Through the Bible in 66 Days - Zephaniah

 

When God Says “Enough!” — The Gospel in Zephaniah

If you’ve ever heard someone say, “That’s it! I’ve had enough!”, you know the tone. It’s the moment when patience runs out, and something has to change. When we open the little book of Zephaniah, tucked away near the end of the Old Testament, we hear that same cry — not from a frustrated parent or a weary friend, but from God Himself.

Zephaniah lived during the days of King Josiah, a time when Judah was trying to recover from years of spiritual disaster. The nation had drifted far from God. Violence, corruption, idolatry, and injustice filled the land. And into that mess, God sent Zephaniah with a message that shook the nation: “The great day of the LORD is near” (Zeph. 1:14).

It’s as if God says, “I’ve had enough. I’m dealing with this.”

The Day of the Lord — God Steps In

Zephaniah repeatedly speaks of the day of the Lord — a moment when God steps into history to judge sin and put things right. Sometimes that “day” refers to a near event (like the fall of Jerusalem), but it mainly points forward to the final judgment at the end of time.

Zephaniah doesn’t give us all the details, but he makes one thing very clear: God takes sin seriously.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - Nahum

Nahum: The God Who Judges, The God Who Saves

There are parts of the Bible we rarely visit, and Nahum is often one of them. Yet this short prophecy is very relevant for our generation. It reminds us that God is not only the Saviour who delights in mercy—as Jonah discovered—but also the Judge who acts in righteousness, as Nahum boldly announced.

Jonah's ministry resulted in the repentance of Nineveh. Nahum's ministry, about a century later, announced the judgment of God upon the same people. One hundred (or perhaps 150) years separate these two books. Still, the lesson is timeless: when you forget what God has done for you, you set yourself up for trouble, i.e. God's judgment.

1. The Core Message of Nahum

G. Campbell Morgan summarised Nahum's message like this:

"The core of the predictive message of Nahum was the utter destruction of a great city and a great people by the will and act of God."

R. K. Harrison adds: "In this small prophecy of doom, the author demonstrated… that the God of the nation whom the Assyrians had despised was in fact the artificer and controller of all human destiny."

This is not merely history. It is a reality for us in our current world. It is gospel truth. 

The New Testament affirms the same truth:

• God rules over nations — "He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness" (Acts 17:31).

• God's justice is perfect — "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right" (Genesis 18:25, echoed in the NT principle of divine justice).

Nahum reminds us that God is not passive. He acts, He intervenes, and He judges.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - Jonah

 

The book of Jonah is an emotional roller coaster, and Jonah seems to be extremely volatile. He is not really the type of person that you would imagine being a preacher. 

God told the prophet Jonah that He (God) was aware of what was going on in the world and that he had to go to Nineveh and warn them that they were fast approaching a time when God would judge them. 

Initially, he disobeyed God and ran in the opposite direction. Then, after his near-drowning and rescue by a whale, he accepts the commission and sets off for Nineveh. 

The story ends with his simmering anger with God for being forgiving. He thought that God should have damned the people of the sinful city of Nineveh. In his heart, Jonah obviously knew that God would forgive, which is why in chapter 4, verse 2, he says to God, 'This is what I was talking about in my country'. Presumably, he had argued with God before he decided to disobey, as he knew how God operated: if there was the slightest possibility that the people would turn from their sins, God would forgive them (and that really annoyed him). God is still the same today - He is 'long-suffering . . .  not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance ', (a change of mind and faith in and obedience to God) 2 Peter 3:9. 

Should we be alarmed about war in the Middle East?

 

World events rush upon us and often take us by surprise. As a Christian, I believe that everything is moving towards the end times and that the events described in the Bible will come to pass. It was thousands of years between the initial promises of a Saviour (Genesis 3:15) and the coming of Jesus of Nazareth, but this, plus the fulfilment of other prophecies (see Daniel 2 and 7, for example), gives me the confidence that God's word will always be seen to be authentic in the end and will always be fulfilled.

I do not know (not being a prophet) how this emerging conflict between the USA, Israel and Iran will turn out, and I do not necessarily agree with everything they have done. However, it would appear that things are gathering pace and Biblical prophecy is nearing fulfilment.

In light of current world events, we all need to be aware that time is running out for all of us. Time is a limited commodity, not just in what we can do in any 24 hours, but also in our lifespan. This means we need to take a relationship with God (or the lack of it) seriously.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - Isaiah

 

The book of Isaiah stands like a great mountain in the Old Testament, and at its summit shines the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many have rightly called it "the Gospel of the Old Testament" because it proclaims—seven centuries before Bethlehem—the good news of a coming Saviour: His birth, His character, His ministry, His sufferings, His death, and His resurrection. Isaiah speaks as a prophet, a preacher, and, at times, almost an evangelist, pointing forward to the Lord Jesus with remarkable clarity.

The Gospel Thread Running Through Isaiah

Isaiah's message can be gathered around several great themes that anticipate the New Testament revelation of Christ. Each theme is rooted in Isaiah's prophecy and confirmed by the apostles.

1. The Virgin-Born Son: God's Sign to the World

Isaiah begins the Gospel story by announcing a miraculous conception.

• Isaiah 7:14 — "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

• Fulfilment: Matthew 1:22–23 quotes this directly, identifying Jesus as the promised Immanuel—God with us.

This is not merely a prediction of an unusual conception; it is the declaration that God Himself would step into human history. Isaiah's Gospel begins with grace: God comes near.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - Ecclesiasties

Ecclesiastes: When Life Feels Like Chasing the Wind

The book of Ecclesiastes stands as one of the most unusual and striking books in the whole Bible. It refuses to gloss over life's frustrations. Instead, it walks straight into them, naming the emptiness we often feel but rarely admit. The Teacher—it's writer—speaks with a raw honesty that resonates deeply with anyone who has ever wondered, What's the point of it all?

Yet Ecclesiastes is not a hopeless book. It is a signpost pointing beyond the emptiness of life "under the sun" to the fullness of life found only in Jesus Christ. The Gospel shines where human experience grows dim.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - Proverbs

 

A Gospel‑Centred Summary of the Book of Proverbs

Highlighting the Wisdom of God and the Way of Salvation

The book of Proverbs is God’s invitation to live wisely in His world. It is not merely a collection of clever sayings; it is a call to walk the path of life rather than the path of death. At its heart stands a simple but searching truth:

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” (Proverbs 1:7)

But the fear of the LORD is not simply respect—it is a right response to a holy God. Proverbs exposes the foolishness of sin, the danger of ignoring God, and the certainty of judgment. Yet it also points us to the One who is the very embodiment of God’s wisdom—the Lord Jesus Christ.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - 1 Chronicles

 

Did you realise that God knows everything? He is looking after us even if we're not aware of it. When some people realise that they say, " Why should we really need to pray? For if God knows everything, why would we need to tell them about our issues, problems and situations? We could get on with our lives, and He will sort everything out as we go along.

First Chronicles tells the story of King David, but you may remember that we read about him in 1st and 2nd Samuel. First Chronicles tells the story of David's life from God's perspective. Please note that God knows every detail of not only David's life but also our lives - our motives, deepest desires, secret sins, and so on. He is the creator, law-giver, and judge, and we will all stand before him and answer for how we have lived at some stage after we die. 

So it is with the Gospel message in the New Testament. The Gospel announces undeserved hope and unlimited redemption. It is firmly grounded in the remarkable truth that God knows every intricate detail of our lives—our struggles, fears, and dreams. Despite His infinite wisdom, He longs to have a deep relationship with us, inviting us to be honest with Him about our lives. This raises a thought-provoking question: If God is already aware of our needs, why should we bother to pray? The answer unfolds beautifully in the pages of First Chronicles, illuminating what a relationship with God is really like.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - 2 Kings

First and Second Kings are often regarded as one book. It covers the period from King Ahab to the time when Israel and Judah were taken into captivity—the period known as the exile. The reason this happened was that they disobeyed God, worshipped idols and turned to grotesque religious practices that were not only evil but very harmful to women and children.

The basic lesson we learn from this is that sin will always catch up with you. You can't outrun it, and there are long-term consequences to our behaviour. This is something we all need to be aware of, as we often forget that we will all stand before God, our maker and that He, as the judge of all the earth, will deal with us fairly but righteously. Hebrews 9:27,28 state this - 'And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him' KJV.

Through the Bible in 66 Days - 1 Samuel

This book starts the history of Israel’s monarchs. Israel had become bored with having Judges and they wanted to be like everyone else. In the ancient world there were many city states that were led by kings. Powerful families led regions and countries as a quick read of Genesis chapters 10 and 14 make clear. It would seem that the plan of the creator had been for humans to respect Him as king and leader. He used men like Abraham, Moses etc to lead on his behalf but the ideal wasn’t a king as they generally soaked up resources and became rich at the expense of others, 1 Sam. 8. 10-18. 

How unlike the Lord Jesus Christ (King of the Jews, John 19.19, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Rev 17.14, 19.16) who instead of taking wealth from others bringing them into poverty became poor that we through His poverty might be rich, 2 Cor. 8. 9. This is a veiled reference to the fact that Jesus is the Son of God, he left the wealth and perfection of heaven to live in a life of poverty in this world. But, it goes even deeper than that. The poverty of Jesus took Him to the death of the cross. He died for our sins, to bring us to God. His poverty is the reason we can have the riches of God’s kindness and grace if we are prepared to repent and believe the gospel.