Bible Studies, Inspired by Faith and Science

The new year started and we went back into Daniel, hoping to finish our study of the prophets soon. Since this study will end with John the Baptist - an appropriate book-end with Samuel - we've decided to move straight into a Chronological study of the Gospels next. But first, here are the last few studies from the prophets - with all their attendant numerical and apocalyptical complexities. (51) Daniel’s Numbers Daniel is often remembered for obscure visions and strange numbers. We’ve already looked at how important symbolic numbers can be in prophesy—3 for God’s certainty, 2 for man’s trust, 4 for the earth, 7 for God’s plan, 10 for man’s counting, 12 for God’s choice… But Daniel uses real numbers too—360 days in a year, 7 days in a week, etc. Going back to Daniel’s vision of Alexander and the history to follow him… Read Daniel 8:11-14 1.        A mathematical question. A generic year was 360 days long. How many years is 2,300 days? 2. ...

It's the end of another Coffee Break Bible Study year, which doesn't seem at all possible. But here we are, back at Daniel, looking at his future that's already our past, before we start with everybody's future in September. Enjoy. Shortly before the Medo-Persian conquest (i.e. before Cyrus, and before the last parts of Isaiah and Zechariah were being read to the Jews of the return) Daniel, still at the Babylonian court, received some amazing visions. Remembering that prophecy often has three applications – to the time of the prophet, to a time of trials when comfort comes from God, and to a future event – we’re going to look at how Daniel’s visions applied (and were applied) to future of his people – and to the present day (which doesn’t mean this is the end of days – just that this could be one of many future times of trials). Daniel’s first vision concerns four winds, four beasts, eleven horns, and the Ancient of Days. 1.        Read Daniel 7:1-6 ...

Our study group follows the school year, so we're stopping soon for summer. Which is kind of weird. We started the previous year with Samuel, hoping to finish all the prophets in a year. Then we broke for summer, starting this year with Daniel and hoping to get back to Daniel's visions of the future by the end of the year. Now we're in sight of the finish line but we know we're not going to reach it. Maybe next week we'll look at Daniel in the light of the "future" from there to John the Baptist (our intended finish-line), and look at the end of the world after summer. But first we'll take some end-of-the-word, and some end-of-tradition glimpses out of Zechariah, following on from the end of Isaiah. (49) Zechariah and the Promise of Salvation An angel interprets each vision in the first half of Zechariah, but the second half is more obscure. The chapters are believed to have been written (or at least edited) at the time when Jerusalem was being ...

We're coming to the end of Isaiah and Zechariah - coming to the end of the words of the prophets in history - and coming to the end of this year's Bible study.  So... did Isaiah live to an enormous age and continue writing in a rebuilt Jerusalem? Did his followers rewrite or revisit his words? Did a follower write in the voice of Isaiah? Or are the words in the book even more ancient than they appear? Perhaps a better question would be: are details of dates and age of a prophet as important as the message conveyed from that "age of the prophets"? I'm still hoping we'll reach John the Baptist by the summer break, but we'll see. Meanwhile, whenever we believe Isaiah and Zechariah were written, their words were surely read in that rebuilt Jerusalem, where enemy nations warred over coast and highway, and rebuilding/nation-building led to thoughts of an age to come. (48) Isaiah and the Promise of Salvation The latter parts of Isaiah and Zechariah mu...

With five weeks to go in our Bible study series, I'm wondering if we'll make it to the end of those prophets. I think we might, but we'll see. This week we look at Joel (with his armies of locusts) and flip back to Isaiah, but the pages are turning forward in history. We'll see Isaiah through eyes of a re-established Jerusalem, then the rest of Zechariah, then Daniel through the eyes of those who used his book to repel invasion, then onward to John - it's where we've been headed for almost 2 years. It will be cool to see where it leads. Anyway, following on from last week, here, at last, is Joel: (47) Joel’s Army and Isaiah’s Messiah As with many minor prophets, it’s hard to pin down when Joel was speaking. But he prophecies at a time when Jerusalem has a Temple ( Joel 2:17 ). And he doesn’t mention a king when he calls the nation to prayer and fasting. so it’s likely he wrote at a time when there was no king. He emphasizes the role of priests, as did Mal...