Month: April 2024

“Gather together-yes, gather together, you shameless nation. Gather before judgment begins, before your time is blown away like chaff. Act now, before the fierce fury of the Lord falls and the terrible day of the Lord’s anger begins.

Seek the Lord, all who are humble, and follow His commands. Seek to do what is right and to live humbly. Perhaps even yet the Lord will protect you- protect you from His anger on that day of destruction.” (vv. 1-3, NLT)

“This prayer was sung by the prophet Habakkuk:

I have hear all about you, Lord. I am filled with the awe by Your amazing works. I n this time of our deep need, hep us again as You did in years gone by. And in Your anger, remember Your mercy.

I see God moing across the deserts from Edom, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His brilliant splendor fills the heavens, and the earth is filled with His praise. His coming is as brilliant as the sunrise. Rays of light flash from His hands, where His awesome power is hidden. When He stops, the earth shakes. When he looks, the nations tremble. He shatters the everlasting mountains and levels the eternal hills. He is the Eternal One!” (vv. 1-6, NLT)

“Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.” (vv. 17-19, NLT)

“This message concerning Nineveh cam as a vision to Nahum, who lived in Elkosh.

The Lord is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and rage. He takes revenge on all who oppose Him and continues to rage against His enemies.! The Lord is slow to get angry, but His power is great and He never lets the guilty go unpunished. He displays His power in the whirlwind and the storm. The billowing clouds are the dust beneath His feet.” (vv. 1-3, NLT)

“The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in Him. But he will sweep away His enemies in an overwhelming flood. He will pursue His foes into the darkness of night.” (vv. 7-8, NLT)

“O Lord, protect Your people with Your shepherd’s staff; lead Your flock, Your special possession. Though they live alone in a thicket on the heights of Mount Carmel, let them graze in the fertile pastures of Bashan and Gilead as the did long ago.

‘Yes,’ says the Lord,’I will do mighty miracles for you, like those I did when I rescued you from Egypt.’

All the nations of the world will stand amazed at what the Lord will do for you. They will be embarrassed at their feeble power. They will cover their mouths in silent awe, deaf to everything around them. Like snakes crawling from their holes, they will come out to meet the Lord our God. They will fear Him greatly, trembling in terror at His presence.

Where is another God like You, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of His special people? You will not stay angry with Your people forever, because You delight in showing unfailing love. Once again You will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under Your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!

You will show us Your faithfulness and unfailing love as You promised our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago.” (vv. 14-20, NLT)

“How miserable I am! I feel like the fruit picker after harvest who can find nothing to ear. No a cluster of grapes or a single early fig can be found to satisfy my hunger. The godly people have disappeared; not one honest person is left on the earth. They are all murderers, setting traps even for their own brothers.” (vv. 1-2, NLT)

“Don’t trust anyone – not your best friend or even your wife! For the son despises his father, and the daughter defiles her mother. The daughter-in-law defiles her mother-in-law. Your enemies are right in your own household!”

But as for me, I look for the Lord for help. I wait confidently for God to save me, and my God will certainly hear me. Do not gloat over me, my enemies! For thought I fall, I will rise again. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light. I will be patient as the Lord punishes me, for I have sinned agains Him. But after that, He will take up my case and give me justice for all I have suffered from my enemies. The Lord will bring me into the light, and I will see His righteousness

Then my enemies will be ashamed that they taunted me, saying, ‘So where is the Lord-that God of yours? With my own eyes, I will see their downfall; they will be trampled in the mud in the streets.”( vv. 5-10, NLT)

“What can we bring to the Lord? Wha kind of offerings should we bring Him? Should we bow before God with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer Him thousands of rams and ten thousand rives of olive oil? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for our sins?

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is right and good, and this is what He requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” (vv. 6-8, NLT)

“But you, O Bethlehem, Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past. The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies until a woman gives birth. Then at last His fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land. And He will stand to lead His flock with the Lord’s strength. In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God. Then His people will live there undisturbed, and He will be highly honored around the world. And He will be a source of peace.” (vv. 2-5, NLT)

“I said, ‘Listen you leaders of Israel! You are supposed to know right from wrong, but you are the very ones who hate good and love evil. You skin my people alive and tear the flesh from their bones.'” (v 1-2, NLT)

“‘Then you beg the Lord for help in times of trouble! Do you really expect Hm to answer? After all the evil you have done, He won’t even look at you!'” (v.4, NLT)

“‘Now the night will close around you, cutting off all your visions. Darkness will cover you, putting an end to your predictions. The sun will set for your prophets, and your day will come to an end. Then you seers will be put to shame, and you fortune-tellers will be disgraced. And you will cover your faces because there is no answer from God.’

‘But as for me, I am filled with power – with the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and strength and boldly declare Israel’s sin and rebellion. Listen to me, you leaders of Israel. You hate justice and twist all that right.'” (vv. 6-9, NLT)

“Someday, O Israel, I will gather you. I will gather the remnant who are left. I will bring you together again like sheep in a pen, a flock in its pasture. Yes, your land will again be filled with noisy crowds! Your leader will break out and lead you to exile, out through the gates of the enemy cities, bring you back to your owe land. Your king will lead you; The Lord himself will guide you.” (vv. 12-13, NLT)

“This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. So he complained to the Lord about it: ‘Didn’t I say before I left home that You should do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that You are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.’

The Lord replied, ‘Is it right for you to be angry about this?’

Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city. And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there , and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.

But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. ‘Death is certainly better than living like this!’he exclaimed.

Then God said to Jonah, ‘Is is right for you to be angry because the plant died?’

‘Yes’, Jonah retorted, ‘even angry enough to die!’

Then the Lord said,’You feel sorry about the plant, though you did noting to put it there. It came quickly an died quickly. But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?'” (Chapter 4, NLT)