Joel 2:1-17
The day of the Lord is coming, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was of old nor ever will be in ages to come.
The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?
"Even now," declares the Lord, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning"
Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly.
The locust army becomes a picture of the invading army of God on the day of his judgment: the sky black with insects; the 'scorched earth' in their wake; their inexorable, totally irresistible, onward march. This is what God's judgments will be like. Who can bear it?
Why?
The good news is that no one need endure God's judgment. He is still calling people to repent. Joel calls the whole nation to turn to God and plead for mercy.
God is waiting for us, turn to the Lord and plead for mercy.
How?
The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it? Turn to the Lord with all your heard.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Saturday, May 30, 2015
The Day of the Lord is near
Joel 1:1-20
Surely the joy of mankind is withered away, even the flocks of sheep are suffering.
For the grain offerings and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God.
Alas for that day! For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty.
The prophecy contains few clues to the date when it was written. We may guess at date - and guesses range from the 8th century BC to the 4th century BBC and later - but the book itself is timeless.
Joel is obviously familiar with themes which also occur in Isaiah, Amos and Ezekiel - particularly the 'Day of the Lord', when God will finally judge the world and his own people. What prompts the prophet's message is a dire emergency, a plague of all-consuming locusts.
As the insect swarms hide the sun ad eat up the food supply, the prophet sees in them the darkness and suffering which will characterize that Day.
He calls the nation to repent, for God still loves his people and longs to rescue and restore them.
Why?
Even in the past 100 years Jerusalem has been stripped of all vegetation by a plague of locusts like the one Joel describes so vividly. The swarm of several million insects is carried into Palestine by the desert wind from Arabia.
The locusts grows rapidly from larva to winged adult, and at every stage its appetite is insatiable. It is worse than an invading army; when it moves on there is no green or growing thing left. There is nothing to offer to God, or so little that the people are using all they have to ward off starvation.
For Joel, the locust swarm is a sign, a warning of the terror of the Day of the Lord, God's approaching judgment day. He calls for a national day of prayer.
How?
Repent and pray to the Lord, for the Day of the Lord is coming soon!
Surely the joy of mankind is withered away, even the flocks of sheep are suffering.
For the grain offerings and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God.
Alas for that day! For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty.
The prophecy contains few clues to the date when it was written. We may guess at date - and guesses range from the 8th century BC to the 4th century BBC and later - but the book itself is timeless.
Joel is obviously familiar with themes which also occur in Isaiah, Amos and Ezekiel - particularly the 'Day of the Lord', when God will finally judge the world and his own people. What prompts the prophet's message is a dire emergency, a plague of all-consuming locusts.
As the insect swarms hide the sun ad eat up the food supply, the prophet sees in them the darkness and suffering which will characterize that Day.
He calls the nation to repent, for God still loves his people and longs to rescue and restore them.
Why?
Even in the past 100 years Jerusalem has been stripped of all vegetation by a plague of locusts like the one Joel describes so vividly. The swarm of several million insects is carried into Palestine by the desert wind from Arabia.
The locusts grows rapidly from larva to winged adult, and at every stage its appetite is insatiable. It is worse than an invading army; when it moves on there is no green or growing thing left. There is nothing to offer to God, or so little that the people are using all they have to ward off starvation.
For Joel, the locust swarm is a sign, a warning of the terror of the Day of the Lord, God's approaching judgment day. He calls for a national day of prayer.
How?
Repent and pray to the Lord, for the Day of the Lord is coming soon!
Friday, May 29, 2015
God will not fail to his promise and his word
Genesis 50:1-26
Jacob's son did as he had commanded them: They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the filed of Machpelah, near Mamre, which Abraham had bought as a burial place from Ephraon the Hittite, along with the field.
Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.
Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place." Joseph died at the age of 110.
It was normal to employ professional embalmers, but perhaps Joseph wanted to avoid religious entanglements(糾葛). Two centuries later the normal embalming period was 70 days. The mourning observed for Jacob was only two shorter than that for a pharaoh.
Why?
Joseph trust in the Lord that will bring his descendant back to the promised land.
Joseph returns to Canaan at last, but only to lay his father to rest in the family tomb at Hebron - still their sole possession in the promised land.
The huge canvas of Genesis, begun with the great strokes of creation and pulsating life in Eden, continued through destruction, promise, and the birth of a new nation in Canaan, closes with the death of Joseph in Egypt. Yet there will be more to tell. "God will not fail to ... take you from here to the land which he promised." Joseph says, full of trust and hope to the last.
How?
God is the sovereign Lord. God never fail to his promise and his word.
Jacob's son did as he had commanded them: They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the filed of Machpelah, near Mamre, which Abraham had bought as a burial place from Ephraon the Hittite, along with the field.
Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.
Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place." Joseph died at the age of 110.
It was normal to employ professional embalmers, but perhaps Joseph wanted to avoid religious entanglements(糾葛). Two centuries later the normal embalming period was 70 days. The mourning observed for Jacob was only two shorter than that for a pharaoh.
Why?
Joseph trust in the Lord that will bring his descendant back to the promised land.
Joseph returns to Canaan at last, but only to lay his father to rest in the family tomb at Hebron - still their sole possession in the promised land.
The huge canvas of Genesis, begun with the great strokes of creation and pulsating life in Eden, continued through destruction, promise, and the birth of a new nation in Canaan, closes with the death of Joseph in Egypt. Yet there will be more to tell. "God will not fail to ... take you from here to the land which he promised." Joseph says, full of trust and hope to the last.
How?
God is the sovereign Lord. God never fail to his promise and his word.
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Jacob was walking along with the Lord and be blessed by the Lord
Genesis 49:1-33
Reuben, turbulent as the waters, you will no longer excel, for you went up onto your father's bed .
Simeon and Levi are brothers - their swords are weapons of violence, I will scatter them in Jacob and disperse them in Israel.
Judah your brothers will praise you; Your are a lion's cub, who dares to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.
Zebulen will live by the seashore and become a haven for ships;
Issachar is a rawboned donkey lying down between two saddlebags.
Dan will provide justice for his people as one of the bribes of Israel.
I look for your deliverance, O Lord.
Gad will be attacked by a bad of raiders, but he will attack them at their heels.
Asher's food will be rich;
Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns.
Joseph is a fruitful vine, whose branches climb over a wall.
Because of your father's God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessing of the deep that lies below blessings of the breast and womb... Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, on the brow眉 of the prince among his brothers.
Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
scepter : an ornamented staff carried by rulers on ceremonial occasions as a symbol of sovereignty.
Why?
The outrage recorded in 35:22 costs Reuben his birthright a firstborn son.
Jacob's judgment of Simeon's and Levi's conduct at Shechem is clear. Both tribes will be scattered.
From Judah comes the royal line of Israel, a coming golden age and the Messiah.
Although near enough to acquire wealth from maritime trade, Zenulun's territory did not in face stretch to the sea.
Gad: Such raids are recorded on the 9th-century Moabite Stone.
Jacob's blessings and instructions decided the ways of descendant of Israel 12 tribes. Jacob is walking along with the Lord so he can say above instructions.
How?
Because of the Almighty, who blesses me with blessings of the heavens above. He is the fountain of blessing.
Reuben, turbulent as the waters, you will no longer excel, for you went up onto your father's bed .
Simeon and Levi are brothers - their swords are weapons of violence, I will scatter them in Jacob and disperse them in Israel.
Judah your brothers will praise you; Your are a lion's cub, who dares to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.
Zebulen will live by the seashore and become a haven for ships;
Issachar is a rawboned donkey lying down between two saddlebags.
Dan will provide justice for his people as one of the bribes of Israel.
I look for your deliverance, O Lord.
Gad will be attacked by a bad of raiders, but he will attack them at their heels.
Asher's food will be rich;
Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns.
Joseph is a fruitful vine, whose branches climb over a wall.
Because of your father's God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessing of the deep that lies below blessings of the breast and womb... Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, on the brow眉 of the prince among his brothers.
Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
scepter : an ornamented staff carried by rulers on ceremonial occasions as a symbol of sovereignty.
Why?
The outrage recorded in 35:22 costs Reuben his birthright a firstborn son.
Jacob's judgment of Simeon's and Levi's conduct at Shechem is clear. Both tribes will be scattered.
From Judah comes the royal line of Israel, a coming golden age and the Messiah.
Although near enough to acquire wealth from maritime trade, Zenulun's territory did not in face stretch to the sea.
Gad: Such raids are recorded on the 9th-century Moabite Stone.
Jacob's blessings and instructions decided the ways of descendant of Israel 12 tribes. Jacob is walking along with the Lord so he can say above instructions.
How?
Because of the Almighty, who blesses me with blessings of the heavens above. He is the fountain of blessing.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Blessing from our heavenly father is greater over any other
Genesis 48:1-22
Israel remembered what God has promised to him, so Israel blessed Joseph's two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
Israel blessed Ephraim with his right hand and to Manasseh with his left hand, for he knew younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become a group of nations.
Israel said to Joseph, "to you, as one who is over your brother, I give you the ridge of land I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow."
Why?
Once again a cycle is completed: from the blessing of Jacob by his blind old father to the blessing Joseph's sons (singled out in Hebrew 11:21 as an act of faith).
How simple Jacob's hands cross over to convey God's blessing to the younger son, in contrast to the Jacob and Esau story in chapter 27, Ephraim and Manasseh are counted as Jacob's own sons, so Joseph enjoys a double inheritance.
The spoken blessing looks to the distant future, when the descendants of these twelve will occupy the promised land.
How?
Father's blessing is important than any other, Like Issac blessed Jacob and Jacob blessed Ephraim. So as our blessing from heavenly father is greater than any other.
Israel remembered what God has promised to him, so Israel blessed Joseph's two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
Israel blessed Ephraim with his right hand and to Manasseh with his left hand, for he knew younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become a group of nations.
Israel said to Joseph, "to you, as one who is over your brother, I give you the ridge of land I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow."
Why?
Once again a cycle is completed: from the blessing of Jacob by his blind old father to the blessing Joseph's sons (singled out in Hebrew 11:21 as an act of faith).
How simple Jacob's hands cross over to convey God's blessing to the younger son, in contrast to the Jacob and Esau story in chapter 27, Ephraim and Manasseh are counted as Jacob's own sons, so Joseph enjoys a double inheritance.
The spoken blessing looks to the distant future, when the descendants of these twelve will occupy the promised land.
How?
Father's blessing is important than any other, Like Issac blessed Jacob and Jacob blessed Ephraim. So as our blessing from heavenly father is greater than any other.
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Christian are more honor and superior than any other in the world
Genesis 47:1-31
Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.旅居"
People said to Joseph "You have saved out lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh." So Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, and it stands to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh's.
Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years.
Why?
Under Joseph's economic policy Pharaoh gains ownership of the land, and the people become his tenants. Only the priests keep their estates.
Jacob was more honor than Pharaoh for he blessed Pharaoh.
Jacob gave himself what his life was, "Few and evil of the years of my life." Most people in the world are few and evil of the years, only under the blessing of the Lord may have the joy and free in his life.
Tax gives to Pharaoh is fifth, our devotion to the Lord is tithe, but the meaning are different and tithe is coming with promise and blessing from the Lord.
How?
Christian is more honor and superior than any other in the world for we are belong to the Lord.
Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.旅居"
People said to Joseph "You have saved out lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh." So Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, and it stands to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh's.
Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years.
Why?
Under Joseph's economic policy Pharaoh gains ownership of the land, and the people become his tenants. Only the priests keep their estates.
Jacob was more honor than Pharaoh for he blessed Pharaoh.
Jacob gave himself what his life was, "Few and evil of the years of my life." Most people in the world are few and evil of the years, only under the blessing of the Lord may have the joy and free in his life.
Tax gives to Pharaoh is fifth, our devotion to the Lord is tithe, but the meaning are different and tithe is coming with promise and blessing from the Lord.
How?
Christian is more honor and superior than any other in the world for we are belong to the Lord.
Monday, May 25, 2015
Blessed way to Egypt
Genesis 46:1-34
Israel when he reached Beersheba,he offered sacrifices to the God.
All those who went to Egypt with Jacob-those who were his direct descendants, not counting his sons' wives-numbered sixty-six persons.
With the sons who had been born to Joseph in Egypt, the number s of Jacob's family, which went to Egypt, were 70 in all.
Why?
The people of Israel, Jacob's household, set out for Egypt with God's reassuring promise that he will accompany them and bring them back by then a nation.
The Egyptian dislike of the nomadic shepherds is probably no different from the feeling of many settled people towards wandering gypsies. Here the dislike serve a useful purpose to keeping the family as an isolated unit. Otherwise group identity might quickly lost.
Jacob learned before he went to Egypt he made sacrifice to the Lord. He knew that his way is under the guidence of the Lord, not him.
God's blessing is more important than what I am doing.
How?
My way needs to be blessed by the Lord.
Israel when he reached Beersheba,he offered sacrifices to the God.
All those who went to Egypt with Jacob-those who were his direct descendants, not counting his sons' wives-numbered sixty-six persons.
With the sons who had been born to Joseph in Egypt, the number s of Jacob's family, which went to Egypt, were 70 in all.
Why?
The people of Israel, Jacob's household, set out for Egypt with God's reassuring promise that he will accompany them and bring them back by then a nation.
The Egyptian dislike of the nomadic shepherds is probably no different from the feeling of many settled people towards wandering gypsies. Here the dislike serve a useful purpose to keeping the family as an isolated unit. Otherwise group identity might quickly lost.
Jacob learned before he went to Egypt he made sacrifice to the Lord. He knew that his way is under the guidence of the Lord, not him.
God's blessing is more important than what I am doing.
How?
My way needs to be blessed by the Lord.
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