Engaging the Old Testament

1

What Is the Old Testament

and Why Study It?

• Canon: What is the Bible? • Inspiration: How Was the Bible

Written? • Textual Transmission: How Did We

Get the Bible? • Hermeneutics: How Do We

Interpret the Bible?

The Yorck Project / Wikimedia Commons

Old Testament Classification: ENGLISH

• Law • History • Poetry and Wisdom • Major Prophets • Minor Prophets

Old Testament Classification: HEBREW

• Torah • Former Prophets • Latter Prophets • The Writings

1. Canon: What is the Bible?

• Hebrew — qaneh; Greek — kanon — a reed or measuring stick

• It’s the “standard” for faith and practice.

Tests for Canon

1. Written by a prophet or other Spirit-led person

2. Written to all generations — (relevant to all people throughout all time) — written for vs. written to

3. Written in accord with previous revelation

The Council of Jamnia (ca. AD 90)

2. Inspiration: How Was the Bible Written?

2 Timothy 3:16-17

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

See also — 2 Peter 1:20-21

Inspiration

• Divine inspiration allowed for human personality to play a role.

• Implications — First — It means that the Bible is trustworthy.

• Second — It means the Bible is authoritative

3. Transmission: How Did We Get the Bible?

Old Testament Texts

• Masoretic Text • Samaritan Pentateuch • Dead Sea Scrolls • Septuagint • Targums

“Scribes”

• Scribe — “counter” • Torah — 400,945 letters. • Torah — Middle word “inquired” (Leviticus

10:16) • Torah — Middle letter in the Hebrew word

for “belly” in Leviticus 11:42

“Scribes”

• Hebrew • Aramaic — Genesis 31:47b; Ezra 4:8-6:18;

7:12-26; Jeremiah 10:11b; Daniel 2:4b-7:28

Semitic Languages

• Ammonite • Ugaritic • Amorite • Aramaic • Hebrew • Phoenician • Akkadian • Moabite • Arabic

4. Hermeneutics: How Do We Interpret the Bible?

Hermeneutics Guidelines

• Use the grammatical-historical method • Understand the context • Determine the type of literature • Interpret figurative language • Let Scripture interpret Scripture • Discover the application to modern life