Thoughts on the Bible Readings September 17th (2 Kings 24, 25; Ezekiel 13; Luke 9)

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=""]2 Kings 24 records that Yahweh judged His people for their tragic treatment of His Law. There was no other remedy than to remove them from the Promised Land. It is believed that both books of Kings were written by Jeremiah to tell Judah why they were in Babylonian captivity. Chapters 24 and 25 record the fall and capture of Jerusalem and Nebuchadnezzar's brutal treatment of the treacherous Zedekiah. The temple was destroyed and the large bronze furniture broken up. The silver and golden vessels were preserved and taken to Babylon. Gedaliah was appointed Governor by Nebuchadnezzar over the remainder of the people who were not taken to Babylon. Gedaliah was slain by Ishmael causing the local militia captains, the sons of Kareah, to panic and flee to Egypt to escape the coming retribution of Babylon. When Evil-Merodach comes to the Babylonian throne Jehoiachin is released from prison and privileged to eat at the Babylonian king's table. Ezekiel 13 records some of the abominable idolatrous practices of Judah, The idolatrous people indulged in supposedly hunting for "souls" (the non-existent spirit life of the departed) which Ezekiel chapter 13 calls 'hunting for souls'. What exactly this mumbo jumbo involved is hard to envision, but Isaiah also counsels against such wizardry - see Isaiah 8 verses 19-20. Luke 9 tells us of the commissioning of "the twelve" who were sent to Israel's lost sheep. These Apostles were seemingly unprepared for such a task but took the Gospel forth in faith - note the similarity in the opening verses of Luke chapters 8 and 9 (8 verses 1 compare with 9 verses 1-2). The record tells us of Herod's perplexity on hearing the report of Jesus' ministry. Herod hearing of the miracles being done by Jesus and he becomes frightened believing that these miracles might have been done by John the Baptist risen from the dead. The chapter tells us of the feeding of the 5,000 which is followed by the record of Jesus' prayer in solitude. We are told that this prayer of our Lord follows Peter's confession that "Jesus was the Christ of God". Jesus foretells his sufferings, crucifixion and resurrection. The disciples are exhorted that it is imperative to take up one's stake (Greek 'stauros') and follow Christ. The remaining segments of the chapter centre on Elijah. The transfiguration is recorded in verses 28-36 - where Moses, representing the Law; and Elijah the Prophets - are seen with our Lord in glory. The Father clearly showing and declaring the surpassing, excellent glory of His Son. Peter comments on the wonderful lessons learned then verses 2 Peter 1 verses 16-21. Read these aloud and ponder their significance for your belief in the inspired Word of God. A paralytic boy is cured by the Lord, when the 9 Apostles who had not gone into the Mount were frustrated by their inability to heal the boy. Once more Jesus tells them of his coming suffering, which message, yet again, fell on deaf ears. Sadly, the Apostles were preoccupied with their feelings of self-importance. Incredibly those who saw the events of the transfiguration should have seen that their Lord alone was great and that they were merely the servants of the coming King. The twelve rebuke a man who is performing miracles in the name of Jesus Christ. Their chastising was because that man was not of their company. Jesus declared - that they who are not against us must be for us. Jesus was next turned away from a Samaritan village since he was clearly intent on going to Jerusalem. James and John, rightly given the appellation "sons of thunder", sought to bring fire upon that village as Elijah had done in 2 Kings 1. Jesus rebukes his Apostles and alludes to the saving mission of the 'whisper of a voice' - found in Elisha's mission. The chapter concludes with three would be disciples being challenged by Christ Jesus to count the cost of following him. The three examples are verses 1) who wanted to make discipleship a second priority. 2) the next would follow when family responsibility had passed - this would always be a problem and left with those not willing to embrace the challenges of following Christ; and, 3) the third had business matters which required attention - Jesus tells that man needs to learn the lesson of which is seen in Elisha's calling 1 Kings 19 verses 19-21. Thanks for joining us - we pray you found these comments helpful in your appreciation of God's words, join again tomorrow Penned by Warwick Rosser and his team, produced by Christadelphianvideo.org See more Thoughts from the Christadelphian Dialy Bible Reading Planner (By R.Roberts) here... [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row] https://christadelphianvideo.org/thoughts-on-the-bible-readings-september-17th-2-kings-24-25-ezekiel-13-luke-9/?feed_id=100615&_unique_id=68c92f6333530