JESUS CHRIST:
GOD’S REVELATION TO
THE WORLD
CHAPTER 3
SURVEYING THE BOOKS
OF THE BIBLE
Best Seller
The Bible was first printed in 1454
The Bible is always at the top of any
best-seller’s list
Familiar Sayings
from the Bible
“A HOUSE DIVIDED”
“APPLE OF HIS EYE”
“CAN A LEOPARD
CHANGE HIS SPOTS”
“OUT OF THE MOUTHS
OF BABES”
“HANDWRITING ON
THE WALL”
“LABOR OF LOVE”
“BY THE SKIN OF MY
TEETH”
“EAT, DRINK, AND BE
MERRY”
Formation of the
Old Testament
Before the actual writing took
place, there was a period of
oral traditions that came from
the experiences the people
had with God and with each
other.
Many historians believe the
Chosen People began to
preserve their stories during
the reign of King Solomon
(950 BC).
Many editors were involved,
resulting in many OT books
being compilations.
The Old Testament Canon
The Septuagint (a Greek
translation of the Hebrew
Scriptures) was common
during Jesus’ day.
Jewish scholars omitted the
seven books written in Greek
from the Septuagint.
The Council of Trent accepted
all the books in the Septuagint
as part of the Old Testament
canon.
Protestant Reformers accepted
the official list of Hebrew
Scriptures accepted by rabbis
in AD 90.
Survey of the
Old Testament Books
Pentateuch
Most scholars believe that
four different oral
traditions went into writing
the foundational
Pentateuch.
The Historical Books
How God remained faithful to the
covenant; how the Israelites
struggled to live by its terms
 Genesis
 Exodus
 Leviticus
 Numbers
 Deuteronomy
Joshua
 Judges
 Ruth
 1 and 2 Samuel
 1 and 2 Kings
 1 and 2 Chronicles
 Ezra and Nehemiah
Tobit, Judith, and Esther
 1 and 2 Maccabees


Survey of the
Old Testament Books
The Wisdom Books
Prophetic Books
How God works in our
everyday lives
The biblical prophets were a
messengers from God.
 Job
 Psalms
 Proverbs
 Ecclesiastes
 Song
of Songs
 Wisdom
 Sirach
 Worship
the one, true God
 Accept God’s love and mercy
 Be just, especially to the poor
 Know that God will ultimately
triumph
Classifying the
Prophets
MAJOR PROPHETS:
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Ezekiel
Daniel
MINOR PROPHETS:
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
The Writing of the
New Testament
Stage 1:
6 BC—AD
30/33
Stage 3:
AD 50—c.
120
Stage 2:
AD 30—50
Stage 1:
The Historical Jesus
Jesus lived a typical life of a Jewish
boy
Began his public ministry c. 28 AD
Taught, healed, and proclaimed the
coming of the Kingdom of God
Crucified by Pontius Pilate c. 30 AD
Rose from the dead three days
after his crucifixion
Stage 2:
Oral Tradition
“Go out to the whole world;
proclaim the gospel to all creation”
KERYGMA—preaching to unbelievers
DIDACHE—teaching, further catechesis
LITURGY—worship of the Christians
Why Commit the Oral Tradition to writing?

The end of the world
was not coming as
quickly as the early
Christians at first
thought it would

Distortions to the
Gospel were occurring

More instruction was
needed
Stage 3:
The New Testament Writings
First written books of the New Testament
were the letters of St. Paul
The four Gospels, Acts, Catholic Epistles,
and Revelation were probably written in the
latter half of the 1st century
Survey of the New Testament
The Sacred Tradition of the Church, administered by
the Apostles and their successors, determined which
books were to be included in the canon and which were
not under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
Types of Writing in the
New Testament
Gospels
Acts of the Apostles
The heart of the Scriptures!
Second part of the
Gospel of Luke
Mark
(~60—75)
Matthew (~80—90)
Luke (~85)
John (~80—110)
Acts tells the early history of
the Church
Types of Writing in the
New Testament
Pauline Letters
Circulated in his name; either
written by Paul himself or a
disciple of Paul

1 and 2 Thessalonians
 Galatians
 Philippians
 1 and 2 Corinthians
 Romans
 Philemon
 Colossians
 Ephesians
 Titus
 1 and 2 Timothy
The Letter to the Hebrews
Emphasizes Christ’s
superiority over all creation
Perfect sacrifice of Death on
the cross took away sin,
fulfilling the promises of the
Old Testament
Types of Writing in the
New Testament
Catholic Epistles
Revelation
Letters intended “for all”
(Catholic means
“universal)
This highly symbolic work’s
purpose was to encourage
Christians who were
undergoing persecution for
their faith in Jesus Christ.
 James
1
and 2 Peter
 Jude
 1, 2 and 3 John