Reading the Bible

Deacon Lee Hunt

6. The Old Testament hopes for a Savior

Forty-six books cover 2,000 years before Christ

The two major divisions of the Bible are the Old and New Testaments. For Christians, the New Testament proclaims the life and message of Jesus Christ as ‘good news” for all peoples, and sees in Jesus the fulfillment of the Old Testament hopes of a Savior and Messiah.

 

The four major divisions of the Old Testament are (1) the Pentateuch, (2) the Historical Books, (3) the Wisdom Writings, and (4) the Prophets.

 

There are 46 books in the Catholic version of the Old Testament that are considered canonical. This canon includes the books recognized by the Catholic Church to contain divine revelation.

 

The Jewish canon, later taken over by the Protestants, contains 39 books, all written in Hebrew or Aramaic languages. The other seven books appeared in the Greek translation (Septuagint) of the Old Testament and were listed as the canon by the local church councils in the fourth century. Catholics call these seven books deutrocanonical (second canon) and Protestants refer to them as apocrypha.

 

The Old Testament begins with the Pentateuch. Genesis describes a prehistory of God’s call and preparation of a people in creation and patriarchs. Exodus portrays the deliverance of Israel from Egypt and the giving of the covenant. Leviticus describes the obligations of the covenant, while Numbers sums up the meaning of the covenant later in Israel’s history.

 

The Historical Books teach one consistent lesson that points out Israel’s infidelity to the covenant and warns of coming destruction and exile in 586 BC. History is taught twice, once by deutronomic writers and then by priestly writers.

 

The Writings contain many profound and beautiful examples of Israel’s reflections on their faith.

 

The Prophetic Books are divided into the Major Prophets and the Minor Prophets.

 

This is the Old Testament. It covers about 2,000 years down to the first century before Christ. It tells the story of one people and their relationship with God.

 

The books are not arranged in chronological order because they were written at many different times. We must seek out each book in the Old Testament for its own time, and then we must create some kind of order in our minds.