Seeking the Gospel Truth

God is using Ezekiel again to get the peoples’ attention. “A sword! A  sword!” This is the final warning issued to the Jews. It’s August of 591  BC. Ezekiel had been in Babylon since 597 BC — 6 years! The ultimate  attack and total destruction of Jerusalem would start in 588 and go  through 586 — 18 months. What’s interesting in this chapter is the fate  of the last Jewish...

Actions have consequences. If you don’t learn from history, you are  doomed to repeat it. It’s not necessarily YOUR history that you need to  learn from, but from past generations. It’s all happened before in one  way or another. In today’s chapter, some of Judah’s exiled leaders went  to Ezekiel asking for a message from God. God gives them a piece of His  mind — which sh...

Biblical poetry is art that ignites our imaginations. Its metaphors and  imagery help us better understand its meaning. They reveal insightful  messages meant to be clearly grasped by the listener. In today’s chapter  we have the imagery of lions and vines. These images are carried into  the New Testament. It is a lament of the rise and fall of kings. Yet,  they retell the...

Your past does not determine your future! In  other words, whatever situation you were born into, does not dictate  what you are as an adult. I was born into a Catholic family. I was not born Catholic . I was born human like every other person in the world, made in God’s image. At some point growing up, a person reaches the age of accountability .  It’s when a child learns right fro...

Many people ask — how can a good God be so mean and nasty in the Old  Testament? You have to look at it all from His point of view. First,  Israel wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for Him. All God wanted was a relationship with humans , yet the humans cheated on Him with other pagan gods .  That’s what Ezekiel 16 is about. Parts of it are rated “R” so I’ll let  you read that on you...

Metaphors are found all over both the Old and New Testaments. God, in  trying to reach the people so they could understand His commands,  instructions and messages, used them often. He likened people and  nations to things that would be familiar to the Israelites. For example,  take the grape vine. Vineyards were everywhere as wine was a staple in  the Jewish diet and used...

Reading the Old Testament, you really get to  know God. He hasn’t changed. He wants a relationship with us humans.  Except, we humans tend to flock to whatever catches our fancy. In other  words, we go with what’s popular, what’s comfortable tradition, what  makes us feel good — even if it’s a sin in God’s eyes. Sinning has consequences . Unfortunately, many Catholics don’t rea...

When I was in high school and college, I was into astrology, tarot  cards, even played around with a Ouija Board a few times. My Catholic  upbringing and false religious instruction did not warn me that I was  playing around with demons and evil. I thank God that He must have had a  plan for me. Obviously, He spared me from diving off the deep end. The  problem that Ezekie...

Here we are in 2022 and we born-again Christians are still here! Funny, there were folks who thought that the Rapture ,  end of the world, etc. would happen on some days past and nothing’s  happened. Nevertheless, we’re all still here. No one but God the Father  knows when it’s going to happen. Not even Jesus! That’s why we have to  be ready. (Mark 13:32-33) Even back in Ezekie...

It is said that if you feel far from God, it’s you who’s done the  separating. In today’s chapters, we see the opposite. Ezekiel had a  vision of when God’s Glory left the temple in Jerusalem for good. Where  is it now? Let’s dig in… Keep reading in my blog where there are links to dig deeper with other Bible Studies and check out the Bible Prophecy Links… https://giselleaguiar.com/...

It amazes me how the sins that God detested back in the Old Testament  run rampant in today’s world. In these next 2 chapters, God has Ezekiel  turning to the mountains of Israel and preaching to them. Why? Because  the Israelites that are already in exile in Babylon aren’t listening to  him. God condemns sinners unless they repent. That’s rather simple.  Unfortunately, pe...

They knew better, yet they disobeyed. God put the Israelites in the center of the pagan nations so they’d be an example to the Gentiles. Unfortunately, they  were the worst of the worst. Therefore, the God of Heaven’s Armies let  loose His judgment on the Israelites. Ezekiel was called by God to demonstrate what that would look like. Let’s dig in… Keep reading in my blog where there are...

See Israel of the Old Testament through the prophecies of Jeremiah.  He, along with Isaiah, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Daniel are considered  “Major Prophets” because their books are longer than the shorter “Minor  Prophets”. ( We’ve met some of those .)  Jeremiah is known as the “Weeping Prophet”. Though he spoke the words  that God gave him, intertwined with some of his own...

Imagining something without visual assistance leaves it all up to our  minds, our imaginations. In today’s chapter, God doesn’t want the Jews,  who are already in Babylon, to imagine anything. He doesn’t want them to  think that — no, there’s no way Jerusalem and the temple would be  destroyed! So, He tells Ezekiel to dramatize what the siege of Jerusalem  might look like....

Growing up Catholic (my story is at the bottom),  I was never encouraged to read the Bible. Not at all. Sure, we had  catechism class with “Bible stories”, and it was twisted with what the  Roman Catholic Church wanted us to learn to keep us enslaved to religion . It’s just plain sad. Now, I can’t get enough of it! I take it in, I digest it, I study it  thoroughly. I embrace it...

Have you noticed that when you’re watching an action-adventure movie or show, they usually start with a spectacular action scene. That’s done to catch the viewer’s attention, pique their curiosity and get them to watch the whole show. The scene brings up a lot of questions in the viewers mind. The hopes are that the movie will answer the questions in an entertaining, worthwhile fashion. In compari...

Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem was the most holy place in all of Israel.  Built to God’s specifications, by the most skilled craftsmen, using the  best materials from all over the Middle East. Unfortunately, some bad  kings didn’t honor God’s laws for worship and sacrifice and they defiled  the temple with pagan idols of fake gods . They disobeyed the first 4 commandments , &nbs...

God means business. If you’ve ever doubted or poo-pooed Bible Prophecy,  you’re in for a rude awakening. This is the final message from Jeremiah  and it’s interesting what actually happens to it, what came true and  what is yet to be fulfilled. Let’s dig in… Keep reading in my blog where there are links to dig deeper and check out the Bible Prophecy Links… https://giselleaguiar.com/...

Babylon is fallen! That’s the great cry from one of God’s angels in Revelation 18 .  In today’s chapter, God tells Jeremiah to warn Babylon that their time  of wealth, pagan worship, lust, haughtiness, vanity, gluttony and pride will soon be over. Written in 586 BC, Jeremiah was not only prophesying  about when the Medes and Persians would invade in 539 BC, but a future  destru...

Yesterday, God pronounce judgment on Moab .  In this next chapter, He judges Moab’s little cousin, Ammon, along with  Israel/Judah’s brother Esau/Edom, Syria, Persia and the bulk of the  Arabian Peninsula. The Middle East is a hotbed of wars and rumors of wars .  We’ll get into the future of these wars in the Book of Ezekiel, that’s  next in line. (I can’t wait! Subscribe...

Next in line for God’s Judgement is Moab. The Moabites were descendants  of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. It’s also where Ruth, one of Jesus’ ancestors  is from. We’ll look at both those stories at the end. As you will see,  God had 2 problems with Moab — idolatry and pride. Similarly, the U.S.  has those same problems. We’ll look at the uncanny resemblance. Let’s  dig in… Keep r...

We are at the point in Jeremiah’s book where there are no more  prophecies per se. Just judgments to 10 nations. Remember, his book is  not in chronological order. These warnings were just complied at the  end. Some mention events that happened before the sacking of Jerusalem , which is covered again in more detail in chapter 51. Thinking back on the Old Testament writings so far, i...

When we last left our hero prophet Jeremiah ,  he was living in the outskirts of what was once was Jerusalem. During  the 3rd and final Babylonian attack, the city was ransacked, its walls  torn down, the temple destroyed, houses burned, and the temple treasures  carted away. There was nothing left but a small remnant of the poorest  people and a few military leaders. Cons...

Time’s up! They were warned! Over and over again, the Israelites were  warned. Unfortunately, they didn’t heed the warning. They ignored it,  rejected it AND God! Too late now. In today’s chapters, we have the  historical account of the Babylonians’ final attack on Jerusalem. They  burned the city and the beautiful temple that Solomon built. They steal all the temple treasures...

Panic piety is good only if it’s genuine and lasting. You shouldn’t call  on God only when you’re in trouble. You should follow, trust and obey  God so you DON’T get into trouble. In other words, God is NOT your spare  tire. He should be your GPS and the Holy Spirit should be your fuel. We meet a few interesting people in today’s chapters. Let’s dig in… Keep reading in my blog where...