Zechariah foresaw a future time when all of the nations would worship the one true God. The praise of the Lord would be so widespread that even horses would have “HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD” inscribed on the bells on their harnesses. These are the same words embroidered on the hat worn by the high priest of Israel (Exod 28:36).
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES (HOLINESS AND HORSES)
The priests and Levites were about their work in New Testament times. They are familiar in the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:31).
Continue reading MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE BIBLE (PRIESTS AND LEVITES)
Exodus 19 describes Israel arriving at Sinai. This chapter is important for understanding the events at Sinai, where Israel spent over two years (Numbers 10:11). God addressed the people as “the house of Jacob. . . the people of Israel . . .” (Exodus 19:3) as a way to remind them that they were the people of the covenant, the descendants of Abraham. What was about to happen at Sinai was not a new covenant with the people but an extension of the covenant God made with Abraham.
Continue reading ISRAEL AT SINAI
The Tabernacle must have been a great mystery for people. Even priests did not know everything about this holy tent. A place where only one man, once a year, entered; where God’s powerful presence was visible; where the high priest brought blood and incense to do a ritual of atonement for the sins of the all the people; the Tabernacle was a place of wonder.
Continue reading THE MOST HOLY PLACE
The vine was of great importance in the religion of Israel. It was used as a symbol of the religious life of Israel itself, and a carving of a bunch of grapes often adorned the front exterior of the synagogue. The symbolism was based upon passages such as Psalm 80 and Isaiah 5:1-5 where Israel is God’s vine.
Continue reading MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE BIBLE (VINE SYMBOLISM)
In a terrifying vision, Isaiah finds himself standing in heaven’s throne room in the presence of God. The time is 740 BC, the year King Uzziah dies.
“It’s all over!” Isaiah says. “I am doomed, for I am a sinful man” (Isaiah 6:5). He knows God is holy and that sin can’t survive in God’s presence.
Continue reading A VISIT TO HEAVEN
The prophet Elijah challenged the prophets of the pagan god Baal to a contest on Mount Carmel. They laid a sacrificial animal on a pile of wood. The prophets of Baal would call on their gods, and Elijah would call on his. The god who answered by sending fire to consume the sacrifice would be declared the superior god (1 Kings 18:22-25).
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES (A GOD WHO HEARS AND ACTS)
8 This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them;
9 That every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being an Hebrew or an Hebrews, go free; that none should serve himself of them, to wit, of a Jew his brother.
Continue reading SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY (JEREMIAH 34:8-22 “TREACHEROUS TREATMENT OF SLAVES”)
These verses occur in the context of presenting a sacrificial animal as an offering to the Lord. The Israelites believed the blood of such an animal was sacred, since it carried the very essence of life itself. In a sense, the blood was the ransom price that atoned for their sins. It was to be drained from the animal and poured on the ground at the base of the altar.
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES (EATING BLOOD FORBIDDEN)
According to Matthew 4:18-20, “As [Jesus] was walking along the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, since they were fishermen. ‘Follow Me,’ He told them, “and I will make you fish for people!’ Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.”
Continue reading MEN OF THE BIBLE (SIMON PETER “ORDINARY GUY, EXTRAORDINARY OPPORTUNITY”)