Death of Sarah

17 – Death of Sarah

Genesis 23:1-20

Sarah died when she was 127 years old. Their encampment was near Hebron at the time, so Abraham went to the Hittites and said, “We both live in this land together. Please allow me to buy a place where I can bury my dead.”

They said, “You are God’s chosen, and we think of you as a mighty prince. Take the best of our tombs and use it to bury your dead. No one will keep you from using it.”

Abraham got up and bowed down before them. “One of you owns a particular cave at the end of a field. Talk to him and persuade him to sell it to me at full price.”

That man was sitting among them. He immediately stood up and stepped forward. He said, “I am that man, and I can tell you that you’re free to bury your dead there at no charge.”

Abraham answered him, “Please allow me to buy this cave at full price.”

The man said, “Listen, the cave is worth 400 shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead freely in the cave.”

So Abraham weighed out 400 shekels and paid it to the man in front of everyone. So Abraham buried Sarah in the cave of Hebron, and it became his possession from that day on.

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Captain of 50

131 – Captain of 50

II Kings 1:1-18

After Ahab died, his son Ahaziah became king of Israel. A short time later, he broke through a wooden rail and fell to the ground from the second floor of his house. His was seriously injured, so he said to his servants. “Go ask the god Baal-zebub if I’ll recover from this.”

Elijah stopped the servants along the road and said, “There is a God in Israel. So why are you taking this question to Baal-zebub? Here is the Lord’s answer for the king. You won’t get up from your sickbed. Instead, you’re going to die.”

The servants went back and gave King Ahaziah this message. The king said, “What did the man look like who told you this?”

“He was a hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.”

“Oh, I know who he is. That’s Elijah.”

So King Ahaziah sent 50 soldiers to go get Elijah. When they got to where he was staying, the prophet was sitting at the top of an embankment. The captain of the men yelled up at him. “Man of God, come down! I have orders to take you to the king.”

Elijah said, “If I’m a man of God, fire will come out of the sky and kill you and your 50 men.” Suddenly a fireball fell from the sky and killed the captain and his men.

So the king sent another 50 soldiers to get Elijah. When they got to where he was staying, the prophet was still sitting at the top of the embankment. The captain of the men yelled up at him. “Man of God, come down! I have orders to take you to the king.”

Elijah said, “If I’m a man of God, fire will come out of the sky and kill you and your 50 men.” Another fireball fell from the sky and killed the captain and his men.

Once again, the king sent 50 soldiers to go get Elijah. When they got to where he was staying, the captain of the men fell on his knees in front of Elijah. He said, “Man of God, please show compassion on us. Spare my life and the lives of these 50 servants of yours.”

The angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go with them. You’ll be safe.” So he got up and went with them.

When he saw King Ahaziah, he said, “This is a message from the Lord. ‘You could have asked me anything you wanted and I would have answered. But no! You sent your messengers to Baal-zebub. Therefore, you’ll not get up from your sickbed. Instead, you’ll die.”

It happened just like Elijah said. King Ahaziah died. He didn’t have children, so his brother Joram became king of Israel.

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Twelve Years Old

180 – Twelve Years Old

Luke 2:40-52

When Jesus was twelve years old, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. When it was time to return home, Jesus stayed behind at the temple, without his parents knowing. They traveled a whole day, thinking he was among the crowd..

That evening they realized he was missing. They went back to Jerusalem and searched for him for three days. Finally they found him in the court of the temple, sitting among the teachers. He was listening to them and asking questions.

Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his ability to answer questions.

His mother ran up and said, “Son, how could you do this to us? We’ve been searching for you.”

He said, “Surely you knew I’d be here in my Father’s house—doing his business.” They didn’t understand what he was talking about.

Jesus went back to Nazareth, and lived in submission to his parents. He grew, and matured, and was respected by all that knew him. God’s blessing was on his life.

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Esther Saves Her People

176 – Esther Saves Her People

Esther 5:9 – 10:3

Continued from the previous story

The king and Haman attended Queen Esther’s banquet. Afterwards the king said, “Now tell me your request so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it’s true you want to grant my request, please bring Haman and come to another banquet tomorrow. I’ll tell you my request at that time.”

Haman was proud as he left the court that day. He had been invited to the queen’s banquet two days in a row! Suddenly his joy turned to anger as he noticed Mordecai once again not bowing before him. He was with friends that evening and told them how this Jew had ruined his joy.

They said, “Build a 75-foot gallows. Go to the king early in the morning and ask him to order Mordecai’s death. Hang him on the gallows right away so you can enjoy the queen’s banquet.” Haman sent for a servant and ordered the gallows to be built.

The king couldn’t sleep that night. So he had someone come to his bedroom and read official records. The servant read how Mordecai had saved the king’s life by revealing a plot to kill him. The king said, “How was this man rewarded?”

The servant looked back at the records, then said, “He wasn’t, my king.”

“Nothing was done to reward this man?! Go into the court and see if anyone is there.”

The servant found Haman waiting to see the king. The king said, “Bring him in.” Before Haman could talk, the king said, “What should I do for a man I want to honor in a special way?”

Haman immediately thought of himself. He said, “Oh, my king. You should honor this man by putting your royal robe and crown on him. Place him on your horse and have your most noble official lead him through the streets yelling, ‘This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor!’”

The king was pleased. “Excellent. Go and find Mordecai and do everything you’ve said. Be careful not to leave anything out.”

Haman stood there in shock, but he had to fulfill everything he had suggested to the king. He put the royal robe and crown on Mordecai, placed him on the royal horse, and led him through the city yelling, “This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor.”

When it was all over, Haman went home in humiliation, but his summons to the queen’s banquet was waiting for him. So he had to rush to get there.

After they had eaten, the king asked Esther, “Tell me what you want so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it pleases you to grant my request, spare my life and the lives of my people. A man has plotted to have my entire race destroyed.”

The king was shocked, “Who is this man and where is he?”

Esther pointed at Haman. “Our enemy is this wicked man.”

Haman was terrified. He couldn’t even speak. The king looked at him and became angry. He got up and walked into the garden so he could think.

Haman ran over and fell down next to Esther to beg for his life. The king walked back into the room and saw Haman lying next to the queen. He said, “Are you going to rape the queen with me standing right here?”

As soon as he said this, servants rushed over and put a hood over Haman’s head. One of them turned to the king. “Haman has built a gallows to hang the man who saved your life.”

This angered the king even more. He pointed to Haman, “Hang him on it!”

Haman was immediately taken out and hanged on the gallows he had built. After this, the king replaced him with Mordecai.

So the Jewish people were saved from the disaster Haman had planned for them, and Mordecai became the highest-ranking official in the government.

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Esther Becomes Queen

175 – Esther Becomes Queen

Esther 1:1 – 5:8

One day the queen of Persia embarrassed the king in front of the lords of the court. They all agreed the king should replace her. So an order went out saying all the beautiful virgins were to come to the palace. From them, the king would choose a new queen.

Esther was a beautiful young woman who had been raised by her older cousin Mordecai. She went to the palace because of her beauty and virtue. But … her cousin told her not to tell anyone that she was Jewish.

In the course of time, she was selected to be the new queen. Soon after this, two events happened about the same time. The first was that Mordecai heard a plot to kill the king. He reported it, and the plot was stopped. His good deed was recorded in the official records.

The second event was that a man named Haman was made the highest-ranking official in the government. From then on, people bowed when he walked by—everyone except Mordecai.

When Haman saw this, he became angry and wanted Mordecai killed. But he wanted more than that—he wanted to totally destroy the Jews.

So he went to the king and said, “There are people in the empire who are different than everyone else. They don’t obey your laws because they have their own. It’s not good to let them live. Allow me to serve you by organizing their destruction. It would be my honor to personally pay for the cost of doing this.”

The king was pleased at Haman’s willingness to serve the kingdom, so he gave him the authority to destroy the Jewish people. Haman set a date and then sent out a proclamation.

It said all the Jews were to be killed on that date. This would include the men, women and children. Their possessions were to be given to those who did the killing.

Once the proclamation was translated into many languages, it was sent out to all the nations in the empire. Fear and panic gripped all the Jews of the land.

Esther was in the palace and didn’t know about this decree. Soon she heard that Mordecai was mourning in a public place. She sent a servant to ask him what was wrong. Mordecai told the servant everything and gave him a copy of the decree. He said, “Tell the queen she must talk to the king and beg him to have mercy upon her people.”

She sent a message back to him. “No one is allowed to go before the king without an invitation. Those who do are put to death unless he points the golden scepter toward them. It’s been 30 days since he has last sent for me.

Mordecai sent a message back to her. “Don’t assume you’ll escape, just because you live in the palace. Listen, if you don’t help, your people will be delivered by some other means. Still, you will die! I believe you were brought to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

She sent back a note. “Tell our people to fast for three days. They’re not to eat or drink anything. My servants and I will do the same. Then I’ll go and stand before the king, even though it is against the law. If I die, I die.”

After three days, Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court so the king could see her from his throne. When he looked up, he was pleased to see her and immediately pointed the golden scepter towards her. She walked up and touched the top of it.

He said, “Tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you.”

She said, “If it pleases you, I want you and Haman to come to a banquet I have prepared.”

“Done!” said the king. “Guard, run get Haman and bring him here. We’re going to Queen Esther’s banquet.”

Continued in the next story

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Handwriting on the Wall

170 – Handwriting on the Wall

Daniel 5:1-31 & 9:1-27

King Belshazzar was the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar. He decided to have a feast with a thousand Babylonian nobles. He sent for the golden cups the Babylon army had taken from the Temple of God in Jerusalem. They were used to drink in honor of their many gods.

Suddenly … the fingers of a man’s hand appeared near a wall that was well lit by lamps. As Belshazzar watched, the fingers started writing on the wall. This made the king so terrified that he shook with fear.

When the hand was done writing, it disappeared. Belshazzar read the words on the wall, but didn’t know what they meant. He sent for his counselors and said, “If you can interpret what these words mean, I’ll give you great riches and make you the third ruler over Babylon!”

They looked at the writing but weren’t able to understand what it meant. This made Belshazzar even more terrified.

The queen mother said, “Don’t be afraid. There’s one counselor you haven’t called. His name is Daniel, and he’s a man filled with the spirit of the holy gods. Your grandfather always called on him whenever he had a problem he couldn’t solve. He’ll tell you what this means.”

Belshazzar called for Daniel and said, “I know you have the spirit of the gods in you. If you can tell me what this means, I’ll give you great riches and make you the third highest ruler in Babylon.”

Daniel didn’t hesitate. “You may keep your gifts and titles. I’ll read the writing and tell you what it means.

“The Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar this empire and made him the most powerful man on earth. Yet he humbled himself before God and acknowledged that he was Lord of all.

“You know this, yet you’re proud and defy the Lord God. You used the golden cups from the Temple of God to praise false gods. You mock the God who holds your life in His hands. Therefore, He has sent you this message: NUMBERED, NUMBERED, WEIGHED, and DIVIDED.

“Here is the interpretation:

NUMBERED – God has numbered the days of your kingdom. Your time is up!

WEIGHED – You were weighed on a scale to determine your worth. You’re worth very little!

DIVIDED – Your kingdom is no longer yours. It’s been divided between the Medes and Persians.”

Immediately, Belshazzar called his servants and told them to put fine clothes on Daniel and expensive jewelry around his neck. He proclaimed Daniel to be the third highest ruler in Babylon.

That very night, the army of the Medes and Persians came into the city, killed Belshazzar, and took over the kingdom. Daniel became a respected counselor in the Persian court.

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Years later, Daniel was reading how Jeremiah said the city of Jerusalem would lie in ruins for seventy years. Daniel prayed and asked God what was going to happen after that. God sent him an angel to explain what would happen.

The angel said, “An order will be given to rebuild Jerusalem. That order will begin a special 490-year period for your people. After the first 483 years, Messiah will come. He’ll be killed, and Jerusalem will be destroyed again. The last seven years will begin when an evil ruler makes a 7-year peace agreement with Israel.”

By telling Daniel this, God showed Israel what would happen before he set up his kingdom on earth.

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Becoming a Wild Animal

169 – Becoming a Wild Animal

Daniel 4:1-37

One night, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that terrified him. He immediately called in all of his counselors and fortune-tellers. He told them the dream, but they couldn’t make sense of it.

Finally he called for Daniel and said, “I know you have the spirit of the gods in you. You have the answers to all mysteries. I had a terrible dream last night, and no one can interpret it for me. I’ll tell it to you, so you can tell me what it means.

“I saw a tree in the middle of the earth. It was tall and strong. Everyone on earth could see it. Even heaven looked at it. It had beautiful leaves and enough fruit for everyone to have as much as they wanted. It provided shelter for the animals, and birds lived in its branches.

“I was admiring the tree, when a messenger came from heaven. This holy one yelled so all could hear, ‘Cut down this tree! Chop off its branches, strip off its leaves, and scatter the fruit. Chase away the animals and birds. But be careful. Leave the stump with its roots still in the ground. Secure it with bands of iron and bronze.

“‘Now leave him alone for seven years. He’ll have the mind of an animal and eat grass in the field. Each morning he’ll be covered with the dew of heaven. He’ll stay this way until he realizes the Most High is the supreme ruler over all kingdoms of the earth. He gives them to whomever He wants. He could even give a kingdom to the lowly slave.’

“Daniel, this is what I dreamed. You’re the only one who can tell me what it means.”

Daniel was shocked! He didn’t say a thing, but just stared at the king.

Nebuchadnezzar said, “Daniel, don’t be afraid. Simply tell me what it means.”

“Oh my king. I wish the meaning was for your enemies. But it’s not. You are the tree, tall and strong. You benefit people far and wide. The holy one, coming down from heaven, passed a judgment on you.

“You’ll be driven away from people and live like a wild animal. You’ll eat grass and sleep under the dew of night. You’ll stay that way for seven years until you realize the Most High is the supreme ruler over all kingdoms. He gives them to whomever He wants.

“Still, the holy one said to leave the tree’s stump with its roots. This means your kingdom will be waiting for you once you acknowledge that heaven rules.

“Here is my advice. Remove sin from your life. Be just. Show mercy. Perhaps God will show mercy on you.”

A year later, Nebuchadnezzar was walking on the roof of his palace in Babylon. Suddenly he stopped and said, “Look at this! It’s Babylon the great, and I’ve built it. I’ve done it because I’m powerful. This kingdom shows my great glory!”

While he was still saying these words, a voice from heaven said to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, I’m taking this kingdom from you. People will chase you away, and you’ll live among the animals. You’ll graze on grass for seven years. You’ll stay there until you learn the Most High is in control over
all kingdoms. He can give them to whomever he chooses.”

Instantly the king went insane. People finally forced him from the palace and he went out into the fields. He ate grass for food. His hair grew long and his fingernails were like claws. The dew covered him each night.

At the end of seven years, he looked up into the sky and his sanity returned to him. He said, “I praise the Most High. He lives forever and there is no end to his kingdom. He does what he wants, and no one can hold him back.”

God sent nobles and advisers looking for him. When they saw that he was back in his right mind, they reinstated him to his old position. He had his kingdom back, but from that day on he always said, “I praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven. His works are true and just.”

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Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

167 – Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

Daniel 2:1-49

Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled him. He called his counselors and told them they were to interpret his dream. They said, “Tell us the dream and we’ll tell you what it means.”

The king said, “Listen carefully to what I’m about to say. You’re to tell me my dream as well as its interpretation. If you can do this, I’ll give you great rewards and honor you before everyone. But if you can’t do this, you’ll die a slow death, and all of your property will be destroyed. Now, tell me my dream!”

His counselors were shocked. They asked a second time, “Please, tell us your dream and we’ll give you the meaning.”

Nebuchadnezzar grew impatient. “You’re stalling for time. You heard what I said. If I tell you my dream, you’ll simply make up something just to humor me. The only way I’ll know your interpretation is correct, is if you can tell me the dream.

At this point, the counselors begged him. “No king has ever asked their counselors to do this. Only the gods know what people dream when they’re asleep.”

Nebuchadnezzar became angry. He made a declaration that all the counselors were to be killed. So the guards started gathering them up. Daniel heard of this and immediately sent a message to the king, “Give me some time and I’ll tell you your dream, as well as the interpretation.”

God showed Daniel the king’s dream and gave him the interpretation. Then Daniel went to meet with the king. Nebuchadnezzar looked at him and said, “Is it true you can tell me my dream and its interpretation?”

Daniel was careful with his answer. “No man is able to do what you’re asking, but there’s a God in heaven who has shown me what you dreamed when you were asleep.

“He gave you a vision of what’s going to happen in the future of the world. You saw a massive statue in your dream. It had a head of gold. Its arms and chest were silver, and its belly and hips were bronze. It had legs of iron, and its feet were a mixture of iron and clay. Suddenly a stone was cut out of a mountain, but you couldn’t see the hands that did it. This stone hit the feet and the entire statue was destroyed.

“The pieces crashed to the ground and the wind blew it away as if it had no weight at all. As you watched, the stone got larger until it filled the entire earth.

“That was your dream. Now here is the interpretation. God has made you the head of gold. After you, will arise another kingdom that’s not as good as yours.

“Then a third kingdom of bronze will rule the world. The fourth kingdom will be as strong as iron and will crush everything in its way. This kingdom will divide into two parts like the legs of the statue. The last kingdom will also be divided into two feet with ten toes. It’ll have the strength of iron, but be as brittle as common clay.

“The stone carved out of the mountain is God’s kingdom, which will be formed without human hands. God will destroy all the kingdoms of this world, but His kingdom will never end.

“Oh king, God has shown you the future with a dream, and it’ll happen just as the dream has said.”

Nebuchadnezzar fell down with his face to the ground. He said, “Your God, he is God! He’s the Lord!” Nebuchadnezzar then made Daniel a great ruler in his kingdom.

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Daniel’s Decision

166 – Daniel’s Decision

Daniel 1:1-16

Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He conquered Jerusalem and took the people captive. He then ordered his officials to select the best young men and train them to serve in the royal court. They were to be given the best instruction in language, literature, and wisdom. This training would last three years, and during that time, the king would provide them the best food and wine.

Four of the young men selected were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men determined before the Lord that they wouldn’t defile themselves by eating and drinking things that were against God’s Law. Daniel asked the overseer to leave those things out of their daily diet.

“Oh no. I couldn’t let you do that! A day is coming when you’ll stand before the king. He’ll see that you’re scrawnier than the others, and then he’ll have me killed!”

At this point, Daniel chose his words carefully. “Please, before you decide, do a test. Allow the four of us to eat vegetables and drink water for ten days. Then see how we look in comparison to the others.”

The overseer highly respected Daniel, so he agreed to this test. At the end of ten days, Daniel and his friends looked better and healthier than all those who had been eating the king’s food and wine. So the overseer allowed the four of them to continue eating only vegetables and drinking water.

God was with Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave them knowledge, and allowed them to understand wisdom. Daniel also understood visions and dreams.

At the end of three years, Nebuchadnezzar interviewed all of the young men who had gone through his training program. None of the others ranked as high as Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So they began serving in the king’s court. He consulted them in every matter concerning wisdom and understanding.

In time, the king valued their counsel ten times higher than his other counselors. Daniel continued to serve in the court through the reign of many kings.

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Going to Egypt

164 – Going to Egypt

2 Kings 25:22-30 Jeremiah 40:1–44:30 52:31-34

Stories 159 – 164 happened during the life and ministry of Jeremiah, the prophet.

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, totally destroyed Jerusalem. He left a few people to care for the land, and made Gedaliah governor of Judah.

Rebel soldiers still lived in the hills of Judah. Gedaliah met with them and said, “The king of Babylon wants to have peace with you. So stop fighting. Look at what the people left behind when they went into exile. You can harvest their grapes and olives and summer fruit. Select a town and go live there. I’ll represent you with the Babylonians.”

The soldiers followed this advice and lived in the land. Jews who lived in other countries came back and accepted Gedaliah as their governor. Altogether, they had a great harvest that year.

The king of Ammon hired ten Jews to kill Gedaliah. The people of Judah warned the governor about this plot. They said, “We have it good here. We don’t want these traitors to ruin it for the rest of us.” But Gedaliah didn’t believe them. He thought they were simply trying to get an advantage over their fellow countrymen.

Gedaliah invited the ten traitors to have a meal with him. During the meal, the men drew their swords and killed the governor. After throwing his body down a large well, they headed back to Ammon. The men of Judah chased after them. There was a battle, but most of the traitors got away.

The people of Judah knew what Nebuchadnezzar would do once he found out his governor had been killed. They made plans to escape to Egypt. They went to Jeremiah and said, “Ask the Lord what we should do. We promise we’ll do whatever he says.”

Ten days later, Jeremiah gave them a message from the Lord. “Don’t move to Egypt, but stay in Judah. I’ll be with you and protect you from the king of Babylon. If you stay, I’ll build you up and establish you here.

“I know you’re afraid, but listen to me. Your fears are waiting for you in Egypt. You won’t find war, hunger, and disease in Judah. No, they’re waiting for you in Egypt.”

The people yelled at Jeremiah, “You’re lying to us. The Lord didn’t tell you that. You want us to stay here so Babylon will kill us.”

The people left Judah and went to Egypt. They took the prophet and Baruch with them. Jeremiah finished his book in Egypt, and then he died.

Years later, a new king ruled Babylon. He brought King Jehoiachin out of prison and gave him his freedom. He was also given a living allowance and was invited to eat at the table of the king of Babylon. He lived in comfort for the rest of his life.