Category: Daily Readings

May 26 (Daily reading: Psalms 131, 138-139, 143-145) In David’s prayer in Psalm 139 (NIV), we see his belief in God’s absolute nature: His omniscience, His omnipresence, and His omnipotence. He is omniscient (all-knowing, vv. 1-6). “Oh Lord, you searched me, you know me, you understand me, you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge…

May 25 (Daily reading: 1 Chronicles 23-25) “Now when David reached old age, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel with the priests and the Levites” (23:1-2). We know that David’s kingdom was highly organized; today’s reading shows how music was included in that organization.…

May 24 (Daily reading: Psalms 108-110) The psalmist wrote five times of a “steadfast” heart or spirit (51:10; 57:7; 78:37; 108:1; 112:7). Biblical parallels of steadfast are faithful, true, firm, sure, trustworthy. In the light of these characterizations, a steadfast heart comes only from God! David wrote that when his heart was steadfast, he could…

May 23 (Daily reading: 2 Samuel 24; 1 Chronicles 21-22; Psalm 30) Taking a census of the fighting men in Israel suggested that their power depended on the size of their army. Joab said: “Now may the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are” (2 Sam. 24:3).…

May 22 (Daily reading: Psalms 95, 97-99) Psalm 95 is, as we say in sports, a story of two halves. The first half, verses 1-7, shows the greatness of God, “King above all gods.” He holds the entire world that He created in His hands. A rock is referred to, “the rock of our salvation.”…

May 21 (Daily reading: 2 Samuel 22-23; Psalm 57) David wrote: “My heart is steadfast, God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises! … I will sing praises to You among the nations” (Ps. 57:7, 9). Our hearts join David’s in singing to our God! He sang in 2 Samuel…

May 20 (Daily reading: Psalms 5, 38, 41-42) There is a heart condition that can keep us from surrendering to our God. David understood this: “I feel faint and badly crushed; I groan because of the agitation of my heart … My heart throbs, my strength fails me; and the light of my eyes, even…

May 19 (Daily reading: 2 Samuel 19-21) Today we meet another obscure character, Sheba, who was yet another contender to be king. But first we conclude the stories of Shimei, Ziba, and Mephibosheth. David continued to show grace, even as God had shown him grace, in his response to these men. When Mephibosheth told him…

May 18 (Daily reading: Psalms 26, 40, 58, 61-62, 64) These psalms teach us a powerful lesson about grace. David wrote: “I waited patiently for the LORD; and He reached down to me and heard my cry. He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the mud; and He set my…

May 17 (Daily reading: 2 Samuel 16-18) Many misfortunes followed David’s sin: the death of his child; his son Amnon’s actions and death by the hand of another son Absalom; Absalom’s insurrection and Ahithophel’s defection. Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth on whom David had shown mercy and welcomed as a member of his own family had apparently…