Author: Josiah Ott
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12/26/24 “A God of Justice & Grace” (Zech. 7-10)
Reading Time: 3 minutesZechariah 7-10 presents a picture of a future hope for Judah and especially Jerusalem after the Lord’s judgment on them for their sins. They had been taken captive by Babylon, not because of Babylon’s military might, but because of God’s sovereign purpose. He was disciplining His people for their sins. God, as…
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12/25/24 “An Everlasting Word” (Zech. 1-6)
Reading Time: 2 minutesZechariah the prophet, a contemporary of Haggai, begins his writing with a call to return to the Lord and then with a series of visions that represent a future hope for Judah and Jerusalem. The present exiled generation is tasked with turning to the Lord unlike their ancestors who consistently rejected the…
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12/24/24 “Misplaced Priorities” (Hag. 1-2)
Reading Time: 2 minutesAs we turn the page from Habakkuk and Zephaniah to Haggai we see a different setting for this prophet’s work. Habakkuk and Zephaniah (amongst many others) forewarned the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians. We know from 2 Kings 24-25 that God followed through on His warnings.…
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12/23/24 “Resting in Sovereignty (Hab. 1-3)
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe prophet Habakkuk was to some degree a contemporary of Jeremiah and was one of the last prophets to serve before the captivity of Judah. His writing recounts the prophet’s dilemma, God’s response, the prophet’s second dilemma, God’s second respond, and the prophet’s praise. Habakkuk had a bone to pick with God…
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12/21/24 “The Unrelenting Justice of God” (Nah. 1-3)
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe prophet Nahum’s ministry occurred somewhere approximately 50-100 years after the fall of Israel in 722 B.C.[1] and his address is, like Jonah, to the city of Nineveh. By Nahum’s time, Nineveh had become the capital of the Assyrian empire, and the nation had conquered Israel. In Jonah’s day, Nineveh repented of…
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12/20/24 “A Simple Summary of God’s Law” (Mic. 1-7)
Reading Time: 3 minutesMicah is a contemporary of the prophet Isaiah whose prophetic ministry comes shortly after those of Hosea and Amos. He prophesies concerning both Samaria (Israel) and Jerusalem (Judah) (Mic. 1:1) and pronounces words of judgment upon them. Judah would surely go to Babylon (4:10) and Assyria would come into Israel’s land (5:5).…
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12/19/24 “Unfathomable Mercy” (Jonah 1-4)
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe short book of Jonah tells the story of God’s merciful dealings with a disobedient prophet and the horrid city of Nineveh. Nineveh was a city found within Assyria, the nation that would eventually destroy Israel and take them captive. Jonah, a prophet we know very little about, is commanded to go…
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12/18/24 “Rebuilding a Fallen Shelter” (Amos 8-9)
Reading Time: 2 minutesAfter countless hard truths concerning Israel’s sure judgment, Amos’s prophecy ends on a positive note. Judgment was sure to come (8:2-3) but so was blessing. This blessing was tied to the “booth” or “shelter” of David (Amos 9:11-12) which is a reference to the dilapidated condition of David’s dynasty in the present.[1]…
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12/17/24 “Hard Truth for Itching Ears” (Amos 4-7)
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe prophet Amos pronounces one of the most intense messages of judgment upon Israel in the bible, he certainly doesn’t pull any punches! After addressing other nations, we see his focus on the northern part of Israel and the message begins with a call for them to wake up. Their lives were…
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12/16/24 “Privilege Creates Responsibility” (Amos 1-3)
Reading Time: 3 minutesAs we turn the page to Amos’s prophecy, we see from the introduction that he’s largely a contemporary of the prophet Hosea who prophesied during the days of King Uzziah in Judah and King Jeroboam II of Israel (1:1). This means that he was one of those who served during the time…