INTRODUCTION TO THE BIBLE AS SCRIPTURE

10th October, 2008

 What is Scripture?

 The Scripture is a body works, written or oral.

 The Scripture is inspired or revealed by a deity
 The Scripture functions authoritatively within a belief system
 The Scripture functions as the point of reference for matters
relating to faith, morals and life. As such the Bible is sacred
scripture

 What is the Bible?

The term Bible is derived through Latin from the Greek biblia, or
“books”, the diminutive form of Byblos, the word for “papyrus” or
“paper”, which was exported from the ancient Phoenician port city
of Biblos. The Bible is a collection of holy books which contain the
word of God, written down by human beings under the inspiration of
the Holy Spirit. It is made up of the Old and the New Testament –
the Hebrew and Christian scriptures.

 Order of the books

The order as well as the number of books differs between the Jewish
Bible and the Protestant and Roman Catholic versions of the Bible.
The Bible of Judaism is in three distinct parts: the Torah, or Law, also
called the books of Moses; the Nebiim, or Prophets, divided into the
Earlier and Latter Prophets; and the Ketubim, or Writings, including
Psalms, wisdom books, and other diverse literature.

The Christian Old Testament organizes the books according to their

type of literature: the Pentateuch, corresponding to the Torah;
historical books; poetical or wisdom books; and prophetical books.
Some have perceived in this table of contents a sensitivity to the
historical perspective of the books: first those that concern the past;
then the present; and then the future. The Protestant and Roman
Catholic versions of the Old Testament place the books in the same
sequence, but the Protestant version includes only those books
found in the Bible of Judaism.

 Classification of the Old Testament.

I. Pentateuch (Torah, Law):

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.

II. The Prophets (Nebi’im):

This is subdivided into earlier prophets: Joshua, Judges, Samuel (1

and 2) Kings (1 and 2).

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III. The later prophets:

Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel (The three major prophets)

Then the twelve minor prophets:

1. Hosea
2. Joel
3. Amos
4. Obadiah
5. Jonah
6. Micah
7. Nahum
8. Habakkuk
9. Haggai
10. Zechariah
11. Zephaniah
12. Malachi,

The Writings (Ketubim): Wisdom Literature

1. Psalm
2. Proverbs
3. Job
4. Ruth
5. Song of Songs
6. Qoheleth (Ecclesiastes)
7. Lamentation
8. Esther (the last five, read on Jewish feast days, are known as the
‘five scroll’,
9. Daniel
10. Ezra
11. Nehemiah.

The Greek Bible, the ‘Septuagint was for the use of the Jews of the
Diaspora. It includes in addition to the text of the Hebrew Bible:

I. Judith, Tobit, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus),

Baruch (Baruch chapter 6 is printed under the separate heading of
the ‘Letter to Jeremiah’). In Daniel the following parts exist only in
Greek: Daniel 3:24-90; Daniel 13 (Susanna); Daniel 14 (‘Bel and the
Dragon’). These books, commonly referred to as deuteron-
canonical, are generally regarded as part of the Christian canon.

In the Catholic Old Testament we have 46 books. In the Protestant

Bible we have 39. In the Hebrew version we have 24. The New
Testament has 27 books.

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 The first five books of the Bible together constitutes a unite in

themselves, and the group was known to the Jews as the torah or
the ‘Law’. The need to have manageable copies of this vast
collection of material dictated the division of its text into five scrolls
of approximately equal length. Hence the name given to it among
speakers of Greek: pentateuchos (biblos understood), the ‘Book in
Five Volumes’, transcribed in Latin as Pentateuchus, whence the
English Pentateuch. Hebrew speaking Jews however, called it ‘The
Five Fifths of the Law’.

The Greek version Hebrew Old Testament designated the books

according to its contents, and the Church adopted its terminology.
Thus the book which opens with the story of the beginning of the
world is called Genesis; the second starts with the departure of
Israel from Egypt, is named Exodus; Leviticus contains the law of
the priests of the tribe of Levi; the first four chapters of Numbers
deal with the census; Deuteronomy is so styled from the Septuagint
rendering of Dt 17:18: ‘the second law’.

 Genesis falls into two parts. Chapter 1-11 deal with primordial
history; they introduce us to the story of salvation, the theme that
runs through the whole Bible. They go back to the beginning of the
world and survey the whole human race. They tell of the creation of
the universe and humanity, of the Fall and its consequences, of the
increasing human wickedness which earned the punishment of the
Flood.

The repopulation of the earth starts with Noah but our attention is
directed ultimately to Abraham, father of the chosen people, by way
of narrowing genealogical tables. Chapter 12 – 50 deal with the
patriarchal history; they portray the great ancestors of Israel.
Abraham is the man of faith; God rewarded his obedience with a
promise of posterity for himself and, for his descendants, possession
of the Holy Land.

Jacob is the man of guile, who supplanted his brother Esau, tricks his
father Isaac into giving him his blessing and outwits his uncle Laban.
But all his cunning would have been useless if God had not
preferred him to Esau before his birth or renewed the promise and
covenant granted to Abraham (25:19 to Chapter 36).

The career of Isaac, Abraham’s son and Jacob’s father, is described

more in relation to these two than for its own sake; he is a relatively
colourless figure. The twelve sons of Jacob represent the ancestors
of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. The concluding chapters of Genesis
(37 – 50, except 38 and 40) are entirely devoted to one of them
Joseph, the man of wisdom. The Joseph-cycle, in contrast to the
foregoing stories, unfolds without visible intervention on the part of
God and without any revelation; it nonetheless has a lesson to

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teach, that the virtue of the wise is rewarded and that Providence
turns human failings to good advantage.

Genesis is complete in itself, the history of ancestors. The three

books that follow have their common framework the life of Moses.
They recount the formation of the chosen people and show how its
social and religious law was constituted

 Exodus is concerned with two main themes: the deliverance

from Egypt, 1:1-5:21, and the Sinaitic covenant, 19: 1-40:38. a
secondary theme, the journey through the desert, connects the two,
15:22-18:27. Moses, having received the revelation of the name of
Yahweh on the mountain of God, leads the liberated Israelites there.
In a majestic theophany God concludes an alliance with the people
and proclaims his law. The covenant is broken almost as soon as
made: the people adore the golden calf. But God forgives the sin
and renews the covenant. There follows a list of ordinances
controlling the practice of worship in desert conditions.

 Leviticus taken up almost entirely with legislation breaks the

thread of the narrative. Its content is as follows: Sacrificial ritual,
Chapter 1-7; ceremony of priestly investiture described in terms of
the consecration of Aaron and his sons, chapter 8-10; ordinances
relating to things clean and unclean, chapter 11-15, concluding with
the ritual for the Day of Expiation, chapter 16; the ‘Holiness Code’,
chapter 17-26, a section which includes a liturgical calendar,
chapter 23, and which closes with blessings and curses, chapter 26.
By way of appendix, chapter 27 lays down the conditions for
redeeming persons and animals and goods vowed to Yahweh.

 Numbers resume the account of the desert journey. A census of

the people, chapter 1-4, and the offering of gifts on the occasion of
the dedication of the dwelling, chapter 7, forms a prelude to the
departure from Sinai. The second Passover is celebrated and,
leaving the holy mountain, chapter 9-10, the people reach Kadesh
after various halts on the way. From here an unsuccessful attempt is
made to infiltrate Canaan from the south, chapter 11-14. After a
long stay at Kadesh, the people resume their journey, until they
reach the Plain of Moab, opposite Jericho, chapter 20-25. The
Midianites are defeated and the tribes of Gad and Ruben settle in
Transjordan, chapter 31-32. Chapter 33 lists the encampments on
the way from Egypt to Moab. Interspersed between these narrative
sections are groups of law either supplementing the Sinaitic code or
preparing for the colonisation of Canaan: chapter 5-6; 8; 15-19; 26-
30; 34-36.

 Deuteronomy has a distinct structure of its own. It is a code of

civil and religious laws, chapter 12-26: 15, framed within a long
discourse of Moses, chapter 5-11 and 26:16-28. All this material is

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itself preceded by a first Mosaic discourse, chapter 1-4, and followed

by a third, chapter 29-30, followed in its turn by sections dealing
with the last days of Moses; the commissioning of Joshua,, the
canticle and blessings of Moses, his death, chapter 31-34. The
deuteronomic code is a partial restatement of the laws promulgated
in the desert. The discourse commemorates the great events of the
Exodus, of Sinai and of the beginning of the conquest, explaining
the religious significance of these, emphasising the importance of
the Law and exhorting the chosen people to be faithful to Yahweh.

 Canon of the Old Testament.

The word canon means rule or measurement or standard. Biblical

canon refers to the authoritatively accepted lists of books of the
Bible.

 Categories of the Old Testament.

 The story of creation – 2 chapters – primeval history.

That God created all things is indisputable but the detail of how God
created is just a religious myth used to convey the truth. The
message of Genesis chapters 1-11 is that God made human beings
and initiated relationship. God wanted the human beings to be like
God, but man failed. In the call of Abraham, God re-initiated this
relationship. Chapters 12-50 are called the story of Israel’s
patriarchal history.

 Classification of the New Testament.

 What is a testament?

The word testament means covenant.

 New Testament Division: (27 books)

Gospels Early Church Epistles or Apoc

History Letters alypse

Mark - Acts (A St. Paul’s

65/67 continuation of Letters
Ad the Gospel of
Luke)
Matthe 1. Romans Revelation
w
Luke 2. 1 and 2
Corinth
John 3. Galatians
4. Ephesians
5. Colossians

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6. Philippians
7.1 Thess
8. 2 Thess.
9. Philemon
10. 1 Timothy
11. 2 Timothy
13. Titus

Hebrews
John – 1, 2 and
3
James
Peter – 1 and 2
Jude

NB. The first Pauline letter is 1 and 2 Thessalonians, written about

50-51 A.D and his last letter was Romans, written about 57-58 A.D.

 Works of the New Testament – approximate date of

composition.

 Early letter:

1 Thessalonians 51 A.D
2 Thessalonians 51 or 90

 Great letters:

Galatians – 54-57
Philippians 56-57
1 Corinthians 57
2 Corinthians 57
Romans 57/58

 Captivity letters

Philemon 56-57 or 61-63

Colossians 61-63 or 70-80
Ephesians 61-63 or 90-100

 Pastoral letters

Titus 65 or 90-100
1 Timothy 65 or 95-100
2 Timothy 66- 67 or 95-100

 Gospels

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Mark 65-70
Matthew 70s – 80s
Luke 70s -80s
John 90s

 Catholic Epistles

1st Peter 64 or 70s-80s

James 62 or 70s-80s
Jude 70s-90s
1, 2, and 3 John 90s
2nd Peter 100-150

 Other writings

Acts 70s-80
Hebrews 60s or 70s-80
Revelation 90s

 Authorship

There are two types of authorship in the Bible.

 Direct authorship: This is when the author is himself the writer of

the work like St. Paul.

 Virtual authorship: Example of this is when someone has been

teacher and has lectured for many years. After his death, his
student now decide to put all his teaching together and produce it in
a print, and then puts the name of their teacher as its author.

Nb. An Apostle: etymologically is one who is called directly by Christ

himself and sent like the twelve apostles. A disciple on the other
hand is a follower of Christ. Every Christian therefore is disciple but
not every Christian is an apostle.

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 Out line - 20/11/08 – Rev. Fr. Patrick Feyistan

 General Introduction

 Division of the Bible

 Formation of the Bible

 Inspiration

 Revelation

 Canonisation of the Bible

 Inerrancy of the Bible

 Principles of interpretation

 General Introduction

 Old Testament
 New Testament

 Under Old Testament

 Hebrew Bible (Palestinian Bible)

 Greek Bible (Alexandrian Bible)

 The Hebrew Bible is divided into three.

 Torah
 Nebi’im
 Ketubim

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 Under the Torah we have the first five books of the Bible

 Genesis
 Exodus
 Leviticus
 Number
 Deuteronomy

Nb: These books are ascribed to Moses (Virtual or ascribed

authorship).

 The Prophets (Nebi’im):

This is subdivided into earlier prophets: Joshua, Judges, Samuel (1

and 2) Kings (1 and 2).

III. The later prophets:

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel (The four major prophets)

Then the twelve minor prophets:

1. Hosea
2. Joel
3. Amos
4. Obadiah
5. Jonah
6. Micah
7. Nahum
8. Habakkuk
9. Haggai
10. Zechariah
11. Zephaniah
12. Malachi,

The Writings (Ketubim): Wisdom Literature

1. Psalm
2. Proverbs
3. Job
4. Ruth
5. Song of Songs
6. Qoheleth (Ecclesiastes)
7. Lamentation
8. Esther (the last five, read on Jewish feast days, are known as the
‘five scroll’,
9. Daniel
10. Ezra

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11. Nehemiah.

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