Old Testament Joshua-Esther

What do we know about Joshua?

Was an assistant of Moses

One of the two spies who went into Canaan and trusted that God would give the land to them

Moses’ successor

How can a merciful God command what seems to be an “ethnic cleansing” of the inhabitants of Canaan?

God is leading the way and it’s God’s choice

God is not giving the Israelites land because they are good, but because the Israelites are weak

God fulfilling His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

The Canaannites who worship God are not killed off

Can an “ethnic cleansing” be justified?

Yes

What main message should we take from the story of Rahab?

Rahab is an immoral, non-Israelite, but because of her faith in God, she is welcomed into Israel

How does the story of Achan contrast with Rahab?

Rahab is an outsider brought into the people of God while Achan is an insider who is thrown out

What New Testament figure shares the same name as Joshua (although different in English)?

Jesus

What is typology?

A way of reading the Bible that recognizes patterns of people, events, and institutions

How do the Israelites’ find rest in the land of Canaan under Joshua have a typological fulfillment?

Just like we will find rest when Christ comes again to a restored world, the Israelites will find rest in Canaan

What are several ways in the which the book of Joshua contrasts with the book of Judges?

Judges-positive vibe, people are obedient, over a period of about 20 years, people are settled

Judges- disheartening, people are like the Canaanites, over a period of about 350 years, utter chaos: morally, politically, and spiritually

What cyclical pattern do we see repeated in the book of Judges?

Judges Cycle: sin, oppression, repentance, deliverance, peace, sin

What is meant by a “judge” in the book of Judges?

A political/military leader

Why are the judges described as “charismatic leaders”?

Because they come onto the scene in a time of chaos and then stick around until things are fixed. God empowers them to complete the task, even if He doesn’t approve of their lifestyle

How do the judges point forward to Jesus?

Jesus is not only a king, but anointed by God’s spirit to judge the nations and bring Israel out of their sin

How does the book of Judges prepare us for 1-2 Samuel?

Shows how Israel had no king and everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Maybe if Israel had a good king, maybe all this chaos wouldn’t be happening

Since the events within Ruth happened in the time of the judges, how does the book of Ruth offer hope?

Shows how in the midst of the chaos of Judges, there are still people living to honor God

What significance is there in Ruth becoming a part of David’s (and ultimately Jesus’) ancestry?

A foreigner is part of the lineage of Jesus

Why do English Bibles divide 1 and 2 Samuel into two books when originally they were one book?

Because when the vowels were added from Hebrew to Greek, the length doubled and the original scroll needed to be divided into two scrolls

What is THE big development that happens in the book of 1 Samuel?

The introduction of a monarchy

How does the introduction of a monarchy fulfill earlier promises in the OT?

Abraham is promised kings will come out of his lineage and Israel prophesies to Judah that the kings from his line will be victorious

In a phrase, who were each of the following individuals? Samuel, Saul, and David

Samuel: last of the judges, king maker, a prophet 

Saul: Israel’s first king 

David: Israel’s greatest king

Why was Israel’s request for a king offensive to Samuel and God?

Because Israel wants a king to be like the other nations and they rejected God as their king

What are key points in the rise and fall of Saul?

1. Samuel anoints Saul as king

2. Good looking, but corrupt

3. Disobeys Samuel’s orders which…

4. Disobeys God

5. Takes plunder which he was told not to

6. Doesn’t kill a king in a war

   1. Samuel rejects Saul as king

What happens at the end of 1 Samel?

Saul is wounded on the battle field and commits suicide

How does 2 Samuel open?

With David mourning the death of Saul and Jonathan

How old was David when he began his reign over all Israel?

30 years old

What parallel do we find between David and Jesus?

Jesus was also about 30 years old when his ministry began and it shows how Jesus and David relate

How did the extent of David’s reign compare to that of Saul’s reign?

David’s kingdom was about 2x the size of Saul’s

What city does David capture and make the capital of the united kingdom?

Jerusalem

How in particular did David solidify Jerusalem as the capital?

By bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem

What key promise does God make to David in 2 Samuel 7:8-16?

there is always going to be a Davidic king on the throne

How is the promise God made to David fulfilled in Christ?

Christ is the king that will rule forever

What great sin does David commit?

He commits adultery

How does David compound the sin of adultery with further sins?

Adultery leads to Bathsheba getting pregnant which leads to David killing Uriah 

David does not rationalize his sin like Saul did, he mourns and repents of his sin

What three kings constitute the period known as the “united monarchy”?

Saul, David, and Solomon

What is Solomon’s biggest accomplishment?

Building the Temple

What was Solomon’s downfall?

His many wives who wanted him to build them temples for their foreign gods and worship with them

What are the immediate and ultimate causes of the “divided kingdom”?

Immediate: Rehaboam being harsher than Solomon

Ultimate: God is angry with Solomon’s idolatry

Who was the first ruler of the northern kingdom?

Jeroboam

What was the name of the northern kingdom and what was its final capital?

Israel- Samaria

What was the name of the southern kingdom and what was its final capital?

Judah- Jerusalem

How did the two kingdoms differ in terms of their obedience?

North- all wicked, idolatry 

South- some good kings

Describe the god Baal?

A storm god, a fertility god, ritualized sex that goes along with his worship

How did Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal show that God could beat Baal “at his own game”?

Baal, a storm god, Elijah asking for fire from heaven, a lightning bolt, the prophets of Baal think they’ll win, but God shows His power and how He controls creation

What key events happened in 722 BC and 586 BC?

722 BC- Assyrians capture Samaria and scatter the Israelite people

586 BC- babylonians capture the southern kingdom, destroy the temple, exile the people

Why is it appropriate that the book of Chronicles appears last in the Jewish ordering of the Old Testament?

Because it has a broad view of the whole OT timeline and it offers reflection over the OT. It also offers hope at the end to look forward ot the hope that is to come.

How does the dating of Chronicles within the postexilic period shape its message?

Knowing that the Bablyon exile has happened brings context to why the people think there is not hope in the future

How does the book of Chronicles like one of the four gospels?

Overlap with 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings, Gospels having overlap emphasizes certain things

How does Chronicles differ from Samuel/Kings?

A big focus on the promise to David, not his sins

Minimizes the reports of Solomon and David

Focuses on the Southern kingdom which had descendants of David

How did the Assyrians and Babylonians differ in their practice of exile? 

Assyrians: scattered people around their empire, exiled people became like the Assyrians 

Babylonians: took Jews out as a group

What was the result of this fort the northern verses southern kingdom?

Northern tribes kind of disappeared while southern tribes were able to come back and keep their culture

Why does Chronicles emphasize the Davidic covenant?

Because blessings will come to the whole world through Abraham/Davidic kings

How does Chronicles emphasizing the Davidic covenant relate to Chronicles’ other emphasis upon the temple?

Davidic emphasis on building the temple and Jesus being a temple builder

How do the final verses of Chronicles offer reassurance and hope?

Having hope that God will keep His promises and a new exodus is underway

How does the New Testament understand Jesus to be a temple builder?

Jesus made Christian bodies temples because the Holy Spirit abides in us

What event created the opportunity for the Jews to return to Israel from exile?

The conquest of the Persians conquering Babylon and the Persian king (Cyrus) said the Jews could return to Israel

What is the Cyrus Cylinder?

One of the most essential Biblical artifacts, a cylinder-like object, words written on it in Cuneiform describing Cyrus’s proclamation/decree allowing the Jews to go back to Israel and rebuild the Temple

Who were the three main leaders in order in Ezra-Nehemiah?

Zerubbabel - 538 BC

Ezra - 458 BC

Nehemiah - 444 BC

What was the mission of each of these leaders and what opposition/problems did each leader face?

Zerubbabel - rebuild the temple; enemies in the land were upset and were in opposition to the building

Ezra - reestablish the law of Moses, unite the people; intermarriage with idolaters

Nehemiah - rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem

What evidence do we have that the author of Ezra-Nehemiah does not believe that the ultimate return from exile has yet happened in his day?

The temple was not like it was 

They were still slaves 

People were breaking the Sabbath, intermarriage with adulterers