LIVING WATERS THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

“A Ministry of Apostolic Faith Mission in Zimbabwe”

Linking Academic Excellence with Spiritual Profundity

COURSE TITLE: INTRODUCTION TO OLD TESTAMENT STUDIES

COURSE CODE: OT 101

DEPARTMENT: NATIONAL DIPLOMA IN THEOLOGY &

RELIGIOUS STUDIES

COURSE TYPE: CORE

LEARNING HOURS: 3 HOURS PER WEEK

SEMESTER: 1ST SEMESTER, 1ST YEARS.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course examines the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) as an expression of the religious life
and thought of ancient Israel, and a foundational document of Western civilization and how ita
was formulated. It is designed to introduce students to different methods used in interpreting the
Old Testament. Special emphasis is placed on the Hebrew Bible against the backdrop of its
historical and cultural setting in the Ancient Near East.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

In order for us to achieve the goals of the study the following objectives shall be necessary:

1. To familiarise with the contents of the Hebrew Bible

2. To know the different methodological approaches to the study of the Bible
3. To have some insights into the history of interpretation
4. To understand the culture of ancient Israel against the background of the Ancient Near
East setting.

For us to achieve the above objectives we shall go through the following course content and
employ the ensuing methods of study.

NATIONAL DIPLOMA IN THEOLOGY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES COURSE OUTLINE Page 1

COURSE CONTENT
The course content shall cover the following areas:

Lesson 1: Background to the Old Testament

 Introduction to the Hebrew Bible

 Inspiration Hebrew Bible
 Canonisation of the Hebrew Bible and other Canons

Lesson 2: The Old Testament in its Ancient Near Eastern Setting

 Influence of the ANE states and cultures to the Old Testament

Lesson 3: Critical Approaches to the Old Testament

 Source Criticism
 Form Criticism
 Tradition Criticism
 Archaeological method

Lesson 4-6: Other Critical Areas In Understanding the Old Testament
 Geography of the Biblical Land
 The Patriachs
 the historicity of the Patriarchs
 Religion of the Patriarchs
 History of Israel from Abraham’s call to the Exile

Lesson 7: Conclusion and Revision of the subject

METHODOLOGY:
 Lecturer method and class debates will be predominantly made use of.
 Regular attendance of lecture sessions is mandatory except in emergencies.
 Participation in class discussions is assumed and regularly assessed by the lecturer.
 Students are expected to read appropriate material widely and come to class prepared.
 Normal adult class learning ethics are expected from all students.

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GUIDELINES ON GRADING AND STANDARDS OF ASSESSMENT:
80+ D (DISTINCTION)

79-70 M (MERIT)

69-60 C (CREDIT)

59-50 P (PASS)

49-40 S (SUPPLEMENTARY)

39-0 R (REPEAT)

COURSE ASSESSMENT:

Evaluation shall be based on Coursework (40%) and Examination (60%). Students will be
required to submit one individual assignment, a group presentation, a mid semester and a final
semester examination during the course.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anderson, G.W. A critical study of the Old Testament

Boadt, L. Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction
Davies, P.R. In Search of Ancient Israel
Hayes, J.H. Introduction to the Bible
Noth, M. The Old Testament World
Gottwald, N. The Bible and Liberation
Gunkel, H. The Legends of Genesis
Tucker, G. Prophetic Superscriptions and the growth of a Canon.
Tucker, G. Form Criticism of the Old Testament
Miller, M. The Old Testament and the Historian
Habel, N. Literary Criticism of Old Testament
De Vaux, R. Ancient Israel: Its Life and Institutions
Soggin, Introduction to the Bible
Pritchard, James B, ed. 1958. The Ancient Near East, Volume 1: An Anthology of Texts and
Pictures. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press
Pritchard, James B. 1965. The Ancient Near East, vol. 1, ed. Princeton: Princeton University
Press.

NATIONAL DIPLOMA IN THEOLOGY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES COURSE OUTLINE Page 3

Pritchard, James, ed. "The Deluge," "The Creation Epic," and "The Epic of Gilgamesh." In The
Ancient Near East, Volume 1. pp. 28-75
Kaufmann, Yehezkel. The Religion of Israel. New York: Schocken, 1972. pp. 21-121
Geller, Stephen A. 2004. "The Religion of the Bible" in The Jewish Study Bible, ed. Adele Berlin
and Marc ZviBrettler, 2021-2040. New York: Oxford University Press.
Sarna, Nahum. 1966. Understanding Genesis. New York: Jewish Theological Seminary.
Speiser, E. A., trans. 1950, 1955. The Creation Epic. In Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to
the Old Testament, ed. James B. Pritchard, 60-61. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Habel, Norman. Literary Criticism of the Old Testament. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1971. pp.
1-42
Trible, Phyllis. "Depatriarchalizing in Biblical Interpretation." In JAAR 41. pp. 30-48

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