Naomi had left Bethlehem with a husband and two sons, she returned as a widow with her widowed daughter in law, Ruth. In her bitterness and poverty, Naomi did not yet know that Ruth would be to her better than seven sons.

In both of these two short letters, John speaks of the duty and limits to Christian hospitality. In one he warns against extending hospitality to those who would sow confusion about the identity of Messiah and in the other he commends hospitality to missionaries.

John closes his first letter with what seems almost like a throw away line, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." Far from being a non sequitur, that line summarizes the entire letter.

John speaks of Messiah abiding in us, we in Him and we in God. The criteria for this are belief that Y'shua is the Son of God who came in the flesh and obedience to His commandments.

Loving your brother is practical, not ethereal. So if your brother has worldly needs, you shall not close your hand against him. This is Torah 101.

The love of the Father and the sacrifice of Messiah has allowed us to be children of God. In this we are, in a sense, estranged from the world because He was also.

John speaks of the Torah as both an old commandment and a new commandment. In this view, the text has not changed but our understanding of it must be adjusted in light of the sacrifice of Y'shua. His light shines upon us and allows us to understand the spirit of the Torah as well as the letter.

John is writing to address heretical confusion sown among believers as to the nature and person of the Messiah. He starts by stating that he has personally seen, heard and touched Y'shua.

The angel speaking to Daniel gives him a prophecy that extends to the end of days and covers the events of Revelation. It includes some very specific events and time spans.

After his death, Alexander's empire was divided among his four top generals. The Selucids and the Ptolemys were above and below Israel respectively. Chapter 11, describing their competition over a span of three centuries, reads like an ancient 'Game of Thrones.'