Lesson - The Patience of Job

VERSES:   Job 1:1-42:17

MEMORY VERSE:   Job 1:1 "There was man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job..."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Romans.   Write "Romans" on small slips of paper and hand out to the students at the end of class.

PRAYER:   Pray that we not only have the patience of Job, but the integrity of Job.

SPECIAL SONG:   Be Patient And Kind (see April - Lesson - Joseph Meets His Brothers Who Hated Him on this blog). Click on orange circle for tune.

VISUAL AID:   Write "JOB" on whiteboard or chalkboard. List the troubles Job had as you tell the story. 

LESSON POINTS:   

• In very ancient times, a long, long time ago, there was a man named Job. Although it is spelled like the word "job" which is a chore you would do, this man's name was pronounced "Job" which rhymes with the word "robe." He was a godly man who served God with his whole heart.  The Bible calls him "perfect and upright" and a "man of integrity." He lived in a country that we have never heard of before; it was called Uz. He had seven sons and three daughters. He was, also, very rich! He had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 donkeys, and a great number of servants. He was the most important man in all of the east. But the most important thing about Job was that he loved and served the LORD God. 
• One day, Satan came among the sons of God to present themselves before the LORD. The LORD asked Satan, "From where did you come?" Satan said he had been going back and forth on the earth. The LORD asked Satan if he had considered His servant, Job. The Lord said that there was no man like His servant Job in all of the earth. Satan said that Job only served the LORD because Job was given much, but if all of Job's 'things' were taken away, then he would curse God. God said that everything Job had was now in Satan's power, meaning he could take anything of Job's away from him, but he could not put his hand on Job or hurt him in any way.
• On another day, all seven of Job's sons and all three of his daughters were eating together in the oldest son's house. While Job was at his house and not with his children, a messenger came up to Job and said that the oxen were plowing in the field and the donkeys were feeding close by. The Sabeans or a nation around Uz stole the animals and killed all of the servants, except the messenger who was telling Job the news.
• While that messenger was still talking, another messenger came up to Job and told him that fire from the sky had come down and burned up all of Job's sheep and the servants who were watching them. They all died, except the messenger who was telling Job the news.
• While the second messenger was still talking, there came another messenger up to Job and told him that another nation, the Chaldeans, came up in three groups and stole the camels and killed all of the servants, except the messenger who was telling Job the news.
• While the third messenger was still talking, there came another messenger up to Job and told him that while his children were eating together in one house that a great wind blew in from the wilderness and struck all four corners of the house and when the roof caved in on them, they all died, except the messenger who was telling Job the news. 
• When all the messengers stopped talking, Job got up, tore his coat, shaved his head, fell down on the ground and worshiped the LORD. Job said that he came into this world with nothing, and he would go out of this world with nothing. The Bible says that in all of the things that happened to Job, he did not sin or say that it was God's fault all the bad things had happened.
• Another day, Satan came again with the sons of God and the LORD asked Satan, "From where did you come?" Satan again said that he had been going back and forth on the earth. The LORD asked Satan again if he had considered His servant, Job. The Lord said that there was still no man like His servant Job in all of the earth. Satan said that Job only served the LORD because he was healthy, but if his bone and flesh were touched, then he would curse God. God said that Job had was now in Satan's power, meaning he could do anything to Job, but he could not  take Job's life. So Satan struck Job with boils from his head to his toes.
• Job was in such pain and misery. He took a piece of pottery and scraped his boils and then went and sat in a pile of ashes. They did not have medicines like we have today, but ashes were clean and helped ease the pain a bit. While, in his pain, Job's wife was very discouraging. She said that Job should curse God and die! Is that what Job should have done? NO! Job said she spoke as one of the foolish women. Job asked her if they should only receive good things all the time and not bad? In all that was said during this time, Job did not sin or blame God for his troubles. Job was very patient.
• Job had three friends who had heard of all the bad times Job was going through and they all came by to visit him at the same time. Job was in such bad condition and looked so badly that his friends did not even know Job until they were very close to him! When they saw Job, they cried, tore their clothes and put dirt on their own heads because they were grieved that Job was going through so much pain and suffering. So the three friends did what many friends would not do. They sat with Job for seven days without saying a word. They gave him comfort by just being there with him because they could tell that he was hurting a great deal.
• Then Job and his three friends had very long discussions. They talked for a while and listened for a while, they scolded Job because they thought that he must have done something very wrong, but the story of Job teaches that bad things happen to good people. We just must learn to be patient and never blame God. 
• Finally, the LORD talked to Job, Job answered some of God's questions and Job listened to God. Job humbled himself before God and recognized the fact that the LORD could do anything! God was powerful and had--and has--control over all things on the earth and in heaven. 
• In the end, the LORD restored Job's health, his riches, his servants, and Job even had seven more sons and three daughters. The only thing different than in the beginning of the story of Job is that the LORD blessed him with twice as much as he had before! All of Job's friends came to see him and brought him gifts. Everyone brought him a piece of money and an earring of gold. So everything was better for Job in the end compared to the beginning. The Bible mentions that Job's daughters were more beautiful than any in the land. Job lived 140 more years and saw his children, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren and his great-great-grandchildren grow up. Then Job died being old and full of days.
• What can we learn from Job? We learn to be very patient and longsuffering. We learn that bad things happen to good people. We learn that through the silence of the scriptures, God never told Job why all of this happened, or at least it was not written in the book of Job.

"Older Student" Tips:

• Discuss what it means, "Bad things happen to good people."
• Talk about the meaning of "God allows trials to take place."  Read 1 Corinthians 10:13.

ACTIVITY:   Job's Patience
Materials needed:   6" x 12" piece of construction paper (any light color), marker, crayons.

1. Hand out paper.
2. Fold paper in thirds, so that the two edges meet in the middle. See picture.
3. On the outside, folded paper, write "Bad Things Happen To Good People Like Job", writing the word "JOB" is beautiful letters.
4. Write "Job 1-42" on the outside of the folded paper.
5. Open up paper completely.
6. Draw two lines down the folds of the paper.
7. In the middle section, write "We need to be patient like Job and never blame God."
8. On right section, write "BEFORE" at the top and then list what Job possessed, for example, write "Rich," "7,000 (draw a sheep)", "3,000 (draw a camel)", "500 yoke of (draw an ox)", "500 (draw a donkey)", and many servants.
9. On left side, write "AFTER" at the top and then list what Job possessed, for example, "very rich", "14,00 sheep", "6,000 camels", "1,000 yoke of oxen", "1,000 donkeys", "many servants", "10 children", "lived 140 more years".
10. Color pictures of animal and decorate the middle section without covering up the words.

Lesson - Haman Reaped What He Sowed

VERSES:   Esther 7:1-10:3

MEMORY VERSE:   Esther 7:3   "...let my life be given at my petition and my people at my request."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Acts. Write "Acts" on small slips of paper and hand out at the end of class, so the students may memorize the verse at home.

PRAYER:  May we watch what we say and do because we know that the LORD watches over us and knows what good and bad that we do.

SPECIAL SONG:   Jesus Loves Me (see February - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #2 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:  TV Box  (see February - Visual Aid #1 on this blog)

LESSON POINTS:

• So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther's second banquet. King Ahasuerus asked again what Esther's request might be. Finally, Esther let her request be known to the king. She said that, if she had  found favor in the king's sight, to let her life be her petition and her people be her request. She said that she and her people were to be destroyed. She told the king that if she and her people were to be sold into slavery, she would have held her tongue and not said a word. The king was astounded and caught by surprise. He asked her, "Who is the one and where is he that thinks that he can do this?" Esther said, "The enemy is wicked Haman!" Haman then was very afraid of the king and queen. The king was angry and got up from the table and went outside to the palace garden. Haman saw that the king meant to do him harm, so he turned to Esther, the one he was going to kill, to talk to her when the king came back into the room. The king must have brought his officers back with him because they covered up Haman's face and led him from the room. One the king's officers told the king that the gallows or the place where Haman had intended to kill Mordecai was ready at the house of Haman. The king commanded that the men hang him on the very gallows that he had built for Mordecai!  Haman died and the king was not angry anymore.
•  The king gave Haman's house to Queen Esther. Mordecai came before king and Esther told King Ahasuerus that Mordecai was her uncle. The king took off his ring which he had taken from Haman and gave it to Mordecai. Esther, too, had a present for her uncle. She gave Mordecai a new job. She set Mordecai as the one responsible for Haman's house. 
• But they still had a problem. Esther spoke again to the king. She fell down at his feet and cried, asking him to change the law that Haman was responsible for. The king held out the golden sceptre to Esther, so Esther stood up before the king. Then Esther suggested that the king reverse the letters that Haman had written to destroy the Jews. The king gave Esther permission to write letters of her own, sealing it with his ring, but in Persia, no man could change a law that the king had made. It was quite a predicament!
• Mordecai called in the scribes and they started writing letters that said that the Jews could defend themselves against any man that would hurt them. Then Mordecai sealed the letters and sent them out to the people by way of mule, camel, and horse! Everyone had to hurry and get out the word! All the Jews who received the letters, talked to others about defending themselves against the possible attackers. When they read the letters, they were extremely relieved and happy. The letters were met with joy in every province that received them!
• So, the day came that Haman had intended to destroy the Jews, but instead, the Jews fought against anyone who wanted to harm them. In the end, there were 75,810 enemies of the Jews that died. The Jews made two special feast days to remember what had happened during this time and they were days of celebration called Purim. There were lots of things to eat, everyone was happy, and they gave presents to the poor people. Mordecai was praised for all the good he did for the Jews. He was next to the king, and great in the eyes of all the Jewish people, sought wealth for the people and peace to all his descendants.

"Older Student" Tips:

• It is interesting to notice that Esther did not hold the king responsible in Haman's wrong doing since she fell down at his feet and and cried.
• Not one time is God mentioned in the book of Esther, but by reading this book, everyone knows that God provided for His people.

ACTIVITY:   "Defend Yourselves!"
Materials needed:   9" x 12" yellow construction paper, 9" x 12" brown construction paper, scraps of black, green, blue, and tan construction paper, 1" x 2" thin white paper, glue, scissors, marker, crayons.  Optional: stapler and staples.

1. Hand out yellow paper.
2. Hand out brown horse.
3. Draw a BIG horse.
4. Cit out horse.
5. Glue horse in the middle of the yellow paper.
6. From blue scrap (or really any color), cut blanket.
7. Glue blanket on horse's back.
8. Decorate blanket.
9. Draw man (or postman) out of scraps.
10. Glue man on top of horse.
11. Take a 1 1/2" x 4" black strip and fold in half.
12. Glue the sides of black paper ONLY, leaving an unglued area in middle. (This is the mail bag or saddle bag for letters.
13. Fold black paper again and secure.
14. Hand out white paper.
15. Write "DEFEND YOURSELVES!" on the white paper.
16. Fold white paper in half.
17. Fold white paper in half again.
18. See if the paper will fit in the "saddlebag". If not, fold again.
19. Leave folded white paper in saddlebag, so it may removed and read again and again. (Option: staple sides of saddlebag.)
20. Write "Mordecai wrote in the king's name, and sealed it with the king's ring, and sent letters by posts on horses, mules, and camels that said "Defend Yourselves!" and "Esther 8:10,11" on the yellow paper.
21. Color man and horse's face and dirt on the ground.

Lesson - Haman Is Invited To Esther's Banquet

VERSES:   Esther 5:1-6:14

MEMORY VERSE:   Esther 6:6   "...What shall be done unto the man whom the king delights to honor?..."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Review the first four books of the New Testament. This is the foundation for the other 23 books.

PRAYER:  Pray with a sincere heart that we will do to others as we would have them do to us.

SPECIAL SONG:   This Little Light Of Mine  (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:  Draw a picture like the one in the Activity below on the whiteboard or chalkboard.

LESSON POINTS:

• After three days of fasting and prayers, Esther put on her royal clothes that she wore on special occasions and stood in the king's court. Maybe this sounds like a normal thing for us to do because Esther was the queen and the king's wife, but it was different back then. Esther was taking a great risk to her own life by going into the king's court uninvited. People only went to the king's court if the king called them, they were in trouble, or they wanted to speak to the king, hoping he would hold out his golden sceptre to them. The golden sceptre was like a staff that had a lot of decorations engraved on it and was one of the king's symbols like his crown. A sceptre showed everyone that he was the king. This was what Esther was hoping for...that the king would hold out his golden sceptre to her. Think of Esther's happiness when the king saw a very nervous Esther in the court and he held out his golden sceptre to her! Perhaps the king was curious as to what could be so important to Esther that she would risk her life to talk to him.
• When Esther drew near, she touched the top of the sceptre. The king asked Esther what she wanted and what her request was. He said she could have up to half the kingdom! But that was not what Esther wanted. Esther had made a plan. She asked the king that, if it pleased him, he and Haman were invited that day to a banquet that she had prepared for Haman. The king ordered a servant to tell Haman to hurry up because Esther had made a banquet for him. So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet.
• While they were eating and drinking, again the king asked Esther what she wanted and he said again that she could have up to half of his kingdom, meaning her request would be granted. But Esther said that she was going to have another banquet the next day and would like Haman and the king to come again and, at that time, she would give him her request.
• So, Haman left the banquet feeling joyful! He had just had a banquet with the king and queen and, with another invitation, the next day sounded like it would be just as satisfying, but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate and saw how Mordecai did not pay any respect to him at all, he was full of anger and resentment. Haman thought he should be treated as if he were special. However, Haman did not say anything to Modecai; he continued on his way. When he arrived home, he called all of his friends and his wife and bragged to them about how his life was so good and how the banquet was only prepared for himself and the next day he was going to Esther's second banquet. There was only one thing that gave him heartache and that was Mordecai, the Jew, sitting in the king's gate who paid him no respect. His wife had a suggestion that pleased Haman. She said to build a gallows 75 feet high (that's high!) and the next day speak to the king about hanging Mordecai from it, then go happily into the banquet. Haman told his servants and they began building the gallows right then.
• The king had a bad night and could not sleep. He commanded that the chronicles of the kings book be brought to him. Servants came in with the book and began reading to him. Then something was read to him that surprised the king! Written in the book was the account of Mordecai saving the king's life by telling Queen Esther about the two officers' plans to kill King Ahasuerus! This interested the king. He asked if anything nice had been done to thank Mordecai for saving his life, but nothing had been done.
• The king asked who was in the court at that time and it was Haman. Haman had come to speak to the king about hanging Mordecai from the gallows they had finished building. (Talk about bad timing!) The king asked Haman what should be done to a man whom the king delighted in. Of course, Haman thought the king was talking about doing great things for Haman, so he replied that he should receive royal clothes to wear, ride on the king's horse, wear the king's crown, and the king's servants should lead the horse through the city and announce the man's presence to all that were in the city. That is what Haman wanted for himself! 
• But the king said to Haman to hurry up, get the royal clothes and the horse and do what he had just said to do...to Mordecai, the Jew!! Imagine Haman's surprise at the king's words!! Haman did everything he told the king he would do and, afterwards, Haman went home to his friends and family with his head covered in mourning. He told his friends and wife what had happened, but they changed their tune and were not sympathetic. They said that if Haman was going to fall before Mordecai, then that would be what would happen, meaning Haman could do nothing about it. Haman was miserable.
• While Haman and his friends were still talking, the king's officers hurriedly escorted Haman to Esther's second banquet. Next time, we will see what happens at Esther's second banquet.

"Older Student" Tips:

• A cubit equals 18 inches.
• Read Galatians 6:7. Discuss the meaning of the verse.
• Sceptre can be spelled 'sceptre' or 'scepter.'

ACTIVITY:   The King Holds Out HIs Golden Sceptre
Materials needed:  9" x 12" yellow construction paper, 4 1/2 " x 12" light green construction paper, 4 1/2 " white construction paper, 5" x 5" brown construction paper, scraps of gold, shiny paper, and different colors of construction paper, glue, scissors, crayons, marker.

1. Hand out yellow paper.
2. Hand out white paper.
3. Fold paper in half, lengthwise, and cut out two pillars for the court.
4. Hand out green paper.
5. Glue green paper at the bottom of the yellow paper.
6. Glue pillars on each side of the yellow paper.
7. Hand out brown paper.
8. Cut out a throne. (see picture)
9. Cut out the king and queen and glue them on the paper (see picture).
10. Out of gold scraps, cut out golden sceptre.
11. Glue sceptre in the king's outstretched hand.
12. Glue hold crowns on both of their heads.
13. Label "Queen Esther", "King Ahazuerus", and the golden sceptre.
14. Write "The King Holds Out His Golden Sceptre To Queen Esther" and "Esther 5, 6" at the top of the paper.

Lesson - Haman's Revenge

VERSES:   Esther 3:1-4:17

MEMORY VERSE:  Esther 5:16   "...and if I perish, I perish."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Review the first four books of the New Testament.

PRAYER:   Pray for courage and determination.

SPECIAL SONG:   The B-I-B-L-E  (see February - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #2 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:   A large Activity (see below)

LESSON POINTS:

• There was a man named Haman who King Ahasuerus had promoted and given a job over all the other officers. He was so important that all of the other officers of the king bowed down to Haman and paid respect to him. All, but one man and that man's name was Mordecai. Mordecai was Queen Esther's uncle, but more importantly, Mordecai was a Jew who obeyed and the served the LORD God. Mordecai did not bow down to Haman because this was a type of 'bow' that not only meant respect, but it also meant that you were worshiping that person. Mordecai knew that he would only bow down to God and not to a man. 
• All of the other king's servants asked Mordecai why he transgressed or went against the king's commandment. Every day, the king's servants would ask Mordecai, but he did not listen to them. Finally, the king's servants went and told Haman. By this time, everyone knew that Modecai was a Jew and that Jews only bowed down to God. 
• Haman started noticing that it was true: Mordecai never bowed down to him or paid any respect to him and Haman did not like it one bit! In fact, it made Haman very angry! Haman planned to get revenge on Morecai by destroying all of the Jews throughout the whole Persian kingdom, and especially Mordecai.
• Haman decided to tell the king that there was a group of people who were scattered throughout his kingdom who did not keep the king's laws because they had their own laws. Mordecai convinced the king that it was not in his best interest to be patient with this group of people called the Jews. Haman went on to say that he would give the officers money to carry out a law that would be written, saying that those people should be destroyed.The king then gave Haman his ring to seal the letter. In those days, if the king gave you his ring, then he trusted you and was giving you permission to do what you thought was best and whatever you did, you could seal it with the seal of the king's ring, then the law would be permanent. Haman wrote the law destroying the Jews and put the seal of king Asahuerus' ring and it was law! Letters were sent out by messengers throughout the kingdom that said to kill and destroy the Jews on one special day and the people were to be ready on that day to fulfill the law. 
• When Modecai found out about the law, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth and ashes on, and cried with a loud and bitter cry in the middle of the city. He was very upset. All over the kingdom, all of the Jews were upset and afraid; they all fasted and prayed and cried. When Queen Esther's servants told her what Mordecai was doing, she quickly sent him more clothes, but he refused them She gave her chief servant instructions to go and see why Modecai was so upset. Mordecai told the servant everything and gave him a copy of the letter. He told the servant to show the letter to Esther and tell her to go and ask for kindness from the king concerning her people. Queen Esther sent the servant back to Mordecai with a message that said anyone who went into the king's court uninvited then there was a law to put that person to death unless the king held out his golden staff to them. When Mordecai heard Esther's words, he replied for her not to think of herself, but think of her people and to not think that she would escape alive because she, too, was a Jew. He said that perhaps this was the reason why she was chosen queen...to save her people.
• Esther, again, sent word to Mordecai to tell everyone to fast for three days, and then she would go into the king's court and plead for her people. Queen Esther said, "If I perish, I perish!"

"Older Student" Tips:

• The law that a Persian king created and sealed with his ring was one that even the king could not change. Ever.
• One of Haman's important jobs was to do something called 'casting Pur', meaning that it was a random way of choosing answers. People would come before Haman every day, ask questions and he would cast Pur and receive an answer. There is not a lot said about this in the Bible, but it will become important towards the end of Esther's story (Esther 3:7; 9:22).

ACTIVITY:   Haman's Revenge
Materials needed:  9" x 12" tan construction paper, five 1/2" x 6" strips of poster board, scissors, tape, crayons, marker.

1. Hand out tan paper.
2. Student draws Mordecai, King Ahazuerus, Queen Esther, Haman, and a servant.
3. Color the people.
4. Hand out poster board strips.
5. Fold each strip in half.
6. Fold strips in half again.
7. Unfold and fold back one section to make a triangle.
   
8. Secure each triangle with tape.
   
9. Attach one triangle on the back of each character.
   
10. If character will not stand up, character is too tall for poster board.
11. Tweak until all characters stand up.
12. Student rehearses the story.

Lesson - Esther Is Chosen

VERSES:   Esther 2:1-23

MEMORY VERSE:   Esther 2:20  "Esther had not yet showed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her..."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   John.  Write 'John' on small slips of paper and hand out at the end of class for memorization at home.

PRAYER:  We do not know how the LORD will use us in this world, so we pray that when we see opportunity, we will do what we are able as Esther did.

SPECIAL SONG:   This Little Light Of Mine  (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:  TV Box (see February - Visual Aid #1 on this blog)

LESSON POINTS: 

• After King Ahasuerus wasn't angry anymore, he remembered Vashti and the law he had made against her: She could not come before the king ever again and could never be queen again. The king decided to get a new queen. 
• Back in Old Testament days, and even today in parts of the world, love was a bonus in a marriage. People married to have a family and carry on the husband's name through male children, and through the years, they learned to love each other. Love did not always come first. 
• So, the king thought nothing of his servant's suggestion of advertising for a wife. His servant suggested that the king appoint officers in all 127 provinces of his kingdom. The officers would choose the best young maidens in their provinces and then they would send them to the king's palace in Shushan in Persia. This pleased the king and he did what the servant advised.
• Now there was a certain Jew whose name was Mordecai who had been carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon and he had raised his niece as his own daughter. She had no mother or father, only her uncle Mordecai. Esther was very beautiful  and was brought into the palace in Shushan with all the other fair, young maidens. They were under the care of Hegai who was responsible for the care of the young women.
• Esther was very lovely and found favor with Hegai and Hegai was kind to her. Hegai gave her everything she needed in the palace and seven women servants from the king's palace were to help Esther with whatever she needed. Hegai preferred Esther over all the other young women.
• It is important to know that Esther was a Jew and loved the LORD God, but her uncle, Mordecai, had told her not to tell anyone that she was a Jew. Morcecai walked every day in front of the women's house because he wanted to know what was going to happen to Esther.
• All of the women were then brought before the king, and soon it was Esther's turn. The women had the choice of receiving anything that they wanted in the palace, but Esther chose nothing but what Hegai had given her. She asked for nothing else and found favor in everyone's eyes. When Esther was taken in to the king's royal house, the Bible says the king loved Esther more than all of the other young maidens, so much so, that he placed the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti. Again, Esther did not tell anyone that she was a Jew because her uncle Mordecai told her not to tell anyone. She obeyed him just like when she was raised by him when she was a younger girl back at home.
• Then something important happened to Mordecai, but not what you probably think! Every day Mordecai sat at the king's gate. One day he was sitting there like he always had, and he heard something. He heard how two of the kings' officers who were responsible for keeping the door of the palace were very angry and were planning to kill the king. Mordecai told Esther what they were planning and Esther told the king in Mordecai's name which meant that Mordecai had saved the king's life. There was an investigation and, sure enough, it was just as Mordecai had said and they hung the two men on a tree and they died for planning to kill King Ahasuerus. All of this event was written down in an important book that told all about the king's life. We will see what happens to Mordecai a little later in the story of Esther.

"Older Student" Tips:

• The book of Esther tells of God's people during the reign of the Persians after the seventy years of Babylonian captivity.
• Remember that, chronologically, Esther should be inserted between Ezra 6 and 7 and tells of events towards the end of Old Testament history.
• It is interesting to note that God's name is not mentioned in any of the ten chapters of Esther. The word 'Jew' is mentioned for the first time in Esther 2:5.
• Esther, in Persian, means "star".
• The purpose of this book is to show the providence of God in God watching over the remnant and Abraham's seed.

ACTIVITY:  Esther Is Chosen.

Materials needed:  9" x 12" pink construction paper, 6" x 6" colorful gift wrapping paper, 6" x 6" piece of tan construction paper, 1 1/2" x 6" piece of shiny gold paper, about 50" of brown yarn, scissors, glue, crayons, marker.

1. Hand out pink paper.
2. Hand out tan paper.
3. Cut a large circle out of the tan paper. This is Esther's head.
4. Cut a 1" x 2" rectangle out of the scraps of tan paper. This is Esther's neck.
5. Glue Esther's neck in the middle of the pink paper.
6. Glue Esther's head on top of her neck.
7. Hand out colorful paper.
8. Round two corners for Esther's shoulders.
9. Glue Esther's shoulders to her neck.
10. Hand out yarn.
11. Cut eight 5" lengths of yarn and a few 1" lengths of yarn.
12. Glue small pieces of yarn for Esther's hair on top of her head.
13. Glue four pieces of yard on each side of her head.
14. Hand out shiny gold paper.
15. Cut paper into a crown.
16. Cut tiny circles for jewels in Esther's crown. 
17. Glue jewels on to crown.
18. Write "Esther Is Chosen" and "Esther 2" at the top of the pink paper.
19. Draw Esther's beautiful face.
20. Draw two lines down Esther's colorful shoulders to resemble her arms.

Lesson - Vashti, An Example Of Modesty

VERSES:   Esther 1:1-22

MEMORY VERSE:   Esther 1:11   "...bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to show the people and her princes her beauty..."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:  Luke.  Write "Luke" on small slips of paper for the students to take home after class and memorize.

PRAYER:   Pray that we put God first in our lives and consider His ways before men's ways--at all cost.

SPECIAL SONG:   Be Careful Little Eyes (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:   Bible Map showing where the Medes and Persians ruled. Draw a picture on the whiteboard or chalkboard of the Activity below.

LESSON POINTS:

• During the reign of the Medes and Persians, there was a king named Ahasuerus who ruled over the land from India to Ethiopia which was a great area. Ahasuerus was a very important king. He lived in Shushan in a huge palace. 
• One day the king decided to throw a great feast or party to show off all the things that he owned. Many people were there and they stayed for SIX months! That's some feast! During these six months, King Ahasuerus was full of pride and, wanting the attention of the people, he displayed all of the riches of his kingdom to his guests who were princes and important people in the 127 provinces or areas that made up his kingdom.
• After this feast, he decided to have another seven-day feast for the all of the people in Shushan. He invited the important people and the not-so-important people to this shorter feast. He made the palace ready, but the feast was in the garden area of the palace. The king's servants hung white, green, and blue cloth hangings in the garden, he had a pavement made of red, blue, white, and black marble. Every gold cup was different from the other and they drank wine from the cups. Everything was very beautiful and the king was very hospitable. He tried to please everyone. While the king was making his seven-day feast, his wife, Queen Vashti was making a feast for the women in the royal house a small distance from the palace. 
• After seven days of drinking and the king was full of wine, he wanted to show off how beautiful his wife was. He sent seven of the woman servants to bring Queen Vashti with her royal crown to the king. He wanted to put the queen on display, too, showing everyone Queen Vashti's beauty, but there was a problem.  Vashti would not come. The queen was beautiful, but she was more modest. She did not want people looking at her just because she was beautiful, so she did not come to the palace to show off her beauty. Wine makes men do foolish things, perhaps that was another reason Vashti would not go and see the king in his palace because the feast had already been going for seven days. 
• The king was extremely ANGRY! The Bible says that his anger burned inside of him. He called his wise men who knew the law and his closest advisers together and asked what should be done with Queen Vashti because she had refused the king's command. One of his advisers said that the queen had not only done wrong to the king, but had offended the princes and all of the people in all 127 provinces. He went on to say that if all of the women of the land heard what the queen had done, then all of the women might do like she did and refused a command of her husband. The king's adviser suggested that he make a law of the Medes and Persians that Queen Vashti not be allowed to come before the king ever again and to let the king chose another wife. He said that way when the law went out to all 127 provinces, then all the wives would learn a lesson and give honor to their husbands.
• Everything that his adviser said, the king agreed and did exactly as they talked about concerning Queen Vashti. Letters were sent out throughout the kingdom and in many languages that every man should rule his own house.
• So, because Queen Vashti had done the right thing and refused to parade before a palace full of men full of wine, showing off how beautiful she truly was, she was banished from ever seeing the king again and we never read of her again in the Bible. But, Vashti believed in what she did, didn't she? She believed that modesty was important no matter who wanted her to do differently. God, too, thought that Vashti had done well because he put it in the Bible.

"Older Student" Tips:

• The book of Esther is written like no other book in the entire Bible. God's name is not mentioned throughout its ten chapters. 
• As mentioned on this blog before, the book of Esther belongs between Ezra 6 and seven, chronologically.
• Definition of modesty:  behavior, manner, or appearance intended to avoid anything improper of indecent.
• Definition of 'showing off':  seeking the attention of others in a very noticeable way.
• We can learn times and lengths of time by the length of kings' reigns. Here, we can learn how long it was before Ahasuerus married after Vashti was banished. or made to live away from the king (Esther 1:3 and Esther 2:16).
• It is also interesting to know that when a Persian king made a law, even he could not change it. Ever.
• Vashti is a good example of how we should be modest and not show off our beauty or talents or our possessions to others. We should be humble as she was and do the right thing no matter what the circumstances. She was a brave woman, knowing the king's anger and the laws of the Persians.

ACTIVITY:   "Vashti--An Example of Modesty"
Materials needed:  9" x 12" piece of light green construction paper, 4.5" x 9" pieces of yellow and dark green construction paper, scraps of other colored construction paper, scissors, glue, crayons, markers.

1. Hand out light green paper.
2. Hand out dark green paper.
3. Glue dark green paper at the bottom of the light green paper.
4. Hand out yellow paper.
5. Make a palace out of yellow paper in two pieces, the roof and the bottom of the palace.
6. Fold a small edge at the top of the bottom story of the palace, so that the bottom of the palace lifts up.
7. Glue edge of the bottom of the palace to the light green paper.
8. Glue roof to palace.
9. Cut a square for the royal house out of any color paper.
10. Fold edge of top of the royal house.
11. Glue edge of the royal house to light green paper.
12. Cut a roof for the royal house.
13. Glue roof to royal house.
14. Lift up yellow palace and draw the king telling seven servants to go and get Vashti.
15. Write "Tell Vashti to come. I want to show how beautiful she is." and "Tell her to wear her crown." under the palace by the king.
16. Lift up the royal house and draw a beautiful Vashti.
17. Write "Vashti was beautiful, but modest. She would not come." under the royal house by Vashti.
18. At the top of the light green paper, write "VASHTI--AN EXAMPLE OF MODESTY" and "Esther 1:1-22".
19. Write "Vashti did the right thing!" at the bottom of the green paper.
20. Color pictures.

Lesson - Nehemiah Rebuilds The Wall

VERSES:   Nehemiah 1:1-13:31

MEMORY VERSE:   Nehemiah 4:6  "...for the people had a mind to work."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Mark. Write "Mark" on small slips of paper and hand out to the students at the end of class for memory work at home.

PRAYER:   Pray that we might be hard workers like Nehemiah and God's people who worked on rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem.

SPECIAL SONG:   Read, Read Every Day (see February - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3 on this blog)

VISUAL AID:  A large-sized Activity (see below)

LESSON POINTS:

• We studied last time about how King Cyrus of Persia, through the urging of the LORD, had allowed any of God's people who were also called 'Jews' to return to Jerusalem. We have studied two groups of God's people who returned to Jerusalem. One group of 50,000 people was led by Zerubbabel back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Later, Ezra led 17,000 more people back to Jerusalem to restore the law. Now, we find that Nehemiah is going to lead the last group of Jews back to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall that went around Jerusalem and protected the city.
• Nehemiah was a godly man who had the job in Babylon of being the king's cupbearer (Nehemiah 1:11). This was a very important job to the king. A king never knew who his friends really were. We have studied before about some kings who were killed by their family or by those who they thought were their friends. That was why Nehemiah had such an important job. He was responsible for making sure that the things that the king drank were not poisoned! 
• One day, Nehemiah was in the city of Shushan which about 150 miles from Babylon and he met a friend and some men of Judah. He asked them about the Jews  who had escaped the captivity and how things were going in Jerusalem. The men said that things were not going well. They said that that the remnant or the small amount of Jews that served God were not doing well at all. They said that there was great affliction and reproach, the wall of Jerusalem was broken down, and the gates had been burned with fire.
• This news made Nehemiah very sad and he sat down and cried. He mourned and fasted and prayed to God for days. Then, for the first time since he had heard the news about Jerusalem, Nehemiah went before the king to give him his cup. The king knew Nehemiah and noticed that he was very sad. He asked him what was wrong and Nehemiah was afraid because no one went before the king when they were sad. Nehemiah answered the king respectfully and said why shouldn't he be sad when the city, the place of his father's graves, laid in waste and the city's gates were burned with fire. The king was concerned and asked Nehemiah what he wanted to do. Nehemiah was a man of prayer. He prayed to God, then he answered the king. Nehemiah replied to the king that he wanted the king to send him to Jerusalem and rebuild the wall. The king was pleased to send Nehemiah to Jerusalem and Nehemiah received a letter from the king to get all the supplies he needed and he left with the captains of the army and horsemen.
• When Nehemiah arrived in the city, two men named Sanballat and Tobiah, who were not Jews, were terribly bothered that someone had come to check up on the Jews to see how they were doing. 
• Nehemiah was secretive. He didn't tell anyone why he was there and at night time he went out and took a look at the wall.  He wanted to see what shape the wall was in and made a plan on how to fix it. Then Nehemiah told the Jews that God's good hand was upon him and he had come to help them build the wall. Right away, the Jews said, "Let's get up and build!" They were ready to work! But, Sanballat and Tobias were not happy. The Bible says that they laughed at Nehemiah and mocked or made fun of him because they hated the Jews. Nehemiah answered them bravely that the God of heaven would help them and they would build the wall.
• There were obstacles in Nehemiah's way, such as the enemies that lived all around Jerusalem, including Sanballat and Tobias, also some of the Jews were afraid, some people said "We can't do it!", there was also an amazing amount of rubbish around the city they had to clean up, and even some of the Jews who were covetous were in Nehemiah's way. But the people wanted to build the wall and they set their minds to work. They worked hard and finished the wall in 52 days! That was fast--all because they were hard workers! The wall was finished.
• After the wall was finished, Nehemiah did much good by reading the law of the Lord. One day they were reading in the book of Moses out loud to all the congregation of people. Everyone could hear the law being read. They found written in the book that the Ammonite and Moabite were not supposed to be included in the congregation of the LORD. Both the Ammonites and the Moabites had treated Israel badly in past times and God had punished them for their mistreatment. When the people heard the law, the Bible says that the people separated themselves from the mixed multitude or the ones who were from other nations found in the house of God. 
• Nehemiah also found that Eliashib, the priest, who had the oversight of the chamber of the house of God, was friends with Tobias. He had treated him like he was something special. He had given him a large room in the house of God to stay in. He had given him meat offerings, frankincense, money from the corn, and oil, and other valuable things to Tobias. Tobias was not a friend of God. He had married a Jewish woman (Nehemiah 6:17-19), but he should not have been in the house of God. All this was done while Nehemiah was in Babylon. When Nehemiah found out about this friendship between Eliashib and Tobias and all the things Eliashib had done for this enemy of the LORD, Nehemiah threw out all of Tobias' things out of the house of God and had them clean the room in which he was staying. Nehemiah was brave and not afraid of anyone who was against God. 
• Nehemiah also took care of the Levites and made certain that they were fed and were doing the jobs for which they were responsible. Nehemiah also spoke to the men of Judah who had married foreign wives. He brought up King Solomon's sins to them and told them not to be like him in that way. He said that even the children could not speak in the Jewish language because they also spoke the language of Ashdod. This was a problem and Nehemiah wanted it fixed because God was displeased.
• Nehemiah said over and over again, "Remember me, O my God..." (Nehemiah 13:14, 22, 31). We should say that, too!

"Older Student" Tips:

• Nehemiah had an interesting plan in building the wall around Jerusalem. Each family had a section of the wall and they were responsible for rebuilding only that section. By everyone pitching in and doing their part made the work go very quickly.
• Definition of affliction:  pain and suffering.
• Definition of reproach: expressing disappointment or disapproval.
  

ACTIVITY:   The Wall of Jerusalem
Materials needed:  9" x 12" dark brown construction paper, four 4 1/2" x 6" pieces of light brown construction paper, scrap of yellow construction paper, crayons, marker, lots of tape, scissors.

1. Hand out dark brown piece of paper to student.
2. Hand out one piece of light brown paper to student.
3. Fold light brown paper in half, lengthwise.
4. Fold again, lengthwise.
5. Unfold and draw medium-sized circles all over one side of light brown paper. The circles are rocks.
6. Fold paper to resemble a tube.This is one side of the wall.
7. Secure with tape.
8. Tape to short side of dark brown paper.
9. Repeat steps #3-7 with second piece of light brown paper. This is the second side of of the wall.
10. Attach to opposite side of dark brown paper.
11. Repeat steps #3-7 with third piece of light brown paper. This is the third side of the wall.
12. Attach to long side of dark brown paper. It should slide right in!
13. Repeat steps #3-7 with fourth piece of light brown paper. This is the fourth side of the wall.
14. Attach to opposite side of dark brown paper. This, too, should slide right in.
15. Tape 'walls' together securely, so they will not bend easily. This is the wall of Jerusalem. Inside is the city of Jerusalem.
16. Hand out yellow paper.
17. Make a 'sunburst out of the yellow paper. See picture above.
18. Write "Nehemiah and the people build the wall in 52 days!" in the middle of the yellow paper.
19. Write "The people wanted to work!". "Nehemiah 6:15", and "The city of Jerusalem" in the middle of the 'city.'

Lesson - Ezra, The Scribe

VERSES:   Ezra 1:1-10:44

MEMORY VERSE:   Ezra 7:10   "For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments."

BOOK TO REMEMBER:   Matthew.  Write "Matthew"on small slips of paper, so the students can take the papers home and memorize the name of this first book of the New Testament.

PRAYER:   May we have the heart of Ezra who had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD.

SPECIAL SONG:   The Books of the Old Testament and The Books of the New Testament songs (see "March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3" on this blog under the month of March.)

VISUAL AID:   Map, showing Jerusalem and Babylon.  Make a sign, either out of large construction paper or write the words on the whiteboard or chalkboard, "70 YEARS LATER."

LESSON POINTS:

• When we watch television or maybe a movie, sometimes there are words that are written at the bottom of the screen, sometimes they say "Twenty Years Later" or something like that. Today's lesson is like that! If this was a movie, we would see the words "Seventy Years Later" at the bottom of the screen. When we left God's people last time, they were servants in Babylon. They had been taken there by force and not because they wanted to go. They had been making and serving false gods for many years and God had finally had enough of their disobedience! He allowed Babylon to come into Jerusalem and destroy the temple, burn the houses, and take the people to the far-away country of Babylon. The reason they were not in their own beloved Canaan was because of the choices they had made and not served and loved God with their whole heart.
• So, how many years later? 70 years later we find that there is a man named Ezra who is a good man who loves God and is a scribe. What is a scribe? A person who writes. Back in the Old Testament times, not everyone could write, but Ezra could! Ezra was from the tribe of Levi. In fact, his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather was Aaron! We remember Aaron, the brother of Moses and Miriam, don't we?! Ezra was a Levite and he was a priest.
• At the end of seventy years, the king that was ruling over the people was the King of Persia named Cyrus. Way back in the prophet Isaiah's time, about 150 years before Cyrus was born, God had told the future by saying that there would be a king named Cyrus who would let God's people not only go back to Jerusalem, but he would let them lay down the foundation of the temple (Isaiah 44:28). And it happened just like God had said it would! God knows the future and God is in control--always!
• The Bible says that God stirred up Cyrus and King Cyrus made a proclamation that said that the LORD God had instructed him to build God a temple in Jerusalem. The king said if any of the Jews wanted to go back to Jerusalem, then they could go. King Cyrus let the people take the vessels that the King of Babylon had taken from the LORD's temple back to Jerusalem, too. 
• Ezra listed all the people who went to Jerusalem the first time with the governor of Judah whose name was Zerubbabel. Guess how many of God's people wanted to go back to Jerusalem? Almost 50,000! That's a lot of people, but not as many as had been forced to leave under Babylon's rule. These people were called the 'remnant' of God's people. A remnant is what is leftover or what remains. It is usually a small amount of what there was in the beginning. Under the guidance and leadership of Zerubbabel, these people traveled back to Jerusalem to build the temple. That was their purpose or the reason that they were leaving. What was Zerubbabel and the nearly 50,000 people going to do? Yes! Build the temple. But, first, they had to lay the foundation (Ezra 3:11). It took them a while, but they finally finished the foundation which was going to hold up the rest of the temple. Perhaps because they had seen the beauty of King's Solomon's temple, or perhaps because they were sorry and remembered their sins and all the trouble they had caused, many of the priests and Levites cried when they saw it (3:12). Some peopel were happy, but some people were sad.
• Building the rest of the temple took a long time because the nations around Jersualem caused some trouble, and then the people were discouraged, but more than twenty years later, the temple, too, was finished (Ezra 6:15). 
• After the temple was built, it had been so long that God's people had worshiped Him, someone need to go and restore the law of the LORD, so the people would know HOW to worship God His way. Ezra asked to go and permission was granted by the next king of Persia, Artaxerxes. This king of Persia gave Ezra everything he needed which was really provided by God (Ezra 7:6). Ezra had also prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD and did them, then he taught the people the law (Ezra 7:10). The king gave Ezra a letter, then Ezra and 17,000 more of God's people returned to Jerusalem to restore the Law of the Lord for a second trip.
• We will learn next time who rebuilt the wall around Jerusalem.

"Older Student" Tips:

• Many of God's people chose not to go back to Jerusalem because they had important jobs in Babylon or they had married wives of the Babylonians and did not want to leave Babylon which was their home. They stayed in Babylon.
• Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther tell the history of the last 100 years of the Old Testament. Remember, the books of the Bible are not written like a storybook. The books of the prophets and poetry were blended into 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, and 1 & 2 Chronicles.
• It may be good to know that the book of Esther should chronologically be inserted between Ezra 6 and 7.

ACTIVITY:   Ezra, The Scribe
Materials needed:  9" x 12" light green construction paper, 3" x 8" scrap of brown paper, 2" x 7" tan construction paper, scraps of blue, black, and tan paper, crayons, scissors, glue.

1. Hand out green paper.
2. Cut 2" circle from tan scrap. This is Ezra's head.
3. Glue head in the middle of the paper.
4. Cut a half-circle of blue paper. This is Ezra's shoulders.
5. Glue the shoulders to the bottom of Ezra's head.
6. Cut strip of blue for Ezra's arm.
7. Glue brown paper to bottom of green paper.
8. Glue long strip of tan paper on top of brown paper.
9. Glue Ezra's arm to Ezra's body.
10. Cut a small circle for Ezra's hand.
11. Glue hand to end of arm.
12. Cut a long, thin, black strip with a point for Ezra's pen.
13. Cut small black square.
14. Glue black square on top of beige strip.
15. Make squiggles on one side of tan paper to resemble words.
16. Color Ezra's face.
17. Write "EZRA" at top of green paper in red.
18. Write "A Levite", "A scribe", "2nd return to Jerusalem", and "He knew God's Law" on blank area around Ezra.
19. Write "Ezra 1-10" at top of green paper.

Extra Helps #10 - Giving Away Bibles

Do your students have Bibles of their own? All students, great and small, need to possess their own copy of God's Word. It does not need to be expensive, ornate, or have the 'extras' that many Bibles include, such as a concordance, Bible maps, red letters, or finger tabs. Just a plain, simple Bible will do. Perhaps there are discount stores in your neighborhood that sell a King James Version for one dollar, as there are in mine. A very good investment for teaching and reading.

What better way to teach students to cherish God's Word than to own their own Bible. There are helpful songs for young students on this blog. Take a look at "The Bible, The Bible" or "The B-I-B-L-E" on February - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #2, teaching that the Bible is God's Word and should be treasured and loved. We must appreciate the bountiful blessings that God extends to those seeking His Word. We need to be thankful for our own copy of the Bible and make sure that we do all that we can to help others receive a Bible of their own. We must believe with our whole heart and teach those with whom we come in contact that God's Word is our most valuable possession and should be more desired than gold. (Psalms 19:7-10).

Extra Helps #9 - "Books To Remember" Idea

I thank the Lord every day for this new avenue of communication called 'blogging.' By typing a few words, it can reach a great number of people in an instant! My daily prayer is that it is helping you in some way. Thank you for reading and sharing with your students.

I believe the only aspect of blogging that I would change would be the fact that the old blogs are "way down there" at the bottom of the list. Hopefully the Search Box is helping you find the lessons that you need.

Eight months ago, we began teaching our students the Books of the Bible, beginning with Genesis and adding a book as we taught. We have just finished our second time through the Old Testament and now will begin our second time through the New Testament. How are your students doing? Over the process of time, all students can learn these books. Yes, some are difficult to pronounce, but it can and has been done many times! 

What are some 'helps' that we can put into the hands of our students to help them learn? Besides singing "The Books Of The Old Testament"and "The Books Of The New Testament" (see March - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #3, we have already mentioned that charts can help. Making a special column on an Attendance Chart (see March - Attendance Charts on this blog) can be a great visual as to how many students know how many books. 

Perhaps covering a small area of the wall with butcher paper, attaching a 9" x 12" piece of construction paper for each child with their name at the top, and adding a Bible sticker each time they can add a book would work for your class. Can you imagine 66 stickers on each construction paper for each child in your class?! That's a very visual Visual Aid!!

Or perhaps your students need something to take home and practice. We know that there is a list of Bible books in each Bible, usually on one of the first few pages, but somehow it is easier for young ones to 'do' and remember than reading a list. Here is one idea:

BIBLE BOOK RINGED CARDS

Materials Needed:  3" x 5" colored index cards, marker, hole punch (optional drill press),1" book ring (found at school supply stores or arts and craft stores), pushpins, scissors and glue.

1. In advance, the Bible teacher will choose to either have the students write each Bible book on an index card (this works well for older students who can write fairly quickly), or the teacher will have the Bible books typed on a white paper and the students cut out each book and glue to a card (a little easier for the younger ones).
2. Choose how many Bible books will be worked on in the allotted time--too many books in a day can be frustrating for the child.
3. Have supplies ready for the best use of time.
4. Students write one book on each card or cut out one typed book and glue a word on each card.
5. Students punch a hole in the corner of each card. If you have access to a drill press, the Bible teacher may drill each unopened package of index cards with a hole in one corner ahead of time.
   
6. Students 'ring' the cards IN ORDER on the book ring.
7. The Bible teacher may choose to display the ringed cards in a papered wall area on a pushpin, adding a few cards each time the students meet, or may send the ringed books home to practice. It may be difficult for the students to remember to bring the ringed cards back to Bible class each time, so it may be more helpful to keep the ringed cards in class for a while before the students take them home. 
8. In the end when all of the cards are finished and the Bible teacher has checked the cards for accuracy, send the ringed cards home with the student.

Children are amazing learners! Give them a little encouragement, a little motivation, a little time, and just watch them learn! May they be OUR example!