S1: The terrorist group Hamas returned four more captives to Israel yesterday,
S1: and in exchange, Israel will release 200 terrorists from prison,
S1: some serving life sentences for murder. Why would Israel pay
S1: such an exorbitant and dangerous price? The answer is rooted
S1: in Scripture. Stay with me. We'll talk about that in
S1: just a moment. Hello, friends. Welcome to Open Line. My
S1: name is Michael Ray. I'm the academic dean and professor
S1: of Jewish studies and Bible at Moody Bible Institute. It's
S1: time for our Bible study across America. We're sitting around
S1: the radio kitchen table and we're talking about your questions
S1: about the Bible, God, and the spiritual life. If you
S1: have a question, now is the time to call, because
S1: it's always best to get in early in the program. And, uh,
S1: so if you could do that, that would be great. Uh, the, uh,
S1: number here, (877) 548-3675. That's (877) 548-3675. Tricia McMillan is in the
S1: producer's chair, and Omar Mendoza is our tech guy today.
S1: Titus is answering the phones and Courtney is visiting. We're
S1: glad you're back. Court. You're out there someplace. Again, the
S1: phone number here is (877) 548-3675. Time to go. Get yourself
S1: a cup of coffee. Open your Bible, because we're about
S1: to study the scriptures together. Well, if you've been watching
S1: the news, I'm sure you're aware that there's a cease
S1: fire in Israel. And Hamas has begun releasing female captives
S1: taken on October 7th, 2023, and their atrocity filled attack
S1: on Israel back then. On that day, October 7th, 2023,
S1: they murdered some 1200 people. Hamas took 251 people captive women, children,
S1: infants and elderly folks. Some Holocaust survivors. Hamas. Hamas has
S1: thus far released seven hostages in the last two weeks,
S1: with Israel releasing 50 terrorists for each one hostage that's
S1: released 50 terrorists. In November of 2023, Hamas released 105
S1: civilian hostages. Civilian captives. And again, the numbers were just
S1: about the same, with 50 terrorists for each one. The
S1: question I'm asked frequently is why does Israel willingly give
S1: up murderous terrorists in such great numbers? Isn't this too dangerous?
S1: And the answer is, of course it's too dangerous. But nevertheless,
S1: these deals are rooted in Jewish values which come from Scripture.
S1: Here's what I mean. The rabbis have historically pointed to
S1: the Bible as calling for the redemption of captives. For example,
S1: Deuteronomy 15 seven. They would point, says, point out, says,
S1: you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand
S1: from your poor brother. According to the rabbis, Leviticus 1918
S1: guides them. It says, you must not jeopardize your neighbor's life.
S1: And then they take it all together with Proverbs 2411
S1: where it says, rescue those being taken off to death.
S1: Save those stumbling toward slaughter. From these verses, rabbinic law
S1: sought to give guidance on how to obey these verses,
S1: and it led to the concept of pigeon shivoham, or
S1: redemption of captives. The rabbis concluded that redemption of Redemption
S1: of captives was a great commandment, as captivity is viewed
S1: as worse than starvation and death, according to the rabbis.
S1: One book of Jewish law is called the Shulkhan Arukh
S1: says every moment that one delays in freeing captives is
S1: cases where in cases where it's possible to expedite their freedom,
S1: is considered to be tantamount to murder. The only warning
S1: given in rabbinic law is not to pay exorbitant prices,
S1: because it will cause evil ones, like Hamas to only
S1: take more captives in the future. It's the old principle
S1: of that which gets rewarded, gets repeated. Still, the rabbis
S1: taught that, uh, exorbitant payments could be paid for exigent
S1: or desperate circumstances. There are exigent and desperate circumstances today.
S1: The entire nation of Israel is heartbroken over these captives,
S1: and they desperately want their return, and they are trusting
S1: the Israeli government to once again protect the nation despite
S1: the release of these terrorist murderers. Here's my point Israel
S1: is an entirely secular nation, yet it derives its values
S1: from Jewish. It has Jewish values, which comes from rabbinic law,
S1: and rabbinic law derives the principle of redemption of captives
S1: from Scripture. And that is how to understand the unbalanced
S1: deal Israel has accepted for the release of some captives.
S1: For our part, since there are 90 remaining captives, what
S1: do we need to do? We need to keep praying
S1: for the safe return of these innocents who were so
S1: cruelly taken by Hamas. And, uh, that's the answer to
S1: the to the question of why these unfair.
UU: Deals are rooted in Scripture.
S1: Well, I would like to go to the phones. And Trish,
S1: if you're listening, I've got a little problem here with
S1: my screen. Could you tell me who our first caller is? Betty. Betty,
S1: welcome to Open Line. How can I help you?
S2: Hi. There is something that has been troubling me. I
S2: know someone who. Well, let me back up a little bit.
S2: When someone lives immorally, they can come to Christ and
S2: have their sins forgiven. When a Christian lives immorally, turns
S2: their back on Christ. Is there a scripture that says
S2: they cannot return to Christ? That once they have tasted
S2: Christ's grace and forgiveness, they cannot come back?
S1: No, The Bible teaches that we all sin, and if
S1: we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to
S1: forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That's
S1: first John one nine. Uh, we have the example of, uh,
S1: someone in, uh, moral failure, uh, that Paul says that
S1: he was grateful that he repented and was restored in first. Uh,
S1: I guess it's, uh, in Second Corinthians. Uh, but he
S1: is grateful for their repentance. Uh, it says in Second
S1: Corinthians chapter two, if anyone has caused pain, he has
S1: caused pain, not so much to me, but to some
S1: degree not to exaggerate. To all of you, the punishment
S1: inflicted by the majority is sufficient for that person. As
S1: a result, you should instead forgive and comfort him. Otherwise,
S1: this 1st May be over overwhelmed by excessive grief. That's, uh,
S1: second Corinthians two, verses six and seven. So the verse
S1: you're thinking of is from Hebrews chapter six.
S2: Yes. I thought it was.
S1: Yeah. And, uh, now what, uh, what Hebrews six is
S1: talking about. I'll read it to you. Here's what it says. Uh,
S1: it's impossible to renew the six four to to renew,
S1: to repentance. Those who were once enlightened, who tasted the
S1: heavenly gift, became companions with the Holy Spirit, tasted God's
S1: good word and the powers of the coming age, and
S1: who have fallen away because to their own harm they
S1: are crucifying the Son of God and holding him up
S1: to contempt. So it says it's impossible. Impossible to renew
S1: such people to repentance. Now, who's it talking about here?
S1: Is it talking about believers who have fallen into sin
S1: and now they want to come back and they can't
S1: be repentant. They can't repent. They can't be restored. That
S1: that's not what it's talking about. We have to understand
S1: who it's talking about. Remember Paul? Paul, the writer of Hebrews,
S1: not Paul, but the writer of Hebrews, whoever that was,
S1: was writing to Jewish believers, and there was a mixed
S1: multitude in his audience. Some of these people, most of
S1: them had had become believers. Some of them had professed
S1: faith but were not genuine. And what he is saying
S1: in Hebrews six is that it's important for them not
S1: to stay where they are, but to actually come to
S1: a full faith in Jesus. Here's why I say that.
S1: If you look at chapter six, verse one, it says,
S1: leaving the elementary message about the Messiah, let us go
S1: on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance
S1: from dead. Works. Faith in God. Teaching about ritual washings.
S1: Laying on of hands. The resurrection of the dead, and
S1: eternal judgment. He is telling them to move on. Some
S1: people think he's telling them to move on from the
S1: basics of the faith, that they are believers, but actually
S1: all those things that he's telling them to move on
S1: from could be either an Old Testament faith or a
S1: believer type faith, except for one. And that tells me
S1: he's talking about something different. He says move on from
S1: the teachings about ritual washing. Some versions say baptisms. Well,
S1: it's that's a bad translation. There are two words in Greek,
S1: one for baptism. And then there's a different word that's
S1: used for the Old Testament ritual washings. And that's what's
S1: used here. So what he is saying is we have
S1: to move on from an Old Testament faith that looked
S1: forward to the coming of the Messiah, to one That
S1: focuses its faith on the Messiah who has come, Jesus.
S1: And then he says, now you've you've come close, but
S1: you're not there yet. Uh, you've tasted the good word
S1: of God. You've, uh, you were in the community of believers.
S1: You were in the congregation, but you weren't really believers yet.
S1: And if you go back now, it'll be impossible to
S1: bring you back now. I think it's impossible for us
S1: to bring anyone back. But God might open the door.
S1: We don't know how far they fall, but that's talking
S1: about people who had come close to being believers but
S1: were not. And then they fall away. And he warns
S1: them it might be impossible to bring you back. Okay,
S1: so it's not not about believers losing their salvation, but
S1: people who are close but did not really experience salvation. Okay.
S1: Can I ask one more question? Sure.
S2: About this individual. This individual is struggling with feeling like
S2: he can't come back. He feels very unattached to Christ.
S2: He feels Christ is unapproachable. That his relationship is lost. Mhm. Um.
S2: How can I help him?
S1: Look up everything you can in your Bible. Okay. About
S1: the grace and mercy of God. Okay. Do a search. Uh,
S1: find everything where it says that God welcomes those of
S1: us who are penitent, that God desires us to come
S1: to him. You find every verse about forgiveness and mercy. Okay.
S1: And then you sit down and you, you say if
S1: you feel lost, everyone is lost. Uh, but but for
S1: the mercy and grace of God, and you show it
S1: to him. That's what you do. Wow. Uh, okay.
S2: He wants his relationship with Christ back.
S1: Okay. Well, you gotta show him that he that he
S1: needs to come by faith, and and the Lord will
S1: welcome him. Read him, the prodigal son. What a great.
S1: What a great reminder. Luke 15. Okay.
S2: Yeah. Yeah.
S1: Okay. Well, thank you for your call. We're going to
S1: take a break here. We come back, we'll be talking
S1: to you about your questions about the Bible, God and
S1: the spiritual life. This program is called Open Line. You
S1: can call (877) 548-3675 with your question. My name is Michael Riddick.
S1: Stay with me. I'll be right back with more of
S1: the questions that you are calling with right here on
S1: Moody Radio's Open Line. Welcome back to Open Line. Let
S1: me tell you about our current resource. Uh, sometimes people
S1: get a little lost. They wonder. They get a little
S1: overwhelmed trying to figure out how all the books of
S1: the New Testament fit together. And that's why I've chosen
S1: survey of the New Testament by Doctor Paul Benware as
S1: our current resource. Uh, it's a it's from the Everyman's, uh,
S1: Bible commentary series, but it's a survey. Doctor Benware taught
S1: Bible survey survey for years and years and years at
S1: Moody Bible Institute. And he was he's he's still with us,
S1: and he's an exceptional Bible teacher. And this book, uh,
S1: gives you a comprehensive guide to take you on the journey.
S1: It gives you a roadmap from Matthew to Revelation. It
S1: helps you see the big picture of God's Word in
S1: the New Testament. You'll see how each book connects to
S1: the one story of God's redemptive plan. Uh, and this
S1: book is yours. If you give, uh, with, with any gift, uh,
S1: with any size gift that you might give to open
S1: line or grateful for it. We want to send it
S1: to you and say thank you for your gift. And
S1: so if you'd like to give a gift so you
S1: can receive a survey of the New Testament by Paul Benware,
S1: all you have to do is call (888) 644-7122. That's (888) 644-7122.
S1: Or you can just go to open line radio.org. I
S1: hope you get it. I love that book by the way.
S1: Even I have been using that book for a long time.
S1: There we go. Okay, we're going to talk to Vicky
S1: in Rantoul, Illinois, listening to WGN. Welcome to Open Line, Vicky.
S1: How can I help you?
S3: Thank you. I am wondering about, um. A Bible study
S3: teacher has been telling us that when the Jewish people
S3: lived in Egypt and they came out of Egypt, that
S3: they were like a bunch of animals. They knew nothing
S3: about God. And I'm wondering, um, isn't there something about
S3: them worshiping God in Egypt?
S1: Um, I don't see any. Why would someone say such
S1: a thing about anyone?
S3: Well, I don't know.
S1: I don't know. I mean, that seems so ridiculous to me.
S1: I can't hardly believe it that someone would say that. Uh, now, now,
S1: let's let's remember, uh, Moses was sent to Egypt because
S1: the Israelites cried out to God for deliverance. That's that's
S1: why God sent Moses, because they were crying out to God.
S1: Also remember, Moses was raised with all the wisdom of Egypt.
S1: We know that because he had been adopted by Pharaoh's daughter.
S1: Do you remember that? Yes. But who was his? Who
S1: was his nurse? Who cared for him? Remember, Miriam brought, uh,
S1: Moses mother and, uh. And Moses mother. Jochebed raised him.
S1: Do you remember that?
S3: Right, right. I do remember that.
S1: And of course, Moses wrote the whole Pentateuch, and it
S1: included stories about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob. Right. And all those
S1: stories from the Pentateuch. From the book of Genesis. Now,
S1: let me ask you this. Where did Moses learn those stories? Well,
S1: they were carried on orally, from generation to generation by
S1: the Jewish people. He learned them at at his, at
S1: his mother's side, learning from her. Right. You know, people
S1: are made in the image of God. They're not like
S1: animals that. But Israel understood that God had chosen Abraham.
S1: They had all these stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
S1: They weren't written in Scripture yet, but Moses wrote them down.
S1: He learned them from his family. Uh, now I don't
S1: understand why someone would say such a thing. It seems harsh. Unkind.
S1: So yes.
S3: But were they able to gather together and worship when
S3: they were living in slavery for 400 years?
S1: You know, I don't know the details of their lives.
S1: I'm sure that they didn't work every minute of every
S1: day for seven days. I'm sure they had something that
S1: they knew. Some sort of gathering. I don't know, really.
S1: You know, that's imposing our experiences on them from, you know,
S1: 1800 to 1400 BC. They were in, in Egypt. I
S1: don't know all the details, but they weren't animals and
S1: they weren't without any knowledge of God. Uh, and so
S1: that's that's what I would say. Thank you.
S3: Okay. Thank you very much.
S1: Okay. Thank you. Vicki. Appreciate it. Uh, we're going to
S1: talk next with Carolyn listening in Chicago, Illinois on WNBA.
S1: Welcome to Open Line, Carolyn. How can I help you today?
S4: Yes. Good morning. It came up in a Bible study
S4: the other day, and it's a verse that I'm so
S4: familiar with, but had never thought of it in this way.
S4: It's Matthew 2436.
S5: Mhm.
S4: Um, but of that day and hour knoweth no man, not,
S4: not any of the angels, but my father only. Now
S4: does it say my father only because Jesus is on
S4: earth right now or. Um, the question came up that
S4: if it's one God which we believe, why wouldn't Jesus
S4: know what the father.
S1: If if after his I understand, how could Jesus not
S1: know if Jesus, if the Lord Jesus is omniscient as
S1: God the Father is? How could he not know? It says,
S1: now concerning that day and hour. The return of the
S1: Lord Jesus. No one knows, neither the angels in heaven
S1: nor the son. That's what you're talking about, right? Exactly.
S1: And except the father only. Some versions leave out. Nor
S1: the son. But I think it probably should be there.
S1: Some manuscripts leave out. Nor the son. But nevertheless, uh,
S1: the only way we could understand this is that the.
S1: There's a self-limitation on the part of the God, the son.
S1: There are some things that he chooses not to know,
S1: and therefore he doesn't know them. It's not because he
S1: can't know them. It's he chooses not to. The self-limitation
S1: of the son. He does this in deference to the father.
S1: The father always the son always does. The father's will
S1: is what John chapter six, Uh, verses 37 through 40 says. So, uh,
S1: he just limits himself. And that's why he doesn't know. Okay.
S4: Okay. I you know, actually, when you said that, I
S4: think that came up not too long ago and, um,
S4: in the morning, morning call. And thank you for what
S4: you do. I am a table, uh, kitchen part partner.
S1: Your table partner. Thank you so much, Carolyn. I really
S1: appreciate that. Uh, we appreciate you so much. You know, uh,
S1: the the kitchen table partners, since Carolyn mentioned it. I'll
S1: mention it now, too. Uh, I appreciate every listener, I
S1: really do. I'm always amazed. I used to laugh when, uh,
S1: when I was going to go on the air, I said,
S1: Eva to my wife, who will listen to this program
S1: if I'm on the air other than you. And so
S1: the fact that there are other people listening and people calling,
S1: it means a lot to me, and I appreciate every listener.
S1: But then there are some people that are so committed
S1: that they want to make sure that we stay on
S1: the air, that they commit to giving monthly to open line.
S1: They are our kitchen table partners, like Caroline, who I
S1: appreciate immensely. What a sacrifice and what a generous heart
S1: to do that. And what we do in response here
S1: at Open Line is I prepare an audio Bible study
S1: exclusively for our kitchen table partners every month. You'll get
S1: it in the mail, your email, you click on it.
S1: And it's a special Bible study designed exclusively takes about
S1: 5 or 10 minutes. It's designed exclusively for our kitchen
S1: table partners, and we're really grateful for each kitchen table partner.
S1: If you'd like to become a kitchen table partner, the
S1: best way to do that is just give us a call.
S1: The number is (888) 644-7122. That's 47122. Or you can go
S1: to open line radio.org. And Carolyn, thank you so much
S1: for being a kitchen table partner. We really, really appreciate it. Uh,
S1: we're going to talk next with Tony in West Chicago, Illinois,
S1: listening on Wmbi. Welcome to Open Line, Tony. How can
S1: I help you today? Good morning. Yeah. Good morning.
S6: Um, I had a question about taxes. And so taxes
S6: are coming up pretty shortly. Um, and I know that
S6: in the time of the kings that the kings taxed
S6: the people. But prior to that, was there any other
S6: tax on people? Um, as you know, under, let's say,
S6: the times of the prophets and so on. Um, because
S6: in our experience, if we don't pay our taxes, we
S6: lose our property. So, um, I just was wondering if
S6: there was a tax, um, above and beyond the usual
S6: tithe that everybody paid to pay for the for the temple.
S1: Well, I think sometimes I think we we misunderstand the
S1: tithing system that is in the Pentateuch. It's it's not
S1: just 10%. There is a tithe for the priests, a
S1: tithe for the temple. And then there was a tithe
S1: for the poor, which was given over three years, uh, 10%
S1: over three years. So it really came to a 23
S1: and a third. What are we doing over there, Tony?
S1: I'm sorry.
S6: That's that's just opening my blinds up. Excuse me.
S1: Yeah, yeah. Uh, the the the idea was 23 and
S1: a third percent of what Israel had was given. And
S1: then on top of that, there were free will, Thanksgiving offerings,
S1: things like that. In addition, the point being, when you
S1: see 23 and a third percent, you realize that the
S1: tithing system in the Torah was Really it was the
S1: Constitution of Israel and it was a taxation system.
S6: Yeah, yeah I see.
S1: So that was the taxation system. And, uh, you know, uh,
S1: it's really important to, to not just look back then,
S1: but Romans 13 says that we're to obey the government
S1: and to pay taxes to whom taxes are due. Pay
S1: your obligations to everyone, taxes to those you owe taxes.
S1: So I actually I had a really dear friend. He's
S1: with the Lord now. But, uh, before he came to
S1: the Lord, he never registered for Social Security. He he
S1: he never paid taxes. He kind of lived off the books.
S1: And then he came to the Lord. And after studying
S1: the Bible, he became convicted. And he he walked into
S1: the IRS to tell them that he made an appointment.
S1: And they couldn't believe it that he was just volunteering. Uh,
S1: and they said, did you get a letter, like from
S1: the IRS? and he's like, no, I didn't get a letter.
S1: They kept insisting, did you get a letter? And finally
S1: he said, yeah, I got a letter from Paul. And
S1: he read them Romans 13 and and boy, it was
S1: hard for him, but he did it. He he fulfilled
S1: that obligation. It's a it's a great reminder. Pay taxes.
S1: To whom taxes are due. Uh, well, we'll come right
S1: back with the Febc mailbag in just a moment. Trish
S1: is dragging it in, so stay with us. This is
S1: open line with Michael Radonich. Welcome back to Open Line
S1: with me, Michael Radonich. So glad you're listening today. I'm
S1: so grateful for the Far Eastern Broadcasting Company partnering with
S1: Open Line to bring you the weekly Febc mailbag. Febc
S1: far Eastern Broadcasting Company is a terrific organization. They bring
S1: the good news to people via media and personal engagement
S1: throughout the world. Check out the Febc podcast called Until
S1: All Have Heard. All you have to do is go
S1: to febc. Org that's febc.org. And joining me right now
S1: Tricia with that Febc mailbag is Tricia McMillan. Hey, Tricia. Hello. Yeah. Well, uh,
S1: I suppose that you've got a bunch of questions there
S1: that people have sent in. I do, I do want
S1: to remind people about how to send the questions. I
S1: think the best way is just go to our website,
S1: openline radio.org, and there's a link there that says Ask
S1: Michael a question. Click on that and you can post
S1: your question there. And then what do you do with
S1: it Tricia when it comes in.
S7: Uh, then I add it to the mailbag. I, I
S7: go through them, but yes. And then I add them
S7: to how do you.
S1: Decide which ones you know. I know you organize them.
S1: You try and put them in some sort of order, right?
S7: I try to. I don't always succeed. And I realize
S7: it often doesn't matter because. Yeah, because there doesn't need
S7: to be a flow. We're talking about the entire Bible.
S7: And so right there doesn't have to be a flow
S7: from one to the next. I like to group them
S7: because my brain works that way. But there doesn't have
S7: to be that. So sometimes it's a little more by the,
S7: you know, just kind of by the seat of my pants.
S7: But sometimes it's a lot more organized. The mailbag ones
S7: I tend to make very organized, like, here's a chunk
S7: that are all dealing with this similar topic, because.
S1: For a full mailbag.
S7: For a full mailbag program, um, but for the this one,
S7: not so much. Um, and.
S1: When people write to me and they say, how come
S1: you didn't answer my question, I mailed it. You blame me.
S1: I just blame Tricia because I don't pick them. You do.
S7: Right. And sometimes it's it's because we've answered that question
S7: more recently. And so I'm trying to pick different questions
S7: that we haven't answered in a while. That's that's a
S7: lot of it. Um. That's right. And if I, you know,
S7: if it.
S1: Or sometimes you'll, you'll get 2 or 3 people will
S1: ask the same question.
S7: Right. And then I'll kind of combine them into one, um,
S7: because they'll be similar or like today I've got a
S7: couple from like towards the end of Genesis that work
S7: well together. So, you know, um, some of the different
S7: ones are nice because just for a change, because there
S7: are so many questions people have about the Bible, um,
S7: a lot of them are the same, and a lot
S7: of them are in that. So that's where, like you
S7: wrote a book called 50 Most Important Bible Questions, where
S7: those are a lot of the questions we have gotten,
S7: but I like to ask some of the ones that
S7: maybe aren't in that book too sometimes. And so, yeah,
S7: so that's kind of.
S1: Where we're at. I'm so glad that you do that.
S1: And I don't, because that's, uh, that's great for me
S1: that you do it and I appreciate it. So. Okay, well,
S1: let's get started.
S7: All right. Our first question is from Michael. Uh, listens
S7: to Listens to Keys in Florida. And he's asking a
S7: question about Genesis 3511 and Genesis 48 four, where it
S7: talks about the Assembly of Nations and many nations that
S7: God says will come from Jacob. He wants to know,
S7: you know, is this what is this a prophecy for.
S1: Uh, a nation indeed an assembly of nations will come
S1: from you and kings will descend from you. And that's, uh.
S1: He says that to Jacob. Uh, and I believe that
S1: that's just saying that nations would come out of him. Uh,
S1: I think it's wondering which nations. Right? Because mostly we
S1: think of the people of Israel coming from him. Right. Uh, so, uh, well.
S7: Is that all it is?
S1: Yeah. Well, I think that's all it is for now.
S1: That's what I'm going to say. But I would have
S1: to do a little bit more searching off the top
S1: of my head. I can't think of of anything else. Okay.
S7: And when we do these questions for the mailbag, often
S7: you don't know what questions are coming. So, so so
S7: when I put you on the spot like this.
S1: That no, it doesn't bother me at all. I actually
S1: I'll let everyone know when when someone asked. I hardly
S1: ever know what the question is in advance. Uh, sometimes
S1: when I even pick the callers, I'm reading the question
S1: as I'm. Right. Uh, so it doesn't bother me. Uh,
S1: what's what was the second verse of.
S7: Genesis 48 four?
S1: Yeah.
S7: Uh, which says and he said to me, behold, I
S7: will make you a fruitful and numerous and I will
S7: make you a company of peoples, and will give this
S7: land to your descendants after you for an everlasting possession.
S1: Yeah. I think this is not talking about anything other than, uh,
S1: the different tribes that came out of out of Jacob. Okay. Uh,
S1: and that that and in fact, that there were two
S1: nations ultimately, that came out Israel and Judah, from him. Uh,
S1: and so I think that's all it's talking about, the
S1: 12 tribes. But, you know, I'll do further checking on that.
S1: I think it's just talking about that.
S7: Okay. Uh, there was there was another. Oh, man. I
S7: will look for this other question that was kind of
S7: related to that, but this, uh, the next question is
S7: from Kathy, um, in Ohio, listens to Wkkf and says,
S7: in Joseph's dream in Genesis 37, he states that the sun,
S7: moon and 11 stars bowed down to him. This is
S7: after Rachel's death, and so is Rachel the moon. And
S7: if so, how could that be? Um. Is it that
S7: the 11 and the star, sorry. And the sun and
S7: the moon all immediately Correspond or is it more metaphorical?
S1: I think it's just saying in Joseph's dream, he says,
S1: the sun, moon and 11 stars were bowing down to
S1: me and it sounds like a father, a mother and
S1: his 11 brothers. That's what it's referring to. And likely
S1: Rachel as as said, she died with Benjamin's birth, so
S1: it's probably talking about Leah there.
S7: Okay, so would she have been the mother figure?
S1: Well, she's she's a matriarch of Israel, so. Okay. So yeah.
S1: That's it. Joe. Oh, yeah. Jacob and his wife and
S1: and then his 11 brothers. 11 brothers. That's the idea.
S7: Okay. All right. Um, our, uh, Christy wanted to know,
S7: how did the people of Israel become known as Jews?
S7: And the Bible, they're referred to as Hebrews or Israelites.
S1: They're also called Jews. If you go to the book
S1: of Nehemiah and the book of Esther. Okay.
S7: And the New Testament calls them that. But yeah. Okay.
S1: The way it happened. Okay. Hebrews was, uh, very ancient. Uh,
S1: and then, uh, as a people.
S7: Group, you mean.
S1: As a people.
S7: Group? Not the book of the Bible.
S1: Okay. Yeah. Hebrews was, uh, the he Abraham. The Hebrew. Okay.
S1: So in ancient times, they were called Hebrews. And then, uh,
S1: with the the 12 sons of Jacob, Jacob was was
S1: renamed Israel. So they become the tribes of Israel, or
S1: they're called Israel. Okay. Uh, of course, there was Judah,
S1: who was the leader of the brothers, uh, in the
S1: book of Genesis. And that's the tribe from which King
S1: David came. And then, of course, the kingdom split, and
S1: the ten northern tribes became known as Israel kept that name,
S1: but the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin became
S1: known as Judah. The. The Israelites went into captivity into
S1: Assyria in 721 BC. The Judeans, the people from Judah,
S1: from the southern kingdom, went into captivity to a similar area. However,
S1: to a different dynasty, a different kingdom, a different empire,
S1: the Babylonian Empire. And so they went there. And when
S1: they got there, uh, they kind of joined with the Israelites.
S1: And the, uh, Judean captives were there together, and they
S1: were called Judeans or shortened Jews. That's where it comes from. And, uh, then,
S1: then when they returned, uh, together, even though some were Israelites,
S1: some were Judeans that together, they were called Jews.
S7: Okay. That's as a collective group of people then?
S1: Yeah. Collective people. Group. Exactly. Okay. And, uh, and so, uh,
S1: now we've got all these, uh, synonyms, you know, there's Israel,
S1: the people, Israel, the land. Uh, there's, uh, so we
S1: no longer Israel. Hebrews. Yeah. The term Israelite in the
S1: Bible is Israeli. And that's why we talk today about
S1: modern Israel. The people of Israel are called Israelis.
S7: Okay.
S1: Okay. Yeah. Same. Same word. Uh, but, uh, you know,
S1: and there are Jewish Israelis and Arab Israelis. There's lots
S1: of different it's kind of interesting the way it the
S1: word has developed.
S7: And were they called Hebrews because they spoke Hebrew or
S7: were they called Hebrews? And then some of the language
S7: they spoke became called Hebrew also?
S1: Yeah. I think it's because they were people who crossed over.
S1: That's what it's the word. It sounds like someone who
S1: crossed over. They crossed over the river to river to
S1: enter the land.
S7: Avery means to cross over. Is is that translated, then
S7: to Hebrew?
S1: Yeah. Avery is.
S7: Hebrew.
S1: Okay. It's the Hebrew language. Okay. And every is a
S1: Hebrew person.
S7: So bonus Hebrew lesson today.
S1: Yeah. That's it. Okay. Well, it is interesting, you know,
S1: that where all these words come from, we just use
S1: them without thinking about how they come. Yeah. Anyway. Well,
S1: we're going to take a break here. Thank you. And
S1: thanks for thanks for for going over those questions with
S1: me in advance.
S8: But yeah. Next time.
S1: No, no. It's great. We're going to come right back
S1: with more of your questions in just a moment. You're
S1: listening to Tricia McMillan and me, Michael Dolnick, right here
S1: on Moody Radio's Open Line. Stay with us. More questions
S1: coming up. Straight ahead. And we're back. I'm Michael. I'm
S1: so glad you're listening in today as we talk about
S1: the Bible, God and the spiritual life right here on
S1: Open Line. I did want to mention the Chosen People
S1: offer that has just come out. Uh, it's meaningful to me.
S1: You know, this week is the International Memorial Day for
S1: the Holocaust. Uh, there's a Jewish one in the springtime,
S1: but right now, it's the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Uh,
S1: that the nations think of that. Uh, my parents survived
S1: the Holocaust. And my mom, interestingly enough, found her faith
S1: just before going to concentration camp, before going to the
S1: ghetto in the concentration camp and Chosen People Ministries because
S1: of this, is offering a not because of my mom,
S1: but because of the the timing of it with the
S1: memory of it and the explosion of anti-Semitism in the world.
S1: They're offering a book called Never Again The Holocaust, remember,
S1: it's a collection of stories from the Chosen People Ministries
S1: archives about the courage, the bravery, the grace found in
S1: the midst of all the unspeakable tragedies of the Holocaust.
S1: And it reminds us that the Lord was still at
S1: work during those terrible days. And it encourages us, as
S1: we read these stories, to stand up for the Jewish people,
S1: to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, and to oppose
S1: this explosion of anti-Semitism that we're seeing today. And so
S1: that's that's really important. If you'd like to get a copy,
S1: just go to our website, openline. radio.org. Scroll down. You'll
S1: see it says a free gift from Chosen People Ministries,
S1: and you'll be able to get your own copy of
S1: Never Again. Also, when you go to our website, I
S1: do want to tell you that we held the summit
S1: in November at Moody Bible Institute, the summit opposing anti-Semitism
S1: and all the messages. My message. Don Sweeting's message. Eva
S1: Redlich's workshop. They're all posted now on the Moody YouTube channel.
S1: And if you'd like to get the links to those,
S1: just go to Openline radio.org and you'll see it there
S1: on our webpage. You can you if you are not
S1: able to come but would like to hear and see
S1: those messages, you can find them right at openline radio.org.
S1: And then another thing I did want to mention, people
S1: are asking me all the time about trips we had done,
S1: the journeys of Paul tours, and we've we've done other
S1: kinds of trips, obviously to Israel. Right now we're a
S1: little bit of a hold pattern on Israel trips, but
S1: I've scheduled a kind of a fun Bible conference cruise
S1: for next December, and it's on a tall ship, just
S1: like we did when we did the Journeys of Paul.
S1: But this time it'll be in the Caribbean. If you'd
S1: like to see more about that, if you'd like to
S1: do a Bible study on a boat. The best way
S1: to do that is to just go to my webpage michael-ray.
S1: Org that's linked at the bottom of the open line
S1: web page Michael Ray. Org. You can learn all about
S1: that December time of the Bible study. We're going to
S1: study the book of Daniel on a boat. So uh, anyway,
S1: we're going to go right to the phones now, uh,
S1: Beth in Homerville, Ohio, listening on CRF. Welcome to Open Line.
S1: How can I help you today, Beth.
S9: I heard you say not to read the Bible chronologically,
S9: but it's so much more interesting because you read the Psalms. And. Oh,
S9: that's why David wrote that psalm there. And the prophets.
S9: You read through second Chronicles, first and second Chronicles, and
S9: then you just keep going on and the prophets, but
S9: chronologically they show which project, which Profit went with which king,
S9: and it just makes it easier for me to read chronologically. Exciting.
S1: Beth, at least you're reading the Bible, so I'm okay
S1: with that. But. Well that's good. Uh, that's fine if
S1: that's how you want to read the Bible. I mean,
S1: I'm glad you're reading the Bible. However, the books of
S1: the Bible were written as individual books. They were not
S1: written as a series of events that you take from
S1: a little bit from this book and a little bit
S1: from that book, and put them in chronological order. They
S1: were designed with an author who had a theme and
S1: a purpose and wanted to communicate something. And so if
S1: we want to understand what the author wanted to say
S1: to us, the author that the Holy Spirit superintended to
S1: write God's Word, then what we have to do is
S1: read the book as a whole. Do you understand?
S9: Okay.
S1: So that's that's what we're that's why I think it's
S1: better to read books as books. Uh, so I don't
S1: want to put all the events from the life of
S1: Jesus together from the four Gospels. What I want to
S1: do is read each gospel individually to see what Matthew
S1: wanted me to learn, what Mark wanted me to learn.
S1: That's the way I do it. Okay, now it helps
S1: to maybe to.
S9: Put them from one to the other.
S1: Yeah, it helps to put them in chronological order, because
S1: that shows that we can make everything fit and it works.
S1: But yeah.
S9: But yeah, yeah.
S1: But, Beth, listen, you're reading the Bible however you want
S1: to read it. I'm happy. Okay.
S9: Okay. Thank you very much.
S1: Okay, great. We're going to talk to Miriam in Delray Beach. Uh,
S1: listening on R&B. Welcome to Open Line. Miriam. How can
S1: I help you?
S10: Good morning. Or good afternoon? Rather, it's not so much
S10: in form of a question. However, I heard of the
S10: chorus of the singers. Um, in the Old Testament, even
S10: King David wanted them only because they were the best.
S10: Could you tell me a little bit about them.
S1: Uh, well, the sons of Korah, uh, they were descended.
S1: Let's see. I'm trying to remember who they descended from. Uh,
S1: they they're from ancient times. From the times of Moses. Uh, and, uh,
S1: they they were involved in worship. Uh, what else do
S1: you want to know about them? What would you like
S1: to know?
S10: Why were they the best singers? Um, there were a
S10: lot of singers, but King David chose.
S1: Yeah, well, here's the thing. They were responsible for the care. Uh,
S1: of of the Tabernacle. Originally, they were part of those people.
S1: They were involved in worship. Uh, you know, we can
S1: look at their genealogies and see that they were involved
S1: in worship. And as a result, it's much like today
S1: in our congregations, we have certain people who are designated
S1: because of their music, gifts to be involved in, in
S1: leading worship and things like that. That's who the sons
S1: of Korah were. That's all.
S11: I see.
S1: Now, let me just tell you, this is a great
S1: example of Miriam, of something that would I think everyone
S1: should have a Bible dictionary. I think a Bible dictionary
S1: is a great tool. Yeah, because what if you had
S1: a Bible dictionary? You could look up Sons of Korah
S1: and it would tell you every verse where they're mentioned.
S1: It would tell you everything that we know about them. Uh,
S1: that that's where I would go if, if, uh, if
S1: I want to know more about the sons of Korah.
S1: So in terms of Bible study methods, that's what I
S1: would make sure I think everyone should have a one
S1: volume commentary on the Bible, a one volume Bible dictionary,
S1: and maybe a Bible handbook, that that's a basic skill
S1: set that that will a basic tool set that you
S1: have to to read the Bible or. the other thing too. Uh,
S1: are you, uh, do you use computers much, Miriam?
S10: I do not know. I do not.
S1: Know. Okay, then you're going to have to get a book.
S1: But you could always, uh, look up Sons of Korah.
S1: And there's all these Bible dictionaries that are already online
S1: and available that you could have looked that up. Okay.
S1: But as far as I know, that they off the
S1: top of my head, they were from the descended from
S1: the Levites, and they were involved in worship in the
S1: Tabernacle and later in the temple. Uh, and that's who
S1: they were. So, okay.
S10: So that's why that you think that that's why King
S10: David would use them? Well, that's what I heard, that
S10: he he liked them the best.
S1: I don't know if he liked them. I wouldn't say
S1: he liked them the best. He was just going to
S1: use them because of their gifting and their calling.
S10: Okay, I see, I see. Okay.
S1: Yeah. Okay. Well, great. Miriam, thanks for your call. Really
S1: appreciate it. Uh, well, first hour is up. Can't believe that, uh,
S1: that went so fast. But here we are. Second hour
S1: coming up straight ahead. Uh, keep listening to the second
S1: hour if if you like. But if your station doesn't
S1: carry it all, you. What you could do is you
S1: could listen online. You can get the podcast, you can
S1: get the Moody Radio app, all sorts of ways to
S1: catch the second hour if your station doesn't carry it.
S1: During the break, check out our webpage open Line radio.org.
S1: It's got links to past programs, everything you're looking at.
S1: It's got a link to my personal web page. Uh,
S1: anything you're looking for, you'll find it right there. Our
S1: Bible study across America will continue in the second hour,
S1: so stay with us. Open line with Doctor Michael Riedel
S1: is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody
S1: Bible Institute. We'll be right back.