A Great Cloud of Witnesses: A Study of Those Who Lived by Faith

by Trillia J. Newbell

Rejuvenate your faith through the stories of the faithful.

Throughout Scripture we find countless stories of God’s faithfulness—we also find countless stories of the people who remained faithful to Him.

To strengthen and deepen your own faith, enter the stories of God’s imperfect yet faithful people in A Great Cloud of Witnesses, a six-week bible study by Trillia Newbell. This study dives into Hebrews 11, examining the lives of Rahab, Enoch, Gideon, Sarah, and many more whose faiths withstood the tests of their days. Each devotional invites you into the lives of ordinary people who lived by faith and concludes with reflection questions so that you can consider how your story connects with those found in Scripture. By studying the great cloud of witnesses found in Hebrews 11, and others who have gone before us, you will learn to imitate their faith while clinging to the One who is always faithful as you run the race God has set before you.

Genres: Christianity, Christian, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian Living

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2021

About the author

Trillia Newbell is the author of Enjoy: Finding the Freedom to Delight Daily in God's Good Gifts (2016), Fear and Faith: Finding the Peace Your Heart Craves (2015), United: Captured by God's Vision for Diversity (2014), a children’s book, God’s Very Good Idea: A True Story of God’s Delightfully Different Family, and a six-week Bible study on Romans 8, If God is For Us: The Everlasting Truth of Our Great Salvation (releases January 2019) . Her writings on issues of faith, family, and diversity have been published in the Knoxville News-Sentinel, Desiring God, Christianity Today, Relevant Magazine, The Gospel Coalition, and more. She is currently Director of Community Outreach for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission for the Southern Baptist Convention. Trillia is married to her best friend, Thern, they reside with their two children near Nashville, TN. You can find her at trillianewbell.com and follow her on twitter at @trillianewbell.

Reviews

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hall of Faith is a famous passage in the book of Hebrews. But how well do we really know these saints of old? In A Great Cloud of Witnesses, Trillia Newbell shows us Hebrews 11 to study those who lived by faith.

A Personal Guide and Friend

Newbell acts as a personal guide and friend to walk us through the Hall of Faith. Each reading begins with a brief introduction, often with a personal story from Newbell’s life. The book invites you to explore the passage by cross-referencing texts. And Newbell provides questions to respond to and reflect on.

Newbell offers a 6-week or 8-week plan for completing the study. Those who aren’t as familiar with the Old Testament will definitely appreciate the extra time to dwell with these saints.

Important Lives

Spending time in the Old Testament with these heroes of the faith made me remember the importance of their lives. Newbell does a great job to summarize their stories, while also leaving room for you to learn more. Most revealing to me were the stories of Sarah and Rahab - the two women featured in Hebrews 11 by name. Newbell speaks personally about her previous miscarriages and history of long, serious relationships. I appreciated the perspective she had to offer when introducing these stories.

The end of the book focuses on modern examples of those who have kept the faith. Stephen (the first recorded martyr after the death of Jesus), Martin Luther King Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, and Jim and Elisabeth Elliot are remembered. I especially appreciated the mention of Pastor Wang Yi and Early Rain Covenant Church in China. Seeing these saints as a succession of the Old Testament heroes encouraged me to run my race well.

Run to the Savior

And after spending much time in the Old Testament, I find myself still looking forward to Christ. I want to run to my Savior in faith. I am motivated by their stories, and I am encouraged by their examples.

I received a media copy of A Great Cloud of Witnesses and this is my honest review.

[EA Kellogg]

this was the perfect length & theme to read on my stateside assignment. i enjoyed diving deeper into hebrews 11, looking back to the old testament stories that correspond with it. i also enjoyed the reflection questions! my only hesitation with this study was that the study didn’t dive into the chapter entirely, verse by verse. not each verse was studied which left me wanting more & slightly disappointed. but overall, a study that i enjoyed working through!

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

i love trillia's heart and the theme of this study has seeped into so many aspects of my life already. i would lend this to anyone who wants to plant seeds in faith, knowing they'll never live to see the harvest.

but there's a certain skill to asking questions -- specifically in bible study -- and this one seemed lacking in that regard to me. the questions were more reiterary than probing. i felt like my answers were cliches. they didn't make me think as hard about the nuts and bolts of the text as, say, jackie hill perry's study.

but the message is solid and needed. 🙌🏽

[Deon]

1.99 on Kindle
July 4, 2022

https://amzn.to/3NLSnZU

[Tamika May · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to say that this is now my favorite of Trillia's written studies! This can be a six or eight week study. Even though the study primarily focuses on Hebrews 11, there is so much more inductive here using Old Testament Scripture. The study questions are put together well, simply put, yet packed so as to get the student to pause, consider and reflect. No one who commits to this study, will walk away from it without a deep and more meaningful insight in the message the author conveyed to it's ancient audience, and now the Spirit to the Church. A plus, is Trillia's challenge to find Christ in the OT text!
This would definitely be great for a discipleship group and even one on one with a young (in the faith) believer as well as a 'seasoned' believer.

[Elizabeth Mindemann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much appreciate this study. I spent two years in an in-depth study of Hebrews and finished Jen Wilkins study on the letter last year. This study digs deeper into the examples of the faithful in order that we might emulate them echoing Paul’s words in Philippians 3 - ““Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.”
‭‭I learned a lot through this study about the specific saints mentioned in Hebrews 11. I especially appreciated the ties and connection to the Old Testament and Christ who is our “better Adam” “better David” ...
I highly recommend this study.

[Courtney Naka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the heart of this study and enjoyed diving deeper into the stories of those mentioned in Hebrews 11, but felt that the questions didn’t dig into the text as much as I was hoping. I wish the content was a bit more robust and challenging.

[Sassy Sarah Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars. I enjoyed this devotional and definitely think it would be a great eight week study to do with other women. Review to come.

[DT · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is hardly a Bible study, and had very little insight.

[Prairie Sky Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m always happy to see a new release in the Moody Bible Studies for Women series - and when I saw the latest one was written by Trillia Newbell on the “Hall of Faith” chapter of Scripture, I couldn’t wait to get started! “A Great Cloud of Witnesses: A Study of Those Who Lived By Faith” is a 6-week Bible Study of Hebrews 11 that promises to help us rejuvenate our faith by diving into the stories of the faithful ones who have gone before us.

This study is organized a bit different than the layout I’m used to, but I’m finding that I really enjoy it. Each of the 6 weeks (which can be expanded to 8 weeks by following a slightly different outline) features both a study portion, and a daily devotional portion. The Bible study is at the beginning of the week, where it explains what portion of Scripture to read and cross-references to check, and then features multiple questions to help you dive into the text and think, ask, and understand what you just read. I have been doing 3-5 questions from here each day, along with one daily devotional (five of which follow each weekly study portion). I’m sorry if this sounds a bit confusing, it’s really quite intuitive once you get into it, and I am enjoying this format. . . I find that it gives you some freedom with how long you can spend each day - depending on how much time I have, I can decide how many core study questions to go through.

As far as content, although I’m not quite finished the study I’ve been finding it to be excellent on all levels: inspiring, challenging, and thought-provoking. It naturally leads you back and forth between the text of Hebrews 11 and the original stories of these Heroes of Faith in the Old Testament, encouraging thoughtful pondering of their lives and choices and, of course, their faith. “A Great Cloud of Witnesses” also includes some great resources such as a quick refresher on HOW to study the Bible, a list of resources for further study, and two appendixes (one for leaders doing a study group, and the other a practical guide for reading Old Testament stories).

As far as I’m concerned, this is one of the best Bible studies in the series so far - but I know I always say that with each new release! One thing that is inherently different about this book, however, is how thin it is. . . This may seem inconsequential, but I believe it is very important. It is thin because we must bring our own hard work, our own brain-power and soul-searching and prayers for understanding to the table as we study, because Ms. Newbell does not spoon-feed it to us! She gives us all the tools we need and provides a jumping-off point for our studies, but she does not give us the answers - and that, I believe, is a sign of a truly great Bible study.

I received this book courtesy of Moody Publishers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Lauren DuPrez · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great Cloud of Witnesses is the latest Bible study for women produced by Moody Publishers. This study about Hebrews 11 is the second one in the series written by Trillia Newbell. In this study, she does an excellent job of helping women understand how to approach the Bible. In the intro to the book, she provides women with four steps for studying the Bible. These steps are 1. Read the Passage Straight Through in One Sitting, 2. Clarify the Context, 3. Consider What the Passage Says – and What It Means, and 4. Apply the Text to Your Life.
While the study is designed to be completed in six weeks, it is set up so that it can be an eight week study if one is desiring to study for a longer period. Each week of A Great Cloud of Witnesses begins with an introduction that contains devotional type content as well as response questions. Following the section introduction, there are five days worth of reading, devotional content, and reflection questions. I really appreciate this aspect of A Great Cloud of Witnesses because it is set up to help women establish discipline in their Bible reading but it also gives some wiggle room for completing the questions in a timely manner.

The book takes women through Hebrews 10 and 11 in order to help them have a fuller understanding of what was occurring in chapter 11. Since Hebrews 11 lists names of saints whose stories are contained in the Old Testament, much of A Great Cloud of Witnesses is spent examining the stories of these saints. I am really thankful for this aspect of the study because it helps women increase their understanding of the Bible. It often seems to be the case that the Old Testament is discounted when Christians approach the Bible. I believe this is generally due to the literary styles used in the Old Testament seeming to be harder to follow than the literary styles used in the New Testament. I’m thankful that in A Great Cloud of Witnesses, Trillia drew in the Old Testament accounts in a way that helps women realize that studying the Bible isn’t as intimidating as it may appear.

One of my favorite aspects of this study is that it makes Scripture approachable. Establishing Bible literacy is often daunting initially due to not knowing where to begin but this study helpfully and gently provides direction. I’m really grateful for Trillia Newbell and her heart to make the Bible approachable for women and I highly recommend A Great Cloud of Witnesses.

I received A Great Cloud of Witnesses compliments of Moody Publishers in exchange for my launch team participation.

[Reyna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable study about Hebreus 11 to do with friends or alone. I really enjoy Trillia J. Newbell's content. I´m glad I got this book because after all the issues in 2020 I really needed encouragement to live by faith. The book design is so pretty, it is full color on the inside, a light blue that gave me peace every time I was writing on it. I´m thankful it has enough space to record your answers. It is practical and deep. I want to go through it with some friends in the summer too, looking forward to doing that. I can´t recommend enough Moody bible studies, they are a huge blessing for me and my book clubs. If you get it, go to week five day two... after a year of losses I thought a lot about obituaries and how they shine light into all of the ugliness of a person´s life. I quote: "At the end of my life, I pray I´m not remembered for all the ways that I´ve failed the Lord, although there are many. Rather, I pray I´m remembered as being faithful". Loved it, was one of my favorite pages in the book. "If your life has been in ruins, God is not done with you. He is not". It may feel like the end of the road, but God promises to finish the good work He started in you (Phil.1:6). He is not finished. He who calls us to faithfulness will give us the grace to endure. He who calls us faithful is faithful".

[Kathleencantwell]

Trillia Newbell continues to be a wonderful guide in bringing the Scripture to life! Her depth in knowledge of Scripture along with her warmth and tenderness of heart sets the atmosphere of this study to feel like you are engaging with her over a cup of coffee.

The content of this study is so encouraging as it takes the participant through the Hall of Faith, where flawed people showed great faithfulness to God in the midst of challenging circumstances. It is also a clear picture of the faithfulness of God not only to the heroes of the past but to us now.

In the midst of a pandemic, racial and political tension, challenges with business, constant shifts with people, this bible study has been timely and of such encouragement. As the study explores the lives of faithful saints, it spurs me on to continue to be faithful, and not grow weary. With each narrative, there are thought provoking questions in response to God's Word and practical application for spiritual principles. I loved this study, it reminds me there are companions cheering me on while I run the home stretch to the finish line in my personal race.

If you are weary and need reminding that you are going to make it in this life, this stud is for you!

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moody Publishers continues its tradition of printing deep, timely Bible studies by some of the best Bible study teachers who desire for women to delve deeply into Scripture whether they are new to the Bible or have been studying for years.

Trillia Newbell's "A Great Cloud of Witnesses" is a six-week study on Hebrews 11 covering the lives of the faithful, including Abraham, Noah, Joshua, Daniel and others., Through the examples of these faithful people of God, we learn how to live our lives by faith. Newbell takes you through their characteristics and their lives so that you can emulate them and be trusting, faithful followers of Christ.

The best thing about this study, other than the subject matter, is that Newbell asks questions that help you think for yourself and gain a better understanding of what you are studying.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Moody Publishers, as part of the launch team for "A Great Cloud of Witnesses". I was not required to write a review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Raquel Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really amazing study bible. This study bible is a six week story bible that specifically focuses on Hebrews 11. While going through the bible study it helps you gain a better understanding on the book of Hebrews which contains a beautiful language and has complex arguments. Throughout the study, it helps you realize that God is better then any other religious figure. This study guide make you come to the realization that Christ is supreme and completely sufficient for salvation, which is a message that has a timeless application. I truly encourage anyone interested in the book of Hebrews to get this bible study because it focuses on key concepts like how jesus alone can forgive our sins and how he guarantees our access to God the father and how the process of maturing our faith takes time.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this
review.

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who is in this "great cloud of witnesses" we are told about at the beginning of Hebrews 12? The chapter before (Hebrews 11) lists the heroes of the faith. They went on before us and finished the race. We can run after them with endurance spurred on by their example. At the heart is Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith (12:2). I was blessed to study this book with a small group of women. We had to spread our meetings out to accommodate work and travel commitments, but it was worth it. I have a better understanding of the gospel and these faith heroes after spending so much time in Hebrews 11. If you are looking for a six or eight week study, check this one out. Includes an appendix for group leaders and "Four Practical Guidelines For Reading Old Testament Stories" by Dr. George H. Guthrie.

[Kim]

Usually, messages about Hebrews 11 spotlight the greatest heroes of the faith. Trillia Newbell does focus on some of them, like Abraham and Noah, but draws our attention to those who only make cameos in the Old Testament. As a fresh approach, she emphasizes that common people, those with troublesome backgrounds, unwise decisions and those we'd miss with a passing glance. That offers hope to us as well. God worked in the lives of those with shocking history and included them as examples to follow because of their faith.

The study includes chapter questions and a leader guide for leading a Bible study group. The book is useful for individual and group study.

I received a copy of the book without obligation. This review is my opinion.

[Dianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using the format similar to her previous book, If God Is For Us, Trillia paves the way for readers to get the most out of studying the lives of the faithful who are featured in Hebrews 11. She shares 4 steps to follow to enhance our understanding of what we are reading and what God has to say to the reader through His Word. It will be be easy to spend many weeks digging into what there is to learn from that "great cloud of witnesses" and being reminded about just how faithful God is; Trillia is an excellent guide for this journey. I am glad to be a part of the launch team for this book and am slowly savoring every chapter!

[Mhughessc · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A Great Cloud of Witnesses" is an fantastic Bible study book by Trillia Newbell. Newbell is an excellent Christian author, and this Bible study is great as well! Based on the 11th chapter of Hebrews, this study focuses on many of the well-known heroes of the faith. My favorite subject study was that of Rahab; she has always been such an intriguing character to me. This was an excellent Bible study that I think many would find useful to strengthen them in their Christian faith.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

[Stephanie Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of receiving an advance copy of, A Great Cloud of Witnesses, a Hebrews 11 bible study. Trillia takes the reader through the Old Testament to have a deeper understanding of the "Faith Hall of Fame". All the while reminding you to look for Jesus in the verses. I love that this is not simply a look at chapter 11 but a bridge between the Old and New Testament. Excellent questions, mini devotionals and the flexibility of doing a 6 or 8 week study makes this an amazing study for an individual or group.

[Grace Cacayorin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not too far into this study yet, but am already being encouraged and sharpened by it! So far I am seeing that Trillia writes with a beautiful focus on Christ, which is essential for any Bible study, since He is the Word made flesh and it's all about Him! I have a feeling I'm also going to love the fact that this study of Hebrews 10 & 11 includes a look back to the original Old Testament stories of some of the "witnesses" listed in Chapter 11. Looking forward to learning and growing as I continue through this excellent study!

[Sarah Haile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really love this book! It does a fantastic job of linking the Old & New Testaments together & tying together the full story of the Bible. Great questions to help you dig in the text vs. just being trite. It will be good work & an encouragement for you! You will learn & grow by engaging with this. Worth it!

[Hanna Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this study from Trillia’s publishers as part of her launch group. I enjoy how approachable Trillia’s writing and devotionals are. Her questions in the study focused on finding Christ and identifying characteristics of God while also examining your own heart. Would recommend for those looking for an easy independent or group study of Hebrews 11

[Amber Thiessen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This devotional on Hebrews 11 is very timely, challenging us to live a life of faith through the lens of those who were recognized by their faith. This is set up as a devotional with a few reflection questions at the end of each daily read. Another great option for your bible study this winter!

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a wonderful study of Hebrews 11. I finish encouraged to keep running my race for Christ, as those ahead of me did. I highly recommend it to you!

A review copy was provided to me by the publisher. My opinions are my own.

[LB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Study focused on Hebrews 11, while the biblical study was great the application questions were surface level vs what I was hoping for. Would recommend for just about any level, good split of daily material.

[Laura Spinella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a huge fan of bible study aids as they usually oversimplify the text or include long personal stories that only tangentially relate. This one was amazing though. It really helped you work through the text without oversimplifying and did not have too much other fluff.

[Faith Crosley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this study and how it allowed me to navigate the Bible in a new way searching for these people throughout the Old Testament. I do wish that there would be a little more questions for the daily studies to lengthen my time in the word.

[Jessica Monroe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book study has been a balm to my soul in a weary season. The study is thought provoking and great for group discussion. It has greatly grown my faith in the Lord!

[geekoutonreading : Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great Bible study by Trillia Newbell. The format is wonderful and I learned a lot!