Living in Exile

While serving in exile, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were again pressured to worship a golden image which represented the pride and arrogance of King Nebuchadnezzar. When brought before the King, they remained ‘stubborn’ in their faith and would rather die in the fiery furnace than disobey their God’s commandments.

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Esther’s Steadfast Spirit

Imagine that you are Esther from what we see in Esther 2.

1.Esther was orphaned. She did not have any other family members with her, other than her cousin Mordecai.
2.Esther was like her fellow Jews who lost their home and taken into captivity into a foreign land.
3.Esther was separated and isolated from her people and cousin. While in the King’s Palace, she was surrounded by people, cultures and values that she was not accustomed to.

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Living under Human Government

In this pagan society, Daniel fought to balance his loyal service to Babylon with his ultimate obedience to God. Yet in spite of his disagreement with Babylon’s policies, Daniel gave his life to serve the nation. The book of Daniel is thoroughly political, revealing the power of God’s sovereign undertow beneath the tides of world politics, and all for the sake of His chosen people. Even as His people endured exile in Babylon, God sovereignly governed the world’s political leaders — raising, dropping, and reordering political powers for millennia (Daniel 2:21)

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Faithful to His Promises

Hoshea was the last king of the north as God’s judgement finally came upon Israel some 200 years after the nation was divided. This was however not caused singularly by Hoshea although he was definitely also a contributor. In fact it was said of him that he did evil in the eyes of the Lord but he was not as bad as his predecessors (v2). That however was immaterial as he became the straw that broke the camel’s back.

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