An Introduction to the Old Testament (Part I)

The Bible is a collection of books God has given to us. The word “Bible” is plural, coming from the Latin biblia, which means “many scrolls.” The entire Old Testament covers a period of about two thousand years and contains books of various genres—such as historical books (like Chronicles), law books (like Deuteronomy), prophetic books (like Isaiah), and poetic books (like Psalms). In total, there are thirty-nine books.

To truly understand the Old Testament, we need to have a holistic view of it. We must understand not only the history but also the geographical context, as this is the only way to correctly interpret the Scriptures.

In the ancient Middle East, there was a well-known region called the “Fertile Crescent,” which is the crescent-shaped area shown in the map below. The Fertile Crescent connects two major river systems: the Nile on one end and the Tigris and Euphrates rivers on the other. The basins of these two great rivers are incredibly fertile, with a flat, fertile plain in the middle known as Mesopotamia.

The Fertile Crescent was the center of power in ancient times, with two great powers on its eastern and western ends. Throughout the Old Testament era, these two nations were constantly at war. On one side was Egypt, and on the other were rising empires such as Assyria and Babylon. The Promised Land of Israel was located right in the middle of these two powers. So, when these two nations fought, one of them had to pass through the Promised Land to get to the other side to attack their enemy. Some have described Israel as living at a crossroads, where you’re often hit. This is an accurate depiction of Israel; they were often oppressed. In Jesus’s time, they were oppressed by the Romans, and before that, they had been oppressed by the Greeks, Syrians, and Egyptians.

The name “Megiddo” in Hebrew is Har Megiddo, or Armageddon. Several major battles in history took place here. There is a small village overlooking Megiddo called Nazareth. It’s very likely that Jesus, as a child, lay on the hill and watched people from all nations come and go. The northern and southern regions of the Promised Land were distinctly different. The north was very busy and was known as the “Galilee of the Nations.” In contrast, Jerusalem in the south was isolated on a mountain.

God placed His people at the crossroads of the world so that everyone could see how they lived out the kingdom of heaven on earth. This was meant to show the entire world how blessed it is to be ruled by God and what kind of curses would come upon them if they defied Him.

(Compiled and edited based on the Chinese Union Version and recordings from David Pawson’s “Unlocking the Old Testament” series.)