2Kings, chapter 10, comments, Jehu's reign

 

2Kings 10:1 ¶  And Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters, and sent to Samaria, unto the rulers of Jezreel, to the elders, and to them that brought up Ahab’s children, saying, 2  Now as soon as this letter cometh to you, seeing your master’s sons are with you, and there are with you chariots and horses, a fenced city also, and armour; 3  Look even out the best and meetest of your master’s sons, and set him on his father’s throne, and fight for your master’s house. 4  But they were exceedingly afraid, and said, Behold, two kings stood not before him: how then shall we stand? 5  And he that was over the house, and he that was over the city, the elders also, and the bringers up of the children, sent to Jehu, saying, We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will not make any king: do thou that which is good in thine eyes. 6  Then he wrote a letter the second time to them, saying, If ye be mine, and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men your master’s sons, and come to me to Jezreel by to morrow this time. Now the king’s sons, being seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, which brought them up. 7  And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel. 8  And there came a messenger, and told him, saying, They have brought the heads of the king’s sons. And he said, Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering in of the gate until the morning. 9  And it came to pass in the morning, that he went out, and stood, and said to all the people, Ye be righteous: behold, I conspired against my master, and slew him: but who slew all these? 10  Know now that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of the LORD, which the LORD spake concerning the house of Ahab: for the LORD hath done that which he spake by his servant Elijah. 11  So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and his priests, until he left him none remaining. 12  And he arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he was at the shearing house in the way, 13  Jehu met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said, Who are ye? And they answered, We are the brethren of Ahaziah; and we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen. 14  And he said, Take them alive. And they took them alive, and slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them.

The prolific Ahab had a great many sons who could lay dynastic claims to authority not only over Israel but over Judah as well. Every one of them was a threat to Jehu’s rule and carried with their lives a promise of unending civil war. Jehu sent the rulers, the elders of Jezreel who had brought up those seventy sons, a terrifying letter with an implicit threat. When they responded submissively he sent them the fatal command, which they followed. I am reminded that in 1212, King John of England had 28 sons between the ages of 12 and 14 of prominent Welshman who had given them as hostages for good behavior hung. One chronicler noted that their pitiful cries rang around the castle at Nottingham.

This is a horrific act much like the movie-ish Mafia threat of, “I’m not only going to kill you but I’m going to kill your family, friends, and everyone you’ve ever met.” The house of Ahab’s nobles, his relatives, and even his priests are executed. Finally, in this passage it is reported that Jehu executed the brethren of Ahaziah who had come to do him honor but with no internet or even newspapers were unaware of the coups d’etat.

This bloody event is God settling accounts through Jehu, something He has done throughout history at various times in various places. If you view history from a big picture perspective it consists of nations and people groups swirling around as Satan tries to unite them in empire, either physical or economic, to stand opposed to God. God then splits and divides until He is ready for the end of human history. But Satan always has a man or men in play, ready to lead them in that final rebellion that God will destroy as we read in Revelation.

2Kings 10:15 ¶  And when he was departed thence, he lighted on Jehonadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him: and he saluted him, and said to him, Is thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart? And Jehonadab answered, It is. If it be, give me thine hand. And he gave him his hand; and he took him up to him into the chariot. 16  And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So they made him ride in his chariot. 17  And when he came to Samaria, he slew all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria, till he had destroyed him, according to the saying of the LORD, which he spake to Elijah. 18  And Jehu gathered all the people together, and said unto them, Ahab served Baal a little; but Jehu shall serve him much. 19  Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal. 20  And Jehu said, Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal. And they proclaimed it. 21  And Jehu sent through all Israel: and all the worshippers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left that came not. And they came into the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was full from one end to another. 22  And he said unto him that was over the vestry, Bring forth vestments for all the worshippers of Baal. And he brought them forth vestments. 23  And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal, and said unto the worshippers of Baal, Search, and look that there be here with you none of the servants of the LORD, but the worshippers of Baal only. 24  And when they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu appointed fourscore men without, and said, If any of the men whom I have brought into your hands escape, he that letteth him go, his life shall be for the life of him. 25  And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, Go in, and slay them; let none come forth. And they smote them with the edge of the sword; and the guard and the captains cast them out, and went to the city of the house of Baal. 26  And they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them. 27  And they brake down the image of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and made it a draught house unto this day. 28  Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel.

Jehonadab is a good man whose posterity honor his commitment.

Jeremiah 35:5  And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine. 6  But they said, We will drink no wine: for  Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever: 7  Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor  plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers. 8  Thus have we obeyed the voice of  Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; 9  Nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed: 10  But we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.

 

He will join with Jehu in doing God’s work.

1Kings 21:21  Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, 22  And will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin.

Jehu will now deceive the servants of Baal. A national holy day for Baal was declared and they are told to come to the house of Baal that Ahab had raised up an altar in.

1Kings 16:31  And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. 32  And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 33  And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.

You can see from the passage how he identified the worshippers of Baal and how he destroyed them, burning their idols, and turning Baal’s house into public toilet. Jehu has wiped out Baal worship from Israel where Jeroboam had led them to sin against God years ago. But it was not a complete overthrow of idolatry and Jehu’s heart was not right with the Lord God as it should have been.

2Kings 10:29 ¶  Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were in Bethel, and that were in Dan. 30  And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in mine eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in mine heart, thy children of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel. 31  But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin. 32  In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel; 33  From Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan. 34  Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 35  And Jehu slept with his fathers: and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. 36  And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty and eight years.

1Kings 12:25 ¶  Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel. 26  And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: 27  If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. 28  Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 29  And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. 30  And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. 31  And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi. 32  And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. 33  So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

Because of Jehu’s obedience in the prosecution of the house of Ahab as God had instructed, Jehu is promised a dynasty through four generations. He then led Israel into further apostasy and idolatry with Jeroboams’ golden calves. Israel was doomed.

 

Bible Study on Acts 2, verses 37 to 41, part 3, baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost

 

Romans 3:21  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

 

Notice here how baptism is used as an entry point to fellowship as part of the church. Typically, Baptists use baptism like this, as a public statement of belief and as the public expression of entry into the body of Christ, something that occurred sometimes months earlier when a recognition of the truth turned a person’s heart to God through Christ. No one gets saved when they get baptized like no one realizes they love someone at the marriage altar. That commitment is made long before the ceremony, if it is true.

 

There will be variations in the order of baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost that takes place when one believes. The error of modernism is to read the Bible like a textbook or the owner’s manual to your car. It is more like a conversation between your Creator and yourself in your response to it. The following line means these things happen when you believe. They are not 1-2-3 like the instructions on the settings guide for your cellphone.

 

38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

 

These are not necessarily linear events like the Jews had to be baptized before they received the Holy Ghost. This, like in eternity, is everything as now, taking place when one is saved. As a similar statement see in Revelation;

 

Revelation 11:18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

 

That was a general statement of events happening in the time frame covered by what was to come after this point. This does not by necessity represent an order of events.

 

The Jews present responded to Peter’s sermon were baptized and received the Holy Ghost but was this a presentation of a strict order of events making their salvation different from Gentile salvation?

 

See the order presented here in the text. First, with Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch there is no mention of receiving the Holy Ghost but it is assumed.

 

Acts 8:26 ¶  And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. 27  And he arose

and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, 28  Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. 29  Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. 30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? 31  And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. 32  The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: 33  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. 34  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? 35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. 36  And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? 37  And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38  And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. 39  And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. 40  But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.

 

Then, with the Roman centurion and company and Peter where it is implied that they believed what they heard and then they received the Holy Ghost and are then baptized.

 

Acts 10:44 ¶  While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45  And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came

with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. 46  For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, 47  Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? 48  And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

 

Now, do you honestly think that each of these situations were different in that in one instance you are baptized then you receive the Holy Ghost after that and yet in another you get baptized because you believe and it is implied that you received the Holy Ghost upon belief and in another instance you believe and receive the Holy Ghost and then are baptized? How many dispensations do you want to create? Christians often don’t have a problem with belief. They have a problem with reading comprehension. This is a lot like those people who believe Noah walked off the Ark with a white son, a black son, and an Asian son when it nowhere says that but they read back into the text what they want to believe.

 

Earlier in Acts 8 you will have people believing and being baptized but not receiving the Holy Ghost until Peter and John lay hands on them. In Acts 16 Lydia believes and is baptized but no mention is made of the Holy Ghost. In the same chapter the jailor believes and is baptized and no mention is made of the Holy Ghost. In Acts 9 it is implied that Paul believed and then he received the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. In Acts 22 he relates that he was baptized after that. Again, if you are going to read the Bible like a textbook how many dispensations do you want to create?

 

When you get saved it is because you believed, were given faith, and received the Holy Ghost. At some point, to fulfill all righteousness as Jesus said, you should get baptized as an outward manifestation of your inward change and faith.

 

In any event Jesus Himself puts the focus on your belief, not your baptism.

 

Mark 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

 

Verse 40 says And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.

 

Untoward is defined by some 17^th century dictionaries as unwilling, obstinate, stubborn, and perverse.  Peter preached salvation from that stiff-necked generation of Jews who stubbornly refused to accept their Messiah, even having killed Him.

 

God added three thousand to the early church at that time. It was God’s work accomplished by God using men and women.

Bible Study on Exodus 10, verses 1 to 11, they were driven out from Pharaohs presence

 

Exodus 10:1 ¶  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him: 2  And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son’s son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD. 3  And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me. 4  Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast: 5  And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field: 6  And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh. 7  And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? 8  And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go? 9  And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD. 10  And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you. 11  Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.

Verse two of chapter ten gives us one of the reasons for what is happening. God has an eye on history. These plagues on Egypt are a testimony for future generations. Christians should look to these events to understand God’s power and to have their faith confirmed in part.

Romans 15:4  For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Sadly, the Hebrews will not honor God’s commission regarding teaching, although technically for the hyperliteralist they did honor the command through the second generation. Of course, common sense tells us that God wanted the teaching done in every generation but, then, hyperliteralists aren’t possessed of much common sense.

Judges 2:7  And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the LORD, that he did for Israel...10  And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.

In verse 4 we have the promise of a plague of locusts to enter Egypt’s border which is the definition of the word coast in the Bible.

Numbers 21:13  From thence they removed, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, which is in the wilderness that cometh out of the coasts of the Amorites: for Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.

Numbers 22:36  And when Balak heard that Balaam was come, he went out to meet him unto a city of Moab, which is in the border of Arnon, which is in the utmost coast.

The National Geographic website explains that locusts are related to grasshoppers and look very much alike but their behavior is much different. While locusts are solitary insects like grasshoppers they have a phase they can go through which is called the, “gregarious phase.” They can, under the right environmental conditions, with plenty of food and conditions ripe for breeding, grow into, “thick, mobile, ravenous swarms,” that can destroy crops and cause major agricultural damage, famine, and starvation.[1] This swarm of locusts will be unlike anything anyone has ever experienced before so there is no use trying to find a comparison with swarms of locusts you read about in the news today. God is working through these creatures as He works through men and women.

Solomon, in Proverbs, makes a statement about four types of creatures that goes against all modern concepts, such as evolution, in ascribing personhood, which is based on self-identity, and wisdom, which is a synonym for understanding, to specific creatures which we have been taught are not much more than simple and annoying biological machines. People, folk, and going out by bands, a term used again when talking about the Roman military units or a group of people, all imply something more than the modernist and the evolutionist give them credit for. Is the following simply metaphorical speech, an anthropomorphism, or describing something with deeper meaning?

Proverbs 30:24 ¶  There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise: 25  The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer; 26  The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks; 27  The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands; 28  The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces.

We all play our part in the bundle of life (1Samuel 25:29).

After the counsel of Pharaoh’s servants to let the Hebrew men only leave, the Pharaoh calls them again and tells them he will let the men go to worship, leaving their families. That is the limit of his concession at this point, to let the men go to worship after the advice of his servants, probably not meaning domestic servants but ministers and advisers.

1Kings 10:5  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

Esther 6:3  And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him.

Moses and Aaron are then driven from the Pharaoh’s presence. A rod turned into a serpent, infestations of frogs, lice, flies, a great plague among the Egyptian cattle, boils on the Egyptians themselves, hail mingled with thunder and lightning and fire and now a gigantic swarm of locusts. A nation is being brought to its knees by God and still, its leader will not listen or yield. There is always a question isn’t there? God has not spoken directly to Pharaoh but through Moses and Aaron and these terrifying signs. Pride is a great blinding mechanism, though. Has it been in your life?

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[1]  National Geographic Society, “Locusts.” http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/group/locusts/

Bible Study on Acts 2, verses 37 to 41, part 2, it is God's will, His desire that all people be saved

 

First, for a reference to John the Baptist’s call to repentance from sin for the Jews to prepare them to receive their Messiah.

 

Matthew 3:1 ¶  In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2  And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 3  For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4  And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. 5  Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 6  And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

 

And now a call from Peter to repent of the official rejection of the Messiah and what they did to Him.

 

38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

 

Then, an important point is made that underscores the argument that while salvation is free to all men and that the Lord would have all men to be saved it is only going to happen to those He calls, who are the ones that He knows will receive Him, rejecting in advance those He knows will reject Him. This is different than traditional Calvinism that says that He made many souls who were created for the express purpose of damning them, that salvation was not an option for them.

 

Verse 39 mentions to all that are afar off. Here is an important cross-reference and a key to interpretation.

 

Ephesians 2:11 ¶  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

 

First, the principle that it is God’s will, His desire that all people be saved;

 

1Timothy 2:4  Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

 

But, God knows who will receive Him by His foreknowledge of all events in space-time, including thoughts of the mind and intents of the heart. God calls people He already knows will believe Him.

 

Romans 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29 ¶  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

 

Verses 29-30 in Romans 8 defines why those in verse 28 are called, because God knew. This foreknowledge extends backwards to before the universe was created. We were chosen in Him, to be holy and without blame, because we will trust in His righteousness and not our own to be saved.

 

Ephesians 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

 

So, the reference to God’s calling in Acts is further explained by Paul as God calling those He foreknew would receive Him, not saying that He created specific people to be condemned. Some will still say this is still unfair but in an eternal view of things we all will know that even the most awful of people had a choice. That they did not make the right choice and that God knew they wouldn’t does not put guilt on Him. It put guilt on mankind rebelling against their Creator. We all make a choice. Free will is a Bible doctrine.

 

Deuteronomy 30:19  I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

 

Joshua 24:15  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

 

God, not a leather-lunged, wily pulpiteer using clever words, guilt because you won’t see your mama again if you don’t get saved, or group pressure in a so-called revival meeting, added 3,000 actually saved people to their number at this time. These were not people who repeated a formula 1-2-3 repeat-after-me prayer, you know, the A-B-C Admit you are a sinner, Believe on Christ, and then Confess your belief to the preacher and the congregation but people whose hearts were changed by God, their Creator, as a consequence of their belief. One can only imagine those who heard and walked away.

 

Bible Study on Exodus 9, verses 22 to 35, neither would he let the children of Israel go

 

Exodus 9:22 ¶  And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. 23  And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. 24  So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25  And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field. 26  Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail. 27  And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. 28  Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer. 29  And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD’S. 30  But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God. 31  And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. 32  But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up. 33  And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth. 34  And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. 35  And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.

There was not just hail but fire mingled with hail. This catastrophe wrecked the land of Egypt.

In this passage we see evidence of hail, fire, rain, and thunder, a terrible storm of hurricane proportions and then some.

Psalm 18:12  At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.

Psalm 78:43  How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan: 44  And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink. 45  He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them. 46  He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust. 47  He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost. 48  He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

Pharaoh makes a false confession of repentance here and Moses identifies it for what it is. Pharaoh’s heart will yet be hardened by his pride and God’s will. God has brought many a person low by what tragedies and disasters He allows in their lives only for them to fall back on their pride and self-righteousness practically pleading for worse to happen. They will not yield. Pharaoh is a great type of the Beast of Revelation whose pride will stand opposed to God in spite of all of the disasters around him.

A rod turned into a serpent, infestations of frogs, lice, flies, a great plague among the Egyptian cattle, boils on the Egyptians themselves, and hail mingled with thunder and lightning and fire and yet the object of Moses’ evangelism still will not yield to God in spite of the words that come out of his mouth. So many have come to the front of the church, got on their knees, and pleaded with God only to reject Him when their own pride and the hardness of their heart takes over once they’ve left the church building.

In the book of Job we are told that these kinds of things can happen and seem quite random and meaningless to us. We simply cannot know why a hurricane strikes when it does with the ferocity it does. We make predictions and guesses which are sometimes accurate but modernism insists there is no reason beyond mere weather-related factors, chance, and circumstance for a disaster of epic proportions while the Bible says that God either causes it or allows it to happen for reasons we are not privy to in this finite existence. It is very frustrating for us and for our pride.

But, here, in Egypt, at this time, we have a specific reason declared by God openly for this trouble, trouble which will declare His power openly to the world and to history.

Bible Study on Acts 2, verses 37 to 41, part 1, Repent, and be baptized every one of you

 

Acts 2:37 ¶  Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? 38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. 40  And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. 41  Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

 

Notice the Jews here asked a similar question to the Philippian jailor.

 

Acts 16:30  And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

 

Notice how this baptism is connected with repentance for rejecting their Messiah, which the leaders of the Jews and the people that followed their instructions did. The statement here is made after Peter identifies who Jesus is and what the Jews had done to Him.

 

First, what does it mean to repent? The words repent and repentance don’t just carry with them an intellectual assent to something like just changing your mind. They involve a turning from something like sin or an action you were purposed to do.

Exodus 32:12  Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

Jeremiah 4:28  For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

Jeremiah 18:8  If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.

Jeremiah 26:3  If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.

Ezekiel 14:6  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

Ezekiel 18:30  Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.

Jonah 3:9  Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

Repenting is also an inward action, an act of the mind or spirit, with this baptism as the outward and immediate expression acknowledging the change. Repentance also implies belief as you repent from sin and turn to God. Sin is downplayed in today’s Christianity so repentance from it usually receives short shrift except in the most fundamental of churches. Consider these verses;

Romans 5:8  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

1John 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

So, if sin before we are saved and after we are saved is not an issue then what do you think about these verses, if we are just to admit we sin like we admit we chew gum and move on? And why did Christ trouble Himself to die on the Cross?

1Corinthians 15:3  For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

In the so-called Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, the spiritual counterpart to the very earthy Sermon on the Plain in Luke, Jesus made a very important point in saying that it was more important that you reconcile to a brother who had something against you first than to offer something to God. In Matthew 5 He made a spiritual application for mourning as in regard to contextually mourning for sin’s very existence and hungering for God’s righteousness.

I realize preachers have taken this too far. The most stunning example is Charles G. Finney’s insistence that if you weren’t trying to make up for all of your past sins to the people you had wronged then you probably aren’t saved, which is foolish. But modern preachers not preaching against sin is just as foolish, if not moreso.

You cannot simply dismiss sin and your sin nature as a bad rash and forget it. We need to deal with our sin, or, more importantly to have Christ deal with it.

1John 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Have you mourned for your sin? Do you weep even now over what you feel so helpless to overcome? Haven’t some of you ruined your families? Haven’t some of you wasted your youth on alcohol and promiscuous sex, looking for love and acceptance, a replacement for your father or mother, pursued money and found bankruptcy, messed up your kids? Do you feel nothing? Has someone gotten you to believe that everything is just peachy? David was forgiven but he suffered terribly for his sin, in his family. Don’t you mourn?

I know that there are verses about salvation that don’t mention repentance like Romans 10:9, 10 or Acts 16:31 but we need to look at all of the verses on a topic before we formulate a doctrine in our head. Repentance from sin, from what you are, a sinner, repudiating your sin and turning it over to Christ, trusting His righteousness and not your own is basic to Bible salvation. You won’t come to the point of receiving Christ if you don’t realize you are spiritually bankrupt without God.

Matthew 5:3  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Isaiah 66:2  For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. [contrite is a feeling of remorse, based on guilt]

Psalm 34:18  The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

 

Psalm 51:17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

The result of repentance and faith is the receiving of the Holy Ghost who indwells the believer, the Spirit of God and Christ, also called the Holy Spirit in its active state with the Holy Ghost being His person.

Bible Study on Exodus 9, verses 13 to 21, a very grievous hail

 

Exodus 9:13 ¶  And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14  For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15  For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth. 16  And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth. 17  As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go? 18  Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now. 19  Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die. 20  He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses: 21  And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.

Here is a threat of death. Pestilence is verse 15 is a reference to plague and sickness.

1Kings 8:37  If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpiller; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be;

This is brought to mind again much later when God condemns Israel for its apostasy.

Amos 4:10  I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

To be cut off from the earth typically is to be killed, to die, to perish.

Genesis 9:11  And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth.

Zechariah 13:8  And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.

2Kings 9:8  For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel:

Verse 16 has an interesting cross-reference in the writings of Paul.

Romans 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.

The scripture saith unto Pharaoh? But, this is Jehovah God speaking through Moses? Is the scripture God? Are the words of God we hold in our hands likened to God? The scripture in Romans 9:17 is translated from a word that refers to the written word. We have to consider the following, as well.

Psalm 138:2  I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is quick [living, alive], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

How then do so-called scholars treat the Bible as they would any old book and yet even hold it to standards they do not even apply to Plato or Aristotle’s writings? When you remove the inspiration of God on the hands of writers, translators, and copyists and the usage of the church itself throughout history in regard to the Bible, denying the work of God on His Bible, you do greatly err.

Job 32:8  But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.

2Timothy 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

2Peter 3:15  And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

How relevant then is the Bible to our faith? Let us look at the words of a prominent writer from several centuries ago.

William Chillingworth wrote in 1638, “The Bible, I say, the Bible only, is the religion of Protestants!”[1]

Now we have the threat of hail on any animal or person found in the field, out of doors. God said directly to Job;

Job 38:22  Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, 23  Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?

A rod turned into a serpent, infestations of frogs, lice, flies, a great plague among the Egyptian cattle, boils on the Egyptians themselves, and hail.

We will see that it is not just going to be hail that will afflict the Egyptians this time. The Hebrews and any Egyptians who feared the Lord should bring their cattle under shelter now.

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[1] William Chillingworth, The Religion of Protestants: A Safe Way to Salvation (1638, repr. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1846), 463.