Who can understand the Bible?

It ain’t the parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.Mark Twain
The Bible can be challenging to understand.  66 books, 1,189 chapters, 31,173 verses, ~40 authors over a 1,500 year period, etc.  But that doesn’t mean that it isn’t accessible.  As Twain noted, some [...]

Isaiah 51-52

Greetings!  These chapters begin some prophecies of the Messiah and lead into chapter 53, which is full of prophecies about Jesus.

Everlasting Salvation for Zion
51     “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness
and who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you were hewn;
2 look [...]

Isaiah 49-50

Greetings!
This section opens with another reminder that God gave his grace to the Israelites so they could be a light to all nations.  It was part of his plan from the beginning.  As a former pastor of mine would say, they were “blessed to be a blessing.”  I think the same way of us today [...]

Isaiah 47-48

Greetings! 
The fall of Babylon was predicted 150 years ahead of time.  It hadn’t even emerged as the strongest force on earth yet.  God used Babylon to punish his people, then used the Medo-Persian empire to destroy Babylon and set free his people.
Nebuchadnezzar’s ups and downs are chronicled in more detail in the Book of Daniel. 
The [...]

Stars, sand and how to read the Bible

A recent commenter on my other blog viewed Genesis 15:5 as evidence that the Bible has errors.  The context is God promising Abraham that despite his advanced age he would have many offspring.
Genesis 15:5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then [...]

Isaiah 45-46

Greetings!
These chapters repeat over and over that there is one God and He is not to be ignored.  As Jonah 2:8 says, Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.
Interestingly, Cyrus is the only Gentile (non-Jew) rule ever annointed in the Bible.  God used Cyrus to rebuild Jeruslaem and to set [...]

Isaiah 43-44

Greetings!
Israel’s Only Savior
43     But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass [...]

Study Bibles

I’ve encouraged a couple commenters to consider study Bibles, so I thought I’d get a little more specific.
My wife’s favorite (and hey, she’s a librarian!) is the Quest Study Bible.  It has lots of the most common questions addressed in the sidebars.  I like it, too.
The Life Application Study Bible is my mainstay.  It has thousands [...]

Isaiah 41-42

Greetings!

The Helper of Israel
41     “Be silent before me, you islands!
Let the nations renew their strength!
Let them come forward and speak;
let us meet together at the place of judgment.
2 “Who has stirred up one from the east,
calling him in righteousness to his service?
He hands nations over to him
and subdues [...]

Isaiah 39-40

Greetings!  Hezekiah had his life spared for 15 years, but he turns around and makes a foolish mistake.  Note his selfishness in v. 8!  Isaiah’s prophecy was amazing because Babylon was under Assyria at the time.

Envoys From Babylon
39     At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because [...]

Itching ears

Many people - including self-proclaimed Christians, surprisingly enough - claim that the Bible is unreliable because of its age and how it was assembled.  They use terms like “bronze age mythology” or “old words” or some such thing.  The theme is that if the words are old then they have lesser or no value.But consider [...]

Isaiah 37-38

Greetings!  This section occurs after King Sennacherib of Assyria threatened Judah. 

Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold
37     When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the Lord. 2 He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah [...]

Old Testament God / New Testament God?

A common misperception about the Bible is that there are two Gods at work, or that somehow God was trying to improve his reputation in the New Testament (NT).  The typical refrain is that the Old Testament (OT) God was vengeful and the New Testament God is loving and kind. A balanced reading of the whole Bible [...]

Isaiah 35-36

Greetings!  Isaiah finished documenting the results of God’s wrath against various nations for their sins.  Now he turns to write of God’s perfect plan.  Ch. 35 reads like a Psalm to me.

Joy of the Redeemed
35     The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus,
2 it [...]

Isaiah 33-34

Greetings!
These are the last chapters where Isaiah delivers God’s message of judgment for various nations.
This section is about Assyria, a world power that repeatedly broke its promises.

Distress and Help
33     Woe to you, O destroyer,
you who have not been destroyed!
Woe to you, O traitor,
you who have not been betrayed!
When you stop destroying, [...]

Isaiah 31-32

Greetings!  As God’s chosen people, Israel should not have sought help from other nations. 
Woe to Those Who Rely on Egypt
31     Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help,
who rely on horses,
who trust in the multitude of their chariots
and in the great strength of their horsemen,
but do not look to [...]

Isaiah 29-30

Greetings!  There are lots of important and familiar verses in these passages.
Ariel was a name for Jerusalem.

Woe to David’s City
29     Woe to you, Ariel, Ariel,
the city where David settled!
Add year to year
and let your cycle of festivals go on.
2 Yet I will besiege Ariel;
she will mourn and lament,
she will [...]

Isaiah 27-28

Greetings!

Deliverance of Israel
27     In that day,
the Lord will punish with his sword,
his fierce, great and powerful sword,
Leviathan the gliding serpent,
Leviathan the coiling serpent;
he will slay the monster of the sea.
2 In that day—
“Sing about a fruitful vineyard:
3 I, the Lord, watch over it;
I water it continually. [...]

Isaiah 25-26

Greetings!  This opens with words of praise for God and recognizes his rule over all the universe.  I write this on a Sunday, and am thinking how challenging it is to focus in worship sometimes.  There are so many distractions.  But He can be praised in so many ways and at all times.
Praise to the [...]

Isaiah 23-24

Greetings!
Tyre was a city to the west of Israel that was famous trading center in the ancient world, famous for its wealth and evil. 
A Prophecy About Tyre
23     An oracle concerning Tyre:
Wail, O ships of Tarshish!
For Tyre is destroyed
and left without house or harbor.
From the land of Cyprus
word has come to [...]