Christian Leadership Programme

Old Testament 1 – PENTATEUCH

Introduction and GENESIS
Term 3: Week 1
Des Cramer

Introduction:
1. “How we got the Old Testament”
Facts:
• Written over a period of 1000 years
• Written by about 30 different human authors
• Contains 39 books
• Written primarily in Hebrew (short portions in Aramaic)
• The original scriptures were carefully and meticulously copied by hand, by Hebrew scribes and
passed from generation to generation
• By the time of Christ, the Old Testament was complete as one book containing the books we have
today.
• The first important translation of the Hebrew OT was the Greek Septuagint (LXX) which was
completed around 250BC.
• The second important translation was the Latin Vulgate (383-405BC) which became the official
Bible of Christianity for about 1000 years.
• The first English version was made around 1384 by John Wycliffe, followed over 200 years later by
the 1611 King James authorised version, which was the forerunner of many modern translations.
• The Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran in 1947 conclusively confirmed the accuracy and unity of the
OT as we have it today.
• The OT has been miraculously preserved by God for well over 3000 years.

2. Why Study the Old Testament

It was written for us!
• To lead …….
• To teach …….
• To instruct …….
• To exhort ……..
• To develop ……..
3. Theme of the Old Testament
• Revelation of Himself as Sovereign Creator and Sustaining
• Ruler of the universe, who chose Israel as His covenant people, by Whom He would accomplish His
plan of
• Redemption through Messiah to bring about
• Restoration of the
• Relationship between God and man, which had been broken by sin
 4. INTRODUCTION TO THE PENTATEUCH
The term Pentateuch is commonly applied to the first five books of the Bible. Penta is the Greek word for
five and teukhos means vessel or scroll case. Other names for the same section of the Bible are Torah, the
Book of the Law and the Law of Moses. Instead of being five separate books, the Pentateuch is really five
volumes or chapters of one book, which consist of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
When the term “Law” is used in the Bible and especially in the New Testament it is always necessary to
determine from the context of the passage exactly is referred to, for example, “law” may refer to:

 The Torah or Pentateuch.

 The Mosaic Law (Exodus 19- Leviticus- Numbers10)
 Law as a principle or rule.

5. THEMES AND GENERAL CONTENTS

The Pentateuch has two major teaching divisions, ……………………………………………. The first division explains
the origins of the universe and all life, the intrusion of sin into the perfect world and reveals God to be both
just and merciful. The second division explains how Israel became the elect people of God and how they
were given His holy law by which to live.
The unifying theological theme of the Pentateuch is …………………………………. Because man was separated
from God and His blessings because of His sinful pride and self-sufficiency (as evidenced in the flood and
the building of the Tower of Babel), God initiated a covenant whereby …………………………………………………...
5.1 Summary of the Contents of the Pentateuch
 Gen. 1-11: Creation prologue
 Gen. 12-50: Accounts of the patriarchs and matriarchs
 Ex. 1:1-12:30: Israel in Egypt
 Ex. 12:31-18:27: Exodus from Egypt and journey to Sinai
 Ex. 19:1-Num. 10:10: Israel encamped at Sinai
 Num. 10:11-12:16: Journey from Sinai to Kadesh-Barnea
 Num. 13:1-19:22: Israel encamped at Kadesh-Barnea
 Num. 20:1-21:35: Journey from Zin to Mt. Hor to plains of Moab
 Num. 22-Deut. 34:Israel encamped at Moab

5.2 THE PURPOSE OF THE PENTATEUCH

The chief purpose of the Pentateuch is to show the divine origin of all of creation, the origin and effect of
sin on creation and God’s plan to deal with the sin that entered creation. The Pentateuch also shows how
the Old Testament law was to point out sin in humanity as rebellion and disobedience to God. It exposes
the human need for divine redemption and was intended to prepare Israel for the revelation of Jesus, the
Messiah. The Sacrificial and ethical demands of the Old Testament foreshadow the New Testament gospel
message – justification by …………………………….
It is important to see that the Pentateuch introduces us to:

 God Himself.
 The beginnings of the world and man.
 Basic theological concepts like, sin, salvation, sanctification.
 What God requires for right relationship to Him.
 God’s redemptive purposes in human history.
 God’s provision of a nation through which He would bring Christ into the world as Saviour.

6. GENESIS - God’s Creation and Covenant

Moses recorded in Genesis the work of God in Creation, the calling of Abraham and the choosing of the
nation of Israel as God’s chosen instrument, in order to show how God would accomplish His plan of
redemption for all mankind.
……. Chapters
2 Major Divisions
Key Events (Chapter 1-11) Key People (Chapters 12-50)
• Creation • Abraham
• Fall • Isaac
• Flood • Jacob
• Nations • Joseph

Key Words Key Words

• Creation • Calling
• Corruption • Covenant

GENESIS- The Book of “Beginnings”

 “In the beginning God created” (1:1)

 “The Lord said to Abram…. And all people on earth will be blessed through you” (12:1,3)
 “Abram believed the Lord and he credited to him as righteousness” (15:6)
Chapters 1-11 – 4 Key Events
A. Creation (Chapters 1-2)
In ………………….. God created the heavens, the earth, the sea and all that is in them. God also created man
in God's own image and God:

 Placed him in the Garden of Eden.

 Gave him dominion over the earth.
 Provided meaningful work for him to do.
 Granted to man great freedom with only one restriction to ensure that man's obedience was
voluntary.
 Created a suitable mate for man in Eve. (woman)
 Brought the man and woman together in marriage.
 Initiated fellowship with him.
Chapter 1 provides the general account of creation while Chapter 2 focuses on the creation of man on the
6th day. In the creation account, God's personal covenant name is first used. (Yahweh or Jehovah in
Genesis 4) The concept of the Sabbath rest was given as a memorial Creation ordinance when God
declared His creative work to be “very good”. Some specific aspects of creation can be seen in the chart.
B. Fall (Chapter 3)
Satan tempted ….……. and …….... to disobey God's Word (commandment) and become their own god. They
sinned by breaking God's law, which caused immediate spiritual death (separation from God) and
eventual physical death (separation of spirit and soul from the body). God pronounced judgment against
man and all the created order and drove Adam and Eve from the Garden to live in a sin-cursed world. But
God also graciously “covered” the sin of Adam and Eve and provided a means for them to have …….……….
with him.
C. The flood. (Chapter 4)
Cain killed his brother Abel (Chapter 4) and the descendants of Cain were, generally, ungodly people who
practiced evil. But God continued the godly line through whom Messiah would come by giving Adam and
Eve another son (Seth in Chapter 5). Notice in Chapter 5 that Seth was born in the “likeness” of Adam, and
that men began to die, as God had promised.
In the post fall, pre flood world sin multiplied rapidly as man increased in population and sought meaning
and purpose in life apart from God. Wickedness so abounded that God determined to judge man’s sin by
flooding the entire earth. Only “righteous” Noah along with his wife, three sons and their wives, were
spared by ………………….., which represented God's gracious, merciful provision of salvation from the curse
and penalty of sin (spiritual and physical death). After the flood, God gave man a new start through Noah
and his children. All peoples of the Earth are descended from Noah's three sons. God provided the
rainbow as a sign or covenant that he would never again flood the earth.
D. Nations. (Chapter 10-11)
Sin was not dead, however, and man devised a plan to rebel against God and exalt his own pride. In the
Babylonian area, a Satan inspired man named ………., directed the construction of the tower of Babel. God
then judged all of mankind for pride and arrogance, confused their single language into many and
scattered them across the face of the earth. This is the likely origin of the “ethnic groups” or the
peoples/nations of the world.

Chapters 12 to 50 – 4 Key People.

A. Abraham (Chapter 12-24)
God called a man named Abraham, who responded to God by …….. God made a covenant with Abraham
promising to,

 Make him a great man and bless him (individual promise to Abraham).
 Create a great nation out of him and give them a land forever (national promise to Israel).
 Bring blessings to all peoples through his descendants (universal promise of spiritual blessing or
salvation).
The covenant of circumcision was the confirming sign of the Abrahamic covenant.
Abraham generally walked by ……. before God and God made him a great man. Abraham was “saved”
when he believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Thus faith in God was established as
the means of making salvation applicable to individuals. Abraham and ………... his wife acting in unbelief
had a child by his handmaiden Hagar. This child was named …………….. and became the father of the Arab
peoples. Later, acting in Faith, Abraham and Sarah gave birth to the child of the promise, ………….. through
whom God would eventually bring salvation in the person of Jesus Christ, the seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:10-
18).
In calling Abraham, God chose both a man and a nation (Hebrews/Jews) through whom He would
accomplish his redemptive purpose for all mankind.
B. Isaac (Chapter 25-26.)
God confirmed to Isaac as the child of promises the covenant (Genesis 26:1-6) that He had made with
Isaac’s father, Abraham, and gave him a wife named Rebekkah.
C. Jacob (Chapter 27-36.)
From the two sons of Isaac, God chose Jacob over Esau to be the one through whom God would continue
the promise of the Abrahamic covenant (Genesis 28:10-15). Jacob learned to walk by faith before God and
God changed ………. name to “Israel”. Jacob became the father of twelve sons, which become the 12 tribes
of Israel.
D. Joseph (Chapter 57-50.)
Joseph, the 11th son of Jacob, was given by God the ability to interpret dreams. Out of jealousy his
brothers sold him into slavery, and he was sent off to ………. But God prospered Joseph in Egypt and
Sovereignly used Joseph to deliver Jacob's family (the Hebrew nation) from death as a result of a
worldwide famine.
Jacob and his entire clan, which were about 70 people, moved to Egypt with Joseph. Thus, the Hebrews
came to live in Egypt, where they would remain for 400 years, ending up as slaves to the Egyptians.
Theme or Purpose
Moses recorded in Genesis the work of God in creation, the call of Abraham and the choosing of the
nation, Israel, as God's chosen instrument in order to show how God would accomplish his plan of
redemption of all mankind.
Application message
We can be confident that our sovereign, creator God is in the process of working out His purpose in the
world and in our individual lives.
Key chapters
1. Creation of all things.
2. Creation of man detailed.
3. Satan. Sin, fall of man, judgments of God.
6. Universal flood.
9. New start; capital punishment.
10-11. Tower of Babel, confusion of language and scattering of nations.
12. Call of Abraham and statement of Abrahamic covenant.
15. Cutting of Abraham Covenant.
17. Confirmation of Abrahamic Covenant.
32. Jacob's name changed to “Israel”.
46. Jacob and his family join Joseph in Egypt.

Distinctive features
Genesis uniquely provides significant understanding of.

 “In the ………………………God.”

 God is a powerful creator.
 God is personal ……..
 Creation account of man in the world.
 Man created in the ………. of God.
 Marriage
 “Sabbath rest” for man.
 Entrance of ….. into the world.
 Deception of Satan and temptation.
 Nature and ……………… of sin.
 Worldwide flood.
 Rainbow covenant
 Preview of Satan's defeat.
 Tower of ……...
 Origin of different Peoples and languages.
 Abrahamic …………...
 Salvation by ……...
 God sovereignly engineering circumstances to accomplish his purpose.
 “What you meant for evil God meant for ……...”
 “God is”
 God's promises.
 Covenant of circumcision.
 Abraham as the ………… of the Jewish nation.
 Isaac is the child of promise.
 How Israel came to be in slavery in Egypt.
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OT1 – Pentateuch Name:………………………………………………..

Week 1

HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT [The total length of your assignment must NOT exceed 250 words]
Please type or write neatly!
READ THE ATTACHED PDF HANDOUT

1. What does the word “Pentateuch” mean? What Hebrew term is used for these books and what is
its meaning?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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2. What is the derivation and meaning of “Genesis”? What is the problem of Gen 1-11? What is the
point of Genesis 12-50?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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3. What are the three principal subjects of Genesis 1-11?

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4. What are the implications of being created in God’s image? What word describes the essence of
creation in Gen 1?

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5. What is the theme of Gen3-11? In what ways did humanity change after the first sin of Gen 3?

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6. How does the account of the Tower of Babel serve as a climax of the avalanche of sin in Gen 3-11?
How does this unit end on a note of hope?

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