{"feedTitle":"D.A. Carson Posts Archive","channelLink":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/","todayKey":"2026-08-27","selectedIndex":0,"count":8,"items":[{"title":"1 Samuel 19; 1 Corinthians 1; Lamentations 4; Psalm 35","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-19-1-corinthians-1-lamentations-4-psalm-35/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-19-1-corinthians-1-lamentations-4-psalm-35/","published":"2026-08-27T06:45:28.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-27","bodyTag":"description","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["1 Samuel 19; 1 Corinthians 1; Lamentations 4; Psalm 35 EVANGELICALS REGULARLY DRAW a line between justification and sanctification. Justification is God’s declaration that an individual sinner is just—a declaration grounded not in the fact that he or she is just, but in God’s accepting Christ’s death instead of the sinner’s, in God’s reckoning Christ’s righteousness to the sinner. It marks the beginning of the believer’s pilgrimage. From the believer’s vantage point, to be justified is a once-for-all experience bound up with God’s good purposes in Christ’s once-for-all death. By contrast, sanctification in the Protestant tradition has normally been understood..."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 18; Romans 16; Lamentations 3; Psalm 34","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-18-romans-16-lamentations-3-psalm-34/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-18-romans-16-lamentations-3-psalm-34/","published":"2026-08-26T06:45:06.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-26","bodyTag":"content:encoded","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["The kind of jealousy described in 1 Samuel 18 is a terrible thing.","(1) It is grounded in an ugly self-focus, a self-focus without restraint. In his world, Saul must be number one. This means that peers must not best him or he becomes jealous. Not for an instant does he look at anything from the perspective of others—David’s perspective, for instance, or Jonathan’s. Ultimately, he cannot look at anything from God’s perspective either. His self-focus belongs to the genus of self-centeredness that lies at the heart of all human sinfulness, but in its degree and intensity it is so unrestrained that it simultaneously loses touch with reality and adopts the most elemental idolatry.","(2) It is triggered by endless comparisons, endless assessments of who’s up and who’s down. Thus if David’s successes redound well on Saul, Saul is pleased; but if someone starts making comparisons between Saul and David that are in any way invidious to Saul, he is jealous (1 Sam. 18:7–8). Insofar as David’s successes are an index of the fact that “the LORD was with David” (18:12–28), Saul is jealous because he knows that the Lord is not with him. The tragedy is that this recognition does not breed repentance, but jealousy. Even the love Saul’s daughter Michal has for David exacerbates Saul’s jealousy (1 Sam. 18:28–29). Inevitably, this kind and degree of jealousy is very much bound up with fear; again and again we are told that Saul feared David (1 Sam. 18:12, 15, 29). David has become an unbearable threat. Jealousy of this order cannot tolerate competence in others.","It has to be said that many leaders, not least Christian leaders, even when they do not succumb to this degree of malevolence, fill the positions around them with less competent people, thinking that they thereby preserve their own image or authority. They don’t, of course; they simply become masters of incompetent administrations. On the long haul, their own reputations are diminished. But jealousy is such a blinding sin that such obvious realities cannot be admitted.","(3) In the worst cases, this sort of jealousy is progressively devouring. It nags at Saul’s mind and multiplies like a cancer. It erupts in uncontrolled violence (1 Sam. 18:10–11); it slips into twisted schemes enmeshing Saul’s own family (1 Sam. 18:20–27). In the chapters ahead it settles into something beyond rage—implacable hatred that deploys the armed forces against one innocent man who makes Saul feel insecure.","A believer who above all wants the name of the Lord to be exalted, who genuinely desires the good of the people of God, and who is entirely content to entrust his or her reputation to God, will never succumb to the sin of jealousy."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 17; Romans 15; Lamentations 2; Psalm 33","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-17-romans-15-lamentations-2-psalm-33/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-17-romans-15-lamentations-2-psalm-33/","published":"2026-08-25T06:45:04.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-25","bodyTag":"content:encoded","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["The names of David and Goliath (1 Sam. 17) conjure up a story many have known from their youth. Sometimes David is made into a very little boy, though in reality he is at least a young man who has bested both a lion and a bear. But today the pair of names becomes evocative of little people and organizations taking on the “Goliaths.” Doubtless there are lessons to be learned about courage and boldness, but the most important lessons lie on slightly different lines.","(1) Perhaps one should first reflect on the slightly obscure chronology. At the end of 1 Samuel 16, David already appears in Saul’s court to play soothing music; yet after David’s fight with Goliath, Saul must still find out who the young man is (1 Sam. 17:55–58). Skeptical scholarship insists the problem cannot be resolved, and therefore infers that there is plenty of nonhistorical material here. Yet: (a) There is no particular reason why Saul should have made special inquiries into the background of just one more musician in the royal court, no matter how soothing he was. Saul may not have been motivated to find out until after the events in chapter 17. (b) More probably, the events in chapter 17 may have taken place before 15:14–23. Hebrew verbs do not convey time distinctions the way English verbs do, and it has been shown that there is no reason why we could not translate 17:1, “Now the Philistines had gathered …” etc., establishing important background for the relationship between Saul and David that occupies the attention of the succeeding chapters.","(2) Although David’s words to army personnel (1 Sam. 17:26) could be taken as the impetuous arrogance of untested youth (and certainly David’s brother Eliab took them that way, 1 Sam. 17:28), behind the brashness is a transparent concern for the glory of God, a concern that drives him to answer Goliath without a hint of personal bravado but with an abundance of faith (1 Sam. 17:45–47). Of course, manipulators sometimes hide behind God-talk. But David is not of that ilk. At this stage of life he might be faulted for lacking the polish of self-restraint, but at least his heart is in the right place.","(3) Above all, one must not read this chapter without remembering Samuel’s anointing of David: “from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power” (1 Sam. 16:13). There lies the source of the God-centeredness, the source of the courage, of the unerring aim, the great victory, and the elevation of the name and glory of God.","The text calls us not to admire David the man and no more, but to ponder what the Spirit of God may do with one person."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 16; Romans 14; Lamentations 1; Psalm 32","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-16-romans-14-lamentations-1-psalm-32/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-16-romans-14-lamentations-1-psalm-32/","published":"2026-08-24T06:45:04.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-24","bodyTag":"content:encoded","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["The anointing of David as King over Israel (1 Sam. 16:1–13), even though his enthronement is years away, is full of interest.","(1) Sometimes prophets and preachers are slower to let go of a bad leader than God Almighty (1 Sam. 16:1). This is not because we are more compassionate than God, but because inertia or nostalgia or personal bonds of affection blind us to the sheer damage the leader is doing. For all his compassion, God is never blinded.","(2) Saul was elevated to the throne by God’s sanction. Is he so foolish as to think that he can outwit God in order to keep it? It is terribly sad to find Samuel afraid to anoint the next king, because Saul will kill anyone, even a prophet of God, who threatens a dynasty that God himself has declared will never be established.","(3) Saul had looked very promising when he was first elevated to the throne. Now Samuel thinks he can detect kingly material in the sons of Jesse—Eliab, for instance, the firstborn. But God says, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).","This is a lesson that must be learned afresh, especially in our day, for our day loves images more than reality. Even some preachers devote more thought to how “to dress for success” and how to develop a compelling and authoritative voice than they do to maintaining a pure heart.","(4) The most important factor in the life and service of David is that the Spirit of the Lord comes upon him “in power” (1 Sam. 16:13). This is the regular experience of those prophets, priests, kings, and a few other leaders, who were given special roles under the terms of the old covenant. However difficult it is to be discerning in such matters, one cannot say too often or too loudly that what the church needs are leaders with unction—a word favored by the Puritans. It simply means “anointing,” i.e., an anointing by the Spirit. Is that too much to ask, in an age when under the terms of the new covenant all of the covenant people of God receive the Spirit poured out at Pentecost?","(5) Those who know their Bibles cannot help but feel a thrill of excitement at the simple words of 1 Samuel 16:12. There the Lord tells Samuel with respect to David, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.” Indeed, David was the one. Here are the inauspicious beginnings of a major new step in the history of redemption, one that leads directly to David’s most eminent descendant—and his Lord."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 15; Romans 13; Jeremiah 52; Psalm 31","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-15-romans-13-jeremiah-52-psalm-31/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-15-romans-13-jeremiah-52-psalm-31/","published":"2026-08-23T06:45:27.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-23","bodyTag":"content:encoded","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["Saul already has a checkered record. On the one hand, he courageously rescued the city of Jabesh from the Ammonites and displayed an admirable restraint in the early use of his royal power (1 Sam. 11). Nevertheless it was not long before he starts treating the Lord God as a talisman, and his word as the equivalent of a magical or astrological hint of what he should do, rather than something that is first of all to be reverenced and obeyed (1 Sam. 13). By chapter 14, only the intervention of his own men keeps him from killing his son Jonathan over a promise that should never have been made and should certainly not have been kept (compare the meditation for July 28). Here in 1 Samuel 15, several traits of character ensure that Saul will not head a dynasty. He will be replaced by another king.","(1) Despite explicit instructions from the Lord regarding the Amalekites, Saul and his army spare the best sheep and cattle, and even the Amalekite King Agag, perhaps as a kind of trophy. Worse, Saul then lies about this to Samuel—as if God could be deceived. The lie betrays the fact that by this time Saul is thinking without reference to an all-knowing God; he is thinking like a mere politician, like a pagan or a secularist.","(2) Samuel understands the heart of the problem to lie in Saul’s changed perceptions of himself (1 Sam. 15:17): at one time he was small in his own eyes, and could scarcely imagine being king. Now he is ready to lie to God’s prophet and never, never, truly repent.","(3) Saul changes his tactics, and insists that the reason he kept the best sheep and cattle was to offer a great sacrifice to the Lord. There is nothing like a little religious patter to pull the wool over some people’s eyes. But not Samuel’s. “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD?” he asks. “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry” (1 Sam. 15:22–23). Such reminders need to be enshrined in contemporary evangelicalism.","(4) So Saul offers formal repentance—but makes the excuse that he was afraid of the people. He simply will not face his own responsibility—and Samuel sees this clearly (1 Sam. 15:24–26).","(5) Saul tries formal repentance once more; but once again he betrays his own heart when he shows that he finds it more important to be honored before the elders of Israel than by the God of Israel (1 Sam. 15:30–31). We are lost when human opinion means more to us than God’s."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 14; Romans 12; Jeremiah 51; Psalm 30","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-14-romans-12-jeremiah-51-psalm-30/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-14-romans-12-jeremiah-51-psalm-30/","published":"2026-08-22T06:45:28.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-22","bodyTag":"description","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["1 Samuel 14; Romans 12; Jeremiah 51; Psalm 30 AMONG THE MAJOR POINTS that Paul has been making in his letter to the Romans is the sheer gratuity of grace, the amazing measure of mercy that has won Jews and Gentiles alike. Alike we are guilty; alike we are justified, forgiven, renewed, owing to the measureless mercy of God. In view of such mercy, Paul urges his readers “to offer [their] bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God” (Rom. 12:1). We are so familiar with this verse that its strangeness no longer strikes us. In the ancient world,..."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 13; Romans 11; Jeremiah 50; Psalms 28–29","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-13-romans-11-jeremiah-50-psalms-28-29/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-13-romans-11-jeremiah-50-psalms-28-29/","published":"2026-08-21T06:45:22.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-21","bodyTag":"description","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["1 Samuel 13; Romans 11; Jeremiah 50; Psalms 28–29 ROMANS 11 HAS BEEN UNDERSTOOD in mutually contradictory ways. There is not space here to list them, let alone evaluate them. I shall simply lay out the flow of Paul’s argument as I see it. (1) Does Paul’s argument in Romans 9–10 mean that God has utterly abandoned “his people,” that is, the Israelites? Paul pens a hearty “No way!”—“By no means!” (Rom. 11:1). The first bit of counter-evidence (Rom. 11:1–6) is that Paul himself is a Jew, a Benjamite at that (one of the two tribes that did not break..."]},{"title":"1 Samuel 12; Romans 10; Jeremiah 49; Psalms 26–27","url":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/1-samuel-12-romans-10-jeremiah-49-psalms-26-27/","urlSource":"item-link","guid":"http://tgcstaging.wpengine.com/d-a-carson/1-samuel-12-romans-10-jeremiah-49-psalms-26-27/","published":"2026-08-20T06:45:26.000Z","publishedDateKey":"2026-08-20","bodyTag":"description","audioUrl":"","paragraphs":["1 Samuel 12; Romans 10; Jeremiah 49; Psalms 26–27 HERE I WISH TO REFLECT on one small part of Romans 10. As part of his insistence that Jews and Gentiles alike must be saved by faith or not at all, the apostle Paul reviews the fundamental Christian “word of faith”: “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). This is then slightly expanded: “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your..."]}],"fetchedAt":"2026-08-28T00:13:36.720Z","source":"https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/devotionals/read-the-bible/feed/"}