“Joseph then answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”” Genesis 41:16 Most of us are familiar

“Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God;” Genesis 45:8a As Joseph’s brothers have returned to Egypt with the stolen

“So Joseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years; and he was embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt.” Genesis

“Because the midwives feared God, He established households for them.” Exodus 1:21 In the opening Chapter of Exodus, we read of Joseph’s death, as

“But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?”” Exodus 5:2a In the previous 2 Chapters, God has appeared to

“But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go.” Exodus 10:20 Moses and Aaron have given God’s

“Moreover, they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which

“So the people grumbled at Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?”” Exodus 15:24 After witnessing Miraculous Judgments against Egypt, allowing their departure; Favor curried

“Then God spoke all these words, saying,” Exodus 20:1 Moses has finally brought the children of Israel to Mount Sinai, the Mountain of God.

“nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute.” Exodus 23:3 After God has given Moses the Ten Commandments, He now

“They shall construct an ark” Exodus 25:10a As Moses begins his first 40 days and 40 nights on Mount Sinai, the first order of

“For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever

“Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend.” Exodus 33:11 Once again, we

“Everyone whose heart stirred him and everyone whose spirit moved him came…” Exodus 35:21 For the 2nd time, God has called Moses to the

“Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.” Exodus 40:34 In the previous Chapters, a

“He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, that it may be accepted for him to make atonement on his

“Fire shall be kept burning continually on the altar; it is not to go out.” Leviticus 6:13 In Today’s Reading, God finishes with the

“Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the Lord spoke, saying, ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,

“For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.” Leviticus 11:45a At the opening of Chapter

“Now the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they had approached the presence of the Lord

“You shall not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived, nor are you to do what is done in

“Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death;” Leviticus 24:16a There are several instances of capital

“So you shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.” Leviticus 25:17 As we

“Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel,” Numbers 1:2a Today, as we begin the Book of Numbers, we’re told

“but they shall not go in to see the holy objects even for a moment, or they will die.” Numbers 4:20 As we saw

“Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ households, made an offering” Numbers 7:2a As we begin Today’s reading we’re told that

“Now the people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord;” Numbers 11:1a If there’s one thing apparent as

“And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people be disrespectful to Me? And how long will they not believe in Me,

“Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who

“But among these there was not a man of those who were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the sons of

“You shall offer the one lamb in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight.” Numbers 28:4 In one of the

“But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” Numbers

“he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death.” Numbers 35:17b In these final 3 Chapters of Numbers, God gives Moses

“You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north,” Deuteronomy 2:3 By way of Introduction, today I begin the 5th Book of the

“Oh that they had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it may be

“He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that

“You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes;” Deuteronomy 12:8

“And It shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the

“When you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations.”

“A woman shall not wear man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination

“Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today,”

“Yet to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear.” Deuteronomy 29:4

“It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom

“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may

“Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day.”” Joshua 7:25a As I mentioned yesterday, I love the Character

“Now the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear or be dismayed.” Joshua 8:1a As we journey on in our Bible Reading through the

“But the sons of Israel did not dispossess the Geshurites or the Maacathites; for Geshur and Maacath live among Israel until this day.” Joshua

“Now the lot for the tribe of the sons of Judah” Joshua 15:1a Chapter 15 describes the territory Judah was allotted, as well as

“Not one of the good promises which the Lord had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass.” Joshua 21:45 If

“When the sons of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the sons of Israel gathered themselves at Shiloh to go up against

“but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley because they had iron chariots.” Judges 1:19b Sandwiched between Deuteronomy and 1st Samuel

“They were for testing Israel, to find out if they would obey the commandments of the Lord, which He had commanded their fathers through

“Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?”” Judges 6:13a

“Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress.” Judges 10:14 As

“Then Samson went down to Timnah and saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines.” Judges 14:1 Today’s Verse begins

“In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” Judges 17:6 This is the

“But the sons of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brothers, the sons of Israel.” Judges 20:13b This is the last

“Now it came about in the days when the judges governed, that there was a famine in the land.” Ruth 1:1a Today’s reading brings

“As for Hannah, she was speaking in her heart, only her lips were moving, but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought she

“When the people came into the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? Let us

“His sons, however, did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain and took bribes and perverted justice.” 1 Samuel 8:3

“So I forced myself and offered the burnt offering.” 1 Samuel 13:12b In Yesterday’s Reading, we’re told the Tragic Tale of Samuel’s sons and

“for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.” 1 Samuel 17:47b Of all the stories in the Bible,

“Then Saul became very angry, for this saying displeased him;” 1 Samuel 18:8a If you remember, the Sad Story of Israel at this time

“So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” 1 Samuel 23:2a David and his army were fugitives on

“David said to his men, “Each of you gird on his sword.”” 1 Samuel 25:13a When reading Today’s Story, I am reminded of a

“But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” 1 Samuel 30:6 The Backdrop to Today’s Story: The Philistines were gathering to Aphek for

 “Then David said to him, “How is it you were not afraid to stretch out your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?”” 2 Samuel

“And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the

“Now in the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah.” 2 Samuel 11:14 This part of

“Then the Lord sent Nathan to David.” 2 Samuel 12:1a Yesterday, we read of David’s Unbelievable Wickedness; how neglecting his Military Role in fighting

“The advice of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as if one inquired of the word of God;” 2 Samuel 16:23 As

“For the Lord had ordained to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the Lord might bring calamity on Absalom.” 2 Samuel 17:14b

“Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years,” 2 Samuel 21:1a Every year I read through the Bible, I

“Now again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”” 2

“Then Solomon formed a marriage alliance with Pharaoh King of Egypt” 1 Kings 3:1a If you’ve noticed, as we ended 2nd Samuel and began

“Now it came about in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel came out of the land of Egypt,” 1

“When they sin against You (for there is no man who does not sin)” 1 Kings 8:46a At the beginning of Chapter 8, we’re

“But he forsook the counsel of the elders which they had given him, and consulted with the young men who grew up with him

“Now behold, there came a man of God from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord, while Jeroboam was standing by the

“Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him;

“But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not yet a prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of him?”” 1 Kings 22:7 Israel and

“O man of God, please let my life and the lives of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight.” 2 Kings

“Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, but we are keeping silent;”

“the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.” 2 Kings 9:20b One of the commissions given

“When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and eliminated all the royal children.” 2 Kings 11:1 Yesterday,

“You have indeed defeated Edom, and your heart has become proud. Enjoy your glory and stay at home; for why should you provoke trouble

“So the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from His sight; none was left except the tribe of Judah.” 2 Kings

“Then he turned his face to the wall…And Hezekiah wept bitterly.” 2 Kings 20:2-3 As we begin Chapter 18, we’re introduced to King Hezekiah.

“and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, a portion for each day, all the days of his life.”

“Now these were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: the firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second

“The sons of Ulam were mighty men of valor, archers, and had many sons and grandsons, 150 of them. All these were of the

“All these, being men of war who could draw up in battle formation, came to Hebron with a perfect heart to make David king

“The anger of the Lord burned against Uzza, so He struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark; and he

“Then David the king went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house

“Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel.” 1 Chronicles 21:1 Last month, I commented on the sister passage of

“And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites.” 1 Chronicles 23:2 David has just established Solomon as

“But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come

“Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people, for who can rule this great people

“But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods

“Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to Jerusalem to test Solomon with difficult questions.” 2 Chronicles

“When the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong, he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 12:1

“and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to observe the law and the commandment.” 2 Chronicles 14:4 It’s been

“Moreover, Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire first for the word of the Lord.”” 2 Chronicles 18:4 In Today’s Reading we’re

“He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did (for Ahab’s daughter was his wife), and

“Joash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest.” 2 Chronicles 24:2 King Ahaziah has

“Now in the time of his distress this same King Ahaz became yet more unfaithful to the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 28:22 When Reading through

“When he prayed to Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem to his kingdom.

“There had not been celebrated a Passover like it in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet;” 2 Chronicles 35:18a As mentioned before,

“Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah,

“But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report could come

“Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God to seek from Him a

“When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of

“should you not walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies?” Nehemiah 5:9b As we saw

“Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10b As I read through the Bible, I’m often struck

“On that day they read aloud from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people;” Nehemiah 13:1a One theme that is central

“Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew whose name was Mordecai” Esther 2:5a Esther is a most amazing Story! It reads

“During that night the king could not sleep so he gave an order to bring the book of records, the chronicles, and they were