Missives

A collection of apologetic and encouraging notes for Christians in need of some power-boosts from time to time.

King Sennacherib constructed a "Palace Without Rival" at his new capital city Nineveh where he chronicled his battlefield successes.
Between 1935-38, James L. Starkey dug around an old gate into two feet of ash and debris and unearthed 18 pottery sherds written in black carbon ink at the Lachish excavations.
When you are forgotten, or neglected, or purposely set at naught, and you don't sting and hurt with the insult or the oversight, but your heart is happy, being counted worthy to suffer for Christ, THAT IS DYING TO SELF.
Definitive snapshots of history reaching far back in time remain elusive but super exciting when found. One of biblical archaeology's top-ten discoveries is a 10-foot-tall grey granite slab. Mr. Windle of ABR gives a succinct overview, leaving space for more pictures to admire.
This week I received two nice letters along with much literature from Joyce Fisher, a 93-year-old widow in El Cajon, California. Ed and Joyce were always evangelical-minded. I've known Joyce for many years;
Normally it's true that the victor writes the history all will remember, but that doesn't seem to be the case for Babylon.
In 2 Kings 18:17, we read the king of Assyria [Sennacherib] sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah at Jerusalem around 713 BC. Who were these people, and why did he send them?
One possible reason the 8th century prophet Jonah was missing (word hints in purple) from last week's chart of Hebrew and Assyrian kings is mainstream Biblical scholars view Jonah's account as "entirely ahistorical", a parody written hundreds of years after the fact and mistakenly interpreted as prophecy. Yet, an analysis of the Assyrian Limmu list discloses a greater miracle than Jonah's whale of a trip.
Often in the Old Testament, the regnal dates of kings are recorded in a relative manner; for instance: And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned over Israel two years.
"Your previous leaders are liars. They claim rights to the throne, but God gave me the victory." To ensure all subjects of the land heard his view, the new ruler posted it along a widely travelled thoroughfare.