Old Testament Overview
Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
If we believe that the Bible is alive and active and it judges the thoughts and attitudes of our heart we should read it with reverence, right? Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. In my own life I have been guilty of trying to make reading the bible something to check off a to-do list, kind of like grocery shopping or making my bed. The problem with that is, it’s not something to just do. If we simply just “check it off” and don’t allow it to change us, it was pointless. If we understand the bible and allow it to penetrate our hearts and minds it will change us from the inside out.
Let’s do some self-reflection (always easier said than done, I know).What do you think when you approach the bible? Do you think it’s boring? Daunting? Maybe you wonder, “how does this all fit together?”
I’ve heard many reasons why people don’t read their Bible. Some say they lack in time or intelligence. Thankfully what you “lack in” God holds a surplus of. In our weakness He is strong. I believe our lack of confidence can be fixed if people feel more confident while handling the Bible.
Last week we talked about the metanarrative of scripture by looking at it systematically. Today I thought it would be appropriate to continue that path and look at the structure of the Bible as a whole.
The Bible is 1 book with 66 books inside.
40 authors written over a time frame of 1500 years.
One of my seminary professors, Dr. Mark Yarbrough teaches this outline. He encouraged the class to clap to the beat and if you could, I think it’s helpful.
I’m going to list some random numbers and hope that you trust me to tie them all together. Say them with me!
5-12-5-5-12
4-1-21-1
Those are categories that we can place all 66 books of the bible into. Let’s look at each category. If you have a pin and paper, it could be helpful to write them down.
5-12-5-5-12 OT
5 = (Pentateuch (Greek), Torah means law in Hebrew, or books of Moses) Genesis - Deuteronomy
12 = History (Theological history meaning, the authors of the books are doing something with what they are saying. We are being led on a journey. One narrative that points toward Christ and will be unfolded in history). These books are Joshua, judges and ruth 1+2 Samuel, 1+2 kings, 1+2 chronicles.
5 = Poetry books. Why are they called poetry? Because they are poetic of course. These consist of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.
5 = Major prophets. What separates a major from a minor prophet? It’s just the size of the book. These are Isaiah to Daniel.
12 = Minor prophets. Think of the 17 as a whole; they are the same significance.The timeline regarding the 5 poetry, 5 major and 12 minor prophets go into the 12 history books. When you read these books know this is where they fit chronologically.
We end the OT seeing that sin continued and continued to cause division between people and God. He constantly called them to repent and showed his love and mercy, but they continued to live as they saw fit. The OT ends with silence. God stops speaking. No prophet is raised up. However, we know looking back that God was working behind the scenes and making a way for Christ birth. There would be a way that God’s people could be freed from their bondage of sin forever.
Next week we will dive into God’s redemption plan and the NT.