Archive for month: July, 2023

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Judges 1:27-36.  Let’s go!

Judges 1:27-36 (NIV)
27  But Manasseh did not drive out the people of Beth Shan or Taanach or Dor or Ibleam or Megiddo and their surrounding settlements, for the Canaanites were determined to live in that land.
28  When Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor but never drove them out completely.
29  Nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer, but the Canaanites continued to live there among them.
30  Neither did Zebulun drive out the Canaanites living in Kitron or Nahalol, who remained among them; but they did subject them to forced labor.
31  Nor did Asher drive out those living in Acco or Sidon or Ahlab or Aczib or Helbah or Aphek or Rehob,
32  and because of this the people of Asher lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land.

On verses 27-36:  In the first 26 verses of Judges 1 we already see hints of Israel’s tribes not going all the way in fully occupying the Promised Land, but rather compromising and allowing other nations to occupy it. This happened in verse 19 where the tribe of Judah did not fully take over the plains.  This happened in verse 21 where the tribe of Benjamin did not oust the Jebusites out of Jerusalem.  We see this happening even more in verses 27-36: the tribes of Manasseh (v27), Ephraim (v29), Zebulun (v30), Asher (v31), Naphtali (v33), Dan (v34), and Joseph (v35) all fail to drive out the Canaanites from the land. 

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Judges 1:16-26.  Let’s go!

Judges 1:16-18 (NIV)
16  The descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, the Kenite, went up from the City of Palms with the men of Judah to live among the people of the Desert of Judah in the Negev near Arad.
17  Then the men of Judah went with the Simeonites their brothers and attacked the Canaanites living in Zephath, and they totally destroyed the city. Therefore it was called Hormah [which means Destruction].
18  The men of Judah also took Gaza, Ashkelon and Ekron–each city with its territory.
 
On verses 16-18:  Let’s address the elephant in the room:  How could God endorse the destruction by Israel of other nations?  Skeptics may object, “Isn’t this just another example of how the Christian God is a cruel, bigoted, and racist, choosing one nation while destroying other nations?”  Keep in mind what the Bible teaches: that God is a perfect, just and holy God who cannot stand wickedness, evil and injustice.  For centuries God had tolerated the evil, idolatrous and immoral behaviour of the nations that occupied the Promised Land.  Despite giving these nations centuries to repent, these nations deliberately sinned against God over and over again without repenting and had tested God’s patience long enough.  

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18.  Let’s go!
 
2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 (NIV)
6  In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.
7  For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you,
8  nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you.
9  We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow.
10  For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.”

On verses 6-15:  Here Paul addresses another problem in the church at Thessalonica: idleness, or laziness.  Apparently, some Christians in the Thessalonian church were becoming known for freeloading off of others in the church. They were taking advantage of the kindness and generosity of other Christians, frequently getting other Christians to pay for their meals and other material wants/needs instead of getting a job and paying for things themselves.