Daily Reading Ezra 4-7 Daily Thought When the northern kingdom of Israel was taken captive by Assyria in 722 BC, the scattered remains of Israelites left behind intermarried with many other nations, producing a mingled people and a mangled religion. They claimed to worship the same God as Judah (Ezra 4:2); they failed to mention […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 32-34 Daily Thought Sennacherib, king of Assyria, had grown accustomed to winning. He was confident, if not cocky, and trash talk came easy. “Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands at all […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 28-31 Daily Thought Ahaz was the next king who “did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (2Chronicles 28:1). He crafted idols to the Baals and sacrificed his own sons in the Valley of the son of Hinnom. He borrowed indiscriminately the gods of the nations around him. […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 25-27 Daily Thought Three chapters, three kings in a row. Each began well, but then. King Joash “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest (2Chronicles 24:2), but then Jehoiada died; King Amaziah, “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 21-24 Daily Thought Jehoiada turned the heart of the nation back to God and placed the only descendent of David back on the throne. Joash became king at seven years of age, and Jehoiada the priest stood by his side, a godly advisor and teacher. Things looked promising when Joash surpassed even […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 18-20 Daily Thought Jehoshaphat had allied Judah with Ahab. Yes, that Ahab–husband of Jezebel, who “reigned over Israel twenty-two years, and did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him” (1Kings 16:29-30). Jehu challenged Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 13-17 Daily Thought The Hebrew people were now a divided Kingdom, Israel to the north under Jeroboam its king, Abijah reigning over the southern kingdom of Judah. They were divided and different. Judah was ruled by a man born from God’s chosen line of David; Israel’s king was a rebellious son of […]
Daily Reading 2Chronicles 9-12 Daily Thought The Chronicles were written to Israel in exile, no longer a nation possessing a land. They look back, recounting God’s hand in their history, a reminder that they are the people of God. Solomon’s reign was the kingdom of God’s favor, the apex of their nation. In the words […]