Assyria completes the siege of the Northern Kingdom and takes them into captivity. This draws a stark contrast with the Southern Kingdom of Judah, which is flourishing under the reign of King Hezekiah. The warnings, prophecies, and explanation of what is happening in Israel is recorded in the prophets Hosea and Isaiah. (A quick side note, that “Ephraim” is being used as another name for the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the reading.) Hosea is a minor prophet that records the relationship between Hosea and his adulterous wife, Gomer. The book goes on to record different poems and prophecies against the nation of Israel. The book repeats the charge against Gomer by leveling it against Israel. In other words, they have sold themselves to serving other gods for gain instead of remaining faithful to the one true God. Isaiah will contrast the lofty/proud and the lowly/humble. The difference between the two is not guilt, but rather who they trust in to save them. The lofty reject God to their own punishment, but the humble wait on God for salvation.
Each week, as you take in the Bible, find some friends to talk it out. You can follow this simple guide to help. First, R.E.A.D. and P.R.A.Y. on your own. Then, meet with friends to share what you've learned.
R - Repeated words
E - Examine and mark
A - Ask what you learn about God
D - Do if there is anything to do
P - Praise
R - Repent
A - Ask
Bible Plan Reading - Week 37
START IT.
We're reading the Bible together in 2024. Specifically, we're taking a journey into how the story of the Bible unfolded in the Old Testament. If we get the big picture, we get the story the Bible is trying to tell us. From Sunday's message or The Big Picture Bible Reading Plan this week in the book of Chronicles or Isaiah or Hosea, what is impacting you the most? Was there a word, phrase, Bible verse, or theme that impacted you?
STUDY IT.
Read 2 Kings 18:3-8. What made King Hezekiah of Judah different in comparison to other kings in the Southern Kingdom of Judah or the Northern Kingdom of Israel?
Read 2 Kings 18:9-12. What was the reason for the exile in the Northern Kingdom of Israel? Read Deuteronomy 28:15, 36.
Read 2 Kings 18:6 What did Hezekiah trust in (verse 6) in comparison to King Hoshea from last week (2 Kings 17:3)? Read 2 Kings 18:16. How is this verse shocking? How did King Hezekiah falter in his faithfulness showing he was not the messiah?
Read Hosea 1:2-3. What does Hosea’s marriage to an unfaithful woman represent? Read Leviticus 20:10. What was the punishment for adultery? Read Hosea 3:1-5. What is surprising about this passage in contrast to the punishment for adultery?
Read Isaiah 25:8-9. What will God do for all the spiritual adulterers that wait on him? How does this shocking turn of God saving spiritual adulterers scream for an answer? How does that answer become resolved in Jesus Christ?
SHARE IT.
Read 2 Chronicles 31:5. What opportunities have been “spread” to you that you can become an active participant in?
Read Isaiah 26:9-10. How are you at living faithfully in a way that shows others the “majesty of the Lord?” Is it hard to not go along with the group?
Read Isaiah 23:9. What will be the outcome of chasing any other glory than God’s?
Read 1 Peter 5:5-6. How will humility affect your relationships with others?
Read Isaiah 26:3. When you do not have peace, what are you trusting in to give you peace that is not working? What can you do with your mind to begin to receive peace?
FINAL THOUGHT
The older you get, the more worries and responsibilities seem to pop up. Scripture is clear that what we think about matters. Christians are to set their minds on the things of God. Discipline in what and how you think produces peace as you align yourself more and more with God’s law and God himself. To meditate on God’s law is to be renewed by the God of peace. However, if you interact with God’s law as something you must perfectly fulfill, you will be crushed. Nobody can perfectly keep God’s law. However, Jesus did perfectly keep God’s law and was crushed on our behalf. His crushing provides our peace eternally. We have peace with God forever. As we meditate on that truth, our daily peace is renewed as God gives us the grace to face the day's challenges ordained by Him. When you find you do not have peace in the moment, meditate on having eternal peace with God through Christ’s sacrifice until it returns. Think about “what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Phillipians 4:9)
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