This quarter, we will study “The Lord’s Patience with His People.” Our first unit explains how He is slow to get angry. Our first two lessons come from the life of Moses, as Moses begged the Lord for mercy, and the Lord renewed the covenant. In lesson 3, Joshua recounted ways the Lord had blessed His people. The unit ends somewhat ominously in lesson 4, as the people asked for a king so that they could be like all the nations.

The second unit, “Faithful to His Promises,” consists entirely of lessons from Jeremiah. In lesson 5, Jeremiah urged backsliding Israel to return to the Lord. In lesson 6, he declared woe to the selfish shepherds of the nation who abused their power for personal gain. The Lord promised that He would gather His people and appoint good shepherds, including the righteous King who would reign over them.

In lesson 7, Jeremiah solemnly and clearly laid out two options for the people: repent and be forgiven, or persist in sinful rebellion and experience the Lord’s discipline. Sadly, the people, led by the priests and false prophets (some of the shepherds from lesson 6), continued in sin and were taken into exile.

Nevertheless, in lesson 8, God sent good news to the exiles. Despite their persistent sins, God would bring them out of exile in seventy years. He would bless His people again, when they sought Him with all their hearts. The unit ends in lesson 9 with God’s promise to gather His scattered people once again.

The final unit, “His Compassion Never Fails,” contains four lessons from four different prophets. Lesson 10 is from Jeremiah, as God promised that Israel would be rebuilt and filled with joy. Lesson 11 is from Ezekiel, as God again declared woe to the wicked shepherds of the people and promised to be Israel’s Good Shepherd. This echoed Jeremiah’s pronouncements and added depth to Jesus’ later declaration that He is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18). Lesson 12 contains Hosea’s description of God’s love for Israel. Although she had been unfaithful to the Lord, like an unfaithful wife, He would welcome her back. Despite her many sins, the Lord would forgive and love His people. Lesson 13 concludes the quarter with Micah’s glorious promise that the Lord would cast the sins of His people into the depths of the sea