Designed for students with little or no knowledge of the Old Testament, this text provides complete background detail as it follows the story told by the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible. Examines the separate biblical books and illustrates the literary structure of each of the books of the Protestant Christian Old Testament/Hebrew Bible.  

Table of Contents:
The Old Testament Story 8th Edition John H. Tullock Revised by Mark McEntire   Contents Bibliographical Abbreviations xiii Maps xv Preface xvii Acknowledgments xviii   1          The Book and Those Who Study It                                                        1   The Old Testament: What Is It?   2 How It Began   4 How It Developed   6 The Work of Scholars   9 Archaeology as a Tool for Understanding   16 Why Study the Old Testament?   22 Study Questions  23 Endnotes   23   2          The Geographical and Historical Settings for the Old Testament Prior to 1200 B.C.E.                                                                                    25   The Ancient Near East    26 Mesopotamia    27 Asia Minor    29 Egypt    29 Syria-Phoenicia    30 Palestine    32 Study Questions    39 Endnotes    39   3          Israel Looks at the Beginnings                                                               41   The Primeval Complex    42 The Ancestral Complex    52 Genesis in Retrospect    64 Study Questions    65 Endnotes    66   4          Israel Becomes a People: Exodus and Wilderness                           68   The Book of Israel’s Beginnings    70 Moses: Birth and Wilderness Years    71 Moses: The Struggle with the Pharaoh    74 The Exodus Event    80 Sinai and the Giving of the Law    85 After Mount Sinai    96 Themes in the Pentateuch    102 Study Questions    103 Endnotes    104       5          Israel Gains a Home: Joshua and Judges                                           106 Moving into the Promised Land    107 Continuing the Story of Occupation    116 Proposed Models for the Israelite Occupation of Canaan    127 Study Questions    128 Endnotes    129   6          Israel Demands a King: Samuel and Saul                                            131 The Sources for the Story of the Israelite Kingdoms    132 The Story of Samuel    133 The Establishment of Saul’s Kingship (1020—1000 B.C.E.)    139 The Appearance of David    143 Samuel, Saul, and David: A Summary    150 Study Questions    150 Endnotes    151   7          Israel’s Time of Glory: David and Solomon                                         152 David: King Over Judah    153 David: King Over All Israel    154 The Court History of David    156 The Reign of Solomon    165 Study Questions    175 Endnotes    175 A01_TULL2463_08_SE_FM.QXD 1/2/08 5:47 PM Page x Contents xi   8          Israel Becomes Two: The Story of the Northern Kingdom             177 Approaching the Divided-Kingdom Story    178 The Division of the Kingdom    179 The Dynasty of Omri    182 Elijah’s Confrontations with Ahab and Jezebel    186 Jehu to Jeroboam II (842—746 B.C.E.)    193 Israel’s Eighth-Century Prophets: Amos and Hosea    194 The Destruction of the Northern Kingdom    212 Study Questions    212 Endnotes    213   9          Judah: Rehoboam to Hezekiah (922—687 B.C.E.)                              215 Judah After the Division    216 The Eighth-Century Prophets from Judah    218 Study Questions    237 Endnotes    238   10        Judah: Manasseh to Zedekiah and the Exile                                      239 The International Situation    240 The Situation in Judah    240 King Jehoiakim and the Prophets Nahum and Habakkuk    246 The Final Years of Judah and the Prophet Jeremiah    250 Study Questions    270 Endnotes    270     11        The Exile: Judah’s Dark Night of the Soul                                           272 After the Fall of Jerusalem    273 With the Exiles in Babylon    278 The Prophet of the Transition: Ezekiel    280 The Collapse of the Babylonian Empire    297 The Exiles’ Great Unknown Prophet: Isaiah 40—66    298 Study Questions    312 Endnotes    313   12        The Post-Exilic Period: Judah Revived                                                314 The Changing International Situation (538—486 B.C.E.)    315 The Restored Community    315 Ezra and Nehemiah    321 Study Questions    328 Endnotes    328 A01_TULL2463_08_SE_FM.QXD 1/2/08 5:47 PM Page xi xii Contents   13        A Legacy of Israel: Teachers of Wisdom and Singers of Songs   329 The Wisdom Literature    330 Israel Sings Its Faith    352 Study Questions    364 Endnotes    365   14        The Time of Silence: Judah in Eclipse                                      367 The Historical Situation    368 The Maccabean Revolt    369 The Word of the LORD in Difficult Times    370 Study Questions    388 Endnotes    388   15 Epilogue: The Continuing Story                                                                   390 Life in Jewish Communities    391 The Rise of Parties and Sects    392 Literary Activity    394 Judaism’s Oral Tradition    397 The End of the Matter    398 Study Questions    398 Endnotes    399 Glossary 400 For Further Study 409 Comprehensive Chronological Chart 415 Credits 419 Index 421