Bible ReadingNehemiah 10:28-39 “The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all who have separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, their daughters, all who have knowledge and understanding, join with their brothers, their nobles, and enter into a curse and an oath to walk in God's Law that was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord and his rules and his statutes. We will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land or take their daughters for our sons. And if the peoples of the land bring in goods or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. And we will forego the crops of the seventh year and the exaction of every debt. We also take on ourselves the obligation to give yearly a third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God... We obligate ourselves to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the LORD... and to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks... and to bring the first of our dough, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our towns where we labor... For the people of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the contribution of grain, wine, and oil to the chambers, where the vessels of the sanctuary are, as well as the priests who minister, and the gatekeepers and the singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.”
[47:18]2 Corinthians 6:14 “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?”
[48:45]Exodus 20:8-11 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
[52:16]Malachi 3:10 “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
[59:42]Observation questions- In Nehemiah 10:28-29, which groups of people are specifically named as joining the covenant, and what are they promising to do together? [47:18]
- In Nehemiah 10, what three main areas of life show up in the people’s vows: relationships, Sabbath, and giving? What does the text say they committed to in each area? [01:03:41]
- In the passage about marriage, what reason is given for avoiding being unequally yoked, and how is the image of a yoke described? [49:45]
- What repeated concern shows up in Nehemiah 10:32-39 regarding the house of God, and what kinds of gifts or offerings are listed there?
Interpretation questions- Nehemiah 10 comes right after a long prayer of praise, repentance, asking, and yielding. What does that connection show about the difference between feeling convicted and actually turning back to God in a concrete way? [45:35]
- The warning about being unequally yoked is tied to worship and allegiance, not outward categories. Why does shared allegiance to the Lord matter so deeply in a marriage or dating relationship? [48:45]
- The Sabbath command pushes against the belief that more work always means more control or more results. Why is rest presented here as an act of trust rather than a break from responsibility? [54:44]
- “We will not neglect the house of our God” is the closing line of this section. What does that sentence reveal about how God’s people should think about giving and about the life of worship together? [56:47]
Application questions- Conviction is meant to lead somewhere. Is there an area where conviction has stayed mostly emotional or vague for too long? What would it look like to turn that into a real act of obedience this week? [46:08]
- In relationships, is there any place where attraction, loneliness, or the desire to be liked has been louder than the desire to honor the Lord? How might God be calling for greater holiness or clarity there? [50:53]
- Many people quietly believe life will fall apart if they slow down. What makes rest hard right now: fear, pressure, habit, money, responsibility, or something else? What would a real Sabbath rhythm look like in this season? [53:30]
- Rest says God can handle what human hands keep trying to control. What is one thing being held too tightly right now that needs to be entrusted to the Lord instead of managed anxiously? [54:31]
- Money often reveals where trust really lives. When bills, debt, and uncertainty show up, what does the heart instinctively trust first: the Lord, personal effort, or the numbers in the account? [58:58]
- Giving rarely makes perfect sense on paper. Is there resistance to generosity because of fear, past mistakes, or the feeling that there is never enough? What would trusting God in that area actually look like? [01:05:27]
- The Lord’s word calls for a response in relationships, time, money, and the hidden places of the heart. Which of those areas feels most in need of surrender right now, and what would saying yes to God look like in plain terms? [01:05:09]
