When is an Army Not an Army?

I saw something in today’s Bible reading* that I’ve never seen before in all of the times I’ve read these chapters. God tells Moses to bring out the Hebrews “according to their military divisions”[1] in Exodus 6:26, 7:4, 12:17, 41, 51. I’ve never seen that terminology before. Why? Well, it comes down to Bible translations….

Rebekah “Falls” for Isaac

In today’s Bible reading, we read the story of when Rebekah falls in love with Isaac. The culture of the Twenty-first Century Western World is very different than that of Isaac’s day. Abraham sends his servant to the land of his relatives to find a wife for his “firstborn son” Isaac. Abraham was concerned that…

Healing AND Curing

With today’s Bible reading, we conclude our reading through the book of Acts. The book ends rather abruptly, almost as if Chapter 29 has been lost. But of course, that didn’t happen. Some have suggested that Dr. Luke didn’t finish the book and that we are living today in Acts 29. One very important thing I…

Love: The Glue that Holds Spiritual Gifts Together

Today’s Bible reading includes what is often called “The Love Chapter”. Part of this chapter 1 Corinthians 13:4–7) is often used during wedding ceremonies. But Paul didn’t write this chapter to describe marital love. Instead, he wrote it to show the superiority of love over spiritual gifts. He goes so far as to say that without love,…