Reflections and meditations about the Bible by Peter DeHaan, PhD.
King Rehoboam Made the Costly Mistake of Listening to His Friend’s Advice Rehoboam succeeds his father, Solomon, as king. He inherits a sweet situation of a nation experiencing peace, enjoying power, and basking in wealth. It is his merely to maintain. His detractor, Jeroboam, goes before him and asks for a reprieve for the people […]
Pursue Christian Unity The last thing Jesus does before his arrest and execution is to pray. The last part of his prayer is for the unity of his future followers (John 17:20-26). Yet two thousand years later, we still wait for Papa to answer this imperative request from his Son. We are not one, far […]
Some Things are More Important Than Religious Practices: Focus on What Matters Most I plan to fast one day a week. While I’m not as consistent as I would like, I follow through more often than I miss. Fasting is a spiritual act of worship for me. It better connects me with God and sharpens […]
Elisha Seems to Allow an Alternative to Taking a Life-Threatening Stand for God I love the story of Naaman in the Bible. He commands the enemy army, conducts raids into Israel, and even has a Hebrew girl as a slave. It’s this girl, full of faith and void of resentment, who suggests Naaman go to […]
How Much Time We Spend on Our Activities Reveals Our Priorities King David longs to build a temple for God, but God says this is not to be. Another, a descendant of David, will attend to its construction. Instead David must content himself with the temple’s planning and in accumulating its building materials. Then he […]
Jesus Condemns Those Who Supersede the Word of God With Their Religious Practices Jesus asks the people, “Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your traditions?” (Matthew 15:3). He goes on to give an example that is culturally relevant to his audience, but which doesn’t connect so much with us […]
Nahum Offers Some Harsh Words to the City of Nineveh about Their Future The book of Nahum, a short three-chapter prophecy, centers on the city of Nineveh. If this city sounds familiar, if might be from the book of Jonah when God sends his prophet there to prophesy its destruction. After hearing Jonah’s blunt, half-hearted […]
Sometimes We Blame God for Our Pain, When We’re the Source of Our Troubles A lament is an expression of grief, sorrow, pain, regret, despair…you get the picture. Lament occurs when life overwhelms our hearts and steals our tomorrows. Many of the Psalms are laments. Though lamenting is biblical, our church services seldom includes the […]
The People Did as They Saw Fit in the Book of Judges; Things Aren’t Much Different Today The book of Judges is a curious one, containing some really questionable content, especially toward the end of the book. The judges it highlights are a colorful bunch, some exhibiting quite dubious behavior. It boils down to leadership […]
Father God Is the Star of the Old Testament; It Explains His Expectations and Shows His Care The story arc in the Bible is God’s relationship to us: the creator and his creation. Most people of faith—the Christian faith, that is—understand God as Trinity, as three persons in one: the Father, the Son, and the […]