II Samuel 15:1-16:14 Dear RTB’ers, I said yesterday that Absalom was not looking good. Today we see an even worse side of his behavior. And tomorrow we’ll see that there are no real limits to his bad behavior. Day by day for us, Absalom goes from bad to worse to worst. But I’m getting ahead… …
Author Archives: Fred
August 8 / II Samuel 13:38-14:33
II Samuel 13:38-14:33 Dear RTB’ers, Joab is looking good. (That won’t always be so…!) Yesterday we saw him bringing David to the fight against Rabbah so that David would get credit for the victory, not himself (II Samuel 12:26-28). And today Joab is all about reconciliation between David and Absalom, first enlisting the woman of …
August 7 / II Samuel 12:1-13:37
II Samuel 12:1-13:37 Dear RTB’ers, I really liked Sean’s comment from yesterday, essentially “DON’T GO THERE!!” After that first wrong step, the next steps are even harder to avoid. Just skip that first step! Sounds easy, huh…??!! What a sad couple of chapters! First, adultery and its aftermath, then rape and its consequences. As for …
August 6 / II Samuel 10-11
II Samuel 10-11 Dear RTB’ers, Yesterday I noted that in II Samuel 8 we saw the height of David’s geographic power to the north as far as Damascus and to the east as far as the Euphrates River. Today’s battle does not dispute that statement. The Ammonites lived to the east of the Jordan River, …
August 5 / II Samuel 8-9
II Samuel 8-9 Dear RTB’ers, Today we see two sides of David’s life – his military prowess and his compassion. First, his military victories: And the LORD gave victory to David wherever he went. (v. 8:6b, repeated verbatim in 14b) In chapter 8 we see the height of David’s geographic power, to the north, with …
August 4 / II Samuel 7
II Samuel 7 Dear RTB’ers, King David is living in his cedar house and he looks over and sees the Ark of God residing in a tent. So he resolves to build a “house” for a dwelling place for the Ark. A nice thought. He even has his prophet’s approval. However, God is not interested …
August 2025 Readings
Date Readings Verses 01-Aug II Samuel 2-3 71 02-Aug II Samuel 4:1-5:16 28 03-Aug II Samuel 5:17-6:23 32 04-Aug II Samuel 7 29 05-Aug II Samuel 8-9 31 06-Aug II Samuel 10-11 46 07-Aug II Samuel 12:1-13:37 68 08-Aug II Samuel 13:38-14:33 35 09-Aug II Samuel 15:1-16:14 51 10-Aug II Samuel 16:15-17:29 38 11-Aug II …
July 29 / Psalm 50
Psalm 50 Dear RTB’ers, God addressing the Israelis – first His people (vv. 7-15), then the wicked (vv. 16-22). To His people He talks of their sacrifices. Although not rejecting those sacrifices, He seems to be suggesting that their hearts may not be right, but that their devotion to Him would be more important to …
July 28 / Psalm 49
Psalms 49 Dear RTB’ers, Today’s Psalm 49 reads more like a Proverb than a Psalm: Let’s not fret over the wealthy, the powerful and what they can do to us; death awaits them, just like anyone else. Even the wise and the foolish die and leave their wealth to others. Be not afraid when a …
July 27 / Psalms 46-48
Psalms 46-48 Dear RTB’ers, No doubt, thousand of scholars (possibly hundreds of thousands) have studied the Psalms through the years. I am not one of them. The Psalms are difficult for me. Maybe it’s poetry, in general? Maybe it’s an unknown context for which a particular psalm was written? Maybe it’s a metaphorical tool used …