Category: Psalms

June 12, read through the Bible in a year.

Today, the last day between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading two Psalms and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..

June 12: Psalm 43, Psalm 44, 1 Chronicles 15, 1 Chronicles 16 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 43. This Psalm can very well be a continuation of Psalm 42. Nevrtheless, it is a Psalm of deep depression and yet continuing praise and hope.

Psalm 44, of the sons of Korah. It is a Psalm recounting the great victories God gave the Israelites when they followed God, and the humiliating defeats they suffered when they did not. Yet the psalmist is confident in God and claims they have not forgotten the Lord and ends with an urgent plea for help.

1 Chronicles 15. The Ark is brought to Jerusalem. When David’s wife Michal, daughter of Saul saw David dancing in the street at the joyous occasion, she despised him.

1 Chronicles 16, The Ark was placed in the Tabernacle, and recorded is David’s song of thanksgiving. After that the regular worship resumed.

 

June 11, read through the Bible in a year.

Today, in between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading three Psalms and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..

June 11: Psalm 40, Psalm 41, Psalm 42, 1 Chronicles 13, 1 Chronicles 14 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 40, of David. It speaks of the servant that comes to do God’s will. David attributes this to himself, but it is spiritually a messianic Psalm.

Psalm 41, of David. A prayer for help in sickness and protection from traitors and other enemies.

Psalm 42, A Maskil of the sons of Korah. A very old Psalm, it mentions Elohim many times, but Jehovah only once. It begins “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.” Enjoy!

1 Chronicles 13.The Ark  is brought from Kirjath Jearim.

1 Chronicles 14, David is firmly established at Jerusalem and with his growing army the Philistines are defeated.

June 9, read through the Bible in a year.

Today, in between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading two Psalms and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..

June 9: Psalm 38, Psalm 39, 1 Chronicles 8, 1 Chronicles 9 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 38, of David, a Petition. This is a Psalm of deep despair and remorse. David acknowledges his sin and cries out to God. Yet, in failing health and abandonment by friends and family his hope in God remains steadfast.

Psalm 39, of David. At the  later part of his life David wrote this Psalm to give words of wisdom, knowing the end for him was near. It is sometimes quoted in part in funerals to give comfort when words are hard to find.

1 Chronicles 8 lists the genealogy of king Saul.

1 Chronicles 9 lists the people, the priests, the Levites and the Levite gatekeepers in Jerusalem that had returned after the captivity in Babylon. It continues with other Levite responsibilities and finally gives another part of the genealogy of king Saul.

 

June 8, read through the Bible in a year.

Today, in between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading one Psalm and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..

June 8: Psalm 37, 1 Chronicles 6, 1 Chronicles 7 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 37, of David. With two lines dedicated to each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, this psalm is one of the longer acrostics in the book of Psalms. David wrote it late in life (“ I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.“) It is full of promises and praise, and was intended for memorization.

1 Chronicles 6 lists the family tree of Levi, musicians in the house of the Lord, the family tree of Aaron and, since the Levites had no land allocation it lists their dwelling places.

1 Chronicles 7 lists the family tree of Issachar, the family tree of Benjamin, the family tree of Naphtali, the family tree of Manasseh West of Jordan, the family tree of Ephraim and the family tree of Asher.

May 22, read through the Bible in a year.

Today we are reading two Psalms one chapter in 1 Kings.

May 22: Psalm 35, Psalm 36, 1 Kings 18 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 35, of David. An urgent call for God to execute His righteous judgment on the enemies of God and vindicate David.

Psalm 36, of David, the Servant of the LORD. This Psalm also tells of wicked people, but then shows the mercies of God and ends up with David recognizing that without God’s protection he too is vulnerable as are we all.

1 Kings 18. This chapter alone made the reading of 1 Kings up to now worthwhile. Elijah meets Obadiah and sends a message to Ahab. When they meet, Elijah challenges Ahab to a competition: Four hundred fifty prophets of Baal and four hundred prophets of Asherah against Elijah alone on Mount Carmel to see whose God is victorious! You know the rest, enjoy reading!

May 21, read through the Bible in a year.

Today we are reading two Psalms one chapter in 1 Kings.

May 21: Psalm 33, Psalm 34, 1 Kings 17 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 33, is a Psalm about the sovereignty of God in creation and history. Here and in many other places of the Bible it encourages us to “sing a new song”.

Psalm 34, of David. This Psalm is an almost acrostic psalm (except for the letter waw). Like many acrostic Psalms, this is to be sung and memorized as it is full of praise and good advice. It contains one notable prophetic reference: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all.
He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken.”

1 Kings 17. With Baal worship in full swing Elijah proclaimed a multi-year drought. He then went into the wilderness by a brook and was fed by ravens. But the brook dried up so he went to a widow in Zarephath. He asks her for water and some bread. That was the last of the flower she had, but she gave it to Elijah anyhow. Later the widow’s son died and Elijah revived him. The jar of flour and the jug of oil never emptied as long as Elijah was in the house, miracle upon miracle!

 

May 19, read through the Bible in a year.

Today we are reading two Psalms  and two chapters in 1 Kings.

May 19: Psalm 31, Psalm 32, 1 Kings 12, 1 Kings 13 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 31, of David. As was so often the case, David was in trouble. He cried out his woes to God, and yet, the Psalm ends with praise and total confidence in God.

Psalm 32, of David. “This was Saint Augustine’s favorite psalm. Augustine had it inscribed on the wall next to his bed before he died in order to meditate on it better.” (James Montgomery Boice)

1 Kings 12 tells of the revolt against Rehoboam and Jeroboam’s Golden Calves at Bethel and Dan to avoid going to Jerusalem.

1 Kings 13. From Judah came a Man of God with a message. It did not go over well, so through lies and intrigues the Man of God was killed by a lion. One quote from this chapter: “After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.” Large portions of the Old Testament described how not to worship, a warning for us.

 

May 18, read through the Bible in a year.

Take a pause between reading the Acts of the Apostles and Paul’s epistle to the Romans by reading two Psalms  and three chapters in 1 Kings.

May 18: Psalm 29, Psalm 30, 1 Kings 9, 1 Kings 10, 1 Kings 11 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 29, of David.A song of praise.  A vivid description of a storm, and how the voice of God speaks through it.

Psalm 30, for the dedication of the Temple. Of David. ( An alternate translation : For the dedication of the House of David.)

1 Kings 9 tells of God’s Second Appearance to Solomon, this time with a promise and a warning. Solomon and Hiram exchanged Gifts and it tells more of Solomon’s achievements.

In 1 Kings 10 the Queen of Sheba visited Solomon and praised him “The half had not been told” of Solomon’s great wisdom and wealth, that is.

1 Kings 11, Solomon’s heart turned from the LORD, ( blame the women). It records Solomon’s adversaries, Jeroboam’s rebellion, and Solomon’s death.

April 19, read through the Bible in a year.

One Psalm and the whole book of Ruth today.

April 19: Psalm 28, Ruth 1, Ruth 2, Ruth 3, Ruth 4 (click on the chapter to begin

reading)

Psalm 28, of David. A Psalm of petition, asking for deliverance, then turning to praise.

Ruth 1, Elimelech’s family goes to Moab, all men die,  Naomi returns with Ruth. The famous quote from Ruth 1: “Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:”

Ruth 2, Ruth meets Boaz.

Ruth 3, Ruth’s Redemption Assured.

Ruth 4, Boaz redeems Ruth, and that’s how Ruth came to be in the genealogy of David and Jesus.

April 18, read through the Bible in a year.

Four Old Testament. chapters today, the end of Judges.

April 18: Psalm 27, Judges 19, Judges 20, Judges 21 (click on the chapter to begin reading)

Psalm 27, of David. “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

Judges 19, The Levite’s Concubine, Gibeah’s Crime, probably the most gruesome story in all the Bible. The Bible is honest and tells it as it was, totally wicked.

Judges 20, Israel’s War with the Benjamites. Another horrendous chapter.

In Judges 21 they had killed nearly all so the Israelites had to find wives for the Benjamites. The book of Judges ends fittingly: “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”