OT – Law

• Introduction

– Large portion of the Pentateuch (first five books of OT) is comprised of law (over 600 commandments)

– Some of them are very strange:• Exodus 34:26: “Do not cook a young goat in its mother's

milk.”• Leviticus 19:19: “Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds

of material.”

– Why do we adhere to some laws and ignore others?

• Traditional approach to interpreting OT law

– Moral – deal with timeless truths regarding God’s intention for human behavior (“Love your neighbor as yourself”)

– Civil – deal with courts, economics, land, crimes, and punishment (“At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.”)

– Ceremonial – deal with sacrifices, festivals, and priestly activities (“celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress.”)

– Distinction between moral, civil, and ceremonial law allowed the believer to know whether the law applied to them:• Moral – universal and timeless (still apply as law to

believers today)• Civil and Ceremonial – applied only to ancient Israel,

not to believers today

– Problems with traditional approach:• Arbitrary distinction not in the Bible (Lev. 19:18-19)• Difficult to classify many laws (Lev. 19:19?)• Too ambiguous and inconsistent

– We need a more consistent approach OT law

• Narrative context – OT law does not appear by itself, but is firmly embedded

in the story of Israel’s exodus, wilderness wandering, and conquest.

Exodus 1-19 Exodus 20-24 (narrative) (law)

Israel’s bondage in Part of the story of Egypt, God’s mightyGod’s encounter with deliverance, andMoses and Israel at their journey to the Mount Sinai Promised land

– The law is part of Israel’s story and the story provides an important context for interpreting law.

– Don’t separate OT law from its narrative context!

• Covenant context

– OT law is tightly intertwined with the Mosaic covenant. What is the nature of that covenant?

• Mosaic covenant is closely associated with Israel’s conquest and occupation of the land

• Blessings from the Mosaic covenant are conditional

• Mosaic covenant no longer a functional covenant for NT believers

Jesus is the mediator of a new covenant (Heb. 8:13)

• NT believers are no longer under OT law as part of the Mosaic covenant

“Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” – Galatians 3:25

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” – Matthew 5:17

• We must interpret OT law through the grid of NT teaching. Jesus is the final interpreter of OT law.

• The OT law no longer applies as direct law for us. However, the OT legal material still contains rich principles and lessons for living that are relevant when interpreted through NT teaching.

OT – Prophets

• Nature of OT prophetic literature

OT Prophets

Major Minor

Isaiah Hosea Jeremiah Joel Ezekiel Amos Daniel Obadiah

Jonah MicahNahum Habakkuk

Zephaniah Haggai

Zechariah Malachi

Longer books

Shorter books

– Little in our culture that resembles the OT prophetic literature (Bob Dylan?)

– Only a small amount of OT prophecy deals with events still future to us

“Less than 2 percent of Old Testament prophecy is messianic. Less than 5 percent specifically describes the New Covenant age. Less than 1 percent concerns events yet to come.” – Fee and Stuart

– Prophets proclaim more than they predict

– Prophets make extensive use of the figurative language of poetry

– Prophetic books are primarily anthologies–collections of shorter units, usually oral messages proclaimed publicly to the people of Israel or Judah.

• Not usually arranged chronologically• Therefore, almost impossible to outline• Look for a few major themes repeated over and over• Yet the prophet’s message comes through loud and clear

– Historical-cultural and theological context

• Basic prophetic message

– Prophets function as God’s prosecuting attorneys, warning the people of the consequences of covenant violation.

– Prophetic message has three basic points:

1. You have broken the covenant; you had better repent!

• Idolatry—syncretism, faithful husband/unfaithful wife• Social justice—widows, orphans, foreigners• Religious ritualism—ritual substitutes for relationship

2. No repentance? Then judgment!

• Plea for repentance, but proclaim severe consequences of rebellion

• Horrific invasions• Loss of Promised land

3. Yet, there is hope beyond the judgment for a glorious future restoration.

• New exodus (Isaiah), new covenant (Jeremiah), new presence of the Spirit (Ezekiel and Joel)

• Messianic promises and future predictions

• Interpretation and application of basic message

1. You have broken the covenant; you had better repent!

• Must pass through filter of NT teaching• No longer under covenant of law, so different for

believers and unbelievers • Focus on relational aspects of our sin (marriage analogy)• Sinning against God causes him to hurt emotionally• Idolatry – job, success, money, TV, clothes, grades …• Social justice – poor, elderly, minorities, children …• Religious ritualism – rituals function as means or ends?

2. No repentance? Then judgment!

• Sin is an offense against God and demands judgment• NT g judgment of death for Christian’s sin transferred to

Christ• If Christians fail to repent, their relationship with God

will be damaged

3. Yet, there is hope beyond the judgment for a glorious future restoration.

• Ultimate fulfillment of promises in Christ • God is in the business of forgiving and restoring people

• Predictive passages

– Small portion of prophet’s message to events that are still future for us

Near View or

Far View?

– Predictions could refer to:• Return of Jewish exiles to Israel (past for us)• First coming of Jesus Christ (past for us)• Second coming of Jesus Christ (still future for us)

– Difficult to determine whether the prophets are describing events that will occur within their lifetime (near view) or events that will occur much later (far view).

– We should be cautious about being overly dogmatic when interpreting details of predictive prophecy.

– It is possible that the prophets have intentionally blurred together these future events so that their readers will focus on the broader theological principles.