Daily Archives: July 2, 2026

Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar

02 Thursday Jul 2026

Posted by in Psalm 78, Psalms

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Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”


Today’s Reading: Psalm 78:56-64 (NIV)*

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

LORD God,
collectively as a nation,
we have wandered away from you.
LORD in your mercy,
lead us back to the center of your holy will.
Give us repentant hearts that seek your face.
Amen.

   — — — —

Gospel Reading:
Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar

Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans
to trap him in his words.
They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians.
“Teacher,” they said,
“we know that you are a man of integrity
and that you teach the way of God
in accordance with the truth.
You aren’t swayed by others,
because you pay no attention to who they are.
Tell us then, what is your opinion?
Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”

But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said,
“You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?
Show me the coin used for paying the tax.”
They brought him a denarius, and he asked them,
“Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

Then he said to them,
“So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

When they heard this, they were amazed.
So they left him and went away.
(Matthew 22:15-22).

* * *

The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them.
And this is how we know that he lives in us:
We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
(1 John 3:24 NIV)

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

bgbg_v4.3_1501818
* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return
to Ukraine and Russia!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look click here.

New from David Kitz.

To view further details or purchase click here.

A Nation that Abandons God

02 Thursday Jul 2026

Posted by in Psalm 78, Psalms

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Today’s Devotion from Psalms 365 by David Kitz

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

Reading:  Psalm 78:56-64 (NIV)*

But they put God to the test
    and rebelled against the Most High;
    they did not keep his statutes.
Like their ancestors they were disloyal and faithless,
    as unreliable as a faulty bow.
They angered him with their high places;
    they aroused his jealousy with their idols.
When God heard them, he was furious;
    he rejected Israel completely.
He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh,
    the tent he had set up among humans.
He sent the ark of his might into captivity,
    his splendor into the hands of the enemy.
He gave his people over to the sword;
    he was furious with his inheritance.
Fire consumed their young men,
    and their young women had no wedding songs;
their priests were put to the sword,
    and their widows could not weep.

Reflection

Sin has consequences. We can pretend it isn’t so, but we’re fooling ourselves. Unchecked sin on a personal level can have devastating consequences—consequences that lead to heartache and an early grave. I think we all know individuals who became trapped in sin and wandered down a self-destructive path.

Today’s reading from Psalm 78 reminds us that a whole nation can abandon God and become mired in the consequences of sin. The nation of Israel did just that. The psalmist tells us they were disloyal and faithless, as unreliable as a faulty bow (v. 57).

When Israel abandoned God, He in turn abandoned them. We read, “He rejected Israel completely. He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent he had set up among humans. He sent the ark of his might into captivity, his splendor into the hands of the enemy. He gave his people over to the sword; he was furious with his inheritance” (v. 59-62).

Has God changed? If the LORD abandoned His people in ancient times, will He treat our nation—any nation that turns away from Him differently today? There are consequences for sin and that truth applies to nations too. When collectively we abandon the ways of God and the precepts He has established from the foundations of the world, we can expect dire days ahead. That’s what happened to ancient Israel, and it can happen to us today as well.

Response

LORD God, collectively as a nation, we have wandered away from you. LORD in your mercy lead us back to the center of your holy will. Give us repentant hearts that seek your face. Amen.

Your Turn

Are you concerned about the spiritual state of your nation? What are you doing about it?

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

bgbg_v4.3_1501818
* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return to Ukraine and Russia!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look, click here.