Daily Bread — Sunday, August 11, 2024
Of Benjamin he said: “The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by Him, who shelters him all the day long; and he shall dwell between His shoulders.” (Deuteronomy 33:12) Most everyone knows that the Temple of God was established on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem which...
6 Av — Head East, Young Man (and Old Man, Too)!
Horace Greeley, writing for the New York Tribune, once told his readers: “Go West, young man. Go West and grow up with the country.” At that time the country was, indeed, growing and expanding westward with the belief that it was mandated by heaven. The history books...
Daily Bread — Saturday, August 10, 2024
And of Levi he said: “Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your holy one, whom You tested at Massah, and with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah -- who says of his father and mother, ‘I have not seen them’; nor did he acknowledge his brothers, or know his...
5 Av — Piece By Piece
It was on this day, in 1970, that one of many cease fires that have occurred during the many wars Israel has fought with her enemies went into effect along the Egyptian, Jordanian and Lebanese border. Like many more to follow, this cease fire did not produce a...
Daily Bread — Friday, August 9, 2024
Hear, Lord, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people. Let his hands be sufficient for him, and may You be a help against his enemies. (Deuteronomy 33:7) The tribe of Judah, as we know, is the royal tribe from which the Davidic line would descend. Therefore, in...
4 Av — His Rod of Correction
It was on this day, in 444 B.C., that Nehemiah began to rebuild the city walls of Jerusalem. Previously, Nehemiah had been in Persia serving the king as his cupbearer. When he heard that the city of Jerusalem lay in ruins, he lamented and he cried out to the Lord to...
Daily Bread — Thursday, August 8, 2024
Let Reuben live, and not die, nor let his men be few. (Deuteronomy 33:6) Though much of Moses' blessing for the people was directed to the entire nation, he also was very specific with each of the tribes. If the overall nation was going to succeed in what God called...
3 Av — How God Uses The Adversary
It was on this day, in 1881, that the first shipload of Russian Jewish immigrants landed in New York City. The significance of this is that it marked the beginning of a mass immigration of Eastern European Jews to America. They brought with them a strong commitment to...
Daily Bread — Wednesday, August 7, 2024
Moses commanded a law for us, a heritage of the congregation of Jacob. (Deuteronomy 33:4) In the previous devotion, we discussed the importance of a heritage and how it is distinguished from an inheritance. What has been entrusted to God's people is for all time and...
2 Av — Guided By The Spirit
It was on this day, in 1492, that King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain signed a decree expelling all Jews from Spain. This expulsion culminated on August 2nd of that same year, which was the 9th of Av on the Hebrew calendar. It just so happened that the Jewish...
Daily Bread — Tuesday, August 6, 2024
Moses commanded a law for us, a heritage of the congregation of Jacob. (Deuteronomy 33:4) In these few words much can be understood about the devotion our Jewish friends have for the Torah. First of all, the words delivered to Moses by the mouth of God were not a...
1 Av — That We Might Know Him
According to tradition, it was on this day that Egypt was afflicted with the plague of the frogs. This plague, along with the other plagues, was designed to bring the king of Egypt into submission to God’s plan, which was to let Israel go into the wilderness. But...