NL-Day278 2 Chronicles 31; Ecclesiastes 7; Matthew 20

Daily Bible Reading Podcast

2CHRONICLES 31:A sign of how far Judah and Israel had wandered from the Lord was that even the Passover was not celebrated. When Hezekiah reinstituted the Passover celebration, it was the start of a real revival.

ECCLESIASTES 7:I find it interesting that Solomon would say that everything has been decided beforehand. GNT certainly implied Who it was who decided beforehand, but NLT makes that explicit:

Ecc. 6:10 NLT Everything has already been decided. It was known long ago what each person would be. So there’s no use arguing with God about your destiny.

Not about the issue of destiny, but about another key point presented in chapter 6, I think that Solomon would have taken back some of his words if he could have listened to what Jesus taught in yesterday’s reading in Matthew.

MATTHEW 20:In yesterday’s reading, Jesus taught how evil divorce is, He blessed children (because they are so close to the kingdom of God), and He taught about the difficulty for rich people in this world to enter the Kingdom of God. And at the end of chapter 19, he gave that promise that all missionaries love, the one about the eternal rewards that will be given to those who leave their families and possessions for the Kingdom of God.

NLT Translation notes:Mat. 20:16“[Even so, at the end,//So] those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.”18 “Listen,” he said, “we’re going up to Jerusalem, where [I,] the Son of Man[,] will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence [me/him] to die. 19Then they will hand [me/him] over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day [I/he] will be raised from the dead.”28 For even [I,] the Son of Man came not to be served[,] but to serve others and to give [my/his] life as a ransom for many.”32When Jesus heard them, he stopped and [said/called], “What do you want me to do for you?”

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.