Brian’s Quiet Time Thoughts.

​ “When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes.” ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭3:6‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/jon.3.6.NASB1995 What happens when authority believes God? 1. The people believe in God “Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them.” ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭3:5‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/jon.3.5.NASB1995 2. Laws reflect Godly values “He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water.” ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭3:7‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/jon.3.7.NASB1995 4. The people are humble Both citizens and the king began fasting and sitting in ashes (verses 5,6). 5. They call on God “But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly” ‭‭J

​ “Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish,” ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭2:1‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/jon.2.1.NASB1995 Alright, let’s settle this argument! Did Jonah get swallowed by a whale or a fish? It should be noted that whale is only found in the KJV version. Most other translations call it a great sea monster “God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good.” ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1:21‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/gen.1.21.NASB1995 Sea monster in the Hebrew is  tannîn Fish in the Hebrew is  dāḡâ and dāḡ According to  Jonah's  own book ,  he called it a fish! But let’s see what Jesus called it after all Jesus made it and Jonah may have only seen  its  mouth or stomach.  “for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the

​ “So the captain approached him and said, “How is it that you are sleeping? Get up, call on your god ( ĕlōhîm) . Perhaps your god will be concerned about us so that we will not perish.”  Then they called on the Lord ( Yᵊhōvâ ) and said, “We earnestly pray, O Lord, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, O Lord, have done as You have pleased.” ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭1:6, 14‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/jon.1.6-14.NASB1995 Most of us know the story of Jonah but I wanted to bring out something different in this story. I noticed that when the captain came to wake Jonah that he used a lowercase “g” in god, but then before they threw Jonah overboard that the crew, including the captain, used “LORD”. So upon further investigation, I found that elohim ( ĕlōhîm ) was used for god and Jehovah ( Yᵊhōvâ) for LORD. Elohim is the plural form of god. And Jehovah is the Lord. How did the crew come to know the Lord? Jonah told them in verse 9. “H

​ “Do not stand at the fork of the road To cut down their fugitives; And do not imprison their survivors In the day of their distress. “For the day of the Lord draws near on all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you. Your dealings will return on your own head.” ‭‭Obadiah‬ ‭1:14-15‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/oba.1.14-15.NASB1995 Obadiah is written to the nation of Edom as I was reading I remembered what Amos wrote to Edom.  “Thus says the Lord, “For three transgressions of Edom and for four I will not revoke its punishment, Because he pursued his brother with the sword, While he stifled his compassion; His anger also tore continually, And he maintained his fury forever. So I will send fire upon Teman And it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭1:11-12‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.1.11-12.NASB1995 In Amos, they pursued their brother Jacob with a sword. And in Obadiah, they were warned not to stand in the road of fugitives while they

​ “The One who builds His upper chambers in the heavens And has founded His vaulted dome over the earth, He who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth, The Lord is His name.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭9:6‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.9.6.NASB1995 God’s chamber is in heaven. His footrest is here on the earth (Isaiah 66:1). Then also God has founded a vaulted dome over the earth. We can explain this away as the atmosphere above us. Some people might use this as a reason for flat earth. But I think it might be bigger than that.  The Hebrew word that we translate as the vaulted dome is used as a bunch of hyssop, a band of brothers, and ties that are loosed. So this vaulted dome is a place that has gathered something together. When I think of a vault I think of wealth storage. Could it be that under this dome God stores up His wealth? Think of a military bunker where He would keep His spoils of war.  “I will shake all the nations; and they will come with

​ “Hear this, you who trample the needy, to do away with the humble of the land, saying, “When will the new moon be over, So that we may sell grain, And the sabbath, that we may open the wheat market, To make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger, And to cheat with dishonest scales,” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭8:4-5‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.8.5.NASB1995 These people are too busy worrying about when the sabbath will be over during the special times of the festivals of the Lord. They are not respecting the rest God commands. As they stew over not being able to sell they are also plotting how to make their goods more valuable, inflation, so that they can enslave the poor among the land because people have to eat.  Nehemiah had the same issue in his day maybe around 70 years later.  “It came about that just as it grew dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut and that they should not open them until after the sabbath. Then I stationed

​ “The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Amos?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said, “Behold I am about to put a plumb line In the midst of My people Israel. I will spare them no longer.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭7:8‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.7.8.NASB1995 God had shown Amos two visions before this in which God was going to destroy Jacob first with locust at the harvest and second with fire. Amos' only response was, “How can Jacob stand, for he is too small” (Vs 3 and 5). And God replied by saying that these would not happen. Then God showed him the plumb line.  A plumb line is used to establish a vertical line off a wall or other vertical structure. It is a standard for establishing if the wall is truly vertical and not leaning in or out. It will also help a bricklayer determine if his brick joints are aligned with the others in previous rows.  So what is God’s established vertical line for life? Let us use the typical Sunday school answer. All together now. “God, Je

​ “Who drink wine from sacrificial bowls While they anoint themselves with the finest of oils, Yet they have not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭6:6‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.6.6.NASB1995 Amos 6 sounds to have a woe to the satisfied theme. The nations of Judah and Israel are referred to in verse 1. And it is before the exile that is talked about in verse 7. So what is going on in verse 6? They are living in luxury, enjoying the finest things. They either have made for themselves bowls to mimic the bowels used in the temple or they are using the bowls of the temple for their own uses and not for God’s. They have done the same with the anointing oil contrary to the word of God.  “It shall not be poured on anyone’s body, nor shall you make any like it in the same proportions; it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. Whoever shall mix any like it or whoever puts any of it on a layman shall be cut off from his people.” ‭‭Exodus‬ ‭30:32-33‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://b

​ “For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel, “Seek Me that you may live.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.5.4.NASB1995 “Seek the Lord that you may live, Or He will break forth like a fire, O house of Joseph, And it will consume with none to quench it for Bethel,” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭5:6‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/100/amo.5.6.NASB1995 Israel is commanded to seek The Lord so that they may live. The time of following their idols, that they have carried around, is over and it is time to pay the penalty of idolatry or repent and live. Do you think that is also the call for us today? Seek God and live while we still have time on earth. While we still have an option. For on the day of judgment every knee will bow to honor God the father and Jesus. It is time to put down our idols and seek God. This is better explained in the first four commands of the Ten Commandments  “You shall have no other gods before Me.  You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any liken