Bethany Bible Study

Jude 1

Jude 1

Author: Family: Written to: Jude (full name maybe Judas or Judah) half-brother of Jesus (Mathew 13:55 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us?)

Time: 65-80 AD

Written to: Jewish Believers. General epistle (not written to any specific church)

Brief Review of Nehemiah

Nehemiah 13

JERUSALEM IN RUINS (SPIRITUALLY) (part-2)

FAILURE #4: What did Sabbath require? How was Sabbath violated? How did Nehemiah react? Is the principle of sabbath relevant and applicable today?

FAILURES #5: How were the Jewish people unequally yoked? What are the dangers of being unequally yoked? How did Nehemiah react? Do we see such marriages/relationships today? What do the four prayers of Nehemiah show?

Nehemiah 12

THE DEDICATION OF JERUSALEM WALLS

PURIFICATION (27-30): Why was it important to hold a dedication service? What is the significance of dedication? Why were the Levites invited from surrounding areas? What role did the Levites play in the temple? What did they cleanse? Why is cleansing important? How can sinners approach a holy God?

WALL DEDICATION WORSHIP SERVICE(31-47): Who all participated in the worship? What are some notable observations from the worship service? What was the source of joy? What followed the worship service? How did people express their generosity and...

Nehemiah 13

JERUSALEM IN RUINS (SPIRITUALLY)

JERUSALEM IN DECLINE: What is the context for this spiritual decline? How long did Nehemiah stay in Jerusalem? Why did he return? How long was he away? What did he expect to see on his return and what did he observe?

FAILURES #1 and #2 (1-9): What are the two failures identified? How did Israelites discover their failure #1? How did they react? How was the house of God desecrated (failure #2) and how did Nehemiah react?

FAILURES #3-#5(6-31): What were these three failures? How did Nehemiah react? What...

Nehemiah 11

JERUSALEM RESETTLEMENT

JERUSALEM RESTTTLEMENT(1-36): Why is Jerusalem called the ‘holy city’? Why was it critical to repopulate the city? Who were the initial occupants? How were other settlers selected? Why was there a reluctance to return to Jerusalem? What were the broad categories of people who returned?

JERUSALEM PRIESTS and LEVITES (12:1-26): List the priest sand Levites during different generations of the returned exiles.

Nehemiah 10

ISRAEL’s COVENANT WITH GOD

THE COVENANT (29-39): What were the three main elements of the covenant?

Nehemiah 10

ISRAEL’s COVENANT WITH GOD

THE COVENANT (1-28): What prompted the signing of the covenant? Who initiated the covenant? Who are the parties to the covenant? Who signed the written covenant? Who consented verbally to the agreement? Is the covenant binding?

ELEMENTS OF THE COVENANT (29-39): What were the three main elements of the covenant? What would be the outcome of keeping the covenant?

Nehemiah 9

LONGEST PRAYER (CONTD.):

REVIVAL THROUGH WORSHIP & CONFESSION

GOD’s FAITHFULNESS & MAN’s UNFAITHFULNESS (16-36): How did God display his faithfulness? How did the people respond? Did God forgive or abandon?

Did people continue to repeat the same mistakes? How does God respond to repeated failures?

THE DECISION (37): What did Israelites decide at the end of their prayer of reflection & confession?

Nehemiah Chapter 9

LONGEST PRAYER: REVIVAL THROUGH WORSHIP & CONFESSION

ASSEMBLY (1-3): Who all gathered? What was the purpose of the gathering? How long did they read the Word and Worship? What is the basis for true revival?

CALL TO WORSHIP (4-5): Who lead the call to worship? What are some reasons to praise God?

GOD’s FAITHFULNESS & MAN’s UNFAITHFULNESS (6-36): How did God display his faithfulness? How did the people respond? Did God forgive or abandon? Did people continue to repeat the same mistakes? How does God respond to repeated failures?

Nehemiah Chapter 8

Context

Reading God's Word (v.1-8)

Two Responses (v.9-12)

Key verse: "The joy of...

Nehemiah 7

REBUILDING OF GODLY COMMUNITY BEGINS

FIRST STEPS (1-3): What was Nehemiah’s focus after completion of walls & gates? Who did he appoint to govern? Why were the chosen? Who else were appointed? What instruction were given? Why is continued security important?

NEHEMIAH’s BURDEN (4-5): What was the condition of the city? What was missing? How did Nehemiah go about resolving the problem?

THE GROUP & THEIR CONTRIBUTION (6-73): Who is in the list of the people who moved to city? Why weren’t some groupe...

Nehemiah 6

ATTACKS ON NEHEMIAH | WALL FINISHED!!

DECEPTIVE INVITATION (1-4): What was the condition of the walls? Who invited Nehemiah and what prompted the invite? Why did Nehemiah reject the invitation? What reason did he give? How could Nehemiah discern their evil motive? Do all have discernment? Was God’s work a priority for Nehemiah?

SLANDER & LIES (5-9): What lies did the letter contain? What was the role of prophets? What was the purpose of spreading lies and slander? How did Nehemiah respond to such personal attacks?

...

Nehemiah 5

OPPRESSION FROM INSIDERS

GREED & SELFISHNESS OF THE RICH(1-5): Why was there an outcry against the rich? In what ways were the rich oppressing and exploiting the poor? Were the rich helping the poor by lending? What Jewish laws were being broken by the rich?

NEHEMIAH’s RIGHTEOUS ANGER (6-13): How did Nehemiah confront and challenge the rich? What example did he give them? What corrective solution did he offer the rich, and how did they respond?

NEHEMIAH’s SELFLESS EXAMPLE (14-19): How does Nehe...

Nehemiah 4

DEFEATING OPPOSITION THROUGH PRAYER

OPPOSITION THROUGH MOCKERY(1-6): Who opposed the work? When did the opposition begin? How did they mock? How do we respond to mockery? How does Nehemiah respond? How is his prayer answered?

OPPOSITION THROUGH CONSIPIRACY OF VIOLENCE(7-9): How does Nehemiah respond?

INTERNAL FATIGUE & THREAT OF VIOLENCE (10-23): How do Jews respond to physical weakness? How did they prepare for the threat of violence?

Nehemiah 3

COOPERATIVE REBUILDING of WALLS & GATES

REBUILDING OF GATES AND WALLS (1-32):

Nehemiah 2

MEETING WITH THE KING

NEHEMIAH’S REQUEST

JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM

CALL TO BUILD

Nehemiah 1

NEHEMIAH’s REACTION TO BROKEN WALLS

NEHEMIAH’s ENQUIRY (1-3): What is the time frame for Nehemiah’s ministry?

What did Nehemiah learn about the condition of Jews?

NEHEMIAH’s REACTION (4): How did Nehemiah react to the news? Is it

surprising?

NEHEMIAH’S PRAYER (5-11): Who is the prayer addressed to? How does he

frame the confession? What is the covenant promise? What was his primary prayer

request?

Ezra 10

CORPORATE REPENTANCE

CORPORATE RESPONSE (1-4): How did people respond to Ezra's public confession? Who emerged as leader from the group and what did he propose?

EZRA's PROCLAMATION (5-8): What was the content of the proclamation? What was the penalty for disobedience?

EZRA's ADDRESS (9-17): How does Ezra confront the sin of people? How do people respond? How were the individual cases reviewed and decided?

LIST OF GUILTY (18-44): Who is included in the list? What did they do put away their transgressions? Does the solution seem harsh?

EZRA 9:1-15

EZRA’s PRAYER OF CONFESSION

REPORT:HOLY SEED CORRUPTED(1-2): What report did princes give Ezra?

What contributed to the spiritual decline among Israelites? What prompted the

princes to come forward? Did the news come as a surprise to Ezra? What does the law

and the new testament exhort about separation?

EZRA’S REACTION (3-4): How did Ezra react to the report? How do other

observers react to Ezra? What is the appropriate first response when we observe sin

EZRA 8:1-14

EZRA’s LEADERSHIP:

RETURN | RECRUITMENT | STEWARDSHIP

THE RETURN WITH EZRA (1-14): How many family heads are listed? How

many returned with Ezra?

FASTING & PRAYER, RECRUITMENT OF LEVITES(15-23): Which prominent

group was missing? How did Ezra solve the problem? Why did they fast & pray?

STEWARDSHIP OF PRECIOUS METALS (24-34): How did Ezra demonstrate

stewardship? Was anything lost or missing?

WORSHIP (35-36): How did they worship?

EZRA 7:11-28

Decree of king Artaxerxes | Ezra’s response

King’s Decree (11-26): What was the main content of the decree? What was the task given

to Ezra? How was the generosity of king expressed? Why was the king generous towards Ezra?

Were there any limits? What was the provision regarding taxes? What additional authority was

given to Ezra?

Ezra’s Response (27-28): How did Ezra respond to the decree and its provisions?

EZRA 7:1-10

EZRA & HIS MISSION

EZRA's BACKGROUND (1-5): What can we say about the lineage of Ezra? What else do we know about Ezra?

GOD's FAVOR ON EZRA (6-9): When did Ezra begin his journey back? What was the secret of Ezra's success? How can we say God's favor was on Ezra?

EZRA's 3MISSION (10): What was Ezra's 3-fold mission? Are all believers called to have the same mission as Ezra?

EZRA 6

Ezra 6 Summary: Restoration Completed Through God’s Favor

Ezra 6 marks the completion of the temple reconstruction, affirming that when God begins a work, He brings it to completion despite delays, opposition, or limited resources.

🔍 Key Events and Themes

EZRA 5

Ezra 5 Summary: Rebuilding Resumes Under God’s Favor

The chapter begins with the resumption of the temple reconstruction after a 16-year pause. Initially, the work had stopped due to opposition from the Samaritans, fear, discouragement, and misplaced priorities among the Jews. However, prophets Haggai and Zechariah revived the mission through God’s word, stirring the hearts of leaders and people alike.

Prophetic Encouragement

EZRA 5 + HAGGAI 1:2-9

TEMPLE REBUILDING WORK RESUMED

WORK RESUMED (1-2): Who was instrumental in inspiring remnant jews to resume the temple building work? Why was the work suspended? How long was the work suspended?

PROPHETIC INTERVENTION

EZRA ==> HAGGAI

ROLE OF PROPHET HAGGAI in REBUILDING (Haggai 1:2-9): What was the word given through prophet Haggai? Why were Jews experiencing material losses & dissatisfaction? How did the remnant respond to Haggai? How did God encourage them? What are some future promises?

EZRA 4

Opposition to God's Work

Ezra 4 highlights how God’s work—especially rebuilding the temple—faced organized resistance and significant delay.

1. Adversaries Attempt Deception (vv. 1–3)

The Samaritans, descendants of those who intermarried with pagan nations (2 Kings 17), offered to help rebuild the temple. Though they claimed to worship the same God, their faith was mixed with idolatry. Zerubbabel and Jeshua wisely rejected their offer, recognizing their intent to corrupt the work.

Key Point: Not every offer of help in God’s work is genuine. Spiritual discernment is essential to avoid compromise...

EZRA 3:7-13

Rebuilding the Temple Foundation

In this passage, the people of Israel who returned from exile begin rebuilding the foundation of the temple. This follows the earlier rebuilding of the altar and marks the continuation of God’s work through His people.

1. Advancing the Work of the Lord

The returnees united under Zerubbabel and Joshua to organize labor and appoint Levites to oversee the temple foundation. The phrase “set forward the work” shows their commitment to restoring what was lost during exile. All who returned participated, showing strength in unity.

2...

EZRA 3:1-6

Main Theme: Rebuilding the Altar – The First Step in True Worship

1. The Priority of the Altar

2. The Purpose of the Altar

Ezra : Chapter 2:1-70

First Return of Jews | Names of Jews

Ezra : Chapter 1

PROCLAMATION & PREPERATION TO RETURN

INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW

Hebrews - Review

Hebrews

Chapter : 13:18-25

GOOD CONSCIENCE | BENEDICTION

Hebrews : Chapter 13

Our Worship + Our Works

Hebrews 12:18-29

Mt Sinai Versus Mt Zion | Unshakeable Kingdom

Mt Sinai and Mt Zion (18-24): What is the significance of Mt. Sinai? Why is Mt. Zion better?

God Speaks (25): How does God speak? What is the consequence of ignoring God’s voice?

The Unshakeable Kingdom (26-28): What was shaken at Mt Sinai? What will be shaken at Mt Zion? What is believer’s inheritance? How must we serve God? Is the Kingdom of God now or in the future? What are two seemingly extreme attributes of God’s character?

REFLEC...

Hebrews 12: 4-17

Lord’s Discipline | 2 Priorities| Bitterness

LORD’s DISCIPLINE (4-13) Why does Lord discipline and what should be our response? How should we discipline? Why should make straight the paths?

GOD AND MAN (14): What must take priority in our relationship with God and with man? Where must we look?

WARNING & EXHORTATIONS (15-17): What causes bitterness? What is the outcome? How can we uproot bitterness? What must we flee? What did Esau give away, why was it wrong, and what was the consequence?

REFLECTION: How do you respond to chas...

Hebrews

Chapter 12:1-4

Jesus: Author & Finisher of Faith

Hebrews Chapter 11:32

Faith of Judges: Jephthah