+
Understanding the History of the Old Testament
First 5 Books:
Genesis: From ___________ till ___________ (Israelites stuck in Egypt for_______years (Exodus 12:40-41)
Exodus: Israelites grow in Egypt, Pharoah decides to afflict them, Moses comes on the scene. Moses leads
the people out of Egypt, go through the wilderness for 40 years because they complained and doubted.
Leviticus: Details of the ________
Numbers: Numbering of the Hebrew men and the wandering in the desert. Spies sent out to Promised
Land
Deuteronomy: Moses’ farewell speech and _______________ of instructions of the Law.
Joshua: Inheriting the _______________________ and fighting battles
Characters of note: Joshua, Caleb, Rahab
Judges: Book of ______________ because God was their king and they disobeyed Him. Dark period of about
400 years. Read Judges 2:20-22, 21:25
Characters of note: Deborah, Gideon, Samson
Ruth: Takes place during the time of ______________ but shows us God’s grace.
Characters of note: Naomi, Ruth, Boaz
1 & 2 Samuel: Samuel comes on the scene as the first prophet in a very long time (1 Samuel 3:19-21). The first
king in Israel is chosen when people rebelled against God and said they wanted to be like the other nations.
Covers the lives of ____________ and ____________.
Characters of note: Hannah, Samuel, Saul, David, Jonathan, Abigail, Nathan
Read 1 Samuel 8:4-7
1 & 2 Kings: Believed to be authored by ______________ the prophet. Records the lives of the kings from
Solomon to Zedekiah. Ends with the destruction of _________________ and the _______________.
Characters of note: Solomon, Elijah, Elisha, Hezekiah, Josiah
Read 1 Kings 11:1-3, (reference Deuteronomy 17:14-20)
Read 1 Kings 11:9-13
After the division of the kingdoms through 2Kings all of the Major and Minor Prophets are prophesying except for
______________, _________________ and ______________ (post exilic prophets). See diagram.
Read 2 Kings 17:5-6, 9-14, 18-20, 24 (Northern Kingdom: Taken captive by ____________ in _________BC)
Read 2 Kings 25:1-2, 9-12 (destruction of Jerusalem and the temple). Three groups of captives taken away.
Southern Kingdom taken captive by ___________________ in __________BC.
1st deportation: 606 BC; includes Daniel the Prophet (Daniel 1:1-7)
2nd deportation: 597 BC; includes Ezekiel the Prophet (Ezekiel 1:1-2)
3rd deportation: 586 BC; final group (2 Kings 24:11, 15-17)
Read Psalm 137
1 & 2 Chronicles: Believed to be authored by __________. Begins with genealogies and then goes into the
death of Saul and the reign of David and then the rest of the kings and also concludes with the captivity.
Characters of note: David, Solomon, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah
Read 2 Chronicles 36:11-21 Why seventy years of captivity? (reference Leviticus 25:3-4 and Jeremiah 29:10)
Read 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 (reference Isaiah 44:29-45:1)
Ezra: Book of Ezra continues where 2 Chronicles left off.
Now the Jews have been freed and the first wave is
coming back to rebuild the temple. Three returns back to Israel.
1st return under __________________ (536 BC): Read Ezra 2:1, 64-65 (42,360 Jews plus 7,337 servants)
-They start rebuilding the temple (Ezra 3:3, 8-10) but are discouraged by their enemies (Ezra 4)
and work on the temple stops for 16 years until God sends Haggai and Zechariah (Ezra 5:1-2,
Haggai 1-2, Zechariah 1:1-3)
2nd return under ____________ (458 BC): Read Ezra 7:6-10. Ezra tries to restore the people spiritually and
teach theme the laws and statutes of God.
3rd return under ______________ (444 BC) (Nehemiah comes to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem)
Nehemiah: Nehemiah leaves his position as cupbearer to the King of ______________ returns to rebuild the
____________ around Jerusalem.
Esther: The Book of Esther, in the form of a short story similar to the Book of Ruth, has its setting in the palace
of Shushan, or Susa, one of the three capitals of the Persian Empire. The story gives us a vivid picture of the Jews
in exile, of the hostility of their non-Jewish enemies in Persia, and of how Esther became the queen of Ahasuerus
(Xerxes), subsequently risking her life in order to save her people, the Jews, from total destruction. God’s
providential care of His people is magnified throughout, though the word "God" never appears in the book.