The snowball fight of March 5, 1770, is a well known story. British soldiers guarding the Boston custom house fired into an unruly mob of dock workers, killing five of them. When Samuel Adams published an account of the shootings, the episode became known as the Boston Massacre. Little did the Patriot leader know the strange chain of events that would follow his expose.
After Sam Adam's publication, the colonists were furious and demanded justice. So vociferous were they, that the British authorities decided to make scapegoats of the Redcoats.
The first to be on trial was Captain Preston. He was found innocent. That left the eight soldiers, who now realized more than ever that they needed a good lawyer. Had their captain been found guilty, that would have rendered them guiltless; they had just been following orders. But with Preston having found innocent, the soldiers were now on their own-hung out to dry. At that point, the best lawyer in Boston stepped in to take their case and save their lives.
When the trial opened, the defense attorney, who was himself a colonial, was held in almost as much ridicule as the soldiers. Cold stares surveyed him in court, and he met with outright hostility on the street. Nevertheless, he persevered.
The defense counsel maintained that the mob into which the defendants had shot, was in reality an unlawful assembly. So brilliantly did he argue the case that, after two and a half, the jury came back with a not guilty verdict for six of the soldiers and manslaughter verdicts for the other two.
None of the defendants in the Boston Massacre went to jail. even the two guilty ones, claiming a common law custom, escaped prison by being branded.
Thus it was that eight British redcoats owed their lives and their freedom to a colonial lawyer who laid aside his own political feelings to do his duty. For you see, that Boston attorney who successfully defended the soldiers of the Boston Massacre was none other than John Adams, our second president, one of the most ardent anti-British patriots Massachusetts ever produced.
Friday, July 10, 2015
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
The Old Testament Books lV
247. Amos prophesied at about the same time as Hosea and Joel. Amos was a sheepherder from a Judean village who left his flocks to denounce the sins of his people during the time of the northern King Jeroboam II (786-744 B.C.), a prosperous time in Israel. Though a herdsman, Amos used some of the purest and most classical Hebrew in the entire Old Testament. In a style of informal satire, Amos attacked the oppression of the poor by the rich, as well the latter's empty piety and immoral religious practices. If the people did not mend their corrupt ways, Amos warned, they would be destroyed.
248. Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament-only one chapter. Like Joel, he emphasized the coming day of the Lord. He said that since all nations have a day of reckoning, it does not pay to gloat when another nation encounters misfortune. He also emphasized the often-used words of wisdom. "As you have done it, so it will be done to you."
249. Jonah. This book marks a distinct change of pace. Jonah's story is told in narrative form about how he refused to deliver a message of warning to the great city of Nineveh, capital of Assyria. Israel's prophets often had words to deliver to surrounding nations, but Jonah had no desire to deliver a message of repentance to the enemies of his people. Jonah attempted to run away, booking passage on a ship going to Tarshish in southern Spain, the farthest known earthly point to which a man could then travel. In the end Jonah learned a great lesson in the depth of God's mercy.
250. Micah returns to the normal poetic style of the prophets. His writings are structured in three stages: reproof, threat, and promise. Micah reminded the people of all that God had done for them in the past. He called them to obedience in the present and hopefulness for the future. He spoke to both the people of the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom.
251. Nahum. Like Jonah, Nahum was concerned with the city of Nineveh. Here there is no narrative story, but where Jonah gave us just the overview, Nahum spells out the full indictment of the city's wrongdoings. Descriptive words are piled on one another, creating rapidly moving pictures. Nahum lived long after Jonah. Nineveh's embrace of morality had ended, and Nahum warned them of their final fall.
252. Habakkuk foresaw the assault on Israel by Babylon. He admitted Israel's sin but asked why an unrighteous nation like Babylon was so worthy to conquer. There is no lengthy answer in this short book. God's response is only that the righteous will live by faith. That is, he or she will trust that all accounts are eventually settled. Once again the people were instructed to live righteously.
253. Zephaniah was a contemporary of Jeremiah. Zephaniah's prophecy came in the years immediately preceding the fall of Jerusalem. He talked of the coming day of the Lord, which for Jerusalem was right around the corner. Yet he, too, spoke of the glorious long-term future God had in mind for his people-that a remnant of God's people would survive the day of judgment.
254. Haggai and the next two prophets did their work after the remnant of Israelites returned from exile in Babylon. Haggai is specifically mentioned in the Book of Ezra as being among the returning exiles. Haggai's style is compact, forceful, and at times stern. Yet he encouraged the leaders and the people not to grieve over the brokenness of the nation they were rebuilding.
255. Zechariah was a coworker with Haggai. He, too, is mentioned in the Book of Ezra. His writing is considerably longer and more complex than Haggai's. This book can be divided into four sections (the first three are dated, but the last is not). He described visions, some of which are as complex as those found in Ezekiel and Daniel.
256. Malachi. The twelfth and last of the minor prophets is more proselike than poetic, with a definite plan of argument. Malachi was concerned with the morality of the priesthood in his time. You would think that all the warning the prophets had given before the fall of Jerusalem and all the chastening Israel had experienced that the priests would be diligent about keeping up their duties. But they weren't. Malachi warned the priests who thought they would get a "free ride" that they were in for a rude awakening.
248. Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament-only one chapter. Like Joel, he emphasized the coming day of the Lord. He said that since all nations have a day of reckoning, it does not pay to gloat when another nation encounters misfortune. He also emphasized the often-used words of wisdom. "As you have done it, so it will be done to you."
249. Jonah. This book marks a distinct change of pace. Jonah's story is told in narrative form about how he refused to deliver a message of warning to the great city of Nineveh, capital of Assyria. Israel's prophets often had words to deliver to surrounding nations, but Jonah had no desire to deliver a message of repentance to the enemies of his people. Jonah attempted to run away, booking passage on a ship going to Tarshish in southern Spain, the farthest known earthly point to which a man could then travel. In the end Jonah learned a great lesson in the depth of God's mercy.
250. Micah returns to the normal poetic style of the prophets. His writings are structured in three stages: reproof, threat, and promise. Micah reminded the people of all that God had done for them in the past. He called them to obedience in the present and hopefulness for the future. He spoke to both the people of the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom.
251. Nahum. Like Jonah, Nahum was concerned with the city of Nineveh. Here there is no narrative story, but where Jonah gave us just the overview, Nahum spells out the full indictment of the city's wrongdoings. Descriptive words are piled on one another, creating rapidly moving pictures. Nahum lived long after Jonah. Nineveh's embrace of morality had ended, and Nahum warned them of their final fall.
252. Habakkuk foresaw the assault on Israel by Babylon. He admitted Israel's sin but asked why an unrighteous nation like Babylon was so worthy to conquer. There is no lengthy answer in this short book. God's response is only that the righteous will live by faith. That is, he or she will trust that all accounts are eventually settled. Once again the people were instructed to live righteously.
253. Zephaniah was a contemporary of Jeremiah. Zephaniah's prophecy came in the years immediately preceding the fall of Jerusalem. He talked of the coming day of the Lord, which for Jerusalem was right around the corner. Yet he, too, spoke of the glorious long-term future God had in mind for his people-that a remnant of God's people would survive the day of judgment.
254. Haggai and the next two prophets did their work after the remnant of Israelites returned from exile in Babylon. Haggai is specifically mentioned in the Book of Ezra as being among the returning exiles. Haggai's style is compact, forceful, and at times stern. Yet he encouraged the leaders and the people not to grieve over the brokenness of the nation they were rebuilding.
255. Zechariah was a coworker with Haggai. He, too, is mentioned in the Book of Ezra. His writing is considerably longer and more complex than Haggai's. This book can be divided into four sections (the first three are dated, but the last is not). He described visions, some of which are as complex as those found in Ezekiel and Daniel.
256. Malachi. The twelfth and last of the minor prophets is more proselike than poetic, with a definite plan of argument. Malachi was concerned with the morality of the priesthood in his time. You would think that all the warning the prophets had given before the fall of Jerusalem and all the chastening Israel had experienced that the priests would be diligent about keeping up their duties. But they weren't. Malachi warned the priests who thought they would get a "free ride" that they were in for a rude awakening.
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
The Old Testament Books lll
238. Ecclesiastes. If Job reads like a play, and Psalms like poetry, and Proverbs like a book of maxims, Ecclesiastes reads like an essay, or the thoughts of an old man thinking out loud. Its subject is the vanity of life. The book approaches Job's question, but from the opposite side: If this universe is governed by a moral God, why doesn't everything make sense? The conclusion of the book's search is that regardless of any apparent vanity, fearing God and keeping His commandments is the wisest course of action.
239. Song of Solomon. Plain and simple, this book is an erotic love poem. The writing resembles Egyptian love poetry and Arabic wedding songs that praise charm and beauty of the bride. The traditional interpretation, both in Judaism and Christianity, is that these love poems represent Yahweh's love for Israel while also establishing God's high regard for male-female love and sexuality.
240. Isaiah opens by dating himself according to the reign of a particular king in Israel's history and then describing his visions in the form of poetry. Throughout his book, Isaiah made key references to historical markers, which keep his writings in context with the historical books. The other prophets often followed this form. Isaiah's ministry spread over the reigns of four of Judah's kings. Isaiah is quoted in the New Testament more often than any other book of prophecy.
241. Jeremiah was another firebrand of the declining years of Judah. Jeremiah, whose name meant "God hurled," was born in a tiny village northeast of Jerusalem, and before long, perhaps while he was still in his teens, he was thrown into the midst of his nation's most terrifying crisis. He was a faithful prophet to God but unpopular among the people. The young Jeremiah declared that the Babylonians would destroy the nation because the children of Israel had forgotten God.
242. Lamentations is a brief book of sorrowful poems, some in the form of alphabetic acrostics, which recall the grim fate of Jerusalem following its destruction by the Babylonians in 587/6 B.C. The title is derived from the Hebrew word qinoth ("dirges" or "laments"). In Christian Old Testaments, the book is placed after Jeremiah, but it is found in the third part of the Hebrew Canon Writings. The poems are bitterly sad elegies for the "dead" city, but they express hope that God will restore a humbled and repentant Israel.
243. Ezekiel is one of the hardest books to read in the Bible. It is long, with a somber tone like Jeremiah. Its images are complex and hard to understand. Babylon besieged Israel before the capital, Jerusalem, finally fell. During those years of siege, captives were taken from the land and shipped to Babylon. Ezekiel was one of the captives. Ezekiel dealt first with the problems that caused Israel to lose her land. Second, he wanted his people to maintain hope for the future.
244. Daniel. Like Ezekiel, the Book of Daniel has some complicated images. These images add to the glorious picture of the future of Israel. The central figure in that future was the Messiah, the Jews' image of hope. The first half of the book is straightforward narrative and is the source of some of the Bible's most loved stories: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace; Daniel in the lion's den; and the story that gave rise to the saying, "You could see the handwriting on the wall."
245. Hosea is a prophet of love. Hosea's own experiences with his wayward wife, Gomer, are used as a symbol to illustrate God's pain in dealing with Israel. Like Gomer's sin, Israel's sin would be punished before there could be restoration. In the Book of Hosea, the sins of Israel are spelled out, and she is described as a "harlot." God is portrayed as a faithful and loving husband and Israel as an adulterous wife.
246. Joel's theme is "This is the day of the Lord." The day of the Lord shows up in other prophetic books as well and means a day of reckoning-a day of judgment. It refers to a time when God brings down the wicked and haughty and lifts up the humble. The day of the Lord meant destruction for some and deliverance for others. Joel spoke of a day approaching for Israel by describing a ravaging plague of locusts.
239. Song of Solomon. Plain and simple, this book is an erotic love poem. The writing resembles Egyptian love poetry and Arabic wedding songs that praise charm and beauty of the bride. The traditional interpretation, both in Judaism and Christianity, is that these love poems represent Yahweh's love for Israel while also establishing God's high regard for male-female love and sexuality.
240. Isaiah opens by dating himself according to the reign of a particular king in Israel's history and then describing his visions in the form of poetry. Throughout his book, Isaiah made key references to historical markers, which keep his writings in context with the historical books. The other prophets often followed this form. Isaiah's ministry spread over the reigns of four of Judah's kings. Isaiah is quoted in the New Testament more often than any other book of prophecy.
241. Jeremiah was another firebrand of the declining years of Judah. Jeremiah, whose name meant "God hurled," was born in a tiny village northeast of Jerusalem, and before long, perhaps while he was still in his teens, he was thrown into the midst of his nation's most terrifying crisis. He was a faithful prophet to God but unpopular among the people. The young Jeremiah declared that the Babylonians would destroy the nation because the children of Israel had forgotten God.
242. Lamentations is a brief book of sorrowful poems, some in the form of alphabetic acrostics, which recall the grim fate of Jerusalem following its destruction by the Babylonians in 587/6 B.C. The title is derived from the Hebrew word qinoth ("dirges" or "laments"). In Christian Old Testaments, the book is placed after Jeremiah, but it is found in the third part of the Hebrew Canon Writings. The poems are bitterly sad elegies for the "dead" city, but they express hope that God will restore a humbled and repentant Israel.
243. Ezekiel is one of the hardest books to read in the Bible. It is long, with a somber tone like Jeremiah. Its images are complex and hard to understand. Babylon besieged Israel before the capital, Jerusalem, finally fell. During those years of siege, captives were taken from the land and shipped to Babylon. Ezekiel was one of the captives. Ezekiel dealt first with the problems that caused Israel to lose her land. Second, he wanted his people to maintain hope for the future.
244. Daniel. Like Ezekiel, the Book of Daniel has some complicated images. These images add to the glorious picture of the future of Israel. The central figure in that future was the Messiah, the Jews' image of hope. The first half of the book is straightforward narrative and is the source of some of the Bible's most loved stories: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace; Daniel in the lion's den; and the story that gave rise to the saying, "You could see the handwriting on the wall."
245. Hosea is a prophet of love. Hosea's own experiences with his wayward wife, Gomer, are used as a symbol to illustrate God's pain in dealing with Israel. Like Gomer's sin, Israel's sin would be punished before there could be restoration. In the Book of Hosea, the sins of Israel are spelled out, and she is described as a "harlot." God is portrayed as a faithful and loving husband and Israel as an adulterous wife.
246. Joel's theme is "This is the day of the Lord." The day of the Lord shows up in other prophetic books as well and means a day of reckoning-a day of judgment. It refers to a time when God brings down the wicked and haughty and lifts up the humble. The day of the Lord meant destruction for some and deliverance for others. Joel spoke of a day approaching for Israel by describing a ravaging plague of locusts.
Monday, July 6, 2015
The Old Testament Books ll
228. 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings. Originally the two books of Samuel and the two books of Kings were each a single book in the Hebrew Canon of the Bible, telling the history of the kingdom of Israel. Once they were translated into Greek in the Septuagint, they no longer fit on single scrolls and were expanded into four books. Samuel contains the history of the prophet Samuel-the last judge of Israel-and the stormy tale of Israel's first two kings, Saul and David.
229. The division of Kings occurred when the Book of Samuel was divided into 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel, the Book of Kings was divided into 1 Kings and 2 Kings, and the Book of Chronicles was divided into 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles. The motivation was not spiritual but practical-the books were simply too long to keep on one scroll.
230. 1 and 2 Chronicles is the ancient Reader's Digest version of everything that had already taken place in the Bible from Genesis forward. It is abridged and simplified, with many of the nasty parts taken out. The first nine chapters contain long tables of "begats," showing the descendants of the Hebrew tribes, from Adam through the time of King David. The rest of 1 Chronicles and most of 2 Chronicles deal with the reigns of David and Solomon and the subsequent history of the kingdom of Judah until the Babylonian exile. Since these books are placed last in the Hebrew Canon, the Hebrew Scriptures end on a liberating note, with echoes of the Exodus.
231. Ezra opens with a decree of Cyrus, the king of Persia, following his capture of Babylon in 539 B.C., that those who want to may leave Babylon and return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Founder of an extensive empire that lasted more than two hundred years, Cyrus was an extraordinary leader. Under Cyrus and his successors, much of the ancient Near East, from India to Egypt and the border of Greece, was brought under one ruler. Unlike other ancient conquerors who enforced their own religions on conquered peoples, Cyrus permitted the captive nations to preserve and restore their own institutions.
232. Nehemiah. Jerusalem was constantly raided by various marauders. Nehemiah's particular concern was the security of Jerusalem, so he returned from exile specifically to help. He organized the people and rebuilt the city walls in fifty-five days. While Ezra's role was that of a priest, Nehemiah's was that of governor. When the rebuilding was completed, Ezra was invited to rededicate the city by reading from the book of Moses. Ezra-Nehemiah make a distinctive pair of books, together recording the rebuilding of Jerusalem after the exile.
233. Esther (Hadassah in Hebrew). While Ezra-Nehemiah deal with events in Jerusalem, Esther tells of events far away. As Ruth was a vignette sketched in the period of the judges, Esther is a vignette sketched in the time of the exile. As one of the exiles, Esther finds herself in the service of the king of Persia. The king sets out to select a new queen, and the beautiful Jewish woman, Esther, is chosen. Haman, the king's right-hand man, plans to rid his county of the Jews. Through a fascinating sequence of events involving Esther, Haman's rampage against the Jews backfires. Esther retains the favor of the king and the Jewish people are saved.
234. The books of poetry. Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Solomon make up the Bible's books of poetry. Hebrew poetry is picturesque and vivid. There is a rhythm or cadence to Hebrew poetry that is lost to some degree in the translation. It is filled with concrete images and deep emotion. it touches the soul. The books of poetry aren't just a change in style from previous books; the subject matter shifts as well. Wisdom takes center stage in these five books; therefore, they are called the "wisdom literature" of the Bible.
235. Job. Whenever the troubling question "Why do bad things happen to good people?" comes up, Job is first to come to mind. But few people ever tackle this book that reads like the script for a play. The central characters are Job, three of his friends, a bystander, and God. The supporting cast includes Job's wife and children, the angels, and Satan as chief of the angels. The first two chapters and the last two chapters are prose, and the thirty-nine chapters in between consist of poetic dialogue between the central characters.
236. Psalms. While Jews and Christians share the entire Hebrew Scriptures, or Old Testament, Psalms is the most emotionally and intensely shared book of Hebrew Scripture. Jews know many of the psalms and individual verses by heart. Jesus often quoted or referred to the Psalms. Martin Luther called the Book of Psalms "a Bible in Miniature." The 150 "rosaries" later instituted by the Roman Catholic Church are in honor of the 150 psalms.
237. Proverbs. Some proverbs are strung together in a meaningful sequence, while others are independent of each other and need to be "unpacked" by the reader. The opening chapters of Proverbs carry extended proverbs that progress with each verse. And mostly one-liner bits of wisdom form chapters ten and following. Proverbs leaves no ambiguity over the contrast between the righteous and the wicked.
229. The division of Kings occurred when the Book of Samuel was divided into 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel, the Book of Kings was divided into 1 Kings and 2 Kings, and the Book of Chronicles was divided into 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles. The motivation was not spiritual but practical-the books were simply too long to keep on one scroll.
230. 1 and 2 Chronicles is the ancient Reader's Digest version of everything that had already taken place in the Bible from Genesis forward. It is abridged and simplified, with many of the nasty parts taken out. The first nine chapters contain long tables of "begats," showing the descendants of the Hebrew tribes, from Adam through the time of King David. The rest of 1 Chronicles and most of 2 Chronicles deal with the reigns of David and Solomon and the subsequent history of the kingdom of Judah until the Babylonian exile. Since these books are placed last in the Hebrew Canon, the Hebrew Scriptures end on a liberating note, with echoes of the Exodus.
231. Ezra opens with a decree of Cyrus, the king of Persia, following his capture of Babylon in 539 B.C., that those who want to may leave Babylon and return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Founder of an extensive empire that lasted more than two hundred years, Cyrus was an extraordinary leader. Under Cyrus and his successors, much of the ancient Near East, from India to Egypt and the border of Greece, was brought under one ruler. Unlike other ancient conquerors who enforced their own religions on conquered peoples, Cyrus permitted the captive nations to preserve and restore their own institutions.
232. Nehemiah. Jerusalem was constantly raided by various marauders. Nehemiah's particular concern was the security of Jerusalem, so he returned from exile specifically to help. He organized the people and rebuilt the city walls in fifty-five days. While Ezra's role was that of a priest, Nehemiah's was that of governor. When the rebuilding was completed, Ezra was invited to rededicate the city by reading from the book of Moses. Ezra-Nehemiah make a distinctive pair of books, together recording the rebuilding of Jerusalem after the exile.
233. Esther (Hadassah in Hebrew). While Ezra-Nehemiah deal with events in Jerusalem, Esther tells of events far away. As Ruth was a vignette sketched in the period of the judges, Esther is a vignette sketched in the time of the exile. As one of the exiles, Esther finds herself in the service of the king of Persia. The king sets out to select a new queen, and the beautiful Jewish woman, Esther, is chosen. Haman, the king's right-hand man, plans to rid his county of the Jews. Through a fascinating sequence of events involving Esther, Haman's rampage against the Jews backfires. Esther retains the favor of the king and the Jewish people are saved.
234. The books of poetry. Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Solomon make up the Bible's books of poetry. Hebrew poetry is picturesque and vivid. There is a rhythm or cadence to Hebrew poetry that is lost to some degree in the translation. It is filled with concrete images and deep emotion. it touches the soul. The books of poetry aren't just a change in style from previous books; the subject matter shifts as well. Wisdom takes center stage in these five books; therefore, they are called the "wisdom literature" of the Bible.
235. Job. Whenever the troubling question "Why do bad things happen to good people?" comes up, Job is first to come to mind. But few people ever tackle this book that reads like the script for a play. The central characters are Job, three of his friends, a bystander, and God. The supporting cast includes Job's wife and children, the angels, and Satan as chief of the angels. The first two chapters and the last two chapters are prose, and the thirty-nine chapters in between consist of poetic dialogue between the central characters.
236. Psalms. While Jews and Christians share the entire Hebrew Scriptures, or Old Testament, Psalms is the most emotionally and intensely shared book of Hebrew Scripture. Jews know many of the psalms and individual verses by heart. Jesus often quoted or referred to the Psalms. Martin Luther called the Book of Psalms "a Bible in Miniature." The 150 "rosaries" later instituted by the Roman Catholic Church are in honor of the 150 psalms.
237. Proverbs. Some proverbs are strung together in a meaningful sequence, while others are independent of each other and need to be "unpacked" by the reader. The opening chapters of Proverbs carry extended proverbs that progress with each verse. And mostly one-liner bits of wisdom form chapters ten and following. Proverbs leaves no ambiguity over the contrast between the righteous and the wicked.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
The Old Testament Books l
218. The Book of Moses. Other wise known as the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible attributed to Moses are the cornerstone of the books contributed by later generations. These books include Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
219. Genesis. Genesis comes from a word meaning "to be born." From that same word we also get words like genetic, congenital, and genealogy. Though it marks the beginning, the best way to look at Genesis is not merely to begin and look forward, but to stand at Exodus and look back. Moses is writing for his fellow Israelite slaves. As they struggle with Egypt's oppression, Moses answers the question, "How did we get in this mess?" Genesis is the answer to that question. It tells the story of the Israelites ancestors-all the way back to the first human beings.
220. Exodus. This book opens several hundred years after the close of Genesis. Jacob and some seventy family members had grown into hundreds of thousands. God's promise of descendants to Abraham also included a promise of land on which the descendants would live. this land had already been settled and was called Canaan, after its original settlers. It is now the area of Palestine or Israel. Exodus means "the going out of." It is the story of the Hebrew people being led by Moses out of Egyptian captivity into the wilderness for forty years.
221. Leviticus. The Levites were descended from Jacob's son Levi. Moses and Aaron were Levites. the Levites were to keep the tabernacle and all its services for the rest of the nation, and the priests were to have the most essential parts of that service. This book is somewhat of an appendix to Exodus as it is a log of the laws and guidelines for the Israelites.
222. Numbers. The English title of this book refers to the census of the twelve tribes that opens the book. The Hebrew title, Ba-Midbar (in the wilderness"), is more accurately descriptive because the book begins with the decision to leave Sinai and cross the desert toward the Promised Land.
223. Deuteronomy. This book is essentially Moses' farewell address-actually three addresses- in which he restates the acts of God. Solemnly Moses warns of the temptations of Canaan and its evil ways. Moses pleads for loyalty to and love of God as the main condition for life in the Promised Land. A central message in Deuteronomy is that the worship of God is to be centralized in one place, so that the paganism of local shrines may be eliminated.
224. The books of history. If the books of Moses can be considered the cornerstone of the Bible, then the next twelve books can be thought of as the first story of the building. The historical record of ancient Israel that began with Genesis through Deuteronomy is continued with these next twelve books. While the first five books brought Israel to the edge of the Promised Land, these next twelve tell what happened once Israel took up residence there.
225. Joshua. Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the Promised Land, and neither were any of the people who came out of Egypt because of the Israelites' griping in the wilderness. Permission came at last for the Israelites to "conquer" the Promised Land after forty years of waiting. The Book of Joshua tells this story. As in many war stories, it gets pretty gory.
226. Judges recounts the history of Israel from the death of Joshua to the time just before the birth of the Hebrew prophet Samuel, roughly a two-hundred-year span. the judges were warrior-like rulers over the tribes of Israel.
227. Ruth. The short Book of Ruth-shortest of all the historical books-provides a welcome respite from the harsh times described at the end of Judges. The opening verses tell of the Moabites, Ruth's marriage to a Hebrew man during a time of famine, and how she chose to return to Judah with her mother-in-law after her husband's death. Her loyalty and kindness were rewarded and forever remembered by the Jewish people because she became the great-grandmother of King David.
219. Genesis. Genesis comes from a word meaning "to be born." From that same word we also get words like genetic, congenital, and genealogy. Though it marks the beginning, the best way to look at Genesis is not merely to begin and look forward, but to stand at Exodus and look back. Moses is writing for his fellow Israelite slaves. As they struggle with Egypt's oppression, Moses answers the question, "How did we get in this mess?" Genesis is the answer to that question. It tells the story of the Israelites ancestors-all the way back to the first human beings.
220. Exodus. This book opens several hundred years after the close of Genesis. Jacob and some seventy family members had grown into hundreds of thousands. God's promise of descendants to Abraham also included a promise of land on which the descendants would live. this land had already been settled and was called Canaan, after its original settlers. It is now the area of Palestine or Israel. Exodus means "the going out of." It is the story of the Hebrew people being led by Moses out of Egyptian captivity into the wilderness for forty years.
221. Leviticus. The Levites were descended from Jacob's son Levi. Moses and Aaron were Levites. the Levites were to keep the tabernacle and all its services for the rest of the nation, and the priests were to have the most essential parts of that service. This book is somewhat of an appendix to Exodus as it is a log of the laws and guidelines for the Israelites.
222. Numbers. The English title of this book refers to the census of the twelve tribes that opens the book. The Hebrew title, Ba-Midbar (in the wilderness"), is more accurately descriptive because the book begins with the decision to leave Sinai and cross the desert toward the Promised Land.
223. Deuteronomy. This book is essentially Moses' farewell address-actually three addresses- in which he restates the acts of God. Solemnly Moses warns of the temptations of Canaan and its evil ways. Moses pleads for loyalty to and love of God as the main condition for life in the Promised Land. A central message in Deuteronomy is that the worship of God is to be centralized in one place, so that the paganism of local shrines may be eliminated.
224. The books of history. If the books of Moses can be considered the cornerstone of the Bible, then the next twelve books can be thought of as the first story of the building. The historical record of ancient Israel that began with Genesis through Deuteronomy is continued with these next twelve books. While the first five books brought Israel to the edge of the Promised Land, these next twelve tell what happened once Israel took up residence there.
225. Joshua. Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the Promised Land, and neither were any of the people who came out of Egypt because of the Israelites' griping in the wilderness. Permission came at last for the Israelites to "conquer" the Promised Land after forty years of waiting. The Book of Joshua tells this story. As in many war stories, it gets pretty gory.
226. Judges recounts the history of Israel from the death of Joshua to the time just before the birth of the Hebrew prophet Samuel, roughly a two-hundred-year span. the judges were warrior-like rulers over the tribes of Israel.
227. Ruth. The short Book of Ruth-shortest of all the historical books-provides a welcome respite from the harsh times described at the end of Judges. The opening verses tell of the Moabites, Ruth's marriage to a Hebrew man during a time of famine, and how she chose to return to Judah with her mother-in-law after her husband's death. Her loyalty and kindness were rewarded and forever remembered by the Jewish people because she became the great-grandmother of King David.
Horseflies on the Fourth of July
THE FOURTH OF JULY has become one of America's most celebrated holidays. Family barbecues, homemade ice cream, and fireworks consume the nation, as its citizens pay tribute to what they consider to be the birthday of the United States. It is a grand show of patriotism, but there is one small problem. Nothing very important happened on July 4th, 1776, except that the delegates of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia had to cut their work short because of a horde of giant horseflies that invaded Independence Hall.
The first official move toward independence from Great Britain came on July 7, 1776, when Richard Henry Lee of Virginia petitioned the Second Continental Congress to make a clean break from the mother country. Nearly all of the delegates leaned toward Lee's clarion call, but few had the fortitude to take the final step that would turn the colonies into "free and independent states." They preferred to ponder the problem for awhile, so they tabled Lee's motion.
The delegates did indeed ponder the problem, but not for long. In less than a month, they experienced a remarkable change in attitude. Recent actions by the British put reconciliation beyond reach. By July 2, 1776, the colonists were ready for action, and Lee's motion for a declaration of independence was brought back for a vote. It passed unanimously, and Thomas Jefferson, with four other delegates, accepted the assignment to prepare the wording of the document that recorded the act of Congress.
That night John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, "The Second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable in the history of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the Great Anniversary Celebration."
So just what did happen on July 4th, 1776? Actually the Congress met that day for a single item of business. They gathered to simply approve the wording of the document which had been drawn up by Jefferson and his colleagues.
As the meeting was called to order, the July temperature began to rise quickly. The sergeant at arms opened the windows to allow any hint of a breeze to flow across the room. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, a slight puff of wind brought with it an invasion of giant horseflies from a nearby stable. The assembled delegates, who had been arguing over trivial points in Jefferson's wording, were suddenly swatting horseflies.
After a few minutes of battle, the insects prompted one tormented delegate to move to accept the document as it then stood. The motion was seconded and passed, as the delegates fled the building and the horseflies.
Therefore, the notion that July 4th, 1776, is Independence Day clearly misses the mark. The vote on independence had been taken two days earlier, and the document itself wasn't signed until August 2, 1776.
What Americans should be celebrating on July 4th is National Horsefly Day, for it was those pesky insects that cut short the debate on the wording of Jefferson's document and preserved its dignity for future generations.
The first official move toward independence from Great Britain came on July 7, 1776, when Richard Henry Lee of Virginia petitioned the Second Continental Congress to make a clean break from the mother country. Nearly all of the delegates leaned toward Lee's clarion call, but few had the fortitude to take the final step that would turn the colonies into "free and independent states." They preferred to ponder the problem for awhile, so they tabled Lee's motion.
The delegates did indeed ponder the problem, but not for long. In less than a month, they experienced a remarkable change in attitude. Recent actions by the British put reconciliation beyond reach. By July 2, 1776, the colonists were ready for action, and Lee's motion for a declaration of independence was brought back for a vote. It passed unanimously, and Thomas Jefferson, with four other delegates, accepted the assignment to prepare the wording of the document that recorded the act of Congress.
That night John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, "The Second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable in the history of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the Great Anniversary Celebration."
So just what did happen on July 4th, 1776? Actually the Congress met that day for a single item of business. They gathered to simply approve the wording of the document which had been drawn up by Jefferson and his colleagues.
As the meeting was called to order, the July temperature began to rise quickly. The sergeant at arms opened the windows to allow any hint of a breeze to flow across the room. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, a slight puff of wind brought with it an invasion of giant horseflies from a nearby stable. The assembled delegates, who had been arguing over trivial points in Jefferson's wording, were suddenly swatting horseflies.
After a few minutes of battle, the insects prompted one tormented delegate to move to accept the document as it then stood. The motion was seconded and passed, as the delegates fled the building and the horseflies.
Therefore, the notion that July 4th, 1776, is Independence Day clearly misses the mark. The vote on independence had been taken two days earlier, and the document itself wasn't signed until August 2, 1776.
What Americans should be celebrating on July 4th is National Horsefly Day, for it was those pesky insects that cut short the debate on the wording of Jefferson's document and preserved its dignity for future generations.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Famous Quotes about the Bible ll
207. "There are no songs comparable to the songs of Zion, no orations equal to those of the prophets, and no politics like those which the Scriptures teach."---John Milton
208. "When you read God's Word, you must constantly be saying to yourself, it is talking to me, and about me." Soren Kierkegaard
209. "You can learn more about human nature by reading the Bible than by living in new York."---William Lyon Phelps
210. "The New Testament is the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world."---Charles Dickens
211. "What you bring away from the Bible depends to some extent on what you carry to it."---Oliver Wendell Holmes
212. "The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold on me." Martin Luther
213. "The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people."---G. K. Chesterton
214. "Intense study of the Bible will keep any man from being vulgar in point of style."---Samuel Taylor Coleridge
215. "'The Bible,' we are told sometimes, 'gives us such a beautiful picture of what we should be.' Nonsense! It gives us no picture at all. It reveals to us a fact: It tells us what we really are; it says, this is the form in which God created you, to which He has restored you; this is the work which the Eternal Son, the God of Truth and Love, is continually carrying on within you."---F. D. Maurice
216. "Read the whole Bible, and read it in order; two chapters in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament, daily if you can possibly spare the time; and you will have more time than you are aware of; if you retrench all needless visits, and save the hours spent in useless or unimportant conversation."---Adam Clarke, a Methodist circuit preacher of the nineteenth century, believed that only through regular Bible reading would Christians grow wise in their salvation.
217. "You may as well quit reading and hearing the Word of God, and give in to the devil, if you do not desire to live according to it."---Martin Luther
208. "When you read God's Word, you must constantly be saying to yourself, it is talking to me, and about me." Soren Kierkegaard
209. "You can learn more about human nature by reading the Bible than by living in new York."---William Lyon Phelps
210. "The New Testament is the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world."---Charles Dickens
211. "What you bring away from the Bible depends to some extent on what you carry to it."---Oliver Wendell Holmes
212. "The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold on me." Martin Luther
213. "The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people."---G. K. Chesterton
214. "Intense study of the Bible will keep any man from being vulgar in point of style."---Samuel Taylor Coleridge
215. "'The Bible,' we are told sometimes, 'gives us such a beautiful picture of what we should be.' Nonsense! It gives us no picture at all. It reveals to us a fact: It tells us what we really are; it says, this is the form in which God created you, to which He has restored you; this is the work which the Eternal Son, the God of Truth and Love, is continually carrying on within you."---F. D. Maurice
216. "Read the whole Bible, and read it in order; two chapters in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament, daily if you can possibly spare the time; and you will have more time than you are aware of; if you retrench all needless visits, and save the hours spent in useless or unimportant conversation."---Adam Clarke, a Methodist circuit preacher of the nineteenth century, believed that only through regular Bible reading would Christians grow wise in their salvation.
217. "You may as well quit reading and hearing the Word of God, and give in to the devil, if you do not desire to live according to it."---Martin Luther
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