Author: Dave Dishman (Page 317 of 459)

The eunuch saw disaster at the gates of Jerusalem. A hungry army chipped away at the massive walls of the city. The eunuch, Ebed-Melek, an Ethiopian servant in the palace, also watched disaster unfold within the city.

The last voice of reason, Jeremiah, stood hip-deep in mud at the bottom of a well, dropped there by angry ministers. Ebed-Melek rushed before the king and secured permission to haul Jeremiah out. Released from starving in the muck, Jeremiah returned to advising the king.

Ebed-Melek impresses me. He acted fearlessly and decisively. Not a native, he may have been captured or purchased as a slave. Dashing into the king’s chambers on Jeremiah’s behalf showed bravery.

Along with courage Ebed-Melek expressed faith in the Lord. He heard the words of Jeremiah and took them to heart. He followed the God Jeremiah spoke so much about, and the Lord put him in the right place as the right time.

Zedekiah, the king who refused to yield to the Lord, met a dismal end. After putting his sons and nobles to death in front of him, his captors gouged out his eyes and dragged him to prison.

Ebed-Melek, on the other hand, received this message from the Lord: I will save you; you will not fall by the sword but will escape with your life, because you trust in me, declares the Lord.

Jeremiah 38 & 39 in week forty-one of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Gary Meulemans

This time of year brings the end of my gardening season. This week the first hard frosts descended on our part of Colorado. The tomatoes are done, as well as all the annuals. Leaves litter the yard and their companions wait, poised to join them.

I carry mixed emotions through this season. I love no longer cutting the grass, but I miss warm afternoons on the deck.

So when I read this in 1 Peter this week, my back garden came to mind:

All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.

The top photo features one of our garden beds in July. The bottom photo shows part of the bed in October. The flowers fell.

I’m grateful that with all the constant changes our life brings, at least one thing endures—the word of God.

1 Peter 1 in week forty-one of reading the Bible cover to cover

Occasionally a phrase in the Bible turns my head, and I think, “Huh”? In Jeremiah this past week I read such a statement attributed to the Lord—nor did it enter my mind (Jeremiah 32:35).

As the omniscient (all-knowing) God, how does anything surprise the Lord?

The context of this quote explains a great deal. The Lord spoke through Jeremiah about his impending judgement on the people of Israel. Babylonians stood at the gate, and the sack and pillage of Jerusalem loomed. No rescue, no last minute reprieve. The Lord’s anger seethed.

Why was God so angry? Years of evil from the people of Israel—turning their backs on the Lord, setting up idols to false gods in Solomon’s temple, and most shocking, killing their children in the worship of a demon god.

This murder of innocent children set the Lord off. So tremendously vile, the Lord described the practice as unimaginable. Did God not know about these heinous acts? The Lord knew, but still the Lord described the horror as unbelievable. As I might say, not in a million years—never entered my mind.

Earlier Jeremiah wrote: The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it (Jeremiah 17:9)?

And so I see the context. Who can understand a religious system that calls for the sacrifice of innocents? Yet such systems emerged over and over in various places throughout history.

These old stories, buried in the thickness of our Bibles, serve as warnings. Our enlightened hearts of the modern world remain deceitful. We’re not above killing innocents over bad ideas, are we?

Blessed in the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him (Jeremiah 17:7). Only the Lord cures the heart. That’s the lesson to draw from Jeremiah’s insight into the human condition.

Jeremiah in week forty-one of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Trym Nilsen

I rarely hear the term “Soul” used these days. I work for an evangelistic ministry, and we tend to talk about reaching people, or changing lives, rather than saving souls. Perhaps it’s a result of camp meeting overuse, but I suspect it has more to do with the immediacy of the world we live in.

Soul is a slow word.

Our soul remains the deepest part of us, the spiritual or immaterial part, the immortal. Our souls search for God, even when we don’t know it, and our souls face an enemy—sinful desires wage war against our soul (1 Peter 2:11).

Peter reminds us of our souls and their one true guide through life. For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

This shepherd provides green pastures, still waters, and righteous paths. He’s a companion through death’s valley. He sets an ample table, and hands us cups filled and overflowing. This overseer restores our souls, fills us with goodness and mercy, and prepares for us an eternal place in the house of the Lord.

Of course I speak of Jesus, the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls.

Though we might not talk about it much, our soul is ever-present, scarred and battling through life. Fortunately, our Shepherd and Overseer steps beside us along the way.

1 Peter 2 in week forty-one of reading the Bible cover to cover

Still waters of the Tambre River in Northern Spain