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Kids Bible Blog: prophecy : Page P30
God’s Lullabies
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Zephaniah 3:11-17
TO CHEW ON: "The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves.He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17
Again Judah was in a mess. When King Manasseh died, his idol-worshiping son Amon became king. Amon was king for just two years when officials murdered him and crowned his eight-year-old son Josiah to be king instead.
God gave another prophet named Zephaniah, messages for King Josiah. Most were not popular. “God’s judgment day is coming,” he said one day. “If Judah doesn’t return to God, it will be destroyed, just the like nations around it. Jerusalem will be destroyed too. Only a few people from it will be saved.”
Then Zephaniah ended his stern message with the beautiful picture of a God who can also be gentle. He is a God who loves and cares for those who stay true to Him.
Have you ever seen a mother or father quiet a crying baby? How do they do it?
In our reading today, God is that parent. He quiets His restless children with...
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God’s Friends
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Luke 2: 21-38
TO CHEW ON: "It had been revealed to him (Simeon) by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Messiah ....She (Anna) never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying." Luke 2: 26 & 37
When Jesus was still a tiny baby (40 days, about six weeks old) Joseph and Mary brought him to the temple in Jerusalem and gave him to the Lord. They also had to bring a sacrifice - doves or pigeons. They were obeying a command God gave Moses hundreds of years earlier.
There were probably many people in the temple the day Joseph and Mary took Jesus there. Perhaps some stopped Mary to take a look at her new baby and say how cute He was. The temple workers (Levites) probably saw Jesus when they helped Joseph and Mary with their sacrifice. But only two people recognized that Jesus was not just an ordinary baby....
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Tags: worship temple storytelling sacrifice prophecy Luke Jesus discussion
God Wants Us Back
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Hosea 14:1-9
TO CHEW ON: "Return, O Israel, to the Lord you God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: 'Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously that we may offer the fruit of our lips.'” Hosea 14:1,2
Hosea was another prophet to Israel at this time. God asked him to do more than just talk to the people. Even his life was an object lesson of what God was like.
“Go marry a woman who won’t be true to you,” God told him.
So Hosea married Gomer, a prostitute. They lived together and had children. But Gomer left Hosea and had affairs with other men.
This made Hosea sad. God told him, “Your wife is just like the Israelites. She left you just like they left me to worship idols.
The Israelites going to worship idols
I don’t want you to divorce her. Instead, you are to take her back.”
Hosea paid money and took his wife back into their home. Then God said to him, “Tell the Israelites that what you did is a picture of what I will do for them. Just like you took your wife back even though she...
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Tags: repent prophecy prayer memory verse Israel idols Hosea
Get Out of Jail Free
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Isaiah 61:1-3
TO CHEW ON: "The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners," Isaiah 61:1
If you’ve ever played Monopoly, you’ll know that if you get sent to “Jail” there are consequences. You must miss your turn. You don’t get to move around the game board like the other players. By the time you’re free again, all the best properties may be bought by others. Unless you have a “Get out of jail free” card. Then you get to go free!
The way Isaiah described the deliverer or Messiah who would come someday sounds a lot like a “Get out of jail free” card. As well as bringing good news to the poor and comfort to the brokenhearted, the promise was that He would free captives and release prisoners.Hundreds of years later, Jesus was about to give His first sermon. In front of the gathered listeners He started by opening the scroll of Isaiah...
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Tags: salvation prophecy Judah Jesus Isaiah good news God’s word forgiveness
Four Secrets
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Revelation 6:1-8
TO CHEW ON: "I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say, in a voice like thunder, 'Come!'" Revelation 6:1
If you get a letter in the mail, the untorn envelope and the stuck-tight flap tell you no one has opened the letter.
In Bible times, scroll letters were sealed with clay or wax. This clay or wax had the imprint of the sender’s seal - an impression of his ring or special stamp. This seal told the person who got the letter it was from the person who had stamped it, and it had not been opened. What was inside a letter stayed a mystery until the seal was broken and the letter was opened and read.
As John watched scenes of heaven, he saw the Lamb (Jesus) opening seven seals. Although these seals weren’t on actual letters, they were messages from God, telling John (and us) things that would happen in the future. Read about the first seals John saw. Then fill in the thing that each brought (pick the answer from the words below)....
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Forgotten Dream Dilemma
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Daniel 2:14-28
TO CHEW ON:"Daniel replied, 'No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.'” Daniel 2:27, 28a
Arioch, the commander of Nebuchadnezzar’s guard had an unpleasant job. He was supposed to kill all the wise men of Babylon. This was because King Nebuchadnezzar had had a dream which he couldn't remember. When his wise men couldn't tell him what he had dreamed and what his dream meant, he ordered them all killed.
But when Arioch came to Daniel to give him the bad news, Daniel was surprised. He hadn't heard anything about Nebuchadnezzar and his dream problem. Daniel begged for more time. Then he gathered his friends and the four of them prayed that God would tell him what Nebuchadnezzar had dreamed and what it meant.
During the night God answered Daniel's prayer. Early the next morning he went to Arioch. “Don’t kill any of the wise men,” he said. “Instead, take me to the king. I know the dream and its meaning.”
Arioch took Daniel to the king.
Then Daniel told...
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Don’t Be Afraid
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Ezekiel 2:1-10
TO CHEW ON: " And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people." Ezekiel 2:6
As Ezekiel lay on the ground, a voice came from the bright vision of God. It was talking to him. “Stand up,” God said.
Ezekiel stood and God continued. “I am sending you to be a prophet to the people of Israel. They are rebellious, stubborn and obstinate. They may or may not listen.”
Ezekiel had wanted to be a priest. Now God was giving him a different job – the job of being a prophet. But it sounded hard and dangerous.
Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll... On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe." Ezekiel 2:9
Before Ezekiel had a chance to argue with God about how hard this job was going to be, God encouraged him. Three times God said to Ezekiel, “Do not be afraid....
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Tags: trust prophecy memory verse fear faith Ezekiel courage
Changed!
TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 10:1-9
TO CHEW ON: “The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.” 1 Samuel 10:6,7
The next day Samuel sent Saul back home. Just before they parted, Samuel took out a bottle of oil and poured some on Saul’s head. Anointing him in this way showed that Saul was God’s choice to be Israel’s king.
1.To make sure that Saul knew this was God’s idea and not just Samuel’s, Samuel predicted some things that would happen to Saul in the next few hours. Which thing Samuel did not say: (1 Samuel 10:2-6)...
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Champion of the Poor
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Amos 8:1-12
TO CHEW ON: "Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land .... I will never forget anything they have done." Amos 8:4,7
In Israel King Jehu was followed by his son and grandson. They were all evil. Now a new king, Jeroboam II, was ruling Israel. Outwardly everything was going well. Crops had been good. Many people were getting rich. They loved their beautiful homes and their lovely things. Some people were poor. But they didn’t matter, did they?
With that attitude, the rich were secretly cheating the poor. When they sold grain to them, they didn’t put the full amount in the bags, but raised the price. Sometimes they put the sweepings or the garbage from the bottom of the wheat bin into the bag and charged for that too.
God saw this unfairness. He called a shepherd named Amos. He sent Amos to be a prophet to Israel....
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Tags: prophecy Israel God’s care generosity Amos
Book Burning
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Jeremiah 36:1-26
TO CHEW ON: "The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes." Jeremiah 36:24
“I’m sure the people will change their ways when they hear all this,” Baruch said, as he put the final touches on the scroll.
God had told Jeremiah many months before to try another way to get the people to listen. “You write down all the things I’ve told you,” God told him. “Then read them to the people. When they hear about the judgments that are coming, surely they’ll change their ways.”
Jeremiah had hired Baruch as his secretary. He had spoken the things God had said to him, while Baruch wrote them on a scroll. It was slow work and took a long time. But finally they were done.
On a day when many people were in Jerusalem, Baruch read Jeremiah’s words at the crowded temple courtyard. Micaiah heard them. He hurried to a room where the king’s officials were gathered. “You’ve got to hear this!” he told them.
They invited Baruch to read Jeremiah’s scroll. After he finished they said, “This is serious. We’d better make sure the king hears this!”
On a cold winter...
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Tags: true/false rebellion prophecy Judah Jeremiah God’s word disobedience
Bad Timing
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Luke 2:1-7
TO CHEW ON: "While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born." Luke 2:6
After the angel’s visit, Mary got pregnant. God, the Holy Spirit, was the baby’s father.
Joseph, the man she was planning to marry, thought she had cheated on him. He was all set to break their engagement. But an angel came to him in a dream. He told Joseph to take Mary as his wife and to be an earthly father to the baby she would have.
Now it was months later. The baby was due to be born any day. That's when Caesar Augustus passed a law about registering for a census. So Joseph and Mary had to take the long trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem where Joseph needed to register. Talk about bad timing!
"The Journey to Bethlehem" by Unknown Artist
They didn’t have planes, cars or buses for the trip. Instead they had to walk the 46 to 50 kilometers (or 28 to 31 miles) from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Maybe Mary rode on a donkey. Not only was the trip uncomfortable, but when they got to Bethlehem, the inns were full....
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Tags: prophecy Luke Jesus God’s timing God’s plan God’s care
As Good as His Word
TODAY’S SPECIAL: 2 Chronicles 36:15-20
TO CHEW ON: "The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy." 2 Chronicles 36:15,16
Have you ever been in a situation where your teacher or parent keeps threatening to punish you, but never does? Maybe that’s how God’s many warnings felt to the people of Judah. Prophets had been telling them for years that God would judge them if they didn’t change their ways.
They probably thought that God’s patience would last forever. But they were wrong.
Finally the day came when Nebuchadnezzar made his final move. After a siege of Jerusalem, today’s reading tells us what happened (2 Chronicles 36:17-20). Complete the sentences by filling in the blanks using the words below.
1. People of all ages were ____ .2. The temple furniture and dishes were _____ to Babylon3. The temple and palaces were _______.4. The Jerusalem wall was ______ .5. Everyone still alive was ___________.6. There they...
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Accurate Predictions
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Joel 2:28-32
TO CHEW ON: "And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions." Joel 2:28
If someone asked you, “What will happen next week?” could you tell them? What if they asked about tomorrow, or even later today?
Without God’s help, people have no way of knowing the future. But when God’s Spirit tells people what to say about the future, as He did to the Old Testament prophets, we get accurate predictions.
God gave Joel words to say about the distant future. He told about a time when God would pour out His Spirit on all people – old and young, women and men.
Hundreds of years later a small band of Jesus’ followers were gathered in a Jerusalem room. Jesus had recently died, risen again and gone back to heaven. Just before He left, Jesus told His followers to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit.
That’s what they were doing this day when suddenly there was the sound of wind and the sight of fire tongues sitting on each person’s head. Then people began praising God in languages they didn’t...
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Tags: prophecy occult Judah Joel Holy Spirit God’s plan
A Special People
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Obadiah 1:-10
TO CHEW ON: "Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever." Obadiah 1:10
Do you have brothers and/or sisters with whom you quarrel? Arguments and quarrels between siblings are common. Bible brothers and sisters had their differences too.
Take Jacob and Esau. Though they were twins, they were always competing against each other. Jacob tricked Esau into giving him the birthright (the inheritance that belonged to Esau as the oldest). Then he tricked Isaac, their father, into blessing him instead of Esau. This made Esau so angry, he threatened to kill Jacob. So Jacob left home.
"Isaac and Esau" Fresco painting by Raphael (1518-1519)
Over the years the descendants of Esau became the nation of Edom. Jacob’s descendants became Israel. But there was no more love between the nations of Edom and Israel than there had been between their great-great-great-... grandfathers....
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Tags: prophecy Obadiah Israel God’s word God’s plan God’s care
A Plan of His Own
TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Kings 12:25-33
TO CHEW ON: "The king made two golden calves. He said to the people, 'It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.' " 1 Kings 12:28
Jeroboam went to live in Schechem and ruled Israel from there. The prophet had told him he would be a successful king if he obeyed God. Even so, Jeroboam began to be afraid. His people would go back to Jerusalem to worship. What if traveling back to Jerusalem would make them want Rehoboam as their king again?
So Jeroboam made a plan to keep that from happening. Instead of encouraging the people to worship God in the temple in Jerusalem he set up calf idols nearby – one in Dan and another in Bethel. He told the people, "Here are the gods who brought you out of Egypt." Then he chose people who weren’t in the Levi tribe to be the priests. They offered sacrifices to the golden calves.
Jeroboam also invented new festivals. At festival time, the people now went to Dan or Bethel instead of Jerusalem. In no time the people who had chosen Jeroboam as...
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Tags: worship trust prophecy memory verse Israel idols 1 Kings
A Parade of Palms and Praise
TODAY’S SPECIAL: Matthew 21:1-11
TO CHEW ON: "A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road." Matthew 21:8
One day as Jesus and His disciples walked toward Jerusalem, He sent two of them on an errand. “Go to the village ahead of you,” He said. “You will find a donkey tied with her colt. Bring them to me.”
Soon the disciples were back with the animals. They put their cloaks (outer clothing) on the animals’ backs and Jesus got on the colt and rode toward the city.
Crowds gathered beside the road. Many had probably seen Jesus’ miracles and heard His teaching. When they saw Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the donkey, they remembered what prophet Zechariah had said. They recognized this was how Messiah (the Jews’ promised deliverer) would ride into Jerusalem.
Then they took off their cloaks and spread them on the road in the donkey’s path. They cut palm branches and spread them on the road too or waved them as they ran beside Jesus shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” They were honoring Jesus as...
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Tags: Zechariah worship prophecy Matthew Jesus Christ’s passion
Faith Adventure
TODAY'S SPECIAL: Read Genesis 12:1-7
Abraham journeying into the Land of Canaan by Gustave Dore
TO CHEW ON: "The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you....” So Abram went as the Lord told him." Genesis 12:1,4
People move from one home to another for many reasons. Sometimes they move to find work. Sometimes they move to be close to family. Sometimes they move to experience life in a different city. And sometimes they move just because God tells them to.
One day God talked to a man named Abram. (He was a man who was alive at about the same time as Job.) God told Abram to move – and he did, just because God said so.
He had to have a big faith in God to leave the country he lived in, the city he knew, and even his family. He was 75 when God asked him to do this. That's older than your grandparents! To make it even harder, God didn’t give him a map or a moving truck. He just told Abram and his wife Sarai to pack their stuff and go wherever He would show them.
Abram...
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Tags: storytelling prophecy promises obedience Genesis courage Abraham
Enter Sin
TODAY'S SPECIAL: Read: Genesis 3:8-15
TO CHEW ON: "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers;he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.." (Genesis 3:15)
The snake that tempted Eve was not just any ordinary snake. It was God’s enemy, Satan appearing as a snake. After Adam and Eve gave in to Satan's temptation and ate the fruit from the tree God had forbidden, they were scared. They hid from God.
God soon found them. He asked what they’d done. Then it all came out. Adam blamed Eve for telling him to eat. Eve blamed the snake for tempting her. But all three got in trouble. The result of sin (breaking God’s rule) became very clear....
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Tags: true/false Satan prophecy Jesus illustrations Genesis consequences
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