup in the LORD's hand;
she made the whole earth drunk.
The nations drank her wine;
therefore they have now gone mad.
Babylon will suddenly fall and be broken.
Wail over her!
Get balm for her pain;
perhaps she can be healed.
" 'We would have healed Babylon,
but she cannot be healed;
let us leave her and each go to his own land,
for her judgment reaches to the skies,
it rises as high as the clouds.'
" 'The LORD has vindicated us;
come, let us tell in Zion
what the LORD our God has done.'
"Sharpen the arrows,
take up the shields!
The LORD has stirred up the kings of the Medes,
because his purpose is to destroy Babylon.
The LORD will take vengeance,
vengeance for his temple.
Lift up a banner against the walls of Babylon!
Reinforce the guard,
station the watchmen,
prepare an ambush!
The LORD will carry out his purpose,
his decree against the people of Babylon.
You who live by many waters
and are rich in treasures,
your end has come,
the time for you to be cut off.
The LORD Almighty has sworn by himself:
I will surely fill you with men, as with a swarm of locusts,
and they will shout in triumph over you.
"He made the earth by his power;
he founded the world by his wisdom
and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.
When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;
he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain
and brings out the wind from his storehouses.
"Every man is senseless and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
His images are a fraud;
they have no breath in them.
They are worthless, the objects of mockery;
when their judgment comes, they will perish.
He who is the Portion of Jacob is not like these,
for he is the Maker of all things,
including the tribe of his inheritance—
the LORD Almighty is his name.
"You are my war club,
my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter nations,
with you I destroy kingdoms,
with you I shatter horse and rider,
with you I shatter chariot and driver,
with you I shatter man and woman,
with you I shatter old man and youth,
with you I shatter young man and maiden,
with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
with you I shatter governors and officials.
"Before your eyes I will repay Babylon and all who live in Babylonia for all the wrong they have done in Zion," declares the LORD.
"I am against you, O destroying mountain,
you who destroy the whole earth,"
declares the LORD.
"I will stretch out my hand against you,
roll you off the cliffs,
and make you a burned-out mountain.
No rock will be taken from you for a cornerstone,
nor any stone for a foundation,
for you will be desolate forever,"
declares the LORD.
"Lift up a banner in the land!
Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
summon against her these kingdoms:
Ararat, Minni and Ashkenaz.
Appoint a commander against her;
send up horses like a swarm of locusts.
Prepare the nations for battle against her—
the kings of the Medes,
their governors and all their officials,
and all the countries they rule.
The land trembles and writhes,
for the LORD's purposes against Babylon stand—
to lay waste the land of Babylon
so that no one will live there.
Babylon's warriors have stopped fighting;
they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
they have become like women.
Her dwellings are set on fire;
the bars of her gates are broken.
One courier follows another
and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
that his entire city is captured,
the river crossings seized,
the marshes set on fire,
and the soldiers terrified."
This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
"The Daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor
at the time it is trampled;
the time to harvest her will soon come."
"Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has devoured us,
he has thrown us into confusion,
he has made us an empty jar.
Like a serpent he has swallowed us
and filled his stomach with our delicacies,
and then has spewed us out.
May the violence done to our flesh be upon Babylon,"
say the inhabitants of Zion.
"May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,"
says Jerusalem.
Therefore, this is what the LORD says:
"See, I will defend your cause
and avenge you;
I will dry up her sea
and make her springs dry.
Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
a haunt of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,
a place where no one lives.
Her people all roar like young lions,
they growl like lion cubs.
But while they are aroused,
I will set out a feast for them
and make them drunk,
so that they shout with laughter—
then sleep forever and not awake,"
declares the LORD.
"I will bring them down
like lambs to the slaughter,
like rams and goats.
"How Sheshach will be captured,
the boast of the whole earth seized!
What a horror Babylon will be
among the nations!
The sea will rise over Babylon;
its roaring waves will cover her.
Her towns will be desolate,
a dry and desert land,
a land where no one lives,
through which no man travels.
I will punish Bel in Babylon
and make him spew out what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
And the wall of Babylon will fall.
"Come out of her, my people!
Run for your lives!
Run from the fierce anger of the LORD.
Do not lose heart or be afraid
when rumors are heard in the land;
one rumor comes this year, another the next,
rumors of violence in the land
and of ruler against ruler.
For the time will surely come
when I will punish the idols of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced
and her slain will all lie fallen within her.
Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
will shout for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north
destroyers will attack her,"
declares the LORD.
"Babylon must fall because of Israel's slain,
just as the slain in all the earth
have fallen because of Babylon.
You who have escaped the sword,
leave and do not linger!
Remember the LORD in a distant land,
and think on Jerusalem."
"We are disgraced,
for we have been insulted
and shame covers our faces,
because foreigners have entered
the holy places of the LORD's house."
"But days are coming," declares the LORD,
"when I will punish her idols,
and throughout her land
the wounded will groan.
Even if Babylon reaches the sky
and fortifies her lofty stronghold,
I will send destroyers against her,"
declares the LORD.
"The sound of a cry comes from Babylon,
the sound of great destruction
from the land of the Babylonians.
The LORD will destroy Babylon;
He will silence her noisy din.
Waves of enemies will rage like great waters;
the roar of their voices will resound.
A destroyer will come against Babylon;
her warriors will be captured,
and their bows will be broken.
For the LORD is a God of retribution;
he will repay in full.
I will make her officials and wise men drunk,
her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep forever and not awake,"
declares the King, whose name is the LORD Almighty.
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"Babylon's thick wall will be leveled
and her high gates set on fire;
the peoples exhaust themselves for nothing,
the nations' labor is only fuel for the flames."
This is the message Jeremiah gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah king of Judah in the fourth year of his reign. Jeremiah had written on a scroll about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. He said to Seraiah, "When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. Then say, 'O LORD, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither man nor animal will live in it; it will be desolate forever.'
When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates.
Then say, 'So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring upon her. And her people will fall.' "
The words of Jeremiah end here
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Jeremiah 50
A Message About Babylon
This is the word the LORD spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians:
"Announce and proclaim among the nations,
lift up a banner and proclaim it;
keep nothing back, but say,
'Babylon will be captured;
Bel will be put to shame,
Marduk filled with terror.
Her images will be put to shame
and her idols filled with terror.'
A nation from the north will attack her
and lay waste her land.
No one will live in it;
both men and animals will flee away.
"In those days, at that time,"
declares the LORD,
"the people of Israel and the people of Judah together
will go in tears to seek the LORD their God.
They will ask the way to Zion
and turn their faces toward it.
They will come and bind themselves to the LORD
in an everlasting covenant
that will not be forgotten.
"My people have been lost sheep;
their shepherds have led them astray
and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill
and forgot their own resting place.
Whoever found them devoured them;
their enemies said, 'We are not guilty,
for they sinned against the LORD, their true pasture,
the LORD, the hope of their fathers.'
"Flee out of Babylon;
leave the land of the Babylonians,
and be like the goats that lead the flock.
For I will stir up and bring against Babylon
an alliance of great nations from the land of the north.
They will take up their positions against her,
and from the north she will be captured.
Their arrows will be like skilled warriors
who do not return empty-handed.
So Babylonia will be plundered;
all who plunder her will have their fill,"
declares the LORD.
"Because you rejoice and are glad,
you who pillage my inheritance,
because you frolic like a heifer threshing grain
and neigh like stallions,
your mother will be greatly ashamed;
she who gave you birth will be disgraced.
She will be the least of the nations—
a wilderness, a dry land, a desert.
Because of the LORD's anger she will not be inhabited
but will be completely desolate.
All who pass Babylon will be horrified and scoff
because of all her wounds.
"Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you who draw the bow.
Shoot at her! Spare no arrows,
for she has sinned against the LORD.
Shout against her on every side!
She surrenders, her towers fall,
her walls are torn down.
Since this is the vengeance of the LORD,
take vengeance on her;
do to her as she has done to others.
Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the reaper with his sickle at harvest.
Because of the sword of the oppressor
let everyone return to his own people,
let everyone flee to his own land.
"Israel is a scattered flock
that lions have chased away.
The first to devour him
was the king of Assyria;
the last to crush his bones
was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon."
Therefore this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
"I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
as I punished the king of Assyria.
But I will bring Israel back to his own pasture
and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
his appetite will be satisfied
on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.
In those days, at that time,"
declares the LORD,
"search will be made for Israel's guilt,
but there will be none,
and for the sins of Judah,
but none will be found,
for I will forgive the remnant I spare.
"Attack the land of Merathaim
and those who live in Pekod.
Pursue, kill and completely destroy them,"
declares the LORD.
"Do everything I have commanded you.
The noise of battle is in the land,
the noise of great destruction!
How broken and shattered
is the hammer of the whole earth!
How desolate is Babylon
among the nations!
I set a trap for you, O Babylon,
and you were caught before you knew it;
you were found and captured
because you opposed the LORD.
The LORD has opened his arsenal
and brought out the weapons of his wrath,
for the Sovereign LORD Almighty has work to do
in the land of the Babylonians.
Come against her from afar.
Break open her granaries;
pile her up like heaps of grain.
Completely destroy her
and leave her no remnant.
Kill all her young bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter!
Woe to them! For their day has come,
the time for them to be punished.
Listen to the fugitives and refugees from Babylon
declaring in Zion
how the LORD our God has taken vengeance,
vengeance for his temple.
"Summon archers against Babylon,
all those who draw the bow.
Encamp all around her;
let no one escape.
Repay her for her deeds;
do to her as she has done.
For she has defied the LORD,
the Holy One of Israel.
Therefore, her young men will fall in the streets;
all her soldiers will be silenced in that day,"
declares the LORD.
"See, I am against you, O arrogant one,"
declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty,
"for your day has come,
the time for you to be punished.
The arrogant one will stumble and fall
and no one will help her up;
I will kindle a fire in her towns
that will consume all who are around her."
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"The people of Israel are oppressed,
and the people of Judah as well.
All their captors hold them fast,
refusing to let them go.
Yet their Redeemer is strong;
the LORD Almighty is his name.
He will vigorously defend their cause
so that he may bring rest to their land,
but unrest to those who live in Babylon.
"A sword against the Babylonians!"
declares the LORD—
"against those who live in Babylon
and against her officials and wise men!
A sword against her false prophets!
They will become fools.
A sword against her warriors!
They will be filled with terror.
A sword against her horses and chariots
and all the foreigners in her ranks!
They will become women.
A sword against her treasures!
They will be plundered.
A drought on her waters!
They will dry up.
For it is a land of idols,
idols that will go mad with terror.
"So desert creatures and hyenas will live there,
and there the owl will dwell.
It will never again be inhabited
or lived in from generation to generation.
As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
along with their neighboring towns,"
declares the LORD,
"so no one will live there;
no man will dwell in it.
"Look! An army is coming from the north;
a great nation and many kings
are being stirred up from the ends of the earth.
They are armed with bows and spears;
they are cruel and without mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
to attack you, O Daughter of Babylon.
The king of Babylon has heard reports about them,
and his hands hang limp.
Anguish has gripped him,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
Like a lion coming up from Jordan's thickets
to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Babylon from its land in an instant.
Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?
And what shepherd can stand against me?"
Therefore, hear what the LORD has planned against Babylon,
what he has purposed against the land of the Babylonians:
The young of the flock will be dragged away;
he will completely destroy their pasture because of them.
At the sound of Babylon's capture the earth will tremble;
its cry will resound among the nations
A Message About Babylon
This is the word the LORD spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians:
"Announce and proclaim among the nations,
lift up a banner and proclaim it;
keep nothing back, but say,
'Babylon will be captured;
Bel will be put to shame,
Marduk filled with terror.
Her images will be put to shame
and her idols filled with terror.'
A nation from the north will attack her
and lay waste her land.
No one will live in it;
both men and animals will flee away.
"In those days, at that time,"
declares the LORD,
"the people of Israel and the people of Judah together
will go in tears to seek the LORD their God.
They will ask the way to Zion
and turn their faces toward it.
They will come and bind themselves to the LORD
in an everlasting covenant
that will not be forgotten.
"My people have been lost sheep;
their shepherds have led them astray
and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill
and forgot their own resting place.
Whoever found them devoured them;
their enemies said, 'We are not guilty,
for they sinned against the LORD, their true pasture,
the LORD, the hope of their fathers.'
"Flee out of Babylon;
leave the land of the Babylonians,
and be like the goats that lead the flock.
For I will stir up and bring against Babylon
an alliance of great nations from the land of the north.
They will take up their positions against her,
and from the north she will be captured.
Their arrows will be like skilled warriors
who do not return empty-handed.
So Babylonia will be plundered;
all who plunder her will have their fill,"
declares the LORD.
"Because you rejoice and are glad,
you who pillage my inheritance,
because you frolic like a heifer threshing grain
and neigh like stallions,
your mother will be greatly ashamed;
she who gave you birth will be disgraced.
She will be the least of the nations—
a wilderness, a dry land, a desert.
Because of the LORD's anger she will not be inhabited
but will be completely desolate.
All who pass Babylon will be horrified and scoff
because of all her wounds.
"Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you who draw the bow.
Shoot at her! Spare no arrows,
for she has sinned against the LORD.
Shout against her on every side!
She surrenders, her towers fall,
her walls are torn down.
Since this is the vengeance of the LORD,
take vengeance on her;
do to her as she has done to others.
Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the reaper with his sickle at harvest.
Because of the sword of the oppressor
let everyone return to his own people,
let everyone flee to his own land.
"Israel is a scattered flock
that lions have chased away.
The first to devour him
was the king of Assyria;
the last to crush his bones
was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon."
Therefore this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
"I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
as I punished the king of Assyria.
But I will bring Israel back to his own pasture
and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
his appetite will be satisfied
on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.
In those days, at that time,"
declares the LORD,
"search will be made for Israel's guilt,
but there will be none,
and for the sins of Judah,
but none will be found,
for I will forgive the remnant I spare.
"Attack the land of Merathaim
and those who live in Pekod.
Pursue, kill and completely destroy them,"
declares the LORD.
"Do everything I have commanded you.
The noise of battle is in the land,
the noise of great destruction!
How broken and shattered
is the hammer of the whole earth!
How desolate is Babylon
among the nations!
I set a trap for you, O Babylon,
and you were caught before you knew it;
you were found and captured
because you opposed the LORD.
The LORD has opened his arsenal
and brought out the weapons of his wrath,
for the Sovereign LORD Almighty has work to do
in the land of the Babylonians.
Come against her from afar.
Break open her granaries;
pile her up like heaps of grain.
Completely destroy her
and leave her no remnant.
Kill all her young bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter!
Woe to them! For their day has come,
the time for them to be punished.
Listen to the fugitives and refugees from Babylon
declaring in Zion
how the LORD our God has taken vengeance,
vengeance for his temple.
"Summon archers against Babylon,
all those who draw the bow.
Encamp all around her;
let no one escape.
Repay her for her deeds;
do to her as she has done.
For she has defied the LORD,
the Holy One of Israel.
Therefore, her young men will fall in the streets;
all her soldiers will be silenced in that day,"
declares the LORD.
"See, I am against you, O arrogant one,"
declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty,
"for your day has come,
the time for you to be punished.
The arrogant one will stumble and fall
and no one will help her up;
I will kindle a fire in her towns
that will consume all who are around her."
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"The people of Israel are oppressed,
and the people of Judah as well.
All their captors hold them fast,
refusing to let them go.
Yet their Redeemer is strong;
the LORD Almighty is his name.
He will vigorously defend their cause
so that he may bring rest to their land,
but unrest to those who live in Babylon.
"A sword against the Babylonians!"
declares the LORD—
"against those who live in Babylon
and against her officials and wise men!
A sword against her false prophets!
They will become fools.
A sword against her warriors!
They will be filled with terror.
A sword against her horses and chariots
and all the foreigners in her ranks!
They will become women.
A sword against her treasures!
They will be plundered.
A drought on her waters!
They will dry up.
For it is a land of idols,
idols that will go mad with terror.
"So desert creatures and hyenas will live there,
and there the owl will dwell.
It will never again be inhabited
or lived in from generation to generation.
As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
along with their neighboring towns,"
declares the LORD,
"so no one will live there;
no man will dwell in it.
"Look! An army is coming from the north;
a great nation and many kings
are being stirred up from the ends of the earth.
They are armed with bows and spears;
they are cruel and without mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
to attack you, O Daughter of Babylon.
The king of Babylon has heard reports about them,
and his hands hang limp.
Anguish has gripped him,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
Like a lion coming up from Jordan's thickets
to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Babylon from its land in an instant.
Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?
And what shepherd can stand against me?"
Therefore, hear what the LORD has planned against Babylon,
what he has purposed against the land of the Babylonians:
The young of the flock will be dragged away;
he will completely destroy their pasture because of them.
At the sound of Babylon's capture the earth will tremble;
its cry will resound among the nations
God Will Preserve Israel
Jeremiah 46:27-28
"Do not fear, O Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, O Israel.
I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
Do not fear, O Jacob my servant,
for I am with you," declares the LORD.
"Though I completely destroy all the nations
among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only with justice;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished."
"Do not fear, O Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, O Israel.
I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
Do not fear, O Jacob my servant,
for I am with you," declares the LORD.
"Though I completely destroy all the nations
among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only with justice;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished."
Monday, February 11, 2008
Restore Zion, Dear Lord as in Jeremiah 33
Jeremiah Chapter 33
While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD came to him a second time:
"This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it—the LORD is his name:
'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'
For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses in this city and the royal palaces of Judah that have been torn down to be used against the siege ramps and the sword in the fight with the Babylonians: 'They will be filled with the dead bodies of the men I will slay in my anger and wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness.
" 'Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it;
I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.
I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before.
I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.
Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.'
"This is what the LORD says: 'You say about this place, "It is a desolate waste, without men or animals." Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither men nor animals, there will be heard once more the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD, saying,
"Give thanks to the LORD Almighty,
for the LORD is good;
his love endures forever."
For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the LORD.
"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In this place, desolate and without men or animals—in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.
In the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them,' says the LORD.
" 'The days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
" 'In those days and at that time
I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line;
He will do what is just and right in the land.
In those days Judah will be saved
and Jerusalem will live in safety.
This is the name by which it will be called:
The LORD Our Righteousness.'
For this is what the LORD says: 'David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices.' "
The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
"This is what the LORD says: 'If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that day and night no longer come at their appointed time, then my covenant with David my servant—and my covenant with the Levites who are priests ministering before me—can be broken and David will no longer have a descendant to reign on his throne. I will make the descendants of David my servant and the Levites who minister before me as countless as the stars of the sky and as measureless as the sand on the seashore.' "
The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
"Have you not noticed that these people are saying, 'The LORD has rejected the two kingdoms he chose'? So they despise my people and no longer regard them as a nation.
This is what the LORD says:
'If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed laws of heaven and earth, then I will reject the descendants of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his sons to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and have compassion on them.' "
Amen,
Dear Lord, Your Word is my Hope, and my prayer.
While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD came to him a second time:
"This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it—the LORD is his name:
'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'
For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses in this city and the royal palaces of Judah that have been torn down to be used against the siege ramps and the sword in the fight with the Babylonians: 'They will be filled with the dead bodies of the men I will slay in my anger and wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness.
" 'Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it;
I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.
I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before.
I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.
Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.'
"This is what the LORD says: 'You say about this place, "It is a desolate waste, without men or animals." Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither men nor animals, there will be heard once more the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD, saying,
"Give thanks to the LORD Almighty,
for the LORD is good;
his love endures forever."
For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the LORD.
"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In this place, desolate and without men or animals—in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.
In the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them,' says the LORD.
" 'The days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
" 'In those days and at that time
I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line;
He will do what is just and right in the land.
In those days Judah will be saved
and Jerusalem will live in safety.
This is the name by which it will be called:
The LORD Our Righteousness.'
For this is what the LORD says: 'David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices.' "
The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
"This is what the LORD says: 'If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that day and night no longer come at their appointed time, then my covenant with David my servant—and my covenant with the Levites who are priests ministering before me—can be broken and David will no longer have a descendant to reign on his throne. I will make the descendants of David my servant and the Levites who minister before me as countless as the stars of the sky and as measureless as the sand on the seashore.' "
The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
"Have you not noticed that these people are saying, 'The LORD has rejected the two kingdoms he chose'? So they despise my people and no longer regard them as a nation.
This is what the LORD says:
'If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed laws of heaven and earth, then I will reject the descendants of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his sons to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and have compassion on them.' "
Amen,
Dear Lord, Your Word is my Hope, and my prayer.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
God reads the heart, it's called: Prayer
Prayer
The prophet Jeremiah was not a popular man. When he declared the truth God had given him-that Judah would soon start seventy long years in captivity-the people threw him into prison.
Yet in such dire circumstances, Jeremiah learned something profound about prayer, Jeremiah 33:1-3 says, “The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still shut up in the court of the prison, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord who made it, (the Lord is His name): “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know”’”
Prayer is a very real part of a vital relationship with God. It is not for some special spiritual elite; it is for you.
Three principles within these verses can transform your old notions about prayer into something fresh and new.
First, God says, “Call to Me.” He wants to hear from you. His all-loving, omnipotent heart desires to hear your innermost thoughts and feelings. He wants to hear from you in the hard times and when life is going smoothly. In fact, your sweetest times of prayer happen when you come before Him simply to praise and worship and give thinks for what He has done.
Second, God says, “I will answer you.” Do you believe that? Perhaps you once asked God for something He did not give you, and since then, you have harbored secret worries that He did not hear or did not care to answer. But God Himself says to you “I will answer you.” That answer may not take the form you anticipate or come when you desire, but He will respond. He might say “yes”, “no” or “wait”. You may not understand the reasons behind His answer-but you can trust that they are the best for you... Romans 8:28 applies for believers who love Him and work for His purpose: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Third, God says “I will show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” You have finite wisdom and understanding; God knows all. He knows the big picture; you see merely a tiny piece. When you ask Him to guide you, He works to direct you as part of His higher vision and calling.
If you take that first step of calling out to Him, prayer can become an important part of a dynamic relationship with almighty God. Do it today-He waits to hear your voice.
The above lesson on prayer is from Charles Stanley Life Principles Bible page: 900.
I totally agree with what Dr. Stanley says about prayer.
Once after reading a book about the Bible, and study of the Bible, I came to the point of understanding that God is real.
I acknowledged the God of the Bible, the God of Israel, and Way of Jesus as His "Truth" in my heart and God blessed me with the Holy Sprit as a deposit of my faith.
I haven’t been the same since, Thank God! Ask God to do the same for you, He will.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22
“Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
The prophet Jeremiah was not a popular man. When he declared the truth God had given him-that Judah would soon start seventy long years in captivity-the people threw him into prison.
Yet in such dire circumstances, Jeremiah learned something profound about prayer, Jeremiah 33:1-3 says, “The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still shut up in the court of the prison, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord who made it, (the Lord is His name): “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know”’”
Prayer is a very real part of a vital relationship with God. It is not for some special spiritual elite; it is for you.
Three principles within these verses can transform your old notions about prayer into something fresh and new.
First, God says, “Call to Me.” He wants to hear from you. His all-loving, omnipotent heart desires to hear your innermost thoughts and feelings. He wants to hear from you in the hard times and when life is going smoothly. In fact, your sweetest times of prayer happen when you come before Him simply to praise and worship and give thinks for what He has done.
Second, God says, “I will answer you.” Do you believe that? Perhaps you once asked God for something He did not give you, and since then, you have harbored secret worries that He did not hear or did not care to answer. But God Himself says to you “I will answer you.” That answer may not take the form you anticipate or come when you desire, but He will respond. He might say “yes”, “no” or “wait”. You may not understand the reasons behind His answer-but you can trust that they are the best for you... Romans 8:28 applies for believers who love Him and work for His purpose: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Third, God says “I will show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” You have finite wisdom and understanding; God knows all. He knows the big picture; you see merely a tiny piece. When you ask Him to guide you, He works to direct you as part of His higher vision and calling.
If you take that first step of calling out to Him, prayer can become an important part of a dynamic relationship with almighty God. Do it today-He waits to hear your voice.
The above lesson on prayer is from Charles Stanley Life Principles Bible page: 900.
I totally agree with what Dr. Stanley says about prayer.
Once after reading a book about the Bible, and study of the Bible, I came to the point of understanding that God is real.
I acknowledged the God of the Bible, the God of Israel, and Way of Jesus as His "Truth" in my heart and God blessed me with the Holy Sprit as a deposit of my faith.
I haven’t been the same since, Thank God! Ask God to do the same for you, He will.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22
“Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
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