Have you not known since the beginning that God is God? He sits enthroned above earth. He brings down princes. Who can compare to God or is his equal? Those who hope in God will not grow weary. They will soar on wings like eagles. He gives them strength.
Micah 7:18-19
God forgives sins. He shows mercy and compassion on us. His anger does not linger.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 29, Day 2: Isaiah 40:21-31 and Micah 7:18-19
5a) It’s God Himself telling us about Him and revealing himself. We can trust what God says about Himself, as it helps us to grow closer to Him. He completely revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Crhist, and it helps us remember Him and what He has done for us.
b) That He is faithful. That he is merciful and compassionate. That He wants to bless me.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 29, Day 2: Isaiah 40:21-31 and Micah 7:18-19
Great verses and a great recap!
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 29, Day 2: Isaiah 40:21-31 and Micah 7:18-19
Isaiah 40:21-31
God’s greatness is evident in all of Creation. God sits above us all. He is master since He knows the stars by name. Knowing God is in our lives should make a difference in how we live.
God gives us His strength. He gives it to us as we rely on Him, seek Him. We can soar above all things like eagles. Strength to go forward.
After questioning God, Habakkuk now prays to God and praises Him for who He is and His goodness.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 28, Day 4: Habakkuk 3:1-15
11a) Habakkuk asks God to repeate his awesome deeds in his day and make them known. He asks him to remember mercy in his anger.
b) It’s a wonderful prayer, asking God to show up and do good deeds in our day like He did in the past. Habakkuk is humble, declaring God’s goodness. We all can be humble to God, declare His goodness, and ask Him to show up in our lives.
12a)
His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth. 6 He stood, and shook the earth; he looked, and made the nations tremble. The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed— but he marches on forever. 9 You uncovered your bow, you called for many arrows. You split the earth with rivers;
11 Sun and moon stood still in the heavens
at the glint of your flying arrows,
at the lightning of your flashing spear. 13 You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness, you stripped him from head to foot. 14 With his own spear you pierced his head when his warriors stormed out to scatter us, gloating as though about to devour the wretched who were in hiding. 15 You trampled the sea with your horses, churning the great waters.
b) God has always been there in the past and worked things out. He will continue to do so for me today.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 28, Day 4: Habakkuk 3:1-15
Love the prayer. Absolutely breathtaking.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 28, Day 4: Habakkuk 3:1-15
Habakkuk prays for revival of the people like in yesteryear. We should pray for personal revival. He prays for God to remember them and have mercy.
He praises God for His glory, His works, and for who God is.
When we remember what God did in the past, it helps us to remember what God can do in the present.
Jeremiah is lamenting the punishment and loss of the people. He compares them to gold that has lost its luster. And they are now destitute. All because of their sins that caused the Lord’s wrath. The Lord has scattered His people. Their punishment will end after the punishment is over.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 27, Day 4: Lamentations 4
9a) They and their. The people of Jerusalem. Us. The people of Jerusalem. He. God.
b) The children of Zion are now pots of clay in a potter’s hand (they have gone from gold to clay). The people are heartless. The infant is thirsty. The children beg for food. The rich are destitute. Kings and royals are now dead. The princes are unrecognizable. Many will die of famine. Women cooked their own children for food.
c) We see the punishment of God’s people. But their punishment will end after this punishment.
10) The Lord has given full vent to his wrath;he has poured out his fierce anger. He kindled a fire in Zion that consumed her foundations. The enemies and foes entered the gates of Jerusalem. The Lord himself has scattered them; he no longer watches over them. The priests are shown no honor, the elders no favor. The Lord’s anointed, our very life breath, was caught in their (the enemies’) traps. God will punish their sin and expose their wickedness.
11) It’s good. It helps to keep me accountable and prevent me from sin. God’s judgment is just; everything He does is just. I think it’s helpful to know you are being watched, so you don’t sin.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 27, Day 4: Lamentations 4
It can be hard to read the troubling consequences of sin and God’s punishment. Yet, it serves as a lesson to us to not do/be the same.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 27, Day 4: Lamentations 4
Jeremiah uses comparison and contrast to point out how the people used to be versus what they are now.
Jeremiah laments the loss of the people who were as precious as gold. Everyone was punished by God; no one was exempt.
The nobility are unrecognizable. It is so bad that women cooked their own children for food.
God’s wrath was deep. The people wandered the streets, stepping on dead bodies and defiling themselves. The people were scattered and were shunned everywhere they went.
No one could escape as the Babylonians pursued them.
Edom was happy Jerusalem had fallen, but they would be punished soon for their sins.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 25, Day 3: Select Passages From Jeremiah
7)
Jeremiah 2:5-6; 3:19-20: God’s people followed worthless idols and therefore became worthless themselves. They no longer sought the Lord. Instead, the people were unfaithful even when God gave them everything.
Jeremiah 4:6; 6:1: God is bringing destruction from the north.
Jeremiah 10:17-18: God will bring distress on His people. They will be captured and forced to leave the land.
Jeremiah 25:8-14: I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,” declares the Lord, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy[a] them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin.10 I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp.11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
12 “But when the seventy years are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon and his nation, the land of the Babylonians,[b] for their guilt,” declares the Lord, “and will make it desolate forever.13 I will bring on that land all the things I have spoken against it, all that are written in this book and prophesied by Jeremiah against all the nations.14 They themselves will be enslaved by many nations and great kings; I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”
8a)
Jeremiah 4:19-21: Jeremiah is distraught, in anguish. He must speak.
Jeremiah 9:1: Jeremiah cries for his people.
Jeremiah 10:23-25: Jeremiah pleads for God’s people. He asks God to pour out His wrath on other nations that do not acknowledge Him.
Jeremiah 15:16-18a: Jeremiah loved God’s word. He sat alone sometimes becuase of his obedience to God. Jeremiah was angry at being the bearer of bad news. He was in pain and did not know when it would end. He wondered about God’s goodness and power.
b) It bothers me, but it’s impossible to linger on or you will be like Jeremiah and let it consume you. I pray about it, and let God do the rest.
c) Lord, let me see those who need you and your Son, Jesus Christ. Let me pray over them to find you and to be open to you. Let me see what you see. Let me help who you want me to help. Let me be more like you. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 25, Day 3: Select Passages From Jeremiah
I can’t imagine the burden that Jeremiah felt with his calling in life. To be the bearer of bad news, the one no one likes and the one everyone hates is tough. It was definitely by the will of God, that’s for sure.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 25, Day 3: Select Passages From Jeremiah
God’s people are so ungrateful for what He has done for them that they dismiss Him. This has to pull at God’s heart.
Therefore, God will bring judgment.
Jeremiah is grieved for his people. He pleads with God for mercy and to judge the Babylonians for their evil, too.
Jeremiah feels alone sometimes because of his obedience, calling from God, and faithfulness to God. How many of us feel that way, too?
Jeremiah points out the people’s sins, tells them judgment is coming and to repent, and gives them hope.
In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established. Many nations will come and be judged. Disputes will be settled. There will be no more war.
The Lord will gather the remnant and rule over them in Mount Zion. They will go to Babylon, but will be redeemed.
Micah 5
A ruler will arise from Bethlehem. He will shepherd the people. The people will live securely. The remnant will be at peace. Yet, God will destroy and take vengeance on the nations that have not obeyed Him.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 23, Day 4: Micah 4-5
9) That we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever.
10a) Jesus
b) Jesus will come from the clans of Judah. Jesus will shepherd his flock, and they will live securely.
11) Good question. It gives me hope on the days I feel little hope. It gets me through.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 23, Day 4: Micah 4-5
Simple message, but powerful. Jesus will come and save.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 23, Day 4: Micah 4-5
Micah 4
God will reign over Israel once she is restored during the Second Coming. The people will learn His ways. There will be no more war or fear.
Everyone will be blessed. The people will be gathered. But they will be punished in Babylon first and then delivered. Nothing and no one will be able to stand against the Lord.
Micah 5
The ruler or king will come from Bethlehem. He will care for his flock tenderly. He will bring peace.
God will deliver His people from their enemies (personified as Assyria here).
The remnant will win, and they will exalt the Lord.
Psalm 46:God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. We will not fear. God is with us, our fortress. He can do all things.
Lamentations 3:22-23: “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning;great is your faithfulness.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 22, Day 5: Psalm 46, Lamentations 3:22-23 & Others
12) We are healed by Jesus’s wounds. We have peace because he died for us. Jesus takes away all of our sins when he suffered. He is our intercessor. Jesus will be at the right hand of God because of it.
13) Verse 1: God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. It really doesn’t get any more comforting than this.
14a) We[a] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. James says the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Perseverance helps us to be more mature and complete in God, lacking nothing. Suffering gives us the courage to keep at it. We pray more when we suffer; we grow closer to God, too.
b) Because God comforts us in our suffering, we can comfort others in theirs. Suffering produces endurance and hope. We are tested by sufferings. Suffering can make us overjoyed when God’s glory is revealed. We are blessed because we have the Spirit of glory.
15) I am unsure. It might be to achieve my goals. To experience more. To grow my faith and perseverance.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 22, Day 5: Psalm 46, Lamentations 3:22-23 & Others
I love the theme of perseverance here. Persevering is hard to do, but often yields the best things in our lives. Trials help us to persevere and overcome, bringing us closer to God and giving us a sense of self-worth.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 22, Day 5: Psalm 46, Lamentations 3:22-23 & Others
God provides even in our suffering. He can provide comfort.
When we suffer, we expereince God’s nearness.
God knows exactly what we need to grow with Him.
If we never suffered, we might never truly depend on God.
Suffering allows us to long for heaven.
Be still is the idea for humanity to stop opposing God, for he is the Great I Am. Instead, surrender.
God is compassionate even in His judgment. Every day we have new hope, mercy, and compassion from God.
Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. The book of the Law was found in the temple. Josiah tore his robes when he read the book because he knew none of the other kings had followed it.
The Lord responded by saying He would bring disaster on this place and its people, according to everything written in the book the king of Judah has read.17 “Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and aroused my anger by all the idols their hands have made,[a] my anger will burn against this place and will not be quenched.’18 Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord: Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I have spoken against this place and its people—that they would become a curse[b] and be laid waste—and because you tore your robes and wept in my presence, I also have heard you, declares the Lord.20 Therefore I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place.’”
2 Kings 20:
When Hezekiah became ill, the prophet Isaiah said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.” Hezekiah wept and the Lord promised to add 15 more years to his life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.’
Hezekiah showed the envoys his riches, and Isaiah prophesied that they would be carried away by Babylon. His son, Manasseh, succeeded him as king.
2 Chronicles 34:
Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He purged Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles and idols.4 Under his direction the altars of the Baals were torn down; he cut to pieces the incense altars that were above them, and smashed the Asherah poles and the idols. He repaired the temple of the Lord.
The book of the Law was found in the temple. Josiah tore his robes when he read the book because he knew none of the other kings had followed it. He read the book to the people and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord. Everyone in Jerusalem and Benjamin pledged themselves to it. Everyone followed the Lord as long as Josiah lived.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 17, Day 3: 2 Kings 22:1-23; 20; 2 Chronicles 34
6a)
2 Chronicles 34:1-2: Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years.2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and followed the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.
2 Chronicles 34:3a: In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David.
2 Chronicles 34:3b-7: In his twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles and idols.4 Under his direction the altars of the Baals were torn down; he cut to pieces the incense altars that were above them, and smashed the Asherah poles and the idols. These he broke to pieces and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.5 He burned the bones of the priests on their altars, and so he purged Judah and Jerusalem.6 In the towns of Manasseh, Ephraim and Simeon, as far as Naphtali, and in the ruins around them,7 he tore down the altars and the Asherah poles and crushed the idols to powder and cut to pieces all the incense altars throughout Israel. Then he went back to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 34:8: In the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign, to purify the land and the temple, he sent Shaphan son of Azaliah and Maaseiah the ruler of the city, with Joah son of Joahaz, the recorder, to repair the temple of the Lord his God.
7a) He tore his robes and inquired of the Lord about the consequences of those who acted before him.
b) You truly can’t grow with God until you do acknowledge your weaknesses before Him.
8a) Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to arouse his anger. 27 So the Lord said, “I will remove Judah also from my presence as I removed Israel, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and this temple, about which I said, ‘My Name shall be there.
b) God heard Josiah and postponed punishment: “Therefore I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place.’”
Josiah read the Law to the people and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord. Everyone in Jerusalem and Benjamin pledged themselves to it. Everyone followed the Lord as long as Josiah lived.
c) I hope rightly. I hope I repent and turn to His ways and not mine. This is not always the case, I’m sure. I’m unsure on the recent experience.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 17, Day 3: 2 Kings 22:1-23; 20; 2 Chronicles 34
I love reading about the good kings much more than the bad kings. It gives me hope for the human race.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 17, Day 3: 2 Kings 22:1-23; 20; 2 Chronicles 34
2 Kings 22:
Josiah followed the Lord. He repaired the temple. According to 2 Chronicles 34, the repair of the temple happened after Josiah committed to the Lord at age 16 and began getting rid of idolatry in Judah. The book of the Law is found and read. Deuteronomy 31:24-27, tells us that there was a copy of the Book of the Law beside the ark of the covenant from Moses on. But, the book had been neglected for so long due to bad kings.
Deuteronomy 17:18-20 says each king was to have a personal copy of the law, and he was to read it.
Deuteronomy 31:9-13 commands the entire law to be read to an assembly of the nation once every 7 years at the Feast of Tabernacles to remind the people of God’s word.
There was apublic reading of the law in Joshua 8:34, during the reign of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17:7-9), more than 500 years later, and in the reign of Josiah (2 Chronicles 34:30), more than 250 years after Jehoshaphat. There could have been more readings, too.
A spiritual revival happened, especially in Josiah. He sought the Lord, and the Lord says judgment is coming, but he spares Josiah due to his faithfulness and postpones judgment of the people. We’ve seen this a lot in this study where God takes pity on his people when they repent and postpones judgment (Ahab,1 Kings 21:25-29). This should encourage us.
2 Kings 20:
God extends Hezekiah’s life 15 years when He tells him that he will die (which is kind of God). He does this because he was faithful to the Lord. We know from 2 Kings 18:2 and 2 Kings 20:6 that Hezekiah was 39 years old when God told him he would die soon. This is also recorded in Isaiah 38.
Hezekiah prayed to God, and God answers (something we all should do). God confirmed his prophecy with a sign (another thing God did not have to do but does out of mercy for us).
Next, we see Hezekiah sin by being prideful of his riches that God gave him. He did not testify about God to these envoys either. This is a sin that God addresses. God says they will be taken away to Babylon, but Hezekiah is joyous because it won’t be in his day.
Hezekiah did not finish well. Will you?
2 Chronicles 34:
Josiah was a good king who worked to end idolatry in Judah. He restored the temple and discovered the book of the Law again. Josiah is overjoyed and goes to God. God answers. He will punish his people but not in Josiah’s time. Josiah will be gathered to his people.
Josiah renews God’s covenant and helps the people to follow God’s ways.
God took pity on his people and their cries. “I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations.” Joel says to not be afraid for the Lord will now bless the land and protect them from their enemies. The Lord will pour out his spirit during the day of the Lord on the people who will be saved.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 14, Day 3: Joel 2:18-32
6) That the Lord took pity on his people. That he would sendgrain, new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy them fully; never again will He make them an object of scorn to the nations. Joel says to not be afraid for the Lord will now bless the land and protect them from their enemies.
7a) God gave all people the Holy Spirit to be with them always. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord and Jesus will be saved.
b) I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.
c) God is faithful. He cares for His people. He forgives them when they turn from sin with the right heart. This is encouraging for me in my sin, too.
8 )
John 16:7-15: The Holy Spirit guides us in the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify Jesus because it is from Jesus that he will receive what he will make known to you. He will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment.
Acts 1:8: “But 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.”
Romans 8:9-16: the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. You will have eternal life because the Spirit is living in you. The Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
2 Corinthians 3:17-18: Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. We have freedom and glory because of the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-23: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. The Holy Spirit allows us to bear these spiritual fruits. The result of the work of the Spirit in a believer’s life is these attributes.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 14, Day 3: Joel 2:18-32
I love how God always is there to provide us with our needs and how the gift of the Holy Spirit is something none of us should take for granted.
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 14, Day 3: Joel 2:18-32
God promises to provide for his repentent people and protect them from their enemies. God will restore His people fully, promising to bring rain and restore what the locusts ate.
Then there will be ultimate restoration and blessing and God’s Spirit will be poured out onto the people after Jesus dies. During Old Testament times, only certain people had the Spirit come upon them.
Joel’s prophecy would be fulfilled at Pentecost when 120 believers were the first to receive the Holy Spirit with signs from heaven.
All are eligible to come to God and to pray for Him to come into their lives.
Jonah expresses his anger that God saved Nineveh. He asks to die. Jonah leaves the city and waits. The Lord provides a plant for shade for him. It grows and then dies. God asks him if he has a right to be angry about the plant. He still wishes for death. Jonah’s concern for the plant is the same as God’s concern for the people of Nineveh who also needed tending to grow in faith.
BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 12, Day 5: Jonah 4
13a) That Jonah is playing God, deciding who should be saved and who should not.
b) Pride that he was better than the people of Nineveh. Anger that they were horrible sinners and God saved them when he was a prophet who was also saved. Anger that the Assyrians were his enemies (the enemy of God’s people). They should be judged, not granted mercy.
14a) Tenderly. By trying to explain to Jonah in a way he would understand about God’s infinite mercy for Nineveh.
b) “should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh” “you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity”
15) It really hasn’t. I’ve always understoon that God can forgive whoever he wants to forgive like he has forgiven me. It’s not on me to judge who he saves and who he doesn’t.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 12, Day 5: Jonah 4
I find it interesting how Jonah is playing God here and decides for God that Nineveh should not be saved. How many of us do this to our loved ones?
End Notes BSF Study Questions People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided Lesson 12, Day 5: Jonah 4
Most prophets are pleased with converts. Thus, Jonah’s reaction here is very different.
Without God’s mercy, Jonah would be dead. Yet, this same mercy granted to Nineveh overwhelms him with anger.
God questions us because we are in the wrong and He wants us to see it from a different (often His) perspective. Sure, we can be angry with God, but we are never right over God, and we must repent of that anger, which is often due to misunderstanding.
Jonah seemed to hope that God would still destroy Nineveh when he left. He did not understand God’s love for all of humanity.
Yet, if Jonah cared so much for a plant that he did nothing for, how much more is God’s caring and love for a people that He did everything for from the moment of their creation?
Fun Fact: This is the first time Jonah is recorded as being happy. And it’s all because of a plant.
Fun Fact: Jonah’s last words recorded in the Bible show him clinging to his ways and not God’s ways. Luckily, God always has the last word.
All of this prepared Jonah for God’s work. How is He preparing you today?
