tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18394839549616890762024-03-13T06:03:56.888-04:00In-between Time: Study of DanielStudy and commentary corresponding with the "Mondays at Marty's" Bible Study on the Book of DanielSue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.comBlogger323125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-34336051949731127042016-11-27T22:56:00.002-05:002016-11-27T22:56:31.827-05:00Daniel 10: Angels Watching Over Me<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Even though we did some combined work on these last 3 chapters, I'm going to break them apart for the purposes of writing. There's a lot to look at, even though all of this happened consecutively. (Thank you, Bible editors, for chapter breaks!)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We are in the time of Persian rule over Babylon. The Jews have been returning to Jerusalem since the time of the takeover. This is year #3 of Persian rule when Daniel receives this particular vision. We are also told that he has been in mourning for 21 days--a fact which doesn't mean much here but has great significance later on in the text.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My big question was "Why is Daniel mourning?" Not just a sadness kind of mourning, but what would seem an intentional time of mourning--denying himself food and wine, and not grooming. Remember, he's hardly a young man anymore. Not bathing for 3 weeks?! Why is he doing this?</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Some think that the particular occasion of his mourning was slothfulness
and indifference of many of the Jews, who, though they had liberty to
return to their own land, continued still in the land of their
captivity, not knowing how to value the privileges offered them; and
perhaps it troubled him the more because those that did so justified
themselves by the example of Daniel, though they had not that reason to
stay behind which he had. Others think that it was because he heard of
the obstruction given to the building of the temple by the enemies of
the Jews...."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Matthew Henry goes on to comment that mourning accompanies one who so passionately loves the church. Daniel was steadfast in his prayers for his people, in their re-establishment of Jerusalem and the Temple, in their future--even if he would not be joining them. He would certainly want to know what and how to be praying for them.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It is in this time of mourning when Daniel receives a vision of "a certain man dressed in linen." In our group time, I likened him to the Oscar statue, because all the references to gold were overwhelming! But, there is actually some discrepancy as to who this "man" is. We pursued the text with the notion that he was the angel Gabriel. Certain commentaries--Matthew Henry's among them--suggest that the "man" is actually Jesus Christ. Wow, right!?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Can we be OK with not knowing, exactly? I hope so. Because what happens from verse 5 to the end of the chapter is not so much about the affairs of the world as it is about Daniel and his receiving of this word. Whomever he saw completely takes Daniel away from consciousness. God has designed the onset of this vision to be for Daniel's eyes only, somehow removing Daniel's earthly attendants from him.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-9" id="en-AMP-22025">"Then I heard the sound of
his words; and when I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in
a deep sleep, with my face toward the ground."</span><span class="text Dan-10-9" id="en-AMP-22025"> (10:9)</span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-9" id="en-AMP-22025">Keep in mind these words as we continue on through this description of Daniel. The next voice he hears would not be the same as the one who uttered the words above. </span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-11" id="en-AMP-22027">“...O Daniel, you highly regarded <i>and</i> greatly beloved man, understand the words that I am about to say to you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you....” Whatever transfixed state Daniel had previously been in, he was going to be lifted from it with the help of an angel. Here, there is more general agreement that this is the angel Gabriel, as there is an air of familiarity with Gabriel and Daniel since they have encountered each other before.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-9" id="en-AMP-22025"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-9" id="en-AMP-22025"><br /></span></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Note, Before God gives strength and power unto his people he makes them sensible of their own weakness."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">OH, I love this quote! Daniel definitely recognizes that he has been, literally, laid flat in the presence of the man in linen. With Gabriel, he is unsteady and "trembling" (10:11). Daniel may be in the presence of an angel, but he does not immediately receive strength simply by being in his presence. Do you recognize that with your own circumstances? I might have the Word of God open, and be praying and humbled, but that does not mean that I am suddenly strengthened and ready to head off into battle. Most of the time, I'm still pretty down. Not that I don't believe God is at work, but I am in a place in which I recognize my weaknesses--and that's a GOOD thing! Remember, we can do all things IN CHRIST who GIVES US STRENGTH! (Philippians 4:13, slight paraphrase, <i>emphasis mine</i> :-) .)</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Gabriel comes to Daniel to encourage and strengthen him. He tells Daniel how greatly he is loved. How can you not be encouraged by hearing how much you are loved! "Highly-regarded," too, is Daniel. And then, those words that fill the pages of Scripture: "Do not be afraid." After all that Daniel had experienced, this vision may be one of the most personally devastating for him...in a good way, which is what may well lead you to believe that the golden man is Christ. God recognizes this, because He knows Daniel's heart so intimately--so, He sends Gabriel to reassure him, twice. And, if that's not enough, the archangel Michael comes along, too!</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-11" id="en-AMP-22027">“</span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-11" id="en-AMP-22027"><span class="text Dan-10-19" id="en-AMP-22035">...Peace be to you; take courage and be strong.” Now when he had spoken to me, I was strengthened</span>....” (10:19)</span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>"When he had spoken to me I was strengthened</i>. Note, God by his word puts life, and strength, and spirit into his people; for if he says, <i>Be strong</i>,
power goes along with the word. And, now that Daniel has experienced
the efficacy of God’s strengthening word and grace, he is ready for any
thing: “<i>Now, Let my lord speak</i>, and I can hear it, I can bear it, and am ready to do according to it, <i>for thou hast strengthened me</i>.”</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Don't we wish we could have the assurance of the angel Gabriel, speaking the life-giving words of God to us, every time we have a crisis? Oh, don't we wish we could be as truly committed to everything Daniel had committed himself to in the name of our Lord? I don't think it's impossible, gals. Not that we would have Daniel's calling, but God does call us to something for His Kingdom. When we need to be strengthened in what we're doing, do we remember the Source of our strength? He is the same as the Source of our peace.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">At the end of the chapter, we get a glimpse into the spiritual world behind our world. Gabriel explains that he knew of Daniel's prayers, but he was fighting with the spiritual prince of Persia for the past 21 days. Aha! The same amount of time Daniel had been in mourning, praying, the angel Gabriel was carrying on spiritual warfare with a demon of Persia. Angels and demons do not have the same attribute as God to be in multiple places at the same time. Gabriel may have known or have been apprised of Daniel's state, but there wasn't much he could do about it while fighting this battle.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">[And, no, I cannot explain the realm of the spirit world. Again, we get but a glimpse, and probably one of the larger glimpses that you'll find in Scripture. Just be careful what you read about the work of angels in places outside of Scripture. Thank Daniel for writing down his experiences and thank God for His preserving that text in His Word!]</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Gabriel will continue to speak into Chapter 11, which we will tackle here as a whole next week. But, I can't leave Chapter 10 without a look at this wonderful word:</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-10-12" id="en-AMP-22028">"Then
he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that
you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before
your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your
words.</span>" (10:12)</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When we want to hear from the angels, when we want to discern God's direction, we need to consider what His humble servant Daniel did. He set his heart on understanding. For Daniel, it was understanding God's will for His people, the future of the Church. He also humbled himself before God. Not just for a day. Really, not just for 21 days. Daniel lived humility! And, he was heard, and to him who was faithful came a response from the Lord.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When you sing "Angels from the Realms of Glory" this Advent season, consider the text from verse 4 of the song, and remember Daniel's vision. We should pray it for our own. </span></span><br />
<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /><span data-iceapw="256">Saints before the altar
bending,<br />
Watching long in hope
and fear,<br />
Suddenly the Lord,
descending,<br />
In His temple shall
appear:<br />
Come and worship,<br />
Come and worship,<br />
Worship Christ, the
newborn King!</span></span></span></i><span data-iceapc="2" data-iceapw="24" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><br />
</span>Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-5741065013090729492016-11-10T15:14:00.002-05:002016-11-10T15:14:37.567-05:00Daniel 8: Carrying on the King's business<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As we begin our look into Daniel 8, we need to remind ourselves about the language in which this book was written. There was that point, getting into Chapter 2, when the book switches from Hebrew to Aramaic--thus, the emphasis of the content being more driven to a Gentile audience. Here, in Chapter 8 and throughout the rest of the book, Daniel reverts back to writing in Hebrew--and so, the message contained here and for the remainder of the book is largely for a Jewish audience. We will read many things about the various kingdoms of the world, but the implications of the events and future happenings were meant to resonate with the Jews.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Why is there all this turmoil at this time? Why is everyone trying to take over the world? This has been a question in the last couple weeks within my group. Honestly, I'm not sure things are that much different today. In <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">our</span> lifetime<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--</span>even <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in the li<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ves of</span></span> those most senior in our fam<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ilies--</span>hasn't there always been someone looking to have "one/new world order"? Conquering the world was a reasonable goal for certain folks. It was Alexander the Great's full-time vocation!</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alexander studied under Aristotle<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.</span> His father, Philip, was a great reformer of Greece, in that he conquered large areas of Macedonia (northern Greece) and updated the military with the latest equipment. Alexander came up as his natural successor and completely dominated the world <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">map </span>for a bit. Nebuchadnezzar's situation in Babylon was similar, although he didn't <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">conquer as </span>much<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> and<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span>his kin didn't fare as well either. Alexander was "two" strong for the Medes and Persians, who could not hold their own alone or together (thus, the splitting of the ram's horns so soundly by Alexander's goat). When Alexander died (at 33)<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--</span>leaving his entire kingdom to four generals who became kings [Note to better think things out in the will!]<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--</span>Antiochus, the "little horn" would emerge from the goat's Syrian domain with the same determination to conquer <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">but </span>with a much more evil <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">intent</span>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">That's the short summary of the world scene with some of Daniel's received imagery thrown into the mix. Would that be frightening to you?<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Even though he received an interpretation, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Daniel</span> still didn't know the t<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ime all of this would begin<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> nor who the actual players were. </span></span></span>It covers a couple hundred years of history! The Medes and Persians rule for <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">100+</span> years. (Esther isn't made queen in Persia until 478 B.C., and Nehemiah doesn't try to get support from the Persians to help rebuild <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jerusalem</span> for 30 years after that.) Alexander the Great is <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">present</span> in the early 300 B.C. years. World conflict exists for a long time on a major scale--and then Jesus comes!</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"The Jewish church, from its beginning, had been all along, more or less,
blessed with prophets, men divinely inspired to explain God’s mind to
them in his providences and give them some prospect of what was coming
upon them; but, soon after Ezra’s time, divine inspiration ceased, and
there was no more any prophet till the gospel day dawned."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It must seem like I'm digressing a bit, but I think it helps us step into Daniel's head as we read about what he experienced. God gave him this vision--a 2nd vision--to explain the course of human events, especially as it pertained to his people, the Jews. This gives us perspective on God's hand in the events of the world (i.e., "I DID tell you this would happen") and how monumental a time the arrival of Christ into the darkness of world domination <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">should have been</span>. Something to think about as we get ready to celebrate Advent shortly!</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"They are not expressly named, or prophecies must not be too plain; but
they are here so described that it would be easy for those who
understood scripture-language to know who were meant; and the Jews,
having notice of this before, might be awakened to prepare themselves
and their children beforehand for these suffering trying times."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Most of what we read is now familiar; the images in the vision have changed. Statue-Beast-Ram/Goat/Horns are all pointing to the shifting in power. But, the description of the "little horn" becomes something to look at more intently, especially as it relates to the Jewish people. The horn itself grew "toward the Beautiful Land" which your Bible may have identified as Palestine--which, a long, long time ago used to be called Canaan, aka "the Promised Land." As mentioned a bit ago, this is the rise of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, which means "the illustrious," says Matthew Henry. But, some folks called him Antiochus Epimanes ("the furious"). He r<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">uled in <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">the Syrian part of Alexander's empire, which contained Palestine.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Antiochus</span> had it in for the Jews, and verses 8:10-14 speak of the things he would do to the people of God, not the least of which was <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">that he [it] "magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host." This is the direct opposite of what Jesus says of <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">His relationship to God <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in Philippians 2:6--</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="text Phil-2-6" id="en-NIV-29398">"...Who, being in very nature<sup><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></sup>God,</span><span class="indent-1"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text Phil-2-6">did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">."</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="indent-1"><span class="text Phil-2-6"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Keep in mind that the <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Temple had been completely rebuilt</span>, but Antiochus <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">took </span>the daily sacrifice away.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"No doubt he took away all other sacrifices, but only the <i>daily sacrifice</i> is mentioned, because that was the greatest loss of all, for in that they kept up their constant communion with God."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">He would desecrate the Temple in 168 B.C. A<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ll of this to gain control of more land (and beat the Romans to it) by unif<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ying all of his territories to a single cultural, social and relig<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ious framework and mindset. The Temple funded his military.<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> But, when the Roman Emp<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ire<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> threatened, Antiochus backed off, and he beef<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ed up his rule and aggression <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">of</span> his own kingdom. Internal r<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ebellion at the hands of those he appointed led to Antiochus killing thou<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">sands of Jews and abolishing Juda<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ism. (Facts from My Jewish Learning.com<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I know, we're getting away from Danie<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">l, right? But, we aren't, really, because this was the <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">vision he was told to keep "secret, for it pertains to many days in the future." (8:37)</span> As horrible as the future looks, God is giving His people that look. What a gift! Which is why we wonder if God still speaks to us through prophecy<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. Will someone in our future look <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">back and say<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> our times are a fulfillment of x? <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">[</span>I know; some a<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">re already talking like that, right? Pray, la<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">dies! Pray<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> before <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">going there....<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">]</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There's a really important <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">phrase</span> to pull out in the midst of this<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--"And on account of trans<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">gression the host <u>will be given over to the horn</u>...."<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(8:12a, emphasis mine)</span></span></span></span></span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"God would not have permitted it if his people had not provoked him to do so. It is <i>by reason of transgression</i>,
the transgression of Israel, to correct them for that, that Antiochus
is employed to give them all this trouble. Note, When the pleasant land
and all its pleasant things are laid waste, it must be acknowledged that
sin is the procuring cause of all the desolation."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As difficult as it was to hear of the little horn's work, how sorrowful for Daniel to hear that the <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">transgression stems from the people themselves. H<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ave you worked for a cause for yourself or fo<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">r others only to see things fail because of your own doing or the <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">sins of the<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> group</span>?<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> God's discipline takes various forms. Remember<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> that this discipline, via Antiochus, comes a<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">fter 70 years of captivity. A<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ft<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">er <i>all</i> the pro<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">phets had spoken.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Not that Antiochus was simply a pawn. He met his own disciplin<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">e from God when he was struck with a b<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">owel disease (worms; dropping flesh; sten<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ch; UGH!) and said, "</span></span></span><i>It is meet </i>[suitable, proper]<i> to submit to God, and for man who is mortal not to set himself in competition with God." </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(</span>Ussher’s Annals, <i>A.M</i>. 3840, about 160 years before the birth of Christ)</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Again, is it any wonder "...Daniel was exhausted an<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">d sick for days<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"? (8:27<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">a) A most difficult vision regarding his people. <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The presence of an angel--Gabriel, of all the ang<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">els!--to deliver the message. Hearing the voice of G<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">od (<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">8:16). And the<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">n being told to keep things under wraps.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"The<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">n</span> I got up again and carried on the king's business; but I was astounded at the vision, and there was none to explain<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> it." (8:28)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We may be astounded by the works of God. We may be<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> at a loss to explain why things are happening the way they are. We may have received a word from God that <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">forth<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">tells some difficult times in our future. We may be exhausted and sick for days of what life looks like. What do we learn from Daniel? <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We get up again and carry on the business of the king.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let's<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> go, gals!....</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-92099557437566865242016-10-30T19:43:00.001-04:002016-10-30T19:43:29.271-04:00Daniel 7: Beast of a Statue<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We were warned in approaching last Monday's session that things with the Book of Daniel were going to look a little different. OOHWEE! But, if we break this down, it's really not all that unusual given some things we read earlier, especially Daniel 2. The big difference is that Daniel is receiving both the vision and the interpretation himself, and--in his words--"my thoughts were greatly alarming me and my face grew pale, but I kept the matter to myself." (7:28) No kings to impress this word upon at the time of receipt, but what a burden to carry within oneself.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This chapter is a flashback: It occurs before the feast that Belshazzar hosts in Chapter 5. Why does it end up here? What was Daniel's thought process in setting up his book this way? May have to continue reading the rest of the Book of Daniel before answering that. I did find an interesting tidbit in Matthew Henry's Commentary:</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Belshazzar’s name here is, in the original, spelt differently from what it used to be; before it was <i>Bel-she-azar—Bel is he that treasures up riches</i>. But this is <i>Bel-eshe-zar—Bel is on fire by the enemy</i>."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Bel is the god of the Chaldeans, and if he was at first the holder of the treasury of the Temple, he is, approaching Chapter 5, the one who will soon die for misusing the vessels of God's treasury. The thought that I shared with my group was that we needed to go back and re-read Chapter 5--looking at Daniel, his character and his presentation in light of the fact that he has had this vision of Chapter 7 before he confronts Belshazzar. It would make sense for Daniel to change the spelling of his name in Chapter 7, given that he witnessed happened to Belshazzar (a fulfillment of 2 visions for which he received interpretation, in the sense of the nations involved).</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Looking at his vision, Daniel beholds "the four winds of heaven" stirring up "the great sea." (7:2) We discovered that the sea is often used scripturally to refer to people. Note that it was four winds of heaven. Who rules in Heaven? Let us not forget, throughout this entire prophecy, that God knows all! From the sea come four beasts. Most conservative Biblical scholars believe that the beasts correlate with the materials of Nebuchadnezzar's dream statue--the rising of the earthly kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Before we go much further: Will you read other thoughts on this in other commentaries? Sure you will. Prophecy was generally received as a message to folks living in a certain period of time, with their language and their points of reference, etc. There is the possibility for more than one fulfillment. The more we look at prophecy as being a future fulfillment, the more likely we will have multiple interpretations. It doesn't mean prophecy isn't important to us, nor should we disregard its message as being for us, on some level--but, we all need to seek God's wisdom and discernment when it comes to what is being said TO US in OUR time.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Whether those visions look as far forward as the end of time, or whether
they were to have a speedy accomplishment, is hard to say, nor are the
most judicious interpreters agreed concerning it."</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you compare the statue materials of Chapter 2 with the beasts of Chapter 7, most of those comparisons seem pretty clear if not more so with the description of the beasts. The iron/clay kingdom of Chapter 2 suddenly becomes graphically "dreadful, terrifying and extremely strong" (7:7) in Chapter 7. Daniel didn't seem to know what to make of it at the time he saw it, as he was "contemplating the horns" when another one arose while he was still taking in the vision. It shouldn't surprise us that he asks for divine interpretation.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Although Matthew Henry mentions the Roman empire as being the 4th kingdom, he also says that some scholars suggest it could be Syria.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"And herein that empire was diverse from those which went before, that
none of the preceding powers compelled the Jews to renounce their
religion, but the kings of Syria did, and used them barbarously."</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">[Remember what I just said about seeking God's wisdom. We can read commentary like this and think--Syria? Compelling believers to renounce their religion? ISIS? Contemplate, but seek His wisdom through prayer.]</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">After all the beasts appear, Daniel sees the thrones of heaven being established. The Ancient of Days (7:9)--the Eternal One, God the Father--takes His seat. That "consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29) is a stark contrast to the images of these creatures. It is He who will judge. [Know what Daniel's name means? "God is my judge."]</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"And thus God deals with his church’s enemies; sometimes he breaks the teeth of them (<a class="bibleref" href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ps.3.7" title="Ps.3.7">Ps. 3:7</a>),
when he does not break the neck of them, crushes the persecution, but
reprieves the persecutors, that they may have space to repent. And it is
fit that God, in doing his own work, should take his own time and way."</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Daniel also received a new look at "the stone" from Chapter 2. The prophet sees "one like a Son of Man" (7:13) coming to the Ancient of Days. A vision of Christ! "And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him." AMEN! Is this a promise from prophecy that we can cling to with surety? Absolutely! Plenty of Scripture to support this! "His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him." (7:27)</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Can't escape from Daniel's asking, quite pointedly, as to the "exact meaning" (7:19) of the fourth beast. Again, commentators are open to not only one possibility for this ruler who will "wear down the saints of the Highest One." (7:25) The Syrian empire, closer to Daniel's day than ours, brought forth a king named Antiochus Epiphanes, who did horrible things to the Jews; if the Roman empire, Julius Caesar might be the "little horn" rising; it could be the Turkish empire; and, what about the antichrist, whose appearance, per Revelation, is a significant mark of the end of the world as we know it? One? Some? All??</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">What may concern us is the thought that this ruler will "wear down the saints" (NASB); "oppress his holy people" (NIV); "will be cruel to God's chosen ones" (CEV); "persecute the followers of the High God" (The Message). God goes so far in His message as to say that the saints will be "given into his [the king's] hand for a time, times and half a time." That period (translating to 3-1/2 years) coincides with the latter half of antichrist's rule, until the return of Jesus. It is no wonder Daniel is alarmed and literally paled, not knowing when such a time might be at hand and how his people are involved.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But, Daniel's vision ends with the reminder that this most oppressive ruler's dominion will be taken away and his kingdom destroyed forever (7:26). But, the kingdom coming to the Highest One will be the kingdom that stands forever, a kingdom "given to the people of the saints of the Highest One." </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"The design of Satan has been to <i>wear out the saints of the Most High</i>, that they may be no more in remembrance; but the attempt is vain, for while the world stands God will have a church in it."</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When the earth "dissolves like snow, the sun forbear to shine," God will bring the Church home to Himself. And prophecies will cease! (I Corinthians 13:8)</span></span></div>
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-85875821897749616242016-10-21T21:16:00.001-04:002016-10-21T21:16:21.731-04:00Daniel 6 -- Preyed upon the Innocent, but the Innocent Pray<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If this chapter has familiar tones from an earlier chapter in Daniel, it's no surprise, really. The Medes and the Persians have taken over Babylon, so it makes sense that some new people were in power at all levels. It also should not surprise us that Daniel stands out from everyone in leadership. He was "distinguishing himself" from the other Darius-appointed leaders "because he possessed an extraordinary spirit." (6:3)</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">How many times do we need to read this story? As was raised up in my group this week, how many times do we need to respond humbly and consistently? How often do we need to look like Daniel? Or look like Jesus? Sometimes, the repetition is God's way of telling us how important something is.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Daniel is on his way to being the king's right-hand man when the green face of envy makes its appearance in the other appointed leaders. Why is Darius picking Daniel and not me? Why is "one of the exiles from Judah" (6:13) getting such a prime role in the kingdom? <b><i>The Message</i></b> paraphrase says Daniel "so completely outclassed" (6:3) his competition. In being that kind of guy, it made it very difficult for the would-be's to accuse him of any wrongdoing, thus demoting or "un-expatriating" him.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The only way they can trap him is to use his religion against him.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Note, It is an excellent thing, and much for the glory of God, when
those who profess religion conduct themselves so inoffensively in their
whole conversation that their most watchful spiteful enemies may find no
occasion of blaming them, save only in the matters of their God, in
which they walk according to their consciences."</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">[If only we could say that about a few folks in the public eye at present....]</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The administrators draft a decree for Darius' approval that would certainly bring Daniel into trouble: Praying to any god (God) other than the king would now send one to the lion's den, according to the law of the Medes and Persians.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We had the question in our group about why the law of the Medes and Persians could not be revoked. Interesting that if you look up "law of the Medes and Persians" on Dictionary.com, it says "unalterable law." [So, on your next chance to use that phrase in conversation, go for it!] I found one resource--a paper from the Bible Study Resource Center--that suggested the following:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"This immutability of the king's</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> commands was peculiar to the Medes and Persians: it was due to their regarding him</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> infallible as the representative of Ormuzd [from elsewhere in the paper, "</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The Persian</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> king was regarded as representative of the chief god, Ormuzd."]; it was not so among the Babylonians."</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Thus, a decree coming from the king would also be something not to be changed. We could take off on another tangent here pretty easily: Are the decrees from God immutable? Have we ever changed them? Do we follow them as we're instructed?</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Daniel does follow God's decrees to the letter! He prays toward Jerusalem every day, three times a day. My study Bible says that this is how Solomon regularly prayed, and his father, King David, was also in the habit of praying three times a day. Was there a law against praying to God in the Medo-Persian kingdom? No. Was Daniel asked to give this up when Darius put him in office? No. Yet this is the rug upon which the administrators would pull to trip up Daniel--and Daniel knew that!</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"When Daniel knew that the writing was signed he might have gone
to the king, and expostulated with him about it; nay, he might have
remonstrated against it, as grounded upon a misinformation that <i>all the presidents</i> had consented to it, whereas he that was chief of them had never been consulted about it; but <i>he went to his house</i>, and applied himself to his duty, cheerfully trusting God with the event."</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As if this isn't enough of a character-building decision, consider the following. The changing of the guard in Babylon was the beginning of the Jews' return to Judah. I know it seems like the Jews have only been in exile in Babylon for a few weeks, but, it has been decades! Remember, Daniel is in his 80s at this point. But he has made the decision not to return home. His understanding of God's plan for his life is so crystal clear. Like Esther, he is here for such a time as this--lion's den and all!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>O, Lord! For such understanding, for such trust in You, we humbly pray. There is nothing to keep us from following the example of Daniel, except that we are not in fully with You. Help us to see! Help us to pray!</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Darius is left with no choice but to throw Daniel to the lions, a situation that completely wrecks him. He knows he has made a dreadful mistake, and all he wants to do is work out a rescue plan. But the powerful king is powerless to do anything about it. He shows compassion, beyond anything we saw from Nebuchadnezzar--he fasts, accepts no distractions and acknowledges, in hope, that God will rescue Daniel. Short of praying all night--as Daniel and his 3 friends did before Daniel received that first dream interpretation--Darius does what he is able to do.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Darius does show that he has hope in Daniel's God in that he wakes from his restless night very early and races for the den. His voice of lament shows his doubt, but Darius is relieved and empowered, once again, as he hears the voice of Daniel:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-21" id="en-AMP-21927">"O king, live forever!</span> <span class="text Dan-6-22" id="en-AMP-21928">My
God has sent His angel and has shut the mouths of the lions so that
they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also
before you, O king, I have committed no crime." (6:21-22)</span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-22" id="en-AMP-21928"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-22" id="en-AMP-21928">With humility and a gracious matter-of-factness, Daniel proclaims his innocence. It is God who has shut the mouths of everyone else by preserving Daniel's life through a miracle. No injury is on his body, just as no odor of smoke was left on his three friends after their time in the furnace--"</span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-22" id="en-AMP-21928"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-23" id="en-AMP-21929">because he believed in <i>and</i> relied on <i>and</i> trusted in his God.</span><span class="text Dan-6-23" id="en-AMP-21929">" (6:23b)</span></span> </span>Darius issues a new decree--after he punishes the perpetrators with the same punishment they created for Daniel. (Hm....which sounds a lot like what happened to Haman in Esther's day.)</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-25" id="en-AMP-21931">"May peace abound to you!</span> <span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932">I issue a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men are to [reverently] fear and tremble before the God of Daniel...." (6:25-26)</span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932"></span><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932">Given that this was the law of the Medes and Persians, it was unalterable. But, the kingdom of Darius and Cyrus the Persian was only so large. The Jews were returning to Judah. New kingdoms were still to rise. Nebuchadnezzar's dream statue was not yet completely built. The unalterable law would eventually fall off the law books--but a new peace was coming!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932"># # #</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-6-26" id="en-AMP-21932">And, for us, a very different bunch of readings, as the Book of Daniel changes from stories of service and miracles to the prophet's own visions and interpretations. Probably back to two posts a week as we wade through some challenging texts. Study Bibles and commentaries ARE NOT CHEATING! Let's explore and learn together. See you Monday!....</span></span></span></div>
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-68238634728230496012016-10-16T16:55:00.000-04:002016-10-16T16:55:01.382-04:00Daniel 5 -- Similar story, but First-hand delivered<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Reading Daniel, Chapter 5, was so much like reading earlier chapters of this book. (I'm hearing a soap opera announcer's voice: "The part of Nebuchadnezzar will now be played by Belshazzar.") This story has so many familiar plot points--extremely anxious king; call for the "wise men"; a message which could not be interpreted; a call to Daniel. There are some marked differences, however.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Yes, we are still in Babylon. Belshazzar is the name of the new king, and we are not really sure what his relationship was to Nebuchadnezzar. Some translations say "your father." But, the Aramaic word used in the text (remember, this part of Daniel was originally written in Aramaic, so the Gentiles would get it) can be translated "ancestor." The same goes for the "queen" who may or may not be "mother" in the text starting with verse 10. We do know these events occurred about 20 years after Nebuchadnezzar's rule.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Babylon is still Babylon, but a chink in its armor has been revealed. The Medo-Persian empire has moved into Babylon.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj878ZDAH2yFejvaOj2RqPpNp-rV9kOJtCanfY_HZ-79y6mmCf64gk4Jjqqr9xaYQq-g999c-Qn4zHTEPFnmAN76qUK0UPi8_210wqtdUm3DTL5PYcwVKgQ0P_2_Yl2qKcd9GsHfdgDksg/s1600/1280px-Ancient_near_east_540_bc.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj878ZDAH2yFejvaOj2RqPpNp-rV9kOJtCanfY_HZ-79y6mmCf64gk4Jjqqr9xaYQq-g999c-Qn4zHTEPFnmAN76qUK0UPi8_210wqtdUm3DTL5PYcwVKgQ0P_2_Yl2qKcd9GsHfdgDksg/s400/1280px-Ancient_near_east_540_bc.svg.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"We must know that about two years before this Cyrus king of Persia, a
growing monarch, came against Babylon with a great army; Belshazzar met
him, fought him, and was routed by him in a pitched battle. He and his
scattered forces retired into the city, where Cyrus besieged them. They
were very secure, because the river Euphrates was their bulwark, and
they had twenty years; provision in the city; but in the second year of
the siege he took it, as is here related."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It's a very odd party scene, then, with Belshazzar drinking in front of a thousand people from the sacred items of the temple of Judah stolen by Nebuchadnezzar. It is possible that he suspected something was up, which is another reason his anxiety almost killed him. But there was more to happen before this inevitable conclusion.</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">"Suddenly the fingers of a
man’s hand appeared and began writing opposite the lampstand on [a
well-lit area of] the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the
king saw the part of the hand that did the writing.</span><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">" (5:5)</span></span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">[Which, for me, recalls these verses--</span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-5-14" id="en-AMP-23249"><span class="woj">“You are the light of</span> [Christ to] <span class="woj">the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;</span></span> <span class="text Matt-5-15" id="en-AMP-23250"><span class="woj">nor does <i>anyone</i> light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.</span></span> <span class="text Matt-5-16" id="en-AMP-23251"><span class="woj">Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good deeds <i>and</i> moral excellence, and</span> [recognize and honor and] <span class="woj">glorify your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5: 14-16) The True Light had entered the palace!!]</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">We don't think of God as being creepy a whole lot, but, YIKES! Depending on how much everyone had had to drink, who knows if they would have even seen this. But Belshazzar definitely saw it, as intended, and his "face was changed." (5:10) In a King Neb move, he calls for his wise men, but, unlike Neb, Belshazzar offers a handsome reward upfront, not a death warrant. But, as we know, no one can figure out the hand, the message or the interpretation. As someone in our group said, the Word from God needed to be given through a person of God!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">Daniel. He was a significantly older man (80 or 90 years old) and not an active part of the Babylonian leadership. But, his people were still in exile, and he remained in the city. The "queen" presents Daniel to Belshazzar as if he is an unknown, which is debatable. She has nothing but words of praise for the prophet, although, from her language, she doesn't sound as if she had any personal contact with Daniel, much less with Daniel's God. But, this shows us, again, how God can work through <i>anyone</i> to accomplish His purposes--and, how God can call the seemingly historical to a new state of prominence and leadership.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880"> </span></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">"Note, There are a great many valuable men, and such as might be made
very useful, that lie long buried in obscurity, and some that have done
eminent services that live to be overlooked and taken no notice of; but,
whatever men are, God is not unrighteous to forget the services done to
his kingdom."</span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-5" id="en-AMP-21880">--Matthew Henry </span> </span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Daniel's demeanor with Belshazzar is brusk, compared with how we last saw his relationship with Nebuchadnezzar. Bribes he will not take. Instead, Daniel launches into a full-blown testimony about the king he served. He recounts Nebuchadnezzar's greatness (since Belshazzar doesn't seem to recall this at all!) and is faithful to reveal that the king had his issue with pride. He describes Neb's consequences--should Belshazzar be paying attention--which are as fresh in Daniel's mind as when his king suffered them. And, as assuredly as Daniel told his king that God was responsible for both his rise and fall, Daniel told Belshazzar that this same God ruled now.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"And you, his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart (mind), even though you knew all this." (5:22) </span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">OH! If that isn't the biggest blow right there, I don't know what is.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"It makes the sin of children the more heinous if they tread in the
steps of their parents’ wickedness, though they have seen how dearly it
has cost them, and how pernicious the consequences of it have been. Do
we know this, do we know all this, and yet are we not humbled?"</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Daniel goes on to interpret God's handwriting on the wall, which, despite the foreign text, is clearly understood (vss. 25-28) At that instant, Belshazzar awards Daniel his promised gifts, as if he had won "Let's Make a Deal." Although with Belshazzar, Daniel makes no deal nor does he offer any words of encouragement or reconciliation. God made it clear through His Word that what was to happen was going to happen. There was no time. That should have caused Belshazzar the most anxiety of all.</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-30" id="en-AMP-21905">"During that same night Belshazzar the [last] Chaldean king was slain [by troops of the invading army].</span> <span class="text Dan-5-31" id="en-AMP-21906">So Darius the Mede received the kingdom; he was about the age of sixty-two." (5:30-31)</span></span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-31" id="en-AMP-21906"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-31" id="en-AMP-21906">Darius the Mede is likely not a name but a title. It could have been Cyrus the Great of Persia or it could have Gubaru, who was the general who led the attack that very night on Belshazzar and his kingdom. So, the "head of gold" became "the breast and arms of silver," if we remember Nebuchadnezzar's dream statue. And how timely for Daniel to be called to interpret a message? To accept a "third ruler" position within the kingdom of Babylon, even from an exiting king? Things that make you go "Hmmmmm...."</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-5-31" id="en-AMP-21906"> </span> </span></span>Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-50404196887526980472016-10-07T09:35:00.000-04:002016-10-07T09:35:19.220-04:00Daniel 4: 27-37--New Vision Brings New Vision<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"...O king, may my advice be pleasing to you...." (3:27)</span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Daniel faced the difficult task of not only being the bearer of bad news, as prophets <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">often were, but giving bad news to someone<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> for whom he had a level of compassion--and someone who still wielded enormous amounts of earthly power. <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Neb<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">uch<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">anezzar <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">had not not<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ably </span>changed in his belief in God<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> or in the way he served. Daniel lets the vision's interpretation stand by itself on that point: "...your kingdom will be assured to you after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules." (3:26) But, in his words of advice to the king, he says the following:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"...break away now from your sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a pro<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">longing of your prosp<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">erity." (3:27)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We talked a bit at our ta<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ble about the question on our wor<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ksheet: "If<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Nebuchadne<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">zzar had repented of his sins as Daniel advised, do you think God would have withheld his judgment<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, or was his decision irrevocable at this point<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">?"<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> If Nebuchadnezzar had truly repented<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> of his sins in his heart<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, God woul<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">d have truly forgiven him, and it is possible that his future might have had a different look. Note, Daniel says<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, "...<i>in case</i> there <i>may be</i> a prolonging of your prosperity." (<i>emphasis mine</i>)</span> But, as was mentioned in our group, there are times whe<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">n we do repent<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, ask f<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">or</span> and recei<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ve forg<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">i<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">veness, but God's <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">disc<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ipline for the con<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">sequences of our sins is still brought forth.<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> (David has a few stories--and reflective psalms--that deal with this very thing.)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Do we consider that part of our being repentant of our sins is not<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> only "breaking away" from our si<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ns<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> and</span> seeking for<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">giveness, but "doing righteousness" and "showing mercy<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"?</span> As my study Bible adds<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, Daniel was not "presenting a works salvation, but treating the issue of sin exactly as Jesus did with the ri<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">c</span>h young ruler in Mt. 19: 16-23."</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As we know, Neb<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">uchadnezzar does not repent. He's had "12 mo<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">nths" (3:29) to re-consider his path, but he chooses to stay on it. At the <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">height of his earthly majesty and soverei<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">gnty, Neb<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">uchadnezzar acquires wh<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">at s<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ome believe was lycanthropy<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--</span>a disease in which a person thinks he is an animal and lives as such. But, we know that it was the angel's warning now made the king's sen<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">tence.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let us pause a little, and view this miserable spectacle; and let us receive instruction from it."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--M<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">atthew Henry</span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">One of the gals in our group defin<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ed <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Neb<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">uchadnezzar's condition as such: "He [God] made him not so much in His image." Pride is definitely not part of God's image. The preaching on pride takes up much of <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">the Book of Proverbs. We discussed in group how it is possible to take pride in something, like our children's achievements<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> and <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">progress, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">things that we do well, etc. Th<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ere is a fine line, though, and pride <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in something can easily turn into proud, period. <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Through <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">W</span>ho's work should that being proud of something be reflected<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">?</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The king's vision is completely ful<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">filled as presented, with <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"seven periods of time" <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(3:32) passing before Nebuchadnezzar recognized "'...that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and besto<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">w</span>s it on whomever He wishes<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.'"</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"But at the end of that period, I, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">N</span>ebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...." (3:34)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And we know, as we finish<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> the chapter, th<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">at</span> the king meant it all <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"for reals." </span></span>He was returned to <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">his physical self. H<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">is</span> kingdom<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> was completely restored to him, without question. <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">[</span>Probably another <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">reason Daniel held the position he did, as there would have been a lot of explaining to do to everybody else in the kingdom!<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">]</span></span></span></span> "..<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A</span>nd surpassing greatness was added to me." (3:36) More importantly,<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> the king gave praise <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and thanks to the One True God and documented his witness of that fact, thanks to Daniel. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">W<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">hen we lift our eyes to heaven, our reason<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> returns. Th<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ink about that!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></i></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">King Nebuchadnezzar would not live long past this admission--maybe another two years. Yes, changes were coming to the kingdom of Babylon, s<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">till, because God's work on the larger scale <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in the world </span>had not yet been completed. But God's working in the life of a prideful, powerful,<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">polytheistic king<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> had reached <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">its most si<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">gnificant milestone nearest<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> its heavenly perfection</span></span></span>.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"Whether he [Nebuchadnezzar] continued in the same good mind that here he seems to have
been in we are not told, nor does any thing appear to the contrary but
that he did: and, if so great a <i>blasphemer and persecutor</i> did
find mercy, he was not the last. And, if our charity may reach so far as
to hope he did, we must admire free grace, by which he lost his wits
for a while that he might save his soul for ever."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Or, as TobyMac would <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">sing </span>quite a bit later<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">:</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span> </span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"I don't want to gain the whole world and lose my soul."</span></span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Toby McKeehan, Christopher Stevens and Michael Ripoll, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">c</span>omposers</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<br />Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-67641721344374887812016-10-06T13:24:00.000-04:002016-10-06T13:24:21.978-04:00Daniel 4: 1-27--"I am Nebuchadnezzar, and I approve this message"<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is an interesting beginning to a chapter, because King Nebuchadnezzar is narrating all the way through Chapter 4.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"The penman of this chapter is Nebuchadnezzar himself: the story here
recorded concerning him is given us in his own words, as he himself drew
it up and published it; but Daniel, a prophet, by inspiration, inserts
it in his history, and so it has become a part of sacred writ and a very
memorable part."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's also an interesting chapter because of how the king presents a flashback in the middle of it. Verses 1-3 are the introduction; verses 36 and 37 are the conclusion; and, verses 4 through 35 are the flashback, describing Nebuchadnezzar's vision, its interpretation and its fulfillment. We had a question in my group as to whether the king's use of 'Most High God' really meant God or just the highest god of the gods. Given the structure of the story, he really meant God in the beginning and the ending (and maybe in the middle, too; read on<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">!)</span>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Not unlike his dream of Chapter 2, Nebuchadnezzar has a vision that alarms him. He calls in his wise men, who cannot interpret the vision. Daniel is then brought in (without the fear of death this time), and the king shares his vision. Note how the king refers to Daniel--"...Belteshazzar according to the name of my god" and "chief of the magicians." Never mind that Daniel has been in the king's palace as a high administrator for awhile. Here, he is still seen as the interpreter of dreams.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My study Bible has a mention of the use of the phrase "a spirit of the holy gods." (3:9, 18) Some versions use all caps in their translations, making it a reference to God in Hebrew and equivalent to the Aramaic used here. The reasoning given for why that would even work--given that Nebuchadnezzar uses Daniel's pagan name and such--is that the king in his narrative (which was written after he experienced everything) may have been "rehearsing his conversion" as he was <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">writing.</span> Something an editor might have caught, perhaps, but the king and Daniel left open to interpretation?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">With verse 10, Nebuchadnezzar presents the dream to Daniel, and we see the clear picture of the kingdom of Babylon and the king's place of pride within it. An angel appears in the vision, and we know that angels are messengers of God. This one certainly brought a warning: "This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers...." (3:17) If the king's wise men had been more read up on Hebrew prophecy, they might have been able to have helped their master.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"But the key of this dream was in a sacred prophecy (<a class="bibleref" href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezek.31.3" title="Ezek.31.3">Ezek. 31:3</a>), where the Assyrian is compared, as Nebuchadnezzar here, to a <i>tree cut down</i>,
for his pride; and that was a book they had not studied, nor acquainted
themselves with, else they might have been let into the mystery of this
dream."</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<br /></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Having that historical knowledge as well as God's interpretation of the dream, more specifically, left Daniel in good position to tell the king what he wanted to know. But, we read that Daniel "was appalled...his thoughts alarmed him" (3:19) Other translations use phrasing like "greatly perplexed...his thoughts terrified him" (NIV); "appalled and speechless for awhile..." (AMP); "</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="text Dan-4-19" id="en-TLB-19264">sat there stunned and silent for an hour, aghast at the meaning of the dream</span>" (TLB). Daniel could have feared sharing th<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">is personal </span>interpretation with the king, though th<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">at</span> seems out of character for him, given all Daniel has been through. More likely, Daniel's relationship with Nebuchadnezzar left him concerned, saddened and compassionate to the king's situation.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Likewise, Nebuchadnezzar <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">sees that Daniel is in an alarmed state. Wh<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">at <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">the king</span>'s actually thinking, we don't know, but what he says also il<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">lustrates that there is a relationship that has been established and respected between the two.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">'...Belteshazz<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ar, do not let the dream or its interpre<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">tation alarm you.' Belteshazzar replied, 'My lord, if only the dream applied to those who hate you and its interpretation to your adversaries<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">!<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">'" (3:19)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The interpretation <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">is as devastating <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">to <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">hear </span>as <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">the</span> description of the vision was. There is a time of change coming for Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom. The angel's warning was strong and true. Daniel knew there would be nothing he could add to make that word any more comfort<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ing. But he could not leave his king, the earthly one he served, without <i>any</i> word.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">"<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">O king, may my advice be pleasing to you...." (3:2<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">7</span>)</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Next post, why we need to <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">listen to Daniel's advice, too.</span> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-62133569301246940202016-09-29T13:22:00.001-04:002016-09-29T13:22:19.914-04:00Daniel 3: 19-30--Faith Refined<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In the last post, we left Daniel's three friends--Babylonian administrators Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego--having just told King Nebuchadnezzar that they were not going to serve his gods or worship the golden idol he produced before his kingdom's leaders. The king was angered to have to address these three to begin with, but in verse 19, he "was filled with wrath, and his facial expression was altered...." That wording is so unusual.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"</span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Brutish passions the more they are indulged the more violent they grow,
and even change the countenance, to the great reproach of the wisdom and
reason of a man.... Would men in a passion but view their faces in a glass, they would blush
at their own folly and turn all their displeasure against themselves."</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The king does not take Matthew Henry's advice, however. So enraged is Nebuchadnezzar that he orders the furnace of Dura to be "seven times more" hot than it already was. Daniel makes a point of telling us that "valiant warriors" (3:20) were asked to tie up the three just as they were--no last words--and bring them to the opening of the furnace. It is believed that such a furnace would have had an opening on top with the fire section on the bottom. So, these soldiers would have walked the three up to the top.</span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> (There is no evidence that there was any struggle.)</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The miracle of the three being saved actually begins before their descent into the furnace. The flames of the super-hot furnace killed the soldiers who brought the three to the top, yet the three fell into the furnace "still tied up," reads verse 23. How could that be? Tied up does not mean with metal shackles. Surely, ropes would have burned away in an instant, leaving the three if not dead at the opening then, at least, separated on their way down. But, no!</span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Dan-3-24" id="en-NASB-21832">“Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?” (3:24)</span></span></span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The king can hardly believe what he sees, asking those around him for confirmation. Not only is everyone OK in there, but there is a fourth person--"like a son of the gods!" My study Bible explains that this was a Pagan expression for "someone who appeared supernatural." There are some sources suggesting it was the angel Gabriel. It is also possible that this could have been Jesus in a pre-incarnate appearance. Let that thought sink in a minute. That has implications for us.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The king had seen enough and called the young men ("you servants of the Most High God") out of the furnace. The high officials in attendance at the ceremony examine the appearance of the men, noting that in every possible physical respect, it was as if the three had never been <i>near</i> a fire much less thrown into one. They had seen it with their own eyes, yet they could not explain it, except that it be of God (and not one of their gods).</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego...." (3:28) The Reformation Study Bible notes that just because Nebuchadnezzar used the phrase "Most High God" didn't mean he was professing God as THE God, "but only that He is supreme over other gods." Note, he doesn't say, "Blessed be the God of Nebuchadnezzar and the kingdom of Babylon...." He clearly knows that he has seen something miraculous, yet he is not ready to take that next step forward in his belief.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>Does that sound like people we know? Does it sound like us, perhaps? The profound and mysterious come to be--things that defy explanation, when prayers are answered, etc. Do we take our faith only so far, or do we go the distance and render everything to the work of the One True God?</i></span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Nebuchadnezzar would seem to be taking baby steps forward in his belief, banning anyone from speaking against this God. (Although he remains true to form in not showing grace to those who don't and inflicting the limb-from-limb tearing/rubbish heap punishment on those who do.) He follows this with a promotion of the three friends, the last time of which they will be mentioned in Scripture. But, the beauty of Scripture is that it can be shared, and their story is of encouragement to us today.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span>Remember that quote from Matthew Henry's commentary of Chapter 2 that I thought we might revisit: "Thus, sometimes, before God brings his people into trouble, he prepares
it, that it may be easy to them." How were Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego to know that their very lives on that day of dedication might have been taken? Face to face with the king, an edict and a furnace--would they have thought to have prepared themselves for that? And yet, the example of Daniel--not only having seen him speak with those in authority, but having trained up alongside him and prayed with him--surely prepared them for that moment. How else can you explain their peace and obedience? </span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span>They were not alone, either.</span> In the moment from which they were unable to turn back--facing their own deaths--they were not alone.</span></span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Those that suffer for Christ have his gracious presence with them in
their sufferings, even in the fiery furnace, even in the valley of the
shadow of death, and therefore even there they need <i>fear no evil</i>.
Hereby Christ showed that what is done against his people he takes as
done against himself; whoever throws them into the furnace does, in
effect, throw him in."</span></span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Does that encourage you as you move through these "present sufferings" (Romans 8:18)--that there is a "glory that will be revealed in us" no matter where Christ meets us: in the now, then or hereafter! "He will deliver us out of your hand, O king." (Daniel 3:17)</span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-56434562673188445252016-09-27T11:19:00.002-04:002016-09-27T11:19:16.852-04:00Daniel 3: 1-18--Image vs Character<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">No sooner does Nebuchadnezzar have a dream about a kingdom with "the head of gold" (2:38) than we read he actually has a gold statue created. Note, though, that we aren't given a time frame for when Chapter 3 occurs. It would seem logical for this to fall after his dream. But, the dream may have affirmed a statue he already had made, waiting for the time of dedication. We don't know.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Our group on Monday waded through the pomp and circumstance of the first 7 verses. Why are there so many people and why are we <i>repeating</i> that there are so many people? Why so many instruments (and repeating all of that)? Clearly, it was an important enough reason for Nebuchadnezzar to invite the most important folks in his kingdom to attend--and to not just attend, but to actively participate. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Why was Daniel not present? There is no definitive answer for this, either. The only clue we have is in his promotion by Nebuchadnezzar to serve "in the king's court." Did this new position somehow exempt him from this service? Did his new duties take him somewhere else? What we can say with certainty is that God's providence kept him safe, while still affording Daniel the opportunity to write about the amazing witness of his friends.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Back to the occasion at hand: This was not only the unveiling of a statue, but the first time the newest idol of Babylon would be worshiped. How does one show a unified front in worshiping an idol? Through a musical cue. Something that folks could hear, even if they weren't on the plain of Dura, perhaps. If not through the enticing music, then perhaps by the command that those not falling down to worship would be thrown into the "furnace of blazing fire" (3:6), which we also read plenty of times in this chapter.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"...That
way that sense directs, the most will go; there is nothing so bad which
the careless world will not be drawn to by a concert of music, or driven
to by a fiery furnace. And by such methods as these, false worship has
been set up and maintained."</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love a great Matthew Henry quote, but, as someone who serves on a worship team, it reminds me again how holy worship is, and how it is not an activity to plan or to participate in lightly or without the presence of the Holy Spirit.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Among those called to the dedication were Daniel-appointed (Neb-approved) administrators Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. "...Certain Chaldeans came forward and brought charges against the Jews." (3:8) Did the friends bow down to the statue? No. But why were these Chaldeans so pleased to bring this information to the king? If they were involved with the dream-interpretation crisis of last chapter, they were likely looking for redemption in the king's eyes. They had just been humiliated! Really, anyone in a position of power (which all these folks had), would be envious of the three "10 times better" captives-turned suitors-turned administrators.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">[Bible study teacher Beth Moore, in her study of Daniel, highlights the phrasing "brought charges against" or "denounced" in verse 8 as meaning, literally "ate the pieces of." It brings to mind the presidential debate of last evening.] </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The Chaldeans repeat the law word for word before the king. Reading through this, again, as I'm writing today, I saw so clearly the image of the Pharisees of Jesus' day, spouting off the letter of the law without the spirit of the law in a way to lord themselves over others. "These men, O king, have disregarded you," (3:12) and all of the goodness you provided.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-12" id="en-NASB-23502"><span class="woj">"'So then, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.'</span></span><span class="text Matt-12-13" id="en-NASB-23503"><sup class="versenum"> </sup>Then He said to the man, <span class="woj">'Stretch out your hand!'</span> He stretched it out, and it was restored to normal, like the other.</span> <span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him."</span></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">--Matthew 12: 12b-14</span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Since the Chaldeans' attack is not only aimed at the three friends but at Nebuchadnezzar's character (the one who raised up and promoted "these Jews" in the first place), the king flies into a rage, once again. He graciously (?) gives the three one more opportunity to worship the image, adding, "...what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?" (3:15) as a last incentive. (Guess he forgot about saying Daniel's God was a "God of gods and a Lord of kings.")</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">The three reply with all respect due a king that "...we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter." (3:16) The answer was obvious that they would continue to serve God, no matter what was offered up or said.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">That is the point that leaves us wondering on the inside, gals of faith, if we would do likewise. When our faith is tested, what is our answer? Is it obvious, as it was for Daniel and his friends? Would we be able to look at a seven times heated-up furnace as the path to victory??</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">When I did the Beth Moore study 5-1/2 years ago, one of her illustrations that I strongly remember is this one from Daniel 3, about when the people of God face a fiery trial:</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Scenario A: We can be delivered FROM the fire.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Dividend?: Our faith is built.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Scenario B: We can be delivered THROUGH the fire.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Dividend?: Our faith is refined.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Scenario C: We can be delivered BY the fire, STRAIGHT INTO HIS ARMS.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Dividend?: Our faith is perfected.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="text Matt-12-14" id="en-NASB-23504">Next time, faith refined....</span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
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</section>Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-35382560058786883142016-09-23T16:57:00.000-04:002016-09-23T16:57:03.353-04:00Daniel 2: 31-49<span style="font-size: large;">One of the questions that came out in Monday's conversations was, essentially, <i>"How are we supposed to know that?!"</i> Nebuchadnezzar's dream was a prophetic word of God delivered through Daniel. We understand that from reading the verses. But, the statue represents Greece, Rome, the millennial kingdom, WHAT?!....</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">At the time of the interpretation, our footnotes would not have existed, if that makes sense. Yes, there was an understanding at the time that the statue in the king's dream represented several kingdoms--beginning with Nebuchadnezzar's "head of gold" (2:38), which was directly stated by Daniel. But, did anyone know to what kingdoms the rest of the body referred? Not at the time. What's challenging about prophecy is that fulfillment details are not always provided, so you have to live through the times before hindsight fills in the footnotes. Then, it becomes history! But, it does make prophecy open to interpretation/s, and that makes reading passages like this challenging.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Thankfully, we now have tools like study Bibles, with footnotes and column notes, commentaries, the Internet and, yes, history books, to help confirm a direction if not the actual facts. Would everyone like to know more about Revelation? You bet! Are there multiple interpretations out there--because we probably haven't lived through all of those times yet to know what all those references mean [but it depends on your interpretation]? Bottom line: Do NOT lose heart over prophetic writings because you don't fully understand them. God did mean those words for people at the time (as a warning, often, and as a sign of His presence and foreknowledge), and as we live--and look to reliable, Biblically based experts and resources--God will reveal the significance of His message to us in our time.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This will not be the last time we see references to these four earthly kingdoms in Daniel. They will take a different form in Chapter 7. (Hey, now you know what's coming up!) These four kingdoms are important to reflect upon in terms of the history of the Jewish church.<span class="text Dan-2-47" id="en-NASB-21806"><br /></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">"This image [of the statue] represented the kingdoms of the earth that should
successively bear rule among the nations and have influence on the
affairs of the Jewish church. The four monarchies were not represented
by four distinct statues, but by one image, because they were all of one
and the same spirit and genius, and all more or less against the
church. It was the same power, only lodged in four different nations,
the two former lying eastward of Judea, the two latter westward."</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">--Matthew Henry</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">Then, there's the stone "...cut out of a mountain without hands...." (2:45) This represents Christ in His second coming--the Millennial kingdom. My commentaries and study Bible lead me back to look at Psalm 118: 22-23, from which Jesus Himself quotes in Matthew 21:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808"></span></span><br />
<div class="line">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="line">
<span style="font-size: large;">"The stone which the builders rejected,<br />This became the chief corner stone;<br />This came about from the Lord,<br />And it is marvelous in our eyes."</span></div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<div class="line">
<br /></div>
<div class="line">
<span style="font-size: large;">What else could possibly topple down the strongest of earthly kingdoms? Only that which God would build. The Messiah, "the stone" may have been "rejected," but he would become "the chief corner stone" at the hand of God. Could Nebuchadnezzar have imagined such a kingdom? We do not know, here, what exactly Nebuchadnezzar thought about the interpretation of his dream. But we do know how he responded to Daniel:</span></div>
<div class="line">
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-47" id="en-NASB-21806">"The king answered Daniel and said, 'Surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery.'"</span> (2:47)</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Not only does he respond with his words, but the king treats Daniel like, well, a king!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;">"It was the custom of the country by prostration to
give honour to kings, because they have something of a divine power in
them (<i>I have said, You are gods</i>);
and therefore this king, who had often received such veneration from
others, now paid the like to Daniel, whom he supposed to have in him a
divine knowledge, which he was so struck with an admiration of that he
could not contain himself, but forgot both that Daniel was a man and
that himself was a king."</span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">--Matthew Henry</span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">Be reminded that even though Nebuchadnezzar seems to do the unusual, Who is the One who puts the kings in their places at certain points in time? God is working through Nebuchadnezzar. Surely, once the dream was interpreted, the king could have easily had another fit. ("What?! My kingdom will be knocked off by a stone?!") Instead, he bestows honors and gives reverence to Daniel. God is also continuing </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;">to work through Daniel to carry out His much greater work of providential care. </span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;">As the Book of Daniel goes forward,</span> it will be easy to lose track of the fact that <i>all</i> of Judah is in Babylon with Daniel and his friends. That God does what He does with both the king and Daniel is all part of a much bigger plan, with ripples we haven't even seen yet.</span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-48" id="en-NASB-21807">"Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.</span> <span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">And Daniel made request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego over the administration of the province of Babylon, while Daniel <i>was</i> at the king’s</span></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">court." (2:48, 49)</span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">A couple of things to note about the ending to this chapter. Daniel "made request" of the king. In a time when he could have lorded over the kingdom and his countrymen his new status and gifts, he continues to honor the king and to serve in his court. Respecting his office, Daniel seeks and receives permission from the king to bring his friends into positions of administration.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Dan-2-49" id="en-NASB-21808">[Digression: Maybe you saw a footnote in your Bible about Daniel's use of his friends' new Babylonian names instead of using their Jewish names. Chapter 2 is partially written in Hebrew and partially written in Aramaic. Part of God's plan for His word to reach the Jews (in Hebrew) and the Gentiles (in Aramaic). The Gentiles would know the three by their Babylonian names. Would you say that's true for you?]</span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Those that helped him with their prayers shall share with him in his
honours, such a grateful sense had he even of that service. The
preferring of them would be a great stay and help to Daniel in his place
and business. And these pious Jews, being thus preferred in Babylon,
had great opportunity of serving their brethren in captivity, and of
doing them many good offices, which no doubt they were ready to do.
Thus, sometimes, before God brings his people into trouble, he prepares
it, that it may be easy to them."</span><div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: large;">--Matthew Henry</span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Did you catch that last sentence? We might just revisit that idea as we embrace Daniel 3 on Monday. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-63888800337798441582016-09-22T10:37:00.001-04:002016-09-22T10:37:25.576-04:00Daniel 2: 1-30--"I Had a Dream"<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Thankfully, <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">it's not every day we have a dream that wakes <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">us up with <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">our spirit "troubled." (2:1) But, when we do, as we talked about on Monday, it i<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">s disturbing, uncomfortable, sleep-robbing and<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">, sometimes, even day<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">-devastating<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">--<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">u</span></span>nless we do what we need<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> to regain perspective.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">For <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">King Nebuchadnezzar, ruling over a kingdom full of "wise men," sorcerers, ma<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">gi<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">cians an<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">d the li<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ke, waking up with <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">that kind of anxiety meant calling in the answer guys. "I had a dream and my spirit is anxious to understand the dream<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">," he sa<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">id</span>. (2:3)<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> At this time in Babylon's history, with Babylon's culture, it was not unu<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">sual for the gods of their day to <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">give</span> messages through dreams. What the king didn't understand was that this was no ordinary dream<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">, and the God who planted this in his mind <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">gave him<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> a vision for things that still have not all completely come to pass. Imagine! (<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">immeasurably more than all we ask or<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> imagine</span>...," right? Eph. 3:20)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">How interesting, reading Matthew Henry's commentary on this chapter, that he su<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ggests Nebuchadnezzar<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> was so distraught over the dream that he actually <i>forgot</i> what it was when he woke up! <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">That's why</span> the king asks for both content and interpretation. (<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">In our group, we <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">pondered </span>that he hadn't taken his medication that day and flew off the handle!) He <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">was clearly beyond reach as he not only asked for answers but <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">issued a decree to kill th<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ose</span> who could not deliver on that command, meaning all the wise men.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Daniel was not <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">called to join the other wise men in the king's room--despite the king's pleasure with him and <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his friends as mentioned in Chapter 1--</span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">and first wind of th<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">e air of anxiety is hearing the announcement of his pending death! <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">W</span></span></span></span>e witness <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his</span> <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">response <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">beginning in verse 14. Continuing with <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his attitude of</span> wis<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">dom<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">, grace and resolve, Daniel <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">speaks to the captain of the king's bodyg<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">uard (or, executioners, <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">it says in my column notes). Note, he s<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">peaks "with discretion and discernment," and then "re<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">qu</span>ested of the king" th<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">at he might have time to <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">interpret the dream. <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Daniel</span> continues to be truly wise i<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">n his dealings with the authorities in his life, and knows that the One true authority is <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">with whom he needs to consult<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">But, also, his friends! This should come as a reli<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ef to us, but I wonder if it does? We are reminded that we do not have to walk through difficult situations by ourselves. <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">It's not that we need to ask our f<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">riends for anything<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> tangible<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">; sometimes we do, but not always. But, do we ask our friends for the important things, like prayer? Daniel and his friends "request compassion" from God. We see other <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">translations </span>using "<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">plead</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">," "<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ask," <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">or "seek mercy<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">" from God. Humility in unity.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"Praying friends are valuable friends; it is good to have an intimacy
with and an interest in those that have fellowship with God and an
interest at the throne of grace; and it well becomes the greatest and
best of men to desire the assistance of the prayers of others for them."</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> --Matthew Henry</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Daniel receives "a night vision" (2:19) with the dream and its interpretation.<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> Though <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his three friends do not receive the same vision, the<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ir prayers have most certainly been answered through Daniel's vision. Again,<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> how wonderful our gift of friendship with those in Christ can be when we are able to trust and share our deep concerns with them. (It puts into pers<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">pective that time when Jesus asked <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">His three friends to pray for Him in the <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">G</span>arden of Geths<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">emane t<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">hat night<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">--Hmm....</span>)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">In response, as we <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">should be expecting from <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">him</span> at this point, <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Daniel</span> praises God for this revelation through a <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">song or psalm<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">, <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">acknowledging fully that this is the work of God alone and of no one else. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span class="text Dan-2-21" id="en-NASB-21780">“It is He who changes the times and the epochs;</span><br /><span class="text Dan-2-21">He removes kings and establishes kings; </span><span class="text Dan-2-21">He gives wisdom to wise men<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">a</span></span></span><span class="text Dan-2-21">nd knowledge to men of understanding." (2:21) There are so many verses in this psalm to love, but for the t<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ime</span>s we are facing right now, I love <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">the truth that Daniel shares here.</span></span></span></span></span> God is in charge of who is in charge, and if we pray to Him <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">(<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">ask, seek, plead, with humility in unity) will He <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">not also grant us understanding?</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"...There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries...." (2:28)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"I<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> have fou<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">nd</span> a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!" announces Arioch, the captain<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">, in bringing Daniel forward to Nebuchadnezz<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">a</span>r. (Never<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">mind that he was just sent to execute Daniel not that long ago<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">!</span>) With <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">God's wisdom and revelation upon him, Daniel not only tells the king <span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his dream and the interpretation, but he witnesses to the glory of God at the same time.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"He who reveals mysteries has made known to you what will take place." (2:29)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">"...T<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">his mystery has not been revealed<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"> to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man...." (2:30)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">Next post, more on the interpretation.<span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif";">...</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-11740291409476236412016-09-14T10:11:00.002-04:002016-09-14T10:11:55.176-04:00Daniel 1: 1-7--Time and Place<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";"> Where are we? It helps to know a bit of
background when putting the Book of Daniel into perspective. The book opens in 605 B.C.,
which puts us much closer to the coming of Christ than looking backward. But,
it's important to remember what has occurred historically on the timeline of
Scripture.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";">The days of Moses and Joshua entering the Promised Land have long
gone by. We have had the judges and the kings attempt to regulate and rule over God's people. Most of the prophets have spoken
forth their words, warning God's people of their waywardness. We have seen Israel and its 10 "tribes" (named from
Jacob's offspring) go into captivity by the Assyrians. Now with beginning of the Book of Daniel, the
so-called Southern Kingdom of Judah, including Jerusalem, has been captured by
Babylon, and God's people are being placed into captivity.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";">Why? Not that God is ever without patience and
grace, but it was time for discipline. The Jews had so many strikes against
them, which they refused to address much less repent of. "The Lord
gave...," them over into captivity. Keep in mind the phrasing, because
it's not "Judah lost a war." <span></span>God
let it go, but His people were not gone from His sight or His intervention,
which is where we find Daniel.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";">What do you hear when you say 'Babylon'? Babel.
Remember the tower of Babel from Genesis? The people who tried to build
"...a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for
ourselves a name...." (Gen. 11:4) God sees their work and confuses their
language, so they will not understand each other. It is not surprising that the
ruling Babylonians in Daniel's time would include teaching candidates thinking of entering
into the king's personal service "the literature and language of the
Chaldeans [Babylonians]." (Daniel 1:4) Understanding those things was crucial to
the unification and strength of the empire. Babylon was as much like its
precursor Babel than ever in terms of wanting to make a name for itself.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";">Great care was taken in the selection of Daniel and the three other noble youths. Outside commentaries suggest there may have been several reasons why King Nebuchadnezzar wanted this type of candidate--to flaunt before the rest of the captives (i.e., "I have your best for my own, just like your treasures from the house of your God"); or, to have them as people of influence amongst the captives, even as they would be direct servants to him. Interestingly, Nebuchadnezzar does not demand that the young men change religions, only their names and their diet--and with the diet, we know Daniel had something to say.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";"><span style="font-size: large;">More on that in the next post....</span></span></span></div>
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-12772117501107312682014-06-05T16:13:00.002-04:002014-06-05T16:15:51.446-04:00Isaiah 24: 1-6<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<h3>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Isa-24-1" id="en-NASB-18097">Judgment on the Earth</span></span></span></h3>
<div class="chapter-2">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-1"><span class="chapternum"></span></span><span class="text Isa-24-1"><span class="text Isa-24-2" id="en-NASB-18098"><sup class="versenum">1 </sup></span>Behold, the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> lays the earth waste, devastates it, distorts its surface </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-1">and scatters its inhabitants.</span><span class="text Isa-24-2" id="en-NASB-18098"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-2" id="en-NASB-18098"><sup class="versenum">2 </sup>And
the people will be like the priest, </span></span></div>
<div class="chapter-2">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-2" id="en-NASB-18098">the servant like his master, the
maid like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, </span></span></div>
<div class="chapter-2">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-2" id="en-NASB-18098">the lender like the
borrower, the creditor like the debtor.</span><span class="text Isa-24-3" id="en-NASB-18099"></span></span></div>
<div class="chapter-2">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-3" id="en-NASB-18099"><sup class="versenum">3 </sup>The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled, for the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has spoken this word.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-4" id="en-NASB-18100"><sup class="versenum">4 </sup>The earth mourns <i>and</i> withers, the world fades <i>and</i> withers, </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-4" id="en-NASB-18100">the exalted of the people of the earth fade away.</span><span class="text Isa-24-5" id="en-NASB-18101"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-5" id="en-NASB-18101"><sup class="versenum">5 </sup>The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant.</span><span class="text Isa-24-6" id="en-NASB-18102"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-6" id="en-NASB-18102"><sup class="versenum">6 </sup>Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held guilty. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-24-6" id="en-NASB-18102">Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>I</b></span>saiah takes a very different turn with the beginning of Chapter 24. We have spent several chapters looking at several judgments brought across different nations--prophecies indicating future destruction. What we have with Chapter 24 is the beginning of a four-chapter judgment upon the whole earth. (Yes, think Revelation.) But, it is not wholly about judgment--not for those who believe in a holy and righteous God. As my study Bible says, "These 4 chapters give praise to God for His future victory over all enemies and the final deliverance of Israel in the Day of the Lord." Let's try to keep that fact in our minds as we work through these tough chapters.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">With verse 1, we immediately receive the strong images of the Lord's plans for the earth--to completely lay it waste. Now, the Lord has brought destruction upon the whole earth before. (Remember Noah?) This would be a destruction more severe than even that, if you can imagine [which we really don't like to!].</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">"</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-13-13" id="en-NASB-17920">Therefore I will make the heavens tremble,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-13">And the earth will be shaken from its place</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-13">At the fury of the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-13">In the day of His burning anger."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--Isaiah 13:13 </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">We have seen pictures of what it looks like when the landscape of the earth has changed, due to things like flooding, mudslides, wildfires, earthquakes and the like. What does a "surface distortion" look like? What does a "despoiled" (vs. 3) earth look like? By dictionary definition, the earth will be "stripped of possessions, robbed and pillaged" (<b><i>Dictionary.com</i></b>) by God's hand. On top of physical changes, God will also "scatter its inhabitants," which is something He did in the time of the Tower of Babel--distorting communications of the people, so to speak. This is a scene that will be nothing like anything witnessed before, in reality or fantasy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> In his poetic way, in verse 2, Isaiah is saying that where there were huge differences between people, such as servants and masters, there will be no differences. In this destruction of the world, all are treated equally: God's judgment will not be stopped in the wake of anyone's wealth, or stature, or occupation, or supposed closeness to God.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>"</i>The priests had been as corrupt and wicked as the people; and, if their
character served not to restrain them from sin, how can they expect it
should serve to secure them from judgments?"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="chapter-2"><span class="text Ps-14-1">"The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'</span></span><br /><span class="text Ps-14-1">They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds;</span><br /><span class="text Ps-14-1">There is no one who does good.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Ps-14-2" id="en-NASB-14083">The <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men</span><br /><span class="text Ps-14-2">To see if there are any who understand,</span><br /><span class="text Ps-14-2">Who seek after God.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Ps-14-3" id="en-NASB-14084">They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt;</span><br /><span class="text Ps-14-3">There is no one who does good, not even one."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Ps-14-3">--Psalm 14: 1-3</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Ps-14-3">Putting these verses together, we can say that even before Isaiah's pronouncement, by their turning aside and not seeking after God, all of the people, "together they have become corrupt." "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-24-4" id="en-NASB-18100">...The exalted of the people of the earth fade away." (vs. 4) </span>How many times in 23 chapters has Isaiah brought people's pride to mention in his prophecies? Pride meaning not only boasting of self, but not relying much less acknowledging the existence of God, yet claiming to retain all of the benefits of that purported relationship. Again, we are reminded that God hates pride (Proverbs 8:13) and that God is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5) who will not stand for taking second place. The prideful will "fade away."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-2-12">"For the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts will have a day <i>of reckoning</i></span><br /><span class="text Isa-2-12">Against everyone who is proud and lofty</span><br /><span class="text Isa-2-12">And against everyone who is lifted up,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-2-12">That he may be abased."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-2-12">--Isaiah 2:12</span> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">The earth itself will also fade away--mourn and wither and fade away. (vs. 4) If you stop with that thought--the earth will fade away--you might think it is part of God's doing, as in, "I'm taking the people away; I'm going to take their home away, too." But, when you read verse 5, it becomes clear. What did the earth ever do? The earth is part of God's creation--a creation that worships Him, that groans in anticipation for the day in which the Lord will take back the earth for His own!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">No, we read in verse 5, "...The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants." The <i><b>King James Version</b> </i>uses 'defiled'. The Hebrew word means "soiled, profaned." (<b><i>Strong's</i></b>) Did the earth become tainted on its own? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">"Such is the filthy nature of sin that it defiles the earth itself under
the sinful inhabitants thereof, and it is rendered unpleasant in the
eyes of God and good men."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">No! Earth is polluted by every unclean thought and impure action taken by those who walk upon it! The "everlasting covenant" had been broken. Recall what God had established between Himself and Abraham, and the generations to follow under His chosen servant:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Gen-17-7" id="en-NASB-405">"I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you.</span>"</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--Genesis 17:7</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">"It is God’s wonderful condescension that he is pleased to deal with men
in a covenant-way, to do them good, and thereby oblige them to do him
service."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">The obliged service was not fulfilled by men! God, out of immeasurable grace and mercy, withstood the lack of returned service, but even He has His limits.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Gen-3-17" id="en-NASB-73">"Then
to Adam He said, 'Because you have listened to the voice of your wife,
and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You
shall not eat from it’;</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Gen-3-17">Cursed is the ground because of you;</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Gen-3-17">In toil you will eat of it</span><br /><span class="text Gen-3-17">All the days of your life."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Gen-3-17">--Genesis 3:17 </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Also, so here, in verse 6, "Therefore a curse devours the earth...," and those who live in it are held guilty. The ground yielding the tree did nothing. The sin of Adam and Eve left the ground of that idyllic Garden cursed. Likewise, it is the sin of mankind that defiles the earth to the point in which God brings upon it a curse, which will consume the earth and man alike.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-5-24" id="en-NASB-17764">"Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes stubble</span><br /><span class="text Isa-5-24">And dry grass collapses into the flame,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-5-24">So their root will become like rot and their blossom</span> <span class="text Isa-5-24">blow away as dust;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-5-24">For they have</span> <span class="text Isa-5-24">rejected the law of the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts</span><br /><span class="text Isa-5-24">And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel."</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-5-24">--Isaiah 5:24 </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> That is, except for "few," (vs. 6) which translates from Hebrew to mean "a remnant." (<b><i>Strong's</i></b>) Even as a curse had been placed upon Eden's ground and the earth's ground, God had plan to undo the curse, for some:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">"No more let sins and sorrows grow,<br />Nor thorns infest the ground;<br />He comes to make His blessings flow<br />Far as the curse is found,<br />Far as the curse is found,<br />Far as, far as, the curse is found."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--Verse 3 of "Joy to the World," lyrics by Isaac Watts </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">"The coming heavenly Adam, who bears the curse of toil, sweat, thorns, conflict, death on a tree, and descent into dust, will regain the garden, tearing apart the veil of the temple."</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">--<b><i>Reformation Study Bible</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Then, there will be joy to the world!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">But, we'll have to wait for that. "All joy </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">turns to gloom...." ...'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><span class="_Do">Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="irc_dsh"><a class="irc_hl irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://memolition.com/2014/02/05/worlds-most-polluted-river-7-pictures/"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">memolition.com</span></a></span></span></span><span class="irc_dsh irc_msc"><a class="irc_hl irc_msl" data-ved="0CAYQhxw" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=polluted&safe=active&hl=en&biw=1206&bih=609&tbm=isch&tbs=simg:CAQSWQmzon0ofzV_1PxpFCxCwjKcIGjwKOggCEhT5J7ghqhSUFOka5hu-IawUqwqTFBogCT_1x4-v2L4gGChi87j7TfsGiX_1XmEeOhCtdmvQJSK4oMIU025zJ32p0_1"><span class="irc_idim"></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 24: 7-12 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-46135107051301328312014-05-21T16:27:00.002-04:002014-05-21T16:27:37.443-04:00Isaiah 23: 15-18 <div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-15" id="en-NASB-18093"><sup class="versenum">15 </sup>Now in that day Tyre will be forgotten </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-15" id="en-NASB-18093">for seventy years like the days of one king. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-15" id="en-NASB-18093">At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as <i>in</i> the song of the harlot:</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-16" id="en-NASB-18094"><sup class="versenum">16 </sup>Take <i>your</i> harp, walk about the city,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-16">O forgotten harlot;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-16">Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-16">That you may be remembered.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17" id="en-NASB-18095"><sup class="versenum">17 </sup>It will come about at the end of seventy years that the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> will visit Tyre. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17" id="en-NASB-18095">Then she will go back to her harlot’s wages and will play the harlot </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17" id="en-NASB-18095">with all the kingdoms</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17" id="en-NASB-18095">on the face of the earth.</span></span></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-18" id="en-NASB-18096"><sup class="versenum">18 </sup>Her gain and her harlot’s wages will be set apart to the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>; </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-18" id="en-NASB-18096">it will not be stored up or hoarded, but her gain will become
sufficient food </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-18" id="en-NASB-18096">and choice attire for those who dwell in the presence of
the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">C</span></b></span>oncluding Isaiah Chapter 23 this week, as the prophecy of Tyre comes to a close. But, as we discover, Tyre itself is not coming to an end, even though the text to this point has suggested that the devastation of the city will bring it to ruin. As God has a plan for the redemption of Judah, He also had a plan for bringing back Tyre.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Tyre will be forgotten," says verse 15. But, before we can get to that place of redemption, we need to understand that Tyre will temporarily be taken off the map, so to speak. "...For seventy years like the days of one king." History confirms a literal fulfillment of this prophecy. In 572 B.C., King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon would wipe out Tyre (after the Assyrians had their go years earlier), and the city was left to the "desert creatures." (vs. 13) After 70 years--the same time frame as the destruction and captivity of Judah--the Tyrians were allowed to return to their city to rebuild, just as the Jews under Nehemiah did in Jerusalem.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Although this was a literal fulfillment, that was not the last destruction of Tyre. Alexander the Great had an even greater conquering in 332 B.C. It's important, then, to note not only the multiple fulfillment possible with prophecy, but also that the numbers included with prophecies may not be literal. As '7' is a number that indicates perfection or completion in Scripture, so is '70.' Recall Jesus' use of "70 times 7" (Matthew 18:22) as the number of times in which we are to offer forgiveness (meaning always). When it was time to complete a work, God would put Tyre back on the path of rebuilding.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">How many times would Tyre return to this path? Just as we understand that offering forgiveness is a for-always situation, we might understand, too, that Tyre would find itself continuing in a success-sin pattern beyond a mere 70 years. [And we can't relate to that at all, can we?] For Tyre, repeating that pattern meant returning to the ways it knew best--that of the route of successful world commerce. Isaiah turns poetic on us here, using the metaphor of a harlot to represent the city's motivations and actions.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-16">"O forgotten harlot... </span><span class="text Isa-23-16">Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, t</span><span class="text Isa-23-16">hat you may be remembered," verse 16 reads. Tyre is not unlike an 80s band on a reunion tour, trying to cash in on its earlier success by playing through sets of the hits that made it famous. [Maybe even with the same hair and costumes!] "Do you remember this one!?!! Sing it out--YEAH!!!!!!!" And, quite often we think, how sad! Why did you turn back when you could have moved forward? It all goes back to the character of the city's leadership, to the spiritual heart of the people.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">"The love of worldly wealth is a spiritual whoredom, and therefore covetous people are called <i>adulterers and adulteresses</i> (<a class="bibleref" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jas.4.4" title="Jas.4.4">Jas. 4:4</a>), and covetousness is spiritual idolatry."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-4" id="en-NASB-30342">"You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.</span> <span class="text Jas-4-5" id="en-NASB-30343">Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: 'He</span></span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-5" id="en-NASB-30343">jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us'?</span> <span class="text Jas-4-6" id="en-NASB-30344">But He gives a greater grace. Therefore <i>it</i> says, '<sup></sup><span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble</span>.'</span> <span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">Submit therefore to God."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">--James 4:4-7</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">As successful as Tyre was around the world, "the market of nations" had a stone-cold heart, bent on meeting its own needs even as it was engaging many suitors, if you will. The "virgin daughter of Sidon" (vs. 12) may not have had any offspring cities, but it was far from ethical innocence, and quite far from knowing true love. But True Love was not finished with Tyre, and God wove into this prophecy the stipulation that Tyre would not gain from its business as it once had.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">"And her merchandise and her hire shall be
holiness to the LORD: it shall not be treasured nor laid up; for her
merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the LORD, to eat
sufficiently, and for durable clothing."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">--Verse 18, <b><i>King James Version</i></b> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">When "the Lord visits Tyre," (vs. 17) which is, again, in an undefined period of time, then shall Tyre's merchandise (profit, commerce, gain) and hire (wages, reward, gift) become holiness to the Lord. [Word meanings from <b><i>Strong's</i></b>.] Holiness?! Remember, Tyre was in a cycle, and when the city had its better days, God was working with them, giving them, as James said, "a greater grace." The city did get rebuilt after Nebuchadnezzar's invasion, and some of the Tyrians who returned came back changed people and effected change in how they used the wealth they were regaining.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">"Perhaps their being fellow-captives with the Jews in Babylon (who had
prophets with them there) disposed them to join with them in their
worship there, and turned them from idols, as it cured the Jews of their
idolatry: and when they were released with them, and as they had reason
to believe for their sakes, when they were settled again in Tyre, they
would send gifts and offerings to the temple, and presents to the
priests."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">Additional Scripture and historical documents also show the evidence of God's presence in Tyre. Recall the story of when Jesus met the Syrophoenician woman with the demon-possessed daughter of whom he said, "Great is your faith." (Matthew 15: 21-28) He met her while traveling through Tyre and Sidon. Paul also traveled to the city, as his ship stopped to unload cargo. Sounds like old Tyre, right? "After looking up the disciples, we stayed there seven days...." (Acts 21:4a) Disciples in Tyre! Paul stayed a week, spending time in fellowship and prayer with the Tyrian disciples and their families.</span> <span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">The Roman historian Eusebius (Hist. 10:4) said that “when the church of God
was founded in Tyre..., much of its wealth was consecrated to God... and
was presented for the support of the ministry.” (from a footnote in the <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b>)</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">Tyre may not have been able to shed its old ways completely. We all are hard-pressed to rid ourselves of sin in our lives. Though God brought discipline upon Tyre, as He brought upon even His favored ones, Israel and Judah, He did so not with the intent to obliterate the city but to guide them into an honorable relationship with Him. Hear James' words again: "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-5" id="en-NASB-30343">'He</span></span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-5" id="en-NASB-30343">jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us.'"</span></span></span></span> Where Tyre could not find it within itself to completely give up its ways to wealth, God would minister from within so that His Kingdom would reign through the "market of the world."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772">How much better, though, to begin with the calling on our hearts before moving to the callings in our lives? [I LOVE this!....] </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">"We must first give up ourselves to be holiness to the Lord before what
we do, or have, or get, can be so. When we abide with God in our
particular callings, and do common actions after a godly sort—when we
abound in works of piety and charity, are liberal in relieving the poor,
and supporting the ministry, and encouraging the gospel—then our
merchandise and our hire are holiness to the Lord, if we sincerely look
at his glory in them."</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-17-Isa-23-18" id="en-MSG-7772"><span class="text Jas-4-7" id="en-NASB-30345">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b> </span> </span></span></span></div>
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</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Judgment on the Earth"--Chapter 24 is the first of four chapters on the subject. Hold onto your hats! ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><span class="_Do">Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="irc_dsh"><a class="irc_hl irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/yourpaintings/paintings/singer-with-a-clarsach-gaelic-harp"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">www.bbc.co.uk</span></a></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">* * *</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 24: 1-6 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-13017632879834163142014-05-14T13:53:00.003-04:002014-05-14T13:53:59.151-04:00Isaiah 23: 11-14<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-11" id="en-NASB-18089"><sup class="versenum">11 </sup>He has stretched His hand out over the sea,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-11">He has made the kingdoms tremble;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-11">The <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has given a command concerning Canaan to demolish its strongholds.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-12" id="en-NASB-18090"><sup class="versenum">12 </sup>He has said, “You shall exult no more, O crushed virgin daughter of Sidon.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-12">Arise, pass over to Cyprus; even there you will find no rest.”</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-13" id="en-NASB-18091"><sup class="versenum">13 </sup>Behold, the land of the Chaldeans—this is the people <i>which</i> was not; </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-13" id="en-NASB-18091">Assyria appointed it for desert creatures—they erected their siege towers, </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-13" id="en-NASB-18091">they stripped its palaces, they made it a ruin.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-14" id="en-NASB-18092"><sup class="versenum">14 </sup>Wail, O ships of Tarshish,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-14">For your stronghold is destroyed.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><span class="text Zech-9-3" id="en-NASB-23003"><b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">A</span></span></b>s far as prophecies go, this one that we've been reading about in Isaiah 23 is fairly complete. The beginning set the scene for whom the word was about (Tyre), as well as the response to that word (by the surrounding trade nations). We learned last time why the city was poised for demise (pride) as well as who originated that call (God, of course). Today, we learn more about who would handle the actual devastation. Next week, the chapter concludes.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-3" id="en-NASB-23003">Verse 11 picks up from last week's passage in which God is established as the one "who has planned this against Tyre." (vs. 8) "He has stretched His hand out...made the kingdoms tremble." One of the cross-reference passages for this verse is Exodus 14, in which Moses stretches out his hand over the Red Sea, and God creates the path that would lead the Israelites to safety. Where God's hand makes a way, it also disciplines others (meaning, Pharaoh and the Egyptians, or, in Isaiah's prophecy, Tyre). The Hebrew for 'stretch' beyond the literal definition means "to bend away (including moral deflection)." [<b><i>Strong's</i></b>] I see this as God bending this city away from Himself, because He cannot be in the midst of the pride He has witnessed.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-3" id="en-NASB-23003">"For Tyre built herself a fortress</span><br /><span class="text Zech-9-3">And piled up silver like dust,</span><br /><span class="text Zech-9-3">And gold like the mire of the streets.</span><span class="text Zech-9-4" id="en-NASB-23004"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4" id="en-NASB-23004">Behold, the Lord will dispossess her</span><br /><span class="text Zech-9-4">And cast her wealth into the sea;</span><br /><span class="text Zech-9-4">And she will be consumed with fire."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4">--Zechariah 9: 3 and 4</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856">At the end of verse 11, we read that God has issued a command against Canaan. No confusion here. Tyre and its motherly city of Sidon were both a part of the territory of Canaan. You see the command in verse 12. There will be no more jubilance in Tyre. To whomever remains in the city, the order is given to evacuate. "...Pass over to Cyprus...." Even though Tyre will become, largely, unpopulated, it does not mean that the burden brought upon the city will leave the hearts of those who leave it, and this is an interesting take-away point. "...E</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-12">ven there you will find no rest."</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">"Note, We deceive ourselves if we promise ourselves rest any where in
this world. Those that are uneasy in one place will be so in another;
and, when God’s judgments pursue sinners, they will overtake them."</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">Try to outrun or outfox or just plain ditch your troubles? Doesn't work, does it? You will find yourself as did one of my favorite movie characters--Maria from <b><i>The Sound of Music</i></b>. She tries to flee a big life decision by seeking refuge back in the abbey from whence she came. She learns with some Reverend Mother-ly guidance that you can't "escape your troubles. You have to face them." Tyre was absorbed in its own pride--a state of the heart that was not left behind, even as its inhabitants fled to supposedly safe havens.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">"And man, being a
part of Thy creation, desires to praise Thee, man, who bears about
with him his mortality, the witness of his sin, even the witness
that Thou 'resistest the proud,'--yet man, this part of Thy
creation, desires to praise Thee. Thou movest us to delight in
praising Thee; for Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our
hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee...."</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4">--from <b><i>The Confessions of St. Augustine</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856"></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856">We have an alternative to being on the lam, having our hearts constantly condemn us. Why does God discipline? To turn His creation back to Him! He is full of mercy and patience, but, there is a time of divine intervention at His will, which can take the form of discipline. Discipline--out of love, out of grace.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Have you been walking on a surface that's uncertain?<br />
Have you helped yourself to everything that's empty?<br />
You can't live this way too long.<br />
There's more than this, more than this....You can rest, you will find rest.</span></span>
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Let this old life crumble, let it fade.<br />
Let this new life offered be your saving grace...."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--Lyrics from <i><b>"</b></i><b><i>Let it Fade"</i></b> by Jeremy Camp </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856">With verse 13, we are given a picture of the depth of the earthly force Tyre will be facing. God says, "</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-13" id="en-NASB-18091">Behold, the land of the Chaldeans—this is the people <i>which</i> was not...." The Chaldeans are also known as the Babylonians. At this time, Assyria was the nation of highest dread. Per my study Bible, Assyria "ravaged" Babylon in 689 B.C. We already know from Isaiah's earlier prophecies of Assyria's conquest of Israel and its take-down of most of Judah (God sparing Jerusalem, under Hezekiah).</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5" id="en-NASB-17856">"Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger</span><br /><span class="text Isa-10-5">And the staff in whose hands is My indignation....</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"><span class="text Isa-13-21"><span class="text Isa-10-7" id="en-NASB-17858">Yet it does not so intend,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-10-7">Nor does it plan so in its heart,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-10-7">But rather it is its purpose to destroy</span><br /><span class="text Isa-10-7">And to cut off many nations."</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"><span class="text Isa-13-21"><span class="text Isa-10-7"></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5">--Isaiah 10:5 and 7</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"><span class="text Isa-13-21">As with the Assyrian conquest of Babylon, the plan for Tyre was to turn the bustling harborfront into a place "for desert creatures." (vs. 13)</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"><span class="text Isa-13-21">"...And their houses will be full of owls;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-21">Ostriches also will live there, and shaggy goats will frolic there."</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Zech-9-4"><span class="text Isa-10-5"><span class="text Isa-13-21">--Isaiah 13:21</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25" id="en-NASB-21147">As if to end with a poetic finish, Isaiah returns to his opening call upon the merchant cities of the world, to grieve and mourn over the loss of Tyre. "Wail, O ships of Tarshish...." </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25" id="en-NASB-21147">"The ships of Tarshish were the carriers for your merchandise.</span><span class="text Ezek-27-25"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">And you were filled and were very glorious</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-27-25">In the heart of the seas."</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">But, Isaiah is not quite finished. We will look at a sort of epilog next week. Had the Tyrians only been able to accept the picture--like that featured above--that the prophet was offering. Had they only been able to see beyond their pride to the sole means of, not escape but, true freedom....</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">"Look up on the ruins of Tyre, and see all this glory stained, and
sullied, and buried in the dust. The honourable ones of heaven will be
for ever such; but see the grandees of Tyre, some fled into banishment,
others forced into captivity, and all impoverished, and you will
conclude that the honourable of the earth, even the most honourable,
know not how soon they may be brought into contempt."</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-27-25">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span><b><i><span class="text Zech-9-4"></span></i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The end of Tyre? For certain, the end of Chapter 23. ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><span class="_Do">Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="irc_dsh"><a class="irc_hl irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://chestofbooks.com/reference/American-Cyclopaedia-11/Tyre-In-Classical-Writers-Tyrus-In-The-Hebrew-Scriptures-Tzor-Rock.html"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">chestofbooks.com</span></a></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 23: 15-18 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-1671281416172369472014-05-07T13:45:00.001-04:002014-05-07T13:45:30.558-04:00Isaiah 23: 6-10<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-NASB-18084"><sup class="versenum">6 </sup>Pass over to Tarshish;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-6">Wail, O inhabitants of the coastland.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-7" id="en-NASB-18085"><sup class="versenum">7 </sup>Is this your jubilant <i>city</i>,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-7">Whose origin is from antiquity,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-7">Whose feet used to carry her to colonize distant places?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-8" id="en-NASB-18086"><sup class="versenum">8 </sup>Who has planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-8">Whose merchants were princes, whose traders were the honored of the earth?</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-9" id="en-NASB-18087"><sup class="versenum">9 </sup>The <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts has planned it, to defile the pride of all beauty,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-9">To despise all the honored of the earth.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-10" id="en-NASB-18088"><sup class="versenum">10 </sup>Overflow your land like the Nile, O daughter of Tarshish,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-10">There is no more restraint.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>T</b></span></span>he "jubilant" city of Tyre! (vs. 7) The "market of nations," as Isaiah called the city in the beginning of Chapter 23. The undeniable prince of trade is "destroyed," (vs. 1) and the world mourns. In today's passage, more about why the city is facing extinction instead of further distinction.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084">"Pass over to Tarshish [to seek safety as exiles]!"</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084">--<b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b>, vs. 6</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Last week, we read of how Tyre's major trade cities responded to the news of this business venture capital coming to ruin. Tarshish, Cypress, Sidon, Egypt--all expressed their shock and "anguish" (vs. 5) over the loss of this incredible business mecca. Tyre's beginnings were "from antiquity," (vs. 7) my study Bible reporting its existence about <span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084">two millennia before Christ. Despite its longevity and its colossal success, its inhabitants are beckoned to leave and seek shelter in other nations.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084">"Is this your jubilant city?" Isaiah asks in verse 7. Obviously, something has happened to make Tyre unrecognizable to its natives. The use of 'jubilant' is not unlike the prophet's use of 'exultant' in verse 2 of Chapter 22:</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-2" id="en-NASB-18055">"You who were full of noise,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">You boisterous town, you exultant city;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">Your slain were not slain with the sword,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">Nor did they die in battle.</span>" </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--Isaiah 22:2 (speaking of Jerusalem)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084">If you'll remember the reference, Judah had the Assyrians at their gates, ready to take over Jerusalem. City folks were living their regular self-fulfilling lives, busy-bodying themselves, as usual. Tyre was not unlike Jerusalem in this regard. The city's main activity was keeping their harbor hopping. Satisfied traders meant more wealth, activity and happy distractions for all. But, this all comes with a price over which even the savviest traders can't bargain.</span><span class="text Isa-23-6" id="en-AMP-18084"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Those that were so disposed might find there all manner of sports and
diversions, all the delights of the sons and daughters of men, balls,
and plays, and operas, and every thing of that kind that a man had a
fancy to. This made them secure and proud, and they despised the country
people, who neither knew nor relished any joys of that nature. This
also made them very loth to believe and consider what warnings God gave
them by his servants; they were too merry to mind them."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-7"> </span>"Too merry to mind"--Now, that's a phrase! In today's culture, how easy is it to become too merry over things and circumstances in our lives that we forget (grow tired of, argue around, ignore or replace) what God is saying to us? Our attention is not on what it needs to be. One of the running themes of Isaiah--and, arguably, all of Scripture--is that pride in oneself will be dealt with at the hand of God.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2" id="en-NASB-21160">“Son of man, say to the leader of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span>,</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2">“Because your heart is lifted up</span><span class="text Ezek-28-2"> and you have said, ‘I am a god,</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-28-2">I sit in the seat of gods i</span><span class="text Ezek-28-2">n the heart of the seas’;</span><span class="text Ezek-28-2"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2">Yet you are a man and not God,</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-28-2">Although you make your heart like the heart of God....'"</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2">--Ezekiel 28:2 (The prophet has his own words on Tyre. We'll get to them one day :-) .)</span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2">God's remedy for pride is humbling--humbling the proud! Tyre did not only have an outstanding reputation, but it flaunted and invested in that reputation. Note the descriptors Isaiah uses in verse 8: "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-8" id="en-NASB-18086">the bestower of crowns," "princes," "</span><span class="text Isa-23-8">honored of the earth." Tyre believed with all its heart that it was worthy of all its titles, because it believed it had engineered all its success. The Master Planner saw it all quite differently.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12">"God did not bring those calamities upon Tyre in a way of sovereignty, to
show an arbitrary and irresistible power; but he did it to punish the
Tyrians for their pride. Many other sins, no doubt, reigned among
them—idolatry, sensuality, and oppression; but the sin of pride is
fastened upon as that which was the particular ground of God’s
controversy with Tyre; for he resists the proud. All the world observing
and being surprised at the desolation of Tyre, we have here an
exposition of it.</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-9" id="en-NASB-18087">"Who has planned this against Tyre?..." (vs. 8) The <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts! (vs. 9) Who else, right? As we talked about last time, Tyre held a very lucrative position among the many trade-oriented cities around the Mediterranean. Might one have thought about conquering Tyre for the sake of gain? Maybe. But, it would make more sense to capitalize, literally, on what Tyre could offer and, thus, gain greater benefits for the home city. Remember, they were in anguish over this loss, because it would carry over into these other cities' wealth and ventures.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-9" id="en-NASB-18087"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-9" id="en-NASB-18087">But, God's point had nothing to do with changing the Mediterranean trade scene. His desire then, as always, is to turn people toward Him. Pride in things other than God always leaves something in tatters. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Ezek-28-2"><span class="text Isa-2-11"><span class="text Job-40-12"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-9" id="en-NASB-18087">For Tyre, it was the city itself. Verse 10 says, "</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-10">There is no more restraint." The notes in my study Bible suggest the more literal translation may be, "There is no girdle or shipyard." The <b><i>King James Version</i></b> says, "...There is no more strength." The <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b> makes an even more specific suggestion: </span><span class="text Isa-23-10" id="en-AMP-18088">"...There is no girdle of restraint [on you] any more [to make you pay tribute or customs or duties to Tyre]." Certainly, they all applied.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-10" id="en-AMP-18088">The word for strength in Hebrew translates to girdle or belt. [<b><i>Strong's</i></b>] Besides the idea of holding up one's clothes, to gird implies something that encircles or provides a boundary. We are strengthened, secured, safely hemmed in.</span><span class="text Eph-6-13" id="en-NASB-29351"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Eph-6-13" id="en-NASB-29351">"Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.</span> <span class="text Eph-6-14" id="en-NASB-29352">Stand firm therefore, <i>having girded your loins with truth</i>...."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Eph-6-14" id="en-NASB-29352">--Ephesians 6: 13-14a (<i>italics mine</i>)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Eph-6-14" id="en-NASB-29352">At Tyre's core was a prideful heart which could not see the truth. Tyre's loins were girded in its self-made image and success. God said, "No more!" </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Eph-6-14" id="en-NASB-29352"><span class="text Prov-11-2" id="en-NASB-16691">To gird His truth about Tyre would require drastic steps. But, for the world's trade stage, God had no better platform in which to demonstrate His Word than through this "Shark": "When pride comes, then comes dishonor, b</span><span class="text Prov-11-2">ut with the humble is wisdom." (Proverbs 11: 2)</span> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"As its beauty shall not intercede for it, but that shall be stained, so
its strength shall not protect it, but that shall be broken. If any
think it strange that a city so well fortified, and that has so many
powerful allies, should be so totally ruined, let them know that it is
the Lord of hosts that has given a commandment to destroy the
strongholds thereof: and who can gainsay his orders or hinder the
execution of them?"</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If there were any doubt destruction was coming, God chose to augment His command with evidence. ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="_Do"><span class="_Do">Photo: </span></span><span class="_dm"><a class="_Sh irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/disney/forum/post/181996/4/daily-disney-challenge"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">www.fanpop.com</span></a></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 23: 11-14 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-74278503084885935222014-04-30T00:00:00.000-04:002014-04-30T00:00:11.373-04:00Isaiah 23: 1-5<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-23-1" id="en-NASB-18079">The Fall of Tyre</span></span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-1"><span class="chapternum"></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-1"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-2" id="en-NASB-18080"><sup class="versenum">1 </sup></span></span></span>The oracle concerning Tyre.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-1">Wail, O ships of Tarshish,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-1">For <i>Tyre</i> is destroyed, without house <i>or</i> harbor;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-1">It is reported to them from the land of Cyprus.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-2" id="en-NASB-18080"><sup class="versenum">2 </sup>Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-2">You merchants of Sidon;</span><span class="text Isa-23-2"> Your messengers crossed the sea</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-3" id="en-NASB-18081"><sup class="versenum">3 </sup>And <i>were</i> on many waters.</span><span class="text Isa-23-3"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-23-3"><sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NASB-18081G" title="See cross-reference G">G</a>)"></sup>The grain of the Nile, the harvest of the River was her revenue;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-3">And she was the market of nations.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-NASB-18082"><sup class="versenum">4 </sup>Be ashamed, O Sidon;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-4">For the sea speaks, the stronghold of the sea, saying,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-4">“I have neither travailed nor given birth,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-4">I have neither brought up young men <i>nor</i> reared virgins.”</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-5" id="en-NASB-18083"><sup class="versenum">5 </sup>When the report <i>reaches</i> Egypt,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-23-5">They will be in anguish at the report of Tyre.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;"><b>O</b></span></span>n the far right-hand corner of the map above, you will see the word Phoenicia. You will then see the two noted cities of that territory--Sidon and Tyre. Chapter 23 of Isaiah is the prophecy concerning the fall of Tyre. Today, through our opening verses, we piece together some background about this major trade city. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"></span><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">"Zidon [Sidon] was the more ancient city, situated upon the same sea-coast, a few
leagues more to the north, and Tyre was at first only a colony of that;
but the daughter had outgrown the mother, and become much more
considerable. It may be a mortification to great cities to think how
they were at first replenished."</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b> (addition, mine)<b><i><br /></i></b></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">Tyre may have started out as Sidon's child, but it grew to be one of the most important trade route locales on the Mediterranean Sea. This is one of those passages that requires a full read of the text, with supporting background, to appreciate why this is even here in the Bible. Tyre had a perfect location--the far-eastern part of the Mediterranean. Goods from that region would be loaded onto large cargo vessels and sent off to major ports westward, like Cypress, Crete, points in Greece and Italy, and over to Spain, which is where Tarshish may have been located. [The commentaries are all over the place on this one!] Being situated close to Egypt also meant Tyre had access to that country's resources, which we read about here in the text. The young, vibrant, bustling, economically minded city earned its title of "the market of nations." (vs. 3)</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Ezek-27-12" id="en-NASB-21134">"'Tarshish was your customer because of the abundance of all <i>kinds</i> of wealth; with silver, iron, tin and lead they paid for your wares.</span>... <span class="text Ezek-27-17" id="en-NASB-21139">Judah and the land of Israel, they were your traders; with the wheat of Minnith, cakes, honey, oil and balm they paid for your merchandise....'</span>"</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9">--Ezekiel 27: 12 and 17 (Chapters 26 and 27 of Ezekiel also prophesy the fall in addition to giving many more details of Tyre's splendor and resources)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">Knowing that Isaiah is always speaking to Judah, even when it seems like he isn't, it is helpful to understand the relationship between Judah and Tyre. It had been a very good relationship. We read in I Kings 5 how Solomon had struck an alliance between Judah and Tyre, through its king, Hiram. "...Hiram had always been a friend of David," it says in verse 1. Solomon arranged for his servants to work with Hiram's servants in constructing the Temple. There was also the marriage of the Phoenician Jezebel to Judah's King Ahab. Not that this was a good idea, nor was Ahab a righteous king in the eyes of God. But, this kept the alliance between the nations intact--the prophet, Amos, going so far as to call it "the covenant of brotherhood."</span></span></span></span><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">"We seldom find it [Tyre] a dangerous enemy to Israel, but sometimes their
faithful ally, as in the reigns of David and Solomon; for trading cities
maintain their grandeur, not by the conquest of their neighbours, but
by commerce with them."</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b> (<i>addition mine</i>)</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">Yet, the burden, the oracle, has come from Isaiah to Tyre. Let's look at the nations mentioned in today's text and their response to this news:</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><b>Tarshish</b>: "Wail, O ships of Tarshish...." (vs. 1) As mentioned, Tarshish was believed to be a city in Spain, located at the southernmost tip, right on the Mediterranean--a logical westernmost point for trading ships headed east or around the peninsula and up to the north. You will recall that Tarshish was the intended destination of a runaway prophet named Jonah. With Tyre destroyed, a major trading post would, literally, be taken off the map. "...Without house or harbor" implies that not only would the traders of the city be unavailable to work commerce, but there would be no rest stop at which the sailors could enjoy a furlough.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><b>Cyprus</b>: From the text, sailors coming from Tarshish, who had stopped at Cyprus as part of their journey, would hear the news about Tyre. Compared to other stops on their journey, Cyprus to Tyre was one of the shorter legs of the trip. I would imagine emotions ranging from disappointment, as in, "I was hoping to enjoy a delicious meal and get off the water for awhile," to fear, as in, "It's been destroyed?! Why are we going to Tyre? Who's going to be there to greet {{gulp}} us?...."</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"><b>Sidon</b>: God's word for the older, established trade city of Phoenicia was, "Be silent...," and, "Be ashamed...." The <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b> begins verse 4 this way:</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"> "Be
ashamed, O Sidon [mother-city of Tyre, now a widow bereaved of her
children], for the sea has spoken...</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;">." Sidon is left speechless, as her "daughter" will not be in the same position of spawning another successful trade city, much less any kind of city. Verse 4 is a lament of things that will never be known. The dreams of one with more to offer, snatched. Of course, there is another side to this story, which we'll unravel as we continue in Isaiah 23. But, for Sidon, the word of the loss is coupled with weightier thoughts: "What now? Is this a time to step in? Is this a time to run?" God says "Be silent. Be ashamed." There is worry, here.<br /><br /><b>Egypt</b>: "...They will be in anguish...." Recall some of our earlier reading in Isaiah concerning the prophecy against Egypt. (Chapters 19 and 20) Egypt was certainly a key player on the world's trade front. Talk about location! Perfect conditions for growing and perfect avenues by which to export their products. See verse 3: "The grain of the Nile, and harvest of the River was her [Tyre's] revenue...." We learn that Egypt was not the sole exporter of her own crops. For all the wealth and sublime conditions for commerce that Egypt sported, Tyre still held some critical reins in the worldwide marketplace that would be advantageous for Egypt's status.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">"Egypt indeed was a much larger and more considerable kingdom than Tyre
was; and yet Tyre had so large a correspondence, upon the account of
trade, that all the nations about shall be as much in pain, upon the
report of the ruin of that one city, as they would have been, and not
long after were, upon the report of the ruin of all Egypt...."</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">--<b><i>Matthew Henry</i></b></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Amos-1-9"><span class="text Isa-23-4" id="en-AMP-18082">Given all of this, why Tyre, Isaiah? </span></span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Who has planned this against Tyre?" (vs. 8) You can probably guess. ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><span class="_Do">Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_gl"><a class="_eh irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Phoenicia"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">www.newworldencyclopedia.org</span></a></span></span></span><span class="_gl irc_msc"><a class="_eh irc_msl" data-ved="0CAYQhxw" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=map+of+mediterranean+sea,+tyre&safe=active&hl=en&biw=1177&bih=598&tbm=isch&tbs=simg:CAQSWQmIqoZsKQ2DxhpFCxCwjKcIGjwKOggCEhTVE88XrBfOF5IRnA6fH9YTmw7RHRogCLgYLtw4DjRTCc_1qin6fwD9c9HcNlSJeLdj-sWd7n8IMIe3wSIgo2VsU"><span class="irc_idim"></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 23: 6-10 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-39235772614040246722014-04-24T12:02:00.000-04:002014-04-24T12:02:06.850-04:00Isaiah 22: 22-25<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-22" id="en-NASB-18075"><sup class="versenum">22 </sup>“Then I will set the key of the house of David on his shoulder,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-22">When he opens no one will shut,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-22">When he shuts no one will open.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-23" id="en-NASB-18076"><sup class="versenum">23 </sup>“I will drive him <i>like</i> a peg in a firm place,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-23">And he will become a throne of glory to his father’s house.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-24" id="en-NASB-18077"><sup class="versenum">24 </sup>So they will hang on him all the glory of his father’s house, </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-24" id="en-NASB-18077">offspring and issue, all the least of vessels, from bowls to all the jars.</span><span class="text Isa-22-25" id="en-NASB-18078"><sup class="versenum"></sup></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-25" id="en-NASB-18078"><sup class="versenum">25 </sup>In that day,” declares the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts, </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-25" id="en-NASB-18078">“the peg driven in a firm place will give way; </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-25" id="en-NASB-18078">it will even break off and fall, </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-25" id="en-NASB-18078">and the load hanging on it will be cut off, for the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has spoken.”</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;"><b>W</b></span></span>e <span style="font-size: small;">finish Isaiah Chapter 22 today, as well as the story of Eliakim--the man who takes over as "prime minister," as God changes up the leadership in the ruling government of Judah. The former head of the household, Shebna, received a demotion from God, and we marked his transition to scribe last time with an exchange of earthly wardrobe.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our last passage of the chapter opens with Eliakim receiving a "key of the house of David." (vs. 22) While not a literal key, Eliakim did earn the privileges that went with all aspects of maintaining Jerusalem, shy of being the king himself. His garments suited his position, so he would be recognized as the man with that authority. But, more importantly, here, is the greater significance of his being chosen by God to fulfill this position. The phrasing used here in verse 22 is found in another location in the Bible: </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this...."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rev-3-7"><span class="woj">--Revelation 3:7</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rev-3-7"><span class="woj">John captures the words of Jesus in Revelation, as He speaks to the church at Philadelphia. The weightiness of the responsibility says a lot about holding this particular key. God did not hand off His city, His people, to the next one in line. This was a sovereign choice.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rev-3-7"><span class="woj">In verse 23, we also see the security that Eliakim will enjoy in this position. Placed as a "peg in a firm place." This would not be a tent peg hammered into sand or soft ground that could be lifted up in a short time and moved to a new place. The simile is one of stability. Verse 24 follows this up saying "</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-24" id="en-NASB-18077">they will hang on him all the glory of his father’s house...." Eliakim would be responsible for the weightiest needs, the lightest needs, and all needs in between ("bowls and jars"). Shebna had the title and the robes, but he did little to show for having authority save to flaunt it. Eliakim would </span></span>"<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-23">become a throne of glory to his father’s house."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8" id="en-NASB-7249">"He raises the poor from the dust,</span><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">He lifts the needy from the ash heap</span><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">To make them sit with nobles,</span><br /><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">And inherit a seat of honor;</span><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">For the pillars of the earth are the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord’s</span>,</span><br /><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">And He set the world on them."</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">--I Samuel 2:8</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Note, Rulers should be fathers to those that are under their government,
to teach them with wisdom, rule them with love, and correct what is
amiss with tenderness, to protect them and provide for them, and be
solicitous about them as a man is for his own children and family. It is
happy with a people when the court, the city, and the country, have no
separate interests, but all centre in the same...."</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">As God would raise up Samuel, so he would call forth Eliakim and lead him as the head of King Hezekiah's house, and that of all Judah. And, for a time, there would be a shoring up of the leadership with its focus, again, placed on following the word of the Lord. But, Isaiah finishes the chapter on a downer, because the punishment due Judah is something that is still being hung on its neck, even if not on the peg of Eliakim. There is a time, says the Lord, when even the firmest pegs will be removed--"break off and fall." (vs. 25)</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">It was quite interesting to see Esther 9: 24 and 25 listed as the cross-reference verses for verse 25. This is a passage referring to the fall and death sentence of Haman, Persian King Ahasuerus' (Xerxes', in the Greek) right-hand man. Just this week, I had a conversation with my daughter over God's revenge or judgment upon a situation--how often does it happen that one sees His justice carried out on those who seemingly get away with murder. </span></span></span></span><span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">Haman was one of those guys who seemed to have figured out his king's system so well that he might have gotten away with wiping out the Jews. God's elaborate and incredibly unpredictable plan not only allowed His people to survive but also pulled the peg on any future exploits by Haman. God only knows what leaving Shebna in power might have meant for Judah.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">But God's plans are</span></span></span></span><span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"><span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8"> always</span></span></span></span> for the benefit of His people! This is a fact lost on all of us from time to time. His ways are unexplainable, unattainable, unbelievable--yet, "</span></span></span></span><span class="text Ezra-9-8" id="en-NASB-12246"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Sam-2-8">If God <i>is</i> for us, who <i>is</i> against us?...." (Romans 8:31)</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">"Our Lord Jesus, having the key of the house of David, is as a <i>nail in a sure place</i>, and all <i>the glory of his father’s house hangs</i>
upon him, is derived from him, and depends upon him; even the meanest
that belong to his church are welcome to him, and he is able to bear the
stress of them all. That soul cannot perish, nor that concern fall to
the ground, though ever so weighty, that is by faith hung upon Christ."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">--<i><b>Matthew Henry</b></i> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Chapter 23: The Fall of Tyre. ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 23: 1-5 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-64773135915932217592014-04-10T14:13:00.001-04:002014-04-10T14:13:12.583-04:00Isaiah 22: 19-21<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-19" id="en-NASB-18072"><sup class="versenum">19 </sup>“I will depose you from your office,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-19">And I will pull you down from your station.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-20" id="en-NASB-18073"><sup class="versenum">20 </sup>“Then it will come about in that day,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-20">That I will summon My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-21" id="en-NASB-18074"><sup class="versenum">21 </sup>And I will clothe him with your tunic</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-21">And tie your sash securely about him.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-21">I will entrust him with your authority,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-21">And he will become a</span> <span class="text Isa-22-21">father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">L</span></b></span>ast week, we were introduced to Shebna, who was a steward and head of the royal household to King Hezekiah in Judah. God called Isaiah to prophesy against him, as the steward had let his position get the best of his head and his service. This week, we start reading about the process of Shebna's outplacement.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In verse 19, we read that Shebna will be deposed from his office. Original word meanings for 'depose' include to put away, to put down, to put aside; a laying down, disposal, or burying. (</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><i>Online Etymology Dictionary</i></b>) When you expand 'depose,' you get 'deposition,' which also gives us the idea of a testimony--a putting down or laying down of your word. Isaiah brought Shebna the news that he would be deposed. He would lose his place of position within Hezekiah's administration. If we agree with the historical data that suggest Shebna had a correspondence (with evil intent) relationship with Assyria's Sennacherib, then we might also say that Isaiah was calling him to dispose of his deposition: "Your testimony is no longer desired here."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"High places are slippery places; and those are justly deprived of their
honour that are proud of it and puffed up with it, and deprived of their
power that do hurt with it. God will do it, who shows himself to be God
by <i>looking upon proud men and abasing them</i>, <a class="bibleref" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job.40.11,Job.40.12" title="Job.40.11,Job.40.12"><span class="bibleref" title="Job.40.11">Job 40:11</span>, <span class="bibleref" title="Job.40.12">12</span></a>."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This was said last week, but is important to reiterate: The 'I' in the "pulling down" of Shebna is not Isaiah, not even really Hezekiah, but God. Scripture doesn't tell us how Shebna rose to his office nor--outside of building a royal tomb for himself--what other things he might have done to earn a call from the nation's prophet with his demotion papers. But, Scripture does tell us that God is not too far away to act in circumstances that grieve Him, and pride is one of those sins that He speaks of and deals with swiftly in His people.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"All the trees of the field will know that I am the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>; I bring down the high tree, exalt the low tree, dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I am the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>; I have spoken, and I will perform <i>it</i>."</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--Ezekiel 17:24</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Then, verse 20, there is a new calling announced: Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, will be summoned to step forward and take Shebna's place. Note the use of "My servant" in the passage. Again, this is not Hezekiah making an appointment, but God saying that, "in that day," "My servant" will be called. A man of God's own choosing.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As we move into verse 21, you might imagine a look of anguish on Shebna's face--his hands over his ears, as he cannot believe what he is hearing. Isaiah is not finished speaking, as he not only deposes but disrobes Shebna in a physical representation of his slippery slope down and out of office. First, he takes his tunic, which was the basic garment for all men--though likely of finer quality given Shebna's position. Eliakim gets that. Then, Shebna's sash--a symbol of high position--was to be tied firmly around Eliakim. Finally, the words: "I entrust him with your authority," which can be more literally translated as "rule," and "he will become a father" to the nation.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Can you see Shebna, perhaps standing before his in-construction lofty final resting place, hearing that it was all going to be taken from him? No position. No authority. Certainly, no side benefits. No legacy outside of what Isaiah would capture in Scripture. Recall that Shebna is not fired, but demoted. He would be a scribe, part of Eliakim's supporting staff. But, that was a long way to fall in the scheme of things back in the day.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 2Kgs-18-18" id="en-NASB-10043">"When they called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, came out to them.</span>"</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--II Kings 18:18 (meeting Sennacherib's representatives at the gates of Jerusalem)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text John-19-10" id="en-NASB-26836">It's not an "official" cross-reference passage, but in all this talk about clothing, I couldn't help but recall Jesus' appearance before Pilate. Jesus did not don a fancy tunic, nor the sash of an official to the king. In mocking Him, the soldiers placed on Jesus a purple robe and a crown of thorns. The King of the Jews certainly didn't dress like one. Nor did He lord His authority over them. This is a concept Shebna did not understand. Not only did clothes not make the man, but authority is not self-made. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text John-19-10" id="en-NASB-26836">"So
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--John 19: 10 and 11a</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">What was Shebna's downfall would be a quality seen in Eliakim that would redeem the integrity of the office, as well as signify him as a type of Christ (more on that next time). The more Shebna tried to mold himself into an authority figure, using all the external, worldly items at his disposal (!), the closer he found himself to earning God's displeasure and, ultimately, permanent displacement. God spoke the word Himself to His people: "You shall have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3). Jesus would echo the same principle: "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Matt-28-18" id="en-NASB-24214"><span class="woj">All authority has been <b><i>given</i></b> to Me in heaven and on earth." (Matthew 28: 18, <b><i>emphasis mine</i></b>) Jesus didn't have all authority until His Father gave it to Him.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Matt-28-18" id="en-NASB-24214"><span class="woj">Do we see in Whom lies control of our lives?! </span></span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"God undertakes the doing of it, not only because he would put it into
the heart of Hezekiah to do it, and his hand must be acknowledged
guiding the hearts of princes in placing and displacing men (Proverbs 21:1--"</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="chapter-2"><span class="text Prov-21-1">The king’s heart is <i>like</i> channels of water in the hand of the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>; </span></span><span class="text Prov-21-1">He turns it wherever He wishes."</span>), but because the powers that are, subordinate as well as supreme, are ordained of God."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Official Study Break! Then, we close out Chapter 22. ....'Til next time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next time: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 22-25 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-69122882865709035492014-04-02T09:55:00.001-04:002014-04-02T09:55:14.243-04:00Isaiah 22: 15-18<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-15" id="en-NASB-18068"><sup class="versenum">15 </sup>Thus says the Lord <sup class="footnote" value="[<a href="#fen-NASB-18068a" title="See footnote a">a</a>]"></sup><span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span> of hosts,</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-15">“Come, go to this steward,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-15">To Shebna, who is in charge of the <i>royal</i> household,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-16" id="en-NASB-18069"><sup class="versenum">16 </sup>‘What right do you have here,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-16">And whom do you have here,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-16">That you have <sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NASB-18069B" title="See cross-reference B">B</a>)"></sup>hewn a tomb for yourself here,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-16">You who hew a tomb on the height,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-16">You who carve a resting place for</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-16">yourself in the rock?</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-17" id="en-NASB-18070"><sup class="versenum">17 </sup>‘Behold, the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> is about to hurl you headlong, O man.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-17">And He is about to grasp you firmly</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-18" id="en-NASB-18071"><sup class="versenum">18 </sup><i>And</i> roll you tightly like a ball,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-18"><i>To be cast</i><i></i> into a vast country;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-18">There you will die</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-18">And there your splendid chariots will be,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-18">You shame of your master’s house.’</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">T</span></b></span>here is more to Isaiah, Chapter 22. With the close of verse 14, we did not reach an end in the prophecy of Jerusalem but a pause. If the first 14 verses were the lead article, verse 15 might be the beginning of a sidebar. Isaiah has been speaking to all of Jerusalem when God touches him on the sleeve, figuratively, and says, "Come...." There is more to be said, and we discover more of the problems that plague Jerusalem through one of its servants.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Shebna is a "steward...in charge of the royal household." What my study Bible calls 'steward' the <b><i>King James Version</i></b> and <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b> call 'treasurer'. We know, then, that Shebna handled money. Being in charge of the house is like being chief of staff or prime minister. He was someone with very high authority, as in not the king, but close.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We also know from Scripture that he was a scribe.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"When
they called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the
household, and Shebnah the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the
recorder, came out to them."</span></span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">--II Kings 18:18</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is the time when King Hezekiah's intermediaries met the liaison from the Assyrian delegation that had parked itself outside Jerusalem's gates. Shebna and his fellow servants to the king called for calm at a time when Sennacherib's forces wished to rock the city walls down and scare all the people--which is exactly what the Assyrians did. At this point in time, Shebna appears to be fulfilling his role.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">But, the prophecy from Chapter 22 describes a different time and situation, before the time Shebna faces Sennacherib's folks. In fact, we will learn next week that Shebna is demoted to scribe (Isaiah 22:19). In his higher position as steward, it seems Shebna ran into difficulty with his integrity. In verse 16, Isaiah questions him: </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">Who
are you? "You who hew a tomb...." [Say that 10 times
fast!] Really, it's who do you <i>think</i> you are, Mister Big Stuff?! Shebna decided that he was worthy of a burial place fit for a
king, quite literally. Do you remember reading about the fallen pompous
kings of Sheol in Chapter 14? These verses sound so much like that.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-14-13" id="en-NASB-17942">"But you said in your heart, </span><span class="text Isa-14-13">‘I will ascend to heaven;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-14-13">I will raise my throne above the stars of God,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-14-13">And I will sit on the mount of assembly</span><span class="text Isa-14-13"> in the recesses of the north.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-14-14" id="en-NASB-17943">I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-14-14">I will make myself like the Most High.'</span><br /><span class="text Isa-14-15" id="en-NASB-17944">Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-14-15">To the recesses of the pit."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-14-15">--Isaiah 14: 13-15 </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Shebna arranged to have a tomb carved from rock. Not just any rock, but rock that was of considerable height. ("</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A tomb that may be Shebna’s, cut in the rock, has been
excavated in the Kidron Valley.</span>"</span>--<b><i>Reformation Study Bible</i></b>) This would have involved calling in some craftsman.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"So very nice and curious was it that it seemed rather to be the work of
an engraver than of a mason or carpenter; and it seemed engraven in a
rock, so firmly was it founded and so impregnable was it. “Nay, <i>thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre</i>,” as if he designed that his pomp should survive his funeral."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"What right do you have here...?" Isaiah asks. Indeed! A man in the position that Shebna held should not have expected the benefits of the king for himself. We can make a reasonable guess that Shebna had a problem with pride. He may have been more caught up in his titles than he was in the work of guiding the people of Jerusalem. There is </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">suggestion in commentary that he may have been
writing to Sennacherib--corresponding with more than the regular payment of the tribute.</span></span></span></span></span></span> Under such a Godly influence as Hezekiah, Shebna would have had the opportunity to have found great blessing in serving. The larger error, of course, was his disobedience to the God he was supposed to be honoring in his word and deed.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">With verse 17, Shebna's fate is revealed in graphic description.</span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">I'm sorry to say that I'm stifling
chuckles because I have these pictures of cartoons and mythical movies
in which the "giant" scoops up the small trouble-in-its-way, balls him
in its hands, and throws him off the screen. As a little kid, you don't know any better. I
do know, now, though--this isn't funny. Isaiah is saying that Shebna thought
himself so high that it would be the Lord's doing to hurl him down from
the heights he thought he was at! He will be thrown "to a vast country."
Unnamed, but not Judah. "There you will die...." You and the "splendid chariots" you somehow found time and funds to create for yourself with which to get around the city. No, not funny at all.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">It
is not known exactly what happened to Shebna, either. Perhaps he was
taken by the Assyrians. Hezekiah may have tossed him out, as part of his
reforming work. There's even a report that Shebna developed leprosy ("</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;">which was a disease commonly supposed to come from the immediate hand of
God’s displeasure, particularly for the punishment of the proud, as in
the case of Miriam and Uzziah"--Matthew Henry), and left the country in disgrace. "You shame of your master's house." Two masters, really.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Jerusalem's people were certainly at fault in their disobedience. The first of this chapter makes that clear to us. God grants us a look at the inner failings of a governmental system through one of its leaders. When we ask why Hezekiah couldn't pull off total reform of his city, of his country, perhaps this is another reason why?</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"> Even so....</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">"It is likewise a confirmation in general of the hand of divine
Providence in all events of this kind, which to us seem contingent and
to depend upon the wills and fancies of princes. <i>Promotion comes not from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south; but God is the Judge....</i>"</span></span></span></span><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Out with the old, in with the new. Goodbye, Shebna! ....'Til next week!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="_Do" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><br />Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Yj"><a class="_Xf irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/outdoor-activities/urban-sports/5-most-popular-spots-for-base-jumping.htm"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">adventure.howstuffworks.com</span></a></span><span class="_Yj"><a class="_Xf irc_msl" data-ved="0CAYQhxw" href="http://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&tbs=simg:CAQSCQnr8qmVfdZQGA&q=parachuting%20face%20first"><span class="irc_idim"></span></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 19-21 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-19569524900024373512014-03-26T00:00:00.000-04:002014-04-01T10:11:31.970-04:00Isaiah 22: 12-14<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-12" id="en-NASB-18065"><sup class="versenum">12 </sup>Therefore in that day the Lord <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span> of hosts called <i>you</i> to weeping, to wailing,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-12">To shaving the head and to wearing sackcloth.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-13" id="en-NASB-18066"><sup class="versenum">13 </sup>Instead, there is gaiety and gladness,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-13">Killing of cattle and slaughtering of sheep,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-13">Eating of meat and drinking of wine:</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-13">“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we may die.”</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-14" id="en-NASB-18067"><sup class="versenum">14 </sup>But the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts revealed Himself to me,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-14">“Surely this iniquity shall not be forgiven you</span><span class="text Isa-22-14"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-14">Until you die,” says the Lord <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span> of hosts.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">A</span></b></span>re you like me--Do you screen out more calls than you take? Do you stare at your caller ID, asking why the same "unknown" folks continue to call day after day (and often more frequently)? If "the Lord God of hosts" came up on your display, how would you respond?</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj">When you read prophecy, often knowing how history unfolded and how prophecy was fulfilled, it is so frustrating and sometimes unbelievable to read how people could have mindlessly ignored a message that was specifically given to them. Yet, when you fully take in this "vision" that Isaiah is relating to Jerusalem, and you think about society today--with its emphasis on personal pleasures and self-sufficiency in an environment of selective communication--are we all that far away from the prophet's word? Time for another reality check!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj">Verse 12 of Chapter 22 sums up the message left to Jerusalem by God: "This is a call to repentance, My people!" There should be deep, inward grieving over the continued display of sinfulness, culminating with a lack of recognition of God as their authority in life. I've spoken here several times about King Hezekiah, who truly tried to reform his country. In the good-king/bad-king kingdom that was Jerusalem in those days, he really was one of the good ones. He modeled for the people not only by restoring God in the places of worship, but by demonstrating active faithfulness to Him through his political decisions in running the country and in his personal response to dealing with those tough situations. He was the one who tore his clothes and sought God in prayer as things around Jerusalem began to disintegrate. But earthly leaders, even with their Godly intentions and actions, cannot sway the mindset of an entire nation, much less change the plans of God.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">"...And all this to lament their sins (by which they had brought those
judgments upon their land), to enforce their prayers (by which they
might hope to avert the judgments that were breaking in), and to dispose
themselves to a reformation of their lives by a holy seriousness and a
tenderness of heart under the word of God."</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj"></span></span><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj">So, we have verse 13, in which we see that not only have the people disregarded the word of their king and their Lord, but they have opted to go full-throttle on the prodigal way.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Luke-17-26" id="en-NASB-25678"><span class="woj">"And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man:</span></span> <span class="text Luke-17-27" id="en-NASB-25679"><span class="woj">they
were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being
given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the
flood came and destroyed them all<span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> <span class="text Luke-17-28" id="en-NASB-25680"><span class="woj">It was the same as happened in the
days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying,
they were selling, they were planting, they were building;</span></span> <span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj">but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj">--Luke 17: 26-29</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj">You could add on to Jesus' examples here: It also happened in the days of Hezekiah--they were eating, they were drinking, they were doing everything that made them happy, even with the charioteers of Assyria fixed at their gates. But, in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, the sons of Jerusalem would call Babylon home.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13" id="en-NASB-21070"><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">"But what do <i>you</i> do? You throw a party!</span><br /><span class="indent-1"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">Eating and drinking and dancing in the streets!</span></span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">You barbecue bulls and sheep, and throw a huge feast—</span><br /><span class="indent-1"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">slabs of meat, kegs of beer.</span></span><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13" id="en-NASB-21070"><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">'Seize the day! Eat and drink!</span><br /><span class="indent-1"><span class="indent-1-breaks"> </span><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">Tomorrow we die!'"</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13" id="en-NASB-21070"><span class="indent-1"><span class="text Isa-22-12-Isa-22-13">--Verse 13 from <b><i>The Message</i></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-32" id="en-NASB-28751">It seems crazy to us when we read how Jerusalem responded. We're watching that movie, and we know the killer is hiding behind the door, but the victim is completely oblivious. Truly, not just oblivious, but frivolously saying, "Whatever.... Not going to happen to me, but if it does, I'm going out with a bang." Does it register yet how ridiculously angry God must have been? Biblical commentator Matthew Henry said, "It is a sin against the remedy." God could save them. God <i>would </i>save them. But rather than admit that there was a problem at their gates--and an even bigger one in their hearts--Jerusalem says, "More sheep ribs, please. Extra sauce!"</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">"Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes. Yet know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things."</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">--Ecclesiastes 11:9</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-32" id="en-NASB-28751"></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-13">"Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we may die." (vs. 13) What originated with Isaiah would be passed down over generations. Paul would use this quote in writing the Corinthians, admonishing them as some in the church had misrepresented and confounded the teaching of Jesus' resurrection from the dead:</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-32" id="en-NASB-28751">"If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die</span>.</span> <span class="text 1Cor-15-33" id="en-NASB-28752">Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals.'</span> <span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753">Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak <i>this</i> to your shame."</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753">--I Corinthians 15: 32-34</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><br /></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753">To me, this reads so much like Isaiah's situation in his day. If I stand here naked among you, prophesying God's word, what does it profit unless you heed what God is saying through me? If God has not brought His people to this place, building His city, establishing His principles by which to prosper His people, then let's party, 'cause what difference does it make? Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning. Isaiah was saying exactly what Paul said. "For some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame." YIKES! Jerusalem didn't get this. 2014 Christians, do <i>we </i>get this??</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><br /></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753">How personal was this message to Isaiah? He goes so far as to tell us that "</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-14" id="en-NASB-18067">the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> of hosts revealed Himself to me...." (vs. 14) In studying up on these words, this was not a visual revealing but a speaking directly to Isaiah. In other words, Isaiah heard this from God literally in his ear! This apostasy, this sin, that is on full display before the Lord "shall not be forgiven"; "will not be atoned for" (<b><i>New International Version</i></b>); "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-14" id="en-KJV-18067">shall not be purged" (<b><i>King James Version</i></b>), until.... The 'your' in closing part of the verse is related not to Jerusalem but to Isaiah. Atonement will not be granted until after Isaiah has passed away.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681">At this, I, being Isaiah, would have thought instantly back to the day of my commissioning as a prophet. God calls Isaiah, and he answers. He is ready to,</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> “Go, and tell this people" (Isa. 6: 9) of whatever God desires him. "Lord, how long?" the prophet asks. (Isa. 6:11)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-6-11">Until cities are devastated <i>and</i> without inhabitant,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-6-11">Houses are without people</span><br /><span class="text Isa-6-11">And the land is utterly desolate,</span><span class="text Isa-6-12" id="en-NASB-17782"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-6-12" id="en-NASB-17782">The <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has removed men far away,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-6-12">And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-6-12">Isaiah would not live to see the day Jerusalem was carried off by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"'In your filthiness is lewdness.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">Because I <i>would</i> have cleansed you,</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-24-13">Yet you are not clean,</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-24-13">You will not be cleansed from your filthiness again</span><br /><span class="text Ezek-24-13">Until I have spent My wrath on you.'"</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">--Ezekiel 24:13 (just before Babylon decimated Jerusalem)</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">And what if Isaiah had not answered the call of the Lord God of hosts? What if he had written off his vision as a spectacle? Just a dream? A misplaced phone call?</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">Who is calling you today? What message are you hearing?</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13">"</span></span></span></span><span class="text Luke-17-29" id="en-NASB-25681"><span class="woj"><span class="text 1Cor-15-34" id="en-NASB-28753"><span class="text Ezek-24-13"></span></span></span></span>It is a <sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NASB-30165C" title="See cross-reference C">C</a>)"></sup>terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the <sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NASB-30165D" title="See cross-reference D">D</a>)"></sup>living God." (Hebrews 10:31) We'll read what happens to the "prime minister" of Jerusalem at the hands of God. ....'Til next week!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="_Do" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><br />Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a class="_lg irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://israel21c.org/travel/jerusalems-ever-evolving-market-video/"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">israel21c.org</span></a><span class="_pp"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 15-18 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-81473955793563992202014-03-20T11:21:00.001-04:002014-03-20T11:21:07.666-04:00Isaiah 22: 6-11<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-6" id="en-NASB-18059"><sup class="versenum">6 </sup>Elam took up the quiver</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-6">With the chariots, infantry <i>and</i> horsemen;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-6">And Kir uncovered the shield.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-7" id="en-NASB-18060"><sup class="versenum">7 </sup>Then your choicest valleys were full of chariots,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-7">And the horsemen took up fixed positions at the gate.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-8" id="en-NASB-18061"><sup class="versenum">8 </sup>And He removed the defense of Judah.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-8">In that day you depended on the weapons of the house of the forest,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-9" id="en-NASB-18062"><sup class="versenum">9 </sup>And you saw that the breaches</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-9">In the <i>wall</i> of the city of David were many;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-9">And you collected the waters of the lower pool.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-10" id="en-NASB-18063"><sup class="versenum">10 </sup>Then you counted the houses of Jerusalem</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-10">And tore down houses to fortify the wall.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-11" id="en-NASB-18064"><sup class="versenum">11 </sup>And you made a reservoir between the two walls</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-11">For the waters of the old pool.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-11">But you did not depend on Him who made it,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-11">Nor did you take into consideration Him who planned it long ago.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;"><b>I</b></span></span> suspect your questions as to a time period for Isaiah's latest prophecy to Judah continue with our passage today. Though we can see references to Assyrian King Sennacherib's invasion of the country and threat to Jerusalem, we can also see references to Jerusalem's demise at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. Let's keep reminding ourselves that, sometimes, God has multiple fulfillment of His word in mind. What we do receive in reading these verses is a continued look into the mindset of Jerusalem at this time.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038">With verse 6, we are re-introduced to Elam and Kir. We just looked at Elam in the last chapter of Isaiah, with the nation called to take on Babylon. ("</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2">The treacherous one <i>still</i> deals treacherously, and the destroyer <i>still</i> destroys. </span><span class="text Isa-21-2">Go up, Elam, lay siege, Media...." (Isaiah 21:2) Kir is another country east of Babylon which became home to the exiles of Damascus after Assyria invaded it and put its king (Rezin) to death. </span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">(II Kings 16:9; also, Amos 1:5)</span></span></span></span></span> The countries have been called to gear up their armies and armament; "chariots" and "horsemen" (vs. 7) to take up position "at the gate."</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsHXqq-ClOuoUdjBLCup6OuXEHMIMKW9EPDkSgrloZt6a0skwbEaqAjjTLtV2mpqUmgQ2K1xPJxlzWe9qSzhFKqy8tsusd3CFbY8LrH3bNS08GalEa2vZX782QIyvo98H__i2WbISK0w/s1600/Jerusalem+map+with+walls.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsHXqq-ClOuoUdjBLCup6OuXEHMIMKW9EPDkSgrloZt6a0skwbEaqAjjTLtV2mpqUmgQ2K1xPJxlzWe9qSzhFKqy8tsusd3CFbY8LrH3bNS08GalEa2vZX782QIyvo98H__i2WbISK0w/s1600/Jerusalem+map+with+walls.gif" height="400" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038">Jerusalem was crafted with great care--under David's and Solomon's leadership--with multiple named gates marking entryway into the city, and high walls to keep out the enemies. But, with armies of horsemen with artillery literally at the gates, "in fixed positions," that was a huge threat to the city, on top of Assyria's already threatening reputation.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"The fenced cities of Judah were a covering to the country; but these,
being taken by the army of the Assyrians, ceased to be a shelter, so
that the whole country lay exposed to be plundered. The weakness of
Judah, its nakedness, and inability to keep itself, now appeared more
than ever; and thus the covering of Judah was discovered."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2" id="en-NASB-18038"></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-2"></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In verse 8, Isaiah says, "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-8" id="en-NASB-18061">And He removed the defense of Judah." 'Defense' is the same word Matthew Henry means when he says 'covering'. Whatever hedge of protection Jerusalem thought it had through its fortified city was about to be lifted. (Isaiah expounds on this in the next few verses.) Even though the prophet tells us who the enemy is at the door, note that the one who removes the hedge is God. In this, as Henry points out in quoting fellow Biblical commentator Dr. John Lightfoot, there is greater meaning to this verse: </span></span></span></span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dr. Lightfoot gives another sense of it, that by this distress into which Judah should be brought God would
discover their covering (that is, uncloak their hypocrisy), would show
all that was in their heart...."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--Matthew Henry<span class="text 1Kgs-7-2" id="en-NASB-8937"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-7-2" id="en-NASB-8937">Recall last week's post, the beginning of the chapter, in which the people were partying on their rooftops. The people of Jerusalem celebrated not being in harm's way while the rest of their country had fallen. There was a pervasive attitude of, "Hey, we're fine. We don't need help. We've got everything we need." This is what brought Isaiah to tears ("</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-7-2" id="en-NASB-8937"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-4">...Let me weep bitterly...," 21:4)</span></span></span> and to a point of frustration, really: "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-11">But you did not depend on Him who made it, n</span><span class="text Isa-22-11">or did you take into consideration Him who planned it long ago." (vs. 11) This is the greater uncovering, to me.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-11"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-11">The people of Jerusalem had it wrong even though their king at the time, Hezekiah--for a change--had it right. We don't see this example enough in modern times, do we, when the one in charge honors God, follows His way, yet still can't quite steer all of his leadership nor his people in the same? Hezekiah took the Assyrians seriously, and he attacked the problem with a two-pronged approach: Turn to God and do what you have to do with the resources that He has provided you. So, what did Jerusalem have?</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-11"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-11">Verse 8 says, "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">...Y</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-8">ou depended on the weapons of the house of the forest." It's not capitalized, but "house of the forest" was an important part of Solomon's palace that he built in the days of his kingdom.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">"He built the house of the forest of Lebanon; its length was 100 cubits and its width 50 cubits and its height 30 cubits, on four rows of cedar pillars with cedar beams on the pillars. He made 300 shields of beaten gold, using three minas of gold on each shield, and</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">--</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-7-2" id="en-NASB-8937">I Kings 7:2 and </span></span></span>10:17</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">The elaborately built cedar weapons storehouse remained in Hezekiah's day. Indeed, Hezekiah added to the supply: "...and made weapons and shields in great number." (II Chronicles 32: 5) Jerusalem rested in the knowledge of a well-stocked armament. <i>But, was that enough?</i></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">In verse 9, we read that there were breaches--"many"--in the city walls. Certainly, that is a perilous situation for an otherwise fortified city. But, here, too, Hezekiah stepped forward. "And he took courage and rebuilt all the wall that had been broken down and erected towers on it, and built another outside wall and strengthened the Millo [rampart or mound, part of the physical defensive landscape of northern Jerusalem (<i>Smith's Bible Names Dictionary</i>)] in the city of David...." Verse 10 further says that houses were torn down to make these improvements. Hezekiah did what was proper and necessary in his physical realm to make sure the city was safe. Jerusalem rested in the knowledge of a secured city wall. <i>But, was that enough?</i></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097">The end of verse 9 and verse 11 talk about Jerusalem's water supply. So significant is this fact that II Kings 20:20 documents Hezekiah's work here as part of his legacy: "<span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119">Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and all his might, and how he made
the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?" They are, and we will visit a verse from there momentarily. First, some background on Hezekiah's project from my study Bible. (</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">To see where this is, look at the map of Jerusalem above and zoom in to the lower right-hand corner)</span></span></span></span></span>:</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">"A
1,700 foot long tunnel cut through solid rock (below Jerusalem)
redirected water from the spring Gihon outside of Jerusalem (to the E)
toward the S of Jerusalem into the pool of Siloam within the city to
provide water in time of siege. The tunnel was a remarkable feat of
engineering and boring skill, often 60 feet below the ground and large
enough to walk through."</span></span></span></span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><br /></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">As part of his strategy, Hezekiah takes great pains to keep his people from thirsting while dehydrating the enemy.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-3" id="en-NASB-11879">"...He decided with his officers and his warriors to cut off the <i>supply of</i> water from the springs which <i>were</i> outside the city, and they helped him.</span> <span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">So many people assembled</span></span></span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">and stopped up all the springs and the stream which flowed through the region, saying, 'Why should the kings of Assyria come and find abundant water?'"</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880">--II
Chronicles 32: 3 and 4</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Jerusalem rested in the knowledge of a plentiful water supply.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"> <i>But, was that enough?</i></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Hezekiah knew that even with all of the physical reinforcements, the preparations, the fortification of supplies, the strategic planning, that, <i><b>no</b></i>, all of this effort was <i>not</i> enough in and of itself. Was it necessary work? Absolutely! Time and time again in Scripture we read of how important it is to use that which God has given us, being material, time, talent, direction, gift. God expects us to use the investment He has made in us. (And if you need a reminder of the consequences of not doing so, read Jesus' "Parable of the Talents," Matthew 25: 14-28) He also expects, as the Steven Curtis Chapman song says, that "you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you...." (I Corinthians 10:31)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Hezekiah trusted God, sought His counsel and prayed in earnest--not for his own sake, but for the sake of the people of God. "With him [Sennacherib] is only an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.'" (II Chronicles 32:8a)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Though Jerusalem would be spared a raid by Sennacherib, the city will have forgotten the saving work of its king. (And even Hezekiah would have his moment of pride.) The city will have rested in the knowledge that its enough was enough.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">"You looked and looked and looked,
but you never looked to him who gave you this city, never once consulted
the One who has long had plans for this city."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11">--the end of verse 11 from <b><i>The Message</i></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11">"They did not design his glory in what they did. They fortified Jerusalem
because it was a rich city and their own houses were in it, not because
it was the holy city and God’s house was in it. In all our cares for
the defence of the church we must look more at God’s interest in it than
at our own."</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"><br /></span></span></span></span><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"></span></span></span></span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"><br /></span></span></span></span><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"></span></span></span></span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"><br /></span></span></span></span><span class="text 1Kgs-10-17" id="en-NASB-9097"><span class="text 2Kgs-20-20" id="en-NASB-10119"><span class="text 2Chr-32-4" id="en-NASB-11880"><span class="text Isa-22-8-Isa-22-11"></span></span></span></span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">You may party "like it's 1999," but there's more ahead, and it's not good. ...'Til next week!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="_Do" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><br />Photo: </span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a class="_sg irc_hol" data-ved="0CAUQjB0" href="http://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?110797-Battle-Reports"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">forums.totalwar.org</span></a></span></span><span class="_up"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> ; http://www.generationword.com/jerusalem101/22-solomon-walls.html</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 12-14 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-41208440640641330592014-03-13T12:05:00.003-04:002014-03-13T12:08:30.029-04:00Isaiah 22: 1-5<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-1" id="en-NASB-18054">The Valley of Vision</span></span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-1"><span class="chapternum"></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-1"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3" id="en-NASB-18056"><sup class="versenum">1 </sup></span></span></span>The oracle concerning the valley of vision.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-1">What is the matter with you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops?</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2" id="en-NASB-18055"><sup class="versenum">2 </sup>You who were full of noise,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">You boisterous town, you exultant city;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">Your slain were not slain with the sword,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-2">Nor did they die in battle.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3" id="en-NASB-18056"><sup class="versenum">3 </sup>All your rulers have fled together,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-3"><i>And</i> have been captured without the bow;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-3">All of you who were found were taken captive together,</span><span class="text Isa-22-3"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3">Though they had fled far away.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-4" id="en-NASB-18057"><sup class="versenum">4 </sup>Therefore I say, “Turn your eyes away from me,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-4">Let me weep bitterly,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-4">Do not try to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my people.”</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-NASB-18058"><sup class="versenum">5 </sup>For the Lord <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span> of hosts has a day of panic, subjugation and confusion</span><span class="text Isa-22-5"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-5">In the valley of vision,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-5">A breaking down of walls</span><br /><span class="text Isa-22-5">And a crying to the mountain.</span></span></span></div>
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the completion of Chapter 22, we will officially be one-third of the way through Isaiah. WOW! Thinking I have learned so much, and also thinking, gee, there's a LOT more left to learn! It's all good. Praising God for His enlightenment over this study! Have to celebrate those mileposts when you reach them. This is a significant one on the journey.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Chapter 22 is called "The Valley of Vision" in my study Bible. Not a real place. But, after all the nations, towns and oases we have studied over these weeks, who's to say there wasn't a Valley of Vision? Bible scholars generally agree that this refers to Jerusalem--which received numerous visions, through prophets like Isaiah, as a chosen communication vehicle of God.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span id="hotword">"Fitly enough is Jerusalem called a valley, for the mountains were round
about it, and the land of Judah abounded with fruitful valleys. ...</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span id="hotword">But most emphatically is it called a <i>valley of vision</i> because
there God was known and his name was great, there the prophets were made
acquainted with his mind by visions, and there the people saw the
goings of their God and King in his sanctuary."</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is not a note of encouragement to Jerusalem, however, as verse 1 begins (as so many other chapters we have read in Isaiah), "The oracle concerning...." The other nations have received their strong words. Jerusalem would now receive some of its own, through its home prophet. There is some question as to what time frame this prophecy references. The thwarted takeover (by God) by Sennacherib of Assyria is one possibility (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=II+Kings+19&version=NASB" target="_blank">II Kings 19</a>). The destruction of the city by Babylon's Nebuchadnezzar is another. One can even make the case for an end-times double-fulfillment prophecy. What we can decide is that the actions of Jerusalem are not ignorable.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finishing out verse 1, Isaiah asks the people why they are up on their rooftops. "What is the matter with you, now....?" If you are afraid of the enemy and you live in a valley, heading up to the roof would provide you with a better view of your surroundings. Judah had some looming enemies. Isaiah, in Chapter 15, makes reference to the people of Moab being on their housetops in a state of mourning:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3">"In their streets they have girded themselves with sackcloth; on their housetops and in their squares e</span><span class="text Isa-15-3">veryone is wailing, dissolved in tears."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3">--Isaiah 15:3</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3">Another possibility, and, likely, Isaiah's point-of-view, is a popular choice even today--Party time! If this is post-Sennacherib's visit and the city was not destroyed, then it's time to celebrate. It's not that Isaiah doesn't understand the response of his people. Isaiah understands far too much more about the situation of his people to condone this response. "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-2">Your slain were not slain with the sword, n</span><span class="text Isa-22-2">or did they die in battle," he says in verse 2. Jerusalem celebrated as if it contained a nation full of victorious soldiers who had endured a hard-fought battle. We know this isn't how the story went. [Do read II Kings 19 if you don't recall what we've looked at here over several chapters. King Hezekiah was on his knees in prayer for a reason!]</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-2">Isaiah's cry of "What is the matter with you?" might be on the same level as Jesus looking over Jerusalem centuries later. "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-2"><span class="text Luke-19-41" id="en-NASB-25773">When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and <sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NASB-25773B" title="See cross-reference B">B</a>)"></sup>wept over it,</span> <span class="text Luke-19-42" id="en-NASB-25774"><sup class="versenum"></sup>saying, '<span class="woj">If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.'" (Luke 19: 41 and 42) Isaiah's deep sorrow over Jerusalem's lack of response to their Lord for His work in saving their city leads him to express himself outwardly (</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-2"><span class="text Luke-19-42" id="en-NASB-25774"><span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-4">"Let me weep bitterly. </span><span class="text Isa-22-4">Do not try to comfort me</span></span>...," </span>verse 4), as well as to give a picture of how their lack of faithfulness and honor to God will play out in their future.</span></span> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"</span><span class="text Lam-1-5" id="en-NASB-20316">Her adversaries have become her masters,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3"><span class="text Lam-1-5">Her enemies prosper;</span><br /><span class="text Lam-1-5">For the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> has caused her grief</span><br /><span class="text Lam-1-5">Because of the multitude of her transgressions;</span><br /><span class="text Lam-1-5">Her little ones have gone away</span><br /><span class="text Lam-1-5">As captives before the adversary."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3"><span class="text Lam-1-5">--Lamentations 1:5</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-15-3">Verse 3 may well refer to Jerusalem's takeover by the Babylonians, not too much further down the road. King Nebuchadnezzar started with the outer layers of Judah before coming in to take over the city completely, burning it and pillaging the temple. "All your rulers have fled together...." (vs. 3) In reading the account of King Neb's closing campaign in II Kings 25, you will discover that a famine has left Jerusalem without food. This causes Neb's men to rush in to take the city in its weakness and Judah's King Zedekiah to make a last-ditch run for cover.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-4" id="en-NASB-10227">"Then the city was broken into, and all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls beside the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans [Babylonians] were all around the city. And they went by way of the Arabah.</span> <span class="text 2Kgs-25-5" id="en-NASB-10228">But
the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the
plains of Jericho and all his army was scattered from him.</span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229">Then they captured the king and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and he passed sentence on him."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229">--II Kings 25: 4-6 (<i>my addition</i>)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Interestingly, <b><i>The Message</i></b> paraphrase entitles Isaiah 22 "A Country of Cowards." Even under King Zedekiah, folks were being taken into Babylonian captivity. The literal loss of leadership in Jerusalem (Zedekiah's sons were killed before him, ending the family reign, and the Babylonians speared out his eyes before carting him away) led to the complete collapse of the city, except for the most poor and the unskilled to labor in the fields. </span></span>"<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3">All of you who were found were taken captive together...." (vs. 3)</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3">Isaiah reiterates that a ceasing to the celebrations is warranted as "</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-3"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-NASB-18058">the Lord <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">God</span> of hosts has a day of panic, subjugation and confusion" in His plans. (vs. 5) The <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b> says, "</span></span></span></span></span><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058">a day of discomfiture <i>and</i> of tumult, of treading down, of confusion <i>and</i> perplexity...." Always illuminating to do a word study (with definitions from the </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><b><i>Online Etymology Dictionary</i></b>)</span></span>. </span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058">'<b>Subjugation</b>' means, most literally "to bring under a yoke." No doubt for the captives of Judah, the stories told for generations of freedom from the yoke of slavery of Egypt arose once again. Why do all those leaders and prophets, the songs and psalms, use words of remembrance? Because we forget! And forgetting some things--the most important thing!--is costly. Not recognizing God's provision, not to mention His authority and sovereignty, led Judah to experience that from which it had already come.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058"> </span></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058">[How Jesus' words should have carried such weight with the Jews when He spoke: "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058"><span class="text Matt-11-29" id="en-NASB-23489"><span class="woj">Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls<span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;"></span>.</span></span> For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:29 and 30) Do you not remember the days of Babylon?]</span></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><b>'Panic'</b> means </span><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><span id="hotword"><span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">"of</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">Pan." Do you remember Pan? I only remember him for his flute, and we still have pan flutes today (a series of multiple-length tubes banded together). He was the Greek god of woods and fields. What I had forgotten was probably the more important part of his nature--"the</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">source</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">of</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">mysterious</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">sounds</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">that</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">caused</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">contagious, </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">groundless</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">fear</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">in</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">herds</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">and</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">crowds,</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">or</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">in</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">people</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">in</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">lonely</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">spots." Now you see where we get 'panic' from! If Judah had trusted in God, they would not have experienced the contagious, groundless fear that kept them herded together in their blind following of sin and misguided decisions.</span></span></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span id="hotword"><span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword"></span></span><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><b></b></span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><b>'Confusion'</b>--means to </span><span class="text 2Kgs-25-6" id="en-NASB-10229"><span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">"overthrow,</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">ruin,"</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">"to</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">pour</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">together,"</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">also</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">"to</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">confuse"</span> <span class="hwc" id="hotword" name="hotword">(or confound</span>--See <a href="http://in-betweentime.blogspot.com/2013/11/isaiah-19-1-3.html" target="_blank">this post</a> for another picture of this.) There will not just be the sense of disorder; there will be perplexity--Why? Why us? Why this? Why God?! Why??!?....</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span class="text Isa-22-5" id="en-AMP-18058">Unfortunately for Jerusalem, Isaiah has only begun to tell of the city's future discomfiture. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The forces are gearing up against Jerusalem ...'Til next Wednesday!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a class="_tg irc_hol" data-ved="0CAUQjB0" href="http://www.urbanchristiannews.com/ucn/2010/06/christ-katrina-five-years-ago-my-hometown-suffered-an-apocalypse-by-russell-d-moore.html"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">www.urbanchristiannews.com</span></a></span><span class="_rp"></span><br />
<span class="_Do"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"> </span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 6-11 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-57481220056548470912014-02-26T00:00:00.000-05:002014-02-26T00:00:03.748-05:00Isaiah 21: 13-17<div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-13" id="en-NASB-18049"><sup class="versenum">13 </sup>The oracle about Arabia.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-13">In the thickets of Arabia you must spend the night,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-13">O caravans of Dedanites.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-14" id="en-NASB-18050"><sup class="versenum">14 </sup>Bring water for the thirsty,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-14">O inhabitants of the land of Tema,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-14">Meet the fugitive with bread.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-15" id="en-NASB-18051"><sup class="versenum">15 </sup>For they have fled from the swords,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-15">From the drawn sword, and from the bent bow</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-15">And from the press of battle.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-NASB-18052"><sup class="versenum">16 </sup>For thus the Lord said to me, “In a year, as a hired man would count it, </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-NASB-18052">all the splendor of Kedar will terminate;</span><span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053"><sup class="versenum">17 </sup>and the remainder of the number of bowmen, the mighty men of the sons of Kedar, </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053">will be few; for the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> God of Israel</span> <span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053">has spoken.”</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">L</span></b></span>ast time, we looked at a prophecy concerning Edom. Today, Isaiah presents us with a short prophecy about Arabia, what we would consider Saudi Arabia today. The question may come to your mind as to why Isaiah, prophesying to Judah, would have a word about Arabia that would be of importance to those people. As we discovered in looking at the prophet's message about Edom, God's Word always fulfills a purpose.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">As we did with Edom, we need to explore the place names used in the passage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><b>Arabia</b>--</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2hvRrTQp2kllRyBN6PMJxPWzmZeKDl5ixyxyDWPnHFrmYvSqjVcYgPjj-JzBsPGS3KcN8ZzT2RhoA2Vu65H6Ys9K255LOSUS36HgjAeMRWkwMYT2hNWFJ0ZFWQxopl_1PBHRwwGSRQ0/s1600/Dedan+Map2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2hvRrTQp2kllRyBN6PMJxPWzmZeKDl5ixyxyDWPnHFrmYvSqjVcYgPjj-JzBsPGS3KcN8ZzT2RhoA2Vu65H6Ys9K255LOSUS36HgjAeMRWkwMYT2hNWFJ0ZFWQxopl_1PBHRwwGSRQ0/s1600/Dedan+Map2.jpg" height="208" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The area is sandwiched between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf--its water borders. Edom is to the north, as are Judah, Babylon and Assyria. "The Arabians generally lived in tents, and kept cattle, were a hardy
people, inured to labour; probably the Jews depended upon them as a sort
of a wall between them and the more warlike eastern nations; and
therefore, to alarm them, they shall hear <i>the burden of Arabia</i>, and see it sinking under its own burden." (from <b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b>) Arabia is a lot of desert, but there are forest areas and, as mentioned in verse 13, "thickets."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Dedan</b> ("Dedanite," from verse 13 in the text)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dedan
was an oasis southeast of Dumah, which, we learned last time, is Hebrew for Edom. As Dumah was a grandson of Abraham (borne through Ishmael), so was Dedan a grandson of Abraham. After Abraham's wife, Sarah, died, the patriarch had sons through his concubine Keturah, including Jokshan, who fathered Dedan and his brother, Sheba. (See Genesis 25 for more details.)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">[<i>Deep-deep stuff</i>: What's really wild is that Noah's grandson through Ham--Cush (father of Nimrod, founder of Babel amongst other large empires east)--had a son named Raamah, who fathered sons named Dedan and Sheba. And they're not the same people! Given where the boys settled, commentators lean toward Jokshan's boys as being in Arabia. But, in the end, we know all the boys ventured away from Abraham's God. <i>Whew!</i>]</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Tema</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> (verse 14)</span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another oasis southeast of Dumah. Also, a son of Ishmael.</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Kedar </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">(verses 16 and 17)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Desert region in northwestern Arabia. Another son of Ishmael. Kedar was noted by other nations as having very fine archers (a fact that will be important later).</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Now, let's start from the top again:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Verse 13 is addressed to the "caravans of Dedanites." Given Matthew Henry's background on the Arabians, we have a picture of tent people moving en masse. They are not living in the safety of their usual dwellings with their cattle grazing. They are told they will spend the night "in the thickets," the bushes, the shrubby areas. They have become nomadic, once again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Verse 14 calls on the inhabitants of Tema to "bring water" to meet the thirsty, the "fugitive" with bread. "For they have fled from the swords...," says verse 15.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-13-14">"They will each turn to his own people,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-14">And each one flee to his own land.</span><span class="text Isa-13-15" id="en-NASB-17922"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-13-15" id="en-NASB-17922">Anyone who is found will be thrust through,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-13-15">And anyone who is captured will fall by the sword."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-13-15">--Isaiah 13: 14b and 15 </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If you've seen any kind of war documentary or movie recreation of such, you've seen the images that I see in my mind when I read this. The beaten soldiers returning from the battlefield. They come back in groups, some carrying others on makeshift stretchers, bandaged, slowly moving, thankful to be alive. Meeting them are the folks in the town--the wives, the family members, the doctors, the churches--taking them in, regardless of whether the soldiers called that place 'home' or not. "Get this man some water!" you hear barked in urgency, while the women are dressing recovery areas, bringing clean cloths for new bandages, and filling pitches of water for cold compresses and the like. Disaster had struck, and the call for help was evident. The injured and the now-homeless were seeking shelter, care and safety.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The oases of the desert would serve as way stations for war wounded returning from battle. Battle with whom? The Assyrians, most likely--the dominating empire at this time, renowned for their intricate battle plans and all things war. This is the kind of news that should have made Judah jump. Their prophet is speaking of trouble with their neighbors, and the neighborhood bully doesn't have plans to stop at the Dedanite cattle fence.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Jumping to verse 17 for a moment, we see where Kedar's strengths have turned into weaknesses, as its mighty archers limp home. They "will be few," the passages says. Again, we see the evidence that men are no match against the plans of God, no matter what their reputation in the world.<span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">"...Neither the skill of archers (though they be ever so good
marksmen) nor the courage of mighty men can protect a people from the
judgments of God, when they come with commission; they rather expose the
undertakers. That is poor glory which will thus quickly come to
nothing."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Note, in verse 16, Isaiah gives us a number, which I think is always significant in the midst of prophecy. "In a year, as a hired man would count it...." The <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b> lives up to its name, here, with an explanation as to why the hired man's counting:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">"Within a year, according to the years of a hireling [who will work no longer than was agreed]...."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">--vs. 16 in the <b><i>Amplified Bible</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">God decrees that within the span of a year--and no longer--"the splendor of Kedar will terminate." (vs. 16) Knowing how long the region would be under duress is not really that important to us reading today--though it is a marker as to when the prophecy might have come down in the first place. We do know that Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon would sock Kedar as part of its rise to empire status. (See Jeremiah 49 for details.) But, the words, in their time, for those people--and for those who should have been listening in [Judah]--should have been clearly heard, drawing forth a response. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">"...Yet it might be of great use to the Arabians then, to awaken them to
repentance, that, like the men of Nineveh, they might prevent the
judgment when they were thus told it was just at the door. Or, when it
begins to be fulfilled, the business shall be done, be begun and ended
in one year’s time."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-16" id="en-AMP-18052">--Matthew Henry </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">How difficult and sad the life of the prophet. Not only the bearers of bad news, but the bearers of bad news that nobody seems to believe could happen to them, even if "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053">the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> God of Israel</span> <span class="text Isa-21-17" id="en-NASB-18053">has spoken." (vs. 17)</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Chapter 22 begins: "The Valley of Vision." ...'Til next Wednesday!<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: </span></span></span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a class="_Nf irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://fromtheunpavedroad.com/2011/07/05/fresh-bread-for-the-hungry/"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">fromtheunpavedroad.com</span></a></span><span class="_Do"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">;</span></span><span class="_Do"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"> </span></span></span><span class="_Do"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span class="_Do"><a class="_Nf irc_hol" data-ved="0CAQQjB0" href="http://bibleoutlines.com/blog/can-count-full-execution-gods-prophetic-word-isaiah-2111-17/"><span class="irc_ho" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">bibleoutlines.com</span></a></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 22: 1-5 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1839483954961689076.post-76427488756006919352014-02-05T11:32:00.002-05:002014-02-05T11:32:24.200-05:00Isaiah 21: 11 and 12 <div class="poetry" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="text Isa-21-11" id="en-NASB-18047">Oracles about Edom and Arabia</span></span></h3>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-11"><sup class="versenum">11 </sup>The oracle concerning Edom.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-11">One keeps calling to me from Seir,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-11">“Watchman, how far gone is the night?</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-11">Watchman, how far gone is the night?”</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-12" id="en-NASB-18048"><sup class="versenum">12 </sup>The watchman says,</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-12">“Morning comes but also night.</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-12">If you would inquire, inquire;</span><br /><span class="text Isa-21-12">Come back again.”</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: red;">W</span></b></span>hen I started parceling out verses into segments for the blog's schedule, I thought I'd take these verses by themselves--since they dealt specifically with Edom--and leave the portion on Arabia for the next session. But, I think now, after reading through these two verses and my reference materials, that there was a greater reasoning for doing so. I find myself, not surprisingly, agreeing with Matthew Henry's commentary: "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This prophecy concerning Dumah is very short, and withal dark and hard to be understood." Let's break down some things, shall we?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Edom? Dumah? Seir? Where?? Edom was a country located south of Judah and home to the descendants of Esau (Jacob's brother--the one who lost his birthright in the red stew incident). The Hebrew for Edom is Dumah, which means silence (hold that definition in your head for a bit). The <b><i>Reformation Study Bible</i></b> (<i>and the map above</i>) indicate Dumah as "an oasis in Edom</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> at the intersection of the roads from the Red Sea to Palmyra and from the Persian Gulf to Petra." Seir is a mountain and mountainous region located west of Dumah, and is the place to which Jacob sent messengers to his brother, hoping to gain his favor after a long absence. (Genesis 32:5)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Add to this information that Dumah is also the name of one of Ishmael's sons. Recall Ishmael was a son of Abraham through Hagar, the Egyptian servant who Abraham's wife Sarah offered to him in a hasty decision to bring forth a son who might be born to continue the bloodline. God blessed Hagar, and God blessed Ishmael with land and sons--though not the inheritance that was promised through Abraham's son Isaac. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"These
are the years of the life of Ishmael, one hundred and thirty-seven
years; and he breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his
people. They settled from Havilah to Shur which is east of Egypt as one
goes toward Assyria; he settled in defiance of all his relatives."</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--Genesis 25: 17 and 18</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Next week, we will also read about Kedar, another son of Ishmael, mentioned in Isaiah's prophecy about Arabia. But, even with this added information, it is unclear as to which people this prophecy is truly about. We can say that both Ishmael and Esau (Edom) settled in the same general region and both out of defiance. As neighbors of Judah (and Isaiah is always writing to Judah, even if not specifically), these nations had influence on Judah--which should have served as a warning for God's people.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The prophecy begins with someone from Edom calling out to the "watchman" (vs. 11)--who, this time, would be Isaiah. Note the fun word play with Dumah meaning silence and someone from the silent nation calling out to Judah to seek the prophet's word as to the status of the country. We looked at the role of the watchman last week as one who carefully observes and notes changes in the environment, specifically any movement by the enemy. There seems cause by someone in Edom to note a restlessness in the country, enough to inquire of the neighboring prophet of Judah, "What's up?"</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"How far gone is the night?"</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">--vs. 11</span></span></div>
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<br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Literally, the call of verse 11 might read, "What is the time of the night?" or "How long is the night?" The answer to the more literal question is not to be taken completely literally, however. The use of 'night' and 'day' can be considered figuratively--'night' being a time of despair, woe or sadness, and 'day' or 'morning' referring to a time of gladness, hope or renewal. It is not unusual in Scripture to see these presented in pairs.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">"In the course of God’s providence it is usual that morning and night are counterchanged and succeed each other."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">--<b><i>Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">"There may be pain in the night, but joy comes in the morning...."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">--lyrics from "Your Love Never Fails" (Jesus Culture, based on Psalm 30:5b) </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Both my study Bible and the <b><i>Reformation Study Bible</i></b> suggest that the question of 'night' refers to the domination of the Assyrian Empire. Although the Assyrians were a threat to many nations, this would more likely suggest Judah as the target of this message. </span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"The prophet promises a short-lived deliverance from Assyrian oppression, but quickly added the threat of Babylonian domination to follow soon." (my study Bible) This would explain verse 12's, "Morning comes but also night." There would be a time of relief from the Assyrian presence, but a Babylonian captivity was on the horizon. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We also know that the Edomites were helping the Assyrians and were a regular threat to Judah. In His way, God sent His word of warning as a distant cry to the watchman of Judah that there was trouble in the offing. The greater message would then be, "What now?" Would Judah recognize its present circumstance--that being a nation more and more removed from its Father, not unlike Esau or Ishmael? Would it hear the call to change?</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-12"><br /></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">"It is our wisdom to improve the present morning in preparation for the night that is coming after it. '<i>Enquire, return, come</i>.
Be inquisitive, be penitent, be willing and obedient.' The manner of
expression is very observable, for we are put to our choice what we will
do...."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">--Matthew Henry</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> "</span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Isa-21-12">If you would inquire, inquire; c</span><span class="text Isa-21-12">ome back again." (vs. 12) It's not unlike the "Ask...seek...knock" of Matthew 7. "Yes, it is still 'night,' but here is what you can do in the meantime, before the 'morning' comes." "Yes, it is 'morning' now, but I have told you that 'night' is coming; here is what you can do." Do we trust that God will not leave us in the "night" without also bringing forth "morning"? There is a reason why the Proverbs 31 woman "does not eat the bread of idleness." (Prov. 31: 27) THERE IS ALWAYS MORE TO COME WITH GOD! What are we doing in the meantime? </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">"Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled <i>the</i> law.... </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-11" id="en-NASB-28278"><i>Do</i> this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-11" id="en-NASB-28278">salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.</span> <span class="text Rom-13-12" id="en-NASB-28279">The night is almost gone, and</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-12" id="en-NASB-28279">the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light."</span> <span class="text Rom-13-13" id="en-NASB-28280"></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275">--Romans 13:8, 11-12</span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text Rom-13-8" id="en-NASB-28275"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The oracle concerning Arabia, which is the conclusion of Chapter 21. ...'Til next Wednesday!<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: www.biblefocus.net</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Next week: </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Isaiah 21: 13-17 </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Note: I read from the <b>New American Standard Bible</b> translation,<br />specifically, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The MacArthur Study Bible</span> (NASB).<br />I will quote other sources if used in a post. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />I also use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible</span><br />(with notes from the <b>King James Version</b>).</span></span></span><br />
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Sue J.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08668691234427771146noreply@blogger.com0