For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Never abandon or forsake a friend whether it is one of your own or a friend of the family. Do what you can to help them in their time of need. When disaster strikes you and you are in need, it is better to have neighbors who will help than to be dependent on family who are far away.

    God’s anger burned against His people because they had sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons. How much more will His anger burn against this nation for the innocent lives they have sacrificed on the altar of convenience? The psalmist reminds us that God will again and again discipline us in His attempts to get us to turn from our sins, but, if we do not respond to God’s discipline, eventually our sins will destroy us. Even in the depths of destruction which results from our sins, God will pity us. If we turn once more to Him, He will save us, even when all seems lost.

    The writer continues to show us how the new covenant is superior to the old one. Under the old one, only priests were allowed to enter the Holy Place, which was separated by a curtain from the Most Holy Place. Only the high priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place, and that only once a year. When the high priest entered the Most Holy Place he entered into the presence of God. So, under the old covenant, only the high priest was allowed to enter into the presence of God. He was only allowed to do that one time a year and he was required to make an offering of blood when he did so. The old covenant had regulations regarding external behavior, good enough as far as they went, but limited in their ability to truly change people. They were a start, but now God has shown us a better way. The old covenant had regulations requiring that worship be performed at a specific location. In tomorrow’s passage the writer will look at how the new covenant goes beyond the limitations of the old covenant.

    Ezekiel quotes a proverb, “The parents have eaten sour grapes, but their children’s mouths pucker at the taste.” The meaning of this proverb is clear, children suffer for their parents’ sins. There is some truth to this proverb. The children of child abusers often suffer their entire lives as a result of the abuse which their parents committed. There are other ways in which the sins of parents affect their children throughout their lives. However, God is merciful and He does not judge us based on our parents actions, neither for good or for evil.
    While it is true that children are likely to commit the same sins which their parents did, they are not condemned to that. Each and every one of us can make our own decisions. If we reject the sins of our parents and strive to live righteous lives, God will provide us a means to escape from the punishment which goes with those sins. He will give us healing. In the same way, if we reject the righteousness of our parents and live sinful lives, God will judge us for those acts and visit the punishment we deserve upon us. The choice is ours to make.