The Good Samaritan

207 – Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-42

There was a man who was an expert of the law of Moses. He asked Jesus, “How can a person earn the right to go to heaven?”

Jesus said, “Tell me what is written in the law.”

He said, “Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Ah,” said Jesus. “Go and do that, and you’ll live.”

The man realized how impossible that was. “Uh, well, exactly who is my neighbor?”

Jesus said…

“A man was traveling down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Robbers grabbed him and beat him until he was almost dead. They then took his money and clothes, and left him on the side of the road.

“The man desperately needed help, and soon a priest came along. He saw the man, but moved to the other side of the road and hurried on his way. After that, a Levite passed by, but he also avoided the situation and ignored the man.

“A third man traveled down the road, but unfortunately he was a Samaritan, a group of people hated by the Jews. Still, he had pity on the Jewish man. He stopped and treated his wounds. He placed him on his donkey and took him to an inn. There he made him comfortable and treated his wounds again.

“The next day, the Samaritan gave the innkeeper money and told him to take care of the wounded man. He said, ‘If it costs more, I’ll pay you when I come back.’

“So,” said Jesus, “three people saw the man lying on the side of the road. Which one was a neighbor to him?”

The answer was simple, “The one who showed mercy.”

“Yes,” said Jesus, “go and follow his example.”

After this, Jesus went to a village. He had friends that lived there, and they invited him and his disciples into their home for a meal.

While they were talking, one of the sisters named Mary sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to everything he said. Martha, her sister, was busy preparing the meal for their guest. In her frustration, she went to Jesus. “Lord, have you noticed that my sister has left all the work for me to do? Please, tell her to come help me.”

The Lord said, “Oh Martha, Martha. You have too many worries. You have forgotten there is only one thing that is absolutely necessary. Mary has chosen that one thing, and it won’t be taken away from her.”

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Forgiven and Grateful

191 – Forgiven and Grateful

Luke 7:36-50

A Pharisee named Simon invited Jesus into his house for a meal. People ate their meals while leaning on a cushion next to the table, with their feet behind them.

While they were eating, a woman came who was known to be a great sinner. She stood behind Jesus and started to cry. She then knelt down and washed his feet with her tears. She let down her hair and used it to dry his feet. She then kissed them and anointed them with expensive oil.

Simon thought to himself, “Well, this proves that Jesus isn’t a prophet. If he were, he’d know what kind of woman this is and he wouldn’t let her touch him.”

Jesus knew what he was thinking. He said, “Simon, I have a question for you. Two men owed a debt to the same banker. One owed $2500, while the other owed $25,000. Both were unable to pay it back, which meant they would be sold into slavery. Instead, the banker decided to forgive their debts and set them free. Which of these men will be the most grateful and the loyal to the banker?”

Simon was quick to answer. “Of course, the one who owed $25,000.”

Jesus said, “You’re absolutely right. I came into your house and you didn’t provide me water to wash my feet. Look at this woman. She didn’t say a word, but simply washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.”

“You didn’t welcome me with a kiss. But this woman hasn’t stopped kissing my feet.”

“You didn’t offer me oil to freshen up. Look, she has anointed my feet with a generous amount of expensive oil.”

“Why is she doing this? It’s because her sins are many, and she’s grateful to be forgiven. Those who feel they’ve been good all their lives don’t experience such deep gratitude.”

He turned to the woman. “Your sins are forgiven.” This shocked those sitting around the table, but Jesus continued on. “Go in peace. Your faith has saved you.”

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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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Jerusalem Under Siege

162 – Jerusalem Under Siege

2 Chronicles 36:10-16 2 Kings 24:18 – 25:2 Jeremiah 37:1-21

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

Nebuchadnezzar had made Zedekiah king of Judah. After he had been king for nine years, he rebelled against Babylon. He thought Egypt would help him. Jeremiah said, “If you do this, the king of Babylon will totally destroy Jerusalem.”

Zedekiah didn’t listen to the prophet, so Nebuchadnezzar brought his army and circled the city, not letting anyone in or out. Zedekiah asked Jeremiah to pray and ask God for help. Suddenly the Egyptian army came up from the south. With that, the Babylon army moved away from Jerusalem.

The Lord sent a message to Zedekiah. “Here’s what I am going to do. Pharaoh’s army will return to Egypt. Babylon will come back and burn this city to the ground. You can’t stop them. Even if your army went out and defeated them, leaving only a few wounded men alive, those few men would get up, come into the city, and burn it to the ground.”

Jeremiah decided to go outside the city walls and look at some property he owned. A guard saw him walking out of the city gate. He said, “You’re going to the Babylonian army.”

The prophet said, “No, I’d never do that.” But the guard didn’t believe him, and took him to the city officials. They were furious with him and had him beaten and put in a dungeon. He stayed there a long time.

Soon the Babylonians came back and once again encircled the city. Zedekiah secretly sent for Jeremiah, and brought him to the palace. The king said, “Do you have a message from the Lord?”

Jeremiah said, “Yes I do. He says, ‘You’ll be defeated by the Babylonians.’ ”

Then the prophet said to the king, “Don’t send me back to that dungeon. I’ll die if you do. What have I done? Everything I’ve said has come true. Where are the prophets who said Babylon wouldn’t return? I beg you. Don’t send me back.”

So King Zedekiah gave the command that Jeremiah wasn’t to go back to the dungeon. He was kept in the palace prison, where he received better care.

Soon there was no food in the city because the Babylonians had stopped everything from going in or out. The rulers of Jerusalem sent a message to Jeremiah. “Please, pray and ask God to deliver us! Perhaps he will give us a miracle like he’s done in the past.”

The Lord sent a message back to them, “No! I won’t deliver you. I’m the one fighting against you. I’ve given you to the king of Babylon. You’ll suffer hunger, disease and plagues. People and animals will die. Those who live through this will be given to the Babylonians.”

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Jonah & the Vine

147 – Jonah & the Vine

Jonah 3:1-4:11

Once again, God said to Jonah, “Leave right now and go to Nineveh. You’re to tell them I’m going to judge them because of their wickedness.” This time, Jonah immediately got up and went to Nineveh.

The city of Nineveh was extremely large. It took three days to walk from one side to the other. So Jonah started his walk across the city. He shouted, “God is going to destroy this city in 40 days!”

The people of the city heard him preach and believed that what he said was true. They passed a law that said everyone was to fast—no exceptions. Everyone was to go without food, and they were to wear burlap sacks. They prayed and asked God to be merciful to them.

The king stepped down from his throne and laid aside his royal robes. He put on burlap sacks and sat on a pile of ashes. He sent out another law that said, “No one is to taste any food or water. That includes animals as well. Everyone is to wear burlap sacks, and stop any evil they are doing. Maybe God will change his mind and allow us to live.”

The Lord saw all they were doing. He knew they had turned away from their wickedness, so he stopped the judgment that was about to kill them and destroy their city.

Jonah was furious when he heard about this. He said, “I told you this would happen! I knew you were a merciful God. I knew you were quick to forgive. That’s exactly why I didn’t want to come here. That’s why I ran away. Kill me right now. I don’t want to live.”

The Lord said, “Do you think it’s right to be so angry about this?”

Jonah didn’t answer, but went to the east side of the city. He made a small shelter so he could sit and see exactly what God was going to do with the city.

While he was sitting there, God caused a vine to grow up next to him. The vine had large leaves, which provided shade from the hot sun. Jonah was pleased with the plant, and enjoyed the shade it provided.

The next morning, God caused a worm to attack the vine and kill it. As the sun got hot, the plant withered. Then God caused a hot east wind to blow on Jonah. As the day went by, the sun and the wind got hotter and hotter, and there was no vine to protect him. Jonah cried, “I don’t want to live anymore. I want to die!”

God said to him, “Is it right to be angry about the vine?”

“Yes, it’s right for me to be angry. I’m so mad I want to die.”

The Lord said, “You’re angry about a simple vine. You didn’t plant it. You didn’t water it. It came up one day and died the next.

“Shouldn’t I also care for the people of this city? If for no other reason, there are over 120,000 children living here, not to mention all the animals.”

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Southern Altai Language in Siberia – Throat singing with captions

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Four Lepers

139 – Four Lepers

2 Kings 6:24 – 7:20

The king of Syria once again invaded Israel. His army surrounded Samaria and set up camp just outside the city walls. They cut off all supplies going into the city. Eventually there was no food, and the people started to starve. It was so bad that a donkey’s head sold for two pounds of silver, and a small bowl of dove’s droppings sold for two ounces of silver.

A woman saw the king walking along the top of the city wall. She asked him to help her. He said, “I don’t know if I can. What’s your problem?”

She said, “My friend won’t keep her promise. We agreed we’d eat our two sons, mine on the first day and hers on the second. So, we boiled and ate my son, but now she has hidden her son.”

When the king heard this, he ripped his clothes. He said, “I’ll get Elisha for this if it’s the last thing I do.” He sent a guard to cut off the prophet’s head.

Elisha was sitting in his house with several elders of Israel. He said, “Our murdering king has sent a guard to cut off my head. The king is right behind him.”

Just then the king walked in. He yelled at the prophet. “You said all this trouble is from God. So why should I serve him if he acts like this?”

Elisha said, “I have a message from God. He said this disaster is almost over. Tomorrow at this time, people will buy a sack of fine flour for a few coins. They’ll buy a large sack of barley for the same price.”

The king’s chief adviser said, “Impossible! We couldn’t have that much food around here even if God opened up the windows of heaven.”

The man of God said, “You’ll see it with your own eyes, but you won’t eat any of it.”

During the night, the Syrian army heard a loud noise like a large army marching toward them. The noise got louder and sounded like the army had many horses and chariots.

The Syrian soldiers thought Israel had hired other nations to come and help them. They yelled, “Let’s get out of here!” They got up and ran away, leaving everything behind.

Before light the next morning, four lepers were sitting just outside of the city gates. One said to the others, “Why are we just sitting here slowly dying of hunger?”

Another one said, “Well, it’s no better in the city. If we go in there, we’ll still die of hunger.”

“Well that’s true, but we can’t stay here. Let’s go into the Syrian camp. If they kill us—well, we’re about to die anyway. But maybe they’ll have pity on us and give us food.”

So, the four men got up and walked toward the camp, not knowing it was empty. They went into the first tent and found food, gold, silver, and expensive clothes. The first thing they did was eating the food. They then took the other things away and hid them. They came back and hid what they found in the next tent.

Finally they said, “What we’re doing isn’t right. People are dying of hunger on the other side of the wall. God will punish us if we don’t go tell them about this.”

So they went to the city gate and yelled to the gatekeeper, telling him exactly what they found. When the king heard about this, he thought it was a trap. He said, “The Syrian army is hiding out of sight, waiting for us to come out of the city.”

So he sent a few soldiers to scout out the land. The men found the route the Syrians had taken. It was full of clothes and equipment the army had thrown away so they could run faster.

The soldiers went back and told the king what they had found. With that, people flooded out of the city to raid the Syrian camp. The price of food immediately dropped.

The king gave his chief adviser the job of crowd control at the gate. Soon, he was trampled to death. All of this fulfilled what the prophet had said.

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Jehoshaphat’s Victory

130 – Jehoshaphat’s Victory

II Chronicles 19:1 – 20:37

Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king of Judah. He ruled for 25 years. He set up an educational system, established justice in the land, and reformed the legal system.

Things were going well in Judah, until suddenly the nations of Moab, Ammon, and Edom decided to unite together and fight against Jehoshaphat. A massive army moved from the east side of the Dead Sea to En-gedi, on the west side.

Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he sought the Lord’s help. He sent out a proclamation saying that everyone was to fast and seek God’s favor. The people responded, and many went to Jerusalem to be with their king and pray with him. A huge crowd went to the Temple and stood before the Lord. Men brought their wives and children, so entire families prayed together and sought God’s help.

Jehoshaphat stood before all the people and prayed to God. He said, “Oh Lord, you’re the God of heaven. You’re the one who gave this land to your friend Abraham. You control all power and might. You said we’re to trust you when we’re in trouble. Look! The Moabites and Ammonites have gathered a massive army and have come to destroy us. We have no power to fight against them. We don’t know what else to do but look to you.”

Suddenly the Spirit of God came upon a prophet. He said, “Hear what God says to you. ‘Don’t be afraid of this vast multitude. This isn’t your battle, but mine. Tomorrow, go against them. You’ll see them coming, but you don’t have to fight them. Get in position, but stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Don’t be afraid, I am with you.’”

Jehoshaphat bowed down and put his face to the ground. All the people did the same and worshiped the Lord. Suddenly, the Levites stood up and started praising the Lord God with a loud voice.

In the morning, the men got up early and went out to face their enemies. Jehoshaphat told them, “Believe in the Lord and you’ll be successful.” He then appointed people to sing for the Lord. They went out in front of the army singing, “Give thanks to the Lord. His faithful love endures forever.”

As the people shouted and praised the Lord, suddenly their enemy became confused. The Ammonites and the Moabites turned on those from Edom and totally annihilated them. They then turned on one another and kept killing until every man was dead. When the army of Judah arrived on the battlefield, there was nothing but corpses lying on the ground. No one had escaped.

Jehoshaphat told his people to gather up anything of value from the dead bodies. They found that their enemies had carried a large amount of valuables onto the battlefield. There was so much that the people gathered for three days. Finally, they couldn’t carry any more.

They met on the fourth day, just to praise God. Then they returned to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat at the lead. Everyone gathered at the Temple to once again praise the Lord with great rejoicing!

All the nations around Judah heard about the great victory God had given his people. They were all terrified of the Lord, and none of them attacked Jehoshaphat as long as he lived. So there was peace in the land, and all was quiet.

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Elijah on Mt Horeb

126 – Elijah on Mount Horeb

1 Kings 19:1-21

Ahab told Jezebel what Elijah had done on Mount Carmel. He told her how all the prophets of Baal had been killed. Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah. She said, “I am going to kill you! Mark my word. You’ll be dead before tomorrow night.”

This struck fear in the heart of Elijah. He ran away to save his life. He left Israel and went to the southern part of Judah. He left his servant there and went on into the wilderness. He walked for another day and finally stopped and sat under a juniper tree.

He cried, “What have I done! I’m no better than my fathers. Lord, take my life” Then he lay down and fell asleep.

After he’d slept a while, an angel touched him. “Get up and eat.” Elijah woke up and saw a jug of water and some bread baking over hot coals. He ate the bread and drank the water and fell back to sleep.

Later, the angel of the Lord woke him again and said, “Get up and eat. You have a long trip ahead of you.”

Elijah woke up and once again found bread and water. So he got up, ate the bread and drank water. He then walked 40 days and 40 nights to Horeb, the mountain of God, also called Mt. Sinai. Once there, he entered a cave and spent the night.

In the morning the Lord said to him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”

He said, “Lord, I’ve worked for you with all my heart. But Israel has forgotten their agreement with you. They’ve torn down your altars. They killed your prophets. I’m the last one, and they’re trying to kill me.”

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain.” Suddenly, a powerful wind hit the mountains and shattered rocks. But the Lord wasn’t in the wind.

Then there was an earthquake. But the Lord wasn’t in the earthquake.

After that, there was a blast of fire. But the Lord wasn’t in the fire.

Then Elijah heard a soft whisper. He wrapped his mantle around his face and went out of the cave and stood at the entrance.The voice said to him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”

“Lord, I’ve worked for you with all my heart. But Israel has forgotten their agreement with you. They’ve torn down your altars, and killed your prophets. I’m the last one, and they’re trying to kill me.”

The Lord said, “Oh Elijah, go back home. I have 7,000 men in Israel who haven’t bowed to Baal.” He then gave the prophet detailed instructions of what he was to do, which included anointing Elisha to replace him and selecting a new king for Israel.

Elijah went back to Israel where he found Elisha plowing a field. The prophet walked up to him and threw his mantle over him and walked on. Elisha left the oxen and ran to catch up with the prophet. He said, “Please, let me say good-bye to my father and mother. Then I’ll follow you.”

Elijah turned and said, “You may go back, but don’t forget the calling that is now yours.”

With that, Elisha took the wooden yoke and plow and built a fire. He killed the oxen and made a meal for his family. When they were done eating, he left them and followed Elijah.

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Elijah and the Widow

124 – Elijah & the Widow

1 Kings 17:1-24

Israel had many wicked kings. They all followed the example of Jeroboam.

While Asa was still king of Judah, Ahab became king of Israel. He was extremely evil, more than any of the kings that were before him. He married a woman named Jezebel, who worshiped Baal. Through her influence, Ahab built a temple of Baal in the capital city of Samaria.

The prophet Elijah stood before the king and said, “I have a message from God. There will be no dew or rain until I say so!”

The Lord said to Elijah, “Leave here and go to a certain brook. It will provide you water, and I have already told the ravens to bring you food.”

So Elijah went and lived next to that brook. And just as the Lord said, the ravens brought him bread and meat every morning and every evening. But in time, the brook dried up because there hadn’t been any rain.

The Lord said, “Go to a Gentile town called Zarephath. I have selected a widow to provide for you there.” When Elijah entered the village, he saw a woman gathering wood. He said to her, “Please bring me a little water.” As she went to get it, he said, “And also bring me some bread.”

She turned and looked at him. “I don’t have any bread. All I have is a handful of flour in the jar, and a bit of oil in the jug. I was gathering these sticks so I could make it into bread for my son and myself. We were going to eat it and then die.”

The prophet said, “Don’t be afraid to do what I say. Go and make your bread, but when it’s done, give some to me first. The Lord God of Israel has said, ‘The jar will always have flour, and the jug will always have oil until the day God sends rain.’”

Again, she looked at him, and then went and did as he asked. She made the bread, and gave some to him first. Sure enough, from that day on, the jar always had some flour, and the jug of oil never ran dry.

She prepared a place for the prophet in the upper room of her house.

Sometime later, the woman’s son got sick. Soon his illness was severe, and finally he died. The woman went to Elijah and said, “Man of God, why did you come in to my house? Was it to expose my guilt, so you could kill my son?”

Elijah said, “Give me your son.” He took the boy to the upper room where he was staying. He laid him on the bed and then prayed, “Oh Lord God, why did you bring me into this woman’s home, and then kill her son?

He then stretched out over the boy and prayed, “Oh Lord my God, please bring life back into this boy!”

He stretched out over the boy a second time. “Oh Lord my God, please bring life back into this boy!”

He stretched out over the boy a third time. “Oh Lord my God, please bring life back into this boy!”

Suddenly the boy started breathing. Elijah took him back down into the house, and gave him to his mother. He said, “Here is your son. He’s alive.”

The woman fell down before the prophet and said, “Now I know you are a man of God, and his word is in your mouth!”

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Abijah & Asa

123 – Abijah & Asa

I Kings 15:1-34 II Chronicles 13:1 – 16:14

Jeroboam was still king of Israel when Rehoboam died. After his death, Abijah became king of Judah. Soon afterward, Jeroboam and the army of Israel invaded Judah.

When the two armies faced one another, Israel’s army was twice as big. Still, Abijah stood on a hill and yelled over at the army of Israel. He said, “Men of Israel, you have left the family of David to serve a servant of Solomon. On top of that, you have left the God of Israel to worship Jeroboam’s two golden calves. And your priests are not from the tribe of Levi.”

He went on and on, preaching to the men. He didn’t realize that while he was doing this, Jeroboam was sending half of his men around to the back of Abijah’s army. Suddenly the army of Judah realized they were surrounded. They cried out to the Lord and the priests blew the trumpets. God fought against Israel and they ran from the battlefield. Many of their soldiers died that day.

Jeroboam never recovered from this massive defeat, and he died soon afterwards. Abijah became stronger because he trusted the Lord.

After Abijah died, his son Asa became king of Judah. He ruled for 41 years. The Lord gave him 10 years of peace because he returned the nation to the ways of David. He destroyed the idols Solomon had set up. He told the people of Judah to seek the Lord God.

Suddenly a vast army from Ethiopia invaded from the south. The army of Judah was greatly outnumbered. Asa prayed, “Oh Lord, only you can help us now!”

So the Lord helped him defeat the Ethiopian army. Many of them were killed as they tried to run away. When it was all done, their army was crushed before the Lord. The men of Judah collected all the possessions from the bodies that were lying on the battlefield. They also got all of their sheep and camels.

As Asa and his men went back to Jerusalem, a prophet met him and challenged him to continue his walk with God. So the king decided to start destroying the idols from all the other cities of Judah. He even removed his grandmother from being Queen Mother because of her loyalty to an idol.

People from the northern kingdom of Israel moved to Judah in large numbers because they worshiped the Lord. On a certain day, everyone met together and vowed to always serve God. Asa then took silver and gold and put it in the Temple treasury. So the Lord gave Judah peace from all their enemies.

Unfortunately, Asa came to a turning point in his life. The new king of Israel declared war on Judah and invaded the land. He took control of a key city.

Instead of trusting the Lord, Asa thought of another way he could get the advantage over Israel. He took the gold and silver out of the Temple and sent it to Ben-hadad, the king of Syria that was north of Israel. He sent a message saying, “I’m sending you gold and silver so you will break your treaty with Israel, and establish a treaty between our two nations.”

Ben-hadad took the gold and silver and made a treaty with Asa. He then invaded Israel and captured several of their cities. Quickly the army of Israel left Judah so they could defend themselves against Syria.

It seemed like Asa’s plan had worked. But then, a prophet went to king Asa and said, “You should have asked the Lord to fight for you— not Syria! Don’t you remember what God did with the massive army of Ethiopia? The Lord is looking for those who will trust Him. You were foolish in doing this. Therefore, you will be at war until you die.”

Asa was angry with the prophet and called for a guard. “Put this man in prison!” After that, he became cruel toward his own people. Suddenly he developed a disease in his feet, which got worse and worse. Still, he didn’t seek the Lord’s help, even when the disease became life threatening. Instead, he trusted the doctors to help him. Finally, he died after two years of great pain.