“Genesis” is a Greek word signifying “origin” or “beginning.” In Hebrew the book is called “Bereshit” (in the beginning). As the first book of the Bible, it sets the precedent of taking its title from the first significant word in the text itself, bereshit.
Genesis is a book about beginnings. It outlines the origins of the universe and of humankind, and it wrestles with the nature of the relationship between God’s creation and God. The book begins with an account of the Creation, the exile of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, and the early history of humankind. This first part of Genesis contains these stories: the initial covenant with humankind; the intrusion of sin through the account of the first murder (of Abel by his brother Cain); the Flood, with which God threatens to eradicate the “mistake” of creating humans, because it has proved itself capable of great evil; a second covenant (with Noah), wherein God vows to never again flood the world; the re-peopling of the earth from Noah’s lineage; and the confusion of tongues at the Tower of Babel, concluding with the genealogy of Shem down to Terah and Abraham.
The next segment of Genesis contains the special history of the Patriarchs, the ancestors of the Jewish people. Here Abraham is the prominent figure, and the history of his call from God is recorded, along with detailed accounts from the Patriarchal Era: tales of Abram and Sarai in Egypt (before their names are changed by God to Abraham and Sarah); the covenant between God and Abram; internal family conflict between Sarai and her handmaid, Hagar, who flees from maltreatment at home and returns at God’s request to “father” Ishmael; the surprising conception, birth, and circumcision of Isaac; God’s decision to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, despite Abraham’s resistance; and Abraham’s offering of Isaac on an altar to God (the Akedah, the Binding of Isaac), which is interrupted and halted by an angel of God at the last moment.
These are then followed by stories of Isaac, Rebekah, and thier children Jacob and Esau. One of the most well-known of these stories is that of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel: Rebekah sends her son Jacob to live with his uncle Laban, who later tricks him into marrying his daughter Leah instead of Rachel, the daughter he desires. Jacob strikes a deal with Laban to work for seven additional years to earn Rachel’s hand in marriage. And so Jacob marries Leah and Rachel and also fathers twelve sons, who become the Twelve Tribes of Israel. (See the box “The Twelve Tribes of Israel,” in “Summaries of the Books of the Bible,” Joshua.) The dramas that unfold in the lives of Jacob’s children—of Joseph and his brothers, and of Dinah—ultimately lead to the emigration of Jacob and his family to Egypt. Later chapters tell the history of Jacob and Joseph, to the death of Joseph in Egypt.
Genesis tells the story of the creation of the world, and then it follows one family across the generations, weaving the narrative through space and time until the family’s descendants dwell in Egypt, thereby setting the stage for the narrative to come, in the successive biblical books.
"Exodus" is derived from the Greek word signifying "departure" or "going out,"referring to the descendants of Abraham "going out" from bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land. The Hebrew title, "Sefer ve'elah shemot," which means "the book of ‘And these are the names,'" is based on the opening words of the book. This is often shortened to Shemot, or "Names."
Exodus gives an account of the early history of Israel as a nation, one that was enslaved, redeemed, set apart, and then dedicated to following God's commandments. The four major themes—liberation, law, covenant, and the presence of God—provide a structure that is meant to maintain an ongoing relationship between God and Israel.
The events in Exodus extend from the birth of Moses to the construction of the Tabernacle. The first chapters give an account of the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt, the early life of Moses and his call to be the deliverer of Israel, the Ten Plagues, the liberation from slavery, the passage through the Sea of Reeds, the journey to Mount Sinai, the arrival at Sinai, the construction of the Golden Calf in Moses's long absence on the mountain, and finally, the preparations for receiving the Law (the Decalogue, or Ten Commandments).
Exodus then turns to matters of law: the promulgation of the Law, and the ratification of the covenant between the Israelites and God with commandments and guidelines to dictate values and behavior sanctioned by God. These commandments include the Mosaic Covenant—both absolute commands such as the Ten Commandments, which are given without explanation or justification, and more conditional laws, with the rationale for them.
The latter part of Exodus gives the orders for making the Tabernacle, for the consecration of the family of Aaron to the Priesthood, and for making their vestments. It also records the sin and punishment of the Israelites for making the Golden Calf.
Like many of the biblical books, the name "Leviticus"is taken from the Greek, literally meaning "things pertaining to the Levites," because much of the book is concerned with the priests themselves (who formed part of the tribe of Levi) and priestly matters. In Hebrew, the term "Priestly Law" is often used to describe the book, as it consists mainly of laws for the priests.
Leviticus contains many laws: those concerning the different kinds of sacrifices; the consecration of Aaron and his sons; the punishment of two of them, Nadab and Abihu, for offering "alien fire" (10:1); laws concerning clean and unclean foods, personal purity, and leprosy; the ordinance for the Day of Atonement; and the laws of holiness. Emphasis is placed on holiness as a quality distinguishing Israel, demanded of Israel by God, and regulating the Israelite's life. Of particular concern are the slaughter of animals; unlawful marriages and lusts; the priests; sacred times, seasons, and festivals; the lights of the sanctuary; the episode concerning a blasphemer and his punishment; the sabbatical year and the jubilee. It concludes with promises and warnings (also called "blessings and curses"), involving vows, tithes, and offerings to God.
The name "Numbers" is likely derived from the Greek translation, the Septuagint, which named the book after the census taking in the first chapters of Numbers and again at the end of the wanderings of the Israelites. The book comprises a period of 38 years and 3 months, from the completion of the giving of the Law until the 5th month of the 40th year.
The Hebrew name is "Be-midbar," or "in the desert," taken from the fifth Hebrew word in the first chapter of the book. It refers to the setting of the book, as the Israelites leave behind the slavery of Egypt and journey through the desert wilderness toward the Promised Land, Canaan.
Numbers begins by describing the last days at Sinai: the first census; the arrangement of the army; the service of the Priestly Levites; various additional laws; and a description of the cloudy pillar, a symbol of God's ever presence. The book then proceeds to describe the Israelites' travels from Sinai to the borders of Canaan, including the appeal of Moses to Hobab; the burning at Taberah; the giving of the quails; the murmuring of Aaron and Miriam against their brother, Moses; Miriam's subsequent skin disease (often identified as leprosy); the sending of the spies, their report, and the murmuring of the people; and, finally, the rash attack on the Canaanites and their response.
The third section of Numbers outlines the 38 years of wandering: various laws are given; the rebellion of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram and their punishment are described; and the dues payable to the Levites are proscribed, followed by an explanation of the way defilement by the dead is to be handled. The book ends with the description of the last year of the Israelites' journey: the death of Miriam; the sin of Moses and Aaron; the circuit around Edom; the death of Aaron; the conquest of the Amorites; the episode of Balaam; the sin of Baal-peor and its consequences; the second census; laws of inheritance, offerings, and vows; the war against the Midianites; settlement of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh; a summary of the places that the Israelites stopped during their forty years of wandering through the desert; levitical cities and cities of refuge (where individuals convicted of crimes and expelled from the community are sent) are all outlined.
"Deuteronomy" comes from the Greek and signifies "repetition of the Law." The first giving, most notably the Ten Commandments, is in Exodus (see the box "The Decalogue, or Ten Commandments," in Exodus, above). In Hebrew, Deuteronomy is known as "Devarim," which means "these are the words," the opening phrase of the book.
Deuteronomy consists mainly of three addresses given by Moses in the 40th year of the Exodus and the last year of his life. Of the three addresses, the firstis introductory, reminding the people of their deliverance from bondage, of God's guidance and protection in their wanderings, and their frequent ingratitude. It closes with a warning from the past and an exhortation to follow God's teachings, in order to secure the inheritance of the land, which is now within reach.
The second address, starting with the Decalogue, consists of a speech from Moses, introducing the importance of the Ten Commandments and the sacred covenant with God, seemingly retroactively, reminding them of the promises they already made at Horeb, to follow God's teachings. This address is followed by the laws in three main groups: those concerning religion, the administration of justice, and private and social rights. It concludes with teachings commonly known as "the blessings and the curses," which are said to be consequences of behaviors either sanctioned or prohibited by God.
At the close of these addresses there is an account of the delivery of the Law to the Levites, a song sung by Moses, the final benediction of the twelve tribes, and the closing scenes of Moses's life.
To some extent, Deuteronomy is a restatement of previously given written law, with an important difference: the law here requires all sacrifices to be offered, not at many places, as previously assumed, but at one place only—in the Promised Land that the Israelites are about to inherit.
The name "Joshua" (Hebrew for "God is salvation") was substituted by Moses for Joshua's earlier name, "Hoshea," on the occasion of sending out the 12 spies (Numbers 13:16). Just why this name change was made is unknown, but a midrash explains that the addition of the letter yud (rendered in English as "j"), which has a numerical value of 10, is said to foreshadow Joshua standing against 10 of the other spies. Joshua was born in Egypt while the Israelites were slaves there. He first appears as a military captain at Rephidim during the attack of the Amalekites. He is Moses's attendant at the giving of the Law and is later sent to spy out the land of Canaan for the tribe of Ephraim. When Moses dies, Joshua is appointed by God as Moses's successor and leader of the people, settling the Israelites in Canaan.
The book of Joshua is predominantly concerned with the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites and the partitioning of the land among the tribes. (See the box "The Twelve Tribes of Israel," below.) Once this is accomplished, Joshua bids farewell to the people and dies. (The general impression in this book is that the Israelites, acting together under Joshua, conquered all of Canaan within aperiod of a few years. However, there are hints within the text that the conquest and occupation of Canaan by the Israelites were a more gradual process and not altogether due to the actions of a united people.) The narrative tells how Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River into the Promised Land, after wandering for 40 years from Egypt, since the Exodus. Then there are detailed descriptions of how the land is divided up between the tribes, incorporating boundaries and cities. Joshua's final speech to all the tribes assembled at Shechem, followed by a short epilogue, closes the book.
Judges receives its title from those who were raised up to be the deliverers of the Israelites from their enemies, after the death of Joshua. The Hebrew word for these deliverers is shofet; itsplural is shofetim, which has come to mean "judges."
Judges opens with an account of the conquest of territories in the land of Caanan by the different Israelite tribes. Each of them was given a portion of the Promised Land, which was their inheritance and responsibility to cultivate. Next it tells the stories of Ehud, Deborah, Barak, Shamgar, Gideon and his son Abimelech, Jephthah, and Samson, with briefer accounts or notices of others, including minor judges. This time period is characterized by successive periods of national sin, punishment, penitence, deliverance, and peace.
The final part of Judges contains a record of two remarkable incidents: that of Micah and the Danites; and the "outrageous act" (20:6) performed at Gibeah and the consequent war that led to the near extermination of the tribe of Benjamin. The latter portion of Judges explains the extent to which some of the Israelite families were demoralized. Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, and Jonathan, the son of Gershom and the grandson of Moses, are said to be living during this time period, indicating that only a generation separates Judges chronologically from the events in the first five books of the Bible.
The books of Samuel are so called not because Samuel was the author, but because he is the most prominent actor in the opening portion, and the great instrument in the establishment of the Kingdom of Israel, which occurs throughout the remainder of 1 and 2 Samuel. The two books are in reality a single work and are so regarded in the original Hebrew canon.
The books of Samuel address three biographies: of Samuel, Saul, and David. The period covered is approximately 1050—970 B.C.E.
1 Samuel is the connecting link by which the judgeship passes on to monarchy. Whereas Judges reflects a cry for stable leadership, here this cry is translated into a request for a king. It is unclear precisely where the power lies—with the priest, the prophet, the judge, or the king. The fact that these books are named after Samuel (a prophet) rather than Saul or David (who were both kings) exemplifies the tension between the kings' authority as political leaders and their subordination to God, whose will is communicated through prophets. In Deuteronomy 17:14, there is an explicit prohibition against kingship, and here the people are defying this prohibition by crying out for the establishment of a monarchy. They want a king to end the reign of political chaos resulting from the charismatic leadership appointed by God. The books of Samuel are essentially the point in Israelite history wherein the people demand personal responsibility for their leadership.
1 Samuel starts with Hannah's poem and introduces the monarchy; 2 Samuel begins by highlighting the death of Saul and reminding the reader that the narrative of conquest and struggle for power in 1 Samuel continues here. David's reign as the next king becomes the central focus of 2 Samuel. He eliminates his rivals, principally from the house of Saul, establishes a capital in Jerusalem, and subdues external enemies. There is a great deal of bloodshed both preceding and following David's rise to power. Still, David emerges from these battles initially as a strong ruler of a unified nation, centered on a royal city that celebrates the blessings of God.
David's personal life looms large throughout these stories, ever present as a potential threat to his successes. David is one who is willing to go to extremes in order to achieve his heart's desire: murder, adultery, deception, and betrayal are means to an end for this king and warrior. But as the personal life of David unravels, so too does the monarchy itself. Following sexual transgressions and familial violence and betrayal in the House of David, Jerusalem becomes dangerous, and David is forced into exile. In his son Absalom's rebellion and revolt, David experiences the threat of another charismatic leader, thereby reliving the trauma experienced by Saul at the start of David's career as a king. Unlike the preceding stories of succession and military triumphs, however, the future of the monarchy is not determined by battles won. Rather, survival is the single most important factor in determining the heir to the throne, and it is Solomon, not Absalom, who ultimately survives.
At the conclusion of 2 Samuel, there is some moral resolution: David takes responsibility for the suffering of his people, and the monarchy, after a tumultuous beginning, becomes strong.
The books of Kings are so named because they recount 400 years of Israelite history through its kings—from David's final years to the Babylonian exile, from approximately 970 to 586 b.c.e. In the original Hebrew both books of Kings were one book, called "The Book of Kings." It was broken into two parts by the Greek translators of the Septuagint, and this division was adopted in all later Christian and Jewish Bibles.
The narrative falls into three parts: (1) the reign of Solomon and the undivided kingdom at the height of its power; (2) a parallel account of the two divided kingdoms, Judah and Israel, until the Babylonian exile; and (3) the history of the Kingdom of Judah until the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the captivity of the people. (For a list of the kings and the dates of their reigns, see "Chronology of the Monarchies" near the end of this book).
The books of Kings are so named because they recount 400 years of Israelite history through its kings—from David's final years to the Babylonian exile, from approximately 970 to 586 b.c.e. In the original Hebrew both books of Kings were one book, called "The Book of Kings." It was broken into two parts by the Greek translators of the Septuagint, and this division was adopted in all later Christian and Jewish Bibles.
The narrative falls into three parts: (1) the reign of Solomon and the undivided kingdom at the height of its power; (2) a parallel account of the two divided kingdoms, Judah and Israel, until the Babylonian exile; and (3) the history of the Kingdom of Judah until the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the captivity of the people. (For a list of the kings and the dates of their reigns, see "Chronology of the Monarchies" near the end of this book).
The prophet Isaiah's name, meaning "God is salvation," serves as the title of the book.Isaiah son of Amoz is called to prophesy in the year that King Uzziah dies (ca. 740 b.c.e. and continues his work at least until 701 b.c.e Ofhis personal history we know little. His wife, "the prophetess," and his sons, whose names bear witness to his prophetic announcements, are mentioned. He has access to the kings of his time (Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah).
The era in which he prophesies is critical. The state of the nation is somber, as described by Amos, who lived somewhat earlier, as well as by Isaiah himself and the prophets Hosea and Micah. Luxury, oppression, idolatry, immorality, vain confidence in humankind, and lack of confidence in God, together with zealous attendance to the ceremonials of religious worship are the characteristics of both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Assyria enters into a period of its greatest power and expansion, and Syria and Palestine are exposed to its severity. The Israelites' nearest neighbors also suffer from the Assyrian advance. The destinies of all these kingdoms are touched upon by Isaiah, though the Israelites are foremost in Isaiah's thoughts. In every victory and defeat, Isaiah sees divine intention and intervention.
Isaiah consists of two distinct parts: chapters 1—39 and chapters 40—66. The first closes with the narratives derived from 2 Kings and records the events of the last great period of Isaiah's career. The second part never mentions Isaiah and seems to have nothing to do with him.
Isaiah 1—39 is a combination of various collections of prophecies and prophetic narratives mostly belonging to the age of Isaiah. They do not all purport to have been written by Isaiah, but it is Isaiah himself who records his call to prophecy, as well as certain other experiences of his earlier life. Later parts of this section read like a narrative about the prophet written by someone else. Some of the prophecies in this first half of the book of Isaiah predict the fall of Israel to Assyria. But Isaiah predicts that Israel and the holy city of Jerusalem will be restored and that a just and pious Judean king from the line of David will rule Israel.
Isaiah 40—66 focuses on the salvation of Israel, on the people's release from exile in Babylonia to return to the Land of Israel. It prophesies that there will be peace on earth, with all people under one God, the end of paganism. The author, or more likely authors, of these chapters are not known and are often referred to as Deutero-Isaiah, or Second Isaiah, and Trito-Isaiah, or Third Isaiah.
As the title suggests, the main character of this book is the prophet Jeremiah. His name in Hebrew means "God will rise."In Jeremiah's most famous confrontation with authority, he threatens the king: "I will hurl you out of this land to a land that neither you nor your fathers have known . . ." (16:13), a prophecy that includes a possible pun on another translation of Jeremiah's name, "God shoots or hurls."
Jeremiah is the son of Hilkiah and a priest of the Priestly city of Anathoth, three miles north of Jerusalem. He is called to prophesy when still a youth, in the 13th year of King Josiah (ca. 626 <SC>b.c.e.<sc>), and he continues to prophesy in Jerusalem and in other cities of Judah for 40 years, until the final capture of the city (586 <SC>b.c.e.<sc>). After the capture, he warns the people at Mizpah and their governor Gedaliah against going down to Egypt, but he is nonetheless carried there against his will by his countrymen, where he protests against their idolatry until the end. Some believe he was murdered in Egypt by those angered by his prophecies. There is no reliable record of his death; he may have died at Tahpanes or, according to a tradition, may have gone to Babylon with Nebuchadnezzar's army.
According to a narrative found within Jeremiah, more than 20 years after his call to prophesy Jeremiah is directed to prepare a book of his prophesy. He does this, but the book is destroyed by King Jehoiakim. Jeremiah writes another book, and it is portions of this book that most likely survive in Jeremiah 1—25. The majority of the poems and narratives in these chapters are told in the first person and have a character of their own, which distinguishes them from the rest of Jeremiah. Chapters 26—45 consist mainly of narratives about the prophet and his life before 604 <SC>b.c.e.<sc> and are thought by most scholars to be mainly the work of his disciple Baruch. The third part of Jeremiah consists of a collection of prophecies concerning foreign nations; scholars say that there are uncanny similarities and overlaps between this section of Jeremiah and portions of 2 Kings.
Although Jeremiah struggles to understand and come to terms with the horror of the destruction of the Temple and banishment from the Land, he looks to a time when the Temple will be rebuilt and his people will return to Jerusalem, praising God, "for the L<SC>ord<sc> is good, for His kindness is everlasting!" (33:11).
Ezekiel is a prophet whose name means "God strengthens." He is the son of Buzi and of Priestly descent through the House of Zadok. He is taken away with King Jehoiachin at the time of Nebuchadnezzar's second attack on Jerusalem and settles with a Jewish colony on the banks of the river Chebar in Babylonia, where he sees visions. He continues to prophesy for 22 years, beginning five years after he goes into captivity.
The first part of Ezekiel contains prophecies uttered before the destruction of Jerusalem to caution the people against the false hope of relief from their suffering in Egypt and to exhort them to repent for their unfaithfulness to God. It includes Ezekiel's call to prophecy, the general carrying out of his commission, the rejection of the people because of their idolatry, the sins of the age in detail, the nature of the judgment, and the guilt that caused it.
The second section announces God's judgments on the seven heathen nations—Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt—and is largely written between the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar's siege of Jerusalem and the news of its fall. It also foretells the re-creation of the Land of Israel and of its people andcontains a detailed vision of the restored Temple, Jerusalem, and nation.
The book is named after the prophet Hosea, whose name means "God has saved." Hosea is of the Northern Kingdom. He begins to prophesy toward the close of the reign of Jeroboam II (before the overthrow of the House of Jehu) and continues to do so during the anarchic period of the kings that follows. In spite of the external prosperity of the reign of Jeroboam II, there are corrupting influences that assert themselves during the anarchy following his death. The kings are recklessly wasteful; the priests fail to teach the knowledge of God, and moral standards plummet; God is forgotten, and the rulers are forced to look to Assyria or to Egypt for help in their misfortunes.
The opening chapters give us the key to the imagery that colors all of the prophet's language thereafter. The unfaithfulness of Hosea's wife, who has borne him two sons and one daughter, is used as a symbol of the idolatry of the nation in the sight of God. Degraded as she is, so " . . . the Israelites shall go a long time without king and without officials, without sacrifice and without cult pillars, and without ephod and teraphim. Afterward, the Israelites will turn back and will seek the Lordtheir God . . ." (3:4—5).
The second part of Hosea consists, under the most vivid imagery, of accusations against the Israelites for their sins, which the prophet denounces unsparingly: their dishonesty, idolatry, distrust of God, and unwillingness to return to God. But it concludes with a hope for Israel's returning to God's favor through repentance.
The prophet Joel, whose name means "Adonai/Lord God is God," isthe son of Pethuel and prophesies at a time not directly stated in the book or elsewhere.
In the opening chapters, Joel describes an impending visitation of locusts and drought, which may represent the threat of invasions. He exhorts the people of Judah to repent, fast, and pray to avert these calamities. He then promises a blessing in their stead, declaring that while there will be a judgment of the heathen in the Valley of Jehoshaphat and Edom and that Egypt will be wasted, Judah will be blessed.
The book is named after the prophet Hosea, whose name means "God has saved." Hosea is of the Northern Kingdom. He begins to prophesy toward the close of the reign of Jeroboam II (before the overthrow of the House of Jehu) and continues to do so during the anarchic period of the kings that follows. In spite of the external prosperity of the reign of Jeroboam II, there are corrupting influences that assert themselves during the anarchy following his death. The kings are recklessly wasteful; the priests fail to teach the knowledge of God, and moral standards plummet; God is forgotten, and the rulers are forced to look to Assyria or to Egypt for help in their misfortunes.
The opening chapters give us the key to the imagery that colors all of the prophet's language thereafter. The unfaithfulness of Hosea's wife, who has borne him two sons and one daughter, is used as a symbol of the idolatry of the nation in the sight of God. Degraded as she is, so " . . . the Israelites shall go a long time without king and without officials, without sacrifice and without cult pillars, and without ephod and teraphim. Afterward, the Israelites will turn back and will seek the Lordtheir God . . ." (3:4—5).
The second part of Hosea consists, under the most vivid imagery, of accusations against the Israelites for their sins, which the prophet denounces unsparingly: their dishonesty, idolatry, distrust of God, and unwillingness to return to God. But it concludes with a hope for Israel's returning to God's favor through repentance.
The prophet Amos, whose name is a derivative of the word that means "to bear a burden," is a native of Tekoa in Judah, about 12 miles from Jerusalem, a "cattle breeder and a tender of sycamore figs" (7:14). Like many of the other biblical prophets, Amos was not an official or professional prophet, but someone who suddenly felt called by God. The imagery of his visions is full of country life; he writes about the "lion roar in the forest" (3:4); the shepherd rescuing "from the lion's jaws, / Two shank bones or the tip of an ear . . ." (3:12); the "bird drop on the ground—in a trap— / With no snare there" (3:5); "blight and mildew" (4:9); the "fish baskets" (4:2); "the rain from you, / Three months before harvesttime" (4:7); dangers from "a lion" and "a bear" (5:19); "the king's reaping" (7:1) and "the late-sown crops" (7:1); "shakes [sand] in a sieve" (9:9); "the plowman shall meet the reaper, / And the treader of grapes" (9:13); "a wagon is slowed, / When it is full of cut grain" (2:13). The prophet also shows knowledge of the great historical movements not only of his own nation, but of other nations as well.
In the reign of Jeroboam II, king of the Israelites, and Uzziah, king of Judah, Amos is sent to Bethel to prophesy against the Israelites. His prophecies include an announcement of the coming of a day, when, captured by the Assyrian invaders, the priest's wife will be reduced to earning her living by infamy; that the priest's sons and daughters will be slain by the sword; that the Israelites will be enslaved; and that the priest himself will die in a polluted land. After delivering his message at Bethel in rebuke of the people's vices (extreme luxury, revelry, and debauchery, combined with cruelty and oppression of the poor), however, he delivers a final message of comfort and hope to the Israelites.
The name of Obadiah the prophet means "worshiper of God." We know nothing of his personal history
A considerable part of this brief book reappears in Jeremiah, and it is not clear which was written first, which of the two prophets repeats the denunciations of the other. The prophecy contains two parts: the first is the denunciation of Edom, sketching its punishment and the sins of the people that led to that punishment; the second predicts the future restoration of the Israelites, who, after their return, should possess the land of Edom and Philistia and rejoice in the establishment of the kingdom of God.
The prophet Jonah's name means "dove." Jonah is the son of Amittai, who was born at Gath-hepher, a village in Zebulun.
This book, unlike those with which it is grouped, is not a book of prophecies, but rather a story about a prophet. Jonah is commissioned to proceed to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, which is a city of sinners. Being an unwilling prophet (and believing the people of Nineveh to be beyond salvation), Jonah refuses and hastens to Joppa, where he boards a ship set for Tarshish. A furious storm arises, and at his own request, the mariners fling him into the sea. Here a great fish swallows him, and he remains in its belly three days and three nights. He prays earnestly, and the fish casts him out onto the land. Bidden a second time to go to Nineveh, he dares not disobey, and once there he proclaims his message: that in 40 days, Nineveh shall be overthrown. Hearing this, the king and people of Nineveh repent, their penitence is accepted, and they are saved from impending doom. Disappointed and angry, the prophet sits in a booth of woven boughs outside the city, waiting in vain for the judgment he had denounced. The book closes with an exhibition of Jonah's petulance and God's tender mercy even toward the sinners of Nineveh.
The prophet Micah, whose name means "who is like (unto God?)," was a native of Moresheth-gath, in Judah. He prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, during the late 8th and early 7th centuries <SC>b.c.e.<sc> He is contemporary with Isaiah, and in much the same style as Isaiah, Micah rebukes those who are corrupt, including wealthy landowners and the "chiefs of the House of Israel" (3:1).
The prophecies in Micah fall into three sections, each opening with a call to listen to God's message. In the first three chapters, a threatening tone dominates. Micah proclaims that the immoral and the false prophets are heading for disaster and ruin and that Jerusalem will be destroyed. In the next section, the tone and contents shift abruptly: restoration of Zion and of its Temple and its people are promised. In the final section, the sins of the past are recounted, followed by instructions for reform. Micah promises God's forgiveness and the restoration of the nation of God.
The prophet Nahum, whose name means "consoler,"was a native of Elkosh. It is not known when he lived, and scholars are not certain when in the 7th century <SC>b.c.e.<sc> the book was written. Nahum may have been the son of an Israelite captive. Those who believe so say it is because the prophet could not have described the doom of Nineveh in language so pictorially vivid if he had not drawn the scenes from personal observation, and they point to the interspersion of Assyrian words in his writing as indication that Assyria was the scene of his prophecies.
Nahum comes to the people in order to console them and to foretell the overthrow of Assyria. Unlike many of the other prophets, his prophecy is devoted to a single theme: the coming destruction of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Assyria had long been dominant in this region, and for the past century Judah had suffered severely as a result of the harsh Assyrian rule. Nahum hardly speaks directly about Judah; rather, his words simply predict the downfall of its enemy.
Nineveh is notorious for brutal violence, cruelty, and bloodshed, as well as blasphemy and hostility against God. Nahum pronounces that its destruction is near and will be swift and complete. There are three very distinct predictions: (1) a general description of God sitting in judgment; (2) the certain fall of Nineveh, with a vivid picture of the siege and sack of the city, aided by the sudden inundation of the Tigris River; and (3) Nineveh's utter destruction and desolation, a desolation so complete that the city vanishes entirely from view, and Alexander can march over it.
Habakkuk "Habakkuk" is an ambiguous Hebrew name, which might come from the same root as the modern Hebrew word hibbuk,which means "close embrace."We know nothing of the prophet himself, but from the musical directions attached to chapter 3 of Habakkuk, a psalm, "For the leader; with instrumental music" (3:19), some conjecture that he is a Levite.
Writing after the great reformation in the days of Josiah, Habakkuk has to sustain hope and teach patience under difficult circumstances. Neither sincere repentance, nor earnest turning to God and the removal of the "high places" (referring to practices of idolatry), nor the great national fast removes the threat of invasion of the Kingdom of Judah by the Chaldeans. Thus the suffering of the chosen people of God from cruel, ruthless oppressors, ". . . / Fleeter than wolves of the steppe" (1:8), seems like a mysterious trial.
In chapter 1, the prophet appeals to God and asks how long the people will suffer. Habakkuk then describes the fierceness of the Chaldeans, and he stands upon his watch and waits for an answer. While he is told that "the righteous man is rewarded with life / For his fidelity" (2:4). Habakkuk is also assured that the suffering shall be removed and the oppressor shall perish. Then, a series of "woes" follow, and Habakkuk breaks into a note of prayer, which introduces the great hymn of faith, recounting the miraculous deliverances of old as indication of future redemption from suffering.
"Habakkuk" is an ambiguous Hebrew name, which might come from the same root as the modern Hebrew word hibbuk,which means "close embrace."We know nothing of the prophet himself, but from the musical directions attached to chapter 3 of Habakkuk, a psalm, "For the leader; with instrumental music" (3:19), some conjecture that he is a Levite.
Writing after the great reformation in the days of Josiah, Habakkuk has to sustain hope and teach patience under difficult circumstances. Neither sincere repentance, nor earnest turning to God and the removal of the "high places" (referring to practices of idolatry), nor the great national fast removes the threat of invasion of the Kingdom of Judah by the Chaldeans. Thus the suffering of the chosen people of God from cruel, ruthless oppressors, ". . . / Fleeter than wolves of the steppe" (1:8), seems like a mysterious trial.
In chapter 1, the prophet appeals to God and asks how long the people will suffer. Habakkuk then describes the fierceness of the Chaldeans, and he stands upon his watch and waits for an answer. While he is told that "the righteous man is rewarded with life / For his fidelity" (2:4). Habakkuk is also assured that the suffering shall be removed and the oppressor shall perish. Then, a series of "woes" follow, and Habakkuk breaks into a note of prayer, which introduces the great hymn of faith, recounting the miraculous deliverances of old as indication of future redemption from suffering.
The prophet Zephaniah, whose name means "God has hidden," was the son of Cushi and the great-grandson of Hezekiah; he tells us himself that he prophesies "during the reign of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah" (1:1), in the late 7th century b.c.e. The date of his prophecy was at about the time of Jeremiah's call, before Josiah's reformation suppressed worship to the god Baal, which Zephaniah denounces.
The prophecy of Zephaniah begins with a harsh denunciation of the idolatry of Judah and a description of God's judgment day. It continues with a call to repent and escape the punishment that is to fall on the Philistines, Moab, Ammon, Ethiopia, and Nineveh. It concludes with promises that the day of Zion's restoration will come and the judgment of wicked nations will end.
The prophet Haggai, whose name comes from the Hebrew word meaning "festive," is the first of the prophets after the Babylonian exile. He was a contemporary of Zerubbabel; of Joshua, who led those who returned from Babylon; and of the prophet Zechariah, with whom he is mentioned in Ezra.
Haggai was inspired by God to rouse the people to support Zerubbabel and Joshua in building the Temple. His prophecies consist of two chapters, and they were all delivered in the second year of Darius Hystaspes, very probably spoken directly to the people at the festivals of the New Moon and of the Feast of Tabernacles, which is the season of the autumn rains. Haggai's prophesies all aim to scold the people for their lethargy and encourage them to complete the Temple.
The book begins by rebuking the apathy of the people for not devoting themselves in earnest to restoring the Temple and for listening to those who tried to persuade them that the time is not opportune for such work. Haggai's words are persuasive, and the people resume the rebuilding of the Temple. Haggai encourages them with the assurance that the glory of the rebuilt Temple will be greater than that of the former. Then he promises them that from the day they begin the restoration in earnest, the harvests will become more plentiful and the years of drought and famine will change into blessings. Finally, Haggai's words contain a special word of encouragement for Zerubbabel.
The prophet Zechariah, whose name means "God has remembered," is the son of Berechiah and grandson of Iddo, who is the head of one of the Priestly houses. A contemporary of Haggai, he begins to prophesy two months after Haggai's first prophecy and continues for two years.
Like Haggai, Zechariah's goal is to rouse the people from their lethargy, but his style is very different. In a series of night visions received during the rebuilding of the Temple, he seeks to ignite in the people a national enthusiasm for the great work.
This book, the longest of the Minor Prophets, consists of two distinct parts: the first contains Zechariah's prophecies and visions, and the second contains anonymous prophecies. Zechariah's prophecies and visions include a call to repentance and a series of visions. It concludes with a command to make a crown for "the Branch" (King David's lineage). After the last vision, there is a two-year pause in Zechariah's prophetic activity, but in the fourth year of King Darius, the word of God again comes to him. Certain people ask a question about continuing to fast as they had done in the past, as Chaldeans set fire to Jerusalem. It seems ridiculous to them to continue fasting, as they suffer losses and tragedies even as they repent. They long for a prophet to come who might expound upon the nature of a true fast and then convert these fasts into feasts of joy and gladness
The anonymous prophesies at the end of Zechariah present greater difficulties than the rest of the book. Many hold that there are two distinct prophets, while others maintain their connection with the rest of Zechariah. In general, like most prophecy after the exile to Egypt, these chapters are prophecies of promise. Judah, now subject to foreign rulers, is promised its own native king and that it will become supreme, with Jerusalem as the religious center of the world.
The prophet referred to as Malachi, which means "my messenger," was most likely of the Priestly order or had close relations with the Priesthood. Nothing is known of his life including his real name and personal history.Though his book is the last of the prophetic books, he is not the latest prophet whose writings survive. Most scholars agree that Malachi wrote in the period after the Babylonian exile, when Nehemiah is absent for 12 years at the court of Artaxerxes.
After dwelling on the affection of God for Judah, speaking of God as a loving father and ruler of God's people, Malachi rebukes the priests as the leaders of the spiritual defection that he witnesses. Then he rebukes the mixed marriages and also the divorces, evidenced by the deserted wives weeping at the altar. Finally, he predicts the coming of a faithful messenger who will purify the people of their sinful ways. He pleads with them to remember the Torah and to look forward to the coming of Elijah, who will "reconcile parents with children and children with their parents" (3:24).
In Hebrew, Psalms is called "Sefer Tehillim," "the Book of Praises" or simply "Praises." The Greek translated the Hebrew mizmor, meaning a song with musical accompaniment, as psalmos, "psalms," and titled the entire collection "Psalms."
When we speak of "the psalms of David," it is not to imply that all of them were actually written by King David, but rather that they are written in the style of David. Only about half of them are attributed to him; some were attributed to Asaph, Solomon, the sons of Korah, and by others we do not know.
Proverbs opens with the words "The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel" (1:1), from which the abbreviated title in the Hebrew Bible "Mishle" (the proverbs of) originates. Proverbs consists of teachings for everyday life, but they come in numerous literary forms, not just as short proverbs. Wisdom is the highest goal here, and it is viewed as a latent, God-given quality in all people. Thus, divine revelation becomes unnecessary, placing Proverbs in tension with many books in the Torah. The Hebrew word mashal means "to rule" or "to govern,"suggesting that Proverbs are not just wise sayings but rules spanning a broad range of topics that govern life. Just as Psalms is often called "the psalms of David" because David is considered the author of many of them, Proverbs is thought to be connected to Solomon, even though he was most likely not the actual author.
Proverbs is a manual of practical rules for daily life, a book of lessons for all ages and for all men and women. Its preface sets forth the general character of the contents, introducing the value of wisdom and the character of wisdom, a central theme of the book as a whole. The purpose of Proverbs is to teach, not to argue or debate, but to provoke thought by vivid pictures and pithy language.
The title comes from the name of its main character, a righteous man, Job, whose life illustrates the theological question of why "bad things happen to good people." It is uncertain when Job was written, but certain features of its language point to a dating after the Babylonian exile in the 6th century <SC>b.c.e.<sc> In any case, the issues Job raises are timeless and not dependent on a particular date of composition.
Job is a wealthy, God-fearing man living in patriarchal style in the land of Uz. Without warning, he is struck by a succession of calamities and is stripped of his property, his children, and his health—all because God enters into a wager with Satan: Will Job continue to be a faithful servant even if his loved ones and his comforts in life are taken away? The book begins with a prose narrative about the cause and extent of Job's sufferings; it affirms that Job is righteous and that sin is not the cause of his calamities (though this assertion is not known to Job or his mortal friends, only to the omniscient narrator and the reader).
Then prose turns to poetry in the conversationsbetween Job and his friends—musings about the cause of Job's (and more generally, of human) suffering. His friends affirm that the cause is sin, and they exhort Job to repent. Job denies their accusations and claims that he is righteous. Moreover, he asserts that other righteous men such as he suffer, while some wicked men prosper. This conversation consists of a series of speeches: Job's complaint, followed by assertions of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, each being successively answered by Job; another series of speeches by the three friends, and Job's responses; and then a speech by Eliphaz and Bildad, and Job's replies. Finally, another friend, Elihu, argues that sufferings are remedial and for the good of the one afflicted, and Job asserts that he is righteous despite his suffering, and then Elihu replies by again defending God's justice with a magnificent description of God's wonderful works in the world of nature.
Then God, speaking from out of a whirlwind, puts a series of questions to Job, intended to compare the unfathomable wisdom and power of God with the littleness of humankind. The book continues with what some consider a confessionby Job that he had spoken beyond his limited knowledge. Its conclusion, in prose, reaffirms Job's righteousness, condemns the friends for their ungrounded accusations, and tells of the peace and prosperity that Job enjoys for the rest of his life.
The Hebrew title "Shir ha-Shirim," "the Song of Songs," may mean the greatest or sweetest of all songs in the same way that "King of kings" means "Supreme King." The book claims Solomon as its author, which accounts for its being called "Song of Solomon" in most Christian Bibles.
Song of Songs consists in large part of dialogue, words exchanged between two or more people. The theme of the dialogues is love. Two alternative theories of Song of Songs are that it is a drama involving two or three chief characters and that it is a collection of popular Hebrew songs, of a simple dramatic nature.
Ruth is named for its heroine and is set in the times of the judges.
During a period of famine, Elimelech and Naomi leave Bethlehem with their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, to seek a home in the land of Moab. There Elimelech dies, and then his sons, who have married two of the daughters of Moab, Orpah and Ruth, die also. Naomi prepares to return to her native town, and Ruth, who cannot be dissuaded, accompanies her. Reaching Bethlehem, Ruth goes to glean in the fields of Boaz, a wealthy relative of Elimelech. Struck by Ruth's loyalty to her mother-in-law, Naomi, Boaz permits Ruth to share in the harvest set aside for his servants to glean. Naomi urges Ruth to claim kinship with Boaz, who would then be obliged, under the levirate law, to marry her in order to maintain the family line. Boaz first offers a closer relative the opportunity to fulfill this duty, but he refuses, and so Boaz marries Ruth. Through Ruth, Boaz becomes the father of Obed, the grandfather of King David.
The name "Lamentations" comes from the Hebrew word kinot, which is the plural of the term applied to David's funeral song for Saul and Jonathan, considered by many to be the quintessential dirge in biblical literature.
Lamentations is not a single poem, but five distinct poems. Chapter 1 dwells on the desolation and grief of the city; chapter 2 describes its destruction and acknowledges that it is the result of sin. Chapter 3 complains of the bitter cup that God's people have to drink but traces God's mercy in the infliction of their miseries. Chapter 4 describes the horrors of the siege and capture of the city, and the last chapter repeats many of the painful details, concluding with a prayer for deliverance.
The title of this book in Hebrew is "Koheleth" (the assembler), after the book's narrator. The English title, Ecclesiastes, is the ancient Greek rendering of the Hebrew, which means "a member of the assembly." The intention of the title may be to call together an assembly, a group of people, in order to address them on the subject of wisdom. Ecclesiastes, along with Job and Proverbs, is part of the Wisdom Literature of the Bible. (See the chapter "Wisdom Literature.") Ecclesiastes is written in the person of Solomon, son of King David, but many facts point to the book being the work of a writer whose name is unknown, living long after the Babylonian exile, when his people were the subjects of a foreign government, either Persian or Greek.
Koheleth was traditionally identified with King Solomon, but scholars today do not regard Solomon as the author. It is significant that the speaker is not called Solomon by name, as he could have been if the author had wished to actually identify him with that king. Koheleth speaks as king only once (1:12—2:26); elsewhere he speaks as a non-royal sage, one who blames the government for injustices (5:8), and the epilogue (12:9—14) makes no mention of Koheleth's royal station. Koheleth is a literary figure, not a historical one, who is given the Solomon-like blessings of power, wealth, and wisdom to qualify him to examine the true value of those assets.
Ecclesiastes consists in the main of reflections upon and illustrations of the complete vanity of life. According to Ecclesiastes, people can get nothing new or satisfying out of all of their toil. The fate of humankind is not determined by their conduct in this life, and there is no life beyond death for humans any more than there is for beasts: the righteous may meet with calamity, the unrighteous with prosperity.
Mingled with such reflections are others that contradict them: the certainty of a judgment that distinguishes the righteous from the unrighteous and that we should fear God. This combination of opposing viewpoints in the same book has been be explained by some as the work of a single writer presenting the conflict between a higher and a lower self, and by others as the work of one writer whose words were added to by another.
In addition, there is no single genre in Ecclesiastes: the work is a mixture of poetry and prose. The whole of Ecclesiastes seems to imply a diversity of opinions and rhetorical styles on each topic it addresses.
The title of the book comes from the name of the main heroine, Esther. It is either from the Persian word for "star" or the name of the Babylonian goddess Ishtar, even though we are told that Esther's Hebrew name is Hadassah, meaning "myrtle." She is selected, in place of Queen Vashti, to become the favorite wife of the Persian king.
Esther's cousin, the Jew Mordecai, who "sat in the palace gate" (2:19), discovers that the eunuchs are planning to assassinate the king. He divulges this information, thereby saving the king's life, and the record of his services is entered in the royal chronicles. But he has a rival for the royal favor: Haman, an Agagite, a descendant of the ancient Amalekite kings. Haman, jealous of Mordecai, forms a plot for the wholesale destruction of the Jewish exiles, especially when he learns that Mordecai refuses to bow down to him.
Mordecai discovers Haman's plans to destroy the Jews and informs Esther. She puts her life at risk, interceding with the king on behalf of the Jews, and Haman is hanged on the very gallows he had designed for Mordecai, while Mordecai is advanced to high honor in the Persian court.
The Jews, saved from peril themselves, make a great slaughter of their enemies, and thereafter celebrate their victory on the holiday of Purim.
Daniel was a Jew in exile in Babylon in the 5th century b.c.e. He was recognized by the rulers there as "intelligent and proficient in all writings and wisdom without blemish, handsome, proficient in all wisdom, knowledgeable and intelligent, and capable of serving in the royal palace" (1:17) and also for his ability to interpret dreams and decipher messages in strange writings. Because of these abilities he was appointed one of the three highest officials in the land. Daniel is at the center of the stories in the first half of the book and is the visionary in the second half.
The first part of Daniel, chapters 1—6, is in many ways linked to the second, chapters 7—12: The first section contains in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream an apocalyptic element, while the second contains Daniel's visions of disastrous events, of apocalypse. Both parts are written partly in Aramaic, partly in Hebrew. That is, Daniel 1:1—2:4a is in Hebrew, then 2:4b—7:28 is in Aramaic. Chapters 8—12 switch back to Hebrew.
The most well-known of the stories is of Daniel in the lions' den. Officials in the court of the Persian ruler Darius, jealous of Daniel, arrange for Darius to forbid the worship of any gods. Daniel, faithful to God, ignores the ordinance and continues to pray, and for this he is arrested and thrown into a den of lions. But he is not killed by the lions, for God protects him. When Darius sees this, he is in awe of God and reverses his order; now all must worship Daniel's god.
Ezra, whose name means "help,"is the son of Seraiah and was probably born in Babylon. He is a scribe who went to Jerusalem with a later group of returning Jewish exiles.
Ezra consists of two sections, with a considerable interval of time between the writing of the two. The first is an account of the return of the Jews from Babylon at the beginning of the reign of Cyrus, 538 <SC>b.c.e.<sc>, and of the rebuilding of the Temple. The second, which takes place more than half a century later, tells of the second return of exiles in the seventh year of Artaxerxes (457 B.C.E.), led by Ezra. The entire period covered by the book extends over 79 years.
Some scholars contend that Ezra may have originally been part of a larger work, along with Nehemiah and Chronicles, but Ezra appears to contain within it practically unaltered extracts from memoirs written by Ezra himself, plus other sections from his memoirs modified by the editor.
Nehemiah means "God comforts." The son of Hacaliah of Judah, he is among the Jews exiled to Babylon. After the Babylonian Empire falls to the Persians, Nehemiah becomes the royal cup-bearer in the palace of the Persian king Artaxerxes, and upon the Jews' return from exile, he is made the civil governor of Jerusalem, whhere Ezra is High Priest.
The books of Nehemiah and Ezra are very closely linked, and although recent scholarship questions it, some scholars speculate that they were once one unified work, written by Ezra. These two books are the only ones in the Bible that contain memoirs.
Nehemiah and Ezra have a common goal: to renew their community with a rebuilt Temple and rededication to the laws of God. When Nehemiah hears of the deplorable condition of Jerusalem and of the residents in Judah, he is filled with sorrow and prays to God. God opens the heart of Artaxerxes to give Nehemiah a commission to rebuild the walls of his ancestral city. (Zerubbabel had previously rebuilt the Temple, but not the city walls.) Many oppose Nehemiah's work, but he prevails, calling upon everyone in the city, of every rank and order, to work with him night and day, and in 52 days the wall is complete.
After holding the position of governor of Jerusalem, Nehemiah returns to the court of Artaxerxes. During this absence, the residents of Jerusalem stray from the Law, and when he is informed of this, Nehemiah once more leaves the Persian court for Jerusalem, so that he can put down abuses, restore the holiness of the Sabbath, denounce mixed marriages, and lead a second reformation.
Large parts of Nehemiah are told in the first person and may be extracts from memoirs written by Nehemiah himself or perhaps based on his memoirs. In other sections, both Ezra and Nehemiah are referred to in the third person, though the narrative may be based on the memoirs of Ezra.
1 and 2 Chronicles are one work in the Hebrew, "The Acts [or Annals] of the Days,"from which comes the title "Chronicles." As mentioned earlier in this section, until recently, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah were all thought to have originally been one book; today modern scholars believe that they were separate books but that the writer of Chronicles, referred to as "the Chronicler," had read Ezra and Nehemiah and was influenced by them.
1 and 2 Chronicles, the last books of the Bible, tell the history of the Temple and its Priesthood, emphasizing its centrality to religious continuity. They also describe the House of David and the tribe of Judah, guardians of the Temple, and stating the case for their importance in Jewish history.
The books are naturally divided into four parts. The first consists of genealogies from Adam: the line from Adam to Abraham; from Judah to Elishama;the kingly line of David through Zerubbabel; priests to the Babylonian exile; and the three leading families of singers, one of which is the line of Samuel. The second part tells the history of David and isremarkable both for its omissions of the narrative that is found in 1 and 2 Kings and for many new facts not given in those biblical books. The third part contains the reign of Solomon, and the fourth recounts the history of the kings of Judah up to the exile.
1 and 2 Chronicles are one work in the Hebrew, "The Acts [or Annals] of the Days,"from which comes the title "Chronicles." As mentioned earlier in this section, until recently, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah were all thought to have originally been one book; today modern scholars believe that they were separate books but that the writer of Chronicles, referred to as "the Chronicler," had read Ezra and Nehemiah and was influenced by them.
1 and 2 Chronicles, the last books of the Bible, tell the history of the Temple and its Priesthood, emphasizing its centrality to religious continuity. They also describe the House of David and the tribe of Judah, guardians of the Temple, and stating the case for their importance in Jewish history.
The books are naturally divided into four parts. The first consists of genealogies from Adam: the line from Adam to Abraham; from Judah to Elishama;the kingly line of David through Zerubbabel; priests to the Babylonian exile; and the three leading families of singers, one of which is the line of Samuel. The second part tells the history of David and isremarkable both for its omissions of the narrative that is found in 1 and 2 Kings and for many new facts not given in those biblical books. The third part contains the reign of Solomon, and the fourth recounts the history of the kings of Judah up to the exile.
Does anyone know what this custom means and where it comes from? Thanks, T.J.
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