Study the Bible in Two Years – 7/3/10

Saturday,  July 3 – Lamentations 1 

1.  This short book of 5 chapters is Jeremiah’s poetic “lament” over the destruction of Jerusalem.  Why did this happen?  See 1:5,8. 

2.  Jerusalem for us can represent God’s church.  Her sins are described as a yoke that weighs her down. See 1:14 Who fashioned this yoke?  Jeremiah doesn’t tell us here, but how alone can we be freed from this yoke of sin?  

3.  From 1:12 to the end of the chapter, the one speaking is not Jeremiah the writer, but Jerusalem herself.   Note 1:21.  How do her enemies react when they see what has happened to God’s city?    Where have you observed that in the world today, when bad things happen to God’s church?  (Just like Jerusalem, some parts of God’s church have sinned and rebelled against him.)

Study the Bible in Two Years – 7-2/10

Friday, July 2 – Jeremiah 52 

1. The last chapter of Jeremiah was added later (by Jeremiah or perhaps his secretary Baruch) and is a summary of the destruction of Jerusalem.  Why do you think this is repeated at the end?    Look back at Jeremiah 27:21-22 and 38:17-18. 

2.  This chapter takes some time to describe what happened to the articles from God’s house.  Why is this important?  See also Daniel 5:2. 

3.  The book ends with the news that one Judean king, Jehoiachin, was released from prison and was treated kindly.  He had been king only 3 months when he was removed and brought into exile by Nebuchadnezzar.  Why do you think this fact about Jehoiachin (also known as Jeconiah) was important?   To discover the answer, see Matthew 1:11.

Study the Bible in Two Years – 7/1/10

Thursday, July 1 – Jeremiah 50-51 

1.  In chapters 50-51 Jeremiah writes as much about one kingdom, Babylon, as he had written about all the other nations combined.  That’s because God’s people are in captivity there! What good purpose would Judah’s captivity in Babylon serve? (50:4,5) 

2.  Why will Babylon be so totally destroyed if they were carrying out God’s will concerning Jerusalem?  See 50:11-12.  Also note that the mighty city of Babylon is to this day just a ruins covered by the desert sands, 60 miles south of Bagdad.

 3.  Three times in these chapters, the Lord tells the believers in exile to do what?  See 50:8, 51:6 and 51:45.  The Lord uses this same picture in the book of Revelation.  The greatest enemy towards God’s church is described as “Babylon.”  What does the Lord tell us to do?  See Revelation 18:4.

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/30/10

Wednesday, June 30 – Jeremiah 46-49 

1.  The army of Egypt looked strong and powerful.  Yet who is in control of the outcome of the battles their army would face?  What applications can you take away from this? 

2.  Why did God allow Moab to be destroyed?  (48:42).  What awaits them?  What awaits those who reject God today? 

3.  How might the attitude that God condemns in 49:4 be exhibited in our culture today?  What warning is there for us in regard to where our trust should lie?

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/29/10

Tuesday, June 29 – Jeremiah 44-45 

1.  How do the first verses of Jeremiah 44 show God’s incredible patience?  Does he show that same patience with you?  How? 

2.  What dreadful curse do we see in verses 25 and 26?  What warning is there for us? 

3.  In the midst of all of the impending doom for the people of Judah, what promise does God give to Jeremiah at the end of chapter 45?

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/28/10

Monday, June 28 – Jeremiah 41-43 

1.  How does the attitude of the people in 42:5-6 appear to demonstrate a trust in God?  Do you pray with that type of trust? 

2.  How do we know that they weren’t actually trusting God?  (43:1-2) Have you ever despaired when God doesn’t answer your prayers in the way that you think is best?  

3.  What was the point of Jeremiah’s object lesson for the Jews on their arrival in Egypt?

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/26/10

Saturday, June 26 – Jeremiah 38-40 

1.  Jeremiah faithfully proclaimed God’s message, but was considered a traitor.  Why?  Has faithfulness to the Lord ever caused you more problems than before? 

2.  What did God promise Zedekiah if he surrendered to Babylon? (38:17,20).   What terrible things actually happened to Zekekiah when he refused to surrender? (39:5-7).  How important is it to listen to the Lord? 

3.   What does Jeremiah’s rescue from the POW camp at Ramah and his assignment to help Gedaliah tell us about how God treats his people?   See Matthew 10:28-31.

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/25/10

Friday, June 25 – Jeremiah 36-37 

1.   Chapter 36 is also a flashback to King Jehoiakim’s reign.  How did he show contempt for God’s Word?  How do people show a similar contempt today? 

2.   Chapter 37 takes us forward again to the last king, Zedekiah.   Why was Jeremiah arrested? 

3.  What shows that Zedekiah had more care and compassion for Jeremiah than he did for the Lord?   How do we show how we care for the Lord?

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/24/10

Thursday, June 24 – Jeremiah 34-35 

1.  We find out that there is hardly anything left to the kingdom of Judah: just three cities are under King Zedekiah’s control.  Babylon has everything else.  Zedekiah told the people to free their Jewish slaves. This was supposed to happen every seven years, but no one had listened for a long time to God’s command.  The nobles did it and then they changed their minds and kept the people as slaves!   Why would someone continue to disobey God in such a hopeless situation? 

2.  Jesus told a parable about this problem.  See Matthew 21:28-31.  Which son were the wealthy people of Jerusalem like? 

3.  Chapter 35 is a flashback to the former King Jehoiakim, and happens about 10-12 years before Chapter 34.  What did Jeremiah tell the Recabites to do?  Why didn’t they do it?    What were the people supposed to learn from this?  Who are you listening to?

Study the Bible in Two Years – 6/23/10

Wednesday, June 23 – Jeremiah 33 

1.  When do you make use of the prayer in verse 11?  Why is it so good to give thanks to God for the blessings he gives to us? 

2. Read verses 14-16.  Notice how the verse talks about a branch that comes from David’s line, a human being descendant of David.  Yet this human being also is called the “LORD”, a name that only refers to the true God.  Who do these verses clearly refer to?  What will this branch do for God’s people? 

3. Science tries to find rules and order in nature and says that the evidence of such laws disprove the existence of God.  How does God show that the opposite is true in verses 25 and 26?  What additional comfort does he provide in those verses for us?