Jesus taught that all scripture testifies about him so that in him we might have life (John 5v39-40). King David taught that it is only by living according to God's word that we're kept on the right path (Psalm 119v9). What then could be better than reading the entire Bible? Click the menu to read about the program, choose a month or Bible book - or just work through the blog posts day by day.
BEGIN WITH PRAYER
"Lord open my eyes and my heart."
Read slowly so that you take in. And as you do, turn your heart to God, thanking him for the good you discover and praying his will home for you, your family, your church and the world.
Understanding to grow in
1 and 2 Chronicles was orginally just one book. It retells Israel's history with a focus on the southern kingdom of Judah. We don't know who wrote it - some think Ezra. The books begin by setting Israel’s history in its wider context. Israel’s history is about world history. We read how the people are descended from Adam and Abraham with a stress on David’s line. This reminds us that through Abraham’s royal seed, God is going to bring blessing to the whole earth, cursed as it is in Adam. It looks the church therefore to its mission to bring that blessing to others by sharing the gospel of Christ (Gal 3v6-14). Father can mean any male ancestor and son any male descendent. So there are undoubtedly gaps in these lists. The focus is on key individuals and nations within the Ancient Near East known to Israel, perhaps with the eye of faith on God's promises that his Messsiah will one day reign over them (Num 24v17-18). The detail teaches that just as human history includes greatness (1v10) and evil (1v19), so does Israel’s (2v3, 7, 22). Sometimes the people were therefore blessed, fulfilling God’s purpose of multiplying and becoming a great nation. Yet sometimes they seem not so blessed – perhaps hinted at by the note of those who had no children (2v30, 32, 34). Whatever the case, we see God’s purposes are worked out through the good and the bad. It nudges the reader to consider what their legacy might be and how they might therefore contribute to the fulfilment of God’s purposes. The names of the line of David stretch beyond the exile, showing the book must have been completed some time after 538BC, and that the everlasting kingdom of David was still being looked for. As in chapter 2, the tribe of Judah is therefore given prominence, as the one God promised would rule (Gen 49v8-10). Perhaps there is a lesson here about eagerly looking in hope for the return of Christ, rather than back to what the church once was.
1 Chronicles 1-3
Finish this reading by pausing to ask yourself:
Finish this reading by pausing to ask yourself:
1) What’s the main thing it teaches me about God or his purposes in Christ? Then praise him for this.
2) What’s the main thing it teaches me about his will for me or the world? Then pray that home.
Devotion to offer up
You could read this aloud and perhaps as a springboard to further prayer.