Comments for November 5

v.5 - This action was predicted by 'a man of God out of Judah' in the reign of Jeroboam - 1Kings 13:1,2.

34:6 The cities which Josiah cleansed were outside the boundaries of Judah. He actually extended his cleansing into the territory of Israel who had already gone into captivity. We might think that was rather a waste of effort. However Josiah knew that the land belonged to God and that it was polluted by the idols even though Israel had been taken by the Assyrians some time before.

v.1,2 When Manasseh, (yesterday's reading) at just 12 years old, is reported as being evil, we tend to blame it on his advisers, on those adults around him that influenced him in his still formative years as king, but here we have an eight year old who manages to avoid that.

V.1 Realistically, Josiah (like all children) was the product of his educators.  Individuals like Shaphan were the ones who guided the eight-year old king.  We are told that when Josiah was sixteen, (and capable of independent thought), that he sought God.  When he was twenty, (and more capable of independent action), he cleansed the land (2 Chron. 33:3).

34:19 Josiah's response on hearing the word of God contrasts starkly with the way that Jehoiakim, Josiah's son - responded when he heard the word of God (Jeremiah 36:23) only a few years later.

34:9 Hilkiah the high priest was the father of the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:1)

34:14-21 Josiah had been reforming the people for quite some years by now. However the book of law was found and he seemed to have no knowledge of its contents. We must presume that Josiah had access to some of the Scriptures but when this book - which was probably Deut 28 or the whole of Deuteronomy - was found he was unaware of the judgements that were to come on unfaithful Israel. Jeremiah was contemporary with Josiah and maybe the repeated references to these curses in Jeremiah's prophecy are a response to the finding of this book in Josiah's day.

The zeal of Josiah was not confined to the cleansing of the temple and the city from idolatry, but he took active steps to restore the building itself from the neglect of the past seventy five years. It was during this restoration that the discovery was made of the book of the Law, which was to have such a profound influence on the subsequent events during his reign. 

Sometimes we need a strong person to tell us what to do.  King Josiah was such a person.  He read the book of the law in the hearing of the people, and then he "caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it" (2Chron 34:30-33).; the NIV says, "He made everyone pledge themselves to it."
This was what a good king should do.  He led the people, and enforced God's law.

34:8  So during the 55 year reign of Manasseh the temple had fallen into disrepair again! Remember the comment about chapter 24:4 earlier this year.

Josiah was 8 yrs old when he began to reign, about 14 when he fathered Jehoiakim, 16 when he had Jehoahaz, 20 when he began to purge the land, 21 when Jeremiah began to prophesy, 26 when he began to restore the temple, & about 29 when Zedekiah was born. He died at age 39.

Although Jeremiah had already been prophesying for about 5 yrs, the king sends his advisers to Huldah. Although Jeremiah's words are the ones saved for us, there were other prophets of the LORD as well.

v 12,13 It is interesting that it is the Levites who are skilled musicians who are put in charge of the labourers, not a job one would have thought was appropriate for them. In the service of the Lord, perhaps we too have to do things that would normally not be what we think we are good at, or what we would choose to do, especially in small ecclesias.

34:14  Josiah had been a good king so far even though, it appears, he did not have a copy of the law to read. This indicates that up to this time his teaching had been by word of mouth

34:5 In the elimination of all the idolatrous things found not only in Judea, but also in Israel. Josiah, not only burned all that was combustible, he broke everything that could be broken, he did it in a manner that had not been witnessed before, he then disinterred the bones of the idolatrous priests, burning them on their own alters.

V.22 Most of the prophets in the Bible were men.  However, there were some women prophets through whom Yahweh worked.  Here, we have Huldah.  Two others of note, one pre-Huldah and one post-Huldah, were: Deborah who ruled Israel (Judg 4:4); and Anna who recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah (Luke 2:36).

34:3 At the tender age of 16 Josiah is showing great spirituality – a challenge to those of us who are young. Also a challenge to those of us who are not so young. If Josiah was so committed at a young age what about us?

V.22 Huldah lived in the college (KJV). The college was a suburb of Jerusalem called Mishneh, which was located in the lower city. Huldah was married to Shallum who was probably the uncle of the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 32:7).

34:2 In saying that Josiah turned not to the left or right we see he is following the instruction given to kings Deut 17:20

v 24,25 First Principles>Kingdom of God>Was overturned>History of fulfilment
Go to Deut 28:49 to see more details of the history of Israel and its overturning.

V.1 Josiah means supported, or healed, by Yahweh. Josiah was a minor when he began to reign. The age of majority in Judaism is 13 years.

V.3 Now at 16 years of age, Josiah was no longer a minor, but was considered an adult.

V.5 Josiah eradicated the idolatrous priests. Instead of burying their bones, Josiah burned them to ashes. Burial would have been a signal of respect, while burning them showed disdain for the priests and their practices.

V.14 This scroll of the Law (some suppose this was Deuteronomy) had been hidden in the temple. The previous evil kings would have made every attempt to destroy books of the Law. However, this book, like Joash, was hidden in the temple until the day that Yahweh would uncover it.

V.22 Huldah was, obviously, a well recognized prophetess. Apart from that, we do not know anything else about her. At this time, Jeremiah and Zephaniah were alive. But, there was no consideration to seek out these male prophets over a female one. True, Huldah was nearby, in Jerusalem, while the other two were not. However, if one were accepted as a true prophet of Yahweh, then gender was immaterial. Huldah must have past the divine test (Deut 18:22). Remember that true prophets (male or female) speak for Yahweh (Amos 3:7).

Vs.23-28 Huldah's words would further consolidate her as a true prophet.

34:33 It would appear that some faithful Jews had come to Jerusalem from the Northern Kingdom of Israel. So they were encouraged and seemingly returned home and continued in their faithfulness.

2Chron 34:1,3,8 - Josiah began purging Judah of fleshly idolatry at age 20 till age 26 (it took 6 years - the number of man) and when the 6 years of purging symbols of sin were completed he ordered the temple of God to be repaired.

2Chron 34:21,24,25 - because God's word was not kept disaster would befall Judah.

2Chron 34:19,27,28 - because Josiah tore his clothes and humbled  himself God would spare him from seeing the disaster that would befall Judah.

34:4    In Lev 26:30 God promised that false worship would be removed from the land of Israel and the people. Here we see that in part at least those words were fulfilled through the faithful actions of Josiah and the people.

34:14This occasion – the finding of the law – prompted Jeremiah to rejoice – Jer 15:16

34:13  We might think that the “overseers” <5329> were skilled builders. Maybe they were. However the same word is translated “Chief musician” in the Psalm titles and  “chief singer” in Hab 3:19

34:7  Notice that Josiah must have travelled round with those who were breaking down the idols as it is said of him that he returned to Jerusalem. So important was the work that Josiah wanted to oversee it personally. 

Figurines and stained glass images

God in his foresight had given some strict instructions to Israel before they entered the land of Canaan:

"Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye are passed over Jordan into the land of Canaan; Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places: And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it." Num 33:51-53
 

Now notice in 2Chron 34:3-4 how many times "pictures" or "images" are mentioned. Baal worship was indeed riddled with it and Israel and Judah had as predicted fallen for this counterfeit religion. Why do we think these educated and God-fearing people could have been seduced like this? They had God's temple just next door. They could call on God whenever they needed him. Could it be that the images, pictures and carved images made Baal more real to them? So how about us? Do we stick to the truth, knowing that God is invisible and wishes to be portrayed in His Word, or do we fall for religions with stone figures, crucifixes, figurines and stained glass windows?

34:26   Whilst Josiah, here, sought counsel of God the contemporary prophet – Zeph 1:6 – said that the people, in contrast to Josiah, were not interested at all in what God had to say to them.

34:25 The statement about forsaking the law and serving other Gods is spoken of by Jeremiah – a contemporary prophet – Jer 1:16

34:9  Josiah sent men to the north, even though Hoshea and the people had been taken captive by the Assyrians, to collect money for the repair of he temple. Those who were negative about Josiah would have seen this as just an attempt to get money. Those who had a positive attitude would see it as an attempt to involve the remnant who were in the north in the things of God in Jerusalem.

34:1   We have to conclude that Josiah had good instruction and was, to a large extent, implementing Godly things in the early years of his reign through the good offices of the priesthood.

2Chron 34:8   Jeremiah commenced his ministry in the 13^th year of Josiah’s reign – Jer 1:1 – some five years before this time, a year after the events of :3.

V.9 Money from Israel came from the remenant of Mannassah and Ephraim. The sons of Joseph. So Joseph And Judah helped repair the house of the Lord.

34:4  When we read of “molten images” we should appreciate that they were probably made of precious metals. However Josiah does not salvage the material. He scatters it on the graves of those who had been false worshippers. The idols went the same way as the worshippers – to the grave!

34:5 we also read of this in 2Kin 23:20. Those involved in false worship did not receive a peaceful burial. Some might have thought such behaviour as Josiah did was “over the top”. Maybe some would think that at least a proper burial should have been given. By contrast Josiah was treating the bodies of those priests in the way that Yahweh viewed them.

35:7-8 Josiah gave the example of generous willing giving. This was then followed by the princes. We need to understand that God does not need out money or effort. However He is willing to accept both, enabling us to work for Him. If we appreciate that we are working for and with the Creator then, maybe, we will be more generous and less grudging, especially with our time. Isn’t it a great privilege for the Creator of all things to be willing to allow us to work for and with Him.

34:4,7 We can conclude that Josiah took an active part in destroying the tokens of idol worship. He did not just give an order and leave it for others to do the work. This is seen in that when he had done the work he “returned to Jerusalem”. It is all too easy for us to leave work to others even when the work is important.

33:1 Whereas 2Kin 21:3 says that Manasseh was like Ahab we see here that Manasseh’s evil is likened to the heathen who had inhabited the land before Israel. So there are two elements to Manasseh’s evil.

34:3  It was later during the reign of Jeremiah that a copy of the Law of Moses was found  - 2Kin 22:8 –so we have to conclude that in his youth Josiah was taught by faithful priests even though they did not have access to a  written copy of the law of Moses.

34:6-7  By the time that Josiah was on the throne the kingdom in the north had been overthrown and their last king taken into captivity. So Josiah, despite the land being governed by a foreign power, still sought to cleanse it of false worship and the trappings of such worship.

34:1 Josiah, being eight years old when he began to reign, must have been born in the latter years of his grandfather Manasseh. Whilst he was probably too young to appreciate Manasseh’s repentance his growing awareness would enable him to see his grand father’s godless behaviour.

v.16 - The significance of this is lost unless we look at the root meanings of the words. Whilst 'Baali' is Master, 'Ishi' is husband - thus signifying that the covenant that was to be established would be based on a very different relationship. As well as this, of course, Baali was the word they applied to their idols, from whom they could never expect an 'Ishi' relationship

Hosea 2:2 whoredom Ezekiel 16:25
2:3 strip ... naked Ezekiel 16:37 - 39
2:5 played the harlot Ezekiel 16:15
2:8 corn ... for Baal Ezekiel 16:17 -19
2:10 discover ... lewdness Ezekiel 16:37
2:11 mirth to cease Amos 8:10
2:14 wilderness of the people Ezekiel 20:35
2:14 speak comfortably Isaiah 40:2
2:15 valley of Achor Isaiah 65:10
2:17 take away ... names ... Baalim Zechariah 13:2
2:22 corn ... wine ... oil Joel 2:19
2:23 I will sow Zechariah 10:9
2:23 Thou art my people Zechariah 13:9
2:23 And I will ... art my God Romans 9:26
2:23 not obtained mercy 1 Peter 2:10

2:22 'corn ... wine ... oil' seems to be used in Scripture to mark the elements of the harvest which will abound as a consequence of God's blessing. Below is a fairly comprehensive list of occasions where the phrase is used. Deuteronomy 7:13 11:14 12:17 14:23 18:4 28:51 2 Chronicles 31:5 Joel 2:19 Haggai 1:11

v. 1 - Ammi = "My people" and Ruhama = "having obtained mercy"

2:15 The valley of Achor was the place where Achan was buried for his sin (Joshua 7:24) Hosea prophecies that instead of being a place of shame it would be a place of 'hope'

FORGETTING GOD
Have you ever had a day or a week slip by when life's pressures and pleasures seem to fill the whole of your life from morning till night, only to discover when you take stock of your day, that you had not read your Bible, prayed or walked with God at all? It may be that we have idols that take our time - things that are more important than God. It may be that nothing is more important but everything is more urgent. With God there are no deadlines, yet every day we face deadlines in our busy schedules - deadlines that must be met. But sometimes these deadlines squeeze God out of the picture and He is forgotten.

Even though God must be the most important thing in our lives, He is often the easiest to forget because He has put it on to us to order our lives, instead of ordering them for us.

So let us resolve to no longer be like Israel who forgot God, but instead let us set aside times, priorities and deadlines that will help us to remember our God, to love Him and to live for Him for ever more.

V.16 To be accurate in Hebrew: baali means literally my master and ishi means my man.

In Genesis, Adam and Eve were called ish and isha (man and woman) but their intended intimate relationship of one flesh is described as man (husband) and wife (Gen. 3:24).

The false gods (baalim) were literally masters (gods) to be served.
Baal is a generic name and specific names were attached to distinguish particular gods (e.g Baal Peor (Moab); Baal Zevuv (Philistine)).

Yahweh is (or should be) the Baal of Israel. But, in this verse Yahweh is commenting on an even closer relationship between Him and His people.

Right now, the connotation of Baal is distasteful, given Israel’s false worship. Therefore, Yahweh chose to be known as Ish. This gives a sense of closeness, devoid of any hint of impropriety. One can worship a god blindly or dispassionately, but one cannot have an intimate relationship and be blind or dispassionate. Thus, we see the difference between ish and Baal.

Incidentally, in Modern Hebrew, baali means my husband.

2:11 Whilst we may think that the cessation of mirth may refer to the Babylonian captivity Amos (8:10) uses similar language which has its ultimate fulfilment with the death and resurrection of Jesus.

From the number of times that this chapter is quoted in Zechariah (see list above) we can conclude that Zechariah was presenting the return from Babylon as the fulfilment of the words of Hosea - even though we might have thought that Hosea was speaking about the Assyrian captivity from what we have seen in chapter 1.

V.19-20 The LORD'S accomplished purpose in Israel's chastening also will result in Israel's salvation, and the renewal of the marriage covenant, not for time only, but forever. The words "I will betroth thee" are repeated three times in these two verses. 

The return of Israel to her God is conveyed in Hos 2:16. In that day, you will call Me Husband, and not Lord.  What a wonderful promise!

2:7  Jesus puts the words of repentant adulterous Gomer into the mouth of the prodigal son – Luke 15:18  – marking that Jesus’ parable is about returning to God. To the Jews who knew their Scripture the point would have been very powerful.

THREE STEPS TO A BETTER MARRIAGE
 
Hosea married a wife who was to turn away to other lovers instead of remaining faithful to her husband. Her life was a parable of Israel who were also unfaithful to God. However, the time came for both Hosea and God to forgive and seek to reconcile things with Gomer and Israel. This was the plan: "Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her." (Hos 2:14) This was a serious plan to fix the relationship problems the partners had.
 
Notice the three steps that began to heal the relationship:

1. Hosea would allure Gomer. He made an attractive offer to her and through his allurement he himself also would have become attractive. We need to make sure we are attractive to our wives and that we have something to offer them that they want. Let's make sure the charm is not slipped off the moment the ring is slipped on her finger.
2. He led her into the desert. The desert is a place free from all other attractions. There are no shopping malls, no other men or women, it is the time and place for husband and wife alone. Whether our marriages are good or bad, we need time to focus on each other. Take time to get away from the other distractions to build our relationships just between ourselves.
3. He spoke tenderly to her. Hosea had every right to do his worst for her unfaithfulness. But instead he spoke tenderly. Let's put away angry words - no matter how bad our partner has been - and speak tenderly showing forgiveness and love.

Whether our marriages are at the end of their rope or doing fine, these three principles can make all the difference

2:4 ‘will not have mercy’ is one of the many plays upon names we find in Hosea.

V.15 Achor in Hebrew means trouble or affliction. Yahweh promises to change His people's disposition from affliction to hope (Heb. tikva). The Valley of Achor was where Achan and his family were stoned to death (Josh 7:24-26). The reference would not be lost on the people.

2:2-3 The whoredoms which cause her to be stripped naked are picked up and used again by the later prophet – Eze 16:25, :37-39

Vs.18-22 The blessings on Israel; the abundance of produce; and the taming of nature are elements of Yahweh’s grace which will be manifest in the Kingdom.

2:10 In speaking of discovering her lewdness the prophet provides language which Ezekiel later uses to speak of the idolatry of Judah and Israel –16:37

Hos 2:23;Rom 9:24-25.

V.1 Ammi (KJV) means my people; Ruhamah (KJV) means having obtained mercy.

V.2 Your mother is the collective nation (Judah and Israel); the children would be the inhabitants of the nation. The exhortation is for the children to plead with the nation to correct itself.

Those in the ecclesia of Christ have the same responsibility towards the whole ecclesia. There is a responsibility to speak up if things are going astray (See the responsibility of the watchman in Ez 33).

V.3 Wilderness is a reference to the forty years’ wandering in the desert before entering the Promised Land.

V.4 If the nation is evil, its citizens will suffer.

V.5 My lovers refers to the idols after which the nation lusted. Look at the gifts listed for the lovers. Contrast the evil use of those elements with the virtuous use of them (Prov 21:20; 25:21; 31:13).

V.7 After the dissatisfaction with her lovers, she (Israel) would decide to return to her first husband (Yahweh). Would she be welcomed? There is a similarity with this situation and the prodigal son (Luke 15:14-18). The father welcomed back his wayward son with open arms. Yahweh would do the same for Israel.

Vs.8,9 For the sins of Israel, Yahweh would withhold rain on the land.

V.14 Yahweh must inevitably bring punishment on His unfaithful nation. But after that, He will be kind to Israel.

V.15 Achor (trouble) will be turned into blessing.

Vs.16,17 Ishi (my man) is better than baali (my master), a designation that could also apply to false gods.

V.18 This is a picture of the Kingdom when nature shall be tamed and war shall cease (Isa 11:6-9; Mic 4:3).

Vs.22,23 Jezreel means seed of God. Yahweh will plant His people in the earth and bring them abundance. This will happen in the Kingdom when Israel will be reconciled to Yahweh.

All the blessings God had given to Israel in fulfilment of His marriage vow, were taken by Israel and given to her lovers (v8). This image is how we understand fully God's mistreatment by His people. How would you feel if, shortly after your wedding, you discovered your husband or wife spending all your hard earned money on adulterous weekends away with someone else? God's answer to this is to restrict Israel's access to His goods, just as you or I might do in this situation (v9). God hoped that this poverty might cause her to think straight and realise He was her best and sole provider (v6-7). This was of course fully laid out in the agreement Israel had made with God (Deut 28).

This isn't just an old testament phenomenon is it? Do you think God is pleased if we spend all He's given us on our own pursuits? Sometimes He will He start to take away His provision bit by bit until we see our priorities more clearly. But God's promise is that whenever He does this, He will always provide abundantly again once the lesson has been learned (v14-15, 22).

2:2  ‘say unto your mother ...’ is an instruction to the children of the prophet.

2:8      The way in which Israel did not appreciate that God had given them things which they offered to Baal is spoken of later – Eze 16:17-19. A recurring problem with Israel was that they did not appreciate how generous God was to them. Do we appreciate His generosity?

2:12      That the vines and figs would be destroyed is also prophesied in Joel 1:7,12 and is prophesied in the contemporary prophet – Isa 5:5-6 – which indicates that Hosea is not simply speaking about literal trees. Rather he is speaking about the destruction of the nation.

2:6    The way in which Hosea speaks of bringing thorns against Judah is an echo of the contemporary prophet Isa 5:6

2:23       In speaking of Israel being God’s people we see an idea which a prophet after the exile picks up to encourage the people about what God will still do in the future – Zech 13:9

2:21      When Hosea says, speaking of God, “I will hear” we see a promise that implies that Israel will have repented and turned to God. An idea picked up by a later prophet – Zech 10:6

2:19     The promise that God would ‘betroth’ Israel is echoed in the contemporary prophet when he speaks of the and being ‘married’ – Isa 62:4

2:18     In promising that Israel will ‘lie down safely’ Hosea is speaking of something which Ezekiel later develops – Eze 39:26 – which provided the environment for God to come and invade the land.

Hos 2:19

In contrast to western-style marriage, there were three very distinct states or stages of a Jewish marriage in Bible times. This information can be found on the web site:

http://www.bible.ca/marriage/ancient-jewish-three-stage-weddings-and-marriage-customs-ceremony-in-the-bible.htm

Stage 1: Betrothal; signing the ‘ketubah’ (creating the marriage bond)

Once the bride (or, in ancient times, her father) has chosen her future husband, both the groom and the bride’s father sign a legal marriage contract called a ‘ketubah’*. Once this is signed the couple are 100% legally married (betrothed) but do not consummate their marriage yet. This ‘ketubah’ or betrothal stage can last for anything up to 7 years—particularly in cases where the marriage contract is arranged whilst the bride & groom are still in childhood or where the bride & groom do not feel ready to marry.

*The Ketubah is somewhat similar to the Western “pre-nuptial” legal contract and is agreed between the groom and bride’s father and is signed by the groom but not the bride.

Stage 2: The "chuppah" (the consummation of the marriage)

Usually, after around a year has elapsed since betrothal and once the groom has raised the money as defined in the ketubah contract, the father of the bride then agrees a date with the groom for the marriage to be consummated, but does not inform the bride of this date. This means that the bride must be ready and waiting with her maidens, for the arrival of the groom and his companions at any time. (cf. Matt 25:1-10) The bride and groom enter the room set aside for the chuppah and consummate their marriage, while the families and companions of the bride and groom wait and celebrate nearby or in the next room.

The groom hands the bloodied ‘proof of virginity cloth’ to the witnesses chosen by the bride’s parents, who then give it to the bride for safekeeping. In Old Testament times they gave it instead to the bride’s parents for safekeeping (Deut 22:15) in case of a possible challenge to the woman’s virginity being made at a later time by the husband (see Deut 22:14). It was up to this stage that the man could legally ‘put away’ his wife and bypass the divorce process if proof of virginity could not be found or the bride had admitted to fornication prior to betrothal. (Deut 22:13-21).

Stage 3: The wedding feast

After the consummation of the marriage, the entire wedding party walks to the house of the groom in a procession to the wedding feast. At the conclusion of this wedding feast (which could last several days), the couple have finally completed the ancient Jewish ritual of marriage.

Incidentally, these protracted Jewish marriage customs explain why, in the case of Mary and Joseph, that Joseph was minded to “put her (Mary) away privily” whilst they were in the ‘betrothed’ stage of their marriage contract. But having been enlightened by the angel in Matt 1:20-25 as to the reason for his (still virgin) wife’s pregnancy, Joseph decided to waive his legal right to do so.

As with the natural, so with the spiritual: as the 'betrothed multitudinous bride' of our Lord by our being baptised, we must always be awake and waiting for our Groom to come for us at any time, which will probably be when we're not expecting him (Matt 24:44). The 'chuppah' or 'spiritual 'consummation' will take place in secrecy after the judgement, probably somewhere between Sinai (the place associated with judgement in Scripture) and Jerusalem during which those found worthy will experience the joy unbounded of being united with our Lord and enjoy the exhilaration of the Spirit nature, after which Christ and his multitudinous bride will walk to the wedding supper (Rev 19:9) in Jerusalem.

2:15   Here and Isa 65:10 – a contemporary prophet – we see that place where Achan was stoned. A place that would have been in Israel’s consciousness as a place of cursing, is to be a place of blessing.

2:16  Here Hosea is speaking of a change of attitude to Gomer – representing Israel when she is faithful. Ishi is husband. Baali is Lord.

A HEDGE OF THORNS

If you ever want to turn your back on God, know this, that he will not just let you walk out on him without a fight.

God used Hosea and his wife to illustrate the extremes he would go to to bring his people back. This is the way it is described in Hosea:

"For she said, 'I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wood and my flax, my oil and my drink.' Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her so that she cannot find her paths. She shall pursue her lovers but shall not overtake them, and she shall seek them, but not find them. Then she shall say, 'I will go and return to my first husband, for it was better for me then than now.'" (Hos 2:5-7).

Maybe you have found that your way has been hedged with thorns and walls. It's not comfortable. If that is you, then turn back to God before his hedges grow even more thorns.

And if you know someone who has turned from God, pray for hedges and thorns for them so that they will come to realize that the God they left behind is so much better than the places they are trying to go.
 

2:17 the assurance that the name of Baalim will be taken away from Israel is repeated in more general terms in the later prophet after Israel return from captivity in Babylon – Zech 13:2

2:2 the record does not give us a timescale for the events in the prophet’s life but we must conclude that a few years have passed since the birth of the children as it would appear that they are now of an age to be able to “plead” – that is speak rationally – with their mother, being of an age when she might listen to them.

2:8 Life goes by in the most “natural” way. We are born, grow up, receive and education, get a job, possibly marry and have children – just like everyone else. Against this background it is easy to take everything for granted imagining that we have achieved what we have by our own efforts. Or maybe we lament that we do not have some of the things that we would like to have. We must be careful to remember that it is God who gives us everything.

2:5  The nation behaved as if Yahweh was not at all involved in their lives. They saw the things that they had as being given to them by the false gods that they worshipped. We might think that we would never be like that. However we have to ask ourselves how much trust do we place in the things that the world in which we live gives us. Our job, house, pension – and so it goes on.

2:2-3 This awful picture of how God would deal with His people is developed at a later date by the prophet Ezekiel –  16:37-39. Doubtless those in captivity with Ezekiel would be well aware of why the kingdom in the north had been taken captive by the Assyrians – but sadly that did not have any effect on them – they did not learn from the example of the northern kingdom.

2:1-2  How old do we think children need to be to be able to “plead” with their mother? One might imagine that they need to be around 8-10 before they are able to speak with any conviction to a mother who appreciates what they are saying. So we are yet further into the time of Hosea’s prophetic ministry.

17 v. 7 - Are we prepared to stand up for the law of God. How do we react to those who bring accusations like this against us?

16:1-3 The circumcision of Timothy was not a compromise. Timothy was a Jew through his Jewish mother, but it appears that because of his father he was not circumcised. As a Jew he should have been because of the covenant of Genesis 17:11-12. However we should not conclude that his mother had no respect for the Word of God for she had taught Timothy to love the word. 2 Timothy 1:5

17:6 The word 4173 'rulers of the city' is only found here and verse 8 in the whole of the New Testament. However archaeological finds at Thessalonica show that this is precisely the word that was used to describe the rulers in Thessalonica
17:15 The word 'ordain' 2525 can be seen, from its use in the New Testament, to encompass rulership and judgment.

Matthew 24:45,47 25:21,23 (made) ruler
Luke 12:14,42,44 (made) judge / rule
Acts 6:3 7:10,27,35 appoint / made
Acts 17:15 conducted
Romans 5:19 made
Titus 1:5 ordain
Hebrews 2:7 5:1 7:28 8:3 set / ordained / maketh
James 3:6 4:4 is
2 Peter 1:8 make

The use in the epistles indicates that, when appointment was made, it was at the Father's instigation, not man's.

16:19 We know that Luke and Timothy were with Paul and Silas at this time so what happened to them? Were they not hauled into the market place because they had not been taking an active part in the work and were therefore overlooked?

17:14-15 Paul on the one hand and Silas and Timothy on the other hand go different ways to further the preaching. Careful reading of Acts enables us to work out for ourselves who was where and when

ch 17 - WOMEN IN THE CHURCH
Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea and Athens all produced similar results to the preaching of Paul. The message ended up dividing the people. Many did not believe or were sceptical, a number were antagonistic to the message, but some believed, and among them, in all those cities were a number of prominent women. So as the first churches were established in these cities, the backbone of them was made up of prominent women.
The were no doubt mentioned for their ready acceptance of the truth and then for their subsequent work in the church through bringing in new converts and supporting their brothers and sisters. Women have an important role to play in the church and it should never be underestimated. Even in the time of Christ it was the women more than the men who stayed with him right to the end. They were there at the resurrection and at Pentecost. Women are the ones to meet the emotional needs, they are practical, compassionate, good listeners and can be very devoted to a cause. They reach people that men cannot. If you, as a woman, have been stirred by the gospel: be encouraged. And men, let us give thanks for and appreciate the women God has given us.

16:13 In going to the riverside 'where prayer was wont to be made' Paul was seeking out spiritually minded Jews to whom he could introduce Christ.

17:32-33 We would do well to learn the lesson that argument and conflict is not the environment in which the truth flourishes. Paul leaves the debaters having given them something to think about. Those who want to know more seek Paul out. Our contacts whose minds we have stimulated will seek us out to learn more of Christ. This teaching is best conducted in a spirit of humility not a spirit of arrogance which is the mind of the one who wishes to argue.

16:14 The opening of the hearts by the lord is rather like Luke 24:45 where Jesus opened the disciples' understanding. Not an event achieved by the activity of the Holy Spirit. Rather is was achieved by expounding the word. So we can conclude that here the opening of the heart of Lydia was through the preaching of the gospel. This shows that God requires a response from the heart to the intellectual truths of the gospel.

17:24 Following on from the comments I made in May this year. When Paul says 'dwelleth not in temples made with hands' he is using the same argument as Stephen (7:48)

 16:10 This is the first time that Luke indicates that he is with Paul. "We" It is difficult to say when Luke joined Paul, because he is careful not to mention himself by name at any time. It is no proof of course that because he uses the word "we" that he is now for the first time with the party. It merely indicates that he discloses his presence with them.  

Paul's new travelling partner was Silas. His choice was not haphazard , but was a good one because he came from Jerusalem. There is also evidence from a consideration of 16:37 that Silas was also a Roman citizen. Since Paul was also a Roman citizen, this privilege would stand them in good stead, particularly when dealing with people in senior positions, like jailers, we note this when we read 16:37-38.  

16:36-39 Paul made a point of asserting himself against the magistrates.  One wonders why he did this seeing that Christ advocates peace, forgiveness, and non-retaliation  of those who have wronged you (Matt 5:39-41; Heb 12:14; 1Pet 2:21-23).  Perhaps he did it to protect the local ecclesia, so that after Paul had left, they would not be bothered by the authorities.

16:37 We might think that Paul is here appealing to his Roman citizenship to obtain an apology for the treatment he and Silas had received. However a reason which is more consistent with our understanding of the Christian attitude to citizenship could be that Paul is wishing to heighten awareness to the gospel message. If they had gone quietly then the effect of the preaching would not be as great as if the issue was highlighted.

17:9-10 The ‘security’ that was taken of Jason was that Paul would not return to Thessalonica. This is why Paul speaks of ‘Satan’ hindering his plans to return there 1Thess 2:18

Acts 16 After the introduction in the first few verses, Luke begins an important part, perhaps the most important part of Paul's life of work in the declaration of the Gospel News. The second missionary journey was not really a journey, but a campaign that was spread over a period of five years. A stop of a few months in one location can hardly be described as a journey. We also also see in V.10 Luke introducing himself for the first time.

17:20  In saying ‘we would know what these things mean’ the Athenians demonstrated that they sought knowledge rather than salvation. The message is clear to anyone who wishes to respond to it and did not need to be explained any further.

DISTRESSED
 
"While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was so full of idols." (Acts 17:16)
 
As I glanced at the front page of the newspaper today, I think I felt a little of what Paul must have felt like while he waited in Athens. In my case it was not a city full of idolatry but rather full of immorality and violence. A two year old child had been killed in a drive by shooting; another child had been kidnapped by a paedophilic; and an angry man had driven his car into a crowd of party goers and killed two of them.
 
The state of our world, the violence, the selfishness and the idolatry we see all around us should distress us, just a Paul was greatly distressed at what he saw around him.
 
But Paul didn't leave it at distress. He did what he could to change things. He didn't go out and begin a riot or a protest, he started by talking to the people in the synagogue and in the marketplace. We can do the same in our churches, marketplaces and places of work. We might not be able to change the world, but we can change individual lives. Let's make sure our distress motivates us to action.

16:3 Paul knew that circumcision was not necessary for salvation. However, Paul knew that some Jews were very oppositional and would seize on Timothy’s unclean status. Even some Jewish believers were having a difficult time foregoing the ritual of the Law.

And so, Paul had his hands full. For the good of the preaching effort, he had Timothy circumcised. Timothy’s mother was Jewish and his father was Greek, but not a proselyte to Judaism. Under Jewish Law, the offspring of a Jewish mother was considered Jewish. Therefore, Timothy was Jewish, but not considered covenanted until circumcised.

Contrast this occasion with Timothy to that of Titus, where Paul did not insist upon circumcision (Gal 2:3).

16:5 Returning to the churches to encourage them had positive benefits. The churches were ‘established’.

16:30-33 Notice that the jailer was not saved by a simple declaration of belief in the Lord Jesus. He had to be instructed in the fullness of the Gospel, i.e. the things concerning the Kingdom of God and the Name of Jesus Christ. Once the jailer understood those things, he made his confession of faith by being baptised. All of these elements are needed to gain a covenant relation with Jesus, and the hope of salvation.

The jailer, perhaps, had young children in his family. If he did, these were not baptised, because baptism is a confession of faith based upon knowledge. Young children would not be capable of completing the process. 

And so, only the adults in the jailer’s household would have been baptised. Thus, understanding the correct procedure for salvation makes the pagan rite of infant baptism an absurdity.

16:4 the ‘decree’ spoken of here is the letter that the apostles Wrote - Acts 15:24-29

17:11 by the Jews response in Berea to Paul's words we are reminded of the exhortation for us as we receive exposition from the scriptures.  Prov 14:15 further clarifies this for us 'the simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well (literally to mean to separate mentally and to understand) to his going'.  Eve through her simplicity was deceived and believed the serpent.  The word 'noble' in this verse in Acts means to be well born of a noble family and shows the standing of these because of how they reacted to Paul's words. The first occurrence of this word is in Luke 19:12 the parable of the nobleman (Christ), we who have been born again, well born into a noble family to be by God's grace, kings and priests and therefore must be of the same mind as the Jews in Berea so that we be not deceived.

16:3 Paul is not compromising his understanding or belief that a man in Christ need not be circumcised. But, Timothy was a young apostle who was destined to preach. If he were not circumcised, Timothy would not be allowed in the temple or synagogues. How then would he be able to preach to the Jews? Timothy’s circumcision was a matter of expediency.

16:14 Purple, used for dying, was made from a certain shell fish found on the coast near Tyre. The shells were crushed, and the fleshy inside of the shellfish was squashed. The milky fluid from the squashed shellfish became purple (sometimes red) when exposed to the air. Quantities of the purple substance were collected and distributed to sellers in various regions. Lydia was such a seller in Thyatira (modern Turkey).

16:24 The stocks were not as we might imagine them today. Adam Clarke comments: Two large pieces of wood, pierced with holes like our stocks, and fitted to each other, that, when the legs were in, they could not be drawn out. The holes being pierced at different distances, the legs might be separated or divaricated to a great extent, which must produce extreme pain.

17:3 Did Jesus have to die for Himself?

17:18 Epicureans were followers of Epicurus. Their philosophy was to extract the best things out of life. They sought to have a pleasant life with no contention or stress. Today, and epicurean is a person who seeks fine food and drink.

Stoics were followers of Zeno. They believed in approaching problems with indifference in an attempt to live peaceably with the universe. Today, a stoic is considered a calm and uncomplaining person.

17:22 Mars’ hill (KJV) (or Ares hill) is often known by the translation Areopagus (ESV).

17:30,31 These are strong preaching points that we can use.

16:16-18 One might have thought that Paul would have been pleased that the status of him and Luke was being spoken of by the maid. However his grief was, it seems, that gain was being made by the use of the maid. Hence his rebuke of the ‘spirit’.

17:16-17      Given the city was given over to idolatry one might think it odd that Paul disputed in the synagogue. However this doubtless indicates that the Jews were also involved in the idolatry.

Acts 16:27-30

“And the keeper of the prison … seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm… and he (jailer)…came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas… and said… Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

This question asked two thousand years ago is still being asked today, “What must I do to be saved?” God, in His great mercy, “... not willing that any should perish...” (2Pet 3:9) provided the way of salvation through His son, Jesus the Messiah. Yet, the world has, “... sought out many inventions” (Ecc 7:29).

Achilles, the son of Peleus and Thetis, was the mightiest of the Greeks who fought in the Trojan War. He is the hero of Homer’s Iliad. His mother, Thetis, attempting to make him immortal, took the young boy by the heel and dipped him in the river Styx. Everything the sacred waters touched became invulnerable, but the heel remained dry and, therefore, unprotected. Achilles later died in battle after getting struck in the heel! The term, “Achilles’ heel” has come to mean our principal weakness. The world is much like this, always going about searching for immortality in every way, but the God-appointed way.

God, through His son, invites men and women to identify with His son, with his sacrifice, and with his resurrection. We can benefit from this great act of Divine mercy. The foundation has been laid for becoming related to the saving work of Messiah. We just need to submit, obey and follow him, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 6:23).

RESURRECTION

When Paul spoke to the people in Athens, the people listened to him gladly, right up until the point when he began to speak about the resurrection. It was then that his audience became divided. "When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but other said, 'We want to hear you again on this subject.'" (Acts 17:32)

As Christians the resurrection is one of the central themes of our faith. Because of the resurrection of Jesus, we believe in the forgiveness of our sins. Because of the resurrection of Jesus we believe that "God has set a day when he will judge the world by justice by the man he has appointed." (Acts 17:31) Because Jesus was resurrected we can be sure that we also can and will be resurrected. Because of the resurrection we can be sure that our faith is not in vain.

But if Paul had gone around only doing good deeds in Athens but not telling anyone what he believed, there would have been very little change in the city. But because of what he said, a number of people became believers. Let us make sure we preach the resurrection both by what we say and how we act. Without words we cannot do a full job. Let us tell others about the resurrection.

17:29  In reality the Athenians were no different from the Jews in making a God after their own image. Isaiah had highlighted the folly of such activities – Isa 40:18-19 – but is not simply that idols are worthless. Anyone who makes an idol to worship is actually denying that God wants man in His image – Gen 1:26

Acts 17:30

“And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.”

We are living in a day and age when mankind is without excuse in worshipping strange gods and holding strange doctrines. An “unknown god” is a god of whom nothing is known, but to obtain eternal life we must know God (John 17:3).

There was a time when people were ignorant of the true God, a time which God suffered the nations to walk in their own ways in worshipping deities of wood, silver and stone, and did not punish them (cf. Acts 14:16). This is not to imagine that God regarded their idolatry as innocent, or approved of, but rather took into consideration their ignorance. For several hundreds of years, God sent no messengers or messages to them, but now He sent the apostles and stirred them up to preach to the Gentiles as well as Jews in turning from their idolatry to worship the one and only, living and true God (cf. Luke 24:47) because there is a judgment day coming throughout the whole world (Acts 17:31). God gave them this revelation to be executed by His Son, and will no longer overlook, or pass by their ignorance. That time has ended.

This passage is frequently used to show God condoned certain actions as outlined in Deut 24:1-4, which is totally out of context! The context of preaching is always the background against which it is presented. Paul preached within the context of what the people sensed, even though it was wrapped in the rags of ignorance and didn’t amount to a hill of beans. He began where they were – extremely devoted to what they conceived to be a deity; he preached to the Jews within the context of the knowledge they had, and he spoke to the ecclesias in view of the understanding they had obtained. It is in this sense that Paul became, “all things to all men, that” he “might by all means save some” (1Cor 9:22).

Being brought to Mars Hill in Athens, a market place frequented by Greek philosophers, Paul seized the opportunity to present to them a proper perspective of life – a God that can be known and must be known if they will be saved. His message was a hallmark presentation that cleared the fog of delusion created by idolatry and philosophy.

Acts 17:18.

What were the beliefs of the Epicureans and the Stoic philosophers?

Since this is the only time that these 2 words are found in the Bible, what their beliefs were need to come from non-Biblical sources. Here's what I have for each.

Epicureans - a sect of philosophers deriving their name from Epicurus (B.C. 342-271), an Athenian philosopher. They taught that pleasure, not absolute truth, was the end to be aimed at, pleasure consisting of mental enjoyments. Peace of mind was the great thing to be attained. Epicurus' followers, in many cases, gave themselves over to sensual pleasures. The English word - epicure - is derived from this man and his teaching. There's a two-fold meaning in my dictionary: 1) one devoted to sensual pleasure; 2) one with sensitive and discriminating taste, especially in food and wine.

Stoics - a sect of Greek philosophers who received their name from the "stoa", a porch at Athens where Zeno (B.C. 357-263) taught. They believed in a Divine government and had a high standard of morality. They appealed to human pride and independence, together with a blind submission to the decrees of fate.

Seeing as their own views were polar opposites to each other, it's interesting that they could unite in this one respect - in finding a common enemy whose views on Jesus and the resurrection seemed so strange to them. It's very much like the Pharisees and Sadducees in Jesus' day, who had very different doctrinal views (see Acts 23 as one example), but could put aside their differences to unite in opposition to Jesus and his teachings. Such is human nature at its worst!

16:27  The jailer was committed to his work. Realising that it would appear that he had not done his job he was willing to die – at his own hand – for his error. But now he is going to die – at his own hand – for his commitment to his new job, The job is serving God.

17:22-31         Paul was preaching to gentiles. However he does use the Old Testament in  his preaching. Here are some quotations he uses.

17:25  When Paul speaks of God as “Lord of heaven and earth” he is using words that Jesus had used – Matt 11:25.

17:34  Notice. In speaking of Dionysius as the Areopagite we learn that at least one of those who were involved in the market place listened to, and responded to, the things that Paul had said on Mars Hill.

17:17    One would imagine that the “devout persons” would, initially at least, welcomed Paul’s involvement. They would have seen him as a powerful ally against the idol worshippers. Though one wonders how they felt when he preached the resurrection to them also.

16:1    This visit to Lystra and Derbe is about 7 years after the events ofActs 14: .

Acts 16:9

“And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; there stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him saying, Come over to Macedonia, and help us.”

“MACEDONIA contained many cities, among which were Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessalonica, and Berea. Al these Paul visited as well as Philippi, announcing in one of the same glad tidings as in all the rest. No one, we presume, will dispute this. Thus when he visited Thessalonica, he gave them to understand that he was the bearer of an invitation to them from the living and true God of Israel, who had commanded him to invite them to His kingdom and glory. Many of the idolatrous Macedonians there accepted the invitation joyfully when they discovered that it was genuine—that it was no fiction, but a word sent to them from heaven, and therefore styled ‘the Word of God,’ in deed and in truth, being confirmed by the power of God. This created in them a hope which was the ‘one hope of the calling,’ or invitation; so that he could address them as he could not address their idolatrous friends, saying, ‘be not as the others, who have no hope.’

The hope formed in them by the apostle’s preaching looked forward to the coming of the day of the Lord in which Jesus should re-appear upon the earth. But so well had he instructed them, that they did not expect that day to arrive until there had first been an Apostasy from the Faith, acuminating in power styled, ‘the Man of Sin,’ whose revelation would be preceded by the removal of the power then existing. ‘Remember yet not,’ says he, ‘that when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And what withholds now for his being revealed in his appointed time, ye know.’ Yea, so conspicuous a place had these things in his preaching, that an outcry was soon raised against him, accusing him, in the city of the Philippian jailor, of ‘teaching precepts which were not lawful for them to receive, neither to observe, being Romans,’ and in Thessalonica, of ‘doing contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying, there is another king—one Jesus.’”

Brother Dr. John Thomas, Herald, 1857, p. 169

Acts 16:30,31

“… Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…”

The most often quote used to answer this question may be read in John 3:16 (cf. Luke 18:18). But is there all that is to it? Jesus taught that God requires us to demonstrate our faith by obediently doing the will of the Father (Matt 7:21; Matt 12:50).

Brother John Thomas in an address to answer questions from his readers, wrote the following pertaining to this very subject in THE HERALD 1860.

“Do you inquire what you must do, that you may inherit eternal life? That you may be prepared for Christ at his coming? We answer, that the Scriptures teach, that we must return to first principles: to those institutions which are sanctioned by the apostolic writings. We must obtain ‘the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins’ [Luke 1:77]. This is the first step… The instant, therefore, that a man obtains the remission of his sins, he acquires, in that act a right and title to eternal life…

Do you inquire what you must do to obtain this right and title to eternal life in the remission of sins? Permit us to quote a few passages from the New Testament in reply to this question. Mark 16:15,16; Acts 2:38,40; 3:19…

If you inquire, is this all that is to be done to acquire a right and title to eternal life? We answer, it is. But you will observe, that to obtain a right and title to an estate is not the same thing as to obtain possession of it; a right and title may be acquired, but, under certain conditions they may be forfeited. No one can enter the Kingdom of God, or possess Life Eternal, without first obtaining a right and title; though vast numbers, it is to be feared, who have acquired a right and title, will forfeit them; and consequently, never realise any share in the glory and renown of the future age… we must also patiently continue in well-doing till the Lord comes… must be occupied in forming our characters after the model of Jesus: ‘who is the exact representation of the character of God,’ and therefore, the very best after which we can aspire. Character and not opinions will be the test of our admission into the Kingdom of God; let us form, then, such a character as we have delineated in the Lamb’s Book of Life…

The character we are required to form, that we may realize the ‘one hope of our calling, ‘must be inspirited by the truth; that is, the law of the Lord must dwell in us, with the courageous determination to obey it, or live in conformity to it, and to contend earnestly for it, at all hazards… Such are the things which constitute the character of the man, whose religion is pure and undefiled, and who will be accepted when the Day Star shall illume the world.” (Emphasis added).

Truth not only requires a theoretical assent, but also a practical recognition. Our approximation to the divine character is the basis upon which bestowal of the divine nature will be made.

16:19 We should understand that “drew” really means that Paul and Silas were dragged forcibly. This was a very ugly situation for them.

16:21 Do we think that the gospel teaches us to do things which are contrary to the law of the and in which we live? Of course the accusation was a trumped up false accusation. However it should make us think about the fact that we should be law abiding members of society.

16:18 Paul could see that the girl was unhelpful in his preaching the gospel. However he did not respond immediately. It was “after many days” that he acted. We do well to reflect on this. Immediate action is not always the best approach. Allowing a little time before acting to deal with an irritant is generally a good idea. 

16:9 There are a number of occasions in Acts when it is clear that the apostles are being directed by God as to where to go and what to do. This is one of those occasions. Paul obeyed even though he did not know what he was being sent to Macedonia to do. Are we willing volunteers –trusting we will never be asked to do anything inappropriate by our fellow believers?

16:1-2 One imagines that there were many young brethren who Paul might have selected to accompany him in his preaching work. However he chose Timothy. The reason is given. He was respected by his fellow believers. Such an accolade is a consequence of long time faithful and consistent commitment. It is not earned by the believer who is sometimes reliable and other times not. Such a simple point but essential for anyone who wishes to represent Christ.

16:30  Wasn’t there an easier way for the jailor to learn the gospel than for Paul and Silas to be beaten and imprisoned? The answer clearly is “yes”. However this was the way that the Father had planned. A consequence was that, due to the magistrates reaction :38 – the believers would be accorded some safety in the Roman colony of Philippi.

16:3 We should not think that the circumcision of Timothy was a light thing for him to do. It was a debilitating procedure on a grown man – consider the way Simeon and Levi killed all the men in a town after they were circumcised – Gen 34:25. 

What sort of inconveniences are we willing to suffer for Christ?