Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 20 June 2020

We're getting awfully close to the mid-point of the year.  Amazing, really.  And we've now crossed the bridge of the Summer Solstice.  One effect of that is that, from this point forward, we see the "day" portion of the 24 hours to become less and less, and the darkness more and more.  I know it sounds weird to be saying that as we see outside the warm sun, the grass and flowers, the birds and butterflies and all  of that.  It probably is weird, but then so am I.  Or so I've been told for most of my life.  Whatever.
Looking around at the world, it's hard to be warm and fuzzy and optimistic.  I realize that none of this, not a speck of it, has taken the Lord by surprise, and that He is still in charge.  But I also know that that means that some some awful things can be permitted to happen to people.  It's happened before.  It's happening now.  It will happen again.  We won't curse the Lord or shake our fists at Him, but we can go to Him and plead for mercy and deliverance.  And we should.  I don't pretend to understand Him, but I've learned to trust Him.                     

Wife  spent some time on the phones this week with the insurance and medical  people.  She suffers, and long has, with a pretty nasty array of maladies.  One effect of that is the need to consult fairly regularly with an array of doctors of various specialties, and to regularly take quite an array of meds. Some of these medical specialties are hard to link up with.  The one doc, a rheumatologist, had been practicing in a not-too-distant hospital that has shut down totally.  He'd moved around that time to an operation and a practice on the southern edge of the county south of us.  But with the changes in our medical insurance, he's no longer "in the Plan" and so we've been trying to arrange to be seen by another.  Been trying for half a year now,or more, actually.  After much effort, we we able to arrange an appointment with another.  Two bad parts of that.  The first is that the earliest we can get in is in mid-SEPTEMBER!  Since some of her meds for that spectrum of conditions will run out some time next week, with no refills permitted, that's an issue.  The other bad part of it is that the doctor she's to see is a long way off.  Like about an 80 minute drive several counties away.  To be made in a 20-year-old vehicle (21 by time of the appointment) with about 236,000 miles on it.  I guess we'll be praying over it.  As we normally do.

And tomorrow is Fathers Day.  Like most people in our age group, our fathers passed on long ago.  Makes it tough.  What makes it tougher is that both of our kids have cut all ties with us as of several years ago.  So, Wife had no cards or calls on Mothers Day, and I will have none tomorrow.  Yes, it hurts.  It hurts a lot. 

But we will get through.

==============
Today.we complete the books of the Kings, with chapter 25 of 2nd Kings.

2 KINGS 25

1And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about.

2And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.

3And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.

4And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king's garden: (now the Chaldeans were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain.

5And the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him.

6So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.

7And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.

8And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzar–adan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem:

9And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire.

10And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about.

11Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzar–adan the captain of the guard carry away.

12But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.

13And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the Lord, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was in the house of the Lord, did the Chaldeans break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon.

14And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away.

15And the firepans, and the bowls, and such things as were of gold, in gold, and of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away.

16The two pillars, one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the house of the Lord; the brass of all these vessels was without weight.

17The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the chapiter upon it was brass: and the height of the chapiter three cubits; and the wreathen work, and pomegranates upon the chapiter round about, all of brass: and like unto these had the second pillar with wreathen work.

18And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door:

19And out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war, and five men of them that were in the king's presence, which were found in the city, and the principal scribe of the host, which mustered the people of the land, and threescore men of the people of the land that were found in the city:

20And Nebuzar–adan captain of the guard took these, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah:

21And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land.

22And as for the people that remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, ruler.

23And when all the captains of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men.

24And Gedaliah sware to them, and to their men, and said unto them, Fear not to be the servants of the Chaldeans: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon; and it shall be well with you.

25But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldeans that were with him at Mizpah.

26And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt: for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

27And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evil–merodach king of Babylon in the year that he began to reign did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison;

28And he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon;

29And changed his prison garments: and he did eat bread continually before him all the days of his life.

30And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life.