Tag: compromise
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No Hoof Left Behind – Exodus 10:24-26
Exodus 10:24-26 And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you. And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the Lord our God. Our cattle also…
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No Halfway Obedience – Exodus 10:9-11
Exodus 10:9-11 And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the Lord. And he said unto them, Let the Lord be so with you, as I…
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Hearing What Pride Wants to Hear – Exodus 10:7
Exodus 10:7 And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? By this point, even Pharaoh’s own servants could see what he refused to face. Egypt was already…
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It Costs More Than You Think – Genesis 38:16-20
Genesis 38:16-20 And he turned unto her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee; (for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What wilt thou give me, that thou mayest come in unto me? And he said, I will send…
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Taking Matters Into Her Own Hands – Genesis 38:13-15
Genesis 38:13-15 And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father in law goeth up to Timnath to shear his sheep.And she put her widow’s garments off from her, and covered her with a vail, and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which is by the way to Timnath; for she saw that…
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Looking for Comfort in the Wrong Place – Genesis 38:12
Genesis 38:12 And in process of time the daughter of Shuah Judah’s wife died; and Judah was comforted, and went up unto his sheepshearers to Timnath, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. Judah’s wife dies, and the text says he was comforted, or more literally, that he was desiring to be comforted. His grief…
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When Judah Went Down – Genesis 38:1-3
Genesis 38:1-3 And it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down from his brethren, and turned in to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took her, and went in unto her. And she conceived, and bare…
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The Pit Instead of the Knife – Genesis 37:22
Genesis 37:22And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. Reuben is doing what weak men do. He is trying to find a…
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What the Flesh Calls It – Genesis 36:3
Genesis 36:3“And Bashemath, Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebajoth.” By the time you get to this verse, Esau’s household is already tangled. And part of the confusion is in the names. In Genesis 28:9, Ishmael’s daughter is called Mahalath. Here in Genesis 36:3, she is called Bashemath. So the same woman appears under a different name. Then when you compare…
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What the Flesh Always Does – Genesis 36:2
Genesis 36:2“Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite;” Esau did not drift into this. He chose it. He went into Canaan and took wives from the daughters of the land. That is not just…
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The Tent Pointed the Wrong Way – Genesis 34:30-31
Genesis 34:30-31 And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.…
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A Deal Sold on Greed – Genesis 34:20-23
Genesis 34:20–23And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying,These men are peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land, behold, it is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us…
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It Sounded Reasonable – Genesis 34:8-10
Genesis 34:8–10And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife. And make ye marriages with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you.And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you;…
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A Dark and Twisted Kind of “Love” – Genesis 34:2-3
Genesis 34:2-3And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her. And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. This is a strange and deeply disturbing passage…
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Curiosity at the Edge – Genesis 34:1
Genesis 34:1And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. There is something almost innocent sounding about this verse. Dinah went out to see the daughters of the land. Surrounded by a house full of brothers, you can understand why she would want some…
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Worship in the Wrong Place – Genesis 33:19-20
Genesis 33:19-20And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for an hundred pieces of money. And he erected there an altar, and called it El-elohe-Israel. Jacob does something here that sounds spiritual, and in one sense, it was. He…
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A Tent Facing the Wrong Direction – Genesis 33:18
Genesis 33:18And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan… when he came from Padan-aram; and pitched his tent before the city. Jacob is back in Canaan, and at first glance that sounds like progress. He is no longer on the wrong side of the Jordan. He is…
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Settling Too Soon – Genesis 33:17
Genesis 33:17And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth. Jacob leaves that tender moment with Esau and journeys to Succoth. The name means Tent Town, which sounds fitting enough for a pilgrim. But then we read something that…
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A Grief of Mind – Genesis 26:34-35
Genesis 26:34-35And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah. What a sad way to end the chapter. While Isaac is digging wells, building altars, and learning…
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A Sin That Reaches Further Than You Think – Genesis 26:10-11
Genesis 26:10, 11And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us. And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death. Why would…
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The Echo of the Border – Genesis 26:7
Genesis 26:7And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon. This does ring a bell, and it…
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Right on the Edge – Genesis 26:6
Genesis 26:6And Isaac dwelt in Gerar: That is a short verse, but it says a lot. God told Isaac not to go to Egypt. So Isaac obeys, technically. He stays in the land. But where does he stay? In Gerar, a border town, as close to Egypt as he can get without actually stepping over…
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A Planned Compromise – Genesis 20:13
Genesis 20:13And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother. This verse makes it even more sobering. Abraham was not…
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What Sin Leaves Behind – Genesis 19:37-38
Genesis 19:37-38And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day. And now you see the long…
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When the Cave Starts Talking – Genesis 19:31-36
Genesis 19:31-36And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth: Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.…
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Too Late for the Mountain – Genesis 19:27-30
Genesis 19:27-30And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the Lord: And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. And it came to pass,…
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Settling for Zoar – Genesis 19:21-22
Genesis 19:21-22And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. Zoar means little…
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A Little Compromise – Genesis 19:20
Genesis 19:20Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. Lot is still negotiating. The Lord said, “Go to the mountain.” Lot says, “How about a little city?” That is so much like…
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When Nobody Takes You Seriously – Genesis 19:12-14
Genesis 19:12-14And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and…
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Pulled Back In – Genesis 19:9-11
Genesis 19:9-11And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. But the men put forth…
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How Far It Can Go – Genesis 19:8
Genesis 19:8Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. This is where it drops off…
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At the Door – Genesis 19:6-7
Genesis 19:6-7And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Lot steps outside, closes the door behind him, and stands there trying to reason with a mob already consumed with lust and violence. It is a sad scene, because…
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When a City Loses All Restraint – Genesis 19:4-5
Genesis 19:4, 5 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out…
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A House Still Open – Genesis 19:3
Genesis 19:3 And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. Lot knew exactly what kind of city he lived in. That is why he did not casually invite these visitors in.…
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One Step at a Time – Genesis 19:1-2
Genesis 19:1-2 And there came two angels to Sodom at even… and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom… and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and…
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Taken with the City – Genesis 14:11-12
Genesis 14:11, 12And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way. And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed. Lot had been living close to Sodom for a while. Then he was living in Sodom. Now, when judgment…
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Nearer and Nearer – Genesis 13:11-13
Genesis 13:11-13 Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other. Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners…
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The Cost of Compromise – Genesis 12:14-16
Genesis 12:14-16 And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had…
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When the People Rule – Revelation 3:14
Revelation 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. When we come to Laodicea, we come to a church that is painfully familiar. Laodicea was a wealthy city, a banking center with money to…
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The Curse That Comes from Compromise – Revelation 2:14
Revelation 2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. Jesus now tells Pergamos exactly what is wrong. The church had held…
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When the Church Married Power – Revelation 2:12
Revelation 2:12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write… Pergamos speaks of a dangerous union. The idea behind the name points to an objectionable marriage, and that fits this period well. If Smyrna speaks of a crushed church, Pergamos points to a compromised church. The pressure from outside began to ease, but…
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At Odds with God – James 4:4
James 4:4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. James does not ease into this one. He comes straight at it, because spiritual compromise is not a small thing. When the…