Isaiah 23-44 Twenty Questions

1. What indications are there in Isaiah 23 that reveal the people of Tyre, Sidon, Phoenicia, etc. as sea-farers and involved in trade?

2. What are some of the things that the prophet says will happen to the earth in Isaiah 24?

3. What about Isaiah 26:19-21 hints at resurrection?

4. Where else in scripture have we heard about Leviathan and a serpent as God’s enemy (Isaiah 27:1)?

5. Who does the vineyard represent in Isaiah 27?

6. What does Peter (writing in I Peter 2:6) see in Isaiah 28:16?

7. How does Jesus apply Isaiah 29:13 in Matthew 15?

8. What is the lesson that Paul draws out of Isaiah 29:16 in Romans 9:20?

9. In Isaiah 30 and 31, does the prophet recommend turning to Egypt for help?  Why or why not?

10. Isaiah 32:2 contains four similes about the king who reigns in righteousness and the rulers who rule in justice.  Which image do you relate most to?

11. According to Isaiah 34, what is the punishment that will fall upon Edom?

12. What is the parallel message of Isaiah 35:3 and Hebrews 12:12?

13. Which do you find to be the most encouraging image given to us in Isaiah 35?  Why?

14. What are some of the ways that Sennacherib’s field commander attempts to dishearten the people of Jerusalem as recounted in Isaiah 36?

15. At their low point of being threatened by the Assyrians, to what human being did King Hezekiah and his officials turn for help?

16. What ended up happening to the army of the Assyrians?

17. What was the sign given to Hezekiah to show that he would recover from his illness?

18. What are some things that show Hezekiah’s later foolishness in Isaiah 39?

19. Christians believe that Isaiah 40:3 is a prophecy fulfilled by whom?

20. In Isaiah 44:6-23, what are some ways that the prophet demonstrates the worship of idols to be utter nonsense?

Isaiah 1-22 Twenty Questions

1. Isaiah prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah in Jerusalem of Judah.  Does the Bible reckon these men as good kings or bad kings?

2. According to Isaiah 1, which does the Lord value more: assemblies worshiping Him with sacrifices or nations practicing righteousness and justice?

3. God offers hope for the forgiveness of the sins of the people, provided their response is what? (Isaiah 1:18-20)

4. What does Isaiah say about the mountain of the Lord’s temple (Zion’s Hill) in 2:1-5?

5. Do you see any parallels between Isaiah 2:6-22 and Revelation 6:15-17 and 18:1-20?

6. What is the point of the parable of the vineyard in Isaiah 5:1-7?

7. In Isaiah 6, why does the angel bring a live coal to touch Isaiah’s mouth, and how would such an act bring about atonement?

8. Have you ever told someone what they needed to hear, but it didn’t sink in and they refused your counsel?  Describe what happened. 

9. What was Isaiah’s promised sign of a virgin conceiving a child in chapter 7 originally supposed to demonstrate?

10. Can a sign have more than one meaning or application?

11. Who is Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz and what does his name mean?

12. What does the prophet foresee regarding Galilee in Isaiah 9:1-3?

13. What do the names of the child in Isaiah 9:6 signify?

14. What groups does God single out for compassion in Isaiah 10:1-4?

15. Isaiah 10:5-19 depicts the nation of Assyria as being both a means of God’s judgment and an object of His wrath.  How is this not a contradiction?

16. How does Jesus Christ fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah 11, and in what ways do we expect Him to fulfill the remainder?

17. How does the prophet describe the “Day of the Lord” in Isaiah 13?

18. Isaiah 13:12-15 has both a historical contextual meaning and a famous cosmic application.  What are they?

19. What nations does the prophet darkly warn in Isaiah 13-21?

20. Isaiah’s audience in Judah might be feeling pretty good about all his prophecies issued against the Gentile nations around them.  Who does Isaiah target in chapter 22?

Eccelesiastes and Song of Songs Twenty Questions

1. How can the phrase “everything is meaningless” be in the Bible?

2. How often do you think about the meaning of life and the inevitability of death, and how often do you suppose the author of Ecclesiastes thought about such things?

3. Solomon (presumed to be the author of Ecclesiastes) first decided to set his mind to what? (Ecclesiastes 1:17)

4. Why did he conclude this pursuit to be empty and meaningless?

5. What was Solomon’s second pursuit? (Ecclesiastes 2:1)

6. What was Solomon’s third pursuit? (Ecclesiastes 2:4-9)

7. What was his verdict about the value of all these attempts to find meaning and purpose in life? (Ecclesiastes 2:11)

8. Why does he conclude that wisdom is no better than foolishness?

9. What is the best that human beings can hope for, according to Solomon? (Ecclesiastes 2:24 and others)

10. Why do you think Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 has been considered such a rich source of wisdom in life (as well as a great song by the Byrds)?

11. How would you answer Solomon’s argument that humans may be no better than animals in Ecclesiastes 3:18-21?  (Again, can you believe that this is in the Bible?!)
12. What do you think of Solomon’s verdict on the meaninglessness of  wealth and the pursuit of money? (Ecclesiastes 5:10-19)

13. Solomon repeatedly bemoans that “there is nothing new under the sun.”  Do you think his opinion of the meaningless of life and its accomplishments would be different if he saw the technological and scientific progress of the last few centuries?  Why or why not?

14. People tend to either love or hate Ecclesiastes.  (It is said that it almost was not included in the Bible!)  Which camp do you fall in, and why?

15. Do you think the Teacher’s “conclusions” of 12:1 and 12:13-14 are enough to counter-balance his earlier observations of life’s utter folly, injustice, and meaninglessness?

16. Have you ever written (or received) a love poem?  Share what you can about that experience.

17. Why do you suppose a romantic poem, especially one filled with erotic undertones, was included in the Bible?

18. Solomon uses imagery with which he was familiar (an apple tree, pomegranate halves, fawns, an ivory tower, etc.)  What modern imagery might you employ if you were writing such a poem today?

19. If Songs was written in Solomon’s youth, Proverbs in his middle age, and Ecclesiastes in his old age (as is sometimes surmised), what development do you see in his thought and theology?

20. The “books of poetry” (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs) communicate God’s truth in a way different than straight text.  What can poetry convey that prose cannot?

Proverbs Twenty Questions

1. What’s the best advice you’ve received in life?

2. What advice would you give a young person today, such as upon their graduation, or when entering their career or marriage?

3. Have you ever seen someone be the victim of not taking their own advice?

4. How can you explain “the fear of the Lord” as a positive thing, and indeed the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7)?

5. Think of people you know who you consider wise and others you regard as foolish.  What characteristics separate them?

6. In what ways is our larger society/culture wise or foolish?

7. What are the benefits of living a life of wisdom, according to Proverbs 3:1-4?

8. What would the world be like if everyone followed Proverbs 3:5-6?

9. What do you find to be most difficult about following Solomon’s guidance to live a life according to wisdom and the fear of the Lord?

10. According to Proverbs 4, how important is wisdom?

11. What does “drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well” refer to in Proverbs 5:15?

12. What lesson does the ant have for the sluggard, according to Proverbs 6:6-8?

13. Proverbs 6 and 7 contain many warnings against adultery with another man’s wife.  If Solomon received such teachings from his father David, why are these words especially poignant?

14. Proverbs 8 and 9 personify Wisdom and Folly.  What can you say about each?

15. Do you find a favorite Proverb or two contained in this book that really resonates with you?

16. Have you ever seen Proverbs 15:1 (“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”) played out in life?

17. What is Solomon’s view on discipline?

18. What is Solomon’s view on debt?

19. Do you consider the proverbs to be promises of God that, if followed faithfully, are guaranteed to produce the outcome described, or general principles of truth that, if lived out, tend to reflect the way that God designed the universe?  Why?

20. What are some of the qualities of a “wife of noble character” in Proverbs 31?

Job 22-42 Twenty Questions

1. What kind of slanderous charges does Eliphaz make against Job in chapter 22?

2. Is Eliphaz correct when he says in Job 22:21: “Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you?”

3. How convinced is Job of his own righteousness?

4. What kind of injustices (economic and moral) does Job describe in chapter 24?

5. In Job 27:1-6, what is Job resolute about, and why?

6. What kind of things do people mine for in the depths of the earth, according to Job 28:1-11?

7. What wisdom does God impart to human beings (Job 28:28)?

8. In chapter 29, what does Job cite as evidence of his past righteousness?

9. In chapter 29, what does Job cite as evidence of his wisdom?

10. In chapter 30, how does Job describe his loss of respect?

11. In chapter 30, how does Job describe his physical symptoms and pains?

12. Job gives a stirring defense of his own righteousness as a summation of his argument in chapter 31.  What sins does Job assert he refrained from?

13. Sometimes people profess to “feeling like Job” because of their suffering.  On what grounds would you say that comparison is likely to be faulty?  Name at least two.

14. How does Elihu feel about his wisdom (Job 36:4)?

15. God reviews his dominion over earth, sky, and sea, including the weather, the constellations, and the behavior of wild animals.  Do any of these topics especially provoke a sense of awe and wonder within you?

16. What would you guess Behemoth and Leviathan are?

17. At the end of the book of Job, who is justified: Job or his friends?

18. Who would you say won the “wager” between God and Satan from the beginning of the book of Job?

19. Job receives back double in livestock for all that he had lost (Job 42:12-17), but the same number of children that he had before.  Do you find any significance to this?

20. How do you think Job would feel about the conclusion that “all’s well that ends well?”

Job 1-21 Twenty Questions

1. In chapter 1, on what basis does Satan claim that Job’s righteousness lies?

2. What does God allow Satan to do to Job?

3. In chapter 2, on what basis does Satan claim that Job’s righteousness now lies?

4. What does God extend permission for Satan to do to Job?

5. Make a list of the losses Job suffered.  How do you think you might have fared spiritually if you were in his shoes?

6. Did Job deserve what happened to him?  Why or why not?

7. In the worst season of your life, what friends of yours would you most want to see, and how would you hope that they would encourage you?

8. In chapter 3, Job basically wishes that he had never been born.  Is depression a sin or a sign of weakness in one’s relationship with the Lord?  Why or why not?

9. What is the crux of Eliphaz’s argument to Job in 4:7-8?

10. How confident is Eliphaz in his own wisdom (Job 5:27)?

11. What does Job reveal he is hoping for in 6:8-10?

12. What appears to be Job’s view of life after death based on 7:6-10?

13. What is Bildad implicitly accusing Job of in chapter 8?

14. In chapters 9 and 10, does Job maintain his innocence or admit his wrongdoing?

15. In chapter 11, Zophar feels the need to defend God’s integrity and attack Job for his insistence on his own righteousness.  Do you think God needs human beings to defend Him?  Why or why not?

16. In Job 13, Job earnestly desires to make his case before the Almighty.  How does the expression in 13:15, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him,” summarize Job’s attitude?

17. Do you detect any change in Job’s thoughts about an afterlife in 14:7-17?

18. Why does Job feel that his friends are “miserable comforters” (Job 16:2)?

19. Does Job 19:23-27 indicate any evolution in Job’s thinking about life after death?

20. Job 21 seems to ponder the inverse question of the theme of this book (Why do the righteous suffer?) as Job asks, “Why do the wicked prosper?”  His friends have been staunchly maintaining that the opposite is true.  Why is it that we can’t tell the quality of someone’s inner spiritual life based upon their outer material prosperity?

Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther Twenty Questions

1. What king issued an edict allowing the Jews to return to Judah from their exile?

2. About how many Jews returned to Judah in this wave?

3. What act came first in the return of worship at the Temple?

4. Why were sounds of weeping and sounds of joy both expressed at the laying of the foundation of the second Temple?

5. Under what king was the work of rebuilding the Temple stopped?

6. What king reversed the work stoppage and allowed the second Temple to be completed?

7. What is Ezra’s work or job title most frequently referred to in Ezra 7?

8. What report caused Ezra’s grief in Ezra 9:3?

9. What was done about this situation (Ezra 10:11)?

10. If the Book of Ezra is chiefly about the rebuilding of the Temple and the restoration of the religion of Jerusalem, what is the subject of the Book of Nehemiah’s main building project?

11. What was Nehemiah’s role in the king’s court?

12. What are some examples of opposition that Nehemiah and the builders had to overcome in Nehemiah 4?

13. What kind of defensive measures did Nehemiah and the workers take to physically protect themselves from threats of attack?

14. What was Nehemiah’s opinion of charging interest?

15. How long did the wall rebuilding project take (Nehemiah 6:15)?

16. What holiday was re-celebrated for the first time in a long time in Nehemiah 8?

17. What did Queen Vashti do to get in trouble with the king?

18. What did the king’s advisors suggest should be done to replace the queen?

19. Why did it take bravery for Queen Esther to approach the king unsummoned?

20. Why was it poetic justice for Haman to be killed in the manner he was?