Day 210..."An eight year old king...destruction...coming home"

Manasseh ruled for fifty-five years but did "evil in the sight of the Lord." Josiah becomes the youngest king, age 8, and "did what was right in God's sight." Isaiah writes of the destruction and doom that will come to those who have disobeyed God for so long. The hopeless and disturbing images include (being like) hunted gazelle, sheep without a shepherd, infants brutally killed, houses plundered, and wives ravished.

The parable of the "prodigal son" does offer one of the greatest words of hope in the Bible. We are welcome by God even if we have journeyed in disobedience (the far country). The good news is we are not only welcomed home but received with a celebration! What a glorious image of the Kingdom of Heaven!