Introduction to Ancient Egypt
The first third of the book of Exodus takes place in Egypt. The Israelites had lived in Egypt for 400 years and were steeped in Egyptian culture. The cultural and historical setting of Exodus is ancient Egypt. Here’s a brief introduction.
Introduction to the Intertestamental Period
The time between the end of the Old Testament (400BC from the prophet Malachi) to the preaching of John the Baptist (25 AD) is known as the “intertestamental” period. Here’s an overview of what happened.
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07 Holy Spirit Pledge and Seal: Ephesians 1:13-23
Paul describes believers as sealed with the Holy Spirit. A seal fulfills a past promise and pledges a future inheritance. A King’s seal had a three-fold purpose: 1) to guarantee authenticity, 2) to name the rightful owner, and 3) to protect from being tampered with or harmed.
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Introduction to New Testament Jewish Groups
The ancient historian Flavius Josephus identifies four rival religious philosophies among the Jews at the time of Jesus: Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots.
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When did the Exodus happen?
When it comes to biblical history, you can divide scholars into minimalists and maximalists. Minimalists believe almost nothing in the Old Testament is historically accurate. Maximalists believe the Old Testament is a reasonably accurate historical document. Among the maximalists, there are two main competing theories about the date of the Exodus: early and late.
Introduction to the Northern Kingdom
After the death of King Solomon, two of his sons, Rehoboam and Jeroboam, fought for the throne. When Rehoboam harshly raised taxes on the people, the 10 northern tribes rebelled and installed Jeroboam as their king, creating the northern kingdom of Israel. The two southern tribes, Benjamin and Judah, remained with Rehoboam and became the…
Malachi Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, key words, history, background, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Malachi.
06 Holy Spirit in the Old Testament: A New Heart
Both the Old and New Testaments speak about the need for God to spiritually renew us and change our hearts. Both associate this spiritual renewal with the Spirit of God. But there is only one really clear Old Testament passage on this topic.
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Zechariah Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of
Haggai Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Haggai.
Nahum Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Nahum.
Introduction to the Southern Kingdom
After the death of King Solomon, two of his sons, Rehoboam and Jeroboam, fought for the throne. When Rehoboam harshly raised taxes on the people, the 10 northern tribes rebelled and installed Jeroboam as their king, creating the northern kingdom of Israel. The two southern tribes, Benjamin and Judah, remained with Rehoboam and became the…
05 Holy Spirit in the Old Testament: Prophets
Most of the Old Testament references to the Holy Spirit involve his work empowering the leaders of Israel to protect the nation. But a second way we see the Spirit of God working in the Old Testament is giving revelation to the prophets.
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Introduction to…
Introductions to Background, history, chronology and books of the Bible.
Zephaniah Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Zephaniah.
Jonah Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Jonah.
Obadiah Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Obadiah.
04 Holy Spirit in the Old Testament: Judges & Kings
One of the main themes in the Old Testament regarding the Holy Spirit is that God empowers Israel’s leaders through His Spirit to bless the nation and keep His covenant promises.
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Amos Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Amos.
Joel Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, key words, history, background, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Joel.
September 2020 Reflections
WitW: Do you know who the Holy Spirit is? The 2020 State of Theology survey shows fewer evangelicals understand the Holy Spirit’s work in salvation. Let’s study the Holy Spirit together.
Hosea Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Habakkuk.
Lamentations Bible Study Resources
Study questions, maps, charts, key words, history, background, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Lamentations.
03 Holy Spirit: Revelation vs.understanding
In 1Corinthians 2, we learn two more important works of the Spirit: 1) The Spirit reveals the thoughts of God to His chosen messengers. This is revelation. 2) The Spirit gives understanding to all believers so that we embrace the claims of the gospel.
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