Bible Reading Challenge Blog

This final chapter is more of a song and it is designed to be used in a house of worship.  You can see that from the very beginning to its intermediary Selah stances after vs.3, 9, and 13 that this was meant for a choirmaster  to put it together to song and musical instruments.   When we read about  Shigionoth in vs.1 we find that name also mentioned in Psalm 7.  We don’t know what it means, but again, it is another piece of evidence that this “prayer” was supposed to be put to some music.  

So we finish this book of the Bible and we also finish another 90 Day Challenge.  We find ourselves with only 16 books left out of 66 books of the Bible.  We are almost there!

So the prophet asked God a question in chapter 1, where are you when things are really going bad, and now we find in chapter 2 that he is waiting for an answer.  The depiction we get is that of a sentinel on a tower waiting for the word of the Lord which he expects to come which will answer that question.  Right away in vs.2 we see that the Lord answers the prophet.  Look at vs.4 and we find a Scripture which is taken up in Romans 1:17,  Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 10:38-39.  Go ahead  and look them up and read them.  What we read is that the righteous will live by faith.  

So the answer God gives is wrapped up in taunts to the wealthy.  Those  nations who are ravaging the Israelites will meet their doom.  The enemy nations which are causing so much grief to the prophet and his people will meet their demise at the hands of those that they have persecuted.  Basically the question of where are you when it hurts is answered with vs.3, if revenge tarries, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not delay.  Wait, but it is delaying which is why I’m calling out to you.  I don’t feel like you are doing anything, I’m getting impatient.  The answer: wait for the Lord.  Look at Psalm 27 and you can see a similar theme.  Actually if you look at Psalm 27:13-14 you hear the author convinced that we will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  So that would be here and now.  If we would just wait for the Lord.  These two themes go well together.

The question the author of Habakkuk poses to God is: “Where are you when bad things are happening?”  It is a question that I’m guessing most of us have asked at one time or another in our life.  As Israel sees its destruction, as it faces the Babylonians, here in chapter 1:6 they are called the Chaldeans, the question arising from the nation must  be why does God not act to save us?  Why is God allowing the total destruction of the land and the temple, and His people to be taken away into slavery?

This question is posed on a personal level in Job.  The book of Job asks the question: Why do bad things happen to good people.  The book of Habakkuk asks the question: Why do bad things happen to the chosen people of God and God does nothing about it?  It is a bit of a longer question but it does take people from the individual to the communal as you would expect within a writing of Scripture.  Our relationship with God is not just one on one.  It is not just us and God, but a community, in our case a church, is involved and it is supposed to have an impact upon our individual relationship with God.  Who we are as a child of God has much to do with our status as part of the family of our church.  

A classic quote which captures this feeling is seen in vs.13: “Why do you look on the treacherous, and are silent when the wicked swallow those more righteous than they?”  But the way, those who are more righteous would be, of course, us.  We  tend to put ourselves in that position, as the more  righteous, even though as we read in Isaiah 64 that all of our deeds are sin and like filthy rags.  But we tend to forget that and put ourselves in the tier of the righteous.  

So, just to put this book of the Bible and this first chapter in context it is said to be spoken of Habakkuk who was a prophet of the Lord.  Once again one of the 12 minor prophets that we are covering which start in the Bible with Hosea and ends with Malachi.

It seems like Nineveh is getting what it deserved, at least this is what was mentioned in vs.19 as the rhetorical question posed is: “who has ever escaped your cruelty?”  With that question comes the statement that we can assume, and so you will not escape the cruelty that is falling on you because you did the same thing to everyone else.  

This prophecy of  Nahum, an oracle against  the nations, is from the beginning to the end a tirade against Nineveh and a description of her destruction which is posed in a somewhat matter of fact yet gleeful way.  The author, you can tell, is pumped about Nineveh being destroyed.  It is such a different perspective than the author who described the destruction of the Benjaminites and called them mighty warriors where here the soldiers of Nineveh in vs.13 are described in this way: “Look at your troops; they are women in your midst.”  

Now some may take offense especially if they happened to see Black Panther and  recognize the strength of the warriors, all of whom happened to be women.  But certainly this was meant as a snub and an insult.  Notice also that Nineveh is a “she”, which make sense because in the Hebrew the word is also in the feminine, so it would only work if the place were described as a she.  So this book of the Bible comes to a close, a vivid, graphic description of the downfall of Nineveh and all of its citizens.

This chapter depicts  the destruction of Nineveh, as it is described in vs.8 like “a pool whose waters run away.”  The kiss of death is seen in vs.13 as  we read about the Lord of hosts who says that they will be burned down and that those who hunt them will not be stopped.  It is a pretty wicked continuation of what was promised in the first chapter as we definitely see Nineveh in this book of the Bible as the enemy of God, again in contrast to Jonah where they are seen as enemy and then protagonist, with Jonah, a Hebrew person, the enemy, or at least the antagonist.  There will be no change in theme as we move to the next and last chapter.

Do you remember Jonah who was given a mission to proclaim Good News to the Ninevites, even while God said that they would perish because they were wicked?  Do you remember how they repented and turned to God and God had compassion on them and rescued them?  Well, not so much in the book of Nahum.  We find ourselves in another minor prophet, and this time we find this prophet speaking many oracles against the nations, beginning with Nineveh. 

You may wonder about this seeming schizophrenic approach to a nation.  No, it makes sense, because in one, Jonah, we see that the grace of  God is allowed to extend to whomever God chooses to extend the grace of God.  In another, so in this case Nahum, we see  that the justice of God is allowed to extend as far as God wants the justice of God to extend.  He wants to be sure that Israel knows that God is an avenging and jealous  God.  Remember in the New Testament, in Romans, where God says vengeance is mine.  The implication is that we are not to take vengeance because God is able to do it on His own.  

When we get to verse 15 we find that the Gospel is proclaimed.  Remember that Gospel really means Good News, and so when we read about one who proclaims peace  and is able to help us celebrate with good news, well, that is Gospel.  The good news is  that the enemy is about to die, which will, of course, bring about peace. Nahum, like Joel, is also short, just 3 chapters.

We find ourselves at the end of Joel and a promise that the nation who had abused and taken Israel to battle will fall on the day of the Lord.  So I guess the day of the Lord is not so bad after all.  But actually, this is not the day of the Lord this all takes places after the day of the Lord.  Do you notice the anti-Isaiah 2:4 and the anti- Micah 4:3 which you find in vs. 10 and following?  While these verses mentioned talk about the time when the day of the Lord  will bring about peace, to the point where we will not learn war any longer.  Both of these verses describe a scene where swords are beaten into plowshares so that peace can truly infuse the land.

Well, not so much here in Joel.  Here we find the opposite taking place in vs. 10 where plowshares become swords and pruning shears become spears.  It  is not at all a time of peace, but rather a battle cry for people to take up arms.  As a result there is a promise that all of the old-time enemies of Israel will suffer.  So there is a prophesy against Egypt and also against Edom where they will become both desolate.  So ends Joel.  

We begin this chapter with a very in depth description of what the day of the Lord is going to look like.  Let’s just start by saying that it is not something that any of us will be looking forward to.  If you look at vs. 1 and 2 we see  that the day of the Lord is coming and then it is described as “a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness.”  

The army that is described to me sound like an army of locusts.  An army of locusts that destroys everything in its path and without any means of ameliorating its impact.  But then there is a transition that seems to take place in vs.12 as we read that we are called to turn back to the Lord, to actually return to the Lord.  It sounds like we have strayed from the Lord, these terrible things are happening, and now we need to turn back to the Lord.

We need to weep and fast but we especially need to rend our hearts and not just our clothing.  We are then reminded in vs.13 that God is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.  Okay, we needed to hear that after we got that terrifying image of the Day of the Lord.  Then there is a call for a congregational meeting.  Everyone get together now.  

We then are given even more hope as we find before us almost a promise that God will bring things back to a new normal where there is the ability to “rejoice” in the Lord.  And then the promise that, seen in vs.25, “I will repay you for the years that the swarming locust has eaten.”  Things seem to be looking a lot better now.

And then we find a series of verses which we use often for Pentecost, they are verses 28-29 where we get the promise that the Holy Spirit will fall on all flesh, sons, daughters, old men, young men, male and female slaves.  Again, the net is cast wide.

That is the vision that we have for the presence of the Holy Spirit which is that the net is cast wide.  It is given to all those who would come seeking His presence.  The promise that we get in these verses is that this will/has/does happen.

We find ourselves in a new book of the Bible: Joel.  The time of authorship is thought to be around 500BC, give or take a hundred years.  It is a minor prophet who declares  a crisis which is taking place and which includes the destruction of much of the agriculture of Israel.  Remember, Israel was an agriculturally based group of people.  Let’s look at chapter 1.

In chapter 1 we set the stage for a destruction of all that is growing on a scale that is incredibly grand.  Everyone is affected without a doubt.  All should be weeping because there is no longer anything to eat or drink.  We  look at vs.14 as the prophet declares that a time of fast ought to be called.  But then in vs.15 notice what he calls this tragedy…The Day of the  Lord.

So when we think of  the Day of the Lord, we might even call it the day of resurrection.  When we think of the day that Jesus comes back to earth and gathers us it is almost always seen in a very positive light.  When we think of the day of the Lord,  we can’t wait for it to come.  It is the carrot that is at the end of this stick that we call life.  Okay, I don’t think that way, but you have heard that said.  But  here Joel says no, don’t look forward to the day of the Lord because it is going to be desolate.  Our task is to do what we hear in vs.14 and 19.  Our job is to cry to the Lord.  I’m not sure we are going to get a good  answer to what is happening here in the prophet Joel.  Let’s keep going to chapter 2 and see what we get.  It is only 3 chapters after all.

Did I mention that I have three daughters?  So…, what part of this chapter do you think is appealing to me?  How about…NONE OF IT!!  But don’t ever forget the reminder that we get in vs.25.  It is a reminder of why the decision that was made by the other 11 tribes of Israel to allow the Benjaminites to go and kidnap young women who were dancers, or to go and slay all the males of the tribe that did not come up when basically a census was done, in order that these women could be given to the surviving males of the Benajaminites.

I hope as you are reading this you are able to put it within the context that this is what happens when the Lord is not directly ruling over you, and, in fact, when no one is directly ruling over you.  Anyone who wishes that there would be no government really doesn’t understand what that might mean.  Sure, we get frustrated with our government, but it is still the best rule that is found in the world.  The government that we have in the USA, with the system of checks and balances, cannot be matched by any other country.

Now, having said that we are very, very error prone and we do sin as a country.  There is no country that is able to follow all things perfectly.  We, as a country, are far from that.  But we are pretty spectacular, especially when you hold it up to the light of the what was happening in the Wild West, also known as the time of the judges. Well, we are leaving that chaotic time and hopefully we will find ourselves in a time that is a bit more ordered.  Don’t count on it.