Ecclesiastes
About the Course
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From: Warren Doud
Welcome to the Grace Notes course on the Old Testament book of ECCLESIASTES.
These studies in Ecclesiastes have been compiled and written and taught
by Rev. Daniel Hill, PhD, pastor of Southwood Bible Church of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Dan has graciously provided his notes so that they can be made available
by E-mail and on the World Wide Web.
After graduating from high school in Scottsdale, Arizona, Dan Hill served
in the United States Navy. Upon receiving his honorable discharge in 1965
he attended Arizona State University where he received a degree in Speech
and History. Dan and his wife Patricia were married in 1970. Pat is also
a graduate of Arizona State University and is the Executive Administrator
for Village Missions International, which has its headquarters in Tulsa,
Oklahoma.
Following three years of teaching in the public schools, Dr. Hill enrolled
at Dallas Theological Seminary where he received his Masters degree in Theology
in 1976. During that time he also was working on research that earned him
a Doctorate from the California Graduate School of Theology in 1977.
Dr. Hill pastored Grace Bible Church in Prescott, Arizona for three years,
then returned to Phoenix where he was the Bible editor for Alpha Omega Publications
and assistant pastor of West Side Bible Church. In 1987, the Hills moved
to Hope, Arkansas where Dr. Hill served as pastor of Hope Community Church.
In 1990, Dr. Hill accepted his present pastorate at Southwood Bible Church
in Tulsa.
Send E-mail to Dr. Hill at ... hill918@aol.com
INSTRUCTIONS FOR STUDY
A lesson may contain scripture references (parallel passages) which illustrate
and clarify the concepts in ECCLESIASTES. These are very important and should
be carefully studied along with the lesson.
For many people, there is too much material coming in every week to be able
to study everything thoroughly before the next lesson arrives. These lessons
are designed so that you can study at your own pace. Don't be dismayed if
things start piling up. You are building an archive that will be useful
for many years to come.
Save the e-mail messages on your hard disk or on floppies. I'm pretty paranoid
about losing things, so I have three backup copies of each file. If you
distribute the studies to other people, you can use a word processor to
make them look better.
Grace Notes materials are copyrighted, but you can copy them and distribute
them to other people, as long as you do not use the notes for commercial
purposes.
STUDYING THE VERSES
This not an interactive course. You can take all the time you need to complete
your study. If you file them carefully, they will be readily available when
you can get to them. You may get busy and have to slow down your study pace
or lay a lesson aside for a few days or longer. That is not a problem because
there are no deadlines or examinations.
Begin each study session with prayer. The Holy Spirit is your teacher, because
these things are "spiritually discerned." In prayer you can re-establish
fellowship with the Lord, if necessary, and renew your commitment to God
and submission to His sovereignty.
Read the passage to be studied in the Bible several times. Try to understand
the ideas even before you have read any comments.
Each word or phrase in the text has its own paragraph, separated by dashes:
---------------.
Follow the discussion of each word. If there are other Bible passages mentioned,
turn to them and read them, not only the verses but also the context. Try
to see the connection between the parallel passages and the portion of ECCLESIASTES
you are studying. Try to see what ideas are being amplified or illustrated.
You are in the process of building a Christian "vocabulary", line
upon line, precept upon precept. As you learn the categories, you will begin
to correlate the ideas into a larger doctrinal frame of reference.
Study the Bible as an expert would study a painting. Up close, the expert
studies the brush strokes and how colors are applied. From a few steps back,
or even several yards away, the whole painting can be seen.
In Bible study, you have to examine the words and phrases, zooming in on
the details of a verse. But you have to "step back" and view larger
context by browsing throughout the Bible to derive as much understanding
as possible about the principles and doctrines presented. The topical studies
and parallel passages help you do that.
The Lord bless you in your study of ECCLESIASTES.
In Christ,
Warren Doud
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