Proverbs 12 continues with the comparison verses. Verse 21 is one of my favorites!
21 No [actual] evil, misfortune, or calamity shall come upon the righteous, but the wicked shall be filled with evil, misfortune, and calamity.
The Amplified Bible (above) says that no ACTUAL evil will come upon the righteous (those in right standing with God by the Blood of Jesus of Nazareth)! That means that even if it looks, momentarily, like evil is happening, it will have no lasting effect and cannot stay! We ARE more than conquerors through HIM (Romans 8:37)! I also like verse 25:
25 Anxiety in a man's heart weighs it down, but an encouraging word makes it glad.
We have all had times when anxiety has tried to get all over us. When those times happen, it is such a tremendous blessing to be surrounded by Bible believing, Word talking, faith talking believers! They will encourage you not to ever give up or quit! make sure that YOU are providing encouraging words to those you come in contact with! There is never a reason to speak negatively when we have the mighty and powerful Word of Almighty God available to encourage ourselves and others! Amen!
Revelation 18 covers the promised destruction of Babylon. God has always been long-suffering, wanting that none should perish (2 Peter 3:9); but there IS an end to the time that He will wait for hardened hearts to change! Verse 2-3:
2 And he shouted with a mighty voice, She is fallen! Mighty Babylon is fallen! She has become a resort and dwelling place for demons, a dungeon haunted by every loathsome spirit, an abode for every filthy and detestable bird. 3 For all nations have drunk the wine of her passionate unchastity, and the rulers and leaders of the earth have joined with her in committing fornication (idolatry), and the businessmen of the earth have become rich with the wealth of her excessive luxury and wantonness.
God has always warned His people when judgment is coming. Verses 4-5:
4 I then heard another voice from heaven saying, come out from her, my people, so that you may not share in her sins, neither participate in her plagues. 5 For her iniquities (her crimes and transgressions) are piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her wickedness and [her] crimes [and calls them up for settlement].
So many in the world today want to reject the One, True, Most High, Living, Almighty God of the Bible. They have no understanding that He IS the only God and the only means of Salvation! Continue to pray for those, all the while having the confidence that God WILL deliver YOU!
In Zechariah 4-6 God assures the people that the Temple would be finished! I like this from the Bible Exposition Commentary:
To some of the Jews, the project was but a "small thing" (Zech 4:10) in comparison to Solomon's grand temple, but we must look at God's work through His eyes and not the eyes of the people of the world. Great oaks grow out of small acorns and great harvests from small seeds. When Messiah came to earth. He was but "a shoot...from the stump of Jesse" (Isa 11:1, NIV) and was "despised and rejected of men" (Isa 53:3). The church began with 120 people and today ministers around the world.
Bible history is the record of God using small things. When God wanted to set the plan of salvation in motion. He started with a little baby named Isaac (Gen 21). When He wanted to overthrow Egypt and set His people free, He used a baby's tears (Ex 2:1-10). He used a shepherd boy and a sling to defeat a giant (1 Sam 17) and a little lad's lunch to feed a multitude (John 6). He delivered the Apostle Paul from death by using a basket and a rope (Acts 9:23-25). Never despise the day of small things, for God is glorified in small things and uses them to accomplish great things.
Shalom in Him!
