Paul wrote Ephesians from prison in Rome, around AD 60–62, to a church he knew well. He'd spent three years there, longer than anywhere else in his ministry. Unlike Galatians or Corinthians, there's no fire to put out. No false teacher named, no scandal to correct, no factions to unite. Paul writes instead out of: time to think while imprisoned, a congregation in good standing, and a desire to lay out the full sweep of what God has done in Christ and what that means for how his people live together. That absence of crisis is part of why the letter feels different from Paul's other epistles. Less firefighting, more architecture.

A few major themes are worth watching for as you read. First, the supremacy of Christ over every spiritual power: thrones, rulers, authorities, whatever unseen forces a first-century Ephesian might have feared (and Ephesus, home to the cult of Artemis and a thriving trade in magic and amulets, gave people plenty to fear). Paul answers that fear not by minimizing the powers but by insisting Christ is already enthroned above them, and that believers share in that authority. Second, the reconciliation of Jew and Gentile into one new humanity, not a footnote but one of the letter's central concerns, given the real ethnic tension present in the diaspora synagogues and churches of Roman Asia. Third, identity "in Christ," a phrase Paul repeats roughly thirty times in six chapters. Everything he asks of believers in the second half of the letter, honesty, generosity, sexual purity, patient marriages, submission and love within households, is grounded in who they already are, not a checklist for becoming acceptable to God.

That points to the letter's basic shape: chapters 1–3 are almost entirely about what God has done and who you now are because of it; chapters 4–6 are about living out that identity in the church, the home, and the world. Paul never asks for anything in the second half he hasn't first grounded theologically in the first. Watch also for the prayers (1:15–23 and 3:14–21). Paul doesn't just teach the Ephesians truth, he shows them what to pray in light of it, which is worth noticing as a model for your own praying through the letter.

Finally, keep an eye on the language of mystery and unity, Paul's repeated claim that God's hidden plan, now revealed, is to "bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ" (1:10). That cosmic vision is what everything else in the letter, church unity, household order, spiritual warfare, ultimately serves.

Questions for Contemplation and Discussion

Note: I'm assume we all have some idea of what's following in Ezekiel and have read through Ephesians before.

1. Ephesians 2:19–22 describes believers as being "built together into a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." How does this picture compare to Ezekiel's vision of God's glory departing the temple (Ezek 10–11) and then returning to a new one (Ezek 43:1–5)? What does it mean that the temple Paul describes isn't a building but a people?

2. Ezekiel 37 pictures two sticks, representing a divided nation, becoming one in God's hand, under one shepherd. Ephesians 2:14–16 describes Christ making Jew and Gentile "one new man" by breaking down "the dividing wall of hostility." Where do you see these two unity visions overlapping, and where do they differ?

3. Ezekiel ties the Spirit's presence to a new heart and the ability to walk in God's statutes (Ezek 36:26–27). Paul says believers are "sealed with the promised Holy Spirit" (Eph 1:13–14) and later urges them to "be filled with the Spirit" (5:18). How does Ephesians develop what Ezekiel promises but doesn't fully unpack? (i.e. what the Spirit's indwelling presence actually produces in a person's life.)

4. Both books are deeply concerned with holiness, Ezekiel through the priestly regulations and the temple's graded zones of access (Ezek 40–46), Ephesians through calls to "put off" the old self and "put on" the new (4:22–24). How does access to God's presence change between the two books, and what does that change cost or require?

Per a previous post we have implemented a schedule to track Bible App promotion post requests. We have limited these posts to happen on Sundays when we don't have regularly scheduled posts anyway. One app may post per Sunday which provides the person a dedicated window for their app, and keeps our normal posting schedule free of off topic posts that have nothing to do with our reading schedule (which is the main purpose of our sub).

Keeping up with comments on there and only having one person (the poster) able to modify the schedule has proven difficult, so I have converted the schedule to a wiki page that multiple moderators here may edit.

That schedule is here: https://www.reddit.com/r/biblereading/wiki/bibleappschedule/

I have added those who have requested in the comments on the old thread to the wiki, though there were multiple requests that came in for the same day (both in comments and in modmail) so I placed people in the order requested on subsequent Sundays

For any future requests please feel free reach out here on this thread or via modmail.

Any promotion posts not made on Sunday will continue to be removed as off topic.

Thank you for your understanding.

Hope for the Mountains of Israel

36 “Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. ^(2) This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The enemy said of you, “Aha! The ancient heights have become our possession.”’ ^(3) Therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because they ravaged and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of people’s malicious talk and slander, ^(4) therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and the deserted towns that have been plundered and ridiculed by the rest of the nations around you— ^(5) this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my burning zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, for with glee and with malice in their hearts they made my land their own possession so that they might plunder its pastureland.’ ^(6) Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I speak in my jealous wrath because you have suffered the scorn of the nations. ^(7) Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand that the nations around you will also suffer scorn.

^(8) “‘But you, mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. ^(9) I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor; you will be plowed and sown, ^(10) and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. ^(11) I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful and become numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. ^(12) I will cause people, my people Israel, to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance; you will never again deprive them of their children.

^(13) “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because some say to you, “You devour people and deprive your nation of its children,” ^(14) therefore you will no longer devour people or make your nation childless, declares the Sovereign Lord. ^(15) No longer will I make you hear the taunts of the nations, and no longer will you suffer the scorn of the peoples or cause your nation to fall, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”

Israel’s Restoration Assured

^(16) Again the word of the Lord came to me: ^(17) “Son of man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land, they defiled it by their conduct and their actions. Their conduct was like a woman’s monthly uncleanness in my sight. ^(18) So I poured out my wrath on them because they had shed blood in the land and because they had defiled it with their idols. ^(19) I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered through the countries; I judged them according to their conduct and their actions. ^(20) And wherever they went among the nations they profaned my holy name, for it was said of them, ‘These are the Lord’s people, and yet they had to leave his land.’ ^(21) I had concern for my holy name, which the people of Israel profaned among the nations where they had gone.

^(22) “Therefore say to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. ^(23) I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes.

^(24) “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. ^(25) I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. ^(26) I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. ^(27) And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. ^(28) Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. ^(29) I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. ^(30) I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine. ^(31) Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices. ^(32) I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord. Be ashamed and disgraced for your conduct, people of Israel!

^(33) “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day I cleanse you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins will be rebuilt. ^(34) The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. ^(35) They will say, “This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.” ^(36) Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.’

^(37) “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep, ^(38) as numerous as the flocks for offerings at Jerusalem during her appointed festivals. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Questions/Discussion

1. What are the “mountains of Israel”?

2. Why is Edom particularly targeted in verse 5? What other nations are being addressed in verse 7?

3. Is the end of verse 12 addressing something specific with regard to “never again deprive them of their children”, or is this a more general allusion to less death, famine, war, and destruction?

4. Why do you suppose the defiling actions of the Israelites which ultimately led to the split of Israel and the exile would be compared to a woman’s monthly cycle?

5. How did the people of Israel profane the name of God (v. 20)? How are we at risk of doing the same?

6. Verses 24-28 seem to suggest God is placing the Holy Spirit back in His people (or maybe for the first time?). Is this how you read these verses? If not, what do you suppose “And I will put my Spirit in you” refers to?

7. What day is Ezekiel 36:33 talking about?

Prophecy Against Mount Seir

35 The word of the Lord came to me: ^(2) “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it, ^(3) and say to it, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you, and I will make you a desolation and a waste. ^(4) I will lay your cities waste, and you shall become a desolation, and you shall know that I am the Lord. ^(5) Because you cherished perpetual enmity and gave over the people of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment, ^(6) therefore, as I live, declares the Lord God, I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you; because you did not hate bloodshed, therefore blood shall pursue you. ^(7) I will make Mount Seir a waste and a desolation, and I will cut off from it all who come and go. ^(8) And I will fill its mountains with the slain. On your hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines those slain with the sword shall fall. ^(9) I will make you a perpetual desolation, and your cities shall not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

^(10) “Because you said, ‘These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will take possession of them’—although the Lord was there—^(11) therefore, as I live, declares the Lord God, I will deal with you according to the anger and envy that you showed because of your hatred against them. And I will make myself known among them, when I judge you. ^(12) And you shall know that I am the Lord.

“I have heard all the revilings that you uttered against the mountains of Israel, saying, ‘They are laid desolate; they are given us to devour.’ ^(13) And you magnified yourselves against me with your mouth, and multiplied your words against me; I heard it. ^(14) Thus says the Lord God: While the whole earth rejoices, I will make you desolate. ^(15) As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so I will deal with you; you shall be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom, all of it. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

Questions

1. What do you know/remember about Mount Seir and/or Edom?

2. For verse 5, what is this "you cherished perpetual enmity" and "their calamity" referring to? And why does Mount Seir/Edom cherish this enmity?

3. What is God accusing Mount Seir/Edom of doing?

4. For verse 10, what are the 2 nations and countries mentioned here? And if this is a reference to what we saw in 2 Kings 17 and 2 Kings 25, why might Mount Seir/Edom believe they would be able to take possession of them since Assyria and Babylon were the 2 main empires involved in conquering Israel/Judah?

5. For verses 10-13 (particularly verse 13), why does God view this as Mount Seir/Edom speaking against Him?

6. Looking back at how we started Ezekiel part 2 (feel free to correct me if I'm missing anything):

Chapter 25 was against the other nations-Ammon, Moab, Edom and the Philistines.

Chapters 26-28 were about Tyre and Sidon.

Chapters 29-32 were about Egypt.

Chapters 33-34 concerned the Israelites.

Chapter 35 is focused on Mount Seir/Edom. Taking a look at 36, it looks like attention will be focused back on Israel.

Why is this chapter 35 about Mount Seir/Edom put in between chapters 33-34 and chapter 36 primarily talking about Israel? And why are they the last enemy nation covered in detail in Ezekiel part 2 so far?

7. Anything else you want to ask about/bring up about this passage?

Chapter 33 pivots us away from the judgement oracles and back to Ezekiel’s mission and hope for restoration.  Today’s passage shows us God, acting as a shepherd to His people (at least in part) through Ezekiel’s mission.

Back in May I wrote the post for John 10 and in that post I referenced this chapter as a strong candidate for beign the primary old testament background of Jesus’ claims to be the good shepherd.   https://www.reddit.com/r/biblereading/comments/1thh72p/john_10121_tuesday_may_19/

Ezekiel 34 (ESV)

>Prophecy Against the Shepherds of Israel

>34 The word of the Lord came to me: ^(2) “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? ^(3) You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. ^(4) The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. ^(5) So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; ^(6) they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them.

>^(7) “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ^(8) As I live, declares the Lord God, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, ^(9) therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ^(10) Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them.

>The Lord God Will Seek Them Out

>^(11) “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. ^(12) As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. ^(13) And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. ^(14) I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. ^(15) I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. ^(16) I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

>^(17) “As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats. ^(18) Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must muddy the rest of the water with your feet? ^(19) And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

>^(20) “Therefore, thus says the Lord God to them: Behold, I, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. ^(21) Because you push with side and shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns, till you have scattered them abroad, ^(22) I will rescue my flock; they shall no longer be a prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep. ^(23) And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. ^(24) And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the Lord; I have spoken.

>The Lord’s Covenant of Peace

>^(25) “I will make with them a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts from the land, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. ^(26) And I will make them and the places all around my hill a blessing, and I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be showers of blessing. ^(27) And the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke, and deliver them from the hand of those who enslaved them. ^(28) They shall no more be a prey to the nations, nor shall the beasts of the land devour them. They shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid. ^(29) And I will provide for them a renowned place for planting so that they shall no more be consumed with hunger in the land, and no longer suffer the reproach of the nations. ^(30) And they shall know that I am the Lord their God with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Lord God. ^(31) And you are my sheep, human sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Lord God.”

Questions for contemplation and discussion

1. What specifically are the shepherds condemned for? Distinguish between what they failed to do (feed, strengthen the weak, heal, bind up, seek the lost) and what they actively did (fed themselves, ruled harshly). Which failure does the text seem to weigh more heavily?

2.The sheep are scattered "because there was no shepherd." How does this connect back to the exile itself as a historical event? Is Ezekiel assigning blame to the monarchy/leadership class specifically, distinct from the nation's sin as a whole?  How does this compare and contrast with individual responsibility was framed in ch. 33)?

3. I myself will search for my sheep" (34:11–16): This is one of the most direct statements of divine initiative in the book. What does it mean that God is stepping into the shepherd role himself, in language that will later map directly onto John 10? Is this replacing human leadership entirely, or setting up for something else?

4. There's a second judgment embedded here, not just bad shepherds, but sheep who trample pasture and foul water for the weaker sheep, who push with flank and shoulder. Why does Ezekiel introduce intra-flock injustice alongside shepherd failure?

5. God appoints "one shepherd, my servant David" to feed them. David has been dead for centuries, so how do you read this? Messianic/Davidic dynastic language, a typological figure, both? How does this set up expectations for the rest of the book?

6. The chapter ends with a covenant of peace (safety from wild beasts, no more famine, showers of blessing, the trees and land yielding fruit). How much of this is meant literally (agrarian restoration) versus figuratively (a new spiritual order)? How does the phrase "they shall know that I am the LORD", used relentlessly throughout Ezekiel, function differently here than in the judgment oracles of chs. 1–32?

Hey everyone,

Over the past few weeks, Ive been working on a small side project called ChristGPT to explore how AI can be better tailored for biblical study, cross-referencing scripture, and historical context.

I know there is a lot of valid skepticism around using LLMs for faith-related topics specifically concerns around AI hallucinating verses, taking passages out of context, or attempting to replace genuine spiritual community and study.

My goal was simply to test if prompt engineering and strict system constraints could create a safer, more reliable search companion for verse lookups and commentaries.

For those who regularly study scripture:

1. What guardrails or translation preferences would you consider essential in a tool like this?
2. How do you handle potential errors or "hallucinated" verses when using technology to assist your study?

I'm looking for feedback from people who care about theological accuracy to test the prototype and point out where it falls short.

(Note: Since self-promotion links aren't allowed directly, let me know in the comments if you'd like to test it out and I can reply with the link or send a DM!)