2Kings, chapter 4, comments

 

2Kings 4:1 ¶  Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. 2  And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. 3  Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. 4  And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full. 5  So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out. 6  And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. 7  Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.

In spite of what Elisha prophesied for those kings in the previous chapter there is no mention of him receiving some great honor from them or declared a national hero.

He does something remarkable for this widow of one of the sons of the prophets. He received the poor woman’s complaint, perhaps because he oversaw the prophets in his capacity and felt responsible to help or perhaps he was directed by God. She reminds Elisha of her late husband’s service for the LORD. But now, without her husband, she and her sons are financially in dire straits, and her sons may be taken as slaves to pay her debts as she has only a small amount of oil to live on and none to sell.

So, Elisha tells her to do what she must do to receive the bounty that God is about to bestow upon her. We, too, would be better off preparing to receive God’s miraculous blessings than spending our time telling God how He ought to help us. She is to collect as many vessels as she can. I can imagine the hopeful anticipation she must have felt after Elisha spoke. The pot of oil seemed endless and filled all of the vessels she had borrowed. When all is said and done she has enough oil to sell to pay off her debt and save her family and support her family.

Think of the five loaves and two fishes that Jesus made to feed a multitude of people. The supply did not end until the need was met with much left over.

Matthew 14:17  And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes. 18  He said, Bring them hither to me. 19  And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. 20  And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full. 21  And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

2Kings 4:8 ¶  And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. 9  And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. 10  Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. 11  And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. 12  And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. 13  And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. 14  And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. 15  And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. 16  And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. 17  And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

According Gill and early Jewish authorities this woman of Shunem was great in wealth and in reputation as being a Godly person. At her invitation Elisha stops and refreshes himself at her place often. She and her husband made him a room to occupy on his visits. Elisha ponders what he can do for her in appreciation. She is without children and her husband is old. Elisha promises her that she will have a child, a blessing in most cultures at most times of history until recently in the western world. She seems doubtful but there is no conflict here mentioned about a lack of faith so it must have been a saying like we use, “don’t be pulling my leg.” She is blessed with a son.

2Kings 4:18 ¶  And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers. 19  And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother. 20  And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. 21  And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. 22  And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again. 23  And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. 24  Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee. 25  So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite: 26  Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well. 27  And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me. 28  Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me? 29  Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child. 30  And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her. 31  And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked. 32  And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. 33  He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD. 34  And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm. 35  Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. 36  And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son. 37  Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

The promised child here dies, perhaps, of heat stroke or some brain seizure. Here is an example of great faith. The woman of Shunem believes that Elisha can and will revive her dead son. Here is another example of a son returning from the dead. This was done in type with Abraham and Isaac and will be done in real time with Christ’s resurrection.

Not even telling her husband she knows that God, through Elisha, will raise her child from the dead. The ritual that Elisha performed might seem bizarre but we know from whom the miracle of resurrection proceeded.

2Kings 4:38 ¶  And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets. 39  And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not. 40  So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof. 41  But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot. 42  And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat. 43  And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof. 44  So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD.

Gilgal was near where Elijah ascended in the chariot. See 2Kings 2:1. A dearth, according to John Gill, is a famine caused by a drought. Elisha commands that his servant, presumably Gehazi, to prepare some soup or stew for his disciples or maybe we might call them student prophets. In desperation and hunger they are gathering plants to put in the pot they know little about as to whether or not they are edible. The vine must have been very bitter and raised their alarm at what it might cause, that it might be poisonous.

Elisha’s command that they mix meal into the pot shouldn’t be mistaken for a cooking remedy to change the danger but as we have seen before, a requirement of faith and confidence in the prophet and, ultimately, God to heal the situation. Perhaps the meal neutralized the bitterness of the soup caused by the vine. In any event, it was safe to eat now.

Then, we have a miracle along the lines of Christ’s feeding of multitudes. Precious food is donated to the prophet and he dispenses it to his disciples but it seems as if it is hardly enough to feed them all. Still Elisha promises that there will be enough and leftovers as well and there is. This is the doings of God Himself and a forerunner of Christ’s miracles.

Bible Study on Matthew 7, verses 7 to 11, Ask and seek

 

Matthew 7:7 ¶  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 9  Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 10  Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11  If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

 

The context here is about wisdom and spiritual things, not a new chainsaw. Finding something and having something opened seems to suggest that directly from the context. Proverbs is filled with verses about the importance of seeking and gaining wisdom. We have but to humbly ask God as Solomon did in 1Kings, chapter 3.

 

This passage is sandwiched in between the one on righteous judgment and one on following a narrow path. It is imperative that we Christians seek wisdom from God through prayer and Bible reading. We cannot depend on or trust in our own narcissism, ego, and mental issues. God will give us wisdom to face the unique situation we are in, even though the situation is something we might share with many other Christians.

 

In any event, this is a great promise

 

James 1:5  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

 

God will also help us understand doctrine, dispensations, and end-time prophecy as we need to know it by our humble supplications and our faithful reading, studying, cross-referencing, and prayer. What we need to know will be given to us. There are things, though, that belong only to God.

 

Deuteronomy 29:29  The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

 

And prophecy is not given to swell our heads but for a specific purpose for us.

 

John 13:19  Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.

 

John 14:29  And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

 

 

John 16:4  But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.

Bible Study on Genesis 36, verses 9 to 43, the descendants of Esau

 

Genesis 36:9 ¶  And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount Seir: 10  These are the names of Esau’s sons; Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau. 11  And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz. 12  And Timna was concubine to Eliphaz Esau’s son; and she bare to Eliphaz Amalek: these were the sons of Adah Esau’s wife. 13  And these are the sons of Reuel; Nahath, and Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah: these were the sons of Bashemath Esau’s wife. 14  And these were the sons of Aholibamah, the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon, Esau’s wife: and she bare to Esau Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah. 15  These were dukes of the sons of Esau: the sons of Eliphaz the firstborn son of Esau; duke Teman, duke Omar, duke Zepho, duke Kenaz, 16  Duke Korah, duke Gatam, and duke Amalek: these are the dukes that came of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons of Adah. 17  And these are the sons of Reuel Esau’s son; duke Nahath, duke Zerah, duke Shammah, duke Mizzah: these are the dukes that came of Reuel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Bashemath Esau’s wife. 18  And these are the sons of Aholibamah Esau’s wife; duke Jeush, duke Jaalam, duke Korah: these were the dukes that came of Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esau’s wife. 19  These are the sons of Esau, who is Edom, and these are their dukes.

Genesis 36:20 ¶  These are the sons of Seir the Horite, who inhabited the land; Lotan, and Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, 21  And Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan: these are the dukes of the Horites, the children of Seir in the land of Edom. 22  And the children of Lotan were Hori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister was Timna. 23  And the children of Shobal were these; Alvan, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shepho, and Onam. 24  And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father. 25  And the children of Anah were these; Dishon, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah. 26  And these are the children of Dishon; Hemdan, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cheran. 27  The children of Ezer are these; Bilhan, and Zaavan, and Akan. 28  The children of Dishan are these; Uz, and Aran. 29  These are the dukes that came of the Horites; duke Lotan, duke Shobal, duke Zibeon, duke Anah, 30  Duke Dishon, duke Ezer, duke Dishan: these are the dukes that came of Hori, among their dukes in the land of Seir.

Genesis 36:31 ¶  And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Israel. 32  And Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom: and the name of his city was Dinhabah. 33  And Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. 34  And Jobab died, and Husham of the land of Temani reigned in his stead. 35  And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Avith. 36  And Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his stead. 37  And Samlah died, and Saul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in his stead. 38  And Saul died, and Baalhanan the son of Achbor reigned in his stead. 39  And Baalhanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Pau; and his wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab. 40  And these are the names of the dukes that came of Esau, according to their families, after their places, by their names; duke Timnah, duke Alvah, duke Jetheth, 41  Duke Aholibamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon, 42  Duke Kenaz, duke Teman, duke Mibzar, 43  Duke Magdiel, duke Iram: these be the dukes of Edom, according to their habitations in the land of their possession: he is Esau the father of the Edomites.

What followed verse 8 was a brief history of the ancient kingdom of Edom, which flowered and decayed before Israel ever had a king, from the Horites who first possessed it through a few generations of Edomites. Edom, named after that red soup, symbolizes Esau’s foolish bargain. We have this memory forever emblazoned in the name of the Red Sea.

1Kings 9:26  And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.

Add this fact to the list of things that keep us from forgetting what God did in the past. We drive on fossil fuels, the remnant of the fabulous biomass that existed before the great Flood of Noah’s time. We are divided by ethnic, linguistic, and racial groupings that remind us of the dispersion of mankind at the Tower of Babel. We repeat in each generation the wicked sins of the flesh and the mind that prove that we are spiritually bankrupt without Christ and have no hope in ourselves. These things should remind us of what God has done but we choose to be willfully ignorant.

Even judgment against us escapes our feeble thought processes. A hundred years ago the nations of Europe and the United States, who thought they were so righteous and each special vessels of God, bashed themselves upon each other in a terrible bloodbath called The Great War or World War One. God judged the nations and finding them wanting judged them with a war and then a great plague of disease that killed more people than the war itself. They did not see that it was God’s judgment but only chose to blame the loser and punish thereby setting up the next war and, indeed, a century of war and the extinguishing of a hundred million lives and displacement of half that many again as refugees. Yet, mankind is blind to it, a doddering idiot, stumbling about in the dark unwilling to be enlightened.

So it is, when we look at the Bible events we see evidence of them in our landscape, our maps, our economic systems, our politics, and elsewhere. But, alas, the stumbling idiot stumbles from one judgment to the next waving his flags, singing his patriotic songs, worshipping his nation-states, as he proudly steers a course for Armageddon.

This curious verse for which we are given no explanation is worthy of note.

24  And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father.

Such a seemingly unimportant detail but important enough to God to be included in the short history of a people who provided little to history but a pathetic example.

Bible Study on Matthew 7, verses 1 to 6, judge yourselves first

 

Matthew 7:1 ¶  Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2  For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3  And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4  Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5  Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. 6  Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

 

Judgment and discernment are essential to being alive. You cannot survive without making judgments about things and people. However, the point of this passage is to be careful in your judgment as you will be judged by the same standard you use. This is not a threat of eternal damnation nor is it locking God into your mistakes if you use a false standard. It is a principle that we have used proverbially in American English that if you point your finger at someone you typically have three other fingers on your hand pointing back at you.

 

Often as not, we bear at least the beginnings of a sin in our hearts that we condemn. In fact, some of the most vicious detractors of other people are people who are guilty of the sin they are incensed about, even if only in thought or inclination. I thought the following part of a prophecy against Jerusalem was interesting speaking of Samaria and Sodom as her sisters.

 

Ezekiel 16:52  Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters.

 

Also pay close attention to the following from Luke;

 

Luke 6:37 ¶  Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

 

The principle here is reinforced, that we should consider our own sins before we focus on the sins of others. This is very clear.

 

Verse 6 seems, at first, awkward in this context unless we look at the fact that Christ is talking to His people, in the context the Jews and in a greater context to Christians. This leads from the statement about judging yourself by the same standard you judge others and about dealing with your own sin before you point out the sins of others. Dogs and swine are unclean animals and some of God’s people here are likened to them. When you judge others, even if you have fulfilled the requirement of dealing with your sin first there is a certain kind of God’s people who will turn on you and attack with all the fury of an unsaved person.

 

In 2Peter 2, the great chapter on false teaches and prophets, dogs and swine, sows, are used also, so is this last verse a warning about false teachers and prophets?

 

It is true that many modern commentators refer to the swine and dogs of verse 6 as the unsaved and unclean. However, it seems to me that they are detaching that verse from the passage, which I call taking a verse out of context. We must at least try to examine a verse in the passage the Holy Spirit places it in order to understand the point that is being made. We are not moving from your brother and your brother’s eye suddenly to a standalone verse on the vicious heathen, I don’t think. But we may be in a context that warns us to judge ourselves first and to be discerning about who we reprove and try to correct as they may turn again and attack us. A vile unrepentant person may be a very frustrating person to witness to, as many of you have discovered, and as John Gill pointed out.

Bible Study on Genesis 36, verses 1 to 8, Esau is Edom

 

Genesis 36:1 ¶  Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. 2  Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; 3  And Bashemath Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebajoth. 4  And Adah bare to Esau Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare Reuel; 5  And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, which were born unto him in the land of Canaan. 6  And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob. 7  For their riches were more than that they might dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not bear them because of their cattle. 8  Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.

This passage is bracketed by two verses 1 and 8 which identify Esau with the region known as Edom and Mount Seir. The passage also names his children by these specific Canaanite women named. Judith is not mentioned here and may have died in childbirth or in some other circumstance. We can say the same probably about Bashemath, Adah’s sister. The duplication of women’s names should not cause confusion. For instance, Mormon patriarch, Joseph Smith, had multiple wives named Sarah.

Genesis 26:34 ¶  And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: 35  Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.

Esau and Jacob are not able to live in the vicinity of each other with their wealth and possessions any more than Abram and Lot were able to live together with theirs. So, here is confirmation that Esau claimed what became Edom, something we discussed earlier. Isaac’s sons are fabulously wealthy by that culture’s standards, by what they considered as true wealth. Esau will merge his worship with Canaan’s and be marginalized in God’s plan of reconciling mankind to Himself.

Bible Study on Matthew 6, verses 25 to 34, sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof

 

Matthew 6:25 ¶  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28  And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31  Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32  (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

 

God typically honors prudent behavior. He honors doing sensible things typically. Therefore, we cannot simply dismiss this as a condemnation of savings and retirement funds, or insurance, to leave behind some form of living for our family after our death, hard work, or attempts at self-reliance. This is not a call for Jesus’ followers to be irresponsible and to write it off as faith. As mammon was used in the last passage to personify worldly riches and compare them to treasure in heaven, in service to God, so here is a call not to anxiety or fear or undue concern over the smallest need but to faith in God.

 

Jesus’ followers are not called to sit on their hands and wait for a government handout or charity.

 

Romans 12:11  Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

 

1Thessalonians 4:11  And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; 12  That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.

 

2Thessalonians 3:10  For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat…12  Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.

 

But see how David, a man of war, gave credit for his success to God. Inasmuch as David fought successfully here is one example of giving God the credit.

 

Psalm 18:17  He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.

 

See how Ezra prepared his heart to know the Scriptures.

 

Ezra 7:10  For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.

 

See how you work but it is God who supplies the bounty.

 

Philippians 4:19  But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

 

Just as it is He who provides the prey for the predator even though you can watch the predator at work. Verse 26 says that God feeds the fowls of the air.

 

Job 38:39  Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions,…41  Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat.

 

So, the important doctrinal point here is not that we are called to do nothing about our lives but that we are called to work for our living understanding that it is God who provides what is needed and necessary, typically, if we work hard. This is a difficult thing for Americans to consider seeing as we tend to dislocate our arm trying to pat ourselves on the back for our success in life.

 

The value of our lives should be in more than what we eat and what we wear, our needs for survival. God knows what you need and the point of this passage is summed up in seeking God’s kingdom. All that you need will be provided for you. Hard work, faith in God, and righteous behavior will take you a long way and you need not worry about tomorrow. This is the principle.

 

Again we see evil defined in a specific context. Here it is the trouble, difficulties, and challenges each day brings.

 

Here it is disobedience to God;

 

Genesis 2:9  And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil…17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

 

Here it is malicious intent;

 

Genesis 37:20  Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

 

And here it is judgment, calamity from God, the opposite of peace.

 

Isaiah 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

 

Regarding the message of this passage Paul will say to not be full of care;

 

Philippians 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

 

Remember Isaiah’s promise;

 

Isaiah 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

 

Also keep in mind what Peter wrote;

 

1Peter 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

 

So, we are commanded not to have anxiety, not to worry. I don’t know any Christian who doesn’t worry even though they might insist they don’t and call their concerns about their loved ones, about tomorrow, or about the trouble they face something other than worry. It is a common thing for one person to feel just like another but in order to feel superior and smug simply label what they feel inside as different. It is dishonest and foolish and insulting but it is in our nature.

 

Christ points out that what you have to deal with today is enough to concern yourself with. It is sound advice and a just command.

Bible Study on Genesis 35, verses 21 to 29, Isaac gave up the ghost

 

Genesis 35:21 ¶  And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar. 22  And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: 23  The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: 24  The sons of Rachel; Joseph, and Benjamin: 25  And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali: 26  And the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these are the sons of Jacob, which were born to him in Padanaram. 27  And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto the city of Arbah, which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned. 28  And the days of Isaac were an hundred and fourscore years. 29  And Isaac gave up the ghost, and died, and was gathered unto his people, being old and full of days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Reuben was Leah and Jacob’s firstborn. He had sex with Bilhah, Rachel’s maid, given to Rachel by her father, Laban. Rachel had herself given Bilhah to Jacob to wife (Genesis 30:4) or to bear children on her mistress’s behalf. In this unseemly arrangement Bilhah was not considered a full, legitimate wife but a concubine, an inferior legal status for a woman. Women had little, if any, rights in this culture and a servant concubine would have almost no rights. We have seen Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid, used in such a way, as well, with really only God’s mercy assisting her. As all reality and events and behaviors are either part of God’s direct and perfect will as what He prefers to happen or a part of His permissive will in that He permits it for a reason often unknown to us we can examine this condition in the light of those facts. God does not create culture or civilization but He manipulates and modifies them to achieve His purposes in spite of man’s wicked condition. There is nothing particularly Godly about this setup for God already gave His direct will, what He wants, early on. A single man and a single woman unite as one flesh. There is no allowance for harems, concubines, secondary wives, girlfriends, mistresses, or any of the other sinful things man desires.

Genesis 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

However, God will use this condition for His purpose of creating the people of Israel.

Here Reuben is said to have sinned, not against Bilhah, but against Jacob, who possesses her as a secondary wife or concubine. Under the Law given to Moses as the Hebrew’s civil and religious regulations we have the following command.

Leviticus 20:11  And the man that lieth with his father’s wife hath uncovered his father’s nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

While under the spiritual rules given to Christians, which can have no proper civil significance as Christ’s order cannot be enforced by the civil magistrate without violating the principle of a willing heart, the offender is to be banned from the congregation until repentant to keep from polluting the attitudes and behavior of the church.

1Corinthians 5:1  It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. 2  And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3  For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, 4  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6  Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

Here, Jacob’s sons are listed. From these men the children of Israel will issue. It is also mentioned that Esau and Jacob buried their father Isaac. Isaac is said to give up the ghost. This is a reference to his spirit. Here is a reference to Jesus’, who was fully man and fully God, human spirit or ghost, lowercase s and g. Here the human spirit belongs to and ascends to God.

Luke 23:46  And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

Again, not only the soul leaves the flesh at death but here we see the spirit leaves, as well. Notice Solomon’s question in Ecclesiastes that suggests mankind doesn’t know what he thinks he knows.

Ecclesiastes 3:21  Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

God uses the spirit of man as one means to examine him from the inside-out.

Proverbs 20:27  The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly.

The Godhead consists of a soul (God the Father), the seat of self-identity and will, a Spirit (the Holy Ghost called the Holy Spirit or Spirit of God when referencing acting on physical reality), the very mind of God, and a body, a physical presence, (Christ or the Word by which all things were created and are held together). It is important to understand that only God’s three parts can act independently although guided by one will. If either our soul or spirit leave us as humans we physically die. Jesus, being fully man and fully God, was not only the physical image of the invisible God but, as a human, possessed a lowercase spirit or ghost which He surrendered when He gave up his brief temporal existence before rising from the dead.

In these last two passages we’ve studied we have seen that the soul and the spirit or ghost both leave the body at death. Neither is said to be extinguished or ceases to exist. When a person’s body dies the unique “I,” that sense of self-identity, the thoughts, mind, and heart that make them who they are, the soul and the spirit, are not there but have departed. The physical flesh is all that is in the way of eternity, a joyous eternity if one belongs to God and a most miserable one if one rejects Christ.

Bible Study on Matthew 6, verses 19 to 24, treasures in heaven

 

Matthew 6:19 ¶  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 22  The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 23  But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! 24  No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

 

Here is a great lesson on what should be the Christian’s priorities. There are many verses and episodes in the Old and New Testament that buttress what Jesus is saying here including those who warn against depending on earthly riches.

 

Psalm 39:6  Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.

 

Psalm 62:10  Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.

 

Proverbs 11:4 ¶  Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.

 

Proverbs 16:16 ¶  How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!

 

Luke 12:21  So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

 

Luke 18:24  And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

 

1Timothy 6:8  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. 9  But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows…17  Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;

 

The word single in verse 22 is interesting. It is translated from a Greek word, according to Strong’s Dictionary, meaning whole or sound. Notice that single is contrasted with evil in this passage, indicating health and soundness on the one hand and diseased or malfunctioning on the other. A spiritually healthy person serves God and places their trust and hope in heaven while a sick and twisted person places their confidence in the riches of the world.

 

You can’t serve both God and mammon, an Aramaic word used here to personify worldly wealth in contrast to God.

Bible Study on Genesis 35, verses 16 to 20, as her soul was in departing

 

Genesis 35:16 ¶  And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. 17  And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also. 18  And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin. 19  And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. 20  And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day.

Jacob and his family now leave Bethel and we have a tragedy of great importance to Jacob. His beloved Rachel dies in hard labor, giving birth to Benjamin. Here we have a statement that is helpful in understanding what happens to the soul at death. It leaves the body. This is not the proverbial ‘rocket science’ although some commentators make it so.

What is the soul? First, it is one of the three parts of which a human being is composed.

1Thessalonians 5:23  And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

From all indications as you read the over the several hundred verses in which the word is found it is the seat of our self-identify, our will, and desires. It was created by God.

Isaiah 57:16  For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made.

It leaves the body upon death and can be deposited in Hell.

Psalm 86:13  For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

It is God who decides when the soul and body separate, when death is to be.

Luke 12:20  But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

One difference between that of the Old Testament and that of the Covenant of Grace after Christ’s resurrection that reveals what we call ‘eternal security’ is that until Christ’s Resurrection the soul is shown to be responsible for the sins of the flesh, the body. Sacrifice, an animal substitute for Christ, is required, the innocent dying for the guilty, in order to cleanse those sins. After the Resurrection, for the Christian, God severs the flesh, the body, from the soul so that it is free from the eternal consequences the sins of the flesh bring about.

Colossians 2:11  In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12  Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

You do not become a child of God by your own power.

John 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Nor, as the verse quoted from Colossians shows, do you keep your salvation by your own strength. Telling people that if they are truly delivered from Hell and eternal suffering by their faith in Christ, which is a gift from God….

Ephesians 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

…that they can, by their own will, lose their salvation is a dangerous delusion and a wicked blasphemy that renders God ineffectual in salvation. These same people usually do not believe they have an authoritative Bible because the God who cannot preserve them could not preserve His words. Beware of so-called “free will” churches. They typically are trying to control you in some way and not afraid to deceive you in the process. After all, if I can lose my salvation I would need them to keep me in the fold, right? Keep me on the straight and narrow? If the Holy Spirit is too weak to do that, what’s next, killing someone in God’s name because He is too weak to do it Himself and needs your help?

Nevertheless, Rachel’s soul left her body at the body’s death, as yours will if the Lord tarries. She gave her child a name that reflected her anguish and sorrow but Jacob gave him the name that lasts for us and gives a tribe of Israel its name.