AM Jan 5th Matt 4

January 5^th Matthew 4 Christ is tempted

1: Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2: And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. 3: And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 4: But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 5: Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 6: And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7: Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 8: Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9: And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10: Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 11: Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

C. The Propaganda of the King Christ begins to preach

12: Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; 13: And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: 14: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, 15: The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; 16: The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. 17: From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The very first thing that Christ is led by the Holy Spirit to do, is the very opposite of what we might imagine. Christ is led into Satanic contact. Christ is to be tested. And so we learn that the Man of God must begin his spiritual work by the leading of the Holy Spirit and through temptation. The Lord Jesus is holy, but his holiness is unconfirmed, however here Christ will face the Tempter all by himself in the wilderness. All great men of God emerge from the wilderness, where they have learnt to trust completely in God. The temptations do not start until after 40 days of fasting. The first temptation is to step outside of the Holy Spirits leading and to provide food for himself – inspite of Gods specific direction. Christ responds by saying that physical food is predominate in his life but obedience to Gods will is first. The second temptation is to demonstrate his divine power, by tempting God to protect him, while doing something in which the Holy Spirit was not directing him. Christ simply says that, we should not put ourselves into a position in which we demand Gods protection. The third temptation is to give honour to Satan, in exchange for dominion over all the Kingdoms of the world. Now, dominion over all the kingdoms of the world was indeed Christ’s destiny, however is was not to be achieved through satanic worship. And ironically it was not be achieved until Satan is bound in the Abyss. Christ says no. Men shall worship the Lord their God and only him. And so Christ triumphs over satanic temptation. He faces the Giant and conquers him. He is David’s greater son. Just like David, he faced the Giant with five smooth stones of the Torah and he only used one. When Christ hears that John is put in prison he moves to Capernaum in the North. And so fulfils scripture that those who sit in darkness have seen a great light. And now Christ begins to preach but what will he preach? He will call on Israel to return unto the LORD their God because the Kingdom promised to their fathers is near.

• Why did Christ go straight into temptation instead of going straight into preaching?
• Describe the three temptations of Christ.
• What was Christs message all about?

PM Jan 4th Gen 9

January 4^th Genesis 9 Noah Blessed

1: And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 2: And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. 3: Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. 4: But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. 5: And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. 6: Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man. 7: And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein. 8: And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, 9: And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; 10: And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. 11: And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. 12: And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. 14: And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: 15: And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16: And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. 17: And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.

Noah’s Sons

18: And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan. 19: These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread. 20: And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: 21: And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. 22: And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. 23: And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness. 24: And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. 25: And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. 26: And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. 27: God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. 28: And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. 29: And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.

Genesis 10 D. The Tower of Babel Noah’s Genealogy

1: Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. 2: The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3: And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 4: And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5: By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations. 6: And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. 7: And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. 8: And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. 9: He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. 10: And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 11: Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, 12: And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. 13: And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim, 14: And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim. 15: And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth, 16: And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite, 17: And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, 18: And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad. 19: And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. 20: These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations. 21: Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. 22: The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. 23: And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. 24: And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. 25: And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother's name was Joktan. 26: And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazar-maveth, and Jerah, 27: And Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah, 28: And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, 29: And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan. 30: And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east. 31: These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations. 32: These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.

The flood had been on the earth for a year and ten days. (370 days) The next thing that God does is to bless Noah. The Lord gives substantially the same command as Adam had in the beginning. He and his sons are to be fruitful and to multiply and replenish the earth. However the Lord explains that now there will be a different relationship between all the animals, fish birds and man. They will be afraid of man. This is because mankind are now going to be allowed for the first time to eat meat. The world had been for nearly 2000 years vegetarian. However God also made a specific stipulation which is that the blood of the creatures is to be drained away and not drunk. This law still stands today. The next thing that Gods says is that men are now communally responsible to the Lord to enact judgment on criminals and the justice is to be fair and not excessive. Murders are to be executed on behalf of the Lord. This was the beginning of civil government. Then the Lord said l will establish a covenant with you and all your seed after you. This covenant still stands today and wherever human beings are alive. This covenant included all of Gods creatures. God promised that there would never be a worldwide flood of water again. Then the Lord said l will put the rainbow in the clouds and whenever God sees it, he will remember his promise. Noah and his family left the ark. The next major incident was the occasion when Noah planted a vineyard and became drunk. Noah was naked in his tent and Ham saw him naked and told his brothers. They took a garment and covered themselves with it and walked backward to cover their Father. When Noah woke he knew what his son Ham had done so he cursed his grandson, saying that he would be a servant of servants. And he blessed the Lord God of Shem and declared that the Canaanites would serve. Noah lived another 350 years. He died at 950 years – two years before the birth of Abraham. The next chapter begins with one of the divisions of Genesis – ‘these are the generations of’. This time these are the generations of Noah. And so we have the ‘List of Nations’ which descend from Noah’s sons.

• What do you think it must have been like to know that you and your family are going to be the beginning of a totally new race?
• In what way was the earth different after the flood?
• What were the new special arrangements that the Lord set for Noah and his family?

January 4^th Genesis 9 Noah Blessed

1: And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 2: And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. 3: Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. 4: But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. 5: And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. 6: Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man. 7: And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein. 8: And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, 9: And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; 10: And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. 11: And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. 12: And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. 14: And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: 15: And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16: And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. 17: And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.

Noah’s Sons

18: And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan. 19: These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread. 20: And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: 21: And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. 22: And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. 23: And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness. 24: And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. 25: And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. 26: And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. 27: God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. 28: And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. 29: And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.

Genesis 10 D. The Tower of Babel Noah’s Genealogy

1: Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. 2: The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3: And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 4: And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5: By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations. 6: And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. 7: And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. 8: And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. 9: He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. 10: And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 11: Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, 12: And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. 13: And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim, 14: And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim. 15: And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth, 16: And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite, 17: And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, 18: And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad. 19: And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. 20: These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations. 21: Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. 22: The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. 23: And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. 24: And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. 25: And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother's name was Joktan. 26: And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazar-maveth, and Jerah, 27: And Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah, 28: And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, 29: And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan. 30: And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east. 31: These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations. 32: These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.

The flood had been on the earth for a year and ten days. (370 days) The next thing that God does is to bless Noah. The Lord gives substantially the same command as Adam had in the beginning. He and his sons are to be fruitful and to multiply and replenish the earth. However the Lord explains that now there will be a different relationship between all the animals, fish birds and man. They will be afraid of man. This is because mankind are now going to be allowed for the first time to eat meat. The world had been for nearly 2000 years vegetarian. However God also made a specific stipulation which is that the blood of the creatures is to be drained away and not drunk. This law still stands today. The next thing that Gods says is that men are now communally responsible to the Lord to enact judgment on criminals and the justice is to be fair and not excessive. Murders are to be executed on behalf of the Lord. This was the beginning of civil government. Then the Lord said l will establish a covenant with you and all your seed after you. This covenant still stands today and wherever human beings are alive. This covenant included all of Gods creatures. God promised that there would never be a worldwide flood of water again. Then the Lord said l will put the rainbow in the clouds and whenever God sees it, he will remember his promise. Noah and his family left the ark. The next major incident was the occasion when Noah planted a vineyard and became drunk. Noah was naked in his tent and Ham saw him naked and told his brothers. They took a garment and covered themselves with it and walked backward to cover their Father. When Noah woke he knew what his son Ham had done so he cursed his grandson, saying that he would be a servant of servants. And he blessed the Lord God of Shem and declared that the Canaanites would serve. Noah lived another 350 years. He died at 950 years – two years before the birth of Abraham. The next chapter begins with one of the divisions of Genesis – ‘these are the generations of’. This time these are the generations of Noah. And so we have the ‘List of Nations’ which descend from Noah’s sons.

• What do you think it must have been like to know that you and your family are going to be the beginning of a totally new race?
• In what way was the earth different after the flood?
• What were the new special arrangements that the Lord set for Noah and his family?

AM Jan 4th Matt 3

January 4^th Matthew 3 B. The Preparation of the King The preaching of John the Baptist

1: In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2: And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 3: For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4: And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. 5: Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 6: And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. 7: But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8: Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 9: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 10: And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 11: I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 12: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

Christ is baptised by John

13: Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14: But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15: And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered him. 16: And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Suddenly Israel’s greatest prophet appears in the wilderness of Judea. He comes with a Divine commission. He comes to call Israel to return to the LORD their God. His message is practical, spiritual and prophetic. He comes dressed in the coarsest of outdoor-wear and he has a leather belt, which like his character is strong and unyielding. He feasts on the symbols of judgment (locusts) and blessing (honey). It was an old fashioned religious revival. There was no advertising campaign, no literature, no newspaper announcements. No TV appearances, He prayed and God sent the people led by the Holy Spirit. People came in their thousands to hear this man call them in the name of God to return to the God of their Fathers. And he baptised them - a Jewish symbolic ritual of how men are to purify themselves in preparation of presenting themselves before the LORD. His preaching tone was forthright and shocking. He called on his converts to show the truth of the Work of God in their hearts in living righteously according to the Mosaic Law. And he told of the Messiah that was to come. Who would be so far greater than himself, that he was to be unworthy to be his lowest servant. He said, he will baptise you in the Holy Spirit and fire. He is thinking of a time in the future when the Messiah will have throughly purged his floor he will gather the wheat into the garner and he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. When Christ came to be baptised of John, John initially refused, because he recognised Jesus as a more righteous man than himself. But Christ insisted and in the act of baptism Christ is empowered by the Holy Spirit for the ministry he is to fulfil. The voice from heaven confirms Christ as the beloved Son in whom the Father delights.

• What was John like?
• What did he eat and what did he wear?
• What was Johns message and what did it mean?

PM Jan 3rd Gen 6

January 3^rd Genesis 6 C. The Flood Evil takes control of mankind

1: And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2: That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. 3: And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. 4: There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. 5: And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6: And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7: And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8: But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

Noah finds Grace

9: These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. 10: And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11: The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12: And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. 13: And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14: Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. 15: And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. 16: A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. 17: And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. 18: But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee. 19: And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. 20: Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. 21: And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. 22: Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.

Genesis 7 The Flood

1: And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2: Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3: Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4: For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. 5: And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him. 6: And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. 7: And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. 8: Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, 9: There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. 10: And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth. 11: In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. 12: And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. 13: In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark; 14: They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. 15: And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. 16: And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in. 17: And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. 18: And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. 19: And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. 20: Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered. 21: And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: 22: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. 23: And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. 24: And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days.

Genesis 8 God remembered Noah

1: And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged; 2: The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; 3: And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated. 4: And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. 5: And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen. 6: And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: 7: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. 8: Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground; 9: But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. 10: And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; 11: And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. 12: And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more. 13: And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. 14: And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried. 15: And God spake unto Noah, saying, 16: Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee. 17: Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth. 18: And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him: 19: Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark. 20: And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21: And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. 22: While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

In these two chapters we have the sorry incident in the world of the flood in the days of Noah. Moses describes the introduction of an evil in the world which would pervert the seed of men and thus interrupt Gods plans for the birth of the Messiah. It seems that angels marry the daughters of men to produce a race of giants who are exceedingly strong, wicked and threaten the very existence of the seed of the woman. The lord states that he will not put up with this growing menace forever. And he restricts the life span of men to 120 years. Moses just states that there were giants in the earth in those days. And he explains how they came about. The world wide effect of this perversion of the race is a very great increase of wickedness which God labels ‘Great’. The Lord repented that he had made man and he was grieved in heart. Then the Lord resolved to destroy man from off the face of the earth. However there was one righteous man and his family. God was determined to be kind to Noah. Next we have a new section in Genesis which begins with the Phrase ‘These are the Generations of’ – Noah. And so we have the story of the life and adventures of Noah. The Lord says two things about Noah, He was righteous and he was perfect. Perfect meant he was a perfect specimen of human being – not having been tainted with the genes of the Giants. Noah walked with God, that is he lived in the enjoyment of fellowship with God. Noah had three sons and they had three wives. The earth was corrupted by the sin of these angelic creatures except for Noah and his family. So the Lord calls on Noah to build an ark. The details are given of this ark and it was huge. It was like a large barge which sat low in the water. The Lord promises that he will destroy all flesh on the earth and that he will establish a new covenant with Noah. There was a minimum of two of every creature in the ark – except fish of course. When the ark was completed God called on Noah to come into the ark. The Lord called seven of every kind of clean animal into the ark and pairs of all the rest. Noah was 600 years old when he entered the ark. Subterranean water came from under the earth and water came down from above the atmosphere and flooded the earth. It rained for 40 days and nights. The ark floated and rose up to a height that enabled the ark to pass over every mountain on earth. All creatures on earth, men and beast perished. Now I want you to notice something pretty remarkable. The passage says…And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. Nothing special about that? Well that exactly the same day that Israel stepped onto the land on the other side of the Gulf of Aqabar! And it is also the same day that Christ stepped into the Garden where the empty tomb spoke of new life. Is that cool or what! Does God count days? Of course he does. Next we see that the waters continued to subside until the tops of mountains were seen. First Noah sends out a Raven but it never returns. Then he sends out a dove but the dove unable to rest on waters returns to the ark. Seven days later the dove is sent out again and returns with an Olive leaf. There is hope for the world. After another seven days the dove is sent out again but never returns. Noah had become attached to her dove but it was only right that she found her wings. Then the Lord called on Noah to come out of the ark and what is the first thing he does? He sacrifices one of every clean animal to the Lord. The Lord smelled the burnt offering and promised never to flood the earth again. The Lord promised he would never curse the ground again. And he promised that the seasons would never cease.

• What was the world like that Noah tried to bring up his family in?
• What was Noah like?
• Make a record of the story of the flood and the ark.

AM Jan 3rd Matt 2

January 3^rd The anger of Herod

13: And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. 14: When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 15: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son. 16: Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. 17: Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, 18: In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not. 19: But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20: Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life. 21: And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22: But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee: 23: And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

The Angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in a dream telling him to go to Egypt. If anyone had been there no-one would have seen the Angel of the Lord and no-one saw them leave. They set off into the darkness (There were no street lights) and so the escape of Christ is perfect. The safest place is another country. It had not even come into Herod’s mind yet to kill the Child but he was long gone when he set his evil plans in motion. Herod spread his blanket of death to destroy the rival king and he never knew that he had failed, until in the dark realms of death Christ appears to declare the glory of his victory on the cross. As soon as Herod died another angel appears to bring the family home, however at some stage Joseph is afraid to return home because of Herod’s son. And he is right to be afraid and is warned again by the Lord to go back to Nazareth. Nazareth was in the far north and in a very out of the way place, where nobody bothered to go. It was a place of obscurity and an object of mirth that anyone would want to live there. Christ would be forever known as Jesus of Nazareth.

• How did the Lord protect Christ from Herod?
• What sort of person was Herod?
• What did Herod do in his anger?

PM Jan 2nd Gen 4

January 2^nd Genesis 4 Cain and Abel

1: And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2: And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3: And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4: And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6: And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7: If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. 8: And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 9: And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? 10: And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11: And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; 12: When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13: And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14: Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15: And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 16: And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. 17: And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch. 18: And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech. 19: And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. 20: And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 21: And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. 22: And Zillah, she also bare Tubal-cain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah. 23: And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt. 24: If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.

Seth born

25: And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 26: And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.

Genesis 5 Adam’s Genealogy

1: This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; 2: Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created. 3: And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth: 4: And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters: 5: And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. 6: And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos: 7: And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters: 8: And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died. 9: And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan: 10: And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters: 11: And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died. 12: And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel: 13: And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters: 14: And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died. 15: And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared: 16: And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters: 17: And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died. 18: And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: 19: And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: 20: And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died. 21: And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: 22: And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: 23: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: 24: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. 25: And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech: 26: And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters: 27: And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died. 28: And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: 29: And he called his name Noah, saying, This name shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed. 30: And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters: 31: And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died. 32: And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Adam and Eve are now living in a very different world from the one that they started in. They have two boys. (Of course they might have had other children but God ordained that these children are specifically mentioned.) Cain was an arable farmer and Abel is shepherd. (A lot of Gods leaders start off as shepherds) Adam and Eve must have taught Cain and Abel the importance of coming before the Lord with sacrificial offerings. Abel is a man of faith and so he not only believes in the Lord but is willing to do Gods will and follow his directions. Abel brings an offering of the lambs but Cain brings an offering from the earth. Cain discovers that his offering is not acceptable. And we are not told quite why this is so. Offerings of the earth were acceptable in the Mosaic Law but there must have been something that he did that was wrong. Cain is not sorry or repentant he is just jealous and furious that his younger brother should be accepted. The Lord speaks to him telling him that he is still able to put matters right but if not that sin is waiting to pounce. Cain talks to his brother in the field and kills him. The first man born is a murderer and he murders his own brother the second man to be born. Then the Lord speaks to him about his brother at first he denies the murderer but when confronted by the Lord and the judgment that will follow he is overcome by grief and says everyone’s hand will be against me and they will want to kill me but the Lord marks him saying that none are to harm him. Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and lived in Nod east of Eden. (Possibly Iran – His grandson was called Irad) Adam and Eve must have had many other children and because their Genes had not Genetic load yet he must have taken a wife from his own family. He had a son and called him Enoch. Eve gave Adam another son to replace Abel and called him Seth. At this time men began to worship the Lord. At the beginning of ch 6 a new section begins with the phrase ‘This is the book of the generations of…’ In this case it is Adam. The story of Adam is briefly rehearsed. His age and the important detailed of his life are recorded. There is no reason to suppose that the age of Adam and the time of his having a child is incorrect. The family tree of Adam is given generation by generation with the dates of birth of firstborn and death. What we do see is that Enoch lived 65 years before he had Methuselah from the birth of his son Enoch walked with God. It is suggested that the name of his son indicates coming judgment and that caused Enoch to think again and walk with God. Eventually we are told of the birth of Enoch’s grandson Noah. A man who would bring comfort to the Antediluvians because it spoke of hope for mankind.

• How would you describe the world outside of Eden?
• How would you describe Cain and Abel. 
  •  What are your thoughts on the breakdown of their relationship and the murder of Abel?

AM Jan 2nd Matt 2

January 2^nd Matthew 2 The wise men go to Jerusalem

1: Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2: Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3: When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4: And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 5: And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6: And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. 7: Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. 8: And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. 9: When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. 10: When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. 11: And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. 12: And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

Here we have the story of the wise men. We notice first of all that we don’t know how many wise men there were and we are not told they were kings! But they come searching for Jesus. This group were probably descendants of the group that Daniel led in Babylon. It seems as if God was drawing together the whole of the 12 tribes to witness the Birth of the Messiah. We could call them ‘the outcasts of the east’. (‘The outcasts of the west’ were the shepherds.) Their study of the stars had led them west but it was the scriptures that pinpointed the child’s birth place. The ancients saw the stars as the story of redemption. Starting with Virgo and ending in Leo - the whole story was outlined in the stars. (That is why the Sphinx of Egypt had the head of the Virgin and the body of a Lion.) When the Magi found the Messiah they fell down and worshipped him. And they presented their gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold speaks his deity, Frankincense of his life and ministry (frankincense burns with a bright steady light and giving off a wonderful scent) Myrrh speaks of his embalming. The three together were prophetic.

• Who were the wise men – according to Scripture?
• What was the effect of the coming of the wise men to see the child born King?
• Why do you think that the wise men bring these gifts to Christ?