The Bible in a Year

Old Testament

Amos-Genesis 6
Special 2 Week Christmas Edition
Read this coming week:
Dec 20 Amos 1‐5, Ps 140, 1 Jn 3‐5 Dec 21 Amos 6‐9, Ps 141, 2 Jn, 3 Jn,
Jude Dec 22 Obad, Jonah 1‐4, Ps 142, Rev 1 Dec 23 Mic 1‐3, Ps 143, Rev
2‐3 Dec 24 Mic 4‐7, Ps 144, Rev 4‐6
Dec 25 Nah 1‐3, Ps 145:1‐13, Rev 7‐9 Dec 26 Hab 1‐3, Ps 145:14‐21, Rev
10‐12 Dec 27 Zeph 1‐3, Hag 1‐2, Ps 146, Rev 13‐15 Dec 28 Zech 1‐5, Ps
147, Rev 16‐17 Dec 29 Zech 6‐9, Ps 148, Rev 18‐19 Dec 30 Zech 10‐14,
Ps 149, Rev 20‐21 Dec 31 Mal 1‐4, Ps 150, Rev 22
Jan 1 Gen 1‐2, Ps 1, Matt 1‐2 Jan 2 Gen 3‐4, Ps 2, Matt 3‐4 Jan 3 Gen 5‐6,
Ps 3, Matt 5

Reading Questions
For next week’s readings answer the following:
• What are some of the things that Amos accuses
the people of Israel and Judah of doing?
• What is the famine that God sends in Amos 8?
• Edom is traditionally considered to be the sons of
Esau, the brother of Jacob who was later named
Israel. What is God punishing Edom for?
• You know the fish story, what surprises you about
Jonah 4 (which few people ever read)?
 • Micah 5 is traditionally one of the Christmas
readings. What is added (or even taken away) by
reading it in its context?
• Nineveh isn’t saved anymore in Nahum! What are
some of the things that will happen to this
Assyrian capital city?
• Habakkuk is written in a time when it seems like
God has left His people. Apply chapter 2 to those
times when we feel God is silent.
• Zephaniah is written at the same time as the
prophet Jeremiah, a time just before and during
the destruction of God’s country, but it looks
hopefully to a day of rejoicing. What is the reason
for rejoicing in chapter 3?
• Haggai occurs after the Babylonian captivity.
Luther often equated the Babylonian captivity
with the period that the church was held by the
law alone (without clear Gospel). What are we to
do as people who are out of captivity?
• Choose 3 prominent visions in Zechariah and
explain what they mean.
• Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament.
What evil does it point to? What good does it
point to?
• Genesis 1-2 is the only picture that we have of the
world before sin. How does it differ from what we
know of a sinful world today?
• Genesis 3-4 gives a stark picture of sin and its
effects. What happens just after sin enters into
the world?
• Why do we consider Noah a “kids story” when it’s
filled with death and corruption? Could you just
as easily paint the story as a disaster-thriller or
horror movie?

Grappling with the 12

Ugh. Minor prophets. That’s what I used to think as
well. Yet still, the 12 Prophets bring out many issues
that we should think about as Christians.

Context:
The 12 Prophets live in a time when they are looking
forward to the rescue of God, right before He comes as
the Messiah. As Christians, we look toward the coming
of a Messiah (again) soon.

Issues:
Christians are certainly not without sin. Even the
Christian church can be accused of doing some of the
same horrid sins that Israel was committing.

New Testament:
The New Testament is more likely to quote from one of
the prophets than one of the historical books. The
minor prophets pop up again and again in the text of
the New Testament.

Bereshith
Bereshith (bear-ay-sheeth) is the Hebrew word for
“Genesis”. Genesis is the first book of the Bible which
lays the historical groundwork for Moses and the
Exodus. In some ways, you can see the book of Genesis
as a “pre-quel” telling the story that is elucidated from
Exodus through to Deuteronomy/Joshua.

The book of Genesis establishes:

• Creation’s relationship to God
• Humanity’s special relationship to God distinct
from the rest of creation
• Sin – its origins and unbridled effects on humanity
• God’s practice of “calling a people”
• How God’s people react generationally to His
calling
….and then we end up in Exodus.

Merry Christmas to you and

yours! There will be no Bible
study on December 27th, we
will begin again on January 3rd.
Please don’t throw this away. If you’re not going to use it, leave it for
someone else to use.