Brad Simon
In the heart of Jerusalem, the temple stood as a sacred sentinel against the Judean sky. Its towering pillars bore witness to generations of worshipers who ascended the temple steps. The sun-filled co...
Lisa Loraine Baker
The shepherds were surrounded by bleating, smelly sheep and the dust that arose when they and their herds moved about. They had no idea what was about to happen — the pronouncement of the ages! ...
Jessica Brodie
Not only does Scripture tell us Jesus' birth was heralded by a choir of angelic beings, but when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the temple, they also encountered two prophets who praised God in a ...
Emma Danzey
The 12 tribes of Israel came from Jacob’s 12 sons. Each tribe was named after one of Jacob’s children or grandchildren. ...
David Sanford
Early in our marriage, Renée and I invested a lot of time with women and men in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. One of our dear friends lived to be 101. Another lived to be 106. These two (and many othe...
Lisa Loraine Baker
The lessons are numerous. A thorough study of the sons of Jacob reveals life lessons for all who take heed....
Betty Dunn
We hear about Joseph at the start of Jesus' story, but not much after that. So, just where was Joseph when Jesus died?...
Clarence L. Haynes Jr.
Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Zebulun, Issachar, Dan, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Joseph, Benjamin. Just who were these 12 men, and what is their significance of their 12 Tribes? These names and their ancesto...
Michael Jakes
When we see Joseph, he seems to be but a minor player in the grand story of the birth and early childhood of Christ. But this is most definitely not the case. To be sure, the man to whom the God of th...
Barbara Latta
Have you ever wondered why Judah, the fourth son of Jacob and Leah, was chosen as the tribe that the Messiah would descend from? Out of twelve sons, why was Judah the chosen one?...
Jessica Brodie
While the star of David doesn’t appear in the Bible nor is it advocated as an “official symbol” of Judaism, it is a meaningful representation of a faithful people and the oldest monotheistic religion ...
Sylvia Schroeder
We get two Christmas stories in the Bible, featuring different guests who meet Jesus and some very different details. Do these stories contradict each other?...
Sometimes when we come to passages like Matthew’s condensed Christmas story, we don’t come with that childlike curiosity and wonder—looking at the everyday with awe, perceiving the familiar as fascina...
Betty Dunn
Scholars believe this is what happened to the 10 lost tribes of Israel. These tribes also settled far and wide around the earth. ...
Melissa Henderson
What do we know about Asher in the Bible? Was he tall or short, plump or skinny? Was he gifted with creativity or hospitality? Scripture shares a small bit of information about Asher. Yet, Asher was a...
Valerie Fentress
Judaism is one of the three major religions of our world. But when was Judaism founded? ...
G. Connor Salter
Each advent candle has some special meaning behind it and presents an opportunity to think about the Christmas season in a new way. The second advent takes us from thinking about hope to a related ide...
Dr. Sandra Hamer Smith
The 12 tribes or sons came from Jacob who the Lord renamed Israel in Genesis 32. If you read Genesis 49, you will see the 12 sons or what we now know as the 12 tribes. ...
Jessica Brodie
God has a plan that He will fulfill despite our all-too-human orchestrations, manipulations, and petty jealousies. Despite Rachel and Leah’s sisterly squabbles and the addition of two more wives into ...
Andy Lee
Have you wondered if numbers repeated in the Bible, like the number 12, have special meaning? ...