The Bible's teaching about the future is meant to comfort, not frighten you. Faithlife.com Daniel 7:1–14 (NASB95) 1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and related the following summary of it. 2 Daniel said, “I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. 3 “And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another. 4 “The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it. 5 “And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‘Arise, devour much meat!’ 6 “After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it. 7 “After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. 8 “While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts. 9 “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire. 10 “A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened. 11 “Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. 12 “As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time. 13 “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. 14 “And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed. Belgic Confession Article 37: The Last Judgment Finally we believe, according to God’s Word, that when the time appointed by the Lord is come (which is unknown to all creatures) and the number of the elect is complete, our Lord Jesus Christ will come from heaven, bodily and visibly, as he ascended, with great glory and majesty, to declare himself the judge of the living and the dead. He will burn this old world, in fire and flame, in order to cleanse it. Then all human creatures will appear in person before that great judge— men, women, and children, who have lived from the beginning until the end of the world. They will be summoned there by the voice of the archangel and by the sound of the divine trumpet. For all those who died before that time will be raised from the earth, their spirits being joined and united with their own bodies in which they lived. Summary The book of Daniel takes a big turn here in chapter seven. The first six chapters are historical narrative - they tell the story of Daniel and his friends in Babylon. Now the genre shifts to eschatology - that is, focused on understanding the end times. And, as is often the case in eschatological books like Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation, it all begins with dreams and visions that men like Daniel experienced. Often these visions are quite fantastic, as Daniel's initial dream is, beginning with four beasts coming up from the sea. Oftentimes eschatological passages like this can be so difficult to understand - what are we supposed to make of an eagle winged lion, a bear with three ribs between its teeth or a four winged, four headed leopard? There's no shortage of creative interpretations and applications trumpeted by enterprising preachers plying for a following on late night television or YouTube. Somehow they conjure up all sorts of interesting allusions with the current events of today, working people into a frenzy that various geopolitical events are sure signs that the apocalypse is imminent. We don't need to wonder what this particular vision is all about, or about what the beasts represent, because Daniel goes on to ask for the exact meaning of all this later on in the chapter. He's told that the four beast represent four kings who will arise from the earth. But all in all, the explanation Daniel gets raises more questions than it answers. So that just leads the speculators to develop elaborate schemes demonstrating which historical kings correspond to each of the beasts as they prognosticate what nation or dictator will be / or already is the beast that devoured and crushed and trampled down the others or who the little horn with eyes and a mouth uttering great boasts will be. Dig Deeper As interesting as all of these bizarre details seem, they're not the primary point of these types of passages. Rather than focus on endless speculations about how Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump or the Iranians are exactly what Daniel envisioned or make grand charts showing what's been fulfilled and what sort of signs we ought to still be looking for, put your emphasis on understanding the big sweeping picture theses passages paint. And that big picture shows good news. It shows the Ancient of Days, seated on a blazing throne, attended by thousands upon thousands with myriads standing before Him. What an amazing description of God Almighty! But at this point, the picture is ominous, as the court sat, and the books were opened - books recording actions that would condemn all people in the holy presence of this mighty King. That's when we're introduced to the Savior - One like a Son of Man, coming on the clouds of heaven - a description that Jesus claimed for Himself as He stood on trial. Not only was this Son of Man presented before the Ancient of Days, but He was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom. He was given exactly what was taken away from the beasts, so that peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. It's good to have a firm grip on these difficult eschatological passages, but don't be too consumed and anxious about how the details will work themselves out. The Bible makes clear what we need to know. As John Calvin famously wrote, "where God closes His mouth, there I will desist my inquiries." But hold on tightly and confidently to the massive good news that these passages present. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the Ancient of Days ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that passages like today's bring you confidence in Christ rather than anxiety from their details; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Don't just 'dare to be like Daniel'. Dare to trust Daniel's God. Faithlife.com SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF... Nebuchadnezzar praised God’s power but not in true repentance. His pride later brought God’s humbling hand until he learned the Most High rules all kingdoms, after which he honored Him rightly. Under King Darius, Daniel’s faithfulness set him apart, stirring jealousy among officials who manipulated the king into banning prayer to any god but himself. Daniel 6:10–23 (NASB95) 10 Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously. 11 Then these men [his rivals] came by agreement and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God. 12 Then they approached and spoke before the king about the king’s injunction, “Did you not sign an injunction that any man who makes a petition to any god or man besides you, O king, for thirty days, is to be cast into the lions’ den?” The king replied, “The statement is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which may not be revoked.” 13 Then they answered and spoke before the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the injunction which you signed, but keeps making his petition three times a day.” 14 Then, as soon as the king heard this statement, he was deeply distressed and set his mind on delivering Daniel; and even until sunset he kept exerting himself to rescue him. 15 Then these men came by agreement to the king and said to the king, “Recognize, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no injunction or statute which the king establishes may be changed.” 16 Then the king gave orders, and Daniel was brought in and cast into the lions’ den. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Your God whom you constantly serve will Himself deliver you.” 17 A stone was brought and laid over the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the signet rings of his nobles, so that nothing would be changed in regard to Daniel. 18 Then the king went off to his palace and spent the night fasting, and no entertainment was brought before him; and his sleep fled from him. 19 Then the king arose at dawn, at the break of day, and went in haste to the lions’ den. 20 When he had come near the den to Daniel, he cried out with a troubled voice. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you constantly serve, been able to deliver you from the lions?” 21 Then Daniel spoke to the king, “O king, live forever! 22 “My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths and they have not harmed me, inasmuch as I was found innocent before Him; and also toward you, O king, I have committed no crime.” 23 Then the king was very pleased and gave orders for Daniel to be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den and no injury whatever was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 127 Q. What does the sixth request of the Lord's Prayer mean? A. “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” means, By ourselves we are too weak to hold our own even for a moment. And our sworn enemies— the devil, the world, and our own flesh— never stop attacking us. And so, Lord, uphold us and make us strong with the strength of your Holy Spirit, so that we may not go down to defeat in this spiritual struggle, but may firmly resist our enemies until we finally win the complete victory. Summary If this all happened last week, it would have gained wall to wall coverage. Shaky cell phone videos showing Daniel kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God would go viral and every network would bring out their talking heads to analyze why one of the nations top officials - that's what Daniel was! - thought he was above the law. It would happen this way now because it happened this way then. Nothing's changed... it's all engineered, and it played out exactly the way Daniel's rivals, who'd been passed over for the top spot Daniel got, designed it to. But they didn't pull this political coup off on their own. Daniel helped them. He knew exactly what he was doing. He could have squirrelled himself away in an inner room and prayed all he wanted without anyone noticing. But instead, he stood before open windows so all could see. On one hand, Daniel simply kept doing what he had been doing previously. His rivals had designed their law to prohibit prayer specifically because they knew how intractably ingrained prayer was for Daniel. It wasn't a crises that brought him to his knees three times a day, it was his regular habit of prayer that caused the crisis. And notice that he didn't beg God for the law to change, he just continued giving thanks before God. But on the other hand, Daniel waited until he knew that the document was signed before he opened the windows. As Iain Duguid comments, "When prayer becomes fashionable, praying in secret may be a good thing, but when prayer is proscribed, to pray in private becomes an act of cowardice." Daniel didn't back down from this political challenge because He was being held up by the power of God. Daniel was so confident in this power that he publicly bet his life on it. Dig Deeper The primary storyline here in Daniel 6 isn't that political theater is no different now than thousands of years ago. It's not a manual for taking on our ungodly rivals, and the main lesson isn't to push you to be pious or that you should 'dare to be like Daniel' (although you should do both). The key reason this famous story of Daniel in the Lions Den is in the Bible is the same reason every for every Bible story, poem, prayer and exhortation: to announce the unchanging reality that God always saves His people. Pagan King Darius, one of the most powerful men the world has ever known, was so amazed by God's salvation that he issued a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom, men are to fear and tremble before the God of Daniel; For He is the living God and enduring forever, And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, And His dominion will be forever. “He delivers and rescues and performs signs and wonders In heaven and on earth, Who has also delivered Daniel from the power of the lions” (Dan. 6:26-27). Remember, as amazing as Daniel's salvation from the lions' den is, it's just a prelude to the salvation that God has accomplished for you in Christ. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who delivered Daniel from the lions and His people from our sin through Jesus; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that your Spiritual Disciplines would be so strong that they become your primary characteristic; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

The more you have to lose, the more you need to stand up for Jesus. Faithlife.com SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF... God revealed Nebuchadnezzar’s troubling dream to Daniel, showing a succession of earthly kingdoms that will ultimately be shattered by an everlasting kingdom from heaven. The king honored Daniel, yet soon set up a golden image and commanded all to worship it. When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused, faithful to the LORD alone, they were accused and brought before the king for defying his decree. Daniel 3:13–30 (NASB95) 13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and anger gave orders to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego; then these men were brought before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar responded and said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? 15 ...But if you do not worship, you will immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire; and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. 17 “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. 18 “But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” 19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath, and his facial expression was altered toward Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. He answered by giving orders to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 He commanded certain valiant warriors who were in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego in order to cast them into the furnace of blazing fire. 21 Then these men were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. 22 For this reason, because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. 23 But these three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up. 24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, “Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, O king.” 25 He said, “Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!” 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out of the midst of the fire. 27 ...the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them. 28 Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God. -- 30 Then the king caused Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego to prosper in the province of Babylon. Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 95 Q. What is idolatry? A. Idolatry is having or inventing something in which one trusts in place of or alongside of the only true God, who has revealed himself in his Word. Summary Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego aren't just anonymous nobodies in the province of Babylon. After Daniel had interpreted Nebuchadnezzar's dream in the previous chapter, the king appointed Daniel ruler over the whole province, Daniel appointed his friends as administrators. Life was good. So it's not like these three were a bunch of captured hostages with nothing to lose who were just taking advantage of the opportunity to stick it to the king in an act of public defiance. If anything, they had more incentive than anyone else to fall in line with this silly order from the king. Besides, the whole arrangement was likely a trap set by their Chaldean rivals. Protesting would be playing right into their hands. All they needed to do was go out, listen to the music, fall down and "worship" for a few moments and move on. Then they could get back to doing the LORD's work in administering their departments for His glory. But these three put it all on the line and immediately got called out by their Chaldean counterparts who ran tattling to the king. Nebuchadnezzar's bruised ego gave way to rage and anger as he ordered his three administrators to report. But his brains catch up, and rather than just executing them on the spot, he repeats his ultimatum and gives them a second chance. Dig Deeper But Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego aren't playing games. They don't even wait for the music to begin again. They flat out tell the most powerful man in the world that we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter! It's no wonder that we read that Nebuchadnezzar's facial expression was altered toward them! But they don't stop there - they go on to contradict the king, who'd boldly claimed that no god could save them from him. Not true, said the three Jews. Our God is able to deliver us... and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But notice the humility in their boast. God could save them, but they weren't obligating Him to do so. But even if He does not, these three men swore that they are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image. Our God did save His three servants, and in a most glorious way. The story ends with Nebuchadnezzar blessing their God, marveling at these men who yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God. Not only that, but the king caused them to prosper in the province of Babylon. You don't need to worry about being ordered to worship a golden image, but there are thousands of ways that you can capitulate and just go with the flow in our own day and age. Don't do it. Take inspiration from these three men of old, and know that the God who saved them from the furnace has saved you even more gloriously through His Son. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who saves His people from the fire; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the courage of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

God made you holy in Christ - don't let the world defile you. Daniel 1 (NASB95) Choice Young Men 1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 The Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and he brought the vessels into the treasury of his god. 3 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his officials, to bring in some of the sons of Israel, including some of the royal family and of the nobles, 4 youths in whom was no defect, who were good-looking, showing intelligence in every branch of wisdom, endowed with understanding and discerning knowledge, and who had ability for serving in the king’s court; and he ordered him to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans. 5 The king appointed for them a daily ration from the king’s choice food and from the wine which he drank, and appointed that they should be educated three years, at the end of which they were to enter the king’s personal service. 6 Now among them from the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 7 Then the commander of the officials assigned new names to them; and to Daniel he assigned the name Belteshazzar, to Hananiah Shadrach, to Mishael Meshach and to Azariah Abed-nego. Daniel’s Resolve 8 But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. 9 Now God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials, 10 and the commander of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking more haggard than the youths who are your own age? Then you would make me forfeit my head to the king.” 11 But Daniel said to the overseer whom the commander of the officials had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days, and let us be given some vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 “Then let our appearance be observed in your presence and the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s choice food; and deal with your servants according to what you see.” 14 So he listened to them in this matter and tested them for ten days. 15 At the end of ten days their appearance seemed better and they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. 16 So the overseer continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept giving them vegetables. 17 As for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom; Daniel even understood all kinds of visions and dreams. 18 Then at the end of the days which the king had specified for presenting them, the commander of the officials presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s personal service. 20 As for every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and conjurers who were in all his realm. 21 And Daniel continued until the first year of Cyrus the king. Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 86 Q. We have been delivered from our misery by God’s grace alone through Christ and not because we have earned it: why then must we still do good? A. To be sure, Christ has redeemed us by his blood. But we do good because Christ by his Spirit is also renewing us to be like himself, so that in all our living we may show that we are thankful to God for all he has done for us and so that he may be praised through us. And we do good so that we may be assured of our faith by its fruits, and so that by our godly living our neighbors may be won over to Christ. Summary After a couple of weeks reading through the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah, we're catching back up with the narrative regarding God's people Israel, and this week's opening sentence sets the stage for a sad scene: Jerusalem has been besieged by Nebuchadnezzar's forces. And even worse, it's not just Judah's king that falls into his hands, but vessels of the house of God, which end up stowed away in the treasury of Babylon's god. But lest you think that God has finally given up on and abandoned His rebellious people, Daniel reminds us that the Lord remains firmly in control - for it was the Lord who gave all this into Nebuchadnezzar's hand. As will become increasingly clear over the next few weeks, all of this is going exactly according to God's plan. Keep this in mind the next time you're feeling like God's abandoned you! Nebuchadnezzar wastes no time, immediately doing to God's people what he's done to so many other countries he'd conquered: he finds the best of them - those who are good looking, intelligent and wise - and begins conforming them to the literature and language of the Chaldeans. Step one: change their names, giving Daniel (the LORD judges) the name Belteshazzar, an Akkadian name that means "Bel (their god), preserve his life). Step two: the way to a man's heart is through is stomach, so the king changes their diet. Daniel didn't seem to mind what name he got called by. It was his diet where he puts his foot down: He would not defile himself with the king's choice food. It wasn't that there was something intrinsically wrong with this choice food, but Daniel knew that by allowing himself to become accustomed to it, he'd never want to give it up. He'd end up choosing the choice food rather than his choice identity as a man of God. Daniel's diet was his line in the sand that kept him from being conformed. What's yours?What's the most effective lure Satan and Sarx have to pull you away from the Lord? Dig Deeper Daniel certainly gives a master lesson in remaining faithful to the Lord, but that's not the primary point of this story. The primary point here, as it is in every chapter of the Bible, is the LORD's faithfulness to His people. As Daniel preserved his distinctiveness, he prospered. But don't miss why: it was God who gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom. In fact, the king found Daniel and his friends ten times better than even his own staff advisors. So Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah entered the king's service. Notice there that they're referred to by their Jewish names, not their new identities the state had tried to impose upon them. Remember, your salvation remains firmly in the hands of your faithful father. He'll never abandon you, just as He never abandoned His covenant people in Babylon. The LORD has set you apart to be holy in Christ - that is, distinct and different from the world around you. Like Daniel and his friends, cling fiercely to this distinctiveness and do not be conformed to the pattern of this world. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who always remains faithful and in control; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will continually resist the world's ongoing attempts to conform you to its sinful pattern; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

You are saved by grace... but not just from your sins! PSALM 57 (NASB95) For the choir director; set to Al-tashheth. A Mikhtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave. 1 Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me, For my soul takes refuge in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge Until destruction passes by. 2 I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me. 3 He will send from heaven and save me; He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah. God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth. 4 My soul is among lions; I must lie among those who breathe forth fire, Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows And their tongue a sharp sword. 5 Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth. 6 They have prepared a net for my steps; My soul is bowed down; They dug a pit before me; They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah. 7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises! 8 Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. 9 I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations. 10 For Your lovingkindness is great to the heavens And Your truth to the clouds. 11 Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth. Westminster Shorter Catechism Q. 1. What is the chief end of man? A. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever. Summary Reformed Christians like us absolutely love the word grace. Most of us have Ephesians 2:8 indelibly seared into our minds: For by grace you have been saved... Understanding grace to mean that God does not give us what our sins deserve is a great way to understand the word, but it's just one definition of it. Some of you more eagle eyed Unfading Truth readers may have noticed that in this past month many of our Bible passages have been taken from the New American Standard Version. There's lots of reasons I've been using various translations this year, but this week's Psalm is a great example as to why I've been sticking with the NASB lately. Every other major translation renders today's opening verse as Have mercy on me, O God! Now obviously when multiple reputable translations all pick the same word, there must be something to it, and to understand David to be crying out for God's mercy as he's hiding in a cave from the murderous King Saul in the midst of lions and predators that breath forth fire (metaphorically speaking) certainly fits. But I think the NASB nailed the Hebrew in the way they rendered David's prayer: Be gracious to me O God. The underlying word means "to have mercy, be gracious, take pity, be kind, i.e., show an act of kindness, compassion, or benefice to another." This is exactly what God does in His grace for us, both in saving us from the punishment our sin deserves, and as He sends from heaven and saves you from that which threatens to trample upon you, as He did for David so long ago. This is why, like David, you too must continually cry out for God to be gracious to you, for this God Most High accomplishes all things for you! Dig Deeper David teaches us a hugely important lesson from deep in the cave. His prayer for God's graciousness was certainly occasioned by Saul's physical threat, but even as David implores God to send forth His lovingkindness and His truth, David's primary concern isn't for his own safety. It's for God to be exalted above the heavens, a phrase he repeats in twice, following that with a prayer that God's glory be above all the earth. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that life's challenges stress us out to the extent that they do. If you put yourself and your own success - however you happen to define it - as your top priority, then it makes sense that every little setback will feel like a crushing defeat. It's hard to hit a moving target! You live in a world that constantly shifts and changes (we read in Psalm 46 last week that the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea). So if all of your attention is focused upon an ever changing target (your own ambitions), you'll continually struggle to hit it. But look at how David's attitude changes after He recenters his focus on God's unchanging glory: he's still stuck hiding out in the same cave - his dire circumstances haven't changed. His enemies still have their nets prepared and have dug a pit to throw him into. But now his heart is steadfast and he will give thanks and sing praises to God for His lovingkindness (His ḥěʹ·sěḏ covenant love) and truth. His whole mindset and attitude is restored and healed, simply because he reoriented his focus back to the unchanging goal that all of us were created for: To exalt God above the heavens and glorify Him above all the earth. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sends from heaven to save us; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will keep your primary focus on exalting and glorifying our unchanging God; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Eternal life has already begun. Live into it! Faithlife.com SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF, "After chapters filled with uprooting and destruction, Jeremiah preaches God’s glorious plan to build and plant his people forevermore. Judgment needed to come first, and now we understand a redemptive motive: God judged not only out of justice, but also to bring to a close the old covenant, which was never able to overcome the power of sin. God will take the initiative to bring a new and better covenant, which will deal decisively with the reason for the old covenant’s ruin: the intractably wicked hearts of his people. In so doing, God will reverse every consequence of judgment (loss of king, of land, of joy—everything)." - Lexham Context Commentary Jeremiah 31:31–34 (NASB95) 31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 56 Q. What do you believe concerning “the forgiveness of sins”? A. I believe that God, because of Christ’s atonement, will never hold against me any of my sins nor my sinful nature which I need to struggle against all my life. Rather, in his grace God grants me the righteousness of Christ to free me forever from judgment. Summary Today's Summary is a modification of one posted November 21, 2023 The more things change, the more they stay the same. This old adage has proven itself true time and time again. The pattern of God's people has been familiar and consistent: peril overtakes them and they cry out to God for rescue; God hears their prayers and delivers them to freedom; after a short interlude of faithfulness, the subsequent generations fall back into sin and God allows peril to overtake them until they once again cry out in repentance. But this time it would be different. Not the part about Israel falling into sin and invoking judgment upon themselves... that part is just as consistent as ever. But this time God's not going to rescue and restore them to the same old thing. He's going to break the pattern. The old covenant, in which the people would fulfill their obligation to God by keeping the laws He handed down through Moses, had never really worked. Sinful people can't be made holy by following rules. God would be faithful to His people. That part won't change either; as we'll see next starting next week as we begin reading Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah, God's people would repent, return and rebuild. But things would be different this time. A new covenant would be coming, one that would fulfill the old Mosaic covenant and bring true freedom to God's people. The more things change, the more they stay the same. God gave the same promise to Jeremiah that He gave to Adam, Abraham, Moses, David and many others. It's the same promise He gives to you: He will be your God, and we will be His people. Dig Deeper Two things stand out regarding the promise the LORD makes to His people here. First is who does what. You and I are the ones who broke the covenant. That's it; that's our only contribution. The LORD, on the other hand, is the one who made the covenant, who took His people by the hand and led them out of slavery, who husbands His people, and who has put His law within us and write it on our heart. Theologians have a fancy word to describe this: God saves us monergistically. Maybe that seems like a mouthful, but you've likely used that word's cousin before: synergistic - that's when two or more people combine forces to make something happen. But since we don't work together with God in our salvation, we replace the syn prefix with the mon (monos / one). Our salvation is in God's hands from start to finish. What a comfort! Our Father is our God, and we are His people! He has forgiven our iniquity, and our sin He will remember no more. The second aspect that stands out is how intellectually based our salvation is: God promises that we will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest. Our knowledge, which was devastated in the fall, will be made complete and whole when all things are made new. This is why Jesus said that eternal life is knowing God (John 17:3). This is also why the more you come to know God here and now, the more you can to begin to experience eternal life here and now. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who has made a new covenant with us in Christ; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will live into eternal life already by continually increasing your knowledge of God; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

True religion involves way more than just occasionally showing up at church. SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF, the LORD confirmed His call in Jeremiah's life, so Jeremiah began proclaiming the LORD’s covenant lawsuit against His people. Jeremiah 7:1–11, 27-29 (NASB95) 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 “Stand in the gate of the LORD's house and proclaim there this word and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship the LORD!’ ” 3 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 “Do not trust in deceptive words, saying, ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ 5 “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own ruin, 7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever. 8 “Behold, you are trusting in deceptive words to no avail. 9 “Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, 10 then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—that you may do all these abominations? 11 “Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” declares the LORD. -- 13 “And now, because you have done all these things,” declares the LORD... I will do to the house which is called by My name, in which you trust, and to the place which I gave you and your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. 15 “I will cast you out of My sight..." -- 27 “You shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; and you shall call to them, but they will not answer you. 28 “You shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the LORD their God or accept correction; truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth. 29 ‘Cut off your hair and cast it away, And take up a lamentation on the bare heights; For the LORD has rejected and forsaken The generation of His wrath.’ Canons of Dordt Point III/IV, Article 15: Responses to God’s Grace God does not owe this grace to anyone. For what could God owe to one who has nothing to give that can be paid back? Indeed, what could God owe to one who has nothing of his own to give but sin and falsehood? Therefore the person who receives this grace owes and gives eternal thanks to God alone; the person who does not receive it either does not care at all about these spiritual things and is satisfied with himself in his condition, or else in self-assurance foolishly boasts about having something which he lacks. Summary We might expect the LORD to send His newly minted prophet Jeremiah out to the front lines of wickedness, calling all who hear him to amend their ways. And that's exactly what the LORD does, giving His covenant prosecutor a list of indictments to pursue: oppression of the alien, orphan and widow, the shedding of innocent blood, walking after other gods, theft, adultery and false swearing. It's just that the front lines the LORD sends Jeremiah to look different than expected. Jeremiah's not sent to confront a wicked king or go shake his fists at pagan interlopers. Rather, the LORD dispatches Jeremiah to stand in the gate of the LORD's house! He's to proclaim there the LORD's condemnation to the very people entering the gates to worship Him! The people Jeremiah preached to weren't all that different from us. They'd lost confidence in their political system to provide security. Yet they still had hope and faith, but it had shifted. As Philip Ryken puts it, they "had taken their faith in the living God and reduced it to faith in a building." They'd become textbook hypocrites: they simply showed up and claimed "We are delivered!" and then went right back to doing all these abominations. The LORD mocks their shallow trust with His thrice repeated prohibition: Do not trust in deceptive words, saying "This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD." It was as if simply being in the physical proximity of something ostensibly holy was enough to cover over their iniquities - that simply by chanting so prescribed formulas, they once again became good with God. Dig Deeper Too many people associate the LORD as the God of second chances, who certainly expects His people to do right, but who gently chuckles a bit each time they fail before picking them up to give them another attempt, especially for those who occasionally darken the door of the LORD's house of worship. While this is the God our culture has come to expect, it is not the God of the Bible, who conditions the right to dwell in His presence upon people's perfect obedience. To people who simply go through religious motions, but who have no true desire to be holy, the LORD rejects and forsakes. He will cast them out of His sight. This is, and ought to be, a terrifying passage of the Bible - especially for people like us for whom "going to the house of the LORD, the house of the LORD, the house of the LORD" every Sunday is as regular as breathing. Don't ever think that you're good with God simply because you show up, be it once in awhile or even twice a week. But passages like today's are not given to crush your eternal confidence. They're given to cause you to cling all the more to Christ, who fulfilled the perfect righteousness our holy Father requires. You can gauge your level of grip by how it is that you treat the alien, orphan and widow and truly practice justice between you and your neighbor. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who demands that we put our trust in Him rather than our own deceptive words; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Confess your hypocrisy and pray that the Spirit would enable you to wholly and sincerely trust in Christ as evidenced by how you treat your neighbor; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

You've been indicted for abandoning the Living Water, but Christ restores it to you. Faithlife.com SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF, After calling and commissioning Jeremiah, the LORD informed him that He would pour out disaster from the north upon against all the towns of Judah because of their wickedness in forsaking Him. Jeremiah 2:9–13 (NASB 2020) 9 “Therefore I will still contend with you,” declares the LORD, “And I will contend with your sons’ sons. 10 “For cross to the coastlands of Kittim and see, And send to Kedar and observe closely, And see if there has been anything like this! 11 “Has a nation changed gods, When they were not gods? But My people have exchanged their glory For that which is of no benefit. 12 “Be appalled at this, you heavens, And shudder, be very desolate,” declares the LORD. 13 “For My people have committed two evils: They have abandoned Me, The fountain of living waters, To carve out for themselves cisterns, Broken cisterns That do not hold water. Belgic Confession Article 14: The Creation and Fall of Man We believe that God created man from the dust of the earth and made and formed him in his image and likeness— good, just, and holy; able by his own will to conform in all things to the will of God. But when he was in honor he did not understand it and did not recognize his excellence. But he subjected himself willingly to sin and consequently to death and the curse, lending his ear to the word of the devil. For he transgressed the commandment of life, which he had received, and by his sin he separated himself from God, who was his true life, having corrupted his entire nature. Summary Yesterday we learned that the prophet Jeremiah was just a young man - likely even a teenager - when the LORD called him to be a prophet. As a reminder, a prophet is a man who represents God to the people. In other words, the prophet speaks on the LORD's behalf. Prophets have also been described as covenant prosecutors. A covenant is, after all, at its core a legal agreement between two parties that stipulates that the LORD will be our God, and we will be His people. Covenants are similar to contracts in many ways. When a breach of contract occurs, the one who did the breaching will quickly be introduced to lawyers representing the aggrieved party. So the LORD here is briefing His new, young prophet / prosecutor on the case. He's going to contend with His people who've broken the covenant they had with Him, or as the other translations put it, He's bringing charges against them. And these charges will have a lasting impact - they're not just against the current generation, but will also apply to their sons' sons. Imagine how overwhelming this must have been for young Jeremiah - to be 'volun-told' by the LORD to prosecute his own people! And not just for some little misdemeanor; the Israelites' breach of contract was so severe that the LORD commands the heavens to be appalled at it... to shudder and be very desolate [dried up / ruined]. All because the LORD's people exchanged their glory for that which is of no benefit. Dig Deeper The LORD's indictment that He's given Jeremiah to prosecute includes two counts. The first, and most foundational, is that they have abandoned Him. As other translations put it, they've forsaken or even rejected the LORD. The word Jeremiah used here literally means that they've just left the LORD behind... they had moved on. The LORD makes clear that it's not just an abstract theological concept that they've given up on. He refers to Himself as the fountain of living waters - the very same living water that Jesus offered to the Samaritan woman at the well that He told her would spring up to eternal life (John 4:14). The LORD's second count flows from the first: having abandoned the fountain of living water, His people chose to instead carve out for themselves cisterns - broken cisterns that cannot hold water. The Belgic Confession describes God as being the overflowing fountain of all good. The people that the LORD had legally bound Himself to gave up on that goodness and futilely fabricated their own fountain of goodness which could not hold water. You stand indicted under the charges that Jeremiah came to prosecute so many centuries ago, which is why you so desperately need a Savior. And we have exactly that in Christ, who is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant (Hebrews 9:15). It's not at all that the charges have been dismissed for those who trust in Christ, but that He's both paid the penalty we incurred for abandoning the Fountain of Living Water AND He's perfectly fulfilled all of our covenantal requirements on our behalf. Whoever drinks of the water that He gives shall never be thirsty again (John 4:14). AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the fountain of living water; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that your covenant relationship to Him is restored in Christ, and pray that you'll resist the ongoing temptation to abandon Him by turning to other sources of 'goodness'; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Believe it or not, you have quite a bit in common with Jeremiah! Bible.com Jeremiah 1:1–10 (NASB95) 1 The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, 2 to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the exile of Jerusalem in the fifth month. 4 Now the word of the LORD came to me saying, 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.” 6 Then I said, “Alas, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, Because I am a youth.” 7 But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ Because everywhere I send you, you shall go, And all that I command you, you shall speak. 8 “Do not be afraid of them, For I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD. 9 Then the LORD stretched out His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me, “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. 10 “See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, To pluck up and to break down, To destroy and to overthrow, To build and to plant.” Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 54 Q. What do you believe concerning “the holy catholic church”? A. I believe that the Son of God through his Spirit and Word, out of the entire human race, from the beginning of the world to its end, gathers, protects, and preserves for himself a community chosen for eternal life and united in true faith. And of this community I am and always will be a living member. Summary Jeremiah wasn’t planning to have the LORD reach out to him. He was a young priest from a small and largely unremarkable town right on the edge of the desert wilderness. The nation around him was outwardly religious, but inwardly unspiritual. Jeremiah began as an unknown and unassuming figure, and the more we get to know him, the more it will become clear that he would have been just fine keeping it that way. The LORD makes a stunning introduction to this young man. He comes with an announcement that only a omnipotent Creator could make, but He communicates it with an intimacy that only a Father could muster. The LORD tells Jeremiah that He knew him even before I formed you in the womb, and that He'd consecrated Jeremiah - that is, He set Jerimiah aside for a holy purpose - even before Jeremiah had been born. The LORD's holy purpose for Jeremiah was for him to be a prophet - one who represents God to the people - not just to Judah or even Israel, but to the nations! Believe it or not, you have lots in common with Jeremiah! Ephesians 1:4 is just one of the places that God reiterates these same claims to you. God didn't just know you before you were born, but He chose you in Him before the foundation of the world. He consecrated you as well - that is, He set you aside that you would be holy and blameless before Him. Dig Deeper Jeremiah doesn't exactly jump for joy at the LORD's pronouncement. Just like Moses, he tried to wriggle out of his commission, telling God that I do not know how to speak, because I am a youth. It's in moments like this that God's patience is so magnified. The One who spoke all of creation into existence has just condescended to an image bearer He had formed and equipped especially for the task of communicating the Word of the LORD to the nations, and that young man quite clearly spoke back about his inability to speak. We'd not be at all surprised to read that the LORD struck Jeremiah with dumbness as He would later do to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist. But the LORD only lightly scolds his new prophet before covering him with words of immense comfort: Do not be afraid of them, the LORD says (interestingly, the text doesn't specify exactly who the them is). The LORD continues, for I am with you to deliver you. Then the LORD stretched out His hand and put His words in Jeremiah's mouth. He literally and physically removed Jeremiah's excuses. You've not likely been called to be a prophet to the nations, but the LORD has given you the same command He gave Jeremiah: All that the LORD commands you, you shall speak. And just like Jeremiah, you're likely an expert at giving excuses as to why you're not the person for the job. But you've also been equipped just like Jeremiah. God has put His words in your mouth! Jesus tells you to not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say (Luke 12:11-12). AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who knew us before He formed us; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will lay down your flimsy excuses and speak as the LORD leads and equips; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

The harder you strive on your own, the more you'll fear. Faithlife.com PSALM 46 (NASB) For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah, set to Alamoth. A Song. 1 God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; 3 Though its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered; He raised His voice, the earth melted. 7 The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah. 8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, Who has wrought desolations in the earth. 9 He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariots with fire. 10 “Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” 11 The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah. Belgic Confession Article 27: The Holy Catholic Church We believe and confess one single catholic (universal) church— a holy congregation and gathering of true Christian believers, awaiting their entire salvation in Jesus Christ being washed by his blood, and sanctified and sealed by the Holy Spirit. -- And this holy church is preserved by God against the rage of the whole world, even though for a time it may appear very small in the eyes of men— as though it were snuffed out. Summary Today's Summary & Dig Deeper post is modified from August 28, 2024 Psalm 46 is familiar and well loved for a couple of reasons. One big reason that Psalm 46 resonates the way it does is because of how it accurately describes the chaos of our fallen world. There's trouble, as the whole world is collapsing into itself, earthquakes surge and shake, mountains slip into the heart of the sea, nations are in uproar and kingdoms totter. All of these poetic pictures this psalm paints stand in stark contrast to the order and beauty that God created the world to have. The Bible often explains the effects of sin upon God's good creation, but few passages pack the rhetorical power of Psalm 46 in describing what Adam's sin unleashed. But all of this verbal thunder is offset by the peaceful advice Psalm 46 provides. The three imperatives (commands) are nearly equally spaced throughout the poem: We will not fear... Notice this imperative is phrased as an indicative! In other words, it's not just a command for you to follow, it's a reality that God provides. Come and behold what the LORD has done... The NIV uses the phrase come and see, but even though the word behold seems archaic, it better captures the psalmist's meaning here: it's not enough to just see what the LORD has done, you need to eliminate all of the distractions and behold it! and Cease striving and know that I am God... Of course the more familiar translation of this command is to be still, but once again the NASB better captures the original meaning; the stillness required here comes only when you cease striving. The Hebrew word means to release / let go. You can have the peace this psalm commands because it promises the almighty presence of God Immanuel - that is, God with us - even in the midst of the sin fueled chaos. Our God is an very-present help in trouble; He is dwelling within the holy city, so she will not fall. God's presence is reiterated in the psalm's two identical refrains: The LORD of hosts is with us... (v7 & 11). Dig Deeper You're likely reading this post at the end of another work week, and this peaceful refuge that Psalm 46 promises probably seems so far away in the midst of the chaos all around you. But this city of God which will not be moved is far closer than you may think. This city the psalmist writes of isn't a walled fortress located somewhere in Palestine, it's present wherever God's people meet to worship Him. It's the Church where God gathers, protects and preserves His people; the place which is well fed by the river of grace whose streams make glad the city [Church] of God. God is the midst of His Church, so she will not be moved. No matter what the nations do in their uproar, no matter how many kingdoms totter around her, all our God must do is raise His voice and the fallen earth will melt leaving nothing but His purified Church. This is why, in the most pivotal moment of Jesus' earthly ministry, He told Peter that He would build my Church and the gates of Hell will not overcome it (Matt. 16:18). As you navigate this chaotic, fallen world, do not fear; cease your striving and know that He is God. You are secured forever as a member of the City of God: His Church. The Lord's Day is once again approaching. Come and behold what the LORD has done. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: This world is trying to pull you away from God with all its chaotic might. Pray that you can cease your striving and know the LORD is God; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: