Bible Reading Reflection from Judges 1-7

 [Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (SSEU), a reading update (reflection) from one chapter of the Bible a day]

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟙:𝟙𝟡

"Now the LORD was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley because they had iron chariots."

Judges 1 chronicled the failure of the Israelites to possess the land God had commanded them. It laid a background for their chaotic lifestyle: everyone was doing what was right in his own eyes.

Hmm! Many lessons to reflect upon. One of them is: Christian living is not a wishful thinking; it is a hard-working action!

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟚:𝟙𝟘

"All that generation also were gathered to their fathers; and there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel."

Some Bible teachers say that this is the saddest verse in the Bible. I don't know what criteria they use to measure the level of sadness! Personally, I have found some other verses to be sadder than this! However, it is one of the saddest verses, that, I will agree without contention!

Such description happened once in Egypt (Exo.1:8), but it was about a new king and Joseph. Here is about a new generation of Israel and Yahweh!

Is it the failure of the parents, the older generations? Parents, especially the Israeli parents are commanded to teach their children concerning the ways and works of Yahweh. They must have taught them well! Then how?

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟛:𝟙-𝟚

"Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to test Israel by them (that is, all who had not experienced any of the wars of Canaan; only in order that the generations of the sons of Israel might be taught war, those who had not experienced it formerly)."

Sometimes God allowed trials, temptations, and even sins in a life of a believer for the greater good. Paul's prayer wasn't answered, but he found sufficient grace of Christ to endure it. God allowed some nations to dwell in the promised land to be thorns to the Israelites.

John Owen says that sometimes, God does not answer our prayer [for us] to overcome certain sins (also trials and temptations) to help us recall and repent of our greater past sin.

To Israelites, actually, the Canaanites are not the real threat, disobeying the law of God, forsaking God, idolatry, intermarriage, and social injustice were the real threat!

Canaanites are there to oppress them as God's means of chastening. Walking daily with the Lord is the real challenge, the real deal!

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟜:𝟠-𝟡

"Then Barak said to her, "If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, 𝕀 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕟𝕠𝕥 𝕘𝕠." She said, "I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the honor shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hands 𝕠𝕗 𝕒 𝕨𝕠𝕞𝕒𝕟." Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kadesh."

Egalitarian loves to talk of Deborah as an example of woman leadership. Well, that's not a rule. It's an exception. We don't build our lives on exception. Or each church may as well employ donkey to warn us; Balaam's donkey indeed warned its owner. BTW, many people used donkeys, horses, elephants, tortoises, octopuses to prophesy for them: football matches. So, there we have it!

Even here, the commandment came to Barak to lead the army. Barak was an effeminate leader. He refused to lead. He wanted to be led by a woman. And so, God shamed him by giving victory into the hands of "a woman" v9.

The world plunged into sin when Adam refused to lead and allowed Eve to deal with the serpent. Men must man up! It's the failure of men! God held Adam responsible!

This world is full of Baraks! And the solution is not to pray for more Deborah but to pray more for people like Samuel, etc. Or else we would be praying for more donkeys to warn us instead of praying for repentance for our love of money!

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟝:𝟚𝟞

"She reached out her hand for the tent peg, And her right hand for the workmen's hammer. Then she struck Sisera, she smashed his head; And she shattered and pierced his temple."

What a gory picture! If this is made into a movie, it's straight R-rated. The Hebrew verbs and syntax require us to fix our attention to the hammering of the nail on his head. Scripture wants to see that picture.

Struck, smashed, shattered, pierced. What an intense expression! And feel like vomiting, seeing the brain and what else coming out!

It’s not surprising that a detailed description is given. Elsewhere Ehud stabbed Eglon. The description is so disgusting that I don't want to eat food and want to puke. Elsewhere Samuel will hack Agag into pieces. No surprise the Son of Man will come back with His swords dipped in blood, to slaughter and conquer!

People love the meek, lowly, gentle Jesus, the loving forgiving God! Well, if the God of Judges and the Jesus of Revelation is not the Jesus we love, it's delusional!

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟞:𝟙𝟚-𝟙𝟛

“The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, ‘The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior.’  Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian."”

David, Solomon, Nehemiah, Ezra, and other prophets responded differently. They confessed their sins. Well, Gideon complained! Yet the angel of Yahweh bore [was patient] with his weak theology, timid nature, small heart, doubtful expression. Moreover, the angel of Yahweh waited [perhaps for hours] for Gideon to confirm its authenticity: through an offering.

In that hour-long event, Gideon must have been transformed.

Giants of God who had gone before said that some of the greatest illuminations they received are through a long time of prayer and meditation. How we ought to spend a devoted time with God, evaluating and confirming our faith!

 

𝕁𝕌𝔻𝔾𝔼𝕊 𝟟:𝟚

“The LORD said to Gideon, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, for Israel would become boastful, saying, '𝕄𝕪 𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕡𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣 𝕙𝕒𝕤 𝕕𝕖𝕝𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕖𝕕 𝕞𝕖.'"”

God seeks His glory. He will not share His glory with others (cf. Isaiah 42:8). And many times, we seek our own glory.

God didn't want to give even a portion of glory to these fighters! They were told to only blow a trumpet and to smash a pitcher (v19). What's the glory or big deal about that!

[BTW, many want to do great things for God, but they don't want to do a small thing for God. John Newton said that if an angel is given a task to sweep the street, and another angel is given a task to rule the city, neither of them will want to exchange their tasks.]

The battle is the Lord!

Bible Reading Reflection from Joshua 19-24

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (SSEU), a reading update (reflection) from one chapter of the Bible a day]

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟡:𝟜𝟡-𝟝𝟘

"When they finished apportioning the land for inheritance by its borders, the sons of Israel gave an inheritance in their midst to Joshua the son of Nun. In accordance with the command of the LORD they gave him the city for which he asked, Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim. So he built the city and settled in it."

This chapter is about the distribution of inheritance. At last, Joshua got a special inheritance! However, not because he was a supreme leader, but because of what he did in the past as an ordinary guy. Caleb and Joshua got a special inheritance! A nice reminder. Faithfulness always pays here on earth and the kingdom to come.

What a stark contrast recorded here. Normally people expect (legitimately or illegitimately) that CEOs, Presidents, etc., have better salaries, facilities, etc. for the positions they serve.

Well, Joshua's special inheritance was not given because of his extraordinary leadership at the top level, but because of his extraordinary service when he was an ordinary soldier!

Something to chew on!

 

𝕁𝕠𝕤𝕙𝕦𝕒 𝟚𝟘:𝟞

"He shall dwell in that city until he stands before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the one who is high priest in those days. Then the manslayer shall return to his own city and to his own house, to the city from which he fled."

No mob justice. No vigilante. No clan justice. No revenge. God has ordained rulers, civil government, and authorities, to administer justice in a society. They will never be perfect, but God ordains them to administer, not us, common people, the public. They will never be perfect, but God will bring perfect justice in His own way and time, trust Him.

Rather, the Scriptures command us to pray for them. The Scriptures assure us that their hearts are controlled by God. Moreover, the Scriptures reveal that prayer is the means of how God accomplishes many things in life.

If the high priest dies within a month, the killer is lucky; he can go back to normal life. If the high priest continues to live, the killer has to live in exile. Sounds unfair? But that's ordained by God. And again, reminding us that Vengeance is not ours, it's God.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟚𝟙:𝟜𝟝

"Not one of the good promises which the LORD had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass."

Good promises, all of them didn't fail; all were fulfilled.

God is a promise-maker. Eh! A good promise-maker. Eh, never a promise-breaker. Certainly not promises-breaker (plural).

He is a promise keeper, a good promise-keeper. The good promises-keeper!

What about this: The good promises maker keeper is Yahweh! 🙂

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟚𝟚:𝟙𝟚

"When the sons of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the sons of Israel gathered themselves at Shiloh to go up against them in war."

They stood with each other [together] to drive out the heathens. These 3 tribes left their families behind to fight for the cause of [the other 10 tribes of] Israel. They had just come back from that military campaign.

And now another war, not against the enemies but within [themselves, Israelites] is looming. Well, in this case, it's more positive because they were concerned about the purity of doctrine that Yahweh alone is God and He alone is to be worshipped. They contended is that there shouldn't be any other altar of worship!

In response, that altar wasn't even to worship Yahweh but to witness Yahweh is God. Not every conflict in a Christian community is a bad one.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟚𝟛:𝟞-𝟟, 𝟙𝟙-𝟙𝟚

6-7 "Be very firm, then, to 𝕜𝕖𝕖𝕡 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕕𝕠 𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕨𝕣𝕚𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕝𝕒𝕨 𝕠𝕗 𝕄𝕠𝕤𝕖𝕤, so that you may not turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you will not 𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕠𝕔𝕚𝕒𝕥𝕖 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕤𝕖 𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤, these which remain among you, or mention the name of their gods, or make anyone swear by them, or serve them, or bow down to them."

☝️👉You either Live with the Book or Live with the World.

11-12 "So take diligent heed to yourselves to 𝕃𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕃𝕆ℝ𝔻 𝕐𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝔾𝕠𝕕.  For if you ever go back and ℂ𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕠 𝕋𝕙𝕖 ℝ𝕖𝕤𝕥 𝕆𝕗 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕤𝕖 ℕ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤, these which remain among you, and intermarry with them, so that you associate with them and they with you."

☝️👉 You either Love God or Love the World!

No neutral ground. Every ground we stand, though looks still, is as the rotation of the earth (rotating but never seeming so), we are weighing on one of its sides.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟚𝟜:𝟙𝟠

"The LORD drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites who lived in the land. We 𝕒𝕝𝕤𝕠 will serve the LORD, for He is our God."

"Also" that's an interesting word. They also wanted to follow because Joshua had announced his intention to follow Yahweh. And they did follow Yahweh imitating Joshua, but after he died, they stopped following.

A leader who has charisma, charm, and soothing words, attracts a lot of superficial crowds. Once the leader is gone, so is the crowd. Well, this is not a criticism of Joshua's leadership, but about the reality of the superficial crowd. Jesus had lots. Sometimes Jesus ran away from such crowd! Sad is he who has such crowd surrounding him!

That's one of the reasons why I don't trust compliments or criticisms of most people. We need only a few good people! One writer said that it's impossible to have 3 best friends, 2 friends are too many, and one is enough! Hmmm!

Bible Reading Reflection from Joshua 13-18

[Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (SSEU), a reading update (reflection) from one chapter of the Bible a day] 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟛:𝟚𝟚

"The sons of Israel also killed Balaam the son of Beor, the diviner, with the sword among the rest of their slain."

The highly esteemed Reverend Balaam was used by God mightily. He even was a great service to the whole people of God. He had invoked blessing from heaven upon the people of Israel at least 3 times.

Who wouldn't like to have the power, privilege, and influence of Balaam? Well, Balaam was killed by the Israelites whom he had blessed before! And the NT has presented Balaam as someone who apostatized for material gain.

Guard against greed, materialism, and apostasy.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟜:𝟙𝟜

"Therefore, Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite until this day, because he followed the LORD God of Israel fully."

Wonderful story! Caleb, an 85-years old grandfather determined to conquer Hebron. This is not an ordinary stronghold. It's a land of Anakim, the giants! It's like trying to steal meat from the dens of lions! Well, Caleb trusted God's promise to Abraham, marched out, and won the war.

He is a descendant of Judah. And Hebron belongs to the descendants of Judah, which was promised by God to Abraham. Years later, David became king in Hebron and reigned there as his capital.

An act of a faithful determined old man fighting against the giants paid off well! We need people like Caleb, a man with a spine, a man with a backbone.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟝:𝟞𝟛

"Now as for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the sons of Judah could not drive them out; so the Jebusites live with the sons of Judah at Jerusalem until this day."

It's Jerusalem. Battle for Jerusalem. And it continues till today!

The Israelites were commanded to conquer Jerusalem. It's a sin not to conquer. Judges 1 recorded all the failures of Israelites to conquer the land. To conquer requires a lot of courage. To have courage requires a lot of conviction from the commandment of God. Apparently, Spiritual Walk with God had declined!

The inhabitants of Jerusalem were not weaklings. Even if they were weaklings, to drive someone out from his own home is not easy, he will do anything to defend his home and family members!

Actually, Joshua 10 recorded that they have conquered once, but the inhabitants recaptured again. Judges 1:8 also mentioned that the children of Judah set the city on fire (2nd conquest?). Also, Judges 1:21 mentioned again that the sons of Benjamin didn't drive out the Jebusites. Centuries later, David conquered Jerusalem and became his capital.

When God commands us to do something and we don't do it, it's a sin. For whatever He commands, he also gives the ability to do it. Instead of being courageous, they were complacent cowards.

Now, whose city is Jerusalem? Should the Israelites conquer again??? Hmmm!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟞:𝟙𝟘

"But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites live in the midst of Ephraim to this day, and they became forced laborers."

Another chapter, recording the failure of the children of Israel – failing to drive the Canaanites away. The consequence is they lived along with them, and they [Canaanites] would be a thorn in the flesh later on!

It serves as a perfect analogy of our battle with sin in our life. God commands us to kill sin (not just to avoid, but to kill). It's an everyday war until we are taken to glory.

Conquering some sin and letting some sin alive will be the Canaanites of our life. When it comes to sin, it is [must be] a zero-tolerance policy [said, Owen Strachan]. Like Samuel hacking Agag into pieces [said, MacArthur in one of his sermons].

The Israelites were not walking with God faithfully. Resulting in a loss of confidence, conviction, and courage to conquer!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟟:𝟙𝟟-𝟙𝟠

"Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only, but the hill country shall be yours. For though it is a forest, you shall clear it, and to its farthest borders it shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, even though they have chariots of iron and though they are strong."

The Canaanites were strong, but the children of Joseph are numerous too. Sure, some have to die in the fighting! 😬 The habitable land may be small, but they can clear out the forest and settle down.

BTW, Joshua didn't suggest them to decrease the population but told them to clear the forest. Try texting this verse to environmentalists! 😂

Hard work, sweat, and blood are what Joshua requires of them, not an easy solution; lottery, not redistribution of lands and wealth. Something poor countries (also as individuals) should think about!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟠:𝟛

"So Joshua said to the sons of Israel, ‘How long will you put off entering to take possession of the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?’"

It's war, not peace. It's annihilation, not toleration. It's a divine project, not a devilish one. It sounds and looks horrific, grim, and cruel. Yes, to give credit to Richard Dawkins, God looks like a sadomasochistic being! Well, let Paul be remembered that let every man on earth be a liar and God be true. Indeed, mankind crucified Jesus because they thought Jesus was ungodly, blasphemous, unholy, and controversial!

The old octogenarian Joshua was appalled that the younger generations were not willing: to lay down their lives for the cause of freedom from the thorns of Canaanites; to work hard to subdue the land for prosperity and well-being of themselves and their children!

Indeed, we humans tend to take things for granted. The foundation which was laid through sweats and blood, the next generation would not continue. . . but give up so easily...

My dad built the most beautiful home in my village, and it stood out for a decade, and we, his children were so quick to abandon home, and even suggested to be given away to one of my aunts who has been a widow!

Bible Reading Reflection from Joshua 7-12

 [Originally posted in a WhatsApp group (SSEU), a reading update (reflection) from one chapter of the Bible a day]

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟟:𝟚𝟘-𝟚𝟙

"So Achan answered Joshua and said, ‘Truly, I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel, and this is what I did: when I 𝕤𝕒𝕨 among the spoil a beautiful mantle from Shinar and two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold fifty shekels in weight, then I 𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕥𝕖𝕕 them and 𝕥𝕠𝕠𝕜 them; and behold, they are 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕔𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕖𝕕 in the earth inside my tent with the silver underneath it.’"

The first time this story was impressed upon my memory was in one of the few classes of Sunday School I had ever attended. The 2nd time was in SSEU, its former president, Phajathang was preaching on this story. [He was preaching from a small pocket size Bible.]

Notice the progress of sin in this confession: the verbs, his actions — Saw, coveted, took, concealed.

And the battle was lost. Numbers of Israelites died. He himself was stoned to death, even his family members were!

I remember the similar progress of sins mentioned in the book of James as well. BTW, MacArthur Study Bible noted that David's sin is identical to this sin of Achan!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟠-𝟝-𝟞

"Then I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. And when they come out to meet us as at the first, we will flee before them. They will come out after us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, 'They are fleeing before us as at the first.' So we will flee before them."

This surprise attack seems to be the ultimate battle strategy for the Israelites. They did like that in the war of Benjamites as well. Even present-day Israel seems to rely on this strategy — a deceptive (surprise attack) strategy.

The recent clash with Hamas as well. The Israelites pretend to do a military ground invasion. The whole international media was led to believe it so. Even I believed so. 😎😂 Then they did a surprise airstrike. That's how they won the six-day war of 1967 as well, against 3 countries.

Maybe North East underground factions should use this strategy as well! 😂

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟡:𝟙𝟜

"So the men of Israel took some of their provisions, and did not ask for the counsel of the LORD."

What a blunder! What a tragedy! What a sin!

They had just won a war; perhaps, that went into their heads. They were favored by Yahweh; perhaps, that made them familiar with God. Familiarity breeds Complacency. The stupidity of the leaders of Israelites demonstrates the plight of everyone.

The first time I decided to visit a bank, I prayed earnestly [for God] to help me out. The first time I was about to do anything I took it seriously. And then... Gibeonites always show up. Gibeonites are everywhere that's why we [need to] always pray, [need to] ask God.

Moses didn't glorify God though he performed God's miracle; God banned him from entering the Promised Land. It's easy to do the things of God, yes, even the righteous and godly things without prayer; and that is sin.

If I step into the pulpit without much prayer, even after my 20-40 hours of preparation, and even if it transforms the life of my listeners, I am still in sin!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟘:𝟙𝟙

"As they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, the LORD threw large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died; there were more who died from the hailstones than those whom the sons of Israel killed with the sword."

I almost remember everything I was taught in Sunday School. And that's because I attended Sunday School maybe just 2,3 times. 😂

One story that I remember so well is this story of Joshua 10: God throwing stones from heaven! Hmm, I still am thinking what I was thinking then! And it is fascinating: God selectively killing the enemies with stones from heaven!

God can really do what He wants to do!

If I were God, I would kill them by a different method! Certainly not by throwing stones. It sounds ridiculous!

God's amazing work may come through ridiculous means, sometimes. Let's not expect only "great" things from God.

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟙:𝟙𝟛-𝟙𝟜

"However, Israel did not burn any cities that stood on their mounds, except Hazor alone, which Joshua burned. All the spoil of these cities and the cattle, the sons of Israel took as their plunder; but they struck every man with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them. They left no one who breathed."

God is a misogynistic megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully to those who are disobedient, like Richard Dawkins. But to those who are obedient, His laws are not burdensome (1John 5:3)

Achan hid a tiny amount of spoil of Ai, and was stoned to death along with his family members! Then here, in the Israelites’ next conquest, they were allowed to take the spoil and keep the houses and properties. There's a time to avoid and a time to accept. A time to offer and a time to receive. A time to sacrifice and a time to celebrate.

It's not difficult for those who listen to God. See, Achan was singled out among thousands of Israelites as if to make a point that it was clear and easy to trust God, because every one of them obeyed, except for this Achan. In fact, it can be said like that for any act of [our] disobedience. Now, the obedient Israelites got all the homes and spoils, while the disobedient Achan perished with his family!

Even in the parable of the wedding feast, the master singled out only one person, an improperly dressed guy to be thrown out. What about all those filthy and uncivilized beggars from the highways and byways? Again, the point is: it's unthinkable to disobey God or to distrust God because God is so awesome and good!

 

𝕁𝕆𝕊ℍ𝕌𝔸 𝟙𝟚:𝟙

"Now these are the kings of the land whom the sons of Israel defeated, and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise, from the valley of the Arnon as far as Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah to the east:"

Listed are 31 kings the Israelites had defeated, but only a few selective accounts are recorded in the Scripture.

The Bible history is not a random account of past events, it has a theme, purpose, and pointed application for all readers.

Even John the apostle did the same thing with his gospel, mentioning only 7 miracles, 7 statements of I AM, and 7 witnesses! It even has 7x3 chapters 😂