Rth 1:1 In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons.
Rth 1:2 The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there.
Rth 1:3 But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons.
Rth 1:4 These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about ten years,
Rth 1:5 and both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.
Michael Youseff did a new take for me on this story, and I want to share with you what it taught me.
1- "Elimelech chose the greener grass of Moab over the land of God's Promise". Every time I choose sin over God's promises, I enter my "own Moab".
2- When I choose sin, God chooses to remove my protection. Elimelech's choice cost his life and that of his sons. What is my sin costing me?
3- Naomi was a godly woman- how else would Ruth have learned about another land's God? And because Naomi chose the better part- returning to Israel- God ended up blessing her with a new daughter and son-in-law. Obedience brings the return of God's protection.
4- So why not just give Elimelech protection in the first place? Because he chose to stray from that protection.
The Better part, day #137:
Phil 1:23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith...
Every morning I pray a little prayer telling God if today is the day we all go home, I'm ready. And how could I not be, in a messed up world where you can get challenged even by family when you take the stand that it is not right to celebrate sin?
So I doubt it was coincidental to hear not one, but two statements that reminded me that if I'm still breathing, God has a use for me here on earth.
Not to say it's time to stop praying that prayer (with as usual, the caveat "But Your will be done"), but to thank God for the encouragement that something I'm doing- or will do- will have an impact on this world.
The Better Part, Day #138:
Rom 7:15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[a] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
David Jeremiah woke me up today to the part I wasn't getting in this passage. "This is Paul, telling us what happened when he tried to do it himself..."
The Better Part, Day #139:
2Pe 2:9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment,
2Pe 2:10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority. Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones,
2Pe 2:11 whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord.
Last night I read where (not local) Arbys clerk served a gay couple and put "fag" in the customer line on the receipt. Excuse: "Sometimes the computer glitches and doesn't print what I type in."
This follows a letter to the San Francisco newspaper protesting the celebration of "pride month" in similar fashion. Many probably think about the same thing- and some of them are Christians. You need to get the point of the above passage. Ask yourself which side you're on. I may be against the celebration of a month of sin, but while I have an abhorrence for the sin, I have love and prayers for the sinner "who knows not what they do."
Why not? I have the day off, it's a Warsteiner Dunkel, and it's only 4.8, so it's lower than all but 6 of the 67 beers I've rated over on Beer Advocate, so it's not like it's gonna be a "me and Dino" thing...
EP: Well, okay, I guess... So what happens on this day in 1975?
Well, we just missed Pele signing his contract with the old New York Cosmos... in 2021 dollars, he would have gotten $2,358,820,424- about $2.2 million PER GAME. In 1975 dollars, it was still almost $44,000 a game.
"It was also $127,000 per goal!"
Man, that is some serious bank! We don't pay anything here, but how about joining us for our show?
P: Believe it or not, I've heard about you guys. I hear you are louco. But hey, tá bom! (all good)
Cool, the summer of the unexpected guest rolls on! And speaking of summer, since this is the last TM summer, we're going to start counting off the top 50 songs of Summer in M10 history- and seeing how this year's crop fits in! But first, we have 2 debuts on the M10 this week, and the first is another Debbie the Doglady contribution to my shuffle- and that means Sass Jordan for the second time... coming in at #10:
******************************************
So, it'll be a while before any of this year's songs make the list- although our current #1 can tie for 50th if it stays at the top next week- But how about we 'kick off' the lower part of the list this week?
P: I see what you did there... Is there any of the songs from Brasil on your list?
Not this time...but, in perusing the top 100 songs in Brazil in 1975, we do have 2 of those on our list- including one finalist! Without giving anything away, The Captain and Tennille's Love Will Keep Us Together was at #19 on your year-end list, and Elton John's Philadelphia Freedom was at #12.
P: Yes, Elton John, he was very massa back then.
3 times on your list! Speaking of lists, here's a few of our Songs of Summer list:
50- Dami Im, Sound Of Silence. This song, which was peaking at #4 this week in 2016, had just gave Australia a 2nd place at Eurovision.
49- Beach House, Chariot. And one year later, this 'B-sides and rareities' selection was peaking at #2 for one of the M10's first superstars.
48- Maybird, Keep In Line. The second hit for Maybird hit #3 in July of 2019.
P: You've been doing this for some time, then?
Yep, this August will be 6 years of M10 hits! In the meantime, though, it's time for you to give us the Panel Finalists!
P: Bacana! So... I'm supposed to READ this list?
Oh, here, let's run it through the universal translator... no, I don't want it in Ood... here, try this!
P: Ah, beleza! So you had 20 songs competing, from 50 stations, and three of them got enough votes to be finalists! They are:
Thank God I'm A Country Boy by Joao... er, John Denver, it was #2 this week on Cashbox.
Joia! Love Will Keep Us Together, #17 and moving up this week!
And last is America and Sister Golden Hair, #3. No número um?
The number one this week, Freddie Fender's Before The Next Teardrop Falls, got just one vote. This was a great week in my life for music. I counted 11 songs that were on the hot 100 that had a legit shot of being on my all time top 100- Sister Golden Hair, Bad Time, Old Days, Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me), Love Will Keep Us Together (but don't tell Toni), Jackie Blue, Magic, Misty, Why Can't We Be Friends, Sail On Sailor, and Listen To What The Man Says- and another 14 that had a shot if I pushed it to my top 200!
Elvis: With all that, mebbe we oughta stay here for a while!
Why not! Next week, we'll go to 1975 again! Great idea! But I did mention Sail On Sailor there, by the Beach Boys, and that's a great lead-in to our second debut! The Beach Boys are doing a box set called Feel Flows, covering a bunch of stuff from 1969-71, and the never before released first single from that box set comes in at #9!
*************************************************
Let's do a few more from that Songs of Summer list:
47- ELO, Buildings Have Eyes. I've had a lot of fun digging up old cuts from my best band, and this is one of 2 times they make the chart, a 2-week #1 from August 2018.
46- Phantogram, Fall In Love. And I did; it hit #1 in August 2016.
45- The Japanese House, Somebody You Found . This one made me fall for Amber Bain, too:
I made this about me/I wrapped you around me/like a blanket/I hate it/I hate myself....
44- Silversun Pickups, Simpatico. Stopped at #3 in August 2019. And keep in mind/ I want you to wait/ here in the crossfade...
Hey, it's time for another beer... and Horace!
I think I should point out that the last time alcohol was brought up on these premises, there was not a good result...
Elvis: Yeah, for you, haw haw!
HB: Oh, do shut up! Now, where were we...Ah, yes. So last week, Miss Lisa Loeb was brought up- did you realize she was the first artist to top the Hot 100 before being signed to any record label? That was from her hit Stay- which had nothing to do with a broken windshield- from the movie soundtrack Reality Bites. The movie itself received reviews at the time which were tepid at best, but the soundtrack was laden with hits. One in particular, much like the movie, achieved a 'cult status' despite not exactly dominating the charts. This was a band who has achieved a #1 on the M10- the English band Squeeze. Their song Tempted was on the soundtrack, featuring the vocals of someone who was known as lead singer for several bands, including Mike + The Mechanics, one Paul Carrack. As well as some solo hits, he might be best known for lead vocals on the 6 Degrees victim, which sat at #4 this week- How Long by the band Ace.
Elvis: Good job, HB! But what the heck is tepid?
HB: My opinion of your music, for one...
Thanks, Horace. Boy, you really have a style on these things! Say, Pele?
P: E ai?
Time for you to do the Overseas If You Please, and the big mover!
P: Legal! So the number one song in England this week was Windsor Davies and Don Estelle, a comedy duo, with Whispering Grass... In Australia, it was Pilot's January... New Zealand had Bob Hudson and The Newcastle Song... Canada had Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Hey You... and in South Africa, it was As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone by Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn... and whatever Laurenco Marques is, they had the Bay City Rollers with Bye Bye Baby. And the big mover this we...
BURRRRRP!
P: Are you all right?
Yeah. Good beer.
P: Encher a cara! The big mover, up 32 spots to # 37, Wings and Listen To What The Man says.
Okay, now lets have another...
Elvis: You jus' opened THAT one!
As I was saying, let's have another three of the Songs of Summer, okay?
EP: Oops, sorry...
43- Moon Taxi, Now's the Time. Now that's some good sax at the end! It also stopped at #3, 2 years ago last week.
42- Cotton Mather, Girl With A Blue Guitar . It was stopped at #2 in August 2017 by a song just a bit farther up the list (like in the top ten)...
41- Plume Of Feathers, First Date. One of 2 M10 hits for a band whose cause is the preservation and resurrection of the local English pub scene. Peak of #3 in August 2016.
And that'll do for this week! So let's have the remainder of the M10...
EP: Boss, you want me to do this? I mean...
Folks, I have literally had a beer and a half in the 2 hours this has taken. AND IT'S NOT DRIVING! Nor do I even have a car on premises. Now, giddawayfromthatmicrophone!
The remaining M10:
8- The Tea Party and Summertime are still stuck here...
7- Counting Crows up 3 with Bobby And The Rat Kings...
6- Former #1 and currently tied for second on this year's summer list, The Hardest Part with Overcoats and Tennis...
5- POWERS gives another notch of ground with Legendary....
4- Maneskin- which gets its name from the Danish for 'moonlight', a bit odd for an Italian band (b/c the bassist, Victoria deAngelis is half-Dane)- up 2 with Zitti e Buoni....
3- Last week's #1, and the song tied for second this summer, Major Murphy and Attention, down 2....
2- Taking the surprising 3 notch leap to #2, Trini Lopez and Lalena...
And the new top dog... from the lp which has already two other #1s to its credit....
...Matthew Sweet and Challenge The Gods!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And now, Pele, how's about you do the Panel winner?
P: Legal! So, if you voted for John Denver, you got 12%...
If for America, you got 14%...
But the winner, with 24%....
...the Captain and Tennille with Love Will Keep Us Together!!!!!!!
Chris, are you all right? Too much beer?
Elvis: Naw, he jus' knows that chick's gonna be on him like stink on...
AHEM, family show?
EP: Sorry, boss. Next week, Toni and another helpin' of 1975!
This week we hit up chapters 18-20 in our glancing blow to the book of Isaiah, and it starts out with a prophecy against Damascus:
Isa 17:1 An oracle concerning Damascus. Behold, Damascus will cease to be a city and will become a heap of ruins. Isa 17:2 The cities of Aroer are deserted; they will be for flocks, which will lie down, and none will make them afraid. Isa 17:3 The fortress will disappear from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus; and the remnant of Syria will be like the glory of the children of Israel, declares the LORD of hosts.
It only takes a quick study of history to know this NEVER happened; while Damascus did lose the kingdom, it was never abandoned. Did Isaiah blow it? Not at all. Look closer at what comes next in Chapter 17.
Isa 17:12 Ah, the thunder of many peoples; they thunder like the thundering of the sea! Ah, the roar of nations; they roar like the roaring of mighty waters! Isa 17:13 The nations roar like the roaring of many waters, but he will rebuke them, and they will flee far away, chased like chaff on the mountains before the wind and whirling dust before the storm.
This and other verses indicate this is an end-time prophecy; the destruction of Damascus is to come when Christ returns. The curious thing to me is the ending here, actually a couple chapters later...
Isa 19:23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. Isa 19:24 In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, Isa 19:25 whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, "Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance."
I know there are Assyrian Christians out there- some 2 to 5 million in various countries, according to Wiki- but apparently they will return to their homeland. The Egyptians I know will have a place in the new world from various places- I'm guessing these might be the Coptic Christians. Now, let me backtrack...
Isa 18:1 Ah, land of whirring wings that is beyond the rivers of Cush, Isa 18:2 which sends ambassadors by the sea, in vessels of papyrus on the waters! Go, you swift messengers, to a nation, tall and smooth, to a people feared near and far, a nation mighty and conquering, whose land the rivers divide.
The following chapters might confuse a person who wonders whether Isaiah can tell the difference between Ethiopia (Cush) and Egypt. Easy answer- at the time, there WAS no difference. From 747-656 BC, Egypt was under the rule of Nubian- Ethiopian- rulers. And these rulers were increasingly under pressure from expanding Assyria, thus they had sent out for allies- and according to the above passage, Judah was one of those. In 669, Ashurbanipal began his conquest of Egypt, and it is prophesied by Isaiah in 19:4-15. But when did Isaiah make that prophecy? Well, chapter 20 begins a theme in the major prophets- God saying, "If you won't listen to words, let me demonstrate":
Isa 20:1 In the year that the commander in chief, who was sent by Sargon the king of Assyria, came to Ashdod and fought against it and captured it-- Isa 20:2 at that time the LORD spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, "Go, and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet," and he did so, walking naked and barefoot. Isa 20:3 Then the LORD said, "As my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, Isa 20:4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Cushite exiles, both the young and the old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, the nakedness of Egypt.
That year was right around 711 BC. So Isaiah walked about naked for 3 years, until 708. Thus, his nakedness exposed an event that happens 40 years in his future. In 667 BC, Ashurbanipal sacked Egypt for the second time. After that, see how well Isaiah and history match up:
Isa 19:1 An oracle concerning Egypt. Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud and comes to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them. Isa 19:2 And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians, and they will fight, each against another and each against his neighbor, city against city, kingdom against kingdom; Isa 19:3 and the spirit of the Egyptians within them will be emptied out, and I will confound their counsel; and they will inquire of the idols and the sorcerers, and the mediums and the necromancers; Isa 19:4 and I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master, and a fierce king will rule over them, declares the Lord GOD of hosts.
Ashurbanipal turned his attention towards Egypt.
Egypt had been conquered by Esarhaddon in 671 BC, one of Ashurbanipal's
father's greatest accomplishments. Though Esarhaddon had placed loyal
governors in charge of the new Egyptian territories and had captured
most of the Egyptian royal court, including the son and wife of the
Pharaoh, the Pharaoh Taharqa had escaped to Kush in the south.
In 669 BC, Taharqa had reappeared from the south and had inspired Egypt to attempt to free itself from Esarhaddon's control.Esarhaddon had received word of this rebellion and learnt that even
some of his own governors who he had appointed in Egypt had ceased to
pay tribute to him and joined the rebels. Esarhaddon had marched to defeat this rebellion but had died before reaching the Egyptian border. To quell the threat, Ashurbanipal invaded Egypt in c. 667 BC, marching the Assyrian army as far south as Thebes, one of Egypt's ancient capitals, and sacking numerous revolting cities.
The rebellion was stopped and Ashurbanipal appointed as his vassal ruler in Egypt Necho I, who had been king of the city Sais, and Necho's son Psamtik I, who had been educated at the Assyrian capital of Nineveh during Esarhaddon's reign.
Ashurbanipal left Egypt after his victory. The country was thus
seen as vulnerable and Taharqa's nephew and designated successor Tantamani
invaded Egypt in hopes of restoring his family to the throne. He met
the forces of Necho at Memphis, the Egyptian capital, and though
Tantamani was defeated, Necho also died in the battle. The situation
quickly turned in Tantamani's favor as the Egyptians themselves rose up
alongside him against Psamtik, who escaped into hiding. Hearing of this,
Ashurbanipal again marched his army to Egypt and defeated Tantamani. In
663 BC Thebes, the stronghold of the Kushites in Egypt, was sacked for a third time in less than a decade, and Tantamani abandoned the campaign and escaped back to Kush.
One of the best Biblical dovetails with history you will find. And if Isaiah hits that so well, you can trust the word God gave him for the end of the age, as well.
This one I want to tread carefully on, because it could easily be taken the wrong way. Without mentioning who, and a caveat that in the middle of the night, one can take things the wrong way, a certain pastor and his sidekick/announcer gave the impression that a Christian who hasn't personally led someone to Christ should be ashamed of themselves.
Now I will grant you that some 'observe only' Christians might have a problem with bearing fruit. But before you make a blanket statement like that, you might want to consider a few things. 1) We don't all have the same gifts. Not everyone can be an evangelist. 2) This makes it sound like, instead of being sowers of seed, like the Parable of the soils guides us, we're to have a belt with little notches in it. 3) There are missionaries who spent years out in the field and never got anywhere- until God brought the increase. Before you make a statement like this, you better remember it is God who brings the increase, and maybe God isn't letting a person know what happens after they leave. This statement puts unnecessary guilt on them. 4) Even a great evangelist like Billy Graham never knew how many of those commitment cards actually represented truly saved souls.
Not that we shouldn't be ready and willing to do so if God allows the opportunity, but this kind of evangelism is a gift- it might be yours, it might not.
The Better Part, day #132:
A post like yesterday's takes some prayer to do right... and if you're not careful, Satan knows how to present a verse of scripture that tells you, "Boy, you messed that up! You probably better just quit until you know what you're doing", and present it as if it were God saying, "I warned you!"
Difference being, God may bring caution, He may tell you to look again through His eyes- but He won't tell you to just quit.
The Better Part, day #133:
Given what secular social media has chosen to celebrate this month, I thought it might be a good idea to remind everyone about this passage...
Rom 1:28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.
Rom 1:29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,
Rom 1:30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
Rom 1:32 Though they know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
Rather than make this all about that one thing, I am challenging myself to see what I myself am doing that encourages others to sin this month. And before FB decides I am being hateful, remember: If my faith is true, I am being hateful if I just think "let 'em burn" and say nothing; I am showing love if I am a watchman at the wall.
The Better Part, day #134:
Some days, you want to be able to just blow down the enemies of God with your dazzling brilliance. But when you really stop and think, you know that victory doesn't depend on your words but God's grace. The world will be the rule, and as much as you hate to see your loved ones fooled by Satan's lies, it is Satan's world. All you can do is plant seeds and give the rest to Him.
The Better part, day #135:
Pro 6:9 How long will you lie down, O lazy man? When will you arise out of your sleep?
Pro 6:10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to lie down;
Pro 6:11 so shall your poverty come as one walking, and your need like an armed man.
This morning, it strikes me that, although the straightforward meaning truly fits our nation today, there is a deeper meaning applying to me. Sleeping and lazy towards my sin, until it ruins me before men. Lord, motivate me to stand up and put in the work against my sins.
Today we go to June 4th, 1974- a night in baseball history known as 10 cent beer night. This was a promo at the game between the visiting Texas Rangers and the hometown Cleveland Indians- a game in which somebody with the Tribe thought it would be a good idea to sell beer for 10 cents a 12-ounce cup, because A) it was 3.2 beer, B) they were limiting it to 6 cups per purchase, and C) it was a Tuesday night, and they typically drew about 12,000. It became a bad idea because A) beer, B) no limit on how many times you could go fetch those six cups, and C) the teams had had a bench clearing brawl just 6 nights ago in Texas and weren't particularly fond of each other. Let's take just a slice of the Wiki story:
The Rangers quickly took a 5–1 lead. Meanwhile, throughout the game, the inebriated crowd grew more and more unruly. Early in the game, Cleveland's Leron Lee hit a line drive into the stomach of Rangers pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, after which Jenkins dropped to the ground. Fans in the upper deck of the stadium cheered, then chanted "Hit 'em again! Hit 'em again! Harder! Harder!" A woman ran out to the Indians' on-deck circle and flashed her breasts, and a naked man sprinted to second base as Grieve hit his second home run of the game. One inning later, a father-and-son pair ran onto the outfield and mooned the fans in the bleachers.
After the Indians had managed to tie the game, a 19-year-old fan named Terry Yerkic ran onto the field and attempted to steal Texas outfielder Jeff Burroughs' cap. Confronting the fan, Burroughs tripped. Thinking that Burroughs had been attacked, Texas manager Billy Martin charged onto the field with his players right behind, some wielding bats. A large number of intoxicated fans – some armed with knives, chains, and clubs fashioned from portions of stadium seats that they had torn apart – surged onto the field, and others hurled bottles from the stands. 200 fans surrounded the 25 Rangers, with more fans coming.
Realizing that the Rangers' lives might be in danger, Cleveland manager Ken Aspromonte ordered his players to grab bats and help the Rangers, attacking the team's own fans in the process. Rioters began throwing steel folding chairs, and Cleveland relief pitcher Tom Hilgendorf was hit in the head by one of them. Hargrove, after subduing one rioter in a fistfight, had to fight another on his way back to the Texas dugout. The two teams retreated off the field through the dugouts in groups, with players protecting each other.
Upshot is the umpire forfeited the game to Texas, the idiot general manager blamed it on the ump not controlling the game, the President of the American league wisely posited that "There was no question that beer played a part in the riot", and the next Beer Night a few weeks later cut the limit to two cups, period.
Hoping things go a little better than that here, we have a rather sober Time Machine as we look at the passing of the legendary BJ Thomas last week. Nardole, did you get BJ for the show...
Elvis: Not exactly, he didn't... he got this guy...
But... but that's Greg Evigan- from BJ and the Bear!
Nardole: Well, how was I to know there was more than one BJ?
Elvis: Man, do YOU got a lot to learn!
GE: Hi! Hope I'm not messing things up here...
No more than usual around here... See, we were supposed to try and get BJ Thomas. He died a few days ago...
GE: No! He was pretty young...
Well this is a Time Machine so actually he was kinda old...
EP: From where WE are, you're HIS age! (points at Chris)
GE: Ye gods!
Before this gets too out of hand, let me play this week's debut on the M10- at #10, here's a longtime big act but first time M10er, Counting Crows...
So, Greg, out of the million things I wanted to accomplish on this show, a lot was pushed aside to do a tribute to BJ Thomas- we'll be doing my top ten favorites of his. First though, we have a rather lackluster Panel to take care of...
EP: That's where you come in, tee hee!
... with 18 songs getting picked #1 on 50 different stations this week in 1974, but the voting leaves us with but 3 finalists- and not a real close race between them!
GE: So, you do this like an election, and whoever gets the most #1 "votes" wins?
Exactly! So, your job is to give us the finalists- and a few other odd jobs...
GE: So you don't need me to sing or anything?
EP: Lissen, he thinks he c'n sing!
GE: I sang the theme on BJ and the Bear...
EP: Yeah, I just saw a review on a rating site, that said, "No death penalty for this?"
GE: How'd you like a knuckle sandwich?
EP: Quit monkeying around, haw haw!
Easy, Greg, don't encourage him! Anyway, here's the short list of our finalists...
GE: All right... we have Ray Stevens and The Streak, #2 on the Cashbox charts...
EP: That woulda come in handy at Beer Night!
GE: Hah, no kidding. Next is Wings with Band On The Run at #3... which pretty much described the teams after the riot...
EP: Hmmm...
GE: And the third finalist is Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods with Billy Don't Be A Hero at #11...
EP: Are you for real? Someone shoulda sang that to Billy Martin!
GE: I can't believe how well that went together! Are you sure you didn't, like, make this up?
I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried, Greg, but it happens on TM all the time! Say, how about you shut Elvis up over there and do a number for us?
And now, I'm going to bring us to a level of seriousness with my tear-jerking (for me) list of my 10 favorite BJ Thomas songs!
10- Everybody's Out Of Town- #26 in 1970.
9- I Just Can't Help Believing- #9, 1970.
8- Eyes Of A New York Woman- #28 in '68.
7- What A Difference You Made, #6 on the Christian chart, 1979.
6- Hooked On A Feeling, #5 in '68.
5- (Hey, Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song, #1 in 1975.
4- Don't Worry Baby, #17 in 1977.
3- Whatever Happened To Old Fashioned Love, #1 on the Country chart in 1983.
2- Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head- the first Billboard #1 song of the 1970's.
And let's save that #1 for after Horace Bellbottom and his 6D moment!
Oh, so this segment needed yet another 'catchy' title, I see? Very well, let's see what we have here...
All, right, how about this. There is now a band called Riot V, which started out in the late 1970's simply as Riot. They were of the genre, 'heavy metal', and while they had some minor success with albums, they apparently never released any singles. In fact, they had a devilish time keeping themselves under contract, almost dissolving many times, including the one where they were eclipsed by another band similarly named, Quiet Riot. We run into them in pursuit of one Steve Loeb, their long-time producer and at one point owner of Greene Street recording studios, an establishment more known for 'hip-hop' acts. Other than searching for a non-existent connection between him and star of song and advertisement Lisa Loeb, Loeb's GSR connection brings us to another pair of sound engineers who were based there who recorded under the name, Elwood. This duo had a minor Alternative hit in 2000 with a cover that hit #33 on the modern rock chart. That cover was of our 6D victim du jour- at #6 on Cashbox this week, Gordon Lightfoot's song Sundown.
I gotta say, not much name dropping there, except for Lisa Loeb and Quiet Riot, who actually had nothing to do with anything.
HB: Perhaps you'd like to do this segment yourself, again. It isn't like I have an extensive knowledge of this noise you children call music.
EP: Hey, music pays your salary, HB!
Ah, moving right along, how about Greg... (in a lower voice: Greg, get OVER here!) does the Overseas If You Please and the Big Mover?
GE: Uh, sure, anything you say! Australia's charts this week were topped by Suzi Quattro's Devils Gate Drive... New Zealand had Terry Jacks and Seasons In The Sun... so did South Africa... Canada went with The Streak... And the UK had the Rubettes, a studio act, with Sugar Baby Love. I don't know what this Laurenco Marques is, but it had Cat Stevens and Oh Very Young. And the big mover was John Denver's Annie's Song, 25 spots from 76-51.
Thanks, Greg, and, er, keep on truckin'! It's time to wrap this with the remaining M10...
9- down 3 in week #8 with Happy for Redspencer.
8- holding is the Tea Party and Summertime.
7- Another 8-weeker is Blackberry Smoke's Ain't The Same, down 5.
6- Up 3 for the Eurovision winner, Maneskin's Zitti e Buoni.
5- Trini Lopez up 2 with Lalena.
4- and down 1 for POWERS and Legendary.
3- up one for Matthew Sweet and Challenge The Gods.
2- slipping after 2 weeks at the top, Overcoats and Tennis with The Hardest Part.
And the surprise new #1, jumping from #5...
Major Murphy and Attention!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jacki Warren can collect a Beauty Contest vote!
And the Panel?
12% for Wings...
14 % for the Heywoods...
...and the winner, with 32%....
...Ray Stevens and The Streak! Didn't he win with this once before?
Oh, and that favorite BJ Thomas song for me? Right here...
I was "told by God"- at least the impression I got- to limit it this week to what my paper Bible labels the burdens against Babylon, Assyria, Phillistia, and Moab- in other words, Chapters 13-16. Our time frame has changed; we are most likely in the mid-720s BC, and Sargon is king in Assyria. The fall of Samaria, the overthrow of Sennacherib, and the usurpation of Sargon all fall hard on each other's heels, and it is in this time period that this set of prophecies come out. The burdens basically have three stories to tell- prophecies against current and near-future nations, the casting of Satan into hell at the end of time, and one little time frame verse at the end.
The prophecies contained seem to go from far-out to about-to-happen, so we'll look at Chapter 16 first, and that little bitty time fix we get from the prophecy about Moab:
Isa 16:14 But now the LORD has spoken, saying, "In three years, like the years of a hired worker, the glory of Moab will be brought into contempt, in spite of all his great multitude, and those who remain will be very few and feeble."
Best guess is that the 'three years' came in about 720 BC, which would put this prophecy near or during the fall of Israel. Moab was subjected because of its pride (16:6-7) and because God asked of them one thing, which they would not do-
Isa 16:3 Take counsel; do judgment; make your shadow as the night in midday; hide the outcasts; do not uncover the fugitive! Isa 16:4 Let My outcasts stay with you, Moab. Be a hiding place to them from the face of the destroyer. For the exacter has ceased, destruction has failed; the trampler is ended out of the land.
But Moab thought the fall of Israel was sweet revenge; and they also thought they were strong enough to stand against the new Assyrian ruler, and joined a coalition that rebelled, and failed. By the time the Medes and Persians took down Babylon, Moab had been erased from history. That Phillistia was part of the rebellion is shown in 15:28-32, but it throws our timeline into a bit of a quandary, as it is begun with phrase "the year king Ahaz died," which is supposedly 716 BC. However, another estimate puts Ahaz's death at 728 BC, so I'm going to assume that a) the best way to date it all is by where ever you fit the Assyrian chronology, and b) that we don't actually know which campaign took out the Phillistines and Moabites.
However, we do know that Babylon was being projected as a world power, which it was not at the time- it was re-conquered by Sargon after a rebellion by the Chaldean Merodech-Baladin ( the same Babylonian king whom Hezekiah showed his treasury to in 2 Kings 20), and was a hundred years from independence, and almost another century from the fall to the Medes Isaiah predicts in 13:17.
But importance really comes in the second phase- the descriptions of Satan as "king of Babylon":
Isa 14:3 When the LORD has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, Isa 14:4 you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: "How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased!
And even the prisoners of Hell take up the taunt:
Isa 14:9 Sheol beneath is stirred up to meet you when you come; it rouses the shades to greet you, all who were leaders of the earth; it raises from their thrones all who were kings of the nations. Isa 14:10 All of them will answer and say to you: 'You too have become as weak as we! You have become like us!'
You ask, how do we know this is about Satan and not some Babylonian king? Observe:
Isa 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! Isa 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Isa 14:15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
Much of this is echoed in Ezekiel 28, where the Devil is equated with the Prince of Tyre:
Eze 28:11 Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me: Eze 28:12 "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. Eze 28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. Eze 28:14 You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. Eze 28:15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you.
In between all this, Isaiah predicts something that had to seem just as impossible at the time as the rise and fall of Babylon- the Fall of Assyria:
Isa 14:24 The LORD of hosts has sworn: "As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand, Isa 14:25 that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and on my mountains trample him underfoot; and his yoke shall depart from them, and his burden from their shoulder."
It would be a long, running battle starting in 623 and ending in 609 that destroyed Assyria- in fact, it was the Pharaoh Necho who killed Josiah in battle on his way to join the last remnants of the Assyrian Army, which were defeated with him at Carchemish in 605 BC, ending Assyria forever. In other words, even if we date all of the burdens to that same date of 716 BC, Isaiah in these chapters gives us events that happened 111- 175 years in the future- and beyond!
So first, let me tell you about the afternoon of the greedy birds. It was mainly our avian friends, including Mrs Cardinal and her hubby, along with the red-headed finches, working the feeder during the Indy 500- but then arose such a clatter, as they say at Christmastime, and I saw Mr Blue Jay, here, chasing everyone with his boisterous landing on the feeder, grabbing a beakfull, and then perching on the fence and breaking his prizes open on it.
Now, on to Monday- Misty's first trip to Johnny Appleseed.
Our first fisherman of the day. Asked a more human one, "Fish bitin'?" Shook his head and said, "Not yet." I said, "That's what I heard yesterday!"
River was dead calm.
Now we know where the geese are all hanging out with their young'uns- under the Coliseum bridge.
And, we're here!
Just before this, we saw a huge raccoon, having made his rounds of the campsite garbage bins, and heading for the river.
The "rich man's doggie park" ($40 for a season pass, with proof of vaccinations)- 60,000 sq ft and all the doggies hanging in one spot with their humans.
"If it were me, I'd be running around. Maybe not right now, but..."
Heading home. I think this might be the first time I've crossed the span without fearing for my hat blowing off.
Taking a break under the spreading Cottonwood
"Hey, flying after bugs is hard work!"
Not exactly sure how a big blue ball gets stuck on the creek bank. Fort Wayne, litter capital of the world.
A lone man looking for means of expression in a tsunami of information. Seeking truth justice and the American way in the perspective of a Nixon conservative. And the Commissioner of the free world's smallest and best fantasy football league.
Posts
