granonine

[granonine]

Jotham's Parable

Judges 9: 7-9. And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my…

[granonine]

Abimelech's Treachery

Judges 9: 3-6. And his mother’s brethren spake of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words: and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother. And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house of Baalberith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him. And he went unto his father’s house at Ophrah, and…

[granonine]

Saturday Soliloquy: What to Write?

Sometimes, I have no idea what I’m going to write about in these Saturday posts. There are several things in my mind right now, but none of them seem post-worthy. Life is like that sometimes. I woke up to clear blue skies, and I thought of a friend of mine whose little boy, earlier this week, said, “Mommy, it has rained EVERY DAY of my life and it’s NEVER going to stop!” Well, chin up, little…

[granonine]

Abimelech

Judges 9: 1-2. And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto his mother’s brethren, and communed with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying, Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the men of Shechem, Whether is better for you, either that all the sons of Jerubbaal, which are threescore and ten persons, reign over you, or that one reign over…

[granonine]

Israel's Weakness

Judges 8:33-35. And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baalberith their god. And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, Who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side: Neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon, according to…

[granonine]

Forty Years of Peace

Judges 8:28-32. Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no more. And the country was in quietness forty years in the days of Gideon. And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives. And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son,…

[granonine]

Gideon's Ephod

Judges 8: 24-27. And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.)And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey. And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a…

[granonine]

Sunday Morning Coffee: Memories

Terry was feeling reminiscent yesterday, talking a lot about his childhood and teen years. He has always preferred being outdoors to being indoors, but when he was young he had what I now suspect was an allergy-based condition. He coughed a lot, especially during the night. He says it didn’t wake HIM up, but it sure enough kept his poor mother up. She worried about him constantly, and it really…

[granonine]

Saturday Soliloquy: Consistence Required

So I was a little lazy this week, did very little when it came to exercising my shoulder as I learned in physical therapy. Today, I’m paying the price for my laziness. I do believe that the weather is playing a part. It turned very drizzly and cool overnight. But I knew very well that most of the pain I’m experiencing right now is because I just wasn’t faithful to my routine. Lesson…

[granonine]

Israel's First Mention of a King

Judges 8: 22-23. Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you. We do tend to want to put our war heroes in places of power. Ulysses S. Grant, George Washington,…

[granonine]

Gideon's Revenge

Judges 8:18-21. Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king. And he said, They were my brethren, even the sons of my mother: as the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you. And he said unto Jether his firstborn, Up, and slay them. But the…

[granonine]

Succoth and Penuel

Judges 8: 13-17. And Gideon the son of Joash returned from battle before the sun was up, And caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and enquired of him: and he described unto him the princes of Succoth, and the elders thereof, even threescore and seventeen men. And he came unto the men of Succoth, and said, Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, with whom ye did upbraid me, saying, Are the hands of…

[granonine]

Zebah and Zalmunna

Judges 8: 10-12. Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all the hosts of the children of the east: for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword. And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the host: for the host was secure. And…

[granonine]

No Help for the Weary Soldiers

Judges 8: 4-9. And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them. And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in…

[granonine]

No God, No Atheism?

The other day, I heard Charlie Kirk comment that without God, there would be no atheism. While that’s been rolling around in my head, I’ve come to some other conclusions. No God, no anything! No universe, no solar system, no Earth, no humans, no animals, no oceans, no whales (what a shame that would be! I love whales ), no mountains or rivers or streams or plant life or–well, anything! No God,…

[granonine]

Saturday Soliloquy: What a Day!

Yesterday wore me out. Not that anything was overly strenuous, mind you. I’m just getting old, and there are things I used to do without even thinking about them that are now major accomplishments! I did a grocery run, and by the time I had the bags stowed in the trunk, I was dreading the short trek to put the cart in the proper place. Mission accomplished, I sat in the car for maybe five…

[granonine]

Dissension

Judges 8: 1-3. And the men of Ephraim said unto him, Why hast thou served us thus, that thou calledst us not, when thou wentest to fight with the Midianites? And they did chide with him sharply.And he said unto them, What have I done now in comparison of you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? God hath delivered into your hands the princes of…