From Pastor Bill

I wrote about the Founding Fathers in the last issue. There is a quote attributed to G. Washington that fire is a “powerful servant, but a fearful master.” That quote can easily be applied to debt: debt is a powerful servant, but a fearful master. Many financial advisors recommend never having any debt. That does not seem very practical to me. Maybe, I’ve just always been poor. It seems to me that some debt, properly managed would increase the prosperity of both the individual and the nation. The country’s first Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton, agreed.

I heard one financial advisor tell a caller that they should find a car “for sale by owner” to avoid debt. Evidently it has been awhile since he tried to buy one. The “buy here, pay here” lots snap those up as soon as they come out forcing low income people to buy from them. That puts a floor under the price of starter cars and requires poor people to pay exorbitant interest rates. This effectively makes them a captive car buyer for a long time.

Debt can be useful for the purchase of cars, homes, major appliances, major home improvements or repairs and the like. Debt for those things does not harm your finances like debt for eating out or for clothing. How much debt you can safely carry depends on your income and your assets. If you have $2000 in cash then $800 in debts is a burden, but when you have $20,000 in assets, then that $800 is not a burden. Why would you use debt at all when you have $20,000? Where is the $20,000? Is it in a CD? Why would you break the CD to buy a Washing Machine? The other reason to use debt is that money is hard to save. It is harder to save the $20,000 than it is to make 0% interest payments to the appliance store for a year on that Washer. Debt can make sense a lot of the time. Used wisely, in balance with your income, debt can greatly enhance your life.

Over the years I am struck by how many people do not have a working budget. A budget is a simple plan of what you are going to do with your income. Many people handle their money emotionally. Then after they have spent their money they can’t pay their bills. Why not rather have a simple plan to pay your bills? How about a plan to spend what is left over? Without a budget, debt can be financially deadly. For people who are going to hold and pay debts, you must know how much money you have available to make your payments.

Accounting has a simple formula for how much debt can be safely held, current assets must be twice current debts. In like manner, the rule of thumb for mortgage debt and/or rent payments was 25% of monthly disposable income. If you make $2000 a month after taxes and deductions, then you could make $500 a month in rent or mortgage payments. The rule of thumb for all debt payments every month was no more than 36% of your income. This seems quaint right now, but it matters. Most people have finances that are grossly out of balance. It is much more important to work out your money than it is to work out at the gym.

What about the United States? Our debt is over the GDP, or total production of our country. The Congress is working on a bill to build roads, bridges, utility lines and broadband. It is filled with pork barrel projects with no apparent value. They want to follow this with $3.5 Trillion in direct transfer payments to individuals. These are “entitlements” that will grow quickly and bankrupt our country. They are using what is known as modern monetary theory, which says you can print all the money you want. If this weren’t bad enough, the Federal Reserve, who manages our currency, is buying all of this new debt, effectively monetizing it. The definition of inflation is printing more money, which they are doing with abandon. This has never worked in any nation, at any time in history. It always ends in a crash. Always.

We have already delayed all of the new military weapons that we were supposed to build from the Trump Administration. Direct transfer payments to people are already stopping us from rebuilding our military. Our military is focused right now on Critical Race Theory. China’s military is focused intensely on killing Americans. We are more interested in forcing “white” soldiers to admit that they have privilege, than on meeting the existential threat posed by Communist China. This is prophecy playing out. As Christians, right now is the time to turn to Jesus Christ and petition Him for help.

Bill Shults is the Pastor of Hungry Hearts Ministries and Publisher of Pursuit. He also oversees the churches in Jackson, Murfreesboro and Cookeville TN and Corinth MS. Bill has also written eleven books on how to have a closer walk with Jesus Christ.

By: Pastor Bill Shults

Of all the amazing stories in the Bible the Noahide flood has to be the most fantastic of them all. It is the main reason many people do not believe the Bible. Is the Noahide flood real? How could we tell? Is there any legitimate, scientific way to uncover evidence of a massive world wide flood? Well, yes there is. It is not a matter of what evidence is existent, but rather how that evidence is interpreted. For example the earth is covered in sedimentary rock. Was that sediment laid down over a vast expanse of time? Or, was it laid down quickly in a world wide cataclysmic flood?

The currently held scientific view is that the sediments were laid down over millions of years. Where does that come from? We date rock layers by the fossils found in them and we date the fossils from the rock layers where they are found. What is the hard evidence to date either of these? They don’t have any. We have developed a civilization based on atheism. In my last article I showed clearly that our founders laid the foundation of this American civilization on the God of the Bible. How did we become atheist?

There is a compelling presentation online and available on DVD that makes the case for a much younger earth and reviews the geologic evidence for a great world wide flood. This presentation is entitled: “Is Genesis History?” It is narrated by Del Tackett. Mr. Tackett interviews many leading academics in their field of study. They are all very clear that the evidence in the rocks is sure. That the evidence in the rocks is compelling; there was a world wide flood.

The presentation opens with a view of the landscape left by the pyroclastic eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980. Some of the rocks there dated from between 385,000 years old to two million years old, but we know they date from 1980. So much for dating rock. A subsequent eruption produced a mud flow that cut canyons into the deposited lava rock. The entire landscape was produced quickly, not over time. This happened in out lifetimes. How is it that we assign millions of years to other geologic features? Could they not easily be formed by catastrophic change as well?

I was amazed to learn that the surface of North America is covered by a mile or more of sedimentary rock. Where did all of this rock come from? After all, rock does not fall from the skies! There are four “mega sequences” of sedimentary rock covering North America. Some of these are over a thousand feet thick. In many places they have what are called “knife edge” boundaries. That means no blending at the borders between layers. Clearly defined layers one on top of the other; similar to a layer cake. Thick layers of sediment, laid down uniformly over very large areas of land, would seem to require a rapid depositing of that material. Could this really have been laid down gradually over time?

Then there is the issue of uniformity within the layers. If this rock really was laid down over millions of years, there would be evidence of erosion. There would be evidence of surface activity. This seems to be missing, which would suggest a rapid depositing of material, followed by another rapid depositing of material. This seems much more likely to occur from oceans being moved over the continents, rather than from rock falling from the sky.

Then there is the “great non-conformity.” At the base of sedimentary rock, there is the granite bedrock. Where these meet, it seems apparent that they were not formed together. The granite is gently rolling and the sediment is clearly laid down later, because they do not fit well. Was the surface of the earth “planed” off by a surge of water from the oceans? If the sedimentary rock was laid down over time, then what about the natural top soil that should have covered the granite bedrock? What about natural features like streams, lakes, plants and animals that are missing. The fossils are found in the sedimentary layers.

Which brings us to the fossils. Marine fossils are found in all of the layers. How can this be? Especially if the layers are laid down over millions of years. In Genesis 6:17 God says: “I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every crea

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Is the Noahide Flood Real, continued ture that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish.” This could have been accomplished if the oceans were cast over the continents; washing all of the marine animals ashore and washing the land animals into the sea. This would also explain why there are marine animals in each layer of sediment if there were successive upheavals of the earth’s crust.

Another question is this: How did Mausosaurs get on land? They are very large sea creatures.

Another anomaly is the Grand Canyon. Deep cut canyons are a feature of the American West. We were told that the streams and rivers cut the canyons over millions of years. In our lifetimes most of the geologic features cut by water took place during floods and storms. Gradual water flows have never produced any geologic features anywhere that I have been. But, there is something more, I previously didn’t consider: cut banks cave. This is a topological term that mean when you cut through the soil the sides cave in. This is true of canyons, especially when millions of years are thrown in the balance. After millions of years and how many earthquakes, how can those beautiful canyon walls still stand the way that they do? After all it is only sedimentary rock.

I earlier mentioned that the layers are dated by the fossils and the fossils are dated by the layers. A convenient arrangement if you can get it. Is that the story those fossils are telling us? Why are dinosaur bones laid in beds of bones? It seems as if they were washed into place as flood debris. Why are the bones often times arranged with the bigger heavier bones at the base and the lighter weight bones towards the top? When the skeletons are intact, why are many of the dinosaurs in the drowning position? If the fossilized bones weren’t deposited by the flood, then why is there no evidence of weathering? On that point, why aren’t the bones of more modern animals fossilized? You don’t find evidence of squirrel, possum and raccoon bones in your back yard. Why are only the bones of certain creatures fossilized in locations where they seem to be washed ashore by floodwaters?

One thing which made me really curious was how did the flood cover the mountains? “For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered. The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than twenty feet” (Gene- sis 7:17-20). How did that happen? Then we find out that many of our mountains today were formed more recently. For instance, Mt Ararat where they suppose the ark came to rest is a volcanic mountain of recent origin. The ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat, not specifically the one we call Ararat. Of the geologist interviewed in the presentation, “Is Genesis History?” they all talked about flood water recession causing upheaval on the earth’s crust. In Tennessee, many of the sedimentary rocks are bent and twisted. Some layers run nearly vertical. Something moved those layers. Something powerful, something violent. The prophet Isaiah saw something long ago that may explain some of what we see today. “The floodgates of the heavens are opened, the foundations of the earth shake. The earth is broken up, the earth is split asunder, the earth is thoroughly shaken” (Isaiah 24:18-19). Is this the description of the Noahide flood? Is it a dual prophecy, one looking back for Noah and one looking future to us? This would seem to explain how post flood mountains do not contain evidence of the flood.

Many dismiss the Bible as a collection of archaic stories for a primitive people. Or, another favorite is that the Bible was written to control the people. Yet, over the course of my lifetime it is the people who scoff at the Bible who want to control everything. Watch the news. It is not so much an argument about what is in the geologic record, but rather what we see in it. Those who want no god, throw around the figures of millions of years to explain everything unexplainable. Where do they get those numbers? Where is the evidence for those numbers. I watched a debate once between Bill Nye, the Science guy and Ken Hamm, the creationist. Mr. Nye always answered the question of “how” by always repeating “what.” Nice work if you can get it.

What we see is not being debated. How it got there is the question. Was all of that sedimentary rock laid down over millions of years? If so where did all of that rock come from? At the Grand Canyon, from what location did all of that material come from? What location eroded to lay up that mile of sediment? Mountains erode, we can see that in TN. Then how can those canyon walls stand after millions of years? How can you have four major layers of sediment covering an entire continent with what seems to be knife edge boundaries of nearly uniform thickness continent wide. It would seem to me that the flood explanation makes a lot more sense.

By: Evangelist Kelly McDonald, Jr.

When most people hear the word “Hanukkah”, they tend to think of it as only a Jewish tradition. However, the Hebrew word Hanukkah (or its alternative spelling Chanukkah) is found eight times in the Old Testament (Numbers 7:10-11, 84-88, 2 Chronicles 7:9, Nehemiah 12:27, Ezra 6:16-17, and Psalm 30:1). It means to be dedicated for a specific purpose. When we look at these references, we learn that many of them are connected to the Tabernacle or Temple. What about the celebration of Hanukkah? Where does it come from?

The origins of this special season are found in the book of Daniel chapter 11 (written in 6th century BC). Most of the chapter is focused on two Greek kingdoms. The Seleucid Kingdom was based out of modern-day Syria and the Ptolemaic Kingdom was based in modern-day Egypt. They are respectively called the Kingdom of the North and Kingdom of the South in Daniel 11. The land of Israel was between these two kingdoms.

In 175 BC, Antiochus Epiphanes became King of the North through intrigue and deception, but he was not the rightful heir to the throne (Daniel 11:21). In 168, he tried to invade the Kingdom of the South for the second time, but the Romans refused to allow it. Angered at this event, Antiochus decided to release his anger on the Jewish people.

When Antiochus approached Jerusalem, he presented himself in a peaceful manner. Once his army entered the city, they turned on the Jewish people. They killed many men and sold the women into slavery. He then defiled the Temple of God. He offered a pig on the altar of sacrifice. He had its blood spread inside the Temple and sprinkled on Torah scrolls. He ordered a statue of Zeus to be erected in the courtyards and had his own likeness carved into it. He declared himself ‘god manifest’. The true God foretold these events in Daniel 11:29-31.

Antiochus forced the Greek religion on the Jewish people and banned Biblical practices, including the Sabbath and reading of the Torah. He sent troops across the country to compel all the natives to sacrifice to idols and eat swine’s flesh. Those who would agree to betray

God were promised riches and positions of authority. Some people did compromise, and they were martyred by the thousands.

A priest named Mattathias started a courageous uprising against this assault. Even though he died during the war, his son Judas called Maccabeus (meaning ‘the hammer’) continued the fight. Those who joined their cause were named Maccabees after him. Despite being outnumbered and underequipped, the Jewish people won.

In 165, the Maccabees tried to re-take Jerusalem. Once they took the Temple area, their first act was to cleanse and dedicate it again unto God. They started the Temple dedication on the 25th day of the Hebrew month Kislev. This was the exact same day that it had been defiled three years earlier. They celebrated this dedication for eight days (I Macc. 4:56, 59). From that time until now, the Jewish people celebrate the victory of their people over the wickedness of Antiochus and the dedication of the Temple at Hanukkah.

There is a fascinating story concerning this cleansing of the Temple, which may or may not be true. As the people prepared to rekindle the menorah, they needed oil. Jewish legend says that they only found one clean jar with the high priest’s seal. Though it was only enough oil to last one day, the menorah then stayed lit for eight days!

In John 10:22-39, we learn that Jesus taught in the Temple area during Hanukkah. In this verse, the Greek word translated as “feast of Dedication” is egkainia, which means “in newness”. During it, he taught us that His sheep listen to His voice and that no one can pluck us from His hand. These are relevant lessons during this season.

Hanukkah has meaning for Christians today. First, Jesus taught us spiritual truths during that season. Second, the perseverance of the Jewish people during this time allowed the Old Testament to be preserved so that we Continued on Page 9

By: Eldress Jill Pettis

Most Americans are indoctrinated into celebrating Christmas annually between Thanksgiving and the end of the calendar year. This is true whether you are raised in a Christian home or not. When you become aware of God’s Feasts and their significance, along with the two additional Biblical holidays of Hanukkah and Purim, the tendency is to make them like holiday celebrations already familiar to us. It can be a challenge to establish a Hanukkah celebration in your home and/or church without it becoming an alternative, or worse a look-alike, to Christmas.

In a nutshell, Hanukkah resulted when a small group of faithful Jews overthrew an oppressive ruler against all odds. Antiochus IV demanded that his subjects worship him. Not only did he refuse to allow Jews to worship according to God’s Laws, Statues and Commandments, he set himself up as the object of worship in their temple, going so far as to sacrifice a pig on the altar. Fear seized many of the Jews who preferred peace to protest, but the Maccabee family was furious over the sacrilege. Outnumbered, out-armed and against unbelievable odds, the clan, led by Judah Maccabee, defeated the armies of the Hellenistic king and regained control of the temple in Jerusalem. The miracle of the oil occurred because there was enough ritually purified oil for use in the temple menorah for one day, yet that one day supply burned for eight days while a new supply of oil was consecrated.

It should matter to all Christians that this victory against the antichrist government of Antiochus IV was a mere 150 years before the birth of Jesus Christ! This victory paved the way for Jesus to be born at a time when the Jews were free to have Biblical temple worship and the priesthood in place in Jerusalem. Jesus participated in the holiday celebration during his ministry on earth. As you discover ways to celebrate and honor Hanukkah, remember that you can easily share the elements of the celebration with others as a means of educating and encouraging them to seek out God’s Ways.

Hanukkah can fall anywhere between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so it does occur during the time when the vast majority of people are celebrating Christmas. All of God’s Feasts and holidays should be family oriented, as well as joining the generations together in the celebration, but that can be easier said than done. I was raised in a Christian family with dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins, but my husband and children were the only ones to ever embrace Hanukkah, much less eliminate Christmas. At first, it was difficult not to make Hanukkah akin to a “Jewish Christmas.” As we expanded our celebration and matured in our understanding, Hanukkah has become a wonderful 8-day celebration of the “Festival of Lights,” easily shared with others and embraced by our daughter and grandson. Following are some ideas for how easily you can incorporate a Hanukkiah, special decorations, crafts, games and food/ fellowship into your Hanukkah celebration.

The light in the temple, on earth and in Heaven, is a 7-branched candlestick representing Jesus, correctly referred to as a Menorah. A type of lampstand is used to celebrate Hanukkah, but it has 9-branches, including a candle named the “shamash” which means “helper.” The shamash candle is given a place of prominence, either set apart, or made larger or higher than the other candles. This is the candle that is lit first, then used to light the other candles. These 9-branched lampstands are technically named Hanukkiahs. It’s important to understand the difference to make or purchase one for use in lighting the candles nightly during the Hanukkah celebration.

There is no limit to the number of Hanukkiahs you can have! We started celebrating when our oldest daughter was in 2nd grade, so our first Hanukkiah was one she made and painted from a kit. It is a treasure in our home. By the time our grandson came along, we attended a city-wide Hanukkiah lighting in front of the courthouse where we lived.

A craft table was set up where the children used a white glazed oblong tile that they decorated to their liking with press on jewels. Adults glued on hex flat head bolts the correct size to hold standard-sized Hanukkah candles (sold in boxes online and in many grocery or big box stores), with extra bolts glued on for the shamash to give the helper height and prominence. A quick search online will yield lots of creative ways to make a Hanukkiah, including ones made from wood, felt, paper or plastic pieces that can be used by children too young to properly handle fire. You will also find incredible Hanukkiahs for sale online that are works of art in themselves, so the possibilities are endless. We even have an electric Hanukkiah purchased from a national party supply store. As our collection has grown, the nightly lighting event has become more spectacular with so many flames reminding us of our Savior, who is the Light of the World! We also choose to sing our favorite songs after we light the Hanukkiah. Of course, those include traditional Hanukkah songs as well as Christian songs/hymns like “This Little Light of Mine,” “Praise to The Father of Lights,” or “The Light of the World is Jesus.” Each year, we look for new songs about His light to add to our repertoire.

While the Hanukkiah remains the central focus of the decorations, few modern homes are equipped to have candles burning all night. One of our favorite decorations is to make a large Hanukkiah from construction paper chains, attaching flames each night that we print off our home computer. Each year, we purchase pre-cut construction paper strips from online retailers or school supply stores, helping younger children staple or tape them together to make the chains. Another reusable favorite is a full-sized window cling that we purchased online from a big box home improvement store. When installed on a window, the flames are covered with a peel-off light blocker. You simply peel off the flame covers each night at dusk. It is enjoyed from the outside of your home at night and from the inside during the day. Most craft stores, and all online party supply stores, sell a variety of smaller window clings, Hanukkiah headbands and or course, dreidels, which serve as both a decoration and activity.

A popular tradition at Hanukkah is a game called Dreidel. There is even an accompanying song! Dreidels are 4-sided spinning tops made from clay, wood or plastic. Tradition holds that the game originated during the reign of terror of Antiochus as a way to continue to teach children Torah and Hebrew during a time when both were outlawed. On each of the four sides of the dreidel are the letters N, G, H and S. These each represent the first letter of the words in the Hebrew saying “Nes Gadol Haya Sham,” meaning “A great miracle happened here.” You can easily find instructions on how to play online, but the main attraction for most is that winners score pieces of gelt, a coin shaped, gold or silver foil-wrapped piece of chocolate. Gelt can easily be given away, and since most are emblazoned with a Hanukkiah, these make great tools for sharing the story of Hanukkah with others. The dreidels and the gelt are decorations that are also games and refreshments. After all, food and great fellowship are inseparably linked.

Be creative! The more ownership your family takes in making this wonderful celebration special, the better memories you’ll create to last a lifetime. You can come up with variations on popular games, possibly playing forms of Pictionary or Charades that utilize words or phrases associated with the Hanukkah story. The Maccabees defended themselves with swords and shields, so creating fun using those, either store bought or homemade, helps relate this historical event to the Biblical teaching of our spiritual armor.

Another way to celebrate would be to focus on the number of the days as they advance through the holiday, looking for ways to relate that number to either the Hanukkah story or other Bible references. For example, on Day 1 you could highlight the importance of one man, or one family like the Maccabees, choosing to take a stand for Truth and changing the course history. You could sing the “Shema” to be reminded “hear O Israel, the Lord Your God, the Lord is One.” Someone might recount that only one cleansed leper returned to thank Jesus for healing him in Luke 17. Perhaps a special treat could be offered to whoever has the most creative or impactful example each day?

What’s not to love about a God who sets up multiple times each year for His people to have fun together celebrating and feasting? Hanukkah is no exception! Traditional foods to eat include brisket, latkes (fried potato pancakes), kugel (a noodle casserole that can be sweet or savory), doughnuts and decorated cookies in

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Hanukkah in your Home, continued the shape of dreidels or hanukkiahs. Search online to find traditional food recipes that suit your family.

Fried foods, like latkes and doughnuts, are part of the celebration giving remembrance to the miracle of the oil. My family adores Krispy Kreme doughnuts, so our Hanukkah celebration always includes at least one visit to the local store while their “Hot & Now” neon sign is lit. We also enjoy fried chicken and fish & chips as celebratory meals, preferring to eat those from restaurants, instead of making them at home. Although I have experimented with making latkes from scratch, I have had greater success using the box mixes from the grocery store. One of my culinary specialties is making homemade eggrolls, something we have now incorporated into our Hanukkah celebration. All the Hanukkah foods lend themselves well to parties, so it’s easy to pick a food theme for different nights and invite friends and family over for gatherings large or small.

Regarding gifts, our family has chosen to make the nightly celebrations our “gifts” to one another. We may share crafts or small token gifts with one another and our guests, but we have chosen not to have Hanukkah appear as a substitution/replacement for Christmas.

Use your imagination and your family’s preferences to make Hanukkah even more special at your house. Find age-appropriate books about the Maccabees to read to younger children and encourage older ones to explore the 1st & 2nd Books of Maccabees. While not included in the canon of scripture, they offer a historic account, with online versions available if your local library doesn’t have copies.

What is Hanukkah, continued could have it today. Third, the events of Hanukkah foreshadow future prophetic events that have yet to happen (Daniel 11:40-45, Zech. 9:9-13, 14:1-3, Matt. 24:15-19, 2 Thess. 2). Fourth, the events surrounding the Hanukkah story set the stage for the political and social background that would exist in Judea when Jesus walked on earth. Lastly, the Apostle Paul taught that our bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 3:15-16). This provides believers with a personal perspective of the Hanukkah story. This article provides a brief overview of the meaning of Hanukkah.

To read a fuller explanation of Daniel 11, see our Winter 2018 Pursuit article titled “Deciphering Daniel 11.” In the 2019 Winter Pursuit magazine article “The Hanukkah Miracle: Fact or Fiction?” we review the primary source evidence concerning the possible Hanukkah miracle.

By: Evangelist Kelly McDonald, Jr.

One of the festive times of the year to celebrate God’s faithfulness is called Hanukkah. During it, we remember how God delivered the Jewish people from overwhelming odds. We also remember the dedication of God’s Temple which occurred at that time. One lesson we learn from Hanukkah is not to trade the treasures of the Lord for the things of this world. This theme is found in the Bible and the Hanukkah story, and it has profound meaning for Christians today.

When the Israelites prepared to leave Egypt, God gave them favor in the eyes of the Egyptians. They were given gold, silver, clothing, and precious stones (Ex. 12:33-36). After they had successfully left Egypt and formed a covenant with God, He asked them to give a freewill offering to the Lord out of these treasures (Exodus 35:4-9). People willingly gave to this cause; they brought so much that they were told to stop giving (Ex. 36:1-6)!

This offering was used to build a Tabernacle to worship the Lord God of Israel. When we look at this structure, which is discussed in the book of Exodus, it had a divine outline to its set up. The Lord had expensive fixtures made to honor Him. The Altar of Sacrifice and Laver of Washing were made of bronze. The Table of Showbread, Menorah, Altar of Sacrifice, and Ark of the Covenant were made using gold. These were the original treasures that would be used to honor God.

Many years later, God revealed to King David another structure that was to be built called the Temple. It would be much larger and more intricate than the Tabernacle. While God would not allow David to construct it because he was a man of blood, God still revealed the appearance and arrangement of it to him.

David also gathered much of the material needed for its construction. At the end of First Chronicles, David and other Israelites devoted thousands of pounds of gold, silver, bronze, and other items for this project (see I Chron. 29:1-7). There was so much material that they had to build storehouses to hold all of it. Furthermore, there would be peace under the reign of David’s son Solomon. As devoted things were brought to the Temple, such as the tithe of tithe (Numbers 18:26-28), They needed somewhere to store it all. These special storehouses were placed around the outside of this new Temple/

“And of the Levites, Ahijah was over the treasures of the house of God, and over the treasures of the dedicated things…The sons of Jehieli; Zetham, and Joel his brother, which were over the treasures of the house of the LORD” (I Chron 26:20, 22).

The treasures set up during this time were protected. While Solomon started out doing the right thing, we learn that he gradually went astray (I Kings chapters 10-11). He turned away from God and worshiped other gods. After he died, God took 10 of the tribes away from his son Rehoboam and gave them to Jeroboam (I Kings chapter 12). What happened to all the treasures and dedicated things during the reign of Rehoboam?

I Kings chapter 14, we learn that Rehoboam went astray from God. Shishak, king of Egypt, attacked Jerusalem and took treasures away from the Lord’s house and from Rehoboam’s personal storehouse. “And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made” (I Kings 14:26).

The next King of Judah was Asa. According to I Kings 15:11-15, he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He removed many the sinful items that Rehoboam had set up. However, he did not remove the high places. He also dedicated treasures which his dad refused to give to the Lord God. Unfortunately, things changed.

In, I Kings 15:16-19, we learn that Asa voluntarily took the Lord’s devoted things and his own personal treasures and gave them to a Gentile king to attack the norther tribes of Israel. He compromised the Lord’s treasures to get security from an enemy and attack his brothers. Asa did not trust God. Because of this trans Continued on Page 12