reading_bible

David Guzik - A Message That Hits the Core

In the first two articles, the videos I used to present Paul and Gabby weren't the main point. What mattered was introducing them. Paul was best introduced with the opening chapter of the New Testament — because order matters. If we're going to start, let's start at the beginning. When I decided to include Gabby's channel, her most recent video became the one to present her content — and it does so well.

This third video, which I first watched a few months ago, stayed with me. Other speakers had noticed the same trend, and events have only accelerated since then, but Guzik addressed it in a way that was both bold and clear. I chose this message on purpose, because Israel is where the battles are being fought — and they will only intensify. Israel is where you see who cares about what people say, and who cares about what God says. And the complexity of it all will reveal differences between believers.

So, if you want your thoughts and attitudes to be aligned with the Bible, here is David Guzik's message entitled "Are More Christians Embracing Hatred Of Jews?"

The subject is as relevant as the man delivering it. David calls himself a free-speech absolutist — as long as speech doesn't cross legal lines like direct incitement to violence. He believes the answer to hateful speech isn't censorship, but more speech — speech filled with love, grounded in truth and wisdom. The Bible has both, if we're willing to think, and if we love and desire the truth at all. And this applies even more to hidden structures of power than to us “ordinary” people who are exposed to manipulation every day.

David Guzik is the author of the Bible commentary Enduring Word, he has been writing, editing, and updating since the late 1990s. Check it out for yourself — it's available on the Blue Letter Biblewebsite, in iPhone and Android apps, and now even in book form, making it more accessible than ever for anyone who wants to dig deeper into God's Word.

If Enduring Word Were in Croatian

To make it easier for you to start using this valuable resource — and since I'm currently reading Isaiah — I decided, with AI's help, to translate a portion of Guzik's commentary on Isaiah 41:2-4. It raises a question that is just as urgent today as it was 2,700 years ago:

b. Tko... Tko... Tko: Dok Bog poziva one u dalekim zemljama da dođu i raspravljaju s Njim, On im pokazuje svoju veličinu nad cijelim stvaranjem i nad čitavom poviješću. Moraju se upitati: „Tko upravlja tijekovima ljudskih događaja?“ Tko je to učinio, pozivajući naraštaje od početka?

i. Ovo je uvijek aktualno pitanje. Postoji li smisao i cilj ljudskoj povijesti? Je li to samo slučajan, besmisleni niz neuređenih događaja? Je li to ciklus koji se sudbinski ponavlja iznova i iznova? Ili postoji Bog na nebu koji upravlja ljudskim događajima, uvijek vodeći prema konačnom ishodu i ispunjenju? Naš odgovor na ovo pitanje utječe na gotovo sve u našim životima.

c. Ja, GOSPODIN, prvi sam; i posljednji sam s onima koji dolaze*: Ovdje GOSPODIN, Bog Izraela, izjavljuje da je On učinio i izvršio sve, pozivajući naraštaje od početka. On podiže i ruši kraljeve i narode. On je prvi i posljednji; On je „okvir“ koji obuhvaća čitavu sagu ljudske povijesti — On započinje priču, završava priču i drži cijelu priču na okupu.

i. Ako je Bog i prvi i posljednji, onda ima vlast nad svime što je između. To znači da postoji Božji plan za ljudsku povijest i da On usmjerava tijek ljudskih događaja prema svom predviđenom ispunjenju. Naši životi nisu prepušteni slijepoj sudbini, nasumičnom besmislu ili beskonačnim ciklusima bez završetka. Umjesto toga, GOSPODIN, koji je prvi i posljednji, upravlja cijelom ljudskom poviješću, pa tako i našim osobnim životima.

ii. Isus preuzima isti naslov Prvoga i Posljednjega u Otkrivenju 1,17 i 22,13. Ako je GOSPODIN prvi i posljednji prema Izaiji 41,4, a Isus je Prvi i Posljednji prema Otkrivenju 1,17 i 22,13, budući da ne može biti dva Prvoga niti dva Posljednjega, Isus mora biti GOSPODIN Bog.

Enduring Word hasn't been translated into Croatian, but that shouldn't stop us from reading it. Even if our knowledge of English is not the best, today that is not a reason to give up. Even if your English isn't great, that's no reason to quit. In fact, our lack of skill can actually be a blessing for the younger generation. Most kids today — even in Croatia — use English almost like their native tongue. There is another visible trend: younger generations, to put it in my own caricatured black-and-white style, stated simply — do not read the Bible.

That's why it matters if we're brave enough to invite them to help us. Imagine asking for their help when we're reading Enduring Word and the English feels too heavy. You'd be surprised how much even very young kids can grasp — or be drawn to. Of course, only if we make it our goal to draw them to what really matters. God, give us wisdom to tell the valuable from the worthless, and the will and the time to hold on to what truly counts. Amen.

Bible quotes are from the ESV® unless otherwise noted. You may also encounter HBRV or Interpretative Translation (AI).

*Different translations render this verse along the lines of: “I, the LORD, was with the first of them, and I will be with the last.” While the message is similar, this kind of translation loses the direct link to Revelation 1:17 and 22:13, where Jesus uses the same title, “the First and the Last.” Preserving the form found here (Interpretative Translation) — “I, the LORD, am the First; and I am the Last” — maintains the biblical connection and highlights Jesus' divine equality with the LORD of Isaiah.