Day 195 of My 6th Bible Study Journey Part 3
Psalm 48
A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah.
[1] Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in
the mountain of his holiness.
[2] Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on
the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
[3] God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
[4] For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together.
[5] They saw it, and so they marvelled; they were troubled, and hasted
away.
[6] Fear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail.
[7] Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with an east wind.
[8] As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in
the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah.
[9] We have thought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy
temple.
[10] According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the
earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness.
[11] Let mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad, because of
thy judgments.
[12] Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
[13] Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell
it to the generation following.
[14] For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even
unto death.
2 Kings 17:1-4
Hoshea, King of Israel
2Kgs 18:9-12
1 (2Ki 15:30) In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah
became king in Samaria over Israel for nine years.
2 He did evil in the sight of the Lord, only not as the kings of Israel
who were before him.
3 (Hos 10:14) Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against him.
Hoshea became his servant and gave him gifts.
4 But the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea,
for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt
and offered up no gift to the king of Assyria as he had done year by year.
So the king of Assyria detained him, and then put him in prison.
[1] In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah
to reign in Samaria over Israel nine years.
[2] And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the
kings of Israel that were before him.
[3] Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his
servant, and gave him presents.
[4] And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea: for he had sent
messengers to So king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of
Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him
up, and bound him in prison.
2) Our Daily Bread for 14 July 2026 titled God at Work By Tim Gustafson
Judges 6:17,36-40
17 And he said to Him, "If I have found favor in Your sight,
give me a sign that it is You who are speaking with me. "
36 Gideon said to God, "If You will use my hands to save Israel,
as You have said-
37 I am placing a fleece of wool on the threshing floor.
If there is dew on the fleece only and all of the ground remains dry,
then I will know that You will save Israel with my hands, as You have said."
38 So it happened. He got up early the next morning and squeezed the fleece.
Enough dew poured out of the fleece to fill a bowlful of water.
39 Then Gideon said to God, "Do not let Your anger burn against me
as I speak only one more time. Please let me perform a test with the fleece
one more time. Please, let the fleece be the only thing dry,
and let there be dew on all of the ground."
40 So God did this during that night. Only the fleece was dry,
and the dew was on all the ground.
[17] And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew
me a sign that thou talkest with me.
[36] And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as
thou hast said,
[37] Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on
the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know
that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said.
[38] And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the
fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of
water.
[39] And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I
will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the
fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let
there be dew.
[40] And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and
there was dew on all the ground.
Jay owned a Gideon Bible, yet his analytical mind didn’t permit him to accept
its miracles. One thing haunted him, though: the genuine faith of his friend.
So Jay offered a strange prayer. He told God, "If you want me to believe in
You, then do something I can't explain."
One day, something drew Jay to look for his Bible. It was gone. How could that
be? He never lost track of things.
He drove in the rain to his teaching job at the University of Zurich. Stepping
out of his car, he spotted a Gideon Bible on the wet pavement. That's strange,
he thought. Picking it up, he noticed the Bible was totally dry despite the
rain. Something he couldn't explain!
Gideon Bibles are named for an Old Testament hero of Israel. When God chose
Gideon to lead Israel into battle against a vast army, Gideon had huge doubts.
He told God, "I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is
dew only on the fleece . . . , then I will know that you will save Israel by
my hand" (Judges 6:37). God answered Gideon's challenge not once
but twice (vv. 39-40).
Doubt-filled prayers aren't a pattern for us to follow. They can, however,
reveal God's character. Gideon led a tiny army to a smashing victory (ch. 7).
Jay put his faith in Jesus, recognising that his prayer had been answered
by a loving God who does things we can't explain.
Reflect & Pray
What experiences have you had that seem beyond explanation?
How do they help you see God at work?
Thank You, dear Father, that You hear
my honest prayers and meet me where I am.
3) Daily verses taken from Billy Graham Evangelical Organisation
Words in Season Scripture Memory Tools
Week 4 - The Blessings of Grace Day 3 - From Darkness to Light
Col 1:13-14
13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and has transferred us
into the kingdom of His dear Son,
14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
[13] Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated
us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
[14] In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of
sins:
Most of us have no real concept of darkness. We live in a world illuminated
not only by sun, moon and start, bit by streetlights and electric lamps and,
when the power goes off, flashlights and candles. We resist the darkness
For the sighted, being in absolute darkness is a frightening experience.
The dark blots out everything; we can see nothing, not even our own bodies,
and we may become disoriented. The dark seems to press in upon us,
with an almost physical weight that oppresses.
Spiritual darkness is like that. Spiritual darkness,
the absence of light in Christ, is oppressive, weighing us down,
distorting our perceptions of realty.
We cannot judge clearly, for we cannot see at all.
Yet God breaks into our darkness, bringing his light - Jesus Christ,
The Light of the World. When the awareness of Christ invades our lives,
our eyes are opened and we can see for the first time. We see our sin,
God's grace, and the Way he has provided for escape from the dark.
And as we continue to walk in his light, we see even more - the need
for changes in our lives, and God's power to work those changes.
Discernment and wisdom come through his light,
and we understand spiritual truths we could never see before.
Paul says that God has 'rescued' us from darkness and brought us
into the light. We cannot, on our own, accomplish this rescue,
but god through Christ's sacrifice brings it about in us.
He is the light who illuminates our darkness.
Application
a) Many different kinds of spiritual darkness invade our lives
and keep us blind to the truth - sin, lack of understanding,
resistance to the Holy Spirit. What kinds of spiritual darkness
have I experienced?
b) What changes took place in me when I first 'came into the light'?
c) What spiritual truths can I see now that I could not see
when I lived in darkness?
4) From Prosperity Promises - Kenneth Copeland
Proverbs 22:7
7 The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.
7 The rich ruleth over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender.