Biblical Studies / Old Testament

  • Israel to Extend the Kingdom

    Deuteronomy 7:12–26

    God promised to do through Israel what Adam did not do, and this goal had to be accomplished through the same terms given to Adam — faithfulness to His covenant demands. The Mosaic covenant with its promise of life (Lev. 18 ...Read More

  • Wisdom and Life

    Proverbs 3:13–18

    Our forebears rejected God’s wisdom in Eden, but in His grace He has made a way for mankind to feast on the treasures of Christ so that we might eat from the Tree of Life forevermore. All of us ...Read More

  • The Tree of Life

    Genesis 2:1–16; 3:22–24

    Adam and Eve’s expulsion from Eden was awful indeed, yet God’s grace was evident even in this punishment. For the Lord’s people, death is a release from the evils of this world, as eternal life in a ...Read More

  • Creation Freed from Decay

    Romans 8:18–25

    Non-Christian environmentalism can be really a form of nature worship that elevates the creature over the Creator. Christians are to be good stewards of creation and look not to misuse it because they know the damage that pollution and other ...Read More

  • The Testimony of Creation

    Job 38

    As we see in today’s passage, the Old Testament develops the theme of creation to show us that God is the true sovereign over all. The applications of this idea are too numerous to mention, but they include the ...Read More

  • God Creates the Universe

    Genesis 1:1–2:3

    What informs your understanding of the world around you? Do you seek meaning and value from the surrounding culture or do you look to God’s Word to give you these things? The worldview of the cultures in which we ...Read More

  • For Our Instruction

    1 Corinthians 10:1-12

    What is your attitude toward the Old Testament? Do you treasure it as the very Word of the living God? Do you avoid reading it because you find its stories and laws perplexing at times? Are you hungry to learn ...Read More

  • Stunting Worship

    Reflect on ways you might involve your physical senses in worshiping God in your private devotions.Read More

  • Respecting God’s Judgment

    Eli said: “It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him.” Can you make this affirmation from the depths of your heart in difficult times as well as good times?Read More

  • To Be Continued

    Genesis 50:22–26

    The history of Israel — the history of all those who by faith in Jesus alone are reckoned as God’s people — continues today. The story did not end when God closed the canon of Scripture, the church continues to wait ...Read More

  • The Worship of a Servant

    Genesis 24:22–28

    We are good at asking the Lord to give us certain things, but are we equally adept at thanking Him when He answers our prayers? Perhaps one reason why we forget to worship Him for His blessings is that we ...Read More

  • The Tower of Babel

    Genesis 11:1–9

    Matthew Henry comments, “Those who aim at a great name commonly come off with a bad name.” In our sin, all of us want to promote our fame at the expense of humble service to the Lord. How do you ...Read More

  • The Table of Nations

    Genesis 10:1–32

    Even though God’s blessing rests upon Shem’s line, the separation of humanity into different peoples and cultures as judgment for sin (Gen. 11:1–9) serves His purposes. The Lord is the One who allows any society to ...Read More

  • Noah Found Favor

    Genesis 6:8

    God knows our actions in advance from all eternity as part of His hidden will (Deut. 29:29), and He brings His secret will to pass by first announcing an intention and then moving us to respond. But we are ...Read More

  • Divine Sorrow

    Genesis 6:5–7

    If the Lord could not be sorrowful or angry at our sin or joyful at our obedience, we could not believe He is unchangeably holy, righteous, and good. Though our character may change, our Father’s does not, and therefore ...Read More