Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 851 to 875 of 5000 results

2 Kings 2:1-25

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... , as he retraces the journey (Jordan River, Jericho, and Bethel, then on to Mount Carmel and Samaria) of Elijah at the beginning of the chapter. The healing of water with salt is somewhat offset by the bitter curses and bear-mauling of the forty-two youths from Bethel, yet both illustrate that a prophet’s response to “evil” can bring both healing and destruction. The entrance of the female bears as agents of judgment reminds us of the devouring lions earlier in the narrative.

852. The Agreement of the People

Nehemiah 9:38--10:39

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... includes not only the heads of families but also their wives and children “who are able to understand” (10:28). The duties specified in 10:30–39 are based on the Pentateuch, but those laws are applied to this new situation. This illustrates early Jewish biblical exegesis. For example, the rule concerning intermarriage (Exod. 34:11–16; Deut. 7:1–4; 20:10–18) is slightly different here. The Sabbath laws must also be clarified. Originally the Jews would not have bought and sold among themselves ...

853. Celebration and Dedication

Nehemiah 12:27-47

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... symbolize their dedication to God. Truly the whole city of Jerusalem has become sanctified. 12:44–13:31 Review · Conservation of the renewed community:How does a revitalized community continue the renewal experience? Certainly the history of Israel and the church illustrates the human tendency to drift away from communion with God. Preserving and continuing renewal requires a constant vigil on the part of the community and its leaders. This may be the reason Ezra-Nehemiah ends with examples of actions to ...

854. Psalm 112

Psalm 112:1-10

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Psalm 112 (a praise psalm and an acrostic psalm) illustrates what the wise person of 111:10 looks like and becomes. Those who fear God share their possessions with the needy, treat all people fairly, and serve God faithfully (112:5–7, 9). God blesses them and their descendants abundantly (112:2–3). Interestingly, those who fear God and delight ...

855. Psalm 133

Psalm 133:1-3

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Oneness among God’s people brings genuine delight (133:1). David describes his feelings about unity via two illustrations. First (133:2), he points to Aaron’s consecration as high priest—an event signifying a free-flowing channel of oneness between God and his people. Second (133:3), David speaks metaphorically of the pristine and heavy dew of Mount Hermon dripping down on the mountains of Zion—bringing life ...

856. Foreword

Proverbs 1:1-7

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Proverbs 1–9 serves as the theological introduction to the canonical book, giving a foundational introduction to biblical wisdom—its nature, sources, acquisition, and value. Chapters 10–29 build on this foundation, offering a plethora of illustrations of what wisdom and its opposite, folly, look like in everyday life. In effect, Proverbs 1–9 offers the “Wisdom 101” course, while Proverbs 10–29 presents “Wisdom 201.” Proverbs 1 is introductory both to the book as a whole and to the ...

857. Warning against the Adulteress

Proverbs 7:1-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... focuses on the temptation. Its structure is quite similar to that of the preceding lesson, consisting of a call to heed (7:1–4), a nearly identical purpose statement functioning as a warning (to “keep you from . . . ,” 7:5; cf. 6:24) and an extended illustration (7:6–23), and an explicit warning (7:24–27; cf. 6:25). Once again, the goal of the instruction is to preserve and enhance life (7:2; cf. 4:4). Accordingly, these wisdom-imparting commands are to be treasured (cf. Prov. 2:1), carefully ...

858. More Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 26:1-28, Proverbs 25:1-28, Proverbs 27:1-27

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... 4) is juxtaposed with the beneficial, though painful, corrective word of a genuine true friend and is contrasted with the reticence of a so-called friend and a foe’s feigned affection (27:5–6). Two general proverbs follow. Verse 7 may simply illustrate how circumstances dictate tastes (although both are distorted); however, in context, the sweet-tasting, bitter food may refer to the “wounds from a friend” (27:6). The Hebrew verb nadad (27:8) designates one forced to flee (NIV) from home like a bird ...

859. Agur’s Message: Relying on God’s Word, Learning from His Work

Proverbs 30:1-33

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... :10–11). Verses 11–14 describe four disreputable types: despisers of parents, the self-righteous, the arrogant, and the greedy. Avarice, the vice of the fourth of these, is described as cutting open the poor in order to devour them. This is illustrated in the animal world by the leech, whose twin suckers (literally “daughters”) keep crying for more. It culminates in a numerical saying that lists four insatiables: the realm of the dead, the barren womb, parched soil, and fire. The subunit is rounded ...

860. Lady Wisdom Exemplified

Proverbs 31:10-31

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... charm and physical beauty. The wise son will do whatever it takes in order to make this woman his lifelong partner, and the wise reader will pay whatever it costs in order to engage in a lifelong journey along “the way of wisdom” (4:11) so vividly set forth and illustrated throughout the book of Proverbs.

861. Time and Eternity

Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... 22 Review · Next Qoheleth turns to the examination of how time, viewed against the backdrop of eternity, affects human efforts to engage in profitable activities. 3:1–8 · He begins with a highly structured “Catalogue of Times” (Fox, 193), which affirms and illustrates that “there is a time for everything” (3:1–8), certainly the book’s best-known text. The poem begins with an initial summary claim regarding time and every human purpose (Hebrew hepets; 3:1). It is disputed whether this verse ...

862. Wealth is Meaningless

Ecclesiastes 5:8--6:12

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... a conclusion (5:10–12; 6:7–9), which state the basic inadequacy of riches for providing lasting “gain.” In sum, they do not last and also cause problems. This section offers a clear example of the misleading nature of the biblical chapter divisions and also illustrates the author’s pattern of touching on a topic briefly at one point in the book (e.g., 4:4–9) and then treating it more fully later. 5:10–12 · The introduction begins with a proverb: whoever loves money (and lots of it) will never ...

863. Recognize that Bad Days Can Bring about Good

Ecclesiastes 7:1--8:1

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... take hold of both warnings (7:16a, 17a), thereby escaping both fates (7:16b, 17b, rather than NIV’s “avoid all extremes”). Proverbially speaking (7:19), acting wisely in such a situation offers a person more protection than a city council, as will be illustrated more fully in 9:13–18. 7:20–24 · The following verses continue to develop the theme by conceding that no one is completely righteous (7:20–22) or wise (7:23–24). Accordingly, how righteous does one have to be before claiming to be ...

864. Be Joyful & Reverent

Ecclesiastes 11:7--12:8

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... . 12:8 · Theme verse: Everything is ephemeral:The concluding remarks are preceded by the repetition of the theme verse, which affirms that everything is utterly ephemeral. The preceding verses (12:1–7) offer the book’s final and most dramatic illustration of the brevity of life. Verse 8, which is similar in formulation to Ecclesiastes 1:2, thus forms with it a literary bracket around Qoheleth’s investigations and findings. This observation has led several commentators to identify a distinct prologue ...

865. Examining Public Worship

Jeremiah 7:1-29, Jeremiah 7:30--8:3

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... to break the law. The temple, like a charm, has become a shelter for evildoers. Theirs is (eternal) security, so they think. Yet God sees not only their “holy” worship, but their unholy behavior. The clincher in Jeremiah’s sermon comes from an illustration in their history more than four hundred years earlier (7:12–14). Shiloh, located in Ephraimite territory some twenty miles north of Jerusalem, was the worship center when Israel entered the land (Josh. 18:1). Eli was its last priest. It was ...

866. Restoration of Isarel

Jeremiah 30:1--31:40

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... book is the future (30:1–3).Cries of fear indicate a people in great trouble (30:4–11). The setting could be the Assyrian capture of Samaria in 722, the Babylonian invasion of Jerusalem in 587, or any calamity, past or future. Childbirth is a frequent illustration in Jeremiah of great distress, anxiety, and pain (4:31; 6:24; 13:21; 49:24). Verses 4–7 are the backdrop against which the following promises of comfort must be seen. The reference to breaking the yoke in 30:8 recalls Jeremiah’s sign act ...

867. A Foundling Turned Harlot

Ezekiel 16:1-63

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Few chapters in the Bible provide a more forceful illustration of the love of God than this one, which, incidentally, is the longest chapter in the book. The Lord finds a female child abandoned by her parents, who are described in verse 3 as an Amorite and a Hittite. This may be understood as a reference to the pre-Israelite ...

868. Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia

Ezekiel 25:1-7, Ezekiel 25:8-11, Ezekiel 25:12-14, Ezekiel 25:15-17

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... ). Like the Edomites, they actively participated in Judah’s and Jerusalem’s demise. The Kerethites (Cretans) were a Philistine group. All this invective against bordering nations who treated Judah with contempt, and in turn pay a price, finds its root in Genesis 12:3. We have in Ezekiel 25 an illustration of what happened to four nations who chose to be hostile toward Abraham’s seed.

869. Edom

Ezekiel 35:1-15

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... to her own land. But Israel cannot return to her land if it has been possessed by another. The function of chapter 35 is to demonstrate that no would-be usurpers of Israel’s land will succeed in that enterprise. God will see to that. Here is an explicit illustration of the good shepherd of 34:25–31 looking out for his own. What he does with the wild beasts in chapter 34 he does with Edom in chapter 35. Far from extending her borders by the annexation of Israel, Edom will in fact fall under divine doom ...

870. Problems of Unfaithfulness in the Family

Hosea 1:1-2:1

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... and the adulterous Gomer to represent God’s covenant marriage with adulterous Israel. Hosea does not express any opposition to this instruction; he accepts God’s direction and follows it even if it may seem a little odd. Remember that God also asks the prophet Ezekiel to illustrate God’s message to his generation of exiles by lying on one side for 390 days and then on the other side for 40 days. God also instructs Ezekiel to cut off all his hair with his sword (Ezekiel 4–5), and he tells Isaiah to ...

871. Oracles of Judgment

Zephaniah 1:1-3

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Zephaniah’s first oracle proclaims God’s judgment on the earth, including nature and all humankind. His message is universal, as it extends beyond a primary focus on Judah to include all nations. The devastation coming on the earth will be on a much larger scale than that of God’s judgment by flood in the days of Noah (Genesis 6–8). The catastrophic language dramatically illustrates God’s great anger with the earth on account of the wicked.

872. The Second Coming and Reception

Zechariah 12:1-9, Zechariah 12:10-14

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... on the part of those in Jerusalem. Jerusalem will be a rock, apparently easy to deal with, but by God’s intervention a rock so heavy that the nations will injure themselves. Both the cup of reeling and the immovable stone metaphors graphically illustrate the sudden and unexpected disaster that befalls the attackers. Verse 4 makes it clear that it is God’s doing that saves Jerusalem. The three elements of panic, madness, and blindness are also present in the curse pronounced on a rebellious Israel (Deut ...

873. Love for Enemies not Eye for and Eye

Matthew 5:38-42, Matthew 5:43-48

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... an act to dishonor (5:39), legal removal of one’s basic possessions (5:40), Roman conscription of a civilian to carry loads (5:41), and more general requests to borrow money or possessions (5:42). While in each of these illustrations commentators have recognized elements of hyperbole (e.g., removal of both tunic and cloak would leave a person naked), the exaggeration emphasizes nonresistance as a nonnegotiable for Jesus’s disciples. In a context in which active political or social resistance has severe ...

874. The Narrow and Wide Gates

Matthew 7:13-14, Matthew 7:15-23, Matthew 7:24-29

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... road leading to destruction, encouraging his disciples to take the narrow path leading to life (7:13–14). Jesus also warns of false prophets, who are recognizable by their evil fruits. A disciple is characterized by doing God’s will (7:15–23). The two ways are illustrated by a closing parable in which a wise person and a foolish person build houses, one on rock, the other on sand (7:24–27). The wise person hears Jesus’s words and enacts them; the foolish one hears but does not obey. The sermon’s ...

875. Jesus and John the Baptist

Matthew 11:1-19

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... :2–30). The unexpected nature of Jesus’s messianic identity explains the divergent responses to his ministry. Stories of controversy, especially between the Pharisees and Jesus, cluster in Matthew 12 (12:1–8, 9–14, 22–32, 38–45), providing a vivid illustration of those who “stumble” over Jesus (or “fall away”; Greek skandalizō; 11:6). 11:2–19 · This section of narrative begins with a question from John the Baptist that highlights concern over Jesus’s identity (11:2–3). Reports of ...

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