The Context and Color of the Bible

Send us Fan Mail Daniel interprets the king's dream and it sounds like King Nebuchadnezzar  praising the one True God.  But is he sincere in that praise?  What lessons can we learn from the dream?   Bryan also gives us an outline for the rest of the book that shows how chapters 1 and 2 set the stage for chapters 3-12. Bryan is the digital media director for Revive Our Hearts.  He studied at H...

Send us Fan Mail The king was angry and issued death to his dream team and those in the "dream team academy."  When Daniel heard this decree, he stepped in to see if he could help.  Bryan points out the qualities in Daniel that we started seeing in chapter 1 and will continue to see in Daniel 6.   Let's find out what we can learn from these verses.  Bryan VanHaitsma is the digital m...

Send us Fan Mail What does a pagan king do when he has a dream that robs him of his sleep? He summons his dream team.  In this episode Bryan explains who makes up the dream team and how they work together in their pagan culture to make sure all the bases are covered.  This young king asks the impossible of his dream team and they let him know it.  The king's rash reaction will spread beyond t...

Send us Fan Mail So many powerful lessons in these verses!  Bryan brings out the lessons we can learn from Daniel and his friends choosing to set themselves apart through their food.   By looking beyond the surface of these verses, we can start to see the resolve of Daniel and his friends when they encounter the fiery furnace and the lions' den.  They didn't wake up one day and decide to...

Send us Fan Mail We all know the story when Daniel and his friends reject the king's food.  But do you understand what was going on before that?  Have you thought about what life would have been like to be taken captive and thrown in with so many others from foreign lands?  Where did Daniel and his friends get their courage and strength to go against their Babylonian training? Bryan leaves us...

Send us Fan Mail Bryan VanHaitsma is back in the studio and in true Bryan fashion he starts with the history lesson.  Most of us quickly skim over verses 1 and 2, but not Bryan.  He describes what was happening before the third year of King Jehoiakim's reign and explains the "game board" for these battles.  When we understand the backdrop to the story, we are able to more fully gras...

Send us Fan Mail We tried something new in this podcast.  Bryan popped into "the studio" randomly to share some thoughts he had while he was studying and reviewing the parable of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18.   Because of the dollar amount (not really in dollars though), Bryan saw connections between the story of Esther and Matthew 18.  When you overlay the characters from Esthe...

Send us Fan Mail Parental Warning - Because we are following the text, there are horrific details Erika talks about in this episode. We've come to the end of Judges.  The people have become like the nations around them (the author even lets us know that with his particular wording).  One sinful act has become the actions of the entire nation.  The end feels empty and wrong.  The reader is lef...

Send us Fan Mail  The Levite in chapter 20 summons all of Israel, and they respond. His words lead them to rise against their own kin. But where is God in this story? What was His will for them? Was this truly the best way to address the grievous wrong done to the Levite’s concubine? Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook - The Context and Color of the Bible | Facebo...

Send us Fan Mail This chapter in Scripture is not suitable for young children so listen without young ears around. Judges 19 presents a challenging and deeply troubling narrative. Erika guides us through this chapter, shedding light on how events unfold to result in the grievous harm inflicted on a woman by her own husband and the community around him. The narrator breaks through at the end of the...

Send us Fan Mail Samson did what was right in his own eyes. Now we will watch as the tribe of Dan does what is right in their own eyes.   When you read this chapter, it's easy to think they are doing what God wants because we see and read about religious items and God's name being used....but it's time to look deeper.  It's time to connect some dots in this story to see what&ap...

Send us Fan Mail We've finished judging the judges, but the story is not over.   It's time to start to wrap up the book by looking at the people and the Levites. Remember this chapter links back to Judges 2. Erika explains what is going on in this chapter and shows us who has been missing while we studied the judges.   Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we uncover the intricate dynamics between a mighty man brought low by his own vulnerabilities (WOMEN) and a cunning woman whose name echoes through history as a symbol of deceit.  Children's Bibles would have you believe Samson turned to God in the end and God redeemed Samson's life through his death. BUT is that really what happened?  Our website - www.t...

Send us Fan Mail Revenge and retaliation would be a good title for Samson's encounters with the Philistines.  Upon learning his marriage is over, Samson seeks revenge.  When the Philistines see Samson's revenge, they retaliate.  Finally, the tribe of Judah gets involved just to maintain the status quo with the Philistines.  But it doesn't end there.  Find out what happens as we set...

Send us Fan Mail Samson - a man with muscles, long hair, and BRAINS.   As Erika unpacks Judges 14, we watch Samson "go down."  Not only does he go down in altitude, but also in character and choices.  Samson is supposed to save his people from the Philistines, but he continually chooses what is right in his eyes. (We've known since Genesis 3 that is not a good idea.)  Judges 14 sets...

Send us Fan Mail It's time for our last judge.  Samson is a known for his strength and long hair, but what can we learn from his birth story? Samson's parents were visited by an angel before he was born.  His mom probably handled the situation better than his dad.   Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook - The Context and Color of the Bible | Facebook We ar...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as we explore the dramatic conflict between Jephthah, judge of Israel, and the men of Ephraim, who have been key players in all our stories so far. Erika compares Jephthah's interactions with Ephraim to Gideon's interactions with them.  Once again, we see how each judge doesn't live up to the actions of his predecessor.  We will also look at the three minor...

Send us Fan Mail As we continue our descent in the cycle of the judges, things start to feel very shaky.  Was Jephthah chosen by God or did God use him because that's who the people picked?   Jephthah brought about an incredible victory for the Lord, but that victory gets overshadowed by his vow.  Even after he made that vow, did he have other options?   Erika digs deep into this chapter to h...

Send us Fan Mail Time for a deep breath while we look at two minor judges.  We can all wonder what the days were like during these judges because we hardly get any information.  Reading about two minor judges signals to us it's time for step down in the cycle.  Therefore, Erika introduces the story of Jephthah even though he's not mentioned in chapter 10.  Remember to look back at the cr...

Send us Fan Mail Before we can completely wrap up Gideon's story, we are going to look at the actions of his son Abimelek.  Abimelek isn't a judge but the way he conducts himself shows us how Gideon's sins were passed down to his children. Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook - The Context and Color of the Bible | Facebook We are on Instagram - @cont...

Send us Fan Mail Gideon has won a massive victory but what happens afterwards? How does he lead the people?  Gideon started out his story hiding in winepress, but where does his story end?  (Spoiler alert - he's no longer hiding.)  Does the end of his story overshadow his victories? Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook - The Context and Color of the Bible | Fa...

Send us Fan Mail A fun story to tell in Sunday School is Judges 7 when God whittles down Gideon's army to a very small group.  But what were the lessons from this?  What did is show us about Gideon's faith in God and God's incredible patience with Gideon? Are we going to see Gideon give God the credit for the victory (like Ehud and Deborah did) or watch this aspect of the story fade...

Send us Fan Mail We've stepped down into the next downward spiral with the story of Gideon.  Parts of his story are familiar but maybe we need to change our perspective on them.   Our website - www.thecontextandcolorofthebible.com We are on Facebook - The Context and Color of the Bible | Facebook We are on Instagram - @contextandcolorofthebible We are on YouTube - The Context and Color of the...

Send us Fan Mail Parental Warning - Judges 5 refers to rape and Erika does address that in the last 10 minutes of the podcast. Our next judge is Barak.  Right away some people might disagree and think Deborah is the judge because Bible translators put her name in the heading. Not only does Erika tell us the story and walk through all the events, but she lays out reasons why Barak fits the pattern...

Send us Fan Mail It's time to look at the judges.  But before we do, Erika gives us the pattern to look for and explains why it's important when we don't see it. We start with the first cycle - two major judges and one minor judge.  Othniel and then Ehud.  Ehud was really good, but he wasn't Othniel.  When we start the next cycle, the judges will take a big step down.  Our webs...