TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
Isaiah 41:17-43:13
Ephesians 2:1-22
Psalm 67:1-7
Proverbs 23:29-35
Isaiah 41:23 — God dares the other gods to a challenge. Can they prophesy the future? What are they? Nothing (Isaiah 41:24)!
Isaiah 42:1 — If you feel whiplash reading Isaiah, don’t worry. Matthew Henry felt the same way:
The prophet seems here to launch out yet further into the prophecy of the Messiah and his kingdom under the type of Cyrus; and, having the great work of man’s salvation by him yet more in view, he almost forgets the occasion that led him into it and drops the return out of Babylon; for indeed the prospect of this would be a greater comfort and support to the believing pious Jews, in their captivity, than the hope of that. And (as Mr. Gataker well observes) in this and similar prophecies of Christ, that are couched in types, as of David and Solomon, some passages agree to the type and not to the truth, other to the truth and not to the type, and many to the type in one sense and the truth in another.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/matthew-henry-complete/isaiah/42.html
Isaiah 42:8 — The LORD God is a jealous God. This is repeated in Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, 1 Kings, Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Nahum, Zephaniah, and Zechariah. Elijah was jealous for God (1 Kings 19:20), and Paul was jealous (2 Corinthians 11:2). God was jealous because He has a right to be unrivaled.
Isaiah 42:10 — Sing to the LORD a new song!
Isaiah 43:1 — From Earl Martin:
Isaiah 43:2 — ”Be Not Afraid” is based on this verse.
Isaiah 43:11 — The Acts 4:12 of the Old Testament!
Ephesians 2:4 — Only God could do this! From children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3) to seated in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6)! From aliens and strangers (Ephesians 2:12) to made right by the blood of Christ (Ephesians 2:13)! From strangers and foreigners (Ephesians 2:19) to fellow citizens of the household of God (Ephesians 2:19)!
Ephesians 2:7 — Stop and think about that for a moment … we have no clue what all God will show to us in the ages to come. God’s grace to us has only just begun!
Ephesians 2:8-9 — From Earl Martin:
Psalm 67:3 — Praise the Lord for His mercy and His grace!
Proverbs 23:33 — They say 1 out of 8 people meet their spouse in a bar. Solomon says it’s a great place to also find the strange woman!
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