Bible 101
Introduction
     The Bible is divided into two main sections, called the Old Testament and the New Testament.  The word 'testament' means 'something that serves as proof''. 
 
The Old Testament is the story of the beginning (Adam through Noah) and the development of His people (Abraham through post-Exile resettlement).  Bible scholars say that the 39 books of the Old Testament were written from about 1200 B.C. until about 400 B.C.. 
The New Testament is the story of Jesus and the development of Christianity in its early years.  Bible scholars say that the 27 books of the New Testament were written from about 50 A.D. until sometime in the second century. 
     Most Christians believe that the authors of the books of the Bible were people writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  The canon (official list) of books of today's Bible was established in the 4th century A.D..  There were other books written, but not deemed acceptable for the official canon of the Bible. 
     Some are included in some versions of the Bible.  The most "accepted" are 15 books known as the Apocrypha.  These books were written from the 4th century BC to the 1st century AD.  There are many other deuterocanonical books classified as pseudepigrapha ("false writing"). 		  
     Such books were also written in the first few centuries that claim to be authored by prominent 1st century apostles and disciples, but did not make the New Testament canon.  These included such books as the Shepherd of Hermas and the Epistle of Barnabus.
  The Old Testament can be divided into four types of literature.
     1) The Pentateuch, or Torah - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbes, Deuteronomy
     2) History - Joshua through Esther 
                          (the history books were considered Writings in the Jewish canon)
     3) Writings - Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
     4) Prophets - 5 major prophet books and 12 minor prophet books

The Pentateuch contains the history and development of people from creation to the time of arrival  in the Promised Land after the Exodus.  The major stories include:
     Genesis - Creation, Adam and Eve, Noah and the flood, the tower of Babel, the Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob)
     Exodus - Moses, the Exodus from Egypt
     Numbers and Leviticus - deal with the journey in the desert and the laws created for the Israelites
     Deuteronomy - mainly a recap of the Exodus story and ends with the Israelites about to enter the Promised Land

     Tradition says that the Pentateuch was written by Moses.  Contemporary scholars suggest the Documentary Hypothesis, which says that the first four books were written by two people/groups (J & E) and includes extra priestly material by another person/group (P) ... with the fifth book by another source (D).

The History books tell the story of the Israelites from the time they enter the Promised Land under Joshua to the return from Babylonian exile.
     Joshua - the Israelites battle for the Promised Land
     Judges - after settling in the Promised Land, individuals (judges) rose up in times of trouble to lead the Israelites
     Ruth - tells the story of Ruth & Boaz (ancestors of David)
     1&2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, 1&2 Chronicles - the story of the monarchies (Saul, David, Solomon), the divided kingdom, and the Exile
     Ezra & Nehemiah - the story of the rebuilding of Jerusalem after the Exile
     Esther - the story of a Jewish girl who is chosen as queen of Persia and helps her (Jewish) people.

The Writings (Wisdom) are songs, sayings, and story.
     Job - the story meant to show the importance of faithfulness to God
     Psalms - sacred songs written by a variety of authors 
     Proverbs - hundreds of wise sayings on how to live
     Ecclesiastes - the secret to a happy life is obedience to God, not wealth, power, or fame
     Song of Solomon - a love poem expressing the affection between a husband and wife
 

  The Prophets include:
     Major prophets: Isaiah, Ezekial, Jeremiah, Lamentations (by Jeremiah?), Daniel
     Minor prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi
     For the most part, the prophets called God's people to repent of their evil ways and foretold what would happen if they didn't. 
     Some were directed at the northern kingdom (Israel); these include Amos and Hosea.  But most were directed at the southern kingdom (Judah); these include Jeremiah,  Isaiah, Joel, Micah, Zephaniah, and Habakkuk. 
     A couple were directed at Ninevah (Jonah, Nahum), while Obadiah spoke to Edom.  Both Daniel and Ezekiel spoke to Babylon.   The last three books in the OT are by prophets speaking after the Exile to Judah ... Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
A concise version of the Old Testament story is as follows.
     God created the heavens and the earth.  Beginning with Adam and Eve, the population of the earth grew in numbers but also grew apart from God.  He sent a flood to wipe them out, but preserved faithful Noah and his family.  After separating the people at Babel, the different nations began to form. 
     God called Abraham to be the father of His chosen people.  Abraham's great-grandchildren followed Joseph to Egypt, where they became slaves.  Moses was called to deliver them from slavery and led them to the Promised Land.  Joshua led the Israelites in capturing the Promised Land (west of the Jordan River).  For several centuries, individuals called judges were raised up in times of trouble to lead the Israelites. 
     But the Israelites were jealous of other nations led by kings, and God gave them Saul to be their king.  After monarchies by David and Solomon, where the nation prospered militarily and economically, the kingdom was divided into northern and southern halves.  The north, which had a succession of bad leaders, was conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC.  The south had its share of good and bad leaders, but ultimately fell to the Babylonians in the 6th century BC. 
     Many were taken into exile in Babylon for about 70 years.  When Persia conquered Babylon, the Jews were allowed to return to their land.  Under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah, the city and temple of Jerusalem were rebuilt.
Old Testament
< 400 Years >
? ? ? ? ? ? ?
New Testament
What happened in the 400 years between the testaments?
   The stories of these years are given in the Apocryphal books.  After Persian rule, the land of the Isreaelites was conquered by the Greek Alexander the Great around 333 BC.  When he died ten years later, Ptolemy was left in charge of the Palestine area.  In the 160s BC, the Maccabee family led a revolt and achieved Jewish independence.  This lasted until the Romans conquered them in 63 BC.  More information on this time period can be found in several of the books of the Apocrypha.
The New Testament containes four types of literature.
     1) Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John 
     2) History - Acts 
     3) Letters - The letters of Paul and others
     4) Apocalyptic - Revelation 

The Gospels tell the story of Jesus' life from four perspectives.
     Matthew - Jesus is the fulfillment of the OT prophecy of the Messiah; written for Jews
     Mark - Jesus is the Son of Man who does miraculous deeds
     Luke - Jesus has compassion for the neglected and downtrodden; written for Gentiles
     John - Jesus is the divine Son of God
 

Matthew, Mark, and Luke are known as the synoptic gospels ... because they are similar in tone and content.  Scholars say that Mark was written first, and Matthew & Luke used part of Mark and another source ("Q") in constructing their Gospels.
A concise synopsis of the Gospels gives us the following account of Jesus' life. 
     He was born in a stable in Bethlehem to Mary.  His coming was recognized by shepherds and wise men.  Other than a story of him visiting the temple at age 12, we don't know much about his younger days.  The majority of the Gospels tells of his three year ministry in Judea and Galilee.  He gathered 12 apostles as his inner circle, but had many more disciples.  He walked from place to place, speaking and teaching and healing.  The Jewish leaders were opposed to him and managed to get him arrested and crucified.  Three days after his crucifixion he was resurrected, lived and taught for 40 more days, and then ascended into heaven.		  

Acts is a History of the early church, from the time of Jesus' Ascension to the end of Paul's days.  Its major themes are:
     1) Pentacost
     2) Peter leads the Apostles in reaching the Jews
     3) The Conversion of Paul
     4) Paul's missionary journeys

Most of the books of the New Testament are Letters (epistles) by Paul and others.  They cover a variety of topics.  Paul's letters are titled according to the recipient of the letter.  He writes about the struggles of people and churches, gives encouragement in the Christian faith, and speaks of Christian doctrine.  Most of the other letters are titled according to their author.  Here are the main focal points of each epistle.
     Romans - Explains many of the Christian concepts of doctrine and faith ... such as justification by faith.
     1 Corinthians - Paul answers questions that came up after he left Corinth.
     2 Corinthians - Paul answers their questions (i.e. apostolic ministry and fellowship) and he defends his own apostleship.
     Galatians - Christ has sets us free from the bonds of the law.  Salvation is through faith, not by our actions. 
     Ephesians - We should be united in living the Christian life and fighting off the forces of evil. 
     Philippians - We should rejoice in our faith.  Also, we can only obtain true Christian unity by humbling ourselves. 
     Colossians - Christ, both human and divine, is the head of the church. 
     I Thessalonians - Paul encourages the church and tells them how Christ will return on the Day of the Lord. 
     II Thessalonians - Paul explains how to live till the end, which is not yet here.
     I Timothy - Paul warns of false teachers and gives guidelines for church worship and leadership. 
     II Timothy - Paul encourages Timothy's faithfulness and asks him to "preach the Word." 
     Titus - Paul writes about church organization, warns of false teachers, and explains the responsibilities of Christian living. 
     Philemon - Paul asks for a slave to be taken back as a Christian brother.
     Hebrews - Christ gave us a new covanent.  We need to follow him and keep the faith, and love each other. 
     James - Covers the need to remain faithful through your suffering, true faith is demonstrated by
your actions, and prayer works. 
     I Peter - Follow Christ's example and maintain faith through suffering and persecution.
     II Peter - Peter encourages his readers to grow in their spiritual lives.  He also condemns the false teachers and reminds them of Christ's return. 
     I John - Show God's love to others.  It also affirms Christ's divine/human nature. 
     II John - John repeats his instructions to love one another.  It also warns his readers of false teachers. 
     III John - John writes to commend Gaius for his unselfishness and Christian hospitality.
     Jude - Jude wrote to describe the false teachers and how to defend against them. 

The concluding book of the Bible, Revelation, is an Apocalyptic vision by John of Patmos of the last days, and was writing to share this with nearby churches.  It shows how Christians will persevere through sufferings and will prevail in the end. 
Note: the OT and NT will be treated in more detail in the future, as OT 101 and NT 101.
BIBLE FACTS
   • The word "Bible" simply means books.
   • The Bible was originally made up of books written in three languages; Hebrew, Aramic, and Koine Greek.
   • The Bible contains 66 books written by over 40 different authors and was completed over 1500 years ago.
   • The Bible has 66 books, divided into 1,189 chapters consisting of 31,173 verses. 
   • The Bible was divided into chapters by Stephen Langton about 1228. 
   • The Old Testament was divided into verses by R. Nathan in 1448.
   • The New Testament was divided into verses by Robert Stephanus in 1551. 
Shortest chapter - Psalms 117 Longest verse -  Esther 8:9
Longest chapter - Psalms 119 Shortest verse - John 11:35
Center chapter - Psalms 118 Center verse - Psalms 118:8
Shortest chapter - Psalm 117 Longest book - Psalms
Longest chapter - Psalm 119 Shortest book - 3 John
   • The Bible is the best selling book of all time.
   • The Bible was the first book ever printed (1454). 
   • The first English Bible translation was started by John Wycliff in 1382 & completed by John Purvey in 1388.
   • The Bible – in its complete form or portions of it – is now available in 2,233 languages.
   • It takes about 70 hours to read the entire Bible.
   • According to a 1997 Barna group survey, over 90% of Americans own a Bible. 
   • Only 31% of Americans say they read the Bible regularly.
LINKS:

Links to Explore:
• Bible Encyclopedia
• Bible Basics
• Bible Study Tools

Relevant Videos for Further Study:
• Time Travel Through the Bible
• Discovering the Bible Curriculum

  Relevant Books for Further Study: 
• Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible
• The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary
• The Oxford Bible Commentary
• How to Study the Bible
• Introduction to the Bible 
• Learn the Bible in 24 Hours
• Lay Speakers Lead Bible Study 
• The NIV Exhaustive Concordance 
• Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary 
• Anchor Bible Dictionary


The 101 series pages are the opinions of the webservant and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Louisiana Conference.