The Big Picture. What, s in the Bible? Why read the Bible? Old Testament. New Testament. What is a Testament? BIBLE TIMELINE. (27 books).

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1 Song of Songs 1

2 Introduction The Big Picture Why read the Bible? q Information about God and his relationship with humanity. q A collection of books written over a period of approximately 1600 years. What, s in the Bible? q 66 books in two sections. q The first section is the Old Testament (39 books). q The second section is the New Testament (27 books). Old Testament The origin of the world and God s relationship with humanity. God s faithfulness to his people (individuals and the nation of Israel). Promises about God s plan to restore the broken relationship between God and humanity. Time frame: from creation to 400 BC. Original language Hebrew (some Aramaic). During the 2nd century BC the Old Testament was translated into Greek. What is a Testament? Testament is another word for solemn agreement. In the Bible this agreement is referred to as a covenant between God and his people. New Testament God s plan revealed through Jesus life, teaching, death and resurrection. How and why people followed Jesus. The spread of Christianity during the 1st century AD. Time frame: birth of Jesus to 90 AD. Original language Koine Greek. Translated into various languages during the first few centuries AD, including Latin. BIBLE TIMELINE Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Songs Jonah ISRAEL DIVIDED KINGDOM CREATION NOAH MOSES JUDGES KING DAVID & KING SOLOMON 3000 BC 1900 BC 1000 BC JUDAH BC Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations EXILED TO ASSYRIA PROPHETS EXILED TO BABYLON 608 BC Ezekiel

3 Where did the Bible come from? God inspired various human authors to record his message. Some sections were written as historical accounts of God s people, others as instructions and laws. Songs and poetry written for use in worship and letters on how to live God s way were also collected together. All sections were handwritten on separate scrolls or parchments, which were copied by scribes who took great care to ensure all copies were accurate. No originals remain but comparing the great volume of copies reveals the accuracy with which the Bible documents have been passed down. The Bible today The Bible has been translated into over 2000 languages.1 Translators work from the original languages to ensure accuracy. There are 13 English translations of the Bible. Resources such as allow you to search online for passages in a variety of versions and languages. WEIRD BUT TRUE Sun and moon stood still for a whole day. Joshua 10:13 WEIRD BUT TRUE Man lived to be 969 years old. Genesis 5:27 BC AD Daniel Ezra Haggai Zechariah Esther Nehemiah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Malachi 400 years Matthew Mark Luke John Acts Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation RETURN 538 BC 460 BC 400 BC 0 AD 30 GOSPELS AD 30s PAUL S MISSIONARY JOURNEYS AD 100 THE EARLY CHURCH 3

4 A time and a place The events recorded in the Bible reveal God s relationship with humanity through time. Identifying the places and the time periods of history in which events occurred helps us to better understand the people we meet in each part of the Bible. The Bible timeline indicates: when the events took place the order in which they happened the connection between the parts of the Bible Reading the timeline Follow the dates from left to right to see the events of the Bible story in chronological order. The dates listed are mostly approximate; however dates for the creation of the world, and the rebellion against God are unknown. BC (Before Christ) refers to the period of history before the birth of Jesus Christ. On this side of the timeline, the years are counted down from higher numbers to lower numbers as you move forward in history. This period is also referred to as BCE (Before the Common Era). AD is a Latin phrase, Anno Domini meaning the year of our Lord and refers to the period of history from the coming of Jesus up to the present time. On this side of the timeline the numbers increase as you move forward in history. This timeline only goes as far as 100 AD, as by this time the writing of the New Testament was complete. This period is also referred to as CE (Common Era). The world scene The events in the Bible took place in the area of the world known today as the Middle East and the Mediterranean countries. Highlight the regions on the map where the events of the Old Testament took place. Choose a different colour or shading pattern to highlight the regions where the events of the New Testament took place. As you read the Bible there are references to other cultures and nations, some of which were powerful empires in the ancient world. Events in the Bible interact with the following major empires: Egyptian Assyrian Babylonian Persian Greek Roman 4

5 Many books The Bible is a collection of many documents written between approximately 1500 BC and 90 AD. These books vary in nature and are arranged with the different categories grouped together. Although written by many different human authors over such a long period of time, the Bible has a unified theme because it is really God s message. This theme is a promise that God will rescue humanity from the consequences of rebelling against him. This promise is ultimately revealed through Jesus Christ. Match the categories listed below to the correct sections of the Bible Library: OLD TESTAMENT Gospels History Law Letters Poetry Prophecy The Prophets WEIRD BUT TRUE An army with seven hundred left-handed men. Judges 20:16 NEW TESTAMENT 5

6 B4 u start 1) R U Ready to find your way around the Bible? The books of the Bible are divided into chapters and sentences or verses to help readers find specific sections. Find the following references in the Bible to discover what they tell us about God and the Bible. Complete the chart below. Name of the book of the Bible Psalm 119:105 Chapter number of the book Bible reference John 3:16 2 Timothy 3:16 What it tells us Verse or sentence number of the chapter OT or NT? Page number in your Bible WEIRD BUT TRUE Man whose hair weighed about 3 kilos at his annual haircut. 2 Samuel 14:26 WEIRD BUT TRUE Man who walked around naked for three years. Isaiah 20:2-3 WEIRD BUT TRUE Queen who gave a test to a king. 1 Kings 10:1-3 6

7 2) Quick quiz After looking over the information in this introduction, see if you can answer the following questions: f. Some books of the New Testament are named after the places to which Christianity spread. Suggest 4 destinations to which letters were sent. a. What do BC and BCE mean? b. What do AD and CE mean? g. Write the name of a book of the Bible that belongs to the following types of writing. Indicate whether it is found in the Old Testament (OT) or New Testament (NT). c. Place these events in correct chronological order: Kings rule God s people Jesus teaches people about Types of writing Poetry Name of a book found in this category OT or NT? God s kingdom Moses leads God s people God makes promises to Abraham. Law Gospel Prophets d. In what year did Jesus die and come back to life? History e. Some books of the Old Testament are named after the people who wrote them. Suggest 6 Old Testament books that have the author s name. h. In what part of the world did the events in the Bible take place? 7

8 1. Beginnings My top 5 In the beginning..., List 5 things in the natural world that you most enjoy. What big idea is introduced by the first sentence in the Bible? The first chapter of Genesis was written with several repeated words and phrases to emphasise qualities about God and the world he created. Read Genesis 1:1-31 aloud and listen for the repetitions. What God did What this showed Match the phrases in the left-hand column with the statements on the right-hand side. How many times does each phrase occur in Genesis 1? And God said, Let there be.../let the... And it was so... God called... God saw it was good God approves his work God speaks powerful words God s words bring about creation God names what he has created How was God active in creation? BIBLE TIMELINE Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Songs Jonah ISRAEL DIVIDED KINGDOM CREATION NOAH MOSES JUDGES KING DAVID & KING SOLOMON 3000 BC 1900 BC 1000 BC JUDAH BC Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations EXILED TO ASSYRIA PROPHETS EXILED TO BABYLON 608 BC Ezekiel

9 Created with order and purpose Create your own illustrated version of the process described in Genesis What patterns can you notice in this process? How is the creation of humans described? BC AD Daniel Ezra Haggai Zechariah Esther Nehemiah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Malachi 400 years Matthew Mark Luke John Acts Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation RETURN 538 BC 460 BC 400 BC 0 AD 30 GOSPELS AD 30s PAUL S MISSIONARY JOURNEYS AD 100 THE EARLY CHURCH 9

10 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 NIV Do any of these concepts help you to understand what it means to be made in the image of God? Mark with a tick or a cross and discuss your choice. Read Genesis 1:26-30 and choose a few phrases which highlight things that are unique about humans. Responding to God Thump Thump Genesis 3 tells us what happened next. Use your own words to describe the special purpose God gave humans. 10

11 Genesis 2 describes in more detail what God provided for Adam and Eve. God provided a garden to live in and food to eat. God gave them a relationship to enjoy. God gave them the responsibility of caring for the world. God gave them the ability and opportunity to obey his instructions. Who did the man and the woman listen to? What information did they hear? What choice did Adam and Eve make? If Adam and Eve were still alive after they had eaten the fruit, what did God mean when he said you will surely die? Discuss with 2-3 others and then share your reflections with the class. Choices have consequences Read Genesis 3:14-23 carefully to discover what happened after Adam and Eve disobeyed God. Then decide whether these statements are true or false. Snakes would always crawl on their belly. True False All creation was blessed. True False Weeds would never be a problem again. True False The relationship between the man and the woman was damaged. True False Giving birth would be easy for the woman. True False Work would now be hard. True False Life continued as if nothing had happened. True False Life outside the garden What happened to Adam and Eve after they left the Garden of Eden? Circle YES or NO in answer to the following questions. Could they live forever? YES/NO Did they live with pain and suffering? YES/NO Did they live in a peaceful relationship with God? YES/NO Were they totally abandoned by God? YES/NO What happened to the world? The story of Noah and the great flood has two powerful themes. J R What does this tell us about God s character? Why do you think God limited the length of human life once people understood good and evil? Read the outline of the account in Genesis 6-9. What promise is given in Genesis 3:15? 11

12 The Flood How did God feel about the world he had created? (Genesis 6:5-6) Why did God have a plan for Noah? (Genesis 6:8-9, 18) Why were pairs of male and female animals also part of God s plan? (Genesis 7:3; 9:7) 12 Describe how the rainbow was important in this story? (Genesis 9:9-17)

13 Really Important Stuff! Fill in the missing words The world was created by God s. People were created in with the purpose of the earth and its creatures. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and came into the world. In the Bible, rejecting God is called. Sin ruined a perfect between God and humanity, but God did not abandon humanity. God promised that one day a descendant of the woman would sin forever. As people spread over the earth, they continued to from God. God instructed Noah to build a large boat, in which he, his family and pairs of male and female animals would be from the flood. All life on earth was given a after the flood. Creation Genesis 1-2 Sin enters the world Genesis 3 Life away from God s presence Genesis 4 The spread of EVIL Genesis 6:1-6 God placed a rainbow in the sky a reminder of the that he will never again destroy the whole earth by flood. In this space, journal what you ve read from this section of the Bible. Note any questions you have. In this space, represent the big ideas of this section of the Bible with your own sketches or words. Noah and the flood Genesis 6-9 The Tower of Babel Was sagten Sie? Genesis 11 Qu avez vous dit? Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy CREATION NOAH 3000 BC MOSES 1900 BC 13