[ 2 ]. Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1983, p. 791…
What are the four reported identities of Melchizedek? Shem, Christ, King of Jerusalem, and a heavenly figure…
the author and Old Testament scholar John W. Oswalt begins with an introduction in which he presents the argument for the book. In this book, it is divided into two main sections: The Bible and Myth and The Bible and History. However, Oswalt puts emphases on myth and history. Oswalt addresses the Bible and myth, the Bible and history, the Old Testament, and the Ancient Near Eastern (ANE) myth all in ten chapters. However, revelation, myth, and history are the main topics of this book. Oswalt further discusses the differences between Scripture and myth; as well as the issues involved in the Bible’s relationship to history and historiography. Oswalt argues that while there are undoubtedly many surface comparisons among the Old Testament and…
Author John N. Oswalt begins The Bible Among the Myths: Unique Revelation or Just Ancient Literature? with a concise and well-written introduction that whets the reader’s appetite, compelling one to continue reading. He begins by informing the reader that his novel has been in the works dating all of the way back to the 1960s, when he attended the Asbury Theological Seminary. Oswalt quickly points out that one of the main points that the book will focus on is determining if “the religion of the Old Testament [is] essentially similar to, or essentially different from, the religions of its neighbors.”1 Oswalt is swift to acknowledge a major difference between the Old Testament and the religions of the Israelites Near Eastern neighbors. The divine medium of the Israelites’ neighbors was nature. On the other hand, the Israelites relied upon a unique human-historical experience.…
In his introduction, Oswalt discusses how roughly sixty years ago it was widely agreed upon in academic circles that the Israelite religion stood apart from their neighbor’s Semitic religion. However, the tide has now turned, for the world of academia largely affirms the Israelite faith is just another religion in the sea of Ancient Near Eastern mythology and religion. Oswalt questions why this drastic change has come. He believes the data from the past is no different then the data used today. Therefore, the problem is how one interprets the data. He discusses the use of “accidentals” and “essentials” while studying the similarities and differences between the Old Testament and mythology.…
There is a new Law, a new covenant in the New Testament that voids out the old covenant and is made much better. God’s Law is eternal as for both the fulfillment of the law through Jesus Christ and the curse of the Law. We as Christians are no longer under the Law because the Law was fulfilled by Jesus Christ. We are adopted in the beloved and are now considered sons of God. If we be a son of God then we must heir with Him…
[ 6 ]. G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, Mich., Nottingham, England: Baker Academic, 2007), 99.…
When reading the book, “Who wrote the Bible”, by Richard Friedman, Friedman presents a strong case for the Documentary Hypothesis as it relates to the first five books of the Old Testament, also known as the Pentateuch or the Torah. This hypothesis proposes that the Torah was derived from originally independent, parallel and complete narratives, which were subsequently combined into the current form by a series of redactors, or editors. These four sources came to be known as the Yahwist (J), Elohist (E), Deuteronomist (D), and the Priestly Writer (P). While many biblical scholars believe there were many redactors that helped combine the four sources, Friedman believes there is only one. Through extensive research on the historical context, special characteristics of the JEDP, and how they view and interpret God, Friedman came to the conclusion and argues that these four sources were combined into the Five Books of Moses by one redactor, Ezra.…
Before outlining the word, Oswalt revisits the idea that scholarship has wandered from the view that the Bible is exceptional from the other writings, religions, and cultures of the Ancient Near East. Since the 1960s, scholars have been stating that the characteristics of the Bible and its modern belief systems have more in common that are in opposition even though the data used to support these claims have remained the same.…
The first 39 books of the larger work called the Bible, is called the Old Testament. The Bible itself is arguably the best selling and most read book of all time, yet it’s well known to be quite challenging to read through and understand. The Old Testament portion of the Bible, notably the most difficult portion of the Bible for most to study and follow, yields 39 books from multiple authors, and spans over 4000 years of crucial world and church history. If that were not enough to take on, the Old Testament comes our way through multiple styles of authorship and formats, including but not limited to, books of history, law, proverbs, ethics, philosophy, treatises, dramas, songs, epics, biographies, and letters. There have been many books written and published to survey, explain, and/or bring to light the Old Testament, but none more helpful to me than the review subject of this paper, the work of Dr. Elmer L. Towns, entitled “A Journey Through the Old Testament”.…
Cited: The Holy Bible, King James Version. New York: Oxford Edition: 1769; King James Bible Online, 2008. http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/.…
The author, a research professor at Wesley Biblical Seminary by the name of John N. Oswalt, attempts to explain the similarities and differences of the Holy Scripture and its teachings from that of the neighboring Ancient Near East beliefs. Moreover, he attempts to answer the question of how scholarly opinions of the disagreements found between Genesis and Babylonian accounts of the origins of the world.…
“Not Reason but Revelation was the cornerstone of the Hebrew faith” (“Religion”). Yahweh was the focus…
The clear parallelism of the two texts is abundantly clear through the direct quotes, such as, “We hold these truths to be self evident,” which are present in both of these texts despite the…
The book opens with an introduction comparing the study of the Old Testament and the other religions and cultures of other peoples from the Ancient Near East. Scholars used to believe that the Old Testament was unique among other beliefs in the Ancient Near East but they now view the Old Testament as identical to other religions of its day and time.…