Thursday, July 29, 2010

July Twenty Nine

~Good Morning~

I am heartbroken. I have a little girl in my group at VBS. She is the sweetest lil thing. The first night she cried at first when she was dropped off and was sitting on my lap. As I held her she was tightly holding/hugging me. I loved this of course (with my tough chicks). My co-leader mentioned to me that her mom was sick with cancer. I was talking to the lil sweetheart last night and she was fine talking about it. She said her mom had cancer of the lungs and that "they say its all over her now". She said how she throws up all the time. UGH!!!! I could not imagine not being able to play with my girls or take them places and show them new things and all the things I love and enjoyed at their age.. AND I feel guilty for taking for granted that we have all the time in the world to "read that book later honey" or "we will go to the park tomorrow, ,MAYBE".

So go do something with your kiddo's that you keep saying MAYBE TOMMOROW too.

  • What is meant by "all the powers of the heavens".

3 He rebuilt the pagan shrines his father, Hezekiah, had destroyed. He constructed altars for Baal and set up an Asherah pole, just as King Ahab of Israel had done. He also bowed before all the powers of the heavens and worshiped them.

  • What is: sorcery,divination and are the mediums and psychics..who/what are they getting the information from?
  • 5 He built these altars for all the powers of the heavens in both courtyards of the Lord's Temple. 6 Manasseh also sacrificed his own son in the fire. He practiced sorcery and divination, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord's sight, arousing his anger.
  • Do we have prophets now? They are in other religions but not spoken about in the non-denomonal churches I have been to.

10 Then the Lord said through his servants the prophets

  • Now God is my God. We all support freedom of religion. Isn't this going against this? (Tough question).
  • .4 He ordered that the altars of Baal be demolished and that the incense altars which stood above them be broken down. He also made sure that the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images were smashed and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 He burned the bones of the pagan priests on their own altars, and so he purified Judah and Jerusalem.


 

Today's Scripture:

2 Kings 21

Manasseh Rules in Judah

Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. His mother was Hephzibah. 2 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the Lord had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. 3 He rebuilt the pagan shrines his father, Hezekiah, had destroyed. He constructed altars for Baal and set up an Asherah pole, just as King Ahab of Israel had done. He also bowed before all the powers of the heavens and worshiped them.

4 He built pagan altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said, "My name will remain in Jerusalem forever." 5 He built these altars for all the powers of the heavens in both courtyards of the Lord's Temple. 6 Manasseh also sacrificed his own son in the fire. He practiced sorcery and divination, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord's sight, arousing his anger.

7 Manasseh even made a carved image of Asherah and set it up in the Temple, the very place where the Lord had told David and his son Solomon: "My name will be honored forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem—the city I have chosen from among all the tribes of Israel. 8If the Israelites will be careful to obey my commands—all the laws my servant Moses gave them—I will not send them into exile from this land that I gave their ancestors." 9 But the people refused to listen, and Manasseh led them to do even more evil than the pagan nations that the Lord had destroyed when the people of Israel entered the land.

2 Chronicles 33:1-9

2 Chronicles 33

Manasseh Rules in Judah

Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. 2 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the Lord had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. 3 He rebuilt the pagan shrines his father, Hezekiah, had broken down. He constructed altars for the images of Baal and set up Asherah poles. He also bowed before all the powers of the heavens and worshiped them.

4 He built pagan altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said, "My name will remain in Jerusalem forever." 5 He built these altars for all the powers of the heavens in both courtyards of the Lord's Temple. 6 Manasseh also sacrificed his own sons in the fire in the valley of Ben-Hinnom. He practiced sorcery, divination, and witchcraft, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord's sight, arousing his anger.

7 Manasseh even took a carved idol he had made and set it up in God's Temple, the very place where God had told David and his son Solomon: "My name will be honored forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem—the city I have chosen from among all the tribes of Israel. 8If the Israelites will be careful to obey my commands—all the laws, decrees, and regulations given through Moses—I will not send them into exile from this land that I set aside for your ancestors." 9 But Manasseh led the people of Judah and Jerusalem to do even more evil than the pagan nations that the Lord had destroyed when the people of Israel entered the land.

2 Kings 21:10-17

10 Then the Lord said through his servants the prophets11 "King Manasseh of Judah has done many detestable things. He is even more wicked than the Amorites, who lived in this land before Israel. He has caused the people of Judah to sin with his idols. 12 So this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I will bring such disaster on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of those who hear about it will tingle with horror. 13 I will judge Jerusalem by the same standard I used for Samaria and the same measure I used for the family of Ahab. I will wipe away the people of Jerusalem as one wipes a dish and turns it upside down. 14 Then I will reject even the remnant of my own people who are left, and I will hand them over as plunder for their enemies. 15 For they have done great evil in my sight and have angered me ever since their ancestors came out of Egypt."

16 Manasseh also murdered many innocent people until Jerusalem was filled from one end to the other with innocent blood. This was in addition to the sin that he caused the people of Judah to commit, leading them to do evil in the Lord's sight.

17 The rest of the events in Manasseh's reign and everything he did, including the sins he committed, are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.

2 Chronicles 33:10-19

10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they ignored all his warnings. 11 So the Lord sent the commanders of the Assyrian armies, and they took Manasseh prisoner. They put a ring through his nose, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon. 12But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the Lord his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors. 13 And when he prayed, the Lord listened to him and was moved by his request. So the Lord brought Manasseh back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh finally realized that the Lord alone is God!

14 After this Manasseh rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, from west of the Gihon Spring in the Kidron Valley to the Fish Gate, and continuing around the hill of Ophel. He built the wall very high. And he stationed his military officers in all of the fortified towns of Judah. 15 Manasseh also removed the foreign gods and the idol from the Lord's Temple. He tore down all the altars he had built on the hill where the Temple stood and all the altars that were in Jerusalem, and he dumped them outside the city. 16 Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings and thanksgiving offerings on it. He also encouraged the people of Judah to worship the Lord, the God of Israel. 17 However, the people still sacrificed at the pagan shrines, though only to the Lord their God.

18 The rest of the events of Manasseh's reign, his prayer to God, and the words the seers spoke to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, are recorded in The Book of the Kings of Israel. 19 Manasseh's prayer, the account of the way God answered him, and an account of all his sins and unfaithfulness are recorded in The Record of the Seers. It includes a list of the locations where he built pagan shrines and set up Asherah poles and idols before he humbled himself and repented.

2 Kings 21:18

18 When Manasseh died, he was buried in the palace garden, the garden of Uzza. Then his son Amon became the next king.

2 Chronicles 33:20

20 When Manasseh died, he was buried in his palace. Then his son Amon became the next king.

2 Kings 21:19-26

Amon Rules in Judah

19 Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem two years. His mother was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz from Jotbah. 20 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, just as his father, Manasseh, had done. 21 He followed the example of his father, worshiping the same idols his father had worshiped. 22 He abandoned the Lord, the God of his ancestors, and he refused to follow the Lord's ways.

23 Then Amon's own officials conspired against him and assassinated him in his palace. 24 But the people of the land killed all those who had conspired against King Amon, and they made his son Josiah the next king.

25 The rest of the events in Amon's reign and what he did are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah. 26 He was buried in his tomb in the garden of Uzza. Then his son Josiah became the next king.

2 Chronicles 33:21-25

Amon Rules in Judah

21 Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem two years. 22 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, just as his father, Manasseh, had done. He worshiped and sacrificed to all the idols his father had made. 23 But unlike his father, he did not humble himself before the Lord. Instead, Amon sinned even more.

24 Then Amon's own officials conspired against him and assassinated him in his palace. 25 But the people of the land killed all those who had conspired against King Amon, and they made his son Josiah the next king.

2 Kings 22:1-2

2 Kings 22

Josiah Rules in Judah

Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. His mother was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah from Bozkath. 2 He did what was pleasing in the Lord's sight and followed the example of his ancestor David. He did not turn away from doing what was right.

2 Chronicles 34:1-7

2 Chronicles 34

Josiah Rules in Judah

Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. 2 He did what was pleasing in the Lord's sight and followed the example of his ancestor David. He did not turn away from doing what was right.

3 During the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David. Then in the twelfth year he began to purify Judah and Jerusalem, destroying all the pagan shrines, the Asherah poles, and the carved idols and cast images.4 He ordered that the altars of Baal be demolished and that the incense altars which stood above them be broken down. He also made sure that the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images were smashed and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 He burned the bones of the pagan priests on their own altars, and so he purified Judah and Jerusalem.

6 He did the same thing in the towns of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, even as far as Naphtali, and in the regions all around them. 7He destroyed the pagan altars and the Asherah poles, and he crushed the idols into dust. He cut down all the incense altars throughout the land of Israel. Finally, he returned to Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 1-2:22

Jeremiah 1

1 These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests from the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. 2 The Lord first gave messages to Jeremiah during the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah. 3 The Lord's messages continued throughout the reign of King Jehoiakim, Josiah's son, until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah, another of Josiah's sons. In August of that eleventh year the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.

Jeremiah's Call and First Visions

4 The Lord gave me this message:

5 "I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb.
      Before you were born I set you apart
      and appointed you as my prophet to the nations."

6 "O Sovereign Lord," I said, "I can't speak for you! I'm too young!"

7 The Lord replied, "Don't say, 'I'm too young,' for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. 8 And don't be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you. I, the Lord, have spoken!" 9 Then the Lord reached out and touched my mouth and said,

"Look, I have put my words in your mouth!
 10 Today I appoint you to stand up
      against nations and kingdoms.
   Some you must uproot and tear down,
      destroy and overthrow.
   Others you must build up
      and plant."

11 Then the Lord said to me, "Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?"

And I replied, "I see a branch from an almond tree."

12 And the Lord said, "That's right, and it means that I am watching, and I will certainly carry out all my plans."

13 Then the Lord spoke to me again and asked, "What do you see now?"

And I replied, "I see a pot of boiling water, spilling from the north."

14 "Yes," the Lord said, "for terror from the north will boil out on the people of this land. 15 Listen! I am calling the armies of the kingdoms of the north to come to Jerusalem. I, the Lord, have spoken!

"They will set their thrones
      at the gates of the city.
   They will attack its walls
      and all the other towns of Judah.
 16 I will pronounce judgment
      on my people for all their evil—
   for deserting me and burning incense to other gods.
      Yes, they worship idols made with their own hands!

17 "Get up and prepare for action.
      Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say.
   Do not be afraid of them,
      or I will make you look foolish in front of them.
 18 For see, today I have made you strong
      like a fortified city that cannot be captured,
      like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.
   You will stand against the whole land—
      the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah.
 19 They will fight you, but they will fail.
      For I am with you, and I will take care of you.
      I, the Lord, have spoken!"

Jeremiah 2

The Lord's Case against His People

1 The Lord gave me another message. He said, 2 "Go and shout this message to Jerusalem. This is what the Lord says:

"I remember how eager you were to please me
      as a young bride long ago,
   how you loved me and followed me
      even through the barren wilderness.
 3 In those days Israel was holy to the Lord,
      the first of his children.
   All who harmed his people were declared guilty,
      and disaster fell on them.
      I, the Lord, have spoken!"

4 Listen to the word of the Lord, people of Jacob—all you families of Israel! 5 This is what the Lord says:

"What did your ancestors find wrong with me
      that led them to stray so far from me?
   They worshiped worthless idols,
      only to become worthless themselves.
 6 They did not ask, 'Where is the Lord
      who brought us safely out of Egypt
   and led us through the barren wilderness—
      a land of deserts and pits,
   a land of drought and death,
      where no one lives or even travels?'

7 "And when I brought you into a fruitful land
      to enjoy its bounty and goodness,
   you defiled my land and
      corrupted the possession I had promised you.
 8 The priests did not ask,
      'Where is the Lord?'
   Those who taught my word ignored me,
      the rulers turned against me,
   and the prophets spoke in the name of Baal,
      wasting their time on worthless idols.
 9 Therefore, I will bring my case against you,"
      says the Lord.
   "I will even bring charges against your children's children
      in the years to come.

10 "Go west and look in the land of Cyprus;
      go east and search through the land of Kedar.
   Has anyone ever heard of anything
      as strange as this?
 11 Has any nation ever traded its gods for new ones,
      even though they are not gods at all?
   Yet my people have exchanged their glorious God
      for worthless idols!
 12 The heavens are shocked at such a thing
      and shrink back in horror and dismay,"
      says the Lord.
 13 "For my people have done two evil things:
   They have abandoned me—
      the fountain of living water.
   And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns
      that can hold no water at all!

The Results of Israel's Sin

14 "Why has Israel become a slave?
      Why has he been carried away as plunder?
 15 Strong lions have roared against him,
      and the land has been destroyed.
   The towns are now in ruins,
      and no one lives in them anymore.
 16 Egyptians, marching from their cities of Memphis and Tahpanhes,
      have destroyed Israel's glory and power.
 17 And you have brought this upon yourselves
      by rebelling against the Lord your God,
      even though he was leading you on the way!

18 "What have you gained by your alliances with Egypt
      and your covenants with Assyria?
   What good to you are the streams of the Nile
      or the waters of the Euphrates River?
 19 Your wickedness will bring its own punishment.
      Your turning from me will shame you.
   You will see what an evil, bitter thing it is
      to abandon the Lord your God and not to fear him.
      I, the Lord, the Lord of Heaven's Armies, have spoken!

20 "Long ago I broke the yoke that oppressed you
      and tore away the chains of your slavery,
   but still you said,
      'I will not serve you.'
   On every hill and under every green tree,
      you have prostituted yourselves by bowing down to idols.
 21 But I was the one who planted you,
      choosing a vine of the purest stock—the very best.
      How did you grow into this corrupt wild vine?
 22 No amount of soap or lye can make you clean.
      I still see the stain of your guilt.
      I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!


 


 


 

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