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1. A brief summary of Israel's Old Testament history

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The Old Testament history of Israel is important to understand future end time events. Israel is God's time piece in which He is carrying out His plan for the ages. This summary will touch on some of the highlights.

This brief summary can be divided up into nine consecutive time periods consisting of the following:

Creation   -  The Patriarchs -  The Exodus  -  Taking the Promise Land  -  Judges  - Israel United  -  Israel Divided -  Israel in Captivity -  Israel's Return

1. God's creation (time period) - Genesis Ch.1-11
Some highlights of:  

God creates the universe - God creates Adam and Eve - God institutes marriage
Satan tempts Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve fall into sin
Cain kills his brother Able, Seth is born
Noah, The Ark, The flood
The tower of Babel

2. The Patriarch (time period) - Genesis 12-50  book of Job
Some highlights of:

Abraham - Abraham is the father of the Israelites
Isaac
Jacob – His 4 wives
Leah
Zilpah
Rachael
Bilhah

Their 12 sons - Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issacher, Zebulan, Gad, Ashler, Joseph   
                        Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali

These 12 sons and their families is the beginning of the nation of Israel.

Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers.
He ends up in Egypt, in prison.
Eventually God delivers him and raises him up seated next to the Pharaoh in power.
Joseph forgives his brothers.
He realizes that God worked all things to the good, to save his family.
Because of a great famine, Joseph brings his father Jacob, his brothers, their families and possessions to Egypt; where they settle in the land of Goshen.

The next Pharaoh puts them into slavery for the next 400 years.

 3. The Exodus (time period)- Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
Some highlights of:

Book Exodus - Covers events from being slaves, their deliverance by God thru Moses,
their travel to Mt. Sinai

A few things in Exodus -Egypt slavery for 430yrs - Moses call -   the10 plagues on Egypt

Book Leviticus  - Covers the events as the Israelites camp at Mount Sinai for one year

Three major things that happen.  1.They receive the law  2.The people build a golden calf 3.They receive the plans and build the Tabernacle.

4. Taking the promise land (time period) -  Joshua
Some highlights of:

A.     Israel Invades the land
2 Spies sent in
Jordan river parts and they cross over
All males are circumcised
The Manna stops

B.     Israel conquers the land
Walls of Jericho fall down
Achan’s Sin – stoned to death
Kings and tribes defeated

C.     Israel divides up the land
Land is divided among 12 tribes
Divided by casting lots

5. The Judges (time period)- Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel 1-7
Some highlights of:

Judges  -  Judges were people that God used to bring about spiritual revival as well as wage military campaigns in the defense of Israel.

List of Judges - (12)

Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Barak, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson

Some details of:

Gideon’s son kills 69 of his half brothers.
A man hires his own personal priest.
Tribe of Benjamin is almost wiped out.
Samson kills 1000 Philistine soldiers with jawbones of an donkey
Samson hair is cut by Delilah
Samson dies with many of his enemies

Ruth - Was a Moabite, married to a Jewish man that dies. She returns to Israel with her mother in law Naomi. She believes in the God of Israel and ends up marrying Boaz who is a close relative of Naomi's husband's family. He is therefore obliged by the Levirate law to marry the widow Ruth, in order to carry on his family line. This law was known as the kinsman redeemer. It is a beautiful story of our kinsman redeemer, Jesus Christ.

1 Samuel 1-7 -  Major events in these chapters are:  Samuel is born and becomes Israel's
premier prophet, Saul is anointed by Samuel to be and becomes Israel's first king.

Hannah’s vow to God to have a child.
Samuel is born, Hannah dedicates him to the Lord
Samuel’s call from God when a young boy
Eli and his sons
Ark is taken and returned

6. Israel united (time period)-  1 Samuel 8-31, 1 Kings 1-11, 1 Chronicles 1-9, Psalms,
                                        Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
Some highlights of:

1 Samuel
King Saul is anointed by Samuel to be the first king of Israel. Saul disobeys God and the Lord rejects him as the King. Samuel is sent to Jess's house and anoints a young David to be the next king. David kills a giant named Goliath. Upon hearing the people praise David's accomplishment king Saul in filled with a jealous rage and seeks to kill David; king Saul's son Jonathan, warns David of his father's intent which begins his life on the run.

2 Samuel - David
Some details of:
Becomes king of only Judah, several years later he becomes king over all
the tribes. He sins with Bathsheba, he has her husband killed, his son Absalom revolts.

1 Chronicles 1-9
God gives David plans to build the temple but forbids him to build it. David passes the plans on to his son Solomon, who builds it.
Under king Solomon Israel become a leading nation of the surrounding nations.

Most of Psalms came through David, which is loaded with many of the Messianic verses.
(see chapter 22 for a sample)

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