George W. Knight - 1-Minute Bible Guide: 180 Key People

2019 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.

Print ISBN 978-1-64352-149-7

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All scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the H OLY B IBLE , N EW I NTERNATIONAL V ERSION . NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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Our mission is to inspire the world with the life-changing message of the Bible.

Printed in the United States of America.

Everyone could use a better grasp of scriptureand the 1-Minute Bible Guide series offers you just that. This easy-to-read book covers the 180 most important people of Gods Word, offering a representative verse and a concise description that can be read and digested in 60 seconds or less. And, if you want to dig deeper, most entries include additional references for further study.

Over the course of these entriesread straight through or one per day like a devotionalyoull gain a clearer view of whos who in the Bible, and why theyre all important. Get better biblical understandingin about one minute per entry.

And Aaron spake all the words which the L ORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.

E XODUS 4:30

The Lord chose Aaron as spokesman for Moses during the exodus from Egypt. But Aaron did more than just speak for his brother. Through Gods power, he also stretched out his staff to bring one of the ten plagues against the land (Exodus 7:9, 19). In the wilderness, Aaron and Hur helped Moses hold up his hands to bring victory over the forces of Amalek (Exodus 17:12).

But Aaron also had his moments of weakness. While Moses was receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, Aaron allowed the people to fashion an idol as an object of worship. Only Moses intercession on his brothers behalf saved him from Gods punishment (Exodus 32:310; Deuteronomy 9:20).

When the official priesthood was established in the wilderness, Aaron was set apart as the first high priest of Israel (Exodus 2829). Upon his death, Aarons son Eleazar succeeded him in this role. But this human priestly system is inferior to the priesthood of Christ. Jesus intercession on our behalf never ends, and it offers the promise of eternal life to all believers (Hebrews 5:25; 7:1112).

Learn More: Exodus 7:820 / Numbers 20:12, 29

And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the L ORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering.

G ENESIS 4:4

Abel was the second son of Adam and Eve, a man whose gift of choice animals from his flock was accepted by the Lord (Genesis 4:116). He serves as a good example of sacrificial giving.

Abels brother Cain brought an offering of harvested fruit and grain to the Lord, but God refused to accept it. This made Cain angry and envious, and he murdered Abel in the first recorded instance of violence in the Bible.

This event is mentioned several times in the New Testament. The writer of Hebrews declared that Abel offered a better sacrifice than his brother. This apparently refers to Abels faith, his superior character as a righteous person, and the correct motives behind his gift (Hebrews 11:4). The apostle John wrote that Cain murdered Abel because Cains works were evil, in comparison to the righteous acts of his brother (1 John 3:12).

Jesus spoke of the blood of righteous Abel (Matthew 23:35). As the first martyr in the Bible, Abels shed blood symbolizes Gods demand for punishment against sin and unrighteousness. But the blood shed under the new covenantJesus atoning death on the crossspeaketh better things than that of Abel (Hebrews 12:24) because it is the agent of salvation for hopeless sinners. See also Cain.

Learn More: Genesis 4:125

And one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David.

1 S AMUEL 22:20

Abiathar, a priest, was the sole survivor of King Sauls massacre of eighty-five priests in the city of Nob. Saul was enraged because Abiathars father, the high priest of Nob, came to Davids aid while Saul was trying to kill the future king (1 Samuel 22:623).

After Abiathar escaped, he lived under Davids protection during Davids fugitive years. When David became the unchallenged king of Israel, Abiathar emerged as a priest in the royal court (1 Samuel 30:7).

At Davids orders Abiathar and another priest named Zadok took care of the ark of the covenant in Jerusalem when David fled the city to escape Absaloms rebellion. These two priests remained in Jerusalem as spies to keep the king informed of Absaloms actions (2 Samuel 15:2329).

Abiathar had another brush with death after David passed from the scene. The priest threw his support behind the kings son Adonijah as successor to the throne. But another son, Solomon, won the power struggle. This was bad news for any subject who was not totally loyal to the new regime, and Solomon promptly banished Abiathar and his family from Jerusalem. Only his previous loyalty to David saved the priest from execution (1 Kings 2:2627).

Learn More: 2 Samuel 19:1115

And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the L ORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me.