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Bible Insights

Can the God of Creation Control the Sun?

Justifying Bible Accounts Through Human Reasoning Limits God’s Power

As Joshua leads the nation of Israel into the promised land, they defeat Gibeon in a most amazing battle. Though Joshua’s army does its part, God plays an even bigger role.

He orchestrates a hailstorm that pelts the Gibeon army with huge hailstones, killing many of them, even more than Joshua’s army kills.

The Sun Stops Moving

Even more so, Joshua prays for more daylight to enable the fighting to continue. This will allow his army to secure a victory and prevent the remaining enemy forces from scurrying away under the cover of darkness.

Do you know what happens? God stops the sun from moving. Yep. It stays in the middle of the sky for a full day.

Some people read this account and don’t know what to make of it. It seems too incredible to accept. They attempt to explain away God’s power with man-made logic.

The Sun Moves Backwards

However, this isn’t the only time something like this happens. Much later we read about King Hezekiah. He becomes deathly ill and God tells him to put his affairs in order.

Hezekiah doesn’t. Instead he prays for more time. God hears his prayer and promises to give him fifteen more years.

To offer proof of God’s power to do as he promised, he makes the sun move backward for a while. Then everything returns to normal.

The sun moves forward again and Hezekiah lives another fifteen years (Isaiah 38:1-8 and also 2 Kings 20:8-11).

The God of Creation Can Do All Things

Again, some people try to explain away this incredible story of the sun moving backward. I don’t know why they try to do this. Yes, this is incredible, but so is God.

Trying to logically dismiss these two accounts and place human limits on God’s power doesn’t make sense.

If God created the reality that we live in, including the sun and the moon, can’t he cause them to stop moving for a couple of hours or to move the sun backward for a few minutes?

My God can. Can yours?

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Joshua 10-12, and today’s post is on Joshua 10:13.]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

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Bible Insights

Can We Cause God To Change His Mind?

Hezekiah and Moses Plead with God for a Different Outcome

In Isaiah we read about King Hezekiah. The king is sick, and Isaiah comes to him with a dire message from God. Through Isaiah, God tells Hezekiah to put his affairs in order because his illness is fatal. Death looms.

Though few of us would welcome death, knowing when our end would occur might bring about a certain appreciation. This would give us an opportunity to say our goodbyes and get our estate organized for our heirs.

Hezekiah Prays and Cries to God

But Hezekiah doesn’t give God a heartfelt, or even a respectful, “Thanks for the heads up.”

Instead the king cries bitter tears and reminds God—as if God needed reminding—of his lifetime of faithfulness, devotion, and good living.

Guess what happens next?

God hears Hezekiah’s prayers and sees his tears. God changes his mind. Instead of sticking to the plan that the king’s end is near, God pledges to give him another fifteen years of life (Isaiah 38:1-5).

Moses Also Seeks God’s Favor

However, long before the reign of King Hezekiah, Moses and God have another interesting exchange. When God’s chosen people decide to worship a golden calf instead of him, God has enough.

He says he’ll destroy his people and start over with Moses to make a new nation.

If this happened to me, I’d bow my head in false humility and say something like, “As you wish.” But not Moses. Instead he tries to talk God out of it. Moses fights for the nation of Israel even though they don’t deserve it.

God listens to Moses’s reasoning and he relents from destroying his people as he had planned (Exodus 32:9-14).

God wants to do good things for us, and sometimes all we need to do is ask.

[Read through the Bible this year. Today’s reading is Isaiah 35-38, and today’s post is on Isaiah 38:1-5.]

Read more about the book of Isaiah in For Unto Us: 40 Prophetic Insights About Jesus, Justice, and Gentiles from the Prophet Isaiah available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

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Bible Insights

Seeking God’s Favor

There are several places in the Bible that talk about seeking God’s favor. In reading these sections it becomes clear that when people seek God’s favor, good things result; when they don’t, bad things result.

For example, Hezekiah sought God’s favor and disaster was averted, whereas the Jewish people did not seek God’s favor and spent 70 years in captivity.

What isn’t readily apparent is how one goes about seeking God’s favor, but Daniel provides the answer. It is simply by stop doing bad things and acknowledging his truth.

Seeking God’s favor isn’t hard, but it’s not often done.

[Jeremiah 26:19, Daniel 9:13]

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.