Day 192 Bible Readings for July 12 – 2 Kings 22: 18-20 (ESV)

2 Kings 21 & 22, Acts 28: 17-31, Psalm 105: 12-22

2 Kings 22: 18-20 (ESV)

“But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard, because your heart was penitent, and you humbled yourself before the Lord, when you heard how I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the Lord. Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place.’” And they brought back word to the king.”

Verses 18 through 20 from 2 Kings 22 shows the judgement of God upon Josiah King of Judah. Josiah began repair of the temple, and listened to words of the Book of the Law that was found. Afterwards, Josiah tore his clothes which was a traditional expression of the sadness and grief when he realized that his nation and his father had disobeyed the laws of Moses and sinned in the eyes of God. When Josiah sent his priest and servants what will be judgement upon Judah for their sinfulness. The Lord said judgement will come to the nation of Judah but because Josiah had repented and realized his nation’s sinful ways, the Lord told him he would die before he saw the destruction of his nation.

Josiah’s example shows us that God is merciful to those who repent and realize their sinfulness. We cannot stop the eventual judgement of God, but we can delay it if we pray to God and seek repentance.

Day 191 Bible Readings for July 11 – Acts 28: 7-10 (ESV)

2 Kings 19: 14-37, 2 Kings 20, Acts 28: 1-16, Psalm 105: 1-11

Acts 28: 7-10 (ESV)

“Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery. And Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him, healed him. And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. They also honored us greatly, and when we were about to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.”

Verses 7 through 10 from Acts 28 shows how Paul kept doing the work of God when he was stranded on the island of Malta. The boat carrying Paul was stranded was called the island of Malta. Paul did not let being stuck on a strange island deter him from doing God’s mission. If there were people to be healed, Paul healed them. No matter what circumstances Paul found himself in, he was always focused on spreading God’s message and making friends wherever he went.

Paul’s example shows us that no matter what unfortunate circumstances we find ourselves in, we need to keep our focus on God and do his good work in whatever gifts God gave us. If we have this attitude, we will always be participating in God’s plans.

Day 190 Bible Readings – Acts 27: 22-26 (ESV)

2 Kings 18, 2 Kings 19: 1-13, Acts 27: 13-44, Psalm 104: 31-35

Acts 27: 22-26 (ESV)

“Yet now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told. But we must run aground on some island.”

Verses 22 through 26 from Acts 27 shows Paul talking to the people on the ship about what God had told him. He tells the men that they will survive but the ship will not survive. He also tells them that they must run aground on some island. From the words God spoke, it sounds like Paul had prayed not only for his safety but also for the safety of the men on the ship. I love how Paul only had confidence in the words of God, but he had no confidence in the sailors on the ship.

At the of Acts 27, the ship did run aground on an island fulfilling the words of God. Even when we are in the most dire of circumstances, God can bring us to safety.

Day 189 Bible Reading – Acts 26: 31-32 (ESV)

2 Kings16 & 17, Acts 26: 24-32, Acts 27: 1-12, Psalm 104: 19-30

Acts 26: 31-32 (ESV)

“And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

Verses 31 through 32 shows the verdict of Paul’s hearing in front of Festus and King Agrippa in Caesarea. Paul was such a persuasive speaker that both Festus and Agrippa wanted to free him, but since Paul appealed to Caesar they had to send him on to Rome. But since God had told Paul in Acts 23 that he would testify in Rome, so Paul said he wanted to appeal to Caesar to obey what God had told him.

Paul was a very persuasive speaker, and he almost convinced King Agrippa to become a Christian. Paul was allowed to speak to an audience who would not normally hear him, so he was following God’s plan to spread the word of God to as many people as possible. Sometimes we are in difficult situations by design like Paul to fulfill God’s plan. We might not immediately perceive the God’s plan at the moment, but if we have faith in God we have to trust that whatever is happening to us good or bad is part of God’s plan.