with the events and some people in each book.
For each book, you may click for an outline and for an animated description, and see Dr. Ed Seely’s BIBLE DIGEST power point.
GENESIS. From a Greek word that means “beginnings.” (Our word genealogy comes from the same Greek word). God creates the universe. Mankind disobeys God. Noah survives the great flood. God selects Abraham (around 2000 BC), and makes a covenant with him, saying that “in you all the nations of the world will be blessed.” Abraham’s son Isaac has a son Jacob, who receives a second name, Israel, so his descendants after that are called the people of Israel. Jacob has twelve sons,¹ of which one, Joseph, is sold as a slave in Egypt. Joseph rises to high position, saves the Egyptians from starvation, and later all his brothers and their families move to Egypt.
JOB. may have been written in these early years. God allows Job to suffer to prove that Job’s love for God was not just because Job was blessed. His friends each had advice about what Job should do, but God silenced all discussion by averring that His ways are above our ways. At the end, Job mainatained his faith, and God restored what had been taken away.
EXODUS. From two Greek words: “ex,” which means “out,” and “odos,” which means “path.” This book tells about the “path out” of Egypt, where the People of Israel had become slaves. Around 1400 BC, God tells Moses to lead them out of Egypt into the desert, where God gives them the Ten Commandments.² God miraculously provides water and food for them. He instructs them to build a portable worship center.
LEVITICUS. This book is named after the Levites (the descendants of Levi, one of Jacob’s 12 sons), because their role was to be the priuests, that is, to perform the animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins, and this book provides instructions for them. God gives details for the sacrifices and the festivals, stressing holiness.
NUMBERS is an English word, given to this book because it tells how many people there were in each of the 12 tribes of Israel. The book also names the tribes that the had to overcome as thy neared their promised land (Canaan, now called Israel). as they move about in the desert of Sinai for 40 years.
DEUTERONOMY is from two Greek words: “deutero,” which means “two,” and “nomos,” which means “law.” In it Moses reviews God’s laws at the end of the 40 years in the desert. Moses then dies.
The five books listed above belong together. They are called “The Five Books of Moses,” because for thousands of years it has been accepted that Moses was the author except for the last few lines which tell us about Moses; death. In Hebrew, these five books are called the “Torah,” which means “teaching.” In Greek, these five books are called the Pentateuch: “penta” means “five,” and “teuch” means “scroll.”
JOSHUA had been one of the spies who did believe that Israel could defeat the people of Canaan. After Moses dies, he becomes the new leader and guides the people of Israel into the land of Canaan, which they now name “Israel.”
JUDGES is the English word chosen by English translators for the temporary military leaders who led the Israelites from the 1300’s to 1050, up until the time Israel chose its first king.. Of these 12 leaders, one is Gideon, who is known for asking God to prove He is really who he says He is by having a fleece stay dry while the grass around it become wet. Another leaders is Samson, famous for his strength, who was betrayed by his girl-friend Delilah.
RUTH was a woman from a nearby country named Moab who lived during the time of the judges. Though she lost her husband, she became loyal to the God of Israel and married a man of Israel. King David was their great-grandchild, so Jesus also came from their family line.
FIRST SAMUEL. Samuel is the last of the judges, and this book tells how he appointed ta man named Saul to be he first of the kings of Israel. After Saul loves favor with God, Samuel anoints a boy named David who will be the next king.
SECOND SAMUEL. David becomes king, establishes Jerusalem as the capital city,
CHRONICLES is an English word that means a “record of historical events.” These two volumes retell the entire story of the Jewish kingdoms, starting from the death of king Saul, through the destruction of the kingdoms by Assyria and then by Babylonia. FIRST CHRONICLES retells the story of David.
PSALMS is from a Greek word that means “to play on a harp.” Many of the 150 songs in this book were written by David.
FIRST KINGS. David’s son Solomon becomes king
PROVERBS. 800 wise sayings, attributed to Solomon, telling us “how to live a fulfilling life.”
ECCLESIASTES is from the Greek word that means a person who speaks at an “ecclesia,” which is “a gathering of people.” Ecclesia is translated as church, so “ecclesiastes” can be translated into English as “preacher;” that’s also the meaning of the Hebrew title. The preacher identifies himself as Solomon. He writes about the lack of fulfillment in a life without God.
SONG OF SOLOMON in some Bibles is called SONG OF SONGS; both of these are based on its first verse, “The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.” It is a love poem.
FIRST KINGS continues after Solomon as the people of Israel divide into two competing kingdoms. The northern kingdom is called Israel. The southern kingdom is called Judah, and is ruled by descendants of David. This book traces the events of the first six kings in each kingdom. One if the northern kings is Ahab, who with his wife Jezebel is denounced by the prophet Elijah (around 860 BC).
SECOND KINGS. This book tells about the rest of the kings, up to the time that the northern kingdom is ended by the Assyrian Empire in 722 BC and the southern kingdom is ended by the Babylonian Empire in 586 BC.
SECOND CHRONICLES retells the history of the kings from Solomon to the deportation to Babylon.
PROPHETS IN THE NORTHERN KINGDOM
JONAH. Jonah. around 770 BC. Jonah tried to refuse God’s command to preach to the people of Nineveh, a leading city of Assyria. When he finally did preach to them, they repented.
HOSEA. Writing around 760 BC. Hosea criticized the Israelites for turning to idols instead of worshipping God faithfully, but said that God would not give up on them.
The northern kingdom is ended by Assyria in 722 BC
PROPHETS IN THE SOUTHERN KINGDOM
JOEL, around 830 BC. After a locust plague in Judah, Joel urged the people to repent of their sinfulness, and promised a glorious future.
AMOS, around 750 BC. Amos warned the rich leaders of Judah to consider the poor rather than their own selfish desires.
MICAH, starting around 740 BC, served under 3 kings, ending with Hezekiah. He said God will judge people for their sins, but will also forgive and give a great future. God requires justice and mercy, and a humble following of God. The prophecy that the future savior would be born in Bethlehem is found in this book.
ISAIAH. This scroll includes historical events, including the vision of angels singing “Holy Holy Holy” when Isaiah was called to be a prophet around 740 BC, and his serving as a consultant to four kings, such as when Isaiah told king Hezekiah not to fear when the Assyrians had surrounded Jerusalem around 701 BC (chapter 39). It criticizes the sins of God’s people, but also assures them that “though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow.” There are warnings about exile, and comfort for God’s people, including the promise of glorious future in new heavens and a new earth. The New Testament quotes from Isaiah 66 times.
NAHUM, around 650, warned that God will destroy the people of Nineveh (the capital of the Assyrian empire) because of their cruelty in war. (They were destroyed by the Babylonians in 612 BC)
ZEPHANIAH, around 640. He warned that the coming day of the Lord will bring judgment on many, but a remnant will survive to bless the world.
HABAKKUK, in the years just before 612 when Babylon defeated Assyria, said that Babylon would defeat Judah as well (which they did in 586). He wonders why God would use a sinful nation for His divine purposes, and was told that God judges all nations. He exhorted God’s people to live by faith.
JEREMIAH. During the 500’s; he was present when Judah was conquered and Jerusalem destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC.Tells how Jeremiah was persecuted by the rulers and people who did not accept his message that they should accept being ruled by the Babylonian empire. He prophesies a “new covenant.”
The Babylonian empire took many Jews from the southern kingdom to Babylon.
LAMENTATIONS, written by Jeremiah as a lament for the Jews taken to Babylon..
BOOKS WRITTEN BY JEWS LIVING IN BABYLON DURING THE 500’S:
OBADIAH wrote around 550 BC, comforting those in exile that they will escape, and warning that judgment will befall a nearby country called Edom. They were descendants of Jacob’s twin, Esau.
EZEKIE describes the visions he had while living in Babylon.
DANIEL describes the visions he had while living in Babylon. He was protected when thrown into a den of lions. He tells of 3 Jewish men who were not injured when thrown into a furnace because they did not worship an idol.
EZRA. This book says that In 539 BC, Persia defeats Babylon, and permits Jews to return to Jerusalem. Around 464 BC the Jewish priest Ezra, who was living in Babylon, went to Jerusalem to urge them to spiritual revival and to more complete following of the Old Testament laws.
In 532 Persia defeats the Babylonians and King Cyrus allows some Jews to return to Jerusalem, who began to rebuild the city walls.
HAGGAI, Haggai. Soon after the return, around the 520’s. He reminded the people to give God their highest priority by rebuilding the temple.
ZECHARIAH, Zechariah. Soon after the return, around the 520’s. He urged the people to keep rebuilding the temple, and recorded visions of a glorious future..
NEHEMIAH. Around 445 a Jewish official living in Babylon came to Jerusalem to urge the rebuilding of the city walls and to act as governor.
ESTHER. Around 474 a Jewish girl named Esther became queen of Persia, and foiled a plot to have the Jewish people killed.
MALACHI. Around the 450’s, the same time as Ezra and Nehemiah, and after Esther was queen of Persia. Finished by 400 BC. He tried to stir the people out of their complacency about their religious life by preaching about the coming “day of the Lord.” These prophecies began to be fulfilled with the coming of Jesus, and others will be fulfilled at the end of the world (judgment day).
After Malachi was written, the Jews noticed that God was no longer giving them inspired writings. The books written up to that date then were together called the “Hebrew Scriptures,” because they were written in Hebrew.
Four hundred years later, Jesus arrived, and those who believed in Jesus accepted the value and God-inspired nature of the Hebrew Scriptures, calling it the “Old Testament.” Around AD 90 or 100, Jewish scholars made a formal list of those books that had always been regarded as their Hebrew Bible, and the Christians have accepted this list “as is.”
Footnotes
1 Names of the Twelve sons of Jacob (also called Israel). Their descendants were called the tribes of Israel. The first ten in this list are also names of the areas in Israel after they returned from Egypt.
Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Benjamin, Levi, Joseph.
The descendants of Levi were priests, and could live throughout the area. The other two tribes were named for the sons of Joseph: Ephraem and Manasseh.
2 Ten Commandments. There are two ways to number the Ten Commandments. Both ways start with the command to have no other gods (Exodus 20:3) as the first commandment. The Eastern Orthodox churches and the Reformed churches (that emerged from the work of Calvin) use the phrase about not having graven images (Exodus 20:4) as the second commandment, and go on to the one about not taking God’s name in vain (Exodus 20:7) as the third. The Lutherans and Catholics go directly to the one about not taking God’s name in vain as number two, and then reach a total of ten by dividing the commandment about coveting (Exodus 20:17) into two commandments, numbered nine and ten. More about different churches.
3 There are two ways to number the Psalms. To find out which your Bible uses, look up Psalm 23. If the topic is about the Lord being our shepherd, then your Bible uses system A. If it is about the earth belonging to the Lord, your Bible uses system B, and therefore your Psalm about the Lord as our shephered will be found as Psalm 22.
Systems A and B are the same for Psalms 1 through 8 and for the last three Psalms, 148, 149, and 150. For all the rest of the Psalms, system B is one number lower than system B. That is because system B combines Psalm 9 and 10 from system A into one Psalm, and calls it Psalm 9.
The numbering system on this website uses system A. System A is used in Hebrew Bibles and Protestant Bibles, while system B is generally used in Roman Catholic Bibles.
| Ezekiel | mid-500’s | Many visions; Promises that God will give a new heart and give us the Holy Spirit |
| Daniel | mid-500’s | Many visions, including one about a “Son of Man,” which is what Jesus later called himself. Two famous stories: Daniel in the Lion’s Den, and three men who were unharmed even though they were thrown into a fire because they refused to deny God. |
5 Details about Kings and Prophets during the Period of Two Kingdoms (about 930 BC to 586 BC), as recorded in the Old Testament books called Kings (1 & 2) and Chronicles (1 & 2). The kings are listed below, with the prophets who lived about the same time; prophets in Italics are those who wrote Old Testament books.
| Northern Prophets | Northern Kings | Southern Kings | Southern Prophets |
| Ahijah
Jonah |
Jeroboam Nadab Baasha Elah Zimri Tibni Omri Ahab Ahaziah Joram Jehu Jehoahaz Jehoash Jeroboam Zechariah Shallum Menahem Pekahiah Pekah Hoshea The northern kingdom was ended by Assyria in 722 BC. Assyria itself was ended by the Babylonians in 612 BC. |
Rehoboam Abijah = Abijam Asa Jehoshophat |
ShemaiahJoelAmos
Isaiah (thru Manassah) Zephaniah, Nahum Habakkuk Jeremiah (thru |
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