Category: Ezekiel

Day 295 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Hebrews 4:1-10 deals with the Sabbath-rest for the People of God. The Jews in the wilderness could not enter because of disobedience, but we, thanks to Jesus, who believe can enter. Remember, “Today” is the key word. Read it carefully!

Ezekiel 20. Though Israel pleaded with God, He would not listen because of their rebellious idol worship. God through Ezekiel then retold the history of Israel and their idolatry and blasphemy, Israel will be severely punished, but in the end, God will restore Israel. The chapter ends with a prophecy against the South, God will destroy the Southern forests.

Psalm 102. A penitential psalm. It recalls the great deeds and miracles God did for His people in the wilderness, and how they disobeyed and turned to idols, even to the point of child sacrifice. In spite of this God is still merciful and there is still hope. It ends with a Hallelujah!

Day 294 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Hebrews 3 hammers down the truth about today. “Exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” With God, every day is “today” and so should we also live.  More about that tomorrow. Other than that it also mentions that Jesus is far superior to Moses.

Ezekiel 17. God gave a parable about two eagles and a vine. Then the parable is explained. Babylon will eventually fall and Israel will be exalted.

Ezekiel 18. “The soul who sins will die”. By this statement an old proverb is refuted. Instead of the fathers sins being visited on the children it is the individual’s responsibility to turn to God and Live.

Ezekiel 19 is a lament about Israel’s princes degraded, and a second lament about the fruitful vine withering.

Day 293 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Hebrews 2. Do not neglect so great a salvation. God cannot die, He is eternal, but He had to be made a little bit lower than the angels, in the form of man, so that he could die. And so Jesus had to endure sufferings, even taste death for our redemption. He was in every way tempted just like we are, and emphasizes with us in our temptations and trials. Praise God!

Ezekiel 14. Idolatry was to be punished, judgment on the Israelis’ unfaithfulness was inescapable.

Ezekiel 15. The word of the LORD: “Jerusalem is a useless vine.”

Ezekiel 16. In spite of everything God still loved Jerusalem and its harlotry, Adultery and its lovers abuse of her. This was more wicked than what happened in Samaria and Sodom.

Psalm 101, of David. A song of praise and a vow that reads like a new year’s resolution.

Day 292 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Hebrews 1 starts out with one of the most fantastic openings in the Bible. Two more are Genesis 1:1-4 and John 1:1. The rest of Hebrews 1 includes Old Testament passages to support the supremacy of Jesus Christ.

Ezekiel 12. Things were getting worse, people would see visions of peace where there is no peace, Judah’s future captivity is portrayed and the judgment is not to be postponed.

Ezekiel 13 proclaims woe to the false prophets.

Day 291 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days

Philemon. The Apostle Paul’s letter to Philemon is a letter from one person to another, and as such should not be for general consumption, and certainly not in the Holy Scriptures. But it is, and by divine inspiration it is a beautiful example of human redemption and how a former, thieving slave was given his freedom and welcomed into the fellowship of believers as a brother.

Ezekiel 10. The vision God gave Ezekiel continued with him seeing the same whirling wheels as in Ezekiel 1, and while they were hovering over Jerusalem, the Glory of God departed from the Temple.

Ezekiel 11. The prophet saw in a vision that God will bring judgment on wicked counselors, and that He will eventually regather and restore Israel!

Day 290 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Titus 3. The Apostle Paul urged Titus to remember telling the believers they are heirs of grace, so avoid dissension and maintain good works. The letter ends with a final greeting.

Ezekiel 5. God told Ezekiel to prepare himself and prophesy that there will be a sword against Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 6. God proclaimed judgment on idolatrous Israel.

Ezekiel 7. And this judgment on Israel was to be in their near future,

Ezekiel 8. Because there were abominations in the Temple.

Ezekiel 9. The prophet Ezekiel saw in a vision how the idolaters were to be slain.

Day 289 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Titus 2. The Apostle Paul wrote to Titus that in order to have a sound church he must teach sound doctrine. And it is all done through saving grace. Quote to remember: “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

Ezekiel 2 is about Ezekiel’s call to a rebellious Israel.

Ezekiel 3. Ezekiel got the call from God to rebellious Israel and was given the charge to be a watchman.

Ezekiel 4. Ezekiel was told by God to portray the siege of Jerusalem.

Psalm 99. The LORD reigns. Exalt Him for He is holy.

Psalm 100. Six verses telling us to make a jubilant noise to the LORD.

Day 288 of reading the Holy Bible in 365 days.

Titus 1. After the customary greeting, the Apostle Paul instructed Titus to appoint elders and listed the qualifications for elders and their duties. Be careful, some Cretans are corrupt!

Ezekiel 1 tells of Ezekiel’s vision from God. As a 23 year old I read of the Swiss author Erich von Däneken and his wild hypotheses about aliens visiting us and mentioned the wheel in a wheel from Ezekiel’s vision. And this was before I believed! Read the chapter carefully and see what you think. Däneken was speculating widely, but what God showed Ezekiel will challenge your imagination!

Psalm 96 was written to “declare His glory among the nations“, and ends up with “Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth.”

Psalm 97 tells what it means to  rejoice “for the LORD reigneth” and “For you, Lord, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.”

Psalm 98. Let us celebrate! Sing unto the LORD a new song!

November 3: Reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Hebrews 11:1-22 is called “the great faith chapter”. “Without faith it is impossible to please God“. In the faith hall of fame the people recorded are in order, Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, ending Genesis. The rest of this great chapter is tomorrow’s reading.

Ezekiel 47. This chapter is interesting. It tells of the river from the temple, the healing waters, trees by the river and the borders of the land.

Ezekiel 48 delineates the division of the land and tells of the Gates of the City. Finally the name of the Holy city shall be  “The LORD is there.” (“Yahweh Shammah,”)

November 2: Reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Hebrews 10:19-39. Since sacrifice for sins are done away with it means we must live “in a new and living way“. In the letter to the Hebrews there are eight “let us” to tell us how. After that I divert into the difference between dispensationalism  with its ten covenants and covenant theology, which has only three, and the different dispensations, of which we now are in the dispensation of grace. The next question is, when did the dispensation of grace, or church age, as it is also called, start? This too is quite interesting, but that was when it hit me. It doesn’t matter, we live in “today”. This is quite fantastic, and the narrative returns to Hebrews, where it explains that the law of Moses was inferior to the new and living way. It comes with a warning though: Do not sin deliberately! Verses 28 through 31 are quite tough, and give us pause to ponder. Is it really that bad? No, there is still hope for the believer, “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.” The verse 38 was the verse that convinced me I had to be baptized in a believers baptism, even though I had been baptized as an infant. It really had nothing to do with salvation, that was settled at the time of belief. It was an act of faith and obedience to remain in close fellowship with God. “But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.”

Ezekiel 46. The prophet continued outlining the manner of worship and how offerings were to be prepared.