3. The historical books of the Old Testament.

Brief overview of the historical books.

The historical books of the Old Testament cover the life of the Jewish people from the time they

entered the Promised Land under Joshua the son of Nun (1451 BC) to the time of the Maccabees

(150 BC). In particular, the books of Joshua and Judges cover the earliest period in the history of

the  Jewish people, when the Jewish tribes that populated the Promised Land had not yet been

united into one state, but were separate from each other to a lesser or greater extent. The books of

Kings and Chronicles cover the monarchical period in the history of the Jewish people that lasted

about five hundred years. This period ended with the fall of the Kingdom of Judah and the begin-

ning of the Babylonian captivity in 586 BC. The books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Judith and Esther tell

us of the events that followed the Babylonian captivity and of the restoration of Jerusalem. Fi-

nally, the books of the Maccabees cover the last period of the Old Testament history of the Jew-

ish people, as they were fighting for independence several hundred years before Christ.

  The  political  and  spiritual  development  of  the  Jewish  nation  spanned many  centuries  and

took  place in several stages. God chose the Jewish people to bring salvation to all nations on

earth through the Jews. It was in God.s plan that the Savior of the world, Christ, the first citizens

of  God.s  Kingdom  and  preachers  of  the Christian Faith should come from among the Jewish

people. The Old Testament prophets, being sent by God, spiritually prepared the ground in the

Jewish nation for building God.s Kingdom among people. The path of spiritual development of

the Jewish people was not smooth. There were times of spiritual growth and prosperity, as well

as times of decreased interest to religion and even apostasy.

  Of  course,  not  everything  that is found in the sacred books has equal significance for us.

When reading the Old Testament history, one should remember that it covers pre-Christian era.

The noble Christian principles of love for one.s enemies, complete forgiveness and self-control

were  unknown  to  people  in that ancient time before the coming of grace. The Jews lived sur-

rounded by antagonistic Gentile nations . Canaanites, Moabites, Edomites, Ammonites, Philis-

tines,  and  later . Syrians,  Assyrians,  Babylonians  and  others  whose  superstitious  beliefs  and

cruel Gentile customs pulled the Jews down a path of spiritual decline. There was no one from

whom to learn good. These Gentiles used each and every opportunity to cruelly enslave and op-

press the Jews. Throughout its history, the Jewish people constantly struggled to preserve their

faith pure and to physically survive. To be correctly understood, this history must be read in the

context of morals and customs of the time. Throughout the historical books of the Bible, of value

are truthfulness and objectivity of this Sacred Book. The Bible does not idealize people or events,

but sternly and impartially evaluates everything, including great national heroes, thus helping the

reader to learn from both good and bad examples. It tells us what to do, and what to avoid.

  Despite  adverse  external  circumstances,  many  sons of the Jewish people achieved great

spiritual heights and have left examples worthy of imitation by people of all ages. Even though

the  Jews often sinned no less than their Gentile neighbors, yet they were able to sincerely repent

. One may assume that it was for this quality that they were chosen by God. As the Gospels

say, they were given much, and therefore much was often required of them.

Another value of the historical books of the Bible is their clear message that it is not blind

accident, but God that directs and decides destiny of each individual and every nation. The Bible

provides excellent examples of God.s Providence by showing how He exalts  and  rewards  the

righteous for their virtue, has mercy on repentant sinners, while at the same time punishing stub-

born sinners as their righteous Judge. In Biblical description of individual lives and events, the

reader is able to see qualities of the Great God Whose mercy is endless, Whose wisdom is in-

comprehensible, Whose  power  is infinite, and Whose righteous judgment is inescapable. No

secular book about history is able to convey such spiritual perspective on events. Only the Bible

can do this!