Offense Defense > Farrell's Bible Notes

Day 61: Numbers 23-25; Luke 9:28-62

.Luke 9:28-30 | It may be possible that they were allowed to see this as assurance that Jesus was not Elias or one of the old prophets as some others speculated (verse 19).

.Luke 9:31-33 | Peter somehow knew that who Jesus was talking to was Elias and Moses, although nobody seemed to have told Peter this. Our Father in Heaven may have revealed this to Peter like in Matthew 16:17 when Peter knew that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God although no man had revealed that to Peter, or as Jesus testified "flesh and blood hath no revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in Heaven."

.Luke 9:38-42 | This seems like an extreme case, something we wouldn't see today. Yet, I believe there are many cases of this type of behavior in kids, but it's most often diagnosed as a mental health condition and the child is prescribed drugs that help keep the child under better control. I'm not a mental health professional and have not dealt with these cases, but I do believe that at least some of these cases are not just mental health issues, but possessions which must be dealt with by the power of God.

.Luke 9:54 | Again, "Elias" is Greek for "Elijah." This is speaking of II Kings 1:10-14 when the king sent his men to Elijah and Elijah said that if he (Elijah) was truly a man of God then let fire come down from heaven and consume them (the king's men). I suppose John and James were thinking that Jesus should be proving Himself here to be the son of God.

.Luke 9:55 | The King James version contains this whole verse, but The New International Version (NIV), English Standard Version (ESV), and I'm sure a ton of other (per)versions have completely removed the last sentence of this verse. In this verse Jesus says "Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of." Some have added it in the footnotes. It's interesting to note that though they were generally following Jesus that they were acting of another spirit at the time. Also it's interesting to note that they themselves didn't even know what manner of spirit they were of. They weren't even aware that they were operating outside of the Spirit of God. This is relevant to our lives because sometimes some of us may feel like we are walking so close with Jesus that we are not capable of going astray. There have been times when I've seen my brothers or sisters in Christ not operating in God's spirit and if they were told so, they may deny it and even get angry with you for pointing it out to them. And sometimes it's not others, sometimes it's us. This is where humility must come in and pride must go out. While going over this with a sister in Christ, I have to remind myself of something. At the moment of time when this was occurring here in Luke 9, this is still the old testament (because Jesus had not died, risen, and ascended and the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) had not come down upon them yet. So although they had Jesus there with them, it's very possible and likely that His spirit was not yet in them. Yes, He gave them power and authority over all devils and to heal the sick and do miracles, but we can't confuse the granting of physical (or supernatural) abilities with the transference or infusing of God's Spirit. This is probably similar to Moses audibly hearing God and doing wonders with his rod, which was not done by Moses' power, but by God's power. We, who are after Jesus' ascension have access to the Holy Spirit being within us, and leading us from within, unlike them who would have been led by God who to them was an outside source of leadership to them. Yet, there are cases in the Old Testament where the Spirit of God did come upon certain people, such as Samson. Also, I must remind myself that it was revealed to Peter by the Father (not flesh and blood) who Jesus was, yet this does not require that the Holy Spirit had to be in Peter for God to tell him something.

.Luke 9:56 | The King James version contains this whole verse, but The New International Version (NIV), English Standard Version (ESV), and I'm sure a ton of other (per)versions have completely removed the first sentence of this verse. In this verse Jesus says "For the son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." Some have added it in the footnotes.

.Luke 9:58 | Jesus was obviously in the same situation as his disciples in verse 4 who didn't have their own dwelling place to stay.

.Luke 9:59-60 | We see here that it was not only the twelve apostles that Jesus commanded to go and preach the kingdom of God, but others who followed Him as well. Also, it's not mentioned that this person had to graduate from any theology school or ministers training program. Of course though, if he would follow Jesus, he would learn from Jesus. The basic message though, was very simple: repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand (Matthew 4:17).

.Luke 9:61-62 | This lesson is similar to the situation with Lot and his wife when they left Sodom and Gomorrah and were told not to look back. Now the analogy of the plough (also spelled "plow") is a fairly simple one. I have never used a real old fashioned plow before, but I have the discovery channel and can learn some of these things from the comfort of my couch. A man was using horses or oxen to plow or pull wood and when he put his hand on the plow, the horses took off. He said once they're off and running, you better be on there, because those horses will keep on going and are not going to look back to make sure you're still holding on. They've got a job to do. They have to get from point A to B with little time wasted and once they get some sort of signal that you're on board, there's no time for waiting around. As we see at the beginning of the next chapter, there's a lot of work to do and only a few to do it. Just like the guys I saw on that TV show, they get out there and they git er done!

Day 62: Numbers 26-28; Luke 10

.Numbers 28 | This chapter lays out the ground rules for different offerings, what's to be offered and how exactly it's supposed to be offered. Concerning offerings, there were at least 16 different offerings (burnt offering, cereal/grain/meal/meat offering, peace/fellowship offering, sin offering, guilt/trespass offering, drink offering, free will offering, wave offering, heave offering, votive offering, thank offering, ordination offering, jealousy offering, incense offering, gift offering, and personal offering). Today, many people use the term "offerings" loosely and with no real definition. However, the term "offering" was not just a general term without specific meaning or purpose, and is not just another way of saying "give money." Leviticus and Numbers has a fair amount of info about offerings.

.Luke 10:1 | It's likely that they were sent two by two, not only for protection, but also so they could minister to each other and encourage each other. They would also be able to bear witness for each other as well.

.Luke 10:26 | This could signify that he was responsible according to his own understanding of what he read in the scriptures.

.Luke 10:29-37 | There is a message that stands out to me here. Don't question "who is my neighbor?" so you can love only them, but rather, you should be a neighbor to others. The King James version spells words like neighbor, savior, etc with "our" at the end instead of "or," such as neighbour, saviour.

.Luke 10:41 | The word "careful" is used here in the King James Version as well as in Philippians 4:6. Some other versions replace this word in Phil 4:6 with the word "anxious," which may be less than accurate. The word careful is somewhat of a compound word, meaning full of care, hence the spelling "care-ful." This word is also used in 2 Kings 4:13 providing a more descriptive use of the word, which lets us know that it means something other than anxious. This verse in Kings says "Behold, thou has been careful for us with all this care..."

Day 63: Numbers 29-31; Luke 11

.Numbers 30:2 | Contrast this with Matthew 5:33-37 when Jesus says "swear not at all" and goes on to specify just how much He means what He says. This is part of Jesus' famous sermon in the mountain (aka Sermon on the Mount) where He repeatedly addresses many areas of the law and then calls His followers to a higher standard than what's commanded by the law. The message here is that you should always keep your word, not just when you swear or make a vow. If you are always keeping your word and doing what you say you'll do, for example, then swearing is pointless and even shows a lack of continual integrity. Should I only take you seriously when you say "dude, I swear!" or should I always be able to take you seriously?

.Luke 11:2 | "And he said unto them, 'When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in Heaven, so in earth." Most of us always hear this prayer and most of us have said it at some time. I was taught this prayer as a little boy, memorized it and said it for nearly twenty years without realizing exactly what I was saying. However, I said the rendition of it found at Matthew 6:9. In Matthew, Jesus begins saying "After this manner therefore pray ye..." He does not say "say these words," which is what many of us do. We simply say the words. By saying "after this manner" He's saying to follow this way of praying, not necessarily the specific words. We have even given these words a specific name and call it "The Lord's Prayer" although the Bible never actually uses any such name and does not give this prayer a name. In my opinion, it's okay to use that as a reference so people know what you're talking about, but I don't recall ever seeing where prayers have names. Remember, right before this prayer is said by Jesus, He tells them "use not vain repetition as the heathen do" (Matthew 6:7). "OUR FATHER" signifies who specifically they were praying to and who they were praying with or on behalf of. It does not say "My Father," but it helps if the person praying keeps in mind that they are not alone and not to be self-centered. This is not to say that saying "my Father" is wrong, because Jesus Himself did say exactly that in Matt 26:42. "WHICH ART IN HEAVEN" signifies that we are not just praying to some form of energy floating around us or to the earth, but to our Father which is in Heaven. "HALLOWED BE THY NAME" - generally speaking, hallowed means set aside or sacred. I believe "hallow" is the word that we derive "halo" from, although "halo" is a noun that is not found in the Bible. "THY KINGDOM COME" - The word "come" is the same word we use today (come, coming, came) and Jesus speaks more about God's Kingdom throughout the new testament, including Matt 12:28, 16:28; Luke 11:20; 17:20-21. Search through a concordance to see what else you can learn about the Kingdom of God (http://www.abibleconcordance.com/Concordance.html). "THY WILL BE DONE, AS IN HEAVEN, SO IN EARTH" - We know what "will" is. I'm sure many of you have reminded others that you have free will and can do whatever you want. Or even heard of the legal document we call a "will," which is what a person would have done. Well God has a will too, and this is basically a statement signifying that the person praying is desiring for God to have His way here on earth just as God has His way in Heaven. Jesus prays this very thing in Matthew 26:42 when He says "O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done." "GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD" - If you recall from Luke 9:3; 9:14-17; 10:7; they were in a situation where they had to depend on the Lord to provide for them to eat daily. Also recall the manna from Heaven that God provided daily for the children of Israel to eat in Exodus 16:21. This may not just be referring to food, but also other life necessities and the Word of God, as Jesus says He is the bread of life and that whoever comes to Him shall never hunger (John 6:35).

.Luke 11:9-13 | Regard James 4:1-3 when reading this, especially verse 3. Also note the underlying message here at the end of Luke 11:13. I'll also point out too that there are some people these days who claim that the receiving of the Holy Spirit is only evidenced by the speaking of tongues. I will point out that the Holy Spirit is someone that God sends (John 14:26), not some thing that a man forces another to try to have. Also, speaking in tongues is not to be pimped as a standardized testing method to judge if one is a follower of Christ or not. For one, the Holy Spirit is not a hired performer operating under the commandment of man. Secondly, 1 Corinthians 12 (especially verses 4,8-10, and 29-31) let's us know that speaking of tongues is not the only gift or appointment of the Holy Spirit or the only evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 14 should also be regarded as well. None of us should be trying to force another to speak in tongues. That is trying to force the Holy Spirit to perform on command and also telling the Holy Spirit exactly what gift or appointment to give to who and when. If we would like to know whether someone is in Christ and whether God is in him, we should regard 1 John 4 (note: 1 John is a letter in the back of the Bible after Peter and before 2 John and 3 John, and is a different book than John, which is at the beginning of the New Testament).

.Luke 11:46-47 | Stephen was stoned and killed for proclaiming this same thing in Acts 7:52.

Day 64: Numbers 32-34; Luke 12:1-31

.Luke 12:15 | "Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth." I just wanted to repeat that to make sure that was read. We are great at coveting what others have, and judging human worth based on one's possessions. Even those of us who should know better, still judge based on who has what.

.Luke 12:19 | Apparently, although the man was not doing God's will, he still tried to use the teaching of Ecclesiastes 2:24 to justify what he wanted to do.

.Luke 12:22-31 | I just wanted to highlight these verses.

Day 65: Numbers 35-36; Luke 12:32-59

.Numbers 36:6-7 | Apparently, God only asked that they stay within (marry) their tribe to keep the inheritance promised to their people (Deuteronomy 8:1).

.Luke 12:35 | Your loins should be girt about with truth, as said in Ephesians 6:14.

.Luke 12:51-53 | This division He is speaking of is related to His parable of the wheat and the tares. To read more about that parable visit Matthew 13:36-43 and also read my January 14th / Day 14 commentary on this passage. Through tribulation and persecution, there will also arise an obvious division even between family members, the ones that truly believe and are willing to endure and the ones who don't and who won't endure and will be offended easily by it and even turn against their own family to try to keep them from enduring it. To read about that visit Matthew 13:21 and my January 13th / Day 13 commentary on Matt 13:21. In conjunction with that scripture read Matthew 24:9-14 and my Matthew 24:10 commentary on January 25th / Day 25.

Day 66: Deuteronomy 1-3; Luke 13

.Deuteronomy 1:4 | This is in reference to Numbers 21:23-24 when it says Israel smote him with the edge of the sword because he wouldn't let them pass through the border of his land.

.Deuteronomy 1:7-8 | The Lord swore this to Abraham as he testifies in Genesis 24:7 and to Isaac in Genesis 26:3-4 and to Jacob in Genesis 28:13-15.

.Deuteronomy 1:11 | He is referring to what God promised to Abraham in Genesis 22:17 and to Isaac in Genesis 26:4,24 and to Jacob in Genesis 28:14.

.Deuteronomy 1:17 | In Acts 10:34, Peter says that he perceives that God is no respecter of persons. This verse here in Deuteronomy helps us to understand better what Peter was saying in Acts.

.Deuteronomy 1:26-28 | These are the words Moses was speaking to Israel, as stated in verse 9, starting in verse 1. God brought these people out of Egypt, freeing them from their bondage and all they've been doing is complaining ever since, even to the point of rebelling against God's commandment for them to go into the promised land. However, this can not all be blamed on these "rebels" as they were called, but also on Moses because this is a consequence of him not believing God in Numbers 20:8. God tells Moses in 20:12 that he will not bring the congregation into the land which he has given them. Why is this happening? Apparently God had something to show these people to get them to calm down and listen and realize that He, God, was in charge and really was leading Moses. Recall from Numbers 20:2-5, the people are upset because they think Moses and God brought them out there to die. God has the perfect opportunity to win these people over through Moses, and tells Moses speak to the rock. Instead of Moses listening to God and performing this extremely great sign/wonder, Moses, probably in some mix of desperation, disbelief, and rebellion does not do as told, but strikes the rock. So instead of the people witnessing this great miracle of God, which could have been all the proof they needed in order to realize that God was behind this, all they got was a little drink of water. It seems the people would not follow, because they were not ever able to see the evidence of God working, to know that they were supposed to be where they were. I suppose they simple decided to stop following Moses. I hear people say all of the time, "God, just give me a sign that you're there. I just want to know that you're here with me and whether this is what I'm supposed to do or not." However, as we see in verse 35, this does not excuse the people of their ways and disbelief, just as we are not excused from any disbelief in God's word, regardless of whether we see a sign or not. Jesus even testifies in John 20:29 "blessed are they that have not see, and yet have believed." Jesus was not particularly speaking of this passage in Deuteronomy, but I believe the principle may still be applied as it is also applied to our lives now. I'm pretty sure there are some people even in 2009 that were supposed to follow God's instruction to perform some signs and wonders (or miracles), but because they didn't, there are others who will not see the hand of God at work. However, this is not any excuse for any of us to be rebels or not to believe in God. I know there are some people who'd like to just believe that Moses was just so perfect. He was a great man, but we see here that he wasn't perfect, and neither are we perfect. This is why we must have faith in God's word, regardless of man's shortcomings, and not walk by sight. It makes me wonder, if we were perfect followers of God's word and performed every miracle He told all of us to perform, would we be able to walk by sight? (Oct.27.2012)What I'm asking is this: if we were fortunate enough to have been able to witness all of the miracles and acts that God commanded each of us to do, and by them could clearly see the hand of God at work through these things, would we be able to have a greater, and more solid belief in God's word after having witnessed these things? Perhaps so, but since we all, at times, behave as a modern day Moses, I suppose God does need us to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Otherwise, we all may also end up as that rebellious nation and refuse to go into our eternal promised land.

.Deuteronomy 1:17 | Through Joshua, the son of Nun, God is still able to fulfill His promise mentioned in Deut 1:7-8. We see from Numbers 14:6-8 that Joshua did believe in God's promise and even told the people not to rebel against the Lord.

.Deuteronomy 1:46 | The people ended up abiding in Kadesh instead of going into their promised land. This is the place where Moses disobediently struck the rock, which partially caused this (Numbers 20:11,16).

.Luke 13:8 | Dung, which is another word for feces, was used to fertilize the trees. The dresser bought the trees a little more time to bear fruit by saying he needed a little more time to help the trees bear fruit. Jesus would be our dresser, fending for some of us fruitless trees so that we will not be cut down. It is spoken many places in the Bible in reference to man (trees, metaphorically speaking) that "every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire" (Matthew 7:18).

.Luke 13:19 | Matthew 13:31 | Mark 4:31 | I'd like to point to this passage because from what I commonly hear, many people think that Matthew 17:20 and Luke 17:6 says "if you have faith as small as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain remove hence to yonder place." However, these verses (at least in the King James version) do not say "as small as," but they simply say "as a grain of mustard seed." This distinction is important to note, because by looking at the other properties of what the mustard seed does aside from being small, we can get a better idea of how much more this may be saying in Matthew 17:20 and Luke 17:6. In Luke 13:19, we are told that the grain of mustard seed grew and became a great tree. This tells us that our faith, if as a grain of mustard seed, should grow into a great tree. So this passage would not simply be saying that we should just have a little itty bitty piece of faith, but that our faith as the mustard seed (the smallest of all seeds) should grow into something great and mighty. It's important that we do not misread this or misunderstand and consequently end up with some little amount of faith. Let's plan to end up with big faith.

.Luke 13:34 | Jesus had just said this in Luke 11:46-47 to the lawyers about killing the prophets. Here, he also mentions Jerusalem stoning those that are sent to them. Stephen, who was sent to them being full of the Holy Ghost was stoned by them, which is recorded in Acts 7:51-59. (Oct.27.2013) Saul, who also became known as Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament, consented to Stephen's death before he (Saul) turned his life over to Christ.

Day 67: Deuteronomy 4-6; Luke 14

.Deuteronomy 4:12 | It is interesting how this says "the voice of the words..." This says that the words had a voice, instead of saying that the voice had words. It's quite amazing when you realize that Words exist even when there is no manifestation of them. Words (even God's words) still exist even when they is no voice speaking them, when there is no instrument writing them, when there is no device displaying them. Words are more than just something written on a piece of paper... more than just something being spoken. Likewise, the Word of God is more than something merely spoken. John 1:1 says "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Thirteen verses later it says "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us" (who we know as Jesus). However, that Word existed even before we ever beheld it/Him.

.Deuteronomy 4:13 | This refers to the Ten Commandments that God gave the people through Moses, recorded in Exodus 20. However, God gave the people many commandments, not just these ten. In Exodus 20, these are never referred to as the "ten commandments," so I wondered why do we call these the "ten commandments" and where does the Bible ever call them that. That is why I am highlighting this verse, to provide the answer for anyone else who may have had that same question. (Oct.27.2012) They are called "the ten commandments" in Exodus 34:28 and Deuteronomy 10:4.

.Deuteronomy 4:23 | From the wording in 4:13, we know that this is speaking of the ten commandments when it says "the covenant of the Lord your God."

.Luke 14:8-9 | "bidden" and "bade" are two forms of the same word, bid. In this case, to bid means to command or to intreat.

.Luke 14:20 | Okay, I object!!! This excuse is completely bogus! So bogus that I actually used the word "bogus." How is marrying a wife an excuse for not going to a nice dinner? Isn't this the #1 couples activity? Going to dinner? Okay, well.... the #2 activity. Man, take your wife out to dinner and stop making excuses. I know, I know, this is just a parable, but I'm sure someone must have used this excuse before.

Day 68: Deuteronomy 7-9; Luke 15

.Deuteronomy 8:1 | He does not tell them some of the commandments, but ALL of the commandments, that they may live and multiply and possess that which was sworn to their fathers. Although it's a promise to their fathers (forefathers), there is still conditions that they must meet to be the beneficiaries of this promise. God can find a way to keep His promise without them partaking in it or either being delayed in doing so.

.Deuteronomy 8:2 | Numbers 14:33-34 | In Numbers 15:41 God wanted them to know that He was their God and brought them out of the land of Egypt (the place of bondage they wanted to return to). We see from Numbers 16:3,13-14 (verses 13-14) and Numbers 20:3-4 that they refused to acknowledge that it was God that was leading Moses to lead them through the wilderness. In Numbers 21:5 when they did acknowledge God and Moses, they spoke against both God and Moses, assuming they were brought out there to die. I suppose some thought that God was trying to kill them or didn't care about them. In (scripture) God calls them rebellious and Moses in (Num 20:10) calls them rebels, so we know that they were not humble people at the start, therefore needing to be humbled. Those famous among them and the princes and certain others of them thought they were all so holy because they were inheriting a promise from the Lord (Num 16:2-3), yet the Lord was going to consume them in Numbers 16:21. They may have even thought that God was simply being cruel to them or punishing them by keeping them out there for a whole forty years. But we see here that He wasn't doing it to punish them, but to both expose their hearts and correct them. This was actually forty years of patience the Lord had with them. Some of what we go through may be the Lord's patience with us and willingness to have us corrected instead of just doing away with us. And sometimes it takes longer than we would like it to.

.Deuteronomy 8:3 | This manna was spoken of in Exodus 16:15,31-35 and Numbers 11:6,7,9. He didn't simply provide them bread to eat, but made it so in order for the whole process to work, they would have to acknowledge Him. They would have to pay attention to Him and His instructions instead of just putting their head down and shoving their face like pigs in a trough that do not even look up to see where the food is coming from and don't halfway care what it is. I would name this message "There is a Lesson With the Blessing." Even now, we so quickly take God's blessings for granted without even acknowledging His instruction for how to handle what He's given us. Some of us won't even acknowledge that it came from Him and that it was Him who brings us through our wilderness. We should learn from their mistakes. (Oct.27.2012) This is the scripture Jesus was referencing in Matthew 4:4.

.Deuteronomy 8:10-18 | Even beyond these verses there was so much emphasis placed on not forgetting God.

.Deuteronomy 8:17-20 | I want to fly this on a banner over the rooftops in 2009. It was God who gave you the power to get wealth. Yet, I couldn't say this for everyone, because I believe the Devil can pay people to do his dirty work as well. I won't mention any names of musicians and actresses who get in front of the world and and strip naked, then get an award and then try to thank God for their success in doing so.

.Luke 15:25-32 | This is a lesson for those of us who have remained with Christ and did what we were supposed to do, and did not do what we were not supposed to do. We can't be angry because others go astray and then later decide to turn to Christ and Christ welcomes them in. When we hear of a man who was a murderer (or drug dealer) who turned from his way and was received into Heaven, or the prostitute (or neighborhood ho) who turned from that life and was received into Heaven, or whoever else, do not feel like you've been cheated because they will also receive what you will receive. The life of sin is not something to be envied. It is not the good life although you may imagine somewhere in your mind that it is wonderful and glorious. This elder son in this story only focused on how his younger (lost) brother was out there laying with harlots. He was thinking that his little brother was out there living it up, having a grand old time, having all the great sex he wanted. And what if the boy did have some sexual pleasure while he was out there? That was not all that was going on in his miserable little life. It wasn't worth what else came with it. I'm sure the ex-prodigal couldn't even fully enjoy the feast that was thrown for him when he came back because he was feeling like he wasn't even worth it. When we hear of someone turning and giving their life over to serve God, we must realize that if they are true in their heart with it, they may be fighting feelings of guilt, unworthiness, and will often be coming back in desperation. You can believe that in some way, they've been beaten up enough and that is not something you should envy or be angry about, but rather, have compassion. They need to be welcomed and embraced more than you do. In fact, they need you to welcome and embrace them. I remember the night when my brother came back to God after being prodigal for so long. So I'm not just saying this theoretically, but from experience. It wasn't hard to see that he had much more appreciation for being in the presence of God than I did. And God was the father who got His son back, while I had a brother again.

Day 69: Deuteronomy 10-12; Luke 16

.Deuteronomy 10:14 | (June.23.2012) This "heaven of heavens" may be referring to the third heaven, spoken of by Paul the apostle in 2 Corinthians 12:2.

.Deuteronomy 11:13-18 | (correction: moved from Day 68 on June.23.2012) Deuteronomy 13:3 | Matthew 22:37

.Deuteronomy 12:8-9 | Romans 14 speaks more about people doing what is right in one's own eyes while doing it unto the Lord and not causing one's brother to stumble by one's own liberties. 1 Corinthians 6:12 and 10:23 are other scriptures that addresses this. From the wording of Deut 12:8, and how he says "ye shall" in the verses before this one, "the things that we do here this day" is speaking of something prior to the things he's saying "ye shall" do. "Whatsoever is right in his own eyes" would not including the things following "ye shall," but rather the way that they were already living before. In modern day, we have adopted a drastically different form of this. Many people want to do what is right in their own eyes, but they do not do it unto the Lord or with the Lord in mind. They forget the Lord God in whatever they choose to do, instead of remembering Him in whatever they choose to do. This is actually not in accord with the scripture, but the reversing or perverting of it.

.Deuteronomy 12:17-18 | The tithe was something that was edible and was, in fact, eaten in the place that God should choose, along with the offerings. There is actually no scripture that says the tithe was money or could be money.

.Luke 16:9 | Grab your nearest dictionary and look up the word "mammon."

.Luke 16:16 | This is a very pivotal point in the scriptures. Yet, although the Kingdom of God was preached, they were all still under the Old Testament Law until Jesus died on the cross. This is speaking of John the Baptist.

.Luke 16:20 | Many people, even many preachers and companies that print Bibles, think this is a parable. So you may see this in a Bible with a header saying "the parable of the rich man and the beggar (or Lazarus)." However, I very seriously doubt that this is a parable and I'm almost certain that it's not a parable, but a real story. I say this for a few reasons. Other parables generally will say "parable" within the text of the scripture when telling the story and sometimes even give an explanation of the parable. But this one does not say it's a parable, neither gives any following explanation. Also, there is a real name ("a certain beggar named Lazarus") included here in this story. The other stories that were parables contained only nameless characters. It also mentions Abraham, Moses and the prophets. See Luke 18:1 for an example of how the scriptures indicated that a parable was about to be told "and he spake a parable unto them." This parable only contains a nameless judge and a nameless widow. The next parable in Luke 18 speaks of a nameless Pharisee and a nameless publican. It's possible that parables don't name actual places either, however, I haven't paid as much attention to that detail while reading the Bible. John 11:1 does speak of "a certain man" who was "name Lazarus." Jesus raised this man from the dead as told in this same chapter. However, it's still possible that this may not be speaking of that same Lazarus, because in Luke 16:20, Abraham says to that rich man in regard to his five brothers who are still alive, "they have Moses and the prophets." So it's possible that this happened in the time of Moses. However, it's also possible (and more probable) that this happened after the time of Moses, and Abraham and Lazarus (although in two different time periods on earth) were now actually in eternity together. (Oct.27.2013) If that's the case, Abraham would be referring to the actual scriptures and testimonies containing the words of Moses and the prophets when he says "they have Moses and the prophets." He wouldn't be saying that Moses and the prophets were actually walking around among the rich man's brothers. To say they have "Moses and the prophets" would be similar to how the term "the law and the prophets" is used in the Bible to refer to the writings that Moses, the prophets, and other writers had left behind before there was a complete Bible to refer to (i.e. Matthew 22:40).

Day 70: Deuteronomy 13-15; Luke 17

.Deuteronomy 13:3 | Deuteronomy 6:5 and 11:13,18 | Matthew 22:37 | Mark 12:30

.Deuteronomy 14:22 | The field brings forth the seed year by year (seasonal harvest). That's what they were told to tithe. Money is not brought forth year by year by the field.

.Deuteronomy 14:23 | The tithe was actually eaten in the place where the Lord God chose to place his name. Money cannot be eaten.

.Deuteronomy 14:24-26 | This clearly tells us that the tithe was not money, because it says if that place the Lord chose was too far to carry it, then they should turn it into money and take the money there and spend it on whatever their soul lusted after. You can't turn money into money so that it's easier to carry. Secondly, when it was turned to money, it was used up by the tither, not treated as is done with a monetary tithe today, if there could be such a thing.

.Deuteronomy 14:27 | Numbers 18:21 speaks of how the Lord has given "all the tenth" to the children of Levi (Levites) for an inheritance. Numbers 18:6 is another reference to the Levites. What the Levites received was not the same as a salary, such as one would give to church staff. They were receiving this as an inheritance because they, like the widow, stranger and fatherless, would receive no part of inheritance of anything there.

.Deuteronomy 14:28-29 | All of the tithe of the third year was to go to the Levite, stranger, fatherless, and widow within their gates (living among them) and was to be eaten by them. Some may have the question, "well, how could they eat three year old food?" They weren't eating old food. The passage said that at the end of three years (meaning at the end of the third year) they brought forth all of the tithe and they ate it. At the end of the previous two years it was apparently eaten by those tithers in the land who had an inheritance (v.22-23). How could the tithe of that whole year still be good at the end of the year? That's a good question, since today we are often taught that we are supposed to tithe weekly or monthly. However, if we look at verse 22, it says they tithed the increase that the field brought forth year by year, not week by week or month by month. So it's probable that they only tithed once a year. The tithe was the tenth of what the field brought forth year by year, so there would not be tithes sitting in a storehouse rotting for months, but rather if the harvest was collected ten times a year, the tenth time (which would be at the end of the year) would be for the tithe, and still fresh. Okay, so what third year? Tithing was performed in cycles of seven (tithe seven years, seven times = 49 years. Then the 50th year was the year of jubilee | Leviticus 25:1-11). So why do Christian leaders now require weekly or monthly tithes of money and do not eat or give the tithe to anyone? I don't know. I haven't found any Biblical reason or justification for that. It would be a good question for you to research or maybe ask them. Deuteronomy 16:12-14; 26:12 and 27:19 would be good places to start your research. Let me know what else in the Bible you (or they) find that may help answer that question.

.Luke 17:6 | See my March 7 commentary for Luke 13:19 and also Mark 4:31-32. To keep this in perspective, however, also regard 1 Corinthians 13:3 where Paul says that although he has all faith, so that he could remove mountains, if he doesn't have charity, it doesn't do him any good. Essentially, Charity is love established and multiplied by God. That's how I'd describe it.

.Luke 17:7 | "by and by" means "immediately."

.Luke 17:9 | Trow means to believe, suppose, or think and it rhymes with "throw." "I trow not" is the same as we say now "I think not" or "I don't believe so." This is the only place in the Bible where this word is used.

.Luke 17:20-21 | Read Daniel 2:44 about this Kingdom. Also read Matthew 6:10; 12:28 and 16:28; Mark 1:15 and Acts 7:48.

.Luke 17:22-23 | This is an important warning. You should also read Matthew 24:5 and 24:23-27, so you will not be deceived into traveling to different places or taking interest in false Christs. Even if you hear about some person doing great miracles in some part of the world and people are flocking to see him, news coverage and all, you know that Jesus has warned you not to be deceived by it and not to even go see it.

.Luke 17:34-35 | see my Matthew 24:40-41 commentary on January 25th / Day 25.

Day 71: Deuteronomy 16-18; Luke 18

.Deuteronomy 16:17 | This is similar to what's said in 2 Corinthians 8:11-13 about giving what you have, not giving what you don't have. There are some preachers today who will tell you to give even when you don't have, because you are supposed to be giving in faith. That is contrary to what the Word says. This is one of those all important reasons why we each need to know all of what the Bible says. There are many who are told to write checks "in "faith" that the money will be in their account by the time the check is cashed. Some people who are deep in debt are therefore essentially giving from their credit companies and going deeper into debt, thinking that God is requiring such.

.Deuteronomy 17:3 | For the record, the worshipping of the sun is spoken against in the Bible, and the sun and moon are also counted as other "gods." In the first of the Ten Commandments, God was not just speaking of golden calves and other handmade gods when He said "thou shalt have no other gods before me" in Exodus 20:3.

.Luke 18:17 | Little children, until they are ruined, have a trust in those who are leading them. They don't need to go conduct experiments and weigh data to decide whether what you're saying is true or not. They believe generally based on their faith in their source of information. You can tell them just about anything and they believe. Of course there are kids who tend not to believe what they're told, but you might find that there's some reason they've become reluctant to believe. Perhaps they once learned that their most trusted source (parents) have lied to them about Santa Clause, or that daddy is coming back home, or something like that. Perhaps they were promised something seemingly insignificant which they never received, and they learned to stop believing what they're told. What is it that you believed?

.Luke 18:19 | Jesus doesn't say that He Himself if not good. This man, however, obviously does not actually believe that Jesus is good (shown by his actions/or lack thereof). If he did, he would have listened to Him and heeded Jesus' words and sold his possessions.

.Luke 18:29-30 | This listing is similar to that which was mentioned in Luke 14:26. This does not only say that people receive more in the coming everlasting life, but also that people receive more in this present time as well. Isn't that what so many people are consumed by? concern over this present time? Well, apparently God anticipated that desire or need as well. Yet, how many have truly left all of that for the sake of the Kingdom of God? And yes, I did just notice that it did say "wife" as well. We can talk about that more later, but for now I will point out that this does not say divorce or even separation (i.e. "going our separate ways"). In Luke 9:3, the twelve were told to leave everything behind for their journey. Some of them were married, but they went out to do the work of the Lord. This would seem somewhat to be how a military soldier must sometimes go away from their spouse for a time for a military mission.

Day 72: Deuteronomy 19-21; Luke 19

.Deuteronomy 21:22 | Verse 22 speaks about hanging upon on a tree. Jesus is referred to both as hanging on a cross (Mark 15:32) and hanging on a tree (Acts 13:29). We have a view of a perfectly chiseled cross, sanded and smoothed out and possibly even polished. The cross, however, was not an adornment, it was a tool of torture and execution. The wood of course, came from a tree, and I can't imagine that it would have been neatly cut and smoothed out to be comfortable to the person hanging on it. That would have taken too much work, especially since they didn't have the high-tech saws and woodworking tools we have today. Splinters in your back was probably part of the punishment. The cross may have still looked pretty much like a tree.

.Deuteronomy 21:22-23 | We know from Mark 15:42 that Jesus' body did not remain on the tree all night. For this reason mentioned here in verse 23 some people, even I, advise against the use of the crucifix symbol. The cross is the symbol depicting what Jesus had once hung on, but the crucifix is a symbol of Jesus still hanging on the cross. Jesus is no longer on the cross, and so I think it is wrong to have Him still hanging on the cross or even to depict Him as still on the cross. This verse (Deut 21:23) testifies that Jesus was accursed of God (on behalf of our sins), so he (with his sinful flesh) had to be buried so that the land was not defiled. This is similar to us being baptized to bury our sinful flesh.

.Luke 19:10 | "For the son of man is come to seek and save that which was lost." The word "lost" likely signifies that whatever is lost was once in it's rightful place with it's rightful owner. What's lost was once had. Remember the parable of the lost sheep and also the prodigal son in Luke 15. God said to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." I'd say it's a reasonable belief that God also knew us before He formed us in the belly. I'm sure there are other scriptures to confirm this, but I haven't looked them up yet. Let me know what you find.

.Luke 19:22 | In verse 21, the servant admits that he knew better. Therefore the nobleman expected him to do better, since he knew better, and in verse 22 the nobleman even says this and calls him wicked. What is it that God has given you? And does God have to take it from you like the servant in verse 24 because you're not using it? This parable is also given in Matthew 25:24-27. Read about Jesus and the passover in my commentary for Exodus 12:5-6 on January 25th / Day 25.

Day 73: Deuteronomy 22-24; Luke 20

.Deuteronomy 24:14-15 | This is essentially saying not to withhold pay from a poor and needy person who is working for you. According to Malachi 3:5, this also include what's due to the widow, fatherless, and stranger as well, and their portion of the tithe. This is also spoken of in Ezekiel 22:28-29, which is likely a deeper look into Malachi 3:8-9 which may very well be in conjunction with Matthew 25:41-46, in which Jesus ends by saying that whatever you've done to them, you've done to Him. Although many preachers say Malachi is talking to all of the people, Malachi began speaking specifically to the priests in Malachi 2:1 and evidently did not change who he was speaking to. And in 3:9 where it says "even this whole nation" it would appear to be saying the priests robbed the whole nation, instead of it saying that the whole nation robbed God, because that was not the theme of the message, even in 3:5.

.Deuteronomy 24:16 | Jesus, however, had no sin of His own to die for, yet was put to death. Jesus also was not simply playing the role of a man dying for other people, but was playing the role of the lamb as our observance of the passover, which was not in contradiction with this verse.

.Deuteronomy 24:17-19 | continuing with what I was saying for verses 14-15, let's look at the word "judgment." This was mentioned in Isaiah 10:1-2, speaking of the "right" being taken away from the poor. The poor had a right to their portion of the tithe. The word judgment is used similar to the word "right." I'm sure this use of the word judgment may be used other places in scripture as well, but this moment, I don't have access to my concordance and since I'm writing this offline, I can't search the one on the internet either. When you read verse 19 here in Deut 24 as well then you begin to see just what this is talking about. Scroll up to my March 11 commentary for Deuteronomy 14:22 to see what we discovered about this harvest and how it pertains to this, and also read Hebrews 10:1 to see what this means for us. I may get more into Deut 24:18 and the talk of the bondwoman later, but for now, glance at Deut 16:12 and Galatians 4:21-31, keeping in mind the subject matter of the scripture surrounding Deut 24:18.

.Luke 20:9-16 | Keeping in mind the dialogue that just took place in verses 1-8 between Jesus and the chief priests and scribes, we see that in this parable he's talking about them and Him (Jesus) and the servants of the Lord. They are playing the role of the husbandmen and the Lord's prophets (Luke 11:47 | Acts 7:52) are likely the servants he's speaking of, and of course you know who the beloved son is (Thanks Jesus for making that one so obvious). This is not their vineyard but they, like Lucifer, got greedy, jealous, and rebellious and forgot their place. Even some today have come to act the same and claim the things or people who belong to the Lord as their own possessions.

.Luke 20:17 | Psalms 118:22 mentions this exact same thing in almost the exact same words. Perhaps this is the stone that will contain the name of him for who those builders work (like the tag on a t-shirt), so they may want to leave it off so they can claim it as their own. Read Isaiah 53:3, which gives us a sort of foreword about the life of Jesus and how he is rejected by men. I'm pretty sure there is another verse referring to Jesus as the chief cornerstone, but I can't think of where it is (and can't look it up at this moment). If you find it, please send me the scripture reference.

.Luke 20:19 | 20:14 | Before Jesus even finishes saying it, they're trying to kill Him. Evidently, they weren't listening.

.Luke 20:41-44 | David was 28 Generations before Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:17). Wow! I just asked the Lord to help me find this scripture that was being referred to here. I don't even remember this scripture, but I just found it very easily by flipping to Psalms and just looking for about 1 minute. Psalms is 150 Chapters long! Thank you Jesus, let's do this again sometime. This is referring to what David said in Psalm 110:1. I'd just like to point out the wording here in v.42. It says "David himself saith in the book of Psalms..." We sometimes just say, "the book of Psalms says," yet it is not the book that is speaking, but the person who wrote it who is speaking, and more than that, it's often God speaking through them, though not always (as Paul says | 1 Corinth 7:12). When we simply say "Psalms says" or "the Bible says," we often forget that we're actually quoting the words penned by a flesh and blood person who sat down to write it, much like I'm sitting here writing these words. The Bible didn't fall out of the sky in a leatherbound book called "the Bible." It is a composition of letters, prophecies, poems, songs, biographies, history, etc as ordered by God, but done through people much like you and me. When we forget that, we forget some of the reality of what we're reading. There are many books of the Bible, however, we are often left unable to quote the writer specifically by name because the writer is not always told. Even in some Introductions given by the company who prints the Bible, they may only suppose who may have written some of these books because the writer may not identify themselves within their writing as Paul does at the beginning of his letters.

.Luke 20:45-47 | Jesus, in front of everybody, calls out scribes who just questioned His authority! Tell it like it tis! Jesus mentions this also in Matthew 6:5.

Day 74: Deuteronomy 25-27; Luke 21

.Deuteronomy 27:5-8 | We see from before that these people of Israel had problems with pride and arrogance, being how they were rebellious and spoke against Moses and even God (Num 21:5; Deut 8:2,17-18). It's likely that God has instructed them not to use any tools on these stones and to write the words of His law "very plainly" (verse 8), so they wouldn't use the opportunity to try to show off by making some fancy altar with fancy letters. This is not a thing that should be used to take pride in your construction of or how nice it looks, but is the words of the law. I would assume God just wanted them to keep their focus on what the words say, plain and simple. Use it for what it was built for and leave it at that. This is similar to what God commanded in Exodus 20:24-26, which I spoke about in my January 28th commentary / Day 28.

.Deuteronomy 27:18 | Galatians 5:7, along with this scripture, speaks on those who lead people astray to follow a way other than the way God would have them follow.

.Deuteronomy 27:19 | This ties in with Deuteronomy 24:17-19, which I commented on yesterday (scroll up to read). To pervert means to lead astray morally or to corrupt; to turn away from the right course; to distort; to misinterpret; to take a good thing and use it improperly or for the wrong purpose (The Living Webster Encyclopedic Dictionary, 1975). The Devil has created little to nothing, but instead has taken what God made for good and perverted it to be used for bad.

.Deuteronomy 27:20-23 | Leviticus 18 speaks much more in depth about this.

.Deuteronomy 27:25 | This sounds like it's talking about Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, the innocent.

.Deuteronomy 27:26 | The keyword in this verse is "all." Even today, there are some who will preach only part of the truth about something, or only follow part of what the Lord commands on something. As we've seen from previous scriptures, one of these areas is tithes. You are hardly going to find anyone who will preach all of the truth about tithes or even follow all of God's commandment concerning it. Most will teach the part they want you to know in order to make you follow (or not follow) it the way they want you to. In the old days, in Malachi 3:10 this word "all" comes up again. Apparently, since Malachi was speaking to the priests, they were collecting the tithes, but not bringing it all in doing what they were supposed to do with it. In those days, it was usually the priests who were set in place to confirm the words of God, however, now we have the Holy Spirit and should each be reading God's word and gaining His understanding for ourselves. Yes, we have apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, and they have their place as our leaders, but unlike the Old Testament days, we each have a personal relationship to God and access to His Word, and we should get to know it for ourselves. We can't simply blame someone else for what we don't know. We should be growing toward the point where nobody can lead us astray because we know His word and edify one another (Ephesians 4:16). So although some of the blame these days may be with crooked leaders, much of the blame falls on each of us who willingly remain in ignorance when we don't have to.

.Luke 21:1-4 | First, I'd like to remind you that the Bible was not written in verses and chapters like we see today. They were later separated like this so it could be used as a reference resource. How could we look up the scriptures when we don't know where to look? I'm not sure when they were numbered and by who, but we do notice that when people in the new testament reference old testament scriptures, they do not say any verse or chapter, they simply say "in the book of (book name)." This is the beginning of chapter 21, however, the content of chapter 21:1 is not separate from the content is chapter 20:45-47. It was all written together, and actually is best understood if it was all read together. We see from Mark 12:38-44 that Mark talked about this exact same thing, except his account of this was not separated into two chapters. Mark gives us a more in depth description of this, so we can see that here in Luke 21:1-4 Jesus sat over against the treasury (apparently not participating) and pointed out to his disciples how the poor widow put her last little bit of money into the treasury (collection plate). He does not say that she was required to do this or to give anything at all, neither does the scripture, but since this happens as He has just told them how they devour widows' houses (Luke 20:47), we can come to a reasonable conclusion that they must have made her feel compelled to give them her money. If anything, they were supposed to be giving to her, not her giving to them, but God still counted it for what was in her heart along with the other poor widows who gave from their heart, yet we are still told that their houses were devoured. 2 Corinthians 8:13-14 speaks of how it's not God's will for one person to be burdened and the other eased, but that there should be an equality so one's abundance will supply the other's need.

.Luke 21:7- | I'd like to get the chance to come back and deal with Luke 21 on it's own, but I spent a great amount of time commenting on Matthews account of Jesus saying these things. This is a very important thing to read and understand. Extremely important! So please take a moment and look back at my entries for my Day 25 / January 25th commentary of Matthew 24.

.Luke 21:25 | Acts 2:20; Joel 2:10,30-31 (verse 10 and verses 30-31); Matthew 24:29; Isaiah 13:10; Mark 13:24; The Revelation 6:12

.Luke 21:26 | "Men's hearts failing them for fear" is what we now call a heart attack.

.Luke 21:27 | Luke 17:20-21; The Revelation 1:7

.Luke 21:32 | Matt 16:28 and 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:51 may be related.

Day 75: Deuteronomy 28-29; Luke 22:1-34

.Deuteronomy 28 | This chapter is split up into two parts. The first part is verses 1-14, and speaks of how they will be blessed if they listen to God and observe and do all of His commandments. The second part (verses 15-68) speaks about how they will be cursed if they don't listen to God and don't observe and do all of His commandments. Remember, the word "ALL" is very important. It's an all or nothing type of deal, so even if they do most of His commandments, except for one, that means that they are not observing and doing ALL of His commandments. The second part (disobedience) gets pretty interestingly detailed, and just goes to remind, it's a terrible thing to be cursed by One who's imagination and creativity is limitless. People these days have a habit of being rebellious and tell others "only God can judge me," not realizing that it would actually be better for them if man judged them, not God.

.Deuteronomy 28:7 | This is saying your enemies will flee seven ways, which is the opposite of what verse 25 says.

.Deuteronomy 28:10 | This may be speaking of the name CHRISTian we are called by now.

.Deuteronomy 28:11 | The Lord swore this to Abraham as he testifies in Genesis 24:7, and to Isaac in Genesis 26:3-4, and to Jacob in Genesis 28:13-15. However, I don't think the Lord swore to them what He would do for them there in that land. If not, He's telling them now.

.Deuteronomy 28:15 | This verse ends in a colon after it says "all these curses" meaning that it's about to list all of the curses, and what a horrific list it is. God is clearly not joking around with this! You've got to read the rest of this chapter if you haven't already. Also, notice the word "all" appears again here in this verse, which means ALL (none left over). This cursing is spoken of in the New Testament in Galatians 3:9-19 and talks about how Christ became cursed for us, so we are no more in bondage to the law. I'm sure I'll get more into this later. You can read more of Galatians now if you like. You may also find more about this in Hebrews 7-9, and other places in the scripture as well if you search.

.Deuteronomy 28:22 | I believe this consumption is what's specified in verses 38-42, and 51, which may also be a reference to the devourer spoken of in Malachi 3:11.

.Deuteronomy 28:25 | This is saying you will flee seven ways, which is the opposite of what verse 7 says.

.Deuteronomy 28:27 | This sounds like some of the STD's that are around today.

.Deuteronomy 28:30 | Betrothal is another word for marriage engagement (agreeing to get married).

.Deuteronomy 28:36 | Notice that he says "which thou has set over thee." This is apparent that it's their own doing, not the Lord's doing.

.Deuteronomy 28:37 | Essentially, they'll be used as an example. Have you ever done something wrong in class and the teacher makes an example out of you, so others look at you and know better than to make the same error you made?

.Deuteronomy 28:53 | This is speaking of cannibalism.

.Deuteronomy 28:67 | "Would God it were even!" is the same as saying "I wish God would let it be evening now, because I'm having a terrible day."

.Deuteronomy 28:68 | "no man shall buy you" meaning nobody will buy your freedom to free you from your bondage.

.Luke 22:3 | John, in John 13:26, tells precisely when Satan entered into Judas (while sitting at the table with Jesus; "The Last Supper" we call it.) A surname is essentially a last name, so his name was Judas Iscariot. This is important to know, because he was not the only Judas. Even one of the other twelve apostles was named Judas (Luke 6:16) although that Judas probably went by the name Barsabas (Acts 15:22).

.Luke 22:5 | Remember what Deuteronomy 27:25 said, "cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person."

.Luke 22:18 | Here, Jesus is apparently speaking of the VINEgar He drunk from the spunge while on the cross (Matthew 27:48). Please note: sponge is spelled “spunge” in Matthew 27:48.

.Luke 22:21 | Matthew 26:23 | Mark 14:20 | John 13:26 | (May.15.2012) In Luke 22:21, when Jesus says "the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table," I imagine there were several people who had their hands on the table, and several who didn't, which would narrow down who the betrayer was.

.Luke 22:22 | Some people argue the point that evil is necessary to fulfill prophecy or God's plan. They say Judas had to betray Him, and also that some others have to do evil because they are fulfilling God's plan. Yes, God does use evil people and has even used an evil spirit before (1 Kings 22:20-22). However, God does not make them to be evil so He can use them, but rather gives them over to their own mind and their own will (Romans 1:28; Romans 1:24-27; Acts 17:16). Also, just because God uses them, does not make them on God's side. They are not on God's side, neither will they receive any good reward for their evil. This verse says "woe unto that man by whom he is betrayed!" God even used Satan for Job, but Satan is still going to burn in that lake of fire (Job 2:1-6; Rev 20:10).

.Luke 22:26 | I just wanted to point this out. I would like to see this more in our society, in our workplaces, in our church congregations, in our educational institutions, etc. Thankfully, I do see it sometimes, but I really think we can do a much better job of this.

.Luke 22:32 | This talk about being converted was likely referring to when Peter was converted from the error of his way after denying Jesus three times. See James 5:19-20 about conversion from error.

Day 76: Deuteronomy 30-31; Luke 22:35-71

.Deuteronomy 30:1-3 | These three verses are one sentence and need to be read together, so it they be understood fully. Nobody reads only half of a sentence and understands what the sentence is saying. Our Bibles are divided into verses, but it does not mean that they should be read that way, although I know it's hard not to. The verse numbers should really serve, not as reading guides, but as reference points so we know where exactly a certain passage is. However, it's a bit hard not to read verse by verse when the next verse is often started on a whole new line, instead of continuing on that same line like any normal sentence would. Some things you've read in the Bible probably didn't make sense to you because you were reading verse by verse, instead of sentence by sentence. Many or most sentences do end at the end of the verse, but some long sentences are broken into two or more verses so the verses remain fairly proportioned to each other in length. So the lesson learned today is... learn to use the verse numbers as reference points when you want to locate a certain scripture, bookmark your reading, or look up a scripture that someone else is referring you to. Other than that, you should pretty much be ignoring the numbers when you read in order to get the full understanding of what you read. It'll take some practice and time to get accustomed to if you're used to looking at the verse numbers as reading guides instead of treating them as reference points. Knowing this will also help you read the Bible better out loud too, so next time someone asks who would like to read the scripture, you can throw your hand up with greater confidence. The apostle Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament is known to write these long (run-on) sentences. Reading his letters might be a good place to start practicing and training your eyes to read the Bible correctly. This is something I'm just becoming aware of also, so I'll be retraining my eyes along with you.

.Deuteronomy 30:9-10 | These two verses are one sentence and need to be read together, so they may be understood.

.Deuteronomy 30:10 | Loving our Lord God with all of your heart and soul is commanded in Deuteronomy 6:5; Deut 11:13 (also read Deut 11:18); Matthew 22:37, and Mark 12:30. Many times it also says "with all thy might." Deuteronomy 13:3 even says that the Lord our God proves you to know whether you love God with all your heart and with all your soul. God's proof that Abraham had faith in Him and loved Him was when he obeyed God's voice and almost sacrificed his only son (Genesis 22:16-18). His proof that Job feared God and would not turn from Him was when Job persevered through the affliction Satan put him through (Job 1:8-12; 2:3-10). Even in Sodom and Gomorrah, God went down (by an angel) to get some solid proof that could be recorded to show that the people were indeed evil. Likewise, a person's works serve as proof of their faith in God (why James says "faith without works is dead" James 2:20-21). Perhaps this proof may be presented when people stand before God for judgment. One may not be able to simply say "Lord I did love you." Instead of the Lord simply saying, "I know you didn't because I know your heart," He would be able to say, "I know you didn't (or did) and here's the proof of it." You can't argue with that. It's important that we show our love to God instead of just saying it. God says "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15). Before Jesus ascended into Heaven, He asked Peter (a.k.a. Simon Peter) three times in a row if he loved Him and when Peter said yes, He told Peter the first time to "feed my lambs" and then twice more to "feed my sheep." Jesus is recorded in Matthew 15:8 quoting Isaiah saying how certain people draw near to Him with their mouth and honor Him with their lips, but their heart is far from Him, and that they worship Him in vain teaching the commandments of men as doctrines (Matthew 15:8-9). Saying that their worshipping Him with speech but not heart is in vain, lets us know how necessary it is love Him with all our heart, and that lips alone is not good enough. This might also give you a clue not to believe everyone who says "I love Jesus," because they all might not. In case you doubt that, read 1 John 3:14 through 5:3, and especially 4:20 which says "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?" Many people even say they believe in God, but it would be wise not to stop there, but to actually love Him, since we know that Satan also believes in God, and so do his demons. In fact, right before James says "faith without works is dead" he says "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble" (James 2:19). I'd advise you to do better than the devils. And like anyone else you love, you should seek to please Him and desire His approval. One other key verse that talks about loving God is Romans 8:28.

.Deuteronomy 30:11-20 | Many people often use the excuse "nobody really knows" when it comes to following this commandment (in verse 10). They say "nobody really knows for sure who God is or that there even is a God" and "Nobody knows what we're supposed to do." And their excuse is that none of us can go up to Heaven and find out until we die. However, from these verses we know that we don't have to die first to find out. We actually do know now, because He put it in our heart and mouth, although maybe not always both at the same time. We also have the ability to reject His commandment too and teach others to reject it, which many have done. Since this is in people's hearts, the only way for the Devil to keep people from doing it (turning unto the Lord our God with all our heart and with all our soul) is to make up a false god or religion for people to turn to. This is probably why there is an endless number of religions, false gods, and idols, which people worship. And people can and will idolize things like money, their children, pop stars, clothes, cars, and even turn to those things with all their heart, soul and might, trying to fill this desire that God has placed in their heart for Him. Sometimes, He is the last option they turn to, and some never make it to that point. They die with those things being their god, but those things (although they may treat them as their god) are not what created them, and those things cannot save them.

.Deuteronomy 30:12 | Jesus testifies in John 3:13 that no man has ascended up to Heaven, but He that came down from Heaven, even the son of man (Jesus) who is in Heaven. There's more to discuss about that, which I may get into later. This same thing here in John is mentioned in Proverbs 30:4.

.Deuteronomy 30:14 | The writer in Hebrews 10:15 quotes the Lord (through the witnesses of the Holy Ghost) that the Lord said He will put His laws into people's hearts and write them in their minds. Deuteronomy 6:6-7 mentions how God's words/commandments will be in people's hearts and how they/we shall teach them diligently to the children and speak of them basically all the time, and everywhere. Some versions, such as the Contemporary English Version (CEV) have removed the word "mouth" from this verse in Deut 30:14, and have also removed it from Romans 10:9, which otherwise requests that you confess with your "mouth" that the Lord is Jesus (or Jesus is Lord). They may have removed the word "mouth" so they can say that it's okay to just pray it silently without confessing with one's mouth, since this version also removed the text of Rom 10:10 which says "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Also in verse 8, instead of saying mouth AND heart, they say mouth OR heart. Perhaps these are the same people who may have put out the idea that you can preach Christ by speaking with your actions, not your mouth, an idea which people have widely accepted this day in age, yet not what Jesus taught His disciples to do.

.Deuteronomy 30:19 | I want to get into 1 John 5:7-8 for a moment. Now this is a tricky scripture to cover, because although I use the King James version which includes this scripture, many Bible versions have distorted, deleted, and reworded much of the words of this scripture as with so many other verses (which are too many to name). I don't know what versions you're reading from, but you'll really have to read from the King James version with me for a moment to get this. Beware, because many other versions make you think you have it all in front of you when you don't, because the verse number is there, but the words have been removed and shifted around to make it look like it's not missing. Verse 7 says "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." Verse 8 says, "And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." The reason I mentioned these verses is because in this verse, Deuteronomy 30:19, it says "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you..."

.Luke 22:41 | A "stone's cast" is a distance, I suppose the average distance one throws a stone. This must have still been in hearing distance of them, since we are reading Luke's testimony of what he heard Jesus say.

.Luke 22:42 | In the model prayer Jesus teaches, which we usually call the Lord's Prayer, He says something similar: "thy will be done." That prayer was only an example of how to pray, not what exact words must be said. In this prayer He prays now, He says "not my will, but thine, be done." We have our desired outcome that we pray for, but still we leave room for God to have His way with the situation.

.Luke 22:43 | The Father does not take the cup from Jesus, but He does strengthen Him. God will strengthen you too for whatever you must go through in life. Don't be afraid or ashamed to call on God to ask Him, and be real with Him about how you're feeling. Just don't curse Him or turn away from Him, of course. He has your best interests in mind, although it may not always seem so, because the things you go through are not always pleasant.

.Luke 22:45 | "sleeping for sorrow" gives me the idea that they were depressed. Many people, when depressed or grieving will sleep as a way to avoid the reality of their situation..

.Luke 22:54 | Peter followed Jesus from far off, but at least he did follow Him. One of the other disciples followed Jesus and even went in with Jesus (John 18:15-16), but the others forsook him and fled (Matthew 26:56).

Day 77: Deuteronomy 32-34; Luke 23:1-25

.Deuteronomy 32:4 | The word "rock" is used eight times in this chapter (verses 4,13,15,18,30,31,37). I haven't done the research on the differences in the words, but I'm getting the feeling that the word "rock" refers to something more fixed and immovable, where a pebble or a stone would refer to... well, a pebble (something you might find in your shoe) or a stone (something you can throw. i.e. "let he who is without sin cast the first stone"). If you're like me though, you probably call them all rocks.

.Deuteronomy 32:13 | Job mentions a rock pouring out rivers of oil (Job 29:6).

.Deuteronomy 32:15 | 2 Samuel 22:47 also uses this phrase "rock of my salvation." 1 Corinth 10:4 says about Moses people "they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ."

.Deuteronomy 32:31 | Man, TV has really messed me up. Now every time I hear the word "rock" all I can hear is that famous wrestler/actor saying "Do you smell what The Rock is cookin!" And I didn't even watch wrestling! How do I get rid of that? Maybe I can just write the words of this verse 100 times on a chalk board: "Their rock is not as our Rock. Their rock is not as our Rock. Their rock is not as our Rock..."

.Deuteronomy 32:32-33 | This verse may help give us more understanding of what happened to Jesus on the cross when they tried to give him wine mixed with gall and He spit it out when He tasted it. Perhaps this was an attempt to poison Him. When it was time for Him to die, he did drink their wine though the second time, which may or may not have been mingled with gall. Well, actually it didn't say it was wine, but vinegar (Matthew 27:4,48).

.Deuteronomy 32:37 | This gives us a better idea of the spiritual meaning of the word "rock" as used here in Deuteronomy.

.Deuteronomy 32:38 | God is asking which one of their "gods" ate their sacrifices that they offered to their gods or drank their drink offerings. Apparently none did, and they can expect those same "gods" to not protect them as well. Remember how the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (name changed from Jacob) ate the fat of Moses' and Aaron's burnt offering in Leviticus 9:24. So yeah, those people may offer sacrifices, but they are not as the sacrifices to God and maybe more like that of Nadab and Abihu who in Leviticus 10:1 offered strange fire before the Lord which he commanded them not.

.Deuteronomy 32:49-50 | God even commands Moses where to die. He doesn't make it into the promised land, but sees it from the mountain top. Perhaps this is what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was referencing for his "I Have a Dream" speech.

.Luke 23:2 | Unless they're talking about some other instance, they lied on Jesus, because in Matthew 17:24-27 it talks about how He instructed Peter to get the money out of the fish's mouth to pay it for both of them. Now, Jesus may not have ordinarily paid it Himself, but seeing how He was mindful not to offend them, it's doubtful that He ever forbade anyone from doing it.

.Luke 23:8 | Herod may have seen Jesus as some sort of entertainer, a David Copperfield, and turned against Jesus when He refused to perform for him. Herod heard all about Jesus, because Herod feared and listened to John the Baptist who was always talking about Jesus (Mark 6:20).

.Luke 23:12 | It's a strange thing that these two, who didn't like each other became friends when Herod sent Jesus to Pilate the second time.

.Luke 23:22-23 | Pontius Pilate puts up somewhat of a fight for Jesus, saying he doesn't find Jesus worthy of death for anything. After he said this though, the people cried out with uproar that He be crucified. This was all instigated by the chief priests, and it's possible that the people may have killed Jesus anyway in the street if He was released. That of course, could not have happened, because Jesus wouldn't have let that happen since that's not how Jesus was supposed to die. Just like Moses knew where he was supposed to die (Deuteronomy 32:49-50), Jesus knew how He was supposed to die (Matthew 26:2).

Day 78: Joshua 1-3; Luke 23:26-56

.Joshua | I mentioned Joshua March 7 in my Deuteronomy 1:17 commentary, but what I don't think I mentioned is that those rebellious people he was from almost stoned him, but God stepped in (Numbers 14:7-10). In Numbers 13:1-2 the Lord told Moses to send out men to search out (spy) the land of Canaan (the land of milk and honey | Num 13:27), to see whether this land, which the Lord had for them, was good or bad, and the strength of the people there (Num 13:18-19). There were twelve of them that were sent, which are named in Numbers 13:4-15; they are the rulers of their tribes and heads of the children of Israel. Among them was Joshua and Caleb. Although the listing of them says "Oshea the son of Nun," it says in verse 16 "Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua. And we also know this is Joshua because Deut 34:9 says "Joshua the son of Nun." Of the twelve that were sent, they were the only ones who believed that they could overcome the people there to possess the land. The rest were scared and so they brought an evil report, causing the children of Israel to all fear going into the land, become rebellious to what God had purposed for them, and desire to return to Egypt (Num 13:30-14:4). Joshua and Caleb (Num 14:7) were the two who spoke up for what God wanted, and were the only ones of those sent who would obtain the land. The people wandered around in the wilderness for forty years because the people refused (afraid) to go in and take the land of Canaan. Joshua and Caleb did not see anything visually different than what the others saw, but they believed different. God Himself in Deut 7:1 said that the people in the land of Canaan were indeed greater than them, but to remember what God did for them with the Egyptians and not be afraid of these greater people (Deut 7:18). I know many will wonder, "well why does a just God, a loving God call them to fight and destroy these other people?" But God in Deut 7 testifies how these people in Canaan were wicked and had turned from Him. They had pretty much spit in God's face.

.Joshua 1:1-2 | Numbers 14:23-24 says Caleb and his seed shall possess the land. It doesn't say only Caleb and his seed, but it does include them. It doesn't include the people who tempted and provoked God. It's possible and likely that others also followed because of Joshua, since it says in Deut 34:9 that he was full of the spirit of wisdom because Moses laid hands on him (Deut 31:14) and the children of Israel hearkened (followed/listened) unto him.

.Joshua 1:11 | 2:1-5 | Remember from Deut 7:1 (Num 13:29) there were seven nations there that had to be conquered, but God said (Deut 7:22) that they weren't supposed to overthrow them all at once because the beasts of the field would increase upon them. This is why you'll see them conquering little by little.

.Luke 23:26 | Matthew 27:32 | This Simon the Cyrenian was the father of Alexander and Rufus (Mark 15:21). This is neither of the two apostles, Simon the Canaanite (Matt 10:4) who is called Zelotes (Luke 6:15) or Simon the son of Jona (John 1:42) who Jesus also named Peter (Luke 6:14). It was also not Jesus' brother Simon (Matt 13:55). There were other Simons as well, aside from these. Apparently Simon was a pretty common name.

.Luke 23:28-29 | I'd say those days are here now with all of our abortions, and runaway parents.

.Luke 23:33-34 | They, being on his right hand and on the left, may be symbolic of the Zechariah 12:6 reference, seeing also how Zechariah 12:8 says in that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem and Jesus defends them in verse 34 saying "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." God, in Zechariah 12:10, even says "they shall look upon me whom they have pierced" and Jesus was pierced in His side while on the cross, which John 19:37 even quotes from when it's done. Remember, Zechariah was in the Old Testament, and said to have been written about 500 years before Jesus was even born. Stephen said pretty much the same thing about those who stoned him (Acts 7:60), and is an example how we are not to take offense when someone persecutes us for the sake of God's Word if we have really received the word of Christ (Matt 13:21). The part about parting his raiment and casting lots is foretold in Psalm 22:18.

.Luke 23:34 | (Jan.7.2014) Notice that Jesus only prays "Father forgive them" instead of directly forgiving them Himself like in Matthew 9:6. We know that in Matthew 9:6 that He said He had power on earth to forgive sins. So why doesn't He just say to the people executing Him "you are forgiven?" I can think of a few reasons off the top of my head, which may not all be true. In fact, as I study more into them, I'm sure I'll see why some of these possibilities cannot possibly be true. But to list some ideas:

Perhaps since they hadn't yet killed Him, He could not yet forgive them for killing Him, so He had to ask His Father (our Father) to do it.
Perhaps He wasn't even speaking of the people killing Him. Maybe He was praying for other people to be forgiven. After all, He never clearly specified who "them" was, although we assume He's speaking of the people killing Him. We know that it is not only them who killed Him, but us also, since our sins that are just as responsible for Him being crucified.
Perhaps He didn't have the ability to forgive anymore, because maybe He said this after He took on our sins, and lay there on the cross as a sinless mess. If so, then we must also examine whether His prayer would still do much good, being that He was not righteous during the moment He hung up there, filthy with all of our sins. Proverbs 15:29 says "The Lord is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous." But then we also must question whether Jesus was actually considered wicked, or just filthy of sin. His thought process didn't seem to be that of a wicked man, that would cause His prayers to be errant and misguided. But I can't say for sure. Was Jesus hanging up there thinking of raping little children? Did those things enter into Him? Did evil actually enter into Him, or was He simply taking the punishment that had entered into others? I'd say it's probable that He was only being punished, because if evil entered into Him, then He would have probably been guilty Himself. On the other hand, we see that He was cut off from God, crying "my God why have you forsaken me?" So perhaps during that separation, evil could have found a pathway into Him without Him actually committing sin. Also see 1 John 3:22 and James 5:16, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
Perhaps He was praying that His executors who later repented would be forgiven after realizing what they did. In John 8:24 Jesus says "If ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins," so it doesn't sound as if He would forgive people of their sins who do not believe in Him.
Perhaps there's some other reason that I completely overlooked.

However, we clearly see a sharp contrast between what He does in Luke 23:34 and Matthew 9:2, where He personally forgives the man "son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee." So there must be some significant reason for this, but unfortunately I can't come to any solid conclusion on the matter just yet.

.Luke 23:46 | He was able to cry with a loud voice and die at will at that same moment. His words "into thine hand I commend my spirit" are foretold in Psalm 31:5.

.Luke 23:46 | Mark (15:39) records that the centurion said "Truly this man was the Son of God."

Day 79: Joshua 4-6; Luke 24

.Joshua 4:1 | "Clean passed over" - the word "clean" means completely here.

.Joshua 4:2 | As I mentioned yesterday in my commentary for Joshua 1:1-2 this lets us know that people of all twelve tribes did make it into the promised land, not just the tribes of Joshua and Caleb.

.Joshua 4:6-7 | At this time, he was telling this to the twelve so they would know what to do. Later, in verse 19-24 he tells the rest of the people about the stones.

.Joshua 4:9 | This verse lets us know that someone other than Joshua was also writing the book of Joshua. He may have written portions of it as well. When the writer says "they are there unto this day" it gives us an idea that this may have been written quite some time after it happened. This place where the stones were set was called Gilgal as it says in verse 20. (Mar.24.2013) It sounds a lot like the stones found in the sea of Galilee around March 2013.

.Joshua 4:19 | It's a good idea to take note whenever a time period is mentioned like this. It may help later when trying to understand what was going on, when, and why.

.Joshua 4:23 | This reference to the Red Sea is Exodus 14:16.

.Luke 24:7 | Jesus said this at Luke 18:32-33.

.Luke 24:9 | "the eleven" refers to the twelve apostles, minus Judas.

.Luke 24:15 | I just thought Jesus was so slick and funny right here, how He slipped in among them and started talking and walking with them. When is the last time you just went up to a group of people who don't know you and have never seen you and just jumped in with them like that with no introduction?

.Luke 24:18-19 | "What things?" He asks in v.19. Again, I thought this was funny how Jesus just kind of played along with them, asking questions like He just had no idea about anything, and like He wasn't Jesus.

.Luke 24:31,37-39 | He vanished out of their sight? Sounds like Jesus just disappeared. I completely love Jesus and all, but I also understand why these people thought what they thought. I mean, if I was standing and talking with somebody that was giving me so much knowledge about scripture and then the person just disappeared, I might think I'd seen a spirit too. The vanishing act would have been enough for me to think that the person wasn't flesh and bone. But go ahead Jesus, do your thing! If I could disappear like that, I probably would too. Still though, it's important to know that Jesus always did things for a reason, not just to show off or play with people's minds.

.Luke 24:41 | Knowing their thoughts (v.37) and disbelief (v.41), Jesus was proving that He was not a spirit, but was flesh and bone and could eat their food.

.Luke 24:42 | Yes, Jesus ate meat. Some, even some of my brothers and sisters in Christ have began to think that eating meat is defiling oneself, or ungodly.

.Luke 24:44 | One of these scriptures in Psalms is Psalms 22:16-18.

.Luke 24:52 | As it says here, Jesus was worshipped. It also says He was worshipped in the following scriptures: Matthew 2:2,8,11; Matt 8:2; Matt 9:18; Matt 14:33; Matt 15:25; Matt 28:9,17; Mark 5:6; Mark 15:19 (mockingly); Luke 24:52; and John 9:38. I'm pointing this out because I've met people (some "Jehovah's Witnesses" and others) who tried to say that we are not supposed to worship Jesus, and I wanted to point out what the scriptures say in case the issue ever arises again. Even in Matthew 28:9 Jesus told them to "all hail" and then they fell to His feet and worshipped Him. Some would rather just see Jesus as just a great man and nothing more, and use Peter's words in Acts 10:26 to say that men should not be worshipped. Yet, Jesus was worshipped always, from a baby until after His resurrection, until now.

Day 80: Joshua 7-9; John 1

.Joshua 8:2 | This was done in Jericho which was recorded in Joshua 7.

.Joshua 8:16-21 | It's possible that America may be set up like this with liers in wait here in America. In 2001, one of our nation's political leaders was warned of this by a minister in private.

.Joshua 8:35 | He didn't pick and choose only what he wanted them to hear.

.John 1:1 |

.John 1:3 |

.John 1:10 | 1:26

.John 1:11 |

.John 1:12 |

.John 1:13 |

.John 1:14-15 |

.John 1:16 | Colossians 2:9

.John 1:26 |

.John 1:29 | Gen 22:8

.John 1:30 | 1:15

.John 1:32 |

.John 1:38 |

.John 1:39,46 | Jesus and Philip both answer simply by saying "Come and see."

.John 1:41 |

.John 1:46-48 | Jesus strikes back! This looks sort of like Jesus and Nathanael are trading verbal blows here, perhaps jokingly. As we would say around the way, they were carrying each other, or joning, cracking, snapping, dissing, or joking on each other, or whatever slang you might have used. The crazy part about this though, is that what Nathanael said about Jesus, he said to Philip. He didn't even say it to Jesus, and he didn't know Jesus even heard him (possibly supernaturally). So when Jesus spoke back to him with a counterpunch (sarcastic remark), it probably really shocked him. Whatever the case, we know that Jesus was talking as if he knew Nathanael, because Nathanael replies "whence knowest thou me?" or "where do you know me from?" Now, it's possible that both of them could have been completely serious with no sarcasm or joking involved, but that's not how I see it. I mean, the man dissed Jesus' whole city.

.John 1:51 | Matthew 4:11 shows an example of this after Jesus was tempted by Satan after fasting in the wilderness for 40 days and nights.

Day 81: Joshua 10-12; John 2

.Joshua 10:13 | The book of Jasher is also mentioned in 2 Samuel 1:18. In today's time, there are many different books named "the Book of Jasher" and I'm not sure that any of them are the original that this is speaking of. Apparently, the Mormons have also published a book claiming to be this title. The Mormons are a separate religion than Christian, evidenced by their drastically different beliefs about who Jesus is, along with other anti-biblical beliefs and claims for which there were found to be recorded U.S. court cases. Of course though, if the Bible mentions a "Book of Jasher" but does not contain a Book of Jasher, we can expect to find a number of hoaxes out there claiming to be it. Some people have found inconsistencies in the text with what's written in the Bible, and also the grammatical structure in some of it's text I've browsed was close but definitely not the same period as the English of the King James translation if that's what it's trying to claim to be. I personally, am not giving it much of my thought since we seem not to have any access or witness to the true book of Jasher. Furthermore, I realize that the books in the Bible are not the only books that were written, and that the book of Jasher may simply not be considered as a biblical book. If not, it wouldn't make it (the original) untrue, but just not a book of the Bible, just as there are many true books in existence today which are not determined to be books of the Bible, simply because they are referenced within the same time period. I'm sure I would waste my time doing a lot of guessing and second guessing, when I could be studying what we do have now, as if I'd ever even finish with that.

.John 2:4 | Jesus said to his mother, "Woman, what have I to do with thee?" I'll tread lightly on this for now and just ask the same question He asked. "What does Jesus have to do with Mary?"

.John 2:12-18 | Some have a picture in their mind of Jesus being mad and out of control, turning over the tables in a frenzy or a fit of rage or something, but when we look at the passage closely, we can tell that there must have been some order or manner that He did it in, and He was not throwing an angry tantrum. We know that because instead of His actions causing a fight or some accusation, the Jews (who he did it to) knew that He was trying to show them some sign or teach some lesson. In verse 18, they asked Him, "What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?" And then they talked. (Dec.8.2013) Lynnelle Harrell also pointed out that Jesus took the time to make a scourge of small cords before He put everyone out (verse 15). This appears that he didn't just fly off of the handle in an emotional response, because it takes time and tedious effort to make a scourge of small cords. It may have looked something like this picture of a scourge of small cords

. I also wouldn't think an out of control person would stand there and pour money out. They'd much rather throw it, than pour it. Pouring definitely takes a more patience and self-control than throwing something, whether throwing it up in the air, down at the ground, or across the room. A man in a fit of rage is almost certainly going to opt to throw. Ask Bruce Banner whether the Incredible Hulk would ever pour anything? No! He's going to throw! You would laugh if you ever saw the Hulk pour something out when he was mad, because it wouldn't even look right. Contrast this with Judas, who threw down the money (pieces of silver) in the temple (Matthew 27:5). Now concerning Jesus' use of the scourge, it never says that He threatened anybody with the scourge or hit any of the people with it. As someone else mentioned, He likely used it to drive the animals out. After all, if you send the animals out, the people who are making money from them will go get them before they run off or someone else takes them. In verse 16, it says he told those who sold doves to "take these things hence." He spoke to them and told them what to do; he didn't beat the dove sellers out. Had he beat anybody in the temple (or outside of it), we surely would have heard of it, and He would have probably been crucified for that, but they had to make up lies in order to have a reason to crucify Him instead. I wasn't there, of course, but with what the scripture tells us (and doesn't tell us), I just don't see the evidence that Jesus lost His temper, as some people have speculated.

Day 82: Joshua 13-15; John 3

.John 3:3-5 | Jesus says born again, not reborn. To say "reborn" would be like saying the first birth was no good now go back and do it over again. However, to say "born again" would be saying you were born once, now be born a second time. It's not a do over. The first time, you were born of flesh and blood. The second time, you're born of water and spirit.

.John 3:10 | He says this "master of Israel" thing, because Nicodemus was a ruler of the Jews, said in verse 1.

.John 3:16 | Romans 5:6-11; John 1:14 (only begotten); 1 John 3:16; Jesus is the only begotten son of God, but not the only son of God. This means our Father God is actually His biological Father. So if Joseph, Mary, Jesus, and our Father God went on the Maury show, Maury would be saying to God, "In the case of Jesus and Mary, you ARE the father!" or to Joseph "you are NOT the father!" And then God would say "I told you I was that boy's daddy!"

.John 3:20 | You may notice that when you are letting your light shine, those in the darkness may not want you around because if you're around them, your light will expose their deeds.

.John 3:21 | Truth is not just in word, but in action; not just spoken, but done.

.John 3:23 | People here often came to John to be baptized instead of him going out to them, which I'm sure he probably did as well.

.John 3:25 | John also had disciples, which is also mentioned in John 1:35.

.John 3:26 | It seems the people came to him as if trying to stir up some trouble between him and Jesus or either had been arguing among themselves, because Jesus was also baptizing people and, in fact, baptized more disciples than John (John 4:1). They didn't at first understand Jesus and John were working together.

.John 3:28 | John said this in John 1:20 and then testified of Jesus there in verse 30.

.John 3:35 | 1 Corinthians 3:21-23

Day 83: Joshua 16-18; John 4

.Joshua 17:10 | (Feb.21.2012) Why are they in places named after Asher and Issachar?

.Joshua 17:13 | (Feb.21.2012) "put the Canaanites to tribute" | Matthew 17:25

.Joshua 17:16 | (Feb.21.2012) This would be their first time fighting alone, I think.

.Joshua 17:18 | (Feb.21.2012) I believe the word "outgoings" means profits, as it's used here.

.Joshua 18:1 | (Feb.22.2012) They're still setting up that one tabernacle.

.Joshua 18:4 | (Feb.22.2012) They possibly have no idea what it looks like or how big it is, since they can't just jump on a computer and see it from satellite, get a map from the corner store, or fly over it by aircraft.

.Joshua 18:9 | (Feb.22.2012) Genesis 49:10 mentions Shiloh, and perhaps was the first mention of it.

.Joshua 18:28 | (Feb.22.2012) highlighted "Jebusi, which is Jerusalem" and "the inheritance of the children of Benjamin"

.John 4:1 | (Feb.22.2012) 3:25-26

.John 4:9 | (Feb.22.2012) Sounds like the Jews had a problem with the Samaritans; looked down on them.

.John 4:10 | (Feb.22.2012) Notice how Jesus speaks of Himself in the third person, saying "thou wouldest have asked him..." In verse 15, she tries to ask for the living water, but doesn't know what she's asking.

.John 4:15 | (Feb.22.2012) 4:10 She doesn't know what she's asking. She says "Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw." She's thinking that she won't have to come to the well again for H2O. In 6:35 Jesus says He's the Bread of Life and that he that believes on Him shall never thirst.

.John 4:17-18 | (Feb.22.2012) "is not thy husband" must be a secret. I would think she could assume it was public knowledge that it could be known how many husbands she's had. She perceives He's a prophet, just by saying this? They must have been "shacking up," pretending like husband and wife.

Day 84: Joshua 19-21; John 5

.Joshua 19:1 | (Feb.23.2012) 19:9

.Joshua 19:9 | (Feb.23.2012) 19:1 | 2 Corinthians 8:14 speaks about this lesson of equality.

.Joshua 20:6 | (Feb.23.2012) Innocent until proven guilty

.Joshua 20:7-9 | (Feb.23.2012) (highlighted)

.John 5:7 | (Feb.23.2012) Notice that he didn't give Jesus a straight answer. I have to say, at least he was still there trying. Or perhaps he was just pretending like he was trying, because he was expected to at least try.

.John 5:8 | (Feb.23.2012) no protocol

.John 5:10 | (Feb.23.2012) "said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed." Sounds to me like they're making up stuff as they go along. I'm pretty sure there's nothing in the law books about one taking up one's bed and walking after they've been carried in and healed.

.John 5:12-13 | (Feb.23.2012) "Jesus had conveyed himself away" so the guy couldn't point Him out. So he couldn't say, and didn't really know who it was that healed him. This is an example that people are able to be healed without knowing who healed them, even to the point of not knowing it was God that healed them, as it says in Hosea 11:3.

.John 5:34 | (Feb.23.2012) It was actually the Spirit in John that bare witness.

.John 5:37 | (Feb.23.2012) Others have heard his voice before (Exodus 33:11), but not these people here.

.John 5:41 | (Feb.23.2012) 5:44; 12:43

.John 5:43 | (Feb.23.2012) "I am come in my Father's name" Mark 9:37. Notice how He says "I am come" instead of "I came."

.John 5:44 | (Feb.23.2012) Nowadays, people are all about receiving honor from one another, and seek that, instead of the honor from God. And it's not just in award shows for the famous celebrities. We see it at work, we see it at school, and we see it in Sunday service (or whatever day you may happen to be there). It's all about feeling or showing that one is validated by those that others think is important. It gets to a point where receiving honor from man replaces the need in one's mind to receive honor from God. To go to one extreme, the Christian says the Atheist is not going to Heaven, and does not agree with the Atheists views. So the Atheist fights against the Christian. It's not that the Atheist is fighting because he/she wants to receive honor from God and go to Heaven; it's that the Atheist feels that the Christian is making him look bad and effecting his/her ability to receive honor from man. Otherwise the Atheist wouldn't care what the Christian says, because the Atheist is not seeking honor from God; The Atheist doesn't believe in God. Some people start to even believe that if they get enough honor from man, they don't need honor from God, and this is where things really start to get out of hand, even in church congregations.

Day 85: Joshua 22-24; John 6

.Joshua 22:5 | (Feb.24.2012) This is what Jesus mentions in Matthew 22:37, and what is meant by Exodus 20:3, the first commandment.

.Joshua 22:10 | (Feb.24.2012) Notice, there is no tabernacle. They're building an altar where the Lord has not placed His name.

.Joshua 22:19 | (Feb.24.2012) From seeing them say "rebel not against the Lord, nor rebel against us, in building you an altar beside the altar of the Lord our God." we can see there was only one altar.

.Joshua 22:24-25 | (Feb.24.2012) From what I remember, they chose not to cross the Jordan, but to settle there.

.Joshua 22:30 | (Feb.24.2012) Phinehas is ready to strike again (remember Numbers 25:7).

.Joshua 23:11 | (Feb.24.2012) 22:5; Matthew 22:37.

.Joshua 23:11-13 | (Feb.24.2012) (highlighted)

.Joshua 23:14 | (Feb.24.2012) We see in verse 1 that Joshua is now old and stricken in age, and now he says "Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth:" meaning, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. He dies in verse 29 of the next chapter.

.Joshua 24:7 | (Feb.24.2012) Sounds like they didn't know they were in the sea, and like they couldn't see them in front of them, because of the darkness between them (if it's speaking of a visual darkness).

.Joshua 24:13 | (Feb.24.2012) John 4:38

.Joshua 24:15 | (Feb.24.2012) VERY IMPORTANT: Just because your ancestors did it does not make it right.

.Joshua 24:19 | (Feb.24.2012) When Joshua is saying here "Ye cannot serve the Lord" he's not saying it as a matter of fact, but challenging them, like a person trying to provoke you to challenge them to a basketball game or a tennis match says "you can't beat me." As we see in verse 22, Joshua doesn't maintain his statement. He accepts their challenge and holds them to it. He's an old dying man; his only influence over people is his words, so he pulls a reverse psychology on them. He hit them with a crippled crossover, and before they can even blink good, they find themselves in an agreement to serve God with witnesses of the agreement and everything. Way to go Joshua! Way to go.

Day 86: Judges 1-3; John 7

.John 7:1 | (Mar.3.2012) (highlighted)

.John 7:18 | (Mar.3.2012) The Pharisees tried to call Him out over this in 8:13.

.John 7:21 | (Mar.3.2012) (highlighted)

.John 7:30 | (Mar.3.2012) 7:44

.John 7:31 | (Mar.3.2012) They have no idea this is Him. Jesus should have responded, "No, Christ could never do more miracles than me in a million years!"

.John 7:38 | (Mar.3.2012) highlighted "As the scripture hath said"

.John 7:39 | (Mar.3.2012) highlighted "the Holy Ghost was not yet given"

.John 7:40 | (Mar.3.2012) Do they think He's John? "The Prophet" is John the Baptist's main role, although Jesus was a prophet also. We must remember too that back then, people were known by their reputations, not their faces. They didn't have TV and photographs of these people floating around. It was a time a person could be both famous and anonymous at the same time. Much different than today.

.John 7:44 | (Mar.3.2012) 7:30

.John 7:47-49 | (Mar.3.2012) As the Pharisees did then, some pastors and preachers say now about wise believers who know the truth.

.John 7:51 | (Mar.3.2012) Innocent before proven guilty.

.John 7:52 | (Mar.3.2012) Accusing Him of favoritism?

Day 87: Judges 4-6; John 8:1-29

.Judges 4:1 | (Mar.4.2012) 3:11-12

.Judges 4:14-21 | (Mar.4.2012) (highlighted)

.Judges 4:19 | (Mar.4.2012) Notice that he asked for water and she gave him milk, which is highlighted in 5:25.

.Judges 4:21 | (Mar.4.2012) Silent but calculated and BRUTAL!

.John 8:6 | (Mar.4.2012) "But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not." I think this is hilarious! Different people have different ideas of what was going on here in this moment. Some people think that He was writing those peoples' sins. Perhaps He was writing their conscience of their sins into their heart. Deuteronomy 30:14; Exodus 32:15-16 talks about the tables of commandments that God wrote. Another scripture says that God actually wrote with His finger (Exodus 31:18). This may have some significance here.

.John 8:7 | (Mar.4.2012) "Among you" Deuteronomy 17:7

.John 8:8 | (Mar.4.2012) Exodus 31:18; Jesus is writing now the second time, which may have some significance (or not) to the fact that God wrote the commandments twice. He wrote them once, then Moses broke them, and He wrote them over again. And you thought losing your unsaved email was a big deal when you lost that.

.John 8:9 | (Mar.4.2012) "convicted by their own conscience"

.John 8:14 | (Mar.4.2012) In 5:31 He says if He bears witness of Himself, His witness is not true. Two verses later, He mentions that John the Baptist bare witness, which gives the idea that He was referring to initially revealing who He was, which was John the Baptist's job. Yet, here he says he bears record of Himself. 1 John 5:7 says "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." The next verse says "And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." So Him saying He bears "record" is signifying His ties with Heaven, where He was before He came to earth. And I use the word "was" loosely, because from my understanding Heaven is eternal. I wonder if He's in two places at the same time, because I'm still left with the question, "how does one leave eternity?"

.John 8:17 | (Mar.4.2012) Jesus calls God a man, or either He's using the word "men" in a general sense of saying "someone."

.John 8:18 | (Mar.4.2012) 1 John 5:8. Jesus' witness is the witness of His Father. (highlighted the "the" in "The Father" here in verse 18)

.John 8:22 | (Mar.4.2012) This is not the first time suicide has been mentioned in the Bible, although rarely mentioned.

.John 8:24 | (Mar.4.2012) For all of the people who don't believe in Jesus and who He is, He says plainly here that non-believers will die in their sins. There's not too many other ways to say "If ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins." Point blank, period.

Day 88: Judges 7-8; John 8:30-59

.John 8:31 | (Mar.6.2012) "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;" This tells us that there were Jews that believed on Him, and they were following His word while they were still Jews, because He said "If you continue in my word..."

.John 8:32 | (Mar.6.2012) "Free"

.John 8:34 | (Mar.6.2012) Those under Jesus can't commit sin. They can't be both under Jesus and serving sin at the same time. As Jesus says in Matthew 6:24, "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other."

.John 8:35 | (Mar.6.2012) The son abides in his Father's house forever. 8:38

.John 8:37 | (Mar.6.2012) "I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you." He said this to those in verse 31. Those same people who believed on Him were seeking to kill Him. It seems they were following His word to an extent or for a time, but I suppose one could follow Jesus for any number of different reasons. Perhaps they were following His word because they sought to kill Him, and following Him would allow them to be close to Him. Notice in verse 31, He didn't simply say for them to follow His word, but to continue in it. Anyone can and may follow it, but not everyone will continue in it. That's what I call the test of time.

.John 8:38 | (Mar.6.2012) two different fathers. Regardless of what they're hearing or listening to, He's concerned about what they're doing, and He says they "do" that which ye have seen with their father, which is the Devil, according to verse 44.

.John 8:39 | (Mar.6.2012) They claim Abraham is their father, but Jesus disagrees. 8:41,44; Galatians 3:7

Day 89: Judges 9-10; John 9

.Judges 9:4 | (Mar.7.2012) "Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him." This line stood out to me, even beyond the context in which it's used here. It's very telling that I didn't even have to question why Abimelech would hire vain and light persons to follow him? Normally, it should be something that I should question, like "why in the world would someone want vain and light people as followers? Wouldn't they want strong, smart, intelligent, wise people around them? Wouldn't that be ideal?" But I already know very well why someone would want vain and light people following them. I am well acquainted with it. My experience with seeing this type of thing is not in the battlefield; it's not in the workplace. My experience with seeing this is in the church. In our current day in age, among those who call ourselves Christians, I've seen far too many pastors and ministry leaders who much preferred vain and light people in their corner. Vain and light people are easy to lead, easy to persuade, easy to teach, easy to figure out, easy to manipulate, easy to answer, and if they get out of line, they are easy to intimidate and correct them to line up with one's own thinking, be it biblical or not. And if you can't intimidate or correct them for some unknown reason, they are easy to write-off because they weren't really worth all that much to them in the first place. Vain and light people are not capable of challenging the leader's understanding very much. They are not knowledgeable enough to challenge any of the leader's incorrect actions, behaviors, or teaching. And if they are knowledgeable enough to recognize them, they are most often not brave enough to confront them, or they don't have the motive to confront them, because in a vain person's mind, it's sufficient for them to know what's going on without them having to subject themselves to unneccessary scrutiny by challenging the leader simply for the sake of other people's wellbeing. In other words, a vain person is really only interested in protecting themselves. They would protect others' interests, but at the price of their own comfort it costs too much, so they just go along to get along. Yes, it is true that Abimelech hired these people and the churchgoers aren't specifically hired, but there are many who are promised blessings and safety from curses if they follow and obey the leaders. This is not what Jesus did. Even when He did have vain and light followers, when they met His presence they were empowered and taught not to be vain and light. Not only was Jesus not threatened by greatness, He required it.

Day 90: Judges 11-12; John 10

.Judges 11:17 | (Mar.8.2012) That's true. I remember reading that.

.Judges 11:23 | (Mar.8.2012) You've got to know your history.

.Judges 11:31 | (Mar.8.2012) His only daughter, a virgin daughter; him being the son of a harlot. Verse 34

.Judges 11:38 | (Mar.8.2012) verses 30-31 and 34

.Judges 11:39 | (Mar.8.2012) verses 30-31; he sacrificed her, ending his family line.

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