Day 199 - 18 July 2021 reflections
Day 199, 18 July 2021
Today at htps://www.calvarycommmunity.ca/
We focused on Psalms 8
Psalms 8
For the Music Director. According to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
You have set Your glory
above the heavens.
2 (Ps 63:1; 84:2, Matt 21:15-16) Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength
because of Your enemies,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 (Ps 79:10; 80:5) When I consider Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You have established,
4 (Isa 30:29; Ps 62:8) what is man that You are mindful of him,
and the son of man that You attend to him?
5 (Ps 42:11; 43:5) For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 (2Sa 17:22; Dt 3:8-9) You have given him dominion
over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
7 (Ps 88:7; Jnh 2:3) all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
8 (Job 35:10; Ps 63:6) the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
and whatever travels the paths of the seas.
9 (Ps 38:6; 18:2) O Lord, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
2 Kings 18; 2 Chron 29-31 ; Psalms 48
2 Kings 18
Hezekiah, King of Judah
2Ch 29:1-2; 31:1, 20-21; 2Ki 17:3-7
1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel,
Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, became king.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king,
and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abi
daughter of Zechariah.
3 (2Ki 20:3) He did what was right in the sight of the Lord,
according to everything that David his father had done.
4 (2Ch 31:1; Nu 21:8-9) He removed the high places, broke down the sacred
pillars, cut down the Asherah poles, and crushed the bronze serpent that Moses
had made, for until those days the children of Israel had made offerings to it.
They called it Nehushtan.
5 (2Ki 19:10; 23:25) He trusted in the Lord God of Israel. Afterwards,
there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah
or among those who were before him.
6 (Dt 10:20; Jos 23:8) He clung to the Lord. He did not depart from
following him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord Âcommanded Moses.
7 (1Sa 18:14; 2Ki 16:7; Ge 39:2-3) The Lord was with him. Wherever he went,
he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.
8 (2Ki 17:9; Isa 14:29) He struck the Philistines as far as Gaza
and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.
9 In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea
son of Elah, king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up
against Samaria and besieged it.
10 He seized it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah,
that is, the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
11 (1Ch 5:26; 2Ki 17:6) Then the king of Assyria exiled Israel to Assyria
and put them in Halah and in Habor by the River of Gozan
and in the cities of the Medes,
12 because they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God,
but transgressed His covenant and all that Moses the servant of the Lord
commanded, and would not obey or do them.
Sennacherib Invades Judah
Isa 36:1-22; 2Ch 32:9-19
13 (Isa 36:1-22) In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah,
Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah
and captured them.
14 (2Ki 18:7) Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria
at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong; turn away from me. I will bear
whatever you put on me." So the king of Assyria required
of Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents
[About 11 tons, or 10 metric tons.] of silver and thirty talents
[About 1 ton, or 1 metric ton.] of gold.
15 (2Ki 16:8; 12:18) So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found
in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king's house.
16 At that time Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple
of the Lord and from the doorposts that Hezekiah king of Judah
had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.
17 (2Ki 20:20; Isa 7:3) Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan,
[Possibly Commander in Chief.] the Rabsaris,[Possibly Chief of Staff.]
and the Rabshakeh [Possibly Commanding General.] from Lachish
to King Hezekiah with a great army against Jerusalem.
So they went up and came to Jerusalem.
When they went up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool,
which is on the highway of the Fuller's Field.
18 (2Ki 19:2) Then they called to the king, and Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,
who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph,
the recorder, came out to them.
19 (Isa 36:4) Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Speak to Hezekiah:
"Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria:
What is the basis of your confidence?
20 You speak empty words concerning counsel and strength for the war.
Now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me?
21 (Isa 30:7; Eze 29:6-7) Now, look! You trust in the staff of this bruised
reed, on Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will enter his hand
and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
22 (2Ch 31:1) But if you say to me, 'We trust in the Lord our God,'
is it not He, whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed,
saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, 'You shall worship
before this altar in Jerusalem'?
23 "Now, make a wager with my lord king of Assyria. I will give you
two thousand horses if you are able to set riders on them.
24 (Isa 10:8) How can you turn away one official of the least
of my master's servants and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and horsemen?
25 (2Ki 19:6) Have I come up apart from the will of the Lord
against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me,
Go up against this land and destroy it."
26 (Ezr 4:7; Da 2:4) Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah
said to the Rabshakeh, "Speak to your servants in Aramaic,
for we understand it. Do not speak with us in the language of Judah
in earshot of the people who are on the wall."
27 But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me to speak
these words to your master and to you, and not to the men sitting on the wall,
who are about to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?"
28 Then the Rabshakeh stood and called with a loud voice in the language
of Judah, "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria.
29 (2Ch 32:15) Thus says the king: 'Do not let Hezekiah deceive you,
for he is not able to deliver you from my hand.
30 Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying,
The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given
into the hand of the king of Assyria.'
31 (1Ki 4:25; 4:20) "Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king
of Assyria: 'Submit to me; come out to me, so that every man may eat
from his own vine and his own fig tree and drink water from his own cistern,
32 (Dt 8:7-9; Ex 3:8) until I come and take you to a land like your own land,
a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive oil
and honey, that you may live and not die.'
"Do not listen to Hezekiah when he leads you astray saying,
The Lord will deliver us.
33 (Isa 10:10-11) Has any of the gods of the nations at all delivered
its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?
34 (Isa 10:9) Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad?
Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?
Have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
35 (Da 3:15) Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their land
out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?"
36 But the people were silent and answered him not a word,
for the king's command was, "Do not answer him."
37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe,
and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes
torn and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.
2 Chronicles 29
Hezekiah, King of Judah
2Ki 18:2-3
1 (2Ki 18:1-3; 1Ch 3:13) Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he began
to reign, and he was king in Jerusalem for twenty-nine years.
The name of his mother was Abijah [Or Abi in 2Ki 18:2.]
the daughter of Zechariah.
2And he did what was correct in the eyes of the Lord
just as his father David had done.
Hezekiah Cleanses the Temple
3 (2Ch 28:24; 29:7) And in the first year and first month of his reign
he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and restored them.
4 He then brought in the priests and Levites and gathered them in the square
on the eastern side
5 (2Ch 35:6; 1Ch 15:12) and said to them, "Listen to me, Levites.
Consecrate yourselves and consecrate the house of the Lord God
of your fathers. And bring out the detestable things
from the holy sanctuary.
6 (Eze 8:16; Jer 2:27) For our fathers have acted unfaithfully
and have done what is evil in the eyes of the Lord our God,
and they have abandoned Him. They have turned their face
from the sanctuary of the Lord and have turned their back.
7 (2Ch 28:24) They also shut the doors of the vestibule
and have extinguished the lamps, nor have they burned incense
or burnt offerings in the Holy Place to the God of Israel.
8 (Jer 25:9; 25:18) Therefore the wrath of the Lord has come on Judah
and Jerusalem for a terror, horror, and scorn as you all can see
with your own eyes.
9 (2Ch 28:17; 28:5-8) Observe, our fathers have fallen by the sword,
and now our sons, daughters, and wives are in captivity for all this.
10 (2Ch 23:16) Now it is in my heart to make a covenant
with the Lord God of Israel so that His burning anger might turn away from us.
11 My people, do not now be negligent for the Lord has chosen you all
to stand in His presence, to serve Him, and to be ministers
and make sacrifices for Him."
12 Then the Levites arose:
from the Kohathites,
Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah;
from the Merarites,
Kish son of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel;
from the Gershonites,
Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah;
13 (1Ch 6:39; 15:8) from the descendants of Elizaphan,
Shimri and Jeiel;
from the descendants of Asaph,
Zechariah and Mattaniah;
14 (1Ch 6:33) from the descendants of Heman,
Jehiel and Shimei;
from the descendants of Jeduthun,
Shemaiah and Uzziel.
15 (2Ch 30:12; 1Ch 23:28) So they gathered their brothers together
and consecrated themselves and entered in as the king commanded
by the words of the Lord in order to cleanse the house of the Lord.
16 (2Ch 15:16) Then the priests came into the inner part of the house
of the Lord to cleanse it, and they removed everything that they found
that was unclean in the main hall of the temple of the Lord to the court.
And the Levites took those things and brought them out to the Kidron Valley.
17 They began to consecrate themselves on the first day of the first month,
and on the eighth day of the month they entered the vestibule of the Lord.
They consecrated the house of the Lord for eight days. Then on the 16th day
of the first month they completed the task.
18 Then they came toward Hezekiah the king and said, "We have cleaned
the entire house of the Lord, the altar of burnt offerings and all its utensils,
and the table for showbread and all its utensils.
19 (2Ch 28:24) All the vessels that King Ahaz discarded from use
during his reign in his treachery we have prepared and consecrated.
They are before the altar of the Lord."
Hezekiah Restores Temple Worship
20 So King Hezekiah got up early and gathered the officials of the city
and went up to the house of the Lord.
21 (Lev 4:3-14) And he brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs,
and seven male goats for a sin offering for the kingdom, sanctuary,
and Judah. Then he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer
them up on the altar of the Lord.
22 (Lev 4:18; 8:19) So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests
took their blood and sprinkled it on the altar and then slaughtered
the rams and sprinkled their blood on the altar. They did the same
for the lambs.
23 (Lev 4:15) And they brought the male goats for a sin offering
before the king and the assembly, and they placed their hands on the goats.
24 And the priests slaughtered them and purified the altar with their blood
to provide atoning reconciliation for all Israel because the king said
that the burnt offering and sin offering would be for all Israel.
25 (2Ch 8:14; 2Sa 24:11) And he set the Levites at the house of the Lord
with cymbals, harps, and lyres according to the commandment of David,
and Gad the seer of the king, and Nathan the prophet.
For the commandment came from the Lord through His prophets.
26 (1Ch 23:5; 15:24) So the Levites stood with the instruments of David
and the priests with the trumpets.
27 (2Ch 23:18) Then Hezekiah gave the command to offer the burnt offering
on the altar. When they started the burnt offering, the song of the Lord began
also, with the trumpets and the instruments of David, king of Israel.
28 The entire assembly worshipped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters
sounded. All of this took place until the burnt offering was finished.
29 (2Ch 20:18) When the burnt offering was finished, the king and all those
with him bowed down and worshipped.
30 Then Hezekiah the king and the officials ordered the Levites
to praise the Lord with the words of David and Asaph the seer.
So they praised with gladness and bowed down to worship.
31 (2Ch 13:9; Ex 35:22) Then Hezekiah responded, "Now you have dedicated
yourselves to the Lord. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings
to the house of the Lord." So the assembly brought sacrifices
and thank offerings, and all who had a willing heart brought burnt offerings.
32 The number of the burnt offerings that the assembly brought was seventy
bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs;
all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord.
33 The consecrated animals were six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep.
34 (2Ch 30:3; 35:11) However there were too few priests, and they were
not able to skin the burnt offerings. But their brothers the Levites
helped them until the work was finished and more priests consecrated
themselves, for the Levites were more upright in heart to consecrate
themselves than the priests.
35 (Nu 15:5-10; Ex 29:13) Also burnt offerings were in abundance with the fat
of the peace offerings and the drink offerings for the burnt offerings.
So the service of the house of the Lord was set in order.
36 Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced that God had prepared the people,
since the events happened suddenly.
2 Chronicles 30
Hezekiah Celebrates the Passover
1 And Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah. He even wrote letters
to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they come to the house of the Lord
in Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel.
2 (Nu 9:10-11) The king counseled with his officials and all the assembly
in Jerusalem to have the Passover in the second month.
3 (2Ch 29:34; Ex 12:6) For they were not able to have it at the appropriate
time of the first month because a sufficient amount of priests had not
consecrated themselves, nor had the people assembled yet in Jerusalem.
4 And this matter was pleasing in the eyes of the king and all the assembly.
5 (Jdg 20:1) So they decreed to make a proclamation throughout all Israel,
from Beersheba to Dan, that they come to keep the Passover to the Lord God
of Israel in Jerusalem, for the multitude of people did not do
as it was written.
6 (Est 8:14; Jer 51:31) So couriers ran throughout all Israel and Judah
with a letter from the hand of the king and his officials
as a command from the king:
"Sons of Israel, return to the Lord of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel
that He might turn to the remnant who has escaped from the king of Assyria.
7 (2Ch 29:8) Do not act like your fathers and brothers who were faithless
before the Lord God of their fathers, and He appointed them for horror,
as you observe.
8 (Ex 32:9; 2Ch 29:10) So now do not harden your necks as your fathers,
but give yourselves to the Lord and come to the sanctuary
that He has consecrated permanently. Serve the Lord your God so that
His burning anger might turn away from you all.
9 (Ex 34:6-7; Ps 106:46) Because if you return to the Lord, your brothers
and children will find compassion before those who have taken them captive,
in order to return you to this land. For the Lord your God is gracious
and compassionate. He will not turn His face from you
if you all return to Him."
10 (2Ch 36:16; 30:6) So the couriers ran from city to city in the land
of Ephraim and Manasseh and up to Zebulun, but the people laughed
at them and mocked them.
11 (2Ch 30:18; 30:21) However some men from Asher, Manasseh,
and Zebulun humbled themselves and journeyed to Jerusalem.
12 (Php 2:13; Jer 32:39) And even in Judah the hand of God was on them
to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king
and officials by the word of the Lord.
13 And many people assembled in Jerusalem to have
the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month.
There was a very large assembly.
14 (2Ch 28:24; 2Sa 15:23) They went out and removed the altars
that were in Jerusalem, and they took away all the incense altars
and threw them into the Kidron Valley.
15 (2Ch 29:34) They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day
of the second month. The priests and Levites were ashamed,
and they consecrated themselves and brought in burnt offerings
to the house of the Lord.
16 (Dt 33:1; 2Ch 35:15) They stood at their places according
to the Law of Moses, the man of God; the priests sprinkled the blood
they received from the hands of the Levites.
17 (2Ch 29:34) For there were many in the assembly
who had consecrated themselves, so the Levites slaughtered
the Passover lamb for those who were not clean in order to consecrate
the people to the Lord.
18 For a multitude of the people-many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar,
and Zebulun-had not purified themselves. For they ate of the Passover
contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed over them saying,
"The Lord is good, and may He pardon
19 (2Ch 19:3) everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the Lord God
of his fathers, but is not pure according the rules of the holy sanctuary."
20 So the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
21 (Ex 12:15; 13:6) Then the sons of Israel present in Jerusalem kept
the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy,
and the Levites and priests praised the Lord every day,
singing with loud instruments to the Lord.
22 (2Ch 32:6; Ne 9:3) Then Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites
who taught the good knowledge of the Lord. So they ate for the appointed
seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God
of their fathers.
23 (1Ki 8:65; 2Ch 7:9) Then the whole assembly counseled to have the feast
for another seven days, so they had seven more days of gladness.
24 (2Ch 29:34; 35:7-8) For Hezekiah king of Judah lifted up for the assembly
one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep. And the officials offered up
for the assembly one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep.
And a multitude of priests consecrated themselves.
25 (2Ch 30:11; 30:18) So all the assembly of Judah and the priests
and Levites and all the assembly who came from Israel rejoiced,
even the sojourners who came from the land of Israel
and those who resided in Judah.
26 (2Ch 7:8-10) And there was a great rejoicing in Jerusalem,
for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel
there had not been anything like this.
27 (Dt 26:15; Ps 68:5) Then the priests and Levites went out
and blessed the people, and their voices were heard.
And their prayers came up to His holy habitation in the heavens.
2 Chronicles 31
1 (2Ki 18:4; 2Ch 32:12) And when this celebration was finished,
all of Israel that was present went out to the cities of Judah
and smashed the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles
and tore down the high places and the altars throughout all Judah
and Benjamin, and in Ephraim and Manasseh, until everything
was destroyed. Then all Israel returned to their cities,
each man to his own possession.
Temple Contributions
2Ki 18:5-7
2 (1Ch 24:1) And Hezekiah set up the divisions of the priests
and Levites according to their divisions, each man as he worked
among the priests and Levites for burnt and fellowship offerings,
to serve, give thanks, and offer praise at the gates of the camp of the Lord.
3 (2Ch 35:7; Eze 45:17) And the portion of the king that came from his own
possessions was for burnt offerings, those given in the morning and evening,
and those given for Sabbaths, New Moons, and appointed feasts,
as written in the Law of the Lord.
4 (Mal 2:7; Nu 18:8-21) And he ordered those people living in Jerusalem
to give a portion for the priests and Levites, in order for them to devote
themselves to the Law of the Lord.
5 (Ne 13:12; Nu 18:12) And when the command spread, the sons of Israel
gave generously the first fruits of grain, wine, oil, honey,
and all the produce of the field. And they brought in abundance
a tenth portion of everything.
6 (Lev 27:30; Dt 14:28) And the sons of Israel and Judah
and all who dwelled in the cities of Judah also brought in a tenth portion
of cattle and sheep, and a tenth portion of the consecrated items
that were to the Lord their God, and brought them in and set them
in great piles.
7 In the third month they began to assign the piles of contribution,
and they finished in the seventh month.
8 When Hezekiah and the officials saw the contribution piles,
they blessed the Lord and His people Israel.
9 Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites
regarding the contribution piles.
10 (Mal 3:10; 1Ch 6:8) Azariah the head priest from the house of Zadok
said, "Since they began to bring the contributions into the house of the Lord,
there has been plenty of food and a large amount left over.
For the Lord has blessed His people, and this great abundance is left over."
11 Then Hezekiah ordered them to prepare chambers in the house of the Lord,
and they did this.
12 (2Ch 35:9) They reliably brought in the contributions, tenth portions,
and consecrated items. The leader over them was Konaniah the Levite,
and Shimei his brother was second to him.
13 And Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah,
Mahath, and Benaiah were supervisors under Konaniah and Shimei his brother
by the appointment of Hezekiah the king
and Azariah the leader of the house of God.
14 And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite was gatekeeper for the East Gate
and over the voluntary offerings to God, to designate the contributions
of the Lord and most holy offerings.
15 (Jos 21:9-19) Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, SheÂmaiah, Amariah,
and Shekaniah reliably assisted him in the cities of the priests
to distribute the portions to their brothers by division,
both great and small.
16 (Ezr 3:4) Besides those males registered from three years old and above,
they distributed to all who entered into the house of the Lord his daily
portion, for their services according to their duties and their divisions.
17 (1Ch 23:24; 23:27) The registration of the priests was according
to the house of their fathers and the Levites from twenty years and above,
according to their duties and their divisions.
18 They were registered with all their little children, wives, sons,
and daughters for the entire assembly for they consecrated
themselves in faithfulness.
19 (2Ch 31:12-15; Lev 25:34) Also for the sons of Aaron, the priests,
who were in the fields of common land of their cities,
there were men in each city who were designated by name to allocate
portions to every male among the priests and to everyone
who was registered by genealogy among the Levites.
20 (2Ki 20:3; 22:2) Hezekiah did this throughout all Judah,
and he did what was good and just and faithful before the Lord his God.
21 And in every deed that he undertook in the service of the house of God
and with the law and commandment to seek out his God,
he did this with all his heart, and he found success.
Psalms 48
A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
1 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised
in the city of our God, in His holy mountain.
2 (Ps 63:1; 84:2) Beautiful in elevation,
the joy of the whole earth,
is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north,
the city of the great King.
3 (Ps 79:10; 80:5) God is known in her citadels
as a refuge.
4 (Isa 30:29; Ps 62:8) For the kings were assembled,
they passed by together.
5 (Ps 42:11; 43:5) They saw it, and so they were astounded;
they were alarmed, they hurried away.
6 (2Sa 17:22; Dt 3:8-9) Trembling seized them there,
and pain like a woman in labor;
7 (Ps 88:7; Jnh 2:3) You break the ships of Tarshish
with an east wind.
8 (Job 35:10; Ps 63:6) 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 forever. Selah
9 (Ps 38:6; 18:2) We have thought of Your lovingkindness, O God,
in the midst of Your temple.
10 (Ps 42:3; Joel 2:17) According to Your name, O God,
so is Your praise to the ends of the earth;
Your right hand is full of righteousness.
11 (Ps 42:5; 43:5) May Mount Zion rejoice,
may the daughters of Judah be glad,
because of Your judgments.
12 Walk about Zion, and go round about her;
count her towers;
13 mark well her bulwarks;
consider her citadels;
that you may tell it to the generation following.
14 For this God is our God forever and ever;
He will be our guide even to death.
2) Our Daily Bread for 18 July 2021
https://odb.org/CA/2021/07/18/come-back-home
entitled God's Restoring Ways
Hosea 14
Hosea 14
A Plea for Repentance
1 (Hos 6:1; 12:6) Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God,
for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
2 (Heb 13:15; Ps 69:30-31) Take words with you
and return to the Lord.
Say to Him,
“Take away all iniquity,
and accept that which is good;
and we will offer the fruit [Gk. Syr.; Heb. bulls.] of our lips!
3 (Ps 10:14; 33:17) Assyria will not save us,
we will not ride on horses.
We will no longer say, 'Our God,'
to the work of our hands.
In You the orphan finds mercy."
4 (Zep 3:17; Isa 12:1) I will heal their backsliding;
I will love them freely,
for My anger has turned away from him.
5 (Isa 35:2; Job 29:19) I will be like the dew to Israel;
he shall grow like the lily
and shall strike his roots
like Lebanon.
6 (Ps 52:8) His branches will spread out,
and his beauty shall be like the olive tree,
and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.
7 (Ps 91:1) Those that dwell under his shadow will return,
they will flourish like the grain
and grow as a vine.
Their fragrance will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8 (Job 34:32; Isa 41:19) O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?
It is I who answer and look after him.
I am like a green fir tree;
your fruit is found in Me.
9 (Ps 107:43; Pr 10:29) Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
whoever prudent, let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right,
and the just will walk in them;
but the transgressors stumble in them.
One of the most moving songs in the musical The Greatest Showman is
"From Now On." Sung after the main character comes to some painful
self-realizations about the ways he's wounded family and friends,
the song celebrates the joy of coming back home and finding that
what we already have is more than enough.
The book of Hosea concludes with a similar tone-one of breathless joy
and gratitude at the restoration God makes possible for those
who return to Him. Much of the book, which compares the relationship
between God and His people to a relationship with an unfaithful spouse,
grieves Israel's failures to love Him and live for Him.
But in chapter 14, Hosea lifts up the promise of God's boundless love,
grace, and restoration-freely available to those who return to Him
heartbroken over the ways they've abandoned Him (vv. 1-3).
"I will heal their waywardness," God promises, "and love them freely" (v. 4).
And what had seemed broken beyond repair will once more find wholeness
and abundance, as God's grace, like dew, causes His people to
"blossom like a lily" and "flourish like the grain" (vv. 5–7).
When we've hurt others or taken for granted God's goodness in our life,
it's easy to assume we've forever marred the good gifts we've been given.
But when we humbly turn to Him, we find His love is always
reaching to embrace and restore.
By: Monica La Rose
Reflect & Pray
When have you experienced or witnessed restoration beyond what seemed
possible? In what areas of your life do you need reassurance of God's promise
to heal and restore?
Loving God and Creator of Life, teach me to trust in Your goodness-not just
when I'm good, but all the time.
3) Daily verses taken from Billy Graham Evangelical Organisation
Words in Season Scripture Memory Tools
Week 8 Guided by Grace Day 1 A circle of Light
John 8:12
12 (Jn 12:35; Job 33:28; Isa 49:6)Again, Jesus spoke to them, saying,
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me
shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life."
When Judy Garland stepped onstage, she filled the spotlight. Nothing was
illuminated but her face, and as she sang, her listeners had a sense of being
transported beyond themselves into the meaning of her song. The focus of
reality, at that moment, was "Judy", and everything else faded into the dim
recesses of the shadowed room. The spotlight brought her into sharp focus
as the center of attention, and all around her was darkness.
When the scriptures speaks of Jesus as "the light," the image is not
of thousands of blazing bulbes lighting up a football field for a night game.
Rather, he is like a hand-help lamp that throws a circle of light in the
immediate vicinity. such a lamp lights the path that a traveler will walk,
but lights it only one step at a time.
Jesus is the center of that circle of light. As we follow him, we share the
light, but he is always at center. Jesus Christ is the focal point,
and everything else fades into dim gray by comparison.
If we are to keep our lives illuminated, to have his light falling upon the
road we walk, we must stay close to him. Jesus does not hand the lamp
to us and suggest that we go the way he wants; he , the Light, leads,
and if we want to stay in the light, we follow.
Application
a) Have I ever tried to go my own way, apart frm the Light?
What was the result?
b) How can this verse help me remember the importance of staying close
to Jesus?
4) From Prosperity Promises - Kenneth Copeland
Matthew 6:19-21
Treasures in Heaven
Lk 12:33–34
19 (Heb 13:5; Lk 12:21) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth
where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.
20 (Lk 12:33; Mt 19:21) But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust destroy
and where thieves do not break in nor steal,
21 (Lk 12:34) for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
5) From a Book called God's Promises for you:
God's Eternal Faithfulness
2 Tim 2:8-13
8 (Mt 1:1; Ro 2:16) Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead,
descended from David, according to my gospel,
9 (Php 1:7; 2Ti 1:8) in which I suffer trouble like a criminal,
even with chains. But the word of God is not bound.
10 (Col 1:24; 2Co 1:6; 4:17) Therefore I endure all things
for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain
the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
11 (Ro 6:8; 1Th 5:10) This is a faithful saying:
If we die with Him,
we shall also live with Him.
12 (Mt 10:33; Ro 8:17 ) If we endure,
we shall also reign with Him.
If we deny Him,
He also will deny us.
13 (Nu 23:19; Ro 3:3 )If we are faithless,
He remains faithful;
He cannot deny Himself.
Remember God's promises when You pray
The Lord's prayer
Matthew 6:9-13
9 "Therefore pray in this manner:
Our Father who is in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
10 (Mt 3:2; 4:17) Your kingdom come;
Your will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven.
11 (Pr 30:8; Isa 33:16) Give us this day our daily bread.
12 (Ex 34:7; Ps 32:1) And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
13 (1Co 10:13; Jn 17:15) And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."
6) This come from Praying for Muslims in Canada 2015 (Is there a 2021 edition?)
Where do Muslims live?
Canada is a land of immigrants. And Muslims are coming in increasing numbers
to our shores. Where do they live? How can we prayfor these areas? Use this as
your more effectively for Muslims in Canada.
Data for those population figures is extrapoled for the 2011 National
Household Survay and population growth projections by Pew Forum. These have
also been adjusted by +40% as reliable sources state that on 60% of Muslims
self-identify on government surveys and forms. These estimates are still on
the conservative end of the spectrum. Percentages represent that of the total
Canadian population, not provincial
BC - 136493 - 7.5%
AB - 195240 - 11%
SK - 17279 - 1%
MB - 21349 - 1.2%
ON - 1001542 - 55%
QC - 418946 - 23%
NB - 4543 - 0.003%
NS - 14629 - 0.1%
PEI - 1127 - 0.0006%
NFLD - 2065 - 0.001%
Yukon - 69 - 0.00004%
NWT - 473 - 0.0003%
NU - 86 - 0.00005%
Adding further
30 days of prayer for the Muslim World 24 April to 23 May 2020
Under the Keep Praying page
When the new moon is sighted it marks the beginning of t he new Islamic month
and Eid al-Fitr, the "Festival of Breaking the Fast", will start! After 30 days
of fasting, the Eid celebration at the end of Ramadan is a joyful time that
usually lasts about 3 days. Muslims will buy new clothes, exchange gifts and,
of course, enjoy special foods. In Muslim-majority nations, the streets may be
decorated and festivals will be held.
For many Muslims, Eid-al-Fitr begins with communal prayers at daybreak and the
distribution of money (zakat) to the poor, which is one of the 5 pillars of
Islam.
You can greet Muslim friends during this time by saying "Eid Mubarak",
which means Blessed Eid!"
Ramadan is over for this year, but you can continue to pray for Muslims you
know, and Muslims around the world:
- Despite the unsettling developments in our world today that involve actions
in the name of Islam, there is at the same time a largely untold story about
unprecedented movement to Christ among Muslims. There have been more such
movements of thousands or more new disciples among Muslims in the last three
decades or so than in all the previous history of Christian Muslim
relationships! Pray for this momentum to continue.
Acts 2:12-17 : 17 12 They were all amazed and perplexed, saying to each other,
"What does this mean?"
13 (1Co 14:23) Others mocking said, "These men are full of new wine."
Peter's Speech at Pentecost
14 (Ac 1:26) But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice
and said to them, "Men of Judea and all you who dwell in Jerusalem,
let this be known to you, and listen to my words.
15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose,
since it is the third hour of the day.
16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 (Isa 44:3; Ac 10:45) 'In the last days it shall be,' says God,
'that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.'
- Pray for Christian workers an organisations focused on seeing effective
discipleship movements among Muslim people.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to continue to inspire you to have god's heart for
Muslims, to see them as He does, and to be the light that then to Jesus.
Matthew 5:14-15 : 14 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a
hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do men light a candle and put it under
a basket, but on a candlestick. And it gives light to all who are in the
house."
Ideas for prayer
- Pray for opportunities to show the love of Christ to Muslims around you
- Pray for, and offer generous hospitality to, those you know who are serving
Christ among Muslim people -
Romans 12:13 "contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality."
- When you gather with fellow believers, remember to pray for Muslims
throughout the year and encourage them to also participate in 30 Days!
My paternal side is of Muslim heritage and will offer this section to further
call for Muslim converts to Christian and any other converts to Christianity
(Hindus, Jews, aboriginals Canadian, atheists, secular humanists, ...) .
7) Prayers for the nation (Canada) coming from Prayer map of Canada
http://www.ehc.ca
18th Day of the Month
a) Pray that pastors will experience spiritual, emotional and physical
refreshing for the presence of the Lord
( Jer 31:25
25 For I satiate the weary souls and I replenish every languishing soul.
)
b) Pray that the Lord will protect and deliver our nation from
danger and adversity
( Ps 34:7
7 The angel of the Lord camps around those who fear Him,
and delivers them.
)
Conclusion:
Praise the Lord for He is Majesty
Pray to the Lord for godly leaders to lead your nation!
Pray to the Lord "Loving God and Creator of Life,
teach me to trust in Your goodness - not just
when I'm good, but all the time."
Pray to the Lord to stay close to Him as he is the Light.
Pray to the Lord to store treasure in Heaven
Pray to the Lord during persecution not to deny Him.
Pray for Muslims in Canada to know Jesus as Saviour.
Pray for Christian workers an organisations focused on seeing effective
discipleship movements among Muslim people.
Ask the Holy Spirit to continue to inspire you to have God's heart for
Muslims, to see them as He does, and to be the light that then to Jesus.
Pray that pastors will experience spiritual, emotional and physical
refreshing for the presence of the Lord.
Pray that the Lord will protect and deliver our nation from
danger and adversity
Pray for internally displaced Christians in Burkina Faso,
who have suffered tremendous loss for the sake of Christ.
Pray to the Lord that to know the Holy Spirit.
and Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness
Remember eternity starts now -
Pray for the direction you take to the Ever lasting loving God.
Today at htps://www.calvarycommmunity.ca/
We focused on Psalms 8
Psalms 8
For the Music Director. According to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
You have set Your glory
above the heavens.
2 (Ps 63:1; 84:2, Matt 21:15-16) Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength
because of Your enemies,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 (Ps 79:10; 80:5) When I consider Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You have established,
4 (Isa 30:29; Ps 62:8) what is man that You are mindful of him,
and the son of man that You attend to him?
5 (Ps 42:11; 43:5) For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 (2Sa 17:22; Dt 3:8-9) You have given him dominion
over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
7 (Ps 88:7; Jnh 2:3) all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
8 (Job 35:10; Ps 63:6) the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
and whatever travels the paths of the seas.
9 (Ps 38:6; 18:2) O Lord, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
2 Kings 18; 2 Chron 29-31 ; Psalms 48
2 Kings 18
Hezekiah, King of Judah
2Ch 29:1-2; 31:1, 20-21; 2Ki 17:3-7
1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel,
Hezekiah the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, became king.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king,
and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abi
daughter of Zechariah.
3 (2Ki 20:3) He did what was right in the sight of the Lord,
according to everything that David his father had done.
4 (2Ch 31:1; Nu 21:8-9) He removed the high places, broke down the sacred
pillars, cut down the Asherah poles, and crushed the bronze serpent that Moses
had made, for until those days the children of Israel had made offerings to it.
They called it Nehushtan.
5 (2Ki 19:10; 23:25) He trusted in the Lord God of Israel. Afterwards,
there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah
or among those who were before him.
6 (Dt 10:20; Jos 23:8) He clung to the Lord. He did not depart from
following him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord Âcommanded Moses.
7 (1Sa 18:14; 2Ki 16:7; Ge 39:2-3) The Lord was with him. Wherever he went,
he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.
8 (2Ki 17:9; Isa 14:29) He struck the Philistines as far as Gaza
and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.
9 In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea
son of Elah, king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up
against Samaria and besieged it.
10 He seized it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah,
that is, the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
11 (1Ch 5:26; 2Ki 17:6) Then the king of Assyria exiled Israel to Assyria
and put them in Halah and in Habor by the River of Gozan
and in the cities of the Medes,
12 because they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God,
but transgressed His covenant and all that Moses the servant of the Lord
commanded, and would not obey or do them.
Sennacherib Invades Judah
Isa 36:1-22; 2Ch 32:9-19
13 (Isa 36:1-22) In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah,
Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah
and captured them.
14 (2Ki 18:7) Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria
at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong; turn away from me. I will bear
whatever you put on me." So the king of Assyria required
of Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents
[About 11 tons, or 10 metric tons.] of silver and thirty talents
[About 1 ton, or 1 metric ton.] of gold.
15 (2Ki 16:8; 12:18) So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found
in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king's house.
16 At that time Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple
of the Lord and from the doorposts that Hezekiah king of Judah
had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.
17 (2Ki 20:20; Isa 7:3) Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan,
[Possibly Commander in Chief.] the Rabsaris,[Possibly Chief of Staff.]
and the Rabshakeh [Possibly Commanding General.] from Lachish
to King Hezekiah with a great army against Jerusalem.
So they went up and came to Jerusalem.
When they went up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool,
which is on the highway of the Fuller's Field.
18 (2Ki 19:2) Then they called to the king, and Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,
who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph,
the recorder, came out to them.
19 (Isa 36:4) Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Speak to Hezekiah:
"Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria:
What is the basis of your confidence?
20 You speak empty words concerning counsel and strength for the war.
Now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me?
21 (Isa 30:7; Eze 29:6-7) Now, look! You trust in the staff of this bruised
reed, on Egypt, on which if a man leans, it will enter his hand
and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
22 (2Ch 31:1) But if you say to me, 'We trust in the Lord our God,'
is it not He, whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed,
saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, 'You shall worship
before this altar in Jerusalem'?
23 "Now, make a wager with my lord king of Assyria. I will give you
two thousand horses if you are able to set riders on them.
24 (Isa 10:8) How can you turn away one official of the least
of my master's servants and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and horsemen?
25 (2Ki 19:6) Have I come up apart from the will of the Lord
against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me,
Go up against this land and destroy it."
26 (Ezr 4:7; Da 2:4) Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah
said to the Rabshakeh, "Speak to your servants in Aramaic,
for we understand it. Do not speak with us in the language of Judah
in earshot of the people who are on the wall."
27 But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me to speak
these words to your master and to you, and not to the men sitting on the wall,
who are about to eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?"
28 Then the Rabshakeh stood and called with a loud voice in the language
of Judah, "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria.
29 (2Ch 32:15) Thus says the king: 'Do not let Hezekiah deceive you,
for he is not able to deliver you from my hand.
30 Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying,
The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given
into the hand of the king of Assyria.'
31 (1Ki 4:25; 4:20) "Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king
of Assyria: 'Submit to me; come out to me, so that every man may eat
from his own vine and his own fig tree and drink water from his own cistern,
32 (Dt 8:7-9; Ex 3:8) until I come and take you to a land like your own land,
a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive oil
and honey, that you may live and not die.'
"Do not listen to Hezekiah when he leads you astray saying,
The Lord will deliver us.
33 (Isa 10:10-11) Has any of the gods of the nations at all delivered
its land from the hand of the king of Assyria?
34 (Isa 10:9) Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad?
Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?
Have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
35 (Da 3:15) Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their land
out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem from my hand?"
36 But the people were silent and answered him not a word,
for the king's command was, "Do not answer him."
37 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe,
and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes
torn and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.
2 Chronicles 29
Hezekiah, King of Judah
2Ki 18:2-3
1 (2Ki 18:1-3; 1Ch 3:13) Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he began
to reign, and he was king in Jerusalem for twenty-nine years.
The name of his mother was Abijah [Or Abi in 2Ki 18:2.]
the daughter of Zechariah.
2And he did what was correct in the eyes of the Lord
just as his father David had done.
Hezekiah Cleanses the Temple
3 (2Ch 28:24; 29:7) And in the first year and first month of his reign
he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and restored them.
4 He then brought in the priests and Levites and gathered them in the square
on the eastern side
5 (2Ch 35:6; 1Ch 15:12) and said to them, "Listen to me, Levites.
Consecrate yourselves and consecrate the house of the Lord God
of your fathers. And bring out the detestable things
from the holy sanctuary.
6 (Eze 8:16; Jer 2:27) For our fathers have acted unfaithfully
and have done what is evil in the eyes of the Lord our God,
and they have abandoned Him. They have turned their face
from the sanctuary of the Lord and have turned their back.
7 (2Ch 28:24) They also shut the doors of the vestibule
and have extinguished the lamps, nor have they burned incense
or burnt offerings in the Holy Place to the God of Israel.
8 (Jer 25:9; 25:18) Therefore the wrath of the Lord has come on Judah
and Jerusalem for a terror, horror, and scorn as you all can see
with your own eyes.
9 (2Ch 28:17; 28:5-8) Observe, our fathers have fallen by the sword,
and now our sons, daughters, and wives are in captivity for all this.
10 (2Ch 23:16) Now it is in my heart to make a covenant
with the Lord God of Israel so that His burning anger might turn away from us.
11 My people, do not now be negligent for the Lord has chosen you all
to stand in His presence, to serve Him, and to be ministers
and make sacrifices for Him."
12 Then the Levites arose:
from the Kohathites,
Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah;
from the Merarites,
Kish son of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel;
from the Gershonites,
Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah;
13 (1Ch 6:39; 15:8) from the descendants of Elizaphan,
Shimri and Jeiel;
from the descendants of Asaph,
Zechariah and Mattaniah;
14 (1Ch 6:33) from the descendants of Heman,
Jehiel and Shimei;
from the descendants of Jeduthun,
Shemaiah and Uzziel.
15 (2Ch 30:12; 1Ch 23:28) So they gathered their brothers together
and consecrated themselves and entered in as the king commanded
by the words of the Lord in order to cleanse the house of the Lord.
16 (2Ch 15:16) Then the priests came into the inner part of the house
of the Lord to cleanse it, and they removed everything that they found
that was unclean in the main hall of the temple of the Lord to the court.
And the Levites took those things and brought them out to the Kidron Valley.
17 They began to consecrate themselves on the first day of the first month,
and on the eighth day of the month they entered the vestibule of the Lord.
They consecrated the house of the Lord for eight days. Then on the 16th day
of the first month they completed the task.
18 Then they came toward Hezekiah the king and said, "We have cleaned
the entire house of the Lord, the altar of burnt offerings and all its utensils,
and the table for showbread and all its utensils.
19 (2Ch 28:24) All the vessels that King Ahaz discarded from use
during his reign in his treachery we have prepared and consecrated.
They are before the altar of the Lord."
Hezekiah Restores Temple Worship
20 So King Hezekiah got up early and gathered the officials of the city
and went up to the house of the Lord.
21 (Lev 4:3-14) And he brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs,
and seven male goats for a sin offering for the kingdom, sanctuary,
and Judah. Then he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer
them up on the altar of the Lord.
22 (Lev 4:18; 8:19) So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests
took their blood and sprinkled it on the altar and then slaughtered
the rams and sprinkled their blood on the altar. They did the same
for the lambs.
23 (Lev 4:15) And they brought the male goats for a sin offering
before the king and the assembly, and they placed their hands on the goats.
24 And the priests slaughtered them and purified the altar with their blood
to provide atoning reconciliation for all Israel because the king said
that the burnt offering and sin offering would be for all Israel.
25 (2Ch 8:14; 2Sa 24:11) And he set the Levites at the house of the Lord
with cymbals, harps, and lyres according to the commandment of David,
and Gad the seer of the king, and Nathan the prophet.
For the commandment came from the Lord through His prophets.
26 (1Ch 23:5; 15:24) So the Levites stood with the instruments of David
and the priests with the trumpets.
27 (2Ch 23:18) Then Hezekiah gave the command to offer the burnt offering
on the altar. When they started the burnt offering, the song of the Lord began
also, with the trumpets and the instruments of David, king of Israel.
28 The entire assembly worshipped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters
sounded. All of this took place until the burnt offering was finished.
29 (2Ch 20:18) When the burnt offering was finished, the king and all those
with him bowed down and worshipped.
30 Then Hezekiah the king and the officials ordered the Levites
to praise the Lord with the words of David and Asaph the seer.
So they praised with gladness and bowed down to worship.
31 (2Ch 13:9; Ex 35:22) Then Hezekiah responded, "Now you have dedicated
yourselves to the Lord. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings
to the house of the Lord." So the assembly brought sacrifices
and thank offerings, and all who had a willing heart brought burnt offerings.
32 The number of the burnt offerings that the assembly brought was seventy
bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs;
all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord.
33 The consecrated animals were six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep.
34 (2Ch 30:3; 35:11) However there were too few priests, and they were
not able to skin the burnt offerings. But their brothers the Levites
helped them until the work was finished and more priests consecrated
themselves, for the Levites were more upright in heart to consecrate
themselves than the priests.
35 (Nu 15:5-10; Ex 29:13) Also burnt offerings were in abundance with the fat
of the peace offerings and the drink offerings for the burnt offerings.
So the service of the house of the Lord was set in order.
36 Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced that God had prepared the people,
since the events happened suddenly.
2 Chronicles 30
Hezekiah Celebrates the Passover
1 And Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah. He even wrote letters
to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they come to the house of the Lord
in Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel.
2 (Nu 9:10-11) The king counseled with his officials and all the assembly
in Jerusalem to have the Passover in the second month.
3 (2Ch 29:34; Ex 12:6) For they were not able to have it at the appropriate
time of the first month because a sufficient amount of priests had not
consecrated themselves, nor had the people assembled yet in Jerusalem.
4 And this matter was pleasing in the eyes of the king and all the assembly.
5 (Jdg 20:1) So they decreed to make a proclamation throughout all Israel,
from Beersheba to Dan, that they come to keep the Passover to the Lord God
of Israel in Jerusalem, for the multitude of people did not do
as it was written.
6 (Est 8:14; Jer 51:31) So couriers ran throughout all Israel and Judah
with a letter from the hand of the king and his officials
as a command from the king:
"Sons of Israel, return to the Lord of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel
that He might turn to the remnant who has escaped from the king of Assyria.
7 (2Ch 29:8) Do not act like your fathers and brothers who were faithless
before the Lord God of their fathers, and He appointed them for horror,
as you observe.
8 (Ex 32:9; 2Ch 29:10) So now do not harden your necks as your fathers,
but give yourselves to the Lord and come to the sanctuary
that He has consecrated permanently. Serve the Lord your God so that
His burning anger might turn away from you all.
9 (Ex 34:6-7; Ps 106:46) Because if you return to the Lord, your brothers
and children will find compassion before those who have taken them captive,
in order to return you to this land. For the Lord your God is gracious
and compassionate. He will not turn His face from you
if you all return to Him."
10 (2Ch 36:16; 30:6) So the couriers ran from city to city in the land
of Ephraim and Manasseh and up to Zebulun, but the people laughed
at them and mocked them.
11 (2Ch 30:18; 30:21) However some men from Asher, Manasseh,
and Zebulun humbled themselves and journeyed to Jerusalem.
12 (Php 2:13; Jer 32:39) And even in Judah the hand of God was on them
to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king
and officials by the word of the Lord.
13 And many people assembled in Jerusalem to have
the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month.
There was a very large assembly.
14 (2Ch 28:24; 2Sa 15:23) They went out and removed the altars
that were in Jerusalem, and they took away all the incense altars
and threw them into the Kidron Valley.
15 (2Ch 29:34) They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day
of the second month. The priests and Levites were ashamed,
and they consecrated themselves and brought in burnt offerings
to the house of the Lord.
16 (Dt 33:1; 2Ch 35:15) They stood at their places according
to the Law of Moses, the man of God; the priests sprinkled the blood
they received from the hands of the Levites.
17 (2Ch 29:34) For there were many in the assembly
who had consecrated themselves, so the Levites slaughtered
the Passover lamb for those who were not clean in order to consecrate
the people to the Lord.
18 For a multitude of the people-many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar,
and Zebulun-had not purified themselves. For they ate of the Passover
contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed over them saying,
"The Lord is good, and may He pardon
19 (2Ch 19:3) everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the Lord God
of his fathers, but is not pure according the rules of the holy sanctuary."
20 So the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
21 (Ex 12:15; 13:6) Then the sons of Israel present in Jerusalem kept
the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy,
and the Levites and priests praised the Lord every day,
singing with loud instruments to the Lord.
22 (2Ch 32:6; Ne 9:3) Then Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites
who taught the good knowledge of the Lord. So they ate for the appointed
seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God
of their fathers.
23 (1Ki 8:65; 2Ch 7:9) Then the whole assembly counseled to have the feast
for another seven days, so they had seven more days of gladness.
24 (2Ch 29:34; 35:7-8) For Hezekiah king of Judah lifted up for the assembly
one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep. And the officials offered up
for the assembly one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep.
And a multitude of priests consecrated themselves.
25 (2Ch 30:11; 30:18) So all the assembly of Judah and the priests
and Levites and all the assembly who came from Israel rejoiced,
even the sojourners who came from the land of Israel
and those who resided in Judah.
26 (2Ch 7:8-10) And there was a great rejoicing in Jerusalem,
for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel
there had not been anything like this.
27 (Dt 26:15; Ps 68:5) Then the priests and Levites went out
and blessed the people, and their voices were heard.
And their prayers came up to His holy habitation in the heavens.
2 Chronicles 31
1 (2Ki 18:4; 2Ch 32:12) And when this celebration was finished,
all of Israel that was present went out to the cities of Judah
and smashed the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles
and tore down the high places and the altars throughout all Judah
and Benjamin, and in Ephraim and Manasseh, until everything
was destroyed. Then all Israel returned to their cities,
each man to his own possession.
Temple Contributions
2Ki 18:5-7
2 (1Ch 24:1) And Hezekiah set up the divisions of the priests
and Levites according to their divisions, each man as he worked
among the priests and Levites for burnt and fellowship offerings,
to serve, give thanks, and offer praise at the gates of the camp of the Lord.
3 (2Ch 35:7; Eze 45:17) And the portion of the king that came from his own
possessions was for burnt offerings, those given in the morning and evening,
and those given for Sabbaths, New Moons, and appointed feasts,
as written in the Law of the Lord.
4 (Mal 2:7; Nu 18:8-21) And he ordered those people living in Jerusalem
to give a portion for the priests and Levites, in order for them to devote
themselves to the Law of the Lord.
5 (Ne 13:12; Nu 18:12) And when the command spread, the sons of Israel
gave generously the first fruits of grain, wine, oil, honey,
and all the produce of the field. And they brought in abundance
a tenth portion of everything.
6 (Lev 27:30; Dt 14:28) And the sons of Israel and Judah
and all who dwelled in the cities of Judah also brought in a tenth portion
of cattle and sheep, and a tenth portion of the consecrated items
that were to the Lord their God, and brought them in and set them
in great piles.
7 In the third month they began to assign the piles of contribution,
and they finished in the seventh month.
8 When Hezekiah and the officials saw the contribution piles,
they blessed the Lord and His people Israel.
9 Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites
regarding the contribution piles.
10 (Mal 3:10; 1Ch 6:8) Azariah the head priest from the house of Zadok
said, "Since they began to bring the contributions into the house of the Lord,
there has been plenty of food and a large amount left over.
For the Lord has blessed His people, and this great abundance is left over."
11 Then Hezekiah ordered them to prepare chambers in the house of the Lord,
and they did this.
12 (2Ch 35:9) They reliably brought in the contributions, tenth portions,
and consecrated items. The leader over them was Konaniah the Levite,
and Shimei his brother was second to him.
13 And Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah,
Mahath, and Benaiah were supervisors under Konaniah and Shimei his brother
by the appointment of Hezekiah the king
and Azariah the leader of the house of God.
14 And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite was gatekeeper for the East Gate
and over the voluntary offerings to God, to designate the contributions
of the Lord and most holy offerings.
15 (Jos 21:9-19) Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, SheÂmaiah, Amariah,
and Shekaniah reliably assisted him in the cities of the priests
to distribute the portions to their brothers by division,
both great and small.
16 (Ezr 3:4) Besides those males registered from three years old and above,
they distributed to all who entered into the house of the Lord his daily
portion, for their services according to their duties and their divisions.
17 (1Ch 23:24; 23:27) The registration of the priests was according
to the house of their fathers and the Levites from twenty years and above,
according to their duties and their divisions.
18 They were registered with all their little children, wives, sons,
and daughters for the entire assembly for they consecrated
themselves in faithfulness.
19 (2Ch 31:12-15; Lev 25:34) Also for the sons of Aaron, the priests,
who were in the fields of common land of their cities,
there were men in each city who were designated by name to allocate
portions to every male among the priests and to everyone
who was registered by genealogy among the Levites.
20 (2Ki 20:3; 22:2) Hezekiah did this throughout all Judah,
and he did what was good and just and faithful before the Lord his God.
21 And in every deed that he undertook in the service of the house of God
and with the law and commandment to seek out his God,
he did this with all his heart, and he found success.
Psalms 48
A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
1 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised
in the city of our God, in His holy mountain.
2 (Ps 63:1; 84:2) Beautiful in elevation,
the joy of the whole earth,
is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north,
the city of the great King.
3 (Ps 79:10; 80:5) God is known in her citadels
as a refuge.
4 (Isa 30:29; Ps 62:8) For the kings were assembled,
they passed by together.
5 (Ps 42:11; 43:5) They saw it, and so they were astounded;
they were alarmed, they hurried away.
6 (2Sa 17:22; Dt 3:8-9) Trembling seized them there,
and pain like a woman in labor;
7 (Ps 88:7; Jnh 2:3) You break the ships of Tarshish
with an east wind.
8 (Job 35:10; Ps 63:6) 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 forever. Selah
9 (Ps 38:6; 18:2) We have thought of Your lovingkindness, O God,
in the midst of Your temple.
10 (Ps 42:3; Joel 2:17) According to Your name, O God,
so is Your praise to the ends of the earth;
Your right hand is full of righteousness.
11 (Ps 42:5; 43:5) May Mount Zion rejoice,
may the daughters of Judah be glad,
because of Your judgments.
12 Walk about Zion, and go round about her;
count her towers;
13 mark well her bulwarks;
consider her citadels;
that you may tell it to the generation following.
14 For this God is our God forever and ever;
He will be our guide even to death.
2) Our Daily Bread for 18 July 2021
https://odb.org/CA/2021/07/18/come-back-home
entitled God's Restoring Ways
Hosea 14
Hosea 14
A Plea for Repentance
1 (Hos 6:1; 12:6) Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God,
for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
2 (Heb 13:15; Ps 69:30-31) Take words with you
and return to the Lord.
Say to Him,
“Take away all iniquity,
and accept that which is good;
and we will offer the fruit [Gk. Syr.; Heb. bulls.] of our lips!
3 (Ps 10:14; 33:17) Assyria will not save us,
we will not ride on horses.
We will no longer say, 'Our God,'
to the work of our hands.
In You the orphan finds mercy."
4 (Zep 3:17; Isa 12:1) I will heal their backsliding;
I will love them freely,
for My anger has turned away from him.
5 (Isa 35:2; Job 29:19) I will be like the dew to Israel;
he shall grow like the lily
and shall strike his roots
like Lebanon.
6 (Ps 52:8) His branches will spread out,
and his beauty shall be like the olive tree,
and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.
7 (Ps 91:1) Those that dwell under his shadow will return,
they will flourish like the grain
and grow as a vine.
Their fragrance will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8 (Job 34:32; Isa 41:19) O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?
It is I who answer and look after him.
I am like a green fir tree;
your fruit is found in Me.
9 (Ps 107:43; Pr 10:29) Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
whoever prudent, let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right,
and the just will walk in them;
but the transgressors stumble in them.
One of the most moving songs in the musical The Greatest Showman is
"From Now On." Sung after the main character comes to some painful
self-realizations about the ways he's wounded family and friends,
the song celebrates the joy of coming back home and finding that
what we already have is more than enough.
The book of Hosea concludes with a similar tone-one of breathless joy
and gratitude at the restoration God makes possible for those
who return to Him. Much of the book, which compares the relationship
between God and His people to a relationship with an unfaithful spouse,
grieves Israel's failures to love Him and live for Him.
But in chapter 14, Hosea lifts up the promise of God's boundless love,
grace, and restoration-freely available to those who return to Him
heartbroken over the ways they've abandoned Him (vv. 1-3).
"I will heal their waywardness," God promises, "and love them freely" (v. 4).
And what had seemed broken beyond repair will once more find wholeness
and abundance, as God's grace, like dew, causes His people to
"blossom like a lily" and "flourish like the grain" (vv. 5–7).
When we've hurt others or taken for granted God's goodness in our life,
it's easy to assume we've forever marred the good gifts we've been given.
But when we humbly turn to Him, we find His love is always
reaching to embrace and restore.
By: Monica La Rose
Reflect & Pray
When have you experienced or witnessed restoration beyond what seemed
possible? In what areas of your life do you need reassurance of God's promise
to heal and restore?
Loving God and Creator of Life, teach me to trust in Your goodness-not just
when I'm good, but all the time.
3) Daily verses taken from Billy Graham Evangelical Organisation
Words in Season Scripture Memory Tools
Week 8 Guided by Grace Day 1 A circle of Light
John 8:12
12 (Jn 12:35; Job 33:28; Isa 49:6)Again, Jesus spoke to them, saying,
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me
shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life."
When Judy Garland stepped onstage, she filled the spotlight. Nothing was
illuminated but her face, and as she sang, her listeners had a sense of being
transported beyond themselves into the meaning of her song. The focus of
reality, at that moment, was "Judy", and everything else faded into the dim
recesses of the shadowed room. The spotlight brought her into sharp focus
as the center of attention, and all around her was darkness.
When the scriptures speaks of Jesus as "the light," the image is not
of thousands of blazing bulbes lighting up a football field for a night game.
Rather, he is like a hand-help lamp that throws a circle of light in the
immediate vicinity. such a lamp lights the path that a traveler will walk,
but lights it only one step at a time.
Jesus is the center of that circle of light. As we follow him, we share the
light, but he is always at center. Jesus Christ is the focal point,
and everything else fades into dim gray by comparison.
If we are to keep our lives illuminated, to have his light falling upon the
road we walk, we must stay close to him. Jesus does not hand the lamp
to us and suggest that we go the way he wants; he , the Light, leads,
and if we want to stay in the light, we follow.
Application
a) Have I ever tried to go my own way, apart frm the Light?
What was the result?
b) How can this verse help me remember the importance of staying close
to Jesus?
4) From Prosperity Promises - Kenneth Copeland
Matthew 6:19-21
Treasures in Heaven
Lk 12:33–34
19 (Heb 13:5; Lk 12:21) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth
where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.
20 (Lk 12:33; Mt 19:21) But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust destroy
and where thieves do not break in nor steal,
21 (Lk 12:34) for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
5) From a Book called God's Promises for you:
God's Eternal Faithfulness
2 Tim 2:8-13
8 (Mt 1:1; Ro 2:16) Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead,
descended from David, according to my gospel,
9 (Php 1:7; 2Ti 1:8) in which I suffer trouble like a criminal,
even with chains. But the word of God is not bound.
10 (Col 1:24; 2Co 1:6; 4:17) Therefore I endure all things
for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain
the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
11 (Ro 6:8; 1Th 5:10) This is a faithful saying:
If we die with Him,
we shall also live with Him.
12 (Mt 10:33; Ro 8:17 ) If we endure,
we shall also reign with Him.
If we deny Him,
He also will deny us.
13 (Nu 23:19; Ro 3:3 )If we are faithless,
He remains faithful;
He cannot deny Himself.
Remember God's promises when You pray
The Lord's prayer
Matthew 6:9-13
9 "Therefore pray in this manner:
Our Father who is in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
10 (Mt 3:2; 4:17) Your kingdom come;
Your will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven.
11 (Pr 30:8; Isa 33:16) Give us this day our daily bread.
12 (Ex 34:7; Ps 32:1) And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
13 (1Co 10:13; Jn 17:15) And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."
6) This come from Praying for Muslims in Canada 2015 (Is there a 2021 edition?)
Where do Muslims live?
Canada is a land of immigrants. And Muslims are coming in increasing numbers
to our shores. Where do they live? How can we prayfor these areas? Use this as
your more effectively for Muslims in Canada.
Data for those population figures is extrapoled for the 2011 National
Household Survay and population growth projections by Pew Forum. These have
also been adjusted by +40% as reliable sources state that on 60% of Muslims
self-identify on government surveys and forms. These estimates are still on
the conservative end of the spectrum. Percentages represent that of the total
Canadian population, not provincial
BC - 136493 - 7.5%
AB - 195240 - 11%
SK - 17279 - 1%
MB - 21349 - 1.2%
ON - 1001542 - 55%
QC - 418946 - 23%
NB - 4543 - 0.003%
NS - 14629 - 0.1%
PEI - 1127 - 0.0006%
NFLD - 2065 - 0.001%
Yukon - 69 - 0.00004%
NWT - 473 - 0.0003%
NU - 86 - 0.00005%
Adding further
30 days of prayer for the Muslim World 24 April to 23 May 2020
Under the Keep Praying page
When the new moon is sighted it marks the beginning of t he new Islamic month
and Eid al-Fitr, the "Festival of Breaking the Fast", will start! After 30 days
of fasting, the Eid celebration at the end of Ramadan is a joyful time that
usually lasts about 3 days. Muslims will buy new clothes, exchange gifts and,
of course, enjoy special foods. In Muslim-majority nations, the streets may be
decorated and festivals will be held.
For many Muslims, Eid-al-Fitr begins with communal prayers at daybreak and the
distribution of money (zakat) to the poor, which is one of the 5 pillars of
Islam.
You can greet Muslim friends during this time by saying "Eid Mubarak",
which means Blessed Eid!"
Ramadan is over for this year, but you can continue to pray for Muslims you
know, and Muslims around the world:
- Despite the unsettling developments in our world today that involve actions
in the name of Islam, there is at the same time a largely untold story about
unprecedented movement to Christ among Muslims. There have been more such
movements of thousands or more new disciples among Muslims in the last three
decades or so than in all the previous history of Christian Muslim
relationships! Pray for this momentum to continue.
Acts 2:12-17 : 17 12 They were all amazed and perplexed, saying to each other,
"What does this mean?"
13 (1Co 14:23) Others mocking said, "These men are full of new wine."
Peter's Speech at Pentecost
14 (Ac 1:26) But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice
and said to them, "Men of Judea and all you who dwell in Jerusalem,
let this be known to you, and listen to my words.
15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose,
since it is the third hour of the day.
16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 (Isa 44:3; Ac 10:45) 'In the last days it shall be,' says God,
'that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.'
- Pray for Christian workers an organisations focused on seeing effective
discipleship movements among Muslim people.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to continue to inspire you to have god's heart for
Muslims, to see them as He does, and to be the light that then to Jesus.
Matthew 5:14-15 : 14 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a
hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do men light a candle and put it under
a basket, but on a candlestick. And it gives light to all who are in the
house."
Ideas for prayer
- Pray for opportunities to show the love of Christ to Muslims around you
- Pray for, and offer generous hospitality to, those you know who are serving
Christ among Muslim people -
Romans 12:13 "contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality."
- When you gather with fellow believers, remember to pray for Muslims
throughout the year and encourage them to also participate in 30 Days!
My paternal side is of Muslim heritage and will offer this section to further
call for Muslim converts to Christian and any other converts to Christianity
(Hindus, Jews, aboriginals Canadian, atheists, secular humanists, ...) .
7) Prayers for the nation (Canada) coming from Prayer map of Canada
http://www.ehc.ca
18th Day of the Month
a) Pray that pastors will experience spiritual, emotional and physical
refreshing for the presence of the Lord
( Jer 31:25
25 For I satiate the weary souls and I replenish every languishing soul.
)
b) Pray that the Lord will protect and deliver our nation from
danger and adversity
( Ps 34:7
7 The angel of the Lord camps around those who fear Him,
and delivers them.
)
Conclusion:
Praise the Lord for He is Majesty
Pray to the Lord for godly leaders to lead your nation!
Pray to the Lord "Loving God and Creator of Life,
teach me to trust in Your goodness - not just
when I'm good, but all the time."
Pray to the Lord to stay close to Him as he is the Light.
Pray to the Lord to store treasure in Heaven
Pray to the Lord during persecution not to deny Him.
Pray for Muslims in Canada to know Jesus as Saviour.
Pray for Christian workers an organisations focused on seeing effective
discipleship movements among Muslim people.
Ask the Holy Spirit to continue to inspire you to have God's heart for
Muslims, to see them as He does, and to be the light that then to Jesus.
Pray that pastors will experience spiritual, emotional and physical
refreshing for the presence of the Lord.
Pray that the Lord will protect and deliver our nation from
danger and adversity
Pray for internally displaced Christians in Burkina Faso,
who have suffered tremendous loss for the sake of Christ.
Pray to the Lord that to know the Holy Spirit.
and Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness
Remember eternity starts now -
Pray for the direction you take to the Ever lasting loving God.