OT Survey - 1 - Approaching the OT

All material based on A Survey of the Old Testament. Andrew E Hill and John H Walton. Additional material used appears in the reference section at the bottom

God reveals Himself

In the Garden

— He created a people among whom He could dwell

— His plan emerges naturally that expresses His character as a creative, relational and gracious being

— The setting was Eden

— We might call it a cosmic temple

— Placed in a garden to be near Him

— Sin broke that fellowship and the privilege of being near God was forfeited

The rest of the Bible is an account of providing His people with the means to be in relationship with Him again

— Stages of God’s presence

Eden

Covenant

Exodus

Tabernacle/Temple

Incarnation

Pentecost

New Creation

Man’s way vs God’s Way

— Men try to build a tower to reach God (Gen 11:1-9)

— Allow God to come down to earth

— God was not pleased with the underlying premise

— God chooses one family and develops a relationship with them (Abraham)

— God’s presence reaches a new level as He appears in the burning bush to Moses

— He reveals His name

— His character/nature

— His presence is known through the plagues and the cloud

— At Mt. Sinai he reveals how His people can preserve His presence (the rituals and other instructions regarding the tabernacle)

— Next God initiates a means by which his presence can be established on earth

— The tabernacle

— Extended by the temple built by Solomon

— Serious setback when Israel rebels and God leaves the temple

— He allows the temple to be destroyed (Jeremiah and Ezekiel)

— The covenant benefits are lost

— The people are exiled from the land

— The next stage is in the New Testament

— Jesus is God with us, Immanuel

— Sort of human tabernacle (Jn 1:14)

— In Christ God’s presence is available to us in a whole new way

— With sin being paid, there is a permanent mechanism for a relationship with God

— Jesus ascends but promises his presence would not be taken away

— Leaves us with the Holy Spirit

— His presence within his people

— God’s people become the location of God’s presence both individually (1 Cor 6:19) and corporately (1 Cor 3:16)

— The veil is torn (Eph 2)

— The final stage is yet to come (Rev 21:3)

The Covenant

— At the core of this self-revelation is the covenant

— The English designation “Old Testament” means “covenant”

— Through the covenant God both reveals what He is like and obliges Himself to a particular course of action

— His loyalty (Heb Hesed) to the covenant frequently leads Him to acts of grace and mercy

— But His justice is also built into the covenant to ensure accountability by His people

— Since the covenant is the instrument used by God to effect self-revelation, the Old Testament often appears to be the history of the covenant more than a history of Israel

— Gen 12-50 is a history of the establishment of the Abrahamic covenant

— Exodus - Deuteronomy is a history of the Mosaic covenant

— Joshua is a record of God’s faithfulness to the covenant

— Samuel and Kings are a history of the covenant of kingship (Davidic)

— The covenant is more in focus than the people who are involved generation to generation

Authority

— The OT is God-breathed or “inspired”

— Is it authoritative and must not be viewed as the opinion of godly people or great literature (2 Tim 3:16)

How to study the Old Testament

— let the Bible speak for itself

— Don’t bring in presuppositions (often subconscious)

— Recognize the presuppositions that you h old

— Constantly reevaluate them for validity and subordinate them to the text of Scripture

— There continues to be much discussion about the focus of the interpreter’s attention

— Traditionally we have been told to know the author’s background and intention

— The historical settings

— How do we try to determine the intention of the author?

— Start by knowing the genre

— The genre will effect how what is written should be approached

— Second, discover all we can about the audience

— Third, through the examination of the context, identify the purpose of the author

— Interpretation requires us to become, to the best of our abilities, part of the original audience

— The message to them is the same as the message to us

References