Grace G.

Oani

Exam Answers

1. Who is the author of the Pentateuch? How was it formed?

The Greek word Pentateuch (“five books”) refers to the first five books of the Bible, collectively to
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Technically, the Pentateuch, also known in
Hebrew as the Torah, is anonymous. But it specifically records God commanding Moses to preserve
received revelation. There are both Old and New Testament references to Moses that validate that
Moses did write them. Even Jesus and His disciples acknowledged a significant connection between
Moses and the Torah, and Jesus frequently referred to these books as being Moses’ teachings.

2. What is the central message of the Pentateuch?

The Pentateuch’s basic purpose is to teach of God and record instructions for His people. Each book
has its own designed purpose, but in reading, we should begin at the beginning. The revelation of
God Himself is the beginning of the entire Bible.

● Genesis, the first book of the Pentateuch, describes God’s creation of the world and
everything within it. It tells us of the first of mankind, Adam and Eve, and God’s divine
intention for unique human relationship with Him. Because of free will, they chose to disobey
God and therefore begat the corrupted human race that followed. The Genesis of mankind
was then shown their need for the forgiveness and sovereign power of their Creator.

● Exodus is a record of the Israelite descendants of Adam and Eve and their continued journey
from the bondage of slavery (because of their disobedience), to their deliverance by God
from their Egyptian captors. During this book, we see the emergence of God’s hand-picked
spokesman (Moses), the parting of the Red Sea, and the Ten Commandments.

● Leviticus is in an obvious guidebook to the Hebrew people and the priests who were to
oversee the Tabernacle and Temple. It is a book of rules, regulations, and laws by which they
were to live in accordance with thanks, devotions, and atonements. Its theme is to promote
worship to God and to strive for holiness.

● Numbers is where the first census of a nation took place. God first instructed Moses to
number the men according to tribe or family. After much disobedience and lack of faith, the
Israelites had wondered the desert for many years. He punished the unholy and
strengthened the righteous; then they were numbered again. God had separated them in
preparation for moving on to the Promised Land and proved again that mankind needed His
provision and guidance for the coming battles of their journey.

● Deuteronomy, the last book of the Pentateuch, calls for unyielding devotion and faithfulness
to the Lord. Moses strongly urged the people to not forget, and not neglect telling their
children all God had faithfully done for them and what He expected from them. About to
 enter the Promise Land, they were camped on the east banks of the Jordan River where
Moses reviewed their history and God reinstated His covenant with them.
These five books of Moses are meant to be read as a whole. In them together you find the
foundation of the world, the beginning of our history, and the infinite God who keeps His promises.

3. What is/are the main theme(s) of the historical books? Explain by providing clear examples.

The main theme of the bible is that God reveals himself through his Word. When he speaks, he
teaches us what he is like, how he acts, and how he desires us to respond. As a whole, the Bible is
about God. It’s about God the Father displaying his glory through God the Son by the power of God
the Holy Spirit. One example of this is in the book of Genesis, God is being described as the God of
Beginnings. This book mainly Describes the creation; gives the history of the old world, and of the
steps taken by God toward the formation of theocracy.

5. Explain the main purpose of the prophetic books and their main concern? Why are the
prophetic books categorized as major and minor prophets?

It is interesting to note that the 16 prophetic books of the Old Testament come from a rather narrow
band in the whole panorama of Israelite history. The heavy concentration of prophetic works during
these times is probably because this period in Israel’s history called especially for covenant
enforcement mediation, which was the task of the prophets. That is along with the evident desire of
God to record for all subsequent history the warnings and blessings that those prophets announced
on His behalf during those pivotal years.

Those years were characterized by three things: (1) unprecedented political, military, economic, and
social upheaval; (2) an enormous level of religious unfaithfulness and disregard for the original
Mosaic covenant; and (3) dramatic shifts in populations and national boundaries. In these
circumstances, God’s Word was needed anew. God raised up prophets and announced His Word
accordingly.

Also, prophetic books were being categorized as major and minor books based on the length of the
said scriptures. The Major Prophets and Minor Prophets are terms used in regard to the Old
Testament portion of the Bible to distinguish the generally longer books of prophecy from the
shorter ones.

To give an idea of the size difference between these sections of Scripture, the five books of the
Major Prophets include 183 chapters. The 12 books of the Minor Prophets include 67 chapters. The
longest book of the Major Prophets, Isaiah, includes 66 chapters, while the shortest book in the
Minor Prophets, Obadiah, includes just one.

6. Explain the following: Canonical books, Deuterocanonical books, and Apocryphal books
The Protocanonical books are those books of the Old Testament that are also included in the Hebrew
Bible (the Tanakh) and that came to be considered canonical during the formative period of
Christianity. The term protocanonical is often used to contrast these books to the deuterocanonical
books or apocrypha, which "were sometimes doubted by some in the early church, and are
considered non-canonical by most Protestants.
There are typically 39 protocanonical books in most Christian bibles, which correspond to the 24
books in the Jewish Tanakh.

The list of protocanonical books are as follows:

Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1–2 Samuel
1–2 Kings
1–2 Chronicles
Ezra, Nehemiah,
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
The Deuterocanonical books are books and passages considered by the Catholic Church, the Eastern
Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East to be
canonical books of the Old Testament but which are considered non-canonical by Protestant
denominations.

The Deuterocanonical books of the Old Testament are:

Canonical by the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church:
Ecclesiasticus
Wisdom
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
Tobit
Bel and the Dragon
Judith
Esther (additional verses)
Baruch

The Books called the Apocrypha consist of 14 books originally attached to the Greek Old Testament
that were not in the Hebrew-written Bible. That is because they were "first-written" in the Greek
language. They were considered scripture and used as such by the Jews of the Dispersion (Jews
living in foreign countries) at the time of Christ.

Accepted Books
Ecclesiasticus
Wisdom
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
Tobit
Bel and the Dragon
Judith
Esther (additional verses)
Baruch

Books Not Accepted

The Prayer of Manasses
The Song of the Three Holy Children
The History of Susanna
1 Esdras
2 Esdras