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Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz,

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and you're listening to the Bible In A Year Podcast,

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where we encounter God's voice and live life through the

0:09

lens of Scripture. The Bible In A Year Podcast is

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brought to you by Ascension. Using the

0:13

Great Adventure Bible timeline, we'll read all the way

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from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the

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story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today.

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It is day 181. We

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are reading from 2 Kings, chapter 15, Jonah,

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the book of the prophet Jonah, chapters 1, 2,

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3, and 4, the entire book of the prophet

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Jonah. Just four chapters, so we'll get through that

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today, as well as praying Psalm 138. As

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always, the Bible translation that I'm reading from is the

0:36

Revised Standard Version, the Second Catholic Edition, and I

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am using the Great Adventure Bible from Ascension. If

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you want to download your own Bible In A

0:42

Year reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com/Bible In A

0:44

Year. You can also subscribe to this podcast in your

0:46

podcast app, unless you're listening in an app that I've

0:48

already said it a thousand times, right? Okay,

0:51

so yeah, moving on. On

0:53

day 181, 2 Kings

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15, we're getting closer and closer

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to our next time period, the time

0:59

period of exile. And so, ah

1:02

man, as we get closer and closer, in fact, we're on day

1:04

181 in 10 days from now,

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on day 191, we'll be coming

1:08

to a conclusion of 2 Kings.

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And what that means is, and 2 Chronicles 36.

1:14

So what that means is going to be that on day

1:16

192, we're going to begin a different kind

1:19

of thing. What we're doing is we're not leaving

1:22

the story, but we're taking a deeper dive into

1:24

the other books, the prophetic books and some other

1:26

historical books and some other wisdom books that

1:29

were written or proclaimed at the time

1:31

of the exile. And so, for

1:33

example, Isaiah on day 192, we're beginning the

1:36

book of the prophet Isaiah. Now Isaiah, at

1:38

the end of today's reading, 2 Kings chapter

1:40

15, we're going to hear about a guy

1:42

named Ahaz. And Isaiah lived at

1:44

that time. And he actually speaks to Ahaz

1:46

in Isaiah chapter seven, I believe it is.

1:48

So we have some crossover, but in 10

1:50

days we are going to come to a

1:52

conclusion in some ways, not a conclusion.

1:54

We're coming to a, let's

1:56

call it a marker. And that marker is going to

1:58

be taking a deep dive. into the works

2:00

and the words of the prophets. But today it

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is day 181. We're reading 2 Kings 15, all

2:06

of the book of the prophet Jonah, one through four, and

2:08

praying Psalm 138. Second

2:12

book of Kings, chapter 15. Azariah

2:14

reigns over Judah. In

2:16

the 27th year of Jeroboam, king of

2:19

Israel, Azariah, the son of Amaziah, king

2:21

of Judah, began to reign. He

2:23

was 16 years old when he began to reign,

2:25

and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem.

2:28

His mother's name was Jekoliah of

2:30

Jerusalem. He did what was right

2:32

in the eyes of the Lord according to all that

2:34

his father Amaziah had done. Nevertheless,

2:37

the high places were not taken away. The

2:39

people still sacrificed and burned incense on the

2:41

high places. And the Lord struck

2:43

the king so that he was a leper to the

2:45

day of his death, and he dwelt in a separate

2:47

house. And Jotham, the king's son,

2:49

was over the household governing the people of the

2:52

land. Now the rest of the acts

2:54

of Azariah and all that he did, are they not written

2:56

in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

2:59

And Azariah slept with his fathers and they buried him

3:01

with his fathers in the city of David. And

3:03

Jotham, his son, reigned in his stead.

3:07

Zechariah reigns over Israel. In

3:10

the 38th year of Azariah, king of

3:12

Judah, Zechariah, the son of Jeroboam, reigned

3:14

over Israel in Samaria six months. And

3:17

he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord as

3:19

his fathers had done. He did not

3:21

depart from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of

3:24

Nabat, which he made Israel to sin. Shalom,

3:26

the son of Jabesh, conspired against him

3:28

and struck him down at Ibliam and

3:31

killed him, and reigned in his stead. Now

3:34

the rest of the deeds of Zechariah, behold, they

3:36

are written in the book of the chronicles of

3:38

the kings of Israel. This was

3:40

the promise of the Lord which he gave to Jehu, your

3:42

sons shall sit upon the throne of Israel to

3:45

the fourth generation. And so it came

3:47

to pass. Shalom

3:49

reigns over Israel. Shalom,

3:51

the son of Jabesh, began to reign in

3:53

the 39th year of Uzziah, king of Judah.

3:56

And he reigned one month in Samaria, then

3:58

Menachem, Gadi came up

4:00

from Tirzah and came to Samaria,

4:03

and he struck down Shalom, the son of

4:05

Jabesh, in Samaria, and slew him, and reigned

4:07

in his stead. Now the

4:09

rest of the deeds of Shalom and the conspiracy which

4:11

he made behold, they are written in the book of

4:13

the chronicles of the kings of Israel. At

4:16

that time Menachem sacked Tapua, and all who

4:18

were in it, and its territory from Tirzah

4:21

on, because they did not open it to

4:23

him, therefore he sacked it, and

4:25

he ripped up all the women in it who were with

4:27

child. Menachem

4:29

reigns over Israel In

4:32

the 39th year of Azariah, king of Judah,

4:34

Menachem, the son of Gadi, began to reign

4:37

over Israel, and he reigned ten years in

4:39

Samaria. And he did what was

4:41

evil in the sight of the Lord. He

4:43

did not depart all his days from all the

4:45

sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, which he

4:47

made Israel to sin. Poul,

4:49

the king of Assyria, came against the land,

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and Menachem gave Poul a thousand talents of

4:53

silver that he might help him to confirm

4:55

his hold of the royal power. Menachem

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exacted the money from Israel, that is, from

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all the wealthy men, fifty shekels of silver

5:02

from every man to give to the king

5:04

of Assyria. So the king

5:06

of Assyria turned back, and did not stay there in

5:09

the land. Now, the rest of

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the deeds of Menachem, and all that he did, are

5:13

they not written in the book of the chronicles of

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the kings of Israel? And Menachem

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slept with his fathers, and Pekahiah

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his son reigned in his stead. Pekahiah

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reigns over Israel In

5:25

the fiftieth year of Azariah, king of

5:27

Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menachem began

5:29

to reign over Israel in Samaria, and

5:31

he reigned two years. And

5:33

he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord,

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he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, the

5:38

son of Nabat, which he made Israel to sin. And

5:40

Pekah the son of Ramalia, his captain, conspired

5:43

against him with fifty men of the Gileadites,

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and slew him in Samaria, in the citadel

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of the king's house. He

5:49

slew him, and he reigned in his stead. Now

5:52

the rest of the deeds of Pekahiah, and all that

5:54

he did, behold, they are written in the book of

5:56

the chronicles of the kings of Israel. Pika

6:00

reigns over Israel. In

6:02

the 52nd year of Azariah, the king of

6:04

Judah, Pika the son of Ramalia began to

6:06

reign over Israel in Samaria and he reigned

6:09

20 years. And

6:11

he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He

6:13

did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam, the son

6:15

of Nabat, which he made Israel to sin. In

6:18

the days of Pika, king of Israel, Tiglath

6:21

Pilsar, king of Assyria came and

6:23

captured Aijon, Abel Bet-nah-akkah,

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Genoa, Kadesh, Hazor, Gilead,

6:28

and Galilee, all

6:30

the land of Naphtali, and he carried the

6:32

people captive to Assyria. Then

6:35

Hosea, the son of Elah, made a conspiracy

6:37

against Pika, the son of Ramalia, and struck

6:39

him down and slew him, and reigned in

6:41

his stead, in the 20th year of

6:43

Jotham, the son of Uzziah. Now

6:45

the rest of the acts of Pika, in all that

6:47

he did, behold, they are written in the book of

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the chronicles of the kings of Israel. Jotham

6:52

reigns over Judah. In

6:55

the second year of Pika, the son of Ramalia, king of

6:57

Israel, Jotham, the son of Uzziah,

6:59

king of Judah, began to reign. He

7:01

was 25 years old when he began to reign, and he

7:04

reigned 16 years in Jerusalem. His

7:07

mother's name was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok. And

7:10

he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord

7:12

according to all that his father Uzziah had done. Nevertheless,

7:15

the high places were not removed, the

7:17

people still sacrificed and burnt incense on

7:19

the high places. He built

7:21

the upper gate of the house of the Lord. Now

7:23

the rest of the acts of Jotham, in all that he

7:25

did, are they not written in the book of the

7:27

chronicles of the kings of Judah? In

7:30

those days, the Lord began to send Razin,

7:32

the king of Syria, in Pika, the son

7:34

of Ramalia, against Judah. Jotham

7:36

slept with his fathers, and was buried with his

7:38

fathers in the city of David his father, and

7:41

Ahaz his son reigned in his

7:43

stead. Jonah

7:52

tries to flee God. Now

7:54

the word of the Lord came to Jonah,

7:56

the son of Amatai, saying, Arise, go to

7:58

Nineveh, and cry against it.

8:01

For their wickedness has come up before me." But

8:04

Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence

8:06

of the Lord. He went down to

8:08

Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish, so he

8:10

paid the fare and went on board to go with

8:12

them to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord.

8:15

But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and

8:18

there was a mighty tempest on the sea so that the

8:20

ship threatened to break up. Then the

8:22

mariners were afraid, and each cried to his God, and

8:24

they threw the wares that were in the ship into

8:26

the sea to lighten it for them. But

8:28

Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the

8:30

ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. So

8:33

the captain came and said to him, What

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do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call upon

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your God. Perhaps the God will give a

8:40

thought to us, that we do not perish.

8:43

And they said to one another, Come, let us

8:45

cast lots, that we may know on whose account

8:47

this evil has come upon us. So

8:50

they cast lots, and the lot fell upon

8:52

Jonah. Then they said to him, Tell

8:54

us, on whose account this evil has come upon us,

8:56

what is your occupation, and where do you come from,

8:58

what is your country, and of what people are you?

9:01

And he said to them, I am a Hebrew,

9:03

and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who

9:05

made the sea and the dry land. Then

9:08

the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him,

9:11

What is this that you have done? For

9:13

the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of

9:15

the Lord, because he had told them. Jonah

9:18

is thrown into the sea and swallowed. Then

9:21

they said to him, What shall we do to you,

9:23

that the sea may quiet down for us? For

9:26

the sea grew more and more tempestuous. He

9:28

said to them, Take me up and throw

9:30

me into the sea. Then the sea will quiet down

9:32

for you, for I know it is because of me

9:34

that this great tempest has come upon you. Nevertheless,

9:37

the men rode hard to bring the ship

9:39

back to land, but they could not, for

9:41

the sea grew more and more tempestuous against

9:43

them. Therefore, they cried to

9:45

the Lord, We beg you, O Lord, let

9:48

us not perish for this man's life, and

9:50

lay not on us innocent blood. For you,

9:52

O Lord, have done as it pleased you.

9:54

So they took up Jonah and threw him

9:56

into the sea, and the sea ceased from

9:59

its raging. Then the men

10:01

feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a

10:03

sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. And

10:06

the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up

10:08

Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the

10:10

fish three days and three nights. Chapter

10:14

2 Jonah's Prayer and Deliverance

10:17

Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the

10:19

belly of the fish saying, I

10:21

called to the Lord out of my distress and

10:23

he answered me. Out of the belly

10:26

of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.

10:29

For you have cast me into the deep, into the

10:31

heart of the seas, and the flood was round about

10:33

me. All your waves and your

10:35

billows passed over me. Then I

10:37

said, I am cast out from your presence. How

10:40

shall I again look upon your holy temple? The

10:42

waters closed in over me, the deep was round

10:44

about me. Weeds were wrapped about my head at

10:47

the roots of the mountains. I

10:49

went down to the land, whose bars closed

10:51

upon me forever. Yet you brought up my

10:53

life from the pit, O Lord my God.

10:56

When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the

10:58

Lord and my prayer came to you into your

11:01

holy temple. Those who pay

11:03

regard to vain idols forsake their true

11:05

loyalty. But I with

11:07

the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you.

11:09

What I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance

11:12

belongs to the Lord. And

11:15

the Lord spoke to the fish and it

11:17

vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. Chapter

11:21

3, Nineveh Repents Then

11:24

the word of the Lord came to Jonah

11:26

the second time, saying, arise, go to Nineveh,

11:28

that great city, and proclaim to it the

11:30

message that I tell you. So

11:32

Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word

11:34

of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an

11:37

exceedingly great city, three days journey in breath.

11:40

Jonah began to go into the city, going a

11:42

day's journey. And he cried,

11:44

yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be

11:46

overthrown. And the people of

11:48

Nineveh believed God, they proclaimed a fast and put

11:51

on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the

11:53

least of them. Then tidings

11:55

reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from

11:57

his throne, removed his robe, and covered himself with

11:59

the sword. with sackcloth and sat in

12:01

ashes. And he made proclamation

12:03

and published through Nineveh, by the decree of

12:06

the king and his nobles. Let

12:08

neither man nor beast, herd nor

12:10

flock, taste anything, let them not

12:12

feed or drink water. But

12:14

let man and beast be covered with

12:16

sackcloth, and let them cry mightily to

12:18

God. Yes, let everyone turn from

12:21

his evil way and from the violence which is

12:23

in his hands. Who knows? God

12:25

may yet repent and turn from his fierce

12:28

anger, so that we perish not. When

12:31

God saw what they did, how they

12:33

turned from their evil way, God repented of

12:35

the evil which he had said he would do to them,

12:37

and he did not do it. Chapter

12:40

4, Jonah's Anger. But

12:43

it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.

12:45

And he prayed to the Lord and said,

12:47

I pray you, Lord, is

12:50

not this what I said when I was yet in

12:52

my country? That is why

12:54

I made haste to flee to Tarshish, for I

12:56

knew that you are a gracious God and merciful,

12:58

slow to anger and abounding in mercy, and that

13:00

you repent of evil. Therefore now,

13:03

O Lord, take my life from me, I beg

13:05

you, for it is better for me to die

13:07

than to live. And the

13:09

Lord said, Do you do well

13:11

to be angry? Then Jonah went out

13:13

of the city and sat to the east of the

13:15

city and made a booth for himself there. He

13:18

sat under it in the shade till he should see

13:20

what would become of the city. God

13:23

reproves Jonah. And the Lord

13:25

God appointed a plant and made it

13:27

come up over Jonah that it might be a

13:29

shade over his head to save him from discomfort.

13:32

So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the

13:34

plant, but when dawn came up the next

13:36

day, God appointed a worm which attacked the

13:38

plant so that it withered. When

13:41

the sun rose, God appointed a sultry east

13:43

wind, and the sun beat upon the head

13:45

of Jonah so that he was faint, and

13:47

he asked that he might die and said,

13:49

It is better for me to

13:51

die than to live. But

13:53

God said to Jonah, Do

13:55

you do well to be angry for the plant? And

13:58

he said, I do well to be angry. angry

14:00

enough to die. And the

14:02

Lord said, you pity the plant

14:04

for which you did not labor, nor did you

14:06

make it grow, which came into being in a

14:08

night and perished in a night. And

14:11

should I not pity Nineveh, that great city in which

14:13

there are more than a 120,000 persons who do not

14:15

know their

14:18

right hand from their left, and also

14:20

much cattle. Psalm 138, Thanksgiving and Praise, a Psalm of

14:22

David. I

14:27

give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart.

14:29

Before the angels, I sing your praise. I bow

14:32

down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name, for

14:35

your mercy and your faithfulness. For you have

14:37

exalted above everything your

14:40

name and your word. On the day I called, you

14:42

answered me. My strength of soul, you increased.

14:46

All the kings of the world, shall praise

14:49

you, O Lord, for they have heard the

14:51

words of your mouth, and they shall sing of the ways

14:53

of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord.

14:56

For though the Lord is high, he

14:58

regards the lowly, but

15:01

the haughty he knows from afar. Though I walk in

15:03

the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You

15:06

stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and

15:08

your right hand delivers me. The Lord will

15:10

fulfill his purpose for me, your mercy, O Lord, in

15:12

good faith. For

15:15

you have been a great man, and your purpose for me.

15:18

Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever.

15:20

Do not forsake the work of your hands. Father

15:27

in Heaven, we give you praise, and thank you so much. Lord,

15:31

you do. You

15:33

see us, and you observe us, you

15:36

watch us, and not just watch us to bust us, right? Lord,

15:38

you can just watch us to catch us

15:40

doing something wrong. You are attentive

15:42

to us. You attend to

15:44

us, which makes no sense, Lord God, because

15:46

you are the God of the universe. And

15:49

yet, these people, us, that you've

15:51

made in your image and likeness, you attend

15:53

to us with the love of a Father, because

15:55

you have made us your sons and daughters. And

15:58

so we thank you. out

26:00

in such a way that our lives

26:02

are prophetic lives, witnesses and testimony to

26:05

Jesus. Let's keep praying for each other because

26:07

it's not an easy thing. It is often

26:09

a challenge for all of us. So embrace

26:12

the challenge. Pray for each other. I'm praying for you.

26:14

Please pray for me. My name is Father Mike and

26:16

I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God

26:18

bless.