Author Todd R

Lessons from an Unlikely Idol

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The history of the kings of Judah can read like a back-and-forth between construction of idols by bad kings and the destruction of idols by good kings.  Hezekiah was one of the few good kings, and one reason is recorded in 2 Kings 18:4, which says:

“[Hezekiah] removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).”

Judah was meant to have only one God, the true God Yahweh, and to destroy anything that would lead them to idolatry.  Unfortunately, worshipping other gods in high places was not uncommon, and neither was worship of Asherah.  What’s interesting about this verse is the mention of this “Nehushtan.”  The origin of this bronze snake that Moses made comes from a story in the book of Numbers.

Photo by Michael Jerrard on Unsplash

As often happened while they wandered the wilderness, the people of Israel complained to God and Moses that they would have been better off if still in Egypt.  They hated the food God was providing and accused Him of leading them into the wilderness to die.  As discipline for this grumbling, “the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.”[1]  The people repented and asked for the serpents to be removed, and Moses prayed for them.

The answer was that “Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.”[2]  This serpent being lifted up was later identified in John 3:14 as a prelude to Jesus being lifted up on the cross, but in Hezekiah’s day it had become an idol, an object that took people away from worship of the true God and the then-future Christ.  Instead of being a symbol of salvation, the bronze serpent became a symbol of idolatry, which leads to damnation.

The story of the serpents ends there, and there is no mention that God told the people to keep this bronze serpent, or that God told them to give it a name.  This was probably the beginning of the problem, that Israel added to God’s intentions for it.

So, what are the lessons for us?

Nehushtan, the bronze serpent, was created at God’s command to be an aid to worship, a device for reminding His people of His provision for them, from above.  Instead, it became an idol.  What this tells us is that anything, even something once (or currently) used in worship, can become an idol.  Even things like private Bible study or public singing of hymns can be idols if we use them as ends in themselves and not as a way to worship our only God.  A thing can be an idol not because of what it is, but because of our attitude toward it.

Also, something that is an idol to one person might not be an idol to another.  The bronze serpent was not an idol to Moses, but it was to people in Hezekiah’s time.  So, if we know that something tempts us, that thing might not be a temptation for others, and vice versa.  Therefore, we should not be quick to judge others for doing things that bother us, but may not be a problem for them, and are not specifically prohibited in the Bible.

When Christ was raised up on the cross like the bronze serpent and was raised from the dead like those who survived the bites of serpents, He identified Himself as the only God and the only one worthy of our worship, but He also identified Himself as the merciful one who desires that we be merciful to each other.

Like ancient Israel, we all have Nehushtans in our lives that corrupt our worship, and like the good king Hezekiah, we must remove them from our lives to reform our worship.

[1] Numbers 21:6
[2] Numbers 21:9

Daily Readings for October 26 – November 1

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Fellow travelers:

For those looking for a Bible reading plan, each week I post 2 chapters to read per day as a main reading plan, and for anyone who wants to read the whole Bible in 2026, I’ll post the extra chapters to read that week.  The main readings include nearly all of the New Testament, plus Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Prophets, and a few other Old Testament books.

Reading 3 chapters a day on weekdays and 4 on weekends almost exactly covers the 1,189 chapters of the Bible, so the “extra” readings will be about 9 chapters per week.  These readings cover the Pentateuch, the OT histories, a few other OT books, plus Jude and Revelation from the NT.

Regardless, I hope this schedule encourages others to read and study their Bible regularly, whatever parts they decide to read.  Follow along (or not) any way you choose!

2 chapter a day plan:
Monday, October 26: Jeremiah 39 – 40
Tuesday, October 27: Jeremiah 41 – 42
Wednesday, October 28: Jeremiah 43 – 44
Thursday, October 29: Jeremiah 45 – 46
Friday, October 30: Jeremiah 47 – 48
Saturday, October 31: Jeremiah 49 – 50
Sunday, November 1: Jeremiah 51- 52

Extra chapters for those reading the whole Bible in 2026:
2 Chronicles 19 – 27

Changing Focus

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Anyone who has been reading here for a while knows that I love the Psalms.  In so many of them, we can relate to what the writer feels or is going through and then learn from them how to better relate to God.  I find myself praying richer prayers when in the Psalms.  This post is about a Psalm I think about when things aren’t going well and God seems distant.  It’s Psalm 77, written by Asaph.

After an introduction, the Psalm begins with these 3 verses:

“I cry aloud to God,
aloud to God, and he will hear me.
In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
my soul refuses to be comforted.
When I remember God, I moan;
when I meditate, my spirit faints.”

Asaph “refuses to be comforted” and his “spirit faints” in “the day of [his] trouble.”  Although he is actively praying to God, he still feels this way.  He believes “he will hear me” and he meditates but still is troubled.  Verses 4-9 continue this frame of mind, with Asaph asking in verse 9, “Has God forgotten to be gracious?  Has he in anger shut up his compassion?”

Then there is a transition in the Psalm where Asaph declares in verses 10 to 12:

“Then I said, “I will appeal to this,
to the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
I will remember the deeds of the LORD;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
I will ponder all your work,
and meditate on your mighty deeds.”

What I love about this transition is how much the language Asaph uses changes.  Re-read all of the verses above, or better yet, go read all of Psalm 77:1-12 and note how often Asaph refers to himself, with words like “I” and “my.”  The repetition tells us Asaph is focused on himself, how he feels, what he thinks about it, what he’s trying to do about it.  But what happens in verses 11 and 12?  We begin to see “your” repeated, referring to God.  Asaph pledges to change his focus to “your wonders,” “your work,” and “your mighty deeds.”  After verse 12, “I” does not appear again, and I believe at this point Asaph began to feel better.  Verses 13 to 15 read:

“Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
you have made known your might among the peoples.
You with your arm redeemed your people,
the children of Jacob and Joseph.”

In other words, Asaph focuses on God, that He is “great,” that He “works wonders,” that He is mighty, that He is our Redeemer.  This focus is reinforced by the “you” and “your” language.  For the rest of the Psalm, he poetically recounts God’s works in the Exodus.[1] In the next-to-last verse, Asaph writes, “yet your footprints were unseen.”  Although the Psalm begins with Asaph in distress, it ends with Asaph being confident that even if God is “unseen” that doesn’t mean He isn’t active.  God is sometimes “seen” only in His effect on the world, the way the wind is only “seen” by feeling it or seeing it make other things move.  Asaph’s faith is strengthened.

How did Asaph experience this change in attitude?  By making a change in his focus.  Asaph stopped writing and thinking about “I” and started writing and thinking about God and who He is and what He has done.  The Psalm doesn’t clearly say this happened for Asaph, but I have often found that if I can make the same change in focus, my spirit no longer “faints” and “refuses to be comforted,” and I find myself more able to face whatever is in front me today.

Years ago, I learned a prayer outline acronym of A.C.T.S.  The letters stand for Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.  In other words, the prayer begins with referring to God using words like “you” and “your” before getting to the parts that focus on “I” and “me.”

If you’re having trouble today, read all of Psalm 77 and try to follow Asaph’s change in focus, or maybe try starting an A.C.T.S. prayer.  I know your God will be there to listen to you!

“I cry aloud to God,
aloud to God, and he will hear me.”

Amen

[1] And possibly Noah’s flood.  The language could include both.

God’s Justice is Good

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Many of the Bible’s Psalms are beautiful songs of praise, but some are harder to read, including what are called “imprecatory” Psalms.  To “imprecate” is to curse, and in the case of these Psalms, the writers curse the enemies of the writer and of God.  Psalm 58, written by David, uses some very harsh language, such as “O God, break the teeth in their mouths” (in vs. 6) or “Let them be like the snail that dissolves into slime, like the stillborn child who never sees the sun.” (vs. 8).  These harsh phrases may be hard to read, but they’re part of the Bible and worth taking some time to understand.

These curses have a context, and for the imprecations in Psalm 58, the context is injustice due to bad worldly judges.  Verses 1 and 2 say:

“Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods?
            Do you judge the children of man uprightly?
No, in your hearts you devise wrongs;
            your hands deal out violence on earth.”

Every day in the news we can easily find injustices to complain about, just as David did, and in many of our hearts, we feel some of the emotions David must have felt.  Much of what passes as news today might be categorized as imprecatory.  David’s curses continue in verses 3 through 8, including the phrases quoted above, but in verse 9, after writing of how wicked and dangerous his enemies are, David notes how quickly God (not David) can sweep them away if He chooses:

“Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns,
            whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!”

This image is not chosen at random, but to make a specific point.  Dry thorns catch fire very quickly, and so when God judges, the unjust judges will be swept away “Sooner than your pots can feel the heat”. Not sooner than the food in your pot cooks, or sooner than the water in your pot boils, but much sooner than that.  A watched pot never boils, they say, but here the result is immediate.

The Psalm closes in vs. 11 with relief that ultimately, there will be true and complete justice, and:

“Mankind will say, ‘Surely there is a reward for the righteous;
            surely there is a God who judges on earth.’”

God’s justice is good because when God judges, He judges rightly, unlike the imperfect, or corrupt, judges of the world from the beginning of the Psalm.  If the things on the news we complain about are truly unjust, God will take care of them “Sooner than your pots can feel the heat.”  Also, when people pursue right actions instead of injustice, God will reward them “Sooner than your pots can feel the heat.”  Judgment by God is good news because He is fully just.  Without such a perfect judge, we only have imperfect judges to judge the imperfections and evils of the world.

Another part of the context is that when David prays in vs. 7 – “Let them vanish like water that runs away; when he aims his arrows, let them be blunted” – he is not vowing to take vengeance himself, but being honest about his frustration and trusting that God will take care of everything when the time comes.  On verse 7 John Calvin commented: “Let us not cease to pray, even after the arrows of our enemies have been fitted to the string, and destruction might seem inevitable.”

Therefore, trust God to take vengeance on evil, even when it seems powerful and triumphant.  Each and every sin will be borne by either the sinner or on the cross.  None will be ignored, and in God’s time, all will be resolved “Sooner than your pots can feel the heat.”  Until then, justice is delayed while God calls His people back to Himself with an offer of patient grace and mercy.

Listen to His call, not only to return to Him, but to patiently trust Him to deal out perfect justice.

God is Faithful in Trouble

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Fellow travelers,

Psalm 71 was likely written by an old man, looking back over his life and the many instances of God’s faithfulness.  Looking back over a lifetime of walking with God strengthens his current faith, and he writes to strengthen ours.  Although some might expect a testimony of God’s faithfulness to talk about uninterrupted good fortune and all the good times the Psalmist has had, in verse 20, they write:

“You who have made me see many troubles and calamities
            will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
            you will bring me up again.”

This man’s life, like most people’s lives, was filled with “many troubles and calamities,” yet these only strengthen his faith because God has rescued him every time in the past.  Without allowing us to experience trouble, how could God develop a track record of rescuing us?  John Calvin comments on this verse that:

“Had he always enjoyed a uniform course of prosperity, he would no doubt have had good reason to rejoice; but in that case he would not have experienced what it is to be delivered from destruction by the stupendous power of God. We must be brought down even to the gates of death before God can be seen to be our deliverer.”

God is always faithful, but we experience it especially in bad times.

Amen.