The Teaching Method of the Bible: Chapter 7
Chapter Seven: The Historical Books
615) …six were born to him in Hebron, where he reigned for seven years and six months. And he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem. (1 Chronicles 3:4 ESV)
616) And in the days of Saul they waged war against the Hagrites, who fell into their hand. And they lived in their tents throughout the region east of Gilead (away from God).
(1 Chronicles 5:1 ESV)
617) And when they prevailed over them, the Hagrites and all who were with them were given into their hands, (1 Chronicles 5:20a ESV)
618) …for they cried out to godin the battle and he granted their urgent plea because they trusted in him. (1 Chronicles 5:20b ESV)
619) But they broke faith with the God of their fathers, and whored after the gods of the people of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. (1 Chronicles 5:25 ESV)
620) So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, the spirit of Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria and he took them into exile…(1 Chronicles 5:26 ESV
621) …and Jehozadek went into exile when the Lord sent Judahand Jerusalem into exile by the hand of Nebuchadezzar. (1 Chronicles 6:15 ESV)
622) Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell on Mount Gilboa. (1 Chronicles 10:1 ESV)
623) The battle pressed hard against Saul, and the archers found him, and he was wounded by the archers. (1 Chronicles 10:3 ESV)
624) “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, (1 Chronicles 10:4b ESV)
625) …lest these uncircumcised come and mistreat me”. (1 Chronicles 10:4c ESV)
626) And when all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, (1 Chronicles 10:7a ESV)
627)… they abandoned their cities and fled, and the Philistines came and lived in them.
(Chronicles 10:7b ESV)
628) And they striped him and took his head and his armor, (1 Chronicles 10:9a ESV)
629) …and sent messengers throughout the land to carry the good news (1 Chronicles 10:9b ESV)
630) …to their idols and to the people. (1Chronicles 10:9c ESV)
631) And they put his armor in the temple of their gods and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon. (1 Chronicles 10:10 ESV)
In some verses it’s more difficult to see the physical/spiritual relationship present than others. When the gods of the enemy enter the picture, it’s less difficult. In this case, both the physical (his head) and the spiritual (his armor) are given over to the gods of the enemy, this relationship is much more easily detected.
632) But when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that had been done to Saul, all the valiant men arose
(1 Chronicles 10:11 ESV)
633) …and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh.(1 Chronicles (10: 12a ESV)
634) He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse. (1 Chronicles 10: 14 ESV)
635) The inhabitants of Jebus said to David, “You will come in here.” Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. (1 Chronicles 11:5 ESV)
636) And David lived inthe stronghold; therefore it was called the city of David. (1 Chronicles 11:7 ESV)
637) Then the three mighty men broke through camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and took it and brought it to David. (1 Chronicles 11:18 ESV)
638) And he wielded his spear against 300 men and killed them and won a name beside the three. (1 Chronicles 11:20b ESV)
639) For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great army, like an army of God. (1 Chronicles12:22 ESV)
640) Of Zebulun50,000 seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all weapons of war,to help David with singleness of purpose. (1 Chronicles 12:33 ESV)
641) Let us then bring again the ark of our God to us, for we did not seek it in the days of Saul. (1 Chronicles 13:3 ESV)
642) So David did not takethe ark home into the city of David, but took itaside to the house of Obed-edom the Hittite. ( 1 Chronicles 13:13 ESV)
643) Solomon called together all the leaders of Israel ….(2 Chronicles 1:2a NLT) Then he led the entire assembly to the plan of worship (2 Chronicles 1:3a ESV)
644) And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had dedicated, and stored the silver the gold, and all the vessels in the treasuries of the house of the lord. (2 Chronicles 5:1b ESV)
645) Then Solomon assembled the elders…. To bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion. (2 Chronicles 5:2 ESV)
646) And they brought up the ark, the tent of meeting,and all the holy vessels that were in the tent, the Levitical priests brought them up. (2 Chronicles 5:5 ESV)
647) Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lordto its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, (2 Chronicles 5:7a ESV)
648) …inthe most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. (2 Chronicles 5:7b ESV)
649) The cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles. (2 Chronicles 5:8 ESV)
650) …my eyes and my heart (2 Chronicles 5:16)
651) Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. But I have built you an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever. (2 Chronicles 6:1 ESV)
652) And he said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to David my father… (2 Chronicles 6:4 ESV)
653) …and I chose no man as prince over my people Israel; but I have chosen Jerusalem that my name might be there… (2 Chronicles 6:5b, 6a ESV)
654) …then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to them and to their fathers, (2 Chronicles 6:25 ESV)
655) …that they may fear you and walk in your ways all the days that they live in the land that you gave to our fathers. (2 Chronicles 6:31 ESV)
656) And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house. (2 Chronicles 7:2 ESV)
657) Whenever David offered praises by their ministry; opposite them the priests sounded trumpets, and all Israel stood. (2 Chronicles 7:6b ESV)
658) Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the kings house. (2 Chronicles 7:11 ESV)
659) If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my faceand turn from their wicked ways, (2 Chronicles 7:14a ESV)
660) …then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14b ESV)
661)My eyes and my heart will be there for all time. (2 Chronicles 7:16b ESV)
662) …thenI will pluck you upfrom my land that I have given you, and this house that I have constructed for my name. (2 Chronicles 7:20a ESV)
663) At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house… (2 Chronicles 8:1 ESV)
He had built the physical and the spiritual at the same time.
664) Solomon rebuilt the cities that Hiram had given to him, and settled the people of Israel in them. (2 Chronicles 8:2 ESV)
The spiritual influence of Solomon was spreading.
665) And Solomon went to Hamath-zobah in the wilderness and took it. (2 Chronicles 8:3 ESV)
666) He built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the store citiesthat he built in Hamath.
(2 Chronicles 8:4 ESV)
He had made a spiritual conquest and gradually strengthened them.
667) And they did not turn aside from what the king had commanded the priests and Levites concerning any matter and concerning the treasuries. (2 Chronicles 8:15 ESV)
668) Thus was accomplished all the work of Solomon from the day of the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid until it was finished. (2 Chronicles 8:16 ESV
669) …riches andwisdom(2 Chronicles 9:22),
670) And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. (2 Chronicles 9:23 ESV)
He no longer had to go out to evangelize the world. They were coming to him.
671) And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, … (2 Chronicles 9:27a ESV)
672) …and he made cedar(the heavenly, high growing trees) as plentiful as the sycamore(the earthly, low growing trees) of the Shephelah. (2 Chronicles 9:27b ESV)
673) But he abandoned the councilthat the old men gave him, and took council with the young men… (2 Chronicles 10:8a ESV)
674) And he put shieldsand spears in all the cities and made them very strong. (2 Chronicles 11:12a ESV)
675) For the Levites left their common landsand their holdings and came to Judahand Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons cast them out from serving as priests of the Lord, (2 Chronicles 11:14 ESV)
676) And those who had their ears set to seek the Lord God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their fathers..
(2 Chronicles 11: 16 ESV) God still had a remnant.
677) They strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made Rehoboam the son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon. (2 Chronicles 11:17 ESV) Their place was secure while they were with the Lord.
678) And he dealt wisely and distributed some of his sons through (2 Chronicles 11:23a ESV)
679) …all the districts of Judahand Benjamin, in all the fortified cities, (2 Chronicles 11:23b ESV)
680) …and gave them abundant provision and procured wives for them.(2 Chronicles 11:23b ESV) He spread his teaching throughout the region.
681) He took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the kings house. (2 Chronicles 12:9b ESV) What could be more clear. The house of the Lord is the spiritual. The kings house is the physical. Finding a few as easily spotted as this one might be helpful in catching on to how often this relationship is to be found in the scriptures.
682) And when the men of Judah shouted, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abidjan and Judah. (2 Chronicles 13:15b ESV)
683) Thus the men of Israel were subdued at that time, and the men of Judah prevailed, because they relied on the Lord. (2 Chronicles 13:18a ESV)
684) And he said to Judah, “let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars… (2 Chronicles 14:7 ESV)
685) And Asa had an army of 300,000 from Judah, armed with large shields and spears and 280,000 men from Benjamin that carried shields and drew bows. (2 Chronicles 14:9a ESV)
686) And the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar, and the Ethiopians fell until none remained alive, for they were broken before the Lord. (2 Chronicles 14:13 ESV)
687) And he gathered all Judah….who were residing with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord God was with him. (2 Chronicles 15:9 ESV)
688) …but that whosoever would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, should be put to death(spiritual death, not physical), whether young or old, man or woman. (2 Chronicles 15:13 ESV)
689) There is a covenant between me and you, as there was between my father and your father. 2 Chronicles 16:3 ESV)
690) Then king Asa took all Judah, and carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber,
(2 Chronicles 16:6a ESV)
691) …with which Baasha had been building and with them he built Geba and Mizpah.
(2 Chronicles 16:6b ESV)
692) Now Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor, and he made a marriage alliance with Ahab. (2 Chronicles 18:1 ESV)
693) Amariah the high priest will have final say in all cases involving the Lord. Zedadiah son of Ishmael, a leader from the tribe of Judah will have final say in all civil cases.
(2 Chronicles 20:11a NLT)
694) Listen to me all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! (2 Chronicles 20b NLT)
695) When Jehoram had ascended the throne of his father and was established, (2 Chronicles 21:4a ESV)
696) You have led the people of Jerusalem and Judah to worship idols, just as King Ahab did in Israel. (2 Chronicles 21: 13b NLT)
697) …he killed all his brothers with the sword, and some of theprinces of Israel. (2 Chronicles 21:4b ESV)
698) And they came up against Judah and invaded it and carried away all the possessions they found that belonged to the king’s house, (2 Chronicles 21:17a NLT)
699) … and also his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to his except Jehoahaz, his youngest. (2 Chronicles 21:17b ESV
700) They buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.(2 Chronicles 21:20b ESV)
701) He also walked in the ways of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in doing wicked.(2 Chronicles 22:3 ESV)
702) And when Jehu was executing judgement on the house of Ahab, he met the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers and he killed them. (2 Chronicles 22:8 ESV)
703) The Levites shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand. And whoever enters the house shall be put to death. (2 Chronicles 23:7a ESV)
704) Be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.(2 Chronicles 23:7b ESV)
795) “Do not put her to death in the house of the Lord.” So they laid hands on her,
(2 Chronicles 23:14b ESV)…and she went into the entrance of the house gate of the king house, and they put her to death there. (2 Chronicles 23: 15 ESV)
706) Then all the people went to the house of Baal and tore it down; (2 Chronicles 23:17a ESV)
707) …his alters and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the alters.(2 Chronicles 23:17b ESV)
708) After this Joash decided to restore the house of the Lord. And he gathered the priests and Levites (2 Chronicles 24:4 ESV)
709)…and said to them “Go out to the cities of Judah and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that you do it quickly.”
(2 Chronicles 24:5 ESV)
710)… and the king and Jehoida gave it to those who had charge of the work of the house of the Lord, and they hiredmasons and carpenters to restore the house of the Lord, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of the Lord.(2 Chronicles 24:12 ESV)
711) But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones
in the court of the house of the Lord. (2 Chronicles 24:21 ESV)
712) Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zachariah’s father had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!” (2 Chronicles 22 ESV)
713) …his servant conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jehoida the priest, and killed him on his bed. (2 Chronicles 24:25a ESV)
714) So he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings. (2 Chronicles 24:25b ESV)
715) But a man of God came to him and said, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel, with all these Ephraimites. (2 Chronicles 25:7 ESV)
716) After Amaziah came from striking down the Edomites, he brought the gods of the men of Seir and set them up as his gods (2 Chronicles 25:14a ESV)b
717) …and worshipped them, making offerings to them. (2 Chronicles 25:14 ESV)
718) And Joash king of Israelcaptured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jpash, son of Ahaziah, a Bethshemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for 400 cubits from the Ephriaim Gate to the Corner Gate. (2 Chronicles
25:23 ESV)
719) And he seized all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of God, in the care of Obed-edom. He seized also the treasuries of the kings house, also hostages, and he returned to Samaria. (2 Chronicles 25:24 ESV)
720) …are they not written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel? (2 Chronicles 25:26b ESV)
721) From the time when he turned away from the Lordtheymade a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish. (2 Chronicles 25:27a ESV)
722) But they sent after him to Lachish and put him to death there. (2 Chronicles 25:27b ESV)
723) He built Eloth and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers. (2 Chronicles 26:2 ESV)
724) He went out and made war against the Philistines and broke through the wall of Gath and the wall of Jabneth and the wall of Ashdod, …(2 Chronicles 26:6a ESV)
725) …and he built cities in the territory of Ashodand elsewhere among the Philistines.
(2 Chronicles 26:6b ESV)
726) The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread even to the border of Egypt.
(2 Chronicles 26:8 ESV)
727) And he built towersin the wilderness and cut out many cisterns, for he had large herds,… (2 Chronicles 26:10a ESV)
728) …and he had farmers and vinedressers in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil. (2 Chronicles 26:10b ESV)
729) In Jerusalem he made machines, invented by skillful men to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones. (2 Chronicles 26:15 ESV)
730) And king Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death, and being a leper lived in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the Lord. (2 Chronicles 26:21 ESV)
731) Moreover, he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and forts and towers on the wooded hills. (2 Chronicles 27:4 ESV)
732) He fought with the king of the Ammonites and prevailed against them. (2 Chronicles 27:5 ESV)
733) And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David had done, but he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. (2 Chronicles 28:1a,2b ESV)
734) And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree. (2 Chronicles 28:4 ESV)
735) Therefore the Lord his Godgave him into the hand of the king of Syria, who defeated a great number of his people and brought them to Damascus. (2 Chronicles 28:5 ES)
736) Behold, because the Lord, the God of your fathers,was angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand, but you have killed them in a rage that has reached up to heaven.
(2 Chronicles 28:9b ESV)
737) And the men who have been mentioned by name rose and took the captives, and with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. (2 Chronicles 28;15 ESV)
738) For Ahaz took a portion from the house of the Lord and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him. (2 Chronicles 28:21 ESV)
739) And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, (2 Chronicles 29:24a ESV)
740) …and he shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and made himself alters in every corner of Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 28:24b ESV)
741) In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and repaired them. (2 Chronicles 29:3 ESV)
742) …and he said to them, “Hear me, Levites! Now consecrate the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filth from the Holy Place.(2 Chronicles 29: 5 ESV)
743) They also shut the doors of the vestibule and put out the lamps and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings in the Holy Place to the God of Israel. (2 Chronicles 29: 7 ESV)
744) For behold, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this. (2 Chronicles 29:9 ESV)
744) They gathered their brothers and consecrated themselves and went in as the king commanded, by the words of the Lord, to cleanse the house of the Lord. (2 Chronicles 29:15 ESV)
746) All the utensils that King Ahaz discarded in his reign when he was faithless, we have made ready and consecrated, and behold, they are before the alter of the Lord. (2 Chronicles 29:19 ESV)
747) For the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. (2 Chronicles 29;24b ESV)
748) Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, (2 Chronicles 30:1a ESV)
749) …that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. (2 Chronicles 30: 1b ESV)
750) …all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke in pieces the pillarsandcut down the Ashram and broke down the high places and alters…
(2 Chronicles 31:1 ESV)
751) And every work that heundertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, (2 Chronicles 31:21a ESV)
752) he did with all his heart and prospered. (2 Chronicles 31:21b ESV)
753) A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, …(2 Chronicles 32:4b ESV)
754) He set to work resolutely and built upall the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it…(2 Chronicles 32:5a ESV)
755) And he set commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them saying,…(2 Chronicles 32:6 ESV)
756) He commanded Judah and Jerusalem to worship only at the alter at the Temple and to offer sacrifices on it alone. (2 Chronicles 32:12 NLT)
757) So the Lords anger came against him and against Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 32:25b NLT)
758) And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which were the work of men’s hands. (2 Chronicles 32:19 ESV)
759) He likewise provided citiesfor himself, and flocks and herds in abundance, for God had given him very great possessions. (2 Chronicles 32:29 ESV)
760) And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the upper part of the tombs of the sons of David, and all Jerusalem did him honor at his death. (2 Chronicles 32:33 ESV)
761) And he built alters in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem shall my name be forever.” (2 Chronicles 33:4 ESV)
762) And he built alters for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord.
(2 Chronicles 33:5 ESV)
763) And the carved image of the idol that he had made he set in the house of God, of which God said to Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever. (2 Chronicles 33:7b ESV)
764) Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray, to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel. (2 Chronicles 33:9 ESV)
765) He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty (2 Chronicles 33:13a ESV)
766) …and heard his plea and brought him… (2 Chronicles 33: 13a ESV)
767) …to Jerusalem and to his kingdom…(2 Chronicles 33:13b NLT)
768) He also put commanders of the army in all the fortified cities in Judah. And he took away the foreign Godsand the idol from the house of the lord,…(2 Chronicles 33:14a,15b ESV)
769) So Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his house, and Amon his son reigned in his place. (2 Chronicles 33:20 ESV)
770) And his servants conspired against him and put him to death in his house. (2 Chronicles 33:24 ESV)
771) …and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem(2 Chronicles 34:3b ESV)
772) …of the high places,the Ashram, and the carved and metal images.(2 Chronicles 34:3c ESV)
773) And he broke in pieces the Ashram and the carved and metal images, (2 Chronicles 34:4b ESV)
774) … and he made dust of them and scattered it over the graves of the who had sacrificed to them. (2 Chronicles 34:4c ESV)
775) …and so he purified Judah and Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 34:5b NLT)
776) The gifts were brought by people from Manasseh, Ephraim, and from all the remnant of Israel as well as from all Judah, Benjamin, and the people of Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 34:9b NLT)
777) They gave it to the carpenters and the builders (2 Chronicles 34:11a ESV)
778) …to buy quarried stone, and timber for…(2 Chronicles 34:11b)
779) binders and beams for the buildings that the kings of Judah had let go to ruin.
(2 Chronicles 34:11c ESV)
780) Then the king summoned all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 34: 29 NT)
781) And the king went up to the Temple of the Lord with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem.(2 Chronicles 3430 NLT_
782) …I am not coming against you this day, butagainst the house with which I am at war.
(2 Chronicles 35:21 ESV)
This verse leaves little to the imagination. It’s about the spiritual.
783) So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried him in his second chariot and brought him to Jerusalem, (2 Chronicles 35:24 ESV)
784) And the king of Egypt made Elakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Jehoahaz his brother and carried him to Egypt. (2 Chronicles 36:4 ESV)
785) Nebuchadnezzar also carried part of the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his palace in Babylon. (2 Chronicles 36: 7 ESV)
786) In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, with the precious vessels of the house of the lord and made his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 36:10 ESV)
787) …has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. (2 Chronicles 36:23a ESV)
In the rebuilding of the wall, Ezra was a priest whose primary interest had been to rebuild the temple (the spiritual) while Nehemiah was a political leader whose primary interest was the rebuilding of the wall (the physical). They were the two key leaders in that story, and together they exemplify how the physical and the spiritual work together in bringing Gods people back to Jerusalem. Without the rebuilding of both the wall and temple, restoration would have been incomplete. Two entire books, Ezra and Nehemiah were dedicated to this story.
788) …so that he made a proclamation throughout his kingdom and also put it into writing.(Ezra 1:1b ESV)
789) …The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to buildhim a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. (Ezra 1:2 ESV)
790) …may God be with him and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel…(Ezra 1:3 ESV)
791) Then rose up the heads of the fathers houses… everyone whose spirit God had stirredto go up to rebuild the house of the God that is in Jerusalem. Ezra 1:5b ESV)
792) Cyrus the king also brought out the vessels of the house of the Lord that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. (Ezra 1:7 ESV)
793) The following were those who came up from Ter-melah, …. Though they could not prove their father’s houses or their descent, whether they belonged to Israel. (Ezra2: 59 ESV)
794) Now the priests, the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their towns, and all the rest of Israel. (Ezra 2: 70 ESV)
795) …and they built the alter of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the Law of Moses the man of God. (Ezra 3: 2 ESV)
796) So they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrnians to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea…(Ezra 3:7 ESV)
797) …the sons of Judah, together supervised the workmen in the house of God, along with the sons of Henadad and the Levites, their sons and brothers. (Ezra 3: 9 ESV)
798) And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets… (Ezra 3:10 ESV)
799) And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the
foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. (Ezra 3:11 ESV)
800) Now the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, they approached…. And said to them,”let us build with you, for we worship your God…(Ezra 4:2 ESV)
801)…”You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord… (Ezra 4:3 ESV)
802) They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundation. (Ezra 4: 12 ESV)
803) …if this city is rebuilt and the wall is finished, they will topay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired. (Ezra 4:13 ESV)
804) We make it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished,you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River. (Ezra 4:16 ESV)
805) …prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem,… (Ezra 5:1b ESV)
806) Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel ad Jeshua the son of Jozadek arose and began to rebuild the house of God that is in Jerusalem. (Ezra 5:2 ESV)
807) Be it known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. It is being built(Ezra 5:8b ESV)
808) …with huge stones, and the timber is laid in the walls. (Ezra 5:8 bESV)
809) …We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth… (Ezra 5:11 ESV)
810) …and he said to him, “Take these vessels, go and put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site. (Ezra5:15 ESV)
811) They finished their building by the decree of the God of Israel and by the decree of Cyrusand Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia. (Ezra 6:14b ESV)
812) And they kept the feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy, for the Lord had made them joyful and hadturned the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel. (Ezra: 6:22 ESV)
813) And there went up also to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king, some of the people of Israel, and some of the priests and Levites, the singers and gatekeepers, and the temple servants. (Ezra 7:7 ESV)
814) For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules to Israel. (Ezra 7:10 ESV)
815) …conduct an inquiry into the situation in Judah and Jerusalem… (Ezra 7:14 NLT)
816) Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence,… (Ezra 7:21b ESV)
817) Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgement be strictly executed on him, (Ezra 7:26a ESV)
818) …whether for death or for banishment(Ezra 7:26a ESV)
819) …or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment.(Ezra 7:26b ESV)
820) So the priests and the Levites took over the weight of the silver and the goldand the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem, to the house of our God. (Ezra 8:30 ESV)
821) For we are slaves. Yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia, … (Ezra 9:9a ESV)
822) …to grant us some revivingto set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection in Judea and Jerusalem. (Ezra 9: 9b ESV)
823) And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” (Nehemiah 1:3 ESV)
824) …let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah… (Nehemiah 2:7 ESV)
825)… and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, that he maygive me the timber to make the teams for the gates … (Nehemiah 2:8a ESV)
826) …of the fortress of the temple and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy.” (Nehemiah 2:8b ESV)
827) I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem … (Nehemiah 2:13a ESV)
828) …that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire.(Nehemiah 2:13 ESV)
829) Come let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.(Nehemiah 2:17b ESV)
830) …”The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will ariseand build it,
but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.” (Nehemiah 2:20 ESV)
831) Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “yes what you are building— if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall.” (Nehemiah 4:3 ESV)
832) There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to build the wall. (Nehemiah 4:10 ESV)
833) From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. (Nehemiah 4:16 ESV)
834) And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. (Nehemiah 4:18 ESV)
835) And I sent messengers to them, saying,“I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. (Nehemiah 6:3a ESV)
836)Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you? (Nehemiah 6:3b ESV)
837) …Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple. (Nehemiah 6:10b ESV)
823)…and read aloud to everyone who could understand. All the people listened closely to the Book of the Law. (Nehemiah 8:3 NLT)
839) And Nehemiah, who was the governor and Ezra the priest and scribe… (Nehemiah 8:9a ESV)
840) You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought water for them out of the rock for their thirst,… (Nehemiah 9:15a ESV)
841) You gave your good Spirit to instruct them(Nehemiah 9:20a ESV)
842) …anddid not withhold your mana from their mouth and gave the water for their thirst. (Nehemiah 9:20b ESV)
843) Their cloths did not wear out and their feet did not swell. (Nehemiah 9:21b ESV)
844) And captured fortified cities and a rich land… (Nehemiah (9: 25a ESV)
845) …upon us, upon our king, our princes, our priests, our prophets,… (Nehemiah 9: 32b ESV)
846) The document was ratified and sealed with the following names: The governor:… The following priests:… (Nehemiah 10:1,2a NLT)
847) The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers…and all who have separated themselves from the people of the land…join with their brothers, (Nehemiah 10:28 ESV)
848) …their nobles, and enter into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law…(Nehemiah 10:29 ESV)
849) We the priests, the Levites, and the people have likewise cast lots…(Nehemiah 10:34a ESV)
850) We obligate ourselves to bring the first fruits of our ground and the first fruit of every tree, year by year… (Nehemiah 10:35a ESV)
851) And the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers of the storehouse. (Nehemiah 10:38b ESV)
852) And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remainedin the other towns. (Nehemiah 11:1 ESV)
853) And the rest of Israel, and of the priests and Levites, were in all the small towns of Judah, every one in his inheritance. But the temple servants lived in Ophel, and Ziha and Gishpa were over the temple servants. (Nehemiah 11:20 ESV)
854) And the Levites: Jeshua,…who with his brothers was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving. And Bakbukiah and Unni and their brothers stood opposite them in the service. (Nehemiah 12:8,9 SV)
855) At the fountain Gate they went up straight before them by the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall, above the house of David, to the Water Gate on the east. (Nehemiah 12:37 ESV)
856) And I was very angry, and threw all the household furniture of Tobiah out of the chamber. (Nehemiah 13:9a ESV)
857) Then I gave orders, and they cleaned the chambers, (Nehemiah 13:9b ESV)
858) …and I brought back there the vessels of the house of God, with the grain offering and the frankincense.(Nehemiah 13:8,9 ESV)
859) Then I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves(Nehemiah 13:22a ESV)
860) …and come andguard the gates, to keep the Sabbath day holy. (Nehemiah 13:22b ESV)
Both today and in scripture most woman are normally very concerned about their appearance. That was as true in Bible times as it is today. People have not changed. We see it clearly in the life of Queen Esther. She had been a strikingly beautiful woman. However, she was not preoccupied with it. Her beauty was a gift from God and had been part of His plan for her life.
A woman today wants to be accepted and is often hoping to be noticed by a man who will want her. She wants to be taken. To hurry this possibility along she will often take steps that she feels will improve her appearance and make her more desirable to men. To her, being noticed by men becomes both the confirmation of her self worth and her future.
If she doesn’t like her ears, she will use her hair to cover them. Her lips can be made to look larger or smaller, thicker or thinner, by using lipstick. Makeup can make her eyes more or less noticeable by using shadow. Skin color can be “improved” using foundation. She will spend her life seeking ways to improve her appearance, to make herself more attractive. Some men, like what they see while others are turned off by her attempt to hide her real self.
Throughout the ancient East, much of a families wealth was invested in jewelry and was conspicuously worn by the woman. In the ancient world, an adequate banking system had not yet been developed and in parts of India, that wearing of the family wealth continues today. By our standards, today, wearing her wealth may result in what seems as though she has gone too far attempting to enhance her appearance. It was only partly so. It was actually a useful means of protecting the families wealth. By wearing it, she was guarding it closely at all times. Symbolically, the display of wealth was alluding to the importance of the woman to her husband (her Lord).
To leave home not looking her best is not in the cards. For many women, she will begin her day attempting to make herself look her very best. She will not be comfortable with herself until that is done. It’s an all important effort.
However, it’s all about the superficial, the visible. When she goes to all that trouble, she has focused entirely on the way her features make her look to others. Features are a very real factor; but, they are not the entire story. They are only half of the story, the physical half. She is overlooking a major component. Her features show only how she looks on the outside.
How she looks on the inside, the invisible, is not to be overlooked. It is the most important factor of her total appearance. The inner self cannot be altered or hidden with makeup. Change there comes only from God; but, it will be very evident. The inner joy of having God at the center of her life will be clearly seen although it may not be entirely understood by observers. Visibly it is her countenance.
There are many ways we see the physical and the spiritual, the visible and the invisible, interacting. Those principles also apply to human appearance. We are on the leading edge of noticing the many many ways the interaction of the physical and the spiritual had been taking place in the lives of biblical characters. The purpose of these many scripture quotations has been to draw attention to the widespread importance of that interaction. It’s happening everywhere, in the Bible, in business, in the church, in the political realm, and in our own lives today.
Admittedly, women can have issues that detract from their physically appearance. Health factors, overeating, injury, or failure to take care of oneself can negatively affect her appearance. Such things are sometimes a matter of choice. Aside from those possibilities, most women have the potential to be physically attractive. Looking her best in the physical world can and does take effort.
When a woman focuses on her appearance, she is probably only aware of 50% of what makes up her appearance. She has focused on the physical, an important half, but none-the-less only half of what creates her appearance. Her total appearance is made up of two components, her physical attributes and her countenance, her inner self. Her countenance is every bit as important as her features. That originates on the inside. It is the invisible half of what makes up her appearance.
The satisfaction that comes from knowing she is a woman of God cannot be enhanced with makeup. Neither is it necessary. True beauty comes from within and comes shining through when it is present. It is not hidden. Neither can it be changed by anything from within the physical world. God changes her on the inside and when He does, the entire world will notice the change.
Her body is actually the reflection of what has taken place in the spiritual world. It does not need nor can it be enhanced by anything from the physical world. God alone can make her beautiful. Once achieved, she then has both her own external physical beauty (which had initially been given to her by God) as well as her internal beauty (which had entirely been given to her by God). To be a truly beautiful woman, it takes both, the visible and the invisible.
Queen Esther is said to have been a very beautiful woman. She had both. She had God given physical beauty; but she also had the beauty that only comes from knowing that she was in the place that God had for her. She said that she may have been born for “such a time as this” (Esther 4:14). She recognized both that she belonged (she was a woman of God) to God and that He had a special assignment for her that no one else was able to fulfill.
She had given up her own way of living out her life to instead live out what God had created her to become. Esther was not hung up on her physical beauty, thinking that it had set her apart. Her focus was on what God had for her to do. That knowledge created a beauty within her that was not subject to deterioration from age or anything else from the visible world.
Neither could what God had already given her be enhanced. When she risked her life to stand before the king, time had passed since she had been called by him. Her physical beauty, alone, was not enough to hold the kings interest. (Esther 4:11). Never-the-less, time had made no difference. In the kings eye, she was as beautiful as she had ever been and he granted her request (up to half of his kingdom… Esther 5:3).
The best way for a woman to become and remain beautiful is for her beauty to come from within. If you are not a woman of God, that can be changed in the twinkling of an eye. Only God can change you on the inside. Ask him to forgive your sins and make you into one of His own. He will do it more quickly than you can say it and as your understanding of what He has done blossoms, you will acquire a beauty that you have never had and as long as you walk with Him, it will never leave you. It is not subject to human aging.
You cannot ask God to simply change your countenance. Ask Him to change you. Your countenance will change when your heart is changed. It will be the result. It’s not age related. It’s permanent. Take a break from reading and do it now. It’s between you and God; nobody else has to be involved. Talk to Him about it. You may be unsure just how to say it. No matter. God will not be listening to how well you say it. He will be listening to the cry of your heart.
861) When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king. (Esther 8:4 ESV)
862) …saying that the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to gather and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed forces that might attack them… (Esther 8: 11 ESV).
Interesting statement! When has a king ever given permission of his people to defend themselves? When people are attacked, they defend themselves.
863) And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews, for the fear of the Jews had fallen on them. (Esther 8:17b ESV)
864) All the officials of the provinces and the satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the Jews, for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. (Esther (9: 3 ESV)
865) The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and they did as they pleased to those who hated them. (Esther 9:5 ESV)
866) And Esther said,“If it please the king, let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this days edit. And let the ten sons of Haman be hanged in the gallows. (Esther 9:13 ESV)
867) …and they Killed 300 men in Susa, but they laid no hands on the plunder. (Esther 9:15b ESV)
868) …and got relief from their enemies and killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they laid no hands on the plunder.(Esther 9:16b ESV)
869) But when it came before the king, he gave orders in writing(Esther 9:25a ESV)
870) …that his evil plan that he had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his own sons shouldbe hanged on the gallows. (Esther 9:25b ESV)
871) The command of Esther confirmed these practices of Purim, and it was recorded in writing. (Esther 9: 32 ESV)
872) For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers,…(Esther 10:3a ESV)
873) …for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people. (Esther 10:3b ESV)