Aug 9, 2022
JEREMIAH
40-41:
Yesterday
we heard of Jeremiah being put in a dry but muddy well, and being
rescued by the faithful official, Ebed-melech. And we heard the
terrible and painful result of Zedekiah's cowardly failure to do as
repeatedly instructed by the Lord.
Ezekiel— who was about 20 years younger than Jeremiah, prophesied about Zedekiah:
Ezek
12:12 NLT “Even Zedekiah will leave Jerusalem at night through a
hole in the wall, taking only what he can carry with him. He will
cover his face, and his eyes will not see the land he is
leaving.
13 Then I will
throw my net over him and capture him in my snare. I will bring him
to Babylon, the land of the Babylonians, though he will never see
it, and he will die there.
PROVERBS 6:
In
yesterday’s chapter we heard a clear theme:
Prov. 5:15 NLT Drink water from your own
well—
share your love only with your wife.
The teaching in today’s passage is insistent:
Prov. 6:20 NLT My son, obey your father’s
commands,
and
don’t neglect your mother’s instruction.
1CORINTHIANS 15a:
In
yesterday’s reading of chapter 14 Paul wrapped up the theme about
spiritual gifts that he started in chapter 12. Note that at the end
he became vehement and insistent, signalling that he knew there
would be people who would argue with him. I want to underline: Paul
was the apostle of the Lord who wrote 13 books of our New
Testament. Every church and Christian fellowship should take these
instructions seriously. If we don't, we fall into the trap of
thinking we are wiser than Paul (and we can even say, the Holy
Spirit). However, those who seek spiritual gifts in a way that is
not self-glorifying will find that the Spirit of the Lord still
gives authentic gifts.
NLT Translation notes:
1Cor. 15:2 It is this Good News that saves you
if you continue to believe the message I told you[. Otherwise, it
was useless that you became believers in the first place!
//—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in
the first place.///unless you never believed it in the first
place.]
[This is a difficult place to interpret what
Paul meant, and I think at least 3 possibilities deserve
consideration, and all seem to me to be equally
possible.]
29
If the dead will not be raised, what point is there in people being
baptized for those who are dead? Why [have some people done
that//do it] unless the dead will someday rise
again?
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.