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Old Testament Prophets and Writings

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OT302/OT502

This unit surveys the second half of the Old Testament: Israel’s history from the 8th century BC to the end of the OT period; the major writing prophets (before, during and after the exile); the impact of the exile to Babylon; and the OT wisdom and apocalyptic books. Together with OT301/501, it is designed to give you an overview of the historical and theological flow of the OT as a foundation for the rest of your theological studies and in particular for more detailed work on parts of the OT in later years.

Workload: one semester, 4 credit points, 36 contact hours
Status: core
Prerequisites: none
When: Semester 2, yearly; also available by distance
Who: Andrew Abernethy

Required Reading:

 

English Bible

Reading the Bible should receive top priority for this course.  This reading may take place with a NRSV, RSV, ESV or [T]NIV Bible (a copy of the NRSV Bible will be supplied in the examination).  It is expected that students read the Bible according to the Bible reading scheduled in the outline above.

Old Testament Introduction/Survey

Since most students will have already taken OT 301/501, they should already have a copy of one of the following introductory texts.
*T. Longman & R.B. Dillard, An Introduction to the Old Testament (2^nd ed; Apollos, 2007)
A.E. Hill & J.H. Walton, A Survey of the Old Testament (3rd  ed.; Zondervan, 2009)
W.S. La Sor, D.A. Hubbard & F.W. Bush, Old Testament Survey (2^nd ed.; Eerdmans, 1996)
W. Dumbrell, The Faith of Israel (2nd ed.; Grand Rapids: Baker, 2002).

Students are expected to read the corresponding book summary in one of these introductions as they read through the various books of the Bible.

Highly Recommended Resources

Since most students already own the introductory text books above, it is strongly recommended that you acquire one book from each of the following categories.

Prophet Introductions

J. Daniel Hays, The Message of the Prophets. A Survey of the Prophetic and Apocalyptic Books of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010)
R. Chisholm, Handbook on the Prophets (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2002)
W. VanGemeren, Interpreting the Prophetic Word. An Introduction to the Prophetic Literature of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990)
G. McConville, Exploring the Old Testament Vol. 4; Prophets (London: SPCK, 2002)

Poetry and Wisdom Books Introductions

D. Estes, Handbook on the Wisdom Books and Psalms (Grand Rapids: Baker 2005)
H. Bullock, An Introduction to the Old Testament Poetic Books (Chicago: Moody, 1988)|
E. Lucas, Exploring the Old Testament Vol. 3; A Guide to the Psalms and Wisdom Literature (London: SPCK, 2008)
One may also combine: D. Kidner, The Wisdom of Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes (IVP, 1988) with T. Longman III, How to Read the Psalms (IVP, 1988)

Other Recommended Resources:

Blenkinsopp, J., A History of Prophecy in Israel (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1996).
Brueggemann, W., The Prophetic Imagination (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2001).
Collins, J. J., The Apocalyptic Imagination: An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature (2^nd ed.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998).
Murphy, R. E., The Tree of Life (3rd ed.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002).