Zechariah 1:18-21 – God’s Revenge

Read Zechariah 1:18-21

Horns, blacksmiths, and colorful horses! “Are we in the book of Revelation?” is the question that came to me as I read this passage. I understand Zechariah does have some apocalyptic sections. Clearly the visions God gave Zechariah are a bit different from how other prophets received their messages. I appreciate Zechariah for giving us a detailed account of what he saw and what the angel explained to him. We don’t have to guess!

If you’ve ever been bullied, then you know the feeling of relief when your perpetrator has been exposed and punished. The Israelite nation had been abused by “bullying” nations for years. This part of the vision was meant to give them the peace of mind that their “bullies” would be taken care of. Whatever residual fears they had could be cleansed away.

Habakkuk 1:5-11 – The Lord Answered

Read Habakkuk 1:5-11

The Lord responds by giving quite a speech! Do you think Habakkuk had a hard time getting past the part about God raising up the Babylonians to destroy. But there is no direct mention of the terror they will bring on Judah.

Do you think Habakkuk “connected the dots” and realized God had heard his lament? God had also seen all the disrespect and evil that was troubling Habakkuk. The cruelty of the Babylonians would soon descend to discipline his own people.

Obadiah 1-9 – Edom’s Judgment

Read Obadiah 1-9

Welcome to Obadiah, the shortest book in the Old Testament. Its message is about oppression and betrayal, from both vantage points. We’ll also see examples of being the “innocent bystander” in perilous times. It’s thought that Obadiah would have written this prophecy sometime after the Babylonian conquest, but it is not clearly stated.

Obadiah’s message reveals God’s dramatic response to anyone who would harm his precious children. Edom was one of those nations, located southwest of the Dead Sea. The Edomite people were descendants of Esau, Jacob’s twin brother. Remember the story about the birth right in Genesis 27? We see time and again in the Old Testament references to the hostilities and struggles Edom had with God’s people, Israel.

Jeremiah 49:1-39 – God’s Fury

Read Jeremiah 49:1-39

We see five individual prophecies of doom in today’s reading. Each recipient of God’s wrath has a little different story, but what they share in common is proximity to Israel and Judah. Why do you think we need to see how God is going to deal with other nations?

It’s helpful to know God is fighting for those he loves. Sometimes it means he has to take control of those around us who are causing us harm or poised to do so. We don’t have to seek revenge. God does the heavy lifting for us. Here’s a little of what I took note of in my reflection of the text and research of who these nations were.

Jeremiah 2:4-13 – Where is the Lord?

Read Jeremiah 2:4-13

I hear such desperation in God’s tone, lamenting over how his children have abandoned him. Jeremiah is going to teach us how intimately God knows us and cares for us. We started this trek down memory lane in our last reading, and now God remembers how his people have responded to him. We’ve got the Bible history to see for ourselves how these people drifted away.

But it isn’t just “those people,” God’s chosen ones. When we look around our own communities, we see similar apathy toward God. There are those who deny God’s existence and there are those who acknowledge there’s a higher power but don’t have any interest in having a relationship with an invisible deity. What about you? Where is God for you?