Pastor Ray Stedman writes: First Kings is the gripping story of how to lose a kingdom. As we read these Old Testament books, the key to making them live and be vital in our lives is to see that they are visual aids by which God is showing us what is going on in our … More How to lose a kingdom
J. Hampton Keathley on “The Significance of Leprosy in the Bible”: (1) The leper was considered unclean and had to be isolated from society to a certain degree. Wherever he went he was to cry out, “unclean, unclean,” and he had to wear black with a hood covering his face and live outside the city … More The significance of leprosy in the Bible and a portrait of how God saves
From C. H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening(Evening May 16): The armies of the three kings were famishing for want of water: God was about to send it, and in these words the prophet announced the coming blessing. Here was a case of human helplessness: not a drop of water could all the valiant men procure from the … More Spurgeon: What trenches am I digging?
And it came about when Ahab heard these words, that he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and fasted, and he lay in sackcloth and went about despondently. Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, “Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled … More God’s Instrument of Grace
And a great and strong wind was rending the mountain and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire [or lightning], but the Lord was not … More Eyes off yourself and onto the Lord, as he is revealed in his Word
ELIJAH PART 2, An Advent Poem by John Piper King Ahab called out from the rocks, “Do you think that a fire-tailed fox Can scorch the fields of Jezebel, And starve the stock, and dry the well, And mock the Baals, and scorn Jezreel, And not be crushed beneath the wheel Of Ahab’s chariot? Beware … More The God who answers here with flame Is God alone and his the fame.
Quoting from “For the Love of God, Volume 1, October 13” FIRST AND 2 KINGS narrate the declining fortunes of both the northern and southern kingdoms. Occasionally there is a reforming king in one realm or the other. But on the whole the direction is downward. Some orientation (1Kings 16): (1) Although 1 and 2 Kings treat both … More Downward Trend
Coty Pinckney, in a sermon, “A Time for Grace, a Time for Judgment” In today’s text, [1 Kings 13-14] we see that God does not zap Jeroboam after he creates the golden calves. Instead, God reaches out to Jeroboam, in a way that has many parallels with His reaching out to David by Nathan the … More Grace extended, grace rejected
In 1 Kings 12, we read that after Jeroboam joins the people, they ask King Rehoboam to “lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you.” (vs 4) Notice that they don’t ask that he end it altogether, just that he lessen the load. If he does, … More God’s sovereignty and man’s accountability
How rich was Solomon? 1 Kings 10:14&15 – “The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 25 tons, not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the land.” 1 Kings 9:27&28 – “And Hiram sent his men – sailors who knew the sea … More Solomon’s wealth in perspective
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 