I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

     Josiah ordered repair work on the Temple. While the Temple was being repaired, Hilkiah, the high priest, found a copy of the
Book of the Law in the Temple. He sent it to King Josiah. When Josiah heard what was written in the Book of the Law, he sent to inquire of the Lord what they should do. He recognized that the people of Judah had failed to keep the Covenant with God. The prophetess whom they consulted told them that God was angry with the people of Judah and was going to bring disaster upon Jerusalem because of the sins of the people. However, because Josiah had humbled himself and sought God’s will, God was going to delay that destruction until after Josiah’s death.
     Josiah held a convocation of the people at the Temple of the Lord where the Book of the Law was read to them. Josiah pledged to obey the Lord and keep His laws and decrees with all of his heart and soul. The people joined Josiah in dedicating themselves to obeying the Lord. Josiah then began a campaign of cleansing the land of idolatry. He started by removing all of the implements of idol worship from the Temple and having them destroyed. He then systematically began destroying and desecrating the pagan shrines throughout the city and then the land. He went so far as to destroy the pagan shrines in what had been the Northern Kingdom, including the idols and shrines built by Jeroboam.
     Josiah called on the people to celebrate the Passover and the Passover was celebrated in all of its fullness for the first time since the time of the judges. Josiah went on to get rid of the mediums and psychics in the land as well as all of the detestable practices which people had adopted from the pagan peoples surrounding them, even those practiced in the privacy of people’s own homes. As I read the detailed description of the cleansing which Josiah performed, I realized how thoroughly ingrained in the lives of the people idolatry had become. It makes me wonder how much idolatry goes on in supposedly Christian America? Even among those who proclaim themselves “the Church”?

     As he was about to be taken into the barracks, Paul asked the commander for permission to speak to him. The commander was surprised that Paul could speak Greek and expressed the thought that Paul was an Egyptian revolutionary. Paul corrected his misunderstanding and requested permission to address the crowd. Paul motioned for the crowd to be quiet and they quieted down. When he could be heard, Paul began speaking in Aramaic (or Hebrew, the Greek is unclear, but it was the local language). When they crowd heard him speaking in the language of the Jews, they became very quiet (suggesting that the crowd was under a similar misunderstanding to the Roman commander).
     Paul started by telling the crowd about his credentials as a student of Jewish law, referring to his time as a student of the prominent rabbi Gamaliel. Paul told them of his fanatical opposition to the early followers of Jesus. He then told them of his trip to Damascus to continue persecuting the Christians and how God struck him on the road with a bright light. Paul told them how this experience led to his conversion to being a follower of Jesus.

     This psalm gives us wonderful advice. It tells us that the route to great joy is to not follow the advice of the wicked, nor hang out with sinners, nor join in mocking others. No, the path to joy is to take delight in God’s commands and to study His instructions both day and night. Following this advice will make us like a tree planted on a riverbank, firmly rooted and prospering in all we do.

     The wealthy think that their riches will protect them from the troubles of life. They are not always wrong, but even the wealthy will experience the consequences of their actions.
     Those who are arrogant are on their way to their own destruction, while a necessary prerequisite to receiving honor is humility.