Each day, Pastor Gary Combs posts a reflection and a prayer on the day's One Year Bible reading.
Reading the feed…
“Behold, God is great, and we know him not; the number of his years is unsearchable” (Job 36:26 ESV). Elihu spoke these words to Job as he called him to consider the greatness of God. When he said, “we know him not,” he did not mean that God could not be known at all. Rather,
“For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it (Job 33:14 ESV). Elihu spoke after Job and his three friends had exhausted their arguments. Elihu said that God spoke in ways people did not always recognize. He described two ways. First, God could speak through warning, using dreams and
“The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender” (Proverbs 22:7 ESV). Solomon warned about the power money and debt could exercise over people. He was not giving an absolute prohibition against every form of borrowing, but a warning about its dangers. The Old Testament regulated lending rather than
“As for me, I said, ‘O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!’” (Psalm 41:4 ESV). David wrote Psalm 41 as a man who was suffering while surrounded by enemies who hoped for his downfall. Yet before focusing on what others had done against him, David acknowledged his own
“Who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:4 ESV). Paul wrote to the believers in Corinth about the “God of all comfort” who comforted His people in every
“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold” (Proverbs 22:1 ESV). Solomon taught his readers that some things were worth far more than wealth. A “good name” meant more than being well known. It described a reputation that grew out of wisdom, integrity, faithfulness,
“And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you” (Psalm 39:7 ESV). David wrote Psalm 39 while wrestling with the brevity of life, the emptiness of human striving, the burden of suffering, and his own sinfulness. He considered how quickly life passes, describing his days as only a few handbreadths
“I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin” (Psalm 38:18 ESV). David wrote Psalm 38 as a deeply penitential prayer to the Lord, giving God’s people words for those times when the weight of sin and its consequences feels overwhelming. David was suffering physically, abandoned by friends, opposed by enemies, and painfully aware
“For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints” (1 Corinthians 14:33 ESV). Writing to the believers in Corinth, the apostle Paul addressed the disorder that had developed in their gathered worship, especially in the exercise of spiritual gifts. The word translated “confusion” carried the
“So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church” (1 Corinthians 14:12 ESV). Writing to the believers in Corinth, Paul addressed their strong interest in spiritual gifts. He did not condemn their zeal, but redirected it. They were eager for manifestations of the Spirit,
“Therefore they called these days Purim, after the term Pur” (Esther 9:26 ESV). The author of Esther told his Jewish readers why the annual feast of Purim received its name. “Pur” meant “lot,” referring to the lots Haman had cast to determine the day on which he planned to destroy the Jews. But what Haman
“How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings” (Psalm 36:7 ESV). David had just described the deceitfulness and wickedness of sinful people. Then he lifted his eyes from the character of the wicked to the character of God. He had declared that Gods
How long, O Lord, will you look on? Rescue me from their destruction, my precious life from the lions! (Psalm 35:17 ESV). David wrote this psalm while surrounded by enemies who had repaid his kindness with betrayal. He addressed God directly, crying out with a raw and honest question. Notice what David did not ask.
Then I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves and come and guard the gates, to keep the Sabbath day holy. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of your steadfast love (Nehemiah 13:22 ESV). Nehemiah wrote these words as a governor returning to a city
“And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem” (Nehemiah 11:2 ESV). Nehemiah recorded how the people of Israel repopulated Jerusalem after the wall had been rebuilt. Some were chosen by lot to move into the city, while others willingly offered to live there. Jerusalem was still vulnerable, and living
“I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1 ESV). David wrote Psalm 34 after escaping from the Philistine king by pretending to be insane. He had been afraid, and his behavior was hardly heroic. Yet when David looked back on the experience, he did not
“You gave your good Spirit to instruct them and did not withhold your manna from their mouth and gave them water for their thirst” (Nehemiah 9:20 ESV). Nehemiah recorded the Levites’ prayer as they rehearsed God’s faithfulness before the assembled people of Israel. Looking back on Israel’s wilderness years, they remembered that God had not
“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host” (Psalm 33:6 ESV). The psalmist called God’s people to praise the LORD by reminding them of His awesome power in creation. The heavens did not come into existence through physical effort. God simply spoke, and
“This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short” (1 Corinthians 7:29 ESV). Writing to the believers in Corinth, Paul urged them to live with an eternal perspective. When he wrote that “the appointed time has grown very short,” he was not necessarily predicting that only a few years remained before
“Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind!” (Psalm 31:19 ESV). David wrote to God’s people as one who had experienced fear, rejection, slander, and danger, yet had also experienced
