“Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth” (Psalm 58:11 ESV). David wrote Psalm 58 against corrupt rulers or judges who had been entrusted with authority but instead used it to “deal out violence.” The psalm’s severe language of judgment can be difficult for us to

“How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!” (Isaiah 14:12 ESV). Isaiah spoke to Judah concerning the future fall of Babylon long before Babylon had carried Judah into captivity and before Cyrus conquered that mighty empire. In

“In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples, of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious” (Isaiah 11:10 ESV). Isaiah spoke to Judah during a time when other powerful nations threatened to dominate them. At the end of Isaiah 10, Assyria appeared

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone” (Isaiah 9:2 ESV). Isaiah had just described Israel’s condition with the words “distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish” (Isaiah 8:22). The northern territories of Zebulun and Naphtali had been

“When you sit down to eat with a ruler, observe carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite. Do not desire his delicacies, for they are deceptive food” (Proverbs 23:1–3 ESV). Solomon warned his son about the dangers of sitting at the table of a

“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good” (Psalm 53:1 ESV). David described more than philosophical atheism. He exposed practical atheism, the settled determination to live as though God does not exist, does not see, and will not judge. The Hebrew

“Be not one of those who give pledges, who put up security for debts. If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bed be taken from under you?” (Proverbs 22:26–27 ESV). Solomon warned against recklessly becoming responsible for another person’s debt. The expression “give pledges” literally pictured striking hands to seal an

“Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the LORD. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If a man offered for love all

“For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine” (Psalm 50:10–11 ESV). Asaph wrote Psalm 50 to God’s covenant people, confronting them about a false view of worship. They were bringing sacrifices, but

“Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days” (Ecclesiastes 11:1 ESV). Solomon gave his readers a memorable saying that has invited several interpretations. Some have understood “bread” as seed, picturing a farmer sowing liberally upon floodwaters and later finding a crop after the waters receded. Others have seen it