The Book of Genesis portrays the creation of heaven and the earth by God in six days. Moreover, God creates man in his image, and from Adam’s rib, he created Eve. However, disobedience and temptation have led to the fall of man when the forbidden fruit is eaten, and God expels Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). Humans descend into sin, scatter into different groups, and start believing in different gods. God then cleanses the world with a flood, and only Noah and his family are saved. However, Noah descends into sin, and humanity goes back to the old ways. A major personality in Genesis is Abraham, who believes in the God of Israelites and has been chosen and promised guidance, land, and blessing from God. Thus, while humans have descended into sin, the Creator plans to bring a blessing to everyone. Abraham’s son, Isaac, goes on to have children of his own, and his wife birthed Esau and Jacob (Sonek, 2019). Jacob, through cheating, deceives his father and cheats Isaac out of his blessing. Jacob’s son, Joseph, is sold into slavery in Egypt by his siblings, yet through the help of God, he is released from prison. He goes on to save the nation of Egypt, showing his devotion to God, who believed humanity deserves redemption. Genesis portrays God’s faith in humanity even when people themselves do not want to obey him. This, however, does not stop God from giving them chances, and through Abraham and his subsequent family, saving is granted.
The book of Exodus is the second one, where Joseph dies in Egypt and 400 years pass from the events in Genesis. The pharaoh does not like the growing and fruitful nation of Israelites, so he enslaves them and orders all boys to be drowned to wipe out the descendants of Abraham. Moses’s mother throws her boy into the Nile River, and the pharaoh’s family finds him and raises Moises as a part of the family. God then guides Moses to free the Israelites from slavery, punishing Egyptians through plagues and showing the pharaoh his wrongdoings by causing suffering to his nation. Moses begs the pharaoh to let the Israelites go as it is God’s will, yet no progress is made. The final plague is the pharaoh’s own wrongdoing turned onto him when all the Egyptian first-born sons die if not protected through lamb blood. The leader loses his son and lets the Israelites go before the enslaved people make their exodus.
The pharaoh then changes his mind and chases after the former slaves, who are able to pass through the sea safely while the water drowns the pharaoh’s army (Exodus 13). Afterward, God guides Moses and the Israelites into the wilderness before forming a covenant with the people on Mt. Sinai (Daube, 2020). While people break the covenant by idolizing false gods, the Creator punishes the followers by leaving them wondering for 40 years. After Moses dies, Joshua becomes the new leader and commands people to go further. The conquests that the Israelites had along the way, including the battles against Jericho and Ai, show people that following God’s lead allows them to inherit the land.
The book of Judges tells Israel’s history after the death of Joshua and how bad leadership and disobedience lead to negative consequences. The six judges, all having different character flows, do not follow the commandments that Moses wrote down, which ultimately led to their defeats. The vicious cycle of judges becoming corrupt and corrupting their nations last for hundreds of years (Judges 6). The Israelites plead with Samuel, one of the prophets, to give them a king, which the Lord consents to despite warning people about the consequences. King David is later succeeded by Solomon, who turns away from the Creator and, after his death, the kingdom is split. Both the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah are later conquered by Assyria and the Babylonians. The citizens are taken into captivity in Babylon before escaping exile after being allowed to come back and restore their religious background based on the Old Testament.
After 400 years of silence and a lack of prophets, the New Testament illustrates the fulfillment of God’s plan through the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. Conceived by the Holy Spirit and birthed by the Virgin Mary, Jesus is the son of God and the mediator between the Creator and mankind. When Jesus is 30, he starts teaching and preaching, as well as performing miracles.
While Jesus gains followers through his teachings, he faces opposition from religious leaders who feel threatened by his authority. This is why they plot against him and execute him through crucifixion (Luke 23). Jesus sacrifices himself to reconcile people back to God, raising from the dead on the third day (Capes, 2018). After 40 days, he ascends to heaven after telling his disciples to spread the word of God. The Church age begins with the first Christians who are facing prosecution for spreading the message of salvation. However, the word of God and the message of salvation are becoming prominent through people such as Apostol Paul, who was once against the gospel. He later becomes a follower of Jesus and advances the message to the capital of the Roman Empire. The Revelation promises people who receive God’s grace through faith eternal existence in a place with no sin, pain, death, and suffering (Revelation 21). Thus, faith will bring people peace, and they will spend eternity near God.
References
Capes, D. B. (2018). The divine Christ: Paul, the Lord Jesus, and the scriptures of Israel. Baker Academic.
Daube, D. (2020). The Exodus Pattern in the Bible. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Sonek, K. (2019). The Abraham Narratives in Genesis 12–25. Currents in Biblical Research, 17(2), 158–183. Web.