WEBVTT - Why You Still Need a Bible Atlas 0:00:08.119 --> 0:00:11.240 Sure you understand the stories of the Bible, but what 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:14.400 can you do to better understand the places of the Bible? 0:00:14.400 --> 0:00:17.279 The land where it all unfolded? Coming up, a sneak 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:19.520 look at a new Bible atlas with features to help 0:00:19.520 --> 0:00:22.720 you see it all. Plus headlines from the Middle East 0:00:22.720 --> 0:00:25.560 along with listener Bible questions. And then we'll wrap it 0:00:25.560 --> 0:00:28.280 all up with an unforgettable look at the Might Have 0:00:28.320 --> 0:00:31.480 Been Town. Join us now for the land and the 0:00:31.480 --> 0:00:34.360 book A Unique Approach to Understanding the Middle East through 0:00:34.360 --> 0:00:37.440 the Lens of Scripture. Doctor Charlie Dyer is our host, 0:00:37.440 --> 0:00:40.280 and I'm John Gager. And did you know that most 0:00:40.280 --> 0:00:44.319 Jewish people have never heard the gospel? Every week we 0:00:44.320 --> 0:00:46.800 talk about Israel and the Jewish people, and it's important 0:00:46.800 --> 0:00:49.960 to remember that they, like everybody else, need to hear 0:00:49.960 --> 0:00:51.080 the good news. 0:00:51.120 --> 0:00:54.040 That's absolutely true. And that's why life in Messiah, a 0:00:54.040 --> 0:00:58.560 ministry that's been in existence for over 135 years, is 0:00:58.560 --> 0:01:02.110 devoted to sharing the gospel with Jewish people around the world. 0:01:02.350 --> 0:01:05.509 And now they're offering a gift to moody listeners. This 0:01:05.510 --> 0:01:09.309 free book, Reaching Jewish People for Messiah, highlights the need 0:01:09.310 --> 0:01:12.150 for the gospel among the Jewish people. It will equip 0:01:12.150 --> 0:01:15.590 you with practical ways to share the good News with them. Now, 0:01:15.590 --> 0:01:19.470 to receive this free e-book, visit Life in Messiah org 0:01:19.630 --> 0:01:22.229 and click on the Moody Radio logo. Sign up today 0:01:22.230 --> 0:01:25.429 to get your copy. That's life in Messiah. 0:01:27.030 --> 0:01:29.510 All right, let's turn our attention toward current events from 0:01:29.510 --> 0:01:32.230 the Middle East. Last week, President Trump said he would 0:01:32.230 --> 0:01:35.950 make a, quote, very, very big announcement before setting out 0:01:35.950 --> 0:01:38.270 on this week's trip to the Middle East. So what 0:01:38.270 --> 0:01:41.070 was that big announcement? And beyond that, what were the 0:01:41.069 --> 0:01:43.350 president's goals for this particular trip? 0:01:43.550 --> 0:01:47.390 Yeah, speculation over his cryptic announcement went into overdrive after 0:01:47.390 --> 0:01:49.910 he made it, since he connected the timing of it 0:01:49.910 --> 0:01:52.590 with his trip to the Middle East. Some suggested he 0:01:52.590 --> 0:01:56.550 might announce U.S. support for the creation of a Palestinian state. 0:01:56.950 --> 0:02:01.180 Ambassador Huckabee dismissed the accuracy of that suggestion. He wrote, 0:02:01.180 --> 0:02:04.780 my four year old grandson Teddy is more reliable. And 0:02:04.780 --> 0:02:08.620 take it from Teddy. This report is nonsense. Others connected 0:02:08.620 --> 0:02:12.139 it to a possible dramatic breakthrough between Israel and Hamas, 0:02:12.380 --> 0:02:18.260 especially with Hamas's release of dual U.S. Israeli hostage Aiden Alexander. Well, 0:02:18.260 --> 0:02:21.860 that idea fell through when Israel resumed its attacks against Hamas, 0:02:22.060 --> 0:02:25.019 hitting a key command center below a hospital where they 0:02:25.020 --> 0:02:29.020 believed Mohammed Sinwar, brother of Yahya Sinwar and commander of 0:02:29.020 --> 0:02:34.620 Hamas's military wing, was located. So what was this announcement? Well, 0:02:34.620 --> 0:02:37.980 it wasn't completely clear, though. Trump did make two announcements 0:02:37.980 --> 0:02:41.500 before he took off. He reported on an apparent breakthrough 0:02:41.500 --> 0:02:44.420 between the U.S. and China on tariffs, and he also 0:02:44.419 --> 0:02:47.460 signed an executive order aimed at lowering the cost of 0:02:47.460 --> 0:02:51.579 prescription drugs. Now, in regard to President Trump's goals for 0:02:51.580 --> 0:02:56.100 the trip, his focus was on economics and mediation at 0:02:56.100 --> 0:02:59.730 the U.S. Saudi Investment Forum. He described the future as 0:02:59.730 --> 0:03:02.570 a time when the Middle East will be defined by commerce, 0:03:02.610 --> 0:03:05.810 not chaos, and where the Middle East will also export 0:03:05.810 --> 0:03:09.970 technology rather than terrorism. He ordered the lifting of sanctions 0:03:09.970 --> 0:03:13.570 against Syria, as he said, to give Syria a chance 0:03:13.570 --> 0:03:16.650 at greatness, and he met with the current leader of Syria. 0:03:16.970 --> 0:03:19.890 He also said his administration was ready to help Lebanon 0:03:19.889 --> 0:03:24.169 create a future of economic development and peace with its neighbors. 0:03:24.530 --> 0:03:28.330 The president agreed to sell over $140 billion in arms 0:03:28.330 --> 0:03:31.490 to Saudi Arabia, while the Saudis agreed to invest part 0:03:31.490 --> 0:03:35.250 of their sovereign wealth fund in the US. Deals were 0:03:35.250 --> 0:03:38.690 also struck with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The 0:03:38.690 --> 0:03:42.690 Abraham Accords. Iran and the conflict between Israel and Hamas 0:03:42.730 --> 0:03:45.930 were also on the agenda, as President Trump worked to 0:03:45.970 --> 0:03:49.690 push forward his plans to mediate solutions that could draw 0:03:49.690 --> 0:03:53.330 the region into a greater sense of peace and prosperity. 0:03:53.810 --> 0:03:57.240 Though not stated directly, the obstacle to all these goals 0:03:57.240 --> 0:04:02.000 remains Islamic fundamentalism. Hamas's charter calls for it to continue 0:04:02.000 --> 0:04:05.800 fighting until the Jewish state is eliminated and an Islamic 0:04:05.800 --> 0:04:09.440 state is established. The same is true of Iran, which 0:04:09.440 --> 0:04:12.839 is ruled as a theocracy by the ayatollahs. Iran has 0:04:12.840 --> 0:04:15.600 been weakened by Israel's defeat of its allies and by 0:04:15.600 --> 0:04:19.240 crippling US sanctions, but there's still a danger to surrounding 0:04:19.240 --> 0:04:22.280 countries now that the trip is over. Let's watch to 0:04:22.279 --> 0:04:24.760 see what the long term results will be. 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:27.000 Yeah, and it'll be interesting to see what plays out. 0:04:27.240 --> 0:04:31.360 Speaking of Iran, the nuclear talks with them resumed Sunday 0:04:31.360 --> 0:04:33.760 after being postponed for a week. What do we know 0:04:33.760 --> 0:04:36.520 about the most recent round of negotiations? 0:04:36.800 --> 0:04:39.039 You know, we actually don't know much, though. The word 0:04:39.040 --> 0:04:43.120 from the negotiators was, quote, cautious optimism along with an 0:04:43.120 --> 0:04:47.080 agreement to continue negotiating. One key area of disagreement, though, 0:04:47.120 --> 0:04:51.839 remains Iran's demand to continue enriching uranium. Iran has said 0:04:51.839 --> 0:04:54.820 it must maintain the right to enrich Rich uranium, and 0:04:54.820 --> 0:04:58.539 that US demands to limit enrichment are not helpful. Both 0:04:58.540 --> 0:05:02.099 President Trump and the US envoy Witkoff have said Iran 0:05:02.100 --> 0:05:05.540 can expand civilian nuclear activities, but that it must get 0:05:05.580 --> 0:05:09.339 rid of all centrifuges. During his time in Saudi Arabia, 0:05:09.339 --> 0:05:12.580 President Trump issued a strong warning to Iran, saying if 0:05:12.620 --> 0:05:16.500 Iran's leadership rejects the olive branch and continues to attack 0:05:16.500 --> 0:05:18.820 their neighbors, then we will have no choice but to 0:05:18.860 --> 0:05:23.540 inflict massive maximum pressure. The choice is theirs to make. 0:05:23.900 --> 0:05:27.620 And recent satellite imagery appears to have uncovered a previously 0:05:27.620 --> 0:05:31.940 unknown nuclear site in Iran being used to extract tritium, 0:05:31.980 --> 0:05:36.059 a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. In addition to creating things 0:05:36.060 --> 0:05:40.020 like self-illuminating lights, tritium can also be used to boost 0:05:40.020 --> 0:05:43.580 the yield of nuclear weapons. The bottom line right now 0:05:43.580 --> 0:05:47.299 is that there's much we don't know about the negotiations, 0:05:47.300 --> 0:05:51.060 but President Trump is very clearly telegraphing what his expectations 0:05:51.060 --> 0:05:55.049 are if Iran hopes to achieve a successful outcome in 0:05:55.050 --> 0:05:56.330 the negotiations. 0:05:56.330 --> 0:05:58.770 If you joined us midstream, this is the land and 0:05:58.770 --> 0:06:02.010 the book from Moody Radio. Our host is Doctor Charlie Dyer, 0:06:02.170 --> 0:06:05.650 noted Middle East expert and scholar. I'm John Gager. Story 0:06:05.650 --> 0:06:10.610 number three. The conflict over a bill requiring ultra-Orthodox Jews 0:06:10.610 --> 0:06:13.530 to serve in the military in Israel seems to be 0:06:13.529 --> 0:06:16.090 coming to a head. Could this be the issue that 0:06:16.089 --> 0:06:18.650 ultimately brings down the current coalition? 0:06:19.010 --> 0:06:22.050 He almost want to say, Oy vey. It really is 0:06:22.050 --> 0:06:24.570 a problem. In fact, the short answer is this could 0:06:24.610 --> 0:06:29.690 bring down Netanyahu's coalition. The different ultra-Orthodox parties have been 0:06:29.690 --> 0:06:34.170 demanding that Prime Minister Netanyahu pass a bill exempting most 0:06:34.170 --> 0:06:38.170 ultra-Orthodox from military service. And, of course, they continued threatening 0:06:38.170 --> 0:06:40.770 to bring down the government if he fails to do so. 0:06:40.850 --> 0:06:44.450 In fact, right now, they're refusing to vote in the Knesset, 0:06:44.450 --> 0:06:48.290 forcing the coalition to remove all proposed legislation from their 0:06:48.290 --> 0:06:51.529 docket for the past two weeks. One major problem with 0:06:51.529 --> 0:06:54.120 the bill they want is that the vast majority of 0:06:54.120 --> 0:06:57.760 Israelis believe all citizens should be subject to the draft, 0:06:57.760 --> 0:07:00.520 especially in light of the war Israel has been fighting 0:07:00.520 --> 0:07:04.760 for the past 18 months. Most Israelis resent the ultra-Orthodox 0:07:04.760 --> 0:07:08.880 refusing to serve. A number of news reports recently appeared 0:07:08.880 --> 0:07:14.120 suggesting Netanyahu might preempt the ultra-Orthodox by dissolving the Knesset 0:07:14.120 --> 0:07:17.480 over this issue and calling for new elections. He would 0:07:17.480 --> 0:07:20.600 then claim he refused to give in to the ultra-Orthodox 0:07:20.600 --> 0:07:24.120 on this important matter, which would very likely increase support 0:07:24.120 --> 0:07:26.720 for him and his party by those opposed to such 0:07:26.760 --> 0:07:31.720 apparent inequity now. So would Netanyahu really dissolve the government, 0:07:31.720 --> 0:07:35.000 or is this just a threat to force the ultra-Orthodox 0:07:35.000 --> 0:07:38.800 to back down? And right now, we don't know. Netanyahu 0:07:38.840 --> 0:07:41.600 would prefer not to go to elections right now or 0:07:41.600 --> 0:07:45.000 really at any time. But he also can't allow parties 0:07:45.000 --> 0:07:48.320 in the coalition to hold him hostage to their threats 0:07:48.320 --> 0:07:51.630 and demands. Watch to see if some sort of compromise 0:07:51.630 --> 0:07:54.310 can be worked out in the coming weeks. That will 0:07:54.310 --> 0:07:58.070 increase the number of ultra-Orthodox going into the military while 0:07:58.070 --> 0:08:02.470 also providing some exemptions. But if a compromise can't be reached, 0:08:02.470 --> 0:08:04.910 this could indeed bring down the government. 0:08:04.990 --> 0:08:08.750 Story number four A controversial announcement claimed to have discovered 0:08:08.750 --> 0:08:13.390 massive structures underneath the pyramids in Egypt. What exactly was 0:08:13.390 --> 0:08:17.230 reported and how valid are these claims made by the scientists? 0:08:17.470 --> 0:08:21.110 Yeah, it's amazing how how breathless these reports were and 0:08:21.110 --> 0:08:24.630 how they appeared in so many different newspapers and journals 0:08:24.630 --> 0:08:27.950 and online sources. But here's what the bottom line is. 0:08:27.950 --> 0:08:31.910 Researchers from the University of Glasgow and the Italian University 0:08:31.910 --> 0:08:34.910 of Pisa caused a stir when they announced they had 0:08:34.910 --> 0:08:40.270 mapped tunnels, pillars, pathways and halls beneath the central pyramid 0:08:40.270 --> 0:08:44.150 at Giza. They said this vast network descends over a 0:08:44.150 --> 0:08:47.470 mile beneath the pyramids, and they claim to have mapped 0:08:47.470 --> 0:08:52.380 it all out using synthetic aperture radar beamed down from satellites. 0:08:52.620 --> 0:08:56.220 So how valid are these claims? Well, they've been rejected 0:08:56.220 --> 0:09:01.140 by virtually all scientists and archaeologists. While NASA has used 0:09:01.140 --> 0:09:05.020 synthetic aperture radar from space to map the Earth's surface. 0:09:05.260 --> 0:09:08.940 Scientists say it's impossible for such radar waves to reach 0:09:08.980 --> 0:09:13.420 thousands of feet underground. These researchers have no background in 0:09:13.420 --> 0:09:17.459 Egyptology or archaeology, and they chose not to publish their 0:09:17.460 --> 0:09:21.420 findings in a credible scientific journal. In addition, one of 0:09:21.420 --> 0:09:25.939 the researchers apparently specializes in ufology, which is the study 0:09:25.940 --> 0:09:30.179 of UFOs. One renowned Egyptologist summarized it all best when 0:09:30.179 --> 0:09:33.900 he said the claims are false and the details supposedly 0:09:33.900 --> 0:09:38.300 discovered could not have been detected using such methods. All 0:09:38.340 --> 0:09:41.380 that to say, if you've seen those articles, don't expect 0:09:41.380 --> 0:09:45.100 to see detailed photos of this supposed discovery underneath the 0:09:45.100 --> 0:09:47.100 pyramids anytime soon. 0:09:47.140 --> 0:09:49.890 Thank you Charlie. Many listeners might be wondering what is 0:09:49.890 --> 0:09:53.890 the proper understanding of Middle East hospitality, so-called, if that's 0:09:53.890 --> 0:09:56.330 what it is, in the gifting of this plane to 0:09:56.370 --> 0:09:58.610 the United States of America. Your thoughts? 0:09:59.050 --> 0:10:01.490 Yeah. Well, make a friend before you need them is 0:10:01.490 --> 0:10:03.490 one of the phrases I learned very early on in 0:10:03.490 --> 0:10:06.809 the Middle East. In fact, you find David giving presents 0:10:06.809 --> 0:10:09.890 and gifts to the towns in Judah as he defeated 0:10:09.890 --> 0:10:12.770 the Amalekites and others. And then later they made him king. 0:10:12.970 --> 0:10:16.329 It was just a concept of Near Eastern hospitality that 0:10:16.330 --> 0:10:19.250 it still extends today. And I think that's probably what's 0:10:19.250 --> 0:10:20.770 behind the offer of that airplane. 0:10:20.809 --> 0:10:24.569 All right. Interesting. We'll follow that story as it unfolds. Well, 0:10:24.610 --> 0:10:27.490 coming up next, a conversation about why you still need 0:10:27.490 --> 0:10:30.969 a Bible atlas. Yeah. You understand the stories of the Bible, 0:10:30.970 --> 0:10:33.610 but what could you do to better understand the places 0:10:33.610 --> 0:10:36.570 of the Bible where it all unfolded? We're going to 0:10:36.570 --> 0:10:38.810 take a sneak peek at a new Bible atlas with 0:10:38.809 --> 0:10:41.370 features to help you see it all. Plus, we'll get 0:10:41.370 --> 0:10:44.250 to your Bible questions later on, and then Charlie's devotional 0:10:44.250 --> 0:10:46.530 wraps it all up. I love the title of this one. 0:10:46.530 --> 0:10:49.959 The might have been town. It's all ahead on today's 0:10:49.960 --> 0:10:52.240 edition of The Land and the book. If you haven't 0:10:52.240 --> 0:10:54.240 yet told a friend about us, today's a good day 0:10:54.240 --> 0:11:11.520 to do that. Sure, you understand the stories of the Bible, 0:11:11.520 --> 0:11:14.080 but what can you do to understand the places of 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:17.560 the Bible? The land where it all unfolded? Up next, 0:11:17.600 --> 0:11:20.920 a conversation about a new Bible atlas with features to 0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:23.559 help you see it all. This is the land and 0:11:23.559 --> 0:11:25.520 the book I'm John Gager and what do you say 0:11:25.520 --> 0:11:27.600 we take a second or two and think about a 0:11:27.600 --> 0:11:31.479 creative idea for loving our Jewish friends, neighbors, and co-workers? 0:11:32.320 --> 0:11:34.400 When you sit down in an honest conversation with a 0:11:34.400 --> 0:11:38.000 Jewish friend about Christianity, the objection you often hear is 0:11:38.000 --> 0:11:41.600 that the New Testament is full of errors. Levi Hazen 0:11:41.600 --> 0:11:44.319 is executive director of Life in Messiah. How should we 0:11:44.320 --> 0:11:45.320 reply to that? 0:11:45.380 --> 0:11:48.940 Well, John, volumes have been written that provide evidence of 0:11:48.940 --> 0:11:52.380 the New Testament's reliability as a historical document. Are you 0:11:52.380 --> 0:11:56.700 aware there are no contemporary historical records that contradict the 0:11:56.700 --> 0:11:59.780 New Testament authors, and where the New Testament can be 0:11:59.780 --> 0:12:05.500 checked against external sources, they are consistently accurate. So why 0:12:05.500 --> 0:12:09.100 wouldn't we take the New Testament as being historically reliable? 0:12:09.820 --> 0:12:13.260 When I encounter this topic in conversation with my Jewish friends, 0:12:13.460 --> 0:12:16.260 I like to try and work in several questions. The 0:12:16.260 --> 0:12:19.020 first of which is have you read the New Testament? 0:12:19.300 --> 0:12:22.500 I'm shocked by how many people have opinions about a 0:12:22.500 --> 0:12:26.420 book they've never actually read. Second, I like to ask 0:12:26.420 --> 0:12:28.740 my Jewish friends if they're aware that the New Testament 0:12:28.740 --> 0:12:32.300 is a Jewish document at its core. The authors were Jewish. 0:12:32.420 --> 0:12:35.260 It's about a Jewish messiah from Israel, and it relies 0:12:35.260 --> 0:12:38.100 heavily on the Hebrew Bible to make its case. In 0:12:38.100 --> 0:12:40.820 using these questions and others like it, my hope is 0:12:40.820 --> 0:12:43.339 that God will soften their hearts to exploring the New 0:12:43.340 --> 0:12:46.050 Testament and Jesus for themselves. 0:12:46.250 --> 0:12:49.770 Insights from Levi Hazen, whose with life in Messiah and 0:12:49.770 --> 0:12:53.850 you're listening to The land and the book. Doctor Jack 0:12:53.850 --> 0:12:58.089 Beck is a scholar, educator, and writer with extensive experience 0:12:58.090 --> 0:13:01.650 in biblical geography. He has a Ph.D. in Theology and 0:13:01.650 --> 0:13:05.770 Old Testament from Trinity International University, and is an adjunct 0:13:05.770 --> 0:13:10.250 faculty member at Jerusalem University College in Israel. And in 0:13:10.250 --> 0:13:13.410 the past 20 years or so, Doctor Beck has collaborated 0:13:13.410 --> 0:13:16.890 on many projects with our Daily Bread Ministries, including the 0:13:16.890 --> 0:13:21.290 Holy Land video series and several books including the Our 0:13:21.290 --> 0:13:25.050 Daily Bread Bible Atlas. Welcome back to the land and 0:13:25.050 --> 0:13:25.850 the book, Jack. 0:13:26.290 --> 0:13:28.530 John, thanks so much for the chance to visit. 0:13:28.530 --> 0:13:31.970 So obviously, uh, no shortage of Bible atlases out there. 0:13:32.010 --> 0:13:35.530 What made you passionate about taking on this particular project, Jack? 0:13:36.050 --> 0:13:38.850 Yeah, so it's a little different, John, in the sense 0:13:38.850 --> 0:13:42.520 that I have used a different paradigm for integrating Eating 0:13:42.640 --> 0:13:47.360 land and text, and that changes the way the atlas reads. 0:13:47.559 --> 0:13:51.800 It is less a history oriented book and more of 0:13:51.800 --> 0:13:56.959 a commentary like read, so it is organized chronologically as 0:13:56.960 --> 0:14:00.840 you move through the Bible, but it pays attention to geography, 0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:05.400 particularly looking for ways in which not only it shaped 0:14:05.440 --> 0:14:08.920 events and culture, but the way it shapes the very 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:12.760 way the Bible itself speaks. Because some of what God 0:14:12.760 --> 0:14:16.040 has had to say to us, he said, using geography. 0:14:16.080 --> 0:14:19.320 Yeah. Well, having said that, uh, don't be scared off. 0:14:19.320 --> 0:14:22.920 This is in addition to being a visually stunning book, uh, 0:14:22.920 --> 0:14:25.800 one that really does piece the whole narrative together for us. 0:14:25.800 --> 0:14:27.760 So I, I like that it's the kind of thing 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:29.960 you can sit down and just take your time with, uh, 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:33.360 what are the sources that you used for the many, many, very, 0:14:33.360 --> 0:14:36.880 very nice photographs in the Our Daily Bread Bible Atlas? 0:14:37.280 --> 0:14:41.000 Yeah. The photos, John, by and large, are my own, uh, 0:14:41.000 --> 0:14:44.590 few of them from the Our Daily Bread Ministries collection, 0:14:44.590 --> 0:14:47.030 but quite a few of them from my own. You know, 0:14:47.070 --> 0:14:49.630 I've been hanging out in that land for about 30 years, 0:14:49.670 --> 0:14:53.470 and camera equipment has changed over time. But I've tried 0:14:53.470 --> 0:14:56.870 to refresh that collection. I have, and many of those 0:14:56.870 --> 0:14:59.070 refresh pictures appear in the atlas. 0:14:59.110 --> 0:15:02.190 Well, they're well done. Doctor Jack Beck is an adjunct 0:15:02.190 --> 0:15:06.630 faculty member at Jerusalem University College in Israel. He's collaborated 0:15:06.630 --> 0:15:08.950 on a lot of projects with our daily Bread ministries, 0:15:08.950 --> 0:15:12.950 including the Our Daily Bread Bible Atlas we're talking about today. 0:15:13.230 --> 0:15:16.230 Describe how the in-depth commentaries bring a greater sense of 0:15:16.230 --> 0:15:18.630 understanding of the land itself. We've touched on some of it, 0:15:18.630 --> 0:15:21.790 but I think until it's all between two covers, all 0:15:21.990 --> 0:15:26.190 flowing nicely historically, chronologically correct, we don't quite get it. 0:15:26.230 --> 0:15:26.950 What do you think? 0:15:27.550 --> 0:15:30.989 Yeah, I think that's true. And it's a fundamental truth, John, 0:15:30.990 --> 0:15:34.350 that who we are and how we think and how 0:15:34.350 --> 0:15:38.430 we most naturally communicate is very much a product of 0:15:38.430 --> 0:15:42.820 where we're from. I very much sound like someone from 0:15:42.820 --> 0:15:46.580 southern Wisconsin. And you can't take who I am and 0:15:46.580 --> 0:15:49.260 move me to a different place and have the same 0:15:49.260 --> 0:15:53.260 backstory that that I have. The same is true of 0:15:53.260 --> 0:15:56.300 the lives of people in the Bible, who they are, 0:15:56.780 --> 0:16:00.100 how they thought, how they most naturally communicated as a 0:16:00.100 --> 0:16:03.060 product of where they're from. And I try to listen 0:16:03.060 --> 0:16:05.620 really carefully to the way in which they speak, the 0:16:05.620 --> 0:16:09.340 way the biblical authors and poets speak, to listen for 0:16:09.340 --> 0:16:14.060 the way in which they use place to inform my thinking. 0:16:14.620 --> 0:16:17.660 Well, another innovation with this updated atlas is the use 0:16:17.660 --> 0:16:20.900 of QR codes embedded in the text. What kind of 0:16:20.900 --> 0:16:23.820 content can listeners expect when they give those a click? 0:16:24.460 --> 0:16:27.180 Yeah, so I've had the opportunity to do a number 0:16:27.180 --> 0:16:31.020 of film series with our Daily Bread Ministries, and among 0:16:31.020 --> 0:16:34.220 the things that we've filmed are some two minute shorts. 0:16:34.380 --> 0:16:38.860 And it's those brief shorts that are often connected via 0:16:39.010 --> 0:16:43.330 the atlas to the video web portal. So, for example, 0:16:43.330 --> 0:16:46.570 if you happen to be reading about a region, you 0:16:46.570 --> 0:16:49.970 might get a two minute introduction visually to the region 0:16:49.970 --> 0:16:52.490 in a video. If you happen to be reading about 0:16:52.490 --> 0:16:55.650 an olive oil crushing press, you could be linked to 0:16:55.690 --> 0:16:58.610 a two minute video on the olive oil crushing press. 0:16:58.610 --> 0:17:01.690 So they're designed to be brief but insightful. 0:17:01.850 --> 0:17:05.689 That's a neat feature. Doctor Jack Beck is a scholar, educator, 0:17:05.690 --> 0:17:09.729 and writer with extensive experience in biblical geography. He joins 0:17:09.730 --> 0:17:12.649 us today on The Land and the book. I'm John 0:17:12.650 --> 0:17:15.810 Yeager saying thanks for being part of our conversation. Jack. 0:17:15.810 --> 0:17:18.130 What were some of the challenges you guys had in 0:17:18.130 --> 0:17:20.929 shooting those videos? I mean, having been there, many of 0:17:20.930 --> 0:17:23.810 our listeners will be aware it's it's a dusty place. 0:17:23.810 --> 0:17:27.010 It gets real hot. So photographically that can be a challenge. 0:17:27.010 --> 0:17:29.570 Extreme light. What were some of the issues you had 0:17:29.570 --> 0:17:30.290 to deal with? 0:17:30.690 --> 0:17:33.010 Yeah, well, I got to give credit to the film 0:17:33.010 --> 0:17:36.050 crew on this one. They are excellent at picking the 0:17:36.050 --> 0:17:39.119 time of day when it's best to be out shooting. 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:42.040 Often that's earlier in the morning or later in the evening. 0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:45.320 Leaving the middle part of the day to do other things. 0:17:45.320 --> 0:17:48.360 So they really do a great job of picking time 0:17:48.359 --> 0:17:49.960 and place to get those shots. 0:17:50.400 --> 0:17:53.520 How long would you say it took to accumulate, shoot, 0:17:53.560 --> 0:17:56.600 edit all of those little inserts that you're a part 0:17:56.600 --> 0:17:58.280 of our Daily Bread Bible Atlas. 0:17:58.680 --> 0:18:02.399 Wow. You know, I would say they're the shorts are 0:18:02.400 --> 0:18:04.760 very much a part of the four seasons of the 0:18:04.760 --> 0:18:08.040 Holy Land that we've done. So there are 34 longer 0:18:08.040 --> 0:18:11.560 episodes there. Every time we went to shoot one of 0:18:11.560 --> 0:18:15.440 those seasons, we ended up collecting some two minute shorts. 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:18.360 And I think there's something like 60 of them that 0:18:18.359 --> 0:18:19.200 are available. 0:18:20.000 --> 0:18:22.679 At the risk of overstating the obvious, there are also 0:18:22.680 --> 0:18:26.560 lots and lots of maps included. Uh, I think they 0:18:26.560 --> 0:18:29.439 just feel fresh. They feel current. Talk about the value 0:18:29.440 --> 0:18:32.280 of having accurate and detailed maps as we try to 0:18:32.320 --> 0:18:33.560 piece together scripture. 0:18:34.119 --> 0:18:37.710 Well, it's for me all about Orientation. It's not the 0:18:37.710 --> 0:18:41.270 full story of geographic understanding, but I think it's an important, 0:18:41.270 --> 0:18:45.710 fundamental piece. I need to know where things are. And 0:18:45.750 --> 0:18:48.389 one way I can do that is through a map. 0:18:48.390 --> 0:18:51.990 If I can gain some sort of orientation that is 0:18:51.990 --> 0:18:56.310 similar to the orientation the biblical authors and poets had. 0:18:56.510 --> 0:18:59.550 I'll be able to both recognize the geography more quickly 0:18:59.550 --> 0:19:02.750 in their texts and of course, understand what they're saying. 0:19:03.070 --> 0:19:05.590 This is the land and the book. Our guest today, 0:19:05.630 --> 0:19:09.590 doctor Jack Beck. The one component to any atlas that 0:19:09.590 --> 0:19:12.670 is so limiting, it seems to me, is the inability 0:19:12.670 --> 0:19:16.230 to truly convey the topography. Only when you've been to 0:19:16.270 --> 0:19:19.030 Israel do you understand that having a scale in hand 0:19:19.030 --> 0:19:21.190 and saying, oh, that was just five miles away is 0:19:21.190 --> 0:19:23.910 almost irrelevant when you realize how steep the hills are. 0:19:23.950 --> 0:19:26.390 These folks would have to walk up and then try 0:19:26.430 --> 0:19:29.630 not to tumble down. How do you resolve that issue 0:19:29.869 --> 0:19:32.310 of the challenge of conveying topography? 0:19:33.109 --> 0:19:35.650 Well, first of all, I want to acknowledge the reality 0:19:35.650 --> 0:19:38.929 of everything you've just said, John. Many people come to 0:19:38.970 --> 0:19:42.290 Israel to get a geographic picture of the land, and 0:19:42.290 --> 0:19:45.210 there's not just one. It is a place that changes 0:19:45.210 --> 0:19:48.649 quickly over short distances. And so I make there to 0:19:48.650 --> 0:19:54.010 be at least 14 or 15 separate geographic regions. We 0:19:54.050 --> 0:19:58.170 call them out in the atlas. We describe them in detail. 0:19:58.170 --> 0:20:02.650 We show photos of them. We have topographic maps that illustrate. 0:20:02.650 --> 0:20:05.730 So in one or more of those ways, we hope 0:20:05.730 --> 0:20:07.810 to be able to give folks a chance to not 0:20:07.810 --> 0:20:11.810 only think about how that space might have looked generally, 0:20:11.810 --> 0:20:14.810 but individually. How did a region look so that we 0:20:14.810 --> 0:20:19.010 might better understand how that region produced unique stories? 0:20:19.250 --> 0:20:20.850 Yeah. I mean, that issue really is at the heart 0:20:20.850 --> 0:20:23.010 of something that just blew me away after my first visit. 0:20:23.050 --> 0:20:25.609 You know, as I said, a scale that says, you know, 0:20:25.650 --> 0:20:28.570 a quarter inch is ten miles or whatever does absolutely 0:20:28.570 --> 0:20:32.369 nothing to convey what these Bible characters would have experienced 0:20:32.570 --> 0:20:35.920 traveling those distances, be they ever so small numerically. 0:20:35.960 --> 0:20:38.800 Yeah. Lots of up and down in the horizontal. 0:20:38.840 --> 0:20:42.359 Yeah. For sure. Another feature that I really appreciate in 0:20:42.359 --> 0:20:44.679 the back you have a number of charts. These are 0:20:44.720 --> 0:20:47.919 historical charts that list things out in a way that's 0:20:47.960 --> 0:20:50.120 that's sort of visual, but helps me kind of wrap 0:20:50.119 --> 0:20:52.360 my brain around it. I can't just seem to read 0:20:52.359 --> 0:20:54.960 a text and get it lodged there. I need to 0:20:54.960 --> 0:20:57.680 see it simplified in a chart, and you guys have 0:20:57.680 --> 0:20:59.040 done a great job with that too. 0:20:59.400 --> 0:21:02.480 Well, thanks. I think that is an important part of this. 0:21:02.520 --> 0:21:05.240 If you're trying to get your mind wrapped around the 0:21:05.240 --> 0:21:09.040 meteorology or weather of a season's of Israel, I think 0:21:09.080 --> 0:21:11.680 a chart is incredibly helpful. If you're trying to get 0:21:11.680 --> 0:21:15.760 a chronological picture of where that particular person or story 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:18.480 fits in the arc of the larger storyline of the Bible. 0:21:18.480 --> 0:21:22.600 We've got those sorts of chronological timelines as well, and 0:21:22.600 --> 0:21:26.160 for me too, they really are helpful. Visual aids. 0:21:26.560 --> 0:21:30.119 In just one visit to Israel, you are almost overwhelmed 0:21:30.359 --> 0:21:34.350 with the geography and topography. One tiny little nation the 0:21:34.350 --> 0:21:38.350 size of new Jersey has mountains, plains, deserts, valleys, everything 0:21:38.350 --> 0:21:41.110 in between. Maybe the best atlas, though, in the end, 0:21:41.150 --> 0:21:43.710 is ultimately a trip to Israel. Your thoughts Jack? 0:21:44.030 --> 0:21:48.550 Yeah, I would absolutely agree. Everything that I have done 0:21:48.590 --> 0:21:52.150 comes up short of actually being in the land, walking 0:21:52.150 --> 0:21:56.910 that land, feeling the breezes, smelling the smells, hearing the birds. 0:21:57.150 --> 0:22:02.270 That sort of a sensory surround experience really makes a difference. 0:22:02.270 --> 0:22:05.030 And your point is well taken too. The first trip 0:22:05.030 --> 0:22:08.229 can be incredibly overwhelming. I've had folks come with me 0:22:08.230 --> 0:22:11.950 on trips two, three, four, five times, and inevitably on 0:22:11.950 --> 0:22:14.710 the second trip they'll say something like, well, you didn't 0:22:14.710 --> 0:22:16.990 say that the first time I was here. I said, yeah, 0:22:17.030 --> 0:22:19.550 I bet I did. It was just you were thinking 0:22:19.550 --> 0:22:22.109 and trying to grasp something else. And that's why the 0:22:22.109 --> 0:22:25.430 the second trip of people who do multiple trips, the 0:22:25.430 --> 0:22:28.270 second trip is almost always the one that they report 0:22:28.270 --> 0:22:29.590 the most learning on. 0:22:29.910 --> 0:22:31.900 I don't know, I can't speak for anybody else. But 0:22:31.900 --> 0:22:34.100 to me, no matter how many times I go to Israel, 0:22:34.260 --> 0:22:41.300 I just cannot comprehend the extraordinary extremes there are geographically. 0:22:41.700 --> 0:22:43.979 You know, I think of going up north and you 0:22:43.980 --> 0:22:47.100 go to the Bonniest waterfall. No one, no one would 0:22:47.100 --> 0:22:51.300 imagine that such a lush, green, cool, spectacular place like 0:22:51.300 --> 0:22:54.740 that existed in Israel, I think, unless they actually went there. 0:22:55.020 --> 0:22:58.180 Yeah, it's exactly right. And then you move 15 miles 0:22:58.180 --> 0:23:01.020 and you're in a different ecosystem, and another 15 miles 0:23:01.020 --> 0:23:04.379 and you're in another ecosystem. And John, something that I 0:23:04.420 --> 0:23:07.700 learned early on is that you can't move one of 0:23:07.700 --> 0:23:10.340 these stories in the Bible, one of these pieces of 0:23:10.340 --> 0:23:13.820 poetry in the Bible, from one region to another and 0:23:13.820 --> 0:23:17.500 not impact how you understand and interpret it. So I 0:23:17.500 --> 0:23:19.700 think one of the one of the keys for me 0:23:19.700 --> 0:23:22.780 as a Bible interpreter, and you'll appreciate this, that I 0:23:22.820 --> 0:23:28.220 began my scholarly career as a linguist and literary analyst. 0:23:28.500 --> 0:23:31.929 Those were the tools that I thought would most help 0:23:31.930 --> 0:23:36.010 me understand the text. I realized after I started incorporating 0:23:36.010 --> 0:23:39.290 geography that I needed that tool in my belt as well, 0:23:39.330 --> 0:23:42.090 to really come around to a full understanding of a 0:23:42.090 --> 0:23:43.889 text and its interpretation. 0:23:44.250 --> 0:23:46.449 You know what we're talking about geography. I'm thinking of 0:23:46.450 --> 0:23:49.650 an evening I spent recently with a couple of our granddaughters, 0:23:49.650 --> 0:23:51.850 and we're reading a Bible story, and of course, it 0:23:51.890 --> 0:23:56.370 envisions a sheep in a green pasture. Well, green pastures 0:23:56.410 --> 0:23:58.690 a la what we see in the United States just 0:23:58.690 --> 0:24:02.449 don't exist in Israel, period. And again, until you go there, 0:24:02.450 --> 0:24:03.970 you don't quite get that right. 0:24:04.290 --> 0:24:09.410 Yeah. That's right. There is no southern Wisconsin, upper Midwestern 0:24:09.730 --> 0:24:12.570 sort of landscape. You know, my grandparents had a dairy farm. 0:24:12.730 --> 0:24:16.210 And so prior to my engagement with Israel, a lot 0:24:16.210 --> 0:24:20.169 of my agricultural understanding and pictures were were coming out 0:24:20.170 --> 0:24:24.290 of that experience. I didn't have another experience to attach 0:24:24.290 --> 0:24:28.879 to the language. But when I suddenly get into that land. 0:24:28.880 --> 0:24:31.880 And I understand the culture of movement of the shepherds 0:24:31.880 --> 0:24:37.159 from wilderness pastures into farm fields and back again. I 0:24:37.200 --> 0:24:40.200 had a whole different understanding of Psalm 23. 0:24:40.440 --> 0:24:43.560 And standing outside of Bethlehem, on the hills where those 0:24:43.560 --> 0:24:46.399 shepherds were positioned at the time of Christ's birth. You 0:24:46.400 --> 0:24:48.120 look at the sheep there and you go, how do 0:24:48.119 --> 0:24:51.160 they find enough to fill their stomachs? But they do. 0:24:51.560 --> 0:24:54.359 And for me, the sort of rush to a devotional 0:24:54.400 --> 0:24:57.480 mentality says, you know, God is going to provide, even 0:24:57.480 --> 0:24:59.920 if it doesn't look like there's enough there. He'll make 0:24:59.960 --> 0:25:02.560 sure there's enough. And that's another great lesson. 0:25:03.000 --> 0:25:06.760 It really is. And Psalm 23, it's not that the 0:25:06.760 --> 0:25:10.840 livestock are in a place that is so abundant in 0:25:10.880 --> 0:25:14.000 food and water that they don't have to worry. They're 0:25:14.000 --> 0:25:17.439 in a place that lacks almost everything. But when they 0:25:17.440 --> 0:25:19.680 look at the shepherd, they lack nothing. 0:25:20.040 --> 0:25:22.880 That's doctor Jack Beck, who has put together our Daily 0:25:22.880 --> 0:25:26.080 Bread Bible Atlas. This is not just a collection of 0:25:26.080 --> 0:25:29.470 maps or a collection of really pretty pictures. It is 0:25:29.470 --> 0:25:32.590 a book that moves you through the entire Bible in 0:25:32.590 --> 0:25:35.190 a way that puts it together for you and helps 0:25:35.190 --> 0:25:37.750 you understand it on several different levels. Thank you for 0:25:37.750 --> 0:25:40.510 your investment with the book. Thank you for sharing with 0:25:40.510 --> 0:25:42.030 us today on the land and the book. 0:25:42.390 --> 0:25:44.429 John, thanks for the opportunity to be with you. I 0:25:44.430 --> 0:25:45.790 always appreciate the visit. 0:25:46.150 --> 0:25:48.149 And we hope you come back. Well, coming up on 0:25:48.150 --> 0:25:50.830 the broadcast, it's your friend and mine, Gerald Peterman, to 0:25:50.869 --> 0:25:53.149 look at Bible questions that have come in. See you 0:25:53.150 --> 0:25:55.550 on our next segment of The land and the book. 0:26:06.830 --> 0:26:11.070 The Bible is one big book, 66 books inside that book, 0:26:11.109 --> 0:26:14.070 and so many different chapters and verses and subjects and 0:26:14.070 --> 0:26:17.430 people and places. If you read it and don't have questions, 0:26:17.430 --> 0:26:19.790 you got to wonder whether you're really reading it. I'm 0:26:19.790 --> 0:26:22.909 John Gager. This is the land and the book. Seated 0:26:22.910 --> 0:26:25.390 across from me, the one and only Doctor Gerald Peterman 0:26:25.430 --> 0:26:28.580 on the Moody Bible Institute faculty. Now on the land 0:26:28.580 --> 0:26:30.100 and the book faculty. Welcome back. 0:26:30.140 --> 0:26:32.100 Oh, thank you, sir. Wonderful to be here. 0:26:32.140 --> 0:26:34.100 Always fun to take a look at what listeners are 0:26:34.100 --> 0:26:36.939 wondering about. Before we get to our first question. Let's 0:26:36.940 --> 0:26:39.220 think about the fact that most Jewish people have never 0:26:39.220 --> 0:26:42.139 heard the gospel. Each week we talk about Israel and 0:26:42.140 --> 0:26:44.820 the Jewish people, and it's important to remember that they, 0:26:44.820 --> 0:26:47.659 like everyone else, need to hear the good news. 0:26:47.900 --> 0:26:51.980 Life in Messiah and ministry in existence for over 135 years, 0:26:52.020 --> 0:26:54.980 is devoted to sharing the gospel with Jewish people around 0:26:54.980 --> 0:26:58.700 the world. Now they're offering a gift to moody listeners. 0:26:58.740 --> 0:27:03.100 This free book, Reaching Jewish People for Messiah, highlights the 0:27:03.100 --> 0:27:05.660 need for the gospel among the Jewish people and will 0:27:05.660 --> 0:27:09.260 equip you with practical ways to share the gospel with them. 0:27:09.260 --> 0:27:14.700 To receive this free e-book, visit Life in Messiah. Click 0:27:14.700 --> 0:27:17.500 on the Moody Radio logo and sign up today to 0:27:17.500 --> 0:27:18.700 get your copy. 0:27:18.740 --> 0:27:22.020 All right. Sounds good. Thank you. Jerry. Here's Charlie's question 0:27:22.020 --> 0:27:24.300 to kick things off. And before we even let him 0:27:24.340 --> 0:27:26.690 ask his question. I have to let you know that 0:27:26.690 --> 0:27:29.050 you can ask your question when you connect with us 0:27:29.050 --> 0:27:34.610 via email at the Land and the book at. The 0:27:34.609 --> 0:27:38.729 land and the book at Moody Dot. All right. Charlie's 0:27:38.770 --> 0:27:41.449 waited long enough. His question. Uh, this came up at 0:27:41.450 --> 0:27:44.530 his Bible study at church regarding fasting. He says there 0:27:44.530 --> 0:27:47.650 was a discussion as to whether it is required or 0:27:47.690 --> 0:27:51.250 is expected, fasting as it required or expected. And the 0:27:51.250 --> 0:27:54.929 scripture that they're referencing is Matthew 617. What do you think? 0:27:55.410 --> 0:27:57.530 Well, it's a great question. The law of Moses. We 0:27:57.530 --> 0:28:00.690 see that fasting is only required on the Day of Atonement. 0:28:00.690 --> 0:28:04.010 You can read Leviticus 16 to see that. But then 0:28:04.010 --> 0:28:06.850 after the Israelites had come back from exile, there were 0:28:06.850 --> 0:28:10.770 several regular fasts of remembrance. And you can go to 0:28:10.810 --> 0:28:15.250 Zechariah seven about this. And Daniel, oh, man, was he 0:28:15.250 --> 0:28:18.250 a pillar of faith. Daniel mentions a three week period 0:28:18.250 --> 0:28:22.130 of mourning where he abstained from what he calls delicacies 0:28:22.130 --> 0:28:27.750 meat and wine. Daniel. Chapter ten. So from Luke 18 0:28:28.150 --> 0:28:31.030 with talk about a Pharisee, it becomes quite clear that 0:28:31.030 --> 0:28:35.270 many Jews fasted on a regular basis twice a week. Now, 0:28:35.310 --> 0:28:37.990 I'm sorry, Charlie, to get to your question. Our Lord, 0:28:37.990 --> 0:28:42.709 I think in Matthew 617 is not commanding fasting. Rather, 0:28:42.710 --> 0:28:46.030 he's assuming that his Jewish audience is doing it on 0:28:46.030 --> 0:28:50.150 a regular basis. They do it to draw close to God, to, 0:28:50.430 --> 0:28:52.830 you know, when we have a hunger in our body, 0:28:53.070 --> 0:28:55.710 you know, it drives us to rely upon God and 0:28:55.710 --> 0:28:58.590 trust in him. So, uh, doing this fasting on a 0:28:58.590 --> 0:29:01.430 regular basis kind of opens us up to God. So again, 0:29:01.430 --> 0:29:04.110 I don't think Jesus is commanding it. I think he's 0:29:04.110 --> 0:29:06.430 assuming we're going to do it, and then he's telling 0:29:06.430 --> 0:29:09.469 us how we should do it. We shouldn't do it 0:29:09.470 --> 0:29:11.830 to be seen by other people so that we think 0:29:11.830 --> 0:29:14.670 we're godly. Right, right. We're doing it for our relationship 0:29:14.670 --> 0:29:15.350 with God. 0:29:15.390 --> 0:29:18.270 Okay, so he is assuming that we as modern day 0:29:18.310 --> 0:29:20.350 followers are also fasting. Is that fair? 0:29:20.390 --> 0:29:22.980 Yeah, I think he is. That is, um, it kind 0:29:22.980 --> 0:29:27.540 of tests our self-control. Yeah. Okay. You know, you live 0:29:27.540 --> 0:29:29.660 in the modern West. There's food all over the place 0:29:29.660 --> 0:29:32.780 all the time, and we could be snacking all day long. 0:29:33.500 --> 0:29:37.100 But then when we change our schedule and we grow hungry, 0:29:37.100 --> 0:29:39.540 and then we let that hunger last for several hours, 0:29:39.780 --> 0:29:42.420 it makes us rely upon God and realize how good 0:29:42.420 --> 0:29:45.420 we have it. Yeah. It's a wonderful spiritual practice for 0:29:45.420 --> 0:29:46.380 drawing near to God. 0:29:46.380 --> 0:29:49.180 The president of Moody Bible Institute, doctor Mark Jobe, first 0:29:49.180 --> 0:29:52.900 kind of introduced me to this whole challenge. And, um, 0:29:53.220 --> 0:29:56.020 so to this day, I try and skip breakfast, for example, 0:29:56.060 --> 0:30:00.620 on Wednesdays and devote that time to prayer. And also, 0:30:00.660 --> 0:30:02.900 if I'm not, listen to the legalist in me doing 0:30:02.900 --> 0:30:05.940 it right, quote unquote. Before I eat, I like to 0:30:05.940 --> 0:30:08.380 go over my little prayer list a last time, so 0:30:08.420 --> 0:30:11.540 I'm sort of a bookend trying to remember those requests. 0:30:11.540 --> 0:30:14.020 Remember why I'm doing this. This is not a health thing. 0:30:14.420 --> 0:30:18.180 It's about being serious with God, about things that are 0:30:18.180 --> 0:30:18.700 on my heart. 0:30:18.740 --> 0:30:20.180 Exactly right. Exactly right. 0:30:20.220 --> 0:30:22.650 Yeah. Thank you, Charlie, for bringing that to our attention. 0:30:22.650 --> 0:30:24.570 Let's go on to Ron's question. He takes us to 0:30:24.610 --> 0:30:28.450 Matthew one verses five and six. Say, And Boaz was 0:30:28.450 --> 0:30:32.130 the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father 0:30:32.130 --> 0:30:34.770 of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. 0:30:35.050 --> 0:30:38.530 But if Boaz marries Ruth to raise up offspring to 0:30:38.570 --> 0:30:42.970 her dead husband, Mahlon's name and the neighbor woman declare 0:30:43.130 --> 0:30:46.050 a son has been born to Naomi, wouldn't the line 0:30:46.090 --> 0:30:49.890 of David technically go through the dead husband Mahlon, instead 0:30:49.890 --> 0:30:50.850 of Boaz? 0:30:50.970 --> 0:30:53.290 Ah, thanks so much for the question. It's actually a 0:30:53.290 --> 0:30:57.570 tough question. Let me mention three things about this. First, 0:30:57.930 --> 0:31:01.130 in the law of Moses, levirate marriage is outlined in 0:31:01.130 --> 0:31:04.890 Deuteronomy 25. What does it do? It obligates a man 0:31:04.930 --> 0:31:09.850 to marry his deceased brother's widow, to ensure the continuation 0:31:09.850 --> 0:31:13.650 of the deceased brother's lineage, and the firstborn son will 0:31:13.650 --> 0:31:16.210 be considered the heir, and then the air will be 0:31:16.210 --> 0:31:18.450 able to supply the needs of the family. So the 0:31:18.450 --> 0:31:22.920 issue here is really having property? Where's the property going 0:31:22.920 --> 0:31:25.720 to go? It will stay in the family this way. 0:31:25.960 --> 0:31:28.240 And then the family has property to grow. Food. They 0:31:28.240 --> 0:31:31.520 can take care of themselves. Now, second, in the book 0:31:31.520 --> 0:31:34.120 of Ruth, it looks like the son Obed, who is 0:31:34.120 --> 0:31:38.200 born to Ruth, would inherit his melons property as well 0:31:38.200 --> 0:31:42.400 as Boaz's property, since Boaz is single when he marries Ruth. 0:31:42.680 --> 0:31:46.760 So let's end up back at Matthew, right? I think 0:31:46.760 --> 0:31:49.760 what Matthew is doing is not giving us the legal 0:31:49.760 --> 0:31:52.640 line that would go through my life. Yeah, right. He's 0:31:52.640 --> 0:31:56.040 not giving us the legal line. He's giving us the bloodline. 0:31:56.320 --> 0:31:59.400 So Boaz is the father of Obed by Ruth, and 0:31:59.400 --> 0:32:02.200 Obed the father of Jesse, who is the father of David. Again, 0:32:02.240 --> 0:32:05.520 that's not the legal ownership. That's the bloodline. 0:32:06.120 --> 0:32:08.360 This is the land and the book from Moody Radio. 0:32:08.360 --> 0:32:12.000 Doctor Gerald Peterman on the Moody faculty. Always open to 0:32:12.000 --> 0:32:14.640 your Bible questions, and you get them to us via 0:32:14.680 --> 0:32:17.990 email at the land and the book at Moody Got 0:32:19.190 --> 0:32:21.230 a question from Eric, he says. A while back on 0:32:21.230 --> 0:32:24.710 a news broadcast, I heard that many young men were 0:32:24.710 --> 0:32:28.790 joining Orthodox churches in the United States. The question how 0:32:28.790 --> 0:32:32.710 is the Orthodox Church different from Protestant and Catholic churches 0:32:32.710 --> 0:32:34.590 in their beliefs and practices? 0:32:34.710 --> 0:32:37.990 Oh, that's a really deep and wide question. And whole 0:32:38.030 --> 0:32:40.950 books are written about it. So let's try to cut 0:32:40.950 --> 0:32:45.110 to the chase. Okay, so first with the Roman Catholic Church, 0:32:45.430 --> 0:32:48.350 the pope is their leader and the pope is believed 0:32:48.350 --> 0:32:51.550 to be infallible when he speaks from his official place 0:32:51.550 --> 0:33:01.350 as pope. The church has seven sacraments which communicate grace, baptism, confirmation, Eucharist, penance, 0:33:01.710 --> 0:33:05.150 anointing of the sick, holy orders, and marriage. And the 0:33:05.150 --> 0:33:08.430 Roman Catholic Bible has what is called the Apocrypha, or 0:33:08.470 --> 0:33:13.750 sometimes called the Deuterocanonicals. That's an additional seven books. And 0:33:13.790 --> 0:33:17.820 of course, we all know Roman Catholic priests are single. 0:33:18.060 --> 0:33:22.020 Now second, the Orthodox Church very similar. They have the 0:33:22.020 --> 0:33:24.900 same seven sacraments. I won't go through them. They have 0:33:24.900 --> 0:33:28.220 the same apocrypha in their Bible. But their church is 0:33:28.220 --> 0:33:31.980 not led by a pope, but by patriarchs. And when 0:33:31.980 --> 0:33:36.540 the patriarchs gather for a council, that council is believed 0:33:36.540 --> 0:33:42.620 to be infallible. Lastly, with Protestants, things are a bit different. 0:33:42.620 --> 0:33:46.940 We often use the phrase sola scriptura. That is, we're 0:33:46.940 --> 0:33:49.940 relying on the Bible. That is, the Bible is the 0:33:49.940 --> 0:33:55.140 final authority with 66 books, not the additional seven with Protestants. 0:33:55.420 --> 0:33:59.700 There are two sacraments, or, I would like to say, ordinances, 0:34:00.100 --> 0:34:04.540 baptism and the Lord's Supper. And leadership is mostly decentralized 0:34:04.540 --> 0:34:09.540 with the result that individual congregations rule themselves. So that's 0:34:09.540 --> 0:34:11.580 a sketch of the differences. 0:34:11.620 --> 0:34:15.420 Okay. In John 20, Mark wants to know when Mary 0:34:15.530 --> 0:34:19.650 encountered Jesus outside the tomb, he told her, don't hold 0:34:19.650 --> 0:34:22.170 on to me, for I have not yet ascended to 0:34:22.210 --> 0:34:24.690 my father in heaven. Can you shed some light on 0:34:24.690 --> 0:34:26.050 this statement? What's going on here? 0:34:26.450 --> 0:34:28.730 I find this one of the most difficult verses for 0:34:28.730 --> 0:34:32.770 me in John's Gospel. Here's what I think is going on. 0:34:32.770 --> 0:34:36.370 When Jesus says, don't cling to me. I don't take 0:34:36.370 --> 0:34:39.170 it that he's being dismissive. I don't take it that 0:34:39.170 --> 0:34:42.970 he's being rude. Let's keep in mind what he says next. 0:34:43.010 --> 0:34:47.370 He says, go tell my brothers that you've seen me. 0:34:47.770 --> 0:34:51.530 So I'm reading the interaction between Jesus and Mary. Like this. 0:34:51.770 --> 0:34:54.250 Let's stop the hug for now. There will be time 0:34:54.250 --> 0:34:57.410 for that later. Yeah. Right now you have a task 0:34:57.650 --> 0:35:01.330 to tell about the resurrection. And I have one too. 0:35:01.650 --> 0:35:06.730 So let them all know I'm alive. So he's giving 0:35:06.730 --> 0:35:10.569 her the opportunity to go from grief to spreading the 0:35:10.570 --> 0:35:14.290 good news, and she's transformed by that commission. 0:35:14.710 --> 0:35:17.350 Well, you know, we mentioned earlier that Jesus assumed his 0:35:17.350 --> 0:35:21.069 followers were fasting and regularly. Okay. My question is, does 0:35:21.070 --> 0:35:25.430 it follow also that Jesus assumed his followers were are 0:35:25.670 --> 0:35:27.670 memorizing scripture? What do you think? 0:35:27.910 --> 0:35:31.950 I think so. That is in Jesus's life. Growing up 0:35:31.950 --> 0:35:34.509 in the synagogue, I'm sure that Mary and Joseph took 0:35:34.510 --> 0:35:37.150 him Sunday. By Sunday, I'm sorry. Saturday by Saturday. Please 0:35:37.150 --> 0:35:40.030 excuse me. Right. And how is it that our Lord 0:35:40.030 --> 0:35:43.190 knows so much Scripture? Because he has heard it over 0:35:43.190 --> 0:35:45.830 and over and over and over and over again. And 0:35:45.830 --> 0:35:48.069 so we need to be taking Scripture in on a 0:35:48.070 --> 0:35:50.790 regular basis. And I think if we just take it 0:35:50.790 --> 0:35:53.310 in day by day, week by week, year by year, 0:35:53.310 --> 0:35:56.029 month by month, it will be in our heart. 0:35:56.070 --> 0:35:58.549 Yeah. Well, I think right there you've revealed tip number 0:35:58.550 --> 0:36:00.710 one to somebody who says, oh, my brain just doesn't 0:36:00.710 --> 0:36:02.989 work that way. I, you know, I used to when 0:36:02.989 --> 0:36:05.430 I was younger or, you know, I just can't seem 0:36:05.430 --> 0:36:08.030 to hang on to it. It's exposure. It's like anything 0:36:08.030 --> 0:36:10.950 else we can all quote a dumb TV jingle. We 0:36:11.190 --> 0:36:13.029 should surely be able to quote a verse or two. 0:36:13.070 --> 0:36:14.460 Oh, you're so right. 0:36:14.980 --> 0:36:17.899 Just be patient with yourself and just make sure you're 0:36:17.940 --> 0:36:21.180 getting Bible input consistently and it will sink in. You'll 0:36:21.180 --> 0:36:22.300 find it's in your heart. 0:36:22.340 --> 0:36:26.260 Be patient and be persistent. And that word will sink in. 0:36:26.300 --> 0:36:30.020 Advice from Doctor Gerald Peterman, who answers your question anytime 0:36:30.020 --> 0:36:33.700 you email us at the land and the Book at Moody's. 0:36:34.820 --> 0:36:37.340 More to come. On today's broadcast, Charley returns with a 0:36:37.340 --> 0:36:40.340 devotional you don't want to miss here on Moody Radio's 0:36:40.340 --> 0:36:56.060 The Land and the book. Hey, thanks for connecting with 0:36:56.060 --> 0:36:58.460 us today at the land and the book. I'm John 0:36:58.460 --> 0:37:01.259 Gager and Charley. How small was the town you grew 0:37:01.260 --> 0:37:03.020 up in? Small? Not so small. 0:37:03.020 --> 0:37:04.060 500 people. 0:37:04.100 --> 0:37:06.379 All right. I can beat that. The town that my 0:37:06.380 --> 0:37:08.739 wife grew up near is so small that when our 0:37:08.739 --> 0:37:11.860 kids were taking their driver's training, we had them back 0:37:11.930 --> 0:37:16.049 around the entire town. But you've got a different kind 0:37:16.050 --> 0:37:17.730 of a town you're looking at today in your devotional, 0:37:17.730 --> 0:37:18.570 I understand. 0:37:18.650 --> 0:37:20.530 Uh, we are we're looking at the might have been 0:37:20.530 --> 0:37:21.569 town of Riblah. 0:37:21.730 --> 0:37:24.250 Mentioned three times in Scripture. I'm guessing none of us 0:37:24.250 --> 0:37:26.450 have ever heard it or recalled it, but we'll get 0:37:26.450 --> 0:37:29.250 to that after this Holy Land experience. Testimony. 0:37:33.370 --> 0:37:36.730 Hi, my name is Suzanne Strizic from Chicago, and I 0:37:36.770 --> 0:37:39.650 just wanted to say that the power of prayer was 0:37:39.650 --> 0:37:42.970 the most remarkable thing. We were prepped before we left 0:37:42.969 --> 0:37:46.969 Chicago to to pray, and we honestly did it each night. 0:37:47.290 --> 0:37:50.330 And we prayed for everything from the bus driver to 0:37:50.410 --> 0:37:54.930 good weather. And God answered all those prayers and just 0:37:54.930 --> 0:37:57.570 gave us a joy, you know, of seeing the sights 0:37:57.570 --> 0:38:01.009 and and the new friends that we met and beautiful, um, 0:38:01.050 --> 0:38:04.730 time together. It was every detail taken care of. So 0:38:04.730 --> 0:38:09.370 the answer to prayer was the most beautiful experience. 0:38:09.690 --> 0:38:13.279 Hi, my name is Alan Strizic from Chicago, Illinois. One 0:38:13.280 --> 0:38:15.480 of the things that really surprised me was when we 0:38:15.520 --> 0:38:18.400 were at the Senechal in the upper room, and Charlie 0:38:18.400 --> 0:38:20.640 pointed out the statue that was in there. It said, 0:38:20.640 --> 0:38:23.239 not by power or might, but by my spirit, says 0:38:23.239 --> 0:38:27.319 the Lord. Hearing those words from Zechariah and actually seeing 0:38:27.320 --> 0:38:29.000 it in the same place as the Last Supper had 0:38:29.000 --> 0:38:33.240 been held, seeing it the same place as the Pentecost event. 0:38:33.719 --> 0:38:36.200 It was just a very, very powerful thing. I had 0:38:36.200 --> 0:38:38.320 been to the room once before, but it was really 0:38:38.320 --> 0:38:40.200 such a surprise and it really moved me a lot. 0:38:40.239 --> 0:38:42.200 Thank you Charlie, thank you. Land in the book. 0:38:44.360 --> 0:38:46.680 All right Charlie, I'm looking forward to your devotional today. 0:38:46.719 --> 0:38:47.480 Have at it. 0:38:47.680 --> 0:38:51.120 Thanks, John. Well, few today know much about the 19th 0:38:51.160 --> 0:38:55.399 century poet John Greenleaf Whittier. With the possible exception of 0:38:55.400 --> 0:38:58.600 a single couplet from one of his poems, that couplet 0:38:58.600 --> 0:39:01.399 goes like this. For of all sad words of tongue 0:39:01.440 --> 0:39:05.160 or pen, the saddest are these. It might have been 0:39:05.719 --> 0:39:08.719 Whittier's poem might be an apt one to read today 0:39:08.719 --> 0:39:11.870 as we drive to the site of ancient Riblah in Syria. 0:39:12.270 --> 0:39:16.029 The site itself isn't impressive, but the surrounding area is 0:39:16.030 --> 0:39:19.469 located by the Syrian Lebanese border. Riblah sits in a 0:39:19.469 --> 0:39:22.910 fertile plain, watered by a number of streams that eventually 0:39:22.910 --> 0:39:26.750 link up to form the Orontes River. Unlike much of Syria, 0:39:26.750 --> 0:39:29.910 which is desert, the immediate area around Riblah is a 0:39:29.910 --> 0:39:33.950 patchwork of green fields and well-tended trees. Little wonder this 0:39:33.950 --> 0:39:37.989 became a major stop on the route between Egypt and Mesopotamia. 0:39:38.469 --> 0:39:40.589 But how can a place of such beauty become a 0:39:40.590 --> 0:39:43.790 town of sadness and regret? Well, we'll discover the answer 0:39:43.790 --> 0:39:47.590 by visiting the city on three separate occasions through the Bible. 0:39:48.070 --> 0:39:51.150 Our first visit to Riblah takes place in the springtime 0:39:51.150 --> 0:39:54.110 of Israel's birth as a nation. The people are camped 0:39:54.110 --> 0:39:56.630 along the eastern edge of the Jordan River, about to 0:39:56.670 --> 0:40:00.750 enter the Promised Land. Moses is giving his final instructions 0:40:00.750 --> 0:40:04.470 before turning over the keys of leadership to Joshua. One 0:40:04.469 --> 0:40:07.109 item on his Divine Punch list is to share the 0:40:07.110 --> 0:40:11.180 specific land boundaries promised by God to the nation. These 0:40:11.180 --> 0:40:14.820 boundaries are given in numbers 34, and along the far 0:40:14.820 --> 0:40:18.580 northeastern boundary of the land is Riblah. The land God 0:40:18.580 --> 0:40:21.820 promised to Israel included much of what is today Lebanon 0:40:21.820 --> 0:40:25.140 and Syria, and the beautiful region of Riblah was on 0:40:25.140 --> 0:40:29.060 the border of God's promised Land. In Israel's early history, 0:40:29.060 --> 0:40:33.380 Riblah represented God's goal, God's ideal for his people. He 0:40:33.380 --> 0:40:35.899 was to be their God. They were to be his people. 0:40:35.900 --> 0:40:38.940 If they obeyed him, he promised to bless. And part 0:40:38.940 --> 0:40:43.219 of that blessing was to include beautiful riblah. Sadly, this 0:40:43.219 --> 0:40:46.419 was not to be. Fast forward in time to our 0:40:46.420 --> 0:40:50.220 second visit to Riblah, the last good king of Judah, 0:40:50.219 --> 0:40:54.180 King Josiah has just died trying to stop Pharaoh Necho 0:40:54.180 --> 0:40:57.140 of Egypt from heading north to engage the army of 0:40:57.140 --> 0:41:01.540 King Nebuchadnezzar. Josiah took his stand and lost his life 0:41:01.540 --> 0:41:03.900 at the hill of Megiddo, in a futile attempt to 0:41:03.940 --> 0:41:08.410 keep Judah from being swallowed up by Egypt's plans for expansion. 0:41:08.730 --> 0:41:12.090 As Josiah's dead body was being carried back to Jerusalem, 0:41:12.290 --> 0:41:15.290 Pharaoh Necho and his army marched north to Riblah and 0:41:15.290 --> 0:41:18.130 set up camp. They had hoped to reach Carchemish on 0:41:18.130 --> 0:41:21.609 the Euphrates River, but Nebuchadnezzar beat them to the prize. 0:41:21.930 --> 0:41:25.330 Carchemish had fallen the next best place for Egypt to 0:41:25.370 --> 0:41:29.850 prepare for the coming conflict with Babylon was Riblah. Meanwhile, 0:41:29.850 --> 0:41:33.410 preparations were made in Jerusalem for Josiah's funeral and to 0:41:33.450 --> 0:41:36.810 determine who would follow him onto the throne. Jehoahaz was 0:41:36.810 --> 0:41:40.770 chosen to succeed his father. Unfortunately, he didn't possess his 0:41:40.770 --> 0:41:44.770 father's godly character. Though only 23 years old, he had 0:41:44.770 --> 0:41:49.009 already decided to follow a different spiritual path rather than 0:41:49.010 --> 0:41:52.049 following in the ways of his own father, Josiah. He 0:41:52.050 --> 0:41:55.090 chose instead to walk in the ways of his forefathers, 0:41:55.130 --> 0:41:58.370 Amnon and Manasseh. He only sat on the throne for 0:41:58.370 --> 0:42:01.089 three months, but in that short time he set a 0:42:01.090 --> 0:42:04.489 pattern for wickedness that was followed by every succeeding king 0:42:04.530 --> 0:42:09.160 of Judah. What a sad legacy. When Pharaoh Necho summoned 0:42:09.160 --> 0:42:12.879 Jehoahaz to Riblah, the young king appeared before Egypt's monarch 0:42:12.880 --> 0:42:15.920 and learned his punishment for being head of a nation 0:42:15.920 --> 0:42:19.160 that had dared oppose the might of Egypt. Pharaoh Necho 0:42:19.160 --> 0:42:21.879 put him in chains at Riblah and carried him off 0:42:21.880 --> 0:42:25.719 to Egypt, and there he died. Riblah. The town that 0:42:25.760 --> 0:42:29.240 represented the extent of Israel's blessing were she to obey 0:42:29.239 --> 0:42:32.040 her God, became the town where the king from the 0:42:32.040 --> 0:42:35.879 line of David was enslaved and taken to Egypt. The 0:42:35.880 --> 0:42:39.839 country from which God had once freed his people from slavery. 0:42:40.280 --> 0:42:42.520 But we've not yet reached the end of the story 0:42:42.520 --> 0:42:45.160 on Riblah. We need to circle back to the city 0:42:45.200 --> 0:42:49.760 one last time. Jehoahaz was followed to the throne by Jehoiakim, 0:42:49.960 --> 0:42:53.600 who was followed by Jehoiachin, who was followed by Zedekiah. 0:42:53.920 --> 0:42:56.840 Each seemed to be a carbon copy of his predecessor. 0:42:57.040 --> 0:42:59.720 The Bible describes each king as a man who did 0:42:59.719 --> 0:43:03.440 evil in the eyes of the Lord. The final king, Zedekiah, 0:43:03.440 --> 0:43:06.660 was perhaps the most tragic of all, because it appears 0:43:06.660 --> 0:43:09.620 that he actually had a struggle of conscience over what 0:43:09.660 --> 0:43:12.140 God wanted him to do. But in the end, he 0:43:12.140 --> 0:43:14.940 didn't have the strength of character to take a stand 0:43:14.940 --> 0:43:17.420 for what he knew to be right. For example, when 0:43:17.420 --> 0:43:21.700 the nobles of Jerusalem wanted to kill Jeremiah, he responded meekly. 0:43:21.900 --> 0:43:24.420 He's in your hands. The king can do nothing to 0:43:24.460 --> 0:43:27.780 oppose you. Reading that verse, you want to shout out, 0:43:27.780 --> 0:43:31.780 for crying out loud, Zedekiah, you're the king! You can 0:43:31.780 --> 0:43:36.739 oppose them. It took an African slave, David Melech, the Cushite, 0:43:36.980 --> 0:43:39.660 to stand up to the king and display the courage 0:43:39.660 --> 0:43:44.219 needed to rescue Jeremiah from certain death. Zedekiah was king 0:43:44.219 --> 0:43:47.740 when the Babylonians finally broke through the defenses of Jerusalem. 0:43:47.739 --> 0:43:50.340 As the Babylonians poured into the city from the breach 0:43:50.340 --> 0:43:53.299 in the north, Zedekiah and his family slipped out of 0:43:53.300 --> 0:43:56.060 the city. At its southern end, they fled into the 0:43:56.060 --> 0:44:00.100 Judean wilderness, down through the countless twisting valleys, making their 0:44:00.100 --> 0:44:03.490 way toward the Jordan River, breaking out onto the plain 0:44:03.489 --> 0:44:07.170 by Jericho. Zedekiah and his family made a desperate dash 0:44:07.170 --> 0:44:09.489 toward the mountains of Ammon. On the far side of 0:44:09.489 --> 0:44:12.450 the valley. But the Babylonians caught up with them before 0:44:12.450 --> 0:44:15.089 he could get away, and after they captured him, where 0:44:15.090 --> 0:44:18.690 did they take him? To Riblah. While the main part 0:44:18.690 --> 0:44:23.770 of Nebuchadnezzar's army had been attacking Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar himself wasn't there. 0:44:23.969 --> 0:44:27.770 He had set up his headquarters in Riblah. Why? Because 0:44:27.810 --> 0:44:31.250 Judah wasn't the only nation in rebellion. The ammonites and 0:44:31.250 --> 0:44:35.370 the people of tyre had also rebelled against Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar 0:44:35.370 --> 0:44:38.570 selected Riblah for his base to prevent these other nations 0:44:38.570 --> 0:44:42.250 from slipping behind his forces to cut off his supply route. 0:44:42.690 --> 0:44:47.530 Its strategic location and natural resources made Riblah the perfect location. 0:44:48.010 --> 0:44:51.170 The Babylonian soldiers were under orders to bring Judah's leaders 0:44:51.170 --> 0:44:55.810 to Nebuchadnezzar to be sentenced for their rebellion. Jeremiah provides 0:44:55.810 --> 0:44:59.730 a vivid account of what happened next. They captured Zedekiah 0:44:59.730 --> 0:45:02.799 and took him to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon at Riblah, 0:45:03.040 --> 0:45:06.160 where they pronounced sentence on him. There at Riblah, the 0:45:06.160 --> 0:45:10.120 king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, 0:45:10.120 --> 0:45:13.000 and also killed all the nobles of Judah. Then he 0:45:13.000 --> 0:45:16.880 put out Zedekiah's eyes and bound him with bronze shackles 0:45:16.880 --> 0:45:20.640 to take him to Babylon. Riblah, a town known for 0:45:20.640 --> 0:45:24.640 its beauty, became for Zedekiah a place of judgment, incredible 0:45:24.640 --> 0:45:29.080 sadness and loss. Loss of freedom, loss of family, loss 0:45:29.080 --> 0:45:32.840 of friends, and finally loss of his own sight. Judah's 0:45:32.840 --> 0:45:35.600 last king got to see the very outer limits of 0:45:35.600 --> 0:45:38.160 the land God had promised to his people, but he 0:45:38.160 --> 0:45:40.959 watched that land soak up the blood of his own children, 0:45:41.160 --> 0:45:43.880 and then all went dark as he was led away, blinded, 0:45:43.880 --> 0:45:47.439 and in chains into exile, where he died. And that 0:45:47.440 --> 0:45:51.480 brings us back to John Greenleaf Whittier's haunting rhyme. For 0:45:51.520 --> 0:45:54.480 of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest 0:45:54.480 --> 0:45:58.080 are these. It might have been. Our journey home is 0:45:58.080 --> 0:46:01.350 a little quieter than before as we ponder the decisions 0:46:01.350 --> 0:46:05.230 made by Judah's final kings that resulted in such tragedy. 0:46:05.469 --> 0:46:08.109 Rebecca didn't have to be a place of sadness for 0:46:08.110 --> 0:46:12.070 Jehoahaz or Zedekiah, but it was because of the choices 0:46:12.070 --> 0:46:15.310 they made which had consequences. And that forces us to 0:46:15.350 --> 0:46:17.950 pause and reflect on our own lives, on the decisions 0:46:17.950 --> 0:46:20.469 we've made and on the ones yet to be made. 0:46:20.590 --> 0:46:23.670 Will the rebels of our lives be places of joy 0:46:23.830 --> 0:46:27.230 where we experience God's blessing that comes from obeying him, 0:46:27.590 --> 0:46:30.270 or will they be places of sadness and regret as 0:46:30.270 --> 0:46:33.590 we ponder with heavy hearts what might have been? 0:46:34.350 --> 0:46:36.750 Well, if that doesn't sober you up, boy, nothing will. 0:46:36.790 --> 0:46:39.149 Thank you, Charlie, for that devotional. I want to say 0:46:39.150 --> 0:46:41.350 thank you to you for hanging with us. All four 0:46:41.350 --> 0:46:44.190 segments here on the land and the book. Our time 0:46:44.190 --> 0:46:46.229 is gone, but we'll be back next week, Lord willing 0:46:46.270 --> 0:46:48.150 to connect you with everything that God's doing in the 0:46:48.150 --> 0:46:50.870 Middle East. I'm John Gager in the land, and the 0:46:50.870 --> 0:46:53.390 book is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of 0:46:53.430 --> 0:46:54.910 Moody Bible Institute.