Song of Solomon has been interpreted in many ways in the theological world. Some disagree on who the characters are, and even how many people are represented in the text. Questions arise such as. Is it allegory? Many believe so. But one thing we can say without a doubt is the book points to the purity and beauty of the marriage covenant, a sacred institution ordained by God to reflect the intimate, faithful love between Christ and His church (Ephesians 5:25-32). Just as the bride in Song of Solomon delights in the presence of her beloved, we are invited to find our joy and security in the love of Jesus, our Bridegroom. One of the things that surfaced as I read the whole book at one time was the concept of the pursuit of the King and the pursuit the woman has for her beloved. In every section, there is this desire to be close to, to touch, to be intimate with the one they love. If this truly is an example of the love and faithfulness of Christ and his church, it makes one wonder if we share the same “passionate” love for our Lord as is exhibited here in this book. I can understand for many believers, the concept presented here is a more sensual tone and can be uncomfortable to consider. But one can’t ignore the relational example of the bride being the church and the groom being Christ in Ephesians 5. In that relationship, we know that Christ pursues those whom he wants to be the church, and we as believers should pursue Christ as our Lord and Savior.  Read More

"That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, 'Ask for whatever you want me to give you.'" Imagine God appearing to you and offering you anything your heart desires. This is precisely what happened to Solomon, the newly appointed king of Israel. His father, David, had just passed away, and Solomon was faced with the immense responsibility of leading a nation. In this pivotal moment, an invitation – an opportunity for Solomon to articulate his deepest needs and desires before the Almighty. WOW. It's easy to get caught up in the "what if." Would we ask for wealth? Power? Fame? Personal comfort? Solomon's response, which we see in the following verses, is a profound lesson for us all. He didn't ask for personal gain, but for wisdom to govern God's people well. He recognized the weight of his calling and the need for divine guidance to fulfill it.  Read More

Solomon's Wisdom: Who doesn't want wisdom and discernment? In 1 Kings 3 & 4, we see King Solomon, David's son, who does not think very highly of himself, as we see in 1 Kings 3:7. He calls himself a little child even though he's not. King Solomon dreams a dream in which he asks God for wisdom because he understands the task at hand will require much wisdom. As we'll see later in the passage, God does indeed grant Solomon wisdom. But it made me ponder: at what point did God grant Solomon wisdom? I wondered this because it seems Solomon already has some level of wisdom by knowing that wisdom will be more valuable to him than wealth, fame, or victory over his enemies. Maybe God was growing his wisdom all along. We see that in 1 Kings 3:3, Solomon showed his love for the LORD by walking according to the instructions given to him by his father David. We know that when we walk according to the LORD's instructions, our lives will bear fruit. It appears the wisdom King Solomon obtained was immediate, but maybe not—maybe it was grown. Let's look at what we can learn from this for our own lives.   Read More

Meditation and Prayers relating to the Law of GodFacts about Psalm 119…..It’s the longest chapter of the Bible with 176 verses. It’s an acrostic poem consisting of all 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. There are 8 verses in each of the 22 stanzas. No one knows who wrote it; but some say Ezra, David, or Daniel.Here are a few verses that portray the ideals and standards we are striving for:REAL peo...  Read More

I recall the day my dad first let me use his car. He gave the keys and said, “Son, be very  careful, do not go out driving around like crazy, be wise who you let in the car, and do not let  them influence you in your decisions.”In 1 Kings 1 and 2, we see David’s last days. He is about to pass away, and in those last days,  he appointed his son Solomon to be king of Israel. This was a great respons...  Read More

Can believers argue with these points? … Great are the Lord’s Works (Psalm 111), The Righteous Will Never Be Moved (Psalm 112), Who is Like the Lord Our God? There is no other like HIM (Psalm 113), What does NOT Tremble at the Presence of the Lord (Psalm 114), We Should Give Glory to God’s Name (Psalm 115), We Love the Lord (Psalm 116), The Lord’s Faithfulness Endures Forever (Psalm 117), and His Steadfast Love Endures Forever (Psalm 118).   Read More

Psalm 127, attributed to Solomon, is a "Song of Ascents" and emphasizes God's essential role in all human endeavors. It's often summarized by the Latin phrase "Nisi Dominus frustra" – "Unless the Lord, in vain."  Read More

There are days when my heart feels too loud, racing with questions, tangled with worry, and desperate for clarity. I open my Bible, needing more than inspiration. I need stillness. And in those moments, Psalm 131 feels like a whisper from God:   Read More

These chapters are the kind that many of us tend to skim. Long lists of names. Tasks assigned. Divisions detailed. Musicians. Gatekeepers. Priests. It can feel dry, until you realize what it’s really about: God sees worship in our work.   Read More

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. A phrase our parents would teach us when we were little. But words sometimes hurt. But they can do so much more. I recently heard from a wiseman; “the foundation of ministry is Character, not a professional skill”. As a Christian, we should place great value on our character. Galatians 5:22,23 summarizes the character of the Christian: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”. Definitely a high standard, but we have a worthy God that we should be Honored to be able to represent with these characteristics. It also makes for an easy target for Satan and his followers to strike at us when we fail. “Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark!” – James 3:5  Read More

Now, let’s look at Psalm 30. David may have written this psalm when he dedicated Araunah’s threshing floor (which became the future site of the temple), and after God stopped the great plague He had used to discipline David (1 Chronicles 21: 1-22: 6). The serious illness mentioned in 30: 2-3 may refer to an illness David experienced or to the plague itself.   Read More

Psalm 95 encourages believers to come together to approach God’s presence with joyful worship and thanksgiving. It reminds us that God is the Lord, our rock, our great God, our great King, our Creator of all things and the Shepherd who cares for His people. The latter part of the psalm warns against hardening our hearts, referencing the Israelites' rebellion in the wilderness.   Read More

You could call Chapter 22, David’s Song of Thanksgiving. David was a skilled musician who played his harp for Saul (1 Samuel 16: 23), instituted the music programs for the tabernacle and temple (1 Chronicles 25), and wrote more of the Psalms than anyone else. Writing a song like this was not unusual for David. This royal hymn of thanksgiving is almost identical to Psalm 18.   Read More

When I was young and first learned about King David, I would think, Wow! This man was courageous, artistic, shepherd, master in rock shooting, royalty and a warrior after God's own heart. I would imagine a strong man with a crown and the best armor that could ever be. In my mind, he was like a Christian Superman from historic times. As I grew in age and in my walk with the Lord, I was able to learn more about him and realize it was not all courageous, fancy warrior king stories. He lived through tough times too, not everything was sweet or about winning. As we read Psalms, we get to know he was a man that also had lowest points in his life. We have a glance of what he felt and prayed while he was enduring the consequences of his sins, or when he was oppressed by his enemies. In today’s Psalms, both authors share their sorrow and mourning for what they are going through. You can sense their tiredness, their souls are weary, there is despair; yet through their trials and suffering, we find the psalmists having HOPE and CONFIDENCE in God. Even PRAISING Him! To be honest, it’s a combination of feelings and actions that sometimes we think is not possible when we are walking through hard times.   Read More

Being a leader is just plain hard! And being a leader does not make you exempt from pain, suffering or consequences. David shows us this is 2 Samuel 19-21. Chapter 19: The war is over, and we find David mourning for the loss of his son Absalom. He lets this grief consume him and people began to notice. Joab tells him that he has to pull it together! Joab reminds David that the work done by the army should be celebrated, not overshadowed by grief for someone who actually was in rebellion. David realizes he is right and gets back to work. He asks Judah to take him back as King. He then replaces Joab as the leader with Amasa. Ultimately, Joab kills Amasa, proving he is not a man of honor. Chapter 21 shows us that a 3 year famine has struck the land due to sin committed by Saul. David, the leader, has now inherited the consequences of this. He tries to appease the Gibeonites by sacrificing seven of Saul's descendants, including two sons of Rizpah and five sons of Merab, but sparing Mephibosheth due to his covenant with Jonathan.   Read More

Do you have biblical principles? Do I truly walk in integrity? Is my trust in the Lord unwavering, or am I easily shaken? Am I willing to be proven and tested by the Lord? What might He reveal about my heart and mind? Is God's steadfast love a constant awareness in my life? Do my actions reflect a walk in His faithfulness?  Read More

Today, we will look at a passage where King David was having some rough times. He fled from Jerusalem because his son Absalom was trying to kill him. Imagine that! That must be a difficult situation to be in.  Read More

We’ve all felt at one time or another what David is expressing in these Psalms: Questions, Hurt, Ridicule, Sadness. Psalm 3: Morning Prayer of Trust in God But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory and the one who lifts my head. I was crying to the Lord with my voice and He answered me from his holy mountain. Arise, O Lord: save me, O my God! Salvation belongs to the Lord; your blessing be upon your people.  Read More

These chapters of 2 Samuel are difficult to read. The focus will be on 2 Samuel 15. There is a commentary that explains some extremely interesting parallels between Jesus and David. Although I know we are supposed to write the devotional, it just can’t be written & explained better than this Verse by Verse Ministries, International study. We all know that David is used in Scripture as a picture of Christ, and this scene is one of the most powerful comparisons. David’s flight from the city is a picture of Jesus’ departure from Jerusalem and from Israel after His first coming.  Read More

We all have messed up, whether in word or deed. We wish we could have a retake of what was said or done. But it is too late, damage has been done, opportunity missed. Psalm 32 is a powerful passage that highlights the joy of forgiveness, the necessity of confession, and the guidance of God. Confession leads to freedom, and trusting in God brings peace.   Read More

Chapter 11 tells the story of David and his lust for Bathsheba. He then arranges to have her husband killed. The last sentence of this chapter ends with “But the Lord was displeased with what David had done”.  Read More

In the Psalm 69 we find David pleading to God to save him from his many enemies and those who would destroy him and the people of Isreal. He feels as if he is drowning under the weight of his many troubles and conflicts. He is also asking God to bring his wrath down on his enemies and punish them in the worst way.  Read More

In 2 Samuel chapter 10 verses 1 and 2 we see Nahash the king of the amorites has died and his son Hanun become king. We see King David had a heart to show kindness to Hanun as his father had showed kindness to David. However Hanun did not receive David's heart of kindness as what it was. And he returned to David and his men evil for the good David was trying to do.  Read More

“Consider this, you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you: Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor me, and to the blameless I will show my salvation.” PS 50:22-23 NIV  Read More