My prayer is that you read and study these devotional passages with me in an earnest desire to seek the Lord (Phil)
¨¨¨ These devotionals are much easier to read on-line ¨¨¨
THE THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Do something good to someone who has wronged you
“And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.”
Genesis 33:4 (KJV)
Genesis 33
Jacob and Esau Meet
Remember, these are brothers. Jacob pretty much cheated Esau out on a couple of things primarily ‘his birth right’
From the previous chapter…
Genesis 32:6-8 (KJV), “6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. 7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands; 8 And aid, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.”
The last thing Jacob remembers about Esau is that he was extremely angry with him
Genesis 27:41 (KJV), “And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.”
Even though Jacob did deceive Esau, and Rebekah helped along the way, it was always God’s plan to have Jacob rule over Esau
Malachi 1:1-3 (KJV), “1 The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. 2 I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, 3 And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness.”
Romans 9:11-13 (KJV), “11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) 12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. 13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.”
With all of this being said, Jacob was deathly afraid of meeting up with Esau. The start of chapter 33
Genesis 33:1-2 (KJV), “1 And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two handmaids. 2 And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost.”
So, what did Esau do when he came upon Jacob?
Genesis 33:4 (KJV), “And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.”
In the eyes of a holy God, none of us is any good and worthy of forgiveness
Psalm 14:1-3 (KJV), “1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. 2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. 3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
[1] God uses bad people to accomplish his purpose because he has no good people to use. Sometimes, as with Jacob, Moses, David, Paul, and many others we can name, bad people cooperate with God by grace and deliberately do his bidding to achieve his ends.
If someone has done you bad in the past, look at it as God calling on you to encourage forgiveness
Just previously to Jacob’s meeting with his brother Esau, Jacob had encountered an Theophany when an angel of the Lord met and wrestled with him face to face
Jacob had felt so guilty of what he had done to Esau in the past that he wanted to give him a plethora of gifts
Genesis 33:10 (KJV), “And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.”
In this chapter alone, Jacob refers to his brother as ‘my lord’ five times, why is that?
Genesis 33:15 (KJV), “And Esau said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he said, What needeth it? let me find grace in the sight of my lord.”
The use of ‘my lord’ in Genesis 33
Lexical Summary (113) – adon: Lord, master, owner. Brown-Driver-Briggs – 3. suffix 1 singular (1) reference to men: my lord, my master; General recognition of superiority.
Firstborn significance
Exodus 4:22 (KJV), “And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn.”
Deuteronomy 21:17 (KJV), “But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.”
Genesis 25:23 (KJV), “And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.”
Isaiah 24
Is this the end?
It is quite peculiar that Isaiah here has redirected the prophetic destruction of certain Israelian enemy nations, and Israel itself, to now prophesizing the destruction of the entire earth; (verses 1, 4, 5, 6, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, & 21) or represented by the world; (verse 4).
Similarities
It is hard to say if Isaiah is prophesying end times or as the earth/world known at that time but, there are similarities with scripture here and with the book of Revelation
1. Cosmic Disturbances and Judgments:
- Isaiah 24:17-23: Describes a day of judgment where the earth is shaken, the heavens are disrupted, and even the heavenly bodies are affected.
- Revelation 6:12-17 & 16:18-21: Parallel Isaiah’s description, depicting earthquakes, falling stars, and other cosmic events accompanying God’s wrath.
- Isaiah 24:1-3 & Revelation 6:12-17: Both speak of the earth being emptied and devastated.
- Isaiah 24:18 & Revelation 16:18: Both mention the shaking of the earth during God’s judgment.
- Isaiah 24:21-23 & Revelation 19:11-21: Both describe God’s judgment against both earthly and heavenly powers.
2. Destruction and Waste:
- Isaiah 24:1 & Revelation 8-9: Both describe a world that is broken, laid waste, and ravaged.
- Isaiah 24:10 & Revelation 18: Both depict the destruction of cities and the mourning of those who lived there.
- Isaiah 24:3 & Revelation 6:12-17: Both describe the earth being laid waste and devastated.
3. The Remnant and God’s Reign:
- Isaiah 24:13-16 & Revelation 7:9-17
- Both speak of a remnant of people who survive the judgment and worship God.
- Isaiah 24:23 & Revelation 19:1-6:
- Both describe God’s reign on Mount Zion (Jerusalem) and the rejoicing of those who are saved.
- Isaiah 25:6-10 & Revelation 19:6-8, 21:3-4:
- Both use the metaphor of a great banquet to describe the restoration of the redeemed and God dwelling with His people.
The actual usage of the word apocalypse is nowhere to be found in the Old Testament. Its origan is created in the Greek apokalupsis
Many passages in the Old Testament; i.e. Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah, etc., though do not use the exact word ‘apocalypse’, a ‘prophecy’, is in many ways a revelation to a prophet from God. The two books, OT and NT, are commonly linked by their apocalyptic literature by their apocalyptic eschatology
- a branch of theology concerned with the final events in the history of the world or of humankind
- a belief concerning death, the end of the world, or the ultimate destiny of humankind
What the word Apocalypse really means
1828 Webster’s original KJV dictionary – APOC’ALYPSE, noun apoc’alyps. [Gr. from to disclose; and to cover.]
Revelation; discovery; disclosure. The name of a book of the New Testament, containing many discoveries or predictions respecting the future state of Christianity, written by St. John, in Patmos, near the close of the first century.
For example:
Revelation 1:1 (KJV), “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.”
Revelation
Lexical Summary (602) – apokalupsis: Revelation, unveiling, disclosure.
Psalms 20
Read and pray this Psalms in any time of tribulation, health need or anytime when reaching out to our Great God
Psalm 20 (KJV), “1 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; 2 Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion; 3 Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah. 4 Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel. 5 We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the Lord fulfil all thy petitions. 6 Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand. 7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. 8 They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright. 9 Save, Lord: let the king hear us when we call.”
Proverbs 4
Listen and understand the wise instruction of your father
Proverbs 4:1 (KJV), “Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.”
Proverbs 4:20-21 (KJV), “20 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. 21 Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.”
Allow Godly wisdom to penetrate your heart and stay there to guide you in your life’s journey
Proverbs 4:7-8 (KJV), “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. 8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.”
Proverbs 4:10-13 (KJV), “10 Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many. 11 I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths. 12 When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straightened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. 13 Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.”
Straightened
Strong’s Concordance (1333) – yatsar: be distressed, be narrow, be straightened in straits, be vexed.
Brown-Driver-Briggs – I. verb bind, tie up, be restricted, narrow, scant, cramped.
By keeping Godly wisdom, God will continue to direct your steps and life’s journey smooth
Stay in God’s Word and allow His Words to stay steadfast in your heart to avoid evil
Proverbs 4:14-17 (KJV), “14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. 15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. 16 For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. 17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.”
This is God’s assurance of walking with righteousness
Proverbs 4:18 (KJV), “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”
Grow in the Word of the Lord 