Build Your Bible Power

When the Holy Spirit inspired the 66 books of the Bible, he chose authors from all walks of life. Can you match each writer with his occupation?

1. ______________ wrote, "I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'"
2. ______________, a member of Israel's royal family, wrote while serving as an adviser to a foreign king.
3. With his experience as a physician, ______________ wrote vivid reports in two books of the Bible.
4. ______________ took a leave of absence from his job as the king's cupbearer in order to serve God.
5. ______________and ______________ left their jobs as fishermen to follow Jesus.
6. This king of Israel, ______________, contributed to four books of the Bible. Can you also name the four books?
7. The man who identified himself as "a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee," was a prolific author and tentmaker named ______________.

Answers to Build Your Bible Power

1. Amos (7:14-15). Amos tended bitter sycamore-fig trees, slitting the immature fruit to help it ripen faster. From his small Judean village, Amos was sent by God to Israel to condemn their immorality and the injustices of rich against poor.

2. Daniel (1:3-6). The prophet Daniel was exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar in 605 b.c. along with other members of Judah's royal family. But his faith in God remained unshakable, and his godly wisdom led him to become adviser to several Babylonian and Persian kings.

3. Luke Author of the Gospel of Luke and Acts, Luke was a Gentile with a Greek education. He accompanied Paul (who tells us Luke's occupation in Colossians 4:14) on some missionary journeys. Medical practice in Bible times was crude until the Greek Hippocrates founded a school in 300 b.c., which Luke benefited from.

4. Nehemiah (1:11). A cupbearer tasted the king's wine to protect him from poisoning. He was often taken into the king's confidence. For a captive foreigner to hold such a high-ranking position and be granted a leave of absence by Persian King Artaxerxes is evidence of Nehemiah's integrity.

5. John and Peter (Matt. 4:18, 21). Fishing was considered a respectable trade in Galilee, an important fishing center. The fish were sold fresh, or salted and shipped as far as Rome.

6. King Solomon (Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon [Song of Songs]). Of the 150 biblical Psalms, two are attributed to Solomon (72, 127); Proverbs 1:1 credits him with writing most of that book. The author of Ecclesiastes isn't named, but clues in 1:1, 1:12, and 2:9 strongly suggest Solomon, who's also named in the title and throughout the Song of Solomon (Song of Songs).

7. Paul (Acts 23:6). A student of the famous rabbi Gamaliel in Jerusalem, Saul (later known as Paul) strictly adhered to both the written and oral law. Every Jewish boy was also required to learn a trade. Tentmaking enabled Paul to support himself during his missionary stay in Corinth.

1999 by the author or Christianity Today/Today's Christian magazine (formerly Christian Reader).
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