If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
JUNE 30
2 Kings 17:1-18:12
2 Kings 17
This is a very sad chapter of the Bible and is entirely about Israel
being taken out of its land. We've read about God's redemptive plan since
almost the first day of the year. We've read about the long years with Abraham,
how God made a covenant with him, and how the nation of Israel was formed, and
began to see the fulfillment of that promise. Yet it seems that the nation
never really responded to God, not in the wilderness, nor as a nation with its
own land.
We have seen the power of sin. This spiritual sickness is the strongest
force on earth, except for the amazing grace of God. His patience and kindness
in these last chapters, working with Israel, has truly been a testimony to His
love. The summary of this chapter shows that unless the heart of man is changed
by the new life of the Spirit, there is no hope for mankind.
Notice in this chapter that it mentions worship and the fear of the
Lord, yet vs. 34-35 make it clear that to worship any other god, in addition to
God, is not to fear Him at all. That would be true today, too.
This chapter introduces the origin of the "race" of the
Samaritans of the New Testament, whom the Jews hated. They were a mixed people,
both of race and of religion - doubly despised and hated in the NT.
It should be mentioned here that to take a people into exile was to
"exterminate" a race of people by forcing them into another culture
to intermarry and lose their cultural identity. Living in another land meant
they would be forced to serve and worship other gods, learn new customs and
speak another language. This effectively happened to the northern kingdom. But
then, they had already lost their identity through their worship of foreign
gods, long before they were taken into captivity. Israel survived through the
southern kingdom. People from all 12 tribes were represented in Judah and we'll
see that there will be something very different about Judah's exile in Babylon.
What things do you find interesting in this chapter? What does this say
to you as a disciple in the harvest?
Vs. 1-6 At this point everyone was either paying tribute to Assyria or
paying the price of not paying. Hoshea has the distinction of being the last
king of Israel, the northern kingdom.
Vs. 7-18 This
explanation is for the northern kingdom. You can see this by v. 19, which
refers to the kingdom of Judah and their sin. But the people were idolatrous
from the death of Joshua to the judgeship of Samuel. Then with Solomon,
idolatry was reintroduced into the nation. We have witnessed God's mercy,
patience and His outstretched hand over hundreds of years. Remember that what
we are seeing is not how bad Israel was, but how deep and irresistible sin is
in each of us. Israel is being used as a visual aid for us to learn from. In
the future God will restore and bless them for this "ministry" and
because of His promise to Abraham. For now, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians
10:11-12, Now these things happened to them as an
example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the
ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he
fall.
Vs. 19-20 When we get into Jeremiah and Ezekiel, we'll see that Judah
really gets blasted because they saw all that God did to Israel and still
didn't follow the Lord.
Notice that since this is mentioning Judah going into exile, this had
to have been written after they went into exile.
Vs. 21-23 This short summary covers a couple of hundred years of God
reaching out to Israel.
Vs. 24-28 The king of Assyria brought in his own people once he had
removed most of the people of Israel. These people from Babylon, Cuthah, etc.,
were part of what Assyria controlled. As these people mixed with the Jews who
were left in Samaria, these mixed people became the hated Samaritans we hear of
in the New Testament. It is interesting that God made sure that these people
still respected Him. What God will do later in Babylon will be very direct and
will actually save Judah/Israel.
Vs. 29-33 This is all to say that those who occupied Samaria were not
worshipers of the Lord. They were pagans who worshiped everything. Yahweh was
just one of many.
Vs. 34-41 If Kings was written after the return from Babylon, it is
explaining why the Jews would not allow the Samaritans to help them with the
temple, and why they would not join the Samaritans as "brothers" or
in worship. These people called themselves Israelites and they claimed to
worship Yahweh, but they were totally lost and embraced all gods. The exiles
who returned from Babylon never worshiped idols, and most of them were very
strong in the culture of Judaism. When we get into the book of Daniel, we can
do some speculating as to why this was.
2 Kings 18:1-12
Vs. 1-8 We will hear more about Hezekiah in this section, in 2
Chronicles and in Isaiah, than any other king besides David and Solomon. You
wonder why Hezekiah was a better man than his father. It might have been that
he was influenced by Isaiah and Micah the prophets and that he learned from
God's judgment against the northern kingdom.
V. 3 Hezekiah walked in the way of David. How? Not in being perfect,
but in worshiping no other God but Yahweh. That then is the deciding mark of
having the heart of David.
V. 4 Did you even know that thing was still around? Imagine the guts it
must have taken for Hezekiah to have destroyed this old relic. I can imagine
all the cultural initiatives to have this put into the Smithsonian, and all the
rallies with people carrying signs that said, "Save Nehushtan."
Apparently no other king, not even David, had objected to people
"honoring" that bronze snake.
Notice the beginning of vs. 5, 6 & 7.
V. 5 When it says there was no king like Hezekiah, before or after him,
that is a very high honor and it needs to be seen in the full context of what
he did. We'll see that full context tomorrow.
Vs. 9-12 Whereas the king of Assyria took Samaria, he would break his
back on Jerusalem. The difference was the godliness of the king and the
presence of the Lord.
Acts 20
This is the conclusion of the third missionary journey. After the night
of fun in Ephesus, Paul was on his way back to Jerusalem.
Vs. 1-2 Paul apparently stopped in Corinth to pick up the aid that was
collected for the church in Jerusalem, as per 1 Corinthians 16. This would have
been after Paul had written 1 and 2 Corinthians. Paul spent three months there
to settle the church and to write Romans.
Vs. 3-6 Apparently Paul had planned to sail directly back to Antioch,
but when he learned of the plan to kill him, he went back through Macedonia by
foot to Philippi. Paul sent these fellow workers ahead to Troas, maybe to throw
his persecutors off of his scent, and then sailed from Philippi to Troas.
Notice that Luke is again with Paul.
Vs. 7-12 Paul preached long sermons too!
Vs. 13-16 So, why did Paul avoid Ephesus? It might have been because of
Alexander the coppersmith. It may also have been to get to Jerusalem before Pentecost.
Vs. 18-38 Notice the amount of space given to this meeting with the
elders from Ephesus. For some reason, this talk Paul has with them is very
important.
Vs. 23-24 Notice
that Paul did have some foreboding regarding Jerusalem. You can also see this
in Romans 15:30-31 (written in Corinth, vs. 1-2), I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of
the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, 31that
I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for
Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints…
Vs. 29-31 Notice Paul's warning. The church in Ephesus survived and is
mentioned in Revelation, written probably 25 years after Paul's death. But in 1
Timothy, written after Acts and after Paul's first imprisonment in Rome, Paul
was rushing off to Macedonia, while Timothy was trying to rebuild the church in
Ephesus. Something happened that almost destroyed that church. Paul is saying
here where the main threat will arise. Also, if you look at the problems Paul
warns Timothy that he will face, in 1 Timothy, you can also see how that
"threat from within" worked to sidetrack and ruin that church. They
became very defensive and doctrinal and lost their first love and their
effectiveness in the harvest.
Vs. 33-35 This sounds like Moses and Samuel saying that they never took
anyone's donkey, meaning that they never took advantage of the people they
served. During those 14 years of silence in Paul's life, when he learned the
trade of tent manufacturing, God impressed on him working to make the gospel
free of charge. This may have been from the fact that as a Pharisee he was
rich. But in all of Paul's work, he worked with his hands and expressed this
conviction in 1 Corinthians 9.
V. 35 Sounds like
what Paul says in Ephesians 4:28, Let the thief no longer
steal, but rather let him labor,
doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share
with anyone in need.
As disciples, keeping the church on track to make disciples
and follow Christ in the harvest is not an easy task. The harvest is
challenging enough, but when different influences and "missions" come
into the church, we need a lot of wisdom and all of God's help. If you read 1
Timothy, notice how often Paul warns about "discussions," and how
often he tries to refocus on the mission. The love of Christ and His mission is
the key to discipleship and our walk with Christ. Once we lose the mission, we
overcompensate by becoming "theological geniuses;" and then we lose
everything, and making disciples cannot take place. You follow Christ in the
harvest, not in debates about theological issues and purity. Disciples are for
the harvest and are made in the harvest, not in discussions. As Paul said in 2
Corinthians 5:14-21, For the love of
Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all,
therefore all have died; 15and he died
for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him
who for their sake died and was raised. 16From
now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once
regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a
new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18All this is from God, who through Christ
reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19that is, in Christ God was reconciling the
world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to
us the message of reconciliation. 20Therefore,
we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you
on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21For
our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become
the righteousness of God.
Psalm 148
Obviously some of this is poetic and some is hyperbolic and some is
metaphoric, but we all get the point. We should praise the Lord.
Vs. 1-2 I take this to mean that all created beings should worship and
praise God.
Vs. 3-4 This would be the vast creation of the universe and earth.
Vs. 5-6 All of these beings and things mentioned represent the majesty
of God's power and He deserves praise for all of this.
Vs. 7-10 All of the things and creatures God created should give praise
to God.
Vs. 11-12 Everything created in His image on earth should praise Him.
Vs. 13-14 God
deserves praise for all of His greatness and majesty, but v. 14 goes further.
In God raising up a horn, it is talking about a ruler.
Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist said it like this in Luke 1:68-69, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he
has visited and redeemed his people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for
us in the house of his servant David.
Proverbs 18:6-7
Notice the art in this. You have
lips in the first and last clause and two mouths in the middle. It's amazing how that hole in our face can
get us into so much trouble. But Jesus said, all these evil things come from within, and they defile a person,
and out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
So the problem is really a heart problem, and the Lord knows how to take care
of –that, but do we?
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are interested in growing
deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the
growth of a discipleship culture in the church, that is, groups of 3-4
disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to
reach out and make disciples, who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most
universal and important discipleship manual we have and it is the key to our
growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here,
or what we are to be doing, or whom we are to be following. My comments are
only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of
God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are
designed to keep us, as disciples, focused on Christ and our role in His
harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be
willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their
growth as disciples, making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular One
Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die
Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the
ESV Bible.
Anyone reading along with us is
welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own
observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition
or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any
point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as
I understand it. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both
historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background,
theological training and my personal study.
I'm
doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that
will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are
reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a
supplement, a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we
will keep following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making
disciples, who make disciples. Being in
the Word every day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the
essential essence of being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by Tyndale
House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News
Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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