Syllabus Summary

1. Abraham’s First Steps of Faith

   Welcome! After defining the course goals, we begin in Genesis 11-12 with Abraham as he sets out on his journey of faith. Then the focus moves to the Covenant of the Pieces.

2. The Birth of Ishmael

   In this unit, we explore the birth of Ishmael including the name given to God by Hagar, and then read of the promise of the birth of Isaac and the command of circumcision.

3. The Birth of Isaac in Gerar

   The birth of Isaac is the focus of this unit, along with the departure of Ishmael from Gerar of the Philistines where the family lived – and the covenant with the king of Gerar.

4. The Binding of Isaac

   This unit explores the Binding of Isaac and its conceptual and linguistic connections with Abraham’s early call to faith, and the surprising connection with the story of Balaam.

5. Psalm Featuring Abraham

   The content of Psalm 105 reminds the reader of Abraham in multiple ways, and it serves not only to reflect on the story of his life but also to make progress in poetic language.

6. Finding Rebekah (Part 1)

   This unit presents the first half of the story of finding Rebekah from Genesis 24, while connecting it to the stories of Abraham and Sarah as well as Jacob and Joseph.

7. Finding Rebekah (Part 2)

   The second half of the story of finding Rebekah appears here, and also draws connections between the promises given to her and those given to Abraham after the Binding of Isaac.

8. Gideon Becomes a Warrior

   In this unit, the focus shifts to Judges 6 that tells of how Gideon emerged from the shadows in response to the call of God to become a warrior against the Midianites.

9. Gideon Tests God’s Promise

   The story of Gideon continues with his plan to literally “lay out a fleece” ahead of battle, along with the actual conflict with the Midianites and its supernatural result.

10. Preparations of War (Law)

    This unit transitions to the law addressing preparations for war in Deuteronomy 20, which is connected to the story of Gideon. Verses from Psalm 18 dealing with war also appear.

11. Jehoshaphat and Ahab in Battle

    The theme of war continues but the focus shifts to 2nd Chronicles 18 and the joint efforts of Jehoshaphat and Ahab, the failure of which was reluctantly prophesied by Micaiah.

12. Moabite and Ammonite Attack

    This unit explores the Moabite-Ammonite attack against Judah in chapter 20 as well as the role of prophecy in difficult times, and is followed by verses of victory in Psalm 115.

13. Victory over Moab and Ammon

    The victory over Moab and Ammon is compared to the Exodus. Then Jehoshaphat’s wicked son, Jehoram, is introduced – as well as God’s promise of hope nonetheless.

14. The Selection of Elisha

    This unit shifts to the story of Elisha in 1st Kings 19 and 2nd Kings 2-3, where his selection to replace Elijah is interwoven with the account of the crossing of the Jordan.

15. Victory over Moab

    The struggle with Moab is revisited in the context of the story of Elisha, and it is followed by a comparison between miracles done on behalf of widows by Elisha and Elijah.

16. Elisha Raises a Dead Son

    This unit presents Elisha’s promise of a son to the barren Shunammite woman, and compares between the son’s death and subsequent raising and a similar story with Elijah.

17. The Law of the Leper (Part 1)

    The Law of the Leper from Leviticus 13-14 is the theme of this unit, which also explores the surprising connection to the “living water” mentioned in the story of Isaac.

18. Miracles by Elisha

    This unit reverts to the life of Elisha and specifically focuses on the story of Naaman the Leper along with a connection to the story of Miriam’s leprosy in the Torah.

19. The Siege of Samaria

    The Aramean siege of Samaria in 2nd Kings 6 grants Elisha the opportunity to pray that his servant would be able to see the angelic protection, a theme continued in Psalm 34.

20. Lepers in the Enemy Camp

    The hunger of Samaria’s residents of was only alleviated when four lepers discovered the abandoned Aramean camp. This miraculous provision is compared to Malachi 3 as well.

21. The Crowning of Jehu

    The focus shifts to the secretive anointing of Jehu as king in 2nd Kings 9, and then moves on to the death of Elisha – which paradoxically brought life to a dead man.

22. The Valley of Dry Bones

    The theme of resurrection moves on to Ezekiel 37 and the prophecy of the valley of dry bones, while touching on this hope as mentioned in Hosea and Deuteronomy as well.

23. “A Soft Answer…”

    The style and structure of Proverbs 15 is the main focus of this unit, complete with the analysis of multiple idioms in Hebrew and comparisons to similar content in the Psalms.

24. The Consecration of Isaiah

    This unit compares and contrasts the prophetic consecrations of Isaiah and Jeremiah, and explores the question of the Seraphim who appear in the story of Isaiah in chapter 6.

25. Jerusalem Besieged by Assyria

    The Assyrian siege of Jerusalem in the time of King Hezekiah in Isaiah 36-37 includes the initial response of Hezekiah – along with his interaction with Isaiah himself.

26. Hezekiah’s Prayer

    This unit focuses on the prayer of supplication made by Hezekiah while making direct comparisons to the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the Temple in 1st Kings 8.

27. Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles

    In this unit, we look at the letter in Jeremiah 29 written by the prophet to the exiles in Babylon – which included a message of hope, although from unexpected directions.

28. Promised Return to the Land

    Jeremiah 30-31 contain the promise of a return to the Land and of rebuilding from the ruins, and these words resemble a promise in Isaiah 58 as explored in this unit.

29. Promises for the Way Home

    The greater part of Jeremiah 31 and Isaiah 35 are compared while focusing on promises given not only of arriving in the Land but also of protection and of blessing on the way.

30. The Promise of Final Salvation

    The promise of final redemption including a messianic figure of salvation in Isaiah 11 and Jeremiah 33 provide the perfect way to bring the course to a close in its final unit.