“I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and lack of bread in all your places, yet you did not return to me,” declares the LORD. “I also withheld the rain from you when there were yet three months to the harvest; I would … More Yet you did not return to me
And the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any wood, the vine branch that is among the trees of the forest? Is wood taken from it to make anything? Do people take a peg from it to hang any vessel on it? Behold, it is … More Infinite mercy of Jehovah- “you will know that I am the Lord”
Job lost everything: his wealth, his health, and his ten children. All swept away in one satanic storm. Reduced to a heap of flesh, ashes, and tears—rebuked by friends and jeered by strangers—righteous Job wrestled over the purpose and presence of God in the midst of unbearable pain. In this book, John Piper recounts the … More Wresting over the purpose and presence of God in the midst of pain
“The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord.”— Proverbs 16:33 “God’s dice always have a lucky roll,” said Sophocles, one of classical Athens’ three great tragic playwrights. Here’s what Charles H. Spurgeon has to say, in Morning and Evening: If the disposal of the lot is the … More Spurgeon: If the disposal of the lot is the Lord’s, whose is the arrangement of our whole life?
Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, … More Esther: Better do my duty and die for my people than shrink from my duty and die with them.
Pastor Ray Stedman, “A Pair of Queens,” on Esther 2: The chapter closes with an account of how the entrance of Mordecai and Esther into the life of this king involved also deliverance from a plot which threatened the very life of the king: When the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting … More When life is at stake
In Nehemiah 4, we come to two statements which contain elements of God’s awesome power and sovereignty, and also elements of our responsibility. The setting is the rebuilding of the wall and the fierce opposition from the enemies of the Jews. In verse 9 we read: And we prayed to our God and set a … More Pray and set a guard
There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And [Jesus] answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you … More God’s amazing mercy: one more chance to repent
John Piper, in “A Hunger for God” p 166: Israel had been taken into Babylonian exile. They had been there for decades. Now the time had come, in God’s reckoning, for their restoration. But how could this happen? They were a tiny, obscure ethnic minority in the massive Persian empire. The answer is that God rules empires. And when … More Piper: God never leaves his prophesies dangling uncertainly
2 Chronicles 22:7 “But it was ordained by God that the downfall of Ahaziah should come about through his going to visit Joram.” Ahaziah decided to join Joram, king of Israel, in order to try to recapture Ramoth-gilead from Hazael, king of Syria. He had advisors that encouraged him to do this. A few years prior to this, … More A King’s Heart and the Sovereignty of God
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 