In today’s Bible reading* we see some prayer requests that don’t tend to set well in our Twenty-First Century, Western Culture ears. Several of the Psalms — including some of today’s — are called imprecatory prayers. I’ve heard the definition before, but I checked again to ensure that I understood it correctly. An imprecatory prayer…
Twice in today’s Bible reading* we read of someone delivering news from the Lord. And both times, it was wrong. They were false prophets. In 2 Samuel 16:21, Ahithophel told Absalom to rape David’s concubines to demonstrate his contempt for David. Ahithophel also encouraged Absalom to pursue David to kill him. Hushai warned Absalom that…
As I read today’s Bible readings* I was impressed with the assurances that the Psalmists had in knowing that God would come through with answers to their prayers. All of the prayers were offered to a covenant-making, covenant-keeping God. In Psalm 55:22, David includes in this Maskil an encouragement for the worshiper to cast their…
Someone once said that holding a grudge is like drinking poison, expecting the other person to get sick. Today’s Bible reading* tells us about two of Absalom’s long-haul grudges. The first is when Amnon (Absalom’s half-brother) rapes his sister. Absalom stews for two years before killing Amnon. The next time is when Absalom has been…
Eight times in today’s Bible reading*, we come across the term “faithful love”. Half of those times, the term appears in Psalm 103. So what is “faithful love”? The Hebrew word behind “faithful love” is ḥesed (with the h pronounced as a guttural ch). It is also translated as “kindness”, “lovingkindness”, “faithfulness”, “steadfast love”, or…
Today’s Bible reading* us a familiar story for many of us: the story of David and Bathsheba. It is the lowest point of David’s life, this man after God’s own heart. The story reveals David’s humanity. It reveals David’s fallenness. And then Nathan the Prophet arrives at David’s door with news of a man who…
