[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 1]

 

Old Testament Survey

Course Content & Expectations

            This course is designed to present knowledge about the Old Testament.  The word “Testament” carries with it the idea of contract, covenant, and will.  What an appropriate word to describe God’s communication to His creation.  The fact that there is both an Old and New Testament simply testifies to the truth that God has spoken to His creation through time and in different ways.

            As we follow God’s works and hear His words in the Old Testament we shall endeavor to observe the way the Bible characters responded to God’s intervention and communication.  Our desire is that you can gain more than just an appreciation of our great God as we progress through the Bible, but that we will be challenged to personal application and insight in our relationship to the Creator.

Expectations

1.         Old Testament Survey will explore four major segments:  Pentateuch; Law; History; and Prophets (Pre-Exilic, Exilic, and Post-Prophets).

 

2.         Course content will be related through: lectures; student involvement; reading assignments; video; and guest speakers when available.

 

3.         The recommended course text will be The New International Version of the Bible.  This version has been selected for its ease in readability among Bible students at all levels of proficiency.  All instruction is keyed to Bible references.

 

4.         Course accountability will include: homework; quizzes; weekly reading assignments; memorization; creative and research writing; and tests. Extra credit work can consist of Bible study worksheets; book reports; scripture topic reports, or (SRS’s #23, pg.77 ) duplicated (see below).

 

5.         Interact sections are “teaching strategies” to facilitate class content.  These are designed as prompts and seed thoughts for lectures and discussions. Teachers may also incorporate these sections as part of their lectures, discussions, or small group projects.

 

6.         Student Resource Sheets in the back of the syllabus are provided to enhance specific lessons. Memory assignments are also included in this section. The SRS’s are integrated throughout course work. A parenthesis after any title including (SRS #     pg.     ) will signal the appropriate time for their use.


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 2]

 

O.T. Survey....Reading Schedule                                     (SRS #1  Pg.55)

SEPTEMBER                                                                       Scripture Reference

            First Reading                                                    Genesis 1:1-19:38

            Second Reading                                                                       Genesis 20:1-33:20

            Third Reading                                                  Genesis 34:1-50:26

OCTOBER   

Fourth Reading                                                            Exodus 1:1-24:18

            Fifth Reading                                                   Numbers 9:15-24:25

            Sixth Reading                                                  Deuteronomy 1:1-18:22

NOVEMBER

            Seventh Reading                                              Deuteronomy 26:16-Joshua 8:35

            Eighth Reading                                                            Joshua 9:1 – Judges 3:6

            Ninth Reading                                                  Judges 3:7 – 21:24; Ruth 1-4  

            Tenth Reading                                                 1 Samuel 1:1 – 21:12

 

DECEMBER

            Eleventh Reading                                             2 Sam.1-2:4; 11:1-12:23; Selected Psalms

            Twelfth Reading                                                          Selected Psalms

JANUARY

            Thirteenth Reading                                          1 Kings 2:13 – 9:9; 1 Kings 11:1-40

            Fourteenth  Reading                                         1 Kings 12:1-19:21; Jonah 1-4

FEBRUARY

            Fifteenth Reading                                             Isaiah 1:1-6:13; Isaiah 24:1-33:24

            Sixteenth Reading                                            Isaiah 40:1 - 61:11

            Seventeenth Reading                                                    Daniel 1- 12

MARCH

            Eighteenth Reading                                          Ezra 1-4; Selected Psalms

            Nineteenth Reading                                          Haggai; Zechariah; Ezra 6

            Twentieth Reading                                           Malachi; Nehemiah

APRIL

            Twenty First Reading                                       Proverbs Projects

            Twenty Second Reading                                              Proverbs Projects

            Twenty Third Reading                                     Proverbs Projects

 

MAY

            Twenty Fourth Reading                                               Proverbs Projects

            Twenty Fifth Reading                                      Proverbs Projects

            Open


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 4]

 

O.T. Survey... “Highlights”... Genesis 1 - 3

            The first five books of the Bible are called the Pentateuch. Moses is recognized as the author of the Pentateuch. These books were written as the Israelites traveled from Mt. Sinai and throughout the forty years of wilderness wandering.

            The name “Genesis” means beginnings.  This book describes the beginnings of all known space and matter, humanity, sin, the family unit, murder, work, worship, sacrifice, nations, languages, and redemption.

Highlights of Genesis   

(1:1-27)           God spoke... and all matter (living and non-living) came into existence. In the beginning = the beginning of time.              (SRS #3,  pg.57)

 

Interact:     

 

 

 

(1:26)                “...Let Us make man in Our image...” God speaking within the Godhead (Trinity); Image = spirit, self-consciousness, self-determination, and many of the character qualities evidenced in the life of Jesus Christ but are marred in unregenerate man.

 

How long was man intended to live?   Man’s constitution was to be immortal

 

 Interact:     

 

 

.

 

(2:18-22)            God provided a suitable “helper” for Adam as he obediently carried out God’s request for him to name the animals

 

 (3:1-5)            Serpent was an instrument for Satan ... Evil is now present after v.31 to tempt mankind. How did evil come into being?

Interact: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Satan’s strategy: Asking questions and making statements which promote doubt about God!


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 9]

 

O.T. Survey... “Highlights”... Genesis 11 - 12

 

(11:1 - 9)    The “Human Family” finds itself in jeopardy again?

Somewhere around 2500 B.C. the gathered people decide to build a great city with a tower which would “reach to the heavens.” This ambitious and independent act, located in the area known as Babylon, displeased God. He apparently saw through their self-centered motives, interpreting them as defiant, prideful, and rebellious against Him. It is a pity that the character qualities of an ever expanding “family” which could bring success and blessing became their undoing. God, in another act of mercy, redirects mankind. Now, with the emergence of diverse languages and diverse peoples, the covenant relationship with God will  be maintained through the “image of God” in all mankind and the future implementation of a chosen people.

 

Interact Project

      Research & Report Questions [3 members/group max. Bible encyclopedias, etc.]

1.      

2.      

3.      

4.      

 

Dispersion of the Mankind’s Community...

            What made these people so great?

 

 

 

Why was their project destined for doom?

City =  

Tower =  

Make Name = 

 

Was God being mean in confusing their language?

God recognized the potential power and achievement of a united people with wrong motives. This was an act of mercy to humble mankind and enable them to regain dependence upon God.   

 

 

(12:1-5)     God’s Call To Abram (Abraham)

With the life of Abram, we begin to get a glimpse within the “history of God’s plan for the redemption of mankind.”  God chooses Abram for no special or praiseworthy qualities that Abram possess, but simply because he was God’s choice, and that through Abram all mankind could be blessed.


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 16]

 

God’s Power Demonstrated...“Highlights”...Exodus 5 - 11

Why did God use a “slower” means of deliverance like the ten plagues?

** To reveal His power to deliver His people

** To humble any of the people who trusted in the gods of Egypt

 

 

1.         Nile to blood...Nile was life to Egypt and sacred to the god Osiris.

 

2.         Frogs...Heka was the frog-headed goddess. It was an offense to kill frogs.

 

3.         Gnats...Geb was the earth god. Dust of the earth rose against them.

 

4.         Flies (beetles)...Sacred to Ra the sun god. Gold beetles have been found in tombs.

 

5.         Livestock...Apis was the black bull that was worshipped. Mummified bulls found in pyramids.

 

6.         Boils...Egyptian priest were “spotless”; they couldn’t serve in their temples with boils.

 

7.         Hail...Isis was the goddess of the air. This is a land of less than 1” rainfall per year.

 

8.         Locust...A sign of judgment from God (devastation)

 

9.         Darkness...Ra was the sun god worshipped by the Egyptians.

 

10.        Death of firstborn...Firstborn of Egypt were set aside for the service of the gods.

 

What does it mean “to harden the heart” of Pharaoh?

 

First we know that God did not force him to act in an evil way. The word “harden” suggests that Pharaoh was “bound fast; confirmed on a course.” God caused Pharaoh to reveal what was already in his heart- willfulness. Even the godless priest yielded to the “finger of God.” Without God’s mercy or grace to intervene, Pharaoh revealed his unyielding thoughts openly.

 

Compare this episode of God’s dealings in Egypt with what Paul instructs the Roman believers ...See Romans 9:14-24

 


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 21]

 

Highlights… Deuteronomy 26 - Joshua 8                                (SRS #13, Pg.67)

Covenant Renewed.....( Deut.26:16-19)

Responsibility rests upon both participants:

I.          God’s decrees and commands...He said Israel are His people...His treasured possession...He will set them in praise, fame, and honor above all nations...He promised to make them a people “holy” to the LORD their God.

II.        Israel must obey with all their heart and with all their soul...They declared that the LORD is their God...They will walk in His ways

 

Fruitfulness or Unfruitfulness; Prosperity or Curses; Captivity, Disease, or Dispersion all depend upon the choices of Love and Obedience.

Warning Against Forsaking.....(Deut.29:16-29)

Deut.29:29...The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.

Covenant Not Too Difficult.....(Deut.30:11-14)

God never asks us to do anything which is too difficult or beyond our reach!  His word is so near—in our mouth and heart—therefore we can obey.

Heaven and earth are witnesses of the covenant and the terms...God tells the Israelites to choose live...The LORD is their/our life!

God Instructs Joshua.....(Josh.1:1-9)

What is God’s counsel and formula for Joshua to be a successful leader?

 

 

 

 

 

The Sin of Achan.....(Josh.7:1-26)

 

Achan’s sin is similar in motive both to Eve’s sin and Satan’s temptation of the Lord Jesus Christ (see Gen.3:1-5; Mt. 4:1-11; 1 John 2:15-17): I saw; I coveted; I took


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 34]

 

O.T. Survey...Pre-Exile...Isaiah 1:1 - 6:13                          (SRS #18, Pg.72)

The Prophecies of Isaiah

·      The greatest evangelistic prophet ever known to God’s people

·      Ministry to the southern kingdom: Judah

·      Warnings of God’s judgment upon: religious formalism, idolatry, oppression, immorality,  pride, and their impending captivity.

·      Important prophecies reflect:  the coming Messiah and Savior, the “final day of the Lord”,  and  forward look to spiritual renewal and everlasting peace.

 

Judah’s Sinful State  

Characteristics:  (Isaiah 1:2-9)

·      “.....Israel does not know or understand?”

·      “.... “spurned” the Holy One of Israel”

·      Why the metaphor of a body?  (i.e. head, heart, sole of foot, etc.)

 

Parable of  Vineyard:  (Isaiah 5:1-7)

·      Vineyard/choice vines = 

·      Cleared stones =   

·      Watchtower = 

·      Winepress =  

·      Hedge =  

·      Trampled =  

Comparison of New Testament Parable: Mark 12:1-12


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 48]

 

O.T. Survey...Nehemiah Rebuilds The Wall

            God is the Master Designer. He has the ability to cause all things to work together for His purposes. While Ezra is proceeding with the revitalization of the law in Israel, God is preparing a another exiled man to carry the burden of rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem. Nehemiah, the king’s cupbearer, hears of a report that the walls around Jerusalem are yet in ruins and that the work has been hindered by local enemies. So deep is Nehemiah's concern, that the godless king Artaxerxes sympathizes and commissions him to go to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall.

            Nehemiah is also a sensitive man who realizes that the predicament his people are in is due to both individual and national disobedience.  His prayer in the first chapter sets the tone of a man of conviction, contrition, and action.

Characterization of Nehemiah... (Neh.1-6)

 

 

 

 

 

Elements of Nehemiah’s Prayer... (Neh.1:4-11a)

 

 

 

 

 

Dealing With Opposition and Persecution... (Neh.4:1 – 6:14)

 

 

 

 

 

Testimony of a Completed Wall... (Neh.6:15-16)

 

 


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 56]

 

Student Resource Sheet #2                                 Name_______________

 

PERIODS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

PENTATEUCH

Creation >>                            Nations  >>                                    Patriarchs >>

 

 

 

 

 

Captivity >>                           Wandering >>                        Promise Land

 

 

 

LAW

Blessing >>                                     Compromise >>                      Accountability

 

 

 

 

HISTORY

Conquest >>         United Kingdom >>       Divided Kingdom >>         Exile

 

 

 

GOD’S PROPHETS

Message of Warning >>    Message of Support >>    Message of Restoration

 


[O.T. Survey Student Edition, Sample Page 67]

 

Student Resource Sheet #13                                Name_______________

 

O.T. Survey...“Hiding His Word In Your Heart”

Pentateuch Verses

 

1.         Exodus 20:1-17                           7.         Deuteronomy 18:15-19

 

2.         Exodus 3:13-13                           8.         Numbers 6:1-12

 

3.         Numbers 21:4-9                          9.         Deuteronomy 22:22-24

 

4.         Deuteronomy 4:1-8                      10.        Leviticus 17:10-14

 

5.         Deuteronomy 6:4-9                      11.        Deuteronomy 21:18-21

 

6.         Deuteronomy 18:9-14                   12.        Deuteronomy 30:11-20

 

 

 

Contract Grading:

            ......4 verses =    79% or C+

 

            ......6 verses =    86% or B

 

            ......8 verses =    92% or A-

 

            ....10+ verses =   100% or A+ (plus bonus points)

 

 

 

Memory Project Due:__________________________