Mike Blogs

15: 1-2. Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go! And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says: Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity’. Jeremiah’s sermons and the prophecies given to him directly from t

Judah is in trouble. The lineage of King David is about to be extinguished. God had promised King David that there would always be one of his descendants on the throne (I Kings 8: 25, 9:5; II Chronicles 6: 16, 7:18). If the lone descendant, Joash, is discovered and killed, then this prophecy will be difficult to fulfill. Still, we know that the Kingdom of Judah eventually fell to the Babylonian Empire and the people were taken captive in exile. Those who returned never reco

The English term ‘disinformation’ came into everyday use in the 1980s (though it has a longer history). Its origin seems to be with the KGB who used it to describe government-driven campaigns to spread false reports in order to mislead or confuse the people. The Germans under Hitler tended to use a similar term, ‘propaganda’, which has a more neutral understanding in the long history of the Catholic Church where it means to ‘spread’ or ‘propagate’ the Gospel. Disinformation

This is a complex story about intrigue at the seat of power. We see stories like this in novels and movies, on TV in news and shows, and in real life right before our eyes. Judah’s kings have died, first the husband Athaliah, and then their son. Athaliah was close to power in the northern kingdom of Israel because her parents were King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. They arranged a marriage to Jehoram, King Jehoshaphat’s son, in order to seal an alliance with the Kingdom of Judah.

We have established that this book preserves Jeremiah’s sermons preached over 40 years (627-586 BC). [Remember that BC means Before Christ, so the years go down instead of up.] Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch recorded these sermons and arranged them in this order. We should not expect, however, that the order is strictly chronological, although most of us would use this method. Still, think of novels or even non-fiction books that begin in the middle of a story and then use flashbac

Among the lists of ‘righteous women’ in the Bible you will find a woman named Jehosheba. Not a household name, even in its shortened form Josheba. Nevertheless, she is a key figure in the history and hopes of Jews and Christians alike. She was the daughter of King Jehoram of Judah, and sister to King Ahaziah, his successor in Judah. However, when we come across this woman in the Biblical story, she is operating as part of the opposition to the ruling party. I’ll tell you why

13:20-22. Lift up your eyes and see those who come from the north. Where is the flock that was given you, your beautiful flock? What will you say when they set as head over you those whom you have groomed to be your allies? Will not pangs seize you like those of a woman in labor? And if you say in your heart, “Why have these things come upon me?” it is for the greatness of your iniquity that your skirts are lifted up

For not being named, this woman from Shunem stars in three different stories in Scripture. In the first story, she performed an act of generosity for a Man of God, the prophet Elisha. She was not asked to do this, at least not by Elisha who only stopped by occasionally for a meal. Instead, her spiritual instincts were well developed. She was faithful to God’s sense of hospitality, so she was moved to do more. She provided a furnished room as a place for Elisha to rest during

You can speak, you can give your witness about what God has done for you, you might even preach…but the issue is not only the bold proclamation that you may make but whether or not the people listening can understand what you are saying. I can sincerely say, “Bwe kin an Anij yokwe lol, E ar letok juon wot Nejin.“ However, if I am visiting Dismal Springs United Methodist Church in the midwest where people are not likely to understand a Pacific Islands language, then what good