Thought from today’s Bible reading from Proverbs 19-21.
The sluggard is mentioned several times in the book of Proverbs. In this passage, we learn something else about him.
“The sluggard does not plow after the autumn, so he begs during the harvest and has nothing” (Proverbs 20:4).
We understand that the sluggard has nothing and is forced to beg because he refuses to work. Other passages also make this point. But this verse builds upon that truth and teaches us something else.
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Thought from today’s Bible reading from Proverbs 16-18.
“A worker’s appetite works for him, for his hunger urges him on” (Proverbs 16:26).
Hunger is the reminder that we need to eat in order to survive. That hunger motivates us to do something that God expects us to do – work. Those who have the ability to work must do so (2 Thessalonians 3:10), from the man who labors by the sweat of his face (Genesis 3:19) to the wife who is a worker at home (Titus 2:5).
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In many ways, our society’s norms and values are quite different from those found in the Bible, particularly in regard to the role and responsibilities of women. Paul instructed Titus to teach the older women about what they were to teach to the younger women. These lessons are still needed today.
“Older women likewise are to be… teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored” (Titus 2:3-5).
Paul mentioned seven lessons the older women were to teach to the younger women. Let us consider each one briefly.
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Thought from today’s Bible reading from 1 Samuel 28-31; Psalm 18.
When David pursued the Amalekites, he left “two hundred who were too exhausted” and carried on with the remaining four hundred men who were with him (1 Samuel 30:10). After they were victorious, they returned to the men who had been left behind.
“When David came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David, who had also been left at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, then David approached the people and greeted them. Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David said, ‘Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.’
“Then David said, ‘You must not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us, who has kept us and delivered into our hand the band that came against us. And who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage; they shall share alike’” (1 Samuel 30:21-24).
On one hand, it is not hard to see where these wicked men were coming from. The two hundred men did not fight; therefore, they should not share in the spoil. But David said they would all share in the spoil. Why? Notice again what David said:
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Thought from today’s Bible reading from Ruth 1-4.
“So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son” (Ruth 4:13).
“So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David” (Ruth 4:17).
Ruth was a Moabite woman who had married one of the children of Israel (Ruth 1:2-4). Yet after her husband died (Ruth 1:5), she was not only welcomed by God, but gave birth to David’s grandfather, Obed. More importantly, she was part of the genealogy of Christ (Matthew 1:5).
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Thought from today’s Bible reading from Joshua 16-18.
As the territory in Canaan was being divided among the tribes, those who descended from Joseph complained that their allotment was insufficient for their people.
“Then the sons of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, ‘Why have you given me only one lot and one portion for an inheritance, since I am a numerous people whom the Lord has thus far blessed?’ Joshua said to them, ‘If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest and clear a place for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.’
“The sons of Joseph said, ‘The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who live in the valley land have chariots of iron, both those who are in Beth-shean and its towns and those who are in the valley of Jezreel.’ Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, ‘You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only, but the hill country shall be yours. For though it is a forest, you shall clear it, and to its farthest borders it shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, even though they have chariots of iron and though they are strong’” (Joshua 17:14-18).
Thought from today’s Bible reading from Joshua 12-15.
Caleb was one of the twelve spies who believed the Israelites could conquer the land of Canaan because God was with them. Though he and Joshua were unable to convince the people, he was promised an inheritance in the land. After the land was divided among the tribes, Caleb asked Joshua to grant him what he was promised.
“You know the word which the Lord spoke to Moses the man of God concerning you and me in Kadesh-barnea. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought word back to him as it was in my heart. Nevertheless my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt with fear; but I followed the Lord my God fully. So Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden will be an inheritance to you and your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God fully.’
“Now behold, the Lord has let me live, just as He spoke, these forty-five years, from the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, when Israel walked in the wilderness; and now behold, I am eighty-five years old today. […] Now then, give me this hill country about which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day that Anakim were there, with great fortified cities; perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I will drive them out as the Lord has spoken” (Joshua 14:6-12).
What does “propitiation” mean? How is “justification” connected to salvation? What does “sanctification” look like in our day-to-day lives? The Bible uses some powerful words to describe God’s plan to save mankind. However, these words are not always easy to understand, especially when they are not part of our everyday vocabulary. This book explores key Bible terms that unlock the message of the gospel.
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Whether you are new to the Bible and want to grow in your understanding or want a simple way to explain these core gospel doctrines to others, this book will be helpful. With a focus on the Scriptures, Big Words in the Bible helps break down these fundamental topics to shed light on the life-changing message of the gospel and the salvation found in it.
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