For today, One Year Bible Online links here.
It is destructive of society when the innocent are punished. The government will break down when officials are punished for telling the truth, no matter how unpleasant that truth may be.
The psalmist appears to be suffering from depression. Yet he holds out hope for escaping from that depression. Verse 8 contains something I desire to pray every day:
for I give myself to you.
Then verse 10 contains more on that theme:
for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a firm footing.
The psalm ends by reminding us what we need to do in order to count on God to rescue us. The psalmist declares, “I am your servant.” If we live our lives as God’s servants He will never abandon us.
Paul and Silas were arrested, beaten, and thrown in jail. But not just thrown in jail, but put in stocks so that they could not sit comfortably, or move about to relieve cramping muscles. Yet in this situation they prayed and sang hymns of praise to God. While they were doing this there was an earthquake which sprang the locks and opened the doors of the jail. When the jailer came out and was about to kill himself, fearing that the prisoners had escaped, Paul was able to tell him that all of the prisoners were still there.
I have wondered from time to time why none of the other prisoners escaped. I realized today that this passage answers that question. The passage tells us that when the earthquake happened the other prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas pray and sing hymns. The other prisoners were so entranced by the message that allowed Paul and Silas to sing after being beaten and locked up that they were unwilling to go anywhere until they learned more. This is what explains the jailer and his households quick acceptance of the Gospel. If those hardened criminals (I assume that at least some of them were) were more interested in what Paul and Silas had to say than in escaping, there must be something to it. Do we witness to the Gospel in a way that has a similar impact on those around us? If not, why not?
This passage shows us the importance of marrying someone who is godly. Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, was a godly king. However, his son, Jehoram, married the daughter of Ahab, the king of Israel. We are told that as a result of marrying the daughter of Ahab, who was himself a wicked king, Jehoram did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. Furthermore, when Jehoram’s son, Ahaziah, became king, he was also wicked. Ahaziah followed the evil example of his grandfather Ahab rather than the good example of his grandfather Jehoshaphat.
In some ways all of this was a result of Jehoshaphat partnering with Ahab for many tasks. While Jehoshaphat was a righteous king, he had a friendly alliance with King Ahab, who was an evil king. It seems likely that Jehoshaphat’s close alliance with Ahab led to his son marrying Ahab’s daughter (perhaps that marriage was even part of that alliance). This all is a reminder of the dangers of joining in common cause with those who do not serve the Lord. I am not saying that we should not do so, but when we do, we must be wary.