Bible: The Old Testament


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Study Questions & Essay Topics

Study Questions

1. What are some of the ways God appears to humans in the Old Testament? How do these appearances change between biblical books? What do they suggest about the themes and purposes of each book?


2. Discuss the role of geography in the development of the biblical story. What is the relationship between physical location and religious well-being in the Old Testament?


3. Discuss the role of female characters in the Old Testament. To what extent do the biblical writers portray women in a positive or negative light?


Suggested Essay Topics

1. What are some of the signs or symbols of God’s covenant with humankind? How do they change over the course of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament)?

2. Compare and contrast Moses and David as national and religious leaders of Israel. How are they alike in their responses to those who oppose them? How are they different?

3. Discuss some of the characters who experience a reversal of fortune in the Old Testament. What is common or unique about their experiences? What religious ideals does the Old Testament portray in their reversal?

4. What are some of the images used in biblical poetry to depict God, humans, and the conflict between good and evil? How do these metaphors continue the themes and motifs of the Old Testament?

5. Compare and contrast Abraham and his grandson Jacob as patriarchs, or fathers, of the Hebrew people. In what sense do their experiences foreshadow the struggles of the Israelites?

not sure about the Analysis

by JEDI1016, September 01, 2012

The section that quotes 1:27-29 relies heavily on the use of the semicolon in the passage. however this is not punctuation that exists in Hebrew and would not have been in the original. in particular its not aplicable to "man and woman he created them" because the 'them' is actually singular in Hebrew and therefor should be translated "Man and woman he created it (humanity)" so its not even the same kind of binary described in the analysis.

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Just a small detail.

by lauraS2010, November 12, 2012

This says Gideon kept the men who drank with their mouths to the stream. It is a bit confusing because of the word lapped. God said to keep the men who lapped out of their hands.

Judges 7:6-7
Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The LORD said to Gideon, "With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place."

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