II Kings 23: Consecration And Desecration

The Bible emphatically states that the best king Judah ever had was Josiah: "Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all  his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him" (vs. 25).  Josiah earned his reputation from his spectacular acts of consecration and desecration.

II Kings 22: A Blast From The Past

An unintentional time capsule is discovered in II Kings 22.  During the course of a rather routine maintenance project in the temple, the book of the law was found (vs. 8).  Apparently containing previously unknown information, the book is taken first to the king's secretary, then to King Josiah himself.  When it is read to the king, he tears his clothes because he realizes how far the nation had fallen away from God's law.  Determined to make it right, Josiah sends a delegation to inquire of the Lord.  Interestingly, these men consult with a woman, the prophetess Huldah (vs. 14).  She informs them that, because of the idolatry of the people, the Lord is surely sending destruction upon Judah.  However, because of the humble, penitent response of Josiah, God has mercifully determined that the day of reckoning will not happen during his reign.

II Kings 21: God Vs. Gods

The spiritual history of Israel can be viewed as a war for allegiance fought between the Lord God and the lesser idols that sometimes swayed the hearts of the people.  Manasseh, a king of Judah who ruled for 55 years, goes down in scripture as one of the worst kings for his misguided leadership in turning the nation to worship false gods.  In fact, the Bible lays the blame for Judah's destruction at his feet.

Nahum 3: Nothing Lasts Forever

"Are you better than Thebes?...You also will be drunken, you will go into hiding; you will seek a refuge from your enemies" (vs. 8 and 11).

Nahum 2: Nineveh Faces The Judgment

God had once had in mind to overthrow wicked Nineveh.  But, in His mercy, He sent Jonah to warn the city by way of whale*.  To the prophet's own exquisite displeasure, Jonah's ministry succeeded and the Ninevites of his day repented.  Their city was saved.  But in Nahum's day, there would be no such escape for the empire this time.

Nahum 1: When Negatives Are Positive

Jealous...Wrathful...Rage...Vengeance.  These words sounds like they are describing a truly awful person, someone that good Christians should avoid (or perhaps witness to!)  Yet the Old Testament prophet Nahum applies them to God, and he expects that we should view such typically negative terms positively!

Psalm 118: The Art Of Repetition And Redundancy

Did you see what I did there?  One of the literary techniques employed by many of the psalms is the use of repetition to drive a point home.  Psalm 118 may be one of the best examples of this.  In addition to housing a number of classic, pithy, prophetic sayings, it also sounds like a psalm that Dr. Seuss could have written!