“My little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!” (Galatians 4:19 ESV). Paul had already brought the Galatians to faith in Christ, but now he saw them drifting into religious legalism. With parental tenderness, he described himself as a mother in labor, groaning until Christ
“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3 ESV). Isaiah gave this promise to Judah during a time of great political instability, with Assyria threatening their borders and Babylon looming on the horizon. The people were tempted to put their confidence in armies, kings,
“I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open” (Isaiah 22:22 ESV). God declared through Isaiah that Eliakim would replace Shebna as steward over the house of David under King Hezekiah. To place the “key on
“And when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised” (Galatians 2:9 ESV). This meeting in Jerusalem was pivotal in church history.
“And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ” (Galatians 1:22 ESV). Paul reminded the Galatians that even after his dramatic conversion, he did not immediately step into public ministry. For years, he was “unknown” to the churches in Judea. Galatians 1 provides one of the clearest autobiographical
“And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the splendor and pomp of the Chaldeans, will be like Sodom and Gomorrah when God overthrew them. It will never be inhabited or lived in for all generations; no Arab will pitch his tent there; no shepherds will make their flocks lie down there” (Isaiah 13:19–20 ESV). Isaiah declared
“For I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish—that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder” (2 Corinthians 12:20 ESV). Paul loved the Corinthians like a father loves his children. He longed
“Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice” (Psalm 55:17 ESV). David’s psalm reveals a rhythm of life anchored by prayer. He speaks of calling upon the Lord evening, morning, and noon—a way of saying that prayer framed his entire day. The unusual order beginning with
“In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple” (Isaiah 6:1 ESV). Isaiah carefully dates his vision to “the year that King Uzziah died” (ca. 740 BC). Uzziah had reigned for fifty-two years, bringing prosperity and
“In that day the Branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel.” ( Isaiah 4:2 ESV). Isaiah, often called the “evangelical prophet,” recorded more Messianic prophecies than any other Old Testament writer. In this verse, Isaiah speaks