Chapter I: Front Matter

Transcriber's Note: Bold text is surrounded by =equal signs= while italic text is surrounded by _underscores_.

OUTLINE STUDIES

IN

THE NEW TESTAMENT

FOR

BIBLE TEACHERS

By

JESSE LYMAN HURLBUT, D.D.

NEW YORK: EATON & MAINS
CINCINNATI: JENNINGS & GRAHAM

Copyright, 1906, by
EATON & MAINS.

CONTENTS

PAGE
PREFATORY 5
HINTS TO STUDENTS 7
HINTS TO TEACHERS 9
THE COURSE DIVIDED INTO LESSONS 11
I. THE LAND OF PALESTINE 13
II. THE PEOPLE OF PALESTINE 19
III. THE LIFE OF CHRIST 25
IV. THE THIRTY YEARS OF PREPARATION 30
V. THE YEAR OF OBSCURITY 35
VI. THE YEAR OF POPULARITY 40
VII. THE YEAR OF OPPOSITION 48
VIII. THE WEEK OF THE PASSION 54
IX. THE DAY OF THE CRUCIFIXION 58
X. THE FORTY DAYS OF RESURRECTION 64
XI. THE NEW TESTAMENT WORLD 68
XII. THE SYNAGOGUE 73
XIII. THE CHURCH IN JUDEA 76
XIV. THE CHURCH IN TRANSITION 83
XV. THE CHURCH TWENTY YEARS AFTER THE ASCENSION 89
XVI. THE PREPARATION OF PAUL FOR HIS WORK 93
XVII. THE CHURCH AMONG THE GENTILES 99
XVIII. THE END OF THE AGE 106

PREFATORY

There is no book in the world which repays earnest study so abundantly as the Holy Bible. Even the cursory reader who possesses a candid mind can gather many precious thoughts from its pages; and he who turns to it for guidance in life, however ignorant he may be, will never be led astray. But as the precious metal lies hidden in the mountains, and must be sought out by the miners, so the treasures in the Word of Life are found only by those who search diligently for them. He who not only reads but _studies_ the Scriptures finds an abundant reward. There is need in our age of searchers in the Bible, who shall bring out of its treasure-house things new and old.

In the old Bible the most important themes are those which gather around the God-man, Jesus Christ. His coming to earth was the culmination of all prophecy, the focus of all history, and the center of all doctrine; and the church which he founded has been for nineteen centuries the inspiration of the world's progress. There are two subjects in the New Testament with which every follower of Christ should be thoroughly acquainted, and they are its two most prominent themes: the life of Christ on earth, and the growth of the early church. In the life of Christ he should know the order of the leading events; he should grasp its principles, and should enter into its spirit. Only as we apprehend Christ can we comprehend the truths taught and inspired by Christ.

But our work as New Testament students must not end with the story of Christ's ascension from earth. Jesus left behind him a little church, of only one hundred and twenty members, which in seventy years overswept all the lands of the greatest empire then on the earth, and which now covers nearly all the world. Of that church we are members, inheritors of its traditions, its doctrines, and--best of all--its spirit. It should be our delight to trace the steps of its early progress, to see how its plans grew with the advancing years, and how an obscure company of Jewish disciples became a church of world-wide reach.

To enable a student to obtain this knowledge this book has been prepared. The earlier studies on the life of Christ have been published as Studies in the Four Gospels, but have been carefully revised and, in the author's judgment, improved. The studies on the early church are the outgrowth of work begun many years ago, frequently revised, taught to classes many times, and carefully restudied in the light of the most recent researches in the domain of early church history.

These chapters are, as their titles indicate, _studies_; designed, not for reading, but for study. This book does not undertake to be a life of Christ, and a history of the early church, to be read. It simply extends a helping hand, and holds out to the student a clue by means of which he can form his own life of Christ and prepare for himself a history of the early church. Wherever a fact can be learned by searching out a Scripture reference the fact is not stated, but the reference is given. Every text referred to should be searched out, as these texts contain the essential facts of this book. Whoever would use these studies rightly must pursue them with the Bible close at hand, and must consult his Bible more frequently than this text-book.

There are a million and a half Sunday school teachers who should be acquainted with the story of Christ and his church: and there are several millions of young people in our Sunday schools who may be teachers before many years and need the same knowledge. This book has been prepared in the hope that these teachers and young people may find it a help to know Him who is the head of the church; and to understand the church, which is the pillar and ground of truth.

JESSE L. HURLBUT.

January 3, 1906.

HINTS TO STUDENTS

Those who desire merely to _read_ this book, or to look it over, will not find it interesting. Those who already know how to study will not need these hints, and can use the book in their own way. But there are many who desire to study these subjects carefully and yet do not know precisely how to do the work. For these students, earnest but untrained, these hints are given.

1. These studies should be pursued with the Bible close at hand, so that every Scripture reference may be at once searched out and read.

2. Begin each lesson by a general view; reading it through carefully, and memorizing the leading divisions of the outline, which are indicated by the Roman numerals I, II, III, etc. This will give the general plan of the lesson.

3. Now take up Part I of the lesson in detail; notice and memorize its subdivisions, indicated by 1, 2, 3, etc., and search out all the Scripture references cited in it. If practicable, write out on a sheet of paper the reference (not the language of the text in full), and what each reference shows. Thus with references in the Second Study, page 19,