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David forged a united monarchy from a loose confederation of twelve tribes; Solomon overlays that monarchy with a brilliant administrative structure. God grants Solomon his request for “discernment in administering,” and in doing so, Solomon builds a kingdom unlike any that had ever appeared before. Too, Solomon carries out David’s wish to build a temple for the Lord in Jerusalem, a temple worthy of God’s name. Throughout his reign, Solomon lives in wealth and splendor, greater than any other king on earth.

With Moses dead, Israel stands on the threshold of the Promised Land, looking to Joshua for leadership. Join Logos Bible Study as Dr. Bill Creasy takes us across the Jordan River and into the land of “milk and honey” in a brutal conquest - a campaign of extermination that raises profound moral and ethical questions in its day, as well as in ours.

Although their names sound alike, few men in the Bible are more different than Elijah and Elisha. Elijah loves a show; Elisha is shy. Elijah loves a grand exit; Elisha dies quietly, alone. Yet, in many ways, Elisha is an even greater prophet than Elijah. This is his story.

In Isaiah Part 2, we enter the historical interlude. We learn in Isaiah 1: 1 that Isaiah functions as a prophet during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah: That is, from 740 – 686 B.C. During that time, two major historical events occur: 1) Assyria’s attack on the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 B.C. and 2) Assyria’s attack on Jerusalem in 701 B.C., while Hezekiah is king and Isaiah is prophet.

That attack in 701 B.C.—and God miraculously saving Jerusalem—foreshadows greater events to come.

Traditionally attributed to the apostle John, 1 John is a very personal discourse on a variety of topics by one who had an extraordinarily intimate relationship with Christ. In this epistle, John discusses the appeal and challenges of emerging Gnostic beliefs in the early Church and the impact such beliefs have on a believer’s view of salvation. Join Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy as we explore this intimate epistle.

As we rebuild the temple in Ezra, so we rebuild Jerusalem in Nehemiah. Ezra and Nehemiah work together, priest and layman, to complete God’s work—and you will not find two more different characters in all of Scripture. When Ezra learns that the Israelite leaders have been unfaithful to God, he sits on the ground appalled and pulls out the hairs of his beard; when Nehemiah hears the same message, he gathers the leaders together, sits them on the ground, and he pulls out the hairs of their beards!

Working hand-in-hand with the prophet Haggai, Zechariah also encourages the people to resume work on the temple in 520 B.C.; but unlike Haggai, Zechariah extends his prophecy to foreshadow future messianic and end-time events. Like Ezekiel, Zechariah has several “weird” visions, including that of an ugly woman in a flying bushel basket! Listen as Dr. Bill Creasy of Logos Bible Study explores this fascinating book.

At Mt. Sinai, God gives his covenant people their greatest gift: The Law, ten principles by which a covenant people is to live with God and one another.

As Proverbs fits squarely into the genre of “advice to a son” literature, so the Song of Songs fits squarely into the genre of erotic love poetry. Traditionally read as an allegory of God’s love for Israel or of Christ’s love for the Church, Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy explores the Song of Songs as what it is, first and foremost: an erotic love poem written by Solomon in the final years of his life, a poem tinged with deep regret and longing.

As the Psalms take us into the heart of David, so do Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs take us into the heart of Solomon. The book of Proverbs fits squarely into the genre of “advice to a son” literature. In this book Solomon offers advice to his son, advice to a young man going out into the world for the first time.

If Isaiah is the Thundering Prophet and Jeremiah is the Weeping Prophet, Ezekiel is the Weird Prophet! Ezekiel is taken captive to Babylon after its second attack on Jerusalem, 597 B.C. Ezekiel’s book is set in Babylon and it consists of thirteen separate “visions” that span twenty years. And they are very strange visions, indeed!

As we know from our own experience: bad things often happen to good people, even when they are fully aligned with God. So what gives? Job explores this paradox, calling into question the fundamental lessons we learn in the first 700 pages of Scripture. Each book after Esther in the Christian canon of the Hebrew Scriptures is a recapitulation into the main narrative. Job takes us back to the start, to the time of Abraham, and it raises serious questions.

In 1 Kings 4: 32, we read that Solomon’s songs “numbered a thousand and five”: The Song of Songs is #1 on the Hit Parade. A frankly erotic love poem, the Song of Songs speaks of fiery romantic love and crushing loss. As an allegory, it may also speak of God’s love for Israel and of Christ’s love for the Church.

Jesus launches his public ministry when he is “about thirty years old” (Luke 3: 23); it lasts three years. During that time “Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people” (Matthew 4: 23). In this session we sample his teaching, preaching and healing.

If Isaiah is the “thundering prophet”, then Jeremiah is the “weeping prophet”. Jeremiah holds the terrible position of being both a priest and a prophet; he represents both the people before God, and God before the people—not unlike a lawyer representing both husband and wife in a contentious and bitter divorce! Join Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy as he follows Jeremiah, the “weeping prophet”, through his many trials and tribulations.

Once thought to have been written by Paul, Hebrews is in fact written by one of Paul’s inner circle prior to A.D. 70, but no one knows exactly who. Addressed to Jewish Christians, our author examines several key issues from a Jewish perspective, drawing heavily upon the Torah for his support. In the marvelous chapters 7-10, our author sees Christ foreshadowed in the Tabernacle; the five great sacrifices of Leviticus; the priest Melchezedek from Genesis 14; and the Law itself. All, our author argues, are merely copies or shadows of the good things that were to come.

With Saul and his sons dead, the door opens for David to become king (1010-970 B.C.). But it’s not easy. Kingship rests with the tribe of Benjamin, while David is from the tribe of Judah; Saul still has a surviving son and grandchildren; Saul’s commanding general, Abner, has rallied ten of the twelve tribes to the house of Saul; and David has been an outlaw for a decade, working for Israel’s enemies, the Philistines. Although we read that God gave the kingship to David, it is another matter entirely to convince the people that David should be king.

As Saul crumbles under the weight of kingship, a young man rises to take his place: David. As Jonathan Kirsch observes in King David: The Real Life of the Man Who Ruled Israel (New York: Ballantine Books, 2000), the story of David is “a work of genius that anticipates the romantic lyricism and tragic grandeur of Shakespeare, the political wile of Machiavelli, and the modern psychological insight of Freud." David is one of the greatest characters in world literature; he is also my favorite character in the Bible.

Forgiveness of sin does not cancel the consequences of sin. And in 2 Samuel 12 the consequences envelop David. David’s eldest son and heir to the throne, Amnon, rapes his half-sister, Tamar. Absalom, Tamar’s brother and David’s favorite son, murders Amnon in revenge, and then Absalom flees into exile.