This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on this city and all the villages around it every disaster I pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to my words.' – Jeremiah 19:15

Today's Scripture Reading (May 31, 2023): Jeremiah 19

What is the greatest sin? Is there really a sin that is unforgivable? Yes, I know. All sins are equal when it comes to our standing in the eyes of God, but is that actually true? Isn't telling a little lie preferable to murdering someone? Of course, there is also a belief that one sin leads to another, and the longer that we practice deception, the larger the deception becomes, and the more sins that become involved.

On the side of the unforgivable sin, that sin is biblically summed up by the phrase "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit." Yet we also celebrate serving a God for whom nothing is impossible. If God can do the impossible, could that erase the possibility of a truly unforgivable sin?

All of these thoughts are interesting, and they are not questions that the theologians of the early church overlooked. A lot of time has been spent on what might be the worst sins of the human race, and the result of those discussions has been a list that we call "The Seven Deadly Sins." That list has gone through several changes over the years, but the current list includes; Lust (including sexual activity outside of marriage), Gluttony, Greed, Sloth (an absence of interest or habitual disinclination to mental, spiritual, or physical exertion), Wrath, Envy, and Pride. It is an intriguing list that contrasts itself with the Seven Christian Virtues. These are the deadly sins and life-giving virtues. Lust contrasts with Chastity, Gluttony with Temperance, Greed with Love and Generosity, Sloth with Diligence, Wrath with Patience, Envy with Gratitude and Kindness, and Pride with Humility.

But they might miss the worst sin of all. It seems that for God and his prophets, the number one sin is actually stubbornness or what the prophets often called being "stiffed-necked." It is the idea that when confronted with our sins, we will not repent of our wrongdoing.

I have always loved the story of the martyrdom of Polycarp, an early church leader. According to historians, late in Polycarp's life, the Saint was arrested and given a chance to reject his faith in his God. Polycarp refused, saying that for "eighty-six years I have served him, and he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior now?" It is a remarkable statement of faith and what we might call Christian stubbornness.

But on the sin side is the story of a man whose bedside I had the privilege to sit beside several years ago. As we spoke near the end of his life and I asked about his spiritual journey, his response was, "I have done without God all my life. This doesn't seem to be the moment that I should change my mind." He was what the prophets would have called stiff-necked. We continued talking, and he passed away soon after I left the room. I have often thought back to our conversation and hoped that maybe he changed his mind before he died, but I have no evidence that that was true. And while the man led an incredible and generous life, the greatest sin was one that he couldn't avoid. He was stiff-necked, and because of his stubbornness, he died without the blessing of God. 

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 20

Now therefore say to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, 'This is what the LORD says: Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions.' – Jeremiah 18:11

Today's Scripture Reading (May 30, 2023): Jeremiah 18

I am always intrigued by the professional sports experts that attempt to change the course of the teams that they are responsible for shaping. Every franchise, except for maybe the Harold Ballard-run Toronto Maple Leafs, wants to win a championship. Many General Managers and team owners take over with a promise that they will work toward a parade, celebrating a title well won. But a team championship is often more than just who has the best strategy; players have to execute the plan along with a generous serving of luck to win over the stiff competition. This is why winning back-to-back championships can be such a rare achievement, let alone trying to win three or four championships in a row.

Jeremiah is directed to go to a Potter and watch him as he shapes the clay. And as Jeremiah watches the potter shape the clay, God reminds his prophet that he is the potter. Unlike a sports team, the potter can do whatever he wants with the clay, or maybe it might be better to say he can create whatever his talent will allow him to produce. God can do whatever he wants with his clay, which is Judah. He can protect or destroy them; the choice belongs to God.

The people disagreed. They held a false confidence that God would always come to their aid, regardless of their behavior. God needs Jeremiah to counteract that belief and tell them that God has the power, just like the potter, to do whatever he thinks is right with Judah, his lump of clay.

But that doesn't mean that the people didn't influence what God did. The disaster was coming because the people continued to rebel against God. But, despite God's declaration to Josiah and Jeremiah that Judah's destiny was already fixed, God still seems to be holding out a hope that Judah will repent of their sin. And if they would do that, God would relent just as he did during Jonah's days with Nineveh. Then Jonah had complained that "Isn't this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity" (Jonah 4:2). It was true when God sent his prophet to Nineveh. It was still true as Judah struggled through what would end up being its last days.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 19

Even their children remember their altars and Asherah poles beside the spreading trees and on the high hills. – Jeremiah 17:2

Today's Scripture Reading (May 29, 2023): Jeremiah 17

American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was a big believer in generational sin. The most common belief of generational sin is found in the Christian doctrine of Original Sin. According to this philosophy, the sin of Adam and Eve is an indelible mark on the race. Somehow, Adam and Eve's sin is shared with the rest of humanity, giving each of us a desire, or a bent, to sin. According to the doctrine, we do not share our first parents' guilt, but we do share a tendency toward sin. We all tend to sin, and we all give in to that tendency at least once in a while, and so, we all sin. Therefore, sin has become our reality. Paul repeats this belief when he wrote to the Roman Church, "there is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:22b-23).

But Hawthorne took this idea of sin a step further. As mentioned above, the doctrine of Original Sin does not include the concept of guilt. I am a recipient of the tendency to sin because of Original Sin, but I am not guilty of that sin. I am only culpable for the sin that I commit. Hawthorne believed in a more personal version of generational sin. Specifically, Nathaniel Hawthorne felt guilt because of the action of two of his ancestors, William Hathorne and his son John. William Hathorne was known for his harsh persecution of the Quakers, especially the public whipping he demanded for Ann Coleman, a Quaker missionary. Coleman and her fellow missionaries, Mary Tomkins and Alice Ambrose, were condemned to be tied to a cart, stripped to the waist, and then whipped, receiving not more than ten stripes. The punishment was carried out in the dead of winter and repeated in each of the small towns in the area. The public whipping and humiliation of these women were intended as a warning to other missionaries who might want to spread their beliefs in the area.

John Hathorne, William's son, was one of the leading judges during the Salem Witch Trials. Hathorne was vocal in his opposition against those accused of witchcraft, and unlike Samuel Sewall, Hathorne never repented or apologized for his role in the trials and executions.

Nathaniel Hawthorne felt the family guilt of these two ancestors so intensely that he changed the spelling of his last name, adding a "w" to Hathorne, making it Hawthorne. (I know, you thought the spelling mistake was mine.) It was one way that Nathaniel dealt with his family's guilt. But the knowledge of the sins of his patrilinear ancestors was something of which Nathaniel Hawthorne felt painfully aware all of his life.

Jeremiah looks at Judah and argues that they are suffering under a form of generational sin. But this time, the sin was written down, engraved on tablets that would be read throughout the generations. But even more importantly, the children would remember seeing the altars and the Asherah poles at which their ancestors had worshiped. They would remember the example and would carry that guilt throughout the rest of their lives.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 18

But now I will send for many fishermen," declares the LORD, "and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill and from the crevices of the rocks. – Jeremiah 16:16

Today's Scripture Reading (May 28, 2023): Jeremiah 16

It was a simple little song that some of us learned in Sunday School when we were children. It is very repetitive, which works when you are trying to teach young children to sing. And it is easy to memorize. The song was written by Harry D. Clarke, maybe best known as the song leader for the Billy Sunday Crusades. The song? Fishers of Men.

            I will make you fishers of men,

            Fishers of men, fishers of men

            I will make you fishers of men,

            If you follow me;

            If you follow me, If you follow me,

            I will make you fishers of men,

            If you follow me;

Of course, as children, there were actions to the song, which included pretending to cast a fishing line with a fishing rod into a body of water. The song is based on Matthew 4:19. Jesus is beginning to call his disciples, and according to Matthew, as he calls Andrew and Peter, Jesus makes this invitation; "Come, follow me and I will send you out to fish for people" (Matthew 4:19). The New International Version translation of the passage has given us a more gender-neutral language than the King James Version's "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." But the idea remains the same regardless of the specific language. Jesus's invitation is that they are invited into the process of telling people about God and expanding the base for God in Israel during the First Century. Jesus is speaking their language. I know that you fish for a living. And I still want you to fish; I just want you to find people, and instead of killing what you are fishing for, I want you to make a difference in their lives for the better.

But even this isn't an original thought for Jesus. He is reaching back into the book of Jeremiah and paraphrasing what the weeping prophet had said there. As God speaks to Jeremiah about the coming captivity and exile, he says that he is sending for fishermen and hunters. And God has some specific fishermen and hunters in mind. The fishermen lived in Egypt, where fish formed the basis of their diet. And the hunters were coming from Babylon, where they hunted for the food that they would eat. But God was repurposing these hunters and anglers. The people of Judea were wrong if they thought they could escape the coming time of struggle. The hunters of Babylon and the fishers of Egypt were on their way to round them up. And it was God who had sent them.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 17

Personal Note: Happy Birthday to my Wife, Nelda.

And if they ask you, 'Where shall we go?' tell them, 'This is what the LORD says: "'Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.' – Jeremiah 15:2

Today's Scripture Reading (May 27, 2023): Jeremiah 15

I recently had a conversation with a homeless woman. She was a mother of a young child who had been kicked out of her parent's house. As a result of being homeless, her child was taken away from her. And now she was starting the long path back, hoping to stabilize her life and get her child back. I didn't know her, but I felt sorry for her. And I would have loved to have been able to talk more to her about her story. What was the reason for her ejection from her parent's house? Was there a path back, things that she could do to invite her parents into the process of repairing the relationship? But fixing that parental relationship might have been the easiest way to get back on the right path.

But I also recognized that that might not be possible. I have no idea whether this young mom's parents were exercising tough love with their daughter, if there was some substantial issue that had arisen between them, or if some other unassailable obstacle had come between them. But the woman impressed me with her intelligence and communication skills. And I must admit, by the end of our conversation, she had me cheering for her, hoping that she could put her life back together and get her child back under her care.

God had told Jeremiah that Judah was about to be evicted from their land. And then, God predicted the question that the people would ask next; if we must leave Judah and Israel, where will we go? Some might have wondered if there was another forty-year wandering in the desert that was in their immediate future. But God wanted Jeremiah to know that their future wasn't that rosy. What was coming was death, war, famine, and exile.

For Israel, death was on the way in the form of plague and disease, death from war and the sword, death would also come as a result of famine and starvation, and for those that lived through this time of crisis, they would live in exile; either a forced captivity in Babylon or a voluntary exile in Egypt. And Jeremiah now understood there wasn't a way out of this eventuality. In the long run, there would be an opportunity to put the relationship back together. But until that happened, there would be significant pain in the future of God's children.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 16

Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for the well-being of this people." – Jeremiah 14:11

Today's Scripture Reading (May 26, 2023): Jeremiah 14

I love Mahatma Gandhi's concept of prayer. "Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness. It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart." Gandhi wasn't speaking of Christian Prayer, but he could have been. As a Christian, I agree with Gandhi's stance. And the Apostle Paul seemed also to agree. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians that they should ^"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). And to the Romans, Paul wrote: "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans" (Romans 8:26). How can you pray without ceasing unless prayer is a longing of the soul that cries out regardless of what it is that is going on in our lives. And praying with a heart and without words is just a way of saying that the Spirit of God is interceding for us and helping us to pray.

And in this way, we pray. Those close to me are rarely far from my thoughts and always in my prayers, as are my church, denomination, and the churches of every denomination in my city, country, and world. I pray whenever I read an article about something. I pray when random thoughts come my way. I pray. Often, you are in my prayers, those who take the time to read my feeble words.

Prayer is almost automatic for some people. And I don't think that there is anything wrong with that. Prayer isn't supposed to be a ritual we participate in at particular times or on significant occasions. Prayer is always a way of life. It is a decision to live with an outward focus.

So, what would it be like to have God instruct you not to pray? Jeremiah loved Jerusalem and the people of God. He wept over the city's destruction and had to be forced to leave the city and taken, almost as a prisoner to his own people, to Egypt. Praying for Jerusalem and the people living in the city was automatic for the prophet. I can't believe that not praying for Jerusalem and the people living in the city was easy. But it was what God had demanded.

However, as hard as it was for Jeremiah, I think it was even more challenging for God. Jeremiah had spent his life praying and prophesying to these stubborn people of which he was a part. But God had spent even longer leading these stiff-necked people and being turned down by them. But now they had gone too far. The die was set, and what was coming now couldn't be changed. As a result, probably for the first time in his life, Jeremiah tried to not pray for Jerusalem and the people who lived within its walls. God didn't want to say no to his faithful servant's pleas, so he instructed him not to ask.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 15

I will pull up your skirts over your face that your shame may be seen— Jeremiah 13:26

Today's Scripture Reading (May 25, 2023): Jeremiah 13

In the days following the Coronation ceremony in Britain, we discovered that King Charles III had an important audience with one of his subjects. Okay, maybe I am reading too much into it, but if I were King Charles, this meeting would have been the most important meeting on my schedule. No, it wasn't the one he likely had with Britain's Prime Minister or one of the religious leaders that would be involved in the Coronation ceremony. This audience was with a nine-year-old boy living in Great Britain. His name? George, the son of William, the son of King Charles.

The young prince had a King-sized problem that only the King could fix. George was concerned about something that had to do with the coronation ceremony. Or, more precisely, Prince George was worried about what he was being asked to wear as one of the pages whose duty was to carry the train of the King's robe during the ceremony. The prince didn't want to wear the white knee-length breeches and tights traditionally worn by pages for such events. The young prince was afraid that the costume that he was to wear would mean that the kids would make fun of him at school. I am not sure if it is comforting or alarming that even the future King of the United Kingdom has to worry about school bullies. But George's plea to "Grandpa Wales," who happened to be King of the United Kingdom, was for a change in the dress code.

As I was thinking about this audience between the King and his grandson, I had to remind myself that this ceremony was more public than it had ever been. The ceremony has only been televised twice in history, and the last time it was televised was seventy years ago. And even then, the audience wasn't near what it was for King Charles III. George knew that all his friends, and even those who didn't like him, would see him in this ceremony. And so, he was concerned.

Grandpa Wales agreed with his grandson and changed the dress code for his pages, allowing them to wear trousers that went well with their military uniforms. And again, as a biased grandfather of a pair of nine-year-olds, it is simply what a Grandfather does, proving that maybe the difference between commoner and royalty might not be as vast as we sometimes think.

Jeremiah is speaking of the future of Judah, and he tells them that there is no doubt in his mind that they are going to captivity. And this nation, who refused to humble themselves before God, would now be humiliated by their enemies. They had been given every opportunity to have an audience with the King of Kings and change the situation, but they refused. And now, they would face the consequences of their actions and be ridiculed by the bullies of Babylon.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 14

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing: - 2 Chronicles 36:22

Today's Scripture Reading (May 24, 2023): 2 Chronicles 36

From Jeremiah's perch in history, he watched the desolation of Israel. Everything that he fought for was gone. The prophet watched as the Babylonians tore the walls of the city down and likely wept as he saw Jerusalem's Temple destroyed. At the time of Jerusalem's destruction, Jeremiah planned to stay in the city until his death. But that wouldn't happen either. Ultimately, Jeremiah would be kidnapped by his supporters and forced into Egypt, where the prophet would spend the rest of his life.

A friend reminds me that if a prophet's prophecies did not come true, the prophet would be put to death. And it is true, but there is also a problem. Many prophets didn't live long enough to see their prophecies come true. And Jeremiah stands among them. Jeremiah made several statements that he did not live long enough to see fulfilled. And that included what might be his most famous proclamation. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jeremiah 29:11). The realization of the truth of these words was not for the generation who received then, but rather for the next generation that was born in exile.

But Jeremiah also spoke of the victory of Cyrus over the Babylonians.

I will make her officials and wise men drunk,
    her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep forever and not awake,"
    declares the King, whose name is the Lord Almighty.

 

This is what the Lord Almighty says:

"Babylon's thick wall will be leveled
    and her high gates set on fire;
the peoples exhaust themselves for nothing,
    the nations' labor is only fuel for the flames" (Jeremiah 51:57-58)

But Cyrus's defeat of Babylon wouldn't happen until Jeremiah had been in the grave for over fifty years. Our hope might be that the prophecies will come true swiftly, but regardless of the prophet, God keeps his own timeline, and we all play by his rules. 

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 13

The Passover had not been observed like this in Israel since the days of the prophet Samuel; and none of the kings of Israel had ever celebrated such a Passover as did Josiah, with the priests, the Levites and all Judah and Israel who were there with the people of Jerusalem. – 2 Chronicles 35:18

Today's Scripture Reading (May 23, 2023): 2 Chronicles 35

One of the beliefs I ran into when researching the relationship between the Bible and the LGBTQ community was the understanding that the church's LGBTQ beliefs have stayed consistent over time. But doing a historical survey of practices indicate that that is not true. There have been changes over time in what we believe concerning the Bible and the LGBTQ community. For instance, early in the Christian Era, one writer argued that LGBTQ laws in the Bible were tied to food laws. The author even went as far as to say that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was that the cities of the plains violated Jewish food laws. This accusation was made even though the destruction of Sodom and her sister cities happened before the food laws were even given to Moses.

During the Middle Ages, the Bible's instructions against homosexuality were believed to be directed at the clergy, especially those trying to get around the emerging demand for celibacy in the priesthood. Apparently, at that time, the prohibition wasn't intended for the average person; it was directed at the clergy who had opted for same-sex relationships in the belief that the celibacy regulations for priests only applied to priests who were in a male-female relationship. When it comes to discussing the LGBTQ community and the church, my position has always been, "If you can make a Biblical argument, I am willing to listen." Still, even I struggle with tying LGBTQ practice to the Jewish food laws or to only applying to the Christian priesthood.

One word we have for the change in beliefs is "drift." Slowly, we change what we believe until what emerges is nothing like what was initially expected. The problem is that we think that our current beliefs haven't changed from the original intentions. And the situation becomes even worse if we aren't sure what was originally intended. It is like playing a game of telephone, where you pass a word or short phrase from person to person down a line until you reach the last person, and then you get to compare the result with the original word that started the process. Sometimes the result is hilarious. But it can also be scary, especially if we have to take the word that we have at the end without an opportunity to compare it with the word that began the process.

Josiah wanted to celebrate the Passover. But there were two huge problems. The first was simply that the Passover had not been observed regularly. As a result, an educational process would be needed to explain why the Passover was an important celebration and why the people were required to participate.

But the second issue, and maybe even the more important one, was that the celebration of Passover had gone through a period of "drift." The way that the Passover was being celebrated was not how Israel had been instructed to celebrate God's protective hand leading the nation out of Egypt. And so, Josiah, under the guidance of the priests in the temple, went back to the beginning to figure out how Passover was intended to be celebrated. And for the first time in generations, the people celebrated the holiday as it was supposed to be celebrated.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 36

But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was celebrated to the LORD in Jerusalem. – 2 Kings 23:23

Today's Scripture Reading (May 22, 2023): 2 Kings 23

I have always been very impatient. I want things now. I wouldn't say I like to wait. I really don't want to wait for food. If I am honest, it is probably one of the reasons why my first choice for food is always fast food. I was recently at a Mcdonald's restaurant for a quick lunch, and even though I am impatient and want my food now, I thought they did an okay job. But evidently, the manager was a little more impatient than I was because as I was leaving, he met me at the door and gave me coupons because he felt the service was slow. And honestly, I hadn't been impressed with that particular store up until that point.

I talk a bit about a fast-food religion. It is the idea that we demand immediacy from our religious beliefs. It is the reason why I think that the four spiritual laws have been able to gain such a grasp on the evangelical church. It is just an understanding of one, two, three, and four, and now you are a Christian, and we can move on to the next person or event. There is a sense of immediacy to four steps and a simple prayer. But I believe that spirituality is, at its roots, a journey; our spirituality really should have more in common with a slow boat to China than the Star Trek transporter, but that isn't quite as attractive because it isn't as immediate.

Our image of Josiah was that he wanted to please God and follow him from the very beginning of his reign. But Josiah's reign started when he was only eight years old. And as an eight-year-old, there was probably little that he could do. But he began moving Israel toward where he believed God wanted them to be. And then, he found a portion of the Bible (probably the book of Deuteronomy) and began to realize how far away he still was from the ideal. And it wasn't until eighteen years after his reign began with the intent to serve the God of his grandfather Manasseh that his journey had progressed far enough to celebrate the Passover the way it was meant to be. And God wasn't through with Josiah even then.

We do our spirituality an injustice when we treat it like a fast-food restaurant. It is a journey, and years into our expedition of spirituality, we are still learning what we need to know to be spiritual. But we also have to place ourselves in spaces where we can learn. Spirituality, maybe especially Christianity, is a journey on which we need to spend the rest of our lives traveling. There is never a point as long as we are breathing where we can say that our spiritual journey has finished. We will always have more to learn.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 35

See also 2 Chronicles 35:19

They will sow wheat but reap thorns; they will wear themselves out but gain nothing. They will bear the shame of their harvest because of the LORD's fierce anger." – Jeremiah 12:13

Today's Scripture Reading (May 21, 2023): Jeremiah 12

The U.S. News compiled its list of worst U.S. Presidents, and James Buchanan was at the top of that list. Buchanan was a one-term president who served the United States just before the election of Abraham Lincoln, and he had barely gotten out of the White House before the bullets started to be fired in the American Civil War. When examining the beginning of the Civil War, most historians place some of the blame squarely on the shoulders of James Buchanan. Most agree that, in the years preceding the war, when there was still a chance to bring the North and South together, Buchanan was stubbornly inactive and did nothing. But some historians believe that it was much worse than that.

Americans have conveniently misled themselves about the presidency of James Buchanan, preferring to classify him as indecisive and inactive ... In fact Buchanan's failing during the crisis over the Union was not inactivity, but rather his partiality for the South, a favoritism that bordered on disloyalty in an officer pledged to defend all the United States. He was that most dangerous of chief executives, a stubborn, mistaken ideologue whose principles held no room for compromise. His experience in government had only rendered him too self-confident to consider other views. In his betrayal of the national trust, Buchanan came closer to committing treason than any other president in American history (Jean Baker, Biographer, 2004).

James Buchanan believed that history would be kind to him, but that time in history hasn't arrived yet. The American Civil War seems to have been the fruit of all of Buchanan's labor as President. It is little wonder that James Buchanan makes the lists of the worst made by many historians.   

Jeremiah warns the Babylonian who are intent on invading Judah; don't get too comfortable in your strength or celebrate the fall of the cities of Judah. The harvest that they are hoping for isn't coming. All they will receive is thorns, even though they will sow wheat. And they will be ashamed because the harvest will make it look like they don't know what they are doing. They will wear themselves out trying to bring in the harvest, yet the result will be the same as if a lazy person who refuses to do anything was responsible for the crop's seeding. And because of that, it will be to their shame.

And the reality is that Jeremiah was right. After the reigns of Napopolassar (21 years) and Nebuchadnezzar II (43 years), the subsequent four kings only reigned for a total of twenty-three years. And as the Empire died, it looked like it was being ruled by a group of people who were too lazy to fight.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 23

From the time I brought your ancestors up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again, saying, "Obey me." – Jeremiah 11:7

Today's Scripture Reading (May 20, 2023): Jeremiah 11

We live in a twenty-four-hour news cycle. News is available at every moment of the day. Early on in the transition, I remember conversing with one local television station about how they attract viewers to their nightly news. Then, the way you attracted viewers was to give a teaser to the story and then "Watch the News at Six for the details." But the problem with that method both then and now is that if I, as a viewer, am interested in the story, I don't have to wait until "News at Six." I can turn to a twenty-four-hour channel or just look up the story on my favorite news channel right now to get the story.

We live in a twenty-four-hour news cycle, but that doesn't mean there is twenty-four hours' worth of news. If you watch a dedicated news channel, you will notice that many of the stories are just repeated hour after hour. If you get up early in the morning and watch the news, most days, you will get a good understanding of the news that will be repeated throughout the day. And anything important that you miss will lead off the morning news tomorrow.

Once again, we have a simplification of the translation in this verse in the phrase "I warned them again and again." And while the intent of the phrase is correct, the actual wording is more "I began warning them early in the morning and continued to warn them throughout the day." If you arose early, I was there warning them, but I didn't just warn them once; I kept warning them, repeatedly sending my messengers to them saying, "Obey me." So maybe the verse should be translated "I warned them when they first came out of Egypt up until today, and on each day, they received a warning early in the morning and continued to warn them as the day passed."

As a result, there is no way that the people could argue that they didn't know. They knew; they just ignored the warnings so the people could do whatever it might have been that they wanted to do. They were purposefully disobedient. And so, God would react accordingly. He would always love his people, but the Promised Land was a fulfillment of a covenant, and soon, the people that God loved would be removed from their land.

Jeremiah wants his audience to realize that this moment didn't have to be this way. They could have listened. They could have followed the law and the prophets, but they didn't deem the covenant important, so the covenant was about to fail.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 12

Personal Note: Happy Birthday to my wonderful Daughter-in-law, Michelle.

Were you angry with the rivers, LORD? Was your wrath against the streams? Did you rage against the sea when you rode your horses and your chariots to victory? – Habakkuk 3:8

Today's Scripture Reading (May 19, 2023): Habakkuk 3

Wind. It is a presence in all of our lives. On a hot day, we are thankful for the presence of a gentle breeze to cool the sweat sticking to our skin. On a cold winter's day, the wind blows the snow obscuring the landscape and stinging our skin. A tornado can suddenly rip apart our lives, and hurricanes are the nightmare of coastal centers worldwide. And all of it is a result of the wind.

Maybe we can blame global warming for the increased frequency of destructive storms, but we can't really blame the wind. But wind is also just a natural occurrence. It is the result of other weather phenomenon, geography, water temperature, and barometric pressure. When a winter blizzard interrupts our plans there is no use in blaming the wind. The storm isn't personal. It just does what is told without the power to refuse.

Habakkuk has a series of questions for his God. And he is focusing on Israel's release from Egypt. Our sense of the poetic shows its presence here. While we seem to like to vary our language, my grammar checker seems to continually remind me that I am using a word too often and should opt for a synonym, the root word for both "rivers" and "streams" is the same Hebrew word, transliterated as "nahar." And, while the word's translation is plural, it is actually two specific rivers in question. The first is the Nile. There, Moses stretched his hand over the water of the Nile, changing it to blood so that the people could no longer drink the water, and the fish living in the river died. The question directed at God was, "Were you angry with the river?" Repeating the word "nahar" seems to lead us to conclude that the second river was the Jordan. There, God rolled back the water to allow Israel to cross over into the Promised Land. And again, Habakkuk asks the question, "God, were you angry with the water of the Jordan?"

In the same way, the Sea indicated here would have been the Red Sea. God, when you rolled back the water of the Red Sea to allow Israel to cross, and when you drove the Egyptian horses and chariots into the water, was that because you were angry with the water of the sea? And, of course, the answer to all of these questions is no. Water, like the wind, only goes where it is told to go. It is a waste of energy to rage against the water, just like it is a waste to be angry with the wind. God's anger was with Egypt, and water was simply a tool God used to chasten them and try to correct their behavior.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 11