Around the

Word in
Eighty Days
©2009 by George A. Kohl
This Bible study booklet was written by Rev. George A. Kohl with gratitude for those who consulted and edited. Rev. George A.
Kohl may be contacted at Belmont Street Baptist Church, 25 Belmont Street, Worcester, MA 01605, gakbsbc@verizon.net, 508-
753-0312.
All Scripture quotations are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978,
1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House and Hodder & Stoughton, Ltd. All rights
reserved. The NIV does not capitalize pronouns related to deity and these materials do. To remain faithful to the NIV, no changes
were made when the NIV was being quoted.

PREFACE: The reader should attentively read the material and the Scripture passage
contained in most readings. Upon occasion, you will be asked to read more than one Bible
passage. Sometimes you will see Bible references in parenthesis interwoven with the material.
These are called proof texts. They substantiate the point being made. You are free to skip them
in your reading unless you need to check if what I am saying is supported by the Scriptures.
While most readings are one page, a few are longer and a few are shorter. Mark places where
you have questions for your mentor or group leader. The goal of this material is to give you an
overview of the Bible that will enable you to read it for yourself with ever increasing
understanding. As with everything in life, you will only get as much benefit out of this study as
you put effort into it. Mentees will probably have to invest 30 to 60 minutes in the material
each day. You may not be able to work at the pace of a reading a day. A judgment on pace will
be made by the mentors or group leaders in consideration of the mentees. Appendix 5 has test
questions you may be given or may self-administer to make sure you are mastering the big
ideas. Mentors are encouraged to give tests to assure that the mentees are mastering the
material. Appendix 1 provides cross references to places in the Life Transformation
Curriculum where more is said about a specific issue.
 Day 1
Getting Started

Welcome to this tour of the Bible! Jules Verne wrote his famous novel, Around the World
in Eighty Days. Playing off that title, we’d like to take you around the Word in eighty days.
Just as you could not possibly see the whole world in eighty days, nor can you see all of the
Bible in that time. The Bible is something people keep on learning about for a lifetime. But just as
you can get a good overview of the world in eighty days, you can also get a good overview of the
Bible. Our goal in these readings is to give you a helpful overview and leave you hungering for more
for the rest of your life.
Many people have read the Bible for years and never understood the big picture. Once they
grasp the big picture, their understanding of the parts doubles and triples. Having said that, this
course is written with the novice in mind. We are trying to write things simply and clearly so that
the person who knows nothing about the Bible can understand it.
The word “Bible” simply means “books.” The Bible is a collection of books that God
inspired to reveal Himself and His will to His people. The Bible is not just a random collection of
books. It is arranged in a certain order.
The Bible is divided into two major parts: The Old Testament and the New Testament. The
word “testament” means the same thing as “covenant” or “solemn agreement.” The Old Testament
is the way that God agreed to relate to His chosen people, the nation of Israel. The New Testament
is the way that God agreed to relate to His new chosen people, the church of Jesus Christ.
There are a total of 66 books that make up God’s Word. The Old Testament consists of 39
books and the New Testament consists of 27.
The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew (with some Aramaic) and the New
Testament was originally written in Greek. The Hebrew and Greek spoken today are not exactly the
same as the Hebrew and Greek of the Bible.
The Old Testament is arranged in the following order. First, there are seventeen books of
history (Genesis through Esther). They cover God’s involvement in human history as He seeks to
reconcile sinful people to Himself. Second, there are five books of poetry (Job through the Song of
Songs). Third, there are seventeen books of prophecy (Isaiah through Malachi). They are messages
from God revealed directly to a person called a prophet. Prophets communicated God’s message to
people. Usually, the prophets addressed present circumstances, but sometimes they predicted the
future.
After the Prophet Malachi, God did not speak through a prophet for roughly 430 years. He
gave us no new written revelations during that time. The next prophet of God to speak after Malachi
was John. We meet him in the opening chapters of the New Testament.
The New Testament is arranged in the following order. The first five books of the Bible
continue to cover the story of God’s involvement in history to reconcile sinful people to Himself.
The first four books, called “the Gospels,” are four different accounts of the life and ministry of
Jesus Christ (Matthew through John). The fifth book of the New Testament, Acts, picks up where
the Gospels leave off and records the rapid expansion of Christianity in its earliest days. After the
books of history come the letters, also called “epistles.” These books of the Bible are letters of
correspondence between Christ’s apostles and the earliest Christians. There are 21 such letters in the
New Testament (Romans through Jude). The twenty seventh and final book of the New Testament
is a book of prophecy called the Revelation. While prophecy can be found in many books of the New
Testament, this book is almost exclusively dedicated to a genre of prophecy called apocalyptic
prophecy. This means the writing is full of symbolism and hidden meanings that the reader must
look beyond the surface to understand what is being communicated.
 Day 2
The Beginning of the Universe

Let’s begin at the beginning. The first book of the Bible is Genesis and the word means
“beginnings.” The Book of Genesis records the beginning of the universe, human race, sin, nations,
languages, a chosen people, and more. We will start our tour with what the Bible says about the
beginning of the universe.

9 Read Genesis 1:1-2:3 for an account of the beginning of the universe.

How old is the earth? Limiting ourselves to the material found in the Bible, we don’t need
an earth that is over ten thousand years old. But the Bible does not tell us how long the earth existed
before the six days of creation. Furthermore, it is a subject of debate as to how literally readers
should take the six days of Genesis1.
Most scientists estimate the earth to be 4.5 billions years old. I don’t know much about the
accuracy of the methods that scientists use to date things like a universe. It seems to me, however,
that the universe must be millions or billions of years old.
I’ve heard it said that the earth is young but that God gave it an appearance of age. That may
be the case but it is only speculation. There is nothing within the Scriptures that says God created
the earth with an appearance of age.
The Day-Age Theory says that the days of Genesis 1 are metaphors for ages or eras of
millions of years. Generally, these theorists believe that God had a blueprint for the universe and
guided the process of evolution to create His design. This is called Theistic Evolution which is
distinct from naturalist evolution in which everything is said to have evolved randomly over billions
of years.
In The Genesis Connection, John L. Wiester takes a day-age approach but his approach is
supernaturalistic. It was his study of the scientific evidence that led him to his supernaturalistic
perspective. He thinks Genesis 1 provides a broad outline of how things happened and that the fossil
record fits into that broad outline. He is skeptical of theistic and naturalistic evolution for many
Scriptural and scientific reasons. He sees a brilliant design in the way the universe is made and finds
it highly improbable that this design could have just happened by chance. He sees huge gaps in the
evolutionary process which scientists cannot close in spite of all of their research and speculations.
He sees missing transitional life forms to which the fossil record should be able to testify.
Some Christians embrace the Gap Theory. This theory says that there is a gap of millions or
billions of years between Genesis 1:2 and Genesis 1:3. Grammatically, the text of Genesis allows
for this. The theory says that in the beginning, God created all matter and energy. He had not yet
created living things. It laid dormant for of millions or billions of years. Then God then resumed His
creation and finished it up in a very short period of time – six days.
I do not know how to reconcile all the data there is to consider inside and outside of the
Scriptures. The most important thing is that we see God as the designer and originator of all things
who created everything brilliantly, powerfully, supernaturally, and out of nothing. We do not want
to deprive God of the praise He is due. It is an awesome creation and it was created by an awesome
Creator.
 Day 3
The Beginning of the Human Race

God created the universe for the pleasure He received out of making it. He also created it to
impress a very special creature–the human being. Wherever we turn our eyes, we stand in awe of
God’s creation. Whether we look at the universe with the naked eye, through a telescope, or through
a microscope, His wonders never cease to amaze us.
As we think about the vastness of the universe, we can feel insignificant. When we realize
that God made the whole thing to impress us with Himself, we feel very significant.
You will see that today’s passage teaches that people are made in God’s image. That means
that you can look at a human and see the one creature that resembles God more than any other
creature. No creature better represents what God is like. Humans are a finite replica of what the
measureless God is like.
Our resemblance to God is not physical. God does not have a body. The Scriptures teach that
God is spirit (John 4:24). He is a real person; however, He is invisible.
Periodically the Scriptures refer to God as having body parts. In such passages the authors
are simply assigning human-like characteristics to God so that we can understand some truths about
the awesome and mysterious God revealed in Scripture.
The likeness we have to God is an immaterial likeness. Just as God is a person, people are
persons. We have intellect, emotions, a will and moral awareness just as God has all these things.
By “intellect” we mean that we can reason in very complex logical syllogisms. The most
intelligent animals can only think in the simplest logical syllogisms. The human ability to reason
makes him matchless among all God’s creatures.
People are also distinct in terms of their emotions. We have a broad range of emotions. One
author has identified 126 different emotions people experience. Many animals have no emotions,
while those that have emotions have very few.
When we say people are persons like God, we also mean that they have the ability to will just
as God possesses the ability to will. Animals have some ability to will, but most of their decisions
are based on instincts. The will of animals is immeasurably inferior to the free and deliberate will
of people. Human willpower makes humans matchless among all God’s creatures.
Finally, when we say people are persons like God, we also mean that humans have moral
awareness. They have an innate awareness that there is right and wrong behavior. This is not the case
with animals.
This super-ability of people to reason, emote, will and be morally aware makes humans more
like God than any other creature. It enables a human to know, worship, adore, love and serve God.
No other earthly creature can do that. We were specially created for these purposes.
In today’s passage you will see that Adam and Eve were given freedom to eat of all the trees
in the garden. Only the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was forbidden them. When originally
created, Adam and Eve had only a knowledge of what was good and right. They were innocent of
any evil; if they ate of the forbidden tree, they would have a knowledge of evil as well. If they ate
from the tree of life, it would have produced physical immortality in them. If they had eaten of the
tree of life after eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would have been
immortalized in a sinful condition. This would have created unspeakable misery on earth for the
entire human race. In this state, they would then not be able to be saved from this spiritual condition.

9 Read Genesis 1:27-2:25

 Day 4
The Beginning of Angels

The Bible doesn’t reveal when angels were created. They were created prior to the rest of the
universe because Job 38:1-7 implies that the angels were singing praises to God while He was
creating everything. It was spectacular for the angels to see the Almighty One create this vast,
awesome, diverse, beautiful, and orderly universe out of nothing

9 Read Job 38:1-7.

Like humans, angels were originally created as sinless beings (Psalm 89:7; Daniel 4:13, 17,
23; 3:13; Mark 8:38; 2 Peter 2:11; Jude 9, 14; Revelation 14:10). Like people, they were created
(Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 148:2; Colossians 1:15) with intelligence (2 Samuel 14:17, 20; Matthew
24:36; 1 Corinthians 13:1; Ephesians 3:10), emotions (Job 38:7; Luke 2:13, 14; Luke 15:7-10;
Hebrews 12:22; Revelations 5:11, 12), and will (1 Peter 1:12; Revelation 22:8,9). Like people, they
were created to know, worship, and serve God (Job 1:6; 2:1; Psalm 29:1-2; 103:20-21; 148:2; Isaiah
6:1-4; Ezekiel 10:1-19; Revelation 4:6-9). Unlike people, angels do not have bodies. They are
invisible spirit beings (Psalm 104:4; Hebrews 1:7, 14) except when God wills for them to appear to
humans as humans (Genesis 19:1; Exodus 3:2; Judges 2:1; Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:26; and John
20:12.) And, unlike humans, angels do not marry or procreate (Mark 12:25).
Angels are presently distinct from and superior to humans in many ways (Psalm 8:4-5; Daniel
10:13; Matthew 28:2; Acts 5:19; 12:7-11, 23; 23:8; 1 Corinthians 11:10; 13:1; Galatians 1:82
Thessalonians 1:7; Hebrews 13:2; 2 Peter 2:10-11; Revelation 7:1; 12:7; 14:17-19; 15:5-8; 18:1).
One day humans will be made superior to the angels (1 Corinthians 6:3). Angels are and always will
be vastly inferior to God and Christ (Ephesians 1:19-21; Philippians 2:9-11; Colossians 1:15-16;
2:10; Hebrews 1:3-13; Hebrews 2:5–9; 1 Peter 3:21-22).
Sometimes people have worshiped angels. This is strictly forbidden by the Scriptures
(Colossians 2:1; Revelation 19:9-10; 22:8-9).
A leading function of angels is to deliver messages for God to people, to encourage God’s
people, to serve their needs, and to oppose the evil forces in the universe (Hebrews 1:14; Psalm 34:7;
103:20; Matthew 18:10; 24:31; Luke 2:13-15; 1 Timothy 5:21).
The Scriptures do not give us an exact number. Christ’s apostle John once had a vision,
which he described in this way: Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering
thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand (Revelation 5:11). We don’t know
if he was hearing all the angels in this vision or just a small portion. We can safely say there are
millions and millions of angels. (See also 1 Kings 22:19; Job 25:3; Daniel 7:10). It appears that the
myriad of angels are organized into various ranks such as a large military is organized by ranks
(Ephesians 1:20-21; Colossians 1:16; 2:10; 1 Peter 3:22). Clearly, archangels are angels in positions
of authority over other angels (1 Thessalonians 4:16; Jude 9).
Probably all angels have names; however, in the stories of the Bible, we do not know the
names of most angels. There are three angels whose names we know: Lucifer, Gabriel and Michael.
Lucifer is only mentioned once and we will have more to say about him tomorrow. Gabriel makes
twelve appearances in the Bible, and Michael makes three.
Some angels are described as having four wings (Genesis 3:24; Exodus 25:18-22; 1 Kings
6:23-29; Ezekiel 1:10). They are called “cherubim.” Some have six wings (Isaiah 6:1-7). They are
called “seraphim.” Some Christians believe that God assigns a “guardian angel” to everyone as a
child. The biblical basis for thinking this is meager (Matthew 18:10) but it is possible. While there
are angels sent from God to inflict death upon humans, there is no such thing in the Bible as an
“angel of death” or “grim reaper” as portrayed in much fiction.
 Day 5
The Beginning of Evil

God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (I John 1:5). His eyes are too pure to look on
evil (Habakkuk 1:13). God cannot be tempted by evil (James 1:13). There are some things that God
cannot do. One thing God cannot do is create a universe with evil present in it.
When the Bible says God saw all that He had made, and it was very good, it means that the
universe was completely suitable for the purposes for which He created it. God could not have said
it was good if evil were present in it. There was an unspecified period of time when there was no
such thing as evil in the universe. Both angels and people were created without evil in them. They
were, however, created with the ability to self-originate evil if they chose to do so.
Does this mean that God created them with a tragic flaw? Wasn’t God able to create a being
that did not even have the ability to self-originate evil?
I must readily admit that much mystery surrounds the Bible’s teachings about the origins of
evil in the universe. Christians assume that God has revealed all that we really need to know for now
about the topic.
Here is our best reply: God created angels and people to know, worship, and serve Him.
But God did not want to create a creature that knew, worshiped, and served Him because it had no
choice. Therefore, He gave angels and people the choice to serve Him or to self-originate evil.
I admit that I have questioned God’s judgment about giving so much freedom of choice to
angels and people. Our responsibility as creatures, however, is to trust God, not to advise or criticize.
I may not understand much about the origins of evil in the universe, but I have resolved that I will
live in the universe the way it is, not as I wish it was.
According to God’s revelation, evil originated when a special angel, Lucifer, chose to
dethrone God and enthrone himself. That is how the origin of evil in the universe is vaguely sketched
out for us in the two ambiguous passages of Scripture we read today.
The first passage is Isaiah 14. It says that the king of Babylon is arrogant, just like an angel
named Lucifer was once arrogant when he became enamored with himself and deceived himself into
thinking that he could dethrone God.

9 Read Isaiah 14:12-15 at this time.

The other passage is Ezekiel 28. It says that the king of Tyre is arrogant, just like a specially
anointed angel who once turned arrogant and rebelled against God.

9 Read Ezekiel 28:11-19 at this time.

The implication of these Scriptures is, at some point in the history of the universe, one of
God’s special angels self-originated sin and became an evil angel. Although a variety of names are
used for him, the Bible most commonly calls him “Satan” or “the devil.” On the day of his rebellion,
a force called “evil” entered into the good and flawless universe that God created.
In the Scriptures we also read about a large number of evil beings called “demons,” “evil
spirits,” “unclean spirits,” and “the devil’s angels.” Their origin is even vaguer. The most widely
held view among Christian is that a third of God’s angels joined Satan in his rebellion against God
(Revelation 12:3-4).
We wish God gave us more information. Our desire for more information is motivated more
by our curiosity than a need to know. We assume, therefore, that this is all God thinks we need to
know about the origin of evil. We assume it is beneficial for us to know that there are now evil
creatures in the universe bent on promoting rebellion against God.
 Day 6
Evil Enters the Human Race

Everywhere in the world that you look, you can see the infiltration of evil. Selfish, sensual,
greedy, angry, envious, inconsiderate, coercive, manipulative, hurtful, deceitful, and egotistical
tendencies can be found in people all over the world. It does not matter whether you are looking at
a remote tribe or the most civilized society. Why are we that way? Do we do evil things because we
lack something in our lives such as affection, love, or money? Do we do things hurtful to ourselves
and others because we are running low on self-esteem? Is Buddhism correct in teaching that there
is no evil in the universe but only numerous flaws that need to be accepted? Is Hinduism correct in
teaching that evil has existed forever? Are Judaism and Christianity correct in teaching that there is
a Devil who promotes the development of evil in the universe? Are we born morally good, neutral,
or with a bent toward doing evil?
On our tour today, you are going to read about the entrance of evil into the human race. Here
are a few things to keep in mind as you read:
• Somewhere between Genesis 1 and 2, evil had already self-generated and made its entrance
into the universe. As discussed yesterday, it happened when a special angel sought to
dethrone God and a large number of angels joined him in his rebellion.
• The serpent in this story is Satan, the devil (Revelation 12:9; 20:2).
• In the quest to promote his rebellion in the universe, Satan goes after the human order of
God’s creation. He seeks to exploit their ability to self-generate sin for his purposes. He
meets the first male and female at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
• You will recall, Adam and Eve were given freedom to eat of all the trees in the garden of
Eden mentioned (Genesis 2:16-17). Only the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was
forbidden them. At their creation, they only had a knowledge of good. If they ate of the
forbidden tree, they would sin against God for the first time in their lives and have a
knowledge of evil as well.
• If they ate from the tree of life after eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they
would have been immortalized in a sinful condition. This would have created unspeakable
misery on earth for the human race. In this state, people would not be able to be saved from
this spiritual condition. It was an act of mercy on God’s part to drive them out of the garden.
• God created people as persons so they could experience relational interaction with Him. God
did not want to create a creature that desired Him only because it had no choice. Therefore,
God gave people the choice to love Him or to self-originate evil. What can a person make
with wheat, water and yeast? One can make life-giving bread or death-producing alcoholic
beverage. Likewise, God made people and angels with the ability to choose life or death.

9 Read Genesis 3:1-24 at this time.

We really do not know how soon after their creation Adam and Eve chose to self-generate
sin. It could have been hundreds of years or just a few days. We get the impression that it wasn’t a
long time by how quickly the story goes from their creation to their fall. We also get this impression
because it occurred sometime before the birth of their first children.
Nor do we know why didn’t God erect an impenetrable barrier between Satan and humans
so they could make their choices without his influence. We must acknowledge that much mystery
surrounds the origins of evil. As humble creatures of God, we assume there is something in God’s
nature that disallowed such a barrier or He would have erected it. I have chosen to accept things as
God says they are rather than wish things were different.
 Day 7
The Transmission of Sin and Death

As we saw yesterday, Satan successfully made his pitch to Adam and Eve and they chose to
self-originate evil. Romans 5:12, alluding to Genesis 3, says, . . . sin entered the world through one
man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.
Something dreadful happened to human nature the day Adam sinned. In the days that
followed their fall, Adam and Eve found themselves dealing with selfishness, dishonesty, pride,
egotism, anxiety, indifference, sensuality, greed, anger, envy, and many other sins. Romans 5:12 is
saying that Adam involuntarily transmitted these evil tendencies to his children.

9 Read Genesis 4:1-16. Notice the manifestation of evil that took place in the very first family.

Adam involuntarily transmitted his bent toward doing evil to his children. They, in turn,
transmitted it to their children. That evil bent has been transmitted right down to us in our day. We
have transmitted it to our children. It was this reality that inspired the biblical poets to write:

• Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. (Psalm 51:5)

• Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies.
(Psalm 58:3)

• Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.
(Proverbs 22:15)

• The rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother.
(Proverbs 29:15)

According to these Scriptures, a child is not morally neutral at birth. Instead, children are
born with a disposition toward doing evil. For example, a child doesn’t have to be taught how to lie,
steal and hurt others. These behaviors will come naturally to children. Rather, children need to be
taught how to tell the truth, to respect the property of others, and to be gentle.
Children start out with a sinful disposition at birth. The way they are raised can unleash or
restrain that disposition. If they could be raised in perfect homes and societies, they would still battle
selfishness, dishonesty, pride, sensuality, greed, anger, envy, and many other sins.
Romans 3:10-12 says, As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no
one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become
worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." And Romans 3:22-23 says, There is no
difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Obviously, every person on every continent in every age has been infected by the entrance
of sin into the human race. Everyone sins against God continuously. We do it in many ways. We do
it by what we do and say, as well as by the things we fail to do and say. We often have wrong
motivations for what we say and do. We sin with the attitudes that often accompany our deeds and
speech. We sin with the evil thoughts that frequently and privately run through our minds. Sin runs
very deep in the human personality.
 Day 8
The Transmission of Death

God warned Adam that he would die if he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil (Geneses 2:17). Romans 5:12 tells us that just as sin entered the world through one man, and
death through sin . . . in this way death came to all men, because all sinned. Not only was sin
transmitted to every person in every generation; so was death.
The first thing that comes to our minds when we think of the word death is the death of our
bodies. On the day that Adam and Eve sinned against God, they did not die physically; however,
their bodies became mortal like the ones we possess today.

9 Read Genesis 5:1-31 and notice the frequent occurrence of the word death. You will notice that
people back then lived much longer than people today. We don’t know why. All we can say is that
something was different about the human body and the environment at that time. The big reduction
in life span took place after the universal flood we will read about in a few days.

While physical death came into human experience as a result of sin, there is more to the
biblical word death. While Adam and Eve did not drop dead on the day they first sinned, they did
die spiritually. That means they became alienated from God (Ephesians 2:1-2).
There is also a third usage of death in the Bible. We read about it in Revelation 20:14-15.
The Scriptures teach that those who die in a spiritually dead state will be thrown into the lake of fire.
The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he
was thrown into the lake of fire. In other words, the people who have not rectified their alienation
from God will be cast into hell and be separated from Him forever.
The lake of fire is a real place that the Bible calls “hell.” In Matthew 25:41 Jesus described
hell as a place God prepared to punish Satan and his angels for their rebellion. With the fall of Adam
and Eve, he chose to send rebellious people there as well.
Hell is described as a lake of fire, a fiery furnace, an unquenchable fire, an eternal fire, a
place of eternal punishment, a place of darkness, and a place where there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth (Matthew 3:12; 5:22; 8:12; 13:42; 18:8-9; 22:13; 23:33; 25:30, 46; Revelation
20:7-15; 21:8). It is actually impossible to take these verses literally. For example, hell can’t be both
a fiery furnace and a lake of fire. Can a furnace be a lake? What emerges clearly from these
descriptions is that hell is a place of torment.
The Bible teaches that if a person dies physically while in a state of spiritual death, he will
remain fixed in that state forever in hell. That is what the Bible means when it says, The wages of
sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23).People
wonder how a loving God could send someone to hell forever. I have concluded that finite and sinful
people do not have the ability to understand either the depths of their sinfulness or the purity of God.
We have no idea what it is like for God to be a God whose eyes are too pure to look upon evil
(Habakkuk 1:13). Therefore, we are in no position to sit in judgment of any of God’s acts. It does
help me cope with this reality by knowing there will be differing grades of suffering in hell just as
there will be differing degrees of bliss in heaven. The degree of bliss or torment will be based on the
life we lived while here on earth. The more opportunity we had to respond to the Word of God, the
more responsible we are for our lives and the more severely we will be judged (Revelation 20:13;
Luke 12:47-48; 10:8-16).
 Day 9
Evil Enters Cultures

Sociologists have shown us that distinct cultures and subcultures form by a group of people
socially interacting over time. Both the God-like traits and sinful tendencies within people get woven
into the fabric of our various cultures. Our sinful bent affects and infect s every government,
neighborhood, school, family, and house of worship. That is why every culture has both virtuous and
evil traits that can be found in it. Keep the following in mind as you read today’s passage:

• You are going to read about a strange intermarriage between the daughters of men and the
sons of God (also called Nephilim or giants.). I have looked at every interpretation about who
these males are, and have never been able to figure it out. In my opinion we cannot know
exactly what is going on here, nor do we need to. I prefer to focus on what we can know from
this passage. From the passage we can see that the sin of Adam and Eve deeply affected
people, their cultures, and the entire human race.

• Not only was the earth full of people, but it was also full of wickedness. Adam and Eve
planted a seed of disobedience when they ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil. Over the following 1,656 years or so, that seed had matured into the prevalence of
wickedness we read about in Genesis 6.

9 Read Genesis 6:1-8 at this time.

While we can’t be sure how many people were living on the earth at this time, reasonable
speculation can put it into the millions and maybe the billions. Genesis 5 tells us that people had
children as early as age 65 and as late as 805. That is a span of 740 year in which people bore
children. Let’s conservatively imagine that the average family produced six children in that time
span. And let’s imagine that this took place for the 1,656 years between the creation of Adam and
Eve and this flood. When you consider all of this together, there may have been a population at the
time of the flood that numbered in the billions.
People sometimes wonder how a loving God could destroy millions of people. The truth is
that everyone on earth is either living in the purpose of God or the patience of God. That being the
case, we must assume that these people became incurably corrupt and beyond the hope of a return
to God and a restoration to His purposes. That’s why God pronounced this judgment on them. There
is a line of no return to God that a person or culture may transgress, putting themselves beyond the
limits of God’s patience. Only God has the right to determine where that line is. We must operate
our lives on the assumption that as long as a person or a people have life they are still within the
reach of reconciliation to God. God’s decision to wipe out the human race was not the result of a
temper tantrum. It was a matter of overextended patience.
 Day 10
The Flood

Today we will read about a man named Noah. He always did what was right in God’s eyes
and walked in fellowship with Him. He had three sons at the time God decided to destroy the human
race.
It is hard to determine from the Bible if Noah’s entire family walked with God or just him.
In either case, God extended His grace to Noah and his entire family. Everyone else perished in a
flood that covered the surface of the entire earth.
To accomplish this. The water came from two sources. It came from inside the earth and from
the sky. Apparently, the earth was different back then, than it is now. Maybe there was more water
somewhere under the surface of the earth than exists today.
To survive the flood, God instructed Noah to construct an huge ship. It was about 450 feet
long, seventy five feet wide, and 45 feet high. It had about 97,700 square feet of floor space. That
is equivalent to the capacity of 520 railroad boxcars.
After it was constructed, God commanded Noah to bring pairs or multiple pairs of every kind
of animal on board. It is doubtful that he brought every single breed of animals that we know of
today. It is more likely that he brought samples of every kind of species. Some scientists have
estimated that he would have had to only bring about 35,000 different vertebrate animals for them
to reproduce into all the breeds we know today. If this is the case, there would have been plenty of
space with room to spare.
We might wonder how Noah rounded up all these animals from all over the earth. The Bible
says that God gathered the animals, not Noah.
We might also wonder how Noah could keep all those animals alive on the ark for one year.
This may also be a miracle. Maybe God put some or all of the animals into a state of hibernation.
Perhaps Noah brought enough food for all. There certainly was enough spare room to store enough
food if he needed to. We can’t really know the answer to this question. We can only speculate.

9 Continue the story by reading Genesis 7:7-24.

In time, the waters began to recede. The oceans and seas became much larger than they were
before the flood. The weight of all that water on the surface of the earth would certainly have
effected the face of the earth. Perhaps the fault lines were produced that would later cause the
continental drifts. Perhaps the depths of the oceans were pushed down and the mountains were
pushed up higher. Perhaps the weight took the animals and plants that were alive at one time and
transformed it into the oil fields of today. Perhaps an “ice age” followed the flood and glacial activity
carved out lakes, rivers, canyons and mountains. All these things seem like scientific possibilities
to us but I am merely speculating.
The environmental changes affected the life span of people. People who lived for almost a
millennium before the flood had their ages cut in half after the flood. Eventually things cut back to
an average life span of between 70 and 80 years old (Psalm 90:10).
In all, Noah’s family and those animals spent one year and six days in the ark before they
touched dry ground again (Genesis 7:11; 8:18). It was at that time that the Lord promised, Never
again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from
childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done (Genesis 8:21).
 Day 11
The Beginning of Nations and Languages

When Noah’s family came out of the ark, God commanded them, Be fruitful and increase
in number and fill the earth (Genesis 9:1). They obeyed.
All the present day peoples of the world can trace their ancestry back to one of Noah’s three
sons. In general, the European peoples of the world came of out Japheth, the African peoples came
out of Ham, and the Semitic peoples out of Shem. Scholars are able to trace most modern people
groups back to one of Noah’s sons. Genesis 10 describes how God formed the nations out of Noah’s
three sons.
Here are a few things to keep in mind as you do today’s reading. First, notice that all the
people on the face of the earth spoke the same language up to that point in history. Second, notice
that they were defiantly determined to stay in one place instead of migrate all over the face of the
earth as God commanded. They knew they were resisting the stated will of God. Third, notice that
God perceived their defiance as an unhealthy declaration of independence from Him. He was not
pleased with the attitude that was forming in the human race. As a result, He confused their
languages along family lines so that the people could not understand each other and would separate
from one another.

9 Read Genesis 11:1-9.

We do not know how much time elapsed between the flood and the scattering of the people.
It may have been as many as a thousand years. Without being able to know how much time existed
between the flood and the scattering, it is hard to speculate on the numbers of people who were on
the face of the earth. I find it easy to believe that this may have involved two hundred million people
or more.
The people migrated, intermarried, and interbred along family lines. Geneticists say that
interbreeding from a smaller gene pool increases the likelihood that a group will develop distinctive
physical characteristics such as skin color, hair texture and color, height, and facial features. This
explains the distinctive differences we find among the peoples of the world today.
Again we see the holy God and Creator acting in judgment against sin and rebellion. Since
the people would not scatter of their own volition, God caused something very strange to happen.
As people tried to communicate their thoughts to others outside their family lines, people found that
they could not understand each other. Without the ability to communicate, people could no longer
work together on the city and the tower. Work on the city and tower ceased. Without the ability to
communicate, the people could no longer live together in one area. As a result, they began to spread
out over the face of the earth as God intended.
 Day 12
The Beginning of Alternative Religions

The scattering of the people described in Genesis 11 led to the diverse languages and physical
characteristics that cover our globe today. It also explains the diversity of cultures and religious
beliefs that have formed over time.
According to the biblical account, each of these scattered people groups started out with a
proper understanding of the one and only true God. Over time, their views of God evolved and
degenerated into the many gods and false belief systems we see in the world today. For example, the
concept of sacrificing animals to appease God did not originate in the mind of a man. It originated
in the mind of God.
Immediately after the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, God provided garments of animal skins
for Adam and his wife and clothed them (Genesis 3:21). This was the introduction of a theme that
runs from Genesis through Revelation–sacrifices can make a vicarious payment for our sins. The
human race started out with a knowledge of a vicarious sacrificial system in order to relate to God.
You can see this in the story of Cain and Abel (Genesis 4:2-7). This theme will develop throughout
the Scriptures. When we get to a man named Moses and the revelation of God’s Law, an entire
sacrificial system is put in place. When we get to the New Testament we understand that these
animal sacrifices were a prototype pointing to the ultimate sacrifice that Jesus Christ would make
for our sins when He died on the cross in our place. You see, animal sacrifices are not just a
primitive concept that evolved over time into the Christian explanation of Christ’s death. Rather, it
was all part of God’s plan from the beginning. The practices that God ordained for the human race
(like animal sacrifices) diversified, degenerated, and disseminated into the array of religious practices
that we find in the world today.

9 Read Romans 1:18-32. In this passage you will see that there was a time in human history when
all the people groups of the world had the knowledge of the one and only true God (Verse 21). You
will see that they failed to worship the one true and living God. Instead, as they suppressed the
knowledge of Him and rejected Him, He let them degenerate into the immoral and idolatrous
religions we see scattered all around the world today (Verses 21-23). He is furious about the rejection
(Verses 28-32). He is furious because He is wise, good, and loving. He knows these false religions
are not in our best interest for this life and the afterlife. He loves us so much that He cares that we
not fall into false religions. At the same time, He respects deeply the free will He has given to the
human race.
As a result of our ancestors suppressing and denying the knowledge of the one and only true
God, some of today’s cultures reside in complete spiritual darkness. We must admit that there are
many virtues in every society. There are many people in all religions who sincerely believe they are
believing the truth and practicing what is right. If people are ingesting spiritual poisons, however,
those toxins are going to “kill” them no matter how sincere they are. There may be much good in
fruit juice that has been laced with arsenic, but the arsenic is going to destroy life. Likewise, there
may be many good qualities in every religion, but the spiritual toxins within that religion are going
to destroy their spiritual lives and bring the wrath of God upon them.
 Day 13
The Beginning of a Chosen Nation

Up to this point, God has been dealing with humans on a global scale. Now, He will select
a single people group to be His chosen people. He will seek to reconcile with every other people
group by working through a chosen people. In His infinite wisdom, God chose a special people group
called the Jews. Also called the people of Israel or Israelites, the Jews are the descendants of three
men in succession–Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is not enough for people to have one or two of
these men in their lineage. To be a Jew one must have all three.
In our reading today, God is just beginning to form that chosen nation. It turned out to be a
process that took 232 years. To begin forming this nation, God first spoke to a man named Abram
whom He later calls Abraham. (On this tour, we will always use the name Abraham just to keep
things simple.) Abraham was living in the pagan city of Ur and God led him to the pagan territory
of the Canaanites.

9 Carefully read what God promised to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-7 and Genesis 15:1-21. Notice
what he promised about descendants, land, allies and enemies, and all the nations of the world.

Abraham had three wives over the course of his life. God’s specially selected people group
came through the lineage of Abraham and Sarah, who gave birth to one son, Isaac. Through his wife
Hagar, Abraham had a son whose family evolved into the Arab peoples. Through Keturah, whom
he married after Sarah’s death, he had six sons. However, the peoples that came out of these two
wives and their children are not God’s specially chosen people.
When an Israelite male was born, the Jews removed the foreskin covering the head of his
penis. Today, much of the western world routinely circumcises to maintain cleanliness and deter
disease. Under the Old Covenant, circumcision symbolized the fact that the Jews were a unique
people with a special relationship with God. Under the Old Covenant, this procedure was carried out
eight days after birth.
Circumcision began after God had made his covenant with Abraham. Abraham was
circumcised and so was his son Isaac. Later in Bible history, God commanded Moses to incorporate
this practice into the Law as something the Israelites were to faithfully observe (Leviticus 12:3).
Isaac and his wife, Rebekah, went on to give birth to one set of twins–Jacob and Esau. The
descendants of Esau became the great nation of Edom; however, they were not God’s specially
chosen people. The Jews, God’s chosen nation, can trace their ancestry back to Jacob. We will take
a brief look at the lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the next few readings.
We can’t know the reasons God selected the Jews. Based on His nature, we can be sure the
selection was not purely random, was not earned by righteousness, and was not a display of
partiality. While He loves all peoples equally, He chose a nation through whom He would seek to
reconcile with all other nations. The selection of Israel was not an end in itself. It was a means to an
end. God’s plan was to relate to Israel in a direct and special way, arouse the spiritual interests of
other nations, and have Israel teach them about the one and only true and living God (Genesis 12:3;
Deuteronomy 7:6, 12-15; 28:58-62; 1 Kings 8:43; Psalm 67:1 Isaiah 43:10-11).
We will see as we go through the rest of the Old Testament that Israel constantly failed at
their responsibility to draw the other nations to God. As a result, God has presently put them “on the
shelf.” Some Christians think they have been permanently shelved and God will no longer work
through the Jews. Others think the shelving is temporary and that at a future time God will again
work through the people of Israel. All agree that at present God is working through a new chosen
people (1 Peter. 2:9-12), the church of Jesus Christ. We will see this when we come to the New
Testament.
 Day 14
Abraham. Isaac, and Jacob

God promised numerous descendants to Abraham but his wife, Sarah, was infertile. In the
culture of that time, a barren wife could give her personal handmaid to her husband as a wife. If the
maid had a son, a husband and wife could adopt the child as their very own.
Abraham and Sarah were suppose to live by a higher law than the law of the land. They were
suppose to live according to God’s moral law. Together they made a big mistake. Their impatience
with the plan of God led them to listen to the voice of societal norms. They decided to have a child
through Sarah’s maidservant Hagar. As a result, Ishmael was born. This turned out to be a source
of great tension and heartache for them. Even after Ishmael’s birth. Abraham and Sarah were still
no closer to seeing the fulfillment of God’s promise.
According to Genesis 18:11 Abraham and Sarah were already old and well advanced in
years, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. This posed a real challenge to God’s promise to
give Abraham numerous descendants through Sarah. Nevertheless, God made good on His promise.
Miraculously, Sarah conceived and gave birth to a son (Genesis 21:1-5) forty-five years after God
made His initial promise to give them a son (Genesis 12:4; 21:5). The child’s name was Isaac. He
turned out to be an only child.
Since Sarah was beyond the age of bearing children, there is a supernatural aspect to the
chosen nation God was forming. As one reads about this 232-year process of forming this chosen
people, one can’t help but notice how often the promises of God were put in jeopardy by the failures
of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yet, again and again, God intervenes and supernaturally salvages His
promises from destruction. God wants the readers of His Word to know that His chosen people had
a supernatural origin.
After 22 years of marriage, Isaac’s wife Rebekah finally became pregnant. Like all mothers,
she could feel the baby moving in her womb. There was something abnormal about the thrashing
within her, and everybody around her thought it was unusual. Since there were no obstetricians to
turn to for understanding, she turned to the Lord.

9 Read Genesis 25:21-34.

Things turned out just as God said. Each child evolved into a great nation and their sibling
rivalry led to rivalry between their respective nations. The older son, Esau, developed into the nation
of Edom. The younger son, Jacob, evolved into the nation of Israel. There was constant tension
between the two nations as found throughout later history as recorded in the Bible.
I have never been able to figure out why God broke the usual pattern and chose to form His
chosen people through a second-born son. It may have had to do with character. My best guess is that
He was making a statement about His sovereign rule over the universe. (I base this on Romans 9:10-
16.) God was saying that His rule over the universe is over and above the customs of any time. He
does what He wants in His own way.
 Day 15
Jacob

Not only did Jacob steal Esau’s birthright; he also stole his father’s blessing. In those days,
a father’s blessing was a formal rite in which a father expressed his positive expectations for a
child’s future. As far as we can tell from Scripture, it is not something that every father did for his
children. Upon occasion, God would move in a father’s heart to speak some prophetic words of
blessing to a child. The words would make a deep impact on the way a child thought of himself and
on his life. There are several examples of this taking place in the Scriptures.
Isaac was moved by God to say such words. Because of Isaac’s partiality toward Esau, he was going
to give the blessing to him even though God had made it clear that He intended those words to be
spoken to Jacob. In spite of God’s clear intentions, Isaac was determined to give the blessing to Esau.
In the end, Jacob deceptively steals the blessing from Esau.
Esau, who reacted apathetically to the taking of his birthright, reacts angrily to the stealing of his
blessing. He vowed to kill Jacob. Consequentially, Jacob had to run for his life. He headed for the
house of his uncle, Laban, in a faraway land.
As he fled, he traveled alone in the wilderness and deeper into the land of the Canaanites.
This was the very land God had promised to Abraham and Isaac. Now He appears to Jacob in a
revelatory dream and reiterates the promises He made to Abraham and Isaac.
Jacob reached his uncle, Laban, and worked or Him for the next twenty years. Through a strange set
of circumstances, he married Laban’s two daughters, Leah and Rachel, and each of their
maidservants as well. Through these four women, he bore twelve sons and one daughter (Genesis
27:41-30:43). Those twelve sons became the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel.
The relationship between Jacob and Laban was a strained relationship. As it was getting increasingly
worse, God appeared to Jacob a second time. He told him to return to the land of his father and
mother, the land of the Canaanites.
Returning to Canaan was no simple matter. Jacob now had a sizable family, numerous
servants, many possessions, and large flocks of sheep and goats. He also knew his uncle would not
be gracious about letting him go. Without letting Laban know, he left.
The further he got from Laban, the closer he got to the brother who vowed to kill him. Nevertheless,
Jacob obeyed God and pressed on toward Canaan.
Jacob sent messengers on ahead of him to alert Esau of his approach. The messengers
returned with the word that Esau was coming out with 400 of his men to meet Jacob. What did that
mean? Was Esau intent on killing Jacob and his household or was he coming to protect the
vulnerable family the rest of the way into Canaan?
Jacob was extremely disturbed. His anxiety motivated him to ask God to spare him and his family.
While we all have nights in which we toss and turn, Jacob literally wrestled with an angel of God
all that night. He refused to let go of the angel until the angel gave him assurance of God’s blessing
on this encounter with Esau.

9 Read Genesis 32:22-32 to see the result of this encounter.

It is also important for Bible students to take note of the fact God changed Jacob’s name to
“Israel” at this point. Jacob’s new name would become the name of the chosen nation God was
forming.
The next morning Jacob looked up and saw Esau and his men approaching. It turns out that
he had come in peace. Because of God’s work in Esau’s heart over the years, Esau’s heart had
softened. His meeting with Jacob was a sincerely cordial event though there still would be perpetual
tensions between their respective nations in the generations to come.
 Day 16
Joseph

Of Jacob’s four wives, his favorite was Rachel. Of his twelve sons, his favorite was Joseph,
the son of his favorite wife. Jacob gave Joseph a very special coat. This favoritism caused his
brothers to hate him. So did Joseph’s dreams that one day he would rule over them.
When they saw Joseph coming toward them in a remote place, they decided to put an end to
him and his dreams by leaving him in a deep pit to die. When they saw some slave traders coming
they changed their minds and sold him into slavery.
To cover their crime, they took Joseph’s special coat, ripped it up, and dipped it in animal
blood. They brought it to their father with the suggestion that a ferocious wild animal must have
killed and eaten Joseph. Jacob grieved bitterly.
God had Joseph sold to a man in Egypt named Potiphar. Potiphar was in charge of security
for the king of Egypt. God blessed Potiphar as a result of having Joseph in his household. Potiphar
was so pleased with Joseph’s work that he gave Joseph authority over his entire household.
Potiphar’s wife kept trying to seduce Joseph. Out of respect for God and Potiphar, he kept
resisting her passes. Angry with Joseph, she spitefully accused him of trying to rape her. Potiphar
sentenced Joseph to prison without trial.
God even blessed Joseph while he was in prison. It was not long before the warden gave
Joseph authority over many matters in the prison. Joseph spent about two years in jail. Finally, a
God-given ability to interpret dreams and an interesting set of circumstances led to his release.
In a dream, God had revealed to the king of Egypt that the region was going to experience
seven years of surplus crops followed by seven years of severe famine. Joseph was able to tell the
king of Egypt exactly what he dreamed and exactly what it meant. Through Joseph’s interpretation,
God commanded the king of Egypt to store up food during the good years to carry them through the
lean years. Grateful, Egypt’s king put Joseph in charge of this project.
Things happened exactly as God had said. People from all over the region came to Joseph
to purchase food. Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt in search of food. When they appeared before
Joseph, they did not recognize him but he recognized them. He kept his identity hidden from them
for the months of negotiation it took to strike a deal on the purchase of grain. Then came that
momentous occasion when Joseph revealed his identity. You can imagine the fears that came over
his brothers.
Joseph assured them that he had no intention to retaliate. Instead, he could see the providence
of God in all that happened. He could see how God planned to save His specially chosen nation from
extinction by providing food through Joseph and Egypt during the famine.
Because Egypt’s king thought highly of Joseph, he was overjoyed to meet Joseph’s family.
He instructed Joseph to invite his family to move from Canaan to the region of Goshen, the most
fertile soil in Egypt. Before long, Jacob accepted the invitation and moved his entire family to Egypt.
Since he was a national hero in Egypt, the Egyptians loved Joseph’s family.
Joseph’s brothers continued to live with a guilty conscience for the awful thing they had done
to Joseph as a teen. It just wasn’t natural for a man to forgive them for such a heinous crime. They
feared that Joseph was only sparing their lives to spare their father grief. You can imagine the crisis
that ensued when Jacob did die.

9 Read about how Joseph handled the crisis in Genesis 50:15-21.

 Day 17
Out of Egypt

When Jacob’s family came into Egypt, they were roughly seventy in number (Genesis 46:27).
After more than 400 years of living in that land, they numbered about two million. During that 400
years, Egypt went through dynasty changes. The time came when no one remembered Joseph or why
the Israelites were in Egypt. Because they were numerous and prolific, the Egyptians perceived them
as a threat and enslaved them. The king also ordered the death of all the males born to Jewish
women.
One Jewish woman hid her son, Moses, in a waterproofed basket among the reeds of the Nile
River. Through a fascinating set of circumstances, Moses grew up as a prince in Egypt. Even though
he had an Egyptian education, he identified with the suffering of the Israelites (Acts 7:20-22). At 40
he saw an Egyptian taskmaster beating one of his fellow Jews. Enraged, he killed the man Acts 7:23-
25).
The next day he discovered that someone witnessed what he did and that word about the
event was circulating among Israelites and Egyptians. He knew that when word reached the king,
he would be sentenced to death and so he fled to the wilderness. In time, he met a woman and her
family. He married into the family and served as a shepherd for the next 40 years.
One day, while tending to the needs of his father-in-law’s flocks, Moses saw a burning bush
that was not being devoured. He curiously approached and heard the audible voice of God coming
out of the bush. God expressed His concern for His suffering people. He was preparing to deliver
them and take them to the land He promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He informed Moses that
He was going to use him to lead them. Moses’ did his best to excuse himself from this task but God
met all his objections with words and supernatural wonders. In the end, Moses did what God
commanded. For the next forty years of his life, he led God’s people.
Moses went to the king of Egypt and demanded the release of the Israelites. The king of
Egypt refused to let them go, even after Moses did miracles proving he was speaking for God.
God then brought ten horrific plagues in succession upon the people of Egypt to move the heart of
the king of Egypt to release the Israelites. The heart of Egypt’s king remained unbroken until the
tenth plague.
In this plague God sent Moses to warn the Israelites about His intentions to kill all the
firstborn males in Egypt. God told them that He would also strike their firstborn children unless they
took some special measures prescribed by God. Each family was to take a one-year-old lamb that
had no blemishes and slaughter it. They were to take its blood and smear some of it over and on the
sides of their doors. They were promised that when God’s angel saw the blood, he would “pass over”
that house and check the next one. He was ordered to fatally strike all the firstborn males in any
household where he did not find the blood on the door as prescribed.
God further ordered that the slain lamb be roasted and eaten as the last supper they would eat
before exiting Egypt. They were told to eat this meal as though they were ready to travel–sandals on
their feet, coats on their backs, and walking sticks in their hands. They were to eat their lamb with
hastily prepared bread. This was the original Passover celebration. The Jews were ordered by God
to reenact the Passover celebration every year since that day.
At midnight that night, God struck down every firstborn male in the land of Egypt. The only
people who were spared were the Israelites who had the blood of the lamb spread on their
doorframes. Even the king’s firstborn son, next in line to be king, was struck dead. The whole nation
of Egypt was made aware of the name Jehovah, the God of Israel. They knew that Jehovah was a
mighty God. They knew that the only way they could get Him “off their backs” was to let His people
go.
In the middle of the night, the king summoned for Moses and Aaron. He granted permission
for all the people and their possessions to go. The people of Egypt were so glad to see the Israelites
go, that they gave them anything and everything they requested. The Israelites carried great wealth
with them into the wilderness. About two to three million Israelites headed off into the night.
Believe it or not, Egypt’s king had second thoughts after he let the people go. Defiantly, he
commanded an enormous army to retrieve them. Imagine the army it would take to retrieve two to
three million people!
As the Israelites were enjoying their first few days of freedom, a troublesome sight was
observed in the distance. The armies of Egypt could be seen approaching on the horizon. The
Israelites were defenseless against a trained army of that size. They had no weapons and no armies.
They were out in the desert, butted up against the waters of the Red Sea. There was no place for them
to run.
As Egypt’s armies approached, the Israelites started complaining to Moses. They let him
know that they thought it would have been better to have stayed in the familiarity of Egypt than to
have come out into the desert to die. Moses told them to stay calm and to watch what God would do
to deliver them.

9 Read Exodus 14:10-31 and see how this amazing scenario played itself out. Notice once again
how God supernaturally intervened on behalf of His specially chosen people.
 Day 18
Israel at Mount Sinai (Part 1)

The first forty years of Moses’ life were spent as a prince in Egypt. The second forty as a
shepherd in Midian. The final forty were spent leading the people of Israel.
Can you imagine what it is like to camp with two million people? In those 40 years, they set
up camp for months at a time in 51 different locations which are all listed in Numbers 33:3-49. We
do not know the exact location of most of these spots. When it was time to move the Lord
supernaturally led them by a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire during the night.
On our tour, we will only look at three encampments where some of the most significant
events took place--Mount Sinai, Kadesh-Barnea, and the banks of the Jordan River.
First, let’s look at the encampment at Mount Sinai. It is located about 300 miles from where
the king of Egypt lived. There two things of special significance took place. First, a census was taken
of all the men who were 20 years of age or older. In all, there were 603,550 men (Numbers 1:46).
It is by speculating on the number of women and children that scholars arrive at a conservative
estimate of two million Israelites involved in the exodus. Second, God gave His Law to Moses. This
Law is referred to throughout the Bible. It is sometimes called “the Law,” “God’s Law,” or “the Law
of Moses.” It was part of God’s covenant with His old covenant people. If they kept the Law, He
would bless them as a nation and make them a blessing to other nations.
Hidden in a dense cloud with fire burning in it, the Lord came down to Mount Sinai from
heaven in full view of all the Israelites who trembled at the site. The Lord then summoned Moses
to climb Mount Sinai while the people stayed at the base. There Moses received the entire Law from
God. The portions of the Bible that articulate this law are Exodus 20-40, the entire Book of
Leviticus, portions of the Book of Numbers, and the entire Book of Deuteronomy. The Jewish rabbis
have calculated that there are 613 different laws God gave to Moses. They say that 248 of them
describe behaviors one must do and 365 laws describe behaviors one is forbidden to do.
A traditional way of categorizing these 613 laws is by dividing each law into one of three
categories-moral laws, civil laws, and ceremonial laws. The moral laws are laws describing right and
wrong behavior. These apply to all peoples in every generation to the present. The civil laws related
to the governance of the nation of Israel as long as they remained God’s chosen people. They include
laws about diet, sanitation, soil conservation, tithing, taxation, military service, marriage, childbirth,
sexual relations, divorce, justice, slavery, loans, and business practices. Now that God is dealing with
a spiritual nation rather than a political nation, New Covenant believers are not obliged to keep these
civil laws even though they still contain much underlying wisdom. The ceremonial laws are religious
laws pertaining to Old Covenant worship. These have to do with subjects like the priesthood, the
tabernacle, holy days, and sacrifices. These laws do not apply to New Covenant believers. They
simply foreshadowed the superior realities of the New Covenant. Repeatedly, the New Testament
points out that the ceremonial things in the Old Testament have a resemblance to and partially
represented a forthcoming New Covenant reality (John 1:29; 3:14-15; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; 10:4- 11;
Ephesians 5:2; Hebrews 9:9-11, 23-24; 1 Peter 2:5,9).
As one reads the Law, one can easily observe that these different categories are all tightly
interwoven. For example, the moral law to love your neighbor as yourself is immediately followed
by a ceremonial law forbidding certain kinds of dress (Leviticus 19:17-19). Still, these categories
prove to be helpful.

9 Read the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:1-17.

9 Skim over Exodus 21- 31 to observe examples of moral, civil, and ceremonial laws.
 Day 19
Israel at Mount Sinai (Part 2)

While much of the Law is irrelevant to New Covenant believers, it is still worthy of study.
The New Testament presupposes that we have a good knowledge of the Old Testament. All the
terminology used about Christ and his saving work is carried over from the Old Testament. Someone
has counted over 1500 New Testament allusions to Old Testament concepts. As a result, Christians
start with the New Testament but understand that an increased understanding of the Old Testament
will increase their understanding of the New.
At one point, Moses was on Mount Sinai so long the people panicked about being leaderless,
asked Moses’ brother Aaron to be their religious leader, and suggested that they make an idol as a
visible representation of Jehovah. Aaron obliged them in their misguided wishes.

9 Read about what happened in Exodus 32:1-30.

Moses led the people to rededicate themselves to Jehovah. It was the tribe of Levi that were
the first to respond. Moses ordered them to kill all the Israelites who were unrepentant. He then
asked Jehovah to forgive all those who were repentant. Jehovah forgave but also promised that they
would still have to suffer the consequences of their sins. Jehovah promised that many would yet die
from a plague and that He would go no further with the Israelites. The fear of proceeding without
Jehovah’s presence caused extreme distress among the people. Once again, the Lord changed His
mind in response to Moses’ pleas.
Afterwards, Moses asked Jehovah to show him a glimpse of His glorious being. Jehovah
promised Moses that He would show him some of His being but not all. After getting Moses settled
in the cleft of a rock, God passed by and Moses saw a glimpse of His glory. In response to what he
saw, Moses proclaimed, The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger,
abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness,
rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their
children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation (Exodus 34:7). Moses bowed
down and worshiped Jehovah. Jehovah promised Moses that He would keep the promises he made
to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
Moses spent the next forty days with Jehovah. When Moses returned to the people, he was
unaware of the radiancy that was on his face as a result of spending time with Jehovah. The Israelites
were afraid of him, so he covered His face with a veil and then told the people what the Lord
commanded. Every time He returned to Jehovah for more instruction, he regained the fading
radiancy. Every time he returned to the people to give them Jehovah’s instructions, he veiled himself.
Sometimes people wonder why God gave so many laws to His people. Think about it: God’s
laws touch on every single area of life. No matter what people were doing, they had to think about
the laws of God that applied to that facet of life. In this way the people remained conscious of God
during every waking hour. That’s what God wanted from them.
Under the New Testament, we have some moral laws by which to live but are more guided
by principles from God that touch on every area of life. There is nothing we can do without thinking
about God and His principles that apply to our every decision. In this way, we remain conscious of
God in every waking hour.
 Day 20
Israel at Kadesh-Barnea

After the encampment at Sinai, everyone marched in a certain prescribed order according to
their tribes whenever God directed the people to move to another camp (Numbers 10:11-36). There
was also a prescribed order in which the people set up their camp. In the very center of the camp was
a portable worship center called the Tabernacle or the Tent of Meeting. It was a tent that could be
broken down, transported, and set up as the nation moved. Certain tribes were commanded to camp
to the north, south, east and west of the Tabernacle (Numbers 2:1-34).
The second encampment we will visit is the one at Kadesh-Barnea. It was located another
200 miles from Sinai near the border of Canaan, the land God promised to give to Israel.
At God’s command, Moses sent twelve explorers into the land of Canaan–one from each
tribe of Israel. Their purpose was to go and discover what a great land God was going to give to his
people. God intended for them to return and to motivate the people to want this land. They returned
after 40 days of exploring.
They reported to the Israelites that the land God promised them was indeed very desirable
and prosperous. In spite of God’s promises that Israel would take the land from the Canaanites, ten
of the explorers reported that the Canaanites were too numerous and powerful for the Israelites to
beat. The other two, Joshua and Caleb, saw things differently. Whereas the ten took their eyes off
God’s promise and focused on the empirical evidence alone, Joshua and Caleb kept their faith in
God’s promise. Even though they looked at the same empirical evidence, they came to a different
conclusion because of their faith. They were confident that the Israelites could overtake the
Canaanites. Nonetheless, the viewpoint of the ten faithless explorers prevailed over the perspective
of Joshua and Caleb in the faithless hearts of the Israelites. The prevailing viewpoint was that it
would be better to go back to Egypt and serve as slaves again than to die in the desert. The prevailing
position was that Moses needed to be replaced as the leader of Israel.
God grew angry with the Israelites. How could they be thinking these things after all He had
done for them through Moses? As a result, God decided to punish all the people who were twenty
years and older at the time of the census at Sinai.

9 Read about their punishment in Numbers 14:26-45.

At this point in the story, Moses, Joshua, and Caleb were still qualified to enter the promised
land even though they were over twenty years old. They all retained their faith in God’s ability to
give the land of Canaan to Israel. Moses, however, was later disqualified for getting unjustly angry
with God (Numbers 20:1-13).Therefore, only Joshua and Caleb were the only people over 20at the
time of the exodus that were permitted to enter the land of the Canaanites, the land God promised
to the Israelites.
 Day 21
Israel at the Banks of the Jordan River

The third encampment we will visit is the one at the banks of the Jordan River just east of
Canaan. To get there, the people traveled another 300 miles. Several significant things happened at
that spot.
First, all the men who were twenty and older were counted again. You would think that with
the passage of time the number would be larger than the first census. It was actually 1820 less
(Numbers 26:51) due to the fact that every man who was at least twenty at the first census died in
the wilderness and a large number of others died in several punishments from God for unbelief and
disobedience (Numbers 11:33-34; 16:35; 25:8-9).
Second, Moses instructed the Israelites in the Law of God again. Remember, all the adults
who heard the Law of God at Sinai had died in the wilderness. This second presentation of the Law
is what makes up the contents of the Book of Deuteronomy in the Bible. (The word, “Deuteronomy,”
literally means “second law.”) That is why this book is highly repetitious of things we read in
Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. It is simply a restatement of the Law. Below you will read a few
of the most significant passages in the book.
Third, at God’s command, Moses transferred his “reins of power” over to Joshua. Again,
Joshua was one of the two explorers that had faith, and God promised that he would see the
promised land.
Finally, Moses died at the age of 120 (Deuteronomy 34). The Lord told him to climb to the
top of a mountain and to look across the Jordan River to observe the land He had promised to
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob long ago. After the breathtaking view, Moses died on top of that mountain
and God buried him although no one knows where.

9 Read Deuteronomy 6:1-9. This passage describes how the faith was to be transmitted to future
generations.

9 Read Deuteronomy 28:15-68. This is an important passage. It describes how God promised to deal
with the Israelites if they refused to obey His commands. Take note that the ultimate punishment was
being deported out of the promised land and being scattered among other nations. This, you will see,
is exactly what happened to the nation of Israel.
 Day 22
Conquering the Promised Land (Part 1)

So far on our tour we have seen how God generated the nations of the world, formed a
chosen nation, brought that nation out of slavery, guided them through the wilderness, and brought
them to the Jordan River. As they look west, they could see the land God promised them for the past
685 years. In those years they had a strong identity as a nation but were without a land of their own.
Things were about to change. God was about to make good on His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. With Joshua as their divinely appointed leader, God ordered the Israelites to take the land
away from the Canaanites. He promised them victory.
Joshua sent two spies into the promised land. They were sent to gather information about the
city of Jericho which was the first city they would encounter on the other side of the Jordan River.
Unfortunately, they were spotted and hunted. Fortunately, they were able to avoid capture by taking
refuge in the house of a prostitute named Rahab. When being sought, she successfully hid them
under a pile of flax. By telling a white lie, she sent the authorities looking in another direction.
Why did Rahab do this for the Israelites? She had heard about all that God had done on
behalf of the Israelites. She heard about how He parted the Red Sea to deliver His people and how
He destroyed the Egyptian army. She was convinced that God was going to give her city and the
entire land of Canaan to them. She informed the spies about how fearful all the Canaanites were
toward God and His people. Her testimony encouraged their hearts.
She asked for a favor in exchange for saving their lives. She wanted the lives of her family
to be spared when the Israelites overtook their city. The grateful spies assured their safety.
Encouraged by the report of the returning spies, Joshua instructed his people to prepare to
cross the Jordan River. To cross, God supernaturally parted the waters in the same way He did when
they crossed the Red Sea forty years before.
Once on the other side, some spiritual preparations had to be made. All the uncircumcised
men had to be circumcised to symbolize Israel’s unique relationship to God. The people also
celebrated their first Passover in the new land.
Now that they were spiritually prepared, they launched their attacks. The first city in Canaan
that the Israelis struck was Jericho. On the way to Jericho, Joshua encountered an angel who gave
him a most uncanny strategy for overtaking this city. Knowing the strategy was from God, Joshua
gave orders to do exactly as he was told.

9 Read Joshua 5:13-6:27 to learn about this unusual strategy.

In succeeding battles, the Israelite army divided and conquered the land with guidance and
help from God. They first overtook the cities in the center of the land. This divided the land into
north and south. It prevented kings in the north from forming alliances with kings in the south. After
cutting the center out of the land, they overtook the cities in the south and then the north. In all, the
Lord gave 31 cities and victories to Joshua and the people of Israel. You may peruse a list of those
cities in Joshua 12:7-24. At the Lord’s command they killed every living thing in those Canaanite
cities—men, women, children, and livestock.
After the land was conquered, they parceled it into districts with each of the twelve tribes
receiving its district. The districts were formed according to the topographical features of the land
such as mountains and rivers. To decide which district would be given to which tribe, they cast lots
and trusted God with the results (Joshua 11:23; 18:10; Proverbs 16:33).
The tribe of Levi did not get any land. The Lord wanted to make them different from the
other tribes. God granted this priestly tribe various cities and towns among the territories of the
twelve tribes of Israel (Joshua 21). He wanted their influence as religious leaders to be spread out
among all twelve tribes.
 Day 23
Conquering the Promised Land (Part 2)

The conquest of Canaan always raises some interesting questions. Let us try to answer some
of the leading questions.
Doesn’t the annihilation of the Canaanites seem excessive, cruel, and immoral?
The Israelites did what they did because God commanded them to do it. They didn’t
obliterate the Canaanites because they were bloodthirsty savages, greedy warlords, or hateful. In His
infinite wisdom, God considered the depravity of Canaanite culture to be beyond the limits of His
patience and mercy. Joshua did not make that determination. God made that judgment. Joshua
simply obeyed His orders.
While this genocide makes us feel uneasy, we don’t want to sit in judgment of Joshua or of
God. We are sure that, if we knew all that God knew about the situation, we would do as He did.
Like it or not, this is the way God is when a nation reaches a point of no return. We assume that more
moral corruption would taken place if the Canaanites were allowed to live than if they were
obliterated. In God’s view, there were no half measures to be taken. The leg had to be amputated or
the gangrene might spread to the whole world.
The truth is, Israel did not fully finish the task as God required. After the conquest of the
land, the tribes were supposed to finish off the Canaanite threat. Instead, they left little pockets of
the infection in place and their compromise continually came back to trouble them throughout their
entire history in the land.

9 Read Judges 2:1-23 as an example of this.

Why did the infants and toddlers have to die?

We do not claim to speak for God on this matter. We do have some questions for you to
consider: If the lives of the infants and toddlers were spared, wouldn’t they have died without adults
to care for them? Should the Israelites have taken on the responsibility of caring for all these
children? If so, would they have grown up knowing they were not Jews? Would they have inquired
about what happened to their biological parents? Would they have harbored resentment toward the
Jews? Would they have staged some sort of rebellion? Would they have gone in pursuit of the gods
of their parents? We don’t know what God was reasoning in any of this, but we have never felt that
we had all the information we needed to answer this question. We tend to assume that if we knew
all that God knows, we would do as God did. When Jesus the Christ returns, we will have a fuller
understanding and we will acknowledge that God has done the right thing (1 Corinthians 13:9-12).
In the meantime, we must simply trust God and His infinite wisdom.
Why did all the livestock have to die? Why did all their possessions need to be destroyed?
We can’t know for sure. Maybe the Jews would have been accused of doing this all for
selfish gain if they were allowed to keep the booty for themselves.
Do these passages justify holy wars and genocide?
One would be hard pressed today to truly convince others that it was indeed God that
commanded a holy war or a genocide. This was the only divinely ordered genocide in all of the bible
and all of human history aside from the flood at the time of Noah.
These passages in Joshua certainly have been used to justify holy wars and genocides.
However, their use to such ends does not justify their real motives-hatred for another people. The
Jews show no hatred of the Canaanites. They were simply doing as ordered by God.
How long did it take the people to fight these wars and divide the land?
All the events in the Book of Joshua, the conquest and division of the land, took place over
a span of seven years.
 Day 24
Israel Ruled By Judges

Unlike the other nations, God, not a human, was to be the King of Israel. He wanted human
judges to lead His people according to the Law of Moses. Things, however, did not end up working
that way. The judges had more of a military role in the life of the nation than a judicial role.
What Israel was like under the judges is described in the Book of Judges in your Bible.
Generally speaking, this period was characterized by moral chaos. As Judges 17:6 and 21:25 express
it, In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
There is a cycle that keeps recurring in the Book of Judges: (1) The people of Israel are
walking with God, (2) they do evil in the eyes of the Lord, (3) the Lord’s anger burns against them,
(4) the Lord punishes His people by having their enemies oppress them, (5) the people repent and
cry out to God to deliver them from their oppression, and (6) God raises up a judge to lead the people
into deliverance from their enemies. This cycle is clearly repeated six times in the Book of Judges.

9 Read Judges 3:7-11 and observe this cycle in these verses.

9 Now spend a few minutes with the chart below and get a snapshot of the years Israel spent under
the judges.

CHRONOLOGY OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES

Years
1. Oppression by King Cushan-Rishathaim (3:8) 8
•Deliverance by Judge Othniel (3:9-12) 40
2. Oppression by Moabites (3:14) 18
•Deliverance by Judge Ehud (3:15-23) 80
•Shamgar serves as judge (3:31)
3. Oppression by King Jabin (4:2,3) 20
•Deliverance by Deborah and Judge Barak (4,5) 40
4. Oppression by Midianites (6:1) 7
•Deliverance by Judge Gideon (6-8) 40
•Abimelech serves as Judge (9:22) 3
•Tola serves as judge (10:1,2) 23
•Jair serves as judge (10:3) 22
5. Oppression by Ammonites (10:8) 18
•Deliverance by Judge Jephtha (11-12:1) 6
•Ibzan serves as judge (12:8-10) 7
•Elon serves as judge (12:11,12) 10
•Abdon serves as judge (12:13-15) 8
6. Oppression by Philistines (13:1) 40
•Deliverance by Judge Samson (15, 16) 20

In all, you can see six cycles of oppression and thirteen judges. All of this took place over
a span of 390 years.
 Day 25
Ruth

The events recorded in the Book of Ruth in the Bible took place in the days when the judges
ruled (Ruth 1:1). That is why the book is located right after the Book of Judges in the Bible. While
the time under judges is dark and chaotic, the Book of Ruth provides a bright spot in that era.
In this book, a Jewish family of four moves to Moab during a severe famine in Israel:
Elimelech, Naomi, and their two sons. In time, the two sons married Moabite women but had no
children. During their stay in Moab, Elimelech died and 10 years later the two sons died leaving
Naomi alone in the land of Moab with her two Moabitess daughters-in-law.
When Naomi heard that the famine in Israel was over, she decided to return to her homeland.
She encouraged her daughters-in-law to stay in their homeland and to start new families. One
decided to do just that, but Ruth decided to care for her mother-in-law in Israel.

9 Read Ruth 1:15-22.

Back in Israel, Ruth decided that she was going to go gleaning. That is, she was going to go
to a barley field that was being harvested and pick up the grains of barley that fell to the ground. This
was a common way for poorer people to work for food back in those days.
Boaz, the owner of the field, saw her and treated her exceptionally well. Boaz told her that
he was being kind to her because she was being kind to her mother-in-law. He hoped that God would
bless Ruth because of the blessing she was to Naomi.
When Ruth returned to Naomi’s house, Naomi was stunned at the amount of grain that Ruth
gathered. She was further stunned by the sudden realization that Boaz was a close relative of Ruth’s
husband.
Ruth returned to Boaz’ fields day after day. Day after day she was blessed by him. After a
while Naomi decided to become a matchmaker. In a manner that is very foreign to us, Ruth asked
Boaz to marry her. He joyfully consented. Everyone was pleased. All the city officials prayed that
the Lord would bless Ruth and make Boaz even more prestigious.
 Day 26
The Rise and Fall of King Saul

Israel’s Request for a King (1 Samuel 8)

Unlike the other nations, God was to be the King of Israel, The Law of Moses was to be the
law of the land. In time the Israelites insisted on being like all the other nations and having a king
to rule over them. They inquired of God through a prophet named Samuel.
Samuel was upset by the people’s request for a king. He took their request as a rejection of
himself and God’s kingship over the people. Nonetheless, he inquired of the Lord, in their behalf.
When people are stubborn, God will sometimes grant their persistent requests as a means of
teaching them that what they want is not really in their best interests. God warned them that kings
do things their subjects do not like. They send sons off to war, subject daughters into service as
housemaids, and take the best of people’s possessions as taxes. Even after these warnings, the people
insisted that they wanted a king. In the end, God granted their wish.

The Rise of King Saul (I Samuel 9-11)

God directed the prophet Samuel to anoint a man named Saul as Israel’s first king. Most of
the people were pleased with God’s choice (1 Samuel 10:27).
Soon after Saul was appointed as king, he experienced his first major test. A people called
the Ammonites had captured an Israelite town (1 Samuel 11:1-3). King Saul commanded an army
of 330,000 troops and decisively took back the town (1 Samuel 11:4-11). In so doing, a feverish
pitch made Saul a national hero. In their enthusiasm, some of the people wanted to kill the people
who originally rejected Saul as king but Saul restrained them (1 Samuel 11:12-15). Saul did much
to solidify the security of the nation which was surrounded by enemies.

The Fall of Saul

Saul was a great leader but he was willing to compromise on God’s standards. Twice the
Lord said He rejected Saul as king because of his compromises.

9 Read 1 Samuel 15:1-29 and see what Saul did that caused God to reject him as king over Israel.

After God’s rejection of Saul as king, He instructed Samuel the prophet to anoint another
king. He anointed David as the second king of the united kingdom of Israel.
 Day 27
The Rise of King David

The Anointing of David as Israel’s Next King

At God’s command, David was appointed the next king of Israel in a small and private
ceremony. Most likely Saul was not made aware of this appointment until much later.
From the day David was appointed king, God’s Spirit departed from Saul and came upon
David (1 Samuel 16:13-14). In fact, God allowed a demon to trouble Saul from time to time as a
punishment (1 Samuel 16:14). David’s harp, it was discovered, provided musical therapy for Saul
whenever the demon was tormenting him (1 Samuel 16:15-23). This was the beginning of a long and
awkward relationship between Saul and David.

David Catapulted into the National Spotlight

David, who had three brothers in Saul’s army, worked part-time for his father as a shepherd
and part-time for King Saul as a musician. One day when David was taking food to his brothers he
observed a nine foot giant from Philistia, named Goliath, taunting the armies of Israel and insulting
Jehovah. The titan had done this for forty days when David encountered him.

9 Read about the encounter in 1 Samuel 17:32-54. As a result of this brave and God-directed event,
David was catapulted into the national spotlight and became a national hero.

The Rise of King David

King Saul grew jealous over David’s popularity with the people. That jealousy got so out of
control that he wanted to kill David. He pursued David relentlessly. Twice in the pursuit, David had
the opportunity to take Saul’s life (1 Samuel 24:1-1-10 and 26:1-25) but David still respected Saul
as God’s appointed king. Saul was grateful for David’s kind heart (1 Samuel 24:16-20), but could
not restrain his pursuit of David. In the meantime, David continued to have military victories on the
side (e.g., 1 Samuel 30) and his name remained in the national spotlight.
In the end, King Saul committed suicide as enemy armies threatened to capture him. When
David learned about Saul’s death, God directed him to go to the territory of the tribe of Judah. When
he did, the people made him king over Judah (2 Samuel 2:1-4). There were about 17 years between
the time Samuel first anointed David as king and this coronation in Judah. It still took seven and a
half more years before David would get the full throne over all twelve tribes of Israel. Even though
loyalists to King Saul’s family continued to stand in David’s way (2 Samuel 2:8-4:12), God blessed
David with the full throne at the age of 37 (2 Samuel 5:1-5).
One of the first actions of his administration was to look for a location for his throne which
would keep the country unified. After taking the fortified city of Jerusalem away from some Gentiles
(2 Samuel 5:6-16), he set his throne up there.
Another early action of his administration was to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.
Yes, this is the same Ark that traveled with the people of Israel in the wilderness 440 years earlier!
It was now given a permanent home in Jerusalem. Over the years it bounced around and even fell
into the hands of Gentile at times. It now had a permanent home in Jerusalem and King David made
Jerusalem the center of worship for the chosen people of God (2 Samuel 6).
David also had a strong desire to construct a permanent temple around the Ark of the
Covenant patterned after the Tabernacle the people of God used in their worship in the wilderness.
When David asked God what He thought about his idea, God enthusiastically endorsed the idea but
did not want David to do the actual construction. The Lord said that there was too much blood on
David’s hands from all of his military victories. (You can see his victories listed in 2 Samuel 8:1-14.)
He told David that the son who would follow him on the throne would have the privilege of erecting
this temple to the glory of God (2 Samuel 7).
 Day 28
The Fall of King David

Things were really going well for King David until one day he was in the wrong place at the
wrong time. He observed a naked woman taking a bath. He sent for her and engaged in sexual
relations with her. Her name was Bathsheba.
Several weeks later she reported to the king that she had become pregnant and that the child
within had to be his since her husband was off to war. David tried to cover his tracks by ordering her
husband Uriah to come home for leave. He did but refused to sleep with his wife while on leave as
a show of solidarity with his fellow soldiers who did not have the privilege to sleep with their wives.
As a result, David devised another plan to hide his sin. He ordered that her husband be put in harm’s
way where he was certain to die in battle. In so doing, David broke two of the Ten
Commandments–the prohibitions against adultery and murder. Only King David, a few confidants,
and God knew about all this. God revealed it to His prophet Nathan and ordered Him to confront
David.

9 Read about the confrontation in 2 Samuel 12:1-14.

David immediately sought the Lord’s forgiveness. God forgave David but also promised that
calamity would come upon the household of David as a result of his sins. David was told that he was
going to pay fourfold for the murder of Uriah. In the years that followed, David experienced four
major tragedies: (1) David and Bathsheba’s child died seven days after birth, (2) David’s daughter,
Tamar, was raped by her brother Amnon, (3) Amnon was killed by his brother Absalom, and (4)
Absalom was killed by David’s general after he tried to stage a coupe against his father’s throne (2
Samuel 12:18; 13:14; 13:29; 15-18). Many other sorrows fell upon David’s life as well.
Notice that God still punished David after forgiving him. You will notice this pattern often
in the Scriptures. Even when God forgives, there is often a price that must still be paid. The
forgiveness has to do with continuing our fellowship with God. The punishment has to do with
justice being served.

9 Read Psalm 51:1-12 to get some insight into David’s attitude after he was confronted.
 Day 29
The Rise and Fall of King Solomon

The Rise of Solomon

After 40 years of ruling Israel, David died in his old age of natural causes. He intended for
his son, Solomon, to follow him as the next king. As he was laying on his deathbed, David’s oldest
son, Adonijah, declared himself to be king. A large and joyful crowd gathered for the inauguration.
When Nathan the prophet heard about it, he told Bathsheba and Solomon about what Adonijah had
done. They in turned told the ailing King David. He ordered them to immediately inaugurate
Solomon as king. When done, Solomon’s inaugural festivities grew so large and boisterous that it
intimidated Adonijah and he fled for his life.

9 An amazing incident occurred in Solomon’s life after his inauguration. Read about it in 1 Kings
3:1-14. Given the opportunity to ask God for whatever he wanted, he asked God for wisdom to
govern justly.

Solomon became the wisest man to ever live. Justice prevailed due largely to his wisdom.
He enjoyed the largest borders the nation of Israel has ever enjoyed. He had peace on all his borders.
There was much prosperity within the nation. Regarding his main accomplishments,
Solomon built the glorious temple for God that God placed in his father’s heart. He also built a
wonderful palace for himself.

The Fall of Solomon

Solomon had a weakness for women. He possessed a harem of 700 wives and 300
concubines from all over the world. Sadly, he married women that he was forbidden to marry by the
law of Moses. These women introduced him to many other gods and his heart was turned away from
the one and only true God (1 Kings 11). As a result, God rejected him as king. Upon this rejection,
Solomon started to experience military opposition from the surrounding nations (1 Kings 11:14-25)
and political pressure from within his own family (1 Kings 11:26-40).
 Day 30
Israel Divides

Solomon’s reign lasted forty years. After Solomon’s death, his son, Rehoboam, became
Israel’s rightful king. He had to deal with the tremendous tax burden Solomon’s reign put upon the
people . The people asked Rehoboam for tax relief. He consulted his advisors and chose to follow
the advice of those who wanted to increase taxes. As a result of this decision, a civil war almost
broke out. It was averted, however, when ten of the tribes of Israel rejected Rehoboam as their king
and formed a separate nation consisting of ten of the tribes of Israel. It is important to know that they
retained the name “Israel.” They chose Solomon’s son, Jereboam, to be their king. The two tribes
that chose to follow Rehoboam as their king were Judah and Benjamin. It is important to know that
they took the name, “Judah,” for their country. From this point on, the two nations go their separate
ways. Each nation had its own identity, history, religion, spiritual journey and succession of kings.
You will recall that the center of worship, the temple, was established in Jerusalem which
is in Judah. Fearing that the people of the newly formed Israel might be drawn to Jerusalem to
worship, Jeroboam started a new national religion involving two golden calves and the worship of
Baal as god.

As you can see, Israel had a succession of 19 kings before God carried them off into exile.
Not one of their kings was righteous. On the other hand, Judah had a succession of 20 kings before
they were exiled. They had 8 kings who were considered righteous. They made spiritual reforms in
the nation. Judah kept returning to evil kings. But, as a result of having some righteous kings, the
nation of Judah survived longer than Israel. I find it interesting that Judah spent roughly 220 years
under righteous kings and survived 135 years longer than Israel who lived under no righteous kings.

9 Briefly examine the chart of kings in Appendix 2.

When you start reading the Bible on your own, you will notice that 1 and 2 Chronicles cover
the same time period as 1 Samuel through 2 Kings. You will also notice that several differences can
be observed. First, 2 Samuel through 2 Kings cover the history of Israel and Judah whereas 1 and
2 Chronicles emphasizes the history of Judah. Second, 2 Samuel through 2 Kings cover political
history whereas 1 and 2 Chronicles emphasizes the spiritual history of Judah. Special emphasis is
given to the kings who brought about religious reforms–David, Solomon, Asa, Jehosophat, Joash,
Hezekiah and Josiah. Third, the books of 2 Samuel through 2 Kings were written shortly after the
events they record. 1 and 2 Chronicles were written 125 years later for the benefit of the people who
returned to Judah after the Babylonian captivity. You will study this in a few days. They were written
to encourage the returnees about the great things that God will do for his people if they are faithful
to Him.
 Day 31
Israel’s Exile

You will recall from a previous reading of Deuteronomy 28:15-68 that God promised certain
curses upon His people if they worshiped other gods. If they defied His corrective measures, their
punishments would get increasingly severe. The most severe punishment would be to lose possession
of the land God gave them and be deported to Gentile nations. Many of God’s prophets warned the
people of this threat. They disregarded God’s warnings and now it is time for God to keep His
promise of deportation. Here is how it happened.
The nation of Assyria evolved into a powerful empire due to outstanding leadership and
military might. Based in the capital city of Nineveh, they subdued one nation after another. When
subdued, a nation was annexed as a province of the empire. That province had only as much
autonomy as Nineveh allowed. The annexed nation was required to pay taxes.
Some nations were compliant and others rebelled against this loss of independence. The
Assyrian emperors were constantly embroiled in conflict related to taking new territories and keeping
all their provinces in subjection. The Assyrian Empire became God’s instrument for bringing
judgment on the nation of Israel.
During the reign of Israel’s King Menahem (2 Kings 15:16-22), the king of Assyria attacked
the territory of Israel. King Menahem agreed to pay him much money to win his favor and hold his
reign. To get the money, Menahem severely taxed the wealthiest people in Israel.
After Menahem’s death, his son, Pekaniah, seized power. His reign was short-lived as he was
assassinated by one of his leading officials, Pekah (2 Kings 15:23-26) who installed himself as king.
During his reign (2 Kings 15:27-31) Assyria invaded and deported a number of Pekah’s officials to
Assyria. They also deported all the Israelites from the tribe of Naphtali. A man named Hoshea
assassinated King Pekah and installed himself as king over Israel.
King Hoshea managed to reign for nine years as a “puppet king” under the control of Assyria
(2 Kings 17). When the king of Assyria discovered that Hoshea was plotting with Egypt to break
away from Assyrian rule, Hoshea was imprisoned, the land was invaded, the Israelites were deported,
and captives from elsewhere were transplanted in the land of Israel.
The Assyrian emperors broke up nationalities to decrease the threat of people banding
together to rebel. All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the LORD their God,
who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They
worshiped other gods and followed the practices of the nations the LORD had driven out before
them, as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced (2 Kings 17:7-8).
While Hoshea was on the throne in Israel, King Hezekiah was on the throne in Judah (2
Kings 18-20). After destroying Israel, the king of Assyria struck all the major cities of Judah and
captured them. Hezekiah surrendered to Assyria with a promise that, if Assyria withdrew from his
land, he would pay whatever taxes they desired. To pay the taxes Hezekiah emptied all the treasuries
of Judah and had to strip all the gold in his palace and in God’s Temple.
After doing all that, the king of Assyria still refused to withdraw his troops. Not knowing
what else to do, Hezekiah went to God’s Temple and poured out his heart to God in prayer. The Lord
sent word through the Prophet Isaiah that He was going to defend Jerusalem from this threat.

9 Read 2 Kings 19:20-37 to learn what the Lord did to the king of Assyria and his armies.

Israel was deported but Judah was spared. Judah was able to maintain its independence for
the next 135 more years before it suffered the same fate at the hands of the Babylonians.
 Day 32
Judah’s Exile

The Assyrian Empire dominated the world scene for 248 years. They were an idolatrous and
immoral people. The Lord announced His plans to punish them through His prophets (Isaiah 10:5-
19; 14:24-27; 33:1-24; Zephaniah 2:13-15; Nahum 1:1-3:19). The nation God dispatched against
Assyria was a powerful province of the Assyrian Empire, Babylon. Babylon succeeded from Assyria
and declared their independence. In time they gained dominance over the entire Assyrian Empire.
Babylon became an empire and dominated over Judah’s politics.
During King Jehoiakim's reign (2 Kings 23-24), Judah saw an opportunity to separate from
Babylon. Jehoiakim conspired with Egypt to rebel. Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar uncovered the
plot. He invaded the palace, arrested Jehoiakim, and deported him and many others to Babylon. The
prophet Daniel and his three friends were part of this first deportation.
King Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, followed his father on the throne. During his reign,
Nebuchadnezzar’s army set up a blockade around Jerusalem. They prohibited people from entering
and leaving the city. Jehoiachin surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar who took Jehoiachin prisoner and
carried off all the expensive worship paraphernalia from God’s Temple. This time he deported
10,000 men--Jerusalem’s political leaders, best soldiers, and skilled workers.
Nebuchadnezzar set King Zedekiah up as a “puppet-king.” The Prophet Jeremiah, at God’s
prompting, advised Zedekiah to remain faithful to Babylon (Jeremiah 37, 38); but he ignored his
counsel and entered into an alliance with Egypt and others against Babylon. As a result,
Nebuchadnezzar and his armies blockaded Jerusalem again. Jerusalem managed to hold out for
eighteen months but was weakened due to famine. At last, the walls were perforated. All the armies
of Jerusalem fled from the city leaving the civilians defenseless. Although Zedekiah fled, he was
captured, was forced to observe the death of his sons, and was deported to Babylon as a trophy after
having his eyes plucked out. Then the Babylonians systematically destroyed the wall of Jerusalem,
the king’s palace, all the significant buildings, and the Temple that had served the Israelites for 365
years. The remaining residents of the city were deported to Babylon. Other peoples were transplanted
into the cities of Judah.
The obliteration of Jerusalem was a crying shame for every Jew. That is what the Book of
Lamentations is about. In it the Prophet Jeremiah weeps over the destruction of the Holy City. In the
style of a funeral dirge, he expresses his horror and helplessness as he watches Jerusalem’s people
get slaughtered and deported and its important buildings get reduced to rubble. How the prophet
wishes the Israelites would not have ignored all the warnings of the prophets who predicted this very
day.
The prophet Jeremiah supernaturally predicted the people of Judah would be carried off into
Babylon for 70 years (Jeremiah 25:1-14). Beginning in 605 B.C., Judah’s people were transplanted
all over the Babylonian Empire. In 536 B.C., they were permitted to return to their land. This is the
70 years Jeremiah predicted.
When the people of Judah were in exile, they thought they were only going to be there a short
time before God would deliver them. Although there were false prophets assuring the people that
this was going to be the case, God revealed something different to His prophet Jeremiah. God
instructed him to write a letter to be circulated among the leaders of the Jews in exile.

9 Read the letter in Jeremiah 29:1-14 and see what God commanded the people to do with the 70
years. For the most part, the people heeded his advice. They settled down and lived their lives among
the Gentiles. Jewish communities were formed in almost all the major cities of the civilized world.
There was some intermarriage between Jews and Gentiles but for the most part the Jews maintained
their distinctive identity.
 Day 33
Daniel

Daniel and his three friends–Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego–were part of the first
deportation to Babylon that took place under Judah’s King Jehoiakim. They were probably about
fifteen to seventeen years old at the time.
King Nebuchadnezzar was always looking for the brightest people he could find to put into
advisory capacities in his government. He needed people from all of the provinces he ruled to advise
him on matters related to those provinces. From among the captured people of Judah he was looking
for those who would be good advisors on Jewish affairs.
These captives were admitted into a special school to prepare people for service to the king.
There they studied the language, literature, religions, culture, traditions, and etiquette of Babylon for
three years. At the end of three years, the emperor himself interviewed each student to determine
whom he would put into his service. The king talked with Daniel and his friends and found none
equal to them.
Around April 603 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream from God. God was dealing
directly with the most powerful man in the world. Nebuchadnezzar could not understand the dream,
but suspected it meant trouble. Wanting desperately to know its meaning, he summoned the sorcerers
that lived in his courts. He wanted them to both tell him what he dreamed and the meaning of the
dream. The practitioners thought the king’s request was unreasonable but could not convince him
to change his mind. Nebuchadnezzar was testing the authenticity of their claims. He thought, “If the
gods can reveal the interpretation of dreams, why can’t they also reveal the contents of those
dreams?”
The sorcerers responded, “There is not a man on earth who can do what the king asks.” It
turned out that they were wrong. Daniel was able to fulfill both requests.
In his dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw a statue made of different materials. Each section of the
statue represented a different world empire. The head of gold is Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian
Empire. Daniel makes it clear that the Babylonian Empire will never be surpassed in greatness by
any human kingdom to follow and that it will not last forever. And, in retrospect, we now know that
the chest and arms of silver were the Persian Empire. The belly and thighs of bronze were the Greek
Empire and the legs of iron were the Roman Empire.
In the dream, the whole statue was pulverized by a rock that grew into a mountain large
enough to cover the entire surface of the earth. The mountain represented the eternal kingdom of God
demonstrating that only God’s kingdom is eternal.
Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor. He acknowledged that
Jehovah was the God of gods. He placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him.
About ten to twenty years later, King Nebuchadnezzar erected a huge statue of a man overlaid
with sheets of pure gold. It seems like he was defying the dream and declaring that his dynasty would
last forever.
The colossal statue was made a symbol of Babylonian nationalism. He gathered leaders from
all his provinces. He gave the order that when the band struck the first chord of a national anthem
everyone was to bow down and demonstrate their respect for Babylon and her gods. If anyone chose
to disobey the king’s edict, he would immediately be thrown alive into the crematorium.
As soon as the music started, the foreheads of people from all over the world bowed down
and touched the earth - except three foreheads–those of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They
would only bend their knees in such honor to the true and living God of Israel.
As threatened, these three were thrown into the incinerator with the king saying, “No god will
be able to save you from my hand. ” But he was wrong. God supernaturally preserved these faithful
men. Nebuchadnezzar gave praise to Jehovah and put these three men in powerful positions of
leadership withing his kingdom.
 The Bible does not tell us about Daniel in that story. We can be quite sure that Daniel did not
bow down to the image. It is generally speculated that Daniel may have been out of the country on
business at this time.
Between Daniel 4 and 5 there is a period of 23 years. Much happened in those 23 years. King
Nebuchadnezzar died and several Babylonian rulers followed him. When we come to Daniel 5, a
man named Belshazzar is in charge of the empire.
One night King Belshazzar threw a great big party for a thousand of the empire’s leaders and
their wives. In a drunken state he gave orders for his servants to go to the temple of the god Marduk
and to get the gold goblets that Nebuchadnezzar took from God’s Temple in Jerusalem seventy years
prior. Drinking out of them was an act of blatant irreverence for the God of Israel. .
While everyone was getting drunk and shouting praises to the gods of Babylon, the party was
invaded by what looked like the large hand of a man. The hand wrote a message on the wall. The
emperor’s legs grew weak and he collapsed. From the floor he summoned his sorcerers to provide
him with an immediate interpretation. Again, Daniel, now between 70 and 80 years old, was able
to do so. The message revealed that the Babylonian Empire was about to fall.
In the height of her glory, it was unthinkable that Babylon could fall. Nebuchadnezzar had
seemingly built and secured a kingdom strong enough to never fall. Four prophets of Jehovah knew
differently--Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and Habakkuk. God revealed to them that Babylon would fall
(Isaiah 13:1-14:23; 21:1-10; 46:1-47:15; Jeremiah 50:1-51:64; Daniel 2:24-45; Habakkuk 1:12-
2:20). God had used the evil Babylonians to judge His people Judah but He had plans to condemn
them as well. As things turned out, the empire fell into the hands of King Dairus the Mede just a few
hours after Belshazzar’s party. Dairus worked in partnership with King Cyrus of Persia.
King Cyrus had 120 provinces that he ruled by three administrators who reported to him. As
the king was thinking about a more efficient way to rule, he looked for one trustworthy person to
appoint as chief administrator.
The king was thinking out loud about the possibility of making Daniel that chief
administrator. This suggestion interfered with the personal ambitions of some high ranking
government officials who started engaging in the dark side of politics. They sought to get rid of
Daniel at all costs. Unable to find fault with his work or character, they resorted to framing him.
They successfully landed Daniel in the lion’s den against the wishes of King Darius. As the Lord
spared Daniel’s friends from the flames, He supernaturally spared Daniel from the mouth of the
hungry lions.

9 Read Daniel 6 19-28.

 Day 34
The Return

Just as the Assyrian Empire fell to the Babylonians in 612 B.C., the Babylonian Empire fell
to the Persians in 539 B.C. Whereas, the Assyrians and Babylonians tried to rule over people by
breaking up the cultures and religions of captured peoples, the Persians sought to rule by establishing
good will with the people of their empire and the gods of the universe. They believed that if they
could establish good will with all the people and all the gods, they could reign forever. They feared
the possibility of upsetting a foreign god who would in turn bring a curse upon their empire. As a
result, they generously allowed people to return to their homelands and to reestablish their religions.
Persian King Cyrus allowed the Jews to return to their homeland. While he did this for his own
reasons, the Sovereign One used his policies to accomplish His purposes. You will recall that the
Prophet Jeremiah predicted that, after His people were in exile for 70 years, they would be gathered
again in their home land and restore their worship.
How would you feel if your name was specifically mentioned in the Bible and it really meant
you? Before King Cyrus’ great, great, great grandfather was born, the Prophet Isaiah predicted that
a king named “Cyrus” would arise and that the LORD would use him to enable the Jews to return
to their homeland after an exile: "This is what the LORD says-- who says of Cyrus, 'He is my
shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; Cyrus will say of Jerusalem, "Let it be rebuilt," and
of the temple, "Let its foundations be laid"' (Isaiah 44:24).
With such a clear reference to Cyrus in Isaiah’s prophecies, you would think Cyrus might be
a believer in the one living and true God. As far as we know he never did put faith in Jehovah. He
seemed to think of Israel’s God as one great god among many and his edict (Ezra 1:2-4) was highly
diplomatic. After all, in his own records that have been recovered, he boasts about restoring the
temples and images of all the major gods.
It is estimated that there were two to three million Jews from the tribes of Judah and
Benjamin scattered throughout the Babylonian Empire. Most of the Jews stayed in Babylon. After
all, some of the families had been there for nearly 70 years. They had careers, business arrangements,
and relationships that were well established by then. Many had buried their parents in Babylon. Yet
about one out of every five Jews took the 900-mile trek back to Judah. They arrived about four
months later under the leadership of a man named Zerubbabel.

9 Read Ezra 1:1-6, and 2:64-67 at this time.

 Day 35
Rebuilding the Temple

After everyone got settled in their hometowns, they gathered together in Jerusalem to rebuild
their religious foundation based upon the Law of Moses. They started by constructing the Bronze
Altar and offering sacrifices to God. Because it was that time of year to celebrate the Feast of
Tabernacles according to the Law, they celebrated that as well (Ezra 3:1-6).
While gathered, the people made donations toward the rebuilding of the temple. With the
money, they purchased building materials from the surrounding areas and hired masons and
carpenters. The work of rebuilding the temple began in 536 B.C. As the work began, the young
people joyfully praised God while some of the older people, who still remembered the glory of their
former temple, began to weep. They remembered Solomon’s Temple and considered the one they
were building to be inferior in majesty. Mixed emotions swirled around the temple. The symphony
of wailing and joy could be heard many miles away (Ezra 3:7-13).
The work of God never advances without opposition from God’s enemies. Many of Israel’s
past enemies still lived in the region. They did all they could to prevent the rebuilding of the temple.
They succeeded at stopping the work for 14 years. The Jews all returned to their towns and started
working on their houses. They neglected the Lord’s house. As a result, God spoke to them about
their misguided priorities through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah.

9 Read what the prophet Haggai said in Haggai 1:3-11.

God gave the Prophet Zechariah a different kind of message that accomplished the same goal.
Zechariah inspired the Jews to finish the task by reminding them of the important role the temple
will play in the future when the Christ comes and resides in it. He informs them that this coming
blessing is contingent on the way they act in the present. With this look into a bright future, they are
to complete the building of God’s House with unreserved enthusiasm.
When the people heard the Word of God from the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, they
immediately repented and went back to work at rebuilding the temple. Their enemies then presented
another legal challenge before the king. This time the Jews just continued to work until the king
handed down his ruling. They were optimistic about receiving a favorable ruling and they were right!
Not only did they get all the legal support they needed, King Darius ordered that all their building
costs be covered by government funds. He also declared that anyone who opposed the efforts of the
Jews would be impaled on a beam taken from their own house. Four and a half years later, the work
on God’s House was completed.
 Day 36
Esther

Whereas the books of Ezra and Nehemiah all describe things that were happening in Judah,
the Book of Esther tells us some of what was going on in the Persian capital at the time.
One of the unique features of the Book of Esther is that it does not mention the name of God.
It reads like a secular history. At the same time, one can easily see the hand of God watching over
His people and working behind the scenes. Again, He spares them from obliteration.
King Xerxes threw a huge, seven day party to egotistically flaunt all of his possessions,
power, and prestige. At one point he decided to show off his beautiful wife by having her dance for
his guests. She refused. This angered the king and he deposed her.
An empire wide search took place to replace her. They were looking for the most beautiful
woman in the kingdom. In the end a Jewess named Esther was selected. Esther had been raised by
her Uncle Mordecai. When crowned queen, Mordecai instructed her not to reveal the fact that she
was a Jew.
Mordecai kept in touch with Esther by occasionally meeting her in the palace courtyard. One
day, while waiting to speak with her, he heard about a plot to kill King Xerxes. He told Esther about
it and she told the king. The king was so grateful that he recorded Mordecai’s name in his journal.
Haman, one of the King Xerxes’ top-ranking officials, grew to hate Mordecai and Jews
because Mordecai refused to show him respect by bowing down when Haman passed by.
One day Haman went to King Xerxes and requested permission to destroy a small renegade
race of people spread throughout his kingdom. His plan was to obliterate them in a single day. He
even offered to cover all the expenses of the undertaking out of his own treasury.
King Xerxes granted him permission. The permission was made in the form of a law of the
Medes and the Persians. In other words, once declared the law could not be changed. The Persians
did this because they wanted all their laws to be well thought out before being issued. In this case,
however, King Xerxes was rather impulsive.
Haman sent out a letter to all the peoples in the kingdom stating that on an assigned date
everyone had legal permission to kill all the Jews in their communities. To provide incentive he
offered the property of all killed Jews to those who did the killing.
The Jews were obviously distraught. Mordecai told Esther that she must speak to the king
and intervene.

9 Read the inspiring words of consent she spoke to Modecai found in Esther 4:15-16.

During that time of fasting she developed a plan. She daringly approached the king and found
him in an exceptionally benevolent mood. She asked him if she could hold a banquet to honor him
and Haman. The date was set.
One day, on the way to see King Xerxes, Haman was once again offended by Mordecai. As
a result, he instructed some of his men to build a gallows upon which he would hang Mordecai that
night if the king granted permission.
At that time, he was sure he would get his wish. He did not know, however, that King Xerxes
was reading his journal that very night. In it he read his notes about how Mordecai once saved his
life. After a flush of gratitude, King Xerxes realized that he had never honored and thanked this man.
When Haman arrived, the king asked him how he would honor a man to whom he wished
to give special honor. Thinking the king was wanting to honor him, Haman gave a detailed
description of the royal parade and treatment he would like. King Xerxes liked his suggestions and
ordered Haman to honor Mordecai in this way. Haman reluctantly did as he was told.
As soon as the parade was over, it was time for an embarrassed Haman to go to Esther’s
banquet. At the dinner, King Xerxes, pleased with his queen, asked what great favor he might grant
her. She surprised the king by asking him to spare her life and the life of her people. This is
apparently the first time the king was aware that Esther was a Jew. The King was furious that anyone
would suggest the annihilation of Queen Esther and her people. He asked, “Where is the man who
has dared to do such a thing?"
All Esther had to do was point across the table. Xerxes had Haman hung that day on the very
gallows Haman had prepared for Mordecai.
A decree was immediately discharged by the king giving the Jews permission to kill anyone
they knew was threatening their lives and property. No Jews lost their lives or property although
many of their enemies were destroyed. Haman’s inheritance all went to Esther. Mordecai was
appointed into the position left vacant by Haman’s death.
 Day 37
Rebuilding the Faith

We can get insights into the spiritual condition of God’s chosen people after they rebuilt the
temple from Malachi the prophet. Instead of sacrificing animals that were spotless and blemish free,
the people gave their blind and lame animals to the Lord. The priests were living unholy lives and
the people did not respect them. There was a high rate of infidelity, divorce, and remarriage among
the people. The Jews were intermarrying with spouses who worshiped other gods and were thereby
committing spiritual adultery. The people were also failing to give a tenth of their income to the Lord
because they were using all their money to improve their standard of living.
While there was spiritual darkness in Judah, there was an extraordinary priest in Babylon
named Ezra. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel,
had given . . . Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and
to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel (Ezra 7:6,10).
Ezra captured the attention of King Artaxerxes of Persia who commissioned him to lead an
immigration of devout Jews to Judah to rebuild the faith of the nation. You will recall, King Cyrus
allowed peoples to return to their homelands to restore their worship about 80 years before. Now
King Artaxerxes shows that same concern.
After Zerubabbel lead 50,000 Jews from Babylon back to their homeland, Ezra led a second
migration to continue the development of the nation, the temple, and the worship of God.

9 Read King Artaxerxes edict in Ezra 7:11-26.

Everyone interested in returning to Judah was to meet him at a particular location. In the
days that followed, family after family showed up at that location. When it seemed like all interested
families were present, Ezra made the discovery that there were no Levites among them. Since the
Law of Moses required that all priests come from the tribe of Levi, Ezra’s national religious
education program would be hindered. As a result, Ezra recruited Levites and the Lord blessed his
efforts. In all, about 2000 male Levites joined him in his mission.
The emigrants carried an immense amount of wealth that the Emperor had given to them to
use for the refurnishing of the temple. Carrying such wealth without the protection of soldiers was
risky. The king offered military accompaniment to protect the people and goods from enemies and
thieves. Ezra declined his offer. Instead, the people prayed, fasted, and trusted the Lord to protect
them since this mission was for Him. There would not have been anything wrong with accepting the
kings help; but Ezra thought the people needed to see the protective hand of God on this trip as a
sign that He was really with them on this mission. When they arrived in Jerusalem, not a single
possession or ounce of gold was missing.
Ezra immediately started to teach the Law of Moses to the people. The people must have
been moved by their studies. Countless numbers confessed their sins to God and covenanted to live
faithfully to God.
 Day 38
Rebuilding the Walls

The Jews returned to Judah in three waves. The first wave was under the leadership of
Zerubbabel. Under him the people rebuilt the temple. The second wave came 81 years later under
the leadership of Ezra. Under him the people were spiritually rebuilt. The third wave came 13 years
later under Nehemiah. Under his leadership the city of Jerusalem was repopulated and had her walls
rebuilt.
God enabled Nehemiah, a Jew, to become the cupbearer of Persian King Artaxerxes. His job
was to protect the king’s beverages from poisoning. Artaxerxes obviously trusted Nehemiah.
One day Nehemiah conversed with his brother and some fellow Jews who had just returned
from Jerusalem. He inquired about how God’s people were doing in Judah. That was when he
learned that the returnees would build a section of the walls but their enemies would then tear it
down. The walls were left in a constant state of disrepair. This left the city continually vulnerable
to attacks. For this reason very few Jews wanted to return there. The work of rebuilding Judah was
advancing slowly and the people were discouraged.
God used this report to arouse Nehemiah’s heart. He wanted to see the returnees succeed at
rebuilding a nation that would be a good witness for God. The news struck him hard even though
he had never lived in the holy city.
He mourned, fasted, and prayed for the next three to four months. In time, he got the strong
sense that it was God’s will for him to do something about Jerusalem’s walls. From that moment on,
he prayed, thought, and planned while he waited for the God-given moment to ask the Artaxerxes
for permission to leave his post. The months of waiting began etching lines of stress on his face. One
day Artaxerxes asked, "Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing
but sadness of heart" (Nehemiah 2:2).
Nehemiah was frightened because a servant never mentioned his personal problems to a king.
It was a show of disrespect. Yet, in spite of his fears, Nehemiah explained how saddened he was
about the pitiful condition of the land of his fathers. When the king asked what Nehemiah wanted,
he uttered a brief prayer and dared to ask for a leave of absence so he could rebuild the city’s walls
and population. Amazingly, the king granted him permission. Nehemiah got all for which he asked--
a leave of absence, rights of passage, and the rights to the timber in a national forest. On top of all
that, the king added the protection of a military entourage.
Three months later, Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem. His royal entourage must have attracted
much attention, but he did not reveal the purpose of his coming to a single soul. For three days he
did nothing but presumably socialize with civil authorities. Then, under the cloak of darkness, he
evaluated the condition of the walls of the city. He did not want Jerusalem’s enemies to discover the
purpose of his visit. With an assessment in hand, Nehemiah disclosed the purpose of his visit to
Jerusalem’s officials and people.
The civil leaders and Nehemiah organized people into 42 work groups and designated certain
stretches of the wall to each group. They had people work on sections of the wall in which they
would have a vested interest. If the people could be rallied and if all went according to plan, the
walls would be finished in several weeks.
The people did rally and the plans were exquisite. God’s work, however, never advances
without resistance from the enemies of God and His people. They rebuilt the wall till all of it
reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart. But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the
Arabs, the Ammonites and the men of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem's walls had gone
ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They all plotted together to come
and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it (Nehemiah 4:7-8).
The Jews prayed to God and posted a guard day and night to confront the threat and
persevered in the work (Nehemiah 4:6-9). The repairs to the wall were made in only 52 days–an
astounding feat of organization, leadership, and faith in God. Nehemiah reports: When all our
enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence,
because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God (Nehemiah 6:15-16).
All that remained was to fix the gates and doors into the city.
Presumably, Nehemiah requested permission to continue the work beyond his original
agreement with King Artaxerxes. Permission was granted and more. Aratxerxes appointed him as
governor of the Persian province of Judah. This enabled them to complete the gates into the city over
the next month and a half.
Still their plans for urban development were going to stall unless they could attract more
people to inhabit the city. A plan for renewal was communicated to the people of Judah. The appeal
was for all of the civil leaders of Judah to move into the rebuilt Jerusalem. After that, the people
agreed to cast lots. One out of every ten families would be moved into the capital city and the
remaining families would inhabit the towns and villages of Judah.
Ezra continued his ministry of rebuilding the people during the governorship of Nehemiah.
These were days of spiritual renewal and Ezra was at the heart of it.
Twelve years after attaining permission to leave Persia, Nehemiah returned to his duties in
the court of the king (Nehemiah.13:6). He served there for 13 years. He then requested permission
to govern Judah again and permission was granted. Upon returning, he saw widespread spiritual
slippage among the priests and the people. This led to a number of reforms in which Nehemiah
asserted his authority as governor by making God’s laws the law of the land. He cleansed God’s
Temple of the possessions of an evil man who was audaciously storing them there as a result of a
friendship with the high priest. He made sure the people supported the priests so that they could
make a living off of their work at the Temple. He made sure that the Sabbath day was not neglected
by making it a day of business like any other day. He made it the law of the land that no one could
marry a foreign wife. He deported an enemy of Jerusalem who had much power and influence due
to his marriage into the family of the high priest. He also purified and reorganized the priesthood.
As you can see, Nehemiah was an ambitious zealot for the proper worship of God. He wanted
to see the people of God restored and purified so they could faithfully fulfill the mission God had
given them to be a witness to the nations.
 Day 39
Introduction to Poetry

We have now completed our overview of the seventeen historical books of the Old
Testament. We will now survey the five books of poetry–Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and
the Song of Songs. The student should keep in mind that there is poetry scattered throughout the
prose of the historical and prophetic books of the Old Testament as well.
Poetry is literature in which specific literary devices are deliberately employed to express
plain thoughts in an artistic and emotional manner. The literary devices used differ from culture to
culture. Traditionally, English poetry has employed rhyme, rhythm, figurative language, and
symbolism. Hebrew poetry employs parallelism, synonyms, figurative language, assonance,
alliteration, acrostics, and refrains.
Parallelism is the repetition of the same parts of speech in the second part of a sentence to
state the same thought in another way. Examples of different parallelisms follow:
Psalm 24:1: The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it . . .
Psalm 34:10: The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
Psalm 42:1: As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
Synonyms are words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the
same meaning. In Psalm 24:1 shown above, earth and world are synonyms. A good translation will
attempt to employ synonyms from its own language to try to demonstrate this literary device.
Figures of speech are words or phrases that depart from the literal meanings of the words for
more picturesque speech. There are numerous kinds of figures of speech. An example of figurative
language is found in Song of Songs 2:2, It says, Like a lily among the thorns is my darling among
the maidens. In plain speech it says, “You are the only woman in the world that I am attracted to.”
Most figures of speech are translatable into other languages. Only colloquial expressions are not.
Assonance is the clever use of sounds when read or sung aloud. In Hebrew poetry these
sounds are only detectable to a person who understands Hebrew.
Onomatopoeia is the formation of sounds intended to imitate natural sounds such as “moo”
or “buzz.” In Hebrew poetry these sounds would only be detectable by someone proficient in the
original language.
Alliteration is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of several words
in the same phrase. "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers …" is an example of an alliterated
sentence. Obviously, in Hebrew poetry this is only detectable in the original Hebrew.
Acrostics occur in a poem when each succeeding line or verse of a poem begins with the next
letter of the alphabet. The first line or verse of the poem might begin with the letter A, the next with
the letter B, the next with the letter C, and so forth. Of course, in Hebrew poetry it would be the 22
letter of the Hebrew alphabet, not the 26 letters of the English alphabet. The entire Book of
Lamentations is an acrostic. Psalms 9, 10, 25, 34, 37, 111, 112, 119, and 145 are as well. Acrostics
are only observable in the original language.
Refrains are sentences that get repeated multiple times throughout a poem. They are designed
to impress a key thought or theme on the minds of the readers or singers. Psalms 42 and 43 are an
example of this. Refrains are observable in any good translation.
As you can see, some of the devices used in Hebrew poetry can be translated into another
language and some cannot. Unfortunately, much of the artistic expression of Hebrew poetry gets lost
in the translation. Nevertheless, even in a translation, the soul of the reader can connect emotionally
with the soul of the Hebrew poet.
 The only way readers of the rest of the Bible can discern if they are reading poetry is by the
layout of the words on a page. For example, turn to the Book of Psalms in the Bible. Do you see all
the white space on the page? Notice how sentences do not go all across the page. Notice how the
sentences are broken up and do not run one into the next sentence as in prose. Notice that
indentations and spaces are frequent. When you see spacing such as this, you know you are dealing
with poetry. Unfortunately, not every translation lays out poetry as poetry. If the translators of your
Bible did not do so, they have made it impossible for you to determine whether you are dealing with
prose or poetry.

9 Try your hand at identifying the different kinds of literature by turning to Isaiah 6. Which verses
of this chapter are written in prose and which are written in poetry?
 Day 40
The Book of Job

The Book of Job starts off with 2 chapters of prose before launching into forty chapters of
poetry. The prose section introduces us to a very wealthy and righteous man name Job.
One day Satan made an appearance before God’s throne in heaven. God expressed to Satan
His pleasure with Job’s righteousness. Satan rebutted that the only reason Job serves God is because
God had blessed him with great wealth. Satan insisted, if God were to take away all those blessings,
Job would forsake the Lord immediately. As a result of that conversation, God allowed Satan to take
away all of Job’s wealth and predicted that Job would remain faithful to Him. Within a matter of
hours, Job lost all of his children, servants, and wealth.

9 Read about Job’s amazing reaction to all that happened to him in Job 1:20-22.

Satan appeared before God on another occasion. God pointed out that Job did not just serve
Him because of all the benefits he derived from serving God. Satan rebutted that if he could take
away Job’s health in addition to his wealth, that he would certainly forsake the Lord. As a result of
that conversation, God allowed Satan to take away Job’s health as long as he spared his life. Soon
thereafter, Job was smitten with painful sores from head to toe.

9 Read Job 2:9-10. Notice the reaction of Job’s wife and his reaction to her reaction.

Having learned of Job’s grief and misery, three of his friends--Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar--
came from afar to console him. His ailment so distorted his appearance they could hardly recognize
him. They sincerely mourned with him and said nothing for seven days.
After seven days of grieving silently, Job broke the silence. Despondent statements spewed
from his mouth. His friends were repulsed by his attitudes and turned on Job. They started accusing
him of having committed some great sin against God in order for God to punish him like this.
Although Job couldn’t understand why the horrendous things that were happening to him, he insisted
that it wasn’t because he committed some great sin against God. The bulk of this book, the poetic
section, is taken up with a debate. The first round of the argument is found in Job 3-14, the second
in Job 15-21, and the third in Job 22-31.
A new “friend,” Elihu, appears and rejects Job’s understanding of the situation in Job 32-37.
He accuses Job of wrongdoing and worthy of God’s punishment. Job does not respond. But, in
chapter 38, the Lord does respond. He appears to Job in a severe storm. He responds to what Job has
been asking throughout this poem, “Why is this happening to me?.”
God surprisingly responds with a non-answer. He barrages Job with a long series of
confrontational questions about His creative wonders. The implication of what He is saying is, “I am
great and awesome in all I do. I rule over the universe. Nothing happens unless I allow it. My ways
are far beyond your ability to comprehend. Who are you to question my ways? You are simply to
trust me and accept my decisions. You are to worship me in all circumstances, both good and bad.”
Job responds to God in a most humble and repentant manner.
The Lord then expresses His anger toward Job’s three friends. He’s upset that they claimed
to be speaking for God and much of their speech was erroneous and foolish. To be forgiven, God
required them to offer sacrifices and required Job to pray for them. After God forgave them, He
blessed Job with double the amount of wealth he had before this whole episode. He also blessed him
with seven sons and three daughters.
 Day 41
The Psalms

The Book of Psalms is one of the most beloved books of the Bible. As people read it, they
can easily identify with the psalmist’s experiences and emotions.
The Psalms are poetry set to music. We must keep in mind that the Psalms are the hymns of
the Old Covenant people of God. When you read them you will run across musical terms in the
headings such as “maskil,” “selah,” and “gittith.” We do not know the meaning of these terms in
most cases. We also have no idea of what the music originally sounded like.
The Psalms were written over the entire history of the Old Testament, roughly 1450-450 B.C.
It is helpful to our appreciation of the Psalm when we can determine the historical context in which
a psalm was written.
In some Psalms the historical context is specifically stated in the heading of the Psalm. For
example, Psalm 51 is based on the time when the prophet Nathan came to him after David had
committed adultery with Bathsheba. We can read the historical background of David’s sin in 2
Samuel 12. If you read the background to the Psalms, you will have a deeper appreciation for what
the Psalm is saying.
Sometimes you can determine the historical background by things said within the poem. For
example, in Psalm 137 we read:

By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept

when we remembered Zion (Jerusalem).
There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

Just by knowing the history of the Old Testament you can easily identify this Psalm as having been
composed and sung while the people of Judah were in captivity in Babylon. They are being taunted
by their captors. They are recalling how wonderful it was to be able to worship God in Jerusalem.
Sometimes a historical background is implied within the poem but we have no mention of
it in the historical narrative of Scripture. For example, in Psalm 38 King David speaks of a time
when he was sick he almost died. We have nothing in the historical record of the Bible that ever
mentions David being so gravely ill.
Sometimes we can gather no insights into the historical backdrop of the poem. That means
we do not need to know anything about the historical background in order to appreciate and be
instructed by the poem. A timeless message can still be portrayed without understanding the
background.

9 Take a few minutes and read at least two Psalms. You are welcome to read any Psalm you like.
Psalm 23 is the most popular Psalm of all time. Other favorites include: Psalm 1, 8, 27, 32, 34, 37,
42, 46, 51, 73, 90, 91, 100, 103, 121, 139, and 150.
 Day 42
The Proverbs

Solomon wrote three poetic books of the Old Testament–Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song
of Songs. (He even wrote a few Psalms.) Let’s look at each of these books in that order.
Proverbs are pithy and catchy sayings that teach practical lessons about everyday life. “An
ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” and “Haste makes waste” are well known English
proverbs.
If you were to translate these proverbs into another language, some of their cleverness would
get lost in the translation. Likewise, it is difficult to appreciate how catchy the Proverbs are in
languages other than Hebrew. Nonetheless, we can still appreciate the wisdom they contain.
In 1 Kings 4:32 we are told that Solomon spoke three thousand proverbs. In our Bible we
only have about 700 of them recorded. Besides creating proverbs, Solomon also collected proverbs
from other wise men. Some of them are recorded in the Book of Proverbs. As a result, the Book of
Proverbs is a collection of Solomon’s sayings and those of other wise men as well.

9 Read Proverbs 10:1-32 for 32 examples of Solomon’s sayings.

9 Look up Proverbs 30:1 and 31:1. You can skim those chapters for some of the proverbs that
Solomon collected from other wise men.
 Day 43
Ecclesiastes

The Book of Ecclesiastes philosophizes over the question, “What brings meaning and
satisfaction to life?” It describes people who are looking for meaning to life in all the wrong places.
It concludes with a statement that explains what is most important in life.
This book is one of the more difficult books of the Bible to interpret. The Bible student needs
to continuously ask himself, “In this paragraph, is the author describing what life is like with God
or without God?” He vacillates back and forth throughout the book with no introduction about what
he is thinking. You have to decide if it sounds like he is describing life with or without God based
on what he is saying.
Living for any purpose other than God’s purposes is described as vain, as meaningless, as
a chasing after the wind, as something that amounts to nothing. The book opens with these words:
"Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
What does man gain from all the pursuits he pursues under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:2-3)? After that
opening statement, the author describes several human pursuits that amount to nothing. We will get
a taste by briefly looking at three vain pursuits.
1. The pursuit of a comprehensive, philosophical explanation of life on earth is a vain
pursuit. The objective of some people in life is to create a comprehensive explanation that puts life
in perspective with the way things are. We call such people philosophers. The Book of Ecclesiastes
tells us that their pursuits are in vain.

9 Read Ecclesiastes 1:12-18.

2. The pursuit of maximum amount of pleasure we can get out of life is a vain pursuit.
The objective of some people in life is to extract as much pleasure as they can out of the time that
exists between their birth and their death. They want to eat, drink and be merry because tomorrow
they may die. The Book of Ecclesiastes tells us that their pursuits are like trying to catch the wind.

9 Read Ecclesiastes 2:1-11.

3. The pursuit of wealth is a vain pursuit. Some people have devoted their entire lives to
pursuing more and bigger and better possessions. The Book of Ecclesiastes tells us that their pursuit
amounts to nothing.

9 Read Ecclesiastes 5:8-16.

Other vain pursuits are also discussed in this book. They are all considered meaningless. At
some point in each of our lives we must come to a moment of decision: Am I going to live for God’s
purposes or my own? There is no greater pursuit in life than the pursuit of God and His purposes for
our lives. According to the Book of Ecclesiastes, this is the whole purpose of people. Listen to the
conclusion of this book:

Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing we do and say and think, whether it is good or evil
(Ecclesiastes 12:13).
 Day 44
Song of Songs

In 1 Kings 4:32 we are told that Solomon’s songs numbered a thousand and five. Of all the
songs he composed, only a handful have survived the centuries. One of his songs is a book of the
Bible called the Song of Songs. By its title we assume it was considered his greatest composition.
It is basically an opera in which a husband and wife expressing their deep attraction to each other.
What we hear is a highly sensual drama usually reserved for the privacy of a bedroom. The Bible has
it all!
This book is one of the most challenging books of the Bible to interpret. There are many
different interpretations. Why? First, Hebrew poetry is designed to give more of an emotional
impression than paint a detailed picture. There appears to be something of a story line in this book
but it is vague. Second, it is often hard to determine exactly who is singing, to whom, and about
whom. Most of this is determined by the grammar of the sentences itself. While some Bibles provide
an outline of who is speaking, this outline is not part of the original biblical text. Third, much of the
imagery of the poem is a mystery to us. For example, would a man’s wife feel loved if he told her,
“I liken you, my darling, to a mare harnessed to one of the chariots of Pharaoh” (Song of Songs
1:9). She would probably suspect he was saying that she looked like a horse and be insulted. But,
if you think about it for just a moment, a horse involved in pulling the coach of the King of Egypt
would be one of the finest horses. The husband in this opera is giving his wife a great compliment.
Fourth, it is hard to determine when a figure of speech should be taken literally, symbolically, or
remain a figure of speech. As a result, interpretations vary widely.
Many see the book as being highly symbolic. For them, the book is primarily about God’s
relationship to Israel or Christ’s relationship to His church. Even before you can draw these
analogies, however, you must see a sexual relationship between a husband and a wife. Some
interpreters, stay on the purely natural level. They see this as a romantic and sexual relationship
between a man and his wife described in highly figurative language.
On a natural level, the Song of songs is a love story between Solomon and a Shulammite
woman (6:13). The poem contains a loose flow of vignettes.
Vignette 1: As an engaged woman, the Shulammite woman expresses her desire for sexual
love. She knows that Solomon is desired by many women. She wants him to come, marry her, and
take her into his bedroom.(Song of Songs 1:2-4)
Vignette 2: She is insecure about the darkness of her skin. It is dark because her brothers,
who cared for her in the absence of a father, were angry with her because she was their mother’s
favorite child. They made her spend long hours in the sun taking care of Solomon’s vineyards that
were under their supervision. When she gets together with Solomon, he alleviates her insecurities
with his generous compliments. (Song of Songs 1:5-11)
Vignette 3: She dreams about sitting at Solomon’s table at their wedding reception. She
imagines her perfume capturing his attention and wooing him to lie between her breasts. In her
fantasy, Solomon compliments her beauty and she returns equivalent compliments to him. She
pictures them frolicking in the great outdoors with a plush meadow of green grass being their bed.
She considers it to be such a delight to be identified with him. She is hungry for his affection. She
wants to lie down with him on top of her and in his embrace. (Song of Songs 1:12-2:13)
Vignette 4: Just as foxes can destroy vineyards a little at a time, there are many things that
can destroy a love affair. Solomon and the Shulammite woman ask their friends to help them get rid
of the things that could destroy their love for each other. (Song of Songs 2:14-3:5)
Vignette 5: In those days, a groom would come and pick up the bride at an unannounced
time and bring her to his home for the wedding. As the Shulammite woman looked at the horizon,
she could see Solomon’s entourage coming to pick her up. She was to ride in an ornate and luxurious
chariot that Solomon designed specifically for this occasion. Solomon undresses his bride for the
first time and marvels at the beauty of her body. He describes her body from top to bottom. (Song
of Songs 3:6-4:7)

9Read Song of Solomon 4:1-7 at this time to get a feel for the actual text.

Vignette 6: Solomon must go away on business and wants his bride to come with him. She
does and gets a payoff in compliments. He is overtaken with emotion when he makes eye contact
with her or sees a piece of her jewelry. He gets such pleasure from kissing her and allowing his
tongue to wander in her mouth. He enjoys the scents she uses on her clothing.
While on this trip, the newlyweds engage in a conversation. He compliments her for
maintaining her virginity before they were married and for remaining faithful to him after marriage.
He expresses what a feast her body is to his senses. Knowing he feels this way, she invites him to
enjoy her body all the more. (Song of Songs 4:8-5:1)
Vignette 7: Couples in those days had separate bedrooms. One night Solomon approached
her room with sexual urges. On that particular night, she had no urges of her own. He made a second
request but she was not interested. By the time she changed her mind, her lover was gone. This made
her very sad and she set out to search for him. At last, she found him. (Song of Songs 5:2-6:3)
Vignette 8: Solomon went down to check his orchards. One bit of business led to another.
Before he knew it, he and his wife were separated. Their friends wanted the Shulammite woman and
Solomon to be together so they could behold the magic of their marriage. When reunited, she does
an erotic, mid-eastern dance for him. He is moved by the dance to compliment her femininely
features. He starts with her feet and compliments his way up her body. (Song of Songs 6:4-7:13)
Vignette 9: The Shulammite woman enjoys being highly affectionate with her husband. But
she is in public, not alone with him. In public it is culturally unacceptable for her to be as
affectionate as she wants to be. As a result, she wishes he was her brother since a person in that
culture can be more affectionate with a brother than a husband in public. (Song of Songs 7:14-8:7)
Vignette 10: Some friends have a pre-adolescent sister. They want her to enter marriage as
a virgin. They say they will lavishly reward her if she resists sexual temptations and they will greatly
restrict her if she doesn’t. The Shulammite endorses their desires. She acknowledges that she was
a virgin when she got married and that it has really enhanced the satisfaction Solomon has gotten out
of her. She was grateful for the help of her brothers in maintaining her virginity. She asks Solomon
to reward them. (Song of Songs 8:8-14)
 Day 45
The Prophets

So far, on our tour around the Word, we have given an overview of the seventeen historical
books of the Old Testament and the five poetic books. Now we will hurriedly give you an overview
of the seventeen prophetic books of the Old Testament.
A prophet is a person who receives direct revelation from God and then communicates that
message to the person or group for whom God intended it. Sometimes their prophecies contained
predictions about the future but they usually addressed a current situations.
A person did not decide on his own to become a prophet. A true prophet is a person who has
been commissioned directly by God (Isaiah 6:1-8, Jeremiah 1:4-8, Ezekiel 2:1-8).

9 Read Jeremiah 1:4–19 as an example of God calling a prophet to his work.

God called thousands of people to serve as prophets (1 Kings 19:9-18). All of them
communicated orally. Some, however, were led of the Lord to write down their prophecies and they
are included in the Bible. There were many other prophets and prophetesses who did not write books
of the Bible. Samuel, Elijah, and Elisha are three of the most famous men and Miriam, Deborah, and
Huldah are three of the more famous women.
The Old Testament prophets were around the entire span of Old Testament history. From
what is recorded in Scripture, it appears that God always had a mouthpiece who spoke for Him.
Anyone could make things up and say that he had received a revelation from God. That is
exactly what the false prophets did. Their “revelations” came right out of their own imaginations
(e.g., Jeremiah 23:16; Ezekiel 13:3). For true prophets, prophecy never had its origin in the will of
man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter1:20-21).
There were at least two tests that could be applied to a prophet to discern if he was a true
prophet or false. First, “Is the prophet’s message consistent with the Law of Moses (Deuteronomy
13:1-5)?” Second, “Was the prophet 100% accurate with his predictive prophecies?” If not, the Law
commanded that he be stoned to death (Deuteronomy 18:14-22).
God used a wide variety of methods to reveal His thoughts to His prophets. His most
common methods were visions, dreams, and direct implantation of thoughts (Numbers 12:6). Upon
occasion a prophet was in a state of unconsciousness, however, God’s revelation usually took place
in a conscious state of mind. The prophets were aware that they were speaking for the Lord and
frequently prefaced their statements with words that indicate this (Isaiah 1:1; Jeremiah 1:8, 19; 2:19;
30:11; Ezekiel 1:1; 3:14; 33:22; Amos 2:11; 4:5; 7:3; Jonah 1:1; Joel 1:1).
By their own admission they did not always understand the messages they were told to
deliver (Daniel 12:8; Zechariah 4:5). In 1 Peter 1:10-11, Concerning this salvation, the prophets,
who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying
to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he
predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
The prophets also did many strange things. A first time reader of the Bible ought to be
warned about it. For example, Hosea married a prostitute. Ezekiel publically cooked his food over
burning human feces. Isaiah walked around the city barefoot and naked. The prophets did not do
these things because they were eccentric characters. Rather, they simply did what God told them to
do and what God told them to do dramatically illustrated the points He was trying to make. Hosea’s
unfaithful wife illustrated the unfaithfulness of Israel to God. Ezekiel’s fuel aroused disgust to
illustrate how disgusted God was with the sins of the people (Ezekiel 4). Isaiah’s nakedness was
illustrative of how the kings of Egypt and Ethiopia were going to be carried away in disgrace by the
Assyrians (Isaiah 20).
 Day 46
Overview of the Prophets (Part 1)

Below you will find a list of all the prophetic books of the Old Testament. A snapshot of the
prophet’s message is stated in what follows. We have to put them in categories rather than in the
order they are arranged within your Bible.

Prophets who Wrote to Gentile Nations - Many prophets spoke messages to other nations. The
following prophesied exclusively to nations other than Israel and Judah,
During the time that kings were on the throne in both Israel and Judah, Obadiah foresaw the
doom of the nation of Edom. (You will recall that Edom grew out of the descendants of Jacob’s
brother Esau. This nation, on Judah’s border, was a frequent thorn in Judah’s side as was prophesied
at Esau’s birth.) At a time when Judah needed military help from Edom, that nation helped Judah’s
enemies. As a result, Obadiah warns them that God judges those who curse his specially chosen
people and is about to destroy them.
Jonah also prophesied during the time that both Israel and Judah had kings on their
respective thrones. He was told by God to go to the capital city of the Assyrian Empire, Nineveh. He
was told to warn the people there of God’s impending judgment upon them because of their sins. But
he resented the people of Nineveh and did not want God’s judgment to be averted. Therefore, he
tried to run away from God. Through a fascinating set of circumstances, Jonah ends up in the
stomach of a huge fish. There he prays that God will forgive him. Upon God’s forgiveness, the fish
belches Jonah up on a shore and Jonah carries God’s message to Nineveh. Surprisingly the people
repented. This upset the prophet and he went into a major depression. Through it all God teaches
Jonah and us just how compassionate He is toward those who turn to Him.
Nahum prophesied during the years that Israel was deported into Assyria and Judah still
stood as a sovereign nation. About 125 years after the people of Nineveh repented under Jonah’s
ministry, the capitol of the Assyrian Empire had become morally corrupt again. In fact, God used
these corrupt people to carry His people in Israel off into exile. This book warns these Gentiles that
God forgives those who repent and judges those who do not. He warns them that they are
dangerously close to wearing out God’s patience and that their impregnable city is about to fall at
His hand. His prophesy came to pass about a decade later when the Babylonians assumed control of
the Assyrian Empire.

Prophets who Wrote to the Nation of Israel

Amos also prophesied during the time that both Israel and Judah had kings on their respective
thrones. He was called to bring bad news during good times. Israel was enjoying a period of
prosperity and her borders were secure. Morally, however, people were greedy in heart and showed
no compassion on those who were remaining poor during the economic expansion. As a result, he
warns the people that their attempts to worship God are not from the heart. They are just an external
show of devotion. Consequently, God despises their offerings and their worship. Amos declares that
God’s judgment will soon be upon them.
Hosea was commissioned by God to prophesy during Israel’s final days before they would
be carried into exile by the Assyrians. He is one of the two prophets whose ministry was primarily
focused on the nation of Israel. (Amos is the other.) God instructed him to marry a prostitute. He
obeyed and she continued to see other men. Hosea was instructed by God to forgive her and to love
her unconditionally in spite of her adultery. All of this was to be a picture of how much God loves
Israel in spite of her spiritual adultery.
Prophets who Wrote Primarily to the Nation of Judah
Joel also prophesied during the time that both Israel and Judah had kings on their respective
thrones. He warns the people of Judah that, as a result of their sins, a day is coming when an army
is going to destroy their nation just as thoroughly and quickly as locusts can attack and destroy a field
of crops. Judah’s only hope was to repent and turn to God before it is too late.
Isaiah was commissioned by God to prophesy during Israel’s final days before they would
be carried into exile by the Assyrians. His ministry was focused on the nation of Judah although he
had plenty of warnings to other nations. Starting with the nation of Judah, and warning all the
surrounding nations, Isaiah announces God’s judgment on all and the whole world. Then the tone
changes in the closing section of his book (chapters 40-66). There he brings comfort to God’s people
and promises a glorious future history for both Israel and Judah.
Micah prophesied during Israel’s final days and about 22 years into Israel’s deportation into
Assyria. Micah was called to bring bad news to the nation of Judah during good times. The nation
was experiencing an economic boom and a moral bust. False prophets abounded. Rulers used their
power to advance their personal prosperity. The priests were greedy. The judges looked for bribes.
The needs of the widows and the poor were being ignored. Micah warned the people that God was
going to destroy them and take them into captivity on account of their sins.
Zephaniah also prophesied during the years that Israel was deported into Assyria and Judah
still stood as a sovereign nation. He warned the people of Judah that a day was coming when God
would judge them because of their sins. He warned them that God would use the Babylonian Empire
to judge them. In fact, he made graphic predictions about what was going to take place during that
time. Amazingly, what he predicted came true about 45 years later. His predictions turned out to be
shockingly accurate. He promised, however, that after this time of judgment and cleansing, God
would send the Christ and His people would again sing for joy.
Habakkuk also prophesied during the years that Israel was deported into Assyria and Judah
still stood as a sovereign nation. He had no trouble understanding that the people of Judah deserved
to be judged by God because of their sins. What he couldn’t understand is why God was going to use
a people who were morally worse than His own people to be the instruments of judgment. It didn’t
seem right and it didn’t seem fair. But God assures him that He can only do what is right even
though His ways are sometimes hard to understand from a human vantage point.
 Day 47
Overview of the Prophets (Part 2)

Prophets who wrote during Judah’s last days and the Babylonian Captivity
For 40 years Jeremiah warned the people, priests and leaders of Judah that there were going
to be severe consequences as a result of their violations of God’s moral laws. Jeremiah foresaw a
future in which the land of Judah was going to be invaded by the Babylonians, the city of Jerusalem
was going to be destroyed and the temple was going to be razed to the ground. Yet in spite of their
sins and God’s judgment, God still loved His chosen people and had wonderful plans for their future.
The obliteration of Jerusalem was a crying shame for every Jew. That is what the Book of
Lamentations is all about. The Prophet Jeremiah weeps over the destruction of Jerusalem. In the
style of a funeral song, Jeremiah expresses his horror and helplessness as he watches Jerusalem’s
people slaughtered and deported and her structures reduced to rubble. How the prophet wishes God’s
people would not have ignored all the warnings of the prophets who predicted this very day. For at
that moment in history it looked like God was all done with His specially chosen people. Yet, even
as his heart is breaking, he acknowledges that God is still a faithful and compassionate God. He
confesses that God still has a wonderful history in store for his specially chosen people. As we shall
see, the prophets promised that Israel would blossom yet again. As we shall see, Israel did during
the time between the Old and New Testaments.

Prophets who Primarily Wrote During the Babylonian Captivity

Ezekiel was one of the many people who were deported to Babylon. He was called to
confront the Jews for their sinfulness and encourages them to be faithful to God while in exile.
Ezekiel is full of symbolism. It is one of the most difficult books to interpret in the entire Bible.
Some of his visions make the book almost bizarre. Yet there is also a simplicity to it. Ezekiel wants
the Jews and the nations of the world to know that God is the one true God. Nearly 70 times the
prophet uses the phrase, “They will know that I am the LORD” (Ezekiel 6:10). He comforts the exiles
regarding the future of their nation.
Daniel was also one of the many people who were deported to Babylon. We already
discussed the first six chapters of the Book of Daniel on Day 35. It reads as a historical narrative. The
second half of the book, chapters 7-12, are quite different. The section is full of symbols and is
difficult to understand. In it Daniel shares his visions of the prophetic future especially as it relates
to His people. He foresaw the fall of the Babylonian Empire as well as the rise and fall of the
Persian, Greek and Roman empires. He foresaw terrible days of trouble for God’s chosen people as
well as a glorious future for them. These things were all future at the time of his writing.

Prophets who Wrote after Judah Returned from Captivity

Haggai made some passionate pleas devised to arouse the people to finish the temple. He
pleaded with the people to renew their commitment in the Lord and their courage to complete His
work. He reminded them that God is sovereign and has a wonderful future in mind for them.
God gave Zechariah a different kind of message that accomplished the same goal. Zechariah
inspires the Jews to finish the task by reminding them of the important role the temple will play in
the future when the Christ comes and resides in it. He informs them that this coming blessing is
contingent on the way they act in the present. With a future outlook as their incentive, they are to
complete the building of God’s House with unreserved enthusiasm.
Malachi is the last of the prophets of God whose messages get recorded in this last book of
the Old Testament. He prophesied after Haggai and Zechariah in the days when Nehemiah was
rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. He warned the people that God was going to judge them if they
rejected his word. His messages confront corruption in the priesthood, sinful practices in the people,
and a false sense of security the Jews had in thinking that they were acceptable to God simply on the
grounds that they were His specially chosen people. Using a question and answer format, he
confronts idolatry, marriage to pagans, adultery, divorce, the lack of tithing and pride in the people.
The book predicts that an Elijah-like prophet will come just before the revealing of the Christ.

The Message of the Prophets

As you can see, the messages God gave to the prophets are varied. Often God was
confronting people about their sin and calling them to repentance (Isaiah 58:1; Ezekiel 22:2; 43:10;
Micah 3:8). The messages contained the promise of divine blessing if they repented and the promise
of divine judgment if they didn’t. Often God told the people of His willingness to forgive them and
restore them into fellowship with Himself (Isaiah 54:10). Sometimes He consoled His people
through the prophets (Isaiah 40:1-2). Sometimes He told leaders how to prepare for approaching
dangers (Ezekiel 3:17; 33:7-9, Jeremiah 6:17; Isaiah 62:6).
Often He foretold some of the future through the prophets. In fact, most of the prophets
predicted some things about the future even though most of their message had to do with present
conditions. For example, Hosea predicted that Israel was going to be carried away into captivity by
the Assyrians (Hosea 9:3). Micah predicted that Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem would be completely
destroyed (Micah 3:12). Jeremiah predicted that Judah would be carried away into captivity in
Babylon (Jeremiah 13:19) and then that the people would return to their homeland after 70 years of
captivity in Babylon (Jeremiah 25:11; 29:10). Isaiah predicted that after the 70 years of captivity that
the Jews would return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and the temple (Isaiah 44:28). And many of
the prophets foretold events pertaining to the identity of the coming Christ which turned out to be
Jesus the Christ.
 Day 48
Between Testaments

Between the Old and New Testaments of the Bible lies a period of about 400 years. This
period is often called “the 400 silent years” because God did not speak at that time through a
prophet. After the prophet Malachi, God did not begin to speak again until the ministry of a prophet
named John.
Although it is not contained in the Bible, some understanding of what took place during this
time gives us helpful insight into the background of the New Testament.

Communities
The Jews from the ten tribes of Israel never returned to their former homeland. They
remained scattered all over the Persian Empire. Where there were adequate numbers, they formed
Jewish communities within their cities. Many Jews became well integrated into their foreign cities.
Some even attained positions of prominence. On the other hand, the displaced Jews of the world
have always faced a great deal of sporadic antisemitism. In time the Jews emigrated from one Jewish
community to another. They usually emigrated to improve their lives or to escape antisemitism.

Synagogues
Wherever there were ten Jewish families living in a city, they felt compelled to start a
synagogue. There they heard the reading of the Word of God on the Sabbath day, received instruction
in the Law, and encouraged one another to be faithful to God.
Each synagogue had a few elders who oversaw the organization. They sometimes had other
officers as well. The ruler of the synagogue organized the worship and made sure nothing improper
took place in the assemblies. The minister gave religious instruction. The elderly and more mature
members often served as a steering committee. When able, the congregation would sometimes build
facilities of their own in which to meet. Some facilities were rather simple and functional while
others were ornate and figured prominently into a city’s landscape. These synagogues would play
a key role in the spread of Christ’s message as we will see when we survey the Book of Acts and the
starting of local churches followed the pattern of starting synagogues in many ways.

Succession of Five Great Empires

We have already seen in our survey of Bible history how the Assyrian Empire fell to the
Babylonians and the Babylonian Empire fell to the Persians. During these 400 silent years, the
Persian Empire fell to the Greeks as the prophet Daniel predicted.
The rebuilt nation of Israel was subject to the Greek Empire except that in 167 B.C., Israel
shook off the domination for a time under the leadership of the Hasmonean Family Dynasty (Perhaps
you have heard of the famous Judas Macabees who was a part of this family dynasty.) Those were
some of the most glorious years in the entire history of the nation of Israel. During this era, Israel
achieved some of the grandness of the days of David and Solomon.
In time the Greek Empire fell to the Romans and in 63 B.C. Israel was made subject to the
Romans. The whole of the New Testament history (A.D. 4-90) takes place under the Roman Empire,
which lasted until about A.D. 500.

Pharisees and Sadducees

During the time of the Greek Empire, in the days of Israel’s independence, two religious
parties arose–the Pharisees and the Sadducees. They both play a significant role in the life and
ministry of the Christ and His apostles.
The Sadducees were people of wealth, power, and prestige. While they regarded the Law of
Moses as their only constitution, their concerns were more civil, legal, and political than religious.
Because the Law of Moses made no mention of an afterlife, the Sadducees questioned whether or
not there was an afterlife and became focused on this earthly life. They benefitted greatly from their
close relationship with the Greeks and Romans.
The Pharisees consisted of experts in the Law of Moses. They knew all 613 commands of
the Law of Moses and what all the rabbis taught about the application of each law. They were
obsessed with ceremonial purity. Those who maintained enough ceremonial purity to please God
would go to heaven. Those who did not, would go to hell. Driven by such motivations they looked
at political issues from a religious standpoint. They opposed cooperation with Greek and Roman rule
because these pagan powers were perceived as a major hindrance to living pure lives. They resented
paying taxes to heathen governments.

The Sanhedrin
During the time of the Greek Empire, the Sanhedrin arose. This body consisted of 70 men
who served as the rulers over the nation of Israel. The vast majority of the men were Sadducees and
there were a number of Pharisees among them. The High Priest of Israel served as its presiding
officer.
During times of autonomy from Gentile oppression, the body ruled supremely. However,
during times of subjection, the body ruled to the extent they were allowed. The Romans, for
example, permitted them to take care of their own internal affairs and religious disputes in Judah.
As we shall see, the Sanhedrin was a significant body in the life and ministry of the Christ and His
apostles.

The Greek Language

The Greek Empire is credited with giving the civilized world a universal language. While
everyone retained their local dialects, Greek became the common language of the entire empire.
Classical Greek became the language of the politicians and the educated. The people had a
marketplace Greek which they used on a daily basis.

The Roman Roads

Roads were evolving since the beginning of mankind. The Roman Empire is credited with
building new roads, improving existing road systems and making roads safe to travel throughout the
entire empire.

Conclusion
Even though God was silent in terms of the prophets, He was at work preparing the world
for the coming of Jesus the Christ and the rapid spread of the Good News concerning the Christ. As
it says in Galatians 4:4-5, . . . when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman,
born under law, to redeem those under law . . .
 Day 49
The Gospels

Welcome to the New Testament! We hope you enjoyed your tour of the Old Testament. As
we observed on Day 1 of this tour, the New Testament consists of 27 books. The first five are books
of history, the next 21 are letters, and the last one is a book of prophecy. The first four books of
history are called “the Gospels.”
The word, “gospel,” means “good message.” The good message they record is that God sent
His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world so that we who were eternally condemned might be reconciled
to God by trusting Him to be our Savior. These four books record the historical facts related to our
reconciliation and the New Testament letters deal with the meaning of those historical facts.
There are four gospels. Each of the Gospel writers uses different materials in his portrayal
of Jesus Christ. One scholar calculated that the four Gospels have 53 segments that they share in
common. Matthew has 42 unique segments that are not included in the other Gospels, Luke has 59,
Mark has only 7, and John has 92 unique segments. Having four Gospels gives a fuller sense of the
work of Christ yet what they share in common assures us that the writers are talking about the same
person. Each writer was trying to persuade different people.
Matthew is writing to Jewish people. He is trying to convince them that Jesus is the Messiah
promised by the Old Testament prophets. His account is full of quotes and predictions from the
prophets. He makes more frequent references to the Law of Moses than do the other writers. He uses
many more Jewish expressions in his account. Scholars have observed how he quotes from the
Hebrew Bible whereas the other three writers quote from a Greek translation of the Hebrew. It is
obvious that he is writing to the Jews.
Mark is writing to Romans. He portrays the Lord Jesus as a swift acting and mighty
conqueror. He is a victor over Satan, sin, sickness, and death.
Luke is writing to Greeks. He wants to convince them that Jesus is the most extraordinary
person that ever lived. According to Luke, the excellencies found in Christ’s character are
unsurpassed. The degree of His love and compassion for people can be found in no one else. As a
physician, Luke takes a special interest in the Christ’s mercies and miracles of healing. Being an
educated man, the breadth of Luke’s vocabulary can observed by Bible scholars.
John is writing to people who are Christians. He wants to strengthen their faith that the Lord
Jesus is the God-man predicted to come in the Old Testament.
Each author selects his material and writes according to what best suits his readers and
purpose. Each has a general chronology in his account even though they did not all write
chronologically as modern historians tend to do. There is a general chronology to what Matthew
wrote, but his account is arranged more topically than chronologically. For example, it is unlikely
that the Lord Jesus spoke all of His parables together at the same time as one might think when
reading chapter 13 of Matthew’s Gospel. Yet Matthew puts them all together because he arranges
things more topically than chronologically. He chooses his material and writes according to what
best suits his readership and purpose. On the other hand, Mark’s account is more chronological than
topical. It was Luke’s stated purpose to be chronological (Luke 1:1-4). And John, like Matthew was
more topical than chronological. Each author selected his material according to the mind-set of his
readers.
When modern readers carefully contrast the four Gospels, they notice that the authors agree
on most of the details but have apparent differences in their accounts. Some, not understanding that
each was writing to a different audience, have accused the Gospels of being contradictory. Think for
a moment. When you examine the notes a class of students takes on a lecture, you find common
material and unique material in everyone’s notes. When you compare the eyewitness reports of a
crime or accident, you find common and unique material. When you compare the biographies
written about a person, each biographer has common and unique material. Likewise, when you
examine the four Gospels, you find material they share in common and materials in which they
differ. Each person is alert to the details that serve his purposes.
When a researcher, author, or investigator wants to harmonize the various accounts he has
heard, he assumes each person is telling the truth from their perspective unless there is compelling
evidence to suggest otherwise. He does not assume that an incomplete report is a false report. His
goal is to merge the reports together as best he can, not to list as many contradictions as he can find.
When he takes such an approach, he finds that “contradictions” are not true contradictions, but are
actually complimentary accounts. When we apply this same approach to the Gospels, we find the
same thing. Each author chose the material they included on the basis of their purpose in writing to
their individual audiences.
There are books that specifically help people deal with the harmonization of such issues. A
most helpful work is The Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties by Gleason L. Archer. My only purpose
in mentioning this is so that you are not caught off guard when you think you have spotted a
contradiction in the Gospels.
 Day 50
The Eternal Existence of Christ

9 Read John 1:1-3 and notice what it says about the eternal existence of Christ. If desirous of other
references highlighting the fact that Jesus Christ has existed forever see John 8:55-59 (especially
verse 58); John 17:5, 24; and Revelation 22:13.

There are groups, like the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who teach that God first created Jesus Christ
and then created all else through Him. They base this false teaching on Colossians 1:15-16 which
says that Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him
all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or
powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.
They treat the word firstborn as if it means “first-created.” In the Scriptures, the Greek word
for firstborn is protokos. It can have a literal meaning or a figurative meaning. Literally, it means the
first child born of a set of parents. Figuratively, it means a person of top rank or supremacy. The
word firstborn is used nine times in the New Testament. Three times the literal meaning is intended
(Matthew 1:25, Luke 2:7 and Hebrews 11:28) and every other usage is figurative (Romans 8:29;
Colossians 1:18; Hebrews 1:6; 12:23; Revelation 1:5). The question is which usage fits best into the
context of Colossians 1:15-16. Is the author trying to establish the fact that the Christ is the first-
created creature or that He has supremacy over the universe? The context makes it clear that he is
trying to demonstrate that Christ has supremacy over the universe. Therefore, he intends firstborn
to be taken figuratively.
Besides selecting the wrong use of firstborn, the Jehovah’s Witnesses give the wrong
meaning to the literal usage of firstborn. They treat the word as if it meant “first-created.” It never
does! And if Paul wanted to portray the Lord Jesus as the first-created being, he would have used
the perfect Greek word which was available to him, protoktistos.
Someone once said, “Poor habits in one area of life usually manifest themselves in other
areas as well.” This is certainly true of the way the Jehovah’s Witnesses interpret Scripture. They
give their followers the impression that they have an advantage over others because they know some
of the Greek words behind the English Bible. In fact, they are very sloppy in their use of Greek. It
is obvious that they give words meanings that fit their predetermined belief system. What they do
with Colossians 1:15 is what they do with many Scriptures.
There are many religious groups of which we should be wary. They go under the banner of
“Christian” but they have many teachings that contradict the long standing and fundamental
teachings of the Christian faith. The eternality of Jesus Christ is one such doctrine! Their teachings
remind me of rat poison. Rat poison is 95% nutritious food and 5% poison; but that 5% is lethal.
Likewise, false teachers can be 95% truth and 5% error; but that 5% can condemn a person to hell
forever. We would include the Christadelphians, Christian Scientists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Masons,
Mormons, Unitarians, Unification Church, Unity School of Christianity, Universalists, Way
International and many other groups in this category. They are what we call pseudo-Christian cults.
They present a “gospel” other than the one presented in the Scriptures.
Christ’s apostle Paul was concerned about the way the Christians in the region of Galatia
were nearly being deceived by false teachings that was 95% truth and 5% falsehood. He said to them,
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and
are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are
throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel
from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally
condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel
other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned (Galatians 1:6-10)!
 Day 51
Christ’s Birth

In a previous study we have already seen that there are about 300 predictions by the Old
Testament prophets regarding the earthly life and ministry of the Christ. These prophecies help us
identify the Promised One. Clearly, Jesus is the Promised Christ.
When it came time for the Eternal One to enter earthly life, the angel Gabrielle appeared to
a woman named Mary who was espoused to a man named Joseph. Gabrielle informed her that God
had chosen her to bring the Promised Savior into the world. He informed her that the Holy Spirit was
going to supernaturally fertilize one of her ova without the aid of a man.
Soon thereafter, the virgin Mary, became pregnant. She immediately traveled to the house
of a relative named Elizabeth who was sixth months pregnant herself. Elizabeth, and her husband
Zechariah, were well past the natural years of childbearing. God had also done a miracle for them.
An angel had appeared to Zechariah one day when he was doing his priestly duties in the temple. The
angel informed him that his wife was going to have a baby and that he was to name the baby “John.”
God also informed Zechariah that his son would be the forerunner of the Christ.
In those days, kings had people who went before them to announce that a king would soon
be visiting their village. The city or town was tidied and the records at city hall were all put in order.
John’s mission was to tell people to prepare for their coming of Jesus the Christ.
As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice the child within her leaped for joy and Elizabeth
prophesied these words: Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!
(Luke 1:42). Mary stayed with Elizabeth for three months. John was born shortly after she left.
When Mary returned to Nazareth she had to inform Joseph of all that had transpired. He did
not know what to make of it. In the end he decided to divorce her in the least embarrassing way
possible. It was then that an angel appeared to him and ordered him to marry Mary and name the
child Jesus which means Savior. He did as he was told.
In the eighth month of Mary’s pregnancy, the Roman Emperor decreed that everyone in his
empire had to go to their cities of origin to be counted in a census. In spite of the lateness of her
pregnancy, Joseph and Mary had to travel to Bethlehem–a three-day trip.
When they arrived in Bethlehem, the narrow cobbled streets were mobbed with nameless
faces. And, sure enough, there was no room in the boardinghouse. They looked everywhere for
lodging in the city but finally had to settle for an animal stable outside the city. In Bethlehem, Mary
went into labor and the baby was born. As the angels had foretold, it was a boy. They wrapped the
newborn in strips of cloth and placed him in a feeding trough.
As Joseph and Mary were thinking about all that had happened, the entrance of the stable was
suddenly silhouetted by some unusually excited shepherds. They had somehow heard that a baby was
born in a stable and they wanted to see him.
They told the proud parents how an angel of the Lord had appeared to them. After quelling
their fears, the angel told them that the Promised Christ had been born that very night. He told them
that they could see the child. He also told them that they would know that they found the right infant
when they found one who was wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a feeding trough.

9 Read about the birth of Christ as recorded in Luke 2:1-20.

In accordance with the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took the child to the temple to be
circumcised when He was eight days old. Then and there they gave him the name “Jesus” which
means “savior.”
The Lord Jesus was born between the census of Quirinius (Luke 2:2,3) and the death of
Herod the Great (Matthew 2:1). Therefore, Jesus was born between 6 B.C. and April 11, 4 B.C.
 Day 52
Christ’s Childhood

The Bible does not say much about the childhood of the Lord Jesus. In this study you will
examine everything the Bible does say.
In ancient times, there existed a fraternity of scholars. Together, they had a broad knowledge
of science, astronomy, astrology, religion, mathematics, history, and politics. They served as advisors
to the kings of Babylon and Persia. They were called Magi. The Prophet Daniel was a member of
this elite group. Perhaps his prophecies caused the Magi to anticipate the coming of a world ruler.
One day, as they were engaged in their observations of the heavens, they noticed a new and
exceptional star in the west. It was probably not noticeable to the average observer. Somehow they
determined that it indicated the coming of the Christ the King of whom the Old Testament prophets
spoke. Perhaps that was their interpretation of the prophecy in Numbers 24:17 that said, A star will
come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. In any case, they wanted to show their respect
to the newborn king.
Each night they looked for that special star to guide them on their way. After a time the star
disappeared, so they went to Jerusalem to inquire of the people where their new king was born. The
people did not know what they were talking about and King Herod, Rome’s appointed ruler over
Israel for about 40 years, felt threatened by the newborn. He wanted to know the time and place of
His birth so he could kill Him. To discern the birthplace, he summoned the Jewish scholars who
turned to ah 5:2. They informed him that the King was to be born in Bethlehem. To find out the time
of the birth, he inquired of the Magi.
With much pretense, he asked the Magi to make a meticulous search for this newborn and
to let him know where He was so he could show him respect. They agreed to do so.
As soon as they began the six-mile trek to Bethlehem, that exceptional star reappeared in the
sky and led them to a specific house. In the house they found Joseph, Mary and the toddler. Joseph
and Mary were undoubtedly surprised by the visit but made quick sense out of it all.
The entourage of Magi (the exact number being unknown) entered the house and
demonstrated their respect by bowing down to the King and by presenting expensive gifts fit for a
king. Jesus was too young to take possession of the gifts Himself. His parents undoubtedly became
the custodians of those gifts.
As the Magi left the house to return to Herod, they were warned by God in a dream not to go
back to Herod. They returned to Persia by a route that did not require them to travel through
Jerusalem. When Herod realized that they reneged on their agreement, he became a raving lunatic
and ordered his military to kill every male child two years old and under in the vicinity of Bethlehem.
The only reason Jesus was not killed was that one of the Lord’s angels appeared to Joseph in a dream
and warned him to flee to Egypt. For the next 12 months, this holy family lived in Egypt.
Presumably, they converted the expensive gifts presented to Jesus into cash to cover their expenses.
After Herod died, the angel appeared to Joseph again and told Him that it was now safe to return
home As they were making their way back to Jerusalem, a passerby informed them that Herod’s son
was now reigning in Judea in place of his fatherph was afraid to return to Bethlehem and was led of
the Lord to return to his hometown of Nazareth.
All Bible students can know about Jesus between the ages of 2 and 11 is contained in Luke
2:40. It says, And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of
God was upon him.

9 We then catch a glimpse of Jesus at age 12 when His family attended a Passover celebration in
Jerusalem. Read about it in Luke 2:41-52. Verses 51-52 will tell you everything we can know about
Jesus between the ages of 13 and 30.
 Day 53
Christ’s Baptism and Temptation

The Baptism of Christ

John was a relative of Jesus. He was also a prophet of God. In fact, he was the first prophet
of God to speak since Malachi. He broke the so called “400 years of silence.” He knew that Jesus
was the Promised Christ.
At God’s command, John started telling people to prepare their hearts for the soon-to-come
Promised Christ. When people repented and believed John’s message, God wanted them to be
immersed by John in the Jordan River. Thousands of people responded to his message and were
baptized. In time, he became known as John the Baptizer.
One day Jesus appeared before John to be baptized. At first John refused to baptize Him. He
knew that Jesus was the Christ and that he was merely a prophet. He told Jesus that he needed to be
baptized by Him and not vice versa. Besides, John said, Jesus had committed no sins of which He
needed to repent. Jesus insisted that He be baptized in order that He might fully comply with the will
of God.
When John immersed Him, as He was coming out of the water, the clouds separated and the
Holy Spirit came down upon Jesus looking like a dove and settling upon Him. A voice from heaven
was heard saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

The Temptation of Christ

9 Read about the temptation of Christ in Matthew 4:1-13.

For centuries theologians have wrestled over whether or not Jesus could have sinned. I’ll just
tell you what makes the most sense to me.
God cannot be tempted to do evil because nothing within Him is attracted to evil (James
1:13). Jesus Christ is God. Therefore, Jesus Christ could not be tempted to sin because nothing
within Him was drawn toward sin. The temptation of Christ, in my opinion, demonstrates the
sinlessness and deity of Jesus Christ to Satan, demons, angels, and people. Jesus Christ never sinned
and didn’t possess the desire to sin.
According to Hebrews 4:15, Jesus Christ is not a high priest who is unable to sympathize
with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was
without sin.
This raises some very good questions: If Jesus couldn’t sin, was He really tempted? Doesn’t
being tempted imply that one could potentially yield? Could Christ sympathize with our struggles
against sin if He did not have His own?
While all admit that Jesus Christ was God and did not have a sin nature prone to sin, some
think He could have self-generated sin in His human nature in the way that Adam and Eve self-
generated sin in the days of their innocence.
There are many complicated theological and semantical issues involved in answering these
questions. This may be another of those questions that we cannot fully answer. Perhaps this is
another mystery we cannot fully resolve.

For a map related to the events of the ministry of Jesus Christ, see Appendix 6.
 Day 54
Christ’s Ministry Begins

Jesus was about 30 years old when He began His ministry (Luke 3:23). Most scholars see
four annual Passover Celebrations recorded in the Gospels during the time of His ministry (John
2:13, 23; possibly Matthew 12:1-8; John 6:4; 11:55-12:1). On the basis of these verses, Bible
scholars believe His ministry on earth lasted about three and one-half years.
By doing a comparative study of the various Gospel accounts, one arrives at the following
outline for the ministry of Christ. The timing of these things is based on the speculations of
scholars as they take the known dates of events and work with the unknown.

4 In the first few days of His public ministry, Jesus gathered six disciples around
months Himself. They spend then next four months traveling together.
About 4 Jesus and His new disciples separated. The disciples returned to their commercial
months fishing. Jesus continued His ministry traveling alone.
10 Jesus invites his disciples to follow Him again. They responded immediately and
months did a ten-month stint with the Lord.
Several Jesus and His disciples separate again. They returned to their commercial fishing
weeks and He works alone.
20 Jesus invites his disciples to follow Him again. This time they would do a twenty-
months month stint with the Lord.
Final The last week of the earthly life of Christ saw Him riding on a donkey, being
week crucified, coming back to life and making several appearances to His followers.
40 days Over the course of the next 40 days, Jesus would appear and reappear to His
followers, until at last He gave them the Great Commission and ascended to
heaven.

9 Read about the first two days of Christ’s ministry in John 1:29-51.

One day as John was doing his work of evangelizing and baptizing, he looked up and saw
Jesus from a distance walking straight at him. He informed two of his followers, John and
Andrew that Jesus was the coming one that he had been telling them about.
At that moment, Andrew and John left John the Baptizer and became followers of the
Christ. They spent the better part of that day with Jesus.
As each went his own way, the first thing Andrew did was find his brother, Peter, and
introduce him to the Christ. Presumably, John shared his report of the day with his brother
James.
On the second day of His public ministry, Jesus introduced Himself to a man named
Philip. We also assume that Philip then found his friend, Nathanael, and told him about the
Christ.
By the end of His second day of public ministry, Jesus has six followers who believed He
is the Promised Christ of the Old Testament. These first six disciples were later appointed as six
of His twelve apostles.
 Day 55
The Four Month Stint

On the third day of His public ministry, Jesus invited His six new disciples to travel thirty
miles with Him to attend the wedding feast of a relative in Cana. They accepted His invitation. It
was at this wedding that Jesus performed His first miracle by turning water into wine. He would
go on in the three and a half years that followed to perform hundreds of miracles (John 21:25).
The four Gospels record 42 miracles that the Lord Jesus did. (See Appendix 3 for a list.)
The primary purpose of His miracles was to show His deity (John 20:30, 31). In them, He
demonstrated that He had authority over nature, disease, disabilities, death and demons. Their
secondary purpose was to show compassion on human suffering.
After the wedding, Jesus went to the city of Capernaum with His mother, earthly brothers,
and His six disciples (John 2:12). They spent a few days there. (After the childhood of Jesus you
never hear any more about Joseph. Presumably he died before Jesus turned thirty.) Then the
Lord planned to travel 100 miles to Judea to participate in a Passover celebration. He invited His
six disciples to travel with Him. They accepted. On that trip to and from Jerusalem Jesus did
many things. He angrily cleansed the temple for the first time (John 2:13-22). (He would do it
again three years later in the last week of His earthly life.) He performed many miracles (John
2:23-25). He conversed with a man named Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin who later
became a secret believer in the Christ, about being born again (John 3:1-21). He evangelized the
multitudes and baptized the many who believed (John 3:22; 4:1-2).
The Lord Jesus decided to leave Judea and return to Galilee when He heard that John the
Baptizer was killed by Herod (John 4:3). Back in those days Jews traveling from Judea to Galilee
circumvented Samaria by traveling through Perea. That is because the Jews despised the
Samaritans who were a Jewish-Gentile mix racially, culturally, and religiously (John 4:9). Yet
John 4:4 tells us that Jesus was compelled to pass through the region of Samaria on His return to
Galilee. There was a Samaritan woman there who was ready to accept Jesus as Christ and she
would be used of God to bring numerous Samaritans to faith in Him.

9 Read about her in John 4:4-42.

Jesus spent two days in Samaria (John 4:40). What a lesson this must have been to His
Jewish disciples about His intentions to love and reach out to all peoples with the Good News.
After this four month tour together, Jesus and His new disciples returned home to Galilee
(John 4:43-45). The disciples returned to their commercial fishing and Jesus Christ continued His
ministry traveling alone. During this time He began His teaching ministry in the synagogues
(Matthew 4:17; Luke 4:15). He would travel from synagogue to synagogue commenting on the
Scripture readings. He taught the people to turn away from their sin and turn to God because the
Christ would soon establish His kingdom.
One day Jesus attended a synagogue service in His hometown of Nazareth. He was
invited to read the Scriptures for that service. He read Isaiah 61:1-2 which is a passage about how
the Promised Christ of the Old Testament would one day come and deliver people from their
desperate situations. When it came time for Him to comment on the passage he began by saying,
Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing (Luke 4:21). The more the people listened to
what He said, the angrier they got. Jesus’ message implied that He was the Promised Christ.
They were so angry that they were going to kill Jesus, but He managed to escape through natural
means. No longer welcome in Nazareth, Jesus moved His base of operation to the city of
Capernaum (Matthew 4:13-16). He probably worked out of Peter’s home which was located
there.
 Day 56
The Ten Month Stint

9 Read Mark 1:16-20.

When reading Mark 1:16-20, you get the impression that Jesus walked up to people, had a
mesmerizing affect on them, and they followed Him. Because of your awareness of the four
month stint that preceded this stint, you know that He was approaching men He already knew
and who already knew Him. After allowing His disciples to go home and to think things over for
several weeks, He again invited them to follow Him. This time, they went on a ten-month stint
with the Lord, six months longer than the last one.
During this tour Jesus healed hundreds of people and cast demons out of many who were
possessed by them (Mark 1:21-34). He and His disciples traveled throughout the entire region of
Galilee evangelizing in synagogue after synagogue (Mark 1:35-39). The disciples saw people
believe in Jesus as the Christ and be baptized as followers of Him. They watched Jesus get
embroiled in controversies with the religious leaders and cope with severe hostilities.
Jesus was seen as a threat to the Sanhedrin, scribes, high priest, Sadducees, Pharisees and
Herodians. Very few religious and civil leaders believed Jesus was the Christ. The religious
leaders and Herodians sought His arrest and death during the course of His three and one-half
years of ministry. In the end, they succeeded—temporarily (John 4:1-3; 7:32-52; 10:22-39;
11:45-54; 12:42, 43; 18:2-3; Luke 22:54, 66-71; 23:1-5; Matthew 27:61-66). The Sadducees and
Pharisees resented His claims to deity (Luke 5:17-26; John 5:18), the company He kept (Luke
5:29-32; 7:36-50; 15;1-32), His disregard for their meticulous interpretations of the Law of
Moses (Matthew 19:1-12; Lk. 6:1-11; Luke 14:1-24; John 8:1-11), His disregard for the
traditions of the elders (Matthew 15:1-20), His frequent teachings against them (Matthew 5:20;
16:5-12; 21:28-46; 22:1-14; 23:1-36; Mark 8:15; Luke 7:29-35; 12:1; 14:1-24; 16:14-31; 18:10-
14), His refusal to give them a sign (Matthew 12:38-45; 15:39-16:4), and His ability to win
debates against them in public (Matthew 22:34-50; Luke 17:20-21; 20:20-40).
After this ten month tour, Jesus and His disciples separated again. We are not sure how
long they were separated, but it must have been several weeks. The disciples returned to their
commercial fishing and the Lord worked alone. We are not sure what His ministry involved
during these several weeks. Presumably He continued to travel and evangelize in synagogue after
synagogue.
 Day 57
The Twenty Month Stint

9 Read Luke 5:1-11. Keep in mind that they had already spent about fourteen months traveling
and working together. This event marks the beginning of a twenty-month tour.

On this tour, Jesus and His disciples primarily traveled and worked in the region of
Galilee. They did, however, make a trip to Jerusalem for a Passover Celebration the year before
Jesus’ death and spent time together in the region of Perea. There the Lord spent hours teaching
His disciples and preparing them for His death and the ministries they would have after His
death.
Many significant events took place during this stint. We will only mention some of the
major ones. It was during this time that the Lord called a tax collector named Matthew to be one
of His disciples (Luke 5:27-32). What kind of relationship the Lord Jesus had with Matthew
before issuing this call is not recorded in Scripture. All we know is that Matthew got up, left his
lucrative position, and followed Jesus.
From among His thousands of disciples, the Lord Jesus appointed twelve to the office of
an apostle (Luke 6:12-16). An apostle is a specially chosen individual who is sent out with a
message by an important person. An ambassador would be a good synonym of an apostle. Just as
the Old Covenant people of God were founded upon the lineage of the twelve tribes of Israel, the
New Covenant people of God were to be founded upon the spiritual lineage of the twelve
apostles of Christ. (See Appendix 4 for a brief biographical sketch of each apostle.)
In Matthew 9:35 we read, Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their
synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness.
When you consider that there were about 200 towns and villages in Galilee, you realize what an
ambitious man He was.
At one point, the Lord Jesus sent out His twelve apostles to evangelize (Matthew 10).
They were to go out in pairs. They could go anywhere they found Jewish people. They were to
inform them that the Christ was about to establish His kingdom. He also gave them supernatural
power to heal the sick and cast out demons. While they were on tour, He toured alone. At the
assigned time and place they all met again and resumed their ministry together.
On one occasion Jesus taught a large group of people all day. Come evening, the crowd
was hungry and the disciples advised the Lord Jesus to send the people away to get some food.
Jesus instructed them to feed the crowd. They were baffled. Where would they get enough food
to feed so many? In responding to the Lord they alluded to a boy in the crowd who had five
loaves of bread and two fish. The Lord Jesus requested that the boy’s food be brought to Him. He
miraculously kept breaking and multiplying it. In the end He fed 5000 men as well as their wives
and children. (Matthew 14:15-21)
His popularity immediately soared. The crowd wanted to crown Him King of Israel right
then and there. It appears that the His apostles favored the idea but the Lord knew it was not yet
time for Him to become King. As a result, He forced the Apostles into a boat and told them to
meet Him on the other side of the lake. He then dispersed the crowds and went up a mountain to
pray. (John 6:14-15; Matthew 14:22-23) Meanwhile, the Apostles were straining at the oars on
the water. They were caught in a storm and, as hard as they tried, they could make no progress.
They were certain they were going to die. After praying, Jesus came to them walking on the
water. At first they thought it was a ghost. Jesus assured them that it was He. Peter asked the
Lord to invite him to walk on the water if it was really Him. The Lord invited him to come. Peter
managed to walk several steps on the water before a lack of faith caused him to sink. The Lord
walked Peter back to the boat. As soon as the two stepped into the boat the winds died down
instantaneously. (Matthew 14:24-33)
 Jesus left Galilee for a time and stepped into Gentile territory. There, a Gentile woman,
knowing of Jesus’ reputation as a healer, asked Him to heal her demon-possessed daughter. Jesus
did. In so doing, He demonstrated the fact that the Gentiles had a place in His heart. While the
spread of the Good News would begin among the Jews, clearly His intentions were global. Jesus
really does love all the peoples of the world. (Matthew 15:21-28).
On one occasion Jesus took His apostles Peter, James, and John up a mountain. There,
before their eyes, He was transfigured. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as
white as the light. They saw Jesus in a temporary display of His glory. After this experience, He
commanded them to tell no one about what they had seen until after His resurrection from the
dead. (Matthew 17:1-9)
On another occasion Jesus fed 4000 men besides women and children. The feeding of the
5000 took place in Galilee. This feeding took place in Perea. (Matthew 15:32-38)
Also, on another occasion Jesus selected seventy of His disciples and sent them out in
pairs. He gave them His itinerary and had them inform people that He was coming. This time
their ministry seemed to focus on the region of Judea. After giving them a head start, Jesus went
from town to town and evangelized and performed His wonders. When they all met again after
the trip, the disciples were ecstatic over what they had experienced. ( Luke 10:1-16)
 Day 58
The Final Week (Part 1)

In the final months of His earthly ministry, the Lord prepared His disciples for His
departure repeatedly informing them that He was going to be betrayed, crucified, and resurrected.
Though warned, they did not hear what He was saying. They believed this Jesus was the Christ
and that He was going to set up a geographical-political kingdom on this earth. They thought He
missed a great opportunity after the feeding of the five thousand. They just reasoned that He was
going to do it in His own time and in a strange way. It was unimaginable to them that He was
setting up a spiritual kingdom. It was inconceivable to them that the Christ could and would be
crucified. They were unprepared for the final week of His earthly life.
What follows is a traditional outline of the events and days of that final week. While
relatively reliable, there is some disagreement over what happened on what day. I only mention
this because false teachers criticize the commemoration of such days as Palm Sunday, Maundy
Thursday, Good Friday, and Resurrection Sunday on the basis of their understanding of the
chronology. They only get pedantic to lift up their own cause. Keep in mind that the events
themselves are more important than the exact day upon which they occurred.
Sunday: Jesus triumphantly enters Jerusalem (Mark 11:1-11)
The Lord Jesus resolved to go to His final Passover celebration in Jerusalem, in spite of
the fact that this trip would mean His death. He sent two of His disciples when He was just
outside of Jerusalem to acquire a donkey that He could use to ride into the city.

9 Read Mark 11:7-10. Notice how the people were ready to crown Him as their king.

Monday: Cleansed the temple for a second time (Mark 11:15-17)

Like every Jew visiting Jerusalem for the Passover, the Lord Jesus and His apostles went
to the temple. There, the Lord Jesus got angry at the merchants and moneychangers for cheating
the people. He shouted, Is it not written: "'My house will be called a house of prayer for all
nations’? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.” Then He started turning over money tables,
setting animals free and driving people out of the area. The religious leaders, who benefitted
financially from the merchandising, were extremely angry with the Lord Jesus. They would have
arrested Him right then and there, except that the Lord Jesus was so popular with the people that
they feared they would start a rebellion if they tried.
Wednesday: Judas plotted with Sanhedrin (Mark 14:1,2,10,11)
The religious leaders were looking for a way to arrest the Lord out of the public’s view.
They caught a break when Judas Iscariot, an apostle of Christ, secretly went to the religious
leaders with an offer to secretly turn the Lord Jesus over to them. Pleased, they offered him thirty
pieces of silver and he accepted. Everyone now waited for a good opportunity to arrest Him.
Judas is one of the greatest mysteries of the Bible. There was a day when he, like the
other apostles, left home, vocation, and all to follow Jesus. It is impossible to discern if the Lord
detected in Judas the making of a real apostle or if He simply needed someone among His
apostles to fulfill Bible prophecy by betraying Him. We know that Judas had character issues all
along (John 12:6). If Judas started out well, changes gradually took place. Out of his free will and
under the sovereignty of God, he was God’s chosen instrument of betrayal. What motivated
Judas is open to speculation. Some think he was motivated by pure greed, or by a desire to
separate himself from being perceived as being a follower of the doomed Jesus, or by attempting
to accelerate the process of Jesus setting up His kingdom, or by disillusionment with the kind of
Christ that Jesus turned out to be. The Bible does not tell us what motivated him.
 Day 59
The Final Week (Part 2)

Thursday: The Last Passover, Betrayal, and Arrest (Mark 14:12-25)

The Lord Jesus came into the city of Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, the
commemoration of the night that God delivered the people of Israel from their bondage in Egypt.
He told His apostles that this would be the last meal He would eat with them before He would be
crucified. The Apostles didn’t seem to understand what He was talking about. It conflicted with
their idea that this young man they deemed to be the Christ was going to soon establish His
earthly kingdom.
Over the course of that meal, the Lord Jesus made a shocking statement. He informed
them that one of them was going to betray Him into the hands of His enemies. Each of the
apostles, suspicious of his own heart, asked the Lord if he would be the one. The Lord Jesus said
nothing until Judas asked. The Lord affirmed that Judas was the one and asked him to leave the
meal to do what he had to do. Judas did.
Peter made the bold assertion that he would never forsake Jesus even if he had to die with
Him. The Lord informed him that before the rooster crowed the next morning Peter would deny
Him three times. Peter vehemently denied that he would ever deny the Lord.

9 Read Mark 14:22-26.

That special night the Lord transformed the Passover Supper into a meal New Testament
believers call the Lord’s Supper or communion. Rather than celebrating the Passover, New
Covenant believers were to commemorate the Lord’s death. Rather than celebrate a deliverance
from Egypt, they were to commemorate a deliverance from the penalty of the condemnation they
deserved for their sins.
After the meal was finished, the Lord Jesus did an extensive amount of teaching in that
upper room. All of John 14-16 was taught there. Then, the Lord Jesus had a time of prayer which
is recorded in John 17. His apostles must have heard this prayer since much of it is recorded. In
this prayer the Lord Jesus prayed for Himself, His disciples and future believers. After closing
their evening with a hymn, they went to the Mount of Olives.
The Lord Jesus brought them to a section of the Mount of Olives called Gethsemane. He
left His apostles at a certain place and asked them to pray. He invited Peter, James and John to go
a little further with Him. He assigned them a spot to pray. Then He went a little further and came
to a private place where He prayed by Himself.
While remaining fully submitted to the Father’s will, He asked if there was a way out of
taking upon His holy self the sins of the world. He was so distressed that His blood capillaries
began to break and pour blood out of His sweat glands.
After praying He went and found His apostles sleeping. He woke them up and asked them
to pray. He then returned to prayer. When finished, He again found His disciples sleeping. He
roused them again and begged them to be in prayer. He returned to His spot to pray. When done,
He returned to His sleeping disciples a third time. This time He awakened them to inform them
that Judas was here to betray Him. As they opened their eyes they saw Judas and a band of
soldiers.
Judas betrayed the Lord Jesus with a kiss and the guards seized Him. Peter grew
indignant, grabbed a sword and started to fight. He succeeded only in cutting off an ear. The
Lord Jesus ordered everyone to put away their swords and healed the man’s ear. The soldiers
then took the Lord Jesus off for trial.
 Day 60
The Final Week (Part 3)

Friday: Six Illegal Trials

The Lord Jesus first went through three Jewish trials and then three Roman trials.
Scholars who have studied the Jewish and Roman laws of that time have demonstrated how there
were dozens of violations of the laws in order to produce this miscarriage of justice.
Jewish Trial #1: Before Annas (John 18:13-24): In the earliest hours of Friday morning,
the Lord was brought before Annas, a former presiding officer of the Sanhedrin, who was still
highly regarded. He questioned the Lord Jesus about His teachings. The Lord Jesus told him that
if he wanted to know about His teachings all he needed to do is ask the public because all of His
teaching was done publicly. An officer struck Christ in the face for this response. Annas bound
Jesus and sent Him to Caiaphas, the current presiding officer over the Sanhedrin.
Jewish Trial #2: Before Caiaphas (Mark 14:53-72): Under the cover of darkness, some
members of the Sanhedrin gathered in Caiaphas’ home. At first they tried to bring witnesses
against Him but they were not finding the substantial evidence they needed to convict Him. At
last they tried to get the Lord Jesus to convict Himself with His own words but the Lord Jesus
remained silent. When He finally spoke, He portrayed Himself as the Christ whose coming was
predicted by the Old Testament prophets. That was all the evidence His enemies needed to
accuse Him of blasphemy and condemn Him to death. They began to spit on Him, hit Him and
mock Him. Meanwhile, in the courtyard of Caiaphas’ house, Peter was trying to follow Christ.

9 Read Mark 14:66-72 and notice what became of Peter’s promise never to deny the Lord.

Jewish Trial #3: Before the Sanhedrin (Luke 22:66-71; Matthew 27:3-10): The formal
trial took place in the meeting hall of the Sanhedrin. Again they solicited claims from His mouth
that He was the Christ promised in the Old Testament. Again they condemned Him for
blasphemy and formally decided to recommend that Pilate, Roman governor over their district,
put the Lord Jesus to death. Meanwhile, Judas, feeling guilty about what he has done, returned
the money to the Sanhedrin with the admission that he had betrayed innocent blood. He then goes
out and hangs himself.
Roman Trial #1: Before Pilate (John 18:28-38; Luke 23:6-7): Pilate did not want to get
involved in this trial. To him it sounded like a religious squabble, not an issue worthy of death.
Pilate did, however, have an interesting conversation with the Lord Jesus. He could not find a
reason to put Jesus to death and considered Him to be deranged. Pilate’s way out of the situation
came when he realized that the Jesus was a Galilean. It turned out that Herod Antipas, Roman
governor over Galilee, was in Jerusalem at the time. Pilate gave the case to him.
Roman Trial #2: Before Herod Antipas (Luke 23:8-12): Herod had heard much about the
Lord Jesus, wanted to meet Him, and accepted the case. He wanted the Lord Jesus to perform a
miracle in front of him like a magician performs his tricks to entertain. Jesus refused. He asked
Him question after question but the Lord refused to speak. Exasperated, Herod had no further
interest in the case. He refused to make a judgment and handed the case back to Pilate. After
verbally abusing the Christ, they sent Jesus back to Pilate dressed in kingly attire to mock him.
Roman Trial #3: Before Pilate again (Luke 23:13-25): Pilate did not want to be
responsible for the death of Jesus. He took his chances on an annual custom he had with the
Jews. He would gather the people, listen to their chants, and offer clemency to one prisoner each
year. He bet on the Jews releasing the previously popular Jesus over an insurrectionist name
Barabbas who could potentially cause Rome to tighten the reigns on Jerusalem. He bet wrong.
The people wanted the release of Barabbas over Jesus. He now had no choice but to sign His
death warrant. The expedient politician ordered that Jesus be severely flogged and then crucified.
 Day 61
The Final Week (Part 4)

Friday: Crucifixion and Burial

Crucifixion was death by nailing a person to a cross. It was designed to be a slow and
tortuous way of dying, done publically, to deter others from committing crimes against the state.

9 Read Luke 23:32-49 for Luke’s depiction of Christ’s crucifixion and death.

The Lord Jesus was nailed to a cross about nine in the morning. It took Him six hours to
die. Many people–family, friends and enemies–were present when He died around three in the
afternoon. The Lord’s body expired a little quicker than the average crucified person. This is
because of the brutal beatings He was given before He was crucified. A Roman soldier drove a
sword into his side to assure that He was dead. At the moment of His death an earthquake
occurred and the huge curtain in the temple the was torn in two from top to bottom.
A man by the name of Joseph of Arimathea, requested permission from Pilate to take
possession of the Lord’s corpse (Matthew 27:57-58). Joseph was a wealthy man, a member of the
Sanhedrin, and a follower of Jesus Christ. Pilate was reluctant to grant permission until he
verified that Jesus was dead. The Roman soldier in charge of crucifixions that day (who had seen
many people die by crucifixion) assured Pilate that Jesus was dead. Legal permission was then
granted to Joseph to take the body of Jesus off the cross. He hurriedly prepared it for burial
before sunset because Friday evening was when the Jewish Sabbath began. On the Sabbath the
Jews were allowed to do no work, including the preparation of dead bodies for burial. As a result,
Joseph hurriedly wrapped the Lord’s cadaver in strips of cloth with spices and laid Him in a tomb
he intended to use for his own burial someday. It was a tomb cut out of the rock in a garden close
to the place where Jesus was killed. He then rolled a circular stone in front of the tomb that was
about five feet high and weighing about two tons. People in that day wanted a good seal on their
tombs to prevent thieves from disturbing graves in search of valuables. The women were at the
cross at the time of His death observed Joseph as he laid the Lord to rest. All of this fulfilled
what was predicted about the Lord by the Prophet Isaiah: He was assigned a grave with the
wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his
mouth (Isaiah 53:9).

Saturday: Securing the Tomb

While He was alive, the Lord Jesus privately and publically proclaimed that He would
rise again within three days of His death. The next day the Sanhedrin requested that Pilate place a
Roman guard in front of the tomb around the clock for three days until the three days had passed.
They feared that Christ’s disciples would steal the body and make the claim that He had risen
from the dead. They feared if this happened the hysteria over Jesus that followed could be more
difficult to squelch than the hysteria that preceded His death. Convinced it was a good idea,
Pilate ordered that a Roman seal be placed on the tomb and that a Roman guard be posted around
the clock. Anyone touching the tomb would be apprehended and tried.
 Day 62
The Resurrection and Appearances

In this reading we will summarize and harmonize what the Bible says about the Christ’s
resurrection (Matthew 27:45-28:20; Mark 15:33-16:20; Luke 23:44-24:53; John 19:28-21:14;
Acts 1:1-11; and 1 Corinthians 15:1-11).
The women who were present at Christ’s death and burial wanted to prepare the body of
Jesus for a proper burial beyond what Joseph of Arimathea was able to hurriedly do before the
Sabbath day. Sunrise on Sunday morning was their very first opportunity. As they were walking
to the cemetery they were probably unaware that the Romans had posted a guard in front of the
tomb and they wondered about how they were going to push back a two ton boulder from the
entrance of the tomb.
When the women arrived at the tomb, they discovered that the huge boulder had already
been rolled back. A Roman seal was probably laying on the ground and the Bible tells us that the
Roman guard fled in fear after an angel came down from the sky and rolled back the stone. The
guard ran to the leaders of the Sanhedrin and reported what had happened. Those leaders created
a story that Christ’s disciples came during the night and stole the body while the guard was
sleeping. They then paid the guards a bountiful sum of money to stick to the story and they
promised them that they would keep them out of trouble with their Roman superiors.
When the women went inside the tomb to look at the body of Jesus, they saw two angels
who explained to them that Jesus had come back to life again just as He had said He would.
They hurried to tell the cowering and hiding apostles. Two of them, Peter and John, ran to
the tomb to observe things for themselves. Sure enough, the body was not there and the linen
clothes in which He was wrapped were all neatly rolled up in the corner. At that point, Peter was
still left wondering about what had happened but John was convinced a miracle had taken place.
Mary of Magdala, one of the women, went to the tomb with Peter and John. After they
both left, she lingered. She took another look in the tomb and saw two radiant angels. They
explained to her what had happened to Jesus’ body. When she turned around she saw a man she
thought was the gardener. After but a few moments of conversation she realized it was the Lord
Jesus Himself. He gave her a message to give to His apostles which she did.
That same day Jesus appeared to two of His followers who were walking to the village of
Emmaus. Jesus started walking and talking with them about the amazing events of those days.
They did not recognize Him, however, until He sat down to eat with them. At that moment He
disappeared. They immediately went back to Jerusalem to tell the apostles about their experience.
When they got back, they were informed by the apostles that Jesus had appeared to Peter. Then
they told their story.
While the apostles were all sharing about the events of that day, the Lord appeared to
them. They did not recognize Him at first and thought they were seeing a ghost. He then invited
them to examine the punctures in His body that resulted from the crucifixion and He ate in front
of them to prove that He was there in body and not as a spirit being. He then took the Old
Testament Scriptures and began to interpret them in light of His death, burial, and resurrection.
For some reason, the Apostle Thomas missed this meeting. He entered the meeting shortly after
Jesus left. The other apostles were telling him about all that happened but he refused to believe
unless he could see Jesus with His own eyes.
One week later the Lord Jesus made His next appearance to the same group of apostles in
that same room. This time Thomas was with them and the Lord specifically invited Thomas to
observe and touch Him. Thomas, content with just observing, believed in the resurrection of
Christ.
Some time later the Lord appeared on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. He saw His apostles
coming in after a night of catching no fish. While still on the water, He yelled instructions out to
them about casting their nets in again. The desperate fishermen did as they were told and caught
a huge catch of fish. Realizing it was the Lord Jesus that issued the order, they all headed into
shore and had a breakfast together.
When the resurrected Lord appeared to His apostles on a mountain in Galilee, He
commissioned them to go and make disciples among all the people groups of the world. It was
around this time that He also appeared to more than five hundred of His followers in one
gathering. Most of those followers were still alive 17 years later when Christ’s apostle Paul wrote
his first letter to the Corinthians.

9 Read 1 Corinthians 15:1-8.

 Day 63
The Commission and the Ascension

The Great Commission

9 Read Matthew 28:16-20. It records the time the resurrected Lord appeared to His apostles
and commissioned them to make disciples among all the people groups of the world.

There are three sources of information that help us understand what the Lord meant when
He said make disciples. First, we can look at the commission itself. Second, we can assume that
His apostles knew exactly what the Lord was saying because they had watched Him do it for the
previous three years. Third, we can see what they did in response to His commission. When we
do all of this research, we can surely conclude that the disciple making process involves the
following.
First, making disciples involves evangelizing people who are not Christians. To
evangelize means "to spread the good news" that God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world
so that we who were eternally condemned might be reconciled to God.
Second, it involves baptizing those who trust in Jesus Christ to save them from eternal
condemnation. Baptism is an initiatory rite that people who put their trust in Christ go through to
announce to those around them saying, "I have decided to follow Jesus and to identify with His
followers.”
Third, it involves congregationalizing baptized believers into a local communities of
believers. In Acts 2:41 we read, Those who accepted Peter's message were baptized, and about
3000 were added to the number of believers that day. After people believed and were baptized,
they belonged to the local church. Following Christ involves belonging, not just believing.
Fourth, it involves stabilizing the newly congregated followers of Christ. Just as a
newborn infant cannot be left to care for himself, nor can a newborn Christian.
Fifth, it involves teaching the stabilized disciples the whole counsel of God, with the goal
of bringing every facet of his life into conformity with the will of God.
Finally, it involves mobilizing maturing disciples to serve the Lord by fulfilling their
God-given calling in life.
The Apostles were to make disciples among all the peoples of the world, all cultures and
subcultures. There are about 43,000 distinct culture-language-people groups in the world. At
present, there are about 10,000 unreached people groups. That means that about 1.3 billion of the
people of the world have no access to the Gospel – no Christians, churches, evangelists,
missionaries or ministries exist among them. Fifty some generations after the Lord Jesus
commanded that disciples be made among all the nations of the world, the job is still not
finished.

The Ascension
The final appearance of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ took place on the Mount of
Olives in Jerusalem. He ascended up into the sky and out of their sight from that spot. This took
place forty days after the day He rose from the grave.

9 Read about the ascension of Christ in Acts 1:3-11.

 Day 64
The Coming of the Holy Spirit

Before ascending into heaven, the Lord told His apostles to wait for the gift of the Holy
Spirit. His coming was predicted and promised by the Old Testament prophets (Ezekiel 36:26-
27; 37:14; Joel 2:28-29), by John the Baptizer (Matt. 3:11), and by the Lord Himself (Luke
12:12; 24:49; John 14:26; 16:7-15). In Acts 1:5-8 the Lord Jesus was saying that the long
anticipated coming of the Holy Spirit was right around the corner. They were to wait until His
coming before going out to make disciples among all the people groups of the world. Humans do
not have the power to make more and better disciples of Jesus Christ. Only God the Holy Spirit
has the power to alter eternal destinies and transform lives.
Only ten days after God the Son ascended to heaven He sent God the Holy Spirit to the
earth. By divine design the Spirit came on the annual Jewish celebration of Pentecost. (Pentecost
came exactly 50 days after the Passover, the day on which Christ was crucified.) Jews and God-
fearing Gentiles from all over the world were gathered together for the celebration.

9 Read about the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:1-13.

The God-fearing Gentiles and Jews gathered in Jerusalem were curious about the loud
roar they had hear. They gathered in large numbers around the house that seemed to be at the
epicenter of it all. There they heard the Apostles supernaturally speaking in languages they had
never learned, their languages! They were praising God for His marvelous deeds. The crowd
wondered what was happening. Peter arose to explain to the crowd that the Holy Spirit came to
earth as predicted and promised by the prophets. He proceeded to proclaim the Good News that
Jesus was the Christ and that He arose from the dead after being crucified. Peter invited them to
admit their sinfulness and need of the Savior. Roughly three thousand listeners trusted Christ to
be their Savior that day. They were baptized as followers of Christ and banded together with the
120 other disciples already residing in Jerusalem.
When pilgrims came to Jerusalem from all over the Roman Empire, they would stay for
weeks at a time. For several weeks after their conversions, the Christians met together daily in a
section of the temple courts and in various homes. They socialized and ate together daily. Daily
they studied the teachings of Christ and His apostles together and had times of prayer together. It
was a time of exceptional generosity with those in need and extraordinary miracles were being
done by God through the Apostles. Everyone was joyfully praising God for His salvation. Every
day more and more people became followers of Jesus Christ
While it is not required of Christians to meet together every day as they did in Acts 2, the
Bible makes it clear that they are to meet on a regular basis. Hebrews 10:25 says, Let us not give
up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all
the more as you see the Day approaching. Christians should meet often enough to spend quality
time together and to enable them to grow spiritually and walk with God. In an American context
we would suggest that Christians spend three to six hours of time together each week. The
culture one is living in would have an effect upon how often Christians should meet.
It was during those weeks after Pentecost that the Christians met daily. The practice of
daily meetings probably did not continue after they returned to their homes. Back home, they
started churches in much the ways that the Jews started synagogues. There are many churches in
the New Testament that started and we do not know how. Presumably, this is how. In the
churches they worshiped God, read the Scriptures, received teaching, encouraged one another,
celebrated the Lord’s Supper, and prayed. In time, they appointed leaders to supervise their work.
 Day 65
The Good News Proclaimed in Jerusalem

In Acts 1:8 the Lord Jesus told His disciples, You will receive power when the Holy Spirit
comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to
the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This verse contains an excellent, general outline for the Book of
Acts: the The Good News is proclaimed in Jerusalem (Acts 2:14-7:60), in Judea and Samaria
(Acts 8:2-9:31), and to the ends of the earth (Acts 9:32-28:31). Today we look at the Good News
as it was proclaimed in Jerusalem. That process began with Peter’s declaration of the Good News
on the day of Pentecost.
During the weeks that followed Pentecost, the Apostles Peter and John were going to the
temple for a prayer meeting. On the way they healed a lame man. Everyone knew this man’s face
because he was daily set in front of a gate of the city to beg for money. One day everyone saw
that he was healed, running, leaping, and praising God. A large crowd gathered around Peter and
he explained that the man was healed by the power of Jesus Christ. He proclaimed the Good
News to them. He explained how Christ was ready to save all who admitted their need of
forgiveness, trusted in His work in their behalf, and called upon Him to save them from God’s
condemnation. As a result of this explanation, the number of Christ followers grew to about five
thousand.
Peter and John were dragged before the Sanhedrin. In their defense, they proclaimed the
Good News of Christ’s death and resurrection. They were told to never again teach in the name
of Jesus. They faced a dilemma. The Lord Jesus had ordered them to tell everyone about Him and
the Sanhedrin ordered them to tell no one else. They decided to obey the Lord and angered the
Sanhedrin by letting them know their decision.
The earliest church just went on doing what the Lord commanded even though they were
constantly threatened with death. At one point, the Sanhedrin imprisoned all of the Apostles that
were in the area at the time. The next morning when they went to get them for their trials, the
Apostles were not in their cells. During the night an angel of God came and released them all.
They were found in the temple area proclaiming the Good News that the Christ, who they had put
to death was alive. The Sanhedrin, unwilling to use force for fear of a public reaction, asked the
Apostles to meet privately with them. They ordered the Apostles to stop talking about Jesus.
Again the Apostles defied their authority. They did not know what to do and released them. The
Apostles returned to their work of evangelizing the city, baptizing the new believers and
congregationalizing the believers. So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in
Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith (Acts
6:7).
One local Jewish synagogue engaged in vigorous debate with a leading follower of Christ
named Stephen. They discussed his teachings and miracle working powers. They brought
Stephen before the Sanhedrin on charges of blasphemy. During his trial he proclaimed the Good
News that the Christ, who had been put to death by them, was alive and still working in the
world through His people.

9 Read Acts 7:54-60 to see the reaction of the people to His testimony.

Christians have been persecuted from the very beginning. Stephen, however, was the first
Christian to be martyred.
 Day 66
The Good News Proclaimed in Judea and Samaria

The Sanhedrin, after their experiences with the Apostle’s miraculous escapes from prison
and disregard for their authority, viewed them as invincible. The ordinary Christians, like
Stephen, were viewed as vulnerable. On the day when Stephen was murdered, a great persecution
broke out against the Christians at Jerusalem. While the invincible Apostles stayed behind in
Jerusalem, the more than five thousand Christians fled for their lives throughout Judea and
Samaria. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went (Acts 8:4). The
message spread and thousands more became followers of Christ.
A leading follower of Christ named Philip went to a city in Samaria. God allowed Philip
to do miracles that captured the close attention of the crowds in that city and Philip evangelized
there. Many people became Christians and the whole city was filled with notable joy.
The Book of Acts then introduces us to one of the most important men of the Bible, Saul
of Tarsus. A zealous Pharisee, he tried to eradicate Christianity by searching house to house for
Christians, arresting and imprisoning and trying those he found, and having some put to death.
One day he was on his way to the city of Damascus to do a thorough search for any
followers of the Christ he found there. Something happened on the way that dramatically
changed his life.

9 Read about this life changing event in Acts 9:3-19.

Jesus Christ miraculously and directly called Saul to the special mission of taking the
Good News to the Gentiles. Just as he had made life difficult for many Christians, life was going
to be extremely difficult for him. Indeed, his life was filled with many hardships (2 Corinthians
11:1-29).
Saul stayed with the Jerusalem church for a time and spoke boldly about Jesus the Christ
in the synagogues. When he learned about a threat against his life, some Christians covertly
helped him to escape to the Mediterranean coast, put him on a boat, and sent him off to the city
of Tarsus.
Based on information we find in his Letter to the Galatians (1:11-23), Saul apparently
resided in the Arabian wilderness for three years. The Lord Jesus frequently appeared to him in
revelations and taught him during this time. The Lord Jesus even called Saul to be numbered as
one of His apostles, ranked with the original twelve. His name was changed to Paul and he was
the famed Apostle Paul who would write thirteen letters of the New Testament.
 Day 67
The Good News Proclaimed among the Gentiles

This third section of the Book of Acts is the proclaiming of the Good News among the
Gentiles. It can be subdivided into Paul’s first, second, and third missionary journey. In this
reading we will discuss his first missionary journey. See Appendix 7 for a map of each journey.
Starting with Acts 13, a major shifts takes place in Acts. The focus changes from reaching
Jews to reaching the Gentiles. Also, the focal point changes from the church in Jerusalem to the
church in the city of Antioch in the Roman province of Syria. Antioch starts to become the center
of Christianity, and all three of Paul’s missionary journeys were launched from that city.

9 Acts 13:1-3 describes the launch of the first missionary journey.

Paul’s First Missionary Journey

The first missionary journey of Paul lasted for one year and five months and covered
about 1100 miles of travel. It focused on a province of the Roman Empire called Galatia. It
included the cities of Antioch in Pisidia (distinct from Antioch in Syria), Iconium, Lystra and
Derbe. The work was successful at making a large number of disciples in each of these places.
These are the cities to whom Paul would soon write his letter to the Galatians.
When Paul and his partners completed the work of their first missionary journey, it was
time to return to their home base - Antioch in Syria. On their way back, they visited each of the
churches they had started. They helped to stabilize the believers in their newfound faith. They
also appointed spiritual leaders in each church and entrusted the new Christians to the Lord.
Upon their return to Antioch, they gathered the church together and reported all that God
had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. They stayed in
Antioch for about seven months. During this time, Paul wrote his letters to the Galatians.

Paul’s Letter to the Galatians

After Paul left the region of Galatia, false teachers threatened the churches Paul started
there. The false teachers were saying the Gentiles had to believe in Christ plus obey the Law of
Moses (especially to be circumcised) before they could be saved. Paul condemned all who
declared a message other than the Good News he brought to them. He commands them to seek
acceptance by God through faith in Christ as Savior, and not through reliance on obedience to the
Law.

9 Read Galatians 3:10-14 for a sampling of this letter.

The Letter of James

It was around this time that the Apostle James wrote his letter to the Jewish Christians
scattered by persecution throughout the Roman Empire. False teachers were threatening them as
well. They were teaching that to be saved all one must do is believe in Jesus. Their message was
partly true and partly false. On the one hand, salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone and not by
works. On the other hand, James insists that true faith in Christ manifests itself by believers
doing good works. If works do not accompany faith, one does not have genuine faith. James lists
a variety of ways that true faith works in our lives: enduring trials, obeying God’s Word, caring
for the less fortunate, being impartial, and controlling our tongues.

9 Read James 2:14-17 for a sampling of this letter.

 Day 68
Paul’s Second Missionary Journey

The second missionary journey of Paul lasted two years, and five months and covered
about 2500 miles of travel. It started out by visiting and strengthening the Galatian churches
again. Paul then went to the city of Troas. There, he received a vision from God to go and work
in Greece.
This second missionary journey focused on Greece (the Roman provinces of Macedonia
and Achaia). It included disciple making in the cities of Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens,
and Corinth. The work was successful at making a large number of disciples in each of these
places, except Athens.

9 Read Acts 17:1-15 for a sampling of this missionary journey.

When they completed the work, it was time to return to their home base in Antioch of
Syria. Here they stayed for six months. During this time Paul wrote his two letters to the
Thessalonians.

Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians

The churches in Thessalonica were exemplary in many ways. They were very influential
in the region. They had deep faith in Christ, deep love for one another, and bright hope for
tomorrow. Paul encourages them to stay the course. They were facing some issues with Paul’s
authority, sexual immorality, lazy people living off of the resources of others, and the second
coming of Christ. The Apostle Paul addresses all these issues.

9 Read 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 for a sampling of this letter.

Paul’s Second Letter to the Thessalonians

Shortly after Paul’s first letter was received, false teachers had crept into the Thessalonian
church. They were upsetting the believers by teaching that the Christ had already come again and
they missed out on the blessing. Paul reminds the people that certain events must precede the
Lord’s coming and those events had not yet occurred. He assures them that the Lord had not yet
returned and that it will be obvious when He does.

9 Read 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15 for a sampling of this letter.

 Day 69
Paul’s Third Missionary Journey

The third journey lasted four years and two months and involved about 2800 miles of
travel. It focused on the Roman province of Asia Minor, not to be confused with the continent of
Asia as we know it today. This mission included making disciples in the Asian cities of Ephesus
and Troas. Paul spent two years and nine months in Ephesus. From there he wrote his first letter
to the Corinthians. When forced out of the city by a riot spurred by his presence, he moved to
Greece where he spent three months making disciples among its cities. From there he wrote his
second letter to the Corinthians.

Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians

The Corinthian church was born in a vile culture. The Christians were having a difficult
time breaking loose from their culture and it caused many problems within the church. There
were problems with factions within the church, sexual immorality, divorce and remarriage, using
spiritual gifts, lovelessness, and false teachings regarding the resurrection of Christ. Paul
addresses these concerns in this letter.

9 Read 1 Corinthians 5:1-13 for a sampling of this letter. In this section he orders the church to
democratically dismiss a brother from its membership because of sexual immorality.

Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians

Shortly thereafter, when passing through Greece, Paul wrote his second letter to the
Corinthians. Since his first letter, false teachers had successfully turned many people against
Paul. They accused him of arrogance and claimed that he was unqualified to be an apostle of
Jesus Christ. Paul had sent his coworker, Titus, to Corinth to straighten things out. When Titus
returned to Paul, Paul was pleased to learn that his apostolic authority was restored in the minds
of most Corinthians. He writes to thank them and to make an appeal to those who still questioned
his integrity, calling, and authority.

9 Since his first letter, the Corinthians church dismissed the immoral brother as Paul instructed.
As a result, the man repented. The church, however, was still ostracizing him. In our sampling,
Paul orders them to forgive him and welcome him back. Read about this in 2 Corinthians 2:5-11.

Paul’s Letter to the Romans

It was also during this time that Paul wrote his letter to the Roman Christians. He had
nothing to do with them becoming Christians and he had never met them. We are not exactly
sure how they became Christians and formed into a church. It is clear from reading Paul’s letter
that Christianity was not brand new there in Rome. We suspect some of the pilgrims present at
Pentecost (Acts 2:10) were converted and brought the Gospel back to Rome. As the apostle to
the Gentiles, he wanted to visit the capital of the Empire and teach among the Christians there. In
fact, many scholars speculate that Paul wanted to move his “base of operation” from Antioch to
Rome. As he prepares to move there, he wrote to prepare the Christians for his long anticipated
arrival. He especially wanted to encourage Jewish and Gentile Christians to work together as one
body. Through his letter, he hoped to strengthen the believers in their understanding of the
teachings of the Christian faith and lifestyle. These doctrines and ethics were the solid foundation
upon which Christian unity is based.

9 Read Romans 1:8-17 for a sampling of this letter.

 Day 70
Paul’s Imprisonment and Trials

The Apostle Paul felt compelled to go to Jerusalem even though he knew it would mean
suffering and could even mean his death. Along the journey home, he met with pockets of
Christians and churches.
When he reach Jerusalem, he met with the Apostles who were still living. They talked
about all the amazing things the Lord Jesus had done to grow His church throughout the Roman
Empire. The Jews there falsely accused Paul of committing crimes and the local Romans officials
mistook him for another man. In any case, he was arrested.
The Roman commander started to flog Paul to get information out of him. At that
moment Paul announced that he was a Roman citizen. It was illegal to flog a Roman citizen and
as a citizen he had the right to appeal his case to the Roman Emperor, Caesar.
Less than thirty percent of the people living under Roman rule were official Roman
citizens. Paul was and that fact was not revealed in the Scripture prior to this appeal to Caesar.
The rest of the Book of Acts records his amazing journey to Rome. In those chapters,
Paul defends himself before the Sanhedrin – the same body that condemned Jesus about 25 years
before. He was then legally tried before three regional Roman leaders – Felix, Festus and
Agrippa. Their job was to discern if he had a legitimate case to present before Caesar. At long
last, he arrives in Rome.

9 Read Acts 28:11-31 at this time.

Paul lived under house arrest. He rented his own house but had a Roman guard with him
at all times. People were allowed to see him. In fact, from the letters we know that Timothy,
Epaphras, Onesimus, Tychicus, Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, Justus and Epaphroditus
spent some time with Paul in his house while he was under house arrest (Colossians 1:23-29, 4:3-
4; Ephesians 3:1-9, 6:18-20; Philippians 1:7, 12-20). We also know that large numbers of people
came to see him– Jews and Gentiles, Christians and non-Christians. He had many opportunities
to evangelize even while in chains. For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented
house and welcomed all who came to see him. Boldly and without hindrance he proclaimed the
Good News (Acts 28:30-31).
It was during this time that Paul wrote what we call “The Prison Letters.” They are listed
below. Paul’s helper Onesimus carried his letter to Philemon while Tychicus delivered his letters
to the Colossian and Ephesian churches. Later Epaphroditus delivered Paul’s letter to the
Philippians.
 Day 71
Paul’s Letters from Prison

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians

The Ephesian church has a mix of Jews and Gentiles in their congregation. The cultural
differences were getting accented and creating tensions within the church. After laying a solid
doctrinal foundation for what he is about to say, he instructs them on how to attain unity and
moral purity.

9 Given his prison situation, you can imagine that Paul got a good look at Roman soldiers. Read
his analogy to a Roman soldier in Ephesians 6:13-17 for a sample of this letter.

Paul’s Letter to the Philippians

The Philippian Christians were suffering persecution for being followers of Christ. Paul
encourages them to persevere in the Christian life. He counsels them as to how they might
experience joy in those difficult circumstances. He also addresses an underlying current of
disunity he is sensing within the churches there.

9 Read Philippians 1:12-30 for a sampling of this letter. In it Paul speaks of his imprisonment
and the faith of the Philippian Christians.

Paul’s Letter to the Colossians

False teachers were trying to convince the Colossian Christians that it was good to have
Jesus Christ in their lives but that they needed something more. (It seems like they were
promoting some kind of esoteric spiritual experiences and ascetic practices.) Paul writes about
the greatness of Jesus the Christ and essentially asks, “What more could one need besides Jesus
the Christ?”

9 Read Colossians 1:15-20.

Paul’s Letter to Philemon

Philemon was a Christian in the church at Colossae. He had a slave, Onesimus, who ran
away from him. (This was a serious crime in the Roman Empire.) By a strange set of
circumstances, Onesimus ran away to Rome, met Paul, and became a follower of Christ. Paul
writes to Philemon to ask him to forgive Onesimus, receive him back into his household, and
relate to him like a brother in Christ.

9 Read Philemon 8-12.

 Day 72
Paul’s Final Days

From reading Paul’s prison letters, we get a sense that Paul was confident that he was
going to be released from his imprisonment (Philemon 22; Philippians 1:23-27; 2:24). He was
right. Although Acts 28:30-31 closes out the Book of Acts, it does not complete what we know
of Paul’s story. From reading the implications of his later letters we can glean more.
Paul was freed from his house arrest in Rome. During this time he did an extensive
amount of traveling, evangelizing, and teaching. He traveled first to the Roman province of Asia
with Timothy and left him behind in Ephesus to care for the churches there (2 Timothy 4:13). He
then went to Macedonia (1 Timothy 1:3) and Achaia (2 Timothy 4:20). From there he wrote his
first letter to Timothy. Then Paul traveled to Crete with Titus and left him there to oversee the
churches there (Titus 1:5). It seems he also made it to Spain (Romans 15:24,28). Sometime
during these travels he wrote his letter to Titus. First Timothy, Second Timothy, and Titus were
all written by Paul to individuals who were shepherding churches.

Paul’s First Letter to Timothy

Timothy was overseeing the church at Ephesus when Paul writes. There are many
problems the young minister is dealing with including false teachers, disorderly worship,
improper conduct, and a lack of leadership in the church. Paul encourages the young man to be
godly and faithful to the task of straightening out this church.

9 Read 1 Timothy 1:3-7 for a sampling of this letter.

Paul’s Letter to Titus

Paul left Titus on the island of Crete to pastor the new believers there. He was to organize
them into a local church. The work was hard and he needed encouragement and advice. This
letter provides advice for the young pastor as he works within the church appointing spiritual
leaders, getting rid of false teachers, and teaching the people how to live.

9 Read Titus 1:5-9 for a sample of this letter.

Paul’s Second Imprisonment and Death

After this period of freedom, Paul was arrested and imprisoned again. He was falsely
accused of being an “evil-doer” (2 Timothy 1:8, 2:8-9). During this brief imprisonment, Paul
wrote 2 Timothy. In this letter, Paul joyfully anticipated his soon-to-come death (2 Timothy 1:8-
12, 2:8-13, 4:6-8). He was martyred shortly thereafter.

Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy

Timothy was having many problems leading the church at Ephesus. He wanted to quit.
Paul, his mentor, tells him he cannot quit because he has a calling from God. Paul encourages
him to boldly persevere in proclaiming the Good News, even if he must suffer persecution for
doing so. In this letter Paul is in prison and senses he is about to be put to death. The letter serves
as his final words to Timothy and to the church of Jesus Christ.

9 Read 2 Timothy 3:10-4:8 for a sample of this letter.

 Day 73
The Rest of the New Testament Letters (Part 1)

There are a total of twenty letters in the New Testament. We have introduced you to
thirteen of them. Today and tomorrow we will do an overview of the rest.

The Letter to the Hebrews

It was around the time of the Apostle Paul’s second imprisonment that the Book of
Hebrews was written. Some people think the Apostle Paul wrote it and others are sure he didn’t.
This is the one letter of the New Testament for which the authorship is uncertain.
Any reader can observe that this book is steeped in the Old Testament law. The better you
understand the Law of Moses, the better you will understand this book.
Some Jewish Christians were being tempted to revert back to Judaism. They were
probably facing pressure to revert from their Jewish families and communities. Perhaps they also
had some inner longings to return to their roots. The author of this book is asking, “Why would
you want to revert when Christ is superior to the Old Testament system of belief in every way?
The Old Testament simply foreshadows the Christ and the New Covenant. Why would you prefer
the shadow over the reality? Don’t go back to Judaism.”

9 Read Hebrews 10:19-39 for a sample of this letter.

The First Letter of Peter

The Jewish Christians who were scattered all over the Roman Empire were facing
persecution. Peter writes to them to encourage them to live properly and boldly in the midst of it.
Peter gives them some helpful perspectives that will enable them to successfully endure.

9 Read 1 Peter 3:12-19 for a sample of this letter.

The Second Letter of Peter

Shortly after Peter wrote his first letter, the Jewish Christians of the Roman Empire were
facing another serious threat – false teachers. Peter warns the believers to be on the alert for false
teachers and encourages them to keep on growing in their faith.

9 Read 2 Peter 2:1-10 for a sample of this letter.

 Day 74
The Rest of the New Testament Letters (Part 2)

The First Letter of John

It is about 13 years after the death of Paul that the Apostle John started his writings. He
wrote the Gospel of John, three letters, and the Book of Revelation.
John was probably writing to the church of Ephesus and the surrounding region. He is
enjoying his fellowship with God and God’s people. He wants the Christians in the region to do
the same. Like James earlier, he stresses that true faith in the true Christ changes a person’s
moral character. Love and righteousness will be found in a person with genuine faith. On the
other hand, false doctrine does not produce these fruits and is to be shunned.

9 Read 1 John 3:16-24 for a sample of this letter.

The Second Letter of John

John seems to have written this letter to a woman who was leading a “Bible study” in her
home. He was very impressed with the change of moral character he was seeing in their lives, but
he was afraid that they were a little too comfortable with some false teachers they were hosting.
They were probably just trying to be hospitable but such hospitality is a disservice to the work of
Christ.

9 Read 2 John 7-11 for a sample of this letter.

The Third Letter of John

In 2 John, John taught the Christians that they should not host false teachers. In this letter
he teaches Gaius, a church leader, that Christians should support true Christian missionaries.
Not everyone in the church is listening to John’s advice. This is because of a dominant
personality named Diotrephes. He has no respect for John and does not allow John’s
correspondence to be read in the church. He even expels supporters of John from the church.
John portrays him as an arrogant “control freak.” John is trying to put limits on Diotrephes’
influence through this letter.

9 Read 3 John 5-10 for a sample of this letter.

The Letter of Jude

Which church Jude is writing to is not certain. He tells them that some things are worth
fighting for and one thing worth fighting for is the truth of the Good News. There were some
false teachers in the church that were teaching people that once a person is saved by God’s grace,
he can live any way he wants. Jude points out that this is a serious error and encourages the
Christian to stand firm against it.

9 Read Jude 3-4 for a sample of this letter.

 Day 75
The Book of Revelation

And now we come to the final book of the Bible. It is one of the most intriguing books.
It was written by the Apostle John from the island of Patmos, where he was an exiled prisoner.
Unlike the rest of the New Testament, Revelation is a piece of apocalyptic literature. It is full of
visions and symbolic language that Jesus the Christ revealed to John. The book was written
around A.D. 95, making it the latest writing in the New Testament.

9 Read Revelation 1:9-20 for a sample of apocalyptic literature. In this passage John sees a
vision of Jesus Christ in heaven. Many of the titles and descriptions given to the Christ in this
chapter are used throughout the remainder of the book.

The Book of Revelation is one of the most difficult books of the Bible to interpret.
Alternative interpretations abound among sincere Christians. Basically, there are four different
approaches to the book:
1. Some see Revelation as a series of pictures that teach spiritual truths applicable to
Christians in every era of time. Those pictures graphically portray the battle between good and
evil that continues through the ages. The stories have no connection to any historical or political
events. They make no predictions about the future. The book is a call to faithful living in the
midst of persecution. It assures those suffering that good will triumph over evil in the end.
2. Some see Revelation 1-18 as pictures that teach spiritual truths applicable to Christians
in every era of time and Revelation 19-22 is predictive of future events surrounding the Lord’s
coming. This is a slight modification of the first approach.
3. Some see Revelation as containing futuristic prophecies from the standpoint of the
writer that have all already been fulfilled. So, looking at them from our standpoint in history, the
prophecies have already been fulfilled and have nothing to say about the future. Some who view
Revelation this way see the prophecies as all fulfilled in the first century while others see them as
completely fulfilled with the fall of Rome in the fifth century. Only the last two chapters, the
ones about heaven and hell, are considered futuristic. The purpose of this book, according to
those who think this way, is to comfort Christians who were suffering at the hands of the Jews
and the Romans.
4. Some see Revelation as prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled. Revelation 4-22 is all
predictive prophecy about the events that will occur when it is time for this world to end. There
are several shades of thought within this school of thought. Clearly, these different approaches
make for vastly different interpretations of the book.
While I am very gracious with those who differ, there are several reasons I hold to the
viewpoint that Revelation is prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled. First, there is a verse at the
beginning of the book that holds a key to the rest of the book. In Revelation 1:19 the Lord Jesus
says to His apostle John, Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take
place later. It seems like this verse provides an excellent outline to the Book of Revelation.
Revelation 1:1-18 describes the things that John has already seen, Revelation 2-3 describes what
is now, and Revelation 4-22 describes what will take place in the future.
Second, the futuristic view is most consistent with the rules of interpretation that I follow
in interpreting all of the Bible including prophecy. When the literal sense makes good sense,
there is no need to look for a spiritual or symbolic sense. It seems to me that the prophecies of the
Old Testament were fulfilled quite literally. There is no reason to believe that the prophecies of
Revelation will not also be fulfilled quite literally.
Third, it seems to me that the earliest church held to a futurist view of Revelation. As far
as I can tell, the idea that Revelation is a collection of stories with morals started around A.D.
400 and really developed into its modern form around A.D. 1800. It seems to me that the men
who developed it then were men who did not believe the Bible was a word from God. This
makes me wary, although these views have now been adopted by theologians who do clearly
believe in the divine inspiration of Scripture.
Having said all this, we must add some additional and balancing thoughts to the
discussion. First, the character of Jesus the Christ is the central theme of Revelation. Revelation
is not primarily a crystal ball whereby the Christian can see into the future. At the beginning of
each paragraph we should be asking, “What does this passage teach about Jesus the Christ?”
before asking, “What does this passage teach about the future?” When this approach is taken,
there is much more agreement between Christians from each of the above mentioned viewpoints.
Second, we should avoid making passages more sensational than they are. Some who see
these things as yet-to-be-fulfilled read modern technology, weaponry, and politics into their
interpretation. We do not know if these events will be fulfilled in our lifetime or a thousand years
from now. We should not read our world into our interpretation of God’s Word.
Third, we should not fear the future when we read the book. If the book elicits fear, rather
than comfort and triumph, we are focusing our eyes on the wrong things.
Fourth, we should not try to assign significance to every detail. Rather, we should try to
step back and capture the big picture of what the various sections are saying.
Finally, let’s not be overly dogmatic about our interpretations. We should remain open to
learning something new from others.
 Day 76
What is Now

In this section the Lord Jesus dictates seven letters to the Apostle John that are intended
for seven churches. These seven churches are located in the same area of Asia Minor.
In each letter the Lord Jesus describes Himself differently before expressing the things He
appreciates and doesn’t appreciate about each church. He closes each letter with a word of
correction and challenge.
To the Church at Ephesus (2:1-7) – This is the same church at Ephesus that we read about
in Acts and to which Paul wrote a letter. There were many things that pleased the Lord Jesus in
this church–their good deeds, hard work, perseverance, and intolerance of heretics. They had lost
their initial devotion to Christ. He urges them to repent and do the deeds they did when they were
first converted.
To the Church at Smyrna (2:8-11) – They were a persecuted church and doing a
marvelous job of handling it. The Lord Jesus told them to be courageous even if they had to die
for Him.
To the Church at Pergamum (2:12-17) – The Lord Jesus appreciated their loyalty to Him
under stressful persecution. He did think, however, they were compromising with some of the
false teachers and pagan practices around them.
To the Church at Thyatira (2:18–29) – The Lord Jesus appreciated the increasing love,
faith, service, and perseverance He found in this church. Now He wanted them to get rid of the
false teachers they were tolerating in their midst.
To the Church at Sardis (3:1-6) – The Lord Jesus found very little good left in the church
at Sardis–just a few good people and a few good values. He commanded them to rebuild the
moral caliber of their church.
To the Church at Philadelphia (3:7-13) – The Lord Jesus also saw this church as a faithful
church. They were faithful in several ways–in enduring persecution and in obedience to God’s
will. He had no real condemnation of them.
To the Church at Laodicea (3:14-22) – This church was rich in resources but the Lord had
no words of commendation for them. They were half-heartedly devoted to the Lord. He wanted
them to be fully devoted to Him or to evil. He did not want them just to be lingering between the
two.

9 Read what the Lord Jesus told this church in Revelation 3:14-22 as an example of what these
letters are like.
 Day 77
What Will Take Place Later

From the Book of Revelation and other Scriptures, it appears that at some point in the
future there will come a tumultuous time of trouble upon the earth and its people (Jeremiah 30:7;
Daniel 9:24-27; 12:1). The Lord Jesus spoke of a time when there would be great distress upon
the earth, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now and never to be equaled again
(Matthew 24:21).
Once you read the Book of Revelation on your own, you will see that our overview today
is focused on events on earth. We deleted the events that take place in heaven. We also deleted
information shared about some of the key personalities mentioned in the book.

9 Below is an outline of the horrific events that will take place on the earth in the final days of
human history as God pours out His wrath upon humankind. Before reading my overview, read
Revelation 6:1-17.

The seven seal judgments (5:1-8:1)

There is a sealed scroll in heaven that can only be opened by someone with authority to
do so. The creatures of heaven anxiously wait to find out who has such authority. It turns out that
only Jesus Christ, worthy of great praise, has such authority (5:1-14). As he opens each seal,
more about the future is revealed.

• Seal 1: A mighty leader will be bent on conquest (6:1-2).

• Seal 2: A major world war will break (6:3-4).
• Seal 3: A serious worldwide famine will take place. A day’s supply of food will cost a
day’s wages (6:5-6).
• Seal 4: One fourth of the world’s population will die from war, starvation, and disease
(6:7-8).
• Seal 5: Christians will be slain for their faith (6:9-11).
• Seal 6: A major earthquake will dislodge every mountain and island from their usual
place. The earthquake will also change the complexion of the sky by day and night. Great
fear will come to all humanity as they respond to these events and Christ’s judgment
(6:12-14).
• Seal 7: A half hour of silence in heaven will be followed by seven of God’s angels being
given seven trumpets which introduces the next series of judgments (8:1-2).

The seven trumpets judgments (8:2-11:19)

The next thing you see in the Book of Revelation is seven angels. Each has a trumpet in
his hand which he is poised to blow upon God’s command. When the trumpet sounds, a new
judgment from God comes forth. The judgments that come forth upon the blowing of the
trumpets are more severe than the ones that came forth from the opening of the seven seals.
Just because John saw the trumpet judgments after the seal judgments does not mean that
they are going to take place after the seal judgments in the future. The grammatical construction
of Revelation is rather loose. “Then I saw” does not mean the same thing as “then will happen.”
Nonetheless, we get the sense that things will unfold in the future in the order that he observes
them. We get this sense because the Lord Jesus taught of a future, tumultuous time in which
things go from bad to worse. After describing the bad times and before describing the worse
times, He said, All of these are the beginning of birth pains (Matthew 24:8). What an analogy!
Things go from bad to worse until they produce the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. That same
pattern seems to occur in the Book of Revelation.
• Trumpet 1: Hail and fire will fall from the sky and destroy one third of humanity and
vegetation (8:7).
• Trumpet 2: Something like a huge, blazing mountain will be cast into the sea. As a result,
one third of the earth’s sea creatures and ships will be destroyed (8:8-9).
• Trumpet 3: A meteor-like object will fall from the sky. One third of the world’s drinking
water will be poisoned and many people die (8:10-11).
• Trumpet 4: The light produced by the sun, moon, and stars will be reduced by thirty-
three percent (8:12).
• Trumpet 5: A meteor-like object will open up the earth and something (probably demons)
will come forth which inflict humans. Whatever comes forth will change the appearance
of the sky and put an eeriness in the air. Non-Christian people will suffer so much they
will want to die, but will not be able to do so (9:1-11).
• Trumpet 6: Four angels will be unleashed. With an army of 200 million, they will kill one
third of the world’s population (9:12-21).
• Trumpet 7: As with the seventh seal, the scene switches from earth to heaven. Here,
heavenly creatures are seen worshiping God at His throne (11:15-19).

The seven bowl judgments (Revelation 15:1-6:21)

In Revelation 15, seven angels prepare to pour the seven bowls of God’s wrath upon the
earth. This is the severest set of judgments yet.

• Bowl 1: Disgusting and painful sores will break out on all who worshiped the world ruler
and took his mark (Revelation 16:1-2).
• Bowl 2: The water in the seas will become contaminated and all of the sea creatures will
die (16:3).
• Bowl 3: The fresh water supply of the earth will be contaminated (16:4-7).
• Bowl 4: Something will happen to the sun and people are scorched by it (16:8-9).
• Bowl 5: The world ruler’s kingdom will be plunged into darkness and his subjects will
continue to suffer from their sores (16:10-11).
• Bowl 6: The Euphrates River will dry up, making it easy for generals from the East to
position their armies for the battle of Armageddon. Whether the generals realize it or not,
they will be positioned by demons. Whether the demons realize it or not, they will have
been positioned by God for judgment (16:12-16).
• Bowl 7: The greatest earthquake in history will occur at this time. The capital of the
Beast’s empire will be split into three parts and many other cities will collapse. Every
island and mountain will disappear. On hundred pound hailstones will fall from the sky
(16:17-21).
 Day 78
The Destruction of Evil

One of the great themes of the Bible is that God will ultimately triumph over Satan and
good will prevail over evil in the end. In Revelation 17-20 you can see the destruction of evil.
Revelation 17:1-19:10: The Beast’s empire goes the way of all empires; it falls with a
great crash. Unlike the great kingdoms before her which took decades to disintegrate, the Beast’s
kingdom will go from being glorious one hour and destroyed the next. Many will be grieved by
her fall because their wealth and self-indulgent lifestyles depended on her success; however,
there will be joy in heaven. The Christians who were martyred by the kingdom of the beast will
be filled with great joy. Babylon’s sins were many but her persecution of Christians was her
worst offense.
Revelation 19:11-21: In numerous places the Scriptures teach that one day the living Lord
Jesus will return to the earth. This passage describes that day. You can see Jesus Christ returning
followed by the armies of heaven. When He comes, he destroys the two beasts – the political
leader and his false prophet. They are captured, thrown into hell and their armies are completely
destroyed. The vultures have a feast on their dead bodies.
Revelation 20:1-10: The Lord Jesus now goes after the source of evil, the devil himself.
He renders the devil completely inactive for 1000 years. Without his evil influence on the world,
the Lord Jesus is free to reign over the world for those 1000 years. To assist him in his reign, He
resurrects the martyred Christians from the dead and gives them immortal bodies. They rule with
Him for the 1000 years. During this time the world will see what the world is like without the
influence of Satan. We can be sure that evil will still be present because evil resides in the hearts
of humans and in their institutions; but without the influence of Satan, evil will be more
restrainable. When the 1000 years is over, the devil is set free and is allowed to wreak his havoc
again. With his influence in the world being felt again, he deceives the nations and turns them
against the rule of the Lord Jesus. As they prepare to take the capital of the Lord Jesus’ empire,
fire falls from heaven and destroys all their armies. The devil is then cast into hell and will never
bear an influence upon the universe again.
Revelation 20:11-15: After the Lord Jesus destroys the devil, He will resurrect all of the
dead from all of the ages. There is debate among different Christian thinkers as to who the dead
are. Some see these as the dead of all the ages. Clearly, the Lord Jesus spoke of a day when both
the believing and non-believing dead would be resurrected. He said, Do not be amazed at this, for
a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out--those who
have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned (John
5:28-29). While some see this as the resurrection of all who have died over all the ages, others
see it as the resurrection of all who died in a state of spiritual death. Hopefully you will recall
what we said about the three dimensions of death way back on Day 9 of this tour. We said, those
who experience physical death while in a state of spiritual death will suffer eternal death. That is
what this passage is about. All who did not experience the moral transformation that comes from
trusting in Christ for salvation were cast into hell.

9 Read Revelation 20:11-15.

 Day 79
The Glories of Heaven

The glories of Heaven are discussed in the closing two chapters of the Bible (Revelation 21-22).
Having been purged of all evil forces, the new heaven and earth will not compare to the original
universe.
• God will be especially present among His people as never before. We shall behold God
(at least, God the Son) with our very own eyes and have direct access to Him.
• Heaven will not be affected by the curse inflicted upon Adam and Eve and their posterity.
• There will be no sickness, pain, death, or sadness there.
• There will be no sinful and unbelieving people in the world. The people there will always
and only do God’s will and serve Him perfectly forever.
• Heaven will rest completely secure. Its city gates will be left open at all times because no
enemy threatens her. After all, God has permanently eradicated all threats.
• Heaven will be prosperous beyond comparison to anything here. Rare and expensive
gems will be there in abundance.
• The bedazzling city of Jerusalem will be huge. It measures 1500 miles broad, wide and
high. That makes it no less than 2,250,000 square miles.
• This state of perpetual happiness will know no end.

9 Read Revelation 21:1-27.

Heaven is a literal place, not just a state of mind. It is a real place out there somewhere. It
is wherever God is centrally located. The best way God can describe it to us is to say that it is
“up” (Luke 24:50-51).
It is a literal place but we can’t help but wonder if Revelation 21-22 is giving us a literal
description of that place. We do not know. We will have to wait and see! The most important
thing to understand from this description is that heaven will be an absolutely wonderful place for
those who trust in Christ to spend eternity. Once there, believers will wonder why we ever clung
so dearly to this life. While God’s goodness can be seen here on earth, it will be unrestrained in
heaven.
While heaven is a wonderful place, being in the very presence of God will be the most
thrilling part about it. Furthermore, the Bible tells us that in heaven we will know the people who
were precious to us on earth who trusted in the Savior. The Apostle Paul used the fact that
Christians would know and be reunited to their loved ones in heaven as something to fill us with
excited anticipation for heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).
 Day 80
An Overview of The Prophetic Future

To this point we have given you the history of Bible events that have all taken place in the
past. Today I will give you the history of some events God’s Word says will take place in the
future. What follows is a rough outline of the chronology of the future as I see it. My outline is a
classical Christian outline of the future. While many Christian thinkers outline the future as I do,
not everyone agrees. This is the outline that makes the most sense to me.
The Tribulation: At some point in the future, human history will enter a period of
unparalleled trouble (Jeremiah 30:7; Daniel 9:24-27; 12:1; Matthew 24:21). That is when most of
the future events predicted in the Book of Revelation will take place (Revelation 6-18). Horrific
wars and natural wonders will take place and millions of Christians will be martyred.
The Second Coming of Christ: Jesus Christ will descend from the sky in a highly visible
fashion. The whole world will see Him (Revelation 19:1-16; Matthew 24:26-31).
The Resurrection of Believers: When Christ is returning, the bodies of the believers of
all the ages will rise from the dead. Their transformed bodies will be immortal and be reunited
with their souls for eternity. The believers will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the
air. They will then join the descending army of the Lord Jesus. (See 1 Corinthians 15:35-54; 1
Thessalonians 4:13-18; and 1 John 3:2-3.)
The Eradication of Christ’s Enemies: When the Lord Jesus and the armies trailing him
return all the way to the earth, they then will rule the world and his empire will be destroyed
(Revelation 17:1-19:21).
The Establishment of Christ’s Earthly Kingdom: Satan will not be destroyed at the
time Christ destroys to rule the world, however, he will be imprisoned and rendered inactive.
Without his evil influence on the world, the Lord Jesus will freely reign for one thousand years
(Revelation 20:1-6).

9 Read Revelation 20:1-6.

The Judgment of Believers: At some point after their resurrection, believers will appear
before the judgment throne of God. Each will be eternally rewarded for the degree of devotion
they had to the Lord during their life on earth (1 Corinthians 3:10-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10).
The Eradication of Satan: When Christ has reigned on earth for 1000 years, the devil
will be allowed to influence the world again. He will deceive the nations to turn against Christ.
Fire will fall from heaven and destroy all the armies that join in his rebellion (Revelation 20:7-
10). He will be cast into the hell and will never bear an influence upon the universe again.
Presumably all his angels, the demons, will be destroyed at this time as well (Matthew 25:41).
The Resurrection and Judgment of the Unbelieving Dead: All the physically dead,
who died in a state of spiritual death, will be resurrected. They will stand before God and give a
report of their lives. If they did not trust in Christ for salvation, they will be condemned to a level
of hell in accordance with the life they lived on earth (Revelation 20:11-15).
The Establishment of the New Universe: After all the enemies of God are eradicated,
the new heaven and earth will appear. Believers will enjoy heaven and the presence of God
forever and ever (Revelation 21-22; John 14:1-3).

Congratulations! You have completed your tour of going Around the Word in 80 Days!
As you can see, all we had time to do was get an overview of the Scriptures.
We hope that someday you will read the Bible from cover to cover. If you read five
chapters a day, you will finish your reading within one year. We hope you are hungering to do
that.
 Appendix 1
Cross References
This Appendix has yet to be developed.
 Appendix 2
The Kings of Israel & Judah
The names of the kings are in the first column followed by the portion of the Bible that records
their reign. The next column records the dates of the reign. All the dates are B.C. The last column
records whether God considered that kings reign to be a “righteous” (R) or “evil” (E) reign.

Israel–The Ten Tribes Judah–The Two Tribes

Book of Bible: 1 Kings Book of Bible: 1 Kings
1. Jeroboam I (12-14:20) 931-910 E 1. Rehoboam (14:21-31) 931-913
2. Nadab (15:25-32) 910-909 E E
3. Baasha (15:33-16:7) 909-886 E 2. Abijah (15:1-8) 913-911 E
4. Elah (16:8-14) 886-885 E 3. Asa (15:9-24) 911-870 R
5. Zimri (16:15-20) 885 E 4. Jehoshaphat (22:41-50) 870-848 R
6. Omri /Tibni (16:21-28) 885-874 E Book of Bible: 2 Kings
7. Ahab (16:29-22:40) 874-853 E 5. Jehoram (8:16-24) 848-841 E
8. Ahaziah (22:51f.) 853-852 6. Ahaziah (8:25-9:29) 841 E
Book of Bible: 2 Kings E 7. Athaliah (11) 841-835 E
9. Joram (6:24-7:20) 852-841 E 8. Joash (12) 835-796 R
10. Jehu (9-10) 841-814 E 9. Amaziah (14:1-22) 796-767 R
11. Jehoahaz (13:1-9) 814-798 E 10. Azariah (15:1-7) 767-740 R
12. Jehoash (13:10-14:16) 798-782 E 11. Jotham (15:32-38) 740-732 R
13. Jeroboam 2 (14:23-29) 782-752 E 12. Ahaz (16) 732-716 E
14. Zechariah (15:8-12) 753-752 E 13. Hezekiah (18-20) 716-687 R
15. Shallum (15:13-15) 752 E 14. Manasseh (21:1-18) 687-642 E
16. Menahem (15:16-22) 752-542 E 15. Amon (21:19-26) 642-640 E
17. Pekahiah (15:23-26) 742-740 E 16. Josiah (22:1-23:30) 640-608 R
18. Pekah (15:27-31) 740-732 E 17. Jehoahaz (23:31-35) 608 E
19. Hoshea (17) 732-721 E 18. Jehoiakim (23:34-24:7) 608-597 E
19. Jehoiachin (24:8-25:30) 597 E
20. Zedekiah (24:18-25:26) 597-586 E
 Appendix 3
The Recorded Miracles of Christ
The Lord Jesus demonstrates His authority over disease and disability
• Jesus heals a leper (Matthew 8:1-4).
• Jesus heals the paralyzed servant of a centurion (Matthew 8:5-13).
• Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever (Matthew 8:14, 15).
• Jesus heals a paralytic (Matthew 9:1-8).
• Jesus heals a woman with a bleeding problem (Matthew 9:20-22).
• Jesus heals two blind men (Matthew 9:27-30).
• Jesus heals a man who had a shriveled hand (Matthew 12:10-13).
• Jesus heals the lame, blind, dumb, and the maimed (Matthew 15:30, 31).
• Jesus heals two blind men (Matthew 20:30-34).
• Jesus heals the blind and the lame in the temple (Matthew 21:14).
• Jesus heals a deaf and dumb man at Decapolis (Mark 7:31-35).
• Jesus heals a blind man at Bethsaida (Mark 8:22-26).
• Jesus heals a bent over woman (Luke 13:11-13).
• Jesus healed a man of dropsy in the house of a Pharisee (Luke 14:1-4).
• Jesus heals ten lepers (Luke 17:11-19).
• Jesus heals a cut off ear (Luke 22:50, 51).
• Jesus heals a nobleman’s son (John 4:46-54).
• Jesus heals a man who was crippled for 38 years (John 5:2-9).
• Jesus heals a man born blind (John 9:1-7).
The Lord Jesus demonstrates His authority over nature
• Jesus calms the stormy wind and sea (Matthew 8:23-27).
• Jesus feeds 5,000 with very little (Matthew 14:15-21).
• Jesus walks on a stormy sea (Matthew 14:25).
• Jesus enables Peter to walk on water (Matthew 14:28-31).
• Jesus feeds 4,000 with very little (Matthew 15:32-39).
• Jesus transfigures in front of three disciples (Matthew 17:1-9).
• Jesus sends Peter to catch a fish with money in its mouth (Matthew 17:24-27).
• Jesus curses a fig tree and causes it to die (Matthew 21:17-20).
• Jesus causes Peter to make a great catch of fish (Luke 5:4-11).
• Jesus turns water into wine (John 2:1-11).
• Jesus causes a miraculous catch of fish (John 21:3-11).
The Lord Jesus demonstrates His authority over demons
• Jesus casts demons out of all who were brought th Him (Matthew 8:16).
• Jesus sends demons out of two men into a herd of pigs (Matthew 8:28-34).
• Jesus casts a demon out of a dumb man (Matthew 9:32, 33).
• Jesus heals a man who is blind, dumb and demon possessed (Matthew 12:22).
• Jesus casts a demon out of a Canaanite woman’s daughter (Matthew 15:22-28).
• Jesus casts a demon out of a boy (Matthew 17:14-18).
• Jesus casts a demon out of a man in a synagogue (Luke 4:33-36).
The Lord Jesus demonstrates His authority over death
• Jesus raises a girl from the dead (Matthew 9:23-25).
• Jesus brings a dead boy back to life (Luke 7:11-15).
• Jesus raises a man who was dead for four days (John 11:41-44).
 Appendix 4
The Twelve Apostles
The Original Twelve

1. Peter lived in Capernaum. The Lord Jesus frequently lodged in his home when in Galilee.
Vocationally he was a fisherman on the sea of Galilee. It is probable that he was in some kind of
business partnership with James and John. Religiously, he was a devout disciple of John the
Baptizer. He became a follower of the Christ after he was introduced to Jesus Christ through his
brother Andrew. In the Gospel accounts, the Lord Jesus seemingly focuses more energy on the
development of Peter than on anyone else. Peter became the leader and spokesman for Christ’s
apostles after His death.

2. Andrew was Peter’s brother. He lived in Capernaum and was also a fisherman with Peter,
James and John. Religiously, he was a devout disciple of John the Baptizer. He became a
follower of Christ after he was introduced to Christ by John the Baptizer.

3. James was a son of a man named Zebedee. Vocationally he was a fisherman on the sea of
Galilee. It is probable that he was in some kind of business partnership with John, Andrew and
Peter. Indications in Scripture are that he and John ran a prosperous operation since they were
able to employ servants. His life ended when Herod Agrippa killed him seventeen years after the
Lord called him to follow Him.

4. John was the brother of James, also a son of Zebedee. He became known as “the beloved
disciple.” The Lord Jesus seems to have had an especially warm relationship with him.
Vocationally he was a fisherman in some kind of business partnership with John, Andrew and
Peter. Seemingly he and his brother had a prosperous business. He is the apostle that would later
write the Gospel of John, the three letters of John and the Book of Revelation.

5. Philip came from Bethsaida, the same town as Peter and Andrew. Presumably, they all knew
each other. Bible students can know very little about his activities during the ministry of Christ.
In the Book of Acts, however, he becomes a deacon in the church at Jerusalem and later becomes
a great evangelist.

6. Bartholomew (also known as Nathanael) is one of the apostles that the Bible gives us very
little information about. The Lord Jesus complimented him as being a man of integrity.

7. Matthew was a tax collector turned apostle of Christ. Israel was under Roman rule at the time
of Jesus. This meant that the citizens of Israel had to pay taxes to the Emperor. The Jews
despised this responsibility. To collect these taxes, Rome appointed natives as tax collectors and
assigned a region to them. The Jews resented any Jew who collected taxes for Rome. Matthew
(also known as Levi) was the tax collector in the region where Jesus had to pay His taxes. He
became a follower of the Christ and later authored on of the four Gospels.

8. Simon is another character we know little about. We know that he was a Zealot. That means
that he belonged to a political party within Israel that worked hard for the independence of Israel
from Rome. Some reckless zealots, known as assassins, used terrorism as part of their tactics.
There is no indication how extreme Simon was.
9. James is another apostle about whom we can know very little. He was the son of a man named
Alphaeus. He was probably the brother of Jude. He may have been the James that wrote the letter
of James in the New Testament.

10. Jude (also known as Judas, Thaddeus and Lebbeus) is another that little is known about.
John gives us one little glimpse of him (14:22-23). He was the son of a man named Alphaeus.
So, probably, he was the brother of James. There are some reasons to think he also was a Zealot.

11. Thomas is only mentioned in John’s Gospel (11:1-16; 14:1-6; 20:24-29). Based on these
three passages, Thomas seems like a skeptical and pessimistic sort of man. He is the apostle who
doubted that the other apostles had really seen Christ after he arose from the dead. When he saw
the risen Christ for himself, he acknowledged Him as his Lord and God.

12. Judas Iscariot was unique in that he was from Judea, whereas all the other apostles were
from Galilee. Judas worked as the treasurer of Jesus and His band. He was known to occasionally
pilfer from that account. Judas is one of the greatest mysteries of the New Testament. He is the
one who later betrayed the Lord into the hands of His enemies for 30 pieces of silver.

What About the Apostle Paul?

The Lord Jesus selected the Apostles upon whom He would build His spiritual kingdom
(Ephesians 2:20; 3:5). As the earthly kingdom of Israel was founded upon the physical lineage of
the twelve tribes of Israel, Christ’s spiritual kingdom was founded upon the spiritual lineage of
the twelve Apostles.
In the end, the wall of the Jerusalem in heaven will have twelve foundations and on each
foundation will be the names of the twelve Apostles of Christ (Revelation 21:14). Which twelve
names will be there? Will Judas Iscariot’s name be among them?
Nothing vile will enter heaven and Judas will not be present. Realizing this, the eleven
remaining apostles sought to replace Judas (Acts 1:12-26). After searching the Scriptures, they
proposed two men as candidates to take over his apostolic ministry. After prayer for guidance,
they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles (Acts 1:26).
Understandings of these events differs. It seems clear enough that Luke says Matthias was
included as one of the twelve. Others say the Apostle Paul would later become the replacement
for Judas and the church was prematurely running ahead of Christ in replacing Judas Iscariot. In
any case, we never hear another mention of Matthias in the Bible after this.
The Apostle Paul said that after His resurrection Jesus Christ appeared to all the apostles,
and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the
apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of
God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I
worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me (1 Corinthians
15:8-11). Christ appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus and called him there to be his apostle
(Acts 9:3-16). I do not know what to make of Matthias but I see Paul as the twelfth apostle,
Christ’s replacement for Judas Iscariot.
 Appendix 5
Test Questions
This appendix will be constructed at a future time.
 Appendix 6
Map of Key Places in Ministry of Christ

The Zondervan Corporation produced this map and it is copyrighted to them.

 Appendix 7
The Missionary Journeys of Paul

Copyright © 2006 McCabe Pilgrimages

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