Hard Verses: Not Your Namby Pamby Bible Study. These Bible Verses are Hard!

This is my confession that this verse is harder than originally thought.  I am still in the works and should have some information by next week. My plan is to have the answers to the proposed questions concerning the "man of perdition" from 2 Thess. 2.  Thanks for all the encouragement and comments.  The video of the livestream from this content is up at Youtube.  Look for "Hard Verses" you should see me and my parrot mug.

Love,

Bryan

Spoiler alert:  It is not the man of perdition in 2 Thess. You are probably wanting to hear about that instead.  Thanks to everyone who has been so patient during my wife's illness.  Yes it has been a while.  

In Christian love,

Bryan Cook

Thanks to Jeff Orr and Guyton Montgomery for helping out this episode.

The hard verse is 1 John 5:16,17, talking of a sin unto death.  What is a sin that is unto death? What is a sin not unto death?  Are there sins that we are not to pray?  We discuss all this on todays episode.  

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Video is on the Youtube channel.

Thanks to Guyton Montgomery for helping with the show. These are the notes used in the show: 20170315 Job 1:6 Job 1:5  And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually. Satan Allowed to Test Job Job 1:6  Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them. Job 1:7  And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. Job 1:8  And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Burton Coffman Job 1:6-12 THAT CONVERSATION BETWEEN GOD AND SATAN Now it came to pass on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah, that Satan also came among them. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil. Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath, on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will renounce thee to thy face. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of Jehovah. See our chapter introduction for the location of this scene, not in heaven, but upon earth when God's people were assembled for worship. Jehovah. Jehovah ... Jehovah ... Jehovah ... Jehovah ... Jehovah ... Jehovah (Job 1:6-12). Seven times in six verses, the covenant name of God appears in this passage, thundering the message that the sons of God here are those in covenant relationship with the Eternal. Note that [~'Elohiym] (God) is used twice in the preceding paragraph. Are the holy angels within any such covenant relationship? Absolutely, NO! How blind the critics are to this passage! Dummelow noted that the use of the Tetragrammaton here is thought by some, To be a slip on the part of the author! F6 How could anybody make a slip seven times in six verses? Our own opinion is that we have proof here, as Dummelow wrote, that, The Tetragrammaton (Jehovah) may have been much older than Moses. F7 This writer fully believes that the name Jehovah is indeed much older than Moses. (See my excursus on the Tetragrammaton (Y-H-W-H), beginning on p. 32 of my commentary on Exodus.) "Satan here has ready access to heaven." F8 See chapter introduction for many reasons why such a comment is erroneous. "The sons of God ... are divine beings who shared in the nature of divinity." F9 Rowley enunciated the same error, "Sons of God means superhuman, or celestial beings." F10 "To interpret these words thus is to suppose that the very same words in Gen 6:1-3 teach that angels intermarried with men producing a race of giants, despite the fact that the Christ himself declared that angels "Neither marry nor are given in marriage" (Mat 22:30). The true meaning of Sons of God is found in Rom 8:14. How are they sons of God? "They are born of God, born of water and the Spirit". In short, they are followers and worshippers of God; and so were those mentioned in Gen 6:1-3, and in this passage before us. To suppose that the Holy Spirit in this passage was speaking of angels is ridiculous. Did He not know the word angels? If that is what he meant, why did not the Holy Spirit write angels? This student of God's Word has had his fill, and more, of the speculations of commentators who presume to tell us what the Holy Spirit meant, instead of what he said. Rawlinson, usually quite accurate, misses it here, stating that, "Job 1:7 teaches that Satan, therefore, is not, like most of his fallen angels, "reserved in chains under darkness to the judgment of the last day (Jud 1:6)." F11 However, this very passage teaches that Satan is chained. (See more on the chaining of Satan under Job 1:12). He could not even touch Job, without God's permission; and, even after the Lord gave him permission to destroy Job's possessions, he was not allowed to touch the person of Job (Job 1:12). Barnes Job 1:6 There was a day when the sons of God - All the versions, and indeed all the critics, are puzzled with the phrase sons of God; בני האלהים beney haelohim, literally, sons of the God, or sons of the gods. The Vulgate has simply filii dei, sons of God. The Septuagint, οἱ αγγελοι του θεου, the angels of God. The Chaldee, כתי מלאכיא kittey malachaiya, troops of angels. The Syriac retains the Hebrew words and letters, only leaving out the demonstrative ה he in the word האלהים haelohim, thus, (Syriac) baney Elohim. JFB sons of God — angels (Job 38:7; 1Ki 22:19). They present themselves to render account of their "ministry" in other parts of the universe (Heb 1:14).

I will be going on hiatus from the show for a little bit. I will be getting caught up on my Master's degree and paying off some bills. Please keep in touch on social media. I will be back. Still send in suggestions.

Hard Verses Episode 18: You are a Bloody Husband; Exodus 4:24-26. The Problem. Exo 4:20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand. Exo 4:21 And the LORD said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go. Exo 4:22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: Exo 4:23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn. Exo 4:24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. Exo 4:25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. Exo 4:26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. 1. What is going on here? 2. Moses seems to be sending his family away while he is going to prepare to go to Egypt. 3. The Lord sought to kill him. Who is him and why does God want to kill him? 4. What is the deal with Zipporah circumcising her son and calling her husband a bloody husband? The Solution. Exo 4:20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand. Exo 4:21 And the LORD said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go. Exo 4:22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: Exo 4:23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn. Exo 4:24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. Exo 4:25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. Exo 4:26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. 1. What is going on? Moses just met God at the burning bush in chapter four. He has met with Jethro his father-in-law and asked to be released to go let God's people go vs. 18. Now he is on his way to Egypt. 2. Where did his family go? Moses set me on an ass (Septuagint states beasts, Hebrew idiom, the ass to mean even the plural of beasts.) or that Zipporah and baby were riding while Gershom led the beast. It would seem that they stayed at the inn before heading back to Jethro. Ex. 18:2-5 speaks of Jethro bringing the family out to Moses in the wilderness. 3. The Lord sought to kill him. Who is him and why does God want to kill him? It seems that Moses was the one stricken by some severe sickness. Zipporah in seeing this, realized that it was because one of her children was uncircumcised and picked up a sharp rock and circumcised the child and threw it at the feet of Moses on which the Lord "let him go." 4. What is the deal with Zipporah circumcising her son and calling her husband a bloody husband? It would seem that Moses was unable to perform the procedure and worrying that her husband was about to die, picked up the rock and did a makeshift circumcision. It was probably from her disdain of the procedure that it was not done. This would be the reason for the outburst of the bloody husband remark. Gen 17 actually records the first circumcision with Abram and his household. It states that Abram circumcised everyone, young and old and even himself. It does not necessarily say that Abraham did that to himself. The lesson for us today 1. Don't wait to do what God wants you to do. 2. Even if things are going to be uncomfortable, if God requires it, do it. 3. God is serious about obeying His command. He was going to kill Moses. 2Th 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 2Th 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 2Th 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; Tools I Used Burton Coffman (e-sword module) Albert Barnes (e-sword module) Adam Clarke (e-sword module) Jamieson Faucet and Brown (e-sword module) Keil and Delitzsch (e-sword module) Call to action. Subscribe and rate. You can also write a review. (Itunes). There are also the podcasts available on Youtube, look for "hard verses" with some additional videos besides the podcast.

Hard Verses Episode 17: Abstain from Meats, Acts 15:29 Welcome to the Hard Verses podcast. Episode 17: Abstain from Meats, Acts 15:29 Hard verses is a podcast not afraid to take on the harder verses in the Bible.  Each week we find difficult verses in God's word. The Problem. Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

1. Are we to abstain from eating meats offered to idols?
2. Other verses would indicate that a strong Christian can eat meats offered to idols. Why the change?

1Co 10:19  What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing? 1Co 10:25  Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: 1Co 10:26  For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. 1Co 10:27  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake. 1Co 10:28  But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: 1Co 10:29  Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? 1Co 10:30  For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? 1Co 10:31  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.  

1. Are Christians still not supposed to eat blood or things strangled?

  The Solution. Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well. This would be indicative of what was instructed to the Gentiles minus all the junk that the Jews were trying to put in there. The idol meat. The meats offered to idols would have been the remaining meat from the sacrifice of the pagan priests.  The meat would go either back to the worshipper and to the priest to sell at the market (Barclay 1976, 116). Barclay would go on to say that "No Christian must risk pollution by eating such meat for it had been offered to an idol" (ibid). The strangled and the blood. The Jews would have looked at animals strangled and not drained properly of blood as unclean.  God had said life is in the blood (Lev 17:11).  Barclay would go on to indicate that this act would make it possible for Jew and Gentile to be able to come together The law of eating blood predates the law of Moses.   Gen 9:3  Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. Gen 9:4  But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. Gen 9:5  And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man.   And is also shown to be inspired instruction for the church. Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.   It is understood that this would make things better between Jew and Gentile, since blood and idol feast offerings would be something of an abomination to a Jew. What about those verses that say that is nothing to it? 1Co 10:19  What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing? 1Co 10:25  Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: 1Co 10:26  For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. 1Co 10:27  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake. 1Co 10:28  But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: 1Co 10:29  Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? 1Co 10:30  For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? 1Co 10:31  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.   It seems that the market place, one would not know if it had been offered to idols or not. Also if you were invited to a house, there would be no way to know if it had been idol food.     The lesson for us today.

1. Don't add to or take away from God's word.
2. Don't do things that will cause others to stumble.
3. Take some time on the hard verses and dig until you get a decent answer. Don't skip. Use your resources.

Tools I Used Albert Barnes (e-sword module). Barclay, William. The Acts of the Apostles, rev. ed. Philadelphia: Westminster (1976). Burton Coffman Commentary (e-sword module) https://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=11&article=2276   Call to action. If you are lost concerning Mosaic law and law with Noah, and the New Testament law, you need to get and do my Bible Genius Study on Acts- all the chapters, you will understand the laws.  Free on preacherbryan.com. Subscribe and rate.   You can also write a review. (Itunes).   There are also the podcasts available on Youtube, look for "hard verses" with some additional videos besides the podcast.  

Best Bible study guaranteed or your money back!  How can I make such a claim?  Because it is also free! It is definitely worth every penny. Download link below post of PDF.

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Thanks,

Preacher Bryan

Hard Verses Episode 16: Two for One Deal (Matt 13:31-33) Parable of the mustard seed Parable of the leaven The Problem. Mat 13:31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Mat 13:32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. Mat 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. So you have the mustard seed leaven The Solution. Mat 13:31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Mat 13:32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. Mat 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. There is nothing before to indicate what this means except the parable of the wheat and tares and the parable of the sower. These are very negative parables. There will be a great number that will die and go to hell. It is quite possible that Jesus needed to balance these negative messages with a couple of positives. 1. The Mustard Seed. The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed. The man took and sowed it and it grew. Looked like a tiny, tiny thing but grew into a great 15 foot bush. The last parable, the seed was the word of God. ¾ did not receive the benefit of the word. This is showing that we sow the word. Seems like a small thing but great things can happen. The birds are able to perch. There should be benefit for all those around that receive the word. We know people that were on the wrong path and heard the gospel and everyone is glad they did. Fathers come home. Mothers become mothers. Friends become real friends that we can lean on. Notice how the kingdom grew in the New Testament with such a small beginning. 120, 3000, to the uttermost parts of the world. 2. Leaven Leaven is yeast. The Jews were required to clean their house a week prior to the day of unleavened bread because just a little is contaminate the bread. Often leaven is a bad thing. Bad influence Mat 16:5 And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Mat 16:6 Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. Mat 16:7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. Mat 16:8 Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? Mat 16:9 Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Mat 16:10 Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Mat 16:11 How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? Mat 16:12 Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. 1Co 5:1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife. 1Co 5:2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. 1Co 5:3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, 1Co 5:4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 1Co 5:5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 1Co 5:6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? 1Co 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 1Co 5:8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. That is bad leaven. This is good leaven. We must become good leaven. Mix us into a crowd and we will affect the whole loaf. The lesson for us today. From the mustard seed. Do the small things and expect God to make the difference. From the leaven Don't lose heart, you come back and the loaf will have grown. Do your part to be a leavening influence. Tools I Used Last week's sermon Call to action. Subscribe and rate. You can also write a review. (Itunes). Check out the new Bible Study. "The Bible Genius Bible Study" now available for free on preacherbryan.com There are also the podcasts available on Youtube, look for "hard verses" with some additional videos besides the podcast.