Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament.  It is difficult to ascertain when this book was written, sometime between 850-200 BC.  Dating this book is based upon the mention of the destruction of Jerusalem and the fact that many of the verses in the text are very similarContinue Reading

Hosea’s name means “deliverance” or “salvation” and is connected on a basic level with the names Joshua and Jesus.  Hosea was a prophet at the time of King Jeroboam II, who died in 746 BC. His ministry may well have continued until the loss of the Northern Kingdom in 721Continue Reading

Jonah didn’t want the people of Nineveh to be forgiven.  He was well aware of the forgiving grace of the Lord and didn’t want the Assyrians to receive it.  He would rather die than see them have this opportunity.  We see this in Jonah 1:12 as well as all ofContinue Reading

Jonah as a type: Jesus Christ The book of Jonah serves as a type for several ideas taught in scripture.  A type is a symbol that looks forward towards a future fulfillment.  It can be defined as a “preordained representative relationship with certain persons, events, and institutions bear to correspondingContinue Reading

The book of Jonah is a wonderful message of forgiveness and grace.  Jonah is called by the Lord to preach repentance to a hardened people, a people that he does not feel are worthy of being saved.  In Jonah’s estimation, the people of Nineveh are so hardened, so unworthy ofContinue Reading

Ezekiel’s vision of the Lord is not unlike the vision John has in Revelation 4.  Both men see God on his throne, surrounded by heavenly attendants.  Both men describe lightning, brilliant light, creatures unknown to man, and a brilliant rainbow in the midst of the heavenly vision. We spent timeContinue Reading

Have you ever been betrayed by close friends?  Has anyone ever spread lies about you and hurt your reputation?  If you answer yes, then you have a friend in the prophet Jeremiah. “The days of Jeremiah were among the most difficult and momentous in all Jewish history.  How stirring theContinue Reading

There is an increasing sentiment among some seminary students that the world is overpopulated, running out of resources and that the future looks bleak.  Many students have expressed to me thoughts such as, “What’s the use?  The world is going to end anyways.  Why get married and have children?  WillContinue Reading

In our classroom we have a “question box”.  I have found this to be a useful tool in the classroom.  When a student has a question that would take us far off topic, yet is still relevant to their lives, a teacher has a couple of options.  The teacher canContinue Reading

The book of Esther deals with many issues that apply in the lives of young people.  Young people today are constantly facing times when they need to stand for something.  Like Esther, they deal with being a covenant person in a very Persian world.  Sometimes they are facing situations likeContinue Reading