Jesus Calls His First Few Disciples

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels: 

(John 1:19) And this is the record of John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

In verses 6 and 7 in the last post, the evangelist John had told us that John the Baptist had been sent by God to bear witness of Jesus.  He now began to tell about John and just how he bore that witness.

(20) And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."

It seems that at least some of the priests and Levites who came to him must have thought he was the Christ, but John told them freely and truthfully that he was not Christ, the Messiah.

(21) And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" And he said, "I am not." "Are you that prophet?" And he answered, "No."

If he wasn't the Christ, they wanted to know just who he was.  They asked if he was Elijah, and he said he was not.  From the accounts in Matthew and Luke we learned that they had also asked if he was the prophet Jeremiah or one of the other prophets risen from the dead.  So whichever prophet they were asking John about in this verse, he answered he was not that prophet.

(22) Then they said to him, "Who are you? That we may give an answer to them who sent us. What do you say of yourself?"

Then who was he?  They wanted to know so that they could tell the people who sent them to find out.  They asked what he had to say for himself.

(23) He said, "I am 'the voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord,"' as the prophet Isaiah said."

Quoting Isaiah 40:3, John told them he was the one Isaiah spoke of when he spoke about the voice of one crying in the wilderness to make straight the way of the Lord.

(24) And they who were sent were of the Pharisees.

Those who were questioning John were Pharisees who were a very legalistic sect zealous for the traditions of the elders.  They were knowledgeable of the scriptures and were anticipating their coming Messiah.

(25) And they asked him and said to him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not that Christ, nor Elijah, nor that prophet?"

There were baptisms done before John came on the scene, but they were for pagans who had converted to Judaism and ordered by the Sanhedrin.  They never baptized Jews so they wondered by whose authority he was doing it now, if he was not Christ, Elijah, or some other important prophet.

(26) John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water, but there stands one among you whom you do not know."

John answered that he did indeed baptize with water.  The account in Matthew 3:11 said a good bit more about this.  He baptized with water for repentance of sins, but there was one among them whom they did not yet know who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.

(27) "He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's strap I am not worthy to unloose."

John explained that the one among them they did not yet know was the one coming after him who was preferred before him, so great in fact that he was not worthy to even loosen His sandal strap.

(28) These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan where John was baptizing.

This conversation between John and the Pharisees took place at a place called Bethabara where John was baptizing.  "Bethabara" literally means "house of the ford" or "house of passage," and was thought to be the place where the Israelites passed over the Jordan River under Joshua.  There could be symbology in this that this is where an opening was made for people to pass through to the Gospel of Jesus, and ultimately to be able to pass through to the kingdom of heaven.

(29) The next day John saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

The day after John had been conversing with the Pharisees, Jesus came to John and John accurately and prophetically declared Him to be the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world, that ultimate Lamb sacrifice that would atone for all sin when He was crucified.

(30) "This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.'"

John went on to say that Jesus was the one he had been talking about when he said that one would come after him who was preferred above him because He had been there before him in time and was before him as the foremost superior One.

(31) "And I did not know Him, but that He should be made manifest to Israel, therefore I come baptizing with water."

Although Jesus and John were cousins (Luke 1:36), it appears that John had not known Jesus previous to His baptism and the beginning of His ministry.  John had spent his time in the hill country in solitude and Jesus had been in Nazareth.  John explained that his purpose had been to proclaim Jesus's coming and make Him known to Israel, preparing the way for Jesus.

(32) And John bore record, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove and it dwelt on Him."

John gave testimony that he had seen the Holy Spirit descending from heaven in the form of a dove that rested on Jesus.

(33) "And I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water, the same said to me, 'Upon whom you shall see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, the same is He who baptizes with the Holy Ghost.'"

John again said that he had not known Jesus before His baptism, but God who had sent him to baptize with water had told him that when he saw the Spirit descending from heaven and resting on Jesus, he would know that He was the one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit.

(34) "And I saw and bore record that this is the Son of God."

John had been a witness to the Spirit descending like a dove onto Jesus and remaining there, so he had therefore heard the voice from heaven declaring that Jesus was His beloved Son (Matthew 3:17), so he knew and testified that Jesus was the Son of God.

(35) Again the next day after, John stood and two of his disciples.

The day after John had seen Jesus and had revealed Him as the Son of God, he was standing with two of his disciples.

(36) And looking upon Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God!"

When John saw Jesus walking, he directed his disciples to see the Lamb of God.

(37) And the two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.

Upon hearing John's declaration, his two disciples followed Jesus.

(38) Then Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, "What do you seek?" They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, being interpreted, Master), "Where do You dwell?"

When Jesus turned and saw the two disciples following Him, He asked them what they were looking for.  They referred to Him as Rabbi which the evangelist John interpreted for his readers telling them it meant Master.  A Master among the Jews was a title for a learned teacher.  The disciples then asked where Jesus dwelt, as if asking where they might go to learn from Him.

(39) He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where He dwelt and stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.

Jesus invited the two disciples to come with Him to see where He dwelt, which they did.  The Jewish clock began at dawn, at 6:00 in the morning, so the tenth hour would have been 4:00 in the afternoon.  The disciples wound up spending most of the day with Jesus.

(40) One of the two who heard John and followed Him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

One of the two disciples of John who had followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  This was apparently before Jesus officially called the two brothers to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:19).

(41) He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah," which is, being interpreted, the Christ.

It seems the first person Andrew wanted to tell was his brother Simon.  He found him and told him that they had found the Messiah.  Once again, the evangelist John seems to be translating for his readers.  He wrote that the Messiah was the same as the Christ.  The Hebrew word "Messiah" was interpreted in Greek by the word "Christ" and both words mean "Anointed."

(42) And he brought him to Jesus.  And when Jesus beheld him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah; you shall be called Cephas," which is by interpretation, a stone. 

Andrew brought his brother Simon to Jesus.  When Jesus looked at Simon, he declared his name to be Simon, the son of Jonah, Simon Bar-Jonah as Jesus called him in Matthew 16:17.  However, He told him he would be called Cephas, which was the Hebrew word for "rock" or "stone" as John interpreted it.  The Greek word John used for "stone" was "Petros" or "Peter" as Anglicized.

(43) The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee and find Philip and say to him, "Follow Me." 

The day after Peter's introduction to Jesus, as Jesus was going to Galilee he found Philip and told him to follow Him.

(44) Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

Philip was from Bethsaida which was where Andrew and Peter were from.  John Gill, in his Exposition of the Bible pointed out that there were three apostles of Jesus called out of Bethsaida, which Jesus later lamented and declared woe upon because it was a wicked place that rejected the word, miracles, and person of Jesus (Matthew 11:21), proving, as he would say, that a man's native place did not honor him, but a man honors his place, and having three apostles of Jesus coming from Bethsaida was no small honor for it.  I just love how God always seems to use flawed people and lowly places!  It gives hope and encouragement to all people from wherever they might hail!

(45) Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

Nathanael is probably the same person Bartholomew.  "Bartholomew" means "son of Tolmai," "Bar-Tolmai," like Jesus called Peter Simon Bar-Jonah in Matthew 16:17.  Therefore, it is likely that Bartholomew had another name.  The three previous gospels mention Bartholomew and John does not.  John mentions Nathanael and the other three do not.  Additionally, the three previous gospels name Bartholomew directly following Philip, and John names Nathanael following Philip.  So it does seem reasonable to assume that Nathanael and Bartholomew are two different names for the same person.  In a later passage in the gospel of John, Nathanael is listed among the disciples whom Jesus appeared to after His resurrection.  Although Jesus had many more disciples than just His chosen twelve, the 21st chapter of John does seem to concern only those of His chosen twelve.

After Jesus told Philip to follow Him, Philip went and found Nathanael and told him they had found Jesus of Nazareth about whom Moses and the prophets had foretold.

(46) And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."

Nathanael questioned how anything good could come out of Nazareth as it was a wicked place in his mind.  Additionally, he surely knew the Messiah was to come from Bethlehem as prophesied in Micah 5:2, not Nazareth.  The prophesy had stated that Jesus would come out of Bethlehem even though she was little among the thousands of Judah.  Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but He grew up in Nazareth, a place so miserable that Nathanael could not imagine anything good coming from there.  Once again we have God using the lowliest places to bring forth something magnificent!  Philip only answered Nathanael's doubt by telling him to come and see for himself.

(47) Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him and said of him, "Behold an Israelite indeed in whom is no guile!"

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, He said of Nathanael in the hearing of Nathanael himself and all who were present that he was indeed an Israelite, not only by birth, but worthy of the name.  He found no deceit or fraud in him; he was what he professed to be, and probably didn't tolerate fraud in anyone else, which might be why Jesus may have been giving him a small zinger because he had doubted that anything good could come from Nazareth.

(48) Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."

Nathanael asked Jesus how He knew anything about him.  Jesus answered that even before Philip had summoned him, He had seen him under a fig tree.  Of course, He did not mean that He was bodily present to see Nathanael, and Nathanael obviously realized that:

(49) Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"

Realizing that Jesus could not possibly have seen him under the fig tree unless He was the Son of God, he declared him so and also to be the King of Israel.  He called Him Rabbi, which meant Master, and that title belonged to no one else but Christ, as Jesus said in Matthew 23:10.

(50) Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' you believe? You will see greater things than this."

It's as if Jesus said to Nathanael, "You believe I am the Son of God just because I saw you under the fig tree? You haven't seen anything yet!"  Indeed, Jesus told him he would see much greater things.

(51) And He said to him, "Most assuredly I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."

Jesus told Nathanael he would see heaven open up and see angels descending upon Him and ascending back to heaven.  Whereas it would literally happen at His baptism, this was probably meant to be in a spiritual sense.  Through Jesus, the secrets of heaven would be made known to His disciples and it would be evident that He had the full favor of God in heaven and His ministering angels.  With Jesus's sacrifice, there would be an open channel to God and His angels for His believers.  There would certainly be no doubt that Jesus was their promised Messiah! 

God Himself Came to Save Us

Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:

(John 1:1) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

These first few verses of John make up one of the most beautiful passages in the entire Bible, in my opinion.  "In the beginning," the same words that begin the Bible in Genesis tell us that Jesus was there in the beginning.  He was there before anything was created.  He was the Word of God and when He took on flesh and came into the world, He brought the Word of God to the world.  Jesus was and is God.  It's a difficult concept for our puny human minds to comprehend, but it's that Holy Trinity that makes up God:  God the Father in heaven, God's Word called His Son when he came into the world, and God the Holy Spirit.  God Himself came into the world to save it!

(2) The same was in the beginning with God.

This seems to be a repetition of what was before said, but it may have been written to confirm that the Word, Jesus, had been there from the very beginning, before God ever spoke creation into existence, before He ever spoke a Word the Word was there.  

(3) All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.

All things were made by Jesus!  Being the Word, He spoke creation into existence.  There was nothing ever made that was not made by Him.  I can't help but think about the words in Genesis when God said, "Let Us make man in Our image..."

(4) In Him was life and the life was the light of men.

In Jesus was life.  Jesus created life and He remains the only source for eternal life.  Life is found only in Jesus Christ!  That life that was created by Jesus was the light of men.  With light we can see things clearly.  From the beginning with Adam, man knew right from wrong and he knew God existed and he communed with Him.  We are all born with that light.  We instinctively know right from wrong and we instinctively know there's a God, although some may grow wise in their own eyes and try to deny it.

(5) And the light shines in darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it.

When sin entered the world with Adam and Eve, darkness came.  The light of man shines in the darkness, but those so enveloped in darkness cannot comprehend or understand the light.  The world had become very dark and had ceased to perceive the light.  The original word that was translated as "comprehend" also means "seize, overtake," and was used just as many times in scripture with that meaning.  So perhaps the meaning here is that darkness never completely overtakes the light.  With any small flickering light, darkness disappears beside it.

(6) There was a man sent from God whose name was John.

The Apostle John now wrote about John the Baptist.  He said he was sent by God.

(7) The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.

John the Baptist was sent by God to bear witness of the Light, that original Light of man that is only found in the Word, Jesus Christ.  John was sent to testify about Christ and through his preaching and teaching, all men might come to believe in Him.

(8) He was not that Light, but to bear witness of that Light.

John the Baptist was not himself the Light, but he came to proclaim the Light and prepare the people to receive the Light.

(9) That was the true Light which lights every man who comes into the world.

The Light John was preaching was the true Light that lights every man who comes into the world.  As was discussed in verse 4, every person is born by the Word and with the Light, the knowledge and wisdom that God gives one from birth, but he may extinguish it with his own lusts and desires for the darkness of the world.

(10) He was in the world and the world was made by Him, and the world did not know Him.

That Light was now in the world and He had made the world and all that was in it, but the world did not know Him.  John the Baptist had come to teach the world about Him.

(11) He came to His own and His own did not receive Him.

Jesus the Light came first to His own chosen people, the Jews, but they did not receive Him as their Messiah.

(12) But as many as received Him, to them He gave power to become the sons of God, to those who believe on His name.

However, to the people who did receive Him and believed in Him as their Savior, He gave them the right to become the sons of God.  He actually gave them power when He sent the Holy Spirit.

(13) Who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

These sons of God were not literally born as God's sons, nor could they become sons by their own will or by the will of any man, but only by God or Jesus who gifted that right when they accepted and believed in Christ as their Savior.

(14) And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.

The Word that was in the beginning with God and was God became man and dwelt among His disciples who beheld His glory.  The disciples had been close associates of Jesus and were able to see Him for who He really was.  The Apostle John, along with Peter and James, had been witness to the full glory of Jesus being displayed at His transfiguration on the mountain (Matthew 17:1-9).  That was a glory that could only be of God in heaven and was proof that the Word came from heaven and became flesh in the form of Jesus who was full of grace and truth.  He was always gracious and kind, doing good to all, and He was full of the truth as only the Word could be.

(15) John bore witness of Him, and cried, saying, "This was He of whom I spoke, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.'"

John the Baptist affirmed the truth about Jesus when he saw Him, saying that Jesus was the very one he had been preaching and prophesying about when he had said that the One who came after him was greater than he was and preferred above him because He had been there since the beginning.  That word that was translated as "before," "protos," actually has a stronger meaning than merely "before."  It means "foremost," the first and/or best, number one.  Jesus had been long before John even though He came into the world after him because He had existed in heaven from the beginning, and He was of foremost importance, far superior to John the Baptist, although John was known as a great prophet.

(16) And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.

That fullness of grace and truth that the evangelist John spoke of in verse 14 all Jesus's disciples had received.  They received grace because of the grace that is in Christ Jesus.  To me that seems to be the sense of the original word "anti" that was translated as "for."  The meaning of the word was "instead of" or "because of."  "Grace instead of grace" doesn't make a lot of sense unless you think of it as the grace of the Gospel of Christ instead of the grace given by the law.  Some of the commentators I study took it to mean "grace upon grace," one blessing upon another, immeasurable grace and love.  That is certainly true, but that doesn't appear to be the meaning of the word.

(17) For the law was given by Moses; grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The law was given and taught by Moses as he had received it from God.  The very truth of God came to us in the form of Jesus Christ.  In addition, He brought us grace from the law that none of us was ever able to adhere to faithfully:  "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)  Jesus brought us the true spirit of the law and the love and grace to save us from it.

(18) No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

No man has ever physically seen God with his eyes, but I believe the sense here is the secondary definition of the word "horao" which means "to see with the mind, to perceive, know."  No one had really seen and fully known God as they did when Jesus from the very bosom of Father God, in oneness with the Father, God Himself, dwelt among men and revealed the true God to them, the God of love and truth and mercy.  Jesus truly revealed God to us in the way the law never could.  However, we needed that law to demonstrate to us how much we really need God and His guidance and salvation.  The law gives us a guidebook on how we are to live our lives and how the fruits of our salvation should look.  The law was necessary, but it provided only a vague glimpse of God in the shadows of that law.  In Jesus Christ, men are able to know God and have seen Him (John 14:7).

Although this makes for a rather short post, I think it should stand alone in its revelation that Jesus IS God.  I think it is probably the most beautiful passage in the entire Bible, telling us how God Himself because He loved us so much, provided a way for Him to come down to us and save us from our sin.  He Himself who could not look on sin provided a way to take upon Himself the entire filthy sin of the world in the human form of Jesus Christ.  He did that for us!  There is no greater love!  The word "love" as we know it doesn't begin to describe the love God has for us.  Actually, there is a word for it, "agape" which means the unconditional selfless love of God, the highest form of love, in contrast to "eros" that refers to sexual desire and love, and also "phileo" which refers to brotherly love.  UNCONDITIONAL - meaning there are no conditions that would prevent Him from loving and saving us.  No one has done anything so bad that they cannot be saved!  The only thing we have to do is to accept His love and salvation by accepting Jesus into our hearts and allowing His sacrifice to cover our sins.  And that should not be looked upon as a condition.  It's a gift that we accept to atone for and cover our sins because an all holy God cannot look upon filthy sin.  Saying "cannot" seems a contradiction in an omnipotent God, but His very nature is all-good and holy and free from any form of uncleanness and sin:

You are of purer eyes than to behold evil and cannot look on iniquity... - Habakkuk 1:13

For You are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness; neither shall evil dwell with You. - Psalm 5:4

I will continue a study of the first chapter of John in the next post as John begins to tell of the historical facts of Jesus in the world.

God Planned for Our Salvation Through Jesus Christ Before Creation

I begin my chronological Bible study using A Chronological Bible Reading Schedule by Skip Andrews. I love how this schedule begins! I don't believe I have read these scriptures at the beginning of any chronological Bible I have ever read, but Mr. Andrews shows us that God had planned for salvation through Jesus Christ before the creation of the world!

Please note that in my transcription of the scriptures that follow, I have used a combination of the King James Version and the New King James Version. As I have written before in Which Version of the Truth Will You Use?, I believe the KJV is the most authentic. However, for better understanding I have replaced the "thee's" and "thou's" of the Old English of the KJV with the newer easier to understand language of the NKJV. Occasionally, when the KJV word made no sense, but the NKJV seemed to have changed the meaning, I went back to the original meaning of the word and used that. Please understand this is not intended to be my own new translation, but my own personal study notes, restating the scriptures in a way that I more fully understand. I hope you will find this study interesting in this particular order, in this particular version, and with these particular commentaries and notes, although it's just one Bible study among thousands. I would welcome and enjoy any comments. On with the study!

God planned for our salvation through Jesus Christ before creation:

(1 Peter 1:18) For you know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold, from your vain conduct received by tradition from your fathers; (19) But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (20) Who indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,

(Ephesians 3:10) To the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, (11) According to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Psalm 40:6) Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required. (7) Then I said, "Behold, I come; in the volume of the book it is written of me. (8) I delight to do Your will, O my God; yea, Your law is within my heart."

(Hebrews 10:5) Therefore, when He came into the world, He said, "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. (6) In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have had no pleasure. (7) Then I said, 'Behold, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of Me) to do Your will, O God.'" (8) Above when He said, "Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the law), (9) Then He said, "Behold, I come to do Your will, O God". He takes away the first that He may establish the second. (10) By that will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

The following scriptures show that Jesus Christ was in existence before Genesis 1:

(John 1:1) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) The same was in the beginning with God. (3) All things were made by Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made.

The Word mentioned above is clearly Jesus Christ as a few scriptures later in John 1:14, it is written: And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

(1 Corinthians 8:6) But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him.

(Colossians 1:16) For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created by Him and for Him. (17) And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

(Acts 17:24) God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. (25) Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. (26) And He has made from one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, (27) That they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from every one of us; (28) For in Him we live and move and have our being, as also certain of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.' (29) Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's device.

I love these scriptures! They are some of my memory scriptures. Imagine that each and every one of us was planned for this particular time and for this particular place! It brings to mind Esther and the words that Mordecai said to her that she had come to the kingdom for such a time as this. Have we all been born at this time and in this place "for such a time as this"? It was a question that hit me like a ton of bricks when I first wondered it about me, especially when it really seems we are nearing the end times.

The following scriptures offer a preview of the Genesis account:

(Hebrews 11:1) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (2) For by it the elders obtained a good report. (3) Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (4) By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and by it he being dead still speaks. (5) By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found, because God had taken him; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. (6) But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (7) By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not yet seen, moved with fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (8) By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out into a place which he would afterward receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. (9) By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; (10) For he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (11) Through faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. (12) Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore. (13) These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, and embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. (14) For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. (15) And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from which they had come out, they might have had opportunity to return. (16) But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country, where God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. (17) By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, (18) Of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," (19) Concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. (20) By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. (21) By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. (22) By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.

That's it for the prequel! Next time I'll start at the beginning, Genesis 1:1.