Meditating on the Word with the Daily Bible

In verse 1 of today’s passage, we read: “Now in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on the thirteenth day when the king’s command and edict were about to be executed, on the day that the enemies of the Jews had hoped to gain the mastery over them, it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews themselves gained the mastery over those who hated them.” (Esther 9:1, NASB) The day that Haman had intended, out of his wickedness, to annihilate the Jews was completely reversed. It became the day not of the Jews’ destruction but of the destruction of those who hated them. And the very man Haman had sought to kill—Mordecai—was now exalted in the king’s palace. As verse 4 says: “For Mordecai was great in the king’s house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces; for the man Mordecai became greater and greater.” (Esther 9:4) This appears to be a confrontation between Haman and the enemies of the Jews on one side and the Jews on the other. But in truth, it reflects the de...

 Haman, who plotted to kill Mordecai—a man who seemed not to be loyal to him—and sought to destroy the Jews, Mordecai’s people, ended up being hanged on the very gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. The king’s signet ring, once held by Haman, was given to Mordecai. The king also placed Haman’s entire estate under Mordecai’s management, effectively transferring all of Haman’s possessions to Mordecai. The one who devised evil plans fell into the very trap he had set and lost everything—even his life. We might call this a “reversal.” But the One who accomplished this reversal is God. It was God who overturned Haman’s wicked schemes. Such a turnaround cannot be planned or carried out by human means. Once the king’s decree was sealed with his signet ring, it was irrevocable, and Haman was the second most powerful man in the kingdom. How could anyone overturn this situation? But God did it. Though the circumstances seemed impossible, with God, all things are possible. Another importa...

With the resolve of “If I perish, I perish,” Esther stood before the king. To stand before the king without being summoned was to risk death. However, the path God had prepared for her was not death—it was favor in the king’s eyes. In verse 2, it says: “When the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she obtained favor in his sight; and the king extended to Esther the golden scepter which was in his hand. So Esther came near and touched the top of the scepter.” (Esther 5:2, NASB) The king extended the golden scepter to Queen Esther. The golden scepter was a rod the king carried, symbolizing royal authority. By extending it to Esther, the king was showing that he accepted her—that he chose her. Instead of being put to death for approaching unsummoned, she was chosen by the king. Earlier in verse 2, it says Esther was “pleasing” in the king’s eyes. The original Hebrew word used here for “pleasing” is ḥen (חֵן) , which means grace or favor . It is followed by the word nasa (נ...

 Now, the Jews throughout the entire province were facing the threat of being slaughtered on a single day. There seemed to be almost no way to escape this crisis. In such a moment, all the Jews prayed. Verse 3 says: “In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.” (Esther 4:3) They mourned deeply, fasted, wept, cried out loudly, wore sackcloth, and lay in ashes. Their hearts were broken, and they gave up food to pray. And they repented of their sins regarding this matter. When we face extreme crises, there are times when we don't even have the strength to pray. We might have enough strength to pray in front of minor problems, but when a crisis becomes too overwhelming, sometimes we find that we don’t even have the will to pray. But in such moments, praying itself is an act of strong faith. When we realize we must pray—but still have no motivation or...

 Did you stand firm in righteousness against injustice yesterday, just as we meditated on in God’s Word? We must never forget to seek God’s righteousness in every circumstance. We cannot overlook our own weaknesses—how easily we are swayed by emotion or selfish desires. Haman, infuriated that Mordecai would not bow before him, sought to punish not just Mordecai, but the entire Jewish people. To achieve this, he bowed before the king and schemed to turn his plan into reality. Let’s look at verse 7: “In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the pur—that is, the lot—was cast in the presence of Haman to select a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar.” Haman cast lots. Now, casting lots was indeed a method God had allowed the Israelites to use. But the purpose of casting lots in Scripture was to seek God’s will . In contrast, Haman and his men cast lots to determine when they would kill the Jews . This is revealed...

 Today’s passage, verses 145 to 152, begins with the Hebrew letter Qoph (ק) . Verse 145 says: “I call with all my heart; answer me, Lord, and I will obey your decrees.” Before the psalmist declares his intent to obey God’s decrees, he first cries out with all his heart. Then, in verse 146, it continues: “I call out to you; save me and I will keep your statutes.” And in verse 147: “I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in your word.” In these three verses, we see a deep longing and desire for God’s Word . This longing is not passive—it is active. It involves meditation on the Word of God and a desire to live by it. The psalmist cries out with a heart that seeks to obey, and he prepares himself early in the morning to meditate on God’s Word. We often say that we “long for God’s Word.” But what does that mean? To long for something means to desire it continually, to seek it with passion and anticipation. God’s people long to encounter God’s Word , to se...

 We have been continuing our morning meditations through Psalm 119. This psalm repeatedly calls us to reflect on the meaning and value of God’s Word in our lives. What does God's Word mean to us? Do we treat it merely as a book filled with nice sayings? Even among those who do not believe in God, there are people who regard the Bible in this way. But we must ask: Why did God give His Word to His people? Proverbs 3:3 says: “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” What does it mean to “bind them around your neck” and “write them on the tablet of your heart”? It means not letting them leave you for even a moment. Just as circumcision was a physical sign of God’s covenant with His people, God’s Word is to be written on our hearts , so that we never forget it—even for a second. To us, God’s Word is not some kind of extra supplement or optional add-on. It must be everything. Our worldview must be shaped by t...

 In Jeremiah 17:9–10 , it says, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” The Bible tells us that the human heart is the most deceitful and corrupt among all created things—“above all things.” Such a deceitful and corrupt heart not only lies to others but also lies to itself . At first, a person may deceive themselves with small lies as a defense. But over time, those lies are mistaken for truth. There is even a psychological condition called “Ripley syndrome.” This is not the fear of being caught in a lie, but rather a state in which the person genuinely believes their own lies to be true. This reflects the innate nature of a heart that is “more deceitful and corrupt than all things.” And people bring this deceitfulness even before God . Just as they lie to people, they lie to God. How can th...

 Today’s meditation begins with the Hebrew letter Mem (מ) . In verse 97, the psalmist says: “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.” Here, “your law” refers to God’s Word . To say “I love your law” is a remarkable expression. Normally, laws and statutes may feel like things that regulate or restrict our lives. But loving God’s Word means thinking of it not as a burden, but as something beloved —like how a parent loves their child or how God loves His people. To love God’s Word is not to keep it out of obligation or fear, nor to view it as a cold set of rules that control our lives. Rather, it is to desire to be near it , to have our hearts aligned with it, because we cherish it. That is the heart of the psalmist who says, “I meditate on it all day long.” When you love someone, you always want to be near them. In the same way, when we love God’s Word, it becomes not a burden , but the very object of our affection , something we want to be close to a...

Today’s reflection begins with verses 81 to 88 of Psalm 119, which start with the Hebrew letter Kaph (כ) . In these verses, the people of God are suffering in difficult circumstances. Verse 82 says: “My eyes fail with longing for your word, saying, ‘When will you comfort me?’” (NASB) In times of hardship, the psalmist longs for God’s help. But this desire for God’s intervention is not simply to have the present troubles removed. The ultimate goal is this: to hope in God’s Word . The psalmist asks for help not for personal peace or safety alone, but so that they may rise again and hold firmly to God’s Word, walking in it. Is this not the life that God’s people should seek? When we face hardships, we ask for God’s help. Often, our prayers are for comfort or protection. But even in those prayers, the heart of our request should be this: “Lord, I am afraid I might waver and abandon Your Word in this hardship. Help me, so that I may continue to hold on to Your Word faithfully.” Are y...

  Today’s passage, verses 33 to 40, contains lines that begin with the Hebrew letter He (ה) . Verse 33 says: “Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will keep it to the end.” (ESV) The psalmist confesses, “I will keep it.” The original Hebrew word for “keep” is natsar (נָצַר) , which means “to guard” or “to preserve.” But what does it mean to “keep” or “preserve” God’s Word? Does it mean to protect it so that no one can touch it? Not quite. To preserve God’s Word means to keep it exactly as it is — to follow it faithfully, set apart from the ways of the world. We all have a “Bible,” a physical book. But the importance of the Bible is not in the book as an object, but in the content written within it. To treat the Bible itself as sacred, lifting it up as a relic, is not the same as truly keeping God’s Word. What matters is living according to what the Word says. So in verse 35, the psalmist prays: “Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.” ...

The first part of today’s passage, verses 17 to 24, begins with the Hebrew alphabet letter Gimel (ג) . In verses 22 and 23, we read: “22 Remove from me their scorn and contempt, for I keep your statutes. 23 Though rulers sit together and slander me, your servant will meditate on your decrees.” When we try to live according to God’s Word, we often encounter “scorn and contempt.” What kinds of scorn and contempt might we face when we strive to live by God’s Word? Of course, it’s rare for people to openly ridicule or show contempt for Christians. However, when we try to live by the Word of God, certain thoughts may arise in our hearts: “If I live like this, people will think I’m a fool.” “If I live like this, people will see me as weak or incompetent.” As a result, living a life of patience, endurance, and forgiveness according to the Word may feel like falling behind in the world—a life that seems powerless, ineffective, or foolish. Yet, even when such thoughts arise, we must ...

 As we begin the month of May, we meditate on Psalm 119. Psalm 119 is the longest psalm in the book of Psalms. It follows a particular structure: each section begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Verses 1 to 8 form the first section, and verse 1 begins with the Hebrew letter Aleph (א) , using the word Ashrei (אַשְׁרֵ֥י) , which means “blessed.” This word is similar to how Matthew 5, which contains the Beatitudes in the New Testament, begins: “Blessed are…” However, the “blessed” in Psalm 119:1 and Matthew 5:3 is different from the kind of “blessing” typically sought in this world. In the world, blessings often refer to material prosperity, honor, or favorable circumstances. But the blessing in God’s Word refers to a life lived close to God’s Word—keeping and living according to it—regardless of our circumstances. Therefore, as we meditate on Psalm 119, we must first redefine what “blessing” truly means. The question is: “What do I truly consider a blessing?” If...