Introduction of the Old Testament
The Old Testament is a group of books that make up the bible and is classified differently. These booksdiscusses a wide range of issuesconcerning God, his people, sin among others. Much of the issues arising from the Old Testament tends to delve much on people’s lives with a domination of unifying themes as discussed below.
The giving of a second chance to humankind by God and renewal of broken relationships has been brought out with a lot of consistency in the Old Testament (Matthews 87). It is depicted from theLaw of Moses that our God values peace and is willing to coexist peacefully with His people of Israel by giving them the Ten Commandments. Moreover we have seen God reuniting with the Israelites after sinning through animal sacrifices. The broken relationships are renewed by the blood shed during sacrifices. In the books of Jeremiah, Leviticus and Exodus, Godis assuring his people that He will be their God and they will be his people. This shows God’s readiness to work closely with humankind. The instance where God saves Noah and his family in the Ark also shows that God does not intend to get rid of humankind.
God’s covenant with His people was always a success even in instances where the parties sinned against God. He sees beyond our weaknesses to fulfil His promises just like he did to Abraham even after Abraham’s failure to trust God onseveral occasions. Through him all nations were blessed which depicts the universality of God’s love for humankind as is illustrated in Genesis3; 12 and Genesis 12:3. In 2ndSamuel 7: 8-19, Prophet Nathan is sent to King David to ask him build a House for God and is promised a kingdom that would rule forever. Indeed King David’s kingdom became the most successful in Israel and his son Solomon took the throne as the wisest King although he disobeyed God (Matthews 110). The mosaic covenant as described in the book of Exodus also displays a unifying theme where God clearly shows that He is always faithful to his people and honors His promises as the people of Israel settles in the Promised Land.
Work Cited
Matthews, Victor H. Old Testament Themes. St. Louis, MO: Chalice Press, 2000. Print.