A FEW NOTES ON THE OLD TESTAMENT BEFORE WE BEGIN

A FEW NOTES ON THE OLD TESTAMENT BEFORE WE BEGIN

Before we delve into my Bible summary I’d like to talk a little bit about God, his plan for the ages, and the Old Testament as a whole. We must first understand that God existed before the events of Genesis 1:1. He has ALWAYS existed. God exists in and of Himself, independent of anything else. God had a purpose in His heart before the beginning. His ultimate plan and purpose is to bring together all things and resolve all things in Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:9-12) David Guzik summed it up perfectly when he said, “God wants to bring glory, attention, and credit to Himself and His own great nature throughout all creation through this great plan and purpose that He has established in Jesus Christ.

Sometimes the Old Testament gets a bad rap. Some people consider its messages insignificant or irrelevant since many of the commands don’t apply to us personally today. Many might see it as inconsistent due to the fact that it can be difficult to comprehend. However, when you understand it contextually it is invaluable. II Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…” Here I would love to encourage you to watch a secret church series by David Platt titled Survey of the Old Testament, which I have linked at the bottom of the page. Platt does a fabulous job of setting you up for success when beginning to read the Old Testament. I’ll quickly hit his high points.

The Old Testament is a collection of 39 books that are usually classified according to one of four genres: law, history, prophecy, and poetry. It contains many literary forms including historical narratives, laws and statutes, prophetic oracles, genealogies, songs, wisdom sayings, laments, apocalyptic visions, etc. It has ONE divine author- the Holy Spirit. It does, however, have various human authors. The Old Testament covers a span of about 1000 years, with the earliest parts written around 1,500 BC and the latest parts written around 400 BC.

The Old Testament is a real story set in real history with real people, real places, and real time. Here would probably be an appropriate place to let you know that I, personally, hold to a decidedly literal interpretation of the Bible which will become apparent very quickly. Actually as soon as we go from Genesis 1:1 to 1:2. Why? (If you’re interested you can check out my personal testimony for my literal interpretation of creation in the post Young Earth vs. Old Earth: Does it even matter? ) I believe the Bible should be taken literally with the exception of when it is obvious that it shouldn’t be- the Bible uses a plethora of literary devices, I’m not suggesting we toss all of those out of the window. For me it comes down to this: when we make ourselves the final arbiters of which parts of the Bible are to be interpreted literally, we elevate ourselves above God. Who is to say, then, that one person’s interpretation of a biblical event or truth is any more or less valid than another’s? The confusion and distortions that would inevitably result from such a system would essentially render the Scriptures null and void. Also (and I almost feel like I should put this in bold because of my religious background): Just because a biblical command is intended to be understood literally, does not mean it is intended to be applied laterally, that is, universally across the board to all peoples at all times in all places.

The Old Testament can be broken down into three basic divisions:

          1. The first 17 books, Genesis through Esther = the story about God’s people.

            – Divided into two major categories:

            A. The Law/Pentateuch- Genesis through Deuteronomy

            B. The History- Joshua through Esther

          2. The next 5 books, Job through Song of Solomon = the writings of God’s people.

            -These books are poetic and wisdom literature and include man’s responses to the words and deeds of God

          1. The final 17 books, Isaiah through Malachai = the prophets from among God’s people.

            – These books are God’s commentaries on the story of God’s people. The historical context is important. These were times of political, economic, and social upheaval. Much of the language of the prophets is poetic and they speak of both the near future and of the ultimate future.

Platt points out that the key to understanding how to interpret the Old Testament is to understand the foundational purpose at the heart of the Old Testament, which is to reveal how God redeems His people for His kingdom. God is restoring His people to Himself, He is re-creating us in His image, for His kingdom. As Platt so eloquently puts it, “God is bringing His people, to His place, for His purpose.”

Links:

David Platt Old Testament Survey

Session 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLUR0GizUVo

Session 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZa7JdJxGJo

Session 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcvJ0T5KNhI

Session 4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9F8PEeLneM