PT-1 “Vengeance for Savage Brutality” (Nah. 3:1-3)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/10/2026 10:09 AM

My Worship Time                                                Focus:  PT-1 “Vengeance for Savage Brutality”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                   Reference: Nahum 3:1-3

            Message of the verses:  “1 ¶  Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder— no end to the prey! 2  The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! 3  Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies!” (ESV)

            We begin this morning with the first sub-point from John MacArthur’s commentary on Nahum, and will do as I have been doing in Nahum by quoting from MacArthur’s commentary, adding comments of my own and looking up all of the verses that he mentions in his commentary.

            “With a cry of lament, ‘Woe,’ Nahum signals Gods vengeance upon Nineveh.  The term expresses the emotion of intense disapproval and condemnation.  Nineveh, as a city of bloodshed, had become an object of the wrath of God.  The Hebrew word for bloodshed, occurring first in the context of Able’s murder (cf. Gen. 4:10, was a euphemism for vicious murder and violent death.”

(cf. Gen. 4:10

“10  And the LORD said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground.”

“Nineveh was characterized by savage brutality, as illustrated by the words of one of its kings, Shalmaneser III:

“I slew their warriors with the sword, descending upon them like Adad when he makes a rainstorm pour down.  In the moat (of the town) I piled them up, I covered the wide plain with the corpses of their fighting men, I dyed the mountains with their blood like red wool.  I took away from him many chariots (and) horses broken to the yoke.  I erected pillars of skulls in front of his town, destroyed his (other) towns, tore down (their walls) and burnt (them) down.”

            This quote comes from “Pritchard, ed., The Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, 277 Baker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 220.

            “Nahum continued by noting that Nineveh was completely full of deception and pillage.  Deception fundamentally means ‘empty’ (cf. Job16:8), describing Nineveh’s political trickery as they made deceitful promises to achieve political objectives (cf. 2 Kings 18:31-32).”

(cf. Job16:8)

8  And he has shriveled me up, which is a witness against me, and my leanness has risen up against me; it testifies to my face.”

(cf. 2 Kings 18:31-32)

“31  Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then each one of you will eat of his own vine, and each one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern, 32  until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, that you may live, and not die. And do not listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you by saying, "The LORD will deliver us.’”

“After deceiving other nations through treachery, the Ninevites would pillage their lands, stripping away property and resources by violence.  When Nineveh conquered other nations, they looted homes, storehouses, treasuries, places, and every kind of depository, plundering everything of value.

            “Every level of Ninevite society celebrated its culture of cruelty and covetousness, so that the city was completely full of such depravity.  Because Assyria captured city after city, the supply of riches and resources was seemingly endless.  Thus, Nahum observed of Nineveh that her prey never departs.  With the word prey, used earlier to describe Assyrian’s enemies (cf. Nahum 2:12), Nahum once again employed animal imagery to convey the relentless brutality of Assyria’s military tactics (cf. Num. 23:24; Isaiah 5:29).  For Nineveh, violence and indulgence were a way of life.”

(cf. Nahum 2:12)

“12  The lion tore enough for his cubs and strangled prey for his lionesses; he filled his caves with prey and his dens with torn flesh.’

(cf. Num. 23:24; Isaiah 5:29)

“24  Behold, a people! As a lioness it rises up and as a lion it lifts itself; it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey and drunk the blood of the slain.’”

“29  Their roaring is like a lion, like young lions they roar; they growl and seize their prey; they carry it off, and none can rescue.”

            “But God would hold the city accountable for its sins.  Nineveh would be overcome with the sound of the whip, and the sound of the rumbling of the wheel, galloping horses, and bounding chariots!  The city that once cruelly whipped and enslaved its captives would itself be filled with the sound of the whip as Assyrian riders would drive their horses to meet the enemy.  The city whose chariots once intimidated other nations would now reverberate with the sound of rumbling of the wheel as its chariots desperately raced into the battle (cf. Nah. 2:4).  The city whose cavalry had previously overrun opposing armies would hear the clamor of galloping horses and bounding chariots frantically rushing through the streets.  The sound of Nineveh’s own destruction.  With such resounding reversals, God would inflict judgment on Assyria for its atrocities.”

            The more that I read about the history of Nineveh the more I can understand how MacArthur states that this is a picture of what will happen in the end times, only because of the technology that the world has now it will be brutally worse.

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Paul wrote to the Galatians “7  Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.”  I believe this speaks of nations along with individuals who think that they can get away with something.  Nineveh certainly fits into this category.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Continue to learn from mistakes I have made in the past and remember that by learning contentment it will make things easier to not make mistakes.

From Dr. David Jeremiah:  “Fear knocked, faith answered.  No one was there.” (Author Unknown)

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7).

2/10/2026 10:53 AM

PT-1 “Luke’s Prologue” (Luke 1:1-4)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/9/2026 7:17 PM

My Worship Time                                                                         Focus:  PT-1 “Luke’s Prologue”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                     Reference:  Luke 1:1-4

            Message of the verses:  “Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught. (NASB)

            “Last evening I began my study on the Gospel of Luke and knowing that it will take me years in order to get through it, but it seemed to me that this is the book that the Lord wanted me to study at this time.  This morning I had the privilege of listening to one of two messages that John MacArthur preached on these four very important verses and learned things that I perhaps had forgotten about. 

            John MacArthur begins his commentary on the gospel of Luke by talking about stories, stories that have been talked about throughout the history of the world, and many of those stories were true as people would read them and for some of them they knew the stories were true, but then there were others who probably were not true at all.  He then states “But there is one enduring and true story that stands above all the rest:  the life of Jesus Christ.  It is, as the title of a mid-twentieth-century Hollywood retelling of His life proclaimed “The Greatest Story Ever Told,” and I am one who believes this and also have the desire to tell His story as I pen these Spiritual Diaries so that the Holy Spirit can send them around the world for people to read them.

            What we will be looking at as we begin this study in the Gospel of Luke is the compelling and glorious story of how God purposed way before there was and earth or stars, that is in eternity past to save lost sinners from eternal hell.  You have to realize that God is eternal and it was for His reasons in eternity past to have this plan of sending His only Son into the world to save sinners from eternal hell through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.  Paul wrote to the Romans, was “delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification” (Rom. 4:25).  The also John wrote similarly “He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).  Now it was only because “God displayed [Jesus] publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith” that He could “demonstrate His righteousness” (Rom. 3:25) and both “be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (v. 26).  Now it was because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23), the gospel message of salvation from sin and judgment in Christ alone completely transcends the limitations of culture and time and definitively  determines every person’s eternal destiny (cf. John 3:36; 8:24; 14:6; Acts 4:12).

(cf. John 3:36; 8:24; 14:6; Acts 4:12).

36  Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

“24  I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.’”

“6  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

“12  And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’”

            John MacArthur writes “Accordingly, the central them of both the Old and New Testaments is the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. Rev. 19:10).”

(cf. Rev. 19:10)

“10  Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

“Just before His ascension He told the disciples, ‘These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke  24:44).  It is the “Scriptures” ( the Old Testament), Jesus declared to the hostile Jewish leaders, ‘That testify about Me’ (John 5:39).  The New Testament Epistles unpack all the theological riches of salvation in Christ, while the book of Revelation chronicles Christ’s second coming in glory (cf. Matt.  24:30).”

(cf. Matt.  24:30)

30  Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”

            I think that those who read these Spiritual Diaries would realize that all of the books of the Old and New Testaments, that the Gospels most are the ones that clearly focus on the life and the ministry of Jesus Christ. Now the gospel of Luke is actually the longest, and most thorough and complete of the four Gospels as Luke covers approximately forty pages, while Matthew thirty-seven, Mark twenty-three, and John twenty-nine.  Now including the book of Acts, Luke’s accurate inerrant, comprehensive narrative of the life of Jesus and its impact spans more than sixty years.  Think about that for a moment, Luke’s writing cover over sixty years.  His narrative begins with the birth of Jesus’ forerunner, John the Baptist, and it concludes with the apostle Paul’s first imprisonment and ministry of the gospel in Rome.  So altogether, Luke’s writings make up more than one fourth of the New Testament.  I have to say that God surely used Luke for a very long time, and because his writings are in the Word of God they have been read for over 2000 years.

            God used Luke’s writings, but very little is known about him, as he is only mentioned three different times in the Word of God, and none in the books that he penned.  (Col. 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philem. 24).”

(Col. 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philem. 24)

14  Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.”

“11  Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry.”

“24  and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.”

            Notice that all of these references are at the end of these three epistles where Paul did this in most all of his letters.  What we can see from this is that Luke was content to remain in the background and allow the majesty of Christ, who pervades his writing, to be the focus. We can see from his writings that Luke’s accurately recorded history and theology establish his readers’ understanding of the Lord’s life and ministry.

            There is something else that needs to be written about concerning these first four verses that constitute the prologue of Luke’s gospel which is actually in the Greek one long section and it was, as MacArthur writes “crafted in the polished style of a Greek literary classic.”  The remainder of the gospel was written in the koine Greek which was used in common, everyday speech, which was used in most of the New Testament writings, but to my knowledge is not used any more.  There is a story to tell about that language which goes back to the time of Alexander the Great who actually combined many of the Greek languages spoken during his time and put them all together and that is why it is called common Greek.

            MacArthur writes “Luke’s prologue thus marks his gospel as a serious literary and historical work, commanding the respect of even the most sophisticated, well-educated Gentile readers.

            “Despite his anonymity four elements of the evangelist’s identity appear implicitly and explicitly in the prologue.  Luke revealed as a physician and historian, and as a theologian and pastor.”

            In tomorrow evenings SD we will look at “Luke The Physician And Historian.”

2/9/2026 8:47 PM

 

 

 

PT-2 Intro to “Nahum 3:1-7”

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/9/2026 9:48 AM

My Worship Time                                                                 Focus: PT-2  Intro to “Nahum 3:1-7”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                  Reference:  Nahum 3:1-7

            Message of the verses:  “1 ¶  Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder— no end to the prey! 2  The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! 3  Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies! 4  And all for the countless whorings of the prostitute, graceful and of deadly charms, who betrays nations with her whorings, and peoples with her charms. 5  Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts, and will lift up your skirts over your face; and I will make nations look at your nakedness and kingdoms at your shame. 6  I will throw filth at you and treat you with contempt and make you a spectacle. 7  And all who look at you will shrink from you and say, "Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her?" Where shall I seek comforters for you?” (ESV)

            I will continue looking at John MacArthur’s introduction of this section in the book of Nahum.

            “But Scripture is also clear that until His earthly kingdom when he cried out, ‘How long, O Yahweh? Will You forget me forever?  How long will You hide Your face from me?  How long shall I  take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart all the day?  How long will my enemy be exalted over me?’  (Ps. 13:1-2; 10:1; Jer. 12:1).”

(10:1; Jer. 12:1)

“1 ¶  Why, O LORD, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?”

“1 ¶  Righteous are you, O LORD, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?”

“When justice is delayed, distress abounds in the hearts of the righteous (cf. Prov. 28:12).”

(cf. Prov. 28:12)

“12 ¶  When the righteous triumph, there is great glory, but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.”

“Job expressed a similar concern, observing that the wicked are not always punished in this life.  He lamented:  ‘How often is the lamp of the wicked put out, or does their disaster fall on them?’ (Job 21:17; cf. 20:28-29; 21: 1-16).

(cf. 20:28-29; 21: 1-16)

28  The possessions of his house will be carried away, dragged off in the day of God’s wrath. 29  This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the heritage decreed for him by God.’”

“1 ¶  Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said: 2  "Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself. 3  Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are in the right, or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless? 4  Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you and enters into judgment with you? 5 ¶  Is not your evil abundant? There is no end to your iniquities. 6  For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing and stripped the naked of their clothing. 7  You have given no water to the weary to drink, and you have withheld bread from the hungry. 8  The man with power possessed the land, and the favored man lived in it. 9  You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless were crushed. 10  Therefore snares are all around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you, 11  or darkness, so that you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you. 12  "Is not God high in the heavens? See the highest stars, how lofty they are! 13  But you say, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the deep darkness? 14  Thick clouds veil him, so that he does not see, and he walks on the vault of heaven.’ 15 ¶  Will you keep to the old way that wicked men have trod? 16  They were snatched away before their time; their foundation was washed away.”

“In Revelation, when the martyred saints in heaven observe the injustice against the righteous on earth they cry out to God, ‘How long, O Master, holy and true?  Will You not judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ (Rev. 6:10).  In response to this plea, ‘it was told to them that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow slaves and their brothers who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also’ (6:11).  While justice in the hands of sinners is not guaranteed in this life, God has promised to render righteous and impartial judgment to every person in the life to come (cf. Heb. 9:27).”

(cf. Heb. 9:27)

“27  And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,”

            “Though the wicked seem to prosper for a little while, the Lord will not let their injustice go unpunished (cf. Exodus 34:7).”

(cf. Exodus 34:7)

“7  keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.’”

“Nahum’s prophecy concerned a nation that had long prospered while exacting violence, immorality, and idolatry.  But at the appointed time, according to God’s sovereign plan, the Lord would unleash His wrath on Assyria for its gross unrighteousness.  In describing the coming fall of Nineveh, Nahum explained that this vile city and the empire it represented would be punished in proportion to its wickedness.  But as discussed previously, Nahum delivered a near prophecy that, being perfectly fulfilled, proved the reliability of every divine promise, including those regarding the end of the age.  By judging Nineveh, God gave His people a glimpse of what He will one day do to all who oppose Him.

            “In this passage (Nah. 3:1-7), Nahum declared that God would bring Nineveh to justice on account of the city’s savage brutality (vv. 1-3) and spiritual harlotry (vv. 4-7).  Nineveh would be an object lesson for every other nation throughout subsequent history.  While justice may see to be delayed from a human standpoint, God has not forgotten.  In His perfect time, He will ensure that pure justice is meted out, resulting in the condemnation of the wicked and the comfort of the righteous.”

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I am trusting the Lord to take care of some things that have been a problem for me for a long time.  I will not get into them, but the Lord knows what I am writing about as it came to fruition a while ago.  The Lord spoke to me through a message last evening  at church, and because of the health of my wife I have not been going to evening church for a while, but I believe that the Lord made sure that I was their last evening. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Two things, first I trust the Lord to work in my heart over things I was convicted of last evening, and then two, I  trust the Lord to give me grace and instruction to teach our Sunday school class as I get the lesson in order.

From the pen of Dr. David Jeremiah:  “One reason sin flourishes is that it is treated like a cream puff instead of a rattlesnake.”  (Billy Sunday).

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10).

Wow! I needed to hear this!

2/9/2026 10:27 AM

 

 

Introduction to Luke

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/8/2026 8:24 PM

“INTRODUCTION TO THE GOSPEL OF LUKE”

            This evening marks the beginning of looking at the Gospel of Luke, and I am going to use the introduction that John MacArthur uses in his commentary on Luke.  MacArthur has four books he has written on the Gospel of Luke, and as mentioned in an earlier SD he took ten years to go through this gospel.

            “The gospel of Luke is the first of a two-volume history, along with the book of Acts (both addressed to the same man, Theophilus, and the ‘first account’ mentioned in Acts 1:1 refers to the gospel of Luke).”  I think it best to quote Acts 1:1-2 “1 ¶  In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2  until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.”  “It is the longest book in the New Testament and , combined with Acts, makes Luke the author of more than one fourth of the New Testament—more than any other writer.  In those two books, Luke presents the most comprehensive New Testament account of the history of redemption.  His gospel and the book of Acts span six and a half decades from the birth of John the Baptist to Paul’s first Roman imprisonment.  Luke also includes a significant amount of new material (more than 40 percent of his gospel is not found in the other gospels [Darrell L. Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994), 12’), including seven of Christ’s miracles and seventeen of His parables.

            “Yet despite the significance of his work, Luke himself remains largely unknown.  His name appears only three times in the New Testament—none of them in his own writings (Col 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Philem. 24). Those passages reveal only a few details about him—that he was a physician who was beloved by Paul and was with the apostle during his first and second Roman imprisonment.  He was also a Gentile (see the discussion of Col. 4:10-14 in chapter 1 of this volume and Acts 1:19, where Luke’s use of the phrase ‘their language’ distinguishes him from the Jewish people). That he accompanied Paul on his missionary journeys is evident from the so-called ‘we’ passages in Acts (see the discussion under Author below).  But as will be seen in chapter 1 of this volume, the prologue to Luke’s gospel helps paint a more complete portrait of this remarkable man.

AUTHOR

 

            “The unanimous testimony of the early church is that Luke wrote the third gospel; no alternative author was ever proposed.  In the middle of the second century the apologist Justin Martyr (C. A. D 100-165) quoted from Luke 22:44 and 23:46 in his Dialogue with Trypho.  Although Justin did not name Luke as the author (citing as his source ‘the memoirs which…were drawn up by His [Christ’s] apostles and those who followed them’ ([chapter 103]), those two verses are unique to Luke.  They demonstrate the fact that Justin was familiar with Luke’s gospel and recognized it as authoritative. Justin’s pupil Tatian included Luke’s gospel in his Diatessaron, the first known harmony of the Gospels.  The Muratorian Canon, a second-century list of the books recognized as Scripture by some in the church, attributes the third gospel to Luke, as do such second and third century writers as Irenaeus, Tertullian, Origen, Clement of Alexandria, and the heretic Marcion.  The Anti-Marcionite prologue to Luke, written to combat Marcion, also declared Luke to be its author.  The oldest manuscript of Luke’s gospel (Bodmer Papyrus XIV [p 75]), dating from the late second or early third century, names Luke as the author.

            “Summarizing the significance of the early church’s testimony to Luke’s authorship of the third gospel, Robert H. Stein writes,

Such unanimity in the tradition is impressive…In general such uncontested and ancient tradition should be accepted unless there is good reason to the contrary.  This is especially so when it names a minor figure in the early church and a non-apostle as the author of over one quarter of the entire NT. (Luke, The New American Commentary [Nashville:  Broadman & Holman, 19912], 21)

Stein’s last point is especially significant.  The apocryphal gospels were attributed to well-known figures, such as Peter. Why would someone forging a work purporting to have come from one of Paul’s companions have chosen the relatively obscure Luke instead of someone more prominent?

            “Further proof that Luke wrote Luke and acts comes from the so-called ‘we’ passages in Acts, where the writer’s use of the first person pronoun indicates that he was traveling with Paul (16:10-17; 20:5-21:18; 27:1-28:16).Thus, the writer of Acts could not be any of Paul’s coworkers mentioned by name in those sections (e. g. Silas, Timothy, Sopater, Aristarchus, Secundus, Gaius, Tychicus, and Trophimus).  By process of elimination, that leaves Luke and Acts.  No one, however, has ever seriously argued for Titus and the author, which leaves Luke, as the unanimous testimony of the early church affirms (see the discussion above).

 

DATE, PLACE OF WRITING, ADDRESSES

            “Luke was written before Acts, which is a sequel to it (Acts 1:1), so the question of when it was written is closely connected to the date of Acts.  Some liberal scholars date Luke in the second century.  They argue that its author drew some of his material from the Jewish historian Josephus, who wrote late in the first century.  But the difference between the two accounts far outweigh the similarities (cf.  Alfred Plummer, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary of the Gospel According to St. Luke, The international Critical Commentary [Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1969], xxxix; D. Edmond Heibert, An introduction to the New Testament, Volume One: The Gospels and Acts [Chicago: moody, 1979], 137).  In the middle of the second century the heretic Marcion included his revised version of Luke as the only gospel in his cannon of Scripture.  If Luke had been written only a short time earlier, it could not have become widely respected enough in the church for Marcion to have chosen it.  Nor could a second-century author had consulted eyewitnesses to the life and ministry of Jesus (Luke 1:2-3); most, of not all of them, would have been dead.

            “Two dates for Luke and Acts have been proposed by conservative scholars; either between A.D/ 70 and 80 (following the completion of Mark’s gospel as a source.  Since Mark is usually dated after Peter’s death during the persecution instigated by Nero, Luke would have to have been written still later.  The priority of Mark, however, has never been established, and the absence of any evidence for it has led scholars to question Luke’s dependence on Mark’s gospel (e.g., Robert L. Thomas and Stanley N. Gundry, eds., A Harmony of the Gospels  [Chicago: Moody, 1979], 274-79; Eta Linnemann, Is There a Synoptic Problem? [Grand Rapids; Baker, 1992]; Robert L. Thomas and F. David Farnell, eds., The Jesus Crisis [Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1998], especially chaps. 1, 3, 6).  Since Luke’s dependence on Mark cannot be established, the argument for the later date collapses.

            “A number of facts support the earlier date for the writing of Luke and acts.  That date best explains the abrupt ending of Acts; Luke did not mention Paul’s release and subsequent travels because the apostle was still in prison when he wrote Acts.  Further there is no mention in Luke’s writings of any even later than about A.D. 61, including such significant events as the death of James, the brother of Jesus and head of the Jerusalem church (around A. D.  62); Nero’s persecution, during which Peter and Paul were martyred (in the mid-60’s); and the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70.  Finally, Luke does not refer to Paul’s epistles, suggesting that he wrote Luke and Acts before the collection of those epistles was widely circulated in the church.  The most natural explanation for those omissions is that Luke wrote his gospel and Acts before those events happened.  The best date, therefore, for Luke’s gospel is A. D. 60-61.

            “Where Luke wrote his gospel is not known for certain.  Some in the early church speculated that he wrote from the Greek providence of Achaia; others argued for Rome (cf. Col. 4:14; Philem. 24), the later possibility is more likely.

            As will be discussed in chapter 1 of this volume, Luke addressed his gospel to a man named Theophilus and, by extension, other Gentiles.  He avoids using Aramaic terms that his Gentile readers would be unfamiliar with (e. g., 22:1, 7) and Israel’s geography (e. g., 1:26; 4:3`; 23:51; 24:13) for them.

 

PURPOSE AND THEMES

 

            “Luke’s purpose in writing his gospel was that his readers might ‘know the exact truth about the things [they had] been taught’ (1:4; see the exposition of that verse in chapter 1 of this volume).  To that end, he did careful research (see the discussion of his sources in chapter 1).”

            This is as far as I am going to go in this introduction and so in tomorrow evening’s SD I will begin to look at the first chapter entitled “Luke’s Prologue (Luke 1:1-4).

2/8/2026 9:46 PM

 

Intro to “Nahum 3:1-7”

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/8/2026 8:03 AM

My Worship Time                                                                         Focus:  Intro to “Nahum 3:1-7”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                  Reference:  Nahum 3:1-7

            Message of the verses:  “1 ¶  Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder— no end to the prey! 2  The crack of the whip, and rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot! 3  Horsemen charging, flashing sword and glittering spear, hosts of slain, heaps of corpses, dead bodies without end— they stumble over the bodies! 4  And all for the countless whorings of the prostitute, graceful and of deadly charms, who betrays nations with her whorings, and peoples with her charms. 5  Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts, and will lift up your skirts over your face; and I will make nations look at your nakedness and kingdoms at your shame. 6  I will throw filth at you and treat you with contempt and make you a spectacle. 7  And all who look at you will shrink from you and say, "Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her?" Where shall I seek comforters for you?” (ESV)

            I will begin looking at this introduction to the third chapter of Nahum by quoting from John MacArthur’s commentary introduction to these first seven verses of the third chapter of Nahum.

            “The righteousness of God demands perfect justice.  For divine justice to be satisfied, all God’s enemies must be punished.  Those who love the Lord, celebrate His righteousness, and desire that He be glorified—they will rejoice when evil is judged and His impenitent enemies are justly punished.  As the psalmist exclaimed:

Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered, and let those who hate Him flee before Him.  As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish before God.  But let the righteous be glad; let them exult before God; and let them rejoice with gladness. (Ps. 68:1-3)

The psalmist called on the Lord to take action because He alone executes true justice (cf. 10:12).

(Ps. 10:12)

12 ¶  Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; forget not the afflicted.”

He causes the wicked to perish and the righteous to rejoice.  This is not an indifferent attitude toward those who perish; it is the joy of the souls that love God and seek His glory.  When God is dishonored those who love Him feel the pain, as the psalmist said:  ‘For zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me’ (Ps. 69:9).  The Apostle Paul applied this attitude to the Son of God, saying, ‘For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, ‘THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU FELL ON ME’’(Romans 15:3).  Paul then conveyed the truth of God’s righteous judgment in 2 Thessalonians 1:5-7, when he wrote:

This is a plain indication of God’s righteous judgment so that you will be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which indeed you are suffering.  Since it is right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give rest to you who are afflicted and to us as well at the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire.

The apostle assured the Thessalonians that the Lord Jesus Christ will return to judge the wicked, and to establish His righteous kingdom.  During His millennial reign, He will enact His rule with perfect justice over the whole earth (cf. Isa. 9:7).”

(cf. Isa. 9:7)

“7  Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.”

            That is as far as I will go this morning from this introduction, but will try and finish MacArthur’s introduction to these seven verses tomorrow morning.

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Once again I see verses that shows that the Lord Jesus Christ is in control of what happens on planet earth, and will bless those who are saved and curse those who are not.  God is not and never will be unfair!

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I am  trusting the Lord to give me peace as I go to my new Sunday school class this morning, and to help me to prepare to teach this class next week and the week after.

“WISDOM IS DEVELOMPENT WISDOM IS DISCIPLINE WISDOM IS DISCERNMENT WISDOM IS DIGNITY WISDOM IS DISCRETION WISDOM IS DEPTH OF UNDERSTANDING WISDOM IS DEVOTION TO GOD.” (David Jeremiah)

“When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you; understanding will keep you.” (Proverbs 2:10-11)

2/8/2026 8:35 AM

 

“Continual Praise” (2 Peter 3:18b)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/7/2026 6:25 PM

My Worship Time                                                                                 Focus:  “Continual Praise”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                Reference:  2 Peter 3:18b

Message of the verse:  “To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

            This will be the last SD on the book of 2 Peter, and in tomorrow evening’s SD I will be posting a Spiritual Diary from the book of Nahum, and in place of Nahum in the morning SD’s I will beginning my study on the Gospel of Luke.  On my other blog I am just about finished going over the book of Psalms and when that is complete I will be posting my older Spiritual Diaries on the books of first and second Thessalonians.  So things are moving along as I finish some books and then add newer ones.  One more note and that is once the book of Nahum is finished my plans are to then post two Spiritual Diaries on the book of Luke, one in the morning and another in the evening, and the reason is that when John MacArthur preached through the book of Luke it took him ten years to complete it, and when I was studying the book of Matthew it took me five years to finish that book.

            John MacArthur writes:  “Peter closed the letter with a doxology, calling believers to worship and adore God (cf. Ps. 95:1-6; 105:1-5; 113:1-6; 148: 150; Rom. 11:36; 1 Cor. 10:31; 2 2 Cor. 1:20; Eph. 1:12; 3:20-21; 1 Tim. 1:17; Jude 25).  They are to give Him all the glory, both now, in the present, and in eternity.”

(cf. Ps. 95:1-6; 105:1-5; 113:1-6; 148: 150; Rom. 11:36; 1 Cor. 10:31; 2 Cor. 10:31; 2 Cor. 1:20; Eph. 1:12; 3:20-21; 1 Tim. 1:17; Jude 25)

“1 ¶  Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! 2  Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! 3  For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. 4  In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. 5  The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. 6  Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!”

“1 ¶  Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! 2  Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! 3  Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice! 4  Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! 5  Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,”

“1 ¶  Praise the LORD! Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD! 2  Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and forevermore! 3  From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised! 4  The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens! 5  Who is like the LORD our God, who is seated on high, 6  who looks far down on the heavens and the earth?”

“1 ¶  Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights! 2  Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his hosts! 3  Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars! 4  Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! 5  Let them praise the name of the LORD! For he commanded and they were created. 6  And he established them forever and ever; he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away. 7 ¶  Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, 8  fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! 9  Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! 10  Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds! 11  Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! 12  Young men and maidens together, old men and children! 13  Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven. 14  He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are near to him. Praise the LORD!”

“1 ¶  Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! 2  Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! 3  Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! 4  Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! 5  Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! 6  Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!”

“36  For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

“31  So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do do, do all to the glory of God.”

“20  For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

“12  so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.”

“20  Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

“17  To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”

“25  to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.”

            Clearly the pronoun Him refers back to Christ and is a sure affirmation of His deity and equality with God.  After all, the Old Testament declares that divine glory belongs to God alone:  ‘I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, nor My praise to graven images’ (Isa. 42:8; cf. 48:11; Deut. 5:24; 28:58; Neh. 9:5; Ps. 93: 1-2; 104:31; 138:5; Ezek. 11:23).

(Isa. 42:8; cf. 48:11; Deut. 5:24; 28:58; Neh. 9:5; Ps. 93: 1-2; 104:31; 138:5; Ezek. 11:23)

I will begin with Isaiah 48:11.

“11  For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.”

“24  And you said, ‘Behold, the LORD our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man still live.”

“58  "If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the LORD your God,”

“Then the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, "Stand up and bless the LORD your God from everlasting to everlasting. Blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.”

“1 ¶  The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. 2  Your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting.”

“31 ¶  May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works,”

“5  and they shall sing of the ways of the LORD, for great is the glory of the LORD.”

“23  And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain that is on the east side of the city.”

“Yet various places in the Gospels attribute that same glory to Jesus Christ:  ‘And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14; cf. Matt. 16:27; 25:31; John 17:24).”

(cf. Matt. 16:27; 25:31; John 17:24)

“27  For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.”

“31 ¶  "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.”

“24 ¶  Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”

“The only possible conclusion, then, is that Christ is worthy of the Father’s glory because He Himself is God (cf. John 5:23; Rev. 1:5-6).  Peter began this epistle with the affirmation of Christ’s deity in 1:1, and he now ends with the same.”

(cf. John 5:23; Rev. 1:5-6)

“23  that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.”

“5  and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6  and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

2 Peter 1:1 “1 ¶  Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:”

            “Having reassured his readers of the certainty of Christ’s return (in 3:1-10), Peter concluded with an exhortation to live this life in light of that reality (in vv. 11-18).  Accordingly, he echoed one of the New Testament’s foremost themes.  In the words of the apostle Paul:

“Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set you mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.  For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. (Col. 3:1-4)

2/7/2026 7:08 PM

 

 

PT-2 “Divine Prosecution” (Nahum 2:13)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/7/2026 8:40 AM

My Worship Time                                                                    Focus:  PT-2 “Divine Prosecution”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                   Reference:  Nahum 2:13

            Message of the verse:  “Behold, I am against you,” declares Yahweh of Hosts.  “And will burn up her chariots in smoke, and a sword will devour your young lions; and I will cut off your prey from the hand, and no longer will the voice of your messengers be heard.”

“13  Behold, I am against you, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will burn your chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard.” (ESV)

            I will pick up from where I left off in quoting from John MacArthur’s commentary on Nahum.

            “While He destroyed the Assyrian messengers who promoted their own glory, God would one day send His own messenger as a forerunner to the Messiah.  Recording God’s announcement concerning this, Mark wrote, ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight’’(Mark 1:2-3; cf. Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1; 4:5, 6).”

(cf. Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1; 4:5, 6)

“3 ¶  A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

“1 ¶  "Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.”

“5  "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 6  And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.’”

“God sent John the Baptist to be that messenger before Christ’s first coming (Luke 3:4-6).  In the future, He will again send a messenger before Christ returns to establish His kingdom.” It is my opinion that as I look at the book of Revelation chapter 11:1-14 that I will quote in a moment after looking at Luke 3:4-6), that it will explain to us about the two witnesses it speaks of.

(Luke 3:4-6).

4  As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5  Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways,”

Rev. 11:1-13

1 ¶  Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, "Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2  but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.   3 ¶  And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth." 4  These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5  And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6  They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7  And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8  and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9  For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10  and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11  But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12  Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13  And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.”

            Now as we can see in these verses the names of these two witnesses are not given, however as one looks at the “miracles” they do there is great speculation that these two witnesses are Moses and Elijah.  I want to now quote from the gospels of Matthew and also Mark as Jesus explains to His disciples concerning John the Baptist and Elijah. 

“14  and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.” (Matthew 11:14).

10  And the disciples asked him, “Then why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come?” 11  He answered, "Elijah does come, and he will restore all things. 12  But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands." 13  Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.” (Matthew 11:10-13)

            “God designed Nineveh’s destruction to prefigure the culmination of His plan for redemptive history.  When the Lord Jesus Christ returns, the desirable treasures of the nations will be given to Israel (Nah. 2:9; cf. Hag. 2:8), the world will be emptied so that God’s glory will fill it (Nah. 2:10; cf. Isa. 6:3), the lions of the nations will be put down and the Lion of Judah will be exalted (Nah. 2:11-12; Rev. 5:5), and the messengers of this world will be silenced so that the only message proclaimed will be the good news of Jesus Christ.  While Nineveh’s desolation was grave, it previewed for Israel the Lord’s ultimate victory over all His enemies, providing comfort that God can and will fulfill all His promises.”

(Nah. 2:9; cf. Hag. 2:8)

“9  Plunder the silver, plunder the gold! There is no end of the treasure or of the wealth of all precious things.”

“8  The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts.’

(Nah. 2:10; cf. Isa. 6:3)

10 ¶  On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet,”

“3  And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!’”

(Nah. 2:11-12; Rev. 5:5)

11 ¶  Where is the lions’ den, the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion and lioness went, where his cubs were, with none to disturb?  12  The lion tore enough for his cubs and strangled prey for his lionesses; he filled his caves with prey and his dens with torn flesh.”

“5  And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.’”

Spiritual Meaning for My Life Today:  As I look at the things that John MacArthur wrote in this section about how the judgment of Nineveh has future events that will happen in the nation of Israel it gave to me something that I would have never figured out, and it also shows me how the Bible is one book, written by different authors who were led by the Holy Spirit to complete it, and every Word in it is true and every prophecy will come to fruition in the exact time that God deems for it to happen.

My Steps of Faith for Today.  I am going  through a very difficult time in my life, and yet as I study the Word of God I can truly know that the Lord is in control of everything going on, and I certainly must trust Him to do what He wants done in my life to bring me to greater maturity, and to bring glory to His name.

From Dr. David Jeremiah:  “Worry is on old man with bended head, carrying a load of feathers which he things are lead.” (Corrie Ten Boom)

“Do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink? Or ‘What shall we wear?’…For your Heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” (Matthew 6:31-32)

2/7/2026 9:20 AM