DISCOVER INSIDE ISSUE 11: 1 SAMUEL, DANIEL, LUKE
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Find a time when you can read the Bible each day
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Find a place where you can be quiet and think
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Ask God to help you understand what you read
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Grab your Bible and a pencil or pen
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Read today’s Discover page and Bible bit
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Pray about what you have read and learned
We want to… • • • •
Explain the Bible clearly to you Help you enjoy your Bible Encourage you to turn to Jesus Help Christians follow Jesus
Discover stands for… • Total commitment to God’s Word, the Bible • Total commitment to getting its message over to you
Team Discover Martin Cole, Nicole Carter, Rachel Jones, Kirsty McAllister, Alison Mitchell, André Parker, Ben Woodcraft Discover is published by The Good Book Company, Blenheim House, 1 Blenheim Rd, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 9AP, UK. Tel: 0333 123 0880; Email: discover@thegoodbook.co.uk UK: thegoodbook.co.uk North America: thegoodbook.com Australia: thegoodbook.com.au NZ: thegoodbook.co.nz
How to use Discover Here at Discover, we want you at home to get the most out of reading the Bible. It’s how God speaks to us today. And He’s got loads of top things to say. We use the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. You’ll find that the NIV and New King James Version are best for doing the puzzles in Discover.
The Bible has 66 different books in it. So if the notes say…
Read 1 Samuel 1 v 1 …turn to the contents page of your Bible and look down the list of books to see what page Genesis begins on. Turn to that page. “1 Samuel 1 v 1” means you need to go to chapter 1 of 1 Samuel, and then find verse 1 of chapter 1 (the verse numbers are the tiny ones). Then jump in and read it!
Here’s some other stuff you might come across…
weird words Grippyfrit These boxes explain baffling words or phrases we come across in the Bible.
Think! This bit usually has a tricky personal question on what you’ve been reading about.
Action! Challenges you to put what you’ve read into action.
Wow! This section contains a gobsmacking fact that sums up what you’ve been reading about.
Pray! Gives you ideas for prayer. Prayer is talking to God. Don’t be embarrassed! You can pray in your head if you want to. God still hears you! Even if there isn’t a Pray! symbol, it’s a good idea to pray about what you’ve read anyway.
Coming up in Issue 11… 1 Samuel: Search for a king What do you think makes a good leader — what would you look for in a new teacher or team captain? In the book of 1 Samuel, God’s people, the Israelites, are looking for a leader. But they don’t always look for the right thing… We’ll read 1 Samuel in three chunks, which each focus on one of three men. First, there’s Samuel, who started serving God when he was younger than you! Next, there’s Saul, who goes out looking for his dad’s donkeys and ends up being made king of Israel! He’s a tall guy, but he falls short of expectations. Third, there’s giant-slayer David. He’s got loads to teach us about trusting God. This book is full of strange and exciting moments. But most importantly, it points us to God’s perfect King, Jesus!
Daniel: Walk God’s way Living for God is really tough sometimes — especially when the people around you don’t. Daniel was a man who knew how that felt. He and his friends got taken from their home in Israel to serve the Babylonian king (who didn’t worship God). Reading about Daniel will show us how to stand out from the crowd by standing up for God!
You’ve probably already heard of Daniel and the lion’s den, but there’s loads more to his story than that. For example, have you heard of Daniel and the ten-horned beast? No?! Then get ready to find out!
Luke: Jesus the perfect teacher We dive into Luke’s Gospel to listen in on some awesome teaching from Jesus. It looks like it’s almost the end of the road for Jesus — less than a week before He dies — but He’s still got loads to say. There are these religious guys who keep trying to trip Him up with tricky questions. But Jesus ALWAYS out-smarts them with His answers. Plus we’ll hear Him tell some amazing stories (a.k.a. parables), and even get a heads-up on what the end of the world will be like! It’s gripping stuff!
Ready? Steady? Let’s read!
1 1 Samuel 1 v 1-8
Let’s dive into the book of 1 Samuel and meet a family even weirder than yours...
Samuel: Given to God THE STORY SO FAR... God had been great to His people, the Israelites. He rescued them from Egypt, gave them their own country (Canaan) and defeated their enemies loads of times. In return, the Israelites kept turning away from God and disobeying Him! In the last issue of Discover we read how God gave the people judges to rescue them and lead them.
But read Judges 21 v 25
Think! How do you react when things at home seem to be going really badly?
Despite all that God had done for them, they rejected Him and lived their own way.
• Try to understand how the others might be feeling?
Now let’s meet a woman who did still obey God...
• Take it out on a parent (or brother or sister)?
Read 1 Samuel 1 v 1-8
• Pour out everything to God, and ask Him to help you?
• Just look after yourself?
Now fill in the missing names.
E_________________ was married to
weird words Zuphite Descended from a man called Zuph
Worship Praise God
Sacrifice Offer gifts to God
House of the LORD Place where God was worshipped
P__________________. They had several children.
Tomorrow we’ll find out what Hannah does. The weird thing is that it was God who stopped Hannah from having children (v6). That seems so unfair, but tomorrow we’ll see God’s great plan kicking into action!
E________________ was also married to H______________, who couldn’t have children. P__________________ teased H______________ until she burst into tears.
Pray! Ask God to help you serve Him in your family situation. Thank God that He’s got a perfect plan for you, even when life seems tough.
2 1 Samuel 1 v 9-18
Pray your heart out Read 1 Samuel 1 v 9-11
Read verses 12-16
Hannah told God exactly what was on her mind. And if God gave her a son, she promised to give the boy to God, so that he’d serve God in a special way (v11).
Eli the priest accused Hannah of being drunk! How embarrassing. He wasn’t used to seeing people pray in such an honest and tearful way.
Tick the boxes that describe Hannah’s prayer.
Read verses 17-18
self-important Hannah was really upset because she was unable to have children. But she knew where to take her troubles...
real
Telling God about her problems had a real effect on Hannah. Draw Hannah’s face before and after praying.
same old words honest
holding back
meaningless words from the heart
in tears BEFORE
Think! Which of those phrases describe your prayers?
AFTER
Hannah didn’t look so miserable any more! She had told God what was getting her down. She knew she could trust Him and wait to see what His answer would be.
_______________________________
weird words Priest He was God’s special servant in the temple
_______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________
Action!
Vow Promise
Anguish and grief Worry and great sadness
Downcast Really sad
God won’t always answer our prayers in the way we expect. But we can trust that He’ll always do what’s best for us.
Wow! We can be totally honest with God. We can tell Him what’s on our minds, what’s upsetting us. God wants us to pour our hearts out to Him. He cares. He listens.
When you pray, pour your heart out to God. Leave your troubles with Him — He wants to sort them out. Why not start right now, by talking honestly to God about how you’re feeling?
3 1 Samuel 1 v 19-28
Bye bye baby Read 1 Samuel 1 v 19-20
__
__ __ __ __
What did Hannah call her son? Go back one letter to find out (B=A, C=B, D=C etc).
J
X J M M
__ __ __ __ __ __ T B N V F M What does that mean?
__ __ __ __
__ __ __
H J W F
I J N
__ __
__ __ __
U P
U I F
__ __ __ __ M P S E
Hannah has tearfully asked God to give her a son. Let’s see how God answered her prayer.
__ __ __ __ __ I F B S E __ __
__ __ __
C Z
H P E
Did Hannah keep her promise?
Read verses 21-28 Weaned
God heard Hannah’s prayers and gave her a son!
When a baby stops being fed by it’s mother’s milk (in those days at about 3 years old). We reckon Samuel was about 3 years old when Hannah left him at the temple. It must have been hard for Hannah to leave the son she had wanted for so long. But she’d promised to give him to God, and knew that God must come first.
weird words
Pray!
Sacrifice Gifts to God (usually animals and crops)
Ephah About 22 litres
Skin of wine Wine bottles made from the skin of animals
It’s easy to make promises to God when life is hard, and then forget them when life gets better! Hannah must have been over the moon with baby Sam, but would she keep her promise? Find the promise back in verse 11.
Do you know anyone with a small baby? Pray that their child will be “given to God” — that he/she will grow up to live for God.
4 1 Samuel 2 v 1-11
Raise the praise Her prayer is in three parts. Use the verses and the word pool to fill in the gaps.
He gives both p______________ and w_____________. God is
children
death
guards
heart
knows
life
food holy Lord
poverty oppose
Rock
shattered strength God has given Hannah the son she asked for. So she’s going to thank and praise God loads!
wealth
in control of the whole w____________! Hannah praises the Lord because He is in control of EVERYTHING!
world
1. Thanking God Read 1 Samuel 2 v 1-3
3. What God will do Read verses 9-11 The Lord g_____________
My h____________ rejoices in
His people. But those who
the L__________. No one is
o_____________ Him will be
h__________ like the Lord. No
s__________________. God
weird words
one is a R__________ like our
will give strength to His King.
Rejoices
God. The Lord is a God who
Is really happy
My horn is lifted high God has given me strength
Deliverance Rescue
k____________. Hannah thanks God for giving her a son and making her soooo happy!
2. What God is like Read verses 4-8
Hannah praises God for caring for people who obey Him. But He will also punish people who reject Him. Later on in 1 Samuel, we’ll read about how God was with King David. But the perfect King, who would come to save God’s people, was JESUS.
Barren Unable to have children
Humbles and exalts Makes less important and more important
Prevails Succeeds
His anointed God’s chosen king
God gives s_______________ to the weak and f__________ to the hungry. He gives c_________________ to the childless. He gives people both d___________ and l__________.
Pray! 1. Thank God for specific things He has done for you 2. Praise Him for what He’s like 3. Praise God for what He will do
5 1 Samuel 2 v 12-17
Little Samuel has begun serving God in Shiloh. But some of the priests weren’t serving God at all...
Pilfering priests! Priest Puzzler!
Read verses 15-16
Tick (4) the statements you would expect to be true for God’s priests.
Now put Xs in the statements that don’t describe Eli’s sons.
Obeyed God’s laws
Obeyed God’s laws
Set a good example
Set a good example
Honest
Honest
Put God first
Put God first
Gentle
Gentle
God had given the Israelites instructions (they’re in Leviticus) about how sacrifices should be offered to God. The priets were allowed to eat some of the meat. God’s instructions made it really clear which parts of the meat they were!
The fat should have been given to God (it was the best part). But these priests put themselves before God. And if anyone stood up to them, they were threatened with violence!
Read verse 17 Read about one of these rules in 1 Samuel 2 v 12-14
weird words Sacrifice Meat offered to God
That was the way things should have been done. But Eli’s sons were greedily stealing whatever they wanted! They didn’t care about God (v12).
Eli’s sons upset and angered God by disobeying Him.
Pray! What do you keep doing that offends God?
Shiloh
____________________________
Where God was worshipped
____________________________
Sin
____________________________
Disobeying God
____________________________
Offering
____________________________
Gift given to God
Contempt Lack of respect, hatred
Will you say sorry to God? Ask Him to help you stop doing these things.
6 1 Samuel 2 v 18-26
Spot the difference Read 1 Samuel 2 v 18-21 Notice that little Samuel is serving God (v18). Hannah had asked God for just one son. And she’d given him to serve God in the temple. But God gave her five more children!
Wow! Spot the difference between young Samuel and Eli’s evil sons...
God often gives us far more than we ask for. Make sure you notice everything God gives you. And thank Him!
Read verses 22-26 Spot the difference. Stick an S in the boxes that describe Samuel, and an E in the ones that describe Eli’s sons.
Didn’t serve the Lord (v12)
weird words Ministering Serving
Linen ephod
Gave her far more than she asked for
Mediate/ intercede Settle a problem
Served the Lord (v18) Bad report from the people (v24) God was pleased (v26) God was angry (v17)
Rebuke Telling off
Stature Size
Do you try to please God and live for Him, as Samuel did?
PRAY!
Refused to listen to their dad (v25)
Priest’s clothes
Gracious
Are you ever like Eli’s sons? You know that you should be pleasing God, but you keep sinning against Him?
Do any of those phrases describe you? (If you say no, you’re lying!) Put your own initials in the boxes that describe you.
Don’t hang around! Today would be a great day to say SORRY, and ask God to help you please Him from now on.
Ask God to help you to grow into someone who serves Him with your whole life.
7 1 Samuel 2 v 27-36
Sons shunned Eli told them off, but they ignored him and refused to change. They continued to insult God with their sinful ways.
Read 1 Samuel 2 v 27-29 Fill in the missing vowels (aeiou). God sent a messenger to Eli. He spoke God’s words. He said: Eli’s sons have disobeyed God and angered Him.
Why d__ y__ __ sc__rn my s__cr__f__c__ __nd __ff__r__ng?
Read verses 30-34 God punished Eli’s whole family. Both of Eli’s sons would die, and none of the family would live a long life. Eli’s family had sinned against God, so God rightly punished them. But it wasn’t all bad news...
Why d__ y__ __ h__n__ __r Read verses 35-36
weird words Altar Where sacrifices to God were put
Incense Powder burnt to make a sweet smell
Scorn
y__ __r s__ns m__r__ th__n m__? (v29)
I w__ll r__ __s__ __p a f__ __ thf__l
God had been so kind to Eli’s family. He had given them the fantastic privilege of serving God in a special way, as priests. But Eli had let his sons disobey and dishonour God. He had put his sinful sons before God.
Hate
pr__ __st
Despite the sin of Eli’s family, God would find a priest who would serve Him faithfully, and lead God’s people in worshipping Him.
Prescribed Commanded
Minister Serve
Disdained Despised
Sap Weaken
Anointed one God’s chosen king
Think & pray! Do you sometimes disobey God, rather than risk offending your friends or family? (For example going along with rude jokes.) Ask God to help you stand up for Him more.
Wow! Never forget how seriously God treats sin. And remember, whatever people do, God’s plans can’t be stopped!
N E I
N
R
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
E
S
__ __
I
O
S U
T
R
God was calling out to Samuel, but Samuel hadn’t worked out that something amazing was happening!
__ __ __ __ __ ,
L
Read verses 2-7
P
S K
The Israelites had stopped listening to God, so He didn’t speak to them much any more. But God was so good to His people that He was going to start speaking to them again through SAMUEL.
V
S N
I A
Well, God has a wake-up call for all of us...
In Old Testament times, God spoke to His people through prophets. These prophets sometimes had visions, telling them what God wanted to say to His people.
A
G
E
Feeling sleepy?
Read 1 Samuel 3 v 1
T
1 Samuel 3 v 1-10
Wake up call
Y
8
Wow! These days, God doesn’t usually speak to us through prophets, visions or late-night awakenings! We now have God’s Word in the Bible. The Bible is God’s message to us!
Action! Every time you read the Bible, make sure you pray first. Ask God to “speak, for your servant is listening”.
weird words Ministered Served
Word of the Lord God speaking to His people
Ark of God Really special wooden box. The 10 Commandments were kept in there.
Read verses 8-10 God was so patient with young Samuel! What did Samuel finally say to God (v10)? To find out, write down every second letter on the wheel at the top of the page, starting with the top S.
Pray! Thank God that He speaks to you through His words in the Bible. Ask Him to teach you loads from the Bible and help you put it into practice.
9 1 Samuel 3 v 11-18
Get the message? God’s first message to Samuel is a hard one to swallow.
Read verses 15-17
Samuel was a_________
Read 1 Samuel 3 v 11-14 Today’s missing words can be found in the wordsearch.
to tell E_______ about his v_____________. But Eli threatened to c___________
God has chosen young Samuel to be His prophet — the one who’d speak God’s message to the Israelites. What an amazing honour for a young lad!
S A F R A I D A R
K C A G AM C S M V H P I S L I N F
U Q I U B S O N S
R C L R E F B C E
S E Y U A L E U L
E P X E G J Y R I
L B M P U N I S H
S V I S I O N E Z
Q H Y L N D G N K
The Lord told S_____________ that
Samuel if he didn’t tell Eli everything.
Wow! God’s Word (the Bible) contains stuff that’s hard to tell people. Just think how many people ignore the 10 Commandments. But we should have the courage to tell people the truth from God’s Word.
Samuel told Eli the truth. And look at Eli’s answer...
He would p___________ Read verse 18 Eli’s f_____________ because Eli didn’t stop
weird words Uttered blasphemies
Eli totally accepted God’s Word, even though it was really tough on him.
his s__________ from d__________________ God.
Said insulting things about God
Pray!
Restrain
Ask God to help you to accept what He says, like Eli did. And ask Him for the courage to tell people what the Bible says.
Stop
Swore Promised
Atoned Paid for, forgiven
10 1 Samuel 3 v 19-21
Word perfect Read 1 Samuel 3 v 19
THE
LORD
Now rearrange the backwards words so they make sense.
EHT
HTIW
LEUMAS
SA
PU
DROL
EH
SAW
WERG THE
Wow!
LORD
Today God still reveals Himself to us through His Word. We can only get to know God by reading the Bible.
So Samuel is God’s chosen prophet.
Read the first sentence of 1 Samuel 4 v 1
God will speak to all of the Israelites through him!
S’LEUMAS God was with Samuel, helping him to live for God and serve the people. Everything Samuel said was true.
LEARSI
LLA OT
EMAC DROW
Pray!
weird words Fall to the ground Be ignored
Dan to Beersheba Areas at the north and south of Israel. All of Israel!
Attested Proved to be the real thing
Spend time asking God to be with you, helping you to grow into someone who serves God with your whole life.
Read verses 20-21 EHT
HGUORHT DROL
SIH OT FLESMIH
The Israelites had constantly rejected God and sinned against Him. Yet God gave them another chance by speaking to them through Samuel.
DROW DELAEVER LEUMAS
Pray! Thank God that He is so kind and loving to His people. Thank Him that He speaks to us through the Bible.