30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 20:)

DAY 20

Finish anything you haven’t completed to this point, or decide for yourself what study you want to do today.

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 19:)

DAY 19

MEDITATE on either the whole book or a certain passage. Just spend today thinking about the book. Write down your insights.

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 16 and 17:)

DAY 18

Ask the LITERARY QUESTION: What type of literature is being used in the whole book, or the passage under consideration? 

The first distinction is to determine whether the passage is prose or poetry. Poetry uses figures of speech and is not to be interpreted literally. 

Learn to recognize the following types of literature: historical narratives, old testament law, Hebrew poetry, prophecy, oracles (found in the prophets), gospels, parables, epistles, and apocalyptic. 

Understand their specific characteristics so you will interpret them correctly.

(See handouts on different literature types!)

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 16:)

DAY 16 and DAY 17

Take note of the HISTORICAL BACKGROUND.

1.               If the book is letter to a church (an epistle), answer the following questions:

1. When was the church founded? Can you find any information in the book of Acts? Consult the Bible Dictionary.
2. Who founded the church? What kind of reception did the original evangelists receive?
3. Read through the letter and discover the church’s strengths and weaknesses.
4. Imagine what it would be like to be a member of this church.
5. What is the prevailing religion in the area? What religious beliefs did these Christians have prior to their conversion?
6. Are there any customs or cultural insights that would be helpful to know?

2.             If the book is historical narrative:

1. What was happening in Israel’s history (or the early church’s history) before and after this book?
2. What is happening in the surrounding cultures?
3. How does this book fit in with the overall history of God’s people?

3.               If the book is one of the Prophets:

1. When did this prophet minister?
2. What was going on in Israel’s history at that time?
3. Who received the prophecy?

** When researching the historical background FIRST look inside the text of the book you are studying for clues. THEN you will probably need to do some reading in outside sources, such as a Bible dictionary.


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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 15:)

DAY 15

Continue working through DAY 13.

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 14:)

DAY 14 

Continue working through DAY 13.

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 13:)

DAY 13

Think through each paragraph of the book and ask this question.
How does each paragraph connect into the next paragraph?
Does the following paragraph continue on the same topic or does it change topics, characters, ideas, or events?
How does the paragraph fit with the overall message, the BIG IDEA of the book?
Can you discover how the author has organized his material?
How is the material organized: bibliographically, geographically, chronologically, logically, or thematically? Does the author answer a series of questions?
Does he move from problem to solution, from general to specific, from theology to practical application?
(If you are working with a book with more than 6 chapters, you may want to go chapter by chapter for DAY 13.)

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 12:)

DAY 12

If the book is 6 chapters or less, write down a brief summary of each paragraph. 

But, If the book is more than 6 chapters, then write a brief summary of each chapter.

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30 DAYS OF DIGGING! DAY 11:)

DAY 11

Look for another meaning of a word or phrase or term of the book. 

Go through the same steps from DAY 10

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