“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9 ESV). The prophet Jeremiah delivered this sobering truth to Judah during the last days before Babylon’s invasion. The people of Judah had turned from trusting in the Lord to trusting in false prophets and manmade idols. But Jeremiah exposed
Chapter: 17
THE FIRST JUDAS
“When Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and went off home to his own city. He set his house in order and hanged himself” (2 Samuel 17:23 ESV). The story of David’s betrayal by Ahithophel foreshadows that of Jesus by Judas. Once a trusted counselor of King David, Ahithophel
JESUS PRAYS FOR US
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John
THE NAME THAT IS GREATER THAN THE GIANT YOU FACE
“You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” (1 Samuel 17:45 ESV). What David said to Goliath as they closed for battle revealed his
WHEN WILL THE KINGDOM COME?
“Behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you” (Luke 17:21 ESV). The Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come, expecting signs of political upheaval or outward power. But Jesus corrected their thinking. The Kingdom of God was not something to be observed with visible signs—they were missing it even
FAITH TO FORGIVE
‘The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”’ (Luke 17:5–6 ESV). This passage comes right after Jesus tells the disciples to
THE STAFF THAT SPROUTED
“On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds” (Numbers 17:8 ESV). The Lord had the heads of house from each of the twelve tribes carve their
DO YOU LIFT UP YOUR LEADER’S ARMS?
“But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun” (Exodus 17:12 ESV). As
WE SHALL SEE HIM
“As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness” (Psalm 17:15 ESV). In this psalm of David, he asked the Lord to deliver him from violent men whose portion was found in the things of this world. After asking the Lord for deliverance from
THE BIBLE IS PRIMARILY A BOOK ABOUT GOD
‘When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless”‘ (Genesis 17:1 ESV). The Bible is a book for us, but not really about us. It is primarily a book about God. The Lord chooses to reveal Himself to Abram.