“Would You not have us call down fire?” –Luke 9:54 James and John asked Jesus: ” ‘Lord, would You not have us call down fire from heaven to destroy them?’ [Jesus] turned toward them only to reprimand them” (Lk 9:54-55). On another occasion, Jesus proclaimed: “I have come to light a fire on the earth. How I wish the blaze were ignited!” (Lk 12:49) Sometimes Jesus wants to call down fire; at other times, He doesn’t. Elijah was the world champion in calling down fire from heaven (see 1 Kgs 18:38; 2 Kgs 1:10, 12; Sir 48:3). However, on at...

“They did not lay bare your guilt, to avert your fate.” –Lamentations 2:14 Solomon built a temple in Jerusalem as a dwelling place for the Lord. God was pleased and came to dwell in the Temple. “The Lord’s glory filled the house of God” (2 Chr 5:14). During the next three-hundred years, Jerusalem was miraculously spared from attack on several occasions (e.g. 2 Kgs 19:35). Eventually the people grew complacent and neglected the Lord’s commands, falling into lifestyles of sin and injustice. Many “prophets” of the time fueled this lax attitude with “false and specious visions” and “misleading portents” (Lam...