Before I discuss the Old Testament, let’s just consider the Bible as a whole.  It has over 40 different authors (41 if you count the Holy Spirit), all consistent with each other, across 15 centuries, consisting of three different languages, covering 2 different continents, which produced a unified narrative with interconnected themes.  Only the hand of God could produce such a body of work.

 

The Old Testament becomes even more valuable when you realize It helps us to be able to identify when the Messiah Comes/Came to this earth (First Coming) without the prophecies of a Coming Messiah, of which there are over 200 (See my Bible Study: “CHRIST, PROPHECIES FULFILLED OF FIRST COMING).

 

In order to better understand the Old Testament, one must be aware how much the Old Testament was valued and used by our Lord Himself.  Without a proper understanding of It, some of the statements of Jesus would be meaningless.  Let alone Paul and others writers.  Two Thirds of the Book of Revelation refers to, or is derived from the Old Testament; which is why most churches do not understand It.

 

The importance of names in the Old Testament cannot be over emphasized.  Consider my Genesis, Chapter Five breakdown; which tells of a coming flood by just using persons names in their order.

 

All Semitic names of people have meaning and usually consist of a phrase or short sentence that comprised of a wish, or an expression of gratitude, or of the times and places the parents were placed into at the time, or even better, a prophecy.  For example, Daniel means “God is my judge,” Joel means “Yahweh is God,” and Nathan means “Gift of God.” No Hebrew name was given without some sort of meaning or expression.  Even God gets involved, Abram means “Father is exalted,” with God changing it to Abraham, which means “Father of a multitude,” see Genesis 17:6.  Sarai to Sarah (Gen. 17:15 & 17).  Jacob to Israel.  The reason is their life mission was changed.

 

The Name of God, “YHWH,” “I AM THAT I AM,” and other versions of His Name, such as “Elohim, Adoni,” appears 6,828 times in the Old Testament.  We don’t need to just “believe in God,” we need to “believe God.” The name “YHWH,” pronounced “Yahwen” seems to be a form of the verb “hayah,” meaning, “to be,” in which case it would mean, “the Eternal One,” “the Existent One,” “the Self-Existing One,” “the Self-Sufficient One,” or “the One who lives eternally.” The Divine attributes that are emphasized by this title are definitely those of “self-existence.” It goes along with, “I AM THAT I AM,” Exodus, 3:14, God’s true Name, as explained by God Himself.

 

The entire Bible has 110 geographical locations listed, contained in 1,151 verses.  Of those, 31 specific cities are named.  Every historical fact of the Bible has been (or will be) proven to be completely accurate.  In fact, whenever critics site some city that they claim did not exist; Walah, archeology (God helps them) comes through to find it.

 

The Old Testament has within It 39 Books, five of which begin the Old Testament, and are generally known as the “Pentateuch,” or better, the “Five Books of Moses.” The next twelve Books are considered to be the Historical Books.  While the next five Books are poetic and the last 17 are considered as being prophetic.

 

The Books of the Law (a.k.a. Pentateuch or Torah):  Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy -- are written by Moses (Exodus 24:4; Numbers 33:2; Deuteronomy 31:9, 22); confirmed by Joshua 8:31-32; First Kings 2:3; Second Kings 14:6; 21:8; Ezra 6:18; Daniel 9:11-13; Malachi 4:4, and by Jesus Himself (dare to argue with Him and you have a bigger problem), Mark 12:19; Luke 20:28; John 5:46-47; 7:19, and lastly, the Apostles (Acts 3:22; Romans 10:5).  The first five Books describe from the Creation to the end of the time the Jewish people spent in the wilderness.

 

The Historical Books are Joshua, Judges, Ruth, First Samuel, Second Samuel, First Kings, Second Kings, First Chronicles, Second Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther -- which describe the history of the nation of Israel from the conquest of the Promised Land to Israel's Restoration after the Babylonian captivity.

 

The Poetical Books (a.k.a. The Books of Everyday Wisdom or The Writings), are Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes.

 

The Prophetic Books are known as the Major Prophets -- Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel.  While the rest of the Books are known as the Minor Prophets -- Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.  The difference being the size, not the content.

 

The Hebrew language is a very precise language.  As an example, the English language has within it, various words that have multiple meanings (such as “Gay”).  Whereas, in the Old Testament alone, there are about 8,000 words in Hebrew; and of those, approximately 5,000, which is the vast majority, are proper names and places.  Therefore, of the about 3,000 words being used, staying within the context will tell us the true meaning of what is written.

 

Since the Hebrew language is so precise, we can rely on its authenticity.  Contrarywise, you should not come to the conclusion that the Biblical text is simple; which for even the average Christian they know that not to be true.  Nor should you conclude that it does not communicate complex ideas and concepts; which most Christians still struggle with an understanding of various passages (to the point of arguing over them).  Or, and this is most important here, that word order and usage mean something.  Once this concept is grasped, then your average Christian can move on into a higher understanding and reflection of God’s Word.

 

Now this is not to say that your baby Christian or average Christian cannot grasp the simplest concepts, to even some very comprehensive conceptions, without a thorough knowledge of God’s Word.  However, as my band teacher used to say, “Practice, Practice, Practice.” Therefore, it goes without saying, the more you delight in and study God’s Word, the more you will receive a blessing out of It.  And the less you will be fooled by the foolish and devilish interpreters of Scripture.

 

Let the simple explain itself; The difficult be explained by other texts or context; The basics be studied by staying within the guidelines; The principles be kept within the parameters; The standards stay composed in the regulations; The directions never forcefully pushed to a different level then was intended; The obvious left alone; the understandable and clear be forcefully implied; The noticeable by clear; The observable become recognizable; and stand by what you have determined to be truth as long as you can justify it with God.

 

Since the Old Testament was written in the Hebrew language, we must understand that it contains no punctuation marks in its original language form.  Therefore, the language structure was developed in other ways to communicate very important and significant ideas.

 

One of the ways that a Hebrew writer of the Bible could emphasize a certain attribute (of God for this example), was by repeating it three times.  As the Creation account comes to the apex of God’s creative work, the text we will consider, emphasizes the unique importance of created humanity.  The Hebrew term “bara’,” meaning, “to create,” always refers to and “has only” “God” as its subject.  That is, it is only God that has the power to create without being dependent on pre-existing matter.  Here is the example text that describes the creation of man: “So God created (bara’) man in His Own image; in the image of God He created (bara’) him; male and female He created (bara’) them.” Genesis 1:27.  It becomes easy to notice the three-fold repetition of the Hebrew word “bara’,” i.e., “created.” Pointing towards the Trinity.  The same concept is seen in Isaiah’s vision and call, where the seraphim repeat the words, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts.” Isaiah 6:3.

 

In Daniel, Chapter 3, we have a repetition (with variations) of the phrase “the image which Nebuchadnezzar set up,” Daniel 3:1 & 2 & 3 & 5 & 7 & 12 & 14 & 15 & 18.  This phrase, or variations of it, is repeated 10 times in the Chapter to contrast Nebuchadnezzar’s action in defiance of the image God revealed to him through Daniel (Daniel 2:31-45). The emphasis here is on humanity’s seeking to make itself into a god to be worshiped, in contrast to the only true God, the only One worthy of worship.  The point is, when you see this occurring, sit up and take particular notice.

 

One scholar has compiled a list of 2,688 specific references from the New Testament that quote from the Old Testament.  Specifically, 400 from Isaiah, 370 from the Psalms, 220 from Exodus, and so on.  If one were to add to this list allusions, themes, and motifs, the number would greatly increase.  The New Testament authors are replete with references to the Old Testament that are often introduced with the phrase, “It is written,” Matthew 2:5; Mark 1:2; 7:6; Luke 2:23; 3:4; Romans 3:4; 8:36; 9:33; First Corinthians 1:19; Galatians 4:27; First Peter 1:16.  All of this confirms that the Old Testament Scriptures are the foundation upon which the teachings of Jesus and the apostles rest.

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