In today’s Bible reading, we see another blessing pronounced on a younger son, skipping the older one. A few days ago, I wrote about the importance of passing along a blessing to one’s children. Today, Jacob/Israel pronounces a blessing to Joseph’s sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. Joseph recognized that his father’s hands were on the wrong…
Isaac gives his son Jacob an important blessing in today’s Bible reading. In Twenty-first Century Western culture, we miss the importance of a father giving his son (or daughter) a blessing. But a blessing is so very important, even today! In the case of Isaac and Jacob, Isaac thought he was giving his blessing to…
As i read today’s Bible reading, I instantly thought of Martin Luther’s powerful hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one now restraining will do so until he is out of the way, and then the lawless one will be revealed. The Lord Jesus…
When the New Testament writers told their stories, they had the memorized and printed Word of Scripture to draw from. Their Bible (our Old Testament) was written in Hebrew and Aramaic. It had been recorded in the language of the common people at the time. By the First Century, many people in what is now…
I’ve said many times that when you see a word or idea repeated several times in a few Bible verses, it’s a pretty good sign that the word or idea are important. Well, in today’s Bible reading the word “comfort” appears nine times in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7. That’s nine times in five verses! It’s safe…
