Summaries of the Books of the Old Testament

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Table of Contents

Introduction
The Summaries
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The Old Testament is a more or less accurate duplication of the Hebrew Bible, although there may be some differences in terms of the arrangement of the books and some of the content depending on the version used. The Old Testament is the first part of the Christian Bible, the second one being the New Testament. It is believed that it was compiled between the 12th and 2nd Century BC, and much of the difference in content could be laid down at the various translations of Hebrew terms.

The Old Testament consists of 39 books, which are further subdivided into the Pentateuch, the Historical Books, Poetic Books, and Prophetic Books. In this paper, a broad summary of the books based on the New International Version will be provided.

The Summaries

The Pentateuch

The Pentateuch or Books of Moses consists of five books, including Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Many people are most familiar with the part of Genesis that tells of the Creation of Adam and Eve, their banishment from the Garden of Eden for their disobedience to God, and the creation of Original Sin. However, Genesis also relates the reason for the Great Flood and the building of Noah’s Ark, as well as the story of the Tower of Babel in which man’s pride in his accomplishments was punished by God by giving them different languages so they could not understand each other. It tells of the story of Abram, later given the name Abraham, who would be designated the “father of all nations” and given the land of Canaan, provided Abraham performed circumcision on all males. Lot, Abraham’s nephew, witnessed the burning of Sodom and Gomorrah, which turned his wife into a pillar of salt. Isaac was born to Abraham when he was 100 years old and his wife Sarah, who was 90 years old. Abraham remained faithful to God even when he was asked to sacrifice his son Isaac to prove it, and he established many nations himself as well as through his son Isaac, and Isaac’s sons Jacob and Esau. This also contained the story of Joseph of the multicolored coat fame.

The second book is on the Exodus, in which the enslavement of the Israelites or the Hebrews have been described as well as the story of Moses, the son of Jacob’s son Levi. Moses was placed in the Nile River in a reed basket as a baby to escape death from the hands of Pharaoh’s soldiers and was rescued and raised by Pharaoh’s daughter. As a man, Moses was forced from Egypt for killing an Egyptian who was beating up a Hebrew and went to the land of Midian where he met and married Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro. Moses was apprised of his role in freeing the Israelites when God appeared before him as a Burning Bush, and Moses reluctantly accepted the role, appearing before Pharaoh with his brother Aaron to ask Pharaoh to allow the Israelites to worship for three days in the wilderness. Pharaoh refused his requests and Moses was forced to place the 10 plagues on the Egyptians, including the death of all firstborn male children. Moses instructed the Israelites to place lamb’s blood on their door so the plagues would “pass over” their homes and save their children. The Pharaoh, faced with such destruction, finally relented and let the Israelites leave Egypt, but realized later they would not be coming back and pursued them to the Red Sea, which parted to allow the Israelites to pass through but crashed down on the Egyptian Army who followed. The Exodus ends when the Ten Commandments were given to Moses at Mt. Sinai.

Leviticus is primarily an instruction book on the moral conduct and sacrificial system for the system. It described what foods should be eaten and how sacrifices may be accomplished. It also provided days of obligation as well as a ban on homosexuality.

Numbers provided a census of the population after the Exodus and describes how the Israelites fell on evil ways and were punished by being made to wander in the desert for 40 years. Moses was banned from entering the Promised Land because he disobeyed God at Meribah. Joshua was designated as the leader who will bring the people into the Promised Land as Moses was to be left behind in the mountains.

Deuteronomy describes how the tribe of Levi is to be designated to work for the Lord and would have no portion of the Promised Land. It also reiterates the Ten Commandments as well as the directions contained in Leviticus. The text contains the well-known “an eye for an eye” attitude.

The Historical Books

There are 12 books in this section and deal mostly with a description of how the Israelites handled their life in the Land of Promise. The 12 books include Joshua, Judges, Ruth, First Samuel, Second Samuel, First Kings, Second Kings, First Chronicles, Second Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther.

The Book of Joshua deals mainly with the 7-year conquest of Canaan, the Land of Promise, and the partitioning of lands. Unfortunately, according to the stories in the book of Judges, the conquest was incomplete, leading the Israelites into immoral and idolatrous ways, forcing the judges to mete out punishment to lead them back. The people went through seven cycles of foreign oppression, repression, and deliverance but to little avail. This book also contained the story of one of the judges, Samson, whose phenomenal strength lay in his hair. His betrayal by Delilah led to his destruction together with many Philistines who plotted against him. The Book of Ruth, a Moabitess who married Boaz and had a son Obed who bore Jesse who eventually begat King David, speaks mostly of righteousness and love and service to the Lord.

First Samuel speaks of the biography of Samuel, son of Hannah, a barren woman who asked God to help her conceive. Samuel was dedicated to God and eventually became a judge of Israel. When Mizpah was wrested from the Philistines and renamed Ebenezer, Samuel chose the tallest man Saul as king, who made a mistake in making a burnt offering himself instead of Samuel, condemning his dynasty to end. First Samuel also relates the story of David, a young shepherd who took on the challenge of the Philistine champion Goliath to single combat. David considered favored by God and instrumental in soothing Samuel when he was in torment, slew the bigger man with a sling and a well-aimed stone. This gained David fame, making King Saul jealous although David and Saul’s son Jonathan became blood brothers and David eventually married Saul’s daughter Michal. Saul tried to kill David, who still showed mercy when Saul failed. Saul decided to commit suicide when he was wounded by the Philistines in Mt. Gilboa and was cremated. Second Samuel continues the story of David who became king of the Judeans while Ish Bosheth, Saul’s son became king over the rest of Israel. There was some tension between the two kingdoms, one of them resulting in the death of Ish Bosheth’s general. Ish Boshreth was subsequently killed by two of his captains who hoped to curry favor with King David, who had the captains put to death for their deeds. David was made king of all Israel and reigned for 30 years and eventually led his troops to Jerusalem, which became the “City of David.” The prophet Nathan predicted that one of David’s sons would build a temple and that David found favor with God. The same prophet told David that his sin of coveting another man’s wife (Bathsheba) would be forgiven if he gave away his wives (he had seven aside from Bathseba. He had sent Bathsheba’s husband Uriah to the frontlines to meet his death so he could claim Bathsheba and the son she was carrying. Nathan told David the son would die, but Bathsheba conceived another child by David, and the child was named Solomon, which means “loved by the Lord.” David’s rule was challenged by his son, Absalom, who maintained a civil war until he was killed by Joab, an army leader. A threatened plague that was meant to strike Jerusalem for its leader’s sins was stopped by God, as David had hoped.

In First Kings, the stories include the death of King David after a 40-year reign and the succession of his son Solomon, who was given a choice by God for anything to help him in his rule. Solomon chose wisdom. This wisdom was put to the test when two women claiming the same baby came before Solomon for a decision. Solomon told the women they would have to cut the baby in half, a decision that horrified one woman and made her decide to give up the baby. Solomon knew then this was the real mother. He also authored 3000 proverbs and 1005 songs, and was just as prolific in his partners, having 700 wives and 300 concubines. Solomon had the Temple of the Lord built in Jerusalem which took 7 years to build. He reigned for 40 years until his death, at which point the Hebrews were divided into the Southern (including Jerusalem) and Northern (Israel) Kingdoms. The kings who ruled the kingdoms did not believe in the Lord God of Israel, which led to many problems, including the propensity of King Ahab for evil, urged on by his wife Jezebel who desired the death of the Lord’s prophets. One of these, Elijah performed some miracles in the name of God, including returning life to a child after a death. A confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal led to the death of the prophets of Baal and the prophecy for King Ahab that Jezebel would be devoured by dogs.

Second Kings tell of Elijah’s ascension to heaven by a whirlwind, leaving Elisha as the main priest of Israel. Elisha performed many miracles, and he anointed Jehu as king of Israel. Jehu had Jezebel killed and her remains scattered for the dogs. At Elisha’s death, a final miracle happened when a dead man revived when thrown into his tomb. At this point, there is much turmoil as those who worshipped other gods caused strife among the citizenry. It was during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah that the prophet Isaiah caused the time to go backward. In the time of Josiah as king of Judah, a scroll of laws was found by the High Priest Hilkiah in the temple. Josiah destroyed temples to other gods and restored the Lord’s Temple but the prophetess Huldah said Judah is destined for destruction, as is what happened when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took over Judah.

The First and Second Chronicles deal mostly with Hebrew history. The first Chronicles considers the lineage of Abraham and the 12 tribes of Israel. Second Chronicles deals with the exploits of Solomon and the temple construction of Mount Moriah in Jerusalem and the transfer of the Ark of the Covenant to this temple. It also details the stories of the alliance between King Jehosephat of the Southern Kingdom and King Ahab of the Northern Kingdom. It also re-tells the story of the finding of the scrolls.

The last three books of Historical books deal mainly with prominent characters during the conquest of the Persians. The Book of Ezra tells of the efforts of King Cyrus of Persia to rebuild the Temple of Jehovah, which was dedicated by the high priest Ezra. The Book of Nehemiah tells of the rebuilding of the city walls of Jerusalem and the pledge of the Jews not to intermarry, and to follow Jewish law. The Book of Esther tells the story of a Jewish girl Esther, also known as Hadassah, who became the queen of Xerxes, King of Persia. Xerxes did not know she was a Jew. When Haman, the prime minister, asked the king to kill all Jews, Esther intervened and had Haman killed. The right to save the Jews was given to her, thereafter celebrated as the “Feast of Purim.”

Poetical Books

This section includes the Books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. The Book of Job is a story of a righteous man who underwent terrible events and suffering after Satan requested God to test the strength of his convictions. The Psalms are a collection of poems, hymns, and prayers that illustrate the religious faith of the Jewish people. It reiterates the blessings that good people can expect while the evil can look forward to being as “chaff before the wind” on Judgment Day. Proverbs is primarily a collection of short sayings, tips on how to manage and handle everyday problems. The Ecclesiastes is less upbeat, dealing mostly with the main idea that everything returns to dust and nothing material attained on this earth lasts. It refers to historical facts to illustrate that nothing ever changes and that the smallest transgression can undo a world of good. The Song of Solomon is a love poem, designed for a typical bride and a groom, although a more fanciful interpretation is where the groom is God and the bride is Israel.

Prophetical Books

The last 17 books mostly deal with the predictions of the major and minor prophets of the time. The first is the Book of Isaiah, which considers the sins of Judah and pronounces God’s judgment. It also refers to the coming of the Messiah and thoughts of everlasting life. The Book of Jeremiah tells of the New Covenant established by God. The prophet Jeremiah claimed he spoke and prayed directly to God, who told him he was “the prophet of the nations.” He warns people that their idolatry will lead to their destruction as the Temple in Judah and Jerusalem are in danger from King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He predicted the fate of his people as well as of other races. The Book of Lamentations describes the sadness in the aftermath of the destruction of Jerusalem, as predicted by Jeremiah, by Babylon. The Book of Ezekiel tells of the experiences of the priest Ezekiel, who ministered to the Jews who were being held captive in Babylon. It refers to the Valley of the Dry Bones and the end of days. The Book of Daniel reveals the dreams and visions of Daniel, who served as one of four counselors to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. His most striking dreams are that of The Fiery Furnace and The Lion’s Den, both saying that the goodwill remains unharmed. Daniel also spoke of famine and the death of the king, and also talked of the end of days as well as the Messiah.

The remaining 12 books are from minor prophets, including the Book of Hosea, which describes the infidelity of Hosea’s wife Gomer, widely believed to represent Israel’s spiritual adultery. Joel predicts the coming of a locust infestation and only the faithful will be saved. Amos tells of a vision he had of God as a lion from Mount Zion, roaring that as a test to the Hebrews he would scatter the people of Israel across the world, but that eventually their blessings will be returned. Obadiah relates the fall of the land of Edom, a neighboring nation to Israel, as well as other nations while Jonah, otherwise known as the tale of Jonah and the Whale, was ordered by God to warn the people of Ninevah of their impending destruction because of their evil ways. Jonah tried to evade his duty by hiding on a ship, which capsized and Jonah was swallowed by a great fish, probably a whale, and carried to dry land after three days. He delivered the message to the people of Ninevah, who repented and were saved. Jonah was angry at their salvation but God showed him that even Gentiles can be saved. The Book of Nahum also warns the people of Ninevah as well as Assyria that destruction is at hand.

The Book of Micah describes the moral decay in Israel and refers both to the end of days and the Messiah. The Book of Habakkuk refers to two points by the prophet Habakkuk that revelation awaits an appointed time and the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord. Zephaniah also develops the end of days as the Day of the Lord and that this is the time to seek humility and righteousness. The prophet Haggai tells the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel that the rebuilding of the Temple should be the top priority and that its splendor will be greater than in the past. Zechariah tells of many prophecies dealing with the coming of the Messiah and the end of days, as well as the need to complete the temple. Malachi proclaims the coming of the end of days and the arrogant and evil will burn. Malachi also speaks out against divorce.

Conclusion

The Books of the Old Testament are primarily a learning tool for those who are not of the Jewish religion but who have become Christian to have an understanding of why certain things are done the way they are. It provides background information of those not of the Jewish faith and provides a springboard of discussion for many of the mysterious references in the New Testament. The summaries above are necessarily incomplete, but a more thorough discussion of the 39 books would not be possible at this point.

References

Holy Bible, New International Version. (2007).

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