Encountering the Old Testament - Book Report/Review Example

Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey, authored by Bill T. Arnold and Bryan E. Beyer, set out a comprehensive analysis of theological theories, while exploring the themes of the Pentateuch, the Historical books, the Poetics and the Prophets. They present interpretation theories such as the neo-orthodox and evangelical and pinpoint differences and controversial subjects among Christian bible scholars. Hebrew culture, language, literature and people are examined. They also stress the sanctity of the scriptures as the inspired Word of God, the importance of the Old Testament and the Old Testament's place as part of the Christian canon. The text states that the Old Testament both reflects and complements the New Testament. By delving into authorship issues, historical context, and particular messages of the OT books, students get a clearer understanding of the background, key people, geographic points, and archeological findings to facilitate a divine encounter through the study of the Word of God. Each of the four sections is prefaced by a collective treatment of the commonly themed books, dealing with shared characteristics, objectives, summaries, definitions and suggestions for further readings. Far from calling into question the Bible, Encountering the Old Testament asserts the infallibility of the Scriptures and encourages the faith on the revealed Word of God.  The Old Testament and the New Testament are twinned sections of the Bible that refer to one another and harmonize seamlessly. Although some Christians concentrate on the New Testament because of the New Covenant of Grace, rather than the Old Covenant of Law, the Old Testament contains vital doctrines which the New Testament supports and assumes generally known. Christians view a wrathful and vindictive God in the Old Testament and a lamb-like compassionate God in the New Testament. The Biblical testaments are not separate pieces in a puzzle; they constitute one whole piece, bearing witness to God’s just character and his attempts to ransom mankind from the effects of sin and death. Within the Old Testament, one would find alleged ‘New Testament’ topics such as grace, faith, justification, and the Holy Spirit. God discloses divine truth gradually, therefore if certain passages are misunderstood or recondite; understanding requires patience and the Holy Spirit to unlock spiritual enigmas. The Pentateuch is regarded as the first five books of the OT, also called the Torah or "Instruction" by the Jewish dispensation. This group of books sets the foundation of Judeo-Christian history, launched by the famous words, "(i)n the beginning" (Genesis 1:1). Spanning the genesis of creation to the death of Moses, one of the chief prophets and writer of the law, commandments, and testimonies, the Pentateuch is divinely inspired revelation The theological focus of the Pentateuch are creation, the fall of man, plan of salvation, kinship and genealogies, election (chosen people), laws, inheritance, the Promised Land, Messiah, sacrificial rites, sanctuary, priesthood, Sabbath, social justice and the covenant. God demonstrates his sovereignty over the individuals, nations and world affairs. The Pentateuch pronounces the Mosaic Law governing man's social, religious, sexual and political life. The institution of the covenant ushers in systems such as sacrifice, atonement, marriage which point to divine realities. Exodus explains the emancipation and exit of God's people. Levitical rituals emphasize the distinction between sanctity/holiness and sin. Numbers enumerates some early battles and the already failing faith of Israel whose feet wandered from the truth. The Pentateuch continues to narrate on the fall from grace and the fallen state of humanity. Through noteworthy such as The Deluge, Sodom and Gomorrah, Babel, Egyptian Slavery and the sins among even the faithful shakes man's trust in man. Universal rebellion forces God to castigate or exterminate the wicked. The OT takes care to note genealogical data because of the promise of a holy seed, the patriarchal tradition, legacy of faith, and retribution theology which proves that God "visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children" (Exo. 20:5; Exo. 34:6; Deut. 5:9). Floods, plagues and curses let characters know of the repercussions of sin; notwithstanding, the God of mercy draws man into redemptive reconciliation through atonement. God's miraculous deliverance set apart Israel from other nations upon whom he has favor. He establishes an intricate religious system to remind his worshippers how to revere Him. Further, because of his desire to 'tabernacle' with men, God gives Moses elaborate and specific instructions to erect a tabernacle. The tabernacle patterned after a heavenly model introduces to Israel many guidelines to observe covering dress, worship, health, diet and family relations.  “Encountering the Historical Books” traces the outline of the history of Israel as a nation, chronicling the reigns of kings, the occurrences of noteworthy events and religio-political movements. The authors raised the question on the authenticity of the history books, the alleged historians, the differences in the Judeo-Christian canons. Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I Samuel, II Samuel, I Kings, II Kings, I Chronicles, II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther comprise biblical books of history. The theological themes in common among them are covenant, social justice, holy war, kingship, kinship, sanctuary and worship, remnant, redemption, law and judgment. Historical accounts follow the course of Israel's trajectory to the Promised Canaan. Although the order of the histories is not in chronological order, time location is revealed by the names and reigns of rulers. Major subjects spanning the history of Israel include the era of conquest, Israel's theocracy, early tribal political structure, sanctuary/temple, Israel's monarchy, Davidic dynasty, apostasy and the Divided Kingdom, captivity and exile, law and judgment. During the time of David’s kingdom, Israel enjoyed its peak as prophets foretold the coming of Jesus the Messiah who would save, reign, and redeem the people. The retribution theology materializes in the histories since Deuteronomic promises contain blessings for the obedient and curses for the wayward. The Deuteronomistic history indicates the history from Joshua to Kings. This period marks the fulfillment of the Abrahamic promise of a prosperous, countless nation which inherits a Promised Land. However, unfaithfulness to the covenant leads God's chosen people away from him and effectively abolished the former theocracy to a monarchy. The downward trend of the nation of Israel ends up in the rift between Israelites and Jews, ungodly rulers, divine punishments, prophetic warnings and Babylonian captivity: a recurrent history of righteousness and relapse. History in the Bible casts a both backward and forward glance: a retrospection of the Abrahamic patriarchs and the anticipation of a glorious kingdom headed by the anointed Messiah and King. Archaeology unites geography with ancient artifacts sprinkled over age-old civilizations. The areas of Mesopotamia, Syria-Palestine and Egypt form the stage on which the Biblical events are built. Also, the four sub-regions of Israel:  the coastal zone (the “Levant)”, the central mountain range, the Jordan Rift (the “Rift”), and the Transjordan Highlands become the promised home and kingdom of Israel.  Herodotus is called the Father of History because he did not simply initiate the procedure of historic record which later historians adopted. He verified the evidence and retold history with the flair of a storyteller. Herodotus integrates ethnology, geography, politics, myth and moral principles. As a Greek historian, Herodotus journals several imperial wars of king Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius I and Xerxes. However, history predated the time of Herodotus and therefore he does not stand as the father of history. Canon derives from the Hebrew 'kaneh' and the Greek 'kanon' which mean reed, measuring stick or rule. The scriptural canon was the spiritual yardstick by which truth is accepted as divinely inspired. Canons are validated based on scriptural unity, universal audience, and divine, Spirit-led authorship. The Jewish Canon and the Christian Canon differ from one another primarily because the Jewish canon concludes at 2 Chronicles, whereas the Christian canon's final book is Malachi. The Jewish canon accepts the Deuteronomistic history books as the prophets since these books detail the attitude of Israel toward the divine covenant. On the other hand, the Christian canon endorses the Biblical history texts as religious history because of the spiritual value. History and theology go hand in hand because they both convey the stories of mankind and the plan of salvation, document divine intervention and revelation and encompass time and place. Heilsgeschichte, meaning salvation history, embodies the union of history and theology. “Encountering the Poetical Books” gives a detailed account of the poetic books and what characterizes the Biblical poets such as Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Songs of Solomon. The common traits of poetical books are wisdom literature, conversations with God, and effusive expressions of praise, love, and agony. The structure of the poetical books incorporates metric styles, parallelism, chiasm and acrostics. Hebrew poetry incorporated the repetition of a core idea either partially or entirely, continuation of an already presented idea, contrast of distinct thoughts, culmination to climactic action, alphabetical ordering of verses, and figures of speech. Chiasms are unique in Hebrew poetry since sentences follow a particular pattern to maintain and produce a desired shape. Shapes would impress on the mind the focus of the verses so the readers' eyes would detect the central concept on the arrangement of verses. Age-old meters which strategically placed similar word sounds or rhymes at the ends of sentences are employed for retention of the sing-song quality. Because of translation to a different language, much of the Bible's poetic content has been lost. However, bible translators used their utmost in preserving the musical cadence of the poetics. These poets evoked emotion in their verse as they complained, rejoiced, exhorted, prayed, lamented, repented, reaffirmed trust in God, and hoped in both God's grace and the coming Messiah. More than any other poet, the Psalms stand out as the inclusive hymn book that integrates the elements of doxology, exhortation and wisdom literature. Wisdom literature is a central genre in the Biblical Poet books. The wisdom literature in the poetics disclose to the unwise and young quintessential truths that can be applied to the practical life and spiritual life. The experiential and divine wisdom of King Solomon, the bitter trials of Job, and the recorded travails of David reinforce that wisdom comes foremost in the midst of adversity. Wisdom literature broaches the question of theodicy, life philosophy, and equips the seeker of wisdom with principles to endure suffering, nourish faith and maintain integral relationships with God and man. Confronting mysterious questions such as the reward of the wicked, the seeming unfair lot of the righteous, the promised blessing for the righteous and evil-boding for the foolish and degenerate, wisdom literature steers the mind back to the fountain of true wisdom-God himself. Proverbial wisdom instructs with the intention that listeners effectively utilize the wisdom in their lives. Sourced from observations from nature and life, Solomon touches on the use of money, work, social habits, family relationships and spousal relationships, educating readers in valuable life lessons. Ecclesiastical wisdom has a more melancholy tone which focuses on the brevity of life and the transience of pleasure. At the same time, while man is alive, his whole duty remains to show his love and commitment for God by doing His commandments faithfully, as clearly mandated in the law and prophets. “The Encountering the Prophets” section delves into the group of Old Testament books named after the major and minor prophets: from Isaiah to Malachi. Arnold and Beyer answer such probing questions such as the place of the prophetic in the context of the Old Testament. A prophet is a person inspired by the supernatural or divine with an essential message for his generation. A prophet also called a seer is said to have superhuman abilities to foretell the future and work miracles. Prophecy numbers among the spiritual gifts. The text proceeds to name and clarify some of the myths and misunderstanding about the prophets. Many believe that prophecy refers solely to the ability to reveal future occurrences, however in the Bible, prophets did much more than merely tell the future. This mistaken belief is rooted in the Greek etymology of prophecy or "prophemi" which simply means to foretell. On the other hand, the English etymology of prophecy derives from "profecie" (French) or "prophetia" (Latin) which means the aptitude to convey messages from the divine. This additional detail cancels the notion that fortunetellers or diviners are true prophets. At the time of the writing of the Old Testament prophets, Israel, God's chosen people had slidden into apostasy and adopted the pagan practices of their neighbors. The law was trampled and social justice was ignored. The fire and brimstone, or woe prophets had to point the people back to keeping the laws and commandments of God and encourage the leaders to rectify the social ills so that the God of heaven and earth could bless the land. The position of the prophets as the last set of Biblical texts before the debut of the New Testament prepares the reader for the first advent of Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Messiah foretold since the times of Adam and sought after among God's people. Prophets keep the hope burning of the imminent appearance of a divine Redeemer and Deliverer. Recurrent themes in the prophetic writings include idolatry, apostasy, the need for repentance, the lamentable corruption, social injustice, the wrath of God against His people, the urgent petition to reform, warnings of future judgments, punishment, God's threatened abandonment, and captivity. A common image of the prophets depicts Israel/Judah as the whoring woman who fornicates against her husband, unfaithful to the holy covenant of marriage. God spoke concerning the oneness of the marital union. In the Garden of Eden God says that a man shall “leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). The word ‘cleave’ proceeds from the Hebrew word dâbaq which means to cling, stick to, adhere to. This definition leaves no opening for separation. In the same way, God and his people are one flesh and joined in heart, mind, body and purpose. Hosea the prophet fully utilizes this imagery as he decries the unfaithful nation who turns aside from her husband, has intercourse with strangers, and even forsakes her children (Hos. 9:1). The prophets carry in their prophecies both immediate and future meanings. Bible commentators and theologians observe that the prophecies are for the edification of both the Judeo-Israelite nations and the modern Christian church. The prophets reveal both the first and second advent of Jesus Christ the Messiah, a time of backsliding of God's people and admonitions to return to God in obedience. The difference between major and minor prophets is the length of the prophecy. The historical context of the prophets covers the 8th century B.C. to the 6th century B.C. The major political events were the Assyrian captivity of Israel, the Babylonian captivity of Judah, the Persian captivity of Judah, the exile and scattering of the divided kingdom of Israel and Judah and the restoration of Jerusalem, and the return of Judean captives. Sadly the petitions to the depraved kings, debauched rulers, biased magistrates, false prophets, and erring priests go unheeded. In sum, Encountering the Old Testament leads one into a study of historical context of the scriptures, through an analysis of the Pentateuch, Poetics, Histories and Prophets. The assertion of the infallibility is coupled with the perspectives of Biblical critics within both the Jewish and Christian faiths. Old Testament theology underscores God's salvific design for man from the beginning of history and focuses on a peculiar people chosen by God, Israel. In the controversy between good and evil, the Old Testament gives background, retracing the steps of the Judeo-Christian ancestors since antiquity and projects the expectation of God to fulfill his word to his people. In the tireless power struggle, individual, tribal and national spheres feature frequent clashes, mediations, and resolutions involving action in both the physical and spiritual realm. The text lays out theological significance of each OT book, the key characters and subjects at stake. The Bible lends itself to several hermeneutical interpretations such as historical method, context, literature classification, etymology or grammatical method, scriptural interpretation of scripture and modern-day application. Israel’s pilgrimage refers to the Israelites' journey from Egypt to Canaan, the Promised Land. Applied to the eschatological context, the OT directs the eye to the transcendent kingdom of God in which God’s people triumph over evil and reign forever. From the revelations written by Moses to the Prophets, the chosen people which formerly represented evolve into the Church, brought into existence and called by Jesus Christ in the New Testament Christian dispensation. Works Cited: Arnold, Bill T. Bryan E. Beyer. Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey. Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2008. Read More