Going Deeper Bible Study

Welcome to Going Deeper Bible Study! This is for anyone who wants to go deeper in God's Word and find Jesus more. Here's how it works: read the chapter, work through the questions, and memorize the verse. Whether you're brand new to the Bible or you've been reading it for years, you are welcome here. We're walking through Genesis — the book of beginnings — and three of Paul's letters: Romans, Galatians, and Ephesians — and each one starts with a short video overview, followed by questions to make you think and a verse to hide in your heart. Grab your Bible (we quote the New Living Translation), find a quiet spot, and let's go deeper with Jesus together.

Finished your questions? Check your answers → Answer Key

The Book of Genesis

Genesis is the book of beginnings — the beginning of the world, the beginning of sin and sorrow, and the beginning of God’s great rescue plan. You will watch God make a good world, watch people ruin it, and then watch God refuse to give up on them: He chooses one man, Abraham, and promises to bless the whole world through his family — and He keeps that promise through generation after generation of very imperfect people, which is good news for the rest of us. Genesis is in four sections, and each section has a key verse to memorize. Watch the BibleProject overviews, then work through each chapter.

Watch: BibleProject — Genesis Part 1 (Chapters 1–11)

Section One — Creation and the Fall (Chapters 1–11)

God makes a good world and commissions human beings to rule it. Then they give in to evil and ruin everything — and God promises to rescue them. Watch BibleProject Part 1 before this section.

Key Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Genesis 1:27:

“So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”

Genesis Chapter 1

1. Verse 1: Who was there in the beginning, before anything else existed?
2. Verse 3: How did God bring light into the world, and what does that tell us about the power of His word?
3. Verse 27: In whose image did God create human beings, and what difference should that make in how we treat every person we meet?
4. Verse 31: What did God say about everything He had made, and how does that compare with the world we see today?

Genesis Chapter 2

1. Verse 3: What did God do on the seventh day, and why did He bless it and set it apart as holy?
2. Verse 7: How did God give life to the first man, and what does that teach us about where our own life comes from?
3. Verse 18: What did God say was "not good" about the man being alone, and what does that tell us about how God designed us to live?
4. Verse 24: What does this verse teach about marriage — what does it mean that the man and his wife become "one flesh"?

Genesis Chapter 3

1. Verse 1: How does the serpent begin his work on Eve — what does he get her to question?
2. Verse 6: Walk through the steps of Eve's fall. What did she see, what did she want, and what did she do?
3. Verse 9: After Adam and Eve hid, what did God ask Adam? Why do you think God asks questions He already knows the answers to?
4. Verse 15: God speaks of a battle between the serpent and the woman's offspring. Who do you believe this promised offspring points to, and why?

Genesis Chapter 4

1. Verse 7: God warns Cain that sin is "crouching at the door." What did God tell Cain he must do, and what happens when we let sin have its way instead?
2. Verse 9: What question did Cain ask God — "Am I my brother's keeper?" How would God want us to answer that question today?
3. Verse 26: At the time Seth's son Enosh was born, what did people begin to do? What does that look like in your own life?

Genesis Chapter 5

1. Verses 3–5: This chapter keeps repeating two words about every man listed — "and he died." Where did that curse come from (look back at Chapter 3)?
2. Verses 21–24: Enoch's story breaks the pattern. What did Enoch do that was different, and what happened to him?
3. Verse 29: What hope did Lamech speak over his newborn son Noah, and why would a world under the curse need that comfort?

Genesis Chapter 6

1. Verse 5: What did God see when He looked at the hearts of people, and how does that compare with what He sees today?
2. Verse 8: Noah "found favor" with the LORD while everyone around him was wicked. What does it take to stand out for God in a corrupt world?
3. Verse 22: What did Noah do with God's instructions about the ark? What is God asking you to build or obey in faith right now?

Genesis Chapter 7

1. Verse 1: What reason did God give for bringing Noah and his family into the ark — what did He say about Noah's character?
2. Verse 16: Who shut the door of the ark? What does that detail teach us about God's part and our part in being saved?
3. Verse 23: When the flood destroyed everything on earth, who was left, and why?

Genesis Chapter 8

1. Verse 1: The chapter begins, "God remembered Noah." Does God ever actually forget us? What does it mean that He "remembers" us?
2. Verse 21: After the flood, what promise did God make to Himself about the earth — and what honest thing did He say about the human heart even after judgment?
3. Verse 22: What rhythms of life did God promise would continue as long as the earth remains?

Genesis Chapter 9

1. Verses 1–3: After the flood, God blesses Noah like a new Adam. Which of His words to Noah sound like His words to Adam in Chapter 1?
2. Verse 6: Why is taking a human life so serious to God — what reason does this verse give?
3. Verses 12–13: What sign did God give of His covenant with every living creature, and what should we remember every time we see it?

Genesis Chapter 10

1. Verse 5: As Noah's sons' families spread out, what three things divided them into separate nations?
2. Verse 32: Where did all the nations of the earth come from? What does this chapter teach us about how all peoples are related?

Genesis Chapter 11

1. Verses 3–4: What were the people at Babel trying to build, and what did they want for themselves? What was wrong with that?
2. Verses 8–9: How did God answer their pride, and why do you think the place was called Babel?
3. Verses 31–32: Terah set out for Canaan with Abram but settled in Haran and died there. What can stop us halfway in following where God is leading?

Watch: BibleProject — Genesis Part 2 (Chapters 12–50)

Section Two — Abraham (Chapters 12–25)

Out of the scattering at Babel, God calls one man and promises to bless him — and through his family, to bless all the families of the earth. Watch BibleProject Part 2 before this section.

Key Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Genesis 15:6:

“And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

Genesis Chapter 12

1. Verse 1: What did God tell Abram to leave behind, and how much of the destination did God show him before he went?
2. Verse 3: What promise did God make about "all the families of the earth"? Who is that promise ultimately about?
3. Verse 4: Abram was seventy-five years old when he obeyed and left. What does his obedience teach us about trusting God at any age?
4. Verse 7: What was Abram's first response when God appeared to him in the new land? What do you do first when God comes through for you?

Genesis Chapter 13

1. Verse 9: Abram let Lot choose first, even though Abram was the elder and the promise was his. What does that teach us about peace-making and selfishness?
2. Verses 11–13: Lot chose what looked best to his eyes — the plain toward Sodom. What warning is there in choosing by looks alone?
3. Verses 14–16: After Lot left, what did God tell Abram to look at, and what picture did He use for how numerous Abram's descendants would be?

Genesis Chapter 14

1. Verses 18–20: Who was Melchizedek, and what two offices did he hold? What did Abram give him?
2. Verse 20: After the victory, who did Melchizedek say had delivered Abram's enemies into his hand? Who gets the credit for our victories?
3. Verses 22–24: Why did Abram refuse to take anything from the king of Sodom, and what does that teach us about not letting the world take credit for God's blessing?

Genesis Chapter 15

1. Verse 1: What were God's first words to Abram in the vision — and what did He say He Himself was to Abram?
2. Verse 5: God took Abram outside and told him to count the stars. What was God teaching him about the size of the promise?
3. Verse 6: What did Abram do, and what did God do in response? Why is this one verse so important to the whole Bible's teaching on how we are made right with God?
4. Verses 13–16: God told Abram the future — slavery in another land for 400 years, then deliverance. What does it mean to you that God knows and tells the hard parts ahead of time?

Genesis Chapter 16

1. Verse 2: Sarai tried to move God's promise along her own way. What usually happens when we try to help God out with our own plans?
2. Verse 13: What name did Hagar give to God after He found her in the desert? What does it mean to you personally that God sees you?
3. Verse 15: Abram was eighty-six when Ishmael was born, and Isaac was still years away. What do we do with God's promises when the waiting gets long?

Genesis Chapter 17

1. Verse 1: How did God introduce Himself to Abram at ninety-nine years old, and what kind of life did He call Abram to in response?
2. Verse 5: God changed Abram's name to Abraham. What did the new name mean, and why does God sometimes give His people a new name — a new identity?
3. Verses 19–21: God loved Ishmael and promised to bless him, but through which son did He say His covenant would run? What does that teach us about God's promises coming God's way?

Genesis Chapter 18

1. Verse 14: Sarah laughed at God's promise. What question does the LORD ask — and how would you answer it for the impossible thing in your own life?
2. Verse 19: God says He chose Abraham to direct his children to keep the way of the LORD. What responsibility do parents and grandparents carry for the next generation's faith?
3. Verse 25: Abraham pleaded for Sodom and asked, "Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?" What does his bold praying teach us about bringing big requests to God?
4. Verse 32: Abraham asked God to spare a whole city for the sake of ten righteous people. What does that show us about God's mercy — and about the difference a few faithful people can make?

Genesis Chapter 19

1. Verse 16: Lot hesitated, and the angels had to take his family's hands and pull them out. When has God had to drag you out of something you were too slow to leave?
2. Verse 26: Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt. What was she looking back at, and what does her story warn us about?
3. Verse 29: The chapter says God "remembered Abraham" and rescued Lot. What does it mean that God answers the prayers of His people for others?

Genesis Chapter 20

1. Verses 2–3: Abraham fell back into the same old fear and the same old half-truth about Sarah. What does his repeat failure teach us about our own weak spots?
2. Verse 7: God called Abraham a prophet and told Abimelech that Abraham would pray for him. Why is it surprising that God still used Abraham right after his failure?
3. Verses 17–18: Abraham prayed, and God healed Abimelech's household. What does that tell us about praying for people even when we were part of the problem?

Genesis Chapter 21

1. Verses 1–2: The LORD did exactly what He had promised, in His own time. How old were Abraham and Sarah when Isaac was born — and what did that long wait prove about God?
2. Verse 6: Sarah said, "God has brought me laughter." How did God turn her bitter laughter of unbelief (Chapter 18) into laughter of joy?
3. Verse 17: In the desert, who did God hear crying — and what did the angel tell Hagar? When have you found that God hears the cry nobody else hears?
4. Verse 19: "Then God opened Hagar's eyes," and she saw a well that was already there. What "well" might God be wanting to open your eyes to right now?

Genesis Chapter 22

1. Verse 1: God tested Abraham. What is the difference between God testing our faith and the devil tempting us to sin?
2. Verse 2: What did God ask Abraham to do with Isaac — "your son, your only son"? What is the hardest thing God could ask you to lay on the altar?
3. Verse 8: Abraham told Isaac, "God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering." Did Abraham know how God would provide, or was he trusting in the dark? What does that teach us about faith?
4. Verse 12: What did the angel say Abraham had now proven? How does real faith show itself — in words, or in obedience?
5. Verse 14: What name did Abraham give to that place, and what does "the LORD will provide" mean to you today?

Genesis Chapter 23

1. Verse 1: How old was Sarah when she died, and how is she remembered as the only woman in the Bible whose age at death is recorded?
2. Verses 4–6: Abraham insisted on buying the burial cave instead of taking it as a gift. What does his honesty in business teach us about the witness of God's people?
3. Verse 19: Abraham buried Sarah in the land God had promised — a land he owned only a burial plot of. What does it mean to die still believing a promise you have only seen the edge of?

Genesis Chapter 24

1. Verse 27: Abraham's servant praised the LORD for His unfailing love and faithfulness, and for leading him straight to his master's relatives. How has God guided your steps when you prayed like that?
2. Verse 40: The servant said the LORD would send His angel ahead of him to make his journey a success. What errand of God are you trusting Him to go ahead of you in?
3. Verses 57–58: Rebekah was asked, "Will you go with this man?" and she said, "Yes, I will go." She left everything on one answer. What is the "I will go" decision in front of you?
4. Verse 67: Isaac was comforted by Rebekah after his mother's death. How does God use people — even new people — to bring comfort into our grief?

Genesis Chapter 25

1. Verse 8: Abraham died at 175, "after a full life." What made his life full — and what are you doing now that will make yours full at the end?
2. Verse 23: Before Jacob and Esau were born, what did God tell Rebekah about the two nations inside her?
3. Verses 29–34: Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of stew, and the Bible says he "showed contempt for his birthright." What eternal things do people trade away today for things that satisfy for a moment?
4. Verse 34: Esau ate, drank, got up, and walked away. What small, careless choices have the biggest consequences in a person's life?

Section Three — Isaac and Jacob (Chapters 26–36)

The promise passes to Isaac, then to Jacob — a deceiver whom God renames Israel. God meets him on the road, wrestles him, and will not let him go.

Key Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Genesis 28:15:

“What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.”

Genesis Chapter 26

1. Verses 2–3: In a famine, God told Isaac to stay in the land instead of running to Egypt, and said, "I will be with you." When famine or hard times come, what is the difference between running and trusting?
2. Verse 12: Isaac planted crops in that same famine year and harvested a hundred times what he planted. What made the difference — the ground, or the God who blessed it?
3. Verses 23–24: At Beersheba the LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you." Why do you think God repeats that same promise to every generation?
4. Verse 28: Even Abimelech could see that "the LORD is with you in everything you do." What would your neighbors and co-workers say they can see about God in your life?

Genesis Chapter 27

1. Verse 20: Jacob lied to his blind father and even put God's name on the lie, claiming the LORD his God had helped him find the animal so quickly. What does this warn us about using God's name to prop up our own schemes?
2. Verses 33–36: Isaac trembled when he learned the truth, and Esau cried out for a blessing. What pain does family deception leave behind, sometimes for years?
3. Verse 41: Esau nursed a grudge and planned to kill Jacob. Where does an unforgiven grudge usually end up if it is left to grow?
4. Verses 42–45: Jacob fled home and never saw his mother alive again. What does this family's story teach us about the cost of getting what we want the wrong way?

Genesis Chapter 28

1. Verses 12–13: Running for his life, Jacob dreamed of a stairway reaching to heaven, with the LORD standing at the top. Why does God come to us in our lowest, loneliest moments?
2. Verse 15: Read God's promise again in this section's key verse. Which part of it do you need most right now?
3. Verse 16: Jacob said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I wasn't even aware of it!" Where might God be present in your life right now that you have not recognized?
4. Verse 22: Jacob promised God a tenth of everything God would give him. What does giving God the first part of what He gives us say about who we trust?

Genesis Chapter 29

1. Verse 20: Jacob's seven years of work for Rachel "seemed like only a few days." What does love do to the weight of hard work and long waiting?
2. Verse 25: The deceiver got deceived — Jacob woke up with Leah instead of Rachel. Where have you seen the "you reap what you sow" principle at work?
3. Verses 31–35: God saw that Leah was unloved and opened her womb. Leah named a son Judah, saying, "Now I will praise the LORD." What does God see in the people the world overlooks?

Genesis Chapter 30

1. Verse 1: Rachel's envy of her sister made her miserable even though she was the beloved wife. What does envy do to a person's happiness?
2. Verse 22: At last, "God remembered Rachel" and gave her a son. What does God's timing in answering prayer look like in this family's story — fast, or slow?
3. Verses 24–25: Rachel named him Joseph and prayed for one more son. Jacob then asked Laban to let him go home. Why is it important to leave a place when God says it is time, even when we have prospered there?

Genesis Chapter 31

1. Verse 13: God introduced Himself to Jacob as "the God who appeared to you at Bethel." What Bethel moments — places God met you in the past — does He call you back to?
2. Verses 42–44: Jacob said that if God had not been with him, Laban would have sent him away empty-handed. Looking back over your hardest years, where can you see that God was with you?
3. Verses 48–49: Laban and Jacob made a covenant pile of stones — "May the LORD keep watch between you and me." What does it mean to settle a conflict and leave the watching to God?

Genesis Chapter 32

1. Verses 9–12: On the road to meet Esau, Jacob prayed — reminding God of His promises and confessing, "I am not worthy." What makes this a model prayer for facing something we fear?
2. Verse 11: Jacob honestly told God he was afraid Esau would kill his whole family. Why is honest fear better than pretending faith?
3. Verses 24–28: Jacob wrestled with a man until daybreak and would not let go without a blessing. What did God change Jacob's name to, and what does the new name mean?
4. Verse 30: Jacob named the place Peniel, saying he had seen God face to face and yet his life was spared. When have you come through a struggle with God and walked away with a limp — but blessed?

Genesis Chapter 33

1. Verse 4: Instead of revenge, Esau ran to Jacob, hugged him, and wept. What made the difference — Jacob's gifts, Jacob's humility, or God's work in both hearts?
2. Verses 8–11: Jacob urged Esau to accept his gift, saying God had been generous to him and he had everything he needed. How does knowing "I have enough" change the way we treat people?
3. Verse 20: Back home at last, Jacob built an altar and named it after God — El-Elohe-Israel. What altars — markers of God's faithfulness — have you built with your life?

Genesis Chapter 34

1. Verses 1–2: Dinah went out among the women of the land and was violated by Shechem. How does this chapter show the pain that comes to a family when God's people settle comfortably among people who do not honour God?
2. Verses 25–29: Simeon and Levi answered evil with treachery and slaughter, using the sign of the covenant to do it. Why is taking revenge into our own hands never God's way?
3. Verse 30: Jacob told his sons, "You have ruined me." When family members act in anger, who else pays the price? What should Jacob's household have done instead?

Genesis Chapter 35

1. Verse 1: After the disaster of Chapter 34, God told Jacob, "Move on... go up to Bethel and settle there." When our lives are a mess, why is returning to the place where we met God the right first step?
2. Verses 11–12: God renewed the promise to Jacob: "I am El-Shaddai... A nation... will be descended from you." How does God's promise survive even His people's worst chapters?
3. Verses 18–20: Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin on the road to Bethlehem. Where was Jesus born centuries later — and how does God weave grief and glory through the same places?
4. Verses 28–29: Isaac died at 180, and Esau and Jacob buried him together. What does it say about God's healing that the two estranged brothers stood together at their father's grave?

Genesis Chapter 36

1. Verses 1–8: Esau's family grew so large that the land could not support both his herds and Jacob's, so he moved to the hill country of Seir. What does this show about God keeping His word to bless Esau too?
2. Verse 31: This chapter lists the kings of Edom who ruled "before any kings ruled over the Israelites." God's chosen family had no king yet — just a promise. What is God growing in your life right now that is still only a promise?

Section Four — Joseph (Chapters 37–50)

Jacob's sons carry the promise — barely. Joseph is betrayed, forgotten, and raised up by God to save the very family that sold him. Genesis ends with God's people in Egypt, holding a promise and a coffin.

Key Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Genesis 50:20:

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.”

Genesis Chapter 37

1. Verses 3–4: Jacob loved Joseph more than his other sons and gave him a special robe — and his brothers could not even speak a kind word to him. What does favouritism do inside a family?
2. Verse 8: After Joseph's dreams, his brothers "hated him even more." When God gives someone a dream or a gift, how should the rest of us respond?
3. Verses 19–20: "Here comes the dreamer!" they said. "Let's kill him." How did jealousy grow into murder in these brothers' hearts, step by step?
4. Verse 28: They sold their own brother for twenty pieces of silver. What things do people "sell" their family for today?

Genesis Chapter 38

1. Verses 16–18: Judah gave Tamar his seal, cord, and staff as a pledge. What do our careless sins leave in other people's hands?
2. Verse 24: Judah was ready to have Tamar burned for the very sin he had committed with her. How quick are we to judge in others what we excuse in ourselves?
3. Verse 26: Judah finally said, "She is more righteous than I am." What did it cost Judah to say that out loud — and why is honest confession the first step back?

Genesis Chapter 39

1. Verse 2: "The LORD was with Joseph," and he succeeded even as a slave in a foreign house. What can God's presence do in a place we never wanted to be?
2. Verse 9: Under daily pressure, Joseph refused sin, saying, "How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God." What made Joseph see his temptation as against God first, not just against people?
3. Verse 12: Joseph ran, leaving his cloak behind. Sometimes the godliest thing to do with temptation is simply run. What temptation do you need to run from instead of negotiate with?
4. Verse 21: Falsely accused and in prison, Joseph found that "the LORD was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love." What does God's "hesed" — His faithful, never-quitting love — mean to you in your lowest place?

Genesis Chapter 40

1. Verse 8: Joseph told the cup-bearer and baker, "Interpreting dreams is God's business." Why did Joseph always point people back to God instead of taking the glory himself?
2. Verses 14–15: Joseph asked the cup-bearer to remember him and told his story: "I was kidnapped... and I have done nothing to deserve being put in prison." How do we keep telling the truth about our situation without turning bitter?
3. Verse 23: The cup-bearer "forgot all about Joseph; he never remembered him." Joseph waited two more years in prison. What is God growing in us during the seasons when we feel forgotten?

Genesis Chapter 41

1. Verse 16: Standing before Pharaoh, Joseph said, "It is beyond my power to do this, but God can." How does that sentence change the way we face situations that are too big for us?
2. Verses 38–39: Even a pagan king could see Joseph was "filled with the spirit of God." What should people be able to see in us before we ever open our mouths?
3. Verses 51–52: Joseph named his sons Manasseh ("God has made me forget all my troubles") and Ephraim ("God has made me fruitful in this land of my grief"). What has God helped you forget — and where has He made you fruitful in the very land of your grief?

Genesis Chapter 42

1. Verse 21: In Joseph's presence, the brothers said to each other, "Clearly we are being punished because of what we did to Joseph long ago." What does a guilty conscience do over twenty years — go quiet, or grow louder?
2. Verse 22: Reuben reminded them, "Didn't I tell you not to sin against the boy?" When have you wished you had spoken up louder against a wrong?
3. Verse 36: Jacob cried, "Everything is going against me!" Was he right? What do we fail to see when we say that?

Genesis Chapter 43

1. Verse 23: Joseph's steward told the frightened brothers, "Your God, the God of your father, must have put this treasure in your sacks." How does God sometimes bless us in ways we mistake for trouble?
2. Verse 29: Joseph looked at Benjamin, his own mother's son, and blessed him: "God be gracious to you, my son." What does blessing look like when it comes from someone who has suffered?
3. Verse 30: Joseph had to hurry out of the room because he was about to cry. After all the years and all the power, what does Joseph's tenderness tell us about his heart?

Genesis Chapter 44

1. Verse 16: Judah said their guilt had been exposed by God. Compare the Judah of Chapter 37 and Chapter 38 with the Judah of this chapter. What changed him?
2. Verses 18–32: Judah poured out the whole story to Joseph — the old father, the dead brother, the boy Benjamin. Why is honest storytelling sometimes the bravest thing a person can do?
3. Verse 33: Judah offered to stay as a slave in Benjamin's place so the boy could go home to his father. How does Judah's offer point us forward to what Jesus would do for us?

Genesis Chapter 45

1. Verses 4–5: Joseph revealed himself — "I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into slavery in Egypt" — and then said, "God has sent me ahead of you to preserve your lives." How could Joseph say both things honestly at the same time?
2. Verse 8: "It was God who sent me here, not you!" How does seeing God's hand behind our hardest chapters change how we treat the people who hurt us?
3. Verses 27–28: When Jacob saw the wagons Joseph had sent, his spirit revived, and he exclaimed, "My son Joseph is alive! I must go and see him before I die." What dead hope has God revived in your life?

Genesis Chapter 46

1. Verses 3–4: God spoke to Jacob one more time: "Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt." He promised to go with Jacob, to make him a great nation there, and to bring him back. What fears does God answer with His presence rather than with explanations?
2. Verse 27: Seventy persons in all went down to Egypt — the whole promise of "descendants like the stars" fits in one household count. What does that teach us about how small God's great works often start?
3. Verses 33–34: Joseph prepared his family to tell Pharaoh they were shepherds, though shepherds were detestable to Egyptians. Why is it important that God's people stay distinct even when they live in a foreign culture?

Genesis Chapter 47

1. Verses 7–10: Jacob, the refugee grandfather, blessed Pharaoh — twice. What does a man have on the inside that lets him bless kings while owning nothing but a promise?
2. Verse 9: Jacob told Pharaoh, "I have traveled this earth for 130 hard years" — and yet this is the man God had blessed and carried all the way. How can a life be both hard and blessed at the same time, as Jacob's was?
3. Verses 29–31: Dying in Egypt, Jacob made Joseph swear to bury him back in Canaan. Why did it matter so much where Jacob was buried — and what was he saying to his family by it?

Genesis Chapter 48

1. Verses 13–14: Jacob crossed his hands and put his right hand on the younger son, Ephraim. How many times in Genesis has God blessed the younger over the older — and what does that pattern tell us about how God chooses?
2. Verse 16: Jacob blessed the boys by "the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm." Looking back over a lifetime of harm and rescue, what name for God would you put in your blessing?
3. Verses 20–21: Jacob said Ephraim would be greater than Manasseh, and told Joseph, "I am about to die, but God will be with you." What is the best thing a dying believer can leave his children — possessions, or a God who will be with them?

Genesis Chapter 49

1. Verse 10: Over Judah, Jacob prophesied that the scepter would not depart from Judah "until the coming of the one to whom it belongs." Who is that coming King, and where else in Genesis has He been promised?
2. Verse 18: In the middle of his blessings, Jacob suddenly prayed, "I trust in you for salvation, O LORD!" Why does trust in God's salvation belong at the centre of everything?
3. Verse 28: Jacob blessed each son "with the blessings that were appropriate to them" — blessing and hard truth together. How do we speak truth to the people we love without withdrawing our blessing?

Genesis Chapter 50

1. Verses 15–17: After Jacob's death, the brothers were afraid Joseph would finally pay them back. Why do we struggle to believe forgiveness is real, even years later?
2. Verses 19–20: Joseph said, "Am I God, that I can punish you?" and then spoke this section's key verse. What two intentions does verse 20 hold side by side — and how do both stay true?
3. Verse 24: Dying, Joseph told his brothers, "God will surely come to help you and lead you out of this land of Egypt." Joseph never saw it happen. What are you trusting God for that you may only see from heaven?
4. Verse 25: Joseph made them swear to carry his bones up when God brought them out — and Genesis ends with a coffin in Egypt. Why do you think the book of beginnings ends there — finished, or still wide open?

Test — Genesis

You’ve finished the book of Genesis — well done! Ten questions, no pressure: just a way to check what stuck. Do your best, then check the Answer Key page and let the Word sink in a little deeper.

1. According to Genesis 15:6, why did God count Abram as righteous?
   A) Because of Abraham's many good deeds
   B) Because Abram believed the LORD — because of his faith
   C) Because he was circumcised
   D) Because he offered Isaac on the altar
2. In Genesis 50:20, what did Joseph tell his brothers God had intended in all that happened to him?
   A) God intended to punish Joseph for his pride
   B) God intended it all for good — to save the lives of many people
   C) God had forgotten Joseph until the very end
   D) God intended Joseph to take revenge
3. Short answer: According to Genesis 1:27, in whose image did God create human beings?
4. In Genesis 39, Joseph refused Potiphar's wife because giving in would be:
   A) A risk to his job only
   B) A great sin against God
   C) A small thing nobody would know about
   D) Wrong only if he got caught
5. Genesis 15 teaches that a person is counted righteous — made right with God — by:
   A) Faith, plus enough good works
   B) Faith alone — believing God
   C) Keeping the whole law
   D) Being born into Abraham's family
6. Short answer: Abraham believed God when God showed him the stars (Genesis 15:5–6). In your own words, what is faith?
7. Abraham's trust in God led him to leave his country and go out, not knowing where he was going (Genesis 12:1–4) — and later to lay Isaac on the altar (Genesis 22). Real trust in God always leads us to:
   A) Do whatever we want
   B) Obey Him
   C) Hide our faith from everyone
   D) Nothing — nothing changes
8. Which one has it in the right order?
   A) Abraham obeyed God for years, and that is what made God count him righteous
   B) God counted Abraham righteous when he believed (Genesis 15) — before circumcision (Genesis 17) and before the altar (Genesis 22); his obedience flowed out of a righteousness he already had by faith
   C) Obedience earns us a place in heaven
   D) God counts us righteous only after a lifetime of good deeds
9. Short answer: Finding the truth means finding ______. And the closer we get to Him, the ______ we get. (Think of Abraham, God's own chosen man, calling himself "dust and ashes" before the LORD in Genesis 18:27.)
10. Joseph served faithfully everywhere he was put — in Potiphar's house, in prison, and in Pharaoh's palace (Genesis 39–41). In Christ, we become:
    A) Servants instead of selfish
    B) Free to do absolutely anything
    C) Our own masters, answerable to no one
    D) Spectators, watching God work from the sidelines

Verses to Memorize

Key verses from the book of Genesis — hide these in your heart:

Genesis 1:27 (NLT)

“So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”

Genesis 15:6 (NLT)

“And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

Genesis 28:15 (NLT)

“What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.”

Genesis 50:20 (NLT)

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.”

Blood Spots — Jesus in Genesis

All through Genesis, wherever the text points to Jesus and to God’s plan to redeem us through His Son, the perfect Lamb, this study marks the place with a blood spot. Here are the fourteen spots; the full notes for each one are in the Going Deeper app and the study master:

1. The First Promise of the Gospel — Genesis 3:15
2. The Covering God Provided — Genesis 3:21
3. By Blood and by Faith, Not by Works — Genesis 4:3–10
4. Saved Through the Judgment — Genesis 6–9
5. The Seed Who Would Bless the World — Genesis 12:3
6. The Priest-King with Bread and Wine — Genesis 14:18–20
7. The Covenant God Swore to Himself — Genesis 15:9–17
8. The Sign That Came After the Faith — Genesis 17:10–11
9. The Lamb God Provided — Genesis 22
10. The Stairway Between Heaven and Earth — Genesis 28:12
11. The Beloved Son, Sold — Genesis 37:28
12. The Brother Who Took the Slave's Place — Genesis 44:33
13. The Scepter of Judah — Genesis 49:10
14. The Sufferer Raised to Save Many — Genesis 45

The Book of Romans

Paul's letter to the Romans is the clearest explanation of the Gospel ever written: we are made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ — not by obeying the law, not by being good, but by faith alone. Watch the overview below, then work through each chapter.

Watch: BibleProject — Romans Part 2 (Chapters 5–16)

Romans Chapter 1

1. Verse 17: How is one made right in God's sight?
2. Verse 20: If somebody lives, past, present or future, who has never read the Bible, or never heard the gospel, or never heard the name of Jesus, do they have an excuse on Judgment Day?
3. Verse 25: Give an example of something in your life that you have worshipped and served instead of God.

Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Romans 1:16:

“For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.”

Romans Chapter 2

1. Verse 1: Who are the people Paul is referring to who are sexually immoral, backstabbers, wicked in every way, and disobedient to parents, etc.?
2. Verse 11: If you are Jewish, does that make you closer to God than Gentiles?

Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Romans 2:4:

“Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?”

Romans Chapter 3

1. Verse 20: Is it possible to be made right with God by obeying the law?
2. Verses 10–12: Is it possible to be made right with God by being good?
3. Verse 22: What is the way that God has shown us to be made right with Him?
4. Verse 28: Is there anything we need to do in order to be made right with God?
5. Verse 31: Does the law matter at all?

Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Romans 3:23–24:

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.”

Romans Chapter 4

1. Verse 3: Why did God count Abraham as righteous?
2. Verse 13: Did Abraham know Jesus?
3. Verse 23: Did Abraham have a Bible?
4. Verses 20–21: How did Abraham know God?
5. Verse 22: What did Abraham have to do in order to be counted as righteous by God?
6. Verse 24: What do you have to do in order to be counted as righteous by God?

Verse to Memorize (NLT) — Romans 4:5:

“But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners.”