John Mark Hicks

Hosea, the prophet who functions as a prosecutor, announced God’s judicial verdict in the previous chapter. Yet Hosea still holds out hope if Israel will seek God’s face (Hosea 5:15). Will Ephraim repent? Will they return to the Lord? Will they seek God’s path rather than their own? Hosea 6 opens the door, but Israel’s […]

Psalm 123 finds pilgrims standing in the gates of Jerusalem and looking up to the God who is enthroned in the heavens and between the Cherubim of the ark of the covenant. The only petition is: “be gracious to us” (a word used three times in the space of four words). It is a communal […]

In Psalm 106 exilic Israel confesses the sins of their ancestors and identifies with them. They recognize the solidarity that shape a people, including their sin and rebellion. They also confess God’s merciful response to sin, and they appeal to God to remember God’s covenant love and renew mercy again. This is a corporate confession […]

Psalm 105–part of the “mini-Bible” (Psalms 103-107)–sings God’s praise for how God’s steadfast love revealed itself in God’s history with Abraham, Joseph, Moses & Aaron, and their journey to Sinai. God is a covenant keeper; and God entered into an everlasting covenant with Abraham that would identify Israel as God’s own possession (chosen ones), multiply […]

If one sees the God of Israel as fundamentally vindictive, angry, or malicious, then one might want to meditate and pray Psalm 103 regularly. The psalmist recognizes God has not treated as we deserve, forgives our sins, liberates us from our oppression, and heals our wounds because God is steadfast love, gracious, and merciful. God […]

Bobby Valentine and John Mark Hicks discuss one of the most important Psalms in Judaism. It is prayed three times a day by devout worshippers. It is a grand picture of God’s mighty works rooted in the divine identity as gracious, merciful, and ever present steadfast love. It is the praise song that concludes the […]

Perhaps Psalm 25 is the “Lord’s Prayer” of the Psalms–it teaches us to pray, pursue the way (derek) of the Lord, and rest in God’s overwhelming mercy, love, and grace. Bobby Valentine and John Mark Hicks discuss Psalm 25 as a kind of model prayer for the covenant people of God. Petitions are grounded in […]

We live in a chilling moment. Children are dying. War has no end in sight. Political discourse is laced with malice and vitriol. Yet, it seems to me, our time is no different than many other times in world history. There is nothing unique about the previous paragraph. This is one reason the Hebrew Bible […]

Text: Matthew 9:9-17 Jesus uses Hosea 6:6 to critique the criticism of some who objected to his eating with “tax collectors and sinners.” The point? Jesus pursues mercy for the sake of healing, and this is at the heart of kingdom living. It is pouring new wine into wineskins.

Jonah thought Yahweh’s mercy to Nineveh was unjust and “evil.” Consequently, Jonah prayed–he lamented, complained, and essentially petitioned Yahweh to reverse the decision, to relent from mercy and apply wrath. Yahweh’s response did not reject or dismiss the prayer. The prayer was heard. In fact, Yahweh responded: “Is it right (good) for you to be […]