“Thus says the Lord: ‘A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.’” (Jeremiah 31:15 ESV). Jeremiah’s words paint a scene of deep national sorrow. Ramah, a town north of Jerusalem, was the place where
Chapter: 31
THE LAW LEADS, BUT GRACE SAVES
‘Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it”‘ (Deuteronomy 31:7 ESV). Moses, at 120 years
THE NEW COVENANT PROPHESIED
“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33 ESV). God told the prophet Jeremiah
DO YOU TRUST IN CHARIOTS OR IN CHRIST?
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord!” (Isaiah 31:1 ESV). From Abraham’s time until that of Isaiah’s, the
HAVE YOU MADE A COVENANT WITH YOUR EYES?
“I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?” (Job 31:1 ESV). Job made a covenant with his eyes not to gaze at a young woman. His “covenant” (“pledge, sacred promise”) was with God and with his wife, that his eyes belonged to God and to his wife
PRAYING GOD’S ATTRIBUTES
“Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love!” (Psalm 31:16 ESV). David requested God’s help based on God’s attributes rather than on his own worthiness. He didn’t negotiate with God, offering to make a sacrifice or some other payment. No, he based his supplications on God’s ability and willingness to
WHAT’S ON YOUR CALENDAR TODAY?
‘But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hand’ (Psalms 31:15 ESV). David put his trust in the Lord, even in the timing of things. He trusted that the time of his birth, death, and every appointment in between was in God’s hands. Therefore, he
REMEMBER THE PILLAR MOMENTS YOU’VE HAD WITH GOD
“I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred” (Genesis 31:13 ESV). Jacob had arrived in Haran empty-handed, but now he had wives, many children and flocks of sheep, goats and camels.
GOD SEES AND CARES FOR YOU
“I will be glad and rejoice in your unfailing love, for you have seen my troubles, and you care about the anguish of my soul.” (Psalm 31:7 NLT). This Psalm of David teaches us to choose gladness and worship, while giving our troubles to God. David wrote that God had seen his trouble. In other
“Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies. Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life” (Proverbs 31:10-12 NLT)
WHO CAN FIND A VIRTUOUS AND CAPABLE WIFE? This is a proverb made more timely by the current culture’s low view of marriage. Neither the art of being a wife, nor a husband are held in high regard today. Yet, for those who would have a marriage as God designed, desiring to experience the joy