Commuter Bible OT

As we cover the siege of Jerusalem and it’s fall there will be a lot of overlap as we try to cover all the material that pertains to this period in biblical history. Today, we’ll begin with a reading that spans the entire book of Habakkuk, wherein the prophet of the same name is recorded speaking to the Lord on behalf of his people. He openly and honestly struggles with understanding why God would...

In our last episode, the prophecies of Jeremiah came to pass. The Chaldean army laid siege to Jerusalem and right before his eyes were gouged out, Zedekiah’s sons were executed in front of him. Our chronological reading of the Old Testament continues as we read this account from 2 Kings. In both readings we are introduced to Nebuzaradan, the Chaldean captain of the guards. Those who surrender to t...

From a chronological standpoint, today’s reading can be a little confusing. Have you ever been watching a TV show that begins with a jump in the story’s timeline for dramatic interest, then jumps backward to show the circumstances that have led up to that point? That’s what’s happening here. Our last reading opened with Jeremiah in prison, but there was no explanation of how he got there. The acco...

From a chronological standpoint, today’s reading can be a little confusing. Have you ever been watching a TV show that begins with a jump in the story’s timeline for dramatic interest, then jumps backward to show the circumstances that have led up to that point? That’s what’s happening here. Our last reading opened with Jeremiah in prison, but there was no explanation of how he got there. The acco...

This part of the text may be a little confusing, so let me give a little historical context. The Babylonian siege began after King Zedekiah had been in office for nine years. This siege was lifted for a small window of time when the troops caught word that an Egyptian army was approaching. During this break, Zedekiah arrested Jeremiah because he was encouraging the men of Judah to surrender, but G...

Today, the Lord offers consolation and hope for those in exile. After 70 years of living outside of the land the Lord has given them, the Lord will bring judgment upon those nations which brought destruction. His people will once again return to the land of promise. Though their land had been decimated by war, it will be brought back to life. The Lord then expresses His everlasting love for His pe...

In an age before billboards, movies, and cat videos, there were few ways to stand out from the crowd and command the attention of people who might otherwise ignore you. At the Lord’s command, Jeremiah frequently acts out some of his prophesies in order to dramatically display the reality of what will soon take place. You wouldn’t soon forget a man wearing chains and a yoke who looks you in the eye...

At this point in the life of Jeremiah, he has served as a prophet among the people of Judah for 23 years. During that time, the people have ignored his prophecies and his calls for repentance. Moreover, other prophets have come before him, but the people have not paid attention. As such, they have brought disaster on themselves and the cup of God’s wrath will poured out on them and on the nations....

In our last reading, Jeremiah condemned Zedekiah and the three godless kings that preceded him. These leaders of Judah, whom the Lord addresses as shepherds in today’s reading, have led the Lord’s flock away from Him, but God promises to raise up one who is called “a Righteous Branch for David,” a king and a shepherd who will reign wisely and administer justice righteously. Moreover, the prophets...

Jeremiah has proclaimed that those who trust in men are cursed and those who trust in the Lord will be blessed. Today, the prophet must put this very teaching into practice, for after gathering the priests, prophets, and leaders of Judah to declare the judgment of the Lord, he is beaten, put in the stocks, and humiliated by one of the priests. Both before and after this event, Jeremiah pleads with...

Jeremiah continues his pronouncement against the persistent sin of Judah as our text begins today, saying that those who trust in men are cursed and those who trust in the Lord will be blessed. The Lord instructs Jeremiah to visit the house of a potter, and in so doing he observes the potter disregarding a jar he had created because it became flawed, at which point he makes another jar. The Lord s...

In today’s episode, Jeremiah delivers a lament for the drought that has come over Judah, calling on God to deliver his people. Throughout Scripture, the Lord often relents after such prayers, but in this instance the Lord denies Jeremiah’s request, saying that this time he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins. God tells Jeremiah not to pray for these people, saying that even if Moses...

The false gods that Israel has served are worthless and lifeless, and God warns that those gods will not save them from His wrath. The nation that the Lord loved and cherished has continuously rejected Him and even mocked His authority, so the Lord will finally bring them to the ruin He promised would come. Later, at the Lord’s command, Jeremiah performs a prophetic act, one of several over the co...

The people of Judah and Jerusalem have developed a false sense of security, for they suppose that fulfilling the rituals of worship will please God. Assuming they have God’s favor because of their sacrifices, they pursue unrighteousness and selfish gain, worshipping idols and even sacrificing their children to false gods. God’s holy wrath burns against their injustice, for He is not satisfied with...

The Lord has announced through Jeremiah that he will send Assyria from the north to conquer Jerusalem and Judah, making it a desolate wasteland. He sends Jeremiah to ensure that everyone in Judah has heard this news, going throughout Israel with this message of God’s impending wrath like a grape gatherer whose hand passes over the branches to make sure he has been thorough. This disaster is coming...

The Lord’s love remains on Judah but he cannot allow her rampant evil and adulterous idol worship to continue. Time and again He has called them to repent, but they continue to love their wealth, their sin, and their idols more than the Lord their God. Because Israel served foreign gods in the land God had given them, so the Lord will send them into a foreign land to serve foreigners they had not...

Jeremiah was a young man from Anathoth serving as a priest when the Lord called him and set him aside to be God’s chosen instrument in prophesying against the nation of Judah. Judah had seen the fall of Israel after their centuries of wickedness and idolatry against the Lord as they both figuratively prostituted themselves with idols and literally prostituted themselves with cult prostitutes. They...

While we finished reading about Josiah from 2 Kings, the book of 2 Chronicles has more to say about this king, including a lengthy description concerning the details of the Lord’s Passover being reinstituted. We’ll also read the book of Zephaniah, a prophet of royal lineage who had Hezekiah as his great grandfather. He writes during the reign of Josiah to proclaim that the day of the Lord is comin...

In our last episode we were introduced to King Josiah who began his reign over Judah at the mere age of nine. As we pick up 2 Chronicles, we’ll hear a parallel account to our reading from 2 Kings 22, but then we’ll continue onward and cover more ground. After sending his men to consult a prophetess named Huldah, Josiah learns that the wrath of God is coming upon Judah soon. When Josiah realizes th...

Like Jonah before him, the prophet Nahum preaches devastation and ruin for Ninevah, only this time Ninevah doesn’t repent. Ninevah was the capital of Assyria, a nation of unparalleled power and wealth which had recently decimated the nation of Israel. Though they thought themselves to be secure from danger, their downfall came after nearby rivers flooded the city and destroyed part of the city wal...

We completed the book of Isaiah in our last episode and now we’re back in the narrative histories of 2 Chronicles and 2 Kings. Hezekiah’s son Manasseh takes the throne and turns the good of his father’s kingdom upside down by participating in every kind of spiritual evil imaginable. As such is the case, God says through his prophets that he will clean Jerusalem out like a bowl, turning it upside d...

We have reached the final chapters of the book of Isaiah, in which Isaiah continues to prophesy about things yet to come. You’ll recall that in our chronological reading of the Old Testament, so far the nation of Israel has fallen to the Babylonians, but Jerusalem and the nation of Judah have not yet been conquered. Even so, Isaiah prophesies in the past tense as he speaks of the desolation of Jer...

The Lord calls his people to fast, but to fast while doing as one pleases, oppressing others, or causing strife and violence, is not true fasting. True fasting involves humility and submission to God, freeing those who are unjustly bound and oppressed, feeding those who are hungry, and caring for those who are in need. The sins of God’s people separate them from a holy God, and He hides His face f...

The Lord invites Israel into his presence, and in our opening verses, this is depicted symbolically with a lavish feast, provided free of charge by God Almighty himself. This happens when the wicked one abandons his way and the sinful one his thoughts, returning to the Lord who has compassion. Even foreigners who are not from the nation of Israel will be blessed by the Lord who brings them into hi...

Throughout the book of Isaiah, we’ll hear references to one called the Servant. Though there is immediate application to be found by naming Israel as this Servant, the New Testament authors, who were filled with God’s Holy Spirit like Isaiah, saw another connection. You’ll probably see it, too. The ultimate Servant, the ultimate son of David, is the promised Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah...