Keegan Books

KNOWING YOUR BIBLE May 22, 2022: Dear Friends, The purpose of this blog is to help the follower learn to know and understand the Bible. Our current focus has been on a series of lessons on learning how to use the Bible. Learning the names and locations of the Bible books, how the books are organized and how to search for and learn how to locate Bible verses to be read have been discussed in our last 3 blogs. Go to the website above left and review these blogs. Spend some time going through the Bible books as instructed in these blogs by going from the beginning to the end of the Bible, studying the names and locations of the books. Spiritual growth and confidence in learning and knowing the Bible books will be accomplished.  There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament. Each Bible book has one or more authors with each book written hundreds of years before or after the other books of the Bible were written. Many readers of the Bible  become easily confused and discouraged when trying to read and learn the Bible, especially if little or no support has been given to guide and direct in the study of the Bible. In this week’s study, the focus will be on how the books of the Bible are related. One may be trying to learn the Bible but is have difficulty in realizing how the books are related. What does 1st Corinthians in the New Testament have to do with Ezekiel or Amos in the Old Testament? Thoughts like this  can lead the new follower to stop trying to learn the Bible all together. That is why it is important to help one realize how the Bible books are related to each other. One of the ways the books of the Bible are related is through the many geographical sites that are mentioned in the Bible. In the next few weeks, several sites will be followed from book to book  as the site is traversed through the books of the Bible. In this blog the geographical site of  Bethlehem will be followed through the books with the approximate timeline listed beside the verses being searched  for of when the book was written or when the event took place. This will allow knowledge and insight of the passage of time between the books the site is mentioned in and give further understanding of how the Bible books are related. Bible verses will be listed below to search for and read. After completion of reading all the verses, return to the list of verses and thumb through starting with the verses in Genesis and follow through the verses in Ruth, then in 1st Samuel, Micah, Matthew and Luke. This will allow realization of years of time that occurred between the times that the site was written about through the Bible. MAY GOD BLESS YOUR BIBLE STUDY THIS WEEK! BETHLEHEM: Genesis, chapter 35, verses 16-21; (1800′s BCE to 1700 BCE). Ruth, chapter 1, verse 1 and verse 19; (1125 BCE). !st Samuel, chapter 16, verses 1-5; (1050 BCE); Micah, chapter 5, verses 2-6; (757 BCE). Matthew, chapter 2, verses 1-6; (70 AD). And Luke, chapter 2, verses 1-14; (70 AD). Note that Rachel, Jacob’s 2nd wife, died and was buried in Bethlehem, in 1800 to 1700 BCE. Approximately 600 years later, Ruth spent most of her life in Bethlehem. Ruth was the great grandmother of king David, written about 75 years later in 1050 BCE as a shepherd boy in the hills near Bethlehem. Micah prophesied 300 years later, in 750 BCE, with reference to the Christ child being born in Bethlehem. Approximately 750 years later, after Micah’s prophecy, the recording of Jesus Christ’s birth in Bethlehem was recorded in Matthew and Luke. So 1800 years after Rachel died in Bethlehem, Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. 1000 years before Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, King David was anointed King of Isarel near Bethlehem as written in 1st Samuel, chapter 16, verses 12-13.  Spend some time contemplating these Bible verses and timelines, allowing a broader perspective to be had in reading and studying the Bible.