Isaiah 2:13-16 - What Happens When Pride Builds Towers - 292

Pride looks sturdy. Cedars rise straight, walls hold firm, towers watch far, and ships carry wealth to the horizon. Isaiah 2:12–16 turns that confidence inside out, showing how easily our best strengths become the very things that blind us to God. We walk through the prophet’s list—trees, mountains, fortifications, and fleets—to uncover why impressive does not equal secure and how the Day of the Lord levels everything we lean on more than Him.

We start with the cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bashan, symbols of beauty and power that once framed temples and palaces. Their grandeur still echoes in our modern loves: credentials, platforms, and the polish of excellence. From there we climb to the mountains and high places—strategic heights and spiritual stages where status feels safe. Isaiah’s warning lands gently but firmly: elevation can become an idol. God humbles even the most revered heights so our hearts can kneel again.

Towers and fortified walls shift the focus to military strength and smart planning. We explore how ancient defenses worked and why Judah trusted them more than their Redeemer, then draw a line to our own systems and backups. Strong structure matters, but it cannot carry the weight of ultimate security. Finally, the ships of Tarshish glide into view, glittering with commerce and reach. We talk about wealth, networks, and the allure of beautiful craft—and why prosperity without worship tends to own us.

This conversation isn’t anti-achievement; it’s pro-order. Good gifts become bad gods. We share practical ways to re-center trust—sabbath to interrupt productivity pride, generosity to loosen wealth’s grip, prayer to resist control, and service to deflate status. When cedars, walls, and ships fail, God remains. Subscribe, share this with a friend who leans on “strong things,” and leave a quick review to help others find the show. What’s the one “high place” you’re ready to bring low this week?

Transcript

Pride That Looks Impressive

Daniel Moore 0:04

If bigger really meant better, Israel would have been untouchable. Taller trees, stronger walls, higher towers, faster ships. And yet Isaiah shows up with a message that basically says, none of that's going to save you. Welcome to Connecting the Gap. Today we're going to be in Isaiah chapter 2, verses 13 through 16, where God takes a hard look at human pride. And he isn't impressed. Isaiah rattles off a list of everything Israel trusted for security. In other words, power, protection, and prosperity. Does that sound familiar? Well, the problem wasn't that they had these things, the problem was they trusted these things. Isaiah reminds us that the day of the Lord exposes what we lean on instead of God. And if Israel can miss it with the prophet spelling it out, we might want to check our own tall trees and strongwalls today. So let's open up Isaiah 2 and talk about pride, misplaced trust, and why God still isn't impressed by things that look impressive to us. Let's get to it. Welcome to Connecting the Gap. This is a podcast about marriage, Bible, and book study, and we interview people that have a story. I'm Daniel Moore, your host. Thank you guys for joining us this week. If you're not familiar with our show, check out our website at connectingthegap.net. We're also on the Christian podcasting app at Edifi. If you have Alex on Google Smart Devices, you can also catch us on there as well. And you can also visit us on social, on Facebook, Instagram, and X at CTGapOnline. If you're a fan of our show, please subscribe so that you get it every episode. And feel free to leave us a comment on our platforms, give us a thumbs up or a five-star review on Apple Podcasts. And we thank you in advance for doing that. Also, if you go to our website at connectingthegap.net, we have some resources there, some books that uh we've written here in the last year. You can check those out. Those are some books on marriage. And I will say, I'm gonna go ahead and probably let the cat out of the bag here. Eventually, sometime this year, I'm going to be releasing this Isaiah study as a book. So you can look forward to that. It's gonna be a little while before it's ready. It'll probably be in two different volumes as we're going through the whole chapter of Isaiah. So there's a lot there, but that's just something to look forward to here later this year coming from us here at Connecting the Gap. Well, this week, as I said, we are in uh Isaiah chapter two at this point. And last week we finished up to verse 12. So this week we're gonna be going into uh verses 13 through 16, and maybe a little further if we have time for that, but we seem to never have time for more than four verses, but we'll see what we can do here for this week. So get your Bibles out and turn to Isaiah chapter 2, and let's get back to our study here on connecting the gap. So to get started this week, we're gonna go ahead and read our text that we're going to be covering for this week. And because verse 12 technically starts the verses here that we're gonna be covering today, we're gonna go ahead and back up to verse 12 and read that one as we get into verses 13 through 16. And we are reading from the ESV version of the Bible. In Isaiah chapter 2, verse 12, it says, For the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up, and it shall be brought low, against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up, and against all the oaks of the Bishon, against all the lofty mountains, and against all the uplifted hills, against every tower and against every fortified wall, against all the ships of Tarshish, and against all the beautiful craft. So last week, as we were finishing up the four verses that we covered in that episode, we talked a little bit about uh Israel and Judah at the time that they were really putting a lot of their trust into foreign nations, trusting in their wealth and in their armies. And he was, they were actually being likened with their self-reliance to arrogance. You know, God pretty much puts those two in the same category as it reflects a failure to trust in him alone. So here's these verses play out, um, starting with verse 12 last week. And as we go through this week, we're gonna be talking about a lot of things here that Judah was putting their trust in, and they were getting their eyes off the Savior, getting their eyes off the creator, our creator God, and they were putting their trust into all of these different things. So as we start off this week, we're gonna go ahead and start with verse 13. It says, Against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up, and against all the oaks of the Bishon. So here in this verse in chapter two, Isaiah begins listing symbols of human pride and grandeur that will be brought low in the day of the Lord. The cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bishon are mentioned as representations of strength, beauty, and human exaltation. These types of trees that are mentioned here were renowned in the ancient Near East, cedars especially associated with majesty and durability, often used in building palaces and temples, even by Solomon in 1 Kings chapter 5, verse 6. I know there's lots of places that I visited. One time we was going down to Alabama to go to the beach, and there's a section of highway that we were driving down as we were on our way there, and down both sides of this highway, it was lined with cedar trees. And one thing that I noticed as we went through there, I told my wife, I'm like, this is so awesome because those trees were so tall, they were so straight, and they made a solid wall down both sides of the highway, which is quite a sight to see. And so as you look at those cedar trees, you know, they they really look like that they're so solid that nothing could destroy them. And they just look like a very strong wall of trees down both sides of the highway. Well, the cedars of Lebanon were enormous. They were majestic trees, known throughout the ancient Near East for their height, their strength, and their beauty. You know, I seen these trees and on my way down to Alabama and I thought, boy, those were big. But these trees that we're talking here about in Isaiah, they could grow up to 120 feet tall. That's approximately 36 meters, and span over eight feet in diameter or two and a half meters in diameter. Their straight trunks and durable wood made them especially valuable for construction and symbolic representation in biblical literature. In the Bible, the cedars of Lebanon are most often associated with strength, stability, majesty, and splendor. They were used for both literal and symbolic purposes. So let's take a look at this here. At some of the most notable uses of the Cedars of Lebanon was, as we've noted, in construction of sacred and royal buildings. This was probably one of the most known uses that this tree was used for. Some of those buildings were, for number one, Solomon's temple and palace. One of the most significant uses of cedar wood was in the building of Solomon's temple in Jerusalem. According to 1 Kings 5, verses 6 through 10, and 2 Chronicles 2, verses 3 through 8, King Solomon formed an alliance with King Hiram of Tyre to obtain large quantities of cedar logs from Lebanon. These were used to line the temple walls, construct beams, and provide paneling due to their scent, resistance to rot, and high quality. Another notable place that cedars was used was in David's palace. Before Solomon, King David's royal house was also built using cedars from Lebanon. 2 Samuel 5, verse 11 records that King Hiram sent David's cedar logs along with craftsmen to build his palace. Now, as we look at these cedar logs, they are also used as symbols. Number one, they can be used as a symbol of strength or pride. That's what they were used as in the Bible in several places. Beyond the practical use that we just talked about by building palaces and temples, the cedars of Lebanon became a metaphor in the Bible. In Psalms and prophetic books like Ezekiel and Isaiah, these trees are compared to mighty nations or proud men. For example, Ezekiel 31.3 compares Assyria to a cedar of Lebanon, tall, strong, and exalted above the trees of the field. Also notably in the Bible, the symbol of righteousness is often referred to as the cedars of Lebanon. In Psalm 92.12, the righteous are told to flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon, symbolizing vitality, stability, and resilience. Because of the impressive size, the longevity, and the global demand for their wood, the cedars of Lebanon held a revered place in the ancient world. Biblically, they served both as vital materials in the construction of sacred places, and they were also symbols of strength and pride that, like human arrogance, would ultimately be humbled by God. As I think about these places that were built with cedar, I've been into homes before where they had like cedar closets. My daughter, at one point in time, her grandpa had a cedar chest built for her. If you ever are around that cedar, it has a distinct scent to it. A scent I really like smelling cedar. Although sometimes cedar can get a little strong. I've been in some places where there's been so much cedar in there that it started burning my nose after a while, but it does give it a nice scent and a kind of a clean scent, uh, when is kind of what comes to mind whenever I'm in the middle of something that's built with cedar. So symbolically, these trees represent not just physical beauty and strength, but also the pride and arrogance of the people who trusted in their own achievements and resources. Many commentators, including John Oswalt, note that these natural icons are metaphors for proud leaders, rulers, or nations who elevate themselves instead of submitting to God. The judgment imagery is rich. Even the most esteemed and enduring human accomplishments will be judged by the Lord when he displays his glory. So here in verse 13, we were continuing what was started in chapter 2, verse 12, where God was calling out a lot of these things of strength that Judah and Israel were looking to to be something that they put their trust in. God was informing them that this stuff is going to fall. It's temporary. You can sit there and worship it, or you can build all the strong things you want out of it and put all of your trust in it. But as far as eternity goes, that only comes from the Lord. So as we move on to verse 14, he continued, against all the lofty mountains and against all the uplifted hills. So as we continue here, Isaiah expands the imagery of judgment from the cedars and the oaks to the terrain. High mountains and uplifted hills often symbolize strength, security, and sometimes places of pagan worship in the ancient world. And in the Bible, you'll hear those called high places. These elevated places could also be metaphors for kingdoms, power structures, or even spiritual pride. Throughout the Old Testament, mountains are both sacred and strategic. However, Isaiah portrays these as targets for divine judgment. The prophet here is declaring that even the natural or spiritual quote unquote heights that people revere or rely on are going to be humbled. The pulpit commentary suggests that this may also represent national pride, nations that see themselves as untouchable and powerful. When you think of a hill or a tall mountain, if you can reach to the top of that, it gives you a sense of security to think that I'm way up here, all the dangers are down below me, so I'm safe. If a flood comes through, they tell you get to the high points. You'll be saved if you get to those high areas, and the water can't reach you as long as it doesn't keep raining and get that deep. So here symbolically, Isaiah is using these to kind of be a metaphor for that type of thinking, in a way. These hills and these mountains, uh, Judah was looking at these as a place of security, and they were putting more of their security and their trust in those types of things again than they were in God. This verse here can contributes to the broader theme that everything man exalts, whether if it's natural, political, religious, or material, it's going to be leveled by the holiness and the supremacy of God. So no matter what the the Israelites or no matter what Judah would try to rise up before God and try to put into place of worship, it was all going to be humbled when God came into the picture and he was ready to judge all of that. In verse 15, this thought process continues. It says, against every high tower and against every fortified wall. So the focus here moves now from nature to military infrastructure. I mean, God, he wasn't pulling any punches. He's letting Judah know, I've I know what all you're doing in all the different areas of your life, and I'm going to call them all out. Well, the reason he was calling out tires and fortified walls here is they were key symbols of national defense and military pride in ancient cities. They stood for security, for autonomy, and a resistance to external threat. Isaiah says that even these structures will fall under God's judgment. Judah, like many nations, had come to trust in its fortresses instead of its redeemer. And if you look on further into Isaiah in chapter 22, verses 8 through 11, it speaks a little bit about that there as well. We'll get there eventually as we go further into this study. Their attempts to secure themselves through earthly means instead of by trusting in God were both senseless and offensive to their covenantal relationship with Him. It's easy for us, especially living in the in the United States, to look at our military and our military might and put all of our trust in that. Because when we have good leadership in our country, which seems to be every other four years, it seems like, uh, we can actually have a strong military that goes in and does things and takes care of business. And the more that we see battles won, the more that we see our military be successful in the things that they do and the offenses that they run, the little wars that take place, the more secure we feel. And it's real easy at that point to put our security in something like that. But we always have to remember that just because we have a strong military doesn't mean the mistakes can't be made, or it doesn't mean that there is something out there that's stronger, and it could take that down. So, in essence, when it comes down to it, we can only say that as Christians, we have to actually keep our security and our reliance in God. And that's pretty much what Isaiah was saying here is he was talking to Judah. So during the time of Isaiah, the fortified walls of cities like Jerusalem and the Kingdom of Judah were substantial structures designed for defense against invading armies. And this would have been taken place about the 8th century BC. While exact dimensions varied depending on the city and the period, archaeological evidence gives us a good idea of their typical size and construction. When we're looking at the city walls, we have to look at the height. During this period, the height of these walls were often between 20 to 30 feet or 6 to 9 meters tall. In some cases, especially in the major cities like Jerusalem or Lakeish, they could be even tall. These walls were also thick. The thickness of these walls could range from 5 to 15 feet, or 1.5 to 4.5 meters. In key areas such as city gates or vulnerable points, the walls were sometimes reinforced and made even thicker. The construction of these walls was phenomenal. These walls are typically built using large stone blocks with an inner core of rubble and smaller stones. Some sections included casemate walls or double walls with chambers in between that could be used for storage, housing, or reinforcement during sieges. And in the scripture, towers were called out. Towers were integrated into these walls at regular intervals, especially near gates and corners. These towers provided elevated positions for archers and lookouts and often added strength to the wall's structure. Look at the gates of these cities. The city gates were the most vulnerable parts of the wall, but they were heavily fortified with multiple chambers, guard rooms, and sometimes double gates. Archaeological excavations at sites like Lakeish and Jerusalem have uncovered remains of such walls, confirming their massive scale and strategic design. These fortifications were impressive engineering feats for their time. But as Isaiah and other prophets emphasized, Judah's reliance on them rather than on God was spiritually misguided. Isaiah here in verse 15 of chapter 2, he refers to every high tower and every fortified wall as part of a larger poetic list describing the pride and self-reliance of Judah and the things that will be brought low on the day of the Lord. Again, here during the time of Isaiah, the kingdom of Judah relied heavily on physical defenses like these towers and these walls to protect against invading armies, particularly from powerful empires like Assyria. Towers were typically built along city walls and at strategic points to serve as lookout posts and strongholds. They provided elevated positions from which defenders could observe enemy movements and launch arrows or other projectiles. Fortified walls surrounded cities like Jerusalem, offering protection against siege warfare. These walls, as we just talked about, were very thick. They were made of stone, and they had gates that could be securely closed during attacks. However, here in Isaiah two, these physical defenses are mentioned not to highlight their strength, but to critique Judah's misplaced trust and human made security rather than in God. The prophet Isaiah warns that all human pride and reliance on earthly power, including military and architectural achievements, is going to be humbled before the Lord. The towers and walls symbolize Judah's self-sufficiency and false sense of security, which God promises to bring low in the coming judgment. So while tires and walls were practical tools for defense, Isaiah uses them symbolically to show how Judah had turned to human strength instead of trusting in God. So this passage calls the people to recognize God's supremacy and abandon their pride. As we read the dimensions of those walls, the vast size that they are, the towers, the gates, I can get a very good visual of what that probably looked like. And I can also get kind of an understanding why Judah would be, you know, feeling so secure with those things around them. It almost seems like nothing could probably break through those at all. But when it comes to what God wants to accomplish, when it comes to what God wants us to do in our lives, when we build those walls between us and him, he wants us to break those down. And if we don't break them down, we know that God can put us in positions where he will make sure those walls get broken down. So here, commentary from Gary Smith on this scripture emphasizes that Isaiah is critiquing an entire world view that substitutes God's protection with human ingenuity and military strength. The result is judgment on what mankind sees as unshakable sources of safety. So to move on here to verse 16 for this week, it continues with this this judgmental talk that has been going on from God to Isaiah to Judah. Next, he's going at war against all the ships of Tarshish and against all the beautiful craft. The ships of Tarshish symbolize wealth, international commerce, and economic achievement. These ships would have represented Judah's hope for wealth, power, and influence, all anchored in the economies of men, not the provision of God. Though its exact location remains debated, most scholars believe it was a city located in the western Mediterranean, possibly in southern Spain near modern day Tarsus. This theory is grounded in archaeological and linguistic evidence, with ancient sources such as the Septuagint also identifying Tarshush with a region in Spain. In Isaiah here in verse 16, the ships of Tarshus are used to represent wealth, expansive commerce, and human achievement. These ships were renowned for their size and capacity to transport luxury goods, metals, precious stones, and other trade items across long distances. Tarshish was likely known for importing and exporting valuable materials like silver, gold, tin, and iron, which were in high demand in the ancient Near East. As we look at this from a biblical historical point of view, Tarshish became symbolic of the pinnacle of international economic success. It's associated with King Solomon's trading empire in 1 Kings 10, verse 22, and is also mentioned in the context of Jonah's attempt to flee from God in Jonah 1.3. This is implying that it was seen as a far off, exotic, and even unreachable destination. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish used to come, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. As we look at Jonah chapter one, verse three, it says, But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare, went on board to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord. And for those of you that are wondering, that's about an estimated five hundred miles or so is the distance that's been estimated from where Jonah was to where he was headed. So he was really trying to get far away from the calling that God had put upon his life. Historians suggest that the Phoenicians, expert seafarers of the ancient world with settlements along the Mediterranean coast, may have helped establish and maintain trade routes to Tarshish. The Phoenician city of Tyre likely played a significant role in facilitating commerce between the Levant and the Western Mediterranean, including routes to Tarshish. In Isaiah chapter 2, here in verse 16, by mentioning the ships of Tarshish, the prophet Isaiah is not only referring to literal ships engaged in far-reaching maritime enterprise, but he's also criticizing the pride and false security the people of Judah placed in wealth, beauty, and global trade. These human accomplishments represented by Tarshish's prestigious vessels will be humbled when the Lord alone is exalted on the day of his judgment. Thus Tarshish becomes a symbol of the external prosperity that lured Judah away from dependence on God. In this verse, where it talks about beautiful craft, that may refer to both skilled artisan products and the luxury vessels that carried them. These were expressions of cultural pride and human glory, drawing attention to man's creativity and progress. In the context of these few verses here, talking about the judgment of God, Isaiah is revealing the futility of trusting in worldly wealth and commerce. Even the best, most beautiful, and seemingly invincible forms of human enterprise will fall under God's judgment. Commentators like Alec Mojcher recognize that these verses are a catalog of all the arenas in which human pride places confidence. We have a tendency to place our pride in nature. We place it in security. We place it in architecture, empire, and economy. But all of them, no matter how lofty, strong, or beautiful, they are all subject to the judgment of the sovereign and holy God. Ultimately, Isaiah's prophetic message is that God alone must be exalted and trusted. All false elevations and securities will be brought low in the day of the Lord. So as we wrap up this week's episode of Connecting the Gap, as we finish up studying here on verses 13 through 16 in Isaiah chapter 2, Isaiah is part of a prophetic vision where the prophet Isaiah describes the future exaltation of God's house or the temple and a call for the nations to come to Zion. In verses 13 through 16 here in chapter 2, Isaiah highlights the pride and the arrogance of humanity and the objects of their misplaced worship, detailing how these manifest in their reliance on materialism and power. As we break these verses down, as we look at Isaiah verse 13 here in chapter 2, this verse mentions the lofty cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bishon. These trees symbolize pride, power, and human glory. Lebanon was known for its majestic trees that were used in construction, especially in the building of Solomon's temple, while Bishon was fertile and rich. In verses fourteen through fifteen of chapter two, Isaiah speaks against the arrogance of military might, referring to high towers and fortified walls. This metaphor indicates the pride associated with human accomplishments, security and reliance on military strength. And finally in verse 16, we just discussed that the verse points to the ships of Tarshish, which symbolize commercial wealth and trade. Tarshish was noted for its distant trade as a place of prosperity far from Israel, indicating reliance on material wealth and economic dominance. As we look through these verses, there are some theological themes that take place. The first one is human arrogance and dependence. This passage that we covered today addresses the pride of human achievements, nature, military prowess, and economic power that leads people away from dependence on God. It also has a theme of God's judgment on human pride. Isaiah warns that the day of the Lord will come, a day of reckoning where human pride will be humbled and God's sovereignty will be established. And finally, there's a call for humility. Implicit in the passage is a call to humility before God, acknowledging his sovereignty over all creation and our need for repentance. So as we look at these four verses this week, how can we apply those to our lives today? Well, the first thing that I can definitely talk about with you today is the caution against materialism. Just as ancient Israel relied heavily on mighty trees, military strength, and economic stability, today's society we often place our trust in materialism, technology, and economic power. This passage encourages us to examine what we are truly dependent on. Where I work at, we have lots of computers. I'm sure where you work at there's lots of computers. I'm at a I work at an automated radio station. So our radio station literally depends on a computer to keep running 24-7 to keep our station broadcasting. When power goes out, internet goes down, our computer systems shut off. I can't work. My job is completely at a standstill at that point. And then it reminds me how reliant we are just on computer systems. Technology has grown so much today, as the Bible said in the last days that knowledge was going to increase. It definitely has. And I think a lot of ways we actually put that in front of God to be dependent on it a lot of times. And we've got to be careful with that. I've done that myself many times, and I still find myself doing that occasionally just in my daily activities. So as we apply this to us and this caution against materialism, we need to challenge ourselves to reassess our priorities, focusing our growth in faith and service rather than material possessions, because the faith that we have in God and the service that we give to Him, it's what's going to stand in the final days. The second thing that we can apply to ourselves is the recognition of human limitations. You know, here in these verses, Isaiah's words serve as a timely reminder of the fleeting nature of human power and success. Just as in Isaiah's time, the fragility of social and economic systems can be a source of anxiety today. You know, in the middle of the anxiety that we have and the tension that we place on ourselves moment by moment as we try to be successful in this life that we are living, we need to find some way to find peace in God's sovereignty instead of worrying about worldly affairs and all the things going on around us. Remind ourselves that the ultimate security does not come from worldly means, but from faith in God. We have to be able to see God through all of the noise and make sure that He is first in every decision and every choice that we make. There's also a call to humility coming out of these scriptures for us today. This passage of Scripture is inviting us as individuals into a corporate humility before God. Acknowledging our limitations and shortcomings can lead to a deeper spiritual growth in Him, and a huge reliance on God's grace can then begin to form inside of us. We need to be able to introduce a culture of confession and repentance within ourselves and within our churches. We need to engage in communal prayers that reflect a humble posture before God Almighty. And fourth, as Isaiah was talking to Judah here in these portions of Scriptures, we need to be prepared for the day of the Lord. This prophetic warning about a future day of reckoning compels believers to live with a sense of urgency and purpose, working towards justice, compassion, and humility. We need to challenge all of ourselves to engage in social justice, advocating for the oppressed and the vulnerable, and we need to make sure that we reflect God's kingdom values now and preparing for the coming of the Lord. So as we close this episode this week, these scriptures here in verses 13 through 16 of chapter 2 in Isaiah serve a powerful reminder of the dangers of pride and reliance on human strength. They urge us to place our confidence in God alone. As we reflect on these verses, we are challenged to seek humility, reassess our priorities, and engage deeply with our faith in a world that often distracts us from what truly matters. This passage speaks directly to the heart of both individual believers and church congregations, and it should promote a spirit of repentance, groundedness, and anticipation for God's work in our lives and the world. I do want to say, thank all of you that come in here every week and join me as we do our episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It's happy birthday to us. I meant to mention this at the beginning, but I forgot. We've been actually podcasting for five years this week. We started this in 2021 and we have been going ever since. It was once a week for a long time until last year. We started doing two episodes a week when my wife joined me for Marriage Life and more. And if anybody has been listening since the very beginning, I don't know if there's any of you out there that have, but if you have, thank you so much for sticking through all of uh the stuff that I've shared over the years. And if you're a new person that's just come along, thank you so much for joining us here and becoming a part of our podcast each and every week. And I thank you so much for listening, sharing, and getting other people involved uh with our ministry here at Connecting the Gap. So I just wanted to uh just say that real quick as we close this week. Uh don't forget you can reach out to us on our website at connectingthegap.net. Uh, there's a form there. You can also email us, Daniel at connectingthegap.net, if you'd like to uh send us a message or add to this conversation, whatever it is you'd like to communicate, we'd love to hear from you. And so you can do it in that way. Please subscribe so that you don't miss any episodes. And it's time for us to go. And as usual, every time we leave, we'd like to remind you that God's word never fails us. God's word has stood the test of time, and through Jesus' death on the cross, he has connected the gap. This is an extension of Connecting the Gap Ministries, and we pray that you have a blessed week.