Leviticus 14:34 “When you enter the land of Canaan that I am giving you as a possession and I place a mildew contamination in a house in the land you possess.…” Observation: These are among the instructions the Lord gives for dealing with contaminations resulting in...

Psalm 12:8 “…what is worthless is exalted by the human race.” Observation: The psalmist has declared that there are no faithful ones among the human race, that everyone has become liars speaking from deceptive hearts. He concludes by saying, “The wicked wander...

John 2:15 “After making a whip out of cords, He drove everyone out of the temple complex, with their sheep and oxen.” Observation: This is the first instance of Jesus clearing the temple complex, but this one is interesting because it occurred at the beginning of...

1 Samuel 16:7 “Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him.” Observation: Samuel was  grieving over the Lord’s rejection of Saul as Israel’s king (16:1), but the Lord had said, in essence, “Buck up! Get over it!” “Go to Jesse of Bethlehem...

Psalm 116:7, 12 “Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me?” Observation: The whole of Psalm 116 celebrates the Lord’s deliverance from death. Verse 3 remembers that, “The cords of death...

Daniel 1:2 “And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God.” Observation: Daniel’s beginning sets the stage for some troubling personal reflection. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had besieged...

Lamentations 5:3 “We have become orphans without a father.…” Observation: The Jews are in Babylonian captivity, having lost everything. Their inheritance (v. 2) had been “turned over to strangers,” their houses had been forfeited to aliens. Everything they needed...

Ezekiel 20:1 “Now it came about in the seventh year, on the fifth month on the tenth of the month, some of the elders came to inquire of the Lord, and sat before me.” Observation: Ezekiel was Israel’s prophet-in-exile. He had been captured by Nebuchadnezzar’s army and...

Psalm 91:11–12 “For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands.…” Observation: The whole of Psalm 91 is one of the most comforting in all Scripture. The promise is simple: If I will but dwell in...

Psalm 11:3 “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” Observation: This verse, either spoken by David’s friends or perhaps by a whispering enemy seeking to wear down his faith, reflects the stress David experienced as Saul and his army...