“Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully” (1 Peter 1:10 ESV). Peter reminded his readers that our salvation did not originate in the New Testament era, but was long anticipated by the prophets of old. They prophesied about the grace that would one

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119:11 ESV). Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible and is located near the center of Scripture. It is an acrostic poem using all 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, with each stanza beginning with a

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you (James 4:10 ESV). James instructed believers to humble themselves before the Lord with the assurance that God would lift them up. Humility was not merely an attitude but an intentional posture of submission to God. The corollary was seen in the broader context, for James

“But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (James 3:8 ESV). James used very strong language to describe the destructive potential of the human tongue. He compared it to a small rudder that steered a great ship and a spark that set a forest ablaze. He

“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror (James 1:23 ESV). James compared a person who heard God’s Word without obeying it to one who looked carefully at his natural face in a mirror and

“Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures (James 1:18 ESV). James wrote to scattered Jewish believers who were enduring trials, temptations, and the danger of being “led away” by sin’s deadly deception. In the immediate context, he had

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. (Hebrews 13:17 ESV). The author of Hebrews exhorted first-century Jewish-background Christians, believers

And to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven (Hebrews 12:23 ESV). Hebrews 12:23 lifts our eyes to the unseen reality of what Christ has already secured for His people. The writer described believers coming, not to the fearsome mountain of Sinai, representing the old covenant, but to Zion, the dwelling place

“I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom. It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations. (Ezekiel 29:14–15 ESV). God declared through Ezekiel that He

“He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name!” (Psalm 111:9 ESV). Psalm 111 is a song of praise celebrating the mighty works of the LORD. It is an acrostic psalm, each line beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet, demonstrating the completeness of

“Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will be counted as cursing (Proverbs 27:14 ESV). Solomon had a keen sense of humor and deep insight into human behavior. Here, he paints a vivid picture of a man who bursts into his neighbor’s home early in the morning, loudly blessing

“But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings (Hebrews 10:32 ESV). The writer of Hebrews urges believers to recall—to bring deliberately to mind—their earlier experiences of faith and endurance. This remembering was not sentimental; it was strengthening. After they first came to Christ, these believers faced

“And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10 ESV). The writer of Hebrews contrasts the repeated sacrifices of the old covenant priests with the once-for-all offering of Christ. The animal sacrifices could never truly take away sin; they were only shadows

“And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for my name’s sake, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt deeds, O house of Israel, declares the Lord God.” (Ezekiel 20:44 ESV). When Ezekiel delivered this prophecy, many of God’s people were living in exile in

“Yet you say, ‘The way of the LORD is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?” (Ezekiel 18:25 ESV). When Ezekiel proclaimed this message, many of God’s people were already living in exile in Babylon after Jerusalem’s first deportations. They

“I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the LORD, that you may remember and be ashamed and never open your mouth anymore because of your disgrace, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord GOD (Ezekiel 16:62–63 ESV). Ezekiel closes this lengthy

“Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: As the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give up the inhabitants of Jerusalem (Ezekiel 15:6 ESV). When Ezekiel spoke these words, Jerusalem had not yet fallen, but many of Judah’s people were

“Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. Should I indeed let myself be consulted by them?” (Ezekiel 14:3 ESV). When certain elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord through Ezekiel, the Lord revealed their hypocrisy to him.

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19 ESV). When Ezekiel delivered this prophecy, many of God’s people were already living in exile in Babylon after the second

“Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek ( Hebrews 5:8–10 ESV). Though Jesus is the eternal Son of God, He entered fully