Eat This Book
Read Proverbs Chapter 25
Zechariah 8
1 Again the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying,
2 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.
3 Thus saith the Lord; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy mountain.
4 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age.
5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.
6 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the Lord of hosts.
7 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;
8 And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.
9 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.
10 For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour.
11 But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the Lord of hosts.
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
13 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
14 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lordof hosts, and I repented not:
15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
18 And the word of the Lord of hosts came unto me, saying,
19 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
The POFW Daily Bible Reading 
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
People shall come to seek the Lord, many people. The time has come for people to wake up and see they need God. If we have ever needed God we need him today. All people from all walks of life will come, strong nations will come to him.
People will want to listen to what you have to tell them and latch on to you when they find that you are an Israelite. How great is this we want to go with you because we have heard of the great power of your God.
God will never leave his people and will always be with them. We should trust in the Lord with all our might.
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
We should be eager and excited to go to His house and seek Him in prayer. What does it tell God when we come slowly dragging in as if it’s a dreaded chore? No, it is a joy and a privilege to be able to go to church; many people risk prison or even death to worship together but they still go.
Lord, I don’t want to take You or Your house for granted, never let me lose my desire to worship together with Your People.
Psalm 122:1 KJV
I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord .
Your reputation proceeds you
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
What do people think of when they think of you, of me, of us?
Proverbs tells us a good name is better than riches.
Our testimony isn’t just what God has brought us out of, but what kind of person we are becoming.
When we face trials yet smile this is testimony.
When we suffer but have joy this is testimony.
When cry but praise this is testimony.
These things cause others to say “there is something different about you!”
Some people are own through invitation. Some are own through fear, and others through a word. Yet many are own by reading the epistle of our life.
What does your/our/my name mean when people think about it?
I pray the people repeat the words of the prophet “we will go with you, for we heard that God is with you.”
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
When we live as “living examples” of the word of God it will cause people to be drawn to Him. It should be a great desire of ours to walk pleasing before Him and obedient to Him. That we may find favor with Him and man.
Just as my children sometimes hold onto the helm of my skirt for safty or to know that I am near. There will be spiritual babies born because of our example that will grab ahold of us because they know we walk with God and they desire to find Him.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
Vs 2-3 God loves his people and desires for them to fellowship with him. We should not be slack to spend time in prayer with him and not forsake the assembling of the saints.
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
A lying imagination.
In today’s society there is a wave of false worlds. The fantasy movement if you would. Although this is not a new concept. With the invention of computers and hd software. You are now able to create any world that your imagination can think up. 50% of these worlds are made up of witchcraft. WoW, World of Witchcraft, is one of the best selling video games in the world. Why? What Hod made for good, the enemy will try to twist it and cause confusion. God gave us a creative mind for a reason. To worship him. David did this. He created many new instruments of music to worship God. My prayer is that we would use what God gave us and use it for His glory.
RED PRINT DAYS ARE COMING!!!!
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
13 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
14 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lord of hosts, and I repented not:
15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
Yes it is that simple. The Lord is telling us that the blessing that are coming are so good that we going to need strong hands to hold them all. Although this is only going to happened when we are in unity. YES, UNITY… We have to speak truth at all time, we are to keep peace, we can’t even imagine evil in our hearts, no false promises, and hold no grudge against our neighbors. In little words, LOVE one another with a pure and sincere LOVE.
I LOVE YOU POFW!!!!
The LORD Promises to Bless Jerusalem 20. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; it shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: 21. And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also. 22.Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORDof hosts in Je-ru’-sa-lem, and to pray before the LORD. Isa. 60:3 23. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
Vs.9, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.”
The prophet has already spoken that we, POFW, are going to build a new church. I believe God is telling POFW to get their hands strong and get ready to WORK, so that the church can be built.
NLT – 9 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Be strong and finish the task! Ever since the laying of the foundation of the Temple of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, you have heard what the prophets have been saying about completing the building. 10 Before the work on the Temple began, there were no jobs and no money to hire people or animals. No traveler was safe from the enemy, for there were enemies on all sides. I had turned everyone against each other.
11 “But now I will not treat the remnant of my people as I treated them before, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 12 For I am planting seeds of peace and prosperity among you. The grapevines will be heavy with fruit. The earth will produce its crops, and the heavens will release the dew. Once more I will cause the remnant in Judah and Israel to inherit these blessings. 13 Among the other nations, Judah and Israel became symbols of a cursed nation. But no longer! Now I will rescue you and make you both a symbol and a source of blessing. So don’t be afraid. Be strong, and get on with rebuilding the Temple!
The promise of harvest for those working in the Kingdom of God. This word is to the Jews, but we as Gentiles are graphed into that same vine and have the same commanded blessing. Praise the Lord!!!
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
We are commanded over and over in the word of God to speak the truth,He knew human nature was going to have a problem with making sure everything that they tell is the truth.Oh how well He knows the people He created. We are so quick to repeat things that we have heard not knowing if it is true or not,or we tell things on others that is not exactly right to make ourselves look better.Shame on us,God is not pleased with this and it hurts our witness to others!!
We need to let our life and our actions be where people will want the God we serve because they can see God in us!!!
We can be great soul winners if we will let our light shine!,
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
The Lord desires to bless but He expects us to do our part. The blessings of God are contingent on our obedience and attitude. If we will then He will.
Cheerful Feasts
Zechariah 8:18-23
.23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt(sleeve) of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
I Corinthians 14:25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.
FAVOR IS EASY TO FIND
15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
The LORD desires to do WELL to and for HIS people. What a promise of hope and inspiration. This promise comes with such clarity of instructions.
To find GOD’s favor we must simply follow the instructions.
1. Speak the TRUTH – do NOT lie.
2. Execute judgement of TRUTH and PEACE – Uphold righteousness – BE a Witness.
3. Do NOT imagine evil in your heart against your neighbor – Do NOT hold grudges or wish calamity on others – Do NOT plot evil against them.
4. Love NO false oath – Do NOT lie to cover up something or someone else.
I commit to continue to follow these 4 simple steps to for the LORD to do WELL unto us.
iRepent
iPraise
iPray
iWork
iGive
iReap
Red Letter Days
6 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the Lord of hosts.
Zechariah 8:6 NLT
This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: All this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God’s people. But is it impossible for me? says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
It may look impossible to us but nothing is too hard for God. No mountain too big, no ocean too wide, no storm too violent… I remember a while back we had a choir practice and the Spirit started moving and someone prophesied about how in this world we deal with temporal things, but we serve an infinite God and that He was about to take over in a situation and do a work that would be beyond any of our ability. Our Red Letter Days are in the hands of the One who is above all, the Almighty, Infinite, Omnipotent, Omnipresent, King of kings and Lord of lords. Truly, is there anything impossible for our infinite Jesus?
Luke 1:37
For with God nothing shall be impossible.
So many things grabbed my attention in this verse today. Where and what to expand on?
16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: 17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord. KJV
16-17 Tell the truth, the whole truth, when you speak. Do the right thing by one another, both personally and in your courts. Don’t cook up plans to take unfair advantage of others. Don’t do or say what isn’t so. I hate all that stuff. Keep your lives simple and honest.” MSG
I am firm believer that children could make great lawyers. They know the meaning of the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Dad: “Did you that cookie?”
Child: “What cookie?”
Dad: “The last one in the package; that I said you could not have.”
Child: “When did you tell me that?”
Dad: “An hour ago.”
Child: “Where was I when you told me that?”
Dad: “Standing in the kitchen eating the other cookies.”
Child:” Are you sure that was me?”
Dad:” Yes, you are the only child in this house.”
Child:” I understand that, I just want to make sure we are both talking about the same thing during the same time period.”
Dad:” You know what I am talking about!”
Child:” I believe I remember a conversation about a cookie today; however the details are a little fuzzy.”
Dad: “Never mind, don’t eat the last piece of cake.”
Child: “What cake?”
Can the weak faith community in Judah belive God will reverse their fortunes and make Jersalem great.God promises to make them holy will they choose to live right again. Being the same with us God can take us weak and sinful as we are and by his spirit make us strong and good. LETS TRUST GOD
9 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.
iLove to eat the Word
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
The teachings of the Word of God that come across the pulpit of The Pentecostals will help us to “Do what is right” in the eyes of The Lord and will give us favor in the eyes of the nations. At first thought, one might think the church should become more relevant to win the world, but the opposite is in fact true. When we line up with the will and holiness of The Lord the nations will grab onto the garments of the church and we will then truly be able to meet their needs.
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
How would you like for you to have others coming to you and stating to you. Take us with you for we know God is with you. “Emmanuel” = Translated means God is with us! Lost/Protocal come see that God is with us. “Sinners come Home”…..No condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. Amen, all have sinned and fallen short to the Glory of God. “Everyone”…….
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
Verses 9-10 CEV “I am the Lord All-Powerful! So don’t give up. Think about the message my prophets spoke when the foundation of my temple was laid. Before that time, neither people nor animals were rewarded for their work, and no one was safe anywhere, because I had turned them against each other.”
Same verses NLT “I am the Lord All-Powerful! So don’t give up. Think about the message my prophets spoke when the foundation of my temple was laid. Before that time, neither people nor animals were rewarded for their work, and no one was safe anywhere, because I had turned them against each other.”
We have promised blessings coming to us upon our obedient response to His call. Now is not the time to “give up”; but a time to push forward and follow His will.
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
What an awesome day this will be. It will definitely be a ‘red letter’ day. We are examples now-today. When there is a great need to find God, the people will know where to turn to find someone who can touch God & help them. Be prepared today because that day is coming soon.
This chapter illustrates opportunity. They were to receive another opportunity; “So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not”. The Lord (Jesus) willingly affords the opportunity of life, for obedience to God’s word. What a mighty God we serve! God bless Jerusalem and you all, in Jesus name, Amen
13 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
The Lord encourages us to be strong, that he will save and bless us. Not to fear because he will not put any more curses like he used to do when he would get angry. God wants us to be kind to one another he hates evil. To fear him and stay away from sin.
God loves us and wants to bless us. I seek you Lord.
Nothing is to difficult for God
6 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts:If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith Jehovah of hosts.
(Zechariah 8:6 ASV)
The literal translation of marvellous is to be difficult. The illustration here is that to these people what would seem to be a difficult to task is not difficult to God himself.
26 And Jesus looking upon them said to them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
(Matthew 19:26 ASV)
Whatever situation it is in your life, it is not hard thing for God. Declare God’s promises and stand in faith.
14 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lordof hosts, and I repented not:
15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.
A reverse of fortune…
God is giving his people a great promise in the scriptures he is giving them reason to hope for the future. He says the same desire I have to punish your fathers is now the desire I have to bless you… Strong contrast … But words that anyone would want to hear. Gods blessing is upon us!!
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
Promises
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
I’m gonna get my blessing right now! Wow what a word! In ready for the promises of Gos. I have put aside (torn up and danced on) my poverty mentality. I will not pass it to my children, I will pass promises instead!
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
This is one thing that people have a hard time dealing with. When something is done wrong to us we want revenge, we want justice to be served in our account but God reminds us that even when we are in the right and others are wrong we are to love them nonetheless. Let God work, it only hurts us when we hold onto anger.
“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: All this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God’s people. But is it impossible for me? says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. (Zechariah 8:6 NLT)
Nothing is impossible for God. He thoughts are above our thoughts.
Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” (Matthew 19:26 NLT)
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek theLord of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
Be a witness..
It’s time to be a witness. Not a time to shy out and hide who you are. People are looking for God in a dark world trying different things that do not fulfill the need of their heart. Guess what!? We the people of God are the sings on the road. All we have to do is speak “Light” in the middle of their darkness. Just plainly be joyful and bold of all the blessings that God is giving us that is a great tool to shine the light. When we walk in with a smile. Why, when all around us is trouble and chaos and our lives may not be perfect..? Well because we have a promise in Him. He will take care of it. He will take care of us. Simply because of His mercy that endureth forever. Hallelujah when the problems arise! People will see and pretty much invite themselves, if we haven’t already invited, to church. I want that what you have. I want to go where your God is. It’s time to let the people know when they asked. I am blessed, for I know the one who can save, heal, deliver, provide, restore, comfort. With God nothing is impossible. Thank you Jesus. I’m blessed with you
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.
We must love everyone in order to get to heaven. It doesn’t matter if they have done you wrong, you still must forgive. It may not be easy to do, but it is the right thing to do.
I am going to grab the hem of my leadership and move forward! I can’t wait to see where God is going to lead us!
A God blessed city will respect and give protection and comfort to its most vulnerable citizens. The old, leaning in canes, will sit safely in curbside benches. The young will play, happy and carefree, on the sidewalks and in parks. They will be protected and provided for -neither begging nor laboring for their upkeep. The scene is one of tranquility and prosperity. The complete fulfillment of this prophecy awaits of course, the second coming of Christ. However, we can glimpse a bit of this future promise as we work together to live out the commands recorded in Zechariah 7: 9-10. How do we show mercy to someone of “ripe old age” (vs4) or to a child? Hospitality staff in church will assist the ‘better aged’ to their chairs, restrooms and vehicles. Not because they want the attention, but because they have a compassionate heart. Bus staff cater to mostly children bringing them to and from church. God’s church is called to be like Him. To literally be like-Christ means to be Chistian. To be church is to be assembled as one body. We are His hands and feet until His second coming.