“If thieves came to you, If robbers by night— O how you will be ruined!— Would they not steal only until they had enough? If grape gatherers came to you, Would they not leave some gleanings?” Obadiah 1:5 NASB Gleanings – Are you left-overs? I know we like to think of ourselves as the elect, the chosen, the special ones…
“So I will choose their punishments And will bring on them what they dread. Because I called, but no one answered; I spoke, but they did not listen. And they did evil in My sight And chose that in which I did not delight.” Isaiah 66:4 NASB Punishments – Jeremiah tells us that God rewards according…
I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds. Jeremiah 17:10 NASB Results – Frankly, this verse scares me. There are a few others that give me equal fright, but this one might be at the top of that list. …
For behold, the kings assembled; they came on together. Psalm 48:4 ESV Assembled – The kings marched together in order to pass before the city of God. What was the result? They were astonished, humbled, afraid. They fled in terror and confusion. No nation stands before Him. David’s declaration of the majesty of the Lord…
He who withholds his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently. Proverbs 13:24 NASB Rod – God’s idea of training involves correction, sometimes correction that stings. We, of course, are more civilized. Who would ever consider punishing a child with a rod these days? Probably only those who risk being taken…
Within her citadels God has made himself known as a fortress. Psalm 48:3 ESV Citadels/fortress – God has made Himself known as a fortress? What in the world does that mean? According to the psalmist, God is already within the citadels of the city. So why does He need to make Himself known as a…
beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King. Psalm 48:2 ESV Great – OK, God is great. But so is the king, right? In fact, in our inverted world, kings often get more praise than God (as John Lennon once quipped)….
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20:8: ESV The Sabbath day – And what does this mean? Does it mean we spend the day meditating on God? Does it mean we sit around wondering if doing the next thing will violate the commandment about rest? Perhaps we need to look at the original…
Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, In the city of our God, His holy mountain. Psalm 48:1 (English Bible) NASB To be praised – You’re probably quite familiar with this Hebrew word. It is found in the expression “Hallelujah!” Literally, this expression means, “Praise for Yah.” The verb is halal, used more than…
Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, In the city of our God, His holy mountain. Psalm 48:1 (English Bible) NASB Great – Sometimes we just absolutely must know the subtle differences in Hebrew in order to comprehend the deeper message of the text. That is the case here. If I asked you what…
