Estudio Biblico

How do we determine where one story ends and another begins? To locate transition points, we look for changes in place, changes in time, changes in major characters, or a change from narrative to poetry or legislation. For example, the narratives in the book of Judges are easily divided according to the main character or judge. When the author records more than one story related to one person, as is the case with Gideon, Abimelech, and Samson, an entire story is one episode in their lives, and such episodes are clearly distinct from one another. The books of Kings and Chronicles are similar, in that new stories often begin with new kings or prophets. In the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, changes in location are significant, since whether the main characters are in Persia or Judah makes a big difference in the meaning of the story and the setting of the story in salvation history.

Get the facts right

Understanding and teaching Old Testament narratives inevitably requires historical research. Suppose you are preaching the story in the first eight verses of Nehemiah 2. Who is Artaxerxes? When was his “twentieth year,” and what was happening during that period of history? Why is the action of this story taking place in Persia instead of Judah? Nehemiah 1 records that Artaxerxes gave permission to Nehemiah to travel to Jerusalem and rebuild the city. Since the book of Ezra records Artaxerxes’ earlier order to stop construction in Jerusalem (4:7–24), his permission in Nehemiah 2 comes as a surprise. But we will not know that unless we have all the historical information at hand. Also, what is the meaning of Artaxerxes’ words to Nehemiah, “Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick?” (Neh. 2:2). Evidently, Artaxerxes had already determined that Nehemiah was not sick. Whether or not Nehemiah was sick was highly important to Artaxerxes since Nehemiah was Artaxerxes’ cupbearer. Royal cupbearers tested a king’s food and drink before the king was exposed to it in order to make sure it wasn’t poisoned. Without that historical information, we will not know the significance of the phrase “seeing you are not sick.”