September – Longing for the King

This month provides a dramatic conclusion to the cycles of sin, judgment, and restoration throughout the Old Testament. We have seen God’s faithfulness established through several stages of covenant, always met by the unfaithful and rebellious response of His people. The restoration from Babylonian captivity provides the final example of this cycle, but with an increasing sense that something more is needed — a restoration of true worship that comes from the heart and a King who can ultimately fulfill God’s promises.

Week 1 – Longing for God’s Presence

Reading: Ezekiel 33–48; Ecclesiastes 2-5
Ezekiel’s message turns increasingly from judgment toward restoration. God promises to gather His scattered people, give them a new heart and spirit, and restore His presence among them. The vision of the restored temple and the return of God’s glory raises an important question: will this restoration finally solve the deeper problem of God’s people’s unfaithfulness?

Guiding questions

1. What changes in Ezekiel’s message as he moves from announcing judgment to proclaiming restoration? What does this reveal about God’s purposes?
2. What does God promise to do for the hearts of His people in Ezekiel 36–37, and why is this necessary for genuine restoration? What clues are provided as to how this will take place?
3. What is the significance of God’s glory returning to the temple? How does this compare with its departure earlier in Ezekiel?
4. How does “the Preacher” and his search for meaning “under the sun” (in Ecclesiastes) help us understand why restored circumstances alone cannot provide lasting fulfillment?

Week 2 – Longing for God’s Kingdom

Reading: Daniel 5-12; Ezra 1–6; Ecclesiastes 6-12
Daniel’s visions lift our eyes beyond the immediate circumstances of exile to God’s larger purposes for His people and the nations. Earthly kingdoms rise and fall, but God’s kingdom will endure forever. Ezra records the first steps toward restoration as exiles return to Jerusalem and begin rebuilding the temple, while Ecclesiastes reminds us that even the greatest achievements of this world remain temporary and cannot provide ultimate meaning while living “under the sun”.

Guiding questions

1. What do Daniel’s visions reveal about the rise and fall of earthly kingdoms and the sovereignty of God over all of them?
2. What do Daniel 7–12 reveal about the coming kingdom, its King, and the ultimate destiny of God’s people along with Daniel’s (and our) role in that process?
3. Why is rebuilding the temple such an important first step in Ezra’s account of restoration? What does this reveal about the priorities of the returning exiles?
4. How does the Preacher’s conclusion in Ecclesiastes — “Fear God and keep his commandments” — help us understand what ultimately matters in a world where everything else is temporary?

Week 3 – Longing for God’s Finished Work

Reading: Haggai; Zechariah; Esther 1–5
The returning exiles face the difficult work of rebuilding, but discouragement and misplaced priorities threaten their progress. Haggai and Zechariah call the people to renewed faithfulness while pointing beyond the immediate work toward God’s greater purposes. In Esther, God’s name is never mentioned, yet His providential care for His people is evident. Together these books remind us that God’s purposes continue even when His presence seems hidden.

Guiding questions

1. Why had the people stopped rebuilding the temple, and what does Haggai reveal about their priorities and their hearts?
2. What encouragement and hope does Zechariah give to a discouraged people? How does his vision from God extend beyond the immediate restoration of Jerusalem?
3. Where do you see God’s providence at work in Esther even though His name is never mentioned?
4. How do Haggai, Zechariah, and Esther together present a challenge to recognize God’s purposes even when circumstances seem insignificant, discouraging, or unclear?

Week 4 – Longing for God’s Word

Reading: Esther 6–10; Ezra 7-10; Nehemiah 1–11
God’s providence becomes increasingly visible as Esther’s story reaches its dramatic conclusion through an uncovering of a vile plot and gracious proclamations of an earthly king. Ezra and Nehemiah lead a renewed effort to restore God’s people and their community as they communicate clearly under God’s direction. The rebuilding of Jerusalem is accompanied by renewed attention to God’s Word, confession, covenant, and worship. Yet even these reforms reveal that external restoration cannot by itself produce lasting faithfulness.

Guiding questions

1. How does God’s providence become evident in the resolution of Esther’s story, and what does this reveal about His care for His people, even in exile?
2. What does Ezra do to restore God’s Word to the center of the community, and why is this essential to genuine reform?
3. How do confession, covenant renewal, worship, and obedience shape Nehemiah’s reforms?
4. Why do these reforms still fail to provide a lasting solution to Israel’s recurring problem of unfaithfulness? What is still missing?

Finishing Up – Longing for the Messiah

Reading: Nehemiah 12-13; Malachi
The walls have been rebuilt, the people have returned, the temple has been restored, and God’s law has been read again. Yet Nehemiah’s final chapters reveal that the same patterns of disobedience remain and human leaders fail us. Malachi brings the Old Testament story to a fitting conclusion by confronting empty worship and covenant unfaithfulness while pointing toward a coming messenger and the Lord Himself. The people have been restored to the land, but they are still waiting for the One who can bring true and lasting restoration.

Guiding questions

1. What do Nehemiah’s final reforms reveal about the continuing spiritual condition of God’s people even after the restoration?
2. What does Malachi reveal about the difference between outward religious activity and genuine worship of God?
3. Who is the messenger promised in Malachi, and what does his coming prepare us for?
4. At the close of the Old Testament, what remains unresolved in the story, and how does this explain the beliefs and practices of those waiting for the Messiah?

* Note that the word “Jew” was only adopted toward the end of Old Testament history to designate those descended from the line of “Judah” and who later returned from the Babylonian captivity.