Judith 8:14

“You cannot plumb the depths of the heart of man, nor grasp the thoughts of his mind. How then do you expect to search out God, who made all these things, and come to understand His mind or comprehend His purpose? No, brothers! Do not provoke the Lord our God to anger.”

Personal Challenge

Judith continues to chastise the leaders of Bethulia for their attempt to test God in their dire situation. This is a great passage to remind us that we are finite in our understanding of the things going on around us, but that God is infinite in the depths of His understanding. We have the promise from our God that all things work for the good for those who love Him. If this is so in our lives, then why do we resist Him in virtually every situation, especially those that are challenging? God always knows more than we do and He always knows what is best for us. His desire for us is to trust Him, to submit to Him, and to trust that He will guide us through the storms of life. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Judith 8:11-13

They came to her, and she said to them, “Listen to me now, rulers of the people of Bethulia! Your words spoken today to the people are not right, nor is the oath you have sworn and pronounced between God and yourselves, promising to surrender the city to our adversaries unless the Lord turns and helps you in so many days.”

“Now who are you to have put God to the test this day, setting yourselves up as God’s equal among the sons of men? You are testing the Lord Almighty, but you will never come to know anything!”

Personal Challenge

Holofernes was one of the commanders in king Nebuchadnezzar’s army. He was ruthless in battle and had destroyed many adversaries. In this part of Judith, the Jews that live in Bethulia are about to be sieged by Holofernes and his mighty army. The leaders of the community are fearful that they will not be able to withstand the siege. Their leader, Uzziah, tells them to give God five more days to help them, and if He doesn’t, they can surrender and save their lives. In essence, he is putting God to the test. Oh, how often do we do this in our own lives? “God, I will do thus and so, if you will only do…” Judith, a recent widow, heard of this and challenged Uzziah, the leaders, and the entire community. She saw that what they were doing was testing God and not trusting Him. We cannot put God on our terms. We must live our lives according to His terms. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Judith 5:20-21

“Now my lord and master, if there is any sin of ignorance in this people and they sin against their God, then we will identify their offense and will go up to defeat them. But if there is no lawlessness in their nation, then let my lord leave them alone, lest their Lord shield them, and their God defend them, and we will become a reproach before the whole earth.”

Encouraging Words

Once again, we find the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people under attack by a foreign nation. The commander of the attacking army has sought out a prophet in the land who is familiar with the Israelites to tell him about them so that he can formulate his battle plan. The prophet, Achior, informs him of the God of the Israelites and that if the Israelites have been living godly lives, lives without lawlessness before their God, then there is no way that the attack will be successful. We need to remember this. If we are living for God then we are under this protection. Glory be to God!

Tobit 13:3-4

Give thanks to Him before the nations,
O children of Israel,
For He scattered us among them.
Make known His greatness there;
Exalt Him in the presence of all the living,
For He is our Lord and God;
He is our Father unto all the ages.

Personal Challenge

Just as God scattered the Israelites throughout the known world of their early days, so has He scattered His Church throughout the world today. Why has He done this? He has done this so that His message, His Good News, can be shared with every people group in the world. He is not ready to end this age until everyone has had the opportunity to hear of Him. This is where we come in. We are the ones that are to be giving thanks to Him before all the nations. We are the ones that are to be exalting Him in the presence of the living. He is our Lord and God, our Father onto all ages, and we are to be proclaiming Him everywhere. Glory be to God!

Tobit 12:8-9

Prayer is good with fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. A few prayers with righteousness are better than many with wrongdoing. It is better to do almsgiving than to lay up gold. For almsgiving rescues one from death, and it will wash away every sin. Those who do almsgiving and are righteous will be full of life.

Personal Challenge

Living a godly and righteous life is not just about attending church services that make us feel good. If we desire to be godly and righteous before our Lord and show our appreciation for the redemption and salvation that He has bestowed upon us, then we will do those things that He asks us to do. Raphael instructs Tobit and Tobias that it is good to pray unto our God. However, he also teaches that our prayers must be accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. Yes, these are still acts of worship that we should be practicing today, for if we do them with the right motive in our hearts, they will draw us closer to our Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Tobit 12:6-7

Then Raphael secretly called the two of them, and said to them, “Bless God and give Him thanks. Ascribe greatness to Him and give thanks in the presence of all the living for what He has done for you. It is good to bless God and to exalt His name. Make known the words of God’s works honorably and do not delay to give thanks to Him. It is noble to keep hidden the secret of a king, but glorious to unveil the works of God. Do good, and evil will not find you.”

Encouraging Words

Who is this Raphael guy that Tobit and Tobias were about to reward for the help that he had given to them? He was none other than Raphael, one of God’s archangels. He did so many miraculous things in the lives of Tobit, Tobias, and their loved ones that they were ready to give him half of their wealth. But he redirected them to focus their praise, thanks, and blessings onto God. It is God that deserves our praise. It is God that deserves our thanks. It is God that deserves our blessings, our all. Our doing good should be all wrapped up in blessing God, for He deserves it. Glory be to God!

Tobit 4:16

From your bread, give to him who is hungry, and from your clothing, give to the naked. If you have more than you need, do almsgiving, and do not let your eye envy the almsgiving when you do it.

Personal Challenge

In the Old Testament church, the Jewish nation, tithing was an expectation, not an option. At a minimum, it was 10% of everything. Almsgiving was above and beyond that and pretty much expected as well. The difference was that tithing was an obligation and almsgiving was from a spirit of gratitude for all that one had. Tobit ends his admonition to Tobias by once again reminding him that he needed to take care of those around him who were hungry and naked without envy or remorse, but eagerly and lovingly. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy as me, the sinner!

Tobit 4:5-7

My son, remember the Lord our God all your days, and do not desire to sin or to disobey His commandments. Do righteousness all the days of your life, and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing. For if you walk in the truth, you will be successful in your works. Do almsgiving from your possessions to all who do righteousness. When you do almsgiving, do not let your eye be envious. Do not turn your face away from any poor man, so the face of God will not be turned away from you.

Personal Challenge

The book of Tobit, an apocryphal book in the Old Testament, is an awesome book to read about a godly man who clearly loves His God. The whole book revolves around the lives of a few people who walk with their eyes on their God and how He rewards that by being active in their lives. In this passage we see Tobit preparing his son, Tobias, to launch out on his life as an adult. Tobit has recently lost his sight and is concerned that he will not be around long enough to prepare his son for his life. In this passage, Tobit teaches Tobias to first take care of his mother as she gets older. He then focused on teaching Tobias to take care of those around him that are in need, the poor, the widow, and the orphan. This definitely shows us where God’s heart is. Glory be to God!