The prophecy of the Old Testament challenges our modern ideas of human free will. We like to think that we decide our own future, that no one knows how we will choose, that we are the only ones in control of our lives. But we see through the Bible that both human free will and God’s foreknowledge...

The words of God are powerful and profound as He authors through Ezekiel the problems of ancient, rebellious Judah. It seems that the people did not see their own sin, they were somehow oblivious to their failure to fulfill God’s commandments. This is why the LORD had been confronting them. To th...

Ezekiel was given a view of the state of Israel in his time, and it was anything but good. God’s people had consistently failed to follow Him. This truly displayed mankind’s need for the Messiah. God had given Israel everything she needed to follow Him, and she couldn’t. She serves as an example ...

In my time pastoring, I have had many conversations with people who have issues with Christianity. Sometimes a person’s main issue will be one of Christianity’s fundamental beliefs: That all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (ROMANS 3:23). In people who reject the concept of sin, I...

God’s foreknowledge is perfect; there is no question when you read His words through the prophet Ezekiel. Ezekiel 26 highlights the city of Tyre. Tyre was a very powerful ancient city that controlled maritime trade in the Mediterranean Sea. It was a small island half a mile off the coast of what ...

A watchman is exactly what it sounds like: A lookout for the community; one who watches and sounds the alarm when an enemy is spotted to give his people time to prepare. God uses the title of watchman to describe Ezekiel, though he was far from the city of Jerusalem. Ezekiel lived near the Chebar...

It was the prophet Obadiah who wrote, “‘Though you ascend as high as the eagle, and though you set your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down,’ says the LORD’ ” (OBADIAH 4). Obadiah was a contemporary with Ezekiel when he prophesied to the nation of Edom, about 600-miles away. Ob...

The last nine chapters of Ezekiel outline the vision of the new Temple to come in the great city, and the name of the city at that time will be called, “THE LORD IS THERE” (EZEKIEL 48:35). Now, Ezekiel 41 deals with the image of the sanctuary inside the Temple on earth that represents
Messiah’s r...

We often associate our lifestyle with our culture––the way we live, the things we do, and what we choose. But our lifestyle is more about whom we serve––people or God. The interesting thing about Ezekiel’s Millennial Temple is that it is not just about the Temple structure, it is about the
lifest...

In the ancient world, a river was the sign of life. It is not a surprise, then, that a sacred river would flow out of God’s holy Temple, the source of life itself. What is also interesting about a river is how it changes the land around it. A river has a way of cutting through everything and conf...

Daniel was a great prophet. He had a unique ministry to the king of Babylon who had taken Daniel’s nation of Judah captive. Early in Daniel’s ministry, we read of King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter 4. The prophet allows Nebuchadnezzar to use his own words as he tells of God speaking and workin...

Daniel was a prophet out of place. In another time he would have been serving God in Jerusalem, but in his time, Jerusalem had fallen to the Babylonians and Daniel had been a part of the waves of exile. In Daniel 9, world politics had shifted again, the Persians had taken over from the Babylonian...

Although Daniel would surely be considered by many to be holy, meaning set apart, we see his reaction when he comes into the presence of God. Drained of his strength, he would have died except for the mercy of God. The messenger of God had to reach out and touch Daniel’s shoulder so that he could...

The prophet Hosea seems to have prophesied between the years 752-722 BC, the years leading up to the fall of the northern nation of Israel. The book of Hosea deals with difficult issues and has been a challenge to many readers. Some have even doubted the prophet Hosea’s ministry because they stru...

The meaning of the word repentance is fascinating. In English it means deep sorrow, compunction, or contrition for a past sin or wrongdoing. Not many of us like the idea of having to approach another with an admission or confession of sin and sorrow over that sin, maybe even less to do so loudly ...

“Tell your children about it, let your children tell their children, and their children another
generation” ( J O E L 1 : 3 ). With these words, the prophet Joel opens his writing to the entire world. His prophecies will be quoted by Peter on the day of Pentecost, recorded in Acts 2. We don’t kno...

In Hebrew, the name Amos means “burden-bearer”. He was not a priest, or a previously known prophet, instead he claims to be a sheep-breeder and sycamore-fig tree farmer. His home was in a small, fortified town about five miles south of Bethlehem in the nation of Judah. With these not-very-impress...

The language that the prophet Amos uses is so interesting. While he explains that God will bring brutal destruction to northern Israel, he also includes their future hope. In verse 9, Amos uses the imagery of the people of Israel being shaken through a grain sieve, which is the nations they will ...

There is some scholarly debate over the book of Obadiah. In Hebrew, the name Obadiah means, “Servant of the LORD”. Some scholars believe that the man who wrote this book, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wanted to stay anonymous, so he wrote as “Obadiah” rather than with his given name. ...

There is so much to love within the story of Jonah, and it’s not because of the greatness of this eighth century BC prophet, quite to the contrary. Once again for the prophets of God, Jonah’s name is fitting. It means “dove” and can imply a sort of simple foolishness. When the people of Nineveh h...

When we see great evil, what do we do? When we are sinned against, how should we respond? Injustice and pain are guaranteed in this life, and the book of Micah has some great advice. He tells us that as we reach out to God, He will help us. “Therefore, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the...