Here is sentence 7! Can you believe we are almost half way through the Bible!?
The key to understanding the Old Testament is to realize the Historical Books cover the major storyline of the Old Testament from creation to approximately 400 BC, while the remaining Poetical and Prophetical Books fit in at proper places within that storyline.
It is easy to look at the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament and think those thirty-nine books recount the history of Israel, one book after another, starting in Genesis and ending with Malachi. But, that is not the case.
- The Historical Books: Genesis through Esther cover the major storyline of the Old Testament—from the creation of the universe in Genesis to approximately four hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ in Nehemiah (technically, the chronology of Esther fits into the chronology of Ezra, but do not worry about that right now!).
- The Poetical Books: Job through Song of Solomon fit in their proper places. For instance, the book of Job tells the story of a man who lived during the time of Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob (Genesis). David wrote many of the Psalms. His life is found in 1 and 2 Samuel, so the Psalms that he wrote fit in at that time. Or take Solomon, who wrote many of the Proverbs, along with Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon. His life is recorded in 1 Kings 1-11, so all of these writings fit in during that time period.
- The Prophetical Books: Isaiah through Malachi fit in later in the story of Israel’s history (Kings and Ezra/Nehemiah), for the most part pre-exilic, exilic, or post-exilic. That will make sense later in the presentation.
| The 17 Historical Books of the Old Testament cover the major storyline of the Old Testament. | ||||||||||||||||
| G | E | L | N | D | J | J | R | 1S | 2S | 1K | 2K | 1C | 2C | E | N | E |
| J | Ps | Pr E SS |
The Prophetical Books fit here, generally in three categories: pre-exilic, exilic, or post-exilic. To Be Explained Shortly! |
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| The Poetical Books and Prophetical Books fit in at proper places within that storyline. | ||||||||||||||||
Day 13- Travel. Today I am thankful that we can so easily travel. As Thanksgiving is approaches I am getting more and more excited to fly up to New York City with Caleb to visit my parents!
