Discipleship Essentials
Handout 2
Part of Discipleship Essentials—That We May Know the Word of God
September 23, 2020

Introduction to the Old Testament

The Old Testament should be viewed from three different perspectives:
The


The
The

The OT is a collection of

books.

The Old Testament is divided into five sections:
The

or the (Genesis through Deuteronomy)
2. The Books (Joshua through Esther)
3. The Books or the Books (Job through Song of Solomon)
4. The Prophets (Isaiah through Daniel)
5. The Prophets (Hosea through Malachi)

Old Testament is the rich study of God’s

, God’s , and God’s .

In the beginning there was

, and then there was !
God made Man and Woman made in His own image!
The Garden of Eden is , but quickly becomes the location of the of man!

OT Timeline.png

Humankind begins to become more corrupt and sinful over time.
God judges the world with a flood, but spares one righteous man

_ and his family!
Nations grew from the descendants of Noah, but ultimately rebels again.
After the rebellion at the of , the Lord scatters mankind all over the world.
The call of to go. A new beginning for God’s people!

Map of OT.png

Abraham’s prosperity turns into Israel’s slavery in Egypt for 400 years.
The

After 430 years of exile, Moses leads Israel out of Egypt.
God gives Israel the Law on Mount Sinai.
Spies sent into promise land. Because of a lack of faith, 40 years of wandering in the desert.
Joshua invades Canaan. People enter promised land where they are ruled by .
Eventually kingdom is established, epitomized by king and his son .
Solomon builds temple which becomes the center of people’s worship.
After Solomon’s death, the kingdom divides into N. Kingdom ( ) and S. Kingdom ( )
Idolatry grows among the people.
The N. Kingdom (Israel) is captured by Assyria in 722 BC. Captives never returned.
The S. Kingdom (Judah) is captured by Babylonians in 586 BC
After 70 years in captivity, Israelites returned from Babylon under Ezra and Nehemiah.
They return to Jerusalem and rebuilds the temple and longs for the glory they once knew.
Malachi is the last book written. People live in anticipation for Messiah.