Genesis 10

 The list of nations here in Genesis 10 is interesting as many of them will be seen again in the rest of the Bible. The ones that stand out to me are the ones Nimrod was responsible for creating. Three in particular Bablyon, Ninivah, and Assyria. These three will be set in opposition to God and Israel throughout the rest of the Old Testament. This ties into the idea that Nimrod was in opposition to God and that legacy continued for generations. A reminder that our actions have consequences greater than we may imagine and longer than we might believe. 

Genesis 9

 We see the sign of promise, the rainbow, spoken of here. A promise God won't use water to destroy all the Earth again. The interesting side note about a rainbow is that it's not a bow. The light cast from the Sun that forms a rainbow actually produces a circle but usually, we cannot see it from where we're standing. If you have the opportunity to fly on a plane above clouds you might see a full circle of the rainbow. For me, it is a reminder that then we only see part of the promise and part of the plan where God from above can see it all.

Just a personal experience: years ago my family was traveling in a car and spotted a rainbow. We turned to where it looked like it landed in the ground and we found it. I can tell you for a certain there's no gold but what I did see was amazing. The car seemed filled with glimmering and shining colors. It wasn't the same as having a light shined with a colored lens it seemed as left there was a glitter in the air with the color. It's hard to describe but it was amazing. To me just a wonderful reminder of how amazing God's creation is.

Isaiah 4

 Here's a good place to show people that chapters and verses were not in the Bible originally. They we're added to help us navigate the Bible and easily be able to return to places we read before, but they weren't divinely inspired by God. The reason this is a good place to show that is because the first verse of this chapter actually ties in with the previous chapter and the time of judgment. 

The first verse of Isaiah 4 isn't saying that women who aren't married are a reproach. It is referring the idea that was helped during Isaiah's time that a woman needed to be married and with a child or they were considered less. This of course is not the truth but it was considered truth amongst the people of that time. This going back to chapter 3 is referring to how bad things will be that not only will they be willing to accept bad leaders in government but also a bad deal in marriage. The scripture is not a praise of polygamy or any kind of endorsement.

Genesis 8

 

We see here in Genesis that Noah releases a dove to see the condition of the world. Yeah first releases a raven. The problem of course is a raven doesn't have a problem sitting on a dead body floating in the water so it wouldn't be accurate to discover if it was safe to go out. The dove however would never do such a thing. The dove would land on solid ground or upon a tree. When the dove is finally released the last time it doesn't return. In reality, the dove went about its dove life. Symbolically the symbol of a new life of peace and a new hope seems to fly away. It flies as it were from the time of Noah and the promise of a new land and a new life to the Gospels where it lands upon Jesus the one who will give us new life, peace, and hope.

Luke 3

 

The Dove came down and sat upon Jesus. Note this for tomorrow's reading. The dove is a sign of the spirit and of peace. It now rests on Jesus the one who will save us from destruction and lead us into a new life.

The other thing I note in this chapter is that John the Baptist in his command to those who repented. He told those who had to share not give it all away. He told publicans, tax collectors, not to quit their job but not to overcharge. And he told soldiers basically don't abuse your authority and be content. Many would have been tempted to tell the

m so rich to give it all away, or the publican to quit working for the Romans, or the soldier to quit being a soldier but John doesn't do that he deals with the heart of people's disobedience not with the problems people may have with others status or job description. Consider it.

Psalm 3

 Troubles come and hard times confront us. There are times when those who are against us may seem innumerable. The answer to this is found in Psalm 3, cry out to the Lord. Recognize that he is the one who can and will save us. He will answer from his holy mountain. 

Where is God's holy mountain? It isn't like the Greek or Roman gods in some faraway place. Scripture speaks of Mount Zion, Jerusalem as being God's holy mountain. The significance of this is Jerusalem is a place people could visit. This is a God who isn't far off but with his people. God will answer but he isn't doing it long distance, he's doing it from our midst. This is encouraging to me. 

Genesis 7

 Forty Days and Forty Nights it rained. Then they waited. This is the first of many times the number forty is used in the Bible. There are several concepts associated with the number according to scholars: Completion of God's Promises, Trials and Testing, or transformation going from one thing to another. All of these can be seen but I would note that all of them have one thing in common after the 40 days things/ people are different. 

Also, the forty days come to an end eventually. This is something that we tend to forget when we are in the middle of a problem, this will end. It will. I know there have been times I have felt that way and I know many others but finally the forty days, the forty years (as Israel spent in the wilderness) will end. Take hope the trials don't last forever.