The Bible Reading Challenge Presented by VCY

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Ezekiel 35:1-36:38
  James 1:1-18
  Psalm 116:1-19
  Proverbs 27:23-27

Ezekiel 35:2 – Why is God focusing on the Edomites (the residents of Mount Seir)? From EnduringWord.com:

Alexander noted a long history of conflict between the Edomites and the kings of Israel (and Judah), during the reigns of: Saul (1 Samuel 14:47), Solomon (1 Kings 11:14–22), Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 20:1–23), Jehoram (2 Kings 8:21), Ahaz (2 Chronicles 28:17).

https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/ezekiel-chapter-35/

The Jordan River Valley

Ezekiel 36:4 – There is something special about being in the land of the Bible. I’m proud to be an American, but America doesn’t possess a land that was prophesied to her. The Old Testament is full of descriptions of mountains (518x),  hills (136x), rivers (247x), valleys (166x), even wastes (88x). The Old Testament is rooted in geography, and there is no better way to study the land of the Bible than in the land of the Bible!

Ezekiel 36:11 – From Jimmy DeYoung:

The Lord even promises the Jews that the land they return to in the last days will be better than it was in the days of their forefathers, verse 11. By doing these things, for the Jews, with His promised land, they shall know that He is the Lord and they shall turn to Him.

Each year, around May 14, the Jewish people celebrate the “birthday” of the Jewish State of Israel and the productivity of the land He has given these Jewish people. This celebration of God’s work in fulfilling His promises about the “land of Israel” has been a witness to the entire world …

It’s not because of Israel or Judah that the Lord does what He does, but for “His Holy names sake.” By the way, that is why He does anything for each of us, as well, for “His Holy names sake.”

http://devotional.prophecytoday.com/search/label/Ezekiel

Ezekiel 36:26 – This verse is almost a repeat of Ezekiel 11:29. God’s not promising rehabilitation but transformation! He’s giving us the power of His Spirit to obey His statutes (Ezekiel 36:27)! Throughout the Old Testament we see disobedience after disobedience. Now we can walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh (Galatians 5:16).

James 1:5 – This verse is often the hasty prayer of the student who has neglected his studies, yet too many adults neglect this passage when needing wisdom. We don’t need Dr. Phil, Dr. Laura, or Oprah giving us wisdom! We need the LORD’s wisdom!

James 1:9-10 – Matthew 23:12, Proverbs 29:23, Luke 14:11, Luke 18:14, James 4:6, and 1 Peter 5:6 all teach that the humble are exalted, and the exalted are humbled. Flip through the television channels and you’ll find that American culture prizes the fastest athletes, the winning politicians, the famous Kardashians, the people who get the most screen time, etc. God’s priorities are completely opposite.

James 1:12 – There are five crowns that are possible for believers to receive:

• Incorruptible Crown – 1 Corinthians 9:25 – for the faithful
• Crown of Rejoicing – 1 Thessalonians 2:19 – for the witness
• Crown of life – James 1:12 – for the tempted
• Crown of righteousness – 2 Timothy 4:8 – for the watching
• Crown of glory – 1 Peter 5:4 – for the pastors

James 1:14 – Don’t boast in the fact that you are not tempted to drink, steal, commit fornication, etc., if you are tempted to view pornography, lie, and be proud. James warns us that we are “… drawn away by (our) own desires and enticed.” (NKJV) A pastor referred to these as “designer lusts,” i.e. custom designed lusts to hit our weak points! Beware! They bring forth death (James 1:15)!

Psalm 116:6 – Speaking of the low – God helps those who are low!

Psalm 116:18 – Not everyone pays their vows right away, but God remembers them. From the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA):

While clinging to a life raft, Zamperini prayed for one of the first times in his life: “God, if I survive this ordeal and get back to America alive, I’ll seek You and serve You.”

[Four years after the war,] For the first time in years, Zamperini remembered the promise he made to God when he was floating in the south Pacific.

“My life passed before my eyes, and I saw an ugly life,” Zamperini said. “Yes, I had a lot of great times. A lot of great experiences, and a lot of escapes from death, but I still didn’t like my life after the war. It was terrible.”

That night in L.A., Zamperini went forward and accepted Christ, and the biggest miracle of his life was set in motion.

https://billygraham.org/story/louis-zamperini-billy-graham-and-a-life-changing-decision-the-rest-of-the-unbroken-story/

Proverbs 27:23 – The Son of the Shepherd King knew the importance of managing flocks. Whether a pastor, manager, or parent, this is a command for all of us.

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

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Image Credit: Beivushtang at the English-language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/, via Wikimedia Commons

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Ezekiel 33:1-34:31
  Hebrews 13:1-25
  Psalm 115:1-18
  Proverbs 27:21-22

Ezekiel 33:7 — This echoes Ezekiel 3:17. The challenge of this passage using the watchmen as an example is actually an expansion from the five verses of Ezekiel 3:17-21 to the nine verses in Ezekiel 33:1-9. The question is, though, does this warning apply to us today?

The Temple laws of Moses were specific to a certain people and a certain building. The warning of Ezekiel to Tyre and Egypt were specific to a certain people at a certain time, but this passage is different. Ezekiel is given by God a universal principal and not a ceremonial command. Ezekiel was specifically appointed a watchman to Israel, but the context implies that there are others who could be called watchmen as well. In contrast to those that say the church is not responsible for the Great Commission, we have the same message that Ezekiel had, but to a different people and a different time.

• The wicked shall die (Ezekiel 33:8)
• The “righteous” will die as well (Ezekiel 33:12-13)
• Turning (Repentance) saves from death (Ezekiel 33:11)
• Our sins can be blotted out (Ezekiel 11:16)

Jeffrey Dahmer

Ezekiel 33:17 — Jeffrey Dahmer was one of the worst serial killers. Sodomized, murdered, dismembered, and cannibalized 17 men and boys over 13 years. Found legally sane.

On July 22nd, 1991, he was caught. He said “For what I did I should be dead.” Over the next two weeks, he confessed to everything. Shortly after he asked for a Bible. He sought legal help from a prominent Christian lawyer in the area. According to his father, books from the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) led him from evolution to the Creator and then to becoming a born again Christian. Yes, it is possible for the wicked to live, and the righteous to die (Ezekiel 33:18-19)!

Ezekiel 33:24 — Israel was trusting in their strength, yet God was judging them for their sin!

Ezekiel 33:25 — In both the Old (Genesis 9:4) and New Testaments (Acts 15:29) God has condemned the eating of blood. The sins that Israel committed (Ezekiel 33:26-27) were universal – condemned in both Testaments.

Ezekiel 33:32 — Be a doer and not just a hearer (James 1:22)!

Ezekiel 34:17 — The Lord GOD (Yahweh Adonai) declares that He, the Shepherd of the flock, will judge between the rams and the goats. What did Jesus say in Matthew 25:32? He said that He would “… separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats …” Jesus claimed to be the Yahweh Adonai of Ezekiel 34:17. Now why wasn’t He stoned for this? Because it was told to the disciples privately (Matthew 24:3) as part of the Olivet Discourse. Those who had followed their rabbi, Y’shua, would not betray Him, save one.

Ezekiel 34:23 — Who is the Shepherd? David, the Shepherd King who wrote of the Lord as Shepherd (Psalm 23), was dead. In John 10:11, Jesus claims to be the Good Shepherd. The Shepherd of Ezekiel 34:23 is prophesied to come, but in this passage is not identified with the LORD as it was in Ezekiel 34:17. Interestingly, this a-divine (not divine, nor anti-divine) claim of identification was made to the Pharisees (John 9:40).

Ezekiel 34:26 — There shall be showers of blessing!

Ezekiel 34:30-31 — This echoes Psalm 100:3 – we should know that the LORD is God, that we are His people, and that we are the sheep of His pasture!

Hebrews 13:2 — The Epistles contain many hard to understand statements about angels. We shall judge angels (1 Corinthians 6:3). The reason for head coverings is because of angels (1 Corinthians 11:10). We might be secretly visited by angels (Hebrews 13:2). We understand things angels don’t (1 Peter 1:12).

Also note the wide variety of people covered in this one chapter:

• Brothers (Hebrews 13:1)
• Angels (Hebrews 13:2)
• Inmates (Hebrews 13:3)
• Adulterers (Hebrews 13:4)
• Christians (Hebrews 13:5)
• Oppressors (Hebrews 13:6)
• Pastors (Hebrews 13:7)
• Jesus Christ (Hebrews 13:8)
• False Teachers (Hebrews 13:9)
• Levites (Hebrews 13:10)
• Beasts (Hebrews 13:11)

Hebrews 13:6 — From Earl Martin:

Hebrews 13:23 — The Pulpit Commentary thinks that this shows Hebrews was written by Dr. Luke:

It is observable that the word ἀπολύεσθαι, which does not occur in St. Paul’s writings, is, like so many expressions throughout the Epistle, one usual with St. Luke (Luke 22:68; Luke 23:16, etc.; Acts 3:13; Acts 4:21; where it expresses release from prison or captivity). He uses it also for dismissal of persons on a mission (Acts 13:3; Acts 15:30); and hence one view is that Timothy’s having already set out to visit the Church addressed is all that is here meant.

https://biblehub.com/hebrews/13-23.htm

Psalm 115:1 — Praise begins with humility!

Proverbs 27:22 — Several possible interpretations abound:

• Is a man known by the type of people who praise him?
• Is a man known by his behavior while praised?
• Is a man known by what he is praised for?
• Is a man to test the people who praise him? 

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

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Image Credit: Carden, Frances. “Jeffrey Dahmer: A Terrifying True Story of Rape, Murder and Cannibalism | Readers Lane.”, 11 July 2020, www.readerslane.com/reviews-title/jeffrey-dahmer-a-terrifying-true-story-of-rape-murder-cannibalism.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Ezekiel 31:1-32:32
  Hebrews 12:14-29
  Psalm 113:1-114:8
  Proverbs 27:18-20

Cedar Tree

Ezekiel 31:10 — God hates pride in case you haven’t noticed. Daniel uses the same phrase (“… lifted up thyself …”) when speaking of God’s judgment against Belshazzar (Daniel 5:23).

Ezekiel 32:7 — When will these events be? Ezekiel doesn’t say, but looking at other passages we can tell. Isaiah 13:10 talks about the Day of the LORD when the moon will not give its light. Matthew 24:29 says that this immediately follows the Great Tribulation.

Hebrews 12:15 — What do we know about this root of bitterness?

• It’s crafty – people don’t see it unless they know what they’re looking for
• It’s costly – taking away the grace of God
• It’s concerning – “trouble you”
• It’s corrupting – “many be defiled”

Hebrews 12:24 — Why is Jesus better? An ignorant beast that touched the Holy Mountain of Moses was to be stoned. Now, we are invited to the city of the living God (Hebrews 12:22).

Psalm 113:3 — I need to spend more time praising the LORD!

Psalm 113:6 — We pride ourselves on how big of a position we have attained on earth. The LORD “humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth!”

Psalm 114:7 — We need a return to the fear of the LORD.

Proverbs 27:18 — Are we faithful in our service to our master?

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

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Image Credit: Smabs Sputzer from Stockport, UK, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Ezekiel 29:1-30:26
  Hebrews 11:32-12:13
  Psalm 112:1-10
  Proverbs 27:17

Ezekiel 29:1 — Did you notice the precision of Ezekiel’s dates? Continual references to the “Xth” year, in the “Yth” month, in the “Zth” day of the month. This is a formal dating system used at least 15 times in the Bible; twelve of those times are found in Ezekiel and none in Isaiah. This may be rooted in Ezekiel’s priestly heritage as opposed to Isaiah’s non-priestly heritage. Was the priest in exile careful to follow the details and dates of the Mosaic feasts?

Ezekiel 29:6 — Speaking of common phrases in Ezekiel, 51 of the 57 times that the phrase “shall know that I am the LORD” occurs in the Old Testament, it occurs in Ezekiel. We’ll see it 19 more times in this book. Compare this to the priestly declarations in Leviticus – 45 times we find the phrase “I am the LORD” as a justification (the reason why) for the laws that He created. Now 850 years later, God is using this as a justification for His judgment. The priests (representing God to man) had taught the Law as a way to know the LORD; now, 850 years later, they are teaching the judgments because people did not know the LORD.

Ezekiel 29:12 — Ellicott contends that Nebuchadnezzar sent the Egyptians captive to Babylon.

Ezekiel 30:15 — Sin in this verse is a geographical location (Sinai Peninsula) as opposed to a theological declaration.

Sin (“bush”). [1] A city on the eastern side of the Nile (Ezek. 30:15, 16). It is possibly Pelusium; but is also identified with Syene, which is present-day Aswan at the first cataract of the Nile. [2] A wilderness area located between the Gulf of Suez and Sinai (Ex. 16:1; Num. 33:11, 12).

William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, ed. Arthur Farstad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), lxvii.

Hebrews 11:32 — Jephthah and Samson were some of the less thrilling biblical judges, yet they were used by God in the same way as Gideon and David were!

Samson Killing the Lion by Peter Paul Rubens

Hebrews 11:33 — We have a godly legacy of heroes who wrought great exploits and suffered great losses (Hebrews 11:36-37). They lived by faith, and we can be glad for the Faith of our Fathers.

Hebrews 12:1-2 — How do we respond after we’ve walked through the Hall of Faith? Follow their example, run our race, look to Jesus, and ask God to make us a faithful man as well. This song is from our friend, Patch the Pirate, who named the tune after a pastor from Wisconsin that he respected for his faithful stand for the Bible.

Hebrews 12:8 — This is some of the harshest language in the Bible, yet it conveys a scary truth. If you are sinning on your race and God does not chastise you, you are an illegitimate son. John Bunyan paints a harsh scene of whipping in Pilgrim’s Progress for Christian when he was deceived off the path.

Psalm 112:1 — What does a modern day faithful man of Hebrews 12:1-2 look like? One that fears the LORD and delights in His commandments. Read through this Psalm and see the blessings that come to the faithful man.

Proverbs 27:17 — How does a faithful man stay sharp? With faithful friends! From Earl Martin:

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

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Image Credit: Peter Paul Rubens, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

TODAY’S BIBLE READING CHALLENGE:
  Ezekiel 27:1-28:26
  Hebrews 11:17-31
  Psalm 111:1-10
  Proverbs 27:15-16

Ezekiel 27:3 — Tyre was the World Trade Center of its day. “A merchant of the people for many isles.” Forty-two different places are listed in this chapter that had commerce in Tyre. Oftentimes, biblical passages don’t strike us because the places are unfamiliar. That’s okay because Ezekiel was not writing to 21st-century Americans; he was writing to 6th-century-BC Greater Mesopotamian Jews! The closest we can get to understanding what this would be like is if someone at the turn of the last millennium prophesied that the commercial hub of the world, New York City, would be destroyed in such a way that all the inhabitants would be astonished (Ezekiel 27:35).

Ezekiel 28:2 — There is a clear difference between God and man. That is why the deity of Jesus Christ is so important, and why religions from Anthroposophy to Zen Buddhism deny the deity of Jesus. Jesus made divine claims about Himself. The best resource on this topic is the book Putting Jesus in His Place. God is a jealous God and will not share His glory with another (Exodus 34:14), and so …

The city of Tyre was the recipient of some of the strongest prophetic condemnations in the Bible (Isaiah 23:1–18; Jeremiah 25:22; 27:1–11; Ezekiel 26:1–28:19; Joel 3:4–8; Amos 1:9-10).

GotQuestions.org

Ezekiel 28:14 — Wait a minute! How is the king of Tyre an anointed cherub in the holy mountain of God, perfect at creation? This isn’t the sarcasm of Ezekiel 28:3. This seems to be a prophetic jump (see Isaiah 7:14) where the prophet jumps from the temporal to comparing them to events that shook eternity, i.e. the fall of Lucifer.

Hebrews 11:17 — In contrast to Tyre and Lucifer who thought it wasn’t fair to be less than God, Abraham didn’t care about whether it was fair to be asked for “his only begotten son.” This is the same phrase used in John 3:16 and elsewhere in John’s writings to show how Abraham’s action was a foreshadowing of God’s action.

Preparing for the Passing Over of the Angel of Death

Hebrews 11:28 — The Passover is a seemingly weird ritual. Publicly marking your house with blood? Yet, Moses was rewarded for his faithfulness in keeping the Passover.

Psalm 111:1 — Why does the psalmist say “my whole heart?” Perhaps as you look around during the song portion of your church service you will notice people singing without their “whole heart.” Perhaps you’ve even caught yourself – the music is familiar, and your mind is elsewhere. Praise the LORD with your whole heart, not just Sunday but everyday!

Psalm 111:8 — The commands of God, preserved in His Word, shall stand fast forever and ever! Yes, the Bible stands!

Proverbs 27:15 — A “contentious woman” is compared to a “continual dropping.” From Forever Be Sure:

Share how reading through the Bible has been a blessing to you! E-mail us at 2018bible@vcyamerica.org or call and leave a message at 414-885-5370.

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Image Credit: Clara Miller Burd, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons