Old Testament Intro

INTRODUCTION
The Story of the Old Testament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3

Birth of a nation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3
Israel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3
A divided nation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3
Captivity and return . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3
Wisdom teachers and songwriters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4
Words of the preachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4
The kinds of literature in the Old Testament
PART I
How to Interpret Historical Writings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6
Old Testament Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6
Wisdom Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6
Prophets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6
How to Look at Different Kinds of Writings in the Old Testament by Don Fleming
(An excerpt from Let the Bible Speak for Itself) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7
Ideas put into words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7
Prose and poetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7
PART II
How to Interpret Old Testament Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 9
The Old Testament Books of the Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11
Genesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11
Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11
Leviticus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11
Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12
Deuteronomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12
PART III
How to Interpret Old Testament History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13
Is the Old Testament Real History? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13
Is the Old Testament Timeline Accurate?
................................................................ Page 13
The Old Testament Describes Ancient Cultures in Accurate Ways as Well . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14
Reading the Old Testament History as History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14
Are the Miracle Stories Fictional?
................................................................ Page 14
The Old Testament Historical Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15
Joshua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15
Judges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16
Ruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16
Samuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16
1 & 2 Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 17
1 & 2 Chronicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 17
Ezra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 18
Esther . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 19
PART IV
How To Interpret Old Testament Poetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 20
An Example: Isaiah 39 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 20
Example: the Tiger Outside the Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 21
Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 22
Introductions to the Old Testament Poetical Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 24
Job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 24
Psalms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 24
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 25
Ecclesiastes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 25
PART V
How To Interpret Old Testament Prophecy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 26

A List of Distant Future Events One Might Find in Prophetic Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 28
Many books, yet one
By Don Fleming
(Excerpt from Let the Bible Speak for Itself)
................................................................... Page 29
Brought to fulfilment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 29
Introductions to the Old Testament Prophets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 30
Isaiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 30
Jeremiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 30
Ezekiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 31
Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 31
Hosea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 31
Joel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 32
Amos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 32
Obadiah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 33
Jonah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 33
Micah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 33
Nahum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 33
Habakkuk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 34
Zephaniah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 34
Haggai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 34
Malachi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 35
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 36
TIMELINE for the Old Testament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 38
TIMELINE for the Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 39
Introduction to Old Testament Page 2 of 39 CRST 251

INTRODUCTION
The Story of the Old Testament
By Don Fleming
(Excerpt from The Christian’s Bible)
Birth of a nation
Genesis, the first book of the Bible, opens with a brief account of the creation of the world, as an introduction to the story of
the people who live in the world. In spite of their repeated failures, God still loved them and initiated a plan for their salvation.
He chose Abraham, a man from Mesopotamia, promising to make his descendants into a nation and to give them Canaan as a
national homeland. The book of Genesis deals with Abraham's descendants over the next two or three hundred years, and closes
with them settling down to a reasonably comfortable life in Egypt. This was the beginning of the nation Israel.
During the next four hundred years the Israelites so increased in numbers that the Egyptian government saw them as a threat
and issued a law that made them slaves. The book of Exodus describes how Moses became the Israelites' leader, overthrew
Egyptian domination and led his people out to freedom (about 1446 BC). Their goal was Canaan, but they stopped first at Mt
Sinai. There, over the next year, they received God's law and organized themselves before moving on. Many of the laws are
recorded in the latter part of Exodus and in the next book, Leviticus.
Additional laws, along with details of arrangements for the journey to Canaan, are recorded in the book of Numbers. But the
people rebelled against God, and entry into Canaan was delayed forty years as a punishment. During those years the generation of
rebels died and a new generation grew up. When the time approached to enter Canaan, Moses repeated, and in some ways
expanded, the law for the benefit of this new generation. The book that records this is Deuteronomy. Moses died before Israel
entered Canaan, and Joshua became the new leader.
Israel established in Canaan

The book of Joshua records Israel's conquest of Canaan and the division of the land among its twelve tribes. Over the
generations that followed, Israel became increasingly rebellious against God. The book of Judges shows how the people intro-
duced foreign religious practices and brought God's judgment upon themselves in the form of invasions from neighbouring
countries. There was no centrally organized government during this period, but certain people (whom the Israelites called judges)
rose to positions of leadership because of their ability to settle disputes and overthrow foreign oppressors. The story of one family
that lived during this time is told in the book of Ruth.
In an attempt to improve national stability, the people decided to establish a monarchy. Their spiritual leader, Samuel,
advised against this, for their troubles had arisen because of their unfaithfulness to God, not because of the system of government.
But the people rejected Samuel's advice, with the result that Israel got its first king, Saul (about 1047 BC). Saul was a failure, and
the story of events before and during his reign is told in the book of 1 Samuel.
David was Israel's next king, and the story of his reign is recorded in 2 Samuel. In spite of some mistakes, he was a great and
powerful king. He established a dynasty through which God promised to produce a king who would be saviour of the world. This
promised king was known as 'Messiah' in the Hebrew language (or 'Christ', in the Greek).
A divided nation
The books of 1 and 2 Kings record the history of the Israelite kingdom after the death of David. Solomon succeeded David,
but his extravagant program for the development of the national capital, Jerusalem, created widespread unrest among his people.
Soon after his death, the ten northern tribes broke away from the dynasty of David and established their own monarchy. The
northern tribes still called themselves Israel, and after some early temporary arrangements established their capital in Samaria.
The people of the south remained loyal to the dynasty of David, whose kings continued to reign in Jerusalem. The southern
king-dom was called Judah, after its leading tribe.
During the time of the divided kingdom, Israel and Judah fought with each other and with neighbouring countries. Political
and social conditions in both kingdoms steadily worsened. Few people trusted God or lived to please him, but from those who
did, God chose some to be his messengers to his people. These preachers condemned the people's sin and warned that judgment
was certain if they did not turn to God. They were known as prophets, and some of their writings have been grouped together in a
separate section of the Old Testament.
Captivity and return

As the prophets had warned, both kingdoms were finally destroyed. In 731 BC Assyria conquered the northern kingdom and
took its people captive into foreign lands. Assyria, in turn, was conquered by Babylon, who then advanced into the Palestine
region. In a series of attacks starting in 605 BC, Babylon gained control of Judah and took its people into captivity, destroying
Jerusalem in 586 BC.
There is a parallel account of 1 and 2 Samuel in the book of 1 Chronicles, and a parallel account of 1 and 2 Kings in 2
Chronicles. However, the books of Chronicles differ from the books of Samuel and Kings in their length, style, content and
purpose. They were written much later, after Israel and Judah had been taken into captivity. The books helped preserve the
national history and family records, so that they might assist people of a later generation when they re-established the nation.
When Persia conquered Babylon in 539 BC, the Persian king immediately gave permission for captive peoples to return to
their homelands. As a result, the nation Israel was rebuilt, with Jerusalem as its capital. No longer was there a division between

north and south. But since most of those who returned to Palestine belonged to the former southern kingdom Judah, the name Jew
(short for Judean) was used for Israelites in general, and has been ever since.
The books of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther deal with the period of reconstruction that began with Israel's return to its
homeland in 538 BC. The three books cover about one hundred years, and with them the historical section of the Old Testament
comes to a close.
Wisdom teachers and songwriters

After the historical section of the Old Testament is a group of five books, all of them markedly different from the previous
books. The first of these, Job, is what is called a wisdom book. Wisdom teachers were people who examined the common affairs
and problems of life with the aim of teaching people how to live rightly. The book of Job consists mainly of a debate between Job
and his friends about God's direction of affairs in people's lives.
The book of Psalms is a collection of 150 songs and poems that express the writers' feelings during their many and varied
experiences. David wrote almost half the psalms, but the authors of many others are unknown.
Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings, most of them from Solomon. Ecclesiastes, another wisdom book, is concerned with
the search for life's meaning. The Song of Songs (also called the Song of Solomon) is a collection of love poems recounting the
exchanges of love between a young man and a young woman.
Words of the preachers

The final section of the Old Testament contains the writings of the prophets. These were the preachers who brought God's
message to his people during the periods of the monarchy, the captivity and the later re-establishment of Israel. Each book is
named after the person who wrote it.
Isaiah and Jeremiah were probably the two most important prophets. Isaiah brought God's message to the people during the
time of the divided kingdom; Jeremiah preached during the forty years leading up to and including the destruction of Jerusalem
by the Babylonians. The horrors of the final siege of Jerusalem are the subject of the small book of Lamentations.
Ezekiel and Daniel were among those Jerusalemites taken captive to Babylon; but whereas Ezekiel lived in one of the
workers' camps, Daniel was taken into the palace and trained to be an administrator. Each served God where he was and brought
God's message to those who needed it.
The next twelve prophets are sometimes called the Minor Prophets, not because they were junior to, or less important than,
the previous four (the so-called Major Prophets), but because their books are shorter. Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah,
Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah all belong to the period that began with the division of the kingdom and ended with the
destruction of Jerusalem. The final three, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, belong to the period of national re-construction that
followed Israel's return to Palestine as recorded in Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther.
At the time the Old Testament story closes, Israel, though back in its land, was still under foreign rule, namely, the rule of
Persia. When Greece conquered Persia (334-331 BC), Israel fell under the rule of Greece, and in the second century BC regained
its independence. But in 63 BC it lost its independence to Rome, and was still under Roman rule when Jesus Christ was born.
(End of article by Don Fleming)

PART I
The Key Question We Must Ask
When Reading the Bible
When we study the Old Testament, we immediately realize that we are going to face problems in understanding what it
means. First of all, it is an enormous book, and the reader can feel helpless to conquer it. Secondly, it is from thousands of years
ago, and the culture and history may be foreign to us. Thirdly, it has a lot of variety in it. In fact, the Bible actually contains
different kinds of literature. Much of it is straight out history. Beyond the history, several books are called wisdom literature, for
example, Psalms, Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes. In addition, all of the Psalms and much of the Prophets are written as poetry,
which makes our reading even more challenging. The last third of the Old Testament is prophetic, which is especially
challenging to interpret, as we will see, because the prophetic literature contains a great variety of literary approaches as well.
Key Question
What effect did the original author want this
piece of writing to have on his original readers
when they read it?
With so much variety, we might be tempted to give up and not study the Bible at all, but that would be a serious mistake. In
reality, the Old Testament is easy enough to understand once we choose to answer this question; “What effect did the original
author want this piece of writing to have on his original readers when they read it?” As long as we answer this inquiry, we will be
able to understand the passage and know how God wants us to change our lives in light of it. Notice that there are four parts of
this question.
First of all, our question is about the original author, such as
Moses, David, or Jeremiah. We understand the fact that God Sub Question 1: Original Author
himself is the author of the Bible, yet God chose to use individual What do we know about the writer, his style, his
authors to communicate his message and therefore we are limited to situation that will help us understand what he wrote?
asking the question, “What did the original author want his readers
to do because of this passage?” If we can find out any information
about that writer, the better off we will be, because we may be able to guess what effect he wanted his composition to have on his
readers by understanding his life and circumstances.
Secondly, the question is about the people who first would
have read this work. Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Sub Question 2: Original Readers
Testament. His audience was recently freed Hebrew slaves and his What do we know about the people, their culture, and
goal was that these former slaves would understand and do what the their situation that will help us understand what the
Lord commanded of them. David wrote his poetry to the people author wrote?
who were living in Jerusalem and Israel. Ezekiel prophesied to the
Hebrew people living in Babylon so that they would turn away from
their sins and return to following God. When we read an Old Testament passage, we are asking this, “What did the original
author want this piece of writing to do to his original readers? What would those original readers have understood, felt, and done
after reading this passage?”
Thirdly, notice that we are asking about the effect the original
author wanted to have. He wrote the piece in order to do Sub Question 3: What Effect?
What does this piece seem to be trying to accomplish?
something to his first readers. Perhaps he wanted them to trust
God, perhaps he wanted them to feel bad about their sin, perhaps he
wanted them to pray about something or to take steps of faith with
God. He might even want them to experience a certain feeling (peacefulness, for example, as a result of reading Psalm 23).
Often, the answer is easy to find. Sometimes, however, we must take our best guess based upon the author’s situation, the
people’s situation and the kind of writing we are examining.
Finally, we are asking about the piece of writing itself as well.
The original author produced a series of sentences, arranging them Sub Question 4: The Piece of Writing Itself
in such a manner that they might affect the original readers. Are What special features of the writing itself should we
there special words we need to define, types of literature (parable, notice?
story, history, poetry, metaphor, etc.) that we need to identify?
What is its context within the chapter and book? Often, people go
right to this question without examining the author and his audience. This is the last question we ask, however.
Of course, since all of the authors of the Scriptures are dead, we cannot ask them to answer our questions, and so we must
look at clues in the text itself. As we ask our main question and the four questions it leads to, we will look at the context of the
book, the forms the author used in order to write, any historical background that we can discover about the situation, and kinds of
Old Testament Introduction Page 5 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

communication which are common to the readers in the day the book was written. Some of these helps are not readily available
to students when they sit to read the Bible, yet many of these helps are right there in the Scriptures themselves. Therefore we are
going to take the approach that by studying the Bible itself, we can find most of what we need in guessing what the author wanted
this piece of writing to accomplish in his readers.
The kinds of literature in the Old Testament

The Old Testament has several different kinds of literature and
that means that we have to study each part of it differently. Why Writers use different kinds of approaches to make the
are there differences? The simplest (and perhaps best) answer to impact they wish to make in their readers.
this question is that each of the writers of the Old Testament had a
goal when they composed their works. They wanted to make a
particular impact on their readers, and that meant that they might use a different form of writing to make that impact. For
example, poetry makes a very different impact on the reader than a straightforward law might have. The poem may give the
reader an emotional sense of God’s greatness and wisdom whereas the law might expose sin in the reader and point him or her to
repentance. That means that we must study poetry differently than we would study the ten commandments, because we already
know that the author of the poetry has a different goal in mind when he writes in images and word pictures. This is also true of
prophecies. The prophet has a clear goal in writing (which we can almost always tell just by reading the entire passage in its
context in the bible and in history). Old Testament prophets used poetry, commandments, history, and many other approaches to
accomplish their purposes in their readers. Therefore we must be careful in understanding the different kind of literature that we
encounter in reading the Old Testament.
Historical Writings
First of all, about one third of the Old Testament is historical.
Our first question is to ask, “What effect did the original author want
this piece of writing to have on his original readers when they read When any author writes his history, whether it is
it?” History presents us with a unique problem because the Old secular or sacred, that author follows a plan to lead
Testament history writers do not usually tell us what effect they are him or her in choosing what stories to select and how
hoping their particular book to accomplish. Often we must think to present those stories.
very carefully to understand what the purpose of the historian is in
writing his work. Of course, contrary to popular assumptions, every
historian, whether secular or religious, has a purpose or plan which guides his writing. The Old Testament history also has clear
direction, and we must carefully discover what that direction is.
Old Testament Law

Within the historical section, we have four books which describe
the Laws Moses gave to Israel during their forty years in the The Old Testament Law can be found in Exodus,
wilderness, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. We Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy
have a special task in understanding the Old Testament laws. Many
Christians ignore the Old Testament Law, because they believe it
does not apply to Christians today. In one way, this is sometimes correct; Christians do not carry out sacrifices nor do they
celebrate Hebrew religious feasts. On the other hand, when Jesus was explaining who he was and why he was to die, he used the
Law and the Prophets both to do it. In addition, Peter, James, Paul and Hebrews often quote from the Old Testament Law to
explain key points for Christian growth. Although generally the Law is not difficult to understand, there are many verses in the
books of Law which can be confusing. Ancient history helps us greatly in understanding some of these. In addition, we can read
other clearer passages in the bible which give us understanding concerning the ones we may not entirely understand.
Wisdom Books
Secondly, we have books which are commonly called wisdom
books. Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs fall The “wisdom books” have some features in common,
into this category. If you know anything about these five works, but also are quite different from one another.
you will know that each one of them is very different from the
others, so we need to learn how to interpret them each one
separately, although some principles will cover more than one.
Prophets
Thirdly, we have the Prophets. A few of the prophets are quite long. Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel are each compilations of
many different prophecies that those three prophets made over several
decades of ministry. A few prophets (Daniel, Hosea, Amos and
Zechariah) are medium-sized in length. The rest is fairly short and The best source for the historical background of the
quick reading. A couple of books of the prophets contain a single prophets is to read the biblical stories in the Old
message and some cover a short period of time, whereas others cover Testament historical books.

the reigns of more than one king. Three books (Daniel, Ezekiel, and Zechariah) have some bizarre images that require special
considerations. We need to understand the historical situation that led these prophets to write their books. Knowing that we need
to understand the history BEFORE we understand the prophet might unsettle us at first until we discover that those historical
situations are right in the Bible itself! For example, the book of Isaiah was written during the reigns of these kings; Uzziah,
Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. (Isaiah 1:1) All we need to do is to read through these sections of the Old Testament history before
we start reading Isaiah. Probably more than half of our questions will be answered just by remembering the background there.
How to Look at Different Kinds

of Writings in the Old Testament
by Don Fleming
(An excerpt from Let the Bible Speak for Itself)
Ideas put into words

Although matters of history, geography, culture, authorship, structure and literary form are constantly in our minds as we
read the Bible, our ultimate concern is with the words themselves. Whatever language we speak, words are the means by which
we express our ideas. If we are to express those ideas correctly, we must use the right words.
The actual words that the Bible uses are therefore important. They say what God wanted to say. The Bible writers recognize
this, and may even base a statement on a specific word. Paul does this in Galatians 3:16, where he draws attention to a word used
in Genesis 12:7 concerning God’s promises to Abraham and his descendants. The Hebrew word used in Genesis for
‘descendants’ has also been translated ‘offspring’ and ‘seed’. It is singular, not plural, a point Paul uses to show that the true
fulfilment of the promises is found not in a whole nation but in one specific person, namely, Jesus Christ.
This, however, does not mean that our reading of the Bible must be a word-by-word study. Words function as parts of a
sentence, and their importance lies in the truth they express. New Testament writers may therefore quote Old Testament
Scriptures without a word-for-word exactness. They express the meaning without following the wording. Paul does this in
Romans 11:8 when he joins parts of Isaiah 29:10 and Deuteronomy 29:4 in his own free quotation.
Whether we read the Bible in our own language or in one of the original languages (Hebrew in the Old Testament, Greek in
the New), we must realize that the unit of meaning can vary in length, depending on the style of writing and the purpose of the
writer. In some cases much may depend on one or two words; in others the unit of meaning may consist of several sentences. But
always we must keep two viewpoints before us: the meaning of the words depends on their context within the sentence, and the
meaning of the sentence depends on the words within it.
Prose and poetry

Hebrew poetry is a good example of how one central idea might be expressed in a lengthy Hebrew poetry often
form. The meaning is found not by concentrating on individual words, but by looking at a number uses many words to
of lines or sentences that together represent the writer’s idea. Words and phrases are carefully explain one main
multiplied and arranged to produce an overall effect. thought.
One statement, for instance, may express the main thought, and a second may repeat it in a
slightly different (or parallel) form: ‘To get wisdom is better than gold; to get understanding is more
desirable than silver’ (Prov 16:16). In other cases a verse may be repeated as a refrain (e.g. Ps 42:5,11), just as we today repeat a
refrain when singing certain hymns. Repetition and parallelism are but two of many distinctive features of Hebrew poetry, but
they remind us that we must consider how words are used if we are to understand their meaning. We need to know the kind of
writing we are reading.
Since poetry is the literary form for much of the Old Testament (chiefly, the book of Psalms
and most of the wisdom and prophetical literature), we need to recognize it as poetry if we are to
The Psalms, Job,
understand it. Let us suppose, for example, that I am a poet. Suppose I write a poem, by which I
Ecclesiastes,
express my innermost thoughts and deepest feelings. I choose and arrange the words in a certain
Lamentations and much
way, with the aim of achieving a particular effect. I do not follow the normal rules for writing
that we read in the
prose, and I may include various word-pictures, images, expressions and figures of speech that
prophetic books are
would not be suitable in prose.
written as poetry.
But suppose someone picked up my poem and read it without any regard for poetry – as if it
were a few paragraphs from the front page of the daily newspaper. Not only would the person
fail to understand what I was saying, but I should be very disappointed. If I write poetry, I
expect people to read it as poetry. Likewise the poet of the Bible expects us to read his writing as poetry. Yet Christians often
read it as if it were prose. In so doing they may interpret literally what the writer meant figuratively, but worse still they will
probably miss the writer’s mood and purpose completely.
The name Yahweh

In the Hebrew Bible a number of words are used for God, the most common of which are translated in English Bibles as ‘God’
(Hebrew: el or elohim) and ‘the LORD’. The latter of these two words, which is always printed in capitals, has a distinctive
significance in the Old Testament. Where God is called ‘Lord’ (and the whole word is not in capitals), the Hebrew word is

usually adon or adonai, a word that indicates God’s sovereignty as lord and master. But where he is called ‘LORD’ (in capitals)
the Hebrew word is yahweh, the name of the Hebrews’ God.
There is some mystery concerning the origin and usage of this name. Israel’s ancestors knew God as Yahweh (Gen 12:1; 26:2;
28:21; 49:18), but the people as a whole seem to have first understood the significance of the name only at the time of their
escape from Egypt under Moses. God revealed himself to Moses as ‘I am who I am’ (Exod 3:14; sometimes translated ‘I will be
who I will be’), and Moses was to pass this revelation on to the people. In revealing himself in this way, God was providing an
explanation of what the name Yahweh should have meant to his people. In the Hebrew language the word translated ‘I am’ is
related to the name of God, Yahweh.
Originally the Hebrew language was written using consonants only. The absence of vowels was no problem, because readers
knew how to put in the vowels as they read. The name of Israel’s God was written as YHWH (without vowels) but pronounced
apparently as Yahweh. There can be no absolute certainty about this pronunciation, because there are no Hebrew records old
enough to record it.
By the time the Hebrews had developed the practice of adding vowels to the written language, they no longer spoke the name
YHWH. This, they claimed, showed their reverence for the holy name of God, but for many it was more a superstition. Whatever
the reason for it, the practice developed that when the Hebrews read the Scriptures, instead of speaking the word YHWH, they
used the word adonai (meaning ‘lord’ or ‘master’).
When, about 300 BC, a version of the Hebrew Bible added vowels to the consonants, it put the vowels of adonai to the
consonants YHWH. This produced a new word, Jehovah, though the Hebrews still preferred to substitute adonai for YHWH
when speaking. English translations of the Bible have usually avoided the pronunciation problem by using ‘the LORD’ (in
capitals) instead of YHWH.
Names of nations
A common practice among the Old Testament prophets was to refer to countries by some representative feature, such as a king
(Isa 14:4; Ezek 28:2), a god (Isa 46:1; Jer 48:46), a river (Isa 8:7; Jer 2:18), a mountain (Isa 1:27; Ezek 35:2), a tribe (Isa 7:2; Jer
49:8), or a city (Isa 9:8-9; Jer 49:3). The reader of the prophets will therefore find that the northern kingdom Israel is often called
either by the name of its leading tribe, Ephraim, or by the name of its capital, Samaria. In the same way the southern kingdom
Judah is sometimes called by the name of its capital, Jerusalem. Among foreign nations, those most commonly referred to by their
capital cities are Assyria (called Nineveh) and Syria (called Damascus).
Names of Israelites
During the years of the captivity in Babylon and the subsequent reconstruction of Israel, it became increasingly common to refer
to Israelites as Jews. The background to this change of usage goes back to the time of the divided kingdom.
When the people of the former northern kingdom (Israel) were taken captive to various countries by Assyria, they became
absorbed into the nations where they lived and largely lost their national identity. But when the people of the former southern
kingdom (Judah) were taken into captivity in Babylon, they retained their national identity. The people of Judah were called
Judeans, which was later shortened to ‘Jew’.
After Persia’s conquest of Babylon, captives from Babylon returned to the ancient Israelite homeland. This meant that most of
those involved in the rebuilding of Israel were Judeans, or Jews. But they were also Israelites, according to the meaning of the
name that went back to the nation’s origins. There was no longer any division in Israel between north and south, and the names
‘Israelite’ and ‘Jew’, along with the ancient name ‘Hebrew’, were used interchangeably (Jer 34:9; John 1:19,47; 2 Cor 11:22;
Gal. 2:14).
End of article by Don Fleming.

Part II
How to Interpret Old Testament Law
Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy tell us history, but they also contain many laws. The most famous laws are
the Ten Commandments, which are found in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. There are many other laws as well in these four
books. Here are some examples:
Laws about relationships: “Israel, remember this! The Lord—and the Lord alone—is our God. Love the Lord
your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) Do not take
revenge on anyone or continue to hate him, but love your neighbour as you love yourself. I am the Lord.
(Leviticus 19:18) “Respect your father and your mother, so that you may live a long time in the land that I am
giving you. (Exodus 20:12)
Laws about worship, priests, etc: The Lord called to Moses from the Tent of the Lord’s presence and gave
him the following rules for the Israelites to observe when they offer their sacrifices. When anyone offers an
animal sacrifice, it may be one of his cattle or one of his sheep or goats. (Leviticus 1:1-2) “Observe the
Sabbath and keep it holy. You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is a day of rest
dedicated to me. On that day no one is to work—neither you, your children, your slaves, your animals, nor the
foreigners who live in your country. (Exodus 20:8-10)
Laws about food: If any Israelite or any foreigner living in the community eats meat with blood still in it, the
Lord will turn against him and no longer consider him one of his people. (Leviticus 17:10)
Laws about cleanness: If someone unintentionally touches anything ritually unclean, such as a dead animal,
he is unclean and guilty as soon as he realizes what he has done. (Leviticus 5:2)
Civil laws: “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. “But if he did not lie in wait for
him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee. “If, however, a
man acts presumptuously toward his neighbor, so as to kill him craftily, you are to take him even from My altar,
that he may die. (Exodus 21:12-14)
Does God require us to obey all of these laws? How could we ever find out how to answer this question?
We must study the teachings of the greatest authority on the Bible, Jesus Christ. Jesus has given us clear directions about the
laws of the Old Testament. In addition, Jesus gave us his apostles to give us further understanding of the Law. Here is what we
learn from Jesus and his apostles.
1. Jesus Himself has fulfilled the Old Testament Law. This means that the laws about sacrifices, the temple,
priests, etc. are all fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He is now our temple! He is our high priest. He is our sacrifice for sin.
Do not think that these laws have passed away; they have been fulfilled by Jesus Himself!
a. Jesus taught that He would fulfill the Old Testament law. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or
the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. (Matthew 5:17) “You search the Scriptures
because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to
come to Me so that you may have life. (John 5:39-40) Then he said to them, “These are the very things I told
you about while I was still with you: everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the writings of the
prophets, and the Psalms had to come true.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, (Luke
24:44-45)
b. All of the Old Testament sacrifices pointed to Jesus. When we trust in Jesus to cleanse us from our sin, we are
trusting in Him as our final and perfect sacrifice. Therefore by trusting in Jesus as our final sacrifice, we are
perfectly obeying the Old Testament laws about sacrifices. It is not that we do not present an offering to God to
take away our sin. In reality, we do offer a sacrifice, Jesus Himself, the final offering for our sins!
i. Those things, which are copies of the heavenly originals, had to be purified in that way. But the heavenly
things themselves require much better sacrifices. For Christ did not go into a Holy Place made by human
hands, which was a copy of the real one. He went into heaven itself, where he now appears on our behalf in
the presence of God. The Jewish High Priest goes into the Most Holy Place every year with the blood of an
animal. But Christ did not go in to offer himself many times, for then he would have had to suffer many
times ever since the creation of the world. Instead, now when all ages of time are nearing the end, he has
appeared once and for all, to remove sin through the sacrifice of himself. Everyone must die once, and after
that be judged by God. In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins
of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for him.
(Hebrews 9:23-28)
c. God prepared for Jesus’ coming by giving many laws, such as:
i. The law of the Sabbath. Jesus is our Sabbath rest; we rest in Him!
(1) So let no one make rules about what you eat or drink or about holy days or the New Moon Festival or
the Sabbath. All such things are only a shadow of things in the future; the reality is Christ. (Colossians
2:16-17) If Joshua had given the people the rest that God had promised, God would not have spoken
later about another day. As it is, however, there still remains for God’s people a rest like God’s resting

on the seventh day. For those who receive that rest which God promised will rest from their own work,
just as God rested from his. Let us, then, do our best to receive that rest, so that no one of us will fail
as they did because of their lack of faith. (Hebrews 4:8-11)
ii. The laws about the Passover. Jesus is our Passover; through Jesus we are rescued from Satan and brought
to God’s promised land.
(1) You must remove the old yeast of sin so that you will be entirely pure. Then you will be like a new
batch of dough without any yeast, as indeed I know you actually are. For our Passover Festival is
ready, now that Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us celebrate our Passover, then, not
with bread having the old yeast of sin and wickedness, but with the bread that has no yeast, the bread
of purity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:7-8)
iii. The laws about the Temple. Jesus is our temple.
(1) But the temple Jesus was speaking about was his body. So when he was raised from death, his
disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and what Jesus had said.
(John 2:21-22)
iv. These are just a sample of many laws fulfilled by Jesus.
d. Jesus makes all things clean. Whether it is food or people, everything becomes clean in Jesus.
i. And He said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever
goes into the man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not go into his heart, but into his
stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.) (Mark 7:18-19) “I also heard a voice
saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’ “But I said, ‘By no means, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean
has ever entered my mouth.’ “But a voice from heaven answered a second time, ‘What God has cleansed,
no longer consider unholy.’ (Acts 11:7-9) I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is
unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. (Romans 14:14)
2. Many of the Old Testament laws were about a civil government, the nation of Israel. They were for a
specific political system. Christians belong to a heavenly kingdom, not an earthly one.
a. Whereas the Hebrews were to execute those who committed murder, Christians are supposed to forgive them.
The difference is easy to explain; the Hebrews had a civil government on earth and had to keep order in their
society. Christians, however, do not belong to this world, but to heaven. Their government is above with God
and they are not supposed to try to create a “Christian” nation here on earth.
i. Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants
would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this
realm.” (John 18:36) We, however, are citizens of heaven, and we eagerly wait for our Saviour, the Lord
Jesus Christ, to come from heaven. (Philippians 3:20)
3. All of the commandments about relationships are still true for today. Christians are supposed to do everything
the Old Testament law commanded about their relationships with others.
a. The Old Testament laws about relationships can be summed up with the statement: “Love your neighbor as
yourself.”
i. Jesus answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
This is the greatest and the most important commandment. The second most important commandment is
like it: ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself.’ The whole Law of Moses and the teachings of the
prophets depend on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40) You will be doing the right thing if
you obey the law of the Kingdom, which is found in the scripture, “Love your neighbour as you love
yourself.” (James 2:8)
b. The New Testament writers often use Old Testament laws to encourage godly living.
i. Children, it is your Christian duty to obey your parents, for this is the right thing to do. “Respect your
father and mother” is the first commandment that has a promise added: “so that all may go well with you,
and you may live a long time in the land.” (Ephesians 6:1-3)
c. Thus, commandments about how we care for other people, such as telling the truth, caring for others, doing
what is just to the poor, helping strangers, etc., still are God’s will for Christians.
4. As much as possible, find out what the New Testament teaches about Old Testament laws that you do not
understand. The best way to find what the New Testament teaches would be to use either the Treasury of Scripture
knowledge (http://www.searchgodsword.org/com/tsk/) or “Nelson’s Cross-Reference Guide to the Bible.”. These
invaluable tools will direct you right to a New Testament passage which may help you decide how you are to
respond to a particular Old Testament law. If you cannot find a New Testament verse to help understand your Old
Testament law, ask these five questions.
a. What is the basic principle of this law? Is this law focused on being a member of the Hebrew nation? Is it
focused on staying holy? Is it promoting moral goodness? Is it about rituals. Try to figure out the main
purpose of the law.
b. If this Old Testament law is about rituals, i.e., about sacrifices, the temple, the Sabbath, priests, fastings,
festivals, worship, etc, then you can know that these things have been fulfilled in Jesus himself, and God is not
commanding you to do these particular actions.

c. Is this Old Testament law a civil commandment about how to punish criminals, how to divide property, how to
decide lawsuits, dealing with farm animals, etc.? If it is, you can know that you are not a part of the kingdom of
the Hebrews; you are a citizen of heaven and follow the laws of heaven.
d. Is this Old Testament law about how God’s people are to treat others? If it is, then you are to obey that law, not
out of fear of God’s punishment, but out of love for others.
e. Are there other New Testament discussion of laws that are like the law you are trying to understand?
The most important principle to remember is also the easiest: What does Jesus say about this law? What do Jesus’ apostles
say about this law? Are there other laws like this one that Jesus explains? Always go back to Jesus and find your answers there.
The Old Testament Books of the Law

By Don Fleming
from Bridgeway Bible Commentary
Note: These introductions were written by Don Fleming, and are in the Bridgeway Bible Commentary
(http://www.bridgeway.org.au/Download/Download.htm). Students must remember that these introductions are not the same as
the Bible itself; they are one man’s interpretation and therefore may have errors in them. Nevertheless, they will help readers to
have a basic idea about each book of the Old Testament.
Genesis
INTRODUCTION
The name Genesis means ‘origin’ or ‘beginning’ and is a suitable name for the book of the Bible that speaks of the origins of the
universe, of the human race, of human sin and of God’s way of salvation. Though it stands at the beginning of our Bibles as an
individual book, it was originally part of a much larger book commonly called the Pentateuch, which is the first five books of the
Old Testament. Those who gave the name ‘Genesis’ to the first book of the Bible were the translators of the Pentateuch. The
ancient Hebrews called the book by its opening words, ‘In the beginning’. The book’s chief concern, however, is not with
physical origins, but with the relationship God desires to have with the people who inhabit his earth.
Adam and Eve, though sinless when created, fell into sin, and the evil consequences of their sin passed on to the human race
descended from them. Rebellious humanity deserved, and received, God’s judgment, but that judgment was always mixed with
mercy. God did not destroy the human life he had created. Rather he worked through it to provide a way of salvation available to
all. His way was to choose one man (Abraham), from whom he would build a nation (Israel), through which he would make his
will known and eventually produce the Saviour of the world (Jesus).
The book of Genesis shows how human beings rebelled against God and fell under his judgment, but it shows also how God
began to carry out his plan for their salvation. After recording his promises to make from Abraham a nation and to give that
nation a homeland in Canaan, it shows how the promises concerning both the land and the people began to be fulfilled.
Exodus
BACKGROUND
The Genesis story concluded with the family of Jacob (Israel) firmly settled in Egypt. Exodus takes up the story approximately
four hundred years later (Gen 15:13-14; Exod 12:41), by which time the descendants of Israel had multiplied till they were a
nation in their own right, even though still in Egypt. The book shows how God delivered his people from slavery in Egypt, led
them to Mount Sinai, and there formally confirmed the covenant made with Abraham, so that Israel might become in reality a
people who would belong to and live for God. God then gave the people, through Moses, the principles by which they were to
live and the religious order which they were to maintain if they were to enjoy the blessings of the covenant.
Revelation of God’s character
Apart from its value in recording the historical facts on which Israel’s national and religious life was built, Exodus is important in
revealing much of the character of the one who was Israel’s God. Above all, he was a God who redeems. The people of Israel
were always to remember him as the one who brought them ‘out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage’ (Exod 6:3-8;
20:2).
Israelites were to see their history not just as a collection of stories, but as a revelation to them of who God was, how he operated,
and what he expected from them. God was involved in every aspect of Israel’s life: victories were his saving acts, disasters were
his judgments. The preservation and growth of the nation was God’s doing (Exod 1:21; 14:21-22,31; 32:35). Israel’s God was
holy, which meant that the people also had to be holy. They were to be set apart for God and were to keep his commandments
(Exod 19:5).
Yet this God, who was different from and separate from his sinful creatures (Exod 19:12-13), also wanted to dwell among them
(Exod 25:8; 33:14). The one whose holiness and justice required the punishment of the sinner (Exod 32:33) was the same one
who graciously provided the way whereby repentant sinners could come to him, have their sins forgiven and be brought into
living fellowship with the holy God (Exod 29:10-14; 34:6-7).
Leviticus
BACKGROUND
In accordance with his promise to Abraham, God had brought the people of Israel out of Egypt and set them on their way to

Canaan. After three months they arrived at Mount Sinai, where they remained for about a year while they organized themselves
for the new life that lay ahead (Exod 19:1; Num 10:11). The book of Leviticus contains some of the teaching God gave to his
people during the year they were camped at Sinai.
Religious system for a covenant people
The people of Israel knew that God had freely chosen them to be his people and in his grace had freed them from slavery in
Egypt. They therefore responded fittingly by promising to do whatever he required of them (Gen 12:2; 15:7-21; Exod 2:24; 4:22;
6:6-8; 19:4-9; 20:2). God then joined himself to Israel in a covenant ceremony in which he laid down certain basic principles and
detailed commandments, and the people in reply promised unconditional obedience (Exod 20:1-24:18).
God went on to show his people the plans he had for the religious life of the nation. He would provide them with a central place
of worship, a priesthood to officiate in religious matters, and a sacrificial system by which they could demonstrate their faith
towards him (Exod 25:1-Lev 7:38). To this he added a body of laws to ensure that priests and people alike were holy and pure in
their relations with him and with one another (Lev 8:1-27:34).
Almost the whole of the instruction in Leviticus is for the priests, who were only one family (the family of Aaron) within the tribe
of Levi (Exod 29:9; Num 3:9-10). However, Israel’s religious system in general is commonly called the Levitical system, and the
Aaronic priesthood is sometimes called the Levitical priesthood.
Numbers
BACKGROUND
At the point where the book of Numbers opens, the people of Israel had been camped at Mount Sinai almost one year. During that
time God had been preparing them for the life ahead by instructing them in the kind of religious, moral and social order he
required of them as his covenant people. (For details see introductory notes to Leviticus.) The time had now come for the people
to leave Sinai and head for the promised land, Canaan. The book of Numbers details the preparations for the journey, outlines
certain regulations that the people had to follow, and describes significant events that occurred along the way.
A nation in the wilderness
On two occasions between the people of Israel’s departure from Egypt and entrance into Canaan, Moses conducted an official
counting, or census, of the nation. These two census are recorded in the book of Numbers, and from them the book takes its
name.
The first census, at the beginning of the book, helped Israel prepare an army for the conquest of Canaan. Although the journey to
Canaan should have taken only a few weeks, it actually took about forty years. The reason for this was that the people rebelled
against God by refusing to trust him for victory, whereupon God left them in the wilderness till that generation died off and a new
generation grew up. The second census, which is towards the end of the book, was therefore forty years after the first, its purpose
being to organize the new generation for the conquest of Canaan.
Since the two census represent only a small portion of the book, the English title ‘Numbers’ does not give a true indication of the
book’s contents. The Hebrew title ‘In the Wilderness’ is probably more suitable, as the book covers the journey from Sinai to the
borders of Canaan, and much of this journey was through wilderness country. Most of the stories recorded in Numbers are
concerned with this journey. The book gives very little information concerning the forty wasted years when Israel was not
journeying, but ‘wandering’, in the wilderness (Num 32:13).
Deuteronomy
BACKGROUND
After receiving the law at Mount Sinai, Israel spent about forty years in the wilderness region between Sinai and Canaan. During
this time those who were adults when Israel left Sinai died and a new generation grew up (Num 14:28-35). Moses therefore
repeated and explained the law for the people of this new generation before they entered Canaan. This instruction was given
during the last two weeks of Moses’ life, while Israel was camped on the plains of Moab making preparations to conquer Canaan
(Num 22:1; 35:1; Deut 1:1-5).
Restating the law; renewing the covenant
The book of Deuteronomy is, however, much more than a mere repetition of the law; it is also an exposition. It restates the
commandments of the law but with a different emphasis. The laws recorded in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers gave the clearcut
legal requirements; Deuteronomy, though it does not lessen those requirements, adds that Israel’s religion must have more than
legal correctness. It must have spiritual warmth.
The covenant is the basis of Deuteronomy, but the relationship between God and his people within that covenant should be one of
love. The sovereign love of God towards his people should produce a response of obedient love towards him (Deut 5:6-7; 6:1-3).
Ancient covenant documents
The form of Deuteronomy is similar to that of the usual covenant document of the ancient Near East, by which a sovereign
overlord made a covenant, or treaty, with his subject peoples. Such a treaty was not a negotiated agreement, but a statement by
the overlord declaring his sovereignty over the people and laying down the order of life he required of them. The people had no
alternative but to accept the overlord’s terms.
In relation to the covenant between God and Israel, most of these features can be seen in the accounts given in Exodus,
Deuteronomy and Joshua. In the case of Deuteronomy, not only are the above features obvious, but the entire book seems to have
been written in the form of a treaty document.

PART III
How to Interpret Old Testament History
Normally, we think of history as real events which happened in the past. On the other hand, when we hear or read stories
about events which did not really happen, we call them myths. For that reason, many writers would say that the Old Testament is
not history, because it describes events which they claim scientifically could not have happened. For example, the Old Testament
describes a world-wide flood, the parting of the Red Sea at Passover and Elijah being taken up into the sky in a flaming chariot.
Professors of history since the early 1800's have viewed the Old Testament as a collection of myths rather than as a reliable
history of the Hebrew people, because they see these stories as impossible fairy tales. This opinion is still held by scholars, but
over the past 100 years archeologists have uncovered many facts which show that these professors are not actually as scholarly as
they would like to think
Is the Old Testament Real History?

We do not have space to defend the reliability of the Old Testament history in depth, but it might be helpful to mention just a
few undeniable facts. First of all, the Old Testament does present a timeline for its history, starting with Adam and going all the
way to the return of the Jews to Jerusalem under Ezra and Nehemiah. How do we construct a timeline for the Old Testament?
We begin by looking at the Old Testament genealogies, which tell us exactly how old a particular man was when his son was
born, and then tell us how old that son was when his own son was born, going generation after generation. These genealogies,
when put together, cover over two thousand years and are written as exactly as an accountant might record important information.
So, the first part of our timeline comes from the records we have in the genealogies. The rest of the timeline comes from the
accounts of Judah’s and Israel’s kings. We can figure this out because the stories of the kings in 1 & 2 Kings tell us how old a
king was when he began to rule on the throne and then how old his son was when his son began to rule on the throne. By
following these clear ages and by comparing the stories of kings in the Bible with what we know from other ancient histories, we
can confidently assert what the dates are for all of the genealogies and Hebrew kings in the Old Testament. The only
complication is that some kings began ruling while their fathers were still alive. Once we realize that, the timeline is clear and
exacting.
Now any intelligent critic would read this last paragraph and say, “You have not proven anything! You simply have shown
what the Old Testament says are the dates. In reality, the Old Testament is making those dates up. The people in those stories
did not even exist and those dates are just myths!” Yet at least these critics must admit that the Old Testament story presents
itself as a history by giving us clear dates in an orderly fashion. The fact that it presents an organized and realistic timeline may
not conclusively prove that the timeline is true, but it does give us a way to check on its reliability.
Is the Old Testament Timeline Accurate?

So, we have a timeline. Our task then is to check to see if the actual timeline of the Old Testament matches with the
evidence found by archeologists. When we look at actual archeological data, we find an overwhelming amount of evidence that
the timeline of the Old Testament is reliable. For example, even though the Bible says that David was king in Jerusalem, for the
past 100 years, history professors have claimed that David did not even exist, but was simply a myth. In 1993, archeologists
discovered writing from about 900 BC. This inscription was found in the ruins of the ancient city of Dan, and was probably
written by King Hazael of Syria. The inscription said, “. . . and I killed kings, chariots, and horsemen numbering two thousand.
I (or he) killed Jerhoram, son of the king of Israel. I (or he) killed Ahaziahu, son of Jehoram, king of the house of David.” This
discovery utterly shocked those who doubted the Bible’s reliability, because it clearly says that Jehoram was a king of the house
of David, clearly proving that David had been the first king of a line of rulers who belonged to the house of David. Furthermore,
we know from 2 Kings that Syria’s King Hazael (the person who wrote the inscription) did in fact go against Jehoram, king of
Israel, and he also seriously wounded King Ahaziah, the king of Judah. We also know that Ahaziah died shortly after this when
Jehu killed him. This inscription not only proves that David was the founder of the line of kings in Judah, but also that the story
about the death of Jehoram and Ahaziah was historically accurate!
Last year, a clay tablet was discovered written in Israel, written in what seems to be a very early form of Hebrew. The
archeologist who found the tablet is convinced that it proves David’s kingship in Jerusalem, and many others agree. Carbon 14
testing has dated it to the exact time when David reigned as King in Jerusalem. The clay tablet shows that during David’s
kingship the nation of Israel was growing and prospering. Other archeological data has recently shown this as well. It will be
more and more difficult to argue that the Bible’s story about David is simply a myth when archeology proves that the Bible is
accurate here.
In 2003, archeologists determined through radio-dating techniques that the tunnel running under ancient Jerusalem was
constructed around 700 B.C. The Bible claims that King Hezekiah built this tunnel. According to the Bible’s timeline, Hezekiah
reigned from 729 to 695 B.C., which is exactly the dating scientists determined through testing. Until this discovery, scholars had
said that the Bible’s claim about Hezekiah building the tunnel was simply a myth, but now science has proven the Bible was
entirely accurate here.
In another archeological find, in 2007 Michael Jursa, a professor from Vienna, translated an ancient clay tablet with writing
on it which had been stored in the British Museum since 1920. When he translated it, it described a man named Nabu-sharrussu-
ukin, who had sent gold to the temple. He checked that name and found it in the book of Jeremiah. “Then all the officials of the
king of Babylon came and took seats in the Middle Gate: Nergal-Sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-Sarsekim a chief officer,

Nergal-Sharezer a high official and all the other officials of the king of Babylon.” (Jeremiah 39:3) Jeremiah’s description of this
official of Babylon is entirely historical, as is proven by this tablet. That suggests that we should trust his other historical
statements.
These are just a few simple examples of literally hundreds of archeological finds that match the timeline of the Bible. From
the story of Jericho, the life of Abraham, the Egyptian Pharaohs, and many, many other stories in the Bible we are discovering
that the Bible timeline is accurate in amazing ways. Archeological discoveries are showing again and again that the Bible’s
timeline is historically reliable.
The Old Testament Describes Ancient Cultures in Accurate Ways as Well

Every bit as convincing as these proofs of the reliability of the timeline is the fact that archeologists have discovered
evidence that the customs we know about in Genesis also occurred in other ancient civilizations. Archeologists have found many
examples of cultural practices from ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, civilizations which existed the same time as Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob. For example, we learn about why Abraham’s wife Sarah brought her slave girl to Abraham. Archeological
finds show us that in 2000 B.C. if a woman was unable to have children, she should bring her slave girl to her husband. The baby
that was born to her slave girl would then belong to the woman. Archeologists now know why Jacob worked for seven years to
marry Rachael, a custom also revealed in these ancient findings. The way that Abraham bought his wife’s grave site is exactly the
same way purchases were made 20 centuries before Christ. Scholars have pointed out dozens of customs in the stories of Genesis
which can be explained by archeological findings from 2000 B.C. This is also true in remarkable ways for Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers and Deuteronomy, especially in the way Moses recorded the Law in Deuteronomy as a treaty between a mighty king (in
this case, the Lord) and his subjects (the Hebrews).
The discovery that the book of Genesis describes such ancient customs in accurate detail, however, is a serious problem for
professors of history who believe that the Old Testament history is a collection of myths. These scholars believe that no one even
began to write the Bible until around 900 BC. Furthermore, they believe that the stories in Genesis are myths, stories made up to
teach Hebrews living in Israel moral lessons about God and his ways. Yet archeology has proven that Genesis, Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy all describe very ancient customs and forms of laws which had been forgotten for centuries
before 900 B.C. It is impossible that a writer living in 900 B.C. would have known anything about these customs which had
existed between five hundred and a thousand years before this supposed writer would have begun creating Genesis. Imagine
making up stories about life one thousand years ago without any historical records to help you know what life was like then. The
fact that the first five books of the Old Testament give us so many examples of ancient culture suggests that these books must
have been written when those ancient practices were still a part of the culture, which is exactly what these books claim. The only
way Genesis could describe such ancient customs is if Genesis is an accurate history. The only way Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers,
and Deuteronomy could describe ancient laws and treaties is if these books were written during the time they say they were
written, i.e., 1445 B.C.!
Reading the Old Testament History as History

So much in the Old Testament sounds like history, from the genealogies to the stories about the kings. From Genesis all the
way to the book of Esther, the authors of the Bible wrote as if they wanted to tell the history of the Hebrews. We have seen just a
few archeological examples (and literally hundreds could be given!) which show that the history in the Old Testament is accurate.
Therefore, when you read a historical passage, read it as an accurate description of what really happened. Read it as history.
It is easy to spot history in the Old Testament. It is almost always straightforward, telling readers what actually happened as
a simple story. The history parts of the Old Testament are always written in prose, that is to say, in the ordinary everyday speech
that we normally use for writing. They simply say “So-and-so did this and then this happened. He was the son of so-and-so and
he lived this many years.”
Often the history tells us stories that might be embarrassing to a Hebrew who believed and followed the Law. For example,
the Old Testament history tells us that when the sinners of Sodom and Gomorrah tried to attack the guests of a foreigner named
Lot who lived in their city, Lot offered to give them his daughters to rape if they would leave his guest alone. It may not sound
noble, but it is what happened. Many other events in the Old Testament are just as upsetting. The history describes some of our
favorite biblical people lying, stealing, raping, betraying others, committing adultery, murdering, and worshiping idols. The very
fact that these favorite people, like David, Moses, Samson and others, are so sinful makes the history all the more believable,
especially in a book which condemns sinful behavior in the Law of Moses.
Are the Miracle Stories Fictional?

Therefore, it is easy to interpret the history once we realize that archeology proves the reliability of the Old Testament
timeline, and the customs recorded in the Bible match what archeologists know about ancient customs. Some readers, however,
have a problem when they come to miracle stories in the Old Testament, such as the crossing of the Red Sea, or the remarkable
strength of Samson. How should we interpret these stories? Do we believe that the original writer wanted his readers to
understand these stories as religious fiction? Or do we believe that the original writer wanted them to understand these stories as
history?
Our first clue is the fact that these stories are all written using prose, as opposed to using poetry. When we study the Old
Testament, we read poetry differently than we read prose. If the history parts had been written in poetry, we would assume that
these stories might not have happened since writers often use poetry to tell imaginative stories rather than careful history. Since

all of the history in the Old Testament is written in prose, we should assume that the authors wrote it as fact unless we can find
clues in the way they wrote it that would tell their original readers that the writing is not reliable.
For example, in American writing, authors give clues so that we can tell the difference between fiction and history. In fiction
stories, the writers often give us secret information about a character, i.e., what they are thinking, how they feel about something,
what they do when nobody is around. That is a clear indication that a story is fiction. History authors work very hard to show
that what they are writing is fact. They will mention where they received the information. If they give “secret information” about
the character, they will make sure you know how they found it out (i.e., through studying the person’s personal diaries, letters,
etc.). Almost always, the reader can tell if a work is fiction or fact.
It is completely reasonable to believe that an Old Testament writer might have created a story that was not historically true,
as long as the writer gave his original readers clues to warn them that he was writing fiction. In fact, sometimes Old Testament
writers did create stories that were not purely historical. They made it clear they were doing this by telling the story using poetry.
Many Bible-believing pastors and teachers would teach that the story of Job is historically true, but the words spoken by the
characters in the story may not be what was originally spoken. The reason they believe this is because Job chapters 3-41 are
poetry. In real life, people do not speak in poetry. In Job after chapter 2, the people speak only in poetry. If the author of Job
wanted us to think that he was quoting what the five characters in the book actually said, he never would have used poetry. That
does not mean that the events in the book did not happen, nor does it mean that the characters did not say the ideas we read in
Job. When we see, however, an Old Testament story written using poetry, we immediately think to ourselves, “This is not
entirely historical.” If I want to tell history, I use prose. If I want to reach deep into human emotions (which would certainly be
true of Job), I use poetry.
The Bible contains many fictional passages, such as the parables taught by Jesus, and certain poetical sections which do not
describe real historical events (“God flew on the wings of the dawn”, which is not a true historical event, or “You tore their flesh
from their bones”, which was not a true historical event either). As long as the authors let the readers know a story is not real
history, it is not a problem! They almost always do this by writing in poetry.
The Old Testament history, however, is written in prose, not poetry. I personally am not aware of any Old Testament prose
that is written in such a way as to suggest that it is fiction. The key to knowing if the Old Testament history is supposed to be
historical should therefore center on whether the authors wrote the historical passages with clues that would warn their original
audience that they are not reading history. The original writers would have to make sure that they began the story or introduced
the story or even used the kinds of words which would indicate that the story is fiction. If any scholar looks at an Old Testament
prose passage and decides that it is fiction, that scholar needs to prove it is fiction by showing clues from the story which would
have warned the original readers that it was not historically true.
So, when you read miracle stories, you need to read them just like you read all of the other stories, in other words, as history
and true. We are forced to assume that the original writer wanted us to believe these miracle stories are true, because they did not
write them with any clues to warn the original readers that the story was fiction. Of course, we understand that there are many
people who doubt the Bible. Those people will come face to face with an Old Testament miracle story and decide that it is
simply impossible regardless of whether the original writer presented it as history. If a reader has already decided that it was
impossible for God to do the various miracles we read about in the Old Testament, then nothing would change that reader’s
opinion. Even if that reader saw a miracle face to face, the reader would not believe it was a miracle, but would find a way to see
it as false.
What do we conclude from all of this discussion about the history parts of the Old Testament? If the story seems as if it is
history, if it does not have any clues that the writer was creating fiction, then even if it describes miracle stories, then we should
read it as history. Since the miracle stories of the Old Testament are written in exactly the same manner as the rest of the history,
we must read it believing that the original author wanted us to accept the miracle as a historical event.
The Old Testament Historical Books

By Don Fleming
(http://www.bridgeway.org.au/Download/Download.htm). Students must remember that these introductions are not the same as
the Bible itself; they are one man’s interpretation and therefore may have errors in them. Nevertheless, they will help readers to
have a basic idea about each book of the Old Testament.
Joshua
BACKGROUND
The book of Joshua is concerned largely with Israel’s conquest of Canaan and the division of the land among its tribes. As
early as the time of Abraham God promised that this land would belong to Israel (Gen 13:14-17), but several hundred years
passed before Israel was large enough to conquer and occupy it.
Israel’s new leader
God chose Joshua to succeed Moses as leader, but he made it clear that Joshua would not exercise the absolute authority that
Moses had exercised. Moses’ position was unique, and he spoke to God face to face. But after his death the civil leadership and
the religious leadership were separated. From that time on the usual procedure was for the civil leader to receive God’s
instructions through the high priest (Num 27:18-23). Nevertheless, Joshua was a person who understood God. His experience as a

spiritual guide, a civil administrator and a military leader fitted him well to lead the people of Israel into the new land and the new
era that lay before them (Deut 31:7,14,23; 34:9).
Judges
BACKGROUND
The book of Judges deals with events in Israel during the two hundred years that followed Joshua’s conquest of Canaan.
Israel under Joshua had won a great victory, but the people had not been fully obedient to God’s command to destroy all the
Canaanites. As a result those Canaanites who were left in the land became a source of trouble to Israel, both religiously and
politically.
During this period Israel’s history developed a pattern that is repeated many times in the book of Judges. Time and again
Israel turned away from God, copied the religious practices of the Canaanites, became politically weak and finally fell under the
power of neighbouring tribes or nations. But God, who used these enemies to punish his disobedient people, was long-suffering
and merciful. In each case he gave them, in his time, a deliverer from among their own people who overthrew the enemy and led
Israel back to himself.
These deliverers were called judges, because they carried out God’s judgment in defeating the enemy and delivering his
people. Other judges, less warlike, carried out God’s judgment by guiding the everyday affairs of his people according to his law.
From these leaders, military as well as civilian, the book takes its name.
Israel and its enemies
The people of Israel were not united. The main reason for this lack of unity was the people’s departure from God. If they
had made him the centre of their national life, their loyalty to him would have bound them together. Their disunity was made
worse by their failure to destroy the enemy among them. Canaanite strongholds in a number of key places kept the tribes apart. In
Canaan itself (the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea) the tribes were broken into three main sections –
northern, central and southern – while the eastern tribes were separated from the rest by the Jordan River.
The religion of the Canaanites
Canaanite gods were known as Baalim (plural of Baal; see Judg 2:11-12; 10:10; 1 Kings 16:31), and goddesses as Ashtaroth
(plural of Ashtoreth, or Astarte; see Judg 2:13; 1 Sam. 7:3-4) and Asherim (plural of Asherah; see Judg 6:25-26; 2 Kings 23:4).
These were gods of nature and fertility who, among other things, were believed to have the power to increase agricultural
productivity. Since Israel knew Yahweh as the Creator of nature, the people easily fell to the temptation to combine Canaanite
ideas with their own and so worship Yahweh as another Baal. The word baal was a common Hebrew word that meant master,
husband or owner, and since the Israelites knew Yahweh as their master, husband and owner, they further linked the Canaanite
Baals with him (Hosea 2:5-10).
The places where the Canaanites liked to carry out their Baal rituals were the sacred hilltop sites known as high places (Num
33:51-52; 2 Kings 23:13). Among the features of these high places were the sacred wooden or stone pillars known as Asherim
(named after Asherah, the goddess whom they represented; Judg 6:25-26; 1 Kings 14:23). From the beginning Israelites had
worshipped Yahweh at various places in the hills (e.g. Gen 22:2; Exod 17:8-15; 19:3), and again the people readily fell to the
temptation to take over the high places of Baal and use them in their worship of Yahweh. All this was in spite of God’s command
that the high places of Baal were to be destroyed (Num 33:52; Deut 12:2-3).
Prostitutes, male and female, were available at these high places for fertility rites. These were religious-sexual ceremonies
that the people believed gave increase in crops, herds, flocks and family (1 Kings 14:23-24; Hosea 2:5,8-9; 9:1-2,10-14). In
following the Baals, the Israelites were also guilty of spiritual prostitution. The covenant bond between Israel and Yahweh was
likened to the marriage bond; therefore, Israel’s association with Baal and other gods was spiritual adultery (Judg 2:12-13,17; Jer
2:20; 3:6-8; Hosea 2:13; 4:12).
Ruth
BACKGROUND
The story of Ruth belongs to the period of the judges, and provides a refreshing contrast with the low religious and moral
condition of Israel pictured in Judges. It shows that simple trust in God and loving thought for others still existed in Israel. Here
and there throughout the nation were people who tried to live their lives humbly and righteously before God. The story shows
also that God was graciously caring for such people and was guiding everyday events for their good, and ultimately for the good
of the nation.
1 & 2 Samuel
BACKGROUND TO 1 & 2 SAMUEL
Originally the two books of Samuel were one, and provided a continuous history of Israel from the time of the judges to the
end of the reign of David. The books do not name their author, though they indicate that material in them was collected from
various written records, such as those of Samuel, Nathan, Gad, David and the author(s) of the book of Jasher (1 Sam 10:25; 2
Sam 1:18; 1 Chron 27:24; 29:29).
The title ‘Samuel’ is taken from the man who is the leading figure in the early part of the story, and who anointed the two
kings whose lives are followed through the rest of the story. The period covered by the two books is between eighty and one
hundred years.

From judges to kings
The opening chapters of 1 Samuel carry on the record of Israel’s history from the book of Judges. During the time of the
judge Eli, Israel’s political and religious life followed the pattern of the period of the judges, with the people turning away from
God and falling under the power of their neighbours (1 Sam 2:12,32; 3:11-13; 4:10-11,18; cf. Judg 2:13-15). But when Samuel,
probably the greatest of the judges, successfully urged the people to put away their false gods and turn again to Yahweh, God in
his mercy rescued them from their enemies (1 Sam 7:3-6,13,15-17; cf. Judg 2:18; 3:9,15).
However, Samuel was not able to bring about any lasting change in the nation. His sons who succeeded him as judges were
worthless, and the people demanded that the system of government be changed. Instead of government by judges, they wanted a
monarchy similar to the monarchies of neighbouring nations (1 Sam 8:1-5). The outcome was the appointment of Saul as Israel’s
first king, but Samuel warned that this would not solve the nation’s problems. Under the judges God had punished Israel for its
unfaithfulness (1 Sam 12:9-11), and under the kings he would punish it just the same (1 Sam 12:13-15).
During the early days of the Israelite monarchy, the nation’s leadership retained many of the features of the leadership that
operated during the time of the judges. This was seen particularly in the way the leaders received the special power of God’s
Spirit to save Israel from its oppressors and carry out other tasks given to them (1 Sam 10:6; 11:6-11; cf. Judg 3:10; 6:34; 11:29;
14:6,19). Thus, when Saul rebelled against God and was rejected, the Spirit of God departed from him and came upon David (1
Sam 16:13-14).
But David was the last of the Spirit-gifted leaders. The people wanted, and received, a system of government where such
leaders were not needed. With a firmly established monarchy, the leadership would pass automatically from father to son (1 Sam
8:19-22).
In contrast to Saul, David submitted to God and desired to carry out God’s will (Ps 89:20; Acts 13:22). With David a new
era began, and Israel at last found the stability it had been looking for. The remainder of 1 and 2 Samuel deals with the reign of
David, whom Israelites of later ages regarded as Israel’s greatest king. He established the dynasty that produced the promised
Messiah (2 Sam 7:12-16; Matt 22:42; Luke 1:32-33).
1 & 2 Kings
BACKGROUND TO 1 & 2 KINGS
The two books of Kings (originally one book) carry on the history of Israel from the books of Samuel. They cover a period
of about four centuries from the closing years of David’s reign to the time the people were taken into captivity in Babylon. They
describe the division of the kingdom into two, and the history, decline and fall of the separate kingdoms.
Characteristics of the books
As with the books of Joshua, Judges and Samuel, the two books of Kings have been written as prophetic history. That is, the
author’s main concern was not merely to record events, but to show the meaning of those events in the purposes of God. (For
further discussion on the features of prophetic history see introductory notes to the book of Joshua.)
Because of this concern to see the meaning to Israel’s history, the writer does not record all the events of any one era. Nor
does he always place events in their chronological order. He selects and arranges his material according to its religious, rather
than its political, significance. He might mention a politically important king only briefly (e.g. Omri; 1 Kings 16:21-28), but deal
with politically unimportant events in some detail (e.g. the ministry of Elijah and Elisha). He deals with the affairs of surrounding
kingdoms only as they are of significance in God’s purposes for Israel.
The author of Kings has chosen to remain anonymous. He may have been a prophet, and he probably used the official court
records, along with the records of the prophets, in preparing his book (1 Kings 11:41; 15:7,23,31; cf. 2 Chron 9:29; 33:19).
Lengthy sections of the prophetical books Isaiah and Jeremiah are found also in Kings (e.g. Isa 36:1-39:8; Jer 39:1-10; 52:1-34).
The whole work was probably completed after the collapse of the Israelite nation, when the people were in captivity in Babylon.
1 & 2 Chronicles
BACKGROUND
As with Samuel and Kings, Chronicles consists of two books in our Bibles, but was only one book in the original Hebrew
Bible. The writer has not recorded his name, though he has recorded the names of some books and documents from which he
gathered his material (1 Chron 9:1; 27:24; 29:29; 2 Chron 9:29; 16:11; 24:27; 33:19; 35:25).
A chronicle is a record of events, and the biblical writing called Chronicles records events that took place in Israel during the
period covered by the books of Samuel and Kings. But Chronicles differs from Samuel and Kings in both style and content. The
Chronicler wrote for people of a specific period and with a clear purpose in mind.
Circumstances of the time
Chronicles was written many years after Israel and Judah had been taken into captivity. After the captivity of the northern
kingdom (Israel) by Assyria in 732 and 722 BC, many of the people of Israel became scattered among the nations where they
lived, and largely lost their national identity. Those of the former southern kingdom (Judah), who were taken captive to Babylon
in a number of stages between 605 and 582 BC, largely retained their national identity. When Persia conquered Babylon in 539
BC and gave permission to the Jews to return to their homeland, those who returned were people of this latter group. Further
migrations followed in succeeding generations.
Most of those who returned had never lived in Palestine and knew little of the temple that once functioned in Jerusalem.

These were the people for whom the Chronicler wrote. He wanted to give them some background knowledge about their country
and their religion. In particular he wanted to impress upon them that they were more than just a lot of migrants living back in the
land of their forefathers. They were a continuation of that pre-captivity nation whose life had been built on the twofold foundation
of the Davidic dynasty and the Levitical priesthood.
The Levites are always of particular interest to the writer of Chronicles. Whereas the writers of Samuel and Kings scarcely
mention them, the Chronicler mentions them repeatedly, to show the part they played in the nation’s affairs. He wants to
impress upon his readers that the nation functions best when the civil administration of the Davidic kings and the religious
order of the Levites work in harmony as God intended.
Ezra
BACKGROUND TO EZRA AND NEHEMIAH
It seems that in Old Testament times the books of Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah were joined to form a continuous story.
The book of Ezra begins at the point where the account in Chronicles ends.
The year was 539 BC and the Jews’ period of exile in Babylon was at last over. Persia had just conquered Babylon, and the
Persian king Cyrus had issued a decree giving permission to the Jews to return to their homeland (1 Chron 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4).
The era that followed is known as the post-exilic period. Six books of the Bible deal with this period, three of them historical, the
other three prophetical. The summary of events below will help towards a clearer understanding of these books.
First exiles to return
After Cyrus’s decree of 539 BC, many thousands of Jews returned to Jerusalem. They had their own Jewish leaders in the
civil administrator Zerubbabel and the high priest Joshua (or Jeshua), but they were still within the Persian Empire and still under
Persian rule. Jerusalem lay within the province known as Beyond the River (GNB: West Euphrates; NIV: Trans-Euphrates),
which extended from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea (Ezra 4:10,16; 7:21,25).
Soon after arriving in Jerusalem, the Jews began to rebuild the temple. First they set up the altar, and in the second year they
laid the foundation of the building (Ezra 3:1-3,8-10). However, enemies then began to oppose the builders, with the result that the
work stopped (Ezra 4:1-5,24).
Haggai and Zechariah
For at least sixteen years no work was done on the construction of the temple (Ezra 4:24). Then, in 520 BC, God raised up
two men from among the Jews in Jerusalem to rouse the people to get on with the job, and not to stop till it was finished. These
two men were the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (Ezra 5:1-2; Hag 1:1; Zech 1:1).
As soon as the people restarted work, there was renewed opposition (Ezra 5:3). The local governor referred the matter to the
Persian king Darius (Cyrus having died some years previously). Darius investigated the matter and found that Cyrus had given
permission to rebuild the temple. He therefore issued a second decree, supporting the initial decree of Cyrus, to allow the work to
go on (Ezra 6:6-12).
Haggai’s stirring preaching brought immediate results, and soon the Jews were again at work on the reconstruction of the
temple (Hag 1:2-6,12-15). Zechariah supported Haggai, and went on to give more extensive teaching designed to bring a spiritual
change in the lives and outlook of the people (Zech 1:4; 6:15; 7:8-9; 13:1). Four years after the restarting of the work, the temple
was finished (in 516 BC; Ezra 6:14-15; cf. 4:24).
The book of Esther
Persia’s next king after Darius was Xerxes I. He was also known as Ahasuerus, and reigned from 486 to 465 BC. He is the
king who features in the story recorded in the book of Esther.
Return under Ezra
Artaxerxes succeeded Xerxes I as king of Persia in 465 BC. In the seventh year of his reign (458 BC) he issued a decree
giving Ezra authority and finance to go to Jerusalem and carry out reforms there (Ezra 7:1,7,13).
It will be seen, from examining the relevant dates, that the events recorded in the opening part of the book of Ezra (i.e. events
relating to Zerubbabel, Joshua and the rebuilding of the temple) took place before Ezra was born. The writer of the book of Ezra
no doubt searched through many letters, documents and historical records to prepare much of the early part of the book. We do
not reach the time of Ezra himself till half way through the book. Ezra’s return was about eighty years later than Zerubbabel’s.
The people in Jerusalem in Ezra’s time were a different generation from those who returned with Zerubbabel.
Ezra was a priest and a scribe skilled in the law of God (Ezra 7:6,12). In former days a scribe was a person who made copies
of the law for those who wanted to read it, but in post-exilic days he became also a teacher of the law. He was a person whose
opinions in religious matters were highly respected. In later years the scribes gained more and more power in Israel, while the
prophets declined in both numbers and influence.
Nevertheless, the scribe Ezra was a man sent by God. He read the law and explained its meaning, so that it became a
handbook for the people to follow in their everyday living (Ezra 7:10; Neh 8:8). Here we see the origin of the religious system
known as Judaism that was developed by the scribes over the next few centuries. However, examples from the Judaism of Jesus’
time show that it was spiritually unhelpful and far different in spirit from the sort of religious life that Ezra taught.
Return under Nehemiah
In the twentieth year of his reign, Artaxerxes issued a second decree allowing a government sponsored group of Jews to
return to Jerusalem, this time under the leadership of Nehemiah (445 BC). The temple in Jerusalem had been finished more than
seventy years earlier, but the city itself was still in a state of disrepair, and the wall around the city had not yet been rebuilt. The

reconstruction of the wall and the city was the specific project for which Nehemiah received the support of Artaxerxes (Neh 2:1-
8).
Ezra had gone to Jerusalem thirteen years before Nehemiah. His reforms met with only partial success, and only when
Nehemiah arrived and became governor of Jerusalem did the reformation have any great effect on the population as a whole. The
two men worked together in leading the people back to God (Neh 8:9). Nehemiah stayed in Jerusalem twelve years, then returned
to Persia (Neh 2:1; 13:6). Some time later he came back to Jerusalem (Neh 13:6-7).
The biblical book of Nehemiah, which was written by Nehemiah himself, records the significant events of his two terms as
Jerusalem’s governor.
Esther
BACKGROUND
The book of Esther belongs to that period of Israel’s history known as the post-exilic. The story recorded in the book took
place in Persia during the reign of the Persian king Xerxes I, also known as Ahasuerus, who reigned from 486 to 465 BC. (For
further details of the post-exilic era see background notes to the book of Ezra.)
Persia had become ruler of the Jews more than half a century before the time of Ahasuerus, when Cyrus conquered Babylon
(in 539 BC). Although Cyrus gave permission to the captive Jews to return to their homeland, many preferred to remain in
Babylon (or Persia, as it now was). They felt assured of reasonable security and freedom in the land of their captivity, and did not
want to face the risks and hardships of a new life in Jerusalem. They and their descendants continued to increase in prosperity,
but showed little interest in re-establishing their religion as a spiritual force in their national life.
God, however, was still guarding his people. The book of Esther does not mention the name of God or the religious activities
that should have been the main feature of Jewish life. But it shows that God was still ruling in their affairs, whether they
acknowledged him or not. He still had a purpose for his people and he would not allow them to be destroyed.

Part IV
How To Interpret Old Testament Poetry
Most English Bibles and at least some parts of Urdu Bibles make it easy to see the Old Testament poetry in the way they
arrange the lines of the poem. For example, in Isaiah 39, we have a story about messengers from a Babylonian king who visited
the Hebrew King Hezekiah. This story is written in prose, i.e., in the ordinary everyday speech that we normally use for writing.
The very next section, however, is poetry. On the page, you can see how the Good News Bible shows the difference between
poetry and prose. Unfortunately, the Good News Bible is the only modern English Bible which often does not show the
differences between poetry and prose, especially in the prophets. Sometimes, however, it does, as you can see in this example.
Compare the two passages below. Isaiah wrote both passages. The first passage (Isaiah 39) is written in prose, i.e., the
ordinary language people use for talking, writing newspaper articles, histories, letters, and general works. The second passage
follows right after it. It is not in prose, but in poetry. The Old Testament uses both poetry and prose regularly. For example, the
history books (Genesis-Esther) are all written in prose. The psalms are all poetry. The prophets have both poetry and prose, but
far more poetry. How can an average reader tell what is written in poetry and what is written in prose? Use the following
example as a model to recognize the difference between the two. This example is taken from the Good News Bible.
An Example: Isaiah 39
39 About this time, the king of Babylonia, Merodach Baladan, son of Baladan, heard
that King Hezekiah had been ill, so he sent him a letter and a present. 2Hezekiah welcomed
the messengers and showed them his wealth—his silver and gold, his spices and perfumes,
and all his military equipment. There was nothing in his storerooms or anywhere in his PROSE
kingdom that he did not show them. 3Then the prophet Isaiah went to King Hezekiah and Notice: This section is written in
asked, “Where did they come from and what did they say to you?” the way people normally talk and
Hezekiah answered, “They came from a very distant country, from Babylonia.” write, which we call prose.
The Good News Bible shows that
4 “What did they see in the palace?”
this is not poetry by printing it the
“They saw everything. There is nothing in the storerooms that I didn’t show them.” way any history, newspaper article,
5 Isaiah then told the king, “The LORD Almighty says that 6a time is coming when everything or story would be written (regular
in your palace, everything that your ancestors have stored up to this day, will be carried off to paragraphs, etc.).
Babylonia. Nothing will be left. Some of your own direct descendants will be taken away and
made eunuchs to serve in the palace of the king of Babylonia.”
8 King Hezekiah understood this to mean that there would be peace and security during his
lifetime, so he replied, “The message you have given me from the LORD is good.”
Isaiah 40
40 “Comfort my people,” says our God. “Comfort them!
`2
Encourage the people of Jerusalem.
Tell them they have suffered long enough
and their sins are now forgiven.i POETRY
I have punished them in full for all their sins.” Isaiah wrote chapter 40 of his
A voice cries out, book in poetry. The Good News
“Prepare in the wilderness a road for the LORD!
Bible shows that this is not prose
Clear the way in the desert for our God! (ordinary writing) by putting each
Fill every valley; thought as a separate line.
level every mountain.
The hills will become a plain,
and the rough country will be made smooth.
Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and the whole human race will see it. Notice that the Good News Bible
The LORD himself has promised this.” has broken this chapter into
A voice cries out, “Proclaim a message!”
sections. Each section is
“What message shall I proclaim?” I ask. separated by a blank line. This
“Proclaim that all human beings are like grass; helps in interpreting the poetry.
they last no longer than wild flowers. There are three sections here (1-2;
Grass withers and flowers fade,
when the LORD sends the wind blowing over them.
3-5; 6-8).
People are no more enduring than grass.
Yes, grass withers and flowers fade,
but the word of our God endures for ever.”

When you compare Isaiah chapter 39 with the beginning of chapter 40 (see the previous page), you can see a clear difference
between them. In chapter 39, Isaiah is writing with normal sentences and paragraphs, but in chapter 40, there are no paragraphs,
just lines. This is generally the way Bibles show the difference between poetry and prose in the Old Testament. You can tell if it is
prose because it has regular sentences and paragraphs, just like newspaper articles, novels, histories, and books do. The poetry has
individual lines that are not joined together in a paragraph. Except for the King James Version and many poetical passages in the
Good News Translation, most English Bibles write prose using regular paragraphs and poetry as one line per thought (see the
example of Isaiah 39 and 40 above). At least some Urdu Bible’s do the same thing in the Psalms, but (like the Good News
Translation), not in the prophets. You should easily tell (if your Bible sets the lines like this) whether the writer is using poetry or
prose.
The Good News Translation, for some reason, is apparently the only modern English translation of the Bible to print many
sections of the prophets in regular paragraphs, making them look like prose when they are actually poetry. This will make it more
difficult to find the poetry in the prophetic books, such as Isaiah or Micah. Generally, however, you can tell by the way the writer
emphasizes his point; he will make a statement, then say it again in a slightly different way (a sure sign of Hebrew poetry). One can
also tell if a passage in the Good News Bible is poetry if it uses many exaggerations to make its point and uses images and word
pictures to describe an important truth. By looking at your Bible, especially if it is not the Good News Translation, you can tell
what passages are written as prose and what passages are poetry. However, even in the Good News Translation , you can tell by the
kind of writing itself.
You might ask, what is the difference between interpreting prose writing (i.e., common ordinary way of writing) and poetry?
The first answer is that you must still answer the key question, whether poetry or prose: “What effect did the original author want
this piece of writing to have on his original readers when they read it?” So, you should always be asking this question whether you
are reading poetry or prose.
Poetry, however, does differ from prose in some important ways, which is why many of the writers of the Old Testament chose
to use poetry at times. Generally you can assume that poetry will take a lot longer to say something than prose does, and it will try
to create a deeper emotional response.
Example: the Tiger Outside the Door

For example, imagine this situation. You are inside your house in a village near the jungles of India. Your house door is open
and you can see out into the fields across from you. Suddenly you see a tiger walking toward your house, and it looks very hungry.
You look at the person who is standing next to the door. You desperately want him to shut it. What should you say?
What Do You Say When a Tiger Is Approaching the Door?
Option 1: Speak a prose sentence or two.

PROSE
“Hurry! Close the door! There’s a tiger out there!”
Option 2: Tell him to close the door by reciting a poem. . .

POEM
Danger lies beyond the narrow limits
of the door’s wooden frame
Its opening invites peril from without
to harm men unaware within.
An unattractive door
rusty hinges
ordinary latches
panels unpainted and ugly
before this moment all ignored, but now,
if soon enough closed and locked,
the commonplace turns suddenly into refuge.
When hazard lurk outside
the most ordinary things
frame, hinge, clasp, paneled door
become more precious to those within
than the treasures of king and Mogul
In the story of the open door and the tiger, you needed to say something that would have an effect on the person closest to the
door, i.e., you wanted that person to shut the door! If that’s what you want to accomplish, skip the poetry and get right to the point;
“Hurry! Close the door! There’s a tiger out there!”
In other words, prose statements get to the point quickly and clearly. Poetry takes a long time to make its point. So, the person
nearest the door jumps up, and slams the door tightly shut and locks it. Everyone breaths a sigh of relief!
Once the door is shut, however, you might stare at the door for a while and say,

“You know, I never realized how such a beaten up old door could be so precious to me!”
The first time when you spoke, you shouted out “Close the door.” Now you have spoken a second time, this time describing
how you feel. Notice that this statement is also prose and is not poetry. Everyone in the room would glance at the door and nod.
Imagine, however, that later on you decide to write that same thought in poetry. You stay up all night working on every word and
phrase.
Why would you write in poetry? It all depends on what effect you want to have on your listeners. The first time you spoke,
you simply wanted to get the door closed. You wanted your statement to affect your listener by making him get up and shut the
door in a hurry, before the tiger got in. The second time you spoke, you wanted to make a statement about how you felt about it
(“the door is precious to me”). You wanted to affect your listeners by making them understand how you were feeling at the
moment. The third time, however, you want to affect them by changing how they thought and felt about something, to consider
something deeply, and to change their attitude toward common things (like unpainted doors). Poetry (if it is good poetry, of course)
is supposed to speak to the person on a deeper level. Prose can do that, but good poetry does it better. Poetry is supposed to force
us to think differently, to feel deeply. It is supposed to impact us profoundly. So, you want to affect others by making them think
about how sometimes common things (doors) can be more valuable than the greatest riches. You write your poetic masterpiece.
Now, once you have written your poem about the door and the tiger, you hand it to all of your friends who were there that
evening when the tiger almost attacked them. They look at it and say, “Oh, a poem!” and they all read it with delight. Nobody
says, “How should I interpret this?” After all, everybody knows about poems. Reading a poem is quite a different experience from
reading a newspaper article. When you read a poem, you expect to have to read it a couple of times, and to think about it carefully.
You also expect that some of the ways it says things are different from a normal book or article. Imagine, however, that one of your
friends does not know how to read a poem. He does not read it a couple of times at all, nor does he think carefully to understand its
main point. In fact, he does not even read most of it one time, but only a few lines of it. He reads the part that says:
Rusty hinges
ordinary latches
Panels unpainted and ugly
Your friend stops there and then says to you, “Oh! You’re telling me to paint the door, aren’t you?”
“What?” you answer in a hurt tone. “Paint the door! I never even thought about trying to get somebody to paint the door! I
was trying to get people to think about how common things can become precious to us when something unexpected happens to us!
That was the effect I was trying to create with this poem.”
Your friend answers, “Well, your poem talks about rusty hinges, doesn’t it? And it talks about the fact that the door is not
painted, doesn’t it? If you didn’t write this to cause someone to paint the door, why did you mention those things?”
You shake your head. “Those are ways to make people think about something more important,” you answer. “I wrote the
poem to make people change their attitudes about common things.”
If the next day you come to the house and the door is painted brightly and the rust is gone from the hinges, you would feel that
your friend did not understand your poem at all. In this imaginary story, your friend read part of your poem out of context and
decided you wanted him to focus on how dirty the door was. He changed the whole point of the poem and therefore could not
understand what it really meant. That ruined everything for you the poet, because you wanted your poem to affect the way your
readers looked at common things like rusty hinges and unpainted doors. You did not care about whether the door was unpainted;
you cared about whether your reader would look at common things from a new perspective. Your friend, even after you told him he
was wrong, decided he wanted to read the poem another way. He dishonored you by refusing to read the poem the way it was
written.
Authors write poems or prose in order to affect people in a certain way. Each author has a different goal. The same principle
is true for reading biblical poetry. When people do not read Old Testament poetry as poetry, but misread it in the same way that
your imaginary friend misread your imaginary poem, they dishonor God, who is the true author of the poetry in the Bible. We must
read the poetry the way the original author wanted it to be read. If we refuse to read poetry as poetry, we dishonor God.
This attitude, of trying to read the poetry the way the original writer wanted it to be read, is the most important part of
interpreting poetry in the Bible. If the prophet writes in poetry, the prophet wants his writing to affect his readers in some way. He
wants readers to read what he created as poetry, studying each poetical section to find what that effect is supposed to be. If his
readers glance over just a few lines and say, “Oh, we should do such and such” without reading the entire section of poetry, they
will almost definitely have no idea what their response is supposed to be. So, if we want to read biblical poetry the way God wants
to read it, we need to understand each complete section, looking for the main point, asking ourselves continually, “What is the
writer trying to do to his readers by using this poetry?”
We are now ready to give some principles for understanding Hebrew poetry.
Principles for Understanding Hebrew Poetry

1. Always ask this question: What effect did the original author want this piece of writing to have on his original readers
when they read it? Why did he choose to use poetry to make this impact? Did he want it go deeper into their thinking, their
emotions and attitudes in order to have a more lasting impact on their lives? Did he want it to change their behavior in some
way? Is there an attitude they had that he wanted to change?
2. Look for one main point in each section. If you look at the example taken from the Good News Bible of Isaiah 39-40, you
will notice that the Good News Bible divides the poetry into sections, like paragraphs. There is a blank line which separates
each section. Just like any poem, you should read that single section as a whole and find the main point. Just like the poem

about the door and the tiger really only has one real point, you should assume the same thing for the poetical sections of the
Bible, whether in the Psalms, Job or in the Prophets. Look for the main point in each section. When the Good News Bible
prints poetry in the prophets as if it is prose, they print it in paragraphs. Read the whole paragraph (in the Good News Bible or
many Urdu Bibles) or the entire section (in other English Bibles) two or three times (they are quick to read). Ask this question;
“What the main point of this paragraph/section? What did the original author want this paragraph/section to do to his readers?”
There should usually only be one main point.
3. Often, Hebrew poetry emphasizes thoughts by repeating them in slightly different ways. When you see Hebrew poetry
saying the same thing twice, don’t try to figure out some clever difference between the first statement and the second statement.
It is just typical of the way Hebrew poetry works. Here is an example from Isaiah 40;
and the rough country will be made smooth
These two lines are saying exactly the same thing. Don’t assume that it is making two different statements that you have to
figure out. Repetition is one of the most important aspects of Old Testament poetry–the second line often repeats the first line
in a slightly different way.
4. Sometimes, the second line in Hebrew poetry will say the opposite of the first line. When you see Hebrew poetry make
one statement and then the very next statement says the opposite, understand this is a typical Hebrew way of speaking poetry.
Yes, grass withers and flowers fade,
but the word of our God endures for ever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
Yes, grass withers and flowers fade, but the word of our God endures for ever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
5. Hebrew poetry (like all poetry) uses lots of exaggeration to make a point.
A voice cries out,
“Prepare in the wilderness a road for the LORD!
Clear the way in the desert for our God!
Fill every valley;
level every mountain.
and the rough country will be made smooth
In the passage above, the prophet Isaiah does not mean that every valley in the world will be filled and every mountain will be
leveled. In other words, we should not assume that God wants us to find every single valley on earth and fill it and explode
every single mountain and bring it down to sea level. He is using poetical exaggeration to show the amazing and incredible
event that is coming; the Lord God will visit earth. If humans needed to do what Isaiah wrote here things literally (i.e., fill in
valleys and level mountains), the prophecy would never be fulfilled. Exaggeration is typical of all poetical language. See this
example in part of a poem by Iqbal.
Like the rose, it lives by bathing itself in blood.
For the sake of a single rose it destroys a hundred rose gardens
And makes a hundred lamentation in quest of a single melody.
For one sky it produces a hundred new moons,
And for one word a hundred discourses.
A key, then to interpreting poetry in the Old Testament is to realize that poetry often exaggerates because it wants to effect us
deeply within ourselves. When you read poetry in the Old Testament, look for the main point of the section and do not assume
that the poetical language is literal!
6. In the Bible, when writers use poetry to affect their readers, they often speak in images and metaphors. This is, of
course, true of all poetry. The Bible may say that God rode a chariot (Psalm 104:3) or that smoke came out of his nostrils
(Psalm 18:8). God does not ride chariots or need chariots! He does not have nostrils! When the biblical writers use poetry to
describe God, they often use images like this to force us to see God’s majesty or his anger or his power. They are not making
statements about God’s physical nature (he does not have a body! Christ now has a body, but the Father does NOT!). If you
believed every poetical description of God literally, you would believe that God has wings (Psalm 36:7)! Often in the Old
Testament, writers use images and pictures to make us see something from a different point of view. Remember, we do not
read just a single verse of a biblical poem; we must read the whole section to get the single important point! Do not take the
images and pictures we read in Old Testament poetry and turn them into some kind of strange so-called “biblical” statement.
a. Read the images and metaphors with this in mind, “What did the author want his original readers to do after they had read
this passage?’
b. Secondly, ask yourself if the poet explains the point of this image either in the passages before the section you are reading
or after it. If the poet explains the point of the image, that is what you should focus on.
c. If you do not know how to interpret the image, you should probably ask this question, “What does this image make me
feel?” For example, if David says that God rode the wings of the dawn to rescue him, riding the wings of the dawn tells us
that God came very quickly to David’s rescue.
By following these six steps, you will probably be able to understand most poetry that you read in the Old Testament. Most
people get into trouble when they read a few lines of a poetical section rather than reading the entire section. They think they know

what the meaning is simply because they have not carefully read the section to figure out its main point. Often as well, they do not
find out the original situation that led the author to write what he wrote. In addition, because they are not reading the poem as if it
is a poem, they make strange conclusions about what the author is saying (i.e., “paint the door” or “God has wings” or some other
completely incorrect conclusion).
Introductions to the Old Testament Poetical Books

By Don Fleming
(http://www.bridgeway.org.au/Download/Download.htm). Students must remember that these introductions are not the same as the
Bible itself; they are one man’s interpretation and therefore may have errors in them. Nevertheless, they will help readers to have a
basic idea about each book of the Old Testament.
Job
BACKGROUND
Among the many different types of books in the Old Testament are those known as the wisdom books. These are the books of
Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, though certain psalms and parts of other books might also be classified as wisdom literature.
Wisdom writings
Wisdom teachers were godly men who looked at life with all its consistencies and inconsistencies, so that they might help
God’s people find meaning and purpose in the life God had given them. Though they were aware of an afterlife (Job 19:26), their
main concern was to deal with the issues that people faced in the present life.
Understanding Job
Job was a wealthy, learned, God-fearing man who lived in Uz, a land somewhere in the region east of Palestine. When he was
overcome by a series of disasters, his friends argued that his troubles must have been because of his secret sins. Job denied this. He
knew that he was not perfect, but he also knew that the traditional views, such as those held by his learned friends, did not explain
everything. The long and bitter argument that followed takes up most of the book.
Job was finally satisfied, not through having all his questions answered, but through meeting the God to whom he had cried. He
may not have understood God’s purposes, but he learnt that God’s wisdom was beyond human understanding and he was worthy of
a person’s total trust. God was not answerable to anyone; he could do as he pleased.
Writing of the book
We should not read the book of Job as we would those books of the Old Testament that consist mainly of prose narratives,
legal commandments, or challenging sermons. This is not only because the book has the characteristics of wisdom literature already
considered, but also because it is in a stylized form. This is evident throughout the – in the narrative introduction, in the successive
rounds of debate, and in the dramatic conclusion.
As in all poetry, the language and word-pictures are often striking, and the writer does not expect his readers to interpret
everything literally. Nor has he designed the book to be read as a word-by-word study. Often one verse, or several verses, may be
used to express one basic thought. These features are typical of Hebrew poetry, and the more we understand such features the better
we will understand Job. (For more about the characteristics of Hebrew poetry see introductory notes to Psalms and Proverbs.)
Psalms
BACKGROUND
A psalm is a hymn of praise intended to be sung to musical accompaniment. The biblical book of Psalms is a collection of 150
of these hymns. The reader of Psalms does not have to move through the book from beginning to end as with other books of the
Bible, for the psalms are not successive chapters of a story, but individual songs and poems.
A collection with unity and variety
It seems that the collection of the psalms was made by a number of people over a long time. Although each psalm is a unit in
itself and not necessarily connected with the psalms before or after it, certain psalms have been grouped together. They may have
come from smaller collections that already existed (e.g. those of the ‘sons of Korah’; see Ps 44-49) and some seem to have been
arranged in a certain order (e.g. Ps 120-134).
Five major groups make up the collection and these are numbered in the Bible as Books 1 to 5 (see Outline below). At the end
of the last psalm in each of the first four books a general expression of praise has been added to mark the close of the book. The
very last psalm, the 150th, has been placed where it is to form a grand climax to the whole collection.
Writers of the psalms
In many cases a psalm is introduced by a title (or heading) that gives the name of the author or the name of the person(s) from
whose collection the psalm was taken. David is named as the author of seventy-three psalms, which is almost half the collection. He
was a gifted musician and poet (1 Sam 16:23; 2 Sam 1:17-27; 23:1) and was the person who first arranged Israel’s musicians and
singers into formally recognized groups for the temple services (1 Chron 15:16-28; 16:7).
Characteristics of the Psalms

In reading Psalms we should bear in mind that the book is one of poetry, specifically Hebrew poetry. The distinctive style of
Hebrew poetry comes not from metre and rhyme as in traditional English poetry, but from the balanced arrangement of words and
sentences. This means that when Hebrew poetry is translated into other languages, it retains some of its style and rhythm. But we
should still seek to understand some of the linguistic characteristics of Hebrew poetry, as this will help us understand better what
the poet is saying.
Often the poet expresses a central idea by making two parallel statements, where the second repeats the thought of the first in
slightly different form (e.g. Ps 27:1; 104:28,33). Sometimes he might balance two statements, where one expresses a truth and the
other either states its opposite (e.g. Ps 37:9) or gives an application (e.g. Ps 103:5,13). In other cases the poet may develop his
theme through a careful arrangement of related statements (e.g. Ps 4:3-5; 91:1-2,14-16).
We can easily misinterpret the psalms if we look in too much detail at each line or sentence. We should rather treat the whole
verse as a unit. At times a verse is repeated as a refrain in the psalm (e.g. Ps 42:5,11; 46:7,11; 49:12,20). A number of psalms are
written in the form of an acrostic (see note on Psalms 9 and 10).
‘Selah’, a word that occurs in many psalms, is probably a musical direction. Its apparent purpose was to indicate a variation in
the music such as a pause, a softening of the music, a build up of voices, a change in the tempo, or the repetition of a line (e.g. Ps
89:37,45,48).
Proverbs
BACKGROUND
In the ancient world, as in the world today, the wisdom of experience was often summarized in short easily-remembered
sayings known as proverbs. The biblical book of proverbs is largely a collection of Hebrew proverbs, mostly from Solomon (Prov
1:1; 10:1; 25:1). It also contains lectures on the benefits of wisdom (Chapters 1-9) along with material from non-Hebrew sources
(Prov 30:1; 31:1). (Concerning wisdom literature in general see introductory notes to the book of Job.)
Most of the book of Proverbs is written in poetry. (Concerning Hebrew poetry see background notes to Psalms.) The poetry in
Proverbs consists largely of two-line units, where the two lines present an obvious parallelism. They may express the same idea in
different words (Prov 16:16), support one central idea with an application (Prov 16:21), develop a basic statement by showing its
outcome (Prov 3:6), or emphasize opposite truths by placing two statements in contrast (Prov 11:5).
We should not read Proverbs as if it were prose, nor should we read it as if it were a novel. This means we should probably not
read the book straight through all at once. The units of instruction are short and straightforward, designed to make readers stop and
think. The wisdom teachers, by presenting their teaching in a poetic form, encourage their readers to memorize it, so they can put it
into practice in the various circumstances they meet.
Ecclesiastes
BACKGROUND
Although the writer does not tell us his name, he was probably a well known wisdom teacher in Jerusalem. A number of of his
illustrations reflect the viewpoint of those with status and wealth, which suggests that his students were mainly from upper class
families (cf. Eccles 5:11-14; 6:1-2; 8:2-3; 10:4). But he also taught the common people at large (Eccles 12:9).
Teaching style
{It appears that Solomon wrote this book late in his life, perhaps almost right before he died.} He shows that all the wealth,
pleasure, wisdom and power that people may gain will, in the end, be of no benefit to them if they have wrong attitudes to life and
to God.
No matter what benefits people gain for themselves in life, they are cancelled by the certainty of death. Life seems useless (Eccles
2:14,18; 6:1-6). Yet through it all God is in control, directing events according to his purposes (Eccles 3:11a,14; 8:15b). The writer
is frustrated that he cannot know God’s purposes, but he never doubts that such purposes exist (Eccles 3:11; 8:16-17; 9:1a). People
should not therefore waste their time and energy searching after what God has kept to himself, but concentrate on enjoying what
God has given to them, namely, life (Eccles 3:12-13; 5:18-19).
God is the sovereign Lord who controls all that happens in people’s lives. At the same time he is the Creator who has given his
world to the people he created. Therefore, people should accept whatever God determines for them, but at the same time they
should find enjoyment in God’s world and in all their activities in that world (Eccles 2:24; 9:7-10). But this enjoyment must not be
selfish or without restraint, for they will only enjoy life properly as they act with wisdom rather than folly, and as they do good
rather than evil (Eccles 7:5,7-9,19).

PART V
How To Interpret Old Testament Prophecy
The Old Testament has many prophecies, most of which are in the books of the prophets (Isaiah to Malachi in the Old
Testament). There are five keys to understanding these books.
1. Start with your basic question, “What effect did the original author want this piece of writing to have on his
original readers when they read it?” You do not want to read just one or two verses in this prophecy and say, “Oh, God
is speaking to me through this verse” and ignore the rest of the passage. You need to understand what the original author
was trying to do with his readers, and that means you need to read the entire section.
2. Be familiar with the particular history that was going one when the prophet was ministering. We know when most
of the prophets carried out their work from the first few verses of their books {example: 1 The word of the LORD which
came to Hosea the son of Beeri, during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the
days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. (Hosea 1:1)}. Six prophets do not actually give this introduction (Joel,
Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, Habbakuk, and Malachi). Of those six, we know when Jonah prophesied from 2 Kings 14:25 and
we know about when Malachi ministered and have a fair guess about Habbakuk. That leaves only three for whom we
simply do not know when they prophesied. For the rest of the prophets, read the history before you try to understand the
prophecy. This guide to the Old Testament includes introductions to each on of the prophets, telling about their historical
situation.
a. It is true that reading the historical background gives us double work to do, because we have to find out first when the
prophet was ministering. In the example Hosea 1;1, we read that Hosea was ministering during the days of King
Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah and during the reign of King Jeroboam. That forces you to read about the
different events that happened during those days. The temptation is to skip the effort and just read it the best you can,
but you might as well not read it at all if you do not know the historical situation going on when the prophet originally
spoke. It helps if you can look over a simple introduction about the prophet, such as the one contained in this study
guide.
3. Determine if the prophecy is poetry or prose. Many prophecies in the O.T. are poetry, but some have prose sections.
a. If it is poetry, you need to apply the rules you have learned for reading poetry in the Old Testament. Remember, read
sections of poetry (most English Bibles and sometimes the Good News Translation and at least some Urdu Bibles
show the sections, putting a blank line between each section). Do not try to understand each little statement within the
section but try to understand the main point of the entire section. Ask yourself as you read the section, “What did the
prophet want to do by writing this?
b. The Good News Bible, which is an excellent English translation, has decided to print many of the poetry sections of
the prophets as prose. This will confuse you, perhaps, as you try to determine if a passage is prose or poetry, so look
over the discussion we have already had about poetry and see if it will help you to identify the poetry sections of the
prophets more easily. We can give you a simple rule, however, that will generally work for the prophets.
i. The following prophets wrote most of their prophecies using poetry and did not use much prose.
(1) Isaiah (4) Obadiah (7) Habakkuk
(2) Hosea (5) Micah (8) Zephaniah
(3) Amos (6) Nahum
ii. The following prophets mixed prose and poetry (the percentages are an estimate and are not scientifically
determined):
(1) Jeremiah (50% prose ) (4) Jonah (90% prose)
(2) Ezekiel (90% prose) (5) Zechariah (90% prose)
(3) Daniel (95% prose)
iii. These two prophets wrote 100% prose with no poetry.

(1) Malachi
(2) Haggai
c. Do not let the exaggerations and the figurative language confuse you. Remember, these things are poetry, meant to
show you something from a different perspective. Don Fleming talks about this in his book, Let the Bible Speak for
Itself.
The Old Testament prophets looked for the time in Israel when ‘every man
would sit under his vine and under his fig tree' (Micah 4:4). If we interpret
this literally, it means that every man throughout the country would have to
grow a vine and a fig tree and then go out of his house and sit under them.
But if we interpret it figuratively (for it is a poetic figure of speech), we see it
as the fulfilment of the Israelites' desire to live in peace and contentment on
their own property, free from all interference, hardship and oppression. We
have interpreted the statement as the writer intended us to.

d. Be aware that the prophet will often repeat himself, as is true in all Hebrew poetry. For example, in Hosea 11:7, the
prophet Hosea says:
How can I give you up, Israel?
How can I abandon you?
Could I ever destroy you as I did Admah,
or treat you as I did Zeboiim?
My heart will not let me do it!
My love for you is too strong
i. Hosea repeats himself in three places here:
(1) How can I give you up/How can I abandon you;
(2) Could I ever destroy you as I did Admah/Or treat you as I did Zeboiim;
(3) my heart will not let me do it!/My love for you is too strong.
ii. Hosea is not saying six different things, but three different things. Because it is poetry, he simply repeats himself
to emphasize his point. Even in saying those three different statements, he is really only getting across one point;
God loves Israel too much to give up on them.
e. Remember, ask yourself what is the main point of each section? The best way to figure out the main point is to
read the section two or three times, and keep asking yourself, “What did the prophet want this section to do to his
original reader?” It seems like a lot of work to read each section (or each paragraph when the Good News Translation
does not show it as poetry) two or three times, but it is the best way to figure out the real point of the passage.
4. Ask yourself if the prophet is speaking about the present, the near future (the next month or the next year) or the
distant future (the coming of the Messiah, etc.). Most often, Old Testament prophecies are a mixture of the present time
and the near future. The prophet will rebuke his readers for their sin now or call them to trust in God now (the present).
He may warn them of God’s judgment which is coming soon (near future). Most of your time reading the prophets will
focus on what was going on when the book was originally written
a. Sometimes, the prophet talks about the future. Usually, it is clear that he is describing something which may happen
in three, six, ten months (although the prophets almost never give a time line for when these events will happen).
Sometimes he describes something which sounds like it will happen to his original readers within weeks or months but
does not actually happen for ten, twenty or even thirty or forty years. The prophet may write this way because he
wants to affect his readers, warning them of coming judgment so that will turn away from their sin and return to follow
the Lord.
b. Always ask yourself, “Why is the prophet writing this section? What does he want his original readers to do?” You
should be able to answer the question in several ways.
i. First, you should be able to tell who his original readers were.
(1) Sometimes the best way to do that is to read an introduction to the book (such as we have supplied in this
guide to the Old Testament). You can often tell by the names of the towns that the author will mention. Find
those towns on a map of Israel and you will be able to tell if the prophet is speaking to the Northern Kingdom
of Israel or the Southern Kingdom of Judah.
(2) Sometimes, the prophet will use figures of speech to describe his audience. This may challenge the reader in
understanding the meaning of the passage.
(a) For example, the prophet will talk about Ephraim, which means the Northern Kingdom of Israel. He
may call his readers Jerushim, or Jacob. The best way to take care of this is to use a simple Bible
dictionary which can explain those words. This, again, takes some time, but after a while you will
simply know what the author is explaining.
c. However, MOST OF THE PROPHECIES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT ARE NOT ABOUT THE DISTANT
FUTURE, BUT ABOUT THE EVENTS THAT WERE HAPPENING DURING THE DAYS OF THE
PROPHET AND EVENTS WHICH WERE ABOUT TO HAPPEN SOON AFTER THAT!
d. If the prophet is talking about the distant future, he may be predicting several events, as you can see from the chart
below.

A List of Distant Future Events One Might Find in Prophetic Books
i. God’s warning of judgment of:
(1) Northern Kingdom of Israel.
(2) Southern Kingdom of Judah, where David’s descendants ruled.
(3) Nations who were attacking Israel/Judah, such as Edom or Babylon.
ii. God’s promise to bring the Hebrews back from Babylon to Jerusalem at the proper time.
(1) God’s specific promises concerning the man who will allow the Hebrews to return to Jerusalem.
iii. The Messiah
(1) His sinless character
(2) His miraculous powers
(3) His remarkable wisdom
(4) His nature as both God and man
(5) His ministry on earth
(6) His death, resurrection, several times with specific details
(7) The actual date that the Messiah would begin his ministry (Daniel 9:24-27)
(8) His rule as king over the entire earth.
(9) His work of bringing peace and prosperity to Israel and the entire world
iv. The world under the rule of the Messiah
(1) Universal peace and happiness
(2) Wealth and prosperity
(3) Freedom from pain, sickness, death
(4) Universal righteousness
(5) Final justice
v. The work of God’s Holy Spirit
(1) Enabling men and women to speak God’s words
(2) Changing them in their inner beings
(3) Writing God’s Law on their hearts
(4) Bringing life
vi. A future resurrection from the dead into a new kind of life for those who belong to God
vii. The destruction of the present heavens and the coming of a new heavens and earth
e. This list of themes is not by any means complete, yet it should help you spot many prophecies about the distant future.
When you read a passage from one of the prophets and you see one of these themes, then you should say, “Perhaps
this is about the distant future!” In looking over the list, you may notice that many of these prophecies have already
been fulfilled. Israel/Judah were judged and sent into exile. The Messiah came the first time, lived a righteous life,
died and rose from the dead. God has sent his Holy Spirit to those who belong to him.
i. On the other hand, many of these prophecies have not yet happened. The Messiah does not reign over all of the
earth in a visible way. The world is not experiencing universal peace. And the present heavens and earth have
not been destroyed and a new heavens and a new earth have not happened. It helps you in interpreting the
prophets to be able to think through which prophecies are still in the future for you today, and which ones
happened already in the past.
f. Often, the prophets mix events from the distant future in with events that will happen much sooner. They will talk in
one section about God’s judgment of Judah by sending them into exile (this happened 605-586 BC). The very next
sentence will describe God bringing them back from exile (538-400BC) and may even describe the coming of the
Messiah (27AD) and his universal reign in peace (the future). These should not surprise us, since we do exactly the
same thing when looking at the past. We will describe events that may be separated by hundreds of years in a single
sentence because they all fit together somehow. When you look at events from a long way off (i.e., you are talking
about events that happened a long time or a prophet is talking about events that will happen a long time from now),
you see them as if they are close to each other, even if they are not.
5. Whenever possible, see if this passage has been discussed by the New Testament. Jesus often explained an Old
Testament prophecy about himself. Jesus himself taught his apostles how to understand the Old Testament (see, for
example, Luke 24:44-45). If Jesus or one of his apostles explained a passage, that makes your task much easier. The
difficult part for you is to find the right New Testament passage which discusses the verse in the Old Testament you are
studying. Some Bibles actually give the references for many of the New Testament passages which quote an Old
Testament prophecy, but most Bibles in Pakistan do not.
a. You can find help for this online using the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
(http://www.searchgodsword.org/com/tsk/). If you can find a copy of the book, “A Treasury of Scripture Knowledge”

you are in great shape, because this gives excellent help. Another book which is like it, is “Nelson’s Cross-Reference
Guide to the Bible.” These books (and the web address) enable you to look at the Old Testament passage and see
other passages which are similar to it. That may bring you to New Testament sections which quote the Old Testament
verse and even explain it.
Many books, yet one
By Don Fleming
(Excerpt from Let the Bible Speak for Itself)
Throughout this study we have seen that our first step is to interpret each portion of the Bible in its context. Each biblical writer
had a definite purpose in addressing his readers, and we must interpret his writing according to that purpose.
However, that does not mean that we can interpret any part of the Bible with a total disregard for the rest of it. The Bible is a
complete unit, and we must read each book in the context of the Bible as a whole. We can better understand the whole when we
consider its parts, and we can better understand its parts when we consider the whole. We must keep both viewpoints before us at
all times.
The unity of the Bible is not to be found in a neatly ordered system where the same word always has the same meaning. It is to
be found in the harmony and perfection of the total revelation. We must not cut up the Bible into small pieces, as if God was
constantly changing his ways or revising his plans. There is a consistency from start to finish. The Bible records what God was
doing through human history, from the initial rebellion in Eden to the completion of his plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. The
way the Bible makes known this developing plan of salvation is commonly called progressive revelation. The study of what God
was doing through this process is commonly called biblical theology.
Brought to fulfilment
We have seen that, in the unfolding of God’s purposes, each stage of the revelation depended on the former and at the same
time developed it. We understand the meaning of each stage of the revelation according to the understanding of those who first
received it. That meaning does not change as further revelations are given, but it does take on greater significance. We understand
the Old Testament in its own setting, but with our knowledge of the New Testament we see the Old in a new light. Our Christian
knowledge does not change the meaning of the Old Testament, but gives it new significance.
Some people seem to think that God did not do a very good job with the Old Testament system,
but when Jesus came he tried again and this time got everything right. Christians may not express their The New Testament
feelings so crudely, though many feel uncomfortable with the Old Testament and largely ignore it. Yet is not better than the
when we quote verses from the New Testament that speak of the Scriptures as inspired and Old Testament. The
authoritative, the expression ‘the Scriptures’ refers to the Old Testament. It is the Old Testament that is New Testament is
able to lead us to salvation, teach us God’s truth, train us in right conduct and equip us for worthwhile founded upon the Old
living (2 Tim 3:15-17; cf. Matt Testament and fulfills
22:29). the promises of the
The New Testament does not correct the Old Testament, but completes it – brings it to fulfilment, Old Testament.
perfection, finality. There is harmony between the Old Testament and the New. God’s activity in
making known his plan of salvation and bringing it to completion was progressive and consistent.
When the new era arrived in Jesus Christ, God did not need to correct anything he had said or done previously.
For an illustration of this truth, think of the building of a house. The builder works to a plan. He puts down a foundation, builds
up the walls and puts up the framing for the roof. Like the Old Testament revelation, the house at this stage is imperfect, for it is
incomplete, but there is nothing wrong with it. Each part is correctly built and has its purpose. But the work of building keeps
moving ahead and eventually the house is completed. The builder has not had to demolish anything he built in the early stages of
construction; he has simply brought his work to completion and fulfilment – as God has done through Jesus Christ and the New
Testament revelation.
This helps us understand what the New Testament writers meant when they referred to the fulfilment of the Old Testament in
the New. For them, fulfilment did not mean merely that Old Testament predictions had come true, as if their main concern was to
show how clever their ancestors were at predicting the future. Rather the fulfilment they saw was the completion of a plan that God
had been working out for the human race through the history of Israel. Now that the plan had come to fulfilment in Jesus, they saw a
significance in Old Testament statements and events that people of former times may not have realized (e.g. Matt 4:14-16; 12:17-
21).
To demonstrate this, let us go back to our illustration of the building of a house.
With one particular room, the builder set up the walls to make the room four metres
The Old Testament is God’s perfect square, as shown on the plan. He knew what he was doing and he did it correctly. Now
plan which prepares the way for the that the house is finished, we learn that the owner of the house has been secretly
coming of the Messiah. By the time making a magnificent floor covering that is exactly four metres square and is to go in
we reach the last word of Old that room. The builder did not know about the floor covering when he was building the
Testament, everything is perfectly house, but the owner did, and that was why he designed the room to be four metres
ready for the next stage in the plan, square. What the Old Testament writers wrote had meaning in its own day, but it
which is the New Testament. gained greater significance when the New Testament writers saw how God had been
working. He had worked with his plan before him, and now he brought his purposes to
fulfilment in Jesus Christ.

Since the New Testament fulfils the Old, we too shall find more meaning in the New Testament when we have a better
understanding of the Old. In the same way we shall find more meaning in the Old Testament when we have a better understanding
of the New. The climax of God’s progressive revelation is in the New Testament, and specifically in Jesus Christ. And because of
him, we see not only the Old Testament in a new light, but the whole of history.
Introductions to the Old Testament Prophets

Don Fleming
(Excerpts from Bridgeway Bible Commentary)
(http://www.bridgeway.org.au/Download/Download.htm). Students must remember that these introductions are not the same as the
Bible itself; they are one man’s interpretation and therefore may have errors in them. Nevertheless, they will help readers to have a
basic idea about each book of the Old Testament.
Isaiah
BACKGROUND
Isaiah lived during that period of Old Testament history when the Israelite nation was divided into two kingdoms. The division
occurred about 930 BC, soon after the reign of Solomon (1 Kings 11:9-13; 12:16-20), and resulted in a northern kingdom of ten
tribes and a southern kingdom of two tribes.
The northern kingdom continued to call itself Israel, though in fact it was the breakaway part of the nation. It dissociated itself
from both the dynasty of David and the religion that centred on the temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:25-33). The early centres of
administration were Shechem and then Tirzah, but within fifty years a new and well fortified capital was established at Samaria, and
this was still the capital in the time of Isaiah.
The southern kingdom called itself Judah, after the tribe that formed its major part. Jerusalem, which had been the capital of the
entire nation in the time of David and Solomon, was now the capital only of Judah. The dynasty of David continued to rule in
Jerusalem, but now it ruled only over the southern kingdom. The Jerusalem temple remained the centre of Judah’s religious life in
spite of the false religion that repeatedly troubled the nation.
A prophet and a statesman
God’s servant Isaiah lived in Jerusalem, where he was an adviser to several kings of Judah. He was a person of importance, and
over many years he used his position to try to influence Judah’s policies in both local and international affairs. His work began in
the year of King Uzziah’s death (740 BC), and continued through the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah (Isa 1:1; 6:1,8-9).
According to traditional Jewish belief, he was executed during the reign of the wicked king Manasseh by being sawn in two (cf.
Heb 11:37).
Much of the early part of Isaiah’s book is concerned with his attempts to persuade the ungodly Ahaz to trust in God instead of
seeking military help from Assyria. The next portion of the book records his attempts to control the zeal of the good king Hezekiah,
who was so keen to free Judah from Assyrian power that he too sought foreign military aid, in this case from Egypt.
Isaiah saw that Assyria and Egypt, along with many other nations among Judah’s neighbours, were opposed to Israel’s God,
who was the one and only true God. The prophet therefore announced God’s judgments upon each of them in turn. But he saw also
that Judah was rebellious against God. The nation was heading for a terrible judgment that would see the people taken into captivity
in a foreign land. Through all these events, however, God would preserve the remnant, that minority of the people who remained
faithful to him.
The final section of the book (beginning with chapter 40), which was probably written much later than the earlier parts, shows
God’s purposes in preserving the remnant. From this faithful group would come the beginning of new life for God’s people. When
the people acknowledged the justice of God’s punishment and received cleansing from past sins, they would return to their land and
enjoy peace and prosperity once more. This future glory of Israel is described at length, with particular emphasis on the qualities of
the messianic king who would rule and the worldwide blessing that his kingdom would bring.
Jeremiah
INTRODUCTION
An obvious feature of the book of Jeremiah is the unusually large amount it reveals of the author’s personality. Jeremiah, like
other prophets, knew that if he faithfully announced God’s message he would be unpopular, but his writings reveal the deeper
tensions that developed within him. He was sad at the ungodly state of his people, and he unceasingly denounced the false religious
practices, wrong social behaviour and foolish government actions that characterized the nation. The bitter persecution he received
was distressing enough, but much more distressing was the feeling that God had been unfair to him.
If we are to understand the difficulties and conflicts that Jeremiah faced, we must first understand the condition of the people to
whom he preached. A century earlier the former northern kingdom (Israel) had been destroyed and its people scattered among the
nations of the Assyrian Empire. Now the southern kingdom (Judah) was heading for a similar judgment, and Jeremiah’s task was to
warn the unrepentant people that the day of reckoning was almost upon them.
The most important period of Jeremiah’s work began after Josiah’s death. His warnings became more intense as he assured the
people that, because of their persistence in wrong attitudes and wrong behaviour, they would be taken captive to Babylon (Jer

10:17-18; 21:2-7; 26:1-6).
God’s messenger rejected
People did not like to hear Jeremiah’s repeated announcements that the Babylonians would conquer Jerusalem, destroy the
temple and take the people captive. As a result he suffered constant persecution. He was violently opposed by his own family (Jer
12:6), by the people of his home town (Jer 11:19-21), by the citizens of Jerusalem in general (Jer 15:10,20; 18:18; 20:7), by the
religious leaders (Jer 20:1-2; 28:10-11; 29:24-28), by the civil authorities (Jer 37:11-15; 38:1-6,24-27) and by the kings of Judah
(Jer 36:26; 37:18). He was flogged (Jer 20:2; 37:15), on occasions imprisoned (Jer 20:1-2; 37:15,21; 38:13) and often threatened
with death (Jer 11:21; 26:7-9; 36:19,26; 38:4,15).
Jeremiah never married (Jer 16:2) and for much of his life he had few friends. Society at large would have nothing to do with
him (Jer 15:10,17), and after a while he was not even allowed to enter the temple (Jer 36:5). His loneliness increased when he was
forbidden to join in ordinary community activities such as feasts and funerals (Jer 16:5,8). Nevertheless, some people in places of
influence at times gained protection for him against his persecutors (Jer 26:24; 38:7-13; 40:5-6).
Ezekiel
BACKGROUND
The era through which Ezekiel lived was one of great change in the Palestine region. It was an era that saw Babylon’s rise to
power, the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of God’s people in a foreign land. All these events had an effect on Ezekiel’s
personal life and on the work God called him to do. Readers should therefore be familiar with the history of the period in order to
understand the man Ezekiel and the message he has preserved in his book.
Ezekiel in Babylon
Many of the people taken captive to Babylon in 597 BC expected that soon they would return to Jerusalem. Ezekiel, who was
one of these captives, no doubt shared their hopes. He was a young priest (Ezek 1:3) and he was probably looking forward to the
day when he would serve in the temple in Jerusalem. Any such hopes were destroyed when he heard from Jeremiah’s letter to the
exiles that they would spend the rest of their lives in Babylon (Jer 29:1-10). God told Ezekiel that his work was to be as a prophet in
Babylon, not as a priest in Jerusalem. Ezekiel began his prophetic work five years after arriving in Babylon and it lasted at least
twenty-two years (Ezek 1:2; 29:17).
In the early days of his preaching, Ezekiel denounced the sins of Jerusalem and announced the city’s coming destruction. He
made it clear that the people’s present suffering, whether in Jerusalem or in Babylon, was a fitting judgment from God. He warned
that for those left in Jerusalem worse was to come, for the city would be destroyed and the temple burnt down when the
Babylonians invaded the city for the third and final time (Ezek 4:1-2; 5:12; 6:1-7; 7:5-9).
Ezekiel’s hearers at first rejected his message, claiming that his announcements of the destruction of Jerusalem applied to a
future generation, not to them (Ezek 12:27-28). A few years later, when news reached the exiles that Jerusalem had fallen as Ezekiel
had prophesied, the people were forced to acknowledge that Ezekiel was a true prophet who knew God’s mind. They started to
listen to his teaching, though few genuinely changed their ways (Ezek 33:21,30-33).
Daniel
BACKGROUND
The book of Daniel is set in the time of the Jews’ exile in Babylon. This was the period that introduced the final stage of
Israel’s Old Testament history, which led in turn to the new era that dawned with the coming of Jesus Christ.
The long career of Daniel
Daniel was one of the first citizens of Jerusalem to be carried off captive when Judah fell under the control of Babylon in 605
BC. This was the fourth year of the reign of the Judean king Jehoiakim (third year according to Babylonian reckoning), when Judah
was rapidly approaching its end (2 Kings 24:1a; Jer 25:1; Dan 1:1-6). (For the history of this era see introductory notes to Ezekiel.)
At the time of his removal to Babylon, Daniel was only a teenager. He was one of a select group of intelligent young men
whom the Babylonians chose from the upper class families of Jerusalem, with the aim of training them to be administrators in the
royal court at Babylon (Dan 1:4).
During his long career in Babylon, Daniel held some of the top positions in the government. He outlasted the Babylonian
Empire and was still alive in the third year of Cyrus, the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 BC (Dan 10:1). He therefore
lived to see the first Jewish exiles return to Jerusalem to rebuild their nation (Ezra 1:1-4).
A book for the times
Jewish affairs were greatly affected by the changes and crises that occurred throughout the period covered by the book of
Daniel. But God’s people were not to lose their trust in him. A prominent theme in Daniel is the sovereignty of God. The book
shows that God is in control of human affairs, whether everyday matters in the lives of his people or events relating to the rise and
fall of nations.
The first half of the book records stories of Daniel and his friends that illustrate the care of God for those who were faithful to
him. The second half shows, through a series of unusual visions, how God would continue his government in the affairs of his
people during great events that were yet to take place.
These revelations were concerned mainly with the long period of confusion and conflict that followed the period of Persian rule
and reached its climax in the events of the New Testament era. The New Testament writers, in turn, take details of these revelations
and apply them to the great events connected with the return of Jesus Christ and the end of the age.
Hosea

BACKGROUND
Hosea belongs to the period of Israelite history when the ancient nation was divided into two kingdoms, Israel in the north and
Judah in the south. His ministry began during the reigns of Jeroboam II in Israel and Uzziah in Judah, and continued through the
reigns of succeeding kings (Hosea 1:1).
Hosea’s experiences
Not only the merchants and officials but also the priests oppressed the poor. The religion was now completely corrupt, and this
was what Hosea particularly opposed. He saw this as the cause of all Israel’s evil. Baal worship, complete with its fertility rites and
prostitution (see ‘Baal worship’ below), was more widely practised than in Amos’s day. Israel knew nothing of the character of
Yahweh (Hosea 4:1-6,17-19; 5:4; 6:6-10; 7:14-16; 8:5-6; 13:6; cf. Amos 2:7-8).
Since the covenant bond between Israel and Yahweh was likened to the marriage bond, Israel’s association with other gods was
really spiritual adultery. Hosea had this impressed upon him when his own wife, Gomer, committed adultery. She left him for other
lovers. But her pleasures did not last and she was sold as a slave. All this time Hosea remained faithful to his marriage covenant and
still loved his erring wife. When he found her a slave he therefore bought her back.
Hosea’s love for his wife was a picture of the covenant love of God for his unfaithful people. They too would go into captivity,
but when they had been cleansed of the filth of their adulterous association with the Canaanite gods, they would be brought back to
live in their land again.
Baal worship
Canaanite gods were known as Baalim (plural of Baal, a word meaning ‘master, owner, or husband’). Goddesses were known
either as Ashtaroth (plural of Ashtoreth) or Asherim (plural of Asherah). These were gods of nature that people believed had the
power to increase fertility in human beings, animals and soil alike.
From the early days of their settlement in Canaan, the Israelites had been easily led astray by the local Canaanite religions.
They saw similarities between the worship of Yahweh and the worship of the local gods, and soon they combined the two. After all,
they thought, Yahweh was the God of nature, and he was Israel’s husband and master (Hebrew: baal). Also, the Canaanites
worshipped at altars on the tops of hills (the ‘high places’), just as Israel’s leaders did in the past. Among the features of the Baalist
places of worship were sacred gardens and pillars, the latter being known as Asherim (plural of Asherah, the goddess after whom
they were named).
At these high places there were prostitutes, both male and female, with whom worshippers could conduct fertility rites. These
were religious-sexual ceremonies that the worshippers believed could influence the gods to give increase in family, herds, flocks
and crops. In forsaking Yahweh for Baal, Israelites were guilty of prostitution, both spiritual and literal (Hosea 2:5,8; 4:10-13; 7:14-
16; 9:1-2).
Joel
BACKGROUND
Among the prophets of the Old Testament, Joel differs from most of the others in that he does not state the period during which
he preached. One suggestion is that he prophesied in Judah around the period 835-830 BC, during the reign of the boy-king Joash.
This would explain why the book does not mention Syria, Assyria or Babylon, the chief enemies during the time of the divided
kingdom, as these nations had not yet begun to interfere in Judah’s affairs. It would also explain why the prophet does not mention a
reigning king, for at that time the government of the country was largely in the hands of the priest Jehoiada (2 Kings 11:1-21; 12:1-
2). The prominence of Jehoiada may also account for Joel’s interest in the temple and its services (Joel 1:9,13; 2:12,15-17).
An alternative suggestion is that the book was written after the Jews’ return from captivity. The most likely period is either
520-510 BC (after the ministry of Haggai and Zechariah and the rebuilding of the temple) or around 400 BC (a generation or so
after the reforms of Ezra and Nehemiah). According to these suggestions, Joel is among either the first or the last of the writing
prophets.
Purpose of the book
In spite of the absence of a specific date, the present-day reader should have no great difficulty in understanding the book of
Joel. This is because the single event that forms the book’s basis is not concerned with details of Judah’s local politics or
international affairs. The event is a severe locust plague, and the setting appears to be Jerusalem and the surrounding countryside.
The locust plague brought extensive agricultural damage and created widespread suffering to the people. What made the plague
even more devastating was its occurrence at the height of a crippling drought. Joel interpreted these events as God’s judgment on
Judah for its sin. He promised the people that if they repented, God would renew his blessing by giving them productive crops and a
more enlightened knowledge of himself. Joel saw these events as symbolic of God’s future judgment on all enemies and his blessing
on his people.
Amos
BACKGROUND
Amos was the first of four prophets who prophesied during the eighth century BC, the others being Hosea, Isaiah and Micah.
This was the time of the divided Israelite kingdom, and each of the writers carefully dated his writings according to the kings of
Israel and Judah in whose reigns he prophesied. This helps the present-day reader to build up a picture of the circumstances
surrounding each prophet’s ministry.
The background notes to Hosea provide a summary of social, religious and political conditions in Israel and Judah during the
time of the earlier eighth century prophets. A reading of those notes will provide a useful introduction to the notes on Amos below.

Maps showing the divided kingdom and the neighbours of Israel-Judah are also located in the notes on Hosea.
The fiery preaching of Amos
Amos, with bold attacks on the rich merchants and unjust rulers of Israel, was the first of the prophets to come to the defence of
the poor. He was a shepherd-farmer who lived in a lonely village in the north of Judah, but most of his attacks are directed at Israel.
This is probably because when he took his fruit and wool across the border to sell in the markets of Bethel and other towns, he saw
the corruption of Israel’s city life. He had first-hand knowledge of the situation, because he himself had to deal with the ruthless
merchants and corrupt officials.
In his fiery sermons Amos condemned the disgusting greed and extravagant luxury of the rich, for he knew that they had gained
their wealth by cheating, oppression and injustice (Amos 2:6-7; 3:10,15; 5:10-12; 6:4-6; 8:4-6). They kept the religious festivals
with much enthusiasm, paid their tithes and offered elaborate sacrifices, but all these things were worthless in God’s sight so long as
the worshippers persisted in their social injustice (Amos 5:21-24; 8:3,10). Amos clearly saw what Israel’s upper classes did not see,
namely, that the nation was heading for a terrible divine judgment (Amos 7:11).
Obadiah
BACKGROUND
The book of Obadiah belongs to the period that followed Jerusalem’s final collapse and ultimate destruction by the
Babylonians in 587 BC. Nothing is known of Obadiah’s ministry apart from what is contained in the short book that bears his name,
though he must have been one of the few genuine prophets left in Judah at the time of its overthrow and captivity. His book is
concerned with God’s judgment on the nation Edom.
Jonah
BACKGROUND
In contrast to other prophetical books, the book of Jonah does not record the name of its author. The book takes its name from
the chief person in the story, a prophet who at one time correctly predicted the growth of the northern kingdom Israel under
Jeroboam II (see 2 Kings 14:23,25 and associated map). A further contrast to other prophetical books is that Jonah contains little of
the prophet’s actual preaching. The book is mostly narrative and, again in contrast to most of the prophetical writings, is mostly in
prose.
Purpose of the book
During the reign of Jeroboam II (793-753 BC), the nation Israel enjoyed such prosperity that people easily developed selfish
nationalistic attitudes. (For conditions of the time see background to Hosea.) Even God’s prophet Jonah was affected by this
narrow-minded spirit.
No doubt Jonah was satisfied to see the fulfilment of his forecasts of Jeroboam’s victories. He would have been far more
satisfied to see the downfall of Assyria, whose rising power was about the only threat that Israel saw to its own independence.
Already Assyria’s capital Nineveh was threatened by an enemy from the north. Jonah was therefore surprised and angry when God
told him to go and warn Nineveh of the coming attack. He was to urge the people to repent of their wickedness so that they might
avoid a terrifying destruction (Jonah 3:4-5,10).
Jonah’s first reaction was to refuse to go, for he would rather see Nineveh destroyed than spared such a fitting judgment. Jonah
needed to learn that God was the controller of all nations, and he would have mercy on any people or nation as he wished, even on
the wicked Ninevites.
As for God’s people, since they had often experienced the love and mercy of God, they should show similar love and mercy to
others. God took no pleasure in destroying people, and neither should they. Rather they should, like God, desire their repentance
and forgiveness (Jonah 4:11; cf. Acts 11:18; Rom 3:29; 9:15).
Micah
BACKGROUND
Micah was the last of four prophets of the eighth century B.C. whose writings have been preserved in the Bible. Amos and
Hosea, the first of this group, brought God’s message mainly to the northern kingdom. The other two, Isaiah and Micah, were
concerned more with the southern kingdom, and prophesied during the same period (Isa 1:1; Micah 1:1). Both were particularly
concerned with the sins of the capital city, Jerusalem. There are many similarities between their books, and it has even been
suggested that Micah might have been one of Isaiah’s disciples (cf. Isa 8:16).
Social conditions
Judah’s prosperity was not evenly spread throughout the population. Those who gained most from the flourishing economic
activity were the merchants, officials and upper class city people in general. They became wealthy largely by exploiting poorer
people such as farmers, and with their wealth came social and political power. Corruption in the law courts made it easy for them to
do as they wished, with the result that as they increased their wealth, the poor were driven into greater poverty. (See also
background notes to Amos and Hosea.)
Nahum

BACKGROUND
Most of the short book of Nahum is concerned with the coming judgment of Assyria, and particularly with the destruction of its
capital, Nineveh. The Assyrians had been cruel enemies of Israel and Judah, but Nahum saw that the day of judgment for them was
now approaching.
Nahum foresaw what the people of Judah had desperately wanted for more than a century, the end of Assyrian power. His
description of Nineveh’s overthrow is dramatic, colourful and full of feeling. He rejoiced that at last a fitting divine judgment was
to fall upon the nation whose cruelty made it one of the most barbarous oppressors in history. In 612 BC Nineveh was conquered as
Nahum foretold, falling to the armies of Babylon.
Habakkuk
BACKGROUND
Although Habakkuk does not mention the Judean kings of his time, the contents of his book indicate the era in which he
prophesied. He announced his message during the closing years of the kingdom of Judah, when Babylon had risen to power and
Judah was threatened with conquest.
The prophet Habakkuk lived during the early days of this build-up of Babylonian control over Judah. His book records how he
argued with God when he learnt that God was preparing Babylon to be his instrument to punish Judah. Habakkuk was confused,
perhaps angry, because he knew that the Babylonians were worse sinners than the Judeans. God assured Habakkuk that any of the
Judeans who remained faithful to him had no cause for fear. Although the nation as a whole would be destroyed, the faithful would
enjoy his favour.
God had a message for the Babylonians as well. They had no cause for self-satisfaction. They had shown an intolerable
arrogance in conquering God’s people, and therefore they too would suffer a divine judgment.
Habakkuk’s faith was strengthened through his dialogue with God. He may not have received the detailed explanations from
God that he was looking for, but he received a revelation of God’s power and wisdom that gave him a better knowledge of God and
a determination to remain faithful to him.
Zephaniah
BACKGROUND
From the information given in the biblical records, it seems that Zephaniah was the first prophet to appear in Judah since the
conclusion of Isaiah and Micah’s ministry seventy years earlier. His preaching marked the beginning of a new era of prophetic
activity in Judah, but it was an era that also saw the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the kingdom of Judah.
A prophet in Jerusalem
For much of the seventy years before Zephaniah, the king over Judah was the wicked Manasseh. After his fifty-five years on
the throne, Judah was in a worse spiritual condition than the original Canaanites, whom God had destroyed. His reign was marked
by cruelty, bloodshed, immorality and foreign religious practices of every kind. The damage he did to Judah could not be fully
corrected by any king who came after him, and it resulted in the destruction of Judah (2 Kings 21:1-9,16; 23:26-27).
By the time he was twenty years of age, Josiah had developed his own national policy and had begun religious reforms that
lasted many years (2 Chron 34:3-4). (For details see 2 Kings 22:3-23:25; 2 Chron 34:1-35:27.) The ministry of the prophet
Zephaniah may have had some part in prompting the king to introduce his reforms. Zephaniah was a young man probably not much
older than Josiah and appears to have been related to him (both being descended from Hezekiah; see Zeph 1:1; cf. 2 Kings 20:21;
21:18,24).
Zephaniah lived in Jerusalem, where he saw and denounced the same evils as Isaiah and Micah denounced almost a century
earlier. His preaching no doubt prompted many of the people to change their ways and cooperate in Josiah’s reforms. It may also
have helped produce the renewed prophetic ministry in Judah. Other prophets of Zephaniah’s time were Jeremiah, Nahum and
Habakkuk, and these were followed after the destruction of Jerusalem by Obadiah and Ezekiel.
Haggai
BACKGROUND
Haggai and Zechariah worked together in Jerusalem during the period that followed the Jews’ return from captivity in Babylon.
Two hundred years earlier the former northern kingdom Israel had been conquered by Assyria and the people taken captive into
foreign countries (722 BC; 2 Kings 17:1-6). Some time later people of the former southern kingdom Judah suffered a similar fate
when they were conquered by the Babylonians and taken captive to Babylon (605-587 BC; 2 Kings 24:1-25:12). People of the
former northern kingdom were largely absorbed by the nations among whom they lived, but not so the people of the former
southern kingdom. They retained their national identity, and these were the ones who returned to reconstruct the ancient Israelite
nation.
The preaching of Haggai and Zechariah
Soon after arriving in Jerusalem, the Jews showed their desire to rebuild the temple on Mt Zion. They set up an altar of
sacrifice, and in the second year they started to lay the foundation of the temple (Ezra 3:1-3,8-10). However, local people began to
oppose the builders, with the result that the work stopped (Ezra 4:1-5,24).
For about sixteen years no work was done on the rebuilding of the temple. Because of this, God raised up the prophets Haggai
and Zechariah to work among his people. They began preaching in 520 BC, their job being to stir up the people to get on with the
job and not stop till it was finished (Ezra 5:1-2; Hag 1:1; Zech 1:1).

Characteristics of the two books
While Haggai’s preaching was straightforward and easy to understand, Zechariah’s consisted largely of vivid accounts of
unusual visions and dramatic messages given to him by God. As a result, his preaching required more thought on the part of his
hearers. This type of preaching (or writing) was known as apocalyptic. (Concerning characteristics of apocalyptic writings see
background to Daniel.)
Malachi
It seems that Malachi preached in Jerusalem during the period of reform by Ezra and Nehemiah. The date of his prophecy
cannot be fixed with certainty, but the sins he rebuked were similar to those that Ezra and Nehemiah had to deal with.
The people expected that, because they had come back to their land and rebuilt their temple, they were going to enjoy the
unlimited blessing of God. This did not prove to be so, and as a result they began to doubt whether God really cared for them.
Malachi replied that the fault was on their side, not God’s. They had, by their sins, created obstacles that hindered their enjoyment
of God’s love (Mal 1:2,6-7; 2:17; 3:7-8,13-14).
Malachi’s book brings to a close the prophetical ministry in the Old Testament history of Israel. Four hundred years would pass
before the voice of a prophet would be sounded in Scripture again. It was the voice of one crying in a barren country, ‘Prepare the
way of the Lord, make his paths straight’ (Mark 1:3).

Glossary
Anonymous—the writer did not write down anywhere in the book what his personal name was. Example: we know who wrote the
book of Romans, because Paul says, “I, Paul write this.” We do not know who wrote the book of Judges; it is therefore
anonymous.
Archeology--the study of the ancient past, a study which is carried by archeologists who dig into the ruins of ancient cities,
translating any writings, and carefully recording the way people of those cities lived in ancient times.
Canaan—the land basically ruled today by Israel
Captivity—In the bible, this describes the long period of time when the Hebrews were conquered by another nation and taken 1000
miles away and forced to live and work in the new land even though they wanted to live in Canaan.
Chronicle–history or story
Common thread—The author has a thought or a plan or a way of thinking that seems to guide the entire book, even though the
author writes about many different things
Context—the verses before the passage you are reading and the verses after it which tell you something about what the writer was
trying to say
Covenant--a contract between two people or between two groups of people.
Davidic—a person who is a descendant (i.e., offspring) of King David
Deportation—the people are removed from their homes and forced to move to another country far away.
Descendant—The people who have a certain person as their ancestor; for example, Abraham had a son named Isaac; Isaac had a
son named Jacob, and Jacob had twelve sons. Isaac, Jacob and his sons are descendants of Abraham (Abraham is their
ancestor).
Dynasty—When a king rules in a land, he wants his sons, grandsons and great grandsons to rule after he is gone. When a king has
descendants who continue to rule after the king has died, these ruling descendants are called his dynasty.
Effect— the change caused by what a person wrote, either a change in their thinking, their attitudes, emotions or their actions
Fiction--a story which is not historically true
Genealogy–list of ancestor, his children, the children of his children, the children of their children, etc.
Generation—the fathers and mothers (uncles, aunts, etc.) are one generation; the children are the next generation, the grandparents
etc. are the previous generation
Hebrew–Those people who are descended from Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham. Hebrews are also called Jews, Israelites,
children of Israel, God’s chosen people
Historical Accuracy—the book is truthful in what it says about history and what it says is reliable
Impact—the change caused by what a person wrote, either a change in their thinking, their attitudes, emotions or their actions
Inscription--ancient writing which may be on a clay pot, on a stone, on metal, or on some other material
Israelites—Those people who are descended from Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham. Hebrews are also called Jews,
Hebrews, children of Israel, God’s chosen people
Jerusalemites—people living in the city of Jerusalem in Israel.
Jews— Those people who are descended from Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham. Hebrews are also called Jews, Hebrews,
children of Israel, God’s chosen people
Kinds of Literature – The kind of writing style, such a poetry, history, letters, etc.
Monarchy--a government which is ruled by a king
Mesopotamia—current day Iraq
Messiah—a king who is a descendant of David who will rule as king over Israel and the whole earth. He will be perfectly righteous
king and will rule forever and ever.
Millennia—1000 years (two millennia=2000 years)
Morality—what is right and wrong
Myth--an ancient story which is not historically true, yet is accepted popularly either as historically true or at least as giving true
information.
Offspring—the children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren who come from a person
Original Author–the person who first wrote the book.
Original Readers–the first people who read the book.
Parallel account—the same story is told twice; once in 1&2 Samuel/Kings and in 1&2 Samuel.
Piece of writing—the book (such as the Book of Genesis) that a writer wrote.
Prophetic–Old Testament books written by the Old Testament prophets
Prose--ordinary language people use in speaking or writing (i.e., not poetry)
Record-keeping—writing down careful details such as genealogies or the names of the people who came with Nehemiah back to
Jerusalem.
Selective—the writer does not write every name in the genealogy, but only those names which he considers to be important for his
purpose in writing.
Text—the actual passage you are reading in the Bible
Theological—Explaining something in reference to God and what God does in the world; especially explaining something from the
Bible

Theology—what a person believes about God and what God does in the world
Threefold promise—a promise which has three parts, or three promises which all belong together (promise of a great nation,
promise of land of Canaan, promise of the blessing through Abraham’s descendant=are all a part of the same promise, but can
also be seen as three promises which all belong together).
Timeline--a list which tells the years and dates for events in order from earliest to most recent.

TIMELINE for the Old Testament
TIMELINE for the Kings

Old Testament Intro

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Old Testament Intro

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INTRODUCTION

The Story of the Old Testament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3

How To Interpret Old Testament Prophecy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 26

TIMELINE for the Old Testament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 38

TIMELINE for the Kings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 39

Introduction to Old Testament Page 2 of 39 CRST 251

Israel established in Canaan

Captivity and return

Introduction to Old Testament Page 3 of 39 CRST 251

Wisdom teachers and songwriters

Words of the preachers

Introduction to Old Testament Page 4 of 39 CRST 251

Old Testament Introduction Page 5 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

The kinds of literature in the Old Testament

Old Testament Law

Old Testament Introduction Page 6 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

How to Look at Different Kinds

Ideas put into words

Prose and poetry

The name Yahweh

Old Testament Introduction Page 7 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

End of article by Don Fleming.

Old Testament Introduction Page 8 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 9 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 10 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

The Old Testament Books of the Law

Old Testament Introduction Page 11 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 12 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Is the Old Testament Real History?

Is the Old Testament Timeline Accurate?

Old Testament Introduction Page 13 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

The Old Testament Describes Ancient Cultures in Accurate Ways as Well

Reading the Old Testament History as History

Are the Miracle Stories Fictional?

Old Testament Introduction Page 14 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

The Old Testament Historical Books

Old Testament Introduction Page 15 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 16 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 17 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 18 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 19 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 20 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Example: the Tiger Outside the Door

What Do You Say When a Tiger Is Approaching the Door?

Option 1: Speak a prose sentence or two.

Option 2: Tell him to close the door by reciting a poem. . .

Old Testament Introduction Page 21 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Principles for Understanding Hebrew Poetry

Old Testament Introduction Page 22 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 23 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Introductions to the Old Testament Poetical Books

Old Testament Introduction Page 24 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 25 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

iii. These two prophets wrote 100% prose with no poetry.

Old Testament Introduction Page 26 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 27 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 28 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 29 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Introductions to the Old Testament Prophets

Old Testament Introduction Page 30 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 31 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 32 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore

Old Testament Introduction Page 33 of 39 Professor Bob Wetmore