OT Bible Content Study Guide of Book Descriptions

Question 1

Records the story of God’s creation of the world, the fall of man, the origins of the people of the earth, the beginning of God’s covenant people and his desire to have a people set apart to worship him.

Answer 1

Genesis

Question 2

Records the events of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and the development as a nation governed by terms of God’s covenant and the laws of God.

Answer 2

Exodus

Question 3

A handbook for the priests and Levites outlining their duties in worship, and a guidebook of holy living for the Hebrews. (Remember: all Israelites were to know and keep the law.)

Answer 3

Leviticus

Question 4

The book of wanderings. Most of the book deals with Israel’s experience in the wilderness. The Nation goes through a painful process of testing and maturation where God teaches his people the consequences of rebellion and irresponsible
decisions.

Answer 4

Numbers

Question 5

A series of farewell sermons from Moses. It is addressed to the new generation who will possess the Promised Land and reminds the people of God what he has done and encourages them to rededicate their lives to him.

Answer 5

Deuteronomy

Question 6

Israelites enter Canaan; Records the conquest of the Promised Land and the division of the territory among the 12 tribes.

Answer 6

Joshua

Question 7

Israel’s turbulent existence from Canaan to Samuel. Bridges the gap between the death of Joshua and the inauguration of the monarchy. Shows moral and political degradation of a people who 1) neglected their Godly heritage and 2) compromised their faith with the surrounding paganism. “Israel had no king, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Answer 7

Judges

Question 8

A young gentle Moabite widow follows her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi, back to Bethlehem. There, she gains the favor of Boaz, her kinsman redeemer, who takes her as his wife when she becomes an ancestor of David and of Christ Jesus.

Answer 8

Ruth

Question 9

The transition of leadership in Israel from Judges to Kings. 3 characters play a prominent role in this book Samuel- Israel’s last judge, Saul – Israel’s first king who was rejected, and David – Israel’s great King.

Answer 9

1 Samuel

Question 10

David’s kingship over Israel. God’s promised him an everlasting Kingdom.

Answer 10

2 Samuel

Question 11

Story of Israel’s monarchy beginning with Solomon, David’s son and successor to the throne. Great accomplishments (temple, wealth, wisdom, fame). His zeal for god diminished in his later years (pagan wives, idolatry).

Answer 11

1 Kings

Question 12

The tragic history of two nations on a path to captivity.

Answer 12

2 Kings

Question 13

The account of the genealogies from Adam and the coming power and reign of David. Instructs the people of God that genuine worship ought to be the center of individual and national life.

Answer 13

1 Chronicles

Question 14

The acts of Solomon and the history of Judah from the rebellion of the northern tribes to exile.

Answer 14

2 Chronicles

Question 15

Shows how God fulfills His promise. People return after 70 years of exile. The “2nd Exodus” is less impressive.

Answer 15

Ezra

Question 16

_________ leads the final return to Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile.

Answer 16

Nehemiah

Question 17

Nominal Jews who stayed in Persia face genocide. _______ and Mordecai foil the plot, resulting in a great deliverance which is celebrated by the feast of Purim.

Answer 17

Esther

Question 18

_________ suffers in order to defend God’s honor and integrity as part of the spiritual battle between God and Satan.

Answer 18

Job

Question 19

Praise within the context of the covenant relationship between God and his people.

Answer 19

Psalms

Question 20

Practical instruction on fearing the Lord. Basic wisdom amidst the cracks and crevices of life.

Answer 20

Proverbs

Question 21

Certain paths in life lead to emptiness. True satisfaction comes in knowing that what we are doing is part of God’s purpose for our lives.

Answer 21

Ecclesiastes

Question 22

A wedding song honoring marriage. Describes God’s honor of love and the enjoyment found between a husband and a wife.

Answer 22

Song of Songs

Question 23

“The prince of prophets.” The 1st 39 chapters are filled with judgment upon immoral and idolatrous people, both Judah and surrounding nations. The final 27 chapters, however, declare a message of hope and consolation.

Answer 23

Isaiah

Question 24

“The Weeping Prophet” Delivers a heartbreaking message of doom to the stiff-necked people of Judah. Despised and persecuted by his countrymen, Jeremiah bathes his harsh prophecies in tears of compassion.

Answer 24

Jeremiah

Question 25

Jeremiah’s grief for the destruction of Jerusalem.

Answer 25

Lamentations

Question 26

“The Exiled Prophet” Carried to Babylon before the final assault on Jerusalem, ________ uses prophecy, parables, signs, and symbols to dramatize God’s message to his exiled people.

Answer 26

Ezekiel

Question 27

Some of the most famous Bible stories: the fiery furnace, the handwriting on the wall, and ________ in the den of lions. A mysterious book with a central message: God’s power and ultimate triumph is clear.

Answer 27

Daniel

Question 28

Prophet instructed marry an unfaithful wife as a vivid illustration of the unfaithfulness of God’s people and the faithfulness of God.

Answer 28

Hosea

Question 29

Disaster for Judah in the form of a cloud of locusts; seen as foreshadowing of the coming day of the Lord.

Answer 29

Joel

Question 30

Condemns luxury, self-indulgence, and the oppression of the poor in the northern Kingdom of Israel.

Answer 30

Amos

Question 31

Edom is condemned for cruelty to Judah.

Answer 31

Obadiah

Question 32

God commissioned Jonah to proclaim a message of repentance to the Assyrian city of Nineveh. Jewish nationalism, however, blinded both the prophet and the covenant people of God’s worldwide purposes of salvation.

Answer 32

Jonah

Question 33

God Lord’s lawsuit against any who would use social status or political power for personal gain against the poor.

Answer 33

Micah

Question 34

Proclaims the downfall of the great Assyrian city of Nineveh (contra Jonah). The Ninevites have forgotten their revival and have returned to their habits of violence, idolatry, and arrogance.

Answer 34

Nahum

Question 35

A prophet who struggles with Faith (over God’s use of the Babylonians to punish his people) and in doing so, the centrality of faith in the lives of God’s people is highlighted.

Answer 35

Habakkuk

Question 36

The Day of the LORD is coming when the malignancy of sin will be dealt with. Israel and her gentile neighbors will soon experience the crushing hand of God’s wrath.

Answer 36

Zephaniah

Question 37

God commands returned exiles to finish rebuilding the temple.

Answer 37

Haggai

Question 38

Complete the Temple Rebuild, because the glory of the Messiah will inhabit it.

Answer 38

Zechariah

Question 39

Judgments plagued God’s people via corrupt priests, wicked practices, and a false sense of security. Using the question-and-answer method, __________ probed deeply into their problems of hypocrisy, infidelity, mixed marriages, divorce, false worship, and arrogance.

Answer 39

Malachi