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My Prayer Box
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Towering Figures of the Old Testament |
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The Story of Joshua |
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As for me and my household, we will serve the
LORD
(Jos 24:15) |
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The Book of Joshua
demonstrates the faithfulness of the LORD
to those who are faithful to Him. It is
the book that recounts the fulfillment of
the promise of the LORD to the Israelites
to deliver to them the Promised Land, the
land of Canaan. It recounts the battles
that the Israelites waged against
seemingly unbeatable enemies and how the
Israelites overcame seemingly
insurmountable obstacles. It tells of the
misery and punishment one can expect if he
dares break the law of God. It tells of
the destruction and slaughter of those who
oppose the will of God.
The story of Joshua begins when Moses
sends twelve spies,
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including Caleb and Joshua, to survey the
land of Canaan. All the spies come back to
Moses with reports of the bounty of the
Promised Land. All, except Caleb and
Joshua recommend not entering the land of
Canaan. Joshua and Caleb plead with the
Israelites to enter Canaan and take
possession of their inheritance from God
but Israel rejects and stones them.
A Successor to Moses
After Moses dies, Joshua, the aide
of Moses, son of Nun becomes his
successor. The LORD promises Joshua
that as He was with Moses, the LORD
will be with him, and no one can |
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withstand him while he lives. The LORD
orders Joshua to be firm and steadfast; to
observe the entire law which Moses left for
him; to keep the book of the law and recite it
by day and by night; and to observe carefully
all that is written in it.
The LORD orders and Joshua prepares to cross
the River Jordan with all the people into the
land the LORD promised the Israelites. Joshua
also reminds the Reubenites, the Gadites, and
the half-tribe of Manasseh of their promise to
Moses that all their warriors cross over armed
ahead and help them, in return for the land
east of the Jordan that Moses promised for
their wives, children, and livestock. They
affirm their allegiance to Joshua as
completely as they obeyed Moses. |
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The Spies in Jericho
Then Joshua sends out two spies from Shittim to
Jericho. The spies go into the house of a harlot
named Rahab and there they live while in
Jericho. However news of their presence reaches
the king of Jericho who orders Rahab to give up
the spies. Rahab instead hides them and she
tells the king that the spies left and she does
not know where they went.
Later Rahab goes to the spies and tells them
that the Canaanites know that the LORD has given
the Israelites the land and that fear has come
upon them. Rahab then asks the spies to spare
her father and mother, brothers and sisters, |
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and all their kin. The spies
tell her that if she does not betray their mission
the Israelites will spare them. She then lets them
down through the window with a rope to escape. As a
sign of the oath Rahab ties a red cord in the window
of her house. Those who are in her house when the
Israelites invade will be spared. The spies make
their way back to the camp and report to Joshua all
that happened. They assure Joshua that the
Canaanites are overcome with fear of them.
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Crossing
the Jordan
The next morning, Joshua moves with all the
Israelites from Shittim to the Jordan, where
they camp before crossing over. Then the LORD
tells Joshua that this day He will begin to
exalt him among his people so that they may know
the LORD is also with him as He was with Moses.
Joshua assures his people that the LORD is in
their midst. And as the LORD ordered, he tells
his people to sanctify themselves for the LORD
and follow a certain distance behind the Ark of
the Covenant, which the priests of the tribe
Levi will carry. He then tells the priests to
take up the Ark, go on ahead of the people and
stop at the |
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water’s
edge. He also tells them that when the
(more...) |
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To
read more of the Story of Joshua,
please go
this this link. |
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Read more about this towering figure of the
Old Testament. |
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Joshua: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries)
In this new Tyndale Old Testament
Commentary, Richard S. Hess explores these
historical, theological and literary
dimensions of the book of Joshua. An
exceptional feature of his commentary is
his careful consideration of the
allocation of the Promised Land and the
boundary lists the book of Joshua so
prominently displays. And in a day when
grave
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doubts have been raised over the historicity
of the "conquest" story, Hess presents
historical and archaeological evidence for
placing the events of Joshua in the late
second millennium B.C. |
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The Sunday Readings |
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February 11, 2007: The
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time |
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First Reading From the Book of
Jeremiah: |
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Jer 17:5-8 |
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Thus
says the LORD:
Cursed is the one who trusts in human beings, who
seeks his strength in flesh,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
He
is like a barren bush in the desert that enjoys no
change of season,
but stands in a lava waste, a salt and empty
earth.
Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose
hope is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted beside the waters that
stretches out its roots to the stream:
it fears not the heat when it comes;
its leaves stay green;
in the year of drought it shows no distress,
but still bears fruit. |
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Responsorial From the Book of
Psalms: |
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Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6 |
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R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not the counsel
of the wicked,
nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
but delights in the law of the LORD and
meditates on his law day and night.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
He is like a tree planted near running
water,
that yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Not so the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives
away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the
just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
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Second Reading
From
the Letter to the Corinthians: |
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1 Cor 15:12, 16-20 |
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Brothers and sisters:
If Christ is preached as raised from the dead,
how can some among you say there is no
resurrection of the dead?
If the dead are not raised, neither has Christ
been raised,
and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is
vain;
you are still in your sins.
Then
those who have fallen asleep in Christ have
perished.
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ,
we are the most pitiable people of all.
But now Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. |
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Notes: |
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Some consider
this chapter an earlier Pauline composition
inserted into the present letter. The problem
that Paul treats is clear to a degree: some of
the Corinthians are denying the resurrection
of the dead, apparently because of their
inability to imagine how any kind of bodily
existence could be possible after death.
It is plausibly
supposed that their attitude stems from Greek
anthropology, which looks with contempt upon
matter and would be content with the survival
of the soul, and perhaps also from an
overrealized eschatology of gnostic
coloration, such as that reflected in
2 Tim 2:18, which considers the
resurrection a purely spiritual experience
already achieved in baptism and in the
forgiveness of sins. Paul, on the other hand,
will affirm both the essential corporeity of
the resurrection and its futurity. His
response moves through three steps: a recall
of the basic kerygma about Jesus'
resurrection, an assertion of the logical
inconsistencies involved in denial of the
resurrection, and an attempt to perceive
theologically what the properties of the
resurrected body must be. |
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The Gospel
From the Gospel
of Luke:
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Lk 6:17, 20-26 |
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Jesus came down with the twelve and stood on a
stretch of level ground with a great crowd of his
disciples and a large number of the people from
all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of
Tyre and Sidon.
And
raising his eyes toward his disciples he said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.
Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.
For their ancestors treated the prophets in the
same way.
But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
Woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false
prophets in this way.” |
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Notes: |
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Luke's "Sermon
on the Plain" is the counterpart to Matthew's
"Sermon on the Mount" (Matthew 5:1-7:27). It
is addressed to the disciples of Jesus, and,
like the sermon in Matthew, it begins with
beatitudes (Luke 6:20-22) and ends with the
parable of the two houses (Luke 6:46-49).
Almost all the words of Jesus reported by Luke
are found in Matthew's version, but because
Matthew includes sayings that were related to
specifically Jewish Christian problems (e.g.,
Matthew 5:17-20; 6:1-8, 16-18) that Luke did
not find appropriate for his predominantly
Gentile Christian audience, the "Sermon on the
Mount" is considerably longer. Luke's sermon
may be outlined as follows: an introduction
consisting of blessings and woes (Luke
6:20-26); the love of one's enemies (Matthew
6:27-36); the demands of loving one's neighbor
(Luke 6:37-42); good deeds as proof of one's
goodness (Luke 6:43-45); a parable
illustrating the result of listening to and
acting on the words of Jesus (Luke 6:46-49).
At the core of the sermon is Jesus' teaching
on the love of one's enemies (Luke 6:27-36)
that has as its source of motivation God's
graciousness and compassion for all humanity
(Luke 6:35-36) and Jesus' teaching
on the love of one's neighbor (Luke 6:37-42)
that is characterized by forgiveness and
generosity.
The
introductory portion of the sermon consists of
blessings and woes that address the real
economic and social conditions of humanity
(the poor--the rich; the hungry--the
satisfied; those grieving--those laughing; the
outcast--the socially acceptable). By
contrast, Matthew emphasizes the religious and
spiritual values of disciples in the kingdom
inaugurated by Jesus ("poor in spirit,"
Matthew 5:5; "hunger and thirst for
righteousness," Matthew 5:6). In the sermon,
blessed extols the fortunate condition of
persons who are favored with the blessings of
God; the woes, addressed as they are to the
disciples of Jesus, threaten God's profound
displeasure on those so blinded by their
present fortunate situation that they do not
recognize and appreciate the real values of
God's kingdom. In all the blessings and woes,
the present condition of the persons addressed
will be reversed in the future. |
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Coming Soon! |
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Smile Makers |
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I'm not quite sure how true these stories are,
but if these are even half right ... |
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something is wrong with these people! |
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Idiot Report #1 |
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I am a medical student
currently doing a rotation in toxicology at the
poison control center.
Today, this woman called in very upset because she
caught her little daughter eating ants.
I quickly reassured her that the ants are not
harmful and there would be no need to bring her
daughter into the hospital. She calmed down and at
the end of the conversation happened to mention
that she gave her daughter some ant poison to eat
in order to kill the ants.
I told her that she better bring her daughter into
the emergency room
right away. |
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Idiot Report #2 |
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Early this year, some Boeing employees on the
airfield decided to steal a life raft from one of
the 747s. They were successful in getting it but
of the plane and home.
Shortly after they took it
for a float on the river, they noticed a Coast
Guard helicopter coming towards them..
It turned out that the chopper was homing in on
the emergency locator
beacon that activated when the raft was inflated.
They are no longer employed at Boeing. |
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Idiot Report #3 |
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A
guy walked into a little corner store with a
shotgun and demanded all of the cash from the cash
drawer.
After the cashier put the cash in a bag, the
robber saw a bottle of Scotch that he wanted
behind the counter on the shelf.
He told the cashier to put it in the bag as well,
but the cashier refused and said, "Because I don't
believe you are over 21."
The robber said he was, but the clerk still
refused to give it to him because she didn't
believe him.
At this point, the robber took his driver's
license out of his wallet and gave it to the
clerk.
The clerk looked it over and
agreed that the man was in fact over 21 and she
put the Scotch in the bag.
The robber then ran from the store with his loot.
The cashier promptly called the police and gave
the name and address of the robber that he got off
the license.
They arrested the robber two hours later. |
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Comments and
Contributions are Most Welcome.
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use the form in this link.
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