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.

     Shortly after King Hezekiah restored Temple worship, the king of Assyria invaded Judah. King Hezekiah repaired the walls of Jerusalem and secured Jerusalem’s water supply. In addition, he gathered the people of Jerusalem and told them not to fear the king of Assyria because while his army was great, God would protect Jerusalem. While he was still besieging another city, King Sennacherib sent messengers to Jerusalem proclaiming that God would be unable to protect Jerusalem from his armies. King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah prayed to God for rescue. The passage tells us that an angel of Lord destroyed Sennacherib’s army and he was forced to return to home, where his own sons killed him. We see two things come together here. First, King Sennacherib and the Assyrians challenged God. They said that God was unable to prevent them from doing whatever they liked, so the people of Jerusalem should not rely on Him. Second, Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem said that only through the action of God could they withstand the attack by the Assyrians. They acknowledged that if Jerusalem did not fall to the Assyrians, the credit would all belong to God.
     We are told that after the destruction of the Assyrian army, Judah was left in peace for the remainder of King Hezekiah’s reign and even accumulated significant wealth. Unfortunately, King Hezekiah’s son and successor, Manasseh, was not as faithful to God as his father. On the contrary, Manasseh rebuilt the pagan temples and altars that Hezekiah had destroyed. He sacrificed his own sons to the fire. He even set up an idol in the Temple. God allowed Manasseh to be taken captive by Assyrian armies. While in captivity, Manasseh turned to God. Upon his release and return to Jerusalem, he gave up his evil practices.

     Paul now writes of his plans for future travel. He tells the believers in Rome that he plans to stop there on his way to Spain, after he has gone to Jerusalem to take a gift from the believers in Greece to the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. He requests their prayers that he be rescued from those in Judea who refuse to obey God, which suggests that he has already heard the prophecies of what will happen when he returns to Jerusalem. Then he acknowledges that all of his plans are subject to the will of God.
      Paul then commends Phoebe to the believers in Rome, which suggests that she was the person to whom he gave the letter to deliver it to the Roman Church. He follows this by listing various people now living in Rome and extending his greetings to them. While this is primarily a personal message to these individuals, it also contains a bit of testimonial for them, suggesting their opinions should be treated as somewhat authoritative by the believers in Rome. He mentions several women as Church leaders. This needs to be taken in balance with his writings elsewhere where he says that Church elders should be exclusively men.

     Today’s section of psalm goes well with today’s passage from 2 Chronicles. When the people of Jerusalem thought there problems were irresolvable, they wholeheartedly turned to God for rescue from the Assyrians and God granted it to them. The psalmist here completely acknowledges that his only hope is through the action of God. That he has no ability to extricate himself from his troubles through his own skill and/or might. We must take a similar viewpoint to life. I am where I am in life, not because I am special, or better than anyone else, or through any other human agency, but because of the grace of God.

     The first proverb today talks about how unwise it is to guarantee debt to someone you do not know. The second tells us that illicit behaviors are initially pleasant, but quickly result in regrets. The final one tells us that the more critical a plan, the more vital it is to listen to good advice before implementing it.