Scriptural Background
The Old Testament begins God’s Word—the history of the universe. It contains 39 books and tells us about ancient Israel and God’s promise of the Messiah. God has been careful to preserve his Word since the beginning of time.
One dramatic biblical example of God preserving his Word begins in 2 Chronicles 34 during King Josiah’s reign over Judah near the beginning of the seventh century BC. Josiah began a period of reformation in Judah. The people before him had completely turned away from God. But Josiah did what was right in the sight of the Lord and walked in his ways
(2 Chronicles 34:2).
The house of the Lord had been desecrated, and Josiah commanded that it be repaired (2 Chronicles 34:8). It was during this restoration of the temple that Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the Lord given by Moses (2 Chronicles 34:14). When Josiah heard the Word of the Lord read, he was convicted of the idolatry and sin in the land, and he tore his clothes in repentance (2 Chronicles 34:19). Because of Josiah’s tender heart and humble spirit, God’s judgment was withheld from Judah for the time being (2 Chronicles 34:27–28).
However, when Josiah’s son Jehoiakim became king, the people once again turned their backs on God and his Word. This is when the Word of the Lord came to the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 36:1), and he was instructed by the Lord to write the words of judgment against Israel, Judah, and all the nations (Jeremiah 36:2). Jeremiah dictated God’s Word as
Baruch wrote the scroll (Jeremiah 36:4). When the scroll was finished and read to King Jehoiakim, he was not afraid, repentant, or humble before the Lord as his father had been (Jeremiah 36:24). Instead, Jehoiakim cast the scroll into the fire piece by piece as it was being read (Jeremiah 36:22–23).
But was King Jehoiakim able to destroy God’s Word even with fire? No. God will always preserve his Word and did so then. He called Jeremiah again and instructed that another scroll be written. Jeremiah took the scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe who wrote on it. It contained all the words (and more) of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire (Jeremiah 36:32).
God has always been and will always be faithful to preserve his Word. In the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8). And in the words of the psalmist, “The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever” (Psalm 119:160).
Historical/Apologetics Background
You may encounter people who don’t necessarily believe the Old Testament can be trusted, or they feel that it is insignificant to today’s culture. But we know that it is relevant and true. God has taken great strides to preserve it through many tumultuous times and thousands of years.
Not only that, but he has been gracious to leave historical evidence that confirms the authenticity of the Scriptures. We know that the ancient Hebrews relied on Scripture. They recognized the inspiration of certain texts and depended on them for wisdom.
The five books of Moses, beginning with Genesis, were written around 1500 BC and chronicle the history of the earth over the previous 2,500 years. After that, the remaining books were written by prophets and scribes. These holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:19–21). The words were recorded on scrolls and carefully transmitted through the generations with painstaking diligence to ensure their accuracy. The final record from the Old Testament prophets came at the hand of Malachi. His prophecy of the coming Messiah (Malachi 3–4) begins a period of 400 years of silence before John the Baptist proclaimed the arrival of Christ.
The Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered at Qumran in 1947, gave rise to additional confirmation of these ancient texts. This finding presented Old Testament manuscripts dated as early as 150 BC. These manuscripts were written nearly 1,000 years before other manuscripts already discovered, and they proved to be the same as those previously found.
For example, a copy of the book of Isaiah was part of the findings at Qumran dated about 150 BC. Prior to this, the oldest dated manuscript of the book of Isaiah was around AD 980. Yet when these two copies of Isaiah were compared, they were found to be 95 percent accurate to the Hebrew Bible—even though they were written over 1,000 years apart.
This evidence of ancient Old Testament Hebrew texts together with the astounding number—more than 24,000—of partial and complete manuscript copies of the New Testament gives us solid historical background to the reliability of the Bible. Biblical scholars have agreed that the number of manuscripts supporting the Bible provides unparalleled
authentication of the original documents. In fact, the Bible has more documentation to verify it than any other book of antiquity that is commonly accepted.
In addition to the historical, physical manuscripts and longevity of the Scriptures, we find more confirmation of the Old Testament truth through Jesus Christ himself. Our Lord relied on the truth and promises of the Old Testament. Indeed, Jesus placed such a high value on the inspired Word of God that even he—the very Son of God, the Messiah—willingly submitted himself to its authority while on earth. He relied on it to resist the temptations of Satan (Matthew 4), and he read from it when he taught in the synagogues. In fact, he was reading from the Old Testament book of Isaiah when he proclaimed that he was the Messiah who fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy (Luke 4:16–21).
Then later, after his resurrection from the grave, on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13), Jesus admonished his companions to believe what the prophets of old had written (Luke 24:25). And as they walked, Jesus taught them from the Scriptures, beginning at the writings of Moses and all through the Prophets, the things concerning himself—that he was the one sent to redeem Israel (Luke 24:21). Jesus Christ taught, obeyed, and lived the Scriptures of the Old Testament.
Because Jesus held these testimonies in such high regard, we should as well—never forgetting that God speaks to us through the consistently preserved Scriptures so that we can know him, his character, his purpose, and his plan to redeem a people for himself for all eternity.
Studying God’s Word
Introduction
Last week we answered the questions of from where and how we got the
Bible. Understanding the basic arguments for the inspiration of Scripture
is a very important part of sharing our faith with others and answering
sincere skeptics’ questions. Not to mention, it is a great encouragement
to our own faith.
? What two passages from Scripture give us a solid understanding of how
we came to have the Bible?
2 Timothy 3:16–17 and 2 Peter 1:19–21.
? What is the basic description of the Bible’s origin based on these two
passages?
God, through the Holy Spirit, moved his prophets to record his words.
The recorded words are inspired Scripture—breathed out by God for our benefit.
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On the Road to Emmaus
Today’s lesson will help us understand the writing of the Old Testament
canon and how Jesus affirms its authority. Some of you might be
confused by the word canon, so let’s clear that up right now. The word
comes from the Greek and Hebrew words for a reed used as a measuring
rule. So when we talk of the canon of Scripture, we are talking about the
books of the Bible that act as a rule or guide for our lives, not about using
the Bible as a weapon.
Luke 24:13–32
? Who are the characters in this passage?
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? Where did this take place?
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? When did this happen?
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? Did the disciples recognize Jesus?
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? What was the attitude of the disciples as Jesus approached them?
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? What were the disciples hoping for (verse 21)?
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? What was Christ’s response to their despair?
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? Are there any figures of speech used in the text?
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? What is the main point of the passage?
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Discover the Truth
? Verse 27 says that “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets” Christ
explained things concerning himself. How should we understand what
Jesus meant?
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? Why is this a fitting figure of speech for the Old Testament Scriptures?
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? Jesus often used the phrase, “Have you not read?” (e.g., Matthew 12:3;
19:4; 22:31) or some variation when talking to the religious leaders who
challenged him. How does this relate to the topic we are discussing?
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God’s Word Is Recorded
Jeremiah 36:1–4, 36:17–19
? What type of literature is this passage?
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? When did this happen?
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? Where did this take place?
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? Who was instructed to write God’s words?
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? Who actually wrote on the scroll?
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? How did this process work?
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? What message did Jeremiah proclaim?
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? What role was Jeremiah fulfilling?
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? What advice did the princes give to Baruch?
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Discover the Truth
? Why did the princes advise Baruch and Jeremiah to go into hiding?
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? How does the description of the recording of God’s words compare to
the 2 Peter 1:19–21 passage we looked at last week?
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God’s Word Is Preserved
Jeremiah 36:20–32
? Who does the pronoun “they” refer to in verse 20?
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? What did the princes do with the scroll?
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? What did they do with the message on the scroll?
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? What did Jehoiakim order once he heard the message?
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? What was the king’s reaction upon hearing the scroll read?
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? Was the scroll destroyed?
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? What was the response of those in the court?
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? What command did the king give regarding Jeremiah and Baruch?
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? How were God’s messengers protected?
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Discover the Truth
? Did Jehoiakim really think that these were the words of God and that
burning the scroll would destroy God’s words? (Peek down to verse 29 to
see what he was thinking)
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How God Speaks Activity
? If you were to open your Bible to show someone, a new believer or a
skeptic, how we got the Old Testament writings, where would you go?
Let’s take a few minutes to make a cross-reference between the
Jeremiah 36 passages and 2 Peter 1:19–21.
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Application
? What is the approximate date of the writing of what we know as the Old
Testament?
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? What can we learn from the way Jesus referred to the Old Testament?
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? How has God preserved the text of the Old Testament?
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? What new idea or information did you see in the passage discussing the
encounter between the risen Jesus and his disciples along the road that
gives you a clearer picture of the Old Testament’s importance?
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? As you share your faith, you are likely to encounter people who doubt
the truthfulness of the Bible, especially the Old Testament. Some will
refer to the Bible as a collection of myths written by desert goat herders.
If you knew you had only one chance to share the truth with them,
would you open the Bible and show them specific passages or tell them
about the Dead Sea Scrolls?
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? What questions has this topic raised in your mind, and how might you
go about answering those questions?
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Prayer Time
• Praise God for preserving his Word.
• Ask God that each person would have boldness to share the hope of
Christ with others.
• Thank God for his justice and mercy toward sin.