Jeremiah 31:31-34 After the righteous King Josiah was killed in battle in 609 BCE, the fortunes of Judea took a sharp downward turn. Babylon threatened Judea’s existence, and Judea had a series of hapless kings from 609 until Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Babylonians deported a number of Judean leaders […]
Numbers 21:4-9 Numbers is the fourth book of the Torah (Hebrew meaning “teaching” or “Law”), also known by Christians as the Pentateuch (Greek meaning “Five Books”). Numbers (like the last half of Exodus, and all of Leviticus and Deuteronomy) is set in the time the Israelites were in the Wilderness before entering the Promised Land. […]
Exodus 20:1-17 The Book of Exodus is the second book of the Torah/Pentateuch, and covers the period from the slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh (around 1250 BCE, if the account is historical), the Exodus itself, and the early months in the Wilderness. Today’s reading is set at Mount Sinai (“Horeb” in other parts of Exodus […]
Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Genesis is the first book of the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy). The Torah is also called the Pentateuch (five books) in Greek. Genesis covers the period from Creation to the deaths of Jacob and his 11th son, Joseph, in about 1,650 BCE, if the accounts are historical. Genesis (like […]
Genesis 9:8-17 Genesis is the first book of the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy). The Torah also called the Pentateuch (five books) in Greek. Genesis covers the period from Creation to the deaths of Jacob and his 11th son, Joseph, in about 1,650 BCE, if the accounts are historical. The Book of Genesis […]
2 Kings 2:1-12 The Book of Kings is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. These books are a didactic history of Ancient Israel from the time in the Wilderness (c. 1250 BCE) to the Babylonian Captivity in 587 BCE. They emphasize that God controls history, […]
Isaiah 40:21-31 The Book of Isaiah is a composite of writings from three distinct periods in Israel’s history. Chapters 1-39 are called “First Isaiah” and called for Jerusalem to repent in the 20 years before Jerusalem was under siege by the Assyrians in 701 BCE. “Second Isaiah” is Chapters 40 to 55 and brought hope […]
Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Deuteronomy is the fifth (and last) book of the Torah and is presented as Moses’ final speech to the Israelites just before they entered the Promised Land. “Deuteronomy” comes from Greek words that mean “Second Law” and is structured as a “restatement” of the laws found in the books of Exodus, Leviticus and […]
Jonah 3:1-5, 10 The Book of Jonah is one of the shortest (and most humorous) books in the Bible, and is included in the 12 Minor Prophets. Though Jonah is never described in the book as a “prophet,” he is a “prophet” who eventually spoke for YHWH by urging the people of Nineveh to repent. […]
1 Samuel 3:1-20 The Book of Samuel is part of the “Deuteronomic History” that includes the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. These books are a “didactic history” that covers the period from just before the entry into the Promised Land (c.1220 BCE, if the account is historical) to the beginning of Babylonian […]