MINISTRY FORMATION: OLD TESTAMENT I

Teacher: Rev. Msgr. Michel Tierney (mtierney@mchsi.com / 847/826-3929)

GENERAL INFORMATION

The Bible “biblia” means books.

Contains many literary forms or genres such as: history, poetry, drama, philosophy, letter, visions, advice,

songs, prophecy, and law.

The term “Jewish Scriptures” and “Hebrew Bible” both refer to a collection of books considered sacred

in Judaism. Many of these writings were regarded as holy even before Jesus’ day, especially the first five books, the

“Torah.” About a century after Jesus, the collection of books we know as the Old Testament was fixed.

Two major parts of the Bible

Old Testament or Hebrew Scriptures

New Testament

Testament means “promise”

Who wrote the Bible?

Various authors - most are unknown. They wrote to communicate God’s message.

When was the Bible written? Over a period of about 1,100 years (1000 BC – 200 AD) even though the people and events cover the times from

1800 BC to 100 AD.

BC – Before Christ

AD – Anno Domini (in the year of the Lord)

BCE – Before Common Era

CE – Common Era

Who are the people in the Bible?

“Hebrews” in the earliest times

“Israelites” when living in Israel

“Jews” from Jesus’ time till now

Number of Books in the Bible

Catholic Old Testament – 46 books

Jewish Old Testament (Hebrew Scriptures) – 39 books

Protestant Old Testament – 39 books

Christian New Testament – 27 books

It will be hard to read the Old Testament and not keep thinking about the New Testament. In other words, by

no fault of our own, we will be reading the Old Testament through the lens of the New Testament. It is

intended that say it is the plan of the Father.

Referencing the Bible

Ex 4:1-6, 8-12

Book Chapter: Verses 1 through 6, and verses 8 through 12

You can find the abbreviations for the chapters in the index

Canon – “measuring stick.” An established rule for guidance, a standard, or a list of rules. In biblical use it is the catalogue of inspired writings

known as the Old and New Testaments, identified by the Church. Determined, in part, by usage and habit. In

the act of canonization, the Church declares that certain books are divinely enabled testimony to a divinely given

revelation.

Apocrypha (Deuterocanonical) Old Testament books not contained in the Jewish canon. Catholics call them the name Deuterocanonical: Tobit,

Judith, I and II Maccabees, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, and Baruch are not in Protestant OT’s. They are not

included because they were written in Greek to Greek-speaking Jews in Alexandria. The other 39 books are written

in Hebrew or Aramaic. These 7 books were listed in the canon of local churches in North Africa in the fourth

century and referred to at the Council of Hippo in 393 and Cartage in 397. They were given solemn approval until

1546 at the Council of Trent. All seven of these books are referred to in the New Testament.

Languages of the Bible –

The Old Testament was written in Hebrew. Hebrew is the language of the Law.

Aramaic was the spoken language.

Commentaries of the Bible - Commentaries give important information about the book, the author, the type of literature, the culture and the use of

words. Many good commentaries, Recommended Catholic Commentary in Jerome Biblical Commentary.

Translations of the Bible

Vulgate – the “common or vulgar” Latin translation of the Bible by St. Jerome in 382 AD. The Council of Trent

in the 16th century declared that the Vulgate is authentic and to be used. Basically, they said that this translation is

to be used.

Septuagint – The most important translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek. It was used by

Greek-speaking Jews in Alexandria and became popular in Palestine. “Sept” refers to the 70 /72 scholars who

translated the books from Hebrew. Includes the deuterocanonical books.

Current Translations: Many, but you want one for study from the Greek and Hebrew texts: New

American Bible, Jerusalem Bible, and Revised Standard Version

OTHER IMPORTANT WRITINGS OF THE TIMES:

Dead Sea Scrolls – found in 1948 AD in the ancient Qumran community close to the Dead Sea in Palestine.

Written between 170 BC and 68 AD. Fragments of all Old Testament texts are found – mostly Deuteronomy,

Isaiah and Psalms. In terms of the New Testament, they contain no trace of any of the principal doctrines of

Christianity: i.e. the Incarnation of Messianic Kingdom. Rather, the Dead Sea Scrolls reveal the existence of an

ascetical community, the Essenes, in first century Palestine.

Talmud – a collection of laws, regulations and other materials that, after the Hebrew Scriptures, is the

authoritative religious document of Judaism. It includes Misnah, a collection of legal interpretations and practices

from the Pharisees and other respected teachers. The Gemara is a commentary on the Misnah. Finally collected

and arranged during the fourth century AD.

Didache – the Teachings of the Twelve Apostles. A first century document written before 100 AD and is

divided into three parts:

1) Way of Life and Way of Death,

2) Liturgical meaning of baptism, fasting, confession and Holy Communion, and

3) How to do ministry.

Holy Land Geography

Palestine – current name for the Holy Land, Canaan, Land of Israel. This is the place the original twelve

tribes of Israel settled. Palestine is separated by the Jordan River. The Jordan River is 65 miles long and

connects the Sea of Galilee and the Dead See (no outlet).

Jewish Scriptures are a History of God’s interaction with his people God intervened in his people’s history and formed them. The stories tell of their good relationships with him

and their not so good relationships with him as they live out their history. Their celebrations and leaders are all

part of their relationship with God. They learn about God and life from their God and their history as children

learn from their fathers and mothers. Their history and their relationship with God are intertwined in their life’s

history. This is a constant unfolding of God’s love and care for them. It cannot be fully understood without the

fulfillment of God’s promises from the New Testament and the who of scripture cannot be fully understood until

life is ended, and we are with God.

Personal History – what shapes us, communicates identity, makes us unique Personal, local national self-

consciousness is through the remembrance of events. We normally think of history as recounting, “what happened”,

but we must recognize that there is no history that simply recounts what happened. All history involves the

selection, organization and interpretation of events. The writers of the Bible tell the history of Israel from their

perspective. They have a message to get across.

Jewish Culture – has a great sense of history and Judaism reaches through a long stretch of history. Secular

viewpoint of Jewish culture – not really unusual, just a small mid-east culture that is not unique and not very

impressive.

Old Testament is sacred history because the meaning of life is disclosed. All events are interpreted

through the light of faith – makes it revelation.

Revelation:

1) Found out who God really was

2) Found God’s identity and our response to his revelation. Discloses God’s activity in history

So, OT is Israel’s encounter with a relational God.

BROAD HISTORICAL SYNOPSIS

1) Formed into a people when freed from Slavery in Egypt

God sent 10 plagues – EXODUS EVENT (1300 BC – 1250 BC)

Prepared them for the journey

Escaped

Rejoiced

Formed a covenant with God (10 Commandments)

2) Wandered and Settled – AGE OF JUDGES (1130 BC – 1020 BC)

Twelve Brothers – twelve Tribes

Battles with neighbors and family difficulties

Week Governmental system Federation

3) Kingship – AGE OF MONARCHY (1120 – 587 BC)

Theological difficulties

Lawyers solved it

King would be the “Son of God” and Earthly God is Heaven King

Saul named as King – KING SAUL (1020 – 1000 BC)

David was the great Warrior and Charismatic – KING DAVID (1000 – 961 BC)

Great King David

Solomon was next king – KING SOLOMON (961 – 930 BC)

Brought Israel to a nation to be admired

4. Divided Kingdom

Jeroboam Northern Kingdom Israel (922-915BC)

Rehoboam Southern Kingdom Judah (922 – 901 BC)

Battled verbally and with skirmishes

5. Fall of the Northern by Assyria (721 BC)

6. Fall of the Southern Kingdom by Babylon (586 BC)

Exile took the Leaders to Babylon (BABYONIAN EXILE 587 – 539 BC)

Left the remnant

7. Persia conquers Babylon

Asks why all these Jews here

Send them home with money to rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem in (515BC)

8. Greece conquers Persia

(323 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the world) Greeks

come with their own gods and demand Jews to worship Persecution (Heroic

Stories of Burning furnace, David in Lions’ Den) Attempted Revolution (Books

of Maccabees)

9. Romans Conquer Greece (146 BC)

Romans too come with their own gods and do demand Jews to worship

PRE-HISTORY ABRAHAM and Period of Patriarchs (1850 BC – 1250 BC)

That is only the History of Israel from the Exodus onward. What happened before that? That’s what the kids asked?

So

-1. Uncle Abraham and Sarah

Called to leave home and he would be the founder of a great nation

Had no children

Produced a child by the maid servant

Produced a child by his wife Sarah at 90 Years

Asked to sacrifice his son if he loved and trusted God

-2. The Great Flood and Noah

Sin had entered the world and was taking it over. God

started over with Noah and all the animals.

-3. In the Beginning (THE BEGINNING)

Two Creation Stories

Fall of Man

Consequences of Sin

out of the garden

death shorter

life work is

hard sin

worsens

JEWISH FEAST AND CELEBRATIONS Rosh Hashanah – “head of the year.” The Jewish New Year.

Yom Kippur – “Day of Atonement.” A holy day of fasting and repentance for forgiveness of sin –

scapegoat. 9 days after Rosh Hashanah

Sakkuth – “Feast of Tabernacles, Feast of Booths” – final harvest festival of grapes and

olives, falling in the month of October (sixth day after Yom Kippur). It was called booths

because harvesters lived in tents or booths during harvest time. Reminded them of living in the

wilderness.

Passover – (14th day of the first month) Travel to Jerusalem to offer sacrifice. Recalled how God had

delivered them by the angel of death passing over the Israelites and killing the first born.

Unleavened Bread - (15th day of the first month) A family meal to recall how God delivered them

from Egypt and provided manna (bread from heaven)

Shavout - (Feast of weeks) (Pentecost) – 50 days after Passover celebrated the wheat harvest and

the giving of the law.

Hanukkah - means “dedication” is a Jewish holiday celebrated for eight days and nights. Jewish troops

were determined to re-purify the Temple by burning ritual oil in the Temple’s menorah for eight days.

But to their dismay, they discovered that there was only one day’s worth of oil left in the Temple.

They lit the menorah anyway and to their surprise the small amount of oil lasted the full eight days.

It starts on the 25th of the Jewish month of Kislev, which coincides with late November – late

December on the secular calendar.

BIBLICAL STUDY How was the message of God given to the writer?

Bird on the shoulder? Dictation? Word of God and word of man?

Everyone thought dictation – God is the author man is the writer

Conflicts occurred in archeology and biblical dating 850 AD and beyond

War between atheistic science and church leaders

1943 AD Pope Pius XII wrote Divino Afflanti Spiritu giving scholars freedom to use methods

The Inspiration and Inerrancy of Scripture

Did God command certain individuals to write? Did God dictate into the ears of the writers? Was the writer in

a hypnotic state, in ecstasy, or even possessed by God?

When speaking of the inspiration of Scripture, we speak of the Holy Spirit assisting

human authors to write sacred books. The reader must take into account the conditions of the time and

culture, the literary genres of the time and the modes of feeling. Human faculties are employed to bring out the

full message of the book. Christianity is not merely a religion of the book (Catechism of the Catholic Church

101-1412).

If the writer were in a hypnotic state, the Bible in its literal sense would not exist because the human author’s

intention would be void. No relationship would exist between the author and his contemporaries, and history

would be vacant. If the writer were in an ecstatic state or even possessed by God, it would seem that the event

of ecstasy would be vital to the writing.

When we speak of inerrancy, we are saying that the Bible is free from error in the sense

that the meaning intended by the writers is itself free from error. Investigation of the literary

form will help one to judge what the meaning was, while the doctrinal affirmation of the meaning will not be

overthrown by growth in historical understanding. The intention of the author must be judged in terms of the

book’s relevance to human salvation. Since the Bible is a response to revelation, and revelation is a process, so

too, the human understanding of an unfolding relationship changes. The inerrant truth of Scripture is the

inerrant saving truth.

BIBLICAL FORMS

What form are the stories of the Old Testament and the Bible as a whole?

Newspaper Example

Headlines

Opinion (Letters to the Editor) Graphs and Statistics

Cartoons

So what is true in the scripture?

The one who knows is the writer, so the Church tries to find the mind of the author

Types of Biblical Criticism

Various methods of scientific study that have their goal in establishing the text, understanding

the content and literary style of the books, and determining their origin and authenticity.

Textual Criticism – seeks to establish the wording of the biblical text as the biblical authors wrote it.

Ras a ma taz, Groovy, dube, dude

Literary Criticism – attends to the words and images, the characters and relationships, the

structure and progress of thought, the literary form, and the meaning. What type of

literature? What words are used?

Historical - Critical Method – uses literary criticism to find out about the origin and growth of the

biblical documents. Where was it written? Was it added to?

Source Criticism – finds out where previously existing material has been used by a later author.

Flood Story

Form Criticism – seeks to clarify literary devices and to isolate the historical settings in which the forms

developed and functioned before they became part of the context. Nativity Story

Redaction Criticism – deals with the ways biblical authors used sources, changed them to

address the problems of their time. Creation Story

Historical Criticism – the reality of an event behind the text rather than the meaning of the

event.

Jonah,

Walls of Jericho

HISTORY OF ISRAELABRAHAM and Period of Patriarchs (1850 BC- 1250 BC) Genesis 12:1-9 God elects a race or a clan of Abram. God chooses Abram over all peoples. 12:1-3 God promises Abraham 3 Things: 1. Nation 2. Land 3. That nation will be a blessing to all other nations. 12:7 builds an altar, something to mark the event. 12:4-9 about the land. 15:1-6 special race will be from a wife, not a slave. 15:7-8God’spresenceisaflamingtorch. 17:1-14 promises, circumcision is a physical mark that can be sealed without a land or a nation, a personal covenant. 17:15-22 Abraham and Sarah’s son is called Isaac that means, “He laughs” because they laughed at God’s request to have children at such an old age. The covenant will extend to Isaac as well. 22:1-8atestofAbraham’sfaith-sacrificeIsaac.Instead,useanimalsacrifice.

EXODUS EVENT (1300 BC- 1250 BC)1750 BC- 1550 BC Hebrews settle in Egypt. The Book of Genesis ends with the Hebrews settling in the prosperous land of Goshen, a fertile section of the Nile Delta nearest to Pal-estine. In 1550 BC, King Ahmose overthrew the Hyksos leader and began a new dynasty. Exodus opens during the 19th Egyptian dynasty under Seti I and Remesses I around 1310 BC. A date for the Exodus in the reign of Ramesses II sometime between 1300 and 1270 BC seems most likely. Ramesses II enslaved the Israelites to build the towns of Pithom and Raamses, as Exodus 1: 11 states and it are most likely that an escape (or Exodus) could be done as refugees kept moving around. Therefore, it is possible that shifts of Israelites left over the period of thirty years. There are varying theories and dates associated with the Exodus.

Exodus 2- Birth of MosesExodus3and4Callscene,fleestoMidianafterkillinganEgyptian Identity- “I am the God of your fathers…” Character- “I have seen the affliction of my people…” The Call- “You will go to Egypt…”

Theophany-–divine visitation, direct communication or appearance by God. God appears to Moses in the burning bush in Exodus 3:2-6 Not a matter of how, but why.

Moses resists and rejects the call by God (says he is not worthy, can’t speak, etc.)Exodus 3:12 God assures Moses

“I am who am”= Yahweh= 1st person singular= “to be,” means Yahweh is an active present being. Jews never say the name of God (Yahweh) because it is too sacred. In the Old and New Testaments, he is simply called, “the Lord”

INSIIGHT: (Gospel of John- Jesus uses this name for himself. “I am” the bread of life, light of the world, sheepgate, good shepherd, resurrection and the life, way, truth and life, true vine. Jesus uses these words for the same reason Yahweh says it in Exodus- to show what the relationship should be like. John 18: 1-14)

Exodus 4: 1-17 God proves his presence 3 ways: 1) Staff to snake 2) Hand turned leprous 3) Nile to bloodAgain, Moses gives excuses as to why he does not want to go. God uses Aaron, his brother, to speak on his behalf. Confrontation with Pharaoh Plague happens and a pattern of events always follows.Exodus 9: 27-35 Moses asks for release Pharaoh refuses Plague occurs (Hebrews not affected) Pharaoh’s meeting (he backs down) Plague ends, Pharaoh changes his mind.

10TH PLAGUE- PASSOVERShows God has control over life and death. Passover- each family slays and roasts a lamb, eat unleavened bread, ready to leave the city, put blood on the doorpost so angel of death can Passover. Jews celebrate this feast today as a reminder of how God saved them. In the NT, the Last Supper was Passover. It was not uncommon that Jesus celebrated this feast with the 12 apostles or that he washed their feet. They thought they were cel-ebrating Passover. Even though it was not on the exact day, we also do the same thing.

Exodus 12: 1-20, 13: 1-16 Passover celebration with a new ritual—consecration of the firstborn.

In terms of covenant, Passover is the decisive saving event in the history of Juda-ism. In Genesis where humans are co-creators with God in word, now they are co-creators with God in deed.

Exodus 13: 17-22, 14: 10-22 Passover- The Sea Event—Decisive saving event, Israel becomes the people of Yahweh, not so much about nature, but rather a sign of the saving presence of Yahweh. Two versions of the event: 1) Exodus 14- prose 2) Exodus 15- poetry hymn, Song of Miriam. This song is sung after the reading is read at the Easter Vigil. Wilderness Journey Shows their lack of faith- “Why did you bring us out here to die…” Shows how God provides and cares- manna and quail. Positive effects of the Wilderness Journey Exodus 16: 1-8 quail and manna. Exodus 17: 1-7 water from the rock. Negative effects of the Wilderness Journey Numbers 11: 4-15 complaining about lack of food, Moses’ anguish was a time of weakness Numbers 14: 2-4 want to choose a new captain and go back to Egypt, want power Exodus 19- Arrival at Mt. Sinai/Mt. Horeb The worship and religion of Yahweh now becomes the national religion Theophany #1- covenant/law make up the Sinai event. God delivers the law. Theophany #2- natural things like thunder, lightening and wind. Ex 19: 16-24.

Exodus 19:3-6 Eagle’s Wings= wilderness leading- explains how to live out vocation / mission and call- be God’s priestly kingdom and holy people.

Exodus 24: 1-2, 9-11 2traditionsfortheratificationofthecovenant Meal at the top of the mountain eaten by representatives of the people. Bloodsacrifices Why? Because these two things were popular at the time.

God’s law for the relationship The relationship will be like a marriage The pledge will be like wedding vows The law was seen as a blessing, not a burden. It is saying “thanks” for the relationship.

Covenant: A solemn agreement made with a religious ritual. Can be made between individuals or nations. Considered valid for all time Deuteronomy 6: 4-9 Summary of LawGospel of Matthew: Chapters 5-7 “Sermon on the Mount”Just as Moses went up the mountain to get the law, Jesus goes up a mountain to give the Law.

Exodus 32 Golden Calf Incident Story of rebellion, Aaron makes the calf; Moses gets so angry he breaks the tablets on the calf. God promises punishment later: 1)Deut.9:7-28(Moses’reflection) 2) Deut. 10: 1-10 (build ark)

BOOKS OF LEVITICUS AND NUMBERSContinuation of the law presented at Sinai up to the point where the Hebrews enter the Promised Land. The focus of all the stories is legal lists on either preparations for the journey or problems encountered on the journey, or on attitudes that threaten the journey. The central theme of Leviticus is holiness in the ordinary areas of life such as food,clothing,sickness,moralethicsandregularworship.Numbersintensifiestheseexpectations and stresses the need for dedication and total commitment to God for Israel to succeed as a nation. Its goal is to live prosperously in the Holy Land.

DEUTERONOMY- mostly speeches by Moses, very different in style and language. Speeches by MosesNumbers 20: 10-13 why didn’t Moses enter the Promised Land? He struck the rock twice.Numbers 27: 12-20 Moses is told by God to choose Joshua as the new leader because Moses will die.Deut. 2: 23-29 Joshua will enter the Promised Land, Moses will not.Deut. 31: 1-8 Moses commissions Joshua.

Moses’ Farewell TourHe tells them to remain faithful. He outlines the blessings and curses they can expect depending upon their commitment to YahwehDeut. 28: 1-15 blessings- stand in awe, give and receiveDeut. 28: 15-68 cursesDeut.30:15-20 finalspeech-chooselifeandnotdeath.Deut. 32: 48-52 Moses sees the Promised Land, but can’t enter.Deut. 32-33 prayers and blessingsDeut. 34 death of Moses

JOSHUA ThebookofJoshuapresentsthatfirststep,theconquestanddistributionofland;the succeeding stages of development, ultimately unsuccessful because of Israel’s failure to obey the law.“The New Moses” Joshua 3 Moses leads people across the Red Sea, Joshua will lead them across the Jordan River Moses had a staff of powers; Joshua has the Ark of the Covenant (both are sacred objects). Moses’ theophany was a burning bush; Joshua had a vision of an angel.Settling in the Promised Land Joshua 2: 1-24 Rahab and the Spies Joshua 5: 5:1-15 Israel in the Promised Land Joshua 6: 1-19 Siege at Jericho Joshua 7: 1-26 Defeat at Ai for breaking the ban Ban- total destruction without taking any possessions for yourself Joshua 24: 1-33 Personality and death of JoshuaAGE OF JUDGES (1130 BC- 1020 BC)Judge- temporary leaders of the 12 tribes assigned by Moses before his death. When the Israelites settled in the Promised Land, they were assigned by tribes and each tribe had a leader called a Judge. This represents the period between the death of Joshua and the days of Samuel. Judges were mostly military leaders sent by God to aid and relieve his people in time of external danger. These are stories of how God raises up deliverers to save Israel when, after settled in the Promised Land, is unfaithful and overcome by enemies. Whenever the people were obedient, things went well. When they were disobedient, pagan nations attacked them.

The book of Judges was formed from many independent sources of stories about certain people. They are hero sagas related to us by local tribe leaders. They are usually embellished and exaggerated stories compiled many years later with one major theme: sin brings punish-ment and repentance brings deliverance. Major Judges: Othniel, Ehud, Barak, Gideon, Jephthah, SamsonNote on the following books of Joshua, Judges, I & II Samuel, I & II Kings:The ancient authors used stories and traditions that already existed; each major work covers many centuries of history, and therefore it cannot be an eyewitness account by oneperson.Theancientauthorscreatedthefinalformofeachwork.Sometimestheytook over older accounts with little or no change; sometimes they rewrote the source. It is important, however, to pay attention both to the older materials (they tell important thingsaboutancienttraditions)andtothefinalformofthedocuments(theytelluswhatthe authors thought was important and therefore emphasized). The Bible often tells the same story from different points of view (crossing the Red Sea, parables and miracles of Jesus); this gives clues to that perspective, and not just the story. An example of this is a saga like tale of David and Goliath while, on the other hand, David’s household is pure history.

So, Deuteronomy- II Kings was written long after the time they actually happened and is considered one long narrative. Most likely, Genesis through Numbers and Deuteronomy throughIIKingswerefinallyassembledintheyearssubsequenttothedestructionofJerusalem in 586 BC. The stories were there, they just were not written down yet.Book written at this time: Ruth

AGE OF MONARCHY (1120- 587 BC)SAMUELPresentedasthefinaljudgeandfirstprophet.TriestokeepthetraditionsofGodalive.Sam-uel is a guiding personality among all Judges- people lost faith, Samuel rallied them up.

I Samuel 2: 12-36, 3:1-21 Call of SamuelI Samuel 5:6-7 Attack of the Philistines —Loss of the ark

because they could not handle its power Philistines had bad luck with it as well and simply return it (hemorrhoids).

A King for Israel?Anti- Monarchy I Samuel 8:6-22, 10: 17-27, 12: 13-18 Monarchy would break the covenant with GodPro- Monarchy I Samuel 11: 1-15 Need a king to be a blessing to other nations.

PROBLEM: Traditionally, Israel’s king was Yahweh himself. Others believed that a human leader was essential for many reasons- war, enemies, diploma-cy, and immediate decisions. Remember, this is being done for the first time so errors were going to be made. One of the big problems was unity among the nation because allegiance till this point was tribal.

I Samuel 12:18-25 Assistance Promised Warningsforthepeopleaboutsin.Godshouldbefirst and the king should be second.

KING SAUL (1020-1000 BC)I Samuel 10: 17-27 Saul hides. He is a tall, reluctant kingI Samuel 14: 16-23 Saul will be a warrior-kingSaulisthefirstkingofIsraelfromthetribeofBenjamin.Saulwasverysuccessfulatfirstwithhismilitary.SaulleadspeopleintobattlewiththePhilistines,theirenemy,and wins. Saul builds a strong army and is successful in battle. Politically, Saul could care less about a centralized government He had no military draft. No hierarchy in court,nocourtofficials.Attheendofhisreign,Saulwasfacedwithtwodifficultsituations: Continual pressure from the Philistines. Military success of a young man named David. Saul spent so much time trying to hunt down and kill David that he eventually lost to the Philistines.Saul’s DownfallBattle with the Amalekites (ancient enemies from Exodus 17: 8-16). “Holy War” was waged by God’s command. No sex, no loot, no property but rather give every-thing as an offering to God. I Samuel 15: 1-35 Saul broke the ban on keeping trea-sures. They beat the Amalekites, but Saul spares the life of the king (Samuel had to killhim)andsomelivestock.Saulalsooffersasacrificereservedforpriests.

KING DAVID (1000- 961 BC)I Samuel 18: 6-16 David’s Rise to FameI Samuel 16: 14-23 Brought into court of Saul as a musician.I Samuel 17: 50- 18:5 Victory over Goliath

Saul’s jealousy towards David clouds his mind so much that the nation falls apart. Jonathan, Saul’s son, who liked David, told him of his father’s plan to kill him. David goes to hide out with Samuel. Saul kicks Jonathan out of his court so he goes to stay with

David. In battle, Saul leaves camp to search out and kill David. Instead, David catches Saul and spares his life. Saul asks for mercy for his descendants from David. David agrees. Samuel dies.

David gathers an army of resistance against Saul because he wants to become king. David gathers Saul-haters from the south (Judah). II Samuel 2: 1-14. After the death of Saul, Da-vid is named King of Judah. Now David has the opportunity to rule North and Saul (keep in mind Saul did a terrible job of uniting North and South).

Abner, Saul’s general and cousin, took Ishbaal, Saul’s son, and made him king over the tribes in the North (Israel). Later, Ishbaal accuses Abner of sleeping with his concubine so he defects to the side of David. Joab, David’s armor-bearer, or right-hand-man, becomes upset with David for letting Abner, as he thought, deceive him.

Joab seeks Abner out and kills him mostly because Abner had killed Joab’s brother Asahel before when Abner was on Saul’s side. When David learns that Abner is leav-ing to come to his side, he asks Abner to bring his wife Michal back with him.

Michal was the daughter of Saul and she had warned David of Saul’s deadly plan against him. Saul has her marry someone else so David has no times to the throne. David had marriedherwhenheandSaulgotalong-buthehadfledtosavehislife.Topreventfurtherproblems, Michal stayed behind with her father, Saul.

While away from Michal, David marries Abigail I Samuel 25: 18-43. Meanwhile, his own men-brothers Rechab and Baanah kill Ishbaal, Saul’s son who wants to become king. When they bring the head of Ishbaal to David hoping for a reward, David has them killed for killing Ishbaal. David buries Ishbaal’s head next to Abner’s. David becomes king of North and South.

Meribaal, who is Jonathan’s son and Saul’s grandson, is restored inheritance by Da-vid and he lives in protection in the palace.

David as King 2 Important Political Moves: Changes the capital city from Hebron to Jerusalem. Brings the Ark of the Covenant to JerusalemDavid makes Jerusalem the center of politics and religion. David does this on purpose to give his kingdom a theological foundation…and it was good for business. This is called Royal Theology—how David combines politics and religion. From now on, the king will always have a special relationship with God. However, David did not just walk into Jeru-salem and set up shop, he had to destroy the Jebusites who lived there.

Jerusalem- known as “City of God”, “City of David”, and “City of Zion”(Jerusalem was much like Washington DC. It belongs to no tribe, it is David’s City)Davidic Covenant- II Samuel 7: 1-17 Promise to establish a kingdom that will never end. The basis for royal theology- David is now a moderator between God and people. David wants to build a temple for the ark, but God wants to build a dynasty for David and his successors.

Yahweh Promises 4 Things in Davidic Covenant Make David a dynasty Dynasty will last forever Davidic king will be like a son to Yahweh God’s loyalty will last in this covenant even if people disobeyThe Throne becomes a mediator between God and People Psalm 89: 1-4, 19-37, Psalm 132: 11-18, Psalm 78: 67-72 II Samuel 5: 17-25; 5: 6-16 David once and for all defeats the PhilistinesDownfall of David The point of the story is that the Davidic King is not above the Law of Moses.David and Nathan Nathan is what is known as a personal prophet. Nathan announces the Davidic Covenant in II Samuel 7 II Samuel 11: 1-27 David and Bathsheba Consequence: God will punish him at a later dateParable of Nathan: II Samuel 12: 13-25. Nathan says that God will forgive him, but future generations will suffer and also that the child conceived will die. Bathsheba bears a son who is sickly and dies soon after birth. But she has another son, whom God blesses. Nathan names him Jedidiah, but is later called Solomon. 3 Theological Points to the Bathsheba Story King is not above the Law of Moses Explains why David’s house will fall Emerging role of prophecyConsequences of Bathsheba SinAmnon,David’sfirstsonwhoisruledbylustrapeshis(Amnon’s)half-sisterTamar.AmnonisDavid’sfirstbornandhencetheheirtothethrone.Absalom,whoisTamar’s

full brother, is enraged. David is also angry with Amnon, but does nothing to punish him. Two years later, Absalom invites Amnon to a royal feast and has him murdered. ThismeansthatnowAbsalomisfirstinlinetobethenextking.Davidiscaughtingriefover the death of Amnon and his love for Absalom, who has since gone into exile. Joab forcesDavidfindAbsalomandbringhimbackintohishouse.DaviddoesandheandAbsalom reconcile.However, Absalom revolts against David and gains popularity by going to He-bronintheNorthanddeclaringhimselfking.David,fearingAbsalom,fleeshim-self. After Absalom revolt is thwarted, David goes on a retreat away from the city and meets many people who bless and curse him.II Samuel 16: 20- 18:4. II Samuel 19: 1-10. While gone, Absalom rallies troops to gofindDavidandkillhim.Davidquicklywantstofightback,butistornbecausehewouldbefightinghisson.David’stellshisadvisorstobegentlewithAbsalomwhenthey defeat him. However, Joab ends up killing Absalom and becomes furious with David when he shows grief at the death of Absalom. Joab reminds him that his com-mitment is to the city.II Samuel 20. During this war within the royal family, Sheba, a follower of Saul from the tribe of Benjamin recruits Amasa, the late Absalom’s general, to organize a group from the North to invade the South. Joab kills Sheba. Book written at this time: Psalms: David writes the Psalms, particularly Pss 1-41. What did God promise Abraham? Are they a blessing to other nations?I Kings 1:28-37 & I Kings 2, 10-12, 14. Scramble for the Throne: Solomon and Adonijah want to both be king David chooses Solomon to be king

KING SOLOMON (961- 930 BC)I & II Kings contain the history of Judah and Israel from the time Solomon (961 BC) through the destruction of both the Northern and Southern Kingdom into the period of the Exile (561 BC.). It is about the ascension and reign of Solomon, the history of the two kingdoms and the Kingdom of Judah after the fall of Israel.Solomon was not a soldier or a military man. He was an educated man. God grants Solomon the gift of wisdom- I Kings 3: 1-14Four Areas of National Development

Foreign Policy- peaceful relations with neighbors, formed alliances with other nations by marrying their king’s daughters.

Defense- large army with superior weapons

Trade- invited ships and merchants into the land Cultural Flourish-finearts,literature,history,music(psalms), philosophy (proverbs).Construction of the Temple of Yahweh I Kings 5-7It took seven years to build. Housed ark of covenant, combined politics and religion like his father David and he used it as a tourist attraction. I Kings 8: 9-14 was consid-ered the holiest place on earth. God said that if Solomon and his descendants forsake the covenant, he would destroy the temple.Solomon’s Downfall- IdolatryI Kings 11: 1-4 Solomon’s marriage to all of the pagan women that God asked him not to marry. Solomon began to perform their rituals to keep them happy and turned away from God. Beyond that, he let pagan gods be worshipped in the temple of Yahweh.Punishment Speech I Kings 11: 1-43Solomon’s son will have the kingship fall, but God will leave one tribe (faithful remnant). Solomon broke #1 commandment by worshipping other gods because of his intermarriage. Solomon blamed his old age.

Problems with Solomon’s Reign in the NorthHigh taxes- Solomon broke the country into twelve tax districts that were split up in tribal fashion. North did not want to pay for the military, Solomon’s court and harem.

Forced labor I Kings 5:27-32- Solomon had many construction projects. He had 30,000 Israelites in labor camps and 80,000 in stone quarries.

RebellionJeroboam is leader of the revolt of the North. Used to work for Solomon and now wants to over throw him. He and his personal prophet Ahijah feel God will give kingshiptoJeroboam.Solomon’sarmybeatshiminbattleandJeroboamfleestoEgypt.Death of Solomon- 922 BC buried next to David in Jerusalem.Books written at this time: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Tobit

DIVIDED KINGDOMREHOBOAM- FIRST KING OF SOUTH (JUDAH) (922- 915 BC)Sheckem Incident I Kings 12:1-20Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, travels north to get anointed king. With Jeroboam gone, the leaders of the North plead with Rehoboam to ease taxes and stop forced labor. Rehoboam does not take advice too well and instead promises to increase taxes and labor. Therefore, the Northern 10 tribes succeed from the kingdom. Jeroboam, meanwhile, returns from Egypt to take over the North. Rehoboam is advised not to attack the North.JEROBOAM- FIRST KING OF NORTH (ISRAEL) (922- 901 BC)Jeroboam makes two shrine towns in the North called “High Places” at Dan and Bethel. High Places were temples built in the North where northerners could go worship. He makes golden calves and puts them in the shrine towns. Now, northern worship will be focused on these two sites. The writers of Kings say that the North is committing idolatry and that is the reason they are conquered. However, Jeroboam was once again using a popular symbol for God- a bull on a stool. Politically, he set up the shrine towns so the people of the North would not travel to the South and spend money in Jerusalem, or worship in Jerusalem. He believed in Yahweh, he just hated the South.Is it idolatry? I Kings 12: 25-30. Hosea 8:1-6, 10:5-6What did God promise David? Is it over?Faithful Remnant- small number of people from the tribe Judah who were always faithful to Yahweh even though they will suffer exile and conquering. This is the group that will be restored. That is why in the Bible during this time the North is always considered bad and the South, which is where the remnant is from, is al-ways regarded as good.Prophesy of Zephaniah- 630 BC- The Day of the Lord will bring judgment upon the people followed by a blessing to the people. God will restore the remnant. 3: 12-20.Messiah- Yahweh’s anointed one. The messiah is a future Davidic king who will re-establish the kingdom of David. What will that messiah be like? 1) Isaiah 11: 1-9 2) Isaiah 9: 1-6Certainly there will be a good king (messiah) who will shepherd God’s people as God would shepherd them

KINGS UNTIL FALL OF THE NORTH (ISRAEL) I Kings 14- II KingsReign of Nabad (901- 900 BC)-whole household is killed by BaashaReign of Baasha (900- 877 BC)Reign of Elah (877- 876 BC)Reign of Zimri (876 BC)- only 7 daysReign of Omri (876- 869 BC)- one of greatest/successful rulers, often called the David of the North for his political savvy.Reign of Ahab (869- 850 BC)- worshipped false gods, but was a great builder.

THE PROPHETSTHE PROPHET ELIJAH I Kings 17- 19 Elijah and the Prophets of Baal- who owns the fertility rights? Baal or Yahweh? Israel did not abandon the Lord, but worshipped Baal in addition to Yahweh. Why? Because Yahweh was not a God of fertility to a nomad people. Elijah convinces the people that Yahweh is also a fertility god. Later, Elijah goes back to Mt. Horeb to learn that Yahweh has not deserted his people.

ELISHA is Elijah’s successor as prophet. Elisha is prophet, but his words go unnoticed.Some words about prophets:They are only concerned with the present, not the future. They are not fortune tell-ers. Their goal is to remind people of the covenant made with Yahweh now, not later. Prophets feel they are called by God but are usually not willing. Used words like, “Thus says the Lord…” Southern Prophets- Focused on Covenant with David (Royal Covenant) Northern Prophets- Forused on Covenant with Moses (Mount Sinai)

KINGS UNTIL FALL OF THE NORTH (ISRAEL) CONTINUED...Reign of Ahaziah (850- 849 BC)- Has Elijah arrested. Ahaziah does not listen to the LordReign of Joram (849- 842 BC)-follows the sins of Jeroboam.Reign of Jehu( 842- 815 BC)- along with Elisha, the cult of Baal

is destroyed. He wipes out the house of Ahab.Reign of Jehoahaz (815- 801 BC)Reign of Joash (801-786 BC)Reign of Jeroboam II (786- 746 BC)- peace and prosperity, but still sinful according the Amos and Hosea.

Prophets before the Exile Writing to Israel in the North:Amos- 750 BC. 7: 10-15. Amos confronts Amaziah, a professional prophet and tells him that Assyria will attack. Amaziah disagrees. Amos calls Israel to social justice- 3:1-2.Hosea- 745- 725 BC.

Hosea says the covenant is like a marriage and the bride (Israel) has been unfaithful to Yahweh. In the meantime, Hosea’ wife, Gomer, has been unfaithful to him. Hosea says that if Israel returns to Yahweh, they could have a honeymoon all over again. 14: 1-9.

KINGS UNTIL FALL OF THE NORTH (ISRAEL) CONTINUED...Reign of Zechariah (746- 745 BC)- assassinatedReign of Shallum (745 BC)- assassinatedReign of Menahem (745- 738 BC)- reign was pro-AssyrianReign of Pekahiah (744- 732 BC)- reign was pro-AssyrianReign of Pekah (732 BC)- reign was pro-AssyrianReign of Hoshea (732- 722 BC)- end of Israel.

KINGS TILL EXILE IN THE SOUTH (JUDAH)Reign of Abijam (915- 913 BC)- negativeReign of Asa (913-873 BC)- banished temple prostitutes and took away pagan imagesReign of Jehoshaphat (873- 849 BC)- positiveReign of Jehoram (849- 842 BC)- marries rival dynasty womanReign of Ahaziah (842 BC)Reign of Athaliah (842-837 BC)-daughter of Ahab (northern king)

Prophets writing to Judah in the South:Joel- 835 BC-arecentplagueoflocustsillustratesthefarmoreterrifyingDayoftheLord.̨Obadiah 840 BC —Written to Edom

Reign of Joash (837- 800 BC)- repairs temple, assassinatedReign of Amaziah (800- 783 BC)- positive, assassinatedReign of Azariah (783- 742 BC)- died of leprosy but North and

South were at peace with each other. Fortified Jerusalem city walls.

Written to Judah in the South:Isaiah 1-39- 740 BC- Isaiah is called (6:1) the same year Azariah dies. Two-

fold message of condemnation (1-39) and consolation (40-66). God judgment on the sins of Judah by the sur-rounding nations, and the world, followed by salva-tion and restoration. Vineyard image 5: 1-7, faithful remnant 10: 20-27, rule of Immanuel 11: 1-9, 9:2-8.

Written to AssyriaJonah 760 BCReign of Jotham (742- 732 BC)Written to Judah in the South:Micah- 735 BC- In spite of judgment by God to lands of Israel and

Judah, God’s covenant will be restored in the Mes-siah’s future kingdom.

Reign of Ahaz (732- 715 BC)- builds new altar in temple, helps Assyria fight Israel and therefore, had to let Assyria gods in the temple.

Reign of Hezekiah (715- 686 BC)- revolts against Assyrians and removes pagan images from the temple. The prophet Isaiah says that Judah may face the same fate as Israel.

Reign of Manassah (686- 642 BC)- negative, restores pagan images, loyal to Assyria.

Written to AssyriaNahum 660 BCReign of Amon (642- 640 BC)- negative, assassinatedReign of Josiah (640- 609 BC)- positive, got rid of pagan imag-

es, destroys High Place at Bethel. Dies in Battle. Establishes public worship in Jerusalem. Some-times compared to David.

The Book of Deuteronomy and JosiahJosiah had a hope to reunite the North and the South. Egypt is now gaining power and has weakened Assyria. Josiah works with the Pharaoh, Necho, to build an alliance so the south could stay a nation. Josiah was very suc-cessful in ridding the land of pagan images and worship. But Josiah finds something in the temple that could unite the North and South to become

one nation to stand up to their neighbors- The Book of Deuteronomy. Some scholars say it was written by the temple priests during the reign of Josiah, but II Kings says it was found. Most likely it was written by Northern scribes who fled to the South after Assyria conquered the North. Some scholars speculate that Josiah commissioned its writing in the spirit of religious re-form to unite the North and South under the Law of Moses. Either way, in 622 BC, Josiah decided to repair the temple and spared no expense in doing so. Politically, the unification of the North and South would provide Josiah with a stronghold on the land. However, the Assyrians occupied the land to the North. So, he promised the Assyrians that he would be a caretaker of the people in the North. To the Assyrians, Josiah kept up the appearance of loyalty to them, but in reality he wanted to reconvert the North to the Law of Moses and Covenant with David. With Deuteronomy, Josiah could entice the North to join them in a fight against neighbors. One problem faced was the fact that the Northern Israelites were intermarrying with the Assyrians so their allegiance would be mixed. Josiah saw himself as a new Joshua- a new conqueror and he is presented that way in the Bible. Josiah hopes it would motivate North and South just as David did by bringing the ark to Jerusalem. However, after Josiah dies, the whole plan in over.The style of the Book of Deuteronomy is that, although put into the mouth of Moses, the homilies are directed at a people living long after the events of the exodus, people who are urged to recall and keep the teachings of Moses. The book looks back at the conquest of the holy land as a completed event, and its legal ideas presuppose the highly developed government set up by David and Solomon. Because the outlook of the book comes from the 7th century and not the 13th century, Deuteronomy’s teaching does not center so much on warning against the dangers ahead as it does on returning to covenant and learning to be more faithful than their ancestors. Look at Dt. 30:15-18. The author is looking back at a very special situation that has already happened and he knows that God asked for obedience and Israel has many times disobeyed and turned away. In other words, Deuter-onomy is more of an explanation, in the mouth of Moses, for Israel’s trou-bles- failed kings, idolatry, injustices, etc. It says has Israel could have been if the people had taken the covenant seriously. Look again at Dt. 6:4-9.

WRITTEN TO JUDAH IN THE SOUTH:Jeremiah- 627 BC- Declaration of certain judgment of God against

Judah. But promises to establish a new covenant with his people.

Zephaniah- 630 BC- The Day of the Lord will bring judgment upon the people followed by a blessing to the people. God will restore the remnant. 3: 12-20.

Reign of Jehoahaz (609 BC)- Necho has him killed.Reign of Jehoiakim (609- 598 BC)- Babylon starts to overcome

Egypt. Judah goes back and forth between the two nations in allegiance. Babylon and Egypt both want the land of Judah. Babylon attacks Judah (and therefore Egypt indirectly) and ex-ile begins.

WRITTEN TO JUDAH IN THE SOUTH:Habakkuk- 607 BC- troubled with God’s plan to use Babylon as his

judgment tool, Habakkuk praises God for gaining a better respect for him.

Reign of Jehoiachin (598 BC)- prominent and powerful citizens are the first to be exiled.

Reign of Zedekiah (597- 586 BC)- the end of Judah. He is put on the throne by Babylon. His rebellion leads to the destruction of the temple.

WRITTEN TO JUDAH IN THE SOUTH:Lamentations- 586 BC- series of five lament poems is a funeral dirge for a fallen city of Jerusalem.

Now, in exile, there is no land, no nation, no covenants, and no temple, (no God?). What does that do to these people who have lived by the Covenants with Abraham, Moses and David?

BABYLONIAN EXILE 587-539 BCHere is where the religion of Judaism becomes a religion of the Book be-cause in order to maintain the religion, everything in their history had to be written down. It becomes a religion that is written instead of oral. It is during the exile that a majority of the Pentateuch and history is compiled and organized, edited and produced. It is written in sequence. Those who had put together the history of Deuteronomy (and Jeremiah), also write and assemble Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings. It is often called the Deuteronomistic History because these works are assembled in the spirit of the book of Deuteronomy. In one sense, the whole history was organized to explain why the nation had failed and why their punishment had been deserved. Notice how each of the heroes- Joshua, David, Samuel, Solomon and Moses all give long speeches, from their own mouth. When linked together, these narratives follow a theological vision of the relation-ship between God and man- especially how man has failed. There are con-sequences for sin, forgiveness and mercy followed by more sin. The whole religion is starting to change into the religion it was during Je-sus’ time and even today. It is at this time that the prophet Jeremiah tells the exiles that Yahweh is everywhere, not only in Jerusalem. The exile pro-duced the Bible. The Torah is written in response to exile. It is an attempt to recapture and salvage the origins of the faith. Does this mean that no part of the OT was written prior to this? No. However, this is the time that much was written and edited using prior sources. Christians in the first few centuries employed the same technique. In oth-er words, the church preceded the New Testament. Therefore, everything written is meant to explain the experience, not necessarily the content of the faith. Their goggles of resurrection experiences forced them to ask and an-swer questions that you and I take for granted. Is Jesus human and divine? When did Jesus become divine? Some of the stories in the Gospels (and other early writings) try to explain unanswered questions about Jesus. An example of this is the birth narratives. Biblical scholars readily agree that the birth stories in Matthew and Luke are meant to explain how Jesus is divine and human and both Gospels take very different angles. Matthew’s is like the Bourne Identity and Luke’s is like Mary Poppins. Keep in mind that his hometown did not understand him, so it is reasonable to say that they did not know the infancy stories. Truths about Jesus put into the Gos-pels were not readily understood during his lifetime.

PROPHETS DURING THE EXILEEzekiel- 592 BC- ministry to Jewish captives in Babylon after the fall of Je-rusalem. Says Judah is a rebellious house, the exile will be temporary, God will renew his covenant, and reminds the people of their past unfaithful-ness. Why will God restore the people? Not out of compassion or because they deserve it, but rather to preserve his holy name.Daniel- 605 BC- Outlines God’s plan for the Gentile nations and portrays Israel during a time of Gentile domination.Isaiah 40-55 written 550-530 BCII Isaiah is a very pivotal text in the OT. It is exilic literature and has many differences in style, language, thought and vocabulary from I Isaiah. An obvious example of this is that II Isaiah mentions Cyrus of Persia (who lets the exiles back) as an anchor and hope to the Israelites. Isaiah of Jerusalem (I Isaiah), writing in the 8th century would not know who Cyrus was. II Isaiah is a community which has experienced a major disaster from which it still suffers. It is a disaster which has reduced the community to political impotence. The motif of hopelessness is a running theme in II Isaiah. The prophet addresses the people with a message of hope; he promises early de-liverance, which will be fulfilled in the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem. The community is being prepared for a new exodus and a new march through the desert, themes which reoccur so frequently and so obviously. II Isaiah 41: 17-20, 43: 1-7, 16-21. There is no period of Israelite history known to us which offers a suitable background in which such a community could exist except the period between the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon in 587 BC and the surrender of Babylon to Cyrus of Persia in 539 AD. The prophecies read intelligibly as addressed to the Babylonian community in exile. II Isaiah 42 and 43The Servants that the writer is talking could mean many things. Is could mean all of Israel or the foreigners called by God to help. However, being a servant is both a positive and a negative. It is positive because the servant is God’s beloved one and a prophet leaving people awestruck. It is negative because these servants are still blind, deaf and robbed of dignity and sinful.II Isaiah 48 we hear the Lord speak to an exiled people. Other Writings During the ExileGenesis 1-11

Overall Message of Genesis 1-11: The stories in Genesis 1-11 have disturbed modern historians for years. They no particular facts that can be located at a given time, no eyewitness reports and no direct connection to the events are known. It is set in time that is considered before human history. Its ex-act place is vague- somewhere to the East. The people are like symbols and nothing is known of their lives. The events seem to take place in a world that you and I would not recognize. The purpose of these chapters deals with the beginnings of the world long before Israel’s time.Creation Story #1 Genesis 1:1-2:4 “Seven Days” creation is accomplished through God’s word “good” ness of creation Humans have dominion over the earth Humans have dignity, power and purpose Humans are in the image and likeness of GodCreation Story #2 “Adam and Eve” Human need for companionship Exalted place of humans Human dignity has responsibilityChapter 3 The Fall of Man alienation from God and the garden alienation from each other alienation from creation and earthChapters 4-11Cain and Abel, Noah and the Tower of Babel are stories of the cycles of crime and punishment. All sin flows from original sin and each story shows the increase of sin.

The Power of Myth in Ancient Times (and today).The Bible is a collection of literary forms- and myth is one form used. Myths are true stories that never happened. Myths are not falsehoods. A myth is an imaginative and symbolic story about a reality that is beyond our comprehension. They are the telling of the past to account for the pres-ent that serves both a public and social function. Myths give people iden-tity and meaning. Ancient myths explain why there is order in nature, the change of seasons and fertility of land, animals and humans. Most of all, in Genesis, is the fact that God is the one always in control. Theologically, myths explain our relationship to God. The Genesis stories specifically at-

tempt to refute the idea that there is more than one God and that He is callous and uncaring. The Israelites demythologized the myths and made them as personal as can be. As literature, they are defined as myth in which every story seems to describe some sort of model, for bad or good, of the proper relations of God to the world of humans.While in exile, the Jews hear stories of creation and fashion their own sto-ries. Keep in mind, these stories must be read through the eyes of an an-cient Israelite who knew the pagan versions of the stories and their tensions between the divine and human. Also, Israel is in exile and the existence of God seems to be doubted because Jerusalem is no longer. One difference: Yahweh is a personal God who acts out of justice and mercy (as opposed to detachment) even though humans act evil and his promises of deliverance must come true. The same themes persist in all of them: 1) What is sin?, 2) Why do humans sin and die?, and 3) Why is God eternal? While Genesis 1-11 is about the increase of sin, Genesis 12 and beyond is about the tak-ing away of that sin, a.k.a. Salvation History. For Christians, it comes to a climax with Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ conquered what humans feared the most- death. He conquered this by rising thus displaying to humanity that life is more powerful than death.The first story of creation deals with all that exists. The author of this story is not claiming to have been a witness to such events. It is necessary to note that the author probably lived during a time that had a seven day week therefore the author was able to structure a story around that. Among God’s creations, the Israelites viewed themselves as beloved of God- thus were made in his image and likeness. The Babylonians, however, believed that humans were made from defective matter and so, at their core, were not good. This story of creation is a story about the reality of creation, not the historical event of creation. It deals with the reality that everything ex-ists.The second story of creation is rooted in a reality that faces all of human-ity- suffering. In this story God is creator and friend. God walks and talks and appears to be unaware of the creation he created. God is not pictured as all-knowing. Woman is created because God “struggles” to find a suit-able partner for man. The profound truth in this story is that sin always results in suffering. Sin changes our nature and therefore, our ability to be in right relationship with God and others.

Myths the Jews Encountered During the Exile Babylonian Creation Myth of Enuma Elish- Marduk, the chief god of Bab-ylon, and at the same time young king of all the gods, fashions the world from the body of Tiamat, the mother goddess whom he had slain in battle. Marduk then creates the world with the following themes: 1) Creation be-gins from nothing, or disorder (chaos), 2) Heavens are created and sepa-rated from the water, 3) The earth is set above the water, 4) Creation of sun and moon, 5) Creation of humans is the best, and 6) The gods rest and celebrate.Mesopotamian Myth of Adapa- Adapa (the first man) is summoned by Anu, the chief god to account for his actions. He is warned not accept Anu’s offer of the bread and water of life because it is actually the food of death. When Anu offers the bread and water, Adapa refuses and therefore misses his chance for immortality for humans.Babylonian Myth of Gilgamesh- A story of the search for immortality. This myth answers the questions of: 1) Why are gods immortal and humans die?, 2) What is our fate?, 3) Why do we get punished by the gods of life? Gilgamesh cuts down the sacred tree in the cedar forest of the gods but is given a chance at immortality if he can find the plant of rejuvenation. At his deathbed, he finds the plant along the shore, but the serpent comes out of the water and eats it- hence- no eternal life. This story also has a flood and one set of animalsCONNECTION #1- Just as the writer of Genesis starts with, “In the begin-ning…” so too the Gospel of John starts the same way. Just as it was God’s word in Genesis that brought the world into existence, so too John has the “eternal” word (logos) breaking into human history while at the same time being ever present. This is also known as pre-existence theology.CONNECTION #2- Just as sin entered the world in a peaceful garden, so to it is taken away in a garden. As God names Adam in Eden (the Garden of God), so to Jesus Christ names “I am” in the Garden. In Genesis, the garden symbolizes a time and place of innocence where no suffering takes place. Man and God and man and woman were in right relationship in Genesis. This is the beginning of the “hour” that Jesus referred to in con-trast to the “Day of the Lord” in prophetic OT writing. The “hour” is the time when God will take away the sin that entered through a garden- thus to put humans and God in right relationship.

In Genesis, eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge is synonymous with sin. In other words, we become what we eat. Sin changes our original nature as created in Genesis. The Last Supper is the sharp contrast to the tree of fruit. Because we are sinful, we can eat of the one who tales away the sin of the world. The hope is that we will become what we eat- however, we still have knowledge of good and evil.CONNECTION #3- Isaiah 11:1-11. Yahweh’s personality is in contrast to non-personal gods. Yahweh is so personal and involved in his creation that his incarnation will shatter the imbalance of creation that sin has allowed. His reign will be a paradise restored. Once again God will make harmony out of chaos. Sin has made us jaded to how perfect creation was for us. To prove that he is God, God will become human to show humans what it means to be human. And his will let these sinful humans beat and kill him. This is also known as Divine Revelation- to reveal, to show forth, to unveil, to give a deep knowledge about, to uncover something previously hidden- and our response. Keep in mind that God is inherently different from his creation, but unlike the pagan creation stories we are actually co-creators. How are we co-creators with God?I & II Chronicles- just as Deuteronomy- II Kings, I & II Chronicles is also considered one larger work broken up by scholars. This section starts with Adam andgoesallthewaytothewriter’spresenttime-thefifthcenturyfollowingtherestoration of the Jerusalem Temple after the Babylonian Exile from 587- 539 BC. I & II Chronicles tell the story of David in a different way. As the writer for Deuteronomy- Kings wanted to show tells why the kingdoms came together and fell, the Chronicles writer tells of the past to account for the present situ-ation. Its goal is to secure the past with David and show that Israel can secure its future once again like at the time of David. Israel could secure its future of a careful observance of the institutions revealed to David by God, handed down by Judah’s priests, and kept alive by the “faithful remnant” that survived the exile and returned to Jerusalem. For the writer, the exile was a mere interruption in an otherwise unbroken history of Judah as a worshipping community. The focus of Chronicles is exclusively from Judah.

RETURN AND RESTORATIONCyrus of Persia conquers Babylon at the Battle of Opis on the Tigris River and issues an Edict for all Jews to return to their land. Ezra and Nehemiah- the only narrative accounts of the post-exilic period (after 539 BC).Up until the 16th century, these two books were always read as one long narrative. The Hebrew Bible still has them as one narrative.

These two books deal with the following phases of new life after The rebuilding of the Temple of Jerusalem in 515 BC. The reordering of Jewish lifeEzra- “Father of Judaism”Cover the return of the exiles by Cyrus of Persia.Some people did not want to go back to Jerusalem because they started new lives in Babylon and started raising their families there. The also had businesses and a comfortable life. It is just like Egypt minus the slavery.Some people did not want the temple rebuilt while others did. In the end, the Persian imperial authorities allowed it to happen.PROPHETS AFTER THE EXILE TO THE FAITHFUL REMNANT

Haggai- 520 BC- urges people to put God first and finish the temple so they can once again be a blessing.

Zechariah- 520 BC- same as Haggai, but he relates the finishing of the temple to the coming of the Messiah through a se-ries of visions.

Malachi- 420 BC- After 100 years back on their land, the Jews have turned cold and Malachi rebukes them. They need to turn back to God with faithful hearts.

Isaiah 56-66- 450 BCAnother thing Ezra did was break up mixed marriages and force the people to marry only Jews. However, this led to an idea of exclusivity of Jews as a “holy race”. Ezra believed the Jews were in danger of being absorbed into other cultures. His believe was a reality. One of the people excluded from marriage is the Samaritans. Samaritans are half-Jew and half-Babylonian/Mesopotamian people who intermarry with Jews during the exile. In 515 BC the Samaritans offered assistance in the rebuilding but were shunned. So, even though they may be half Jew, they are forbidden from marrying full-blood Jews. Hence, Samaritan writings are full of negative feelings

towards Ezra while the Talmud (collections of oral history) sees Ezra as a second Moses. This animosity continued up through the time of Jesus.Jumping ahead- early Christianity had to deal with the same thing when faced with bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles. Paul brought the Gospel to the Gentiles while Peter was reluctant. The Letter to the Galatians is about this tenuous relationship. The Council of Jerusalem in 54 AD is a result of this tension. Also, the Gospel of Matthew has a similar situation. Mat-thew’s community was Jewish Christians who know the Old Law and all of scripture. These people still practice Jewish feasts and customs. Unfor-tunately, the Jews at temple do not accept them because they follow Jesus. They are also not accepted by some Gentile-Christians because they still go to the temple.One must note- Ezra did not imply that the Jews were morally superior to anyone, but rather ritually pure. But when ritually pure means not as-sociated with Gentiles, tensions arise. If Ezra is claiming Jews as a chosen race, holy people and ritually pure, that leads to more exclusion rather than inclusion. Upon returning to the land, there was great emphasis on ritual purity. Once again, it was not about race or ethnicity, but rather pure worship of Yahweh. Therefore, a priestly class emerged in the society. This class is known as the Sadducees whom Jesus has words with in a few hundred years.One good thing- In Nehemiah 8 Ezra has a public reading of the Torah that was, as some scholars say, drafted during the exile. After the reading, there was a public pledge and signing of the law.Ezra shaped Judaism into what it was at the time of Jesus and still con-tinues up until this day. The people of Jesus’ time had no association with Judaism as it appeared in the time of Moses, David and Solomon. Their Judaism was shaped after the exile by Ezra and Nehemiah. What Ezra formed in terms of strict adherence to the law most definitely continued up to the time of Christ.

THE GREEK DYNASTY I & II MaccabeesBy 323 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the world and Seleucid is the name of the Greek dynasty that ruled in Syria following Alexander’s death. It comes from the name of Selecus, one of his generals. Ptolemy, one of Alexander’s gen-eral, who ruled from Egypt, ruled right after Alexander’s death.

As you know from your ancient history, the Greeks had their own set of Gods. When they conquered peoples they made them worship the Greek Gods. The Jews could not do that so they rebelled. The word “Maccabee” derives from the Hebrew word for hammer and was a nickname for Judas, a leader in the Jewish revolt against the Seleucid ruler, Antiochus Epiph-anes who outlawed Judaism (165-161 BC). So, from the time of Ptolemy in 323 BC until Antiochus Epiphanes in 165 BC, the Jews faced much inter-ference in terms of the hellinization (spread of Greek thought) of culture, politics and economy from Egypt. Some Jews eagerly accepted it while oth-ers resisted hellinization. The term “Maccabean” came to designate the period of Jewish History that witnesses the successful revolt against the Seleucids many years after hellinization.After the revolt, the descendants of the Maccabees assumed religious and later political leadership of the Jewish community in Palestine. The ruled an independent Judah from 135- 67 BC until Pompey conquered Palestine for Rome.Hanukkah is a Jewish feast celebrating the purification and rededication of the Second Temple (built by Ezra) during the Maccabean revolt. It was Judas Maccabee who mandated this service because of the way Antiochus Epiphanes had treated it. Jewish historian Josephus calls it the Feast of Lights because the rededication involved lighting the temple’s menorah. The Talmud relates the story of how one day’s supply of oil lasted for the full eight days even though it was meant for only one day. Hanukkah is a feast day because it is remembering Jews taking up arms, defending their land and winning which allowed Judaism as a religion to survive. Nowa-days, Hanukkah is not so much military conquest as it is light conquering the darkness.

THE ROMAN DYNASTYIn 147 BC the Romans conquered the Greece and took all there territories which included Palestine. The Romas also had their set of Gods, as did the Greeks, and they also had the same rule the those who were conquered had to worship the Roman Gods. But while the Greeks were interested Greek thought, the Romans were more practical people. Since the Greeks had so much difficult with the Jews, the Romans said all that Roman Citizens must worship the Roman Gods, except the Jews who had there own God.

Jewism had broken in to many little groups and though the temple stood for the unity and worship, it was really the synogog that played a greater part of the Jewish tradition. But by the time of Roman occupation, Judism had broken down to many and various groups: Sadducese, Pharacees, Herodian, Essencens, Zelots, Scribes, etc.

IMPORTANT TERMS AND EXPLANATIONSGentile non-JewHolocaust asacrificeentirelyconsumedbyfiredoneinadorationtoGod.Also

the European persecution of the Jews from 1938-1945.Soteriology the study of salvation, or explanation of the different under-

standings of salvation.Western Wall“Wailing Wall” The Western Wall in the midst of the Old City in Jerusalem

is the section of the Western supporting wall of the Temple Mount that has remained intact since the destruction of the Second Jerusalem Temple (70 AD.). It became the most sacred spot in Jewish religious and national consciousness and tradi-tion by virtue of its proximity to the Western Wall of the Holy of Holies in the Temple, from which, according to numerous sources, the Divine Presence never departed. It became a cen-ter of mourning over the destruction of the Temple and Israel’s exile, on the one hand, and of religious - in 20th century also national - communion with the memory of Israel’s former glo-ry and the hope for its restoration, on the other. Because of the former association, it became known in European languages as the “Wailing Wall”. From 1948- 1967, Jews were not allowed to pray at the Wall. The Six-Day War in June of 1967 liber-ated the Wall for Jews. Since 1968, many excavations have revealed clues to past structures along the Wall.

Synogog Synogogs (meeting places) began to develop during the time of no Temple

Temple Theplacewheresacrificewasoffered. When the Temple was rebuilt,sacrificesbeganagain.

RESOURCES FOR PRESENTATION The Catholic Study Bible Reading the Old Testament by Lawrence Boadt Scripture: Nourished By The Word by Margaret Nutting Ralph The Shape of Catholic Theology by Aidan Nichols The Catholic Source Book by Peter Klein The New Testament: A Student’s Introduction by Stephen L. Harris The New Testament by Bart Ehrman

DOGMATIC CONSTITUTION ON DIVINE REVELATION

DEI VERBUM SOLEMNLY PROMULGATED

BY HIS HOLINESS POPE PAUL VI

ON NOVEMBER 18, 1965

CHAPTER III

SACRED SCRIPTURE, ITS INSPIRATION AND DIVINE INTERPRETATION

11. Those divinely revealed realities which are contained and presented in Sacred Scripture have been committed to writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. For holy mother Church, relying on the belief of the Apostles (see John 20:31; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:19-20, 3:15-16), holds that the books of both the Old and New Testaments in their entirety, with all their parts, are sacred and canonical because written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they have God as their author and have been handed on as such to the Church herself.(1) In composing the sacred books, God chose men and while employed by Him (2) they made use of their powers and abilities, so that with Him acting in them and through them, (3) they, as true authors, consigned to writing everything and only those things which He wanted. (4)

Therefore, since everything asserted by the inspired authors or sacred writers must be held to be asserted by the Holy Spirit, it follows that the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into sacred writings (5) for the sake of salvation. Therefore "all Scripture is divinely inspired and has its use for teaching the truth and refuting error, for reformation of manners and discipline in right living, so that the man who belongs to God may be efficient and equipped for good work of every kind" (2 Tim. 3:16-17, Greek text).

12. However, since God speaks in Sacred Scripture through men in human fashion, (6) the interpreter of Sacred Scripture, in order to see clearly what God wanted to communicate to us, should carefully investigate what meaning the sacred writers really intended, and what God wanted to manifest by means of their words.

To search out the intention of the sacred writers, attention should be given, among other things, to "literary forms." For truth is set forth and expressed differently in texts which are variously historical, prophetic, poetic, or of other forms of discourse. The interpreter must investigate what meaning the sacred writer intended to express and actually expressed in particular circumstances by using contemporary literary forms in accordance with the situation of his own time and culture. (7) For the correct understanding of what the sacred author wanted to assert, due attention must be paid to the customary and characteristic styles of feeling, speaking and narrating which prevailed at the time of the sacred writer, and to the patterns men normally employed at that period in their everyday dealings with one another. (8)

But, since Holy Scripture must be read and interpreted in the sacred spirit in which it was written, (9) no less serious attention must be given to the content and unity of the whole of Scripture if the meaning of the sacred texts is to be correctly worked out. The living tradition of the whole Church must be taken into account along with the harmony which exists between elements of the faith. It is the task of exegetes to work according to these rules toward a better understanding and explanation of the meaning

of Sacred Scripture, so that through preparatory study the judgment of the Church may mature. For all of what has been said about the way of interpreting Scripture is subject finally to the judgment of the Church, which carries out the divine commission and ministry of guarding and interpreting the word of God. (10)

13. In Sacred Scripture, therefore, while the truth and holiness of God always remains intact, the marvelous "condescension" of eternal wisdom is clearly shown, "that we may learn the gentle kindness of God, which words cannot express, and how far He has gone in adapting His language with thoughtful concern for our weak human nature." (11) For the words of God, expressed in human language, have been made like human discourse, just as the word of the eternal Father, when He took to Himself the flesh of human weakness, was in every way made like men.

CHAPTER IV

THE OLD TESTAMENT

14. In carefully planning and preparing the salvation of the whole human race the God of infinite love, by a special dispensation, chose for Himself a people to whom He would entrust His promises. First He entered into a covenant with Abraham (see Gen. 15:18) and, through Moses, with the people of Israel (see Ex. 24:8). To this people which He had acquired for Himself, He so manifested Himself through words and deeds as the one true and living God that Israel came to know by experience the ways of God with men. Then too, when God Himself spoke to them through the mouth of the prophets, Israel daily gained a deeper and clearer understanding of His ways and made them more widely known among the nations (see Ps. 21:29; 95:1-3; Is. 2:1-5; Jer. 3:17). The plan of salvation foretold by the sacred authors, recounted and explained by them, is found as the true word of God in the books of the Old Testament: these books, therefore, written under divine inspiration, remain permanently valuable. "For all that was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope" (Rom. 15:4).

15. The principal purpose to which the plan of the old covenant was directed was to prepare for the coming of Christ, the redeemer of all and of the messianic kingdom, to announce this coming by prophecy (see Luke 24:44; John 5:39; 1 Peter 1:10), and to indicate its meaning through various types (see 1 Cor. 10:12). Now the books of the Old Testament, in accordance with the state of mankind before the time of salvation established by Christ, reveal to all men the knowledge of God and of man and the ways in which God, just and merciful, deals with men. These books, though they also contain some things which are incomplete and temporary, nevertheless show us true divine pedagogy. (1) These same books, then, give expression to a lively sense of God, contain a store of sublime teachings about God, sound wisdom about human life, and a wonderful treasury of prayers, and in them the mystery of our salvation is present in a hidden way. Christians should receive them with reverence.

16. God, the inspirer and author of both Testaments, wisely arranged that the New Testament be hidden in the Old and the Old be made manifest in the New. (2) For, though Christ established the new covenant in His blood (see Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25), still the books of the Old Testament with all their parts, caught up into the proclamation of the Gospel, (3) acquire and show forth their full meaning in the New Testament (see Matt. 5:17; Luke 24:27; Rom. 16:25-26; 2 Cor. 14:16) and in turn shed light on it and explain it.

FOR OLD TESTAMENT I CLASS

A Contemporary Dilemma

God's Word for God's People

Sandra M Schneiders I.H.M.

Copyright permission The Liturgical Press

In the past couple of years increasing numbers of well-known biblical scholars have felt compelled to speak forcefully against the errors and dangers of biblical fundamentalism. Although this article is concerned with a different topic, namely, how the ordinary intelligent Christian without formal biblical training can derive spiritual profit from reading the Scriptures, it is necessary to say something about the fundamentalistic approach to the Bible in order to make clear how the approach I will suggest differs from it.

The phrase "biblical fundamentalism" has become a technical expression with a specific meaning. Those who oppose it are not arguing against the principle of basing one's spiritual life and moral values upon a fundamental base like the Bible. Nor do the opponents of "biblical fundamentalism" favor, instead, an easygoing relativity by which scriptural interpretation shifts from age to age. We must explain what most scholars understand by biblical fundamentalism.

Problems with fundamentalism Biblical fundamentalism rests upon three erroneous

presuppositions. The theological presupposition is a notion of biblical inspiration as divine verbal dictation. There may have been a time when it made sense to imagine God breathing into the ear or the imagination of Jeremiah or Luke the exact substance, even the wording, of the biblical books which bear their names. Today we know that most of the biblical books wear written over a period of years, sometimes of centuries and that the final text is the product of many authors. If for no other reason (and there are other serious theological reasons), we would therefore have to reject the notion of inspiration as verbal dictation by

100 The BIBLE Today

God. Nor can we accept the conclusion that the text gives us some purely divine word, reaching us unmediated by limited human words. The text of the Bible, consequently, requires interpretation just as any other human text does.

The second erroneous presupposition underlying biblical fundamentalism is of a literary nature. The fundamentalist claims to read the biblical text without interpreting it, to read it at "face value," to take it seriously exactly as it presents itself. However, contemporary philosophical studies and literary studies, as well as psychology and sociology, have made us aware that we must always interpret anything that is mediated to us by signs. When we listen to someone we use facial expression, tone of voice, body language, context, previous. knowledge of the subject and of the speaker, knowledge of the language and culture, and many other factors to help us interpret even the most seemingly straightforward discourse. Imagine, for example, asking different people what the sentence "He's out" means. It depends on whether it was said by the secretary in the office or the umpire on the baseball field; whether it is followed by a period, an exclamation point, or a question mark. The question in reading the biblical text is not whether to interpret, but how.

The words of Pope Pius XII come to mind, written forty years ago in the encyclical on biblical interpretation, Divino A.fflante Spiritu:

What is the literal sense of a passage is not always as obvious in the speeches and writing of the ancient authors of the East, as it is in the works of our own time ... For the ancient peoples of the East, in order to express their ideas, did not always employ those forms or kinds of speech, which we use today; but rather those used by the men and women of their times and countries. What those exactly were the commentator cannot determine as it were in advance, but only after a careful examination of the ancient literature of the East.(nos. 35-36)

The third erroneous presupposition is spiritual. The fundamentalist takes a magical view of the text, and magic whether practiced by a tribal shaman or by a Christian in relationship to the sacraments of the Bible, consists in the attempt to make God conform to our will by the performance of certain behaviors. God has given us no assurance that if we read the Bible with unnuanced nai'vete, God will infallibly supply us with divine truth. The Bible, like the sacraments, is a way that God comes to meet us. But as with every meeting, the quality of the encounter depends on the dispositions of both persons. And we do not always understand our own dispositions much less how God wishes to be with us and to speak with us at any given time. The biblical text is not magic. It is not an

March 1984 101

answer to our insecurity, our need for infallible guidance or knowledge. It is a divine gift which is interpersonal in nature and which, therefore, can never be turned into a thing, an object. In the Bible we listen to God.

Problems with Critical Scholarship However, having recognized the false premises and erroneous

conclusions of biblical fundamentalism, we must recognize also that not all Christians who resort to a fundamentalist approach to Scripture are motivated by insecurity appealing to authoritarian interpretation against the seeming chaos of an unstable world and confused Church.

Many contemporary Christians, especially Catholics, have been caught in a double bind that is not of their own making. After nearly four centuries of very little contact with Scripture, Catholics were told by the document on Divine Revelation of Vatican II that the Scriptures are "the pure and perennial source of the spiritual life" (Dei Verbum, no. 21). However, their attempts to approach and drink deeply from this fount of spirituality have been frustrated in some cases by the very scholarship which should pave the way for the serious Christian reader. Modem critical scholarship seems often to be so complicated on the one hand, and so spiritually empty and dry on the other, that the nonprofessional student of Scripture is driven either to conclude that the Bible, after all, was not meant for ordinary Christians, or else that God must have made the biblical message plain and that the scholars are complicating it for purposes of blunting its demanding message.

Reading the Bible as the Word of God Obviously, the point of this article is that neither of the above

conclusions is valid. Just as Jesus preached his parables to the ordinary people of Palestine and was often better understood by simple folks than by the scribes and lawyers who were trained in the Law, so the Bible is meant to be a rich source of spiritual life for God's people today. Scholars today, like the scribes of old, have special skills which make them responsible for rendering service to their sisters and brothers in the serious business of hearing the Word of God, but they do not enjoy a privileged access to the encounter with God in sacred Scripture which is denied to other Christians.

On the other hand, it is at least irreverent to refuse to approach the Bible with the same respect for its complications that we accord to the daily newspaper! The Bible is not written in plain English - indeed, it is not written in English at all. (We might do well to recall how often the disciples begged Jesus to speak more plainly. It was not his Aramaic they

102 The BIBLE Today

had trouble with, but his worldview, what he called "the reign of God.") Our English language editions are translations and that means,

immediately, that we are already involved with an interpretation of the original text. But the language is less a problem than the message which is not always easy to understand, because understanding demands conversion; sometimes at very deep levels.

We come, therefore, to our central question: How can the ordinary intelligent Christian, lacking formal biblical training, derive spiritual profit from the prayerful reading of the Bible - and without falling into a nai've fundamentalism that fails to take seriously the complex nature of the text?

Attitudes for Prayerful Bible Reading First, it seems to me, we need to be firmly convinced of three

truths. The first is that God does want to communicate with us, and that the Bible is a privileged form of that communication. Communication, however, is a two-way street, and it is seldom effortless. Ifthe person with whom we are communicating is important enough to us, we are willing, indeed eager, to make the effort to understand and to be understood. Fruitful biblical meditation is no easier, and certainly no less rewarding, than our most meaningful communication with those we love.

The second truth is that the Bible, whether we like it or not, is a book. It is not a crystal ball or a magic wand. Books have to be read, and reading is an act of interpretation. It is a characteristic of good texts that they grow in meaning as we grow in life experience because we are able to bring more of ourselves to the process of interpretation. It is also characteristic of books that they were written at a particular time, in a particular place, in terms of a certain culture, in a single language, by individual human beings with their own particular biases and problems and insights This means that the work of interpretation (and it is work, however much it is a labor of love!) is the meeting of two particular and very complex sets of factors: (1] ourselves, with our ever expanding (or sometimes contracting!) horizons of experience; and [2] the text which is conditioned by all the strangeness of the long-distant time and place and circumstances of its human composition.

The third truth is that we, who come to read this sacred book, are ordinary mortals. We have limited human intellects which do not function any more efficiently when we are reading the Bible than they do when we are reading the newspaper. If I cannot understand the stock market report or the complexities of an international situation, even though the accounts are in twentieth-century English and written by people whose culture and

March 1984 103

circumstances I share, I should not be unduly chagrined to realize that I do not have immediate intuitive comprehension of every aspect of the Bible on first reading.

Method of Prayerful Bible Reading With these three convictions firmly in place, we can, I think,

approach the Scriptures with a well-founded and faith-filled hope of genuine spiritual enrichment. The following suggestions are meant to assist the nonprofessional reader in his or her prayerful study of the biblical text.

[1] BE AWARE THAT, SINCE ALL READING IS INTERPRETATION, THE MORE CLUES WE CAN FIND TO GUIDE OUR INTERPRETATION, THE FULLER AND MORE ADEQUATE IT WILL BE. Just as we are more likely to understand oral communication if we can see the speaker's face, if we know something about her or his concerns, etc., so the more we know about the text we are reading, about the concerns that the author(s) had at heart, about the time and place and circumstances of its composition, etc., the more likely we are to understand the text. This suggest that reading a good, nontechnical, but academically-sound commentary on the particular Bible passage is good practice. Fortunately, there are a good number of such commentaries available in English today. One might also take advantage of lectures or continuing education courses on biblical topics. If this seems a bother, or more work than God intended for us, we have forgotten all three of the basic truths discussed above.

[2] TRY TO BE RESPECTFUL OF THE HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL DISTANCE WHICH SEPARATES US, as twentieth-century readers, from this text which was written thousands of years ago in the Middle East, without being paralyzed by the difference. Just as one must bear in mind, in reading Shakespeare, that one is not living in Elizabethan England - and thus that special efforts have to be made to understand not only the English, but also the customs and behaviors and much else - so one must make the same kind of effort in relation to the Bible. But, anyone who has enjoyed a performance of Hamlet, without having majored in English literature, knows that understanding is based more on shared human experience than on academic expertise. The latter is immensely useful, and only an ignorant egotist would refuse to avail him or herself of it to the extent that that is possible. But the basic capacity to understand texts which deal with the deepest and most important aspects of human experience comes from being a human who shares those concerns.

104 The BIBLE Today

[3] The third suggestion is closely related to the first two, namely: DO NOT HESITATE TO DO A LITTLE RESEARCH IF SOMETHING IN THE TEXT SEEMS BOTH IMPORTANT AND OBSCURE. Our spiritual lives will not be noticeably impoverished if we do not know what a drachma is worth in American currency, provided we get the point from Luke's Gospel, for example, that for the woman who lost it, it represented a very significant sum. But we might get a lot more out of the parable of the Good Samaritan if we take a little time to find out who the Samaritans were and why they were hated and despised by orthodox Jews.

[4] TRY TO READ THE BIBLE AS WHOLISTICALLY AS POSSIBLE. No line of the Bible, like no line of any other text, has independent meaning. Isolated texts like "To thine own self be true" and "The Lord is my shepherd" seem to have meaning independently of their context, but this is only because the context was transmitted to us by our community tradition, within which these texts have become aphorisms. We are far more likely to derive meaning and nourishment from a leisurely and prayerful reading of a good portion of the biblical text, for example, of a whole parable or even a chapter or, ideally, a whole gospel, than from reading one of two sentences in isolation. After reading the whole section, return to dwell on a smaller part of the text that speaks to you in a particular way. Anyone who reads even the newspaper knows the importance of reading details in context.

[5] DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF REPEATED READING. Just as someone who loves Shakespeare or Mozart sees or hears more, and more deeply, by attending successive performances, so even the untrained reader of the Scriptures will find new and deeper meanings as she or he reads and rereads the same passages. And things that were unclear at a first reading, often become clear by virtue of being reread in the context of the whole.

[6] THE BIBLE SHOULD ALWAYS BE READ AS THE CHURCH'S BOOK. By this I mean that the proper context for biblical prayer and study is the faith-life that we share with all believers. It is the community which produced the Bible and the community which must continue to interpret it. One way to facilitate such ecclesial reading is to share our biblical study and prayer with other interested Christians. Often, by reading the Bible with others, for example, in a prayer group or study group, we minimize the possibility of coming to totally erroneous interpretations and maximize the possibility of having our own limited

March 1984 105

perspectives enriched by the faith experience of others. Jesus' promise to be present wherever two or three are gathered in his name surely applies to gatherings for a sharing ofhis Word.

[7] PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO PASAGES WHICH MAKE YOU UNCOMFORTABLE. We all have a tendency to think that God could not really be saying something that doesn't make sense to us. The truth is that God's thoughts are not our thoughts, nor God's ways, ours. Revelation is most clearly revelation when it breaks through our personal biases and social prejudices and challenges us to change our way of thinking.

[8] Finally, and perhaps most important of all: WE MUST READ SCRIPTURE PRAYERFULLY. In the Scriptures, as Vatican II assured us, God comes to us and desires to speak with us. Communication between friends is not primarily an exchange of information nor a solving of problems. It is a sharing of selves. Through our prayerful reading of Scripture we seek to put on the mind of Christ so that we ourselves, as twentieth-century Christians, can confront creatively the problems of our own times. We do not read the Scriptures to find specific answers to questions the biblical writers never dreamed of, but rather to become the kind of persons who can be for our age what Jesus and the first disciples were for theirs. Indeed, it is only through us that Jesus can be present and active in our world.

Conclusion To put on the mind of Christ is to let ourselves be transformed

through loving communion with the One who speaks to us in the Scriptures. This ongoing conversation cannot be other than arduous. That is the price of all true self-revelation. But, however difficult communication at times can be, lovers want neither to break it off in frustration nor to flatten it out into simplistic exchanges that avoid the heart of the matter. Surely our communication with the One who gives meaning to our lives as Christians is no less worthy of our effort than our earthly friendships.

106 The BIBLE Todav

Sr, Sandra M Schneiders I.HM (of Monroe, Michigan) is associate professor of New

Testament studies and spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology and the Graduate

Theological Union (Berkeley, California). Her doctorate in theology was granted by

the Gregorian University, Rome

The Word of God in Scripture

How to read and interpret the Bible

Theology CoMMISSIoN

CaNadIaN CoNfereNCe of CaTholIC BIShopS

Theology CoMMISSIoN

CaNadIaN CoNfereNCe of CaTholIC BIShopS

The Word of God in Scripture:How to read and interpret the Bible

1999re-released on the occasion of the Synod on The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church, 2008.

Art & Design: Creative Art & Design, Publications Service, CCCB

Illustrations: page 18 from More Clip Art For the Liturgical Year and page 14 from Even More Clip Art For the Liturgical Year, Copyright © 1990, 1992 by The Order of St. Benedict, Inc. All rights reserved. Published by Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota. Reprinted with permission

pages 6, 17 and cover page reprinted from Clip Art For Year A by Steve Ersparmer © 1992, Archdiocese of Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications, 1800 N. Hermitage Avenue, Chicago, IL 60622. 1-800-933-1800. www.ltp.org All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Excerpts from Catechism of the Catholic Church, Copyright © Concacan Inc. – Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994, for the English translation in Canada.The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.

Published by: Theology Commission Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops 2500 Don Reid Drive Ottawa, Ontario K1H 2J2

Tel.: (613) 241-9461, ext. 217 Fax: (613) 241-8117 www.cccb.ca

First printed in Canada by: M.O.M. Printing Ltd.

The Word of God in Scripture: How to read and interpret the Bible, Copyright © Concacan Inc., 1999. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photographic, or mechanical, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

If, through inadvertence, anything has been printed without permission, proper acknowledgement will be made in future printings after notice has been received.

Table of contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

I– The Word of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

II– How to read the Bible, the Word of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

III– How to interpret the Bible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

IV– Conclusion: Sacred Scripture in the Life of the Church . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

�

Introduction

ncreasing interest in the Holy Scriptures is a source of great joy in the Church today! Personal prayer more often starts with the Word of God in the Bible; study and prayer groups place Scripture at the centre of their activities. Lectures and study

sessions are organized in different places as well as on radio and television. Publications of the Bible are blossoming, as well as the production of books and periodicals related to the Bible.

The Theological Commission of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops would like to enlarge the number of friends of the Word of God in the Scriptures. A great many Christians suspect that they might draw light, inspiration and courage from the Scriptures, but they hesitate without a map and instructions to guide them through a complex and dense country. They are precisely the candidates for whom we, the Bishops of this doctrinal Commission, have designed this simple and practical guide.

This guide for the reading and interpretation of the Bible begins by showing the importance and place of the written Word of God in the whole of the Christian life. Then, it presents the conditions for a fruitful reading, a plan to be followed and a list of tools for deeper study. Finally, the guide offers some fundamental criteria for the interpretation of these very particular books: we have indeed to be reminded that they are indivisibly both the Word of God and human words, that they are directed toward faith and that they are to be understood in the community of the living Church.

These comments are intended to point out the road and inspire the desire to travel it. If they are in some way adequate, the benefit that can come from the development of a vibrant guide will be immediately apparent. We will be well rewarded if these notes lead to constant dwelling in the Scriptures as in a beloved home, through which, above all, God dwells among us.

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The Word of God in Scripture:How to read and interpret the Bible

I. The Word of God

esus is the Word of God, the second person of the Trinity who became flesh and dwelt amongst us. He wrote nothing, but instead gathered together a community of disciples. After the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the Holy Spirit

empowered those disciples to spread the Good News throughout the world.

The Good News of Jesus has been alive in the Christian community from the start, but it did not take written form until several decades had passed. Eventually, over a period of many years, the Holy Spirit inspired some of the members of the Church to write what we now call the “New Testament,” for the good of the Church.

Down through the ages, Christians have encountered Jesus, the Word of God, in the Sacred Scriptures, in the sacraments, in the liturgy, in the teaching of the Apostles and their successors, in the lives and writings of the saints, and in many other ways.

The Sacred Scriptures have a special place among the diverse elements of living Christian Tradition, through which we encounter Jesus, the Word of God. Unlike all other kinds of writings, the 46 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament not only have a human author, but also have God as their author. So, after a reading from the Letter to the Romans we do not say “The Word of Paul,” but rather, “The Word of the Lord.” Somewhat in the way that Jesus is both human and divine, the books of the Bible are both human and divine.

The only way in which we know which writings are “the Word of the Lord” is that the same Holy Spirit who inspired the sacred authors guided the Church to discern with certainty which writings are inspired.

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II. How to read the Bible, the Word of God

1) Ways of Reading ScriptureLiturgical Reading: This is the primary setting for reading the Word of God. Much of the Bible was written to be read at the Liturgy.

Continuous Reading: This situates individual texts within the whole of the Bible.

Contemplative Reading: The Bible is meant to be prayed.

Exegesis: “Exegesis” means “to draw the meaning out of the text.” Study of the Word of God is essential, since the Scriptures were written far away and many years ago.

Reading to Preach or Teach: When we preach or teach, then we engage in all of the above ways of reading Scripture, with the intention of communicating it to others.

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2) Buy a Bible• Buy a sturdy Bible with clear print and a pleasing layout.

Make sure it is complete. If you buy the Good News Bible, or The Revised English Bible, or The Revised Standard Version (an edition of this, with notes, is published as The Oxford Annotated Bible), be sure to get the edition “with Apocrypha,” or “with deuterocanonical books,”1 or “Catholic Edition.” If you do not, you will get a Bible with only 39 of the 46 books of the Old Testament. If you buy The New Jerusalem Bible (get the full edition, the one with the notes) or The New American Bible, the Bible will be complete.

• Some translations (e.g. The Revised Standard Version) are relatively literal: some of the Hebrew or Greek language structure is carried over into the English. Literal translations are valuable, for they keep us close to the originals, though that may at times mean that the English is not as natural and understandable as it could be.

• Some translations (e.g. the Good News Bible, or The Revised English Bible) are relatively free: the translators were not so concerned with keeping closely to the language structures of the original, but to use whatever vocabulary or word order they felt most faithfully expressed in English the meaning of the original. Free translations are valuable, since they are a kind of commentary, and usually are clear and easy to read. At times, however, poetic richness is lost, as well as levels of meaning which are in the original text.

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1 Deuterocanonical books or sections, so-called because of their late coming in the canon of Scripture, are: Tobit, Judith, the Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch, 1 and 2 Maccabees, sections of Esther and of Daniel.

3) Read for a Life-timeThe Bible is a whole library. We do not have to read it all at once. Just read steadily, day by day. Feel free to ponder some passages at length, and to skim over others. Although all of the Bible is inspired, not all of it is of the same spiritual value.

4) Read the Bible in a Spirit of PrayerThis is the Word of God: “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.” (I Samuel 3:9)

5) Read SlowlyThe best plan for reading a book of the Bible is:

a) Skim through it, reading the section headings, to get an idea of the whole. Read any introductions which are provided.

b) Read through, slowly, one section at a time. Check the notes (especially useful in The New Jerusalem Bible or The Oxford Annotated Bible With Apocrypha). Perhaps check a commentary. Mark up your Bible.

c) Read and reread the section. Memorize some parts. Try reading aloud.

6) Always Read as a Member of the ChurchThe Bible is meant by God to be a part of the whole life of the Christian in the Church, a life which includes prayer, the sacraments, works of practical charity, active involvement in the parish, knowledge of the teachings of the Church, etc. It must always be part of this wider picture.

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7) Adopt a PlanYou might want to read a chapter (or a smaller section) a day, perhaps in this order: the Gospels, the Psalms, the rest of the New Testament, the Wisdom books of the Old Testament (Proverbs, Sirach, Wisdom, Qoheleth, Song of Songs, Job), then the rest of the Old Testament.

An excellent plan: read the Mass readings for the day. Over the course of 2 years, at daily Mass, almost the whole of the Bible is read (except for lists and things like that). At Sunday Mass there is a three year cycle for the Gospels: Matthew one year, Mark the next, then Luke. The Gospel of John is read during some of the special seasons (Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter), and in the last Sundays of ordinary time in the year of Mark. The first reading is chosen from the Old Testament to throw light on the Gospel. The Second Reading is chosen independently: the letters of the New Testament are read. The Mass readings from the Lectionary provide a full experience of the Bible, and link us to the sacramental life of the Church throughout the world.

For a text of the Mass readings, you might want to subscribe to Living With Christ. Complete edition. Novalis, Periodicals Department, 49 Front Street East, 2nd Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5E 1B3. [(416)-363-3303]

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8) Study the BibleThe Bible is God’s Word in human language. Because it is human as well as divine, and was written long ago in a culture far different from our own, we sometimes need help in understanding what it says. A little information, easily available, can save us from misunderstanding the Bible.

• An excellent series of short bible commentaries, in booklet form from The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 56321:

The Collegeville Bible Commentary. Old Testament Series, 25 booklets

New Testament Series, 11 booklets The Sacra Pagina Series (an excellent set of more

detailed commentaries.)

• A most useful introduction: An Introduction to the New Testament, by Raymond Brown. New York: Doubleday, 1997.

• A valuable commentary on the whole Bible, with useful topical articles: The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.

• Some more detailed commentaries:

Matthew: Daniel Harrington, The Gospel of Matthew. Sacra Pagina, Volume 1. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1991.

Mark: Augustine Stock, The Method and Message of Mark, Michael Glazier, Inc., 1989.

Luke: Joseph Fitzmyer, The Gospel According to Luke, 2 vols. Anchor Bible. Doubleday, 1981 and 1983.

John: Raymond Brown, The Gospel According to John, 2 vols. Anchor Bible. Doubleday, 1966 and 1970.

The Psalms: A. A. Anderson, Psalms 1-72. Psalms 73-150, New Century Bible Commentary. Eerdmans, 1972.

The Book of Revelation: John Sweet, Revelation, SCM Press, 1979.

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9) Find a Time and Place for Reading ScriptureEach day spend at least a few minutes prayerfully reading the Word of God. Begin with a short period of prayerful attentiveness, and then reflect upon a short passage of Scripture, reading it again and again. End with a period of silent prayer. Rejoice in the Word of the Lord: it is light for our path, and leads us to grateful awareness of God’s mercy.

10) Read: Dei Verbum: The Dogmatic Constitution on Divine RevelationThis is the document of Vatican II which deals with the Word of God. It is superb! Its 6 sections deal with 1) divine revelation itself; 2) the transmission of divine revelation (through Scripture and Tradition); 3) sacred Scripture: its divine inspiration and its interpretation; 4) the Old Testament; 5) the New Testament; 6) sacred Scripture in the life of the Church.

Dei Verbum can be obtained in booklet form, and is also found in any collection of the Documents of Vatican II. You should also read: The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 74-141.

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III. How to interpret the Bible

ive the Bible to ten different people and you can get ten different and contradictory interpretations of it. The Bible does not explain itself. Nor do individuals enjoy some kind of God-given guarantee that they will hit upon the correct

interpretation of difficult passages. Much of the Bible is quite clear, but when in doubt here are some principles of interpretation to help us understand what the Bible means.

1) The Principle of Variety Be aware of the different types of human literature through which God’s truth is expressed in the Bible: poetry must be read as poetry, parable as parable, history as history, etc. Always keep in mind the original situation out of which the passage arose, and the purpose of the writer. “In order to discover the sacred authors’ intention, the reader must take into account the conditions of their time and culture, the literary genres in use at the time, and the modes of feeling, speaking, and narrating then current.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 110)

2) The Human and the Divine “In the process of composition of the sacred books God chose and employed human agents, using their own powers and faculties, in such a way that they wrote as authors in the true sense, and yet God acted in and through them, directing the content entirely and solely as he willed. It follows that we should hold that whatever the inspired authors or sacred writers affirm is affirmed by the Holy Spirit; we must acknowledge that the books of Scripture teach firmly, faithfully and without error such truth as God, for the sake of our salvation, wished the biblical text to contain.” (Dei Verbum, 11)

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3) Respect for InformationThere is a barrier of time and culture between us and the biblical writers. Scholars can help us to overcome that barrier, and understand the customs, the history, and the literary traditions of biblical times.

4) The Principle of CompletenessNo single verse of the Bible, taken by itself, expresses the whole of God’s plan. You can prove anything by taking verses here and there out of context. Keep in mind the context of the whole book, and of the other books of the Bible.

5) The Norm of Christ“Different as the books which comprise it may be, Scripture is a unity by reason of the unity of God’s plan, of which Christ Jesus is the center and heart, open since his Passover.” (Catechism, 112) The Old Testament has a value on its own, but Christians can see in it the foreshadowing of Christ. When disturbed by some things in the Old Testament (e.g. violence, ritualistic concerns, harsh laws), we should see them in the context of the final revelation in Jesus.

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6) The Context of Living FaithThe Bible must be read within the context of the living faith of the Church upon which the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost. Christ did not give us the Bible directly: he gave us the Church, and it was out of the Church that the New Testament later arose. “Sacred Scripture is written principally in the Church’s heart, rather than in documents and records, for the Church carries in her Tradition the living memorial of God’s Word, and it is the Holy Spirit who gives her the spiritual interpretation of Scripture.” (Catechism, 113) It is our sense of the unity of the whole faith, sometimes called “the analogy of faith,” that allows us to interpret rightly any portion of it. (Catechism, 114) For example, if we want to know how to interpret the scriptural references to the Eucharist, we will be guided by our living faith in the Eucharist, which we Christians have celebrated since long before the Gospel was put into written form.

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IV. Conclusion

Sacred Scripture in the Life of the Church

he force and power in the Word of God is so great that it remains the support and energy of the Church, the strength of faith for her sons, the food of the soul, the pure and permanent source of spiritual life.”

“Just as the life of the Church grows through persistent participation in the Eucharistic mystery, so we may hope for a new surge of spiritual vitality from intensified veneration for God’s Word, which ‘lasts forever’.” (Is 40:8; cf. 1 Pet 1:23-25)

Vatican II, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation

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