Ryan Higginbottom | Knowable Word

A Check-Engine Light for My Small Group Preparation

June 19, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Preparing for a Bible study meeting can take a lot of energy. But the amount of time it takes can vary from passage to passage and leader to leader.

Since we can always put in more time to read, pray, and think, how do we know when we’re done? How can we tell when the study is ready?

I’m not sure there’s a universal answer to that question. However, I think there are indicators that show up when we haven’t prepared enough. In this article, I’ll share one of my indicators in the hope that it might help others to discover theirs.

The Relationship Between Preparation and Explanation

My small group preparation falls into two phases. First I study the passage; then, I think through the discussion about the passage I hope to have with my small group.

If my preparation time is shortened in any given week, it’s likely the second phase that suffers. And while I’m seldom conscious of how much focused time I’m spending on my study, I have identified a helpful litmus test for under-preparation.

For me, there’s an inverse relationship between my preparation time and how much talking I do during the Bible study meeting. The less prepared I am, the more I talk, and the more prepared I am, the less I talk.

Perhaps this is surprising. After all, if I’m more prepared, wouldn’t I have more to say?

Drawing on the Strength of Small Groups

Let’s not forget, the chief advantage of a Bible study is interaction. The discussion and conversation we have as a group can turbo-charge our engagement with a passage of Scripture.

Therefore, as a leader, I prepare with the goal of interaction. I try my best to write questions to draw my friends into the Bible and help them see what I have seen.

The less prepared I am, the less time I’ve likely had to spend on my questions. So, my explanations take the place of discovery and learning among my group members. I’m serving my friends a filet instead of helping them wrestle the fish into the boat.

It’s often the interpretation phase of Bible study that gets short-circuited. In my head, I know the interpretive dots must be connected, so I connect the dots myself instead of posing the questions that help my friends draw the line between points A and B.

The result is not always a disaster. Some people in my group might not even notice. But I can tell, and our application never seems quite as sharp when we haven’t arrived together at the author’s main point.

A Light of Your Own

Talking too much—trying to give too many explanations myself—is my check-engine light. It tells me that I didn’t spend enough time on the right things as I got ready for my small group. For future meetings, I’ll need to carve out focused time to plan for the small group discussion. (For those with similar struggles to me, you might find this question-writing worksheet helpful. I still do!)

Your indicator light might be different from mine. One way to make progress thinking through your own leadership is to meet with a trusted friend from the group after the Bible study. Specific, loving feedback can go a long way toward helping you grow.

Titus: From Sound Faith Flow Character and Devotion to Good Works

June 5, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Ezra Jeffrey-Comeau (2018), public domain

Paul’s letter to Titus was written to help a young pastor set up churches in Crete. While many of Paul’s other epistles are rich with doctrine, this one is not. Instead, Paul writes about what sound doctrine brings: godly character and a zeal for good works.

Divisions of Titus

Paul marks the sections of this letter using logical connectors and thesis statements. He begins the letter with a greeting (Titus 1:1–4) and then moves into qualifications for elders (Titus 1:5–9) and why these leaders are necessary (Titus 1:10–16). Paul then explains that Titus should teach and model the behavior that adorns sound doctrine (Titus 2:1–10) because this is what God’s grace trains us to do (Titus 2:11–15). Paul ends with an emphasis on the saving work of God leading to good works (Titus 3:1–8), instruction to avoid controversies and division (Titus 3:9–11), and final instructions (Titus 3:12–15).

Greeting, rebuking false teachers (Titus 1:1–16)
Character and behavior as a result of grace (Titus 2:1–15)
God’s salvation leading to good works (Titus 3:1–15)

(I previously looked at repetition in Titus, and while that showed me what was on Paul’s mind, by itself it didn’t provide the structure for an interpretive outline. It was an important first step, though!)

Section 1 Walkthrough

The connection between faith and behavior is evident from the very beginning of this letter.

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness (Titus 1:1)

Famously, Paul lists qualifications for elders in Titus 1:6–9. However, we must not jump to those qualifications before reading why they are there. Titus must “put what remained into order” in Crete by appointing “elders in every town” (Titus 1:5). These elders will help establish order.

Elders must be “above reproach”—this requirement is repeated (verses 6 and 7), and in fact this is an umbrella requirement for all of the others involving character (not arrogant, not violent, self-controlled, etc.). The only skills that are mentioned in these qualifications come in verse 9, and it seems those skills may be acquired. Holding firm to the trustworthy word is key, because elders are needed “to give instruction in sound doctrine” and “to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9).

Paul then explains why these elders—those who will instruct and rebuke—are necessary. There are many false teachers in Crete, upsetting many people (Titus 1:10–11). These false teachers need to be rebuked for they are “devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth” (Titus 1:14). Though they claim to know God, “they deny him by their works” (Titus 1:16). Paul’s plan for appointing elders is now coming into sharper focus: he wants leaders who will help everyone be “sound in the faith” (Titus 1:13).

Section 2 Walkthrough

Paul returns to the connection between theology and character at the beginning of the second section, telling Titus to “teach what accords with sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1).

Paul mentions what should be taught to older men, older women, young women, younger men, and bondservants (Titus 2:1–6, 9–10). These teachings are almost entirely in the realm of character (self-controlled, reverent in behavior, kind, submissive, etc.), as good character will “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10). Titus himself must be a “model of good works” (Titus 2:7). Additionally, Paul knows that in his confrontations with false teachers, Titus’s uprightness will matter almost as much as his arguments—he must “show integrity, dignity, and sound speech” in his teaching so that opponents will be “put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us” (Titus 2:7–8).

In the next paragraph, Paul connects character and behavior to the work of Jesus. God’s grace has appeared, bringing salvation and “training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:12). We wait for the appearing of Jesus, the one who “gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness”—we were devoted to evil works—and to secure a people “who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14). God’s people gain zeal as his grace does its ongoing training work (Titus 2:12).

At the end of this section, Paul emphasizes that Titus should feel empowered to “declare these things” and to “rebuke” with all authority (Titus 2:15).

Section 3 Walkthrough

Titus must remind his people to be “ready for every good work” and all of the characteristics that implies (Titus 3:1). Paul shares that he was once not this way—embodying the very opposite of these qualities (Titus 3:2). But God saved him, not because of Paul’s works, but because of God’s mercy (Titus 3:5). The center of this section (Titus 3:4–7) is arguably one of the only portions of doctrine in this slim book, where Paul explains how merciful salvation happens and what the results are.

Paul wants Titus to “insist on these things”—this “saying” he’s just written—”so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works” (Titus 3:8). On the other hand, topics that will promote controversies should be avoided (Titus 3:9). In fact, any people who stir up division should be warned and then avoided. Division and quarreling among God’s people is not a fertile environment for good works to grow.

Paul ends the letter with some personal greetings. But he returns to one of his primary themes in these final sentences.

And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful. (Titus 3:14).

Conclusion

For Paul, character and a zeal for good works lie downstream from sound faith. So, Titus needs to put leaders in place to help him rebuke bad teaching and provide instruction from the trustworthy word. The same grace that appeared for salvation becomes our trainer, helping us to renounce our unfruitful ways and to devote ourselves to good works.

Interpretive Outline

Greeting (Titus 1:1–4)
Establish order through leaders who are above reproach and who can instruct and rebuke (Titus 1:5–9)
- For there are many false teachers who need to be rebuked (Titus 1:10–16)
Teach and model the behavior that adorns sound doctrine (Titus 2:1–10)
Here is the connection between our works and our Savior (Titus 2:11–15)
Emphasize the gospel, so that believers may devote themselves to good works (Titus 3:1–8)
- Controversies and divisive people will get in the way of good works (Titus 3:9–11)
Final instructions (Titus 3:12–15)

This post is part of a series of interpretive overviews of the books of the Bible.

Emphasizing What the Bible Emphasizes

May 22, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

About a decade ago, I knew a couple that had a very strong, specific view on creation. They read piles of books and articles, and almost every conversation with them circled back to this topic. For them, the trustworthiness of other authors and Bible teachers was always passed through the grid of agreement on this one doctrine.

This issue was a single, steel track that ran through their relationships. Regrettably, I began to avoid conversations with them because every interaction ended the same way.

Though it may be with a different issue, you may know people like this. It’s possible that you may be a person like this!

The Issue of the Moment

When one doctrine or application or book of the Bible dominates someone’s thoughts and conversations, it is not necessarily a bad thing. From my experience, these are often legitimate spiritual matters, and it may be that God is at work changing a person’s mind and heart.

As humans, we are often creatures of the moment, and what we are learning or struggling with or rejoicing over can become our center of spiritual gravity. All other issues fall into orbit.

A few years ago I began studying Lamentations and thinking deeply about lament. This affected me profoundly, and God taught me much through it. This was a reorienting lesson, and I brought it into many conversations. Looking back, I’m guessing my friends and family were eager for me to get past the just-learning-about-it phase.

When our issue of the moment begins to dominate our thoughts and conversations—to the exclusion of other healthy, worthy topics—what is missing is balance and proportion.

The Bible’s Emphases

As we mature as Christians, we should learn to distinguish between an emphasis and an exclusive emphasis. God wants us to learn about lament, and he also wants us to practice lament—but this is not a good summary of the Bible or our lives as Christians. This is not what we should focus on to the exclusion of all else.

There are at least three commitments that will keep us from losing sight of the big picture of the Bible.

Connect every passage to the Bible’s big story. Regardless of how powerful and affecting a portion of the Bible is, we should work hard to put it in the context of the whole Bible. Rehearsing the main story of the Bible regularly is a safeguard to a single-issue obsession.

Talk about the Bible with your friends. Good friends will offer encouragement and correction as needed. Dialog with our friends about what God is teaching us will give opportunities for pushback—both in terms of content and emphasis.

Regularly exposure yourself to lots of the Bible. If our Bible intake is limited to what we are studying deeply, we may end up imbalanced in our emphases. If you are a part of a good church, this can include the weekly preaching and other Bible-focused classes. Reading and listening to the Bible (in addition to studying it) will remind us of what God emphasizes in his word.

Studying the Bible is not Code Breaking

May 8, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

The Bible is not a secret code.

Written Plainly

Some Christians act like the Bible is written in a mysterious language, accessible only to a select few. Bible study is left to the brilliant, the professionals who can teach the rest of us.

I remember a time when some people were convinced that the key to understanding the Bible was in the numbers. Biblical numerology would unlock the real meaning of the text and make everything clear. Now, I’m rather fond of mathematics, but this never added up.

You may have run across similar approaches to the Bible. If you look at just the right map, do just the right word study, count the letters in Greek and Hebrew, then you’ll know the truth. Then you’ll be on the inside.

Friends, the Bible is knowable. It is understandable. We need no advanced degrees or initiation rites to grasp the message of God’s word.

God Wants to be Known

The point of a code is to pass a message in such a way that if the wrong people see the message, it will look like gibberish. Only the tiny few intended targets will be able to transform the text into something understandable.

When we treat the Bible as code we make God out to be someone who is hiding, who does not want to be known, who is shielding his real identity from the world.

But this is NOT what God is like!

God wants to be known; he wants to be worshipped and understood. If in no other way, this is clear through the incarnation of Jesus.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:14–18)

Jesus came to make the Father known. God does not hide who he is from the people he wants to know him.

The Bible is Deep

This does not mean that the Bible is trivial or obvious. While we can grasp the most important truths of the Scriptures with simple reading, the Bible repays diligent, faithful study. The more we spend time with God’s word, the more we understand and delight in God himself.

The Bible is a pool shallow enough to provide refreshment and keep us from drowning. But it is also so deep that we will never reach the bottom.

The Easy Way Out

Paradoxically, treating the Bible as a code might, for some people, be the search for an easy path. After all, for people that can break a code, everything is made plain. For those without the key, there is no way of understanding. We might as well throw up our arms.

God calls us to the slow, gradual, longterm renewing of our minds and hearts by his word. This is not the task of a computer and an algorithm, it is the joyful work of a life.

How to Approach the Bible

We read and study the Bible to know God and walk with him. We are not looking for secret knowledge or a golden ticket. Rather we labor to learn and remember what is clear, work to understand what is less clear, and apply all of it through the help of the Spirit. And, because we forget so easily, we read and reread.

How do we understand the Bible? We approach it the way we take in any other communication: we observe what it says, interpret its meaning, and apply it in our lives.

Understanding and transformation are available to all in God’s word. Won’t you give yourself to it?

Against Springboard Studies

April 24, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

How can a Bible study go wrong when the entire focus is on the Bible? How can a Sunday school class or sermon be steeped in God’s word and leave us feeling empty?

Springboard Studies

Some Bible studies are springboard studies. The Bible study leader reads the passage and identifies connected biblical themes. Then the group time becomes an opportunity to teach on or discuss those themes.

I call these “springboard studies” because the leader takes the given passage as a jumping-off point—a springboard—to a different discussion. Springboard studies have the appearance of being faithful to the text of Scripture because the group is reading numerous Bible passages and talking about theology and doctrine. However, at the end of the hour, participants rarely have a good idea about the meaning of the discussion’s “text of origin.”

This is common for teachers, speakers, and preachers, too. People serving those in those roles should read on with their domain in mind.

What Drives Discussion?

Springboard studies can be lively and engaging. This is often because the leader jumps from the passage to a topic about which they are passionate or interested. As such, the leader puts a lot of energy into defending a doctrine or explaining some theological development close to their heart.

The problem with this approach is that it almost by definition misses the main point of the passage. People attending the Bible study may leave with a better sense of the leader’s allegiances and theological preferences but without an understanding of why the original text was written.

Bible interpretation is hard work, and we often need to fight to understand what the author was trying to communicate. But if a Bible study group claims to be studying a certain book of Scripture, the goal should be to observe, interpret, and apply that text.

Building a Theological Framework

Please don’t misunderstand me. Theology and doctrine are of great importance, and we sometimes build portions of our theological frameworks on the smaller points or assumptions of the Biblical authors. (Although, it is worth asking how devoted we should be to doctrines which are not the main points of any Bible passage.)

My issue is with Bible studies (or sermons) that claim to be expositional, verse-by-verse examinations of Scripture passages which may better be described as “inspired by the text.”

How to Avoid Leading a Springboard Study

Springboard studies come about, in part, because we don’t think the Bible is interesting or important enough to hold our attention for 45 minutes. So we map a word, phrase, character, or scene from the Bible onto something “more relevant” that will sustain a longer conversation. As though merely having a conversation—any conversation at all—were the goal of Bible study!

The main way to avoid leading a springboard study is to let the text of Scripture drive the discussion. After observing the passage, we fire every related question we can think of at the text. The Scripture in front of us may not have answers to all (or many) of these questions, but the work of interpretation is to keep asking and answering questions until we identify the author’s main point.

There is an important place in the church for classes, lectures, and conversations about Biblical topics which are not rooted in a single passage. But let’s not confuse this with Bible study.

What Comes After Resurrection?

April 10, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Bruno van der Kraan (2018), public domain

We tend to think of Jesus’s resurrection as his last act on earth, the final event in the Gospel accounts. But this isn’t so.

While the empty tomb is the last major episode of the Gospels, we must read on to know what Jesus did afterward. The Gospel writers did not end their accounts with the resurrection!

What Jesus spent his time doing and saying after the resurrection was crucial, both for the disciples and for us. In this article we’ll look at the Gospel of John, and we’ll see that Jesus spent his time confirming the resurrection and sending his disciples on their mission.

Jesus Confirms His Resurrection

I will not focus on the resurrection itself, as Peter has already written about the resurrection as Jesus’s final sign in John’s Gospel.

Jesus’s meetings with the disciples after his resurrection take up most of the last two chapters of John. Jesus took care to reveal himself and show that he was the same man who had recently died and been buried.

When Jesus first appeared to the gathering of the fearful, hiding disciples, he showed them his hands and side (John 20:20). Thomas had not been present, and he (famously) wanted to see the proof for himself. Jesus encouraged Thomas to touch his hands and side—something we are not told he did for the other disciples. Thomas believed, and said “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:24–29)

John understood that Jesus aimed to persuade. He said that Jesus did many other signs for the disciples beyond those which were recorded (John 20:30). John was on board with this mission—he wrote his Gospel in part so that readers would believe Jesus is the Christ (John 20:31).

Jesus also appeared to seven of the disciples on the sea shore. They recognized Jesus when he told them to fish on the other side of their boat. He invited them to the shore and made them a breakfast of bread and fish. John emphasizes the importance of these appearances: “This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead” (John 21:14).

In these encounters, Jesus repeatedly confirmed that he was alive. His disciples could see and touch and eat with him. He was not a ghost or a hallucination; the resurrection really happened, just as he had said.

Jesus Commissions the Disciples

Jesus also took time after his resurrection to send his disciples on their mission.

When Jesus greeted his disciples at that first post-resurrection meeting, he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” He breathed on them, and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld” (John 20:21–22). John connects the power of the Holy Spirit with the sending of the disciples, just as Luke does (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8).

Jesus commissioned the disciples as a group, but he paid special attention to restore and empower Peter. Three separate times Jesus asks Peter if he (Peter) loves him (Jesus). When Peter says that he does, Jesus points him to his work: “Feed my lambs,” “Tend my sheep,” “Feed my sheep.” Jesus also told Peter directly: “Follow me” (John 21:15–19).

Later, when Peter asked Jesus about John, Jesus cut through the question to remind Peter of what was most important: “You follow me!” (John 21:22)

An Important Connection

After his resurrection, Jesus focused on confirming his resurrection and sending his disciples on their mission. But these are not separate tasks for Jesus.

Jesus’s resurrection confirmed all of his teaching and prophecy. Since the disciples were sent out to proclaim the good news of the Messiah, it was vital that they had this validation for themselves. Because they would face intense persecution and hardship for their message, they needed to be convinced of the truth. Jesus sent them on their mission, emboldened with resurrection hope and power.

What was true for Jesus’s disciples in the first century is true for us today as well. This is, after all, why John’s Gospel was written (John 20:31).

Are you convinced that Jesus rose from the dead? If so, does this give you courage and hope to go on the mission God has for you?

Overlooked Details of the Red Sea Crossing

March 27, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

The crossing of the Red Sea is one of the most memorable and cinematic events recorded in the Bible. This brief section of history has been captured in several films as well as in thousands of Sunday school lessons and coloring pages.

So if we were asked to recount this story, we could probably list many of the highlights without consulting Scripture. However, because the episode is so famous, and depictions of the event are so numerous, we will inevitably miss some details. The story is perhaps too familiar.

This was certainly the case for me! I recently reread this portion of Exodus and felt like I was reading this passage for the first time.

Four Important Details

Peter has written extensively and deeply on all of Exodus and on this passage specifically. To learn how this event fits into the whole book of Exodus, and for a razor-sharp look at this particular episode, I encourage you to read his article.

Here I will highlight some aspects of Exodus 13–14 that I had not remembered. These details are not just interesting—they help guide us to the main point of the passage. (Remember: good observation fuels accurate interpretation!)

Israel crossed at night

For understandable reasons, all pictures and video depicting this event happen during the day. (That makes for a much better coloring page!) But this event happened in the dark of night. (See Exodus 14:24 and Exodus 14:27 where it seems that the Israelites crossed during the night, with their path illuminated by the pillar of fire, and then the Egyptians started their pursuit at first light of the morning.) As we will see below, God aimed to confuse the Egyptians, and the nighttime setting was an important ingredient.

The wind blew all night to part the sea

Yes, Moses “stretched out his hand” in order to divide the sea, but the way this happened was that “the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided” (Exodus 14:21). This miracle did not happen in an instant but rather over the course of several hours. Imagine waiting by the side of the Sea while this was happening!

The pillar of cloud protected Israel

God went with his people out of Egypt in the form of the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. His primary purpose was to lead and direct his people. And those very pillars led Israel to the shore of this great sea.

But God led Israel in a roundabout way to this particular spot in order to provoke Egypt to pursue their valuable runaway slaves. Once Egypt caught up, there was a real threat!

Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night. (Exodus 14:19–20)

The Egyptians fled from Israel

In my memory, the Egyptians pursued Israel into the bed of the Red Sea, the Israelites exited on the other side, and then the Egyptians drowned as the waters returned to normal. But that’s not what happened!

The Egyptians, having been provoked by the Lord to chase the Israelites, went into the sea (Exodus 14:23). But the Lord intervened—he “threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily” (Exodus 14:24–25). The Egyptians knew they were in trouble, so they decided to flee (Exodus 14:25). So, it was while these two nations were running away from each other that the Red Sea covered Pharaoh’s army.

Why These Details Matter

The Lord determined that he would get abundant glory at the Red Sea. He said, “And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord” (Exodus 14:4). He says much the same to Moses again in Exodus 14:17–18.

This was not just about God getting glory from the Egyptians. He also wanted his people to know and fear him.

Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses. (Exodus 14:30–31)

This is crucial, because the Israelites were greatly afraid when they saw Pharaoh and his army drawing near (Exodus 14:10). Moses told the people:

Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. (Exodus 14:13–14)

The four details above show God’s hands-on involvement in the crossing of the Red Sea. God rescued his people and closed the door to any possible return to Egypt. In tangible ways, the Lord fought for his people as he promised.

When God sets out to deliver his people and gain glory for himself, he will make both happen.

Fear is a Battleground

March 13, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

The Bible says a lot about fear. The book of Proverbs begins by asserting that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Prov 1:9). We also read that “the fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe” (Prov 29:25). The Bible teaches plenty about fear in the New Testament as well (see Hebrews 13:6, Matthew 10:28).

These pillars of the fear of man and the fear of God are crucial to understand and identify. Yet the Bible often points to them from a distance, asking us to supply the details in our personal application. It’s more rare to study a passage where the granular temptations to fear are explicit.

We have such a passage in Nehemiah 6.

A Lure and a Lie

Nehemiah was leading the efforts to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem with other Jewish people who had returned from exile. Because God’s people were surrounded by hostile nations, the wall demanded attention and effort after the temple was completed (Ezra 6:15).

Nehemiah had to deal with enemies and disrupters—both when he arrived in the city (Neh 2:10,19-20) and when fending off later attacks (Neh 4:1-23). But Nehemiah 6 offers specifics about complex plots to harm or stop the governor and his work.

Two of Nehemiah’s opponents, Sanballat and Geshem, tried to lure Nehemiah far outside the city. They wanted the work on the wall to stop, and they likely intended to capture or kill Nehemiah (Neh 6:2). Nehemiah received four private letters before an open letter arrived. There we read of the threat to tell King Artaxerxes about a Jewish plan to rebel and Nehemiah’s intention to become king, allegedly backed by prophets declaring as much (Neh 6:6-7). All of this was a lie, crafted to provoke Nehemiah into traveling out of the city to protest.

Nehemiah knew what Sanballat and Geshem really wanted—they aimed “to frighten” Nehemiah and the other workers. They hoped this threat would halt construction on the wall (Neh 6:9).

Hide in the Temple

The second plot unfolded when Nehemiah went to the house of Shemaiah. Shemaiah warned Nehemiah about a plot to kill him and suggested they hide in the temple (Neh 6:10).

Nehemiah saw the implications. He understood that he would seem weak if he hid. He also knew this was not the purpose of the temple! Nehemiah realized that God had not sent Shemaiah; rather, Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him to prophesy (Neh 6:12). They were working, along with some other prophets, to make Nehemiah afraid (Neh 6:13,14).

Contrasting Fears

The threats to Nehemiah were not just from outside. Because of his connections by descent and by marriage, Tobiah had regular communication with the “nobles of Judah” (Neh 6:17,18). He exchanged letters with them and they reported Nehemiah’s words back to Tobiah. All of this was an effort to make Nehemiah afraid (Neh 6:19).

But another fear emerged. Despite numerous efforts to stop it, the wall around Jerusalem was completed (Neh 6:15). Here is the reaction.

And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations around us were afraid and fell greatly in their own esteem, for they perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God. (Nehemiah 6:16)

These enemies attempted to frighten Nehemiah, but they were the ones who ended up afraid. The surrounding nations thought less of themselves and more of Yahweh because they knew he helped his people.

Specific Targets of Fear

This chapter records contrasting fears: the repeated attempts to make Nehemiah afraid, and the fear and awe that God inspires when he strengthens his own. We also read about the specific aims of fear, aims that are not often spelled out in Scripture.

Here’s an important interpretation question to lead us into application. How were Nehemiah’s enemies using fear against him? What specifically did they want him to be afraid of?

First, they wanted him to fear the loss of the king’s approval. If the king heard the dishonest account about Nehemiah, he might take action to stop the work on the wall or summon everyone back to Susa. Nehemiah was dependent on the favor of the king, and Sanballat and Geshem wanted him to be so afraid of losing this favor that he would meet them at the plain of Ono and, presumably, suffer capture or death.

Nehemiah’s enemies also wanted him to fear the threat of death. If Shemaiah convinced Nehemiah to hide in the temple, Nehemiah would look like a coward who was using a holy place for self-protection. Nehemiah knew what his enemies were up to: “For this purpose he was hired, that I should be afraid and act in this way and sin, and so they could give me a bad name in order to taunt me” (Neh 6:13). They wanted Nehemiah to sin, to gain a poor reputation among his people, and then to be open to ridicule. In the end, Nehemiah’s enemies were hoping to eliminate the work force behind him by painting him as an ungodly leader.

Gospel Answers

We can be tempted to unrighteous fears from many directions. Perhaps, like Nehemiah, you’ve been tempted to fear death—a very natural fear! Or maybe you’ve been afraid of disapproval from a boss, supervisor, or parent. You may be resistant or hesitant about something God has called you to because of one of these fears. For those who trust in Christ, the gospel addresses these fears.

While a courageous, God-honoring action on your part may bring criticism from those in authority over you, God is the ultimate authority and he has kings in his hands (Prov 21:1). Jesus ascended to heaven and sat down as a sign of this supreme control.

Further, while death is an enemy, Jesus defeated death in his resurrection. Our destination is the same as his.

God gave Nehemiah strength and wisdom to resist temptations to fear and to see through falsehoods. We can also take to heart Nehemiah’s example of prayer in the midst of temptation, hardship, and anger (Neh 6:9,14).

A List from Ezra Repeated in Nehemiah

February 27, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

A Bible reader making their way through the historical books of the Old Testament could be forgiven for feeling a sense of déjà vu after finishing Nehemiah, chapter 7.

If this describes you, the good news is, you’re not wrong! With a couple of exceptions[1], Nehemiah 7:6–73 is an exact copy of Ezra 2:1–70. While these passages are not the sort of fast-paced narrative that might captivate a modern reader, they are an accountant’s dream. These passages give a thorough list of the people who moved back to Jerusalem from Babylon during the reign of Cyrus. (See Ezra 1:1–11.)

Many Christians struggle to read a passage like this once. So why would it be in our Bibles twice?

The answer cannot be merely that Nehemiah found the scroll and wrote down what he read (Neh 7:5). Just a chapter later some Torah scrolls were read in public but were not copied into Nehemiah’s narrative. Something else is going on.

The current article is a case study of what Peter wrote about recently. When the Bible quotes or alludes to other parts of the Bible, we should take extra care to understand.

Ezra 2

The historical context of both passages is important. In Ezra 2, we have a list of the people “whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem” (Ezra 1:5). God had put it in the heart of Cyrus, king of Persia, to send some of the captured Jewish people back to Jerusalem. The temple had been destroyed when Nebuchadnezzar’s army had leveled the city, and the people of God were now being charged (by a pagan king!) to rebuild what had been knocked down.

In the long list of chapter 2, the author took great care to list the people who returned by clans and families (Ezra 2:2–35). However, we also read of people specifically gifted and trained to help with the temple rebuilding efforts: the caravan back to Jerusalem included priests (Ezra 2:36–39), Levites (Ezra 2:40), singers (Ezra 2:41), sons of gatekeepers (Ezra 2:42), temple servants (Ezra 2:43–54), and sons of Solomon’s servants (Ezra 2:55–57).

What is the point of the list in Ezra 2? This thorough accounting shows that Cyrus really did let people leave for Jerusalem and that they were prepared for the work of rebuilding the house of the Lord and resuming temple worship. Much of the rest of Ezra recounts the success of those rebuilding efforts.

Nehemiah 7

By the time we get to Nehemiah 7, somewhere between 70-80 years have passed since that multitude hiked back to Jerusalem. Nehemiah is handing over the governorship of Jerusalem (Neh 7:2) after having successfully managed the rebuilding of the city wall (Neh 7:1).

But the work of reconstruction was not complete. The temple had been reopened and the wall was repaired and functioning, but the city itself was still a wreck. “The city was wide and large, but the people within it were few, and no houses had been rebuilt” (Neh 7:4). There was a third phase to the rebuilding efforts yet to come.

Then Nehemiah discovered the Ezra 2 scroll:

Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles and the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. And I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up at the first, and I found written in it: (Neh 7:5)

If we wonder why the long passage was included twice, we can start here. Nehemiah calls this “the book of the genealogy.” The leaders would rebuild the city by tribe and clan, so the genealogical records of those who repopulated the city were vital.

This played out later in Nehemiah. As the leaders made efforts to repopulate the city of Jerusalem, they cast lots to relocate people from the surrounding area (Neh 11:1). But when the list of people who settled in Jerusalem is given in Nehemiah 11:3–24, it is organized in part by tribe.

One List, Two Purposes

Although Ezra 2 and Nehemiah 7 are almost identical passages, the contexts show that the lists and enumerations were used for two different purposes. In Ezra, the list confirmed that Cyrus made good on his promise and that the returnees were ready to rebuild the temple. In Nehemiah, the list was recalled for genealogical purposes in an effort to rebuild and repopulate the city of Jerusalem.

There are several places in the Bible—like the tabernacle instructions and construction in Exodus—that seem repetitive, and we may wonder why God would preserve such passages for our benefit. Instead of viewing these passages with frustration or impatience, we can humbly ask God to teach us.

Often, these repetitions are instances of God’s people using his word in a faithful way. In addition to learning about each of the passages involved, we have examples for our instruction.

[1] These two passages are not exactly identical, and the small discrepancies have caused large stumbling blocks for some people. All of God’s word is important, including these differences, but that is not the focus of the present article.

10 Truths About God’s Word From Nehemiah 8

February 13, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Both nature and the Bible give compelling arguments that God wants to be known. He reveals himself.

It should therefore not surprise us that God reveals to us something about those very means of revelation. How else would we understand?

So, while it may seem circular to some, the Bible is a valid and rich source of information about how we should treat special revelation coming from God. The eighth chapter of Nehemiah is crammed with this sort of instruction.

In the Midst of Rebuilding

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are largely about new beginnings. A remnant of Israel has returned to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon. They have rebuilt the altar, the temple, and the city walls, and they are rebuilding the city itself. In the midst of so much building, they are learning how to be God’s people again.

The occasion in Nehemiah 8 is a special month in the Jewish calendar. The first day of the seventh month is the Feast of Trumpets, and later we have the Feast of Booths. On the first of the month, the people call for Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law into the public square (Neh 8:1).

Learning about God’s Word

From the way the people handle, approach, and react to the Law, we can learn much about God’s word.

God’s word has divine authority

The scrolls that Ezra carried into the square before the Water Gate were not merely historical. The people were not just feeling nostalgic. This was “the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel” (Neh 8:1).

God’s word is preserved

The people called for the Law, and—rather remarkably—Ezra had it (Neh 8:2)! Between the devastation that Jerusalem experienced and the decades spent in Babylon, the existence of these scrolls is surprising. Because God wants to be known, he protects and preserves his word.

God’s word is meant to be understood

There is staggering emphasis on understanding the Law in this chapter. Those who gathered were those “who could understand” (Neh 8:3, 4). Levites “helped the people to understand the Law” after Ezra read it (Neh 8:7). “They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading” (Neh 8:8). The people rejoiced greatly “because they had understood the words that were declared to them” (Neh 8:12).

The reading of the Law was no empty religious activity. The people wanted to understand the words from their great God.

God’s word demands sustained attention

Ezra read from the Law “from early morning until midday” and “the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law” (Neh 8:3). This is a long time to stand and listen, but this reading is worthy of such focus.

God’s word is honored

The Israelites constructed a platform for Ezra to stand on for this reading, so they were literally elevating God’s word in front of the people (Neh 8:4). When “Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people,” “all the people stood” (Neh 8:5).

God’s word leads to worship of God

Note what happened after Ezra brought out the scroll.

And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. (Neh 8:6)

God speaks and as the people learn from and about their Sovereign Lord, they are humbled and driven to worship him.

God’s word is understood in community

Trained ministers of the temple—the Levites—moved among the people to give instruction after the reading of the Law was over (Neh 8:7–8). The Israelites “remained in their places” while this happened, so this may have looked like teachers walking through a large crowd and stopping to help small groups.

In the West we sometimes overemphasize the individual nature of religious life. We’d do well to remember the blessings of being among God’s called people.

God’s word brings conviction

As the people heard the words of the Law, they wept (Neh 8:9). They were likely overcome by their sin and moved to confess their violations to God (see Neh 9:3). The Scriptures are not cold or dry. This living and active word sinks a hot poker into our hearts and points us to the deep mercy of God in our conviction.

God’s word is worthy of study

After a long day of hearing the Law and working to understand it, some of the Jewish leaders wanted more. They went back to Ezra the next day “in order to study the words of the Law” (Neh 8:13).

God’s word informs behavior

As a result of this study, the leaders realized they had not been keeping the Feast of Booths properly (Neh 8:17). There was immediate and fruitful application from this study of God’s word as the whole city was brought into obedience.

A Rich Word

There is more to say about the Bible than what is captured in Nehemiah 8, but this is quite a list. I was quieted and convicted as I read this chapter of God’s word, because I don’t always treat the Bible as it deserves. Perhaps you might benefit from a slower meditation on these truths about the Scriptures. Do you believe them? Do they shape the way you and your church approach the Lord?

« Previous Page