Rebellion—found ninety-eight times in ninety-three verses

Variations: rebel, rebelled, rebellest, rebellion, rebellious, rebels

First usage: Genesis 14:4 (rebelled)

Last usage: Hosea 13:16 (rebelled)

Defined: stubbornness, obstinance, or resistance

Interesting fact: Scripture describes rebellion using various visual illustrations (i.e., a heart waxed gross, ears dull of hearing, a stiff neck, a hard heart, etc.). One association of special interest pertains to the Old Testament command found in Deuteronomy 10:16 where the Bible says, “Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.” The Jews obviously failed in this area causing them to miss the Messiah when Christ came down from heaven’s glory. In fact, Stephen rebuked the Jews’ failure when he said, “Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye” (Acts 7:51).

Bible study tip: When studying a book of the Bible, the student should integrate several steps to insure the desired, untainted, truthful outcome. First, the student should read the entire book of the Bible. Preferably, this should happen several times. Secondly, the student should attempt to determine the major divisions within the book. The divisions may simply match the chapter divisions, but frequently a division will include multiple chapters. At this point, it would be wise to create an outline of the book with the Roman numerals representing the major divisions found within the book. From here, the process can be repeated but focused within each major section of the book until the student has a breakdown of each individual verse within the book. This process must be done with all diligence. Bible study is work!

Sunday, Day 218—Church Day (no devotional)

Monday, Day 219—A Rebel Refuses to Yield

Tuesday, Day 220—A Rebel Refuses to Hear

Wednesday, Day 221—Church Night (no devotional)

Thursday, Day 222—The Heart of a Rebel

Friday, Day 223—The Rebel’s Guide

Saturday, Day 224—A Rebel Keeps His Distance

 

Day 218: Church Day

1 Samuel 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.