Job 1-3; Proverbs 11:1-11

Tuesday's Bible Reading: Job 1-3; Proverbs 11:1-11

Esther 9-10; Proverbs 10:22-32

Monday's Bible Reading: Esther 9-10; Proverbs 10:22-32

On July 30, 1956, "In God We Trust" became the official motto of the United States. The act of Congress was signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower (see the U.S. Treasury website).

Psalms 90-92

Sunday's Bible Reading: Psalms 90-92

It is good to praise the LORD
and make music to your name, O Most High,

to proclaim your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night . . . —Psalm 92:1-2

Tonight's sunset viewed from the end of Grand Haven's south pier.

2 Corinthians 6-9; Proverbs 10:12-21

Saturday's Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 6-9; Proverbs 10:12-21

Esther 7-8; Proverbs 10:1-11

Friday's Bible Reading: Esther 7-8; Proverbs 10:1-11

Esther 4-6; Proverbs 9:10-18

Thursday's Bible Reading: Esther 4-6; Proverbs 9:10-18

On July 26, 1833, as he William Wilberforce lay dying, word was brought him that the bill to outlaw slavery everywhere in the British empire had passed in Parliament. [Source: Christian History Institute]

Esther 1-3; Proverbs 9:1-9

Wednesday's Bible Reading: Esther 1-3; Proverbs 9:1-9

Nehemiah 12-13; Proverbs 8:32-36

Tuesday's Bible Reading: Nehemiah 12-13; Proverbs 8:32-36

Today in Jewish History
9 Av

In 423 BCE, the first Holy Temple was destroyed by fire, as Nebuchadnezzar's Babylonian troops conquered Jerusalem. Also on this day, the second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. Tisha B'Av has long been a day of calamity for the Jewish people: on this day, during the time of Moses, Jews in the desert accepted the slanderous report of the 12 Spies, resulting in the decree postponing enter to the Land of Israel. Other grave misfortunes throughout Jewish history occurred on the Ninth of Av: The Spanish Inquisition culminated with the expulsion of Jews from Spain on Tisha B'Av in 1492. World War I broke out on the eve of Tisha B'Av in 1914 when Germany declared war on Russia; German resentment from the war set the stage for the Holocaust. On the eve of Tisha B'Av 1942, the mass deportation began of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto, en route to Treblinka. Today, Tisha B'Av is the Jewish national day of mourning, when we don't eat, drink or bathe. Lights in the synagogue are dimmed, and we read the Book of Lamentations, Jeremiah's poetic lament over the destruction of Jerusalem. [Source: aish.com]

Nehemiah 10-11; Proverbs 8:12-31

Monday's Bible Reading: Nehemiah 10-11; Proverbs 8:12-31

Psalms 87-89

Sunday's Bible Reading: Psalms 87-89

2 Corinthians 1-5; Proverbs 8:1-11

Saturday's Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 1-5; Proverbs 8:1-11

Nehemiah 7-9; Proverbs 7:6-27

Friday's Bible Reading: Nehemiah 7-9; Proverbs 7:6-27

Nehemiah 4-6; Proverbs 7:1-5

Thursday's Bible Reading: Nehemiah 4-6; Proverbs 7:1-5

How timely . . .

Today in Jewish History
4 Av

In 333 BCE, the prophet Nechemia began to rebuild the destroyed wall around Jerusalem, as recorded in the biblical Book of Nechemia. This was a first stage in the restoration of the Jewish capital, crowned by the construction of the Second Holy Temple a few years later. [source: aish.com]

Nehemiah 1-3; Proverbs 6:20-35

Wednesday's Bible Reading: Nehemiah 1-3; Proverbs 6:20-35

Ezra 9-10; Proverbs 6:12-19

Tuesday's Bible Reading: Ezra 9-10; Proverbs 6:12-19

The birthday of Isaac Watts.

PERSPECTIVE

Ezra 7-8; Proverbs 6:1-11

Monday's Bible Reading: Ezra 7-8; Proverbs 6:1-11

Psalms 84-86

Sunday's Bible Reading: Psalms 84-86

1 Corinthians 12-16; Proverbs 5:15-23

Saturday's Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 12-16; Proverbs 5:15-23

Ezra 4-6; Proverbs 5:1-14

Friday's Bible Reading: Ezra 4-6; Proverbs 5:1-14

Ezra 1-3; Proverbs 4:18-27

Thursday's Bible Reading: Ezra 1-3; Proverbs 4:18-27

God's work among Gentiles began long before the first century.

[T]he LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing:

2 "This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:
" 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Anyone of his people among you—may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the LORD, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And the people of any place where survivors may now be living are to provide him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.' " —Ezra 1:1-4

To read more about Cyrus the Great, click here.


Public Domain

23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of life.

24 Put away perversity from your mouth;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

25 Let your eyes look straight ahead,
fix your gaze directly before you. —Proverbs 4:23-25

From yesterday's reading . . .

1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left. —2 Chronicles 34:1-2

2 Chronicles 34-36; Proverbs 4:1-17

Wednesday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 34-36; Proverbs 4:1-17

A woman speaks for God . . .

Hilkiah and those the king had sent with him went to speak to the prophetess Huldah, who was the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District.

She said to them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 'This is what the LORD says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people—all the curses written in the book that has been read in the presence of the king of Judah. Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and provoked me to anger by all that their hands have made, my anger will be poured out on this place and will not be quenched.' Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD, 'This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says concerning the words you heard: Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what he spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before me and tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the LORD. Now I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here.' "
So they took her answer back to the king. —2 Chronicles 34:22-28

Then King Josiah called together the elders, went up to the temple, read the Book of the Covenant found in the temple, and "renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD—to follow the LORD and keep his commands, regulations, and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to obey the words of the covenant written in this book" (2 Chronicles 34:31).

2 Chronicles 31-33; Proverbs 3:27-35

Tuesday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 31-33; Proverbs 3:27-35

Click here to read more about Sennacherib, king of Assyria (2 Chronicles 32).

2 Chronicles 28-30; Proverbs 3:11-26

Monday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 28-30; Proverbs 3:11-26

Today in Jewish History (23 Tammuz)
In 1099, Crusaders captured Jerusalem. The Crusaders were a Church-sponsored movement to "liberate the Holy Land from the infidels." (En route, the Crusaders carried out a campaign of rape and pillage; an estimated 40% of European Jewry was slaughtered in the process.) The day following their conquest of Jerusalem, the Crusaders murdered all the city's Jews, by herding them into a synagogue and setting it on fire. Jews were barred from Jerusalem for the next century. Muslims were also victims of the Crusaders, which historians believe planted a deep-seeded hatred of the West. [Source: Aish.com]

The period of time known today as the Crusades is a primary example of how one generation's "solution" to a problem becomes the next generation's problem. In the case of the Crusades, this ill-conceived "solution" is still a problem for Christians more than 900 years later. Beware of "solutions" that leave behind resentment and hatred.

Israel, of course, has been not only a victim of such a solution, but also the perpetrator, as we learn in today's Bible reading:

But a prophet of the LORD named Oded was there, and he went out to meet the army when it returned to Samaria. He said to them, "Because the LORD, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand. But you have slaughtered them in a rage that reaches to heaven. And now you intend to make the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem your slaves. But aren't you also guilty of sins against the LORD your God? Now listen to me! Send back your fellow countrymen you have taken as prisoners, for the LORD's fierce anger rests on you." —2 Chronicles 28:9-11

This happened during the reign of Ahaz, who was King of Judah for sixteen years, from 732-715 B.C.

In contrast, consider the work of Swiss missionaries Ernest Creux and Paul Berthoud, who, with their families, entered Mozambique on July 9, 1875. Instead of taking lives to establish religious dominance through power and military might, they gave their lives to establish a spiritual kingdom through love and the example of Christ. [Source: Dictionary of African Christian Biography]

For more information about what happened on this day in Christian history, go to: Christian History Institute

Psalms 81-83

Sunday's Bible Reading: Psalms 81-83

1 Corinthians 7-11; Proverbs 3:1-10

Friday's Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 7-11; Proverbs 3:1-10

Today is 7-7-7.

For what it's worth, the seventh verse in the seventh chapter of the seventh book in the Bible is Judges 7:7:

The LORD said to Gideon, "With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place."

May this be your perfect day!

2 Chronicles 25-27; Proverbs 2:12-22

Friday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 25-27; Proverbs 2:12-22

On this day in church history, Sir Thomas More was beheaded for failing to recognize the sovereignty of King Henry VIII over the church.

On the morning of July 6, 1535, [More] was told to make ready. He joked with the executioner and proclaimed himself the King's good servant, "but God's first." At 9 A.M. he was beheaded. After his bloody death, his head was exhibited on London bridge. In 1886 Leo XIII beatified More and in 1935 Pius XI canonized the English martyr. Source: Christian History Institute.

The above information is located on the July 5 page of CHI. Evidently the editors wanted to list a more important event on July 6. It happened in 1054. If you don't know what it was, click here to find out.

2 Chronicles 22-24; Proverbs 2:1-11

Thursday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 22-24; Proverbs 2:1-11

On this day in church history [1768] John Wesley wrote, "We are reasonable creatures, and undoubtedly reason is the candle of the Lord. By enlightening our reason to see the meaning of the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit makes our way plain before us" (William D. Blake, An Almanac of the Christian Church).

This quote, separated from its context, seems to be a statement about divine direction and knowing God's will. However, the letter is not giving advice about taking the next step in this life; it's about preparing to enter eternity:

The last scene of life in dying believers is of great use to those who are about them. Here we see the reality of religion and of things eternal; and nothing has a greater tendency to solemnize the soul and make and keep it dead to all below. We are reasonable creatures, and undoubtedly reason is the candle of the Lord. By enlightening our reason to see the meaning of the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit makes our way plain before us.

Today's reading in Proverbs tells us where understanding comes from:

[I]f you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,

4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,

5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD
and find the knowledge of God.

6 For the LORD gives wisdom,
and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. —Proverbs 2:3-6

In the letter mentioned above Wesley also wrote: "As you have not the same outward trials which many have, it is highly needful you should have some inward ones; although they need not be either many or long. If you walk closely with God, He is able to give any degree of holiness, either by pleasure or pain. " Click here to read the entire letter.

2 Chronicles 19-21; Proverbs 1:20-33

Wednesday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 19-21; Proverbs 1:20-33

Happy Independence Day!

Celebrate Freedom

God's exclamation point? Several Our Daily Bread readers commented on the "coincidence" that BBC journalist Alan Johnston was released by his captors in Gaza on the same day that Celebrate Freedom appeared in ODB. I prefer to look at it as God's way of adding an exclamation point to what I wrote.

Fireworks finale in Grand Rapids . . .

2 Chronicles 16-18; Proverbs 1:8-19

Tuesday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 16-18; Proverbs 1:8-19

2 Chronicles 13-15; Proverbs 1:1-7

Monday's Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 13-15; Proverbs 1:1-7

Psalms 78-80

Sunday's Bible Reading: Psalms 78-80