Reading 1 – 2Sa 22:26

“To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless” (2Sa 22:26).

This principle is developed in the Lord’s prayer: “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Mat 6:14,15; cp also Mat 18:33-35; Jam 2:13). And, conversely, God’s ways do not appear right to those who themselves are not upright: cp Mat 25:24; 27:5.

Reading 2 – Jer 25

In Jer 25, Jeremiah predicts vengeance upon the Philistines in the Last Days. He lists their cities (v 20) along with “all the mingled people” (vv 20,24 — the word is “ereb”, closely related to “Arab”) of Egypt, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, Sidon, Dedan, Tema, Arabia, Elam, and Media — all Muslim territories — and finally Babylon. God will cause all of these to drink of “the wine cup of this fury” (v 15). This figure of a “cup” of judgment being filled up to the brim, and given by God to the wicked, is common in the Bible, and is often used in regard to the great judgments of the Last Days (Psa 11:6; 75:8; Isa 51:17,22,23; Oba 1:16; and esp Rev 14:8,10; 16:19; 18:6).

Reading 3 – Rom 13:3

“For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you” (Rom 13:3).

This seems to take no account of the possibility that government may be tyrannical and may reward evil and suppress good. A few years after Paul wrote these words, Nero launched a persecution against the believers at Rome; multitudes lost their lives, and not because of doing evil. Later on, other emperors would lash out against Christians in several waves of persecution stretching over more than two centuries.

One way to deal with the problem is to assume that Paul is presenting the norm, that is to say, the state as functioning in terms of fulfilling the ideal for government, which is certainly that of punishing evil and rewarding or encouraging good.

Another, and better, possibility: consider the principle of Rom 8:28, whereby God finds ways to bring good out of apparent evil, so that even in the event that the state should turn against the people of God and persecute them cruelly and unjustly (as in 1Pe 3:12-17), God will bring good out of that evil too, in the long run. Sometimes God may speak more clearly out of prison cells and graves than out of the lives of believers who live securely and at peace with their rulers!

AND HE WILL COMMEND YOU: Possibly the “he” here could refer to God — who is, after all, the ultimate ruler and authority in any case!

Reading 1 – 2Sa 1

“At long last, the man who had hounded David from pillar to post around Israel and indeed had driven him from Israel, was dead. He was the man who had made family life for David impossible. It is likely that David never again saw his mother and his father after he joined Saul’s court. He was hounded out of Israel, and the most frightful impact on this faithful man was his lament to Saul, ‘You have driven me from the heritage of the LORD, saying, Go, serve other gods!’ His life hung on a thread on more than one occasion and he had been mercilessly harassed and ill-treated by Yahweh’s anointed. Saul’s death might have been an occasion for joy and relief. It might have been time to allow the huge grudge against Saul to be lifted. It might have been time to reward a bragging Amalekite. At last, life could return to normal.

“But instead… what a lament! ‘The beauty of Israel is slain upon the high places! How are the mighty fallen!.. Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. Lovely? Pleasant? Saul???’ David’s magnanimity and love for one who had harassed, threatened and sought to kill him for so long is breathtakingly beautiful and immensely moving. He loved one who was undeserving of his love. In the face of condemnation, evil talk and murderous intent, David was not easily provoked and answered not a word. His love covered a multitude of sins.

“A fitting example of his greater Son. And a fitting reminder too of what it means to be a man or woman after God’s own heart” (Ken Chalmers).

Reading 2 – Jer 7

“This chapter reveals the hypocrisy and false confidence of Judah in their religious formalism. It is typical of the reign of the flesh within the community of the faithful. It was probably proclaimed before the second reform of Josiah, when the people were enthusiastically contributing to the restoration of the temple, and when an apparent willingness to honour Yahweh was presented. But it was an empty facade. The spiritual perception of the people was soon to manifest itself in the feasting and debauchery of the gods of the land. The people were involved in a religion of deceit, with false prophets contradicting Jeremiah’s warnings, and turning from his appeal for righteousness in the land. Instead the false leaders preached peace and unity, where there was none. Jeremiah stood in the very court of the temple and courageously declared the divine will.

He told them…

that the temple will not save (vv 1-7); that it would experience a similar fate to Shiloh (vv 8-16); that the city and people were full of adultery against God (vv 17-20); that ritualism cannot save (vv 21-28); that the ecclesia had forgotten her vows (vv 29-31); that it has prepared for its own destruction (vv 32-34).

What a sad end to a monarchy that commenced with the courage and faithfulness of David, and now saw the abandonment of the royal sons of David when ultimately Zedekiah assumed the throne. When the pioneers of the ecclesia are ignored; the people become wilful in their folly (cp 2Pe 3:3-4)” (GE Mansfield).

Reading 3 – Mat 18:10

“See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven” (Mat 18:10).

“Personal” angels are mentioned or alluded to in Heb 1:13,14; Psa 34:7; Dan 10:12; and Zec 3:7.

It would appear that even (or especially!) the little children have THEIR angels! Thus there is angelic and providential care even before baptism. Apart from its spiritual significance to the “little ones” who are believers, who should be “like” little children, Jesus seems to be saying that even small children — themselves unbaptized — may such care:

“Unnumbered comforts to my soul

Thy tender care bestowed,

Before my infant heart conceived

From whom those blessings flowed.”

And the words of the Psalmist in Psa 22:9,10 suggest the same: “Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust [or ‘kept me in safety’: AV mg; RSV] in you even at my mother’s breast. From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

“The face of my Father” suggests Jacob in Gen 28:17-19; 32:30: first realizing that he was in the “house of God” (Beth-el), and then later seeing the “face of God” (Peni-el) after wrestling through the long night. We may see a “Beth-el” wherever a child is found!

Reading 1 – 1Ki 6:7

“In building the temple, only blocks dressed at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool was heard at the temple site while it was being built” (1Ki 6:7).

All was brought perfectly ready for the exact spot it was to occupy — and so is it with the “temple” which Jesus is building today; the making ready is all being done now: we are the living stones being made ready now (1Pe 2:5-9), and after the return of Christ, and the judgment, we will be brought to our proper places in God’s “temple”.

When we reach the Kingdom, there will be no more need to sanctify us there, no more need to square our corners with affliction, no more “smoothing” of our surfaces with suffering. No, we must be made ready HERE AND NOW — Christ must do this work beforehand, even if it is painful (and it will be, in one way or another!).

But when he has finished that work, then we shall be brought by the angels to the heavenly Jerusalem, to abide as eternal pillars in the temple of our Lord.

“Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name” (Rev 3:12).

As regards Jesus: an iron (Roman) hammer was instrumental in the final shaping, outside the city, of “the stone which the builders rejected” into “the headstone of the corner”. As a foundation cornerstone it was laid then, and as the head cornerstone it will, at his return, crown and complete the “living temple”.

Reading 2 – Jer 32:17

“Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you” (Jer 32:17).

“At the very time when the Chaldeans surrounded Jerusalem, and when the sword, famine and pestilence had desolated the land, Jeremiah was commanded by God to purchase a field, and have the deed of transfer legally sealed and witnessed. This was a strange purchase for a rational man to make. Prudence could not justify it, for it was buying with scarcely a probability that the person purchasing could ever enjoy the possession. But it was enough for Jeremiah that his God had bidden him, for well he knew that God will be justified of all His children… This gave a majesty to the early saints, that they dared to do at God’s command things which carnal reason would condemn. Whether it be a Noah who is to build a ship on dry land, an Abraham who is to offer up his only son, or a Moses who is to despise the treasures of Egypt, or a Joshua who is to besiege Jericho seven days, using no weapons but the blasts of rams’ horns, they all act upon God’s command, contrary to the dictates of carnal reason; and the Lord gives them a rich reward as the result of their obedient faith. Would to God we had in the religion of these modern times a more potent infusion of this heroic faith in God. If we would venture more upon the naked promise of God, we should enter a world of wonders to which as yet we are strangers. Let Jeremiah’s place of confidence be ours — nothing is too hard for the God that created the heavens and the earth” (CH Spurgeon).

Reading 3 – Mar 6:23

“And he [Herod] promised her [Salome, the daughter of Herodias] with an oath, ‘Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom’ ” (Mar 6:23).

Compare this with Est 5:3; 5:6; 7:2 — the same offer Ahasuerus made to Esther (but Herod’s was hollow; he did not have the power!).

Similarities between the two incidents: feasting and drinking, plotting the death of others (Salome asking for the head of John the Baptist; Esther asking for the “head” of Haman!).

Esther — an orphan become queen; Salome — daughter of a queen; Esther — asking a favor in order to deliver God’s people; Salome — asking a favor in order to destroy God’s prophet; Esther — asking on behalf of Mordecai; Salome — asking on behalf of Herodias; Esther — had her opportunity because of the king’s drunken pride; Salome — ditto; Ahasuerus — offered the half of the kingdom because he loved her; Herod — offered the half of his kingdom because, drunk, he wanted to show off. Esther — took the good advice of her uncle; Salome — took the bad advice of her mother.

Thanks to Herodias, Herod later lost all his kingdom and was banished to Gaul.

Reading 1 – 2Sa 6:17

“They brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it [in Jerusalem], and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the LORD” (2Sa 6:17).

A number of David’s psalms stem from this incident:

“LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart” (Psa 15:1,2).

“Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false” (Psa 24:3,4).

“Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary. In front are the singers, after them the musicians; with them are the maidens playing tambourines. Praise God in the great congregation; praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel” (Psa 68:24-26).

“O LORD, remember David and all the hardships he endured… I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob… Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool — arise, O LORD, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might” (Psa 132:1,4,5,7,8).

Reading 2 – Jer 11

“Jeremiah’s message continues its indictment against a generation of faithless Israelites. The ecclesia was facing its last days, and entered into a conspiracy against the divine covenant in Jer 11.

As a representative of the small, faithful remnant within the nation,

Jeremiah endorsed the covenant: vv 1-5. He supported king Josiah, and later predicted the advent of the New covenant (Jer 31:31-34). Then the prophet proclaims the Truth throughout Judea: vv 6-8. He is directed to tour the land with the message of the Covenant — a tour that brought him into conflict with his own city, and in so doing, he typed the Christ. The people turned back: vv 9,10. Some time elapsed. The people returned home after the enthusiasm of the proclamation of the covenant, and celebration of Passover, but the tour of Jeremiah received little success. The people heard with impatience his warning words, and like their forefathers, stubborn of heart, they repudiated his strictures. Therefore the People will experience the curse of the Covenant: vv 11-14. Olive branches to be broken off: vv 15-17. The lamb to the slaughter: vv 18,19. Jeremiah’s prayer: Vindicate divine judgment: v 20. Yahweh promises to vindicate the prophet: vv 21-23.

Thus the chapter is a sad commentary on the way in which flesh reacts to the divine mercy, and reminds us that rejection of the warnings of the Word will bring a sad destiny” (GE Mansfield).

Reading 3 – Mat 22:11

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes” (Mat 22:11).

The word “see” is the Greek “theoreo” — suggesting a formal inspection by the king: something like being “presented” at court!

“Anciently, kings and princes were accustomed to make presents of changes of raiment to their friends and favourites, to refuse to receive which was an expression of highest contempt (2Ki 10:22; Est 6:8; 8:15). It was, of course, expected that such garments would be worn when they came into the presence of the benefactor. The garments worn on festival occasions were chiefly long white robes; and it was the custom of the person who made the feast to prepare such robes to be worn by the guests. This renders the conduct of this man more inexcusable. He came in his common ordinary dress, as he was taken from the highway; and though he had not a garment of his own suitable for the occasion, yet one would have been provided for him, if he had applied for it. His not doing it was expressive of the highest disrespect for the king” (Albert Barnes).

The respected rabbinical scholar Edersheim cites, as background to this parable, two commonly-known rabbinical parables (from which Jesus may have borrowed, or at least used as his “jumping-off” place):

In one parable the king is represented as inviting his subjects to a feast, without, however, fixing the exact time for it. When inviting the guests, the king had told them to wash, anoint, and array themselves in their festive garments. But the foolish assume that they will know well in advance, from the preparation of the food and the arranging of the seats, when the feast was to begin; and so they had gone, the mason to his cask of lime, the potter to his clay, the smith to his furnace, the fuller to his bleaching-ground. But suddenly comes the king’s summons to the feast, when the wise appear festively adorned, and the king rejoices over them, and they are made to sit down, eat and drink. But he is angry with the foolish, who appear squalid, unwashed, and unadorned, and are ordered to stand by and look on in anguish, hunger and thirst. The second parable tells of a king who committed to his servants the royal robes. The wise among them carefully laid them by while the foolish put them on when they did their work. After a time the king asked back the robes, when the wise could restore them clean, while the foolish had them soiled. Then the king rejoiced over the wise, and, while the robes were laid up in the treasury, they were bidden go home in peace. But to the foolish he commanded that the robes should be handed over to the fuller, and that they themselves should be cast into prison.

And so the Bride makes herself ready for the wedding, and she is given “fine linen, bright and clean” — which represents “the righteous acts of the saints”. In the Mat 22 parable, all the guests are in the same role as the “Bride” in Rev 19: they are the multitudinous bride — and the garments they have been “given” are twofold:

Their nakedness, or sins, have been covered by the “garment” provided by the Bridegroom (in symbol, this is equivalent to being washed and cleansed with water through the word, etc, in Eph 5:26,27; and/or garments washed white in the blood of the Lamb, in Rev 7:14) [contrast this with the fig-leaf coverings, which is all Adam can provide for Eve to cover her nakedness after the original sin!]. But without their own righteous acts, by which their faith is demonstrated to be real (Jam 2:17-26), they would be rejected, because their faith would have been dead!

So it would seem that, in the special wedding garments, there may be two aspects involved: first, a garment which is provided by the host, or bridegroom, or king; and secondly, the need for each invited guest to keep his or her own special garment washed and clean and ready to wear.

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Reading 1 – Deu 31:19

“Now write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them” (Deu 31:19).

“It is interesting to see, as we read through the Bible, how many parts of scripture we instantly recognize as having learnt because we have heard them in song. It is not that we have purposely gone out to memorize parts of the word of God, yet because so much of it has been set to music, we remember what it says. It was for this reason, I believe, that Moses gave Israel this message in a song. God told him, ‘Now write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites and make them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them’ (Deu 31:19). So Moses sung the song to all Israel. The music, the rhythm, the rhyme and the words all help us to remember it. And so this was a song that would have been remembered by the Israelites for a long time to come.

“This particular song was much more than just a nice piece of music. It warned Israel of the choice they would make about serving God in the future. So Moses said, ‘Take to heart all the words that I have solemnly declared to you today… they are not just idle words for you — they are your life.’

“The lesson is for us to do the same. Let’s get the word of God into our minds and hearts by music or whatever means we can. Let’s take its message to heart and live by what we have learned” (Robert Prins).

Reading 2 – Isa 3:16-24

“The LORD says, ‘The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, tripping along with mincing steps, with ornaments jingling on their ankles’ ” (Isa 3:16).

These words (vv 16-24) were spoken against the women of Israel, who made a vain and wanton display of the wealth (beauty, culture, fashion, display, ostentation) their husbands had wickedly acquired. (Luxury had greatly increased in the days of Uzziah: 2Ch 26:5,15.) Their dressiness was not necessarily wicked in itself, but it was wrong when unaccompanied by the inner adorning, of which the apostles wrote (1Ti 2:9; 1Pe 3:3).

“That superb Bible scholar William Kay catalogues seven separate items mentioned here as having direct connection with the garments of the High Priest, the best-dressed man in Israel. Now women of the temple, who originally had been glad to forego their personal vanities (Exo 38:8), sought to outdo in appearance the most exalted man in the nation. Accordingly, Isaiah applies to these ‘haughty’ (v 16) women the very word which he has already used three times about the ‘loftiness of man’ (Isa 2:11,15,17)” (Harry Whittaker, “Isaiah” 114).

For a time, these women in Israel continued on their way completely indifferent to the requirements of the law or the appeal of the prophets. They preferred to please themselves. They stood before their mirrors and admired the beauty that they saw reflected therein, but they did not see the hidden ugliness of the heart: the spirit of rebellion that made Yahweh sad and angry.

The day came, however, when they learned to regret the folly of their actions. It was the day of judgment, and they were held accountable for the manner in which they had defied the requirements of Yahweh, and had influenced others to do likewise.

Reading 3 – Col 1:10

“And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Col 1:10).

A LIFE WORTHY OF THE LORD: “You have your limits. You have more mental capacity than some, and less than others. You have more physical capacity than some, and less than others. This is true of everyone except the single one at the top and at the bottom. Much can be done in both categories by exercise, but still there are limits — and all are different. It is not important. At his very best and highest, man is still nothing. At worst and lowest, he is still something. What counts eternally is how you use what you have been given, in mental, physical, and circumstantial opportunity. This is your personal stewardship, be it great or small. You will be judged upon it. God requires your most and best, within your limits. This is what love will be eager and anxious to give and still wish it could give more. Do you have this love and zeal for divine service that makes the difference between life and death? It comes with long study and meditation, and prayer. It’s not a secret or special gift that some just happen to have. It’s something all are commanded to develop, and freely shown how. It is spiritual-mindedness, which is life and peace; and there can be neither life nor peace without it. It is not a matter of sudden and shallow emotional excitement, like orthodox ‘conversion.’ It is a deep, steady, consistent learning and growing and transforming, and becoming closer and closer to the Divine Perfection” (GV Growcott).

BEARING FRUIT IN EVERY GOOD WORK: “Don’t drift. Don’t play. Make all your time sensible and constructive and useful. Play is for children. It is essential for them. Your childhood is over. Grow up. There is plenty of exercise and enjoyment and relaxation in practical and effective work. Eschew the fleshly illusion that time must be wasted to be enjoyed. That’s stupid. We have no justification or excuse for wasting God’s valuable time in childplay — for ALL our time is His, for His purpose. We have solemnly agreed to this. So be honest. Live up to it. You know there is no satisfying peace or joy in slipping back into the vacuous and juvenile play of infancy. Grow up! Press on! Keep your eye on the glorious goal. You have a brief, once-only opportunity to secure eternity. Don’t bungle it. Disneyland is for immature and empty minds. It’s a dressed up skeleton: a grinning corpse. Look beyond the glitter and tinsel to the cold and dead bones beneath. It’s the whole mad world in microcosm: shun it as the plague” (GV Growcott).

Reading 1 – Jos 15

“Judah was the imperial tribe, and it was fitting that he should be planted in a conspicuous territory. Even if the republic had not been destined to give place to the monarchy, some preeminence was due to the tribe which had inherited the patriarchal blessing, and from which he was to come in whom all the families of the earth were to be blessed. Judah and the sons of Joseph seem to have obtained their settlements not only before the other tribes, but in a different manner. They did not obtain them by lot, but apparently by their own choice and by early possession. Judah was not planted in the heart of the country. That position was gained by Ephraim and Manasseh, the children of Joseph, while Judah obtained the southern section. In this position his influence was not so commanding at first as it would have been had he occupied the centre. The portion taken possession of by Judah had belonged to the first batch of kings that Joshua subdued, the kings that came up to take vengeance on the Gibeonites. What was first assigned to Judah was too large, and the tribe of Simeon got accommodation within his lot (Jos 19:9). Dan also obtained several cities that had first been given to Judah (compare Jos 15:21-62; 19:40-46). In point of fact, Judah ere long swallowed up a great part of Simeon and Dan, and Benjamin was so hemmed in between him and Ephraim that, while Jerusalem was situated within the limits of Benjamin, it was, for all practical purposes, a city of Judah” (Expositor’s Bible).

Reading 2 – Isa 21

Isa 21 is a very difficult prophecy, but it appears to be about an especially significant Passover deliverance — and this accords well with the great destruction of the Assyrian army (described in Isa 36; 37) which is at the heart of the whole prophecy.

“The twilight I longed for” (Isa 21:4), or “the night of my pleasure” (AV), looks like an allusion to Passover, the only holy observance kept at nighttime, and the time of the overthrow of Sennacherib’s Assyrian army (Isa 31:5; 30:29; 29:1; 26:20; 33:20; 52:12).

In v 5, there are other Passover allusions: the setting of the tables, the eating and drinking. The command to “oil the shields” (or “anoint the shield”: AV) MIGHT be translated, as does the Septuagint, “anoint the doorposts”, referring to the smearing of the blood of the Lamb on the door frames of faithful Jews in Egypt (Exo 12:22). Likewise, the lookouts — watching at night (vv 6,8) — suggest the nighttime vigil of Passover: a waiting both for destruction of one’s enemies, and for deliverance.

The word that finally comes, about the fall of “Babylon”, could be a reference to the devastation of the Assyrian army outside Jerusalem — because at the time of Hezekiah the two names, Assyria and Babylon, seem to have been used interchangeably for the same basic power (Assyria had previously conquered and controlled the city of Babylon, and Assyrian kings were quite proud of this accomplishment.)

So also, the called-out question of v 11, “Watchman, what is left of the night?”, suggests a high anxiety in a time of distress: the Passover night of fear and death, culminating in the morning of deliverance (Isa 37:36).

Reading 3 – Phm

“The little letter to Philemon introduces us to two men. One is the writer, an old man in chains. Contrary to all outward appearance and though in prison, he was really free. Once, in his youth, he thought he was free, but he was really in chains to the law of sin. But when Christ came into his life he threw away his chains. Then, though in bonds, his spirit was as free as the winds of heaven. He was free to rejoice, and he was at peace. The other man is Onesimus. As a runaway slave, he escaped in the hope of finding freedom. He learned that the world was not as he imagined. His experience of earthly freedom was bitter: Rome’s streets were not gold, and the cobblestones were hard. Disillusioned, with empty pockets, in rags, he sought out the ecclesia in Rome. And where did he find true freedom? In the prison cell, from an old man in chains! He found help, sympathy, love and the Truth. From Paul the prisoner he found true freedom!” (Walter Draper)

Reading 1 – Deu 32:11

God’s care for His people is beautifully expressed in His words to Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how l carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself” (Exo 19:4).

Bible writers were much impressed with the swift, swooping flight of the eagle, the largest bird known in Israel. In modern times the eagle has been observed catching its young in flight, as mentioned in the Bible: “Like an eagle that stirs up Its nest and hovers over Its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on Its pinions” (Deu 32:11).

The young eaglet might be afraid to fly, but the parent forces it out of the nest. It may flutter and fall, unable yet to fly properly. Then the parent eagle can dive and spread its saving wings underneath the falling young one. This is the imagery of that famous line which promises God’s sustaining presence in time of trouble: “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deu 33:27).

In the long history of God’s people, they have been sustained by the faith and confidence that God cares for them. This has been equally true with all the saints of the Old and New Testaments. God cares for all His creatures, but He is particularly concerned for those whom He has called and who have responded to be His people. This does not mean that they will be spared the hazards of life. It does mean that God’s people can endure and survive many perils because they know that the LORD cares for them, that they are borne on “eagles’ wings”, and that underneath are the “everlasting arms”.

Reading 2 – Isa 5:20

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter” (Isa 5:20).

“Human judgment almost invariably makes the wrong choice, the wrong assessment, swinging to the wrong extreme, making the wrong decision… In every generation men dedicate themselves with avidity to the worship of Mammon, and call it their greatest good… Isaiah found himself in the midst of experienced influential men who through folly or wilfulness were turning God’s laws upside down. Woe unto them! When a man is self-afflicted with this kind of twisted outlook on life there is no hope for him… One of the greatest curses of modern time is this double-speak. It has poisoned every aspect of human relations. A mighty military machine is called Defense. An aggressive political campaign is called a Peace Movement. Wholesale criticism and disparagement of the Word of God is paraded under the respectable name of Scholarship, whilst those who try to be honest with Holy Scripture are reckoned stupid or in darkness. A pseudo-science of psychology is called into being to give a flamboyant sanction to self-indulgence and all kinds of immorality. Thus sin is blithely abolished” (Harry Whittaker, “Isaiah” 129).

Reading 3 – Col 2:2

“My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love” (Col 2:2).

“The article commonly talked about as ‘love’ is not the apostolic article. The popular article consists of an emasculated mind, and honeyed word uttered in a silly tone. The apostolic ‘knitting together in love’ is on the goodly foundation ‘of all riches of the full assurance of understanding.’ It is a love springing from identical convictions — a common love resulting from a common enlightenment; a mutual affection spontaneously generated by unity of knowledge and judgment, and this not in the scanty form of ‘opinion’ or the cold uncertainty of ‘views’, but in the richness of a positive and pronounced ‘assurance of understanding’; enthusiastic convictions if you will, without which there can be no true discipleship of Christ. This is a state of mind that stops not short at ‘good words and fair speeches’, but shows its faith by ‘works’, without which, a man, whatever his knowledge and understanding, or ability to speak with even higher than human tongues, is a ‘sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal.’ There be many fig trees fair and promising to look upon, which, when the Master comes to inspect them and finds nothing but leaves, will wither up before his destroying curse” (Robert Roberts, “Seasons of Comfort” 36).

Reading 1 – Jos 14:11

“I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then” (Jos 14:11).

“For fighting, and for all the intercourse and manifold activities of life, his sinews are as braced, his eyes as clear, his spirit and limbs as alert as they were in those old days. No doubt you will say that was due to miraculous intervention. No doubt it was; but is it not true that, in a very real sense, a man may keep himself young all his life, if he will go the right way to work? And the secret of perpetual youthfulness lies here, in giving our hearts to God and in living for Him. Christianity, with its self-restraint and its exhortations to all, and especially to the young, to be chaste and temperate and to subdue the animal passions, has a direct tendency to conserve physical vigour; and Christianity, by the inspiration that it imparts, the stimulus that it gives, and the hopes that it permits us to cherish, has a direct tendency to keep alive in old age all the best of the characteristics of youth. Its buoyancy, its undimmed interest, its cheeriness, its freedom from anxiety and care — all these things are directly ministered to, and preserved by, a life of simple faith that casts itself upon God, and dwells securely, in joy and in restfulness, and not without a great light of hope, even when the shadows of evening are falling.

“One of the greatest and most blessed of the characteristics of youth is the consciousness that the most of life lies before us; and to a Christian man, in any stage of his earthly life, that consciousness is possible. When he stands on the verge of the last sinking sandbank of time, and the water is up to his ankles, he may well feel that the best and the most of life is yet to be.

” ‘They shall still bring forth fruit in old age, they shall be full of sap and green.’ A gnarled old tree may be green in all its branches, and blossom and fruit may hang together there. The ideal of life is, that into each stage we shall carry the best of the preceding, harmonised with the best of the new… The fountain of perpetual youth, of which the ancients fabled, is no fable, but a fact; and it rises, where the prophet in his vision saw the stream coming out, from beneath the threshold of the Temple door” (Alexander MacLaren).

Reading 2 – Isa 19:11-15

“The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; the wise counselors of Pharaoh give senseless advice. How can you say to Pharaoh, ‘I am one of the wise men, a disciple of the ancient kings’? Where are your wise men now? Let them show you and make known what the LORD Almighty has planned against Egypt…” (isa 19:11,12).

Verses 11-15 picture a “sustained and contemptuous exposure of the experienced statecraft of Egypt. The political skill of that land’s priests and Pharaohs had wide reputation outside its own borders (Exo 1:10; 1Ki 4:30; Act 7:22). Yet it would all prove useless to stave off the downfall and chaos purposed by the Lord of the hosts of angels, who in Moses’ day had wrought such havoc in that land of unmatched prosperity (Psa 78:49)” (Harry Whittaker, “Isaiah” 229).

Reading 3 – Tit 2:14

“(Jesus) gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Tit 2:14).

“(Jesus) gave himself for us”: Jesus laid down his life, deliberately, willingly (John 10:11,15,18; 1Pe 2:23), on our behalf. The preposition “for” is “huper”, as also in 1Ti 2:6 (“a ransom on behalf of all men”), which can bear this meaning; Jesus may be seen as a representative — dying ON BEHALF OF men — and not as a substitute — dying INSTEAD OF men.

The original word for “redeem” here is “lutron”, which means to release for a price, or — put simply — to buy. It is one of the several words (or word groups) translated “redeem”, “redemption”, and “ransom”.

The word translated “his very own” (“peculiar people”: KJV) is the Greek “periousios”, which literally means “something beyond”. Paul is quoting from the Old Testament: “Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be MY TREASURED POSSESSION (Heb ‘segullah’) . Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exo 19:5,6). “Segullah”, we are told, referred to the private treasure of kings; in societies where kings were more or less absolute dictators, everything in their realm was considered to be legally their property — but even a king could not control and spend and enjoy all properties in his kingdom, and so he would possess certain properties, properties which were set apart as his own “special treasure”, his “peculiar” or unique property, and no one else’s.

In the figure here, God Almighty is the great king, and all the universe belongs to Him, and all men, and all they have — it is all His. The cattle on a thousand hills belong to Him! But… the Heavenly Father has condescended to choose a special few of all His subjects to be His own family, His own special possession, His own cherished riches. They stay close to His person; they recline in His bosom; they hear His whispers of endearment; they feel the tender touch of His special love. They are dearer to Him than the stars in the heavens, or the glorious snow-topped mountains. They are dearer to Him than the treasures of the richest mines, or the harvests of the richest fields. They are the ones He has redeemed with the precious blood of His Son. “Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name. ‘They will be mine,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him’ ” (Mal 3:16,17).

Reading 1 – Jos 16

“The record continues the listing of inheritances, as Joshua sets out the landmarks that constitute the gift of Yahweh to His people. This chapter sets out the inheritance of Joseph who has two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, and consequently stood as recipient of the divine firstborn, receiving a double portion of inheritance. Joseph was elevated to the firstborn instead of Reuben (1Ch 5:1). So Joshua sets out: [1] The general borders: vv 1-4. [2] Ephraim’s border: vv 5-9. [3] Ephraim’s failure: v 10. The rest of the inheritance of Joseph’s sons continues in Jos 17.

“As with the other tribes, so with Ephraim: they failed to fulfil the instruction of their commander: see Jos 16:10. It seems that although Joshua ejected the main power of the Canaanites, they returned to their former cities, whilst he completed the campaign elsewhere. This required that each tribe make its own effort to obtain its individual holding, although the land as a whole had been won for Israel. In like manner Christ has opened the way to life eternal, but we each must conquer our individual inheritance” (GE Mansfield).

Reading 2 – Isa 22:7-11

“And you looked in that day to the weapons in the Palace of the Forest; you saw that the City of David had many breaches in its defenses; you stored up water in the Lower Pool. You counted the buildings in Jerusalem and tore down houses to strengthen the wall. You built a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool…” —

Now here comes the key point, the “punch line”, so to speak… —

“…but you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it long ago” (Isa 22:7-11).

At the threatened attack of the Assyrian enemy, Judah — and Jerusalem — began to strengthen every conceivable defense, and take every conceivable precaution. They looked to their weapons, and their walls, and their water. They looked to everything they possible could… EXCEPT the God of Israel!

At other times, the Israelites trusted in altars (Isa 17:7), in defensed cities (Isa 37:26), in Egypt (Isa 31:1), or in Syria (2Ch 16:7-9).

But they did not, or could not, or refused to, trust in the God of Israel (Isa 8:17; Jer 33:2,3; Mic 7:7).

“Men cry out under a load of oppression; they plead for relief from the arm of the powerful. But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night, who teaches more to us than to the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the air?’ ” (Job 35:9-11).

In the midst of all the preparations for the defense of the ultimately defenseless city of Jerusalem; in the midst of the crying and hand-wringing and desperate, foolish planning; in the midst of the silly, midnight-hour frenzy to “eat and drink… for tomorrow we die!” (v 13), it remained for two men — the king and the prophet — to ask the nation the only question it had not asked itself: “Where is our God?”

Reading 3 – Heb 1:8

“But about the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom’ ” (Heb 1:8).

Jesus comes in the glory of the Father (Mat 16:27), and he sits on a throne appointed him by the Father (Psa 110:1), which therefore could be called God’s throne. Also, one who acts on behalf of God may be called “God”, as a title: this is true of:

angels: Gen 16:13; 18:13; Exo 23:20,21; Hos 12:3,5; and men: Exo 22:28; Exo 22:6 and 21:8 (elohim); Psa 138:1; Joh 10:34 (quoting Psa 82:1,6).