Por Jacob D. Gerber

Bible Readings for November 5th 2 Kings 18 | Philemon 1 | Hosea 11 | Psalms 132, 133 & 134 The words of the Rabshakeh of Assyria (the great commander of Assyria’s army) in 2 Kings 18 offer a masterclass in Satan’s strategies to lead us to doubt Yahweh’s goodness toward us. To start, he twists Hezekiah’s obedience in removing the high places by sugg…

Bible Readings for November 4th 2 Kings 17 | Titus 3 | Hosea 10 | Psalms 129, 130 & 131 The dark day finally arrives. In 2 Kings 17, we read of the doom of the northern ten tribes of Israel, whom Yahweh sends off into exile at the hands of the Assyrians. The relatively mild wickedness (2 Kgs. 17:2) of Israel’s final king, Hoshea, becomes the straw …

Bible Readings for November 3rd 2 Kings 16 | Titus 2 | Hosea 9 | Psalms 126, 127 & 128 Although Judah has experienced wicked kings before this point, King Ahaz leads the southern nation of Judah into unprecedented evil. Ahaz’s father, Jotham, was a godly king who did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh (apart from leaving the high places in Judah;…

Bible Readings for November 2nd 2 Kings 15 | Titus 1 | Hosea 8 | Psalms 123, 124 & 125 One of the fascinating aspects of the stories of the kings of Israel and Judah is the way that Yahweh continues to bless his people despite their sinfulness—even as their sinfulness brings about an increasing number of curses. The stories repeatedly emphasize Yah…

Bible Readings for November 1st 2 Kings 14 | 2 Timothy 4 | Hosea 7 | Psalms 120, 121 & 122 In 2 Kings 14, we read a strange role reversal between the two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. In this chapter, we find Judah with a relatively godly king, Amaziah, who does right in the eyes of Yahweh, even though he permits the high places—that is, hills where …

Bible Readings for October 31st 2 Kings 13 | 2 Timothy 3 | Hosea 5–6 | Psalm 119:145–176 The death of Elisha is a tragedy in Israel. After this point, we do not read of another prophet whom Yahweh sends to the northern ten tribes, and very shortly, the entire nation of Israel will fall to the Assyrians in 2 Kings 17. The end of Elisha’s life, then,…

Bible Readings for October 30th 2 Kings 11–12 | 2 Timothy 2 | Hosea 3–4 | Psalm 119:121–144 In 2 Samuel 7, Yahweh made a covenant with David, promising that David would never lack a man from his own body to sit on the throne of Israel. But, as we continue through the stories of the kings of Israel and Judah, one major question arises again and agai…

Bible Readings for October 29th 2 Kings 10 | 2 Timothy 1 | Hosea 2 | Psalm 119:97–120 In yesterday’s meditation, we began discussing the way the biblical authors use repetition to lace their narratives with rich, complex meaning. In 2 Kings 10, the biblical author uses yet more repetition to evaluate the reign of Jehu. To begin, Jehu stages an even…

Bible Readings for October 28th 2 Kings 9 | 1 Timothy 6 | Hosea 1 | Psalm 119:73–96 One of the difficulties of reading certain stories in the Bible—especially the more violent stories—comes in the way that the narratives in the Bible convey meaning and value judgments in such different ways than we might expect from, for example, a modern novel. Be…

Bible Readings for October 27th 2 Kings 8 | 1 Timothy 5 | Daniel 12 | Psalm 119:49–72 The story of reclaiming the Shunammite woman’s land in 2 Kings 8 seems, at first, to be a rather strange addition to the storyline of the reigns of kings in Israel, Syria, and Judah through the rest of the chapter, but there is more to it than meets the eye. Intri…

Bible Readings for October 26th 2 Kings 7 | 1 Timothy 4 | Daniel 11 | Psalm 119:25–48 At the end of 2 Kings 6, we find Ben-hadad, the king of Syria, besieging Samaria and driving the city to starvation, so that women are eating their children to stay alive (2 Kgs. 6:28–29; cf. Deut. 28:52–57). Nevertheless, even in the midst of this incredibly dark…

Bible Readings for October 25th 2 Kings 6 | 1 Timothy 3 | Daniel 10 | Psalm 119:1–24 Despite the fact that Elisha healed Naaman, the commander of Syria’s army in 2 Kings 5, Syria nevertheless attempts to capture Elisha in 2 Kings 6. The reason for turning against Elisha is simple: he had prophesied military intelligence about the Syrians to Israel’…

Bible Readings for October 24th 2 Kings 5 | 1 Timothy 2 | Daniel 9 | Psalms 117–118 We first read of Israel’s battles with Syria during the reign of King David (cf. 2 Sam. 8, 10), but these conflicts escalate significantly during the reign of King Ahab (cf. 1 Kgs. 20, 22). In 2 Kings 5, we meet Naaman, the mighty commander of Syria’s army—the man w…

Bible Readings for October 23rd 2 Kings 4 | 1 Timothy 1 | Daniel 8 | Psalm 116 In 2 Kings 4, we learn that the ministry of Elisha doesn’t simply pick up where Elijah left off—rather, Elisha actually mirrors the ministry of Elijah, and in doing so, his ministry points forward to a greater prophet yet to come. So, Elisha saves a widow and her sons wh…

Bible Readings for October 22nd 2 Kings 3 | 2 Thessalonians 3 | Daniel 7 | Psalms 114–115 In 2 Kings 3, Elisha gets his first opportunity to prophesy to the kings of Israel and Judah, who are united in battle. The last time King Jehoshaphat of Judah joined forces with the king of Israel was against Syria back in 1 Kings 22, when King Ahab ignored t…

Bible Readings for October 21st 2 Kings 2 | 2 Thessalonians 2 | Daniel 6 | Psalms 112–113 Yahweh had sent Elisha to assist Elijah when the elder prophet suffered from severe spiritual depression (1 Kgs. 19:19–21). Through an apprenticeship process, Elisha has been preparing to replace his master once Elijah departs into glory. So, in 2 Kings 2, we …

Bible Readings for October 20th 2 Kings 1 | 2 Thessalonians 1 | Daniel 5 | Psalms 110–111 After Ahab dies, his son Ahaziah sadly picks up where Ahab had left off—he ignores the word of Yahweh in order to seek revelations from other gods. In 2 Kings 1, the prophet Elijah confronts Ahaziah similarly to the way that he had confronted Ahab, and in the …

Bible Readings for October 19th 1 Kings 22 | 1 Thessalonians 5 | Daniel 4 | Psalms 108–109 Although Ahab humbles himself before Yahweh in 1 Kings 21, we learn in 1 Kings 22 that this humbling is not true, full-fledged repentance and faith in Yahweh. Instead, when Ahab plans to go to battle against the Syrians with King Jehoshaphat of Judah as his a…

Bible Readings for October 18th 1 Kings 21 | 1 Thessalonians 4 | Daniel 3 | Psalm 107 Despite the fact that Yahweh sends Ahab prophet after prophet, revealing his word to the king time after time, Ahab nevertheless stands firm in his unbelief and hardness of heart. In today’s reading from 1 Kings 21, the only thing that moves Ahab to humility is wh…

Bible Readings for October 17th 1 Kings 20 | 1 Thessalonians 3 | Daniel 2 | Psalm 106 Although Ahab is a wicked king, Yahweh nevertheless reveals himself to him multiple times. Still, Ahab follows in the footsteps of King Saul, receiving with joy any word of Yahweh that signifies good to him but systematically ignoring any warnings or instructions …

Bible Readings for October 16th 1 Kings 19 | 1 Thessalonians 2 | Daniel 1 | Psalm 105 At the end of 1 Kings 18, Elijah might have believed that he had succeeded in bringing the nation of Israel back to Yahweh. And yet, when Elijah returns after defeating the prophets of Baal, Ahab’s wife Jezebel sends him this message: “So may the gods do to me and…

Bible Readings for October 15th 1 Kings 18 | 1 Thessalonians 1 | Ezekiel 48 | Psalm 104 In the head-to-head showdown of the gods in 1 Kings 18, Yahweh leads the people of Israel to repentance for the sins they had committed. This is one of the more famous stories from the Bible, but in context, its significance runs far beyond a simple display of Y…

Bible Readings for October 14th 1 Kings 17 | Colossians 4 | Ezekiel 47 | Psalm 103 In 1 Kings 17, we meet the prophet Elijah, a prophet whose life and ministry is marked by a glaring contrast. On the one hand, Elijah is so important that he appears, along with Moses, on the mountain when Jesus is transfigured into his glory (Matt. 17:1–9; Mark 9:2–…

Bible Readings for October 13th 1 Kings 16 | Colossians 3 | Ezekiel 46 | Psalm 102 In 1 Kings 16, the northern nation of Israel descends quickly into chaos because of the sin of their many kings. Where Asa, the godly king of Judah, reigns for a total of forty-one years (1 Kgs. 15:10), the northern nation of Israel goes through a series of kings in …

Bible Readings for October 12th 1 Kings 15 | Colossians 2 | Ezekiel 45 | Psalms 99, 100 & 101 The two new kings whom we meet in 1 Kings 15 represent, respectively, the two main kinds of kings we will read about during the age of Judah’s kings. On the one hand, we have the wicked Abijam, who “walked in all the sins that his father did before him, an…

Bible Readings for October 11th 1 Kings 14 | Colossians 1 | Ezekiel 44 | Psalms 97–98 The overall sweep of the books of Samuel and Kings builds the case against both the nations of Israel and Judah in order to justify Yahweh’s sending both nations into exile. In many ways, the apostasy of Solomon serves as the foundation for the apostasy of both th…

Bible Readings for October 10th 1 Kings 13 | Philippians 4 | Ezekiel 43 | Psalms 95–96 In the first part of 1 Kings 13, Yahweh sends a prophet to condemn Jeroboam’s worship. Speaking to the illicit altar on which Jeroboam was offering unauthorized sacrifices, the man of God (a name given to prophets during those days) foretells the day when a son o…

Bible Readings for October 9th 1 Kings 12 | Philippians 3 | Ezekiel 42 | Psalm 94 What the Bible teaches about the relationship between the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of humankind is complicated, to say the least. On the one hand, we know God never tempts anyone to sin, nor is he the author of sin (Jas. 1:13). But on the other hand, …

Bible Readings for October 8th 1 Kings 11 | Philippians 2 | Ezekiel 41 | Psalms 92–93 As Israel’s king, Solomon reaches extraordinary heights during Israel’s golden age. Lavish wealth, rich cultural achievements, and wide-ranging justice characterize this era to a degree that Israel has never seen before or since. But, precisely because Solomon enj…

Bible Readings for October 7th 1 Kings 10 | Philippians 1 | Ezekiel 40 | Psalm 91 Solomon’s glory as king of Israel reaches its pinnacle in 1 Kings 10. We read an initial report of Solomon’s great wisdom, wealth, and fame in 1 Kings 4, but we find a fuller inventory here in this chapter. Chiefly, these descriptions of Israel’s golden age under Solo…

Bible Readings for October 6th 1 Kings 9 | Ephesians 6 | Ezekiel 39 | Psalm 90 In 1 Kings 9, Yahweh accepts Solomon’s prayer from 1 Kings 8, saying, “I have heard your prayer and your plea, which you have made before me. I have consecrated this house that you have built, by putting my name there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all t…

Bible Readings for October 5th 1 Kings 8 | Ephesians 5 | Ezekiel 38 | Psalm 89 As Solomon prays to dedicate the temple in today’s reading from 1 Kings 8, his prayers provide important theological distinctions for understanding what it means for Yahweh to dwell in a physical location like this temple. First, Solomon is clear that no temple can conta…

Bible Readings for October 4th 1 Kings 7 | Ephesians 4 | Ezekiel 37 | Psalms 87–88 As we began to review yesterday, the construction of Solomon’s temple is not a brand new idea at this stage in the story of God’s people. It is not as though Yahweh has been working on various plans for awhile and then he suddenly decides to build a temple to try som…

Bible Readings for October 3rd 1 Kings 6 | Ephesians 3 | Ezekiel 36 | Psalm 86 In the beginning, God dwelt with his people in the temple of his creation—that is, in the perfection of the Garden of Eden. There, Yahweh walked among his people, who dwelt with their God without guilt and shame, in perfect intimacy and communion with him. Yahweh made hi…

Bible Readings for October 2nd 1 Kings 4–5 | Ephesians 2 | Ezekiel 35 | Psalm 85 The description of Solomon’s kingdom in 1 Kings 4 is overwhelming, with unending officials (1 Kgs. 4:1–19), wealth (1 Kgs. 4:20–28), and cultural achievements (1 Kgs. 4:29–34). It is staggering to imagine living in such a golden age of human flourishing, with seemingly…

Bible Readings for October 1st 1 Kings 3 | Ephesians 1 | Ezekiel 34 | Psalms 83–84 Solomon’s kingdom rises to great heights primarily through the events in the story from today’s reading in 1 Kings 3. Solomon is not an ordinary king—although, as we discussed yesterday, he will also not be the ultimate messianic king who will completely save God’s p…

Bible Readings for September 30th 1 Kings 2 | Galatians 6 | Ezekiel 33 | Psalms 81–82 In yesterday’s reading, we reflected on David’s greatest failure in life: his passive unwillingness to discipline or to set boundaries for those around him. In today’s reading, we see a further contrast between David and his son Solomon in David’s final words to h…

Bible Readings for September 29th 1 Kings 1 | Galatians 5 | Ezekiel 32 | Psalm 80 As we come to the end of David’s life, the stories we read not only prepare us for the transferring of the kingdom to David’s son Solomon, but they also give us deeper insight into David’s limitations as king. In today’s reading from 1 Kings 1, we see two specific fai…

Bible Readings for September 28th 2 Samuel 24 | Galatians 4 | Ezekiel 31 | Psalm 79 David sins at the end of his life by ordering a census of Israel. This sin is less well known than his adultery with Bathsheba, but that does not mean that it was less serious. In fact, in many ways, the people of Israel faced harsher consequences here in 2 Samuel 2…

Bible Readings for September 27th 2 Samuel 23 | Galatians 3 | Ezekiel 30 | Psalm 78:38–72 David’s last words in 2 Samuel 23:1–7 are brief, but they are worthy of careful study. In this short speech, David gives us a summary of his reflections on his kingship—or, more precisely, Yahweh’s reflections on leadership that David prophetically speaks. In …

Bible Readings for September 26th 2 Samuel 22 | Galatians 2 | Ezekiel 29 | Psalm 78:1–37 The song David composes in 2 Samuel 22 reflects on the story we read yesterday at the end of 2 Samuel 21. There, David had gone out to battle with the Philistines, but as the battle stretched on, “David grew weary” (2 Sam. 21:15), and Ishbi-benob, a descendent …

Bible Readings for September 25th 2 Samuel 21 | Galatians 1 | Ezekiel 28 | Psalm 77 Back in Joshua 9, the people of Israel entered into a covenant with the Gibeonites. The Gibeonites had lied to Israel, claiming to have arrived from far off. In fact, they were among the peoples whom Yahweh had instructed Israel to drive out of the land of Canaan, b…

Bible Readings for September 24th 2 Samuel 20 | 2 Corinthians 13 | Ezekiel 27 | Psalms 75–76 As we read yesterday in 2 Samuel 19, David replaced Joab as his commander with Amasa because Joab had ignored David’s command not to harm his son Absalom. This demotion does not sit well with Joab, who finds an opportunity to murder Amasa in the middle of p…

Bible Readings for September 23rd 2 Samuel 19 | 2 Corinthians 12 | Ezekiel 26 | Psalm 74 During the uprising of Absalom, Israel’s previously unwavering loyalty to David fell apart. Now that Absalom is dead, David must sort through what to do with the people who supported him, the people who betrayed him, and the people who did both. Today, we will …

Bible Readings for September 22nd 2 Samuel 18 | 2 Corinthians 11 | Ezekiel 25 | Psalm 73 There is a tragic irony to the way Absalom dies in 2 Samuel 18. Certainly, one of the core components to Absalom’s winsomeness as he stole the hearts of Israel (2 Sam. 15:6) was his physical appearance—including the five pounds (two hundred shekels) of hair tha…

Bible Readings for September 21st 2 Samuel 17 | 2 Corinthians 10 | Ezekiel 24 | Psalm 72 Back in 2 Samuel 15, David’s friend Hushai wanted to flee Jerusalem with David. Instead, David instructed Hushai to stay and pretend to join Absalom. In this way, Hushai could help David from inside Absalom’s inner circle to defeat the counsel of Ahithophel (2 …

Bible Readings for September 20th 2 Samuel 16 | 2 Corinthians 9 | Ezekiel 23 | Psalms 70–71 If we began to see the suffering of David at the hand of Absalom in 2 Samuel 15, each of the three scenes in 2 Samuel 16 ratchets up David’s suffering even further, one misery at a time. These scenes are important not only to underscore the treachery of Absa…

Bible Readings for September 19th 2 Samuel 15 | 2 Corinthians 8 | Ezekiel 22 | Psalm 69 The unresolved problems arising from David’s reluctance to discipline those around him—whether in his capacity as a king or as a father—combine to create a dangerous situation in 2 Samuel 15, where we find Absalom conspiring to steal the throne of Israel from hi…

Bible Readings for September 18th 2 Samuel 14 | 2 Corinthians 7 | Ezekiel 21 | Psalm 68 By allowing Absalom to return to Jerusalem, David, as we will see, is making a catastrophic mistake—a mistake so serious that it will eventually bring David’s entire kingdom and even his life into jeopardy. The problem isn’t so much that Absalom comes back but t…