In this week’s class, we will finish up Session 3, Bible Apologetics, by focusing on the transmission of the Old Testament, and three main reasons why we can trust that what we have today is exactly what God wanted us to have in His Word. We will also review last week’s questions on Abraham and Lot, and finish up with new Bible study questions for Genesis chapters 20-21. Each week’s class will include prayer, review, an “apologetics” presentation and a homework assignment. You can also ask questions in the comment section below.

Watch this week’s class presentation on these topics:

2023 A Case for the Old Testament

Session 3, Part 4: The Transmission of the Old Testament

Prayer and Reflection

1. Write out your prayer cards and exchange them at the end of the class.

2. What are the six parts (using your hand) to the question: How can we trust that the Bible is the Word of God? (From Greg Koukl’s presentation last week)

3. Recite the memory verse below:

Memory Verse:

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

Click here to check or review answers for Genesis chapters 18-19

How do we know that the Old Testament is reliable?

How was it transmitted over time?

It is generally acknowledged by scholars that the Old Testament we have today is the same one that was being used by Jesus and the Jewish people of the first century AD/CE, at that time considered the sacred Hebrew Scriptures
The Old Testament covers the period of time from creation to about four hundred years before the birth of Jesus

There are three lines of evidence…

1. God’s direction and inspiration

If God exists (and He does) then miracles are possible; if miracles are possible then God can use miracles to communicate His message with the written word that would last throughout time
Jesus also used miracles in His ministry to communicate God’s message during His time here on earth
God can guarantee that what we are reading today is what He meant for us to get

From the Old Testament

God Himself wrote some of what He gave to Moses and also directed Moses in his writings: When He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God. –Exodus 31:18

He has made His wonders to be remembered; the Lord is gracious and compassionate.
-Psalm 111:4 (NASB)

The word “remember” appears in Scripture some 227 times (examples: 1 Chronicles 16:15, Psalm 111:4, 119:52, Isaiah 46:9, Malachi 4:4).
The word “written” appears 251 times (examples: Deuteronomy 28:58, Joshua 1:8; 8:34, Psalm 102:18, 1 Kings 2:3, Ezra 3:2, Nehemiah 10:36).
The high use of these words indicates that God is stressing something important for us to know; He wants us to remember our history (both good and bad) and learn from it.
He made sure that his chosen authors have written down these things so that it would not be lost over the generations.

From the New Testament

Paul tells us: “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NASB)
And, Peter tells us: “So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” 2 Peter 1:19-21 (NASB)

2. Oral Transmission

Oral transmission of information from antiquity was community oriented and therefore self-correcting.
In ancient culture students of the Scriptures could commit the Torah to memory, and some still do it today.
Historians consider oral transmission very reliable up through the time of the printing press in the fifteenth century AD/CE.

What is notable is that there were only five generations of people who knew each other from Adam to Moses:

(Adam)—Methuselah—Shem—Isaac—Levi—Amran—(Moses)

3. Written Transmission

We have outside confirmation from secular sources in history, literature and archeology
From Moses’ time on, the written Word was considered sacred
The job of transmission through copying went to the tribe of Levi and the Scribes (along with the continuation of oral transmission)
Scribes used materials such as stone, clay, papyrus, parchment, and eventually paper to record the Scriptures

Tanakh

The Jewish Bible (Tanakh) contains all of the same books that we have in the Old Testament (39), just in a different grouping and order
These books have long been accepted as God’s Word by Jewish Scribes and historians, and are categorized as the Torah, the writings, and the prophets
In our Christian Bible we categorized them as the books of Moses, history books, books of wisdom and poetry, and the books of the prophets (major and minor)

Septuagint

This is the Greek translation and name for the Old Testament
The Septuagint was the first translation of the Hebrew Scriptures/Old Testament into Greek ( 300-200 BC/BCE), and this would have been the Scriptures Jesus read from in the first century AD/CE
It is the translation used by the early Jews and Christians through the second century AD/CE

Masoretic Text

Oldest known copy is dated 900 AD/CE
The Masoretes were Jewishscribe-scholars between the 6th and 10th centuries AD/CE, based primarily in present-day Israel in the cities of Tiberias and Jerusalem, as well as in Iraq (Babylonia)
The Old Testament we have today has been translated mainly from this text family
It differs from the Septuagint mainly in grammar, spelling, and in some places word order

Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS)

Dated 250 BC/BCE to AD/CE 100
These scrolls were discovered in 1947 in the Qumran Caves of the West Bank, about a mile north of the Dead Sea
The DSS contain all of the Old Testament books (with the exception of Esther, although other texts mention Esther), and this closes the one-thousand-year gap from the Masoretic Text
This discovery also helped confirm the prophecies in the Old Testament, fulfilled by Jesus, were not added or altered after the time of Christ but in fact was there centuries before his birth

What is so exciting is that we can see many of these ancient scrolls in museums, libraries, and Churches around the world today!

Scribes

Following Moses, the Scribes were required to copy, protect, and preserve their history and the writings through the generations.
Copying of the Scripture had extremely rigorous guidelines and there were very harsh warnings for disobedience—see Deuteronomy 28:56-69.
The scribes believed with all their hearts, souls, and minds that this was the Word of God– See Deuteronomy chapter 6.
They were responsible for it and had a reverent fear for what they were doing.
Scribes taught and lived by the highest ethical standards and were willing to die for their job.
There were over 4000 very strict rules for the treatment of Scripture that could only be performed by Scribes. Here are just a few examples…

Scribal Copying Rules

Each scroll must contain a specific number of columns, all equal throughout the entire book
Each column’s length must not be less than 48 lines or more than 60
Each column’s breadth must be exactly 30 letters
The copyist must use a specially prepared black ink
The space between every consonant must be the size of a thread
The copyist must sit in full Jewish dress
The copyist must use a fresh quill to pen the sacred name of God
The copyist could copy only letter by letter not word by word
The copyist counted the number of times each letter of the alphabet occurred in each book
The copyist knew the middle letter of the Pentateuch and of the entire Old Testament
After copying the copyist counted forward and backward from the middle letter
The copyist must count all letters and spaces
The copyist must not be interrupted, even if the King walked in, they could not stop
Each manuscript would be compared and read out-loud before the people
Any mistake in any area would require the copyist to burn the copy, or tear it up, and start over

Moses wrote these words to the Israelites

“These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you. Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:1-9

Going Deeper

Evidence That Demands A Verdict (Josh.org), book by Josh McDowell and Dr. Sean McDowell, Professor – Biola University
How We Got the Bible, by Neil R. Lightfoot, Professor of New Testament at Abilene Christian University, Abilene, Texas
“Christian Apologetics: Where Did The Old Testament Come From?” by Doug Powell, M.A. Christian Apologetics- Biola University https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI3cpHVp8_s
“The Reliability of the Old Testament,” by Dr. Tom Howe, Director of Veritas Graduate School of Apologetics and Professor of Bible and Biblical Languages at Southern Evangelical Seminary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPPk0xYMHTk

Bible Study

Each week we will have Bible study following the presentation. There will be questions presented here on the weekend, and basic answers will be part of the next presentation or posted mid-week for your review, depending on the topic. This can also be used to make a leader’s guide for your own small group and future studies!

Always remember to pray before you study and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you and lead you into the truth found in God’s Word – pray for protection from the evil one who will try to discourage, distract and deceive us when we commit to growing closer to the LORD.

Note: Questions are taken directly from the chapters, and answers should be found and cited from the Scripture text in order to be Biblically accurate (unless asked to summarize in your own words). Study Bibles, commentaries and your own thoughts can be used for Discussion or Going Deeper questions. If you use these kinds of sources share them with your group.

1. Review of Class Topic: Before getting into the Bible study questions, discuss today’s class presentation by summarizing what you learned, commenting or asking any questions.

Read Genesis Chapters 19:30 through 21:

2. (Genesis 19:30-38) In this part of the story Lot’s daughters do the unthinkable. Why did they do this and what was the outcome? Going Deeper: Two sons were born out of this situation. What can you uncover about their descendants and their relationship later on with Israel?

3. (Genesis 20:1-18) Abraham and Sarah repeat the same mistake they made earlier in Egypt (12:9-20). How is this story different? Discuss: What example is being set for Abraham and Sarah’s descendants when they repeat these kinds of exploits, and does it make us think how our own repeated behaviors could affect our next generation?

4. (Genesis 21:1-21) In this chapter, the long-awaited son of the promise is born. What is his name and what does it mean? Discuss: What happened that caused Sarah to drive out Hagar and Ishmael, how did God help them and where did they end up? What did God say to reassure Abraham, and why?

5. (Genesis 21:22-34) What covenant did Abraham make with Abimelech and why?

Going deeper: Give an example where the following names come up later on in the Bible, and in what context: Beersheba and Philistines

Please join us each week as we continue our case for the Old Testament!

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You will not find this material in the public school curriculum even though it is based on solid evidence and grounded in research. It is ironic that following the evidence to where it leads stops at the door of our public schools as they will not let a “Divine footprint” in! Join us as we examine evidence for Christianity and learn how to become a thoughtful defender and ambassador of your faith.

Click into the resource page of this website to view many of the top Christian thinkers and apologists along with some of their work; connecting to these types of resources is essential in your Christian growth.

Please let me know what you think: Give feedback, ask questions or send concerns in the comment section of the blog.

Teri Dugan

TeriDugan@truthfaithandreason.com

1 Peter 3:15