Category: Bible (Page 40 of 356)

Barbarians roam the pages of scripture, murdering, raping and carrying women off into slavery. Others sacrificed children to demonic gods. Brutality emerges as a theme in the Bible.

Even when David served as king, he faced palace intrigues and scorn from his enemies: They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

Not that we’re any better. Those of a barbarian nature reside with us today. A thug launched a brutal war in Ukraine, and savage men regularly kidnap young women to violate in Central Africa.

But what of those in more enlightened realms? Angry folk roam the internet, turning civil discourse into vicious diatribes. More subtly, greedy traders overwhelm the gates with promises of pleasure or fulfillment found by purchasing the latest style, or changing yourself to fit a new mold.

At our core we all carry seeds of the barbarian.

Thankfully, an escape route exists. David prayed, As for me, afflicted and in pain—may your salvation, God, protect me. We can form David’s words into an especially pertinent prayer today:

Lord, barbarians surround us, attack us and sadly motivate us. May your salvation protect our souls in this world filled with affliction and pain.

Psalm 69 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Hasan Almasi

I find in the Scriptures touching reminders of my position in this world. Promises like these give me hope: I who set the heavens in place, who laid the foundations of the earth…covered you with the shadow of my hand.

God is speaking to his people, pointing to joyful days ahead. He tells them not to fear mortal enemies who dry up like grass, but remember their Maker, who stretches out the heavens and who lays the foundations of the earth.

It’s an astounding proposition. The Creator of all we see—tiny creatures swimming under microscopes and galaxies dancing through telescopes—actually pays attention to you and me. Both fabulous and unnerving, the Bible assures us this is true.

My problems, while still challenging and worthy of attention, look different when I evaluate them from under the shadow of our good Lord’s hand.

Isaiah 51 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by eberhard 🖐 grossgasteiger

I sat in the tiny living room, crowded with expectant followers of Jesus. They started to quietly sing, Am pacea ca un fluviu, Am pacea ca un fluviu…

I literally felt their faith roll through my body. The room where I sat was in Romania, the year 1983. I was a college student on a summer mission. Communist ideologues ruled and religion was forbidden. Yet a group of young believers gathered in defiance and sang a familiar hymn:

I’ve got peace like a river
I’ve got peace like a river
I’ve got peace like a river in my soul…

The government forced one married couple in the room to work on opposite ends of the country due to their faith. They rarely saw each other, but here they sat with their brothers and sisters. Others faced fines and job discrimination. Arrests loomed for outspoken Christians. The Bible was banned. And still they sang about hearts brimming with peace.

The phrase originates in Isaiah. The Lord says, If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.

My Romanian friends paid more attention to the words of God than to the dictates of a corrupt government. Which is good for me to remember when tumultuous politics threaten the peace.

By paying attention to the Lord and his commands, dikes crumble before an ever-flowing tranquility, a freedom from the angst of this world. I will never forget that evening. In the midst of intense pressure this cohort enjoyed a sense of peace originating from the hand of God. The same river flows for me if I’m willing to turn to the Lord and receive it.

Isaiah 48 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Jack Anstey

In a wonderfully contemptuous section of scripture, Isaiah skewers those who place their trust in gods represented by hand-made idols.

The metalworker encourages the goldsmith, and the one who smooths with the hammer spurs on the one who strikes the anvil. One says of the welding, “It is good.” The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.

Such a goddess! The delightful figure worthy of worship only required a few nails in its base to stand upright.

Isaiah again referred to the divinities a few lines later. See, they are all false! Their deeds amount to nothing; their images are but wind and confusion. Consisting of mere blowing and bamboozlement, Isaiah mocked gods fashioned by men.

I mock as well, until I consider the idols I experience. An idol is any object, or person, who is not God but worshipped as if they were. Worship means more than simply offering fruit or candy to a statue, like I’ve seen in parts of Asia. I worship when I look to something for my hope and fulfillment above the Lord.

What idols tempt me? Wealth, comfort, ease of mind, a bit of notoriety, a wider reader base. More broadly our society worships influence, political power, and the kick that comes from consuming. Too modern to venerate statues, we instead bathe in reservoirs of self-indulgence.

When I spotlight myself, I’m smack in the realm of wind and confusion. A place of tottering foolishness, I need constant bracing.

But God don’t need no nails to stand up straight. Instead, the Lord holds the worlds in the palm of his hand. With the Lord I replace chaos with order and confusion with wisdom. Which leads to a peaceful hope, a way better outcome than I gain from the gods I create for myself.

Isaiah 41 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Khamkéo