Day 176: For the Soul in Trouble

Welcome to Day 176 of the Bible 365 Podcast! I'm so excited you are joining me on this journey through the entire Bible this year. Reminder that each episode in 2026 will have a brand new devotional.

Today we'll be reading through 2 Kings 8, 9:1-13; Acts 16:16-40; Psalm 143; and Proverbs 17:26. Invite a family member or friend to join you as we grow in our knowledge of God through His Word.

I'm so glad that you are here!

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Welcome to day 176 of the Bible 365 podcast. My name is Rainey Goudo, and today we're going to be reading through 2 Kings chapter 8 and 9 verses 1 through 13. Acts chapter 16 verses 16 through 40, Psalm chapter 143, and Proverbs chapter 17, verse 26. The translation I'm using throughout this podcast is the Berean Standard Bible, also known as the BSB. Let's read. 2 Kings chapter 8. Now Elisha had said to the woman, whose son he had restored to life, Arise, you and your household, go and live as a foreigner wherever you can, for the Lord has decreed that a seven year famine will come to the land. So the woman had proceeded to do as the man of God had instructed. And she and her household lived as foreigners for seven years in the land of the Philistines. At the end of seven years, when the woman returned from the land of the Philistines, she went to the king to appeal for her house and her land. Now the king had been speaking to Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, Please relate to me all the great things Elisha has done. And Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had brought the dead back to life. Just then the woman whose son Elisha had revived came to appeal to the king for her house and her land. So Gehazi said, My lord the king, this is the woman, and this is the son Elisha restored to life. When the king asked the woman, she confirmed it. So the king appointed for her an officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, along with all the proceeds of the field from the day that she left the country until now. Then Elisha came to Damascus while Ben Hadad, king of Aram, was sick, and the king was told, The man of God has come here. So the king said to Haziel, Take a gift in your hand, go to meet the man of God, and inquire of the Lord through him. Will I recover from this illness? So Haziel went to meet Elisha, taking with him a gift of forty camel loads of every good thing from Damascus. And he went in and stood before him and said, Your son bin Hadad, King of Aram, has sent me to ask, will I recover from this illness? Elisha answered, Go and tell him, you will surely recover. But the Lord has shown me that in fact he will die. Elisha fixed his gaze steadily on him until Haziel became uncomfortable. Then the man of God began to weep. Why is my Lord weeping? asked Haziel. Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites, Elisha replied. You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little ones to pieces, and rip open their pregnant women. But how could your servant, a mere dog, do such a monstrous thing? said Haziel. And Elisha answered, The Lord has shown me that you will be king over Aram. So Haziel left Elisha and went to his master, who asked him, What did Elisha say to you? And he replied, He told me that you would surely recover. But the next day Haziel took a thick cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it over the king's face. So Ben Hadad died, and Haziel reigned in his place. In the fifth year of the reign of Joram, son of Ahab over Israel, Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, succeeded his father as king of Judah. Jehoram was thirty two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. And Jehoram walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For he married a daughter of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the Lord. Yet for the sake of his servant David, the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah, since he had promised to maintain a lamp for David and his descendants forever. In the days of Jehoram, Edom rebelled against the hand of Judah and appointed their own king. So Jehoram crossed over to Zayr with all his chariots. When the Edomites surrounded him and his chariot commanders, he rose up and attacked by night. His troops, however, fled to their homes. So to this day Edom has been in rebellion against the hand of Judah. Likewise, Libna rebelled at the same time. As for the rest of the acts of Jehoram, along with all his accomplishments, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? And Jehoram rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the city of David, and his son Ahaziah reigned in his place. In the twelfth year of the reign of Joram, son of Ahab over Israel, Ahaziah, son of Jehoram, became king of Judah. Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem one year. His mother's name was Athaliah, the granddaughter of Amri, king of Israel. And Ahaziah walked in the ways of the house of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the Lord, like the house of Ahab, for he was a son-in-law of the house of Ahab. Then Ahaziah went with Joram, son of Ahab, to fight against Haziel, king of Aram at Ramath Gilead, and the Arameans wounded Joram. So King Joram returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds that the Arameans had inflicted on him at Ramah when he fought against Haziel, king of Aram. Then Ahaziah, son of Jehoram, king of Judah, went down to Jezreel to visit Joram, son of Ahab, because Joram had been wounded. 2 Kings 9, verses 1 through 13. Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, Tuck your cloak under your belt, take this flask of oil, and go to Ramath Gilead. When you arrive, look for Jehu, son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nemshai. Go in, get him away from his companions, and take him to an inner room. Then take the flask of oil, pour it on his head, and declare, This is what the Lord says, I anoint you king over Israel. Then open the door and run, do not delay. So the young prophet went to Ramoth Gilead, and when he arrived, the army commanders were sitting there. I have a message for you, commander, he said. For which of us? asked Jehu. For you, commander, he replied. So Jehu got up and went into the house, where the young prophet poured the oil on his head and declared, This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, I anoint you king over the Lord's people Israel, and you are to strike down the house of your master Ahab, so that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord shed by the hand of Jezebel. The whole house of Ahab will perish, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, both slave and free in Israel. I will make the house of Ahab like the houses of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, and Baeshah, son of Ahijah. And on the plot of ground at Jezreel, the dogs will devour Jezebel, and there will be no one to bury her. Then the young prophet opened the door and ran. When Jehu went out to the servants of his master, they asked, Is everything all right? Why did this madman come to you? You know his kind and their babel, he replied. That is a lie, they said. Tell us now. So Jehu answered. He talked to me about this and that, saying, This is what the Lord says, I anoint you king over Israel. Quickly, each man took his garment and put it under Jehu on the bare steps. Then they blew the ram's horn and proclaimed, Jehu is king. Acts 16, verses 16 through 40. One day, as we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl with the spirit of divination, who earned a large income for her masters by fortune telling. This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation. She continued this for many days. Eventually Paul grew so aggravated that he turned and said to the Spirit, In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to come out of her. And the Spirit left her at that very moment. When the girl's owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities in the marketplace. They brought them to the magistrates and said, These men are Jews and are throwing our city into turmoil by promoting customs that are unlawful for us Romans to adopt or practice. The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered that they be stripped and beaten with rods, and after striking them with many blows, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to guard them securely. On receiving this order, he placed them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stalks. About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly a strong earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. At once all the doors flew open and everyone's chains came loose. When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul called out in a loud voice, Do not harm yourself, we are all here. Calling for lights, the jailer rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and asked, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? They replied, Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household. Then Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. At that hour of the night, the jailer took them and washed their wounds, and without delay he and all his household were baptized. Then he brought them into his home and set a meal before them. So he and all his household rejoiced that they had come to believe in God. When daylight came, the magistrates sent their officers with the order, release those men. The jailer informed Paul, The magistrates have sent orders to release you, now you may go on your way in peace. But Paul said to the officers, They beat us publicly without a trial and threw us into prison, even though we are Roman citizens. And now do they want to send us away secretly? Absolutely not. Let them come themselves and escort us out. So the officers relayed this message to the magistrates, who were alarmed to hear that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. They came to appease them and led them out, requesting that they leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia's house to see the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left the city. Psalm 143. O Lord, hear my prayer. In your faithfulness, give ear to my plea. In your righteousness, answer me. Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one alive is righteous before you. For the enemy has pursued my soul, crushing my life to the ground, making me dwell in darkness like those long since dead. My spirit grows faint within me, my heart is dismayed inside me. I remember the days of old, I meditate on all your works. I consider the work of your hands. I stretch out my hands to you. My soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah. Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me, or I will be like those who descend to the pit. Let me hear your loving devotion in the morning, for I have put my trust in you. Teach me the way I should walk, for to you I lift up my soul. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord. I flee to you for refuge. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your good spirit lead me on level ground. For the sake of your name, O Lord, revive me. In your righteousness, bring my soul out of trouble, and in your loving devotion, cut off my enemies. Destroy all who afflict me, for I am your servant. Proverbs 17, verse 26. It is surely not good to punish the innocent or to flog a noble for his honesty. Today's devotional is coming from Psalm 143, verse 11, and I really love how this reads in the BSB. And to me it sums up the entirety of what we're reading in this Psalm. You can hear this prayer of David. It's a prayer of absolute desperation. He opens up, O Lord, hear my prayer. In your faithfulness, give ear to my plea. In your righteousness, answer me. He opens up about the enemies that are pursuing him and attacking him. He says his spirit is growing faint within him, and his heart is dismayed. Now this is David, the warrior, David, the king, David, the man after God's own heart. David, who is an incredible and anointed psalmist. But then look what he says in verse five. He's remembering the days of old. He is not just remembering, but he is meditating not on the works that he himself did, but he's meditating on the works that God did. He says, I consider the work of your hands. And then the natural response to that, verse six, I stretch out my hands to you, my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Then he gets very vulnerable. Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me. But then we get down to verse 11, and to me it sums up everything. For the sake of your name, O Lord, revive me in your righteousness. Bring my soul out of trouble. You know, in my life, I've now been serving the Lord for many decades. I was 16 years old. I'm 52 right now, I'll be 53 this year. Can't believe it's been that long. Feels like it has not been that long. But I know in my own life, in my own walk with the Lord, it's been perpetual seasons and times of the Lord reviving me. And in his righteousness, bringing my soul, my mind, my will, my emotions out of trouble. And maybe one of you needs to hear this today. Maybe many of you need to hear this today. Maybe you are in this place where as we read this psalm, you're like, This is me. I identify with so many of these points. Well, I want to encourage you to take this entire psalm today and lift it up to the Lord, bring it before Him. Let this prayer of David become your prayer also, and make sure to cap it off with for the sake of your name, O Lord, revive me. Come on, make me new, restore me in your righteousness, bring my soul out of trouble, out of this dark place, out of this difficult place. God loves you so much, and He's waiting for you to call out to Him. Let's pray. Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus, and today I lift up all of our listeners, but most especially those who do indeed identify with David here in Psalm chapter 143. My prayer is that as they call out to you, that you would revive them, and that you would bring their soul out of trouble. Draw us close by the presence of your Holy Spirit and reveal your Son to us. We ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus. Amen. Well, I sure hope you enjoyed today's devotional. If you're getting something out of the Bible 365 podcast, consider sharing it with your family and with your friends. Please continue to pray for me. I am praying for you. Have a great day, and I'll see you tomorrow with day 177.