Mar 28, 2021
1400 years earlier, the Israelites were delivered from Egypt by God putting to death the first-born of Egypt. To celebrate the deliverance, Israel held the Passover festival, which remembered when the angel of death ‘passed over’ Israelite houses covered by the blood of a lamb (Ex. 12:21-23). On his way to the...
Mar 21, 2021
In north Jerusalem, above the Temple, there was a pool called Bethesda, meaning ‘house of mercy’. The pool was possibly stirred by an angel who may have used the natural mineral properties to heal people or may have caused a miracle of healing. Sometimes healing is from natural processes and sometimes...
Mar 14, 2021
After the nation of Israel split in two after Solomon’s reign, the Assyrians invaded the north in 722 BC (2 Kings 17:1-6). They exiled most of the Jews to Assyria and sent Assyrians to rule the land. As they intermarried with the Jews, their ‘half-breed’ children, known as ‘Samaritans’, were hated by...
Mar 7, 2021
The majority of first century Israelites were lower class, making just enough to live day to day. As Rome ruled and taxed Israel heavily, the only wealthy Jews were businessmen, tax collectors and a minority of the religious ruling class. Wealth can be a blessing from God (Deut. 8:17, 18; 28:1-14; Prov. 10:22). Because...