I sat in Theology class hanging on to every word he said and taking notes furiously. I highly admired him as I put a lot of stock in degrees and he had his M.Div. and Ph.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and had done advanced study at Vanderbilt University and Oxford University in England. He was the fourth president of a well known seminary. I felt fortunate to be taking this class. When he covered angels he told us, "Angels are not human beings. We do not become angels when we die." I remember it so well because my entire life I had thought when we die we become angels in heaven. Where had I gotten that idea? His teaching on angels interested me and afterwards I started noting angels every time I read about them in the Bible. What was the Bible verse telling me about them? Photo by Tamara Malaniy on Unsplash Angels are mentioned 108 times in the Old Testament and 175 times in the New Testament. That's a lot of references to angels. Here's what we know about angels from studying Scripture. The information we can say we know about angels has to come from Scripture which as the Word of God is authoritative for our lives. The word "angel" is aggelos in Greek and mal'ak in Hebrew. They both mean "messenger." God created angels. When did He do that? We don't know, but it was probably with the creation of the heavens in Genesis 1:1. God is not creating any more of them and because they are immortal they do not die. The number of angels is not increasing or decreasing. The number of angels is constant. Angels are spiritual beings and do not have physical bodies like humans do. Jesus said, "... for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." (Luke 24:39) Angels can take the form of a person when they need to do so. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. (Hebrews 13:2) Two angels entered Sodom and the men of Sodom thought they were regular men. (Genesis 19) There are numerous places in the Bible where angels have an appearance of men. There are a lot of angels. Armies of them! "Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matthew 26:53) A legion in a Roman army was about 6000 men. Hebrews 12:22 says in the city of the living God there are "myriads of angels." Revelation 5:11 tells us there are "myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands" of angels, living creatures and the elders praising the Lamb on His throne. Lots of angels. There are different kinds of angels. Archangels, cherubim, and seraphim are three kinds named in the Bible. Archangels are angels of the highest rank. Only Michael is identified in the Bible as an archangel. Cherubim are angels which guarded the way to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:24) And we find golden cherubim on the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant. (Exodus 25:18,20) Cherubim have wings. Seraphim seem to be high ranking in the angel hierarchy. They have six wings each and are in constant adoration of God. (Isaiah 6:2) Most references to angels in the Bible don't mention anything about wings or flying. We only know the name of two angels - Michael, an archangel, and Gabriel who was a special angel who delivered messages from God to Daniel, Zacharias, and Mary. [Catholics believe in an angel named Raphael who is mentioned many times in Tobit - see Tobit 5:4. Tobit is a book of the Apocrypha and is not in Protestant Bibles. The Roman Catholic Church says Raphael is an archangel.] Angels are very powerful. Angels are greater in might and power than humans are. (2 Peter 2:11) A single angel struck down and killed 185,00 men of the Assyrian army! (2 Kings 19:35) Even though angels are powerful, they aren't as powerful as God is. Only God is omnipotent. Apparently when angels appear in the glory of the Lord, they are a scary thing to behold! The normal reactions when humans would see an angel is to fall on their face in fear. The angels always tell them, "Do not be afraid." And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people." (Luke 2:9,10) There are good angels and evil angels. Angels are similar to humans in that they have free will. Satan was an angel who rebelled against God. He took one third of the angels with him. (Revelation 12:3,4; 9) We call the fallen evil angels "demons." Demons are going to try to appear to us as good angels. But we are to test the spirits. There is a spiritual battle going on between the angels and the demons. While demons are powerful, we have the power of the Spirit in us. In the name of Jesus there is no need to fear demons. God will bring demons to a final defeat. Angels have a purpose. Their number one purpose it to praise God. Angels always give glory to God. Angels are messengers. They carry God's will and instructions to mankind. They often provide for people and meet their physical needs. They protect God's people and keep us out of harm's way from physical dangers. Angels have delivered people out of dangerous situations. They will strengthen and encourage God's people. Angels are ministering spirits. Sometimes God uses angels to answer our prayers. Sometimes God uses angels to destroy His enemies. Angels carry our spirit to heaven when we die. Often people wrongly believe that when someone dies they become an angel. Does it matter? After anyone dies, people comment something like "Heaven got another angel." This is simply not true. I had thought the same thing before I took that theology class and looked into what we know about angels. I wondered why people believe that. I think I believed it because others had told me that. It had to come from somewhere. For years I tried to figure it out. Perhaps it comes from great movies like It's a Wonderful Life where Clarence is trying to get his wings. The only Scripture verse I can find that people might misinterpret is Luke 20:34-36. Jesus said to them, "The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage; for they cannot even die anymore, because they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection." We are "like" angels in that there will be no marriage, no procreation, no death. Resurrected believers cannot die. It does not mean we become angels. (See also the matching verses in Matthew 22:30 and Mark 12:25) You won't hear a minister at a funeral say the person who died is an angel because they aren't an angel. Angels and humans have some things in common and in some ways we are "like" them. That does not mean we become angels. We were both created by God meaning we have a starting point. We both have free will and can choose to be with God or reject Him. Angels made that choice at the beginning of time. We have the chance to make the choice during our lifetime. Angels are separate ministering spirits. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14) Angels serve God and minister to us. But does it matter if people believe they will become or their loved ones who have died have become angels? And this is a question I wrestled with for years. I wanted to correct people when I'd hear them say it, but the only time I heard it was when someone died. And that is certainly not an appropriate time to correct grieving people - especially if it really doesn't matter. And then I recently read why it does matter in the book, 9 Common Lies Christians Believe by Shane Pruitt (affiliate link.) I went, "Oh!" Angels can't be redeemed. There is nothing in the Bible that indicates they can be saved. Angels either chose to glorify God or they rejected Him and fell from grace and then became demons. Once they made that choice, that is their eternity. Angel or demon. Humans on the other hand can be redeemed! The crux of the Bible is God's redemptive plan for mankind. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:16) Jesus came as a human. He taught us. He was crucified. He was resurrected. He was the sacrificial atonement for our sin. He is the Mediator of a new covenant in His blood. And whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. What Jesus did was for us, not angels. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. (Hebrews 2:16) Who is the "descendant of Abraham"? We believers are. Our belief in Jesus Christ makes us children of God. We are adopted in to His people. Jesus came to redeem us. That is a truth we can hang our hat on. Believe it to your core. If your loved one who died knew the Lord, that person is more alive than you are right now. They know complete joy, peace, rest. They are glorified! They no longer suffer. They no longer are depressed. They are no longer held hostage by sin. Every tear has been wiped away. They will never be dead! Jesus Christ's resurrection was literal and physical. His body was able to be seen, it was real, it could be touched and was recognizable. And so will our resurrected bodies! Angels are spirits and there is nothing in Scripture that says they will have bodies like us. Your broken heart should be mended by the promises of Scripture. We do not grieve as others do who have no hope. We are to comfort each other with the hope we have been given. Glorious hope. The biblical view of what happens to us when we die from my theology class notes: We remain conscious. Our spiritual eternal decisions are sealed. We go to a place that reflects our choice. We are judged. We go to heaven or apart from God for eternity. Angels aren't redeemed. They made that choice a long time ago whether to worship and serve God or to reject Him. They are what they are. Humans can be redeemed! Praise the Lord! [I once had an encounter with an angel. At least I think I did. I know that sounds unbelievable to most people. But at the time I thought it was an angel. I still believe that over a decade later. Entertaining Angels]

Someone gave me this book, Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion by Father Gregory Boyle. They had read it and told me they thought I'd really enjoy it. I said thank you and threw it on my nightstand where it sat in the stack for probably three months. Gregory Boyle is a Jesuit priest and the founder and executive director of Homeboy Industries. This book is a Christian book about Boyle helping gang members. Boyle began Homeboy Industries to help gang members get jobs and to become productive members of society. It is an older book, copyright 2010. I was curious how this person had come to read it. They said after the Black Lives Matter movement they had joined an internet group that read books that expanded their view on social issues occurring today. One month they were to read Tattoos on the Heart. "For twenty years, Gregory Boyle has run Homeboy Industries, a gang-intervention program located in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, the gang capital of the world. ... Arranged by theme and filled with sparkling humor and glowing generosity, these essays offer a stirring look at how full our lives could be if we could find the joy in loving others and in being loved unconditionally." "Tattoos on the Heart reminds us that no life is less valuable than another." Father Boyle has received numerous humanitarian awards. I was drawn in. This book was incredible! I felt like the Grinch whose heart grew three times that day. I had never heard of Father Boyle. I had never heard of Homeboy Industries. I had never heard of this book and I had worked in a Christian bookstore when it came out! How did that happen? I am so glad I read it. Sometimes a book impacts your heart in a remarkable way. One of the reviews of the book is: "Reading this book is a spiritually cleansing experience that won't leave you the same." Exactly. I guess I thought of gang members as violent drug-crazed people. The bottom of society. The people we write off. As I read account after account about how Christian love can transform lives, my heart grew. When Father Boyle took a couple of the gang members to a White House dinner, I rolled with laughter. Other stories made me tear up because they were so heartbreaking. My world is so far removed from these gang members in Los Angeles and truly these people never entered my mind. Reading this book I was beginning to see them as He does. Do I believe the love of Christ can change a person? I do believe that! But sadly I don't always live like I believe that. Father Boyle's stories are remarkable. He changed lives. But he also had a lot of failures though - people that he helped who screwed him over. But he never gave up. So the book is about his endurance to live what he believed. Jesus transforms lives. We tend to think we'll help someone and when it goes bad, we immediately give up, and we write that person off. Heck, we will write that whole group off. But a close reading of Jesus' ministry is that it was one life transformed at a time. Each person is made in His image and deserves our love. [Passion to Know More website is an affiliate of only one company, ChristianBook. Here is an affiliate link to Tattoos on the Heart. ChristianBook prices are greatly discounted and if you order more than one item, you save money even if you pay minimal shipping. Browse my "Books Recommended" page and see if there is something else you might be interested in. I'm all about supporting a Christian company over a monopoly any day.] After I read Tattoos on the Heart I made several memes with ideas put forth in this book. I'll leave you with a few of them. "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:35

I have been doing Passion to Know More for over six years. For the most part I write about what I'm studying in the Bible. By far my most popular article is What Hour is That? which is about the difference between how the Jewish people and the occupying Romans measured the hours in the New Testament. There are many places where it will say for example "the third hour" or "the sixth hour." I was explaining what that meant. I also went over how the Jewish people divided night watches into thirds and Romans divided night watches into fourths. I got quite a bit of feedback on the article finding it quite helpful, but one thing some people asked about was Jesus being crucified on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday; how can that be the third day and about Mary Magdalene and the women coming to the tomb on the first day of the week. Today we measure days and hours by Roman way - the day begins at midnight and is broken up into two 12 hour segments; midnight to noon is am and noon to midnight is pm. But that isn't how the Jews in biblical times counted their days and hours. The Jews began counting a 24 hour day at sundown which would obviously vary time-wise. I used 6pm which is what others use to explain this. They broke it up into 12 hour segments too, but called these nighttime - from sundown to sunrise (6pm to 6am for our purposes) and daytime - sunrise to sundown (6am to 6pm for our purposes.) It seems to us by the way we measure hours and days that Jesus died on Good Friday and rose on Sunday would be two days (less than 48 hours), not three days. But remember the Jews started their 24 hour day at sunset. The gospels tell us Jesus died about the ninth hour (Jewish way of counting hours because the authors were Jews) which would be Jewish daytime or about 3pm for the Roman way of counting hours. Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice,... Matthew 27:45,46. And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Matthew 27:50 The first day started at 6pm on Thursday. Jesus died around 3pm on Friday - the way we measure hours today. That is still the first day. 6pm Friday to 6pm Saturday would be the second day. Jews would measure the third day from 6pm on Saturday night to 6pm Sunday night. Jesus rose on Sunday because the tomb was sealed as the Roman guard kept watch during the night, but in the morning of the first day of the week (which started Saturday night at 6pm and is still a 24 hour day) Mary came to the tomb. Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. Matthew 28: 1 The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week and for the Jews began at sundown (6pm for our purposes) on Friday night and ended at sundown on Saturday night. The empty tomb was discovered "after the Sabbath" as it became dawn the first day of the week, i.e. Sunday. Day 1 - Thursday 6pm - Friday 6pm. Jesus died on the ninth daytime hour or about 3pm Friday according to the biblical text, but it is still the first day. Day 2 - Friday 6pm - Saturday 6pm. Day 3 - Saturday 6pm to Sunday 6pm. Empty tomb discovered around 6am (Roman time) on Sunday - the third day. I hope that clarifies it for you.

The first five books of the Bible are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These five books are called the Pentateuch. They are foundational in understanding the rest of Scripture. Have you read them? I looked for a reading chart for just the Pentateuch, I couldn't find one, so I made one. If you read about three chapters a day you can finish the Pentateuch in 61 days. That sounds like a great summer project! Or you could start now. Wink. Save this chart to your computer. Print it off and stick it inside your Bible. Check off as you read. Check out Foundation for a little more detail on the Pentateuch.

There are seven Herods mentioned in the biblical text. Herod was the name of several Jewish officials who ruled over Palestine. They were appointed by Rome. To understand the Herods and the Herodian Dynasty and their significance to history, we will have to back up to the Intertestamental Period and the Maccabean Era (165 - 63 B.C.) The politics of this time period is fascinating. In 165 B.C. the Jews had won a war of independence, the Maccabean Revolt, from their Greek rulers. The Jews restored their temple worship and set up a government of Jewish priests from the same family, called the Hasmonean family. When the Hasmonean family came into power they forced all territories to convert to Judaism. They threatened that if someone wanted to maintain their land they would have to be circumcised. Two Arabs who were natives of Edom (later became known as Idumaea) "converted" to Judaism. These two men are Antipas and his son, Antipater the Idumaean. Both men served as military commanders for the Jews. Antipater the Idumaean became an important political advisor to the Judea priest-king John Hyrcanus II. The Hasmonean family which ruled the Jewish people became progressively corrupt. Internal problems and chaos ensued. In 63 B.C. the Jews invited General Pompey to come in and restore order. The Romans weren't really interested in the Jews and what seemed like a strange religion, but they were interested in ruling the land near their enemies, the Persians. And they were interested in that trade route for sure! General Pompey took Jerusalem, entered the temple and even the Most Holy Place. This was sacrilegious to the Jews and they immediately realized they had made a colossal mistake! The Romans renamed the entire area Palestine and governed using client rulers. Thus began the Roman Era (63 B.C. - the fourth century A.D.) of control of the biblical region. When the Romans came into the region Antipater the Idumaean switched sides from the Jews to the Romans. Apparently that conversion wasn't genuine and he was a master at playing politics. The Roman Emperor Julias Caesar rewarded Antipater by making him the governor of Judea in 47 B.C. and he was called the "king of the Jews" although he was not ethnically Jewish. Caesar gave him Roman citizenship which was then passed on to his heirs. Antipater appointed his son, Herod, as governor of Galilee. Antipater is poisoned in 43 B.C. by a political opponent and dies. Antipater the Idumaean was a man of great influence and wealth and is considered the founder of the Herodian Dynasty. He is not mentioned in the Bible. And that brings us to Herod the Great and the other Herods mentioned in the Bible. Here's a rundown of them and feel free to save or share this Herods chart I made. During my research I found several charts on the Herodian Dynasty, but they were quite complicated. I tried to simplify it. I give permission for personal or church use. I do not give permission for publication. When Antipater died, the Jews align themselves with the Parthians and tried to revolt against the Romans. The Parthian Empire was massive and occupied modern day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. The Roman Senate then appoints Herod (Antipater's son) as the governor of Judea, Galilee, Iturea and Trichonitis in 37 B.C. Herod got a promotion to king of the Jews and the Senate ordered Herod to put down the rebellion. And that is exactly what he did. He wiped out the rebels and acquired the name Herod the Great. He had 45 Jewish leaders of the rebellion executed and he confiscated their wealth. Herod the Great ruled Judea and Galilee when Jesus was born. He reigned from 37 - 4 B.C. I know those dates seem off. How could he have died before Jesus was born? The calendar marking the years was invented many centuries later and we now know it is off by a few years. See my article What Year Is It Anyway? Scholars now believe Jesus was born around 5 B.C. Herod the Great placed his friend in the office of high priest at the temple. He controlled the Jews by controlling their leaders. This must have really upset the Jews. Everyone was expected to do his bidding and if they didn't he had them killed. He was not a man of morals. He married ten women. His second wife was a Hasmonean Princess named Mariamne. Her grandfather had been a high priest and she was one of the last heirs of the Hasmonean dynasty. Mariamne went above Herod's head to the Romans and had her brother appointed as head priest. Herod got worried Mariamne's brother would usurp his power; so he had him killed. This upset his wife of course and so Herod accused her of adultery and plotting against him and had her executed. During his reign he had his wife Mariamne, her mother, brother and grandfather all killed. And Herod the Great had three of his sons killed. He was not a nice guy. Herod the Great is also known as a master builder during his reign. He built Herodium - a palace and a fortress near Bethlehem, the port city of Caesarea, and gladiator rings, theaters, aqueducts, etc. But it was the Jewish temple which interests us the most. Solomon's ornate lavish temple had been destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. A remnant of Jews had returned to Jerusalem and eventually built a small temple. This is called the Second Temple. Herod the Great went about making this temple a crown jewel of Jerusalem. He did this not because of faith, but because he wanted to be known for the glorious kingdom he ruled. Herod the Great had the hilltop expanded using massive retaining walls of stone blocks. Once he had the land shored up he expanded the temple and made it magnificent. In A.D. 66 the Jews rebelled against Rome and the temple was destroyed in A.D. 70. All that remains of Herod the Great's Second Temple today is a section of the lower portion of the Western Wall which is called the Wailing Wall. In the place where the temple once stood now stands the Dome of the Rock - the Muslim shrine built about 1300 years ago. There was nothing great about Herod the Great and the Jews did not like him. Herod the Great was known for being a violent dictator, an expansive builder, and as we know from Matthew 2, the king who sought to have baby Jesus killed by having all the male children in Bethlehem under two years old murdered. (Matthew 2:16) The Jewish historian, Josephus, wrote that Herod the Great suffered a horrible death when he was about seventy years old. It was most likely chronic kidney disease which was made so much worse by maggot-infested gangrene of his genitals. Ugh!! Medical scholars say he could have lived months or even up to two years suffering with this condition. If the two years is correct, it means Herod the Great would have begun suffering about the time Jesus was born. When Herod the Great died it was recorded the Jews throughout the country celebrated his death. Herod the Great was buried at Herodium and in 2007 his mausoleum and sarcophagus were excavated. Before Herod the Great died he had four living sons and he divided the kingdom between three of them. All four of these sons are mentioned in the biblical text - sometimes by just their name and sometimes as King Herod or just Herod. "Herod" was a title as a descendant of Antipater and Herod the Great. And the group of Herods is called the Herodian Dynasty. Herod Archelaus ruled the lion's share of the kingdom from 4 BC- AD 6, but fell out of favor and lost his throne and was exiled. He was replaced by a Roman procurator. Herod Antipas ruled the northern part of ancient Palestine including Galilee from 4 BC - AD 39 during the time of Jesus ministry. Antipas is infamous for a couple things. He divorced his wife and married his brother's wife, Herodias. John the Baptist pointed out this was unlawful to do and Antipas had John the Baptist beheaded. Herod Antipas was the ruler of Galilee during Jesus' ministry. Jesus called Herod Antipas a "fox." (Luke 13:32) But the second thing Herod Antipas is infamously known for is mocking and treating Jesus with contempt, putting a gorgeous robe on him and sending Jesus back to Pilate. Afterwards Herod Antipas and Pilate became friends. (Luke 23:6-12) Herod Philip I was not a ruler and although he was not a ruler, he was historically known as Herod Philip I. He is only mentioned in the biblical text because he was married to Herodias. She ended up marrying Herod Antipas and was the instigator in having John the Baptist beheaded. Herod Philip II was the ruler of the region north of Galilee from 4 BC to AD 34. At this point we are at five Herods mentioned in the Bible. Now we come to Herod Agrippa I who was the grandson of Herod the Great and the nephew of Herod Antipas. In Acts 12:1 the biblical text refers to him as "Herod the king." He persecuted the early church and is infamously known as having put to death the apostle James. Herod Agrippa I was struck by an angel of the Lord because he did not give God the glory. He was eaten by worms and died. (Read Acts 12:2-23.) And we are to the last Herod mentioned in the Bible. It is Herod Agrippa II, the son of Herod Agrippa I and the great grandson of Herod the Great. The apostle Paul goes before King Herod Agrippa II. The account in Acts 25 and 26 is fascinating. Paul tells the king how he had been a Pharisee and how he had persecuted the early Christians. He tells the king about his Damascus road conversion. King Herod Agrippa II heard Paul's story. We will never know the impact on this Herod. Perhaps Paul did persuade him to become a Christian. King Agrippa stated "This man is not doing anything worthy of death or imprisonment." (Acts 26:31) And Agrippa sent Paul on to Rome to appeal to Caesar. "Ethnarch" just means ruler over a common ethnic group. A "tetrarch" is the ruler of one fourth of a region. These local kings were actually client rulers and were given their authority from Rome. Palestine was part of the Roman empire, but Rome imposed a regional government first through King Herod the Great and his successors, and then later through prefects such as Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem. These leaders were the puppets of Rome. Another thing to mention is some of the Jews aligned with various Jewish sects like the Sadducees and Pharisees. These sects within Judaism developed during the Intertestamental time period. There was also a Jewish sect called the Herodians. The Herodians were a political party who wanted to further the cause of Herod's government. They are mentioned three times in the biblical text - Matthew 22:16, Mark 3:6, and Mark 12:13. In the chart are many geographical names. Ancient Palestine was divided into three general geographical sections. Galilee in the north which is where most of Jesus' ministry took place. Samaria in the center. Judea in the south where Jerusalem is located. Jerusalem was the location of the temple and where the Jewish leaders were located. It is the center of the Jewish faith and the center of commerce. To be king over Judea was to have the more important position because Judea was the largest part of the kingdom and also had significant prominence to the Jewish people. Most of the New Testament events happen in either Judea or Galilee and it helps for understanding to know who ruled these sections at various times. Anipater ruled just Judea 47 - 43 BC - founder of the Herodian Dynasty. Herod the Great ruled Judea and Galilee 37 - 4 BC - king when Jesus was born. Herod Archelaus ruled Judea 4 BC- AD 6, lost his throne and was exiled and was replaced by a Roman procurator. Herod Antipas ruled Galilee from 4 BC - AD 39 - had John the Baptist beheaded and mocked Jesus and had Jesus sent back to Pilate. Herod Agrippa I ruled Judea AD 41- 44 - persecuted the early church and had the apostle James put to death. The rest of the time Judea and Galilee were ruled by Roman procurators (governors.) The most famous being Pontius Pilate who ruled over Judea from AD 26 - 36. There are seven Herods mentioned in our biblical account. We know about them from the biblical text but also because they were significant figures in history and were written about outside biblical records. The Herods were considered alien rulers and for the most part were despised by their Jewish subjects. (Herod Agrippa I did find favor with most Jews during his rule.) The rule of Rome using client rulers plays significantly into the historical context of our biblical text.

Well that did not work out as planned! My women's Bible study group had just finished Jen Wilkin's study called God of Deliverance. We had spent months studying the first 18 chapters of Exodus verse by verse in great depth. Jen's study is excellent and we learned an incredible amount! (Here are affiliate links to the God of Deliverance study book and God of Deliverance Leader Kit with videos.) Most of the women have been in this group for five years. There is serious Bible study going on! The women have grown by leaps and bounds in their knowledge and faith. We have done studies on theology, discipleship, Bible study skills, apologetics, another world religion, and we have alternated between the New Testament and the Old Testament. They are passionate about learning - always doing their homework, always participating. We have become extremely close. The very best of friends. Each study I try to do something to make the study be memorable. We had love glasses one time when we studied having a heart for God. Another study a big concept was the fear of God and I had the rather scary portrait of my great grandmother Sarah Minerva hanging up. She was a God fearing woman; something we wanted to be. I hadn't really done anything for this study up until last night. Jen ended her study with a wrap-up and that is what we were going to discuss last night. What we will remember about this study. I wrote down several things I will remember from this study. I was thinking the women have learned so much and I want to show them how much they have learned! So I typed up a quiz and ran out and got the cutest little prize for whoever did the best on the quiz. We discussed our take-aways from this long study. Then we watched Jen's tenth video. And then I gave them the quiz. Long groans. 'This is so hard!' The quiz was not received well at all. The ladies grumbled just like the Israelites did in the wilderness. Ha! We went over the answers and I let them grade their own quizzes and we didn't talk about scores. We determined the winner by did anyone get more than 40 points? No? Did anyone get more than 30 points? Yes, and I gave the woman her cute little succulent. I honestly thought it would be pretty easy for them except for questions 5 and 21. Question 5 Jen went over the introduction week in her video. It would be hard to remember back that far. Question 21 is just hard to remember all the plagues. Those two questions I knew would be difficult but were designed to give us a winner. The rest of the questions they should have known because either Jen taught them or we have gone over them (like question 7) many times. I thought they would take it and go 'Look how much we learned!' and be proud of themselves. Nope. It was tortuous. They knew we had studied it, but they just couldn't remember the answers. How well do we know the biblical accounts? Do we give the biblical accounts as much effort as we do other things in our lives? We expect our children to master algebra and chemistry, or piano, or soccer skills, but have they been taught the basics of our faith with the same expectations? We ourselves take exercise classes and nutrition classes, but how much effort do we put into learning about the tenants of our religion? These women who go to church week in and week out were mostly learning this stuff for the first time. While we have come a long way in 5 years, the reality is we have not mastered all that much relative to how long we have been Christians. Before the women came last night I asked my adult son a few of the questions. For the most part he did not know the answers. However, my husband was listening and he did know most of the answers! He grew up in the church and apparently was very well trained. At one point I said to my son, "Dude, in the movie The Ten Commandments, what does Moses say to Pharaoh?" And he responded he never saw the movie. What? Honestly I was shocked! How'd that happen? I thought everyone had seen the movie. I told him we were watching it this Easter and he chuckled. Again I felt like a mom failure for not teaching my kids more about the Christian faith. We just didn't talk about this stuff much in our home. I guess I assumed they were getting "enough" training at church. Jen Wilkin ended this study by saying we must know our stories well so we can share them with future generations. The vast majority of us have failed at this. I am reminded of the pastor who said to me if I broke my Connecting the Dots of the Bible class into 5 minute teaching videos, he would show the videos to the middle and high school students. Is that really the bar we want to set for ourselves and the next generation? Five minute videos? Is that the best we can do? Do we think that pleases God to get a teeny portion of our effort? You can’t learn anything worthwhile in 5 minute segments. The concepts in the Bible build on each other taking us into deeper understanding. After five years together, the women in this group realize that. Where should the bar be set for basic Christian training? We expect our kids to master their school subjects. We expect them to practice their instrument or their sport to get better at it. We will pay for them to have tutors when they are struggling in a subject. We will pay trainers to hone their skills. Perhaps when it comes to the Bible we should expect the same standards. Perhaps we should hold ourselves to those standards. Is it really enough to hand them a Bible and say have a quiet time for five minutes and make sure you pray before bed? Do we even do that? Not training up a child in the way they should go leads to generations of people with weak faith. And what happens when people have little faith? The first big storm that hits they get swept away. And the storms will come. We need deep roots to make it through the tsunamis of life. There is a real benefit to learning this information. Huge benefits! Scripture commands us to repeat and remember, repeat and remember, repeat and remember. Our memories are so short. We forget most of what we learn as time goes on. We must repeat it - over and over. But we need to know the accounts ourselves to be able to do this. We need to be purposeful to learn them well and talk about them. Passing our faith on to the next generation is a command from the LORD. Will we be obedient? I told the ladies to think about what grade they would have got if that quiz was for a real class. Would they have got an A or an F? Are they happy with their grade? I told the women to look on the bright side. We know more than we did months ago. I guarantee they know more about Exodus 1-18 than most people reading this. I couldn't be more proud of them! We continue to be purposeful on our faith journey and to plug along. Let's ponder though if we put the same effort into Bible study with which we do other things in our lives. Anything you want to master takes training and effort on your part. Let’s all strive to make God’s Honor Roll. Knowledge is never wasted. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. PS The woman who won the succulent named it "Manna" because what is it? Ha ha! Cracked me up.

The Amalekites are an often mentioned enemy of the Israelites in the Old Testament. It is beneficial for our understanding of Scripture to know who they are. I am finishing up an excellent study on the first half of Exodus and apparently I had studied the Amalekites before because I wrote in my Bible about them. Amalek is mentioned in Exodus 17:8-16. I didn’t remember who they were but when I started looking up reference Scripture it came back to me. They were one of the groups of people who intermittently waged war against the Israelites. And Amalekites are one of the what I call "the bad bits" of the Bible where God would order the utter destruction of a group of people. Amalek is the grandson of Esau. (Genesis 36:12) That section of Genesis 36 has a geneology of the descendants of Esau. Genealogies are important and I've learned there is a reason for them being in our biblical text. Amalekites are the descendants of Esau. Reading the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible) is critical to the understanding of the rest of Scripture. But rundown in case you haven't read Genesis. Abraham has Isaac. Isaac and his wife Rebekah have twins, Esau and Jacob. Jacob deceives Isaac and steals the blessing. Esau is pretty upset and plots to kill Jacob. Isaac tells Esau "by your sword you shall live." (Genesis 27:40) And Esau's descendants did live by the sword. "The Amalekites were a fierce nomadic tribe that lived in the desert region of the Dead Sea. They made part of their livelihood by conducting frequent raids on other settlements and carrying off plundered goods. They killed for pleasure. One of the greatest insults in Israelite culture was to call someone "a friend of Amalek." When the Israelites entered the region, the Amalekites saw this as a perfect opportunity for both pleasure and profit." [Source NIV Life Application Bible text note for Exodus 17:8] God promises He will "utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven" and Exodus 17:16 tells us "The LORD has sworn; the LORD will have war against Amalek from generation to generation." Deuteronomy is the book when right before the Israelites enter the promised land, Moses remembers what God has done for His people and urges the Israelites to obey God's law and the blessings they will have if they do so. We learn in Deuteronomy 25:17-19 when Moses is reminding the people how they should deal with the Amalekites in the future that the Amalekites didn't fear God and didn't fight fair. They preyed on the weakest among the Israelites. They attacked the back of the group where the stragglers were. These stragglers would have been the elderly, the sick, the mothers with young children. After the Israelites settle in the promised land and and have some rest, they are to "blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven." And Moses adds, "you must not forget." We see the Amalekites mentioned again in in Numbers 14:40-45. The Amalekites struck and beat the Israelites down. The Amalekites troubled Israel off and on for many years. Here is what you need to remember about the Amalekites. They are descendants of Esau and lived by the sword. They didn't fight fair and they found pleasure in killing. God commands the Israelites that they are to utterly destroy the Amalekites in the future. God gives the promised land to the Israelites as an inheritance. We come to Judges 3:12-14 where the Israelites again do evil in the sight of the LORD. Yes, again. God uses the Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Amalekites to defeat them and the Israelites serve Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years. (I'm always struck by the fact that the Bible gives the good, the bad and the ugly. The Israelites recorded the times they did evil in the sight of the LORD. Documenting the sins you commit, something you and I wouldn't tend to do if we were writing about our lives, makes us know the biblical accounts are true.) In Judges 6:3-10 we again see the Israelites do evil in the sight of the LORD and God uses the Midianites and the Amalekites who come in and destroy the crops and livestock and deliver them into the hands of Midian for seven years. God tells the Israelites "But you have not obeyed Me." The LORD subdues the Midianites and the Amalekites before Gideon and the Israelites. (Judges 7:12) We see the Israelites obeying God here. In 1 Samuel 14:47-48 we see King Saul defeat the Amalekites. But it is not until further into the reign of King Saul that the Israelites are told to destroy the Amalekites. It is time. Thus says the LORD of hosts, "I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, ... Now go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey." (1 Samuel 15:1-3, 7-10) OK, this is one of "the bad bits" where even the children and animals are to be utterly destroyed. The Hebrew word "herem" means completely destroy and is used frequently in the book of Joshua. We learn from "the bad bits" incidents of herem of God's hatred of evil and His power and will to destroy it. King Saul wasn't a very good king and by that I mean he wasn't fully devoted to God. Remember the people picked him. Saul is commanded to utterly destroy the Amalekites and he only does part of the job. Saul spares their king and keeps the best of the animals and all that was good (in his eyes.) Saul disobeyed God. We learn partial obedience doesn't cut it. And it is the Amalekites who take David's wives and the other wives and sons and daughters captive in 1 Samuel 30. That causes much heartache. It is an Amalekite that kills King Saul. (2 Samuel 1:1-16) We finally find out what happens to the Amalekites in 1 Chronicles 4:43. We don't get the details, but King Hezekiah is obedient to the LORD and destroys the Amalekites. When the Exodus happens God promises He will blot out the Amalekites for what they have done to Israel. He tells the Israelites they must not forget. Over 400 years go by where the Israelites and the Amakelites are in conflict with each other. God orders Saul to utterly destroy them. Saul doesn't. Fifteen reigns after King Saul - or about 300 years - King Hezekiah finally completes the task. Imagine the evil the Amalekites did in the generations between Saul and Hezekiah! So much suffering could have been avoided if only when God first commands the utter destruction of the Amalekites, the Israelites had obeyed Him. And these are my take-aways with regard to the Amalekites: God hates wickedness. We should be fully obedient to the LORD. God's commands are good. God says something, and it is so. What He says will always come to pass.

The apostle Thomas was so very human. He would not believe Jesus had been resurrected until he saw in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put his finger into the place of the nails, and put his hand into His side. It is so human to be inquisitive and skeptical and to want proof. And because Thomas would not believe until he saw it for himself, he has become forever known as "Doubting Thomas." Surprisingly Thomas isn't mentioned that often in the New Testament. Just eleven times by name. He is mentioned in the three synoptic gospels when the twelve apostles are listed. (Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:14-19; Luke 6:13-16) Thomas is mentioned seven times in the gospel of John. First in John 11:16 where we find out he is also called "Didymus." That is interesting because "Thomas" comes from the Hebrew word meaning twin and "Didymus" in Greek means "the twin." Who was his twin? We don't know. Why didn't his twin become a disciple of Jesus like the other brothers who were apostles? We don't know. Don't miss the significance of Thomas' one little sentence in the account in John 11:1-16! Lazarus had become sick and his sisters, Mary and Martha, sent word to Jesus. Jesus hears the news and waits two more days and then tells his disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." His disciples remind Jesus the Jews in Judea want to stone him. (Like He needs reminding of that fact.) So Jesus then said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead, and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him." Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, so that we may die with Him." What devotion to Jesus and what courage Thomas exhibited! The disciples didn't really want to go back to Judea because the Jews sought to stone Jesus and most likely his disciples might be persecuted or killed too. They would be risking their lives to stick with Jesus - or so they thought. But Thomas, who later becomes infamously known as "Doubting Thomas," shows great devotion, courage, and leadership in saying in a sense, 'Hey, we are all in this together. We will live and die with you Lord.' Now that is something extraordinary to know about Thomas. The next time we see Thomas is in John 14:1-6 where Jesus is trying to comfort His disciples. I consider this to be one of the most moving passages in the Bible. I can't read it without getting choked up. Yes, Jesus is giving His disciples comfort because He is about to leave them, to be crucified. The whole going to My Father's house and preparing a place for us and that He will come again to receive us to Himself - oh that gets me every time. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it. "And you know the way where I am going." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." See that? There is that inquisitiveness in Thomas. He just doesn't understand Jesus' words. He admits he doesn't understand. And that famous verse "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." - zoom back and put yourself in the place of the disciples. They probably didn't understand even then what Jesus was saying. They went into hiding when Jesus was crucified - thinking they may be next. 'How could their Lord die? What would they do?' And three days later when Jesus rises from the dead we can know they finally understood His words that night because they came out from hiding and took the good news to the ends of the earth. There is an important concept to understand here. When did Jesus reveal who He was? In bits and pieces to His disciples and followers during His three year ministry. Peter admits in Matthew 16:16, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." But then Peter goes on to deny he knows Jesus three times. There is this sense that Peter believed it, but yet doubted it or fully did not understand it. Jesus was gradually revealing who He was to everyone, but they didn't fully get it until He was resurrected. Do you know then and today there are many groups and people who believe Jesus was the Messiah, but they don't believe He is the Son of God? They think Jesus was some prophet or wise man or good teacher, but it has not been revealed to them who Jesus is. Yes, just like then, our understanding grows the more we learn. We have faith, but our roots are growing deeper. We believed, but now we are sure. And this brings us to the really important mention of Thomas. John 20:19-29 is the account of the resurrected Christ appearing to His disciples. But Thomas wasn't there. Again, it mentions he is called "Didymus" (the twin) in verse 24. The other disciples tell Thomas, "We have seen the Lord!" Thomas isn't going to believe until he sees Him for himself. Jesus came. Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." Did you get that? Who did Thomas say Jesus was? "My Lord and my God!" Did Jesus correct him and say, 'No, no, no - I am your Lord, but not your God.'? NO! Thomas confessed Jesus was his Lord AND God. The fact that Jesus did not correct Thomas is affirmation who Jesus is. And yet there are those who think Jesus was just a prophet or a good teacher or a rabbi. Thomas - he was the first one to truly understand and say the identity of our Lord and God. I hope you remember him as such and not just as "Doubting Thomas." Thomas again sees the resurrected Christ at the Sea of Galilee. (John 21:1-14) Thomas is mentioned for the last time in the New Testament in Acts 1:13 as being in the upper room with the other apostles. They were of one mind, devoted to prayer. Waiting for what was to come next - the day of Pentecost. We know Thomas went out and spread the good news. "He is risen!" Good news indeed. Church tradition says Thomas died a martyr's death speared to death in what is now India after starting several churches there. Will we be like the skeptics of time who think Jesus was a really good guy, maybe even a prophet? Or will we be like Thomas and confess with all of our being, "My Lord and my God!"? Who you believe Jesus is matters.

When a word or phrase is repeated over and over in the Bible, we should sit up and take notice. The writers of the Bible use some form of the expression, “The Lord says,” over three thousand times! Watch for it. What the LORD says, always comes about. Always. God said to Abram, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions." (Genesis 15:13,14) Note Abram hadn't been renamed to Abraham yet. We know the account of Joseph being sold into slavery to Egypt and after time becoming Pharaoh's advisor. Jacob's family escapes the famine by going to Egypt. There they grow numerous and become slaves of the Egyptians. God raises up Moses to deliver His people out of bondage. Hundreds of years after telling Abram what will happen to his descendants God speaks to Moses at the burning bush. The LORD said, "I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. So I have come down to deliver them..." (Exodus 3:7,8a) "I will grant this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. ... Thus you will plunder the Egyptians." (Exodus 3:21, 22b) God said so. Did it happen? It did. ... for they had requested from the Egyptians articles of silver and articles of gold, and clothing; ... Thus they plundered the Egyptians. (Exodus 12:35b,36b) At the end of four hundred and thirty years, to the very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:41) Moses says "Thus says the LORD" over and over to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh would not listen. Thus says the LORD. And it is so. One of the most surprising and disturbing examples of God saying something and it is so is found with King David. We are well aware of David's great sin with Bathsheba. King David had her husband, Uriah the Hittite, killed. The prophet Nathan goes and rebukes David in 2 Samuel 12. There is a price to pay for David "doing evil in His sight." Nathan begins with "Thus says the LORD God of Israel" (verse 7) and continues to give David the consequences of his sin. A disgusting consequence is in verse 11 and 12. "Thus says the LORD, 'Behold, I will raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. Indeed you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and under the sun.'" God said so. Did it happen? It did. Absalom was David's son. He had rebelled against King David and tried to usurp the throne. Absalom returns to Jerusalem when King David isn't there and he is advised to sleep with King David's concubines. This would signify to all of Israel Absalom's assumption of royal power. Ahithophel said to Absalom, "Go in to your father's concubines, whom he has left to keep the house; then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself odious to your father. The hands of all who are with you will also be strengthened." So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and Absalom went in to his father's concubines in the sight of all Israel. (2 Samuel 16:21,22) Don't ever say the Bible is boring! Thus says the LORD. And it is so. We see over and over in the biblical accounts "Thus says the LORD" or a similar variation. And in every instance things happen just as God said they would. Every single time. Our God, the one we worship and give glory to, keeps His word. He accomplishes what He says He will do and what He purposes to happen is going to happen. We can take that to the bank. That truth sinks in to our very being and it brings us great comfort. It is comforting to us because God has told us in His word that: He loves us. (John 3:16) We can believe it. He has forgiven us. (Psalm 86:5; 1 John 1:9) We can believe it. He hears our prayers. (1 John 5:14) We can believe it. He will never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6) We can believe it. He will comfort us. (2 Corinthians 1:3) We can believe it. We cannot be separated from Him. (Romans 8:38-39) We can believe it. He will do what is good for us. (Romans 8:28) We can believe it. He is coming again. (Revelation 22:12) We can believe it. We will be with Him forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:17) We can believe it. Our God is a God of His word. "Thus says the LORD,..." Over 3000 times.

The Jewish people have three things that help them remember the most important commandment to love God. They are the Shema, phylacteries and mezuzahs. I wrote about the Scripture passages contained in the Shema liturgy, and in in the phylacteries and mezuzahs in Not Just a Jewish Belief. And I just noticed something. The second greatest commandment is not located in any of those things. The Shema is the Jewish confession of faith. The complete Jewish "Shema" in their liturgy consists of three sections: Deuteronomy 6:4-9 - what we typically think of as the Shema. It tells us the LORD is one, to love the LORD, to teach these commandments to our children, to keep them in view, and to write them on our doorposts and gates. Deuteronomy 11:13-21 - pretty much reiterates Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Numbers 15:37-41 - to have a reminder that has us remember all the commandments of the LORD and to obey them. Phylacteries are the leather boxes that pious Jews will wear on their foreheads and left hands. They contain four Scripture passages: Exodus 13:1-10 - observing Passover and tell your children what the LORD has done, a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead. Exodus 13:11-16 - being devoted to the LORD and talking to your children about remembering what the LORD has done, a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 - see above Deuteronomy 11:13-21 - see above A mezuzah is a decorative container which is attached to the doorframe of your home. It contains a scroll inside of it that has two Scripture passages on it - 1. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 2. Deuteronomy 11:13-21. The purpose of these things are to remind the Jews of the greatest commandment to love the LORD. Of course there is a connection between the Shema Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and what Jesus tells us is the greatest commandment which is to love the LORD. See Matthew 22:37-40 or Mark 12:29-31 or Luke 10:27. But in those passages Jesus also tells us what the second greatest commandment is. The second greatest commandment is "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." This comes from Leviticus 19:18. '..., but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD.' Jesus tells us, "There is no other commandment greater than these." (to love the LORD with all our heart and soul and mind and strength and to love our neighbor.) Of course the next question we ask is, "Who is my neighbor?" It is interesting that in Luke's account the scribe asks Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?" and Jesus goes into the parable of The Good Samaritan. A man was stripped, beaten and left half dead. A priest passes and does not help. Then a Levite passes and he does not help. But a Samaritan, a despised foreigner helps the man. Who was the good neighbor? "The one who showed mercy toward him." And in Luke 10:37 Jesus tells them, "Go and do the same." That is a directive to us too. Talk about applicability! My mind immediately goes to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 where Jesus says over and over "you have heard that..." and follows that by "but I say to you..." The religious people knew the Law. Jesus did not come to do away with the Law. Jesus came to fulfill the Law, but also to bring it to a deeper meaning, a greater obedience. Given a situation where someone else is in need we have choices. We can choose not to help them which is what the priest and Levite did in the account of the Good Samaritan. Or we can choose to show mercy towards another. This is the option Jesus wants us to choose. Matthew 5:43-48 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." Jesus was talking about not doing the bare minimum. We shouldn't just obey to obey. We obey out of the love that pours out of our hearts. Remember who was the good neighbor. The Jews focus on loving God and obeying His commands. They have the command to love their neighbors, but yet that command is not found in three important things of their faith - the Shema, phylacteries and mezuzahs. Jesus clearly puts in our minds and to a deeper understanding that there are two commands we are to remember as the most important. Christ-followers should focus on loving God and loving others. When we have mercy on others, we are modeling Christ. When we love others as ourselves, we are being obedient. Love God. Love others. Imagine what the world would be like if we actually did it!

Before you read a book of the Bible it is quite helpful to get a little background of that book. This is especially a great idea for the Old Testament prophesy books (to give you an idea which historical era the prophet was writing to) and for the 21 epistles (letters) in the New Testament (since they are written to various audiences and for various reasons.) Reading an introduction to a book of the Bible before you read that book will greatly enhance your reading of the Bible. If you have a study Bible, there will be an introduction to each book of the Bible which will tell you things like the author, when that book was written, the audience, Key Scriptures, Key Themes, and an outline of the book. I have 3 study Bibles and the introductions are informative, but somewhat dry and boring. There are reference books that have information about each book of the Bible. These books give you the big picture of each book – themes, cultural background, historical background, maps, pictures,… I have 3 of the most popular ones and I like each of them. But my favorite is The Complete Guide to the Bible by Stephen M. Miller, copyright 2007 (affiliate link*), published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. This one has the book-by-book background and explanations, fascinating details on Bible times, and beautiful pictures. Several pages per book of the Bible. The author has a sense of humor and it reads like a book. Honestly, I love this book and use it quite frequently! It is something you want for your own Bible study and it would make a great gift for someone else. To see the other two books of the Bible reference books I own check out Something to Have for Your Library dated November 28, 2015. #booksoftheBible #referencebookforBible #readtheBible #referencebook * PassiontoKnowMore is an affiliate of ChristianBook and that means if you purchase the book or anything through the link on this page or the links on any pages of PassiontoKnowMore, I receive a small portion of the sale. It helps to offset the cost of the site. Christianbook charges minimal shipping, but the prices are so low on the books and other products that it often comes out a better deal. And you usually receive the products in a couple days.

The practice of casting lots to make decisions or to obtain an answer is mentioned many times in the Bible - mostly in the Old Testament but there are a handful of references to this practice in the New Testament. The purpose of casting lots is told to us in Proverbs 18:18. Casting the lot ends quarrels and separates powerful opponents. The Bible isn't specific about the actual lots themselves. Were they sticks of varying lengths, or flat stones, or maybe white stones with a black stone thrown in, or some kind of dice? We just don't know, but it seems it would be similar to flipping a coin, or throwing dice or drawing names from a hat. In the Old Testament casting lots was used for many reasons. The most frequent was to divide the land as specified in Numbers 26:55 - But the land shall be divided by lot. Joshua divided the land by casting lots in Joshua 18:8-10. "... then I will cast lots for you here before the LORD in Shiloh." ... And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD, and there Joshua divided the land to the sons of Israel according to their divisions. They also used casting lots to determine various duties. In 1 Chronicles 25:8 They cast lots for their duties, all alike, the small as well as the great, the teacher as well as the pupil. In Nehemiah 10:34 they cast lots for who would supply wood. In Leviticus 6:13 the Old Testament law commanded that "Fire must be kept burning on the altar continually; it is not to go out." This required a lot of wood! The people shared the responsibility for providing this wood. In Nehemiah 11:1 they cast lots to see which families would move to Jerusalem! One of the most intriguing uses of casting of lots was to determine who had sinned. We see this in 1 Samuel 14:24-45 when the lot was cast between Saul and Jonathan and Jonathan was selected. Jonathan admitted his sin. And we see it in Jonah 1:7 when the pagan sailors cast lots to see who was responsible for the storm and it selected Jonah. Casting lots was a practice not only used by the Hebrews but also by people of other cultures such as these pagan sailors and also the Roman soldiers when they cast lots for Jesus' garments. This is recorded in all four gospels - Matthew 27:35, Mark 15:24, Luke 23:34, and John 19:24. The phrase they divided His clothes and cast lots fulfilled Psalm 22:18. Psalm 22 is quoted more frequently in the New Testament than any other Psalm because it has many messianic prophecies. What is also interesting is that Psalm 22:18 was written about 1000 years before Jesus was crucified! One last example of casting lots needs to be mentioned to make a point. It is found in Acts 1:26 where casting lots was how the apostles decided who would replace Judas. They drew lots and the lot fell to Matthias. He was added to the eleven apostles. Back up to the preceding verses. They had put two men forward to be the possible replacement. And they prayed and said, "You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place." They prayed and then they cast lots. Lots were used to seek God's will. Joshua cast lots before the LORD. Saul prayed before the lot was cast. The apostles prayed to the Lord before they cast their lots. It reminds me of my women's Bible study group where we had a bowl of names in it. I would ask the ladies to say a quick prayer before they drew a name. Then in the next week they were to reach out to that woman whose name they drew and encourage her in some way. We called these our encouragement cards. There was nothing random about whose name they got. We prayed and we were trusting God to give us the name we were to encourage. The Hebrew people asked God to be a part of the process. Casting lots is not an occult practice. Occult practices are condemned by God as spelled out in Deuteronomy 18:10-12. Divination is the practice of seeking knowledge of the future by supernatural means. The Hebrew people were seeking God's will. However, we no longer need to cast lots to determine God's will. Nowhere in the New Testament does it instruct Christians to cast lots to make decisions. After the lot fell on Matthias to be the twelfth apostle, casting lots is not mentioned again. Why? Because Pentecost occurred and the Holy Spirit became indwelling in believers. If we want to know God's will; we have God's Word, the Holy Spirit to guide us, prayer and fasting.