Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Destroying the Message: Part 2The human responses to the gift of prophecy can take many forms. In the case of Moses, the children of Israel fell into open rebellion against Moses and Aaron, driven by fear of the foes whom they would encounter when trying to enter the Promised Land. Years later, King Jehoiakim burned God's message in hopes of destroying God's prophetic word.These, however, were not isolated cases by any means. The history of ancient Israel and Judah was, with rare exceptions, one of rejecting the prophets.Read 2 Chronicles 36:15-16. How did the nation of Judah respond to messages sent by God to them through His prophets? How did God eventually react to Judah's behavior?Jeremiah's prophetic ministry spanned the reigns of Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. The kingdom of Babylon, led by Nebuchadnezzar, was now at Judah's door. The prophecies of Jeremiah were all but fulfilled when a 21-year-old named Zedekiah came to the throne (2 Chron. 36:11). The Bible says, "He did evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke from the mouth of the Lord" (2 Chron. 36:12, NKJV).Notice how Jeremiah's prophetic gift is described. He is seen as speaking out of the very mouth of God. Nevertheless, Zedekiah did not humble himself before the prophet. And yet Jeremiah, who was only a man, a sinner like all the rest of us, was a representative of the Lord, on whose behalf he spoke.Jeremiah was one among many in that role. For centuries, God had been sending prophets to His people (Exod. 3:15, Ps. 105:26, Mal. 3:1, Isa. 6:8, Jer. 25:4, Matt. 11:13, Luke 11:49, etc.), not willing "that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Pet. 3:9, NKJV). This history of ancient Israel and Judah is the story of God's ceaseless attempts to reach His backsliding people with His promises of salvation, if only they would repent.But at this late hour in Judah's history, the grace extended by God to Judah through the guidance and comfort of Jeremiah's prophetic voice was met, not with humility, faith, and repentance, but with laughter, mockery, and derision.They mocked the messengers of God, despised God's words, and scoffed at His prophets. Surely, we today would never do anything like that—or would we?

Destroying the Message: Part 1Read Jeremiah 36:20-26. What was going on in the court, and how did the leaders respond to the prophetic warning?Jeremiah was God's prophetic voice to the nation of Judah during a time of impending doom. For many years God through Jeremiah had been warning Judah of His displeasure with them, and that Babylon would conquer them and take them captive into exile (Jer. 6:8-19, Jeremiah 26). The Lord was seeking to save them, but they had to obey.Judah's sins were many, open, and unchanging. Idolatry, child sacrifice, adultery, and tyranny were the norm during Jeremiah's time, yet the prophet's warnings and appeals were not heeded. As Jeremiah's prophetic ministry neared its end, God's appeals to His wayward children grew more intense, yet His efforts always remained redemptive. In Jeremiah 32, for instance, God tells Jeremiah to buy a piece of land and hold on to the deed, " 'For thus says the Lord of hosts . . .: "Houses and fields and vineyards shall be possessed again in this land" ' " (Jer. 32:15, NKJV).It was love that moved God to have Jeremiah write a kind of final appeal for repentance and reformation. Jehoiakim's response to this message was one of disdain for God, His message, and His messenger.Read Jeremiah 36:27-31. How did God respond to Jehoiakim's act of defiance?Sometimes there is a tendency to believe that if we dismiss or destroy God's messages or His messengers, the message itself will vanish. Our unwillingness to heed God's prophetic Word does not erase the message God has for us. Our disdain only intensifies the harm that will befall us and our families because of our willful ignorance or rebellion. Jeremiah's prophecy about King Jehoiakim's end holds a grave warning for every human being (Jer. 36:30-31): we ignore God's warnings to us at our own peril, for we will reap the consequences of our sin and evil.What does it tell us about God's loving character that He persisted in trying to reach His people despite their defiance?

Anger at God's MessengerMoses, God's chosen leader, knew the joys and pains of guiding a mixed multitude through a wilderness in search of the Promised Land.Read Numbers 14:4-11. What is happening in these verses? Why are the people upset with Moses and Aaron?A close reading of these verses reveals that the children of Israel were angry at God because they did not trust Him. Moses and Aaron, the human representatives of God's ultimate Lordship, were easy targets for the nation's anger. The need for physical and mental safety is a core motivation that all human beings possess. When either is threatened, or we perceive something as a threat to our physical or mental well-being, we can become irate or even irrational.Read Numbers 13:26-30. Why were the Israelites so afraid? What word of encouragement did Caleb share with them?The Israelites harbored legitimate fears about the challenges that lay ahead in possessing the Promised Land, "but when men yield their hearts to unbelief they place themselves under the control of Satan, and none can tell to what lengths he will lead them."—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 389. Moses faced an almost insurmountable leadership challenge in this moment. The fears of the people soon mushroomed into anger against Aaron and Moses and into open rebellion against God. When the people sought new leaders to replace the prophet/leader chosen by God (Deut. 34:10-12, Num. 14:4), Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes and pleaded with the people to trust in God despite their fears: " 'If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, "a land which flows with milk and honey." Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land' " (Num. 14:8-9, NKJV).It's easy to trust in God when things are going well, isn't it? How about when disaster strikes? How about when trusting God means discomfort or inconvenience? How well do you do then?

Sabbath AfternoonRead for This Week’s Study: Num. 13:26-30; Jer. 36:20-26; 2 Chron. 36:15-16; Matt. 23:30-35; 1 Cor. 10:6-12Memory Text: "Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come" (1 Corinthians 10:11, NASB).Some people today are encouraged to speak "their truth"—their experiences, their ideas, their needs, their boundaries, their convictions—whatever these may be. Every "truth" is valid (the thinking goes) and should not be silenced. What happens, however, when some of these deeply held "truths" conflict with the Truth, Jesus Christ, and His Written Word?What happens is that some people will accept biblical truths and turn away from their errors; others, however, will cling to their lies. Some change their behavior in response to truth; others rebel against it. Such has been the history of humanity.Biblical prophets were often called to deliver messages that people did not want to hear. As a result, many were criticized, ostracized, even threatened with death or indeed killed (Heb. 11:32-38). Despite all this, God's prophets faithfully proclaimed their messages because divine prophetic guidance was not optional for them. It was lifesaving instruction for the people of God. Hence the messages had to be delivered, no matter the personal cost to the prophet.*Study this week's lesson to prepare for Sabbath, November 14.

Welcome to the English Sabbath School Podcast!A place where we explore the weekly Sabbath School lessons, share biblical insights, exchange ideas, and practice English together.Our purpose goes beyond learning and sharing information. We believe that studying God's Word should make a difference in the way we think, live, and relate to others.Information and Transformation — growing in knowledge, growing in faith.

Ellen G. White's WritingsEllen G. White's experience and writings parallel much of what we have studied this week regarding God's messengers in the Bible. She, too, received a divine commission to write out what had been revealed to her.Reflecting in 1909, Ellen G. White wrote, "Because of the accident which had nearly cost me my life, I had been feeble in health and unable to write. . . . But one night the angel of the Lord came to my bedside and said to me, 'You must write out the things that I give you.' I said, 'I can not write.' Again the command was given, 'Write out the things I give you.' I thought I would try, and taking up a lapboard from the table, I began to write, and found that I could trace the words easily."—The General Conference Bulletin, May 31, 1909.Like the inspired writers of Scripture, Ellen G. White also employed literary assistants. Her secretaries did the work that editors are expected to do—assist authors in expressing their messages clearly while not inserting thoughts of their own. They were not ghostwriters or co-authors. Their work was dependent upon the material that Ellen G. White herself produced, whether written out by hand or delivered orally.Ellen G. White also quoted and adapted material from other literary sources in her writing to aid in the presentation of her messages. By recommending to her readers some of the very books she used, it is evident that she was not intending to be deceitful or unfair to those authors, but she found in their language apt expressions to convey the truths that she wished to express.What about discrepancies or inaccuracies?"In regard to infallibility," she wrote, "I never claimed it; God alone is infallible."—Selected Messages, book 1, p. 37.One may encounter certain statements in her writings that are difficult to understand or harmonize with others. Ellen G. White's humanity was not overridden by her divine calling. Like all of us, Ellen White would grow and mature as well, a growth and maturity that is revealed in her writings.As already stated, but worth repeating, she also corrected those who believed that every word she wrote came directly from heaven. "There are times when common things must be stated, common thoughts must occupy the mind, common letters must be written and information given that has passed from one to another of the workers. Such words, such information, are not given under the special inspiration of the Spirit of God."—Selected Messages, book 3, p. 58.To discover more, visit https://whiteestate.org/absg/6.

Divine Message and Human ImperfectionsWhat does Paul say about God's treasure in 2 Corinthians 4:7?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paul writes of God's treasure as being entrusted to "earthen vessels" (human beings), so that God's power might be shown in contrast to our own weaknesses. Scripture reveals that just as God's messengers were not supernaturally preserved from failings in their personal lives (Moses, Elijah, David, Jonah, and Peter, for example), so their writings were not exempt from the imperfections of human understanding and communication."The union of the divine and the human, manifest in Christ, exists also in the Bible. The truths revealed are all 'given by inspiration of God;' yet they are expressed in the words of men and are adapted to human needs."—Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 747.The humanity of God's messengers is not overridden by their divine calling to communicate the treasures of truth, as Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7. Nor does it appear that the Holy Spirit saw fit to prevent His messengers from making statements and writing words that we today find hard to harmonize or to explain. However few these verses are, it takes a very narrow mind to stumble over them. As Bible-believing Christians, we are to surrender to the Word of God to the degree that we understand it and trust the Lord, despite what we don't understand.Some discrepancies may be attributed to inconsequential mistakes by later copyists, or to conflicting sources (records) that the inspired authors relied upon. When considering problematic passages, we need to ask ourselves if we fully understand the meaning of the writer's words, and whether further study might solve the difficulty.Even if we are not able to resolve every seeming mistake or discrepancy, we find that they are inconsequential to the essence of the message being presented. We can have confidence that the divine truths of Scripture are faithfully revealed despite the imperfections of God's messengers.Why do you think that God chose to use fallible human beings rather than sinless angels as His primary messengers?

Literary Sources"And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yet, he pondered and sought out and set in order many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find acceptable words; and what was written was upright—words of truth" (Eccles. 12:9-10, NKJV).This passage can be read to show that Solomon did not originate all the proverbs that he recorded. Under the inspiration of God, he "sought out" many sayings and searched to find "acceptable words." In fact, the oft-quoted description of the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 is attributed to the mother of an otherwise unknown King Lemuel, not Solomon (Prov. 31:1). Evidence points to the influence of Egyptian literature on the Proverbs as well.Similarly, the inspired historians of the Old Testament tell us that they referenced archives and other historical annals to narrate faithfully the story of God's people.Read 1 Kings 11:41; Luke 1:1-4; and Jude 14, 15. What do these verses tell us about how the inspired writers at times used non-biblical sources?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Ezra and Nehemiah are other examples of Bible writers who relied upon historical records to document their accounts. Ezra includes copies of letters and royal decrees regarding Jerusalem and Persia (see Ezra 4–7), and Nehemiah tells us about genealogical registries that he found and incorporated into his narrative (see Neh. 7:5-72).This principle appears in the New Testament as well. "It is clear from Luke's experience that Inspiration functions in a manner consistent with the natural operation of the mental faculties and does not set them aside. Here is an inspired writer who was led by the Holy Spirit to give diligent study to the available oral and written source materials on the life of Christ, and then to combine into a connected narrative the information thus gathered."—The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 669.Jude seems to be quoting from 1 Enoch 1:9—a non-canonical, intertestamental Jewish work. Without mentioning their names, Paul also quoted from Greek philosophers (see Acts 17:28 and Titus 1:12).Though the biblical writers were often guided by direct revelation through visions and dreams, this did not exclude the Holy Spirit from also inspiring these messengers to select material from other sources. Why is this an important concept for us to remember?

Literary AssistantsRead Jeremiah 36:17-18 and Romans 16:22. What do these verses tell us about the Bible writers' use of literary assistants?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Presumably, Jeremiah could have written his messages, but instead he relied on a trusted scribe to record his prophecies faithfully and to share them with the nation's leaders. Jeremiah is not the only example in the Bible where prophets used the services of a literary assistant to communicate the divine message.In the New Testament, even though Tertius says that he "wrote this epistle" (Rom. 16:22), it is evident from the beginning of the book of Romans that he was writing only what Paul wished to say. Tertius was his amanuensis, or secretary—a literary assistant who put Paul's words into written form.This practice was not unusual for Paul. At the conclusion of his letters to the Colossians and Thessalonians, Paul makes a point of adding his salutation with "my own hand" (Col. 4:18, 2 Thess. 3:17, NKJV) as a way of authenticating the entire letter. This suggests that he relied upon someone else to pen the letters for him. Because this reality might raise doubts as to whether the letter correctly represented him—or worse, that it wasn't from him at all—Paul provided his own handwritten note at the end so that there would be no doubt about the genuineness of his epistle.Many commentators attribute the variation in literary style found among Paul's letters to his use of literary assistants. The same is suspected regarding Peter's two letters: "Although it is a fact that the style of language of 2 Peter is different from that of the first epistle, this may reasonably be accounted for by the probability that Peter . . . employed secretarial aid in phrasing an epistle he was writing in Greek. If Paul, who was fully at home in Greek, used secretaries, as he quite evidently did, it is even more logical to think that Peter, whose native language was Aramaic, would have done so, and that these secretaries would have exerted a definite influence on the wording of his letters in Greek."—The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 186.This suggests that while remaining faithful to the thoughts and meaning of God's messengers, the vocabulary and sentence construction might reflect the varying literary abilities of the assistants they employed. It's the thoughts that are inspired, not necessarily the specific words used to express those inspired thoughts.

Literary Genres and StylesThe Bible contains a variety of writing styles used by God's inspired messengers. Some resemble the writing of a diary (see Num. 33:1-49). On the other hand, the books of Daniel, Zechariah, and John contain examples of apocalyptic writing, which is marked by grand symbolism, cosmic themes, and descriptions of heavenly beings, among other characteristics.Read Isaiah 13:1. How does the Bible here refer to the message Isaiah is giving?__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Visions received by the prophets are sometimes called "oracles"—meaning that they are communications or revelations from God (some versions translate the word "burden"). Newer translations of the Bible show that many were written out in poetic form, often using parallelism. Parallelism is when subsequent lines repeat or sometimes contrast with earlier lines. For example: "In that day a man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel" (Isa. 17:7, NKJV). "Maker" and "Holy One" are in parallel to each other, each image giving us more information about the other.The prophets also used common literary devices such as metaphors (symbols) and hyperbole (exaggeration). For us to understand better and apply their messages, it is important to recognize the kind of writing that they used.Another literary style frequently found in Scripture is the "covenant lawsuit." For example, in Jeremiah 2:4-9, Jeremiah presents God's legal complaint against His people for violating their covenantal obligations. Using courtroom imagery, the author portrays God as the prosecutor laying out the reasons for His judgment.Scripture also contains prophetic writing, history, song, and parables. Jeremiah was told to compose a book of all his messages (Jer. 36:2), while much of the New Testament writings consist of letters addressed to individuals or communities. No distinction is made in the authority of one style of communication over another. Paul's letters were to be regarded as carrying the same weight as the prophets of old, because Paul gives clear evidence in his letters that he was inspired by the Holy Spirit (see 1 Cor. 7:10, 12, 40).Some scholarship emphasizes the human element in Scripture at the expense of the divine. Why is that a sure path to spiritual ruin?