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Essential Question
0Why is the
Hebrew Scripture
important to not
only the Jews but
also to Christians
as well?
I CAN:
1. Discover the organization of the Hebrew
Scriptures
2. Explain important themes and literary
devices in the Hebrew Scriptures
3. Evaluate the Jewish tradition of Biblical
Interpretation
4. Analyze the role of the Tanakh in Jewish and
in Christian Life
Organization of the
Jewish Bible
0Broken into
three different
sections:
1.Torah
2.Nevi’im
3.Ketuvim
1) Torah
0 First five books of the
Hebrew Scripture
0 From the Hebrew word
“teaching”
0 Greek word Pentateuch
meaning “five parts”
0 Central teachings and laws
of Judaism
0 In geologies has word
“begat” which means “was
the ancestor of”
2) Nevi’im
0 Second part of
Hebrew Scriptures;
from the word
“Prophets”
0 Within Israel,
prophets were the
ones who spoke on
behalf of God.
3) Ketuvim
0 Third and Final part
of Hebrew Scripture;
means “writings”
0 These books include
many different writing
themes and literary
forms such as: prayers,
poetry, and wise
sayings.
Hebrew Scriptures
0 The whole Hebrew
Scriptures is known as the
Tanakh (made up of initial
sounds of the Hebrew
words Torah, Nevi’im, and
Ketuvim
0 All share one consistent
theme: the relationship
between God and humans,
especially the people of
biblical Israel
How Jews Read the Hebrew
Scriptures
1. Plain Sense- (peshat) looks to
the surface and meaning of
text or words
2. Inquiring- (derash) looks
deeper into the meaning, such
as rabbi or minister
3. Allegorical- (remez) looks for
parallels between the
scriptural text and more
abstract concepts
4. Mystical- (sod) biblical text as
symbolic code that can bring
hidden wisdom and personal
connections
Christians and the Hebrew
Scriptures
0 Believe that the Hebrew
Scriptures point to Jesus
Christ and a new
covenant established
and recorded in the
New Testament
0 Some call it Old
Testament, while others
call it Hebrew
Scriptures
The Name of God
0 Names carry enormous power
within Hebrew tradition
0 Exodus 3:15- personal name
of God revealed and is the
most powerful and sacred of
all
0 Christians translate it as
Yahweh
0 Tetragrammation- four
letters (YHWH) that make
up the personal name of
God
Name of God Cont.
0 It was to only be spoken in
the holy of holies, Hebrews
substituted its name for
Adonai (Lord)
0 Jehovah- vowel sounds of
Adonai and consonants of
Yahweh
0 Some religious people spell
out G-d so as not to desecrate
his name
Other Hebrew Writings
0 Talmud- comprises both
the Mishnah and Gemara,
both oral law and later
elaborations and
commentaries
0 Midrash- A creative
interpretation or
exposition of the
meaning of a biblical text
Midrash
Hebrew Scriptures in Jewish
and Christian Life
0 Deuteronomy 6: 4-9- Moses’s
farewell address, sum up the
centrality of Hebrew
Scriptures in Jewish identity,
faith and daily life.
0 Jesus was a Jew
0 Most Christian liturgies
(structured public worship)
read from Hebrew texts and
sing portion of psalms
0 Follow the Ten
Commandments