Marty Solomon and Brent Billings discuss the book of Esther and the story that lies behind the celebration of Purim. Discussion Video for BEMA 70 The Queen You Thought You Knew by Rabbi David Fohrman The Story #20: The Queen of Beauty and Courage sermon — YouTube Transcript for BEMA 70...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings hear the message of Malachi, seeing how he utilizes a question-and-answer format to prophetically speak to the people of God. Discussion Video for BEMA 69 Out of Babylon by Walter Brueggemann Transcript for BEMA 69...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings study the apocalyptic message of Zechariah, a contemporary to Haggai, who sought to encourage God’s people with image-driven messages of forthcoming hope. Discussion Video for BEMA 68 Transcript for BEMA 68...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings read through the prophecy of Haggai and find that the real issues rarely change—past, present, or future. Discussion Video for BEMA 67 Transcript for BEMA 67
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the different leadership styles seen during the rebuilding of Jerusalem in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Discussion Video for BEMA 66 BEMA Discipleship on Facebook Transcript for BEMA 66...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings move into the fourth voice of Isaiah, seen in chapters 55–66. We hear the compelling promise of restoration for God’s people and the invitation for them to become the people they were meant to be. Discussion Video for BEMA 65 1 Isaiah — Vineyard Presentation (PDF) Faith Unraveled by Rachel Held Evans Sabbath as Resistance by Walter Brueggemann Transcript for BEMA 65...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings challenge the typical understanding of the voice of Isaiah, taking a look at the servant discourse in chapters 40–54. Discussion Video for BEMA 64 Out of Babylon by Walter Brueggemann Transcript for BEMA 64...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings discover that the famous story of Job is so much more than we ever realized. Discussion Video for BEMA 63 NOOMA 012: Matthew by Rob Bell Literary Structure (Chiasm) of the Bible NOOMA 024: Whirlwind by Rob Bell Transcript for BEMA 63...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the book of Daniel and its persistent and sometimes hidden message of perseverance. Daniel — Son of Man Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 62 Double Rainbow — YouTube Transcript for BEMA 62...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the apocalyptic visions of Ezekiel and his message of encouragement to a people trapped in exile. Discussion Video for BEMA 61 Transcript for BEMA 61
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings hear the words of prophet Joel speaking to God’s people about the hope that exists, even in the midst of utter destruction. Discussion Video for BEMA 60 Transcript for BEMA 60
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings explore the shortest prophet in Tanakh—the book of Obadiah—and its condemnation of the nation of Edom for their lack of care for their brother and their neighbor. Obadiah — Petra Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 59 Transcript for BEMA 59...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings dive into one of Marty’s favorite prophecies: the book of Habakkuk. They examine the complaints submitted by the prophet and his ensuing dialogue with God. Discussion Video for BEMA 58 Transcript for BEMA 58...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the often-avoided book of Lamentations and the shocking space it creates for the dark things that need to be grieved. Discussion Video for BEMA 57 Learning to Lament, Part 1: The Culture of Denial — The RobCast, Episode 92 Learning to Lament, Part 2: Widow, Slave, Mother — The RobCast, Episode 93 Learning to Lament, Part 3: She’s Finding Her Voice — The RobCast, Episode 94 Learning to Lament, Part 4: As Deep as the Sea — The RobCast, Episode 95 Learning t...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings begin our journey through the Babylonian prophets, examining the famous weeping prophet: Jeremiah. Discussion Video for BEMA 56 The Disciple Scroll by Allan Rabinowitz Love Wins by Rob Bell Erasing Hell by Francis Chan Transcript for BEMA 56...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings wrap up the Assyrian period of history by looking at one of the most distressing prophets: the voice of 2 Isaiah as he delivers numerous woes to the nations of the world, including God’s people. Yet even this is not void of hope as we see it scattered throughout today’s portion of Text. Discussion Video for BEMA 55 Transcript for BEMA 55...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings hear the voice of Zephaniah as he warns the kingdom of Judah of impending judgment. Discussion Video for BEMA 54 Transcript for BEMA 54
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings juxtapose the book of Jonah against the other Assyrian prophet to Israel—the book of Nahum—looking at the other side of the equation of how God deals with evil. Discussion Video for BEMA 53 Information on BEMA Trips [Marty doesn’t need more emails] Transcript for BEMA 53...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the book of Jonah and try to uncover the message buried in this most unusual prophet. Jonah — Potential Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 52 Challenging God: Why Did Jonah Run? — Aleph Beta Academy Subscribe to Aleph Beta Academy BEMA listeners can use code friendsofbema for one month off of a monthly Premium membership. Transcript for BEMA 52...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the first of four voices found in Isaiah — the pre-Assyrian voice that condemned the greed and injustice of the people of Judah. NB: Due to a malfunction with our original recording, this episode was recorded in 2021. Our environments and equipment setups have changed, but we did our best to present it as it was in 2017. 1 Isaiah — Vineyard Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 51 Out of Babylon by Walter Brueggemann The Prophets by Abraham Joshua ...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings explore the warning of the prophet Micah as he speaks to the people of Judah about what God truly desires. NB: Due to a malfunction with our original recording, this episode was recorded in 2021. Our environments and equipment setups have changed, but we did our best to present it as it was in 2017. Discussion Video for BEMA 50 Transcript for BEMA 50...
A simplified version of the daily prayer from Hosea 2. This recording is meant to follow Episode 49 . Verastikh le l'olam Verastikh lib'tzedek      uve'mishpat, uve'chesed, uve'rachamim Verastikh lib'emuna, v'yadat et Adonai I will betroth you to myself forever. I will betroth you to myself in righteousness,      and in justice, and in love, and in compassion. I will betroth you to myself in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord ....
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the message of Hosea as depicted in the prophetic theater of his own life through his marriage to the prostitute Gomer. Verastikh — Learn Hebrew Discussion Video for BEMA 49 Transcript for BEMA 49...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings explore the book of Amos on a quest to find the heart of God as expressed in the first of His many mouthpieces. Amos — Plumb Line Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 48 The Prophets by Abraham Joshua Heschel Plumb Line — Wikipedia Transcript for BEMA 48...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings examine the remaining books in Tanakh, most of which are prophets, attempting to understand prophetic history as a whole and the setting for each period of history. The Lord’s Mouthpiece Presentation (PDF) Discussion Video for BEMA 47 Out of Babylon by Walter Brueggemann Transcript for BEMA 47...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the underaddressed book called Song of Songs and explore the ramifications of avoiding the topic of sexuality. Discussion Video for BEMA 46 Sex God by Rob Bell NOOMA 002: Flame by Rob Bell The Zimzum of Love by Rob and Kristen Bell Transcript for BEMA 46...
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and special guest Kevin Luo continue our study of wisdom literature, examining the collection of Proverbs and the teaching of Ecclesiastes. Discussion Video for BEMA 45 Kevin Luo on Twitter A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans Less Is More Than Enough by Chris McNaught “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” by Simon Senek — TED NOOMA 012: Matthew by Rob Bell Transcript for BEMA 45...
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and special guest Kevin Luo discuss the collection of ancient songs known as the Psalms. Discussion Video for BEMA 44 Classifying the Psalms by Genre Kevin Luo on Twitter Transcript for BEMA 44...
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings wrap up a look at the kings of Israel, exploring the story of Naaman and its implications for us today. Discussion Video for BEMA 43 Transcript for BEMA 43
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the story of Elijah and the lessons learned by one of Israel’s greatest prophets. Discussion Video for BEMA 42 Where God Was Born by Bruce Feiler Map of Phoenicia, Late Bronze Age — Wikipedia Transcript for BEMA 42...
