Shows / Wise Counsel
Wise Counsel
Welcome to Wise Counsel, a daily five-minute devotional hosted by RM Smith. Each episode dives deep into biblical scholarship and Ancient Near Eastern context, offering concise insights into Scripture to illuminate its timeless truths and practical applications. Join RM Smith as he explores the cultural and historical backgrounds that enrich our understanding of God's Word, equipping you to navigate life's challenges with wisdom and discernment. Tune in for your daily dose of spiritual…
Episodes
- Wise Counsel
How First-Century Christians Read Revelation: Ditching the Newspaper for the Ancient Lens
What if everything we think we know about reading the Book of Revelation is built on modern assumptions rather than ancient reality? For generations, popular…
- Wise Counsel
Will the New Jerusalem Have a Sun? The Cosmic Light of the New Creation
What will the physical reality of the New Jerusalem and the New Earth actually look like? Will we need a physical sun, moon, or starlight, or is something far…
- Wise Counsel
240. The Fire That Purifies Without Consuming
Throughout Scripture, fire is one of the most prominent metaphors used to describe the holiness, presence, and transformative work of God. While human or…
- Wise Counsel
244. Ezekiel's Vision Was Not a UFO
This episode tackles the common fringe theory that Ezekiel 1 describes an ancient alien spacecraft or UFO encounter. By analyzing the passage through ancient…
- Wise Counsel
243. The Angelic War Behind Human Empires
This episode explores the divine council worldview, examining how ancient spiritual rebellions—such as those at Genesis 6 and Babel—led to God placing nations…
- Wise Counsel
242. Who Really Rules the Earth Today?
A central question running throughout biblical literature concerns the ultimate governance of the present world. On one hand, Scripture repeatedly declares…
- Wise Counsel
246. Ancient Context for Horsemen and Pentecost
This episode examines the background of apocalyptic imagery in the Book of Revelation and the event of Pentecost through ancient Near Eastern and Second Temple…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 6 The Cosmic Courtroom, Mountain Witnesses, and What Yahweh Requires
If you were to stand upon the limestone watchtowers of Jerusalem in the late eighth century B.C., the horizon offered only the terrifying advance of the…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 7: The Barren Harvest, the Defense Advocate, and Sins in the Sea
Stand upon the limestone watchtowers of eighth-century B.C. Judah, and the horizon reveals the dust-choked advance of the Neo-Assyrian war machine under…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 5: The Ruined Scepter, the Smallest Clan, and the Divine Council
If you were to stand upon the limestone watchtowers of Jerusalem in the late eighth century B.C., the horizon would offer no comfort—only the terrifying…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 4 The Exalted Mountain and the Cosmic Garden
Walk the sun-drenched streets of the mid-eighth century B.C. and you will find a society at the absolute pinnacle of its material power under the forty-year…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 2-3 Land-Grabbers, False Prophets, and the Cosmic Courtroom
Step into the sun-drenched streets of the mid-eighth century B.C., a society at the absolute pinnacle of its material power and geopolitical prestige. Beneath…
- Wise Counsel
241. The Divine Stress Test for Job
The Book of Job presents one of the most intense theological narratives in biblical literature: a systematic, multi-layered "stress test" engineered in the…
- Wise Counsel
Micah 1 | The Approaching Storm, the Divine Council, and Yahweh on Trial
In this deep-dive study, referencing the file named "Biblical Scholarship", we open the first chapter of Micah to explore the terrifying cosmic and historical…
- Wise Counsel
Joel 2-3 The Valley of Decision: Cosmic Dissolution, the Outpoured Spirit, and Zion's Sanctuary
What happens when a national agricultural crisis escalates into an end-time, cosmic confrontation? In this deep-dive episode, we explore the concluding vision…
- Wise Counsel
Joel 2 The Shofar in Zion: The Day of Yahweh, Heart Repentance, and the Eschatological Spirit
What happens when a national agricultural disaster transforms into a terrifying apocalyptic crisis? As the second chapter of Joel opens, the prophet commands…
- Wise Counsel
Joel 1 The Swarm and the Sovereign: Unpacking the Cosmic Courtroom
Welcome back to the podcast. Today, we are dissecting the terrifying and urgent alarm sounded in the opening chapter of Joel, drawing heavily from the file…
- Wise Counsel
Jonah 4: The Prophet Who Sued God: Weaponized Grace and the Fury
Welcome back to the podcast. Today, we are looking at the shocking, unresolved cliffhanger of Jonah's story, drawing directly from the file "Biblical…
- Wise Counsel
Jonah 3: Grace for the Enemy: Unpacking Nineveh’s Shocking Repentance
What happens when God shows grace to the people you detest most? In Jonah 3, after being vomited back from the subterranean depths of Sheol, the reluctant…
- Wise Counsel
Jonah 1-2: Swallowed by Chaos: Jonah and the Dragon of Sheol
Forget the sanitized Sunday School imagery of a friendly marine mammal; to ancient audiences, the sea was an untamable, otherworldly realm symbolizing dread…
- Wise Counsel
Jonah 1: Storms, Sovereignty, and Skipping Out on God
When God calls Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah does what many of us are tempted to do when faced with a hard assignment: he buys a ticket in the exact opposite…
- Wise Counsel
Amos 7:1–8:14 When God Goes Silent: Plumb Lines, Prophetic Conflict, and Spiritual Famine
In this episode, we explore the terrifying vision oracles and explosive narrative confrontation in Amos 7:1–8:14. Set during the mid-eighth century B.C. under…
- Wise Counsel
239. Two Yahwehs in the Old Testament
The concept of "Two Powers in Heaven" or "Two Yahwehs" refers to a well-documented thread within ancient Hebrew thought and Second Temple Judaism. Throughout…
- Wise Counsel
Amos 9: The Shattered Altar and the Resurrected Tent
In this episode, we draw from the insights found in the file "Biblical Scholarship" to explore the striking finale of the prophet Amos. We navigate the…
Wise CounselAmos 5:1–6:14 Justice Like a River vs. Complacency in Zion
In this episode, we dive into the powerful and devastating prophetic message of Amos 5:1–6:14. Drawing from the insights in the file Biblical Scholarship, we…
- Wise Counsel
238. The Hidden Powers Shaping Nations: Supernatural Rulers and Borders
238. The Hidden Powers Shaping Nations: Supernatural Rulers and Borders
Wise CounselAmos 3-4 The Lion’s Roar and the Celestial Courtroom
In this episode of our study series, we dive deep into the striking prophetic imagery of Amos 3:1–4:13, utilizing insights from our "Biblical Scholarship"…
Wise CounselAmos 1-2 The Shepherd’s Thunder: The Rhetorical Snare
In this episode, we draw upon insights from the "Biblical Scholarship" file to explore the explosive opening chapters of the book of Amos. We dive into the…
Wise CounselHosea 14: The Breathtaking Restoration: Healing and Hope
In this concluding episode of our series, we explore the profound hope and breathtaking restoration of chapter 14. To grasp the full theological weight of this…
- Wise Counsel
237. Beyond Maps: Understanding the Meaning of Biblical Prophecy
237. Beyond Maps: Understanding the Meaning of Biblical Prophecy
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 12–13: Jacob’s Deceit, Baal’s Death Sentence, and Victory Over Death
In Hosea 11:12–13:16, Hosea brings Israel’s covenant rebellion into sharp focus. The prophet reaches back to the story of Jacob, exposing the tragic irony of a…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 9:1–10:15 | The Days of Punishment: Israel’s Exile Anticipated
“The days of punishment have come; the days of recompense have come.” In this episode of Wise Counsel, we explore Hosea 9:1–10:15, a sobering section of…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 11: Out of Egypt, the Father’s Heartbreak, and the True Son
How can a passage looking back at Israel’s ancient Exodus suddenly become something Matthew says was fulfilled in the life of Jesus? In this episode of Wise…
- Wise Counsel
235. Nephilim, Giants, and the Watchers' Rebellion
235. Nephilim, Giants, and the Watchers' Rebellion
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 7–8: Israel’s Fatal Flight to Egypt and Assyria
What happens when a people become deeply invested in politics, cultural influence, and human alliances—but increasingly cold toward God? In this episode of…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 5-6: God’s Case Against Israel’s Rotting Facade: Inside the Trial of
Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us... on the third day he will raise us up." Yet, Yahweh immediately exposes this liturgy as a shallow, manipulative…
- Wise Counsel
Ancient Prophecy Was Never About the Future
What if everything you were taught about biblical prophecy was missing the bigger picture? We often read the Old Testament prophets like fortune tellers…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 4: The Cosmic Courtroom: God’s Case Against Israel
What happens when a nation maintains a polished, prosperous veneer of religion while rotting away at a heart level? In this episode of Wise Counsel, we step…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 3: The Slave Market of Grace: The Cost of Redemption
What is the valuation of a ruined human life? In this episode of Wise Counsel, we dive into Hosea 3:1–5, home to one of the most scandalous, intimate, and…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 2: The Mechanics of Hosea’s Cosmic Lawsuit
What happens when the Sovereign of the universe decides to take His own covenant people to court? In this episode of Wise Counsel, we dive into the brilliant…
Wise CounselHosea 1: Why God Ordered Hosea’s Personal Ruin
Why would a holy, loving God intentionally command His faithful servant to step directly into a lifetime of personal heartbreak, public humiliation, and…
- Wise Counsel
Hosea 1: Hosea’s Scandalous Marriage and God’s Heartbreak
What if the Holy God of the universe called you to live out His own personal heartbreak? In this episode of Wise Counsel, we step directly into the shocking…
- Wise Counsel
Covenant Enforcers: The Real Role of the Biblical Prophets
Are you ready to throw away your popular end-times charts and read the prophets in their actual ancient Near Eastern context? In this prelude episode of the…
- Wise Counsel
232. Breaking Donkey Necks and Redeeming Sons
A concise five-minute debate that contrasts hard judgment with restorative love in biblical narratives. Quickly unpack the symbolic image of coercion vs…
- Wise Counsel
226. Why_Ancient_Israelites_Wore_a_Blue_Thread
226. Why_Ancient_Israelites_Wore_a_Blue_Thread
- Wise Counsel
223. Messianic_prophecy_as_pattern_not_prediction
223. Messianic_prophecy_as_pattern_not_prediction
- Wise Counsel
219. Why_Paul_Linked_Hair_to_Reproductive_Anatomy
219. Why_Paul_Linked_Hair_to_Reproductive_Anatomy