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  • Bible reading notes
    • Genesis
      • Gen 12-25 (Abraham)
      • Gen 25-36 (Isaac & Jacob)
      • Gen 37-50 (Joseph)
    • Exodus
      • Exodus 1-4 (Moses’ life and call)
      • Exodus 5-15 (Plagues and exodus)
      • Exodus 15-19 (Wilderness and Sinai)
      • Exodus 20 (Ten Commandments)
      • Exodus 20-24 (Book of the Covenant)
    • Judges
      • Gideon
      • Abimelech
      • Jephthah
      • Samson
    • 1 Samuel
      • 1 Samuel 1-8 (Road to monarchy)
      • 1 Samuel 9-15 (Saul)
      • 1 Sam 16-31 (David)
    • 2 Samuel
      • 2 Samuel 1-8
      • 2 Samuel 9-20
      • 2 Samuel 21-24
    • Ezra-Nehemiah
      • Ezra 1-6 (temple building)
      • Ezra 7-10 (Ezra in Jerusalem)
      • Neh 1-7 (wall building)
      • Neh 8-13 (covenant renewal)
    • Psalms
    • Isaiah
    • Jeremiah
      • Jeremiah 1-25
      • Jeremiah 26-45
    • Amos
    • Obadiah
    • Jonah
    • Micah
    • Nahum
    • Habakkuk
    • Haggai
    • Zechariah
      • Zechariah 1-8
      • Zechariah 9-14
    • Matthew
    • Luke
    • John
  • Introductory notes
    • Gen 12-50 intro
    • Exodus 1-24 intro
    • Judges intro
    • 1 Samuel intro
    • 2 Samuel intro
    • Ezra-Nehemiah intro
    • Intro to the Prophets
    • Jeremiah intro
    • Amos intro
    • Jonah intro
    • Micah intro
    • Habakkuk intro
    • Haggai intro
    • Zechariah intro
  • Seasonal
    • Advent 2019
    • Advent 2020
    • Advent 2022
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • New Year
  • Topical
    • An eye for an eye (lex talionis)
    • Can a righteous person save a city?
    • Child sacrifice and a loving God
    • Discerning true prophecy from false
    • Destruction of the Amalekites
    • Disasters and God’s judgment
    • Does God change His mind?
    • God’s justice in this world
    • Gospels
    • Evaluating biblical characters
    • Hardening of Pharaoh’s heart
    • How did David meet Saul?
    • Intergenerational punishment
    • Jephthah’s vow
    • Jonah and historicity
    • Jesus the Nazarene? (Matt 2:23)
    • Justice and forgiveness
    • Light and God’s salvation plan in Isaiah
    • Melchizedek’s significance
    • Messianic prophecies
    • Natural or supernatural event?
    • Numbers leaving Egypt
    • Passover lamb’s bones
    • Prophecy and multiple fulfilments
    • Prosperity gospel
    • Racial purity in Ezra 9?
    • Reading OT Law
    • Reckoning Abraham righteousness (Gen 15:6)
    • Significance of genealogies
    • The art of telling a story
    • Un-chosen: Is God unfair?
    • Were the exiles racist?
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Home
  • Bible reading notes
    • Genesis
      • Gen 12-25 (Abraham)
      • Gen 25-36 (Isaac & Jacob)
      • Gen 37-50 (Joseph)
    • Exodus
      • Exodus 1-4 (Moses’ life and call)
      • Exodus 5-15 (Plagues and exodus)
      • Exodus 15-19 (Wilderness and Sinai)
      • Exodus 20 (Ten Commandments)
      • Exodus 20-24 (Book of the Covenant)
    • Judges
      • Gideon
      • Abimelech
      • Jephthah
      • Samson
    • 1 Samuel
      • 1 Samuel 1-8 (Road to monarchy)
      • 1 Samuel 9-15 (Saul)
      • 1 Sam 16-31 (David)
    • 2 Samuel
      • 2 Samuel 1-8
      • 2 Samuel 9-20
      • 2 Samuel 21-24
    • Ezra-Nehemiah
      • Ezra 1-6 (temple building)
      • Ezra 7-10 (Ezra in Jerusalem)
      • Neh 1-7 (wall building)
      • Neh 8-13 (covenant renewal)
    • Psalms
    • Isaiah
    • Jeremiah
      • Jeremiah 1-25
      • Jeremiah 26-45
    • Amos
    • Obadiah
    • Jonah
    • Micah
    • Nahum
    • Habakkuk
    • Haggai
    • Zechariah
      • Zechariah 1-8
      • Zechariah 9-14
    • Matthew
    • Luke
    • John
  • Introductory notes
    • Gen 12-50 intro
    • Exodus 1-24 intro
    • Judges intro
    • 1 Samuel intro
    • 2 Samuel intro
    • Ezra-Nehemiah intro
    • Intro to the Prophets
    • Jeremiah intro
    • Amos intro
    • Jonah intro
    • Micah intro
    • Habakkuk intro
    • Haggai intro
    • Zechariah intro
  • Seasonal
    • Advent 2019
    • Advent 2020
    • Advent 2022
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • New Year
  • Topical
    • An eye for an eye (lex talionis)
    • Can a righteous person save a city?
    • Child sacrifice and a loving God
    • Discerning true prophecy from false
    • Destruction of the Amalekites
    • Disasters and God’s judgment
    • Does God change His mind?
    • God’s justice in this world
    • Gospels
    • Evaluating biblical characters
    • Hardening of Pharaoh’s heart
    • How did David meet Saul?
    • Intergenerational punishment
    • Jephthah’s vow
    • Jonah and historicity
    • Jesus the Nazarene? (Matt 2:23)
    • Justice and forgiveness
    • Light and God’s salvation plan in Isaiah
    • Melchizedek’s significance
    • Messianic prophecies
    • Natural or supernatural event?
    • Numbers leaving Egypt
    • Passover lamb’s bones
    • Prophecy and multiple fulfilments
    • Prosperity gospel
    • Racial purity in Ezra 9?
    • Reading OT Law
    • Reckoning Abraham righteousness (Gen 15:6)
    • Significance of genealogies
    • The art of telling a story
    • Un-chosen: Is God unfair?
    • Were the exiles racist?
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Amos,  Bible reading notes

    The forgotten side of the relationship with God

    Amos 3:1-15, 4:1-3 A while back, a friend shared an incident about taking her son to a birthday party where the birthday boy received the newest iPhone model from his parents. As the boys were horsing around, he dropped the…

    By Csilla Saysell May 27, 2025
  • Amos,  Bible reading notes

    Taking the log out of our eyes

    Amos 2:4-16 Recently, I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and for a fraction of a second, I thought I saw my mum: the same eyes, the same facial expression. It was a surprise, as I do not…

    By Csilla Saysell May 23, 2025
  • Amos,  Bible reading notes

    Where is God when wars and atrocities happen?

    Amos 1:2-15; 2:1-3 War crimes and atrocities in armed conflicts are nothing new, but in the West we can be too far removed from it all. However, with the ongoing war in Ukraine and the conflict between Israel and Gaza,…

    By Csilla Saysell May 20, 2025
  • Amos,  Amos intro,  Bible reading notes

    Introduction to Amos

    Amos 1:1; 2 Kings 14:23-27; 2 Chron 26:1-23 I once saw a photo of a man sitting in a deckchair in the sun reading a newspaper. It looked an idyllic picture except for the fact that the man was positioned…

    By Csilla Saysell May 16, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Psalms

    Lessons from the place of distress and remembering the Lord

    Ps 102:1-28 One of the things I noticed living in the West is how much more private people are about their troubles and how much harder it can be to know what they are really feeling. Even at funerals, those…

    By Csilla Saysell May 13, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Habakkuk

    The secret of a transformed life: From distress to joy

    Hab 3:16-19 Perhaps one of the most searching questions in the Bible is asked in Job’s story, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing?’ (Job 1:9). The accusation made is that God has lavished His blessings on Job, so he is…

    By Csilla Saysell May 9, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Habakkuk

    The missing piece we need in our image of God

    Hab 3:1-15 Among secular people today, as well as among many Christians, God is viewed as good, loving and kind, close when we need Him and caring for us. Our church buildings also reflect this perspective – they tend to…

    By Csilla Saysell May 6, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Habakkuk

    Knowing the reality of God and the difference it makes

    Hab 2:15-20 The twentieth century novel, Lord of the Flies, is the story about a group of public-school boys who land on an uninhabited island. Without adult authority, their behaviour degenerates into violence and savagery with one boy eventually bludgeoned…

    By Csilla Saysell May 2, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Habakkuk

    The outcomes of a self-sufficient life and its remedy

    Hab 2:5-14 We finally begin to see in our reading an answer to Habakkuk’s question about the wickedness of the Babylonians and whether God is going to judge them (Hab 1:13). The portrait of the oppressor describes the way of…

    By Csilla Saysell April 29, 2025
  • Bible reading notes,  Habakkuk

    The righteous shall live by his faith and the NT

    Hab 2:4; Rom 1:16-17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:32-39 The study of this famous verse, ‘The righteous will live by his faith’ (Hab 2:4) would not be complete without a reflection on how this line is used in the NT, most…

    By Csilla Saysell April 25, 2025
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About Me

Hi, I’m Csilla!

Labradorite is a gemstone that, like Scripture to some, looks grey and lifeless until the light is diffracted from its internal layers to show a beautiful iridescence. As an Old Testament scholar, I write to help draw out Scripture’s colours by sharing practical insights and a deeper knowledge of God’s Word.

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