Read Ezra 9-10 at Bible Gateway. When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, with respect to the abominations of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, […]
Archives for November 2011
ezra 7-8
Read Ezra 7-8 at Bible Gateway. Artaxerxes was a title among the Persian kings, not a personal name; this is why there is more than one king named “Artaxerxes” in Ezra. It means “high king” or “king of kings.” A possible timeline of the hundred years that encompass the events of Ezra – Esther – […]
esther 9-10
Read Esther 9-10 at Bible Gateway. We have learned that in the teaching tools of Scripture, the chiastic structure is one of the thumbprints of the Holy Spirit on the Scriptures, declaring that He is its author. We are seeing that chiastic structures fill the Scriptures in an unbroken chain from beginning to end. We […]
esther 7-8
Read Esther 7-8 at Bible Gateway. This plot of Haman’s against the Jews, and the exposing of the plot, had an interesting side effect: Then many of the people of the land became Jews, because fear of the Jews fell upon them. Est 8:11 Darius the Great ruled over 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia. […]
esther 5-6
Read Esther 5-6 at Bible Gateway. Now it happened on the third day that Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, across from the king’s house, while the king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, facing the entrance of the house. So it was, when the king saw […]
esther 3-4
Read Esther 3-4 at Bible Gateway. We have seen this pattern over and over in Scripture: the enemy of God’s people in concert with a pagan or Gentile king, plans the death or destruction of God’s people. In Exodus, Pharaoh sought to commit genocide against the Hebrews when he commanded the baby boys to be […]
esther 1-2
Read Esther 1-2 at Bible Gateway. Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus (this was the Ahasuerus who reigned over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, from India to Ethiopia), in those days when King Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan the citadel, that in the third year of his reign he made a feast for […]
ezra 5-6
Read Ezra 5-6 at Bible Gateway. Yesterday we saw, in Zec 13-14, that opposition, tests, trials, and challenges must rise up in the way of the people of God, because it is in being challenged, that we prove our loyalty to the LORD God, Creator of heaven and earth. Silver can only be refined by […]
zechariah 13-14
Read Zechariah 13-14 at Bible Gateway. The prophecy that idolatry will be cut off (Zec 13:1-6) has been fulfilled. When Judah came back from Babylonian captivity, they served the LORD all through Persian rule. The Greeks under Alexander the Great overcame the Persian empire, and under the rule of the Greeks, a cosmopolitan worldliness was […]
garlic salve
3 T virgin coconut oil 3 T virgin olive oil 3 T fresh chopped garlic Melt the coconut oil over warm water. Blend in the olive oil. Then blend in the garlic that has been minced fine. The entire mixture can go into the blender or food processor to blend together until smooth. Pour into […]