Sovereignty

God’s Anger And Mercy - Romans 9:14 – 9:24 (commentary)

This passage begins with a question which makes us ask, “Is God unjust in choosing Isaac over Ishmael and Jacob over Esau? Moses over Pharaoh and Israel over Egypt” (vv. 14-18)? Paul responds, “Not at all! God is not under obligation to give mercy to anyone.” …

Psalms 68:15 – 68:23 (commentary)

The great mountains of the land of Basham (v. 15) no doubt refers to Mount Hermon, the highest snow capped peak in the Middle East, just a few miles north of Basham. The psalmists intent was to show that Israel would be victorious by divine design (sovereignty), rather than by hu …

Psalms 75:1 – 75:10 (commentary)

One day the Jews in Jerusalem looked out the gates of their city and were terrified to see their Assyrian enemies camped outside. The Assyrian tents were still there and their flags were flapping in the breeze. However vultures were circling the camp and there was a stillness of …

God Is ruling according to His plan - Psalms 93:1 – 93:5 (commentary)

From the “Beginning” of history until the time of Samuel “Theocratic” rule was Israel’s sole form of government. It failed, not because God failed but because Israel failed. When the people demanded of Samuel that he give them a king so they might be like the …

Our Steps are Ordered by the Lord - Psalms 107:33 – 107:43 (commentary)

In this passage we see how the Lord has great power over nature (vv. 33-39). He is sovereign and can restrain His blessings should He desire or He can give them in abundance if He so chooses. All around them the Jews could see the harvest of hundreds of years of rebellion and apo …

Balaam foretells the happiness of Israel - Numbers 24:1 – 24:25 (commentary)

This chapter begins by explaining how Balaam realized the Lord’s intention to bless Israel, so he did not try to use his sorcery as he usually did (v.1) but he looked toward the wilderness and saw the tribes encamped in formation and the Spirit of the Lord came on him (v. 2). He …

God’s Sovereignty in Shaping the World - Proverbs 16:1 – 16:4 (commentary)

These verses emphasize God’s role as sovereign king of the universe. We may make plans, but the answers are from God (v. 1). We think our ways are pure, but God weighs the motives of each one of us (v. 2). It says that “the Lord weigheth the spirits.” That is wh …

Israel Degraded - Ezekiel 19:1 – 19:14 (commentary)

Ezekiel explains in prophetic form the last declining years of Judah. He uses an illustration of a lioness and her cubs to illustrate his message (vv. 1-9). With this picture of the lioness and her cubs he raised the curiosity of his listeners. It is suggested that the li …

Dimensions and Design of the Temple - Ezekiel 41:1 – 41:26 (commentary)

Chapters 40-43 give the temple’s measurements and then describe how it would be filled with God’s glory. As you read all of these details, remember that God is sovereign over everything and even restoring the faithful to Himself. Ezekiel climbed the stairs and entered thr …

The Kings And Their Successors - Daniel 11:1 – 11:20 (commentary)

This chapter contains detailed prophecy of events that were to take place in Israel for the next three hundred years. Daniel starts out by saying, you also need to know that I protected and helped Darius the Medo in his first year as king (v. 1). Three kings were yet to rei …

God Spoke to Jeremiah Through Ordinary Experiences - Jeremiah 1:11 – 1:19 (commentary)

In this passage two signs were given the prophet as sort of an outline of his prophetic ministry: (1) The first was a vision which caused Jeremiah to see the branch of an almond tree (v. 11). This branch represented God who was watching to see that His word is fulfilled (v. …

God is Sovereign - Jeremiah 22:24 – 22:30 (commentary)

Jehoiachin (who was only 23 years old) followed his father Jehoiakim to the throne (v. 24). After a three-month reign Jehoiachin surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar and he and his mother Nehushta (the widow of King Jehoikim (2 Kings 24:8) was deported to Babylon where they both …

Depending on The Power of God - Jeremiah 24:1 – 24:10 (commentary)

The prophet is shown a vision of two baskets of figs (v. 1). One was a basket of good figs, the other of rotten, stinking and smelly figs (vv. 2-3). God said “These figs are like the people.” The good figs represented those who are going to be carried captive to …