Dusting off the Old Testament

The Old Testament was the Scripture that Jesus knew and that Paul and the disciples used to teach the early Church.  The Old Testament is comprised of three major sections: the Law (the first five books), the Prophets (Joshua to Isaiah plus the twelve latter prophets), and the Writings (Psalms, Proverbs, etc).  Jesus often taught that all of the Scriptures (the Old Testament) revealed who He was, most notably after His resurrection when He revealed how the whole of Scripture spoke of Him (Luke 24:27).  Needless to say, this means that the Old Testament warrants examination by Christians.

At the onset, the ancient writing is challenging, "the past is a foreign country: they do things differently there (L.P. Hartley)."  Because of its nature, the challenge is more prevalent with the Old Testament.  The composition of the Old Testament spans many centuries; understanding it requires a bit of study.  The canon of the Old Testament is comprised of a variety of literary styles written by a diverse set of authors that was edited by later scribes. A good study Bible is the first step.

Additionally, the Old Testament is full of stories that reveal that nature of God and His relationship to mankind.  Therefore, understanding the Old Testament can be rewarding but it requires practice.  Although the Old Testament is compiled of episodes, it is not merely about stories: there is much more.  In this, the key is to read from a broad perspective, keeping in mind the forest before getting too fixed on the individual trees; focus on the whole before addressing the minutiae.

For this, reading whole books is in order.  Reading the whole book or major sections helps us to understand the big things.  Then, following the completion, making basic mental outlines and plain synopsis of theme and purpose will help to define the most important elements.  Additionally, understanding why the book was written and for whom is a great way to garner pertinent information that is helpful in interpretation.

Ultimately, the whole Bible is about God, who He is and how He relates to us.  We should dig into it and not shy away from the Old Testament in the process.  The Old Testament is rich with theology and Christology that make it essential study for all Christians.  That being said, it can be difficult to understand and a good study Bible as well as basic hermeneutical technique can go a long way to help.