Mike Graham’s daily Bible reading notes from the Olive Tree Beginning to End plan.
Mike’s Bible Reading JournalApril 2, 2026 — Days 81–84 of 365 Everyone Did What Was Right in Their Own Eyes Judges 10–21 — The most honest book in the Bible about what the human heart produces when it has no true king — and one of the most insistent that …
Israel longed for a king to shelter them. Abimelech offered shade. But a thornbush has no canopy — only fire.
Israel said amen to the curses on Mount Ebal before they ever crossed the Jordan. The whole story of Judges is what happens when that amen stays on the lips and never reaches the heart.
Two deceptions in Joshua opened a question I wasn’t expecting — about lies, about Satan, about the cross, and about a God whose purposes run deeper than any human failure in the story.
Moses describes the exile before Israel has even crossed the Jordan. Not if, but when.
People say the Old Testament is law and the New Testament is grace. They cite “eye for eye” as their warrant. But is that what this verse is actually saying?