Afflictions

Abijah’s Evil Reign in Judah

Abijah, Rehoboam’s son and David’s grandson, succeeded his father to the throne of Judah (v. 1). He reigned for a period of three years in Jerusalem and he walked in the sins of hia father (vv. 2-3). This began near the end of Jeroboam’s reign in Israel. Because of David, who …

The Lord Corrects His People

The Jews had become comfortable in their captivity and did not want to leave. They had followed Jeremiah’s suggestions (Jer. 29:4-7) and had families, houses and gardens. It was not easy for them to pack up and go to the holy land, but that was where they belonged and where God had a work …

Trust in God’s Word

The writer in this passage stresses a determination to keep the Word (vv. 65-72). God is good all the time. The emphasis in the first two verses (vv. 65-66) is on what is good in the life of the believer. God does what is good because God is good and because what He does is according to …

IllustrationBible scholar and author D. A. Carson tells of a time when he and a …

Bible scholar and author D. A. Carson tells of a time when he and a friend were going to the beach for some much-needed peace and quiet, but when they got there they found a horde of high school kids celebrating graduation with lots of beer, loud music and, shall we say, public d …

IllustrationWhat Comes Out Under Pressure

Think a moment about a water-saturated sponge. If we push down with our finger even slightly, water runs out onto the table. We immediately know what fills the interior pockets of the sponge. The same is true of ourselves. We can tell what fills us on the inside by what com …

IllustrationHow a Bar of Steel Can be Made Very Valuable

A bar of steel worth $5.00 when made into ordinary horseshoes, is then worth $10.00. If this same $5.00 bar is manufactured into needles, the value rises to $350.00. And yet if it’s made into delicate springs for expensive watches, it is worth more than $250,000.00. The sam …