Amos 9:1, 14-15

January 13, 2026 by Leave a Comment

“I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and he said: ‘Strike the capitals until the thresholds shake, and shatter them on the heads of all the people; and those who are left of them I will kill with the sword; not one of them shall flee away; not one of them shall escape’” (Amos 9:1).

“’I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them,’ says the Lord your God” (Amos 9:14‬-‭15‬).

This last chapter of Amos presents something of a contrast. First, Amos has a vision of the Lord pouring out his wrath on the evil doers (9:1-10). 

Then, Amos closes his book by telling of a time when the Lord will restore the “tabernacle of David,” which includes the land promise, “‘I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them,’ says the Lord your God” (15‬).

I believe that modern Israel is the partial fulfillment of what Amos and the other prophets describe as the restoration of Israel. Clearly, the nation does not walk in righteousness. So, we wait for the Lord to bring that element of the restoration.

Father, please fulfill your promise to restore Israel in righteousness. Please defend them from those who seek to undermine your land promise by dividing the land. Amen.

Filed Under: Amos, devotional thoughts, Old Testament, Prophecy, Restoring Israel

Amos 8:11-12

January 12, 2026 by Leave a Comment

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it” (Amos 8:11-12).

This is a disturbing passage. First, the Lord warns the people of the day when He will send a famine of the word of the Lord, resulting in an inability to find the word.

In this case, there are clearly two actors. 1) The people have disregarded the Lord, chasing after idols and pleasure. 2) The Lord who will withhold his blessing. 

The result will be that the people will not be able to find the word of the Lord when they want it. I’m not sure if that means that all the clergy are corrupt and putting out anything but the truth. Or, the Lord has simply taken away his word. I think I lean toward the former because I don’t think the Lord will withhold His word from the remnant of faithful believers. 

Do we see anything similar in our country? There are lots of churches and lots of preachers. But are there lots of churches and preachers preaching the word of the Lord? Or are there more and more that are moving to the word of man? 

Father, please help me be faithful to you and your word. Help me accept what the Bible says, even when it is hard. Amen.

Filed Under: Amos, devotional thoughts, idolatry, Old Testament, Prophecy

Daniel 9:2

December 15, 2025 by Leave a Comment

“in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.” (Daniel 9:2)

Here, Daniel is referencing Jeremiah 25:11-12, “This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. Then after seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the Lord, making the land an everlasting waste.”

1. Daniel viewed Jeremiah as a prophet. 
2. Daniel believed Jeremiah heard from the Lord. 
3. Daniel used Jeremiah’s writing to make sense of his own circumstances. 

Lord, help me to follow Daniel’s lead in trusting your word and using it to make sense of my life circumstances. Amen.

Filed Under: Daniel, devotional thoughts, Jeremiah, Old Testament, Prophecy

Daniel 8:21-25

December 14, 2025 by Leave a Comment

The first thing I noticed is that we went back in time. Chapters 7-8 happened before chapters 5-6. I should have noticed this yesterday! It’s funny how I see different things on different days. 

If you are like me and have trouble understanding these visions, you are also like Daniel, who said, “And I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days. Then I rose and went about the king’s business, but I was appalled by the vision and did not understand it.” (27‬)

“And the goat is the king of Greece. And the great horn between his eyes is the first king.22 As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his nation, but not with his power. 23 And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. 24 His power shall be great—but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. 25 By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall become great. Without warning he shall destroy many. And he shall even rise up against the Prince of princes, and he shall be broken—but by no human hand.” (Daniel 8:21-25) 

This vision has information that is helpful for interpretation. The single horn is Greece, which is broken and replaced by four smaller horns. From these four, one will be stronger. 

Starting with the one horn, we can see Alexander the Great, whose kingdom was divided into four smaller kingdoms upon his untimely death in 323 BC. Ultimately, Antiochus IV (Seleucid empire) rose above the other three. He named himself Antiochus Epiphanes (Epiphany in English). An epiphany is an appearance of a divine or supernatural being. Notice what Daniel wrote about this person: “in his own mind he shall become great.” That description certainly fits a person who thinks he is the appearance of a divine or supernatural being when he is not. 

The timing of our reading is crazy: Hannukkah starts tonight. This is a holiday that Jews celebrate the rededication of the temple after they defeated Antiochus’s army in 164 BC.

Father, please help me see how your word references the world we live in and is applicable to everyday life. Amen.

Filed Under: Daniel, devotional thoughts, Old Testament, Prophecy

Daniel 7:13-14

December 13, 2025 by Leave a Comment

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14)

The Ancient of Days has always been understood to be God, or the Father, if one believes in the Trinity. So, we have one who is like a son of man who approaches the father and is given an eternal kingdom. Additionally, all peoples, nations, and languages will serve him. 

Daniel clearly has a vision of Jesus. 

Father, help me to recognize more of the OT connections to Jesus. Amen.

Filed Under: Daniel, devotional thoughts, New Testament, Old Testament, Prophecy
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