Continuing with our discussion of the Bible ands its organization and content, the following is a summary of what we covered in the last 4 posts on Bible Basics:
The Bible has 2 testaments: The Old Testament and the New Testament.
The Old Testament has 39 books divided into 5 sections: The Law, The History, The Poetry & Wisdom, The Major Prophets and The Minor Prophets.
The Law consists of: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
The History consists of: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.
The Books of Poetry and Wisdom consist of: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.
The next grouping of books in the Old Testament is the Major Prophets which include the following:
- Isaiah [A prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah, Isaiah predicts God’s judgment on Judah was well as the surrounding countries and the world, but also promises a future salvation and restoration. Many important Messianic prophecies (prophecies about Jesus) are found in this book.]
- Jeremiah [A prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah also, Jeremiah declares the certain Judgment of God. He also tells of God’s promise of a new covenant with His people.]
- Lamentations [A series of 5 poems of lament by the prophet Jeremiah]
- Ezekiel [A prophet to Israel in captivity in Babylon. Ezekiel tells of the fate of Judah’s enemies and its future.]
- Daniel [The book of Daniel includes some well-known Bible stories such as Daniel in the lion’s den and the three Hebrew boys in the firey furnace. It also shows the future of the 5 world kingdoms and shows Israel during the period of Gentile power in the world.]