First Samuel: Establishing the Throne of David

Our parish has been offering Bible study classes for 14 years. "First Samuel" was one of the most gripping of all the studies we have ever done. Our classes loved it so much that they keep asking when we will get to do a Second Samuel study (please hurry, Fr. Kirby!). This "First Samuel" study introduced us to a key part of Israel;s history, helping us to understand how God, working through his chosen people, was laying the foundations for Christ;s Kingship and the salvation of the world. I came away from "First Samuel" with a deeper sense of God's steady shepherding of his flock through time; I also found in Hannah;s story a sense of the heroism of righteous women, and their role in salvation history, looking forward of course to the greatest woman of them all, our Blessed Mother. Very thorough study guide, inspiring video lecture. I would call First Samuel a "can'tmiss" Bible study. Thank you TAN Books.

We did the 1Samuel study in our Parish on Wednesday mornings and Monday nights. We had about 50 people. When covid hit and the Parish was closed we continued on line on zoom and lost no one! The course was interesting and informative and many of our members had never studied any Old Testament books before. The study notes are excellent and give great background for newcomers to the Old Testament. It was easy to watch the videos on line. The answers to every group discussion question are in the back of every workbook and people find that comforting. The only downside was the 2Samuel study is not ready yet. We would have liked to do that next to see what happened to King David! But I hear the 2Samuel study is coming.

We decided to use this study during 2020/21 for our 60 person Bible Study because it included online videos and covered a book we hadn;t studied in the 25 year history of our local program. Our participants and leaders loved everything about this study! Father Kirby;s commentaries and videos were enlightening, but easy to grasp, so veterans were learning but newcomers weren;t lost. First Samuel is a great book to study because it is so pivotal in Salvation History, it has so many applicable lessons to our lives and times, and it is a great narrative read. No one will be bored! The format of the study allowed us to shift between in-person and virtual meetings easily when necessary; and because the lessons were so rich, we lost very few participants over the course of the program despite the year;s challenges. The life application videos and readings were excellent! When we chose the study, we did not anticipate the many ways it would relate to current events in the world and the Church. We had great discussions every week on topics like leadership, friendship, fatherhood, consequences of choices, right worship and more. I highly recommend this study to parish groups and individuals. If you have previously done an overview of Salvation History, and/or a Gospel study, this study will provide deeper understanding and help connect the Old and New. Our participants are begging for a study of Second Samuel to follow up this great study. Thanks, Father Kirby!

I must admit, I did not have great expectations of this study but I was pleasantly surprised! This Is a very well written analysis of the establishment of the kingdom of Israel. I did not realize how many familiar stories were contained in this book and it was so informative to learn about them in this context. I am amazed at how God continues to reveal His love and faithfulness through His Word! This study does an exceptional job of making relevant the stories of so long ago to our lives today. Highly recommended.

First Samuel was Excellent. It is a book not many of the ladies (we had a little over 50 this year) were familiar with so we did not know what to expect. We learned so much about the origins of the Kingdom of Isreal and saw many OT events/items that foreshadow NT realities. We studied this along with Mary, Queen of Heaven and both studies were loved by all!

We did this study of First Samuel online in the Spring of 2021. Every time we discuss what study we will do next, they ask if Second Samuel is out yet. The study was so good, helping us understand how God worked in the lives of Samuel and David, and the dangers of complacency in our spiritual life. I recommend this study to any serious Bible study group.

One of my favorite studies and am looking so forward to 2nd Samuel.

I learned so much from doing this bible study. It Father Kirby is excellent! I Can't wait to do the Samuel 2 Study. So many topics revenant to today;s culture. This study has been my favorite so far!

This is my favorite Bible Study. Father Kirby did an excellent job!! I Can't wait for 2 Samuel.