Questions for 2nd Session - Chapters 4 -6 ( 27 October 2007)

Questions:

Ch 4: The LAWS
1. Distinguish between all the different meanings of 'law' in the Bible.
2. What did you learn that was new to you in ch. 4?
3. What are the differences between Apodictic & Casuistic laws? How does this change the way we interpret some of the OT laws for the contemporary Christian?
4. Why do the OT laws treat women and non-Hebrews so badly?

Ch 5: The Psalms
1. What is the significance of the Psalms as divinely inspired “words about and to God rather than from God.”
2. How do words about God function as God’s Word to us?
3. In your own words, explain the three features of parallelism Old Testament poetry.

Ch 6: Wisdom Literature
1. Define wisdom according tot he Bible.
2. Why did Solomon ask for a wise heart? What would this mean for the Christian leader today?
3. What is the prudential wisdom of Proverbs?
4. What is acrostic ordering in Proverbs and how does it aid memorability?
5. Distinguish between the practical and cynical wisdom of Ecclesiastes.
6. What did I mean by “we mistakenly fall for a love that is less than we had hoped for but more than we bargained for.”

Questions for Introduction & Ch 1-3

Intro:

1. What is a genre and why is it important to establish it when reading any passage of the Bible? What are examples of genres in everyday reading?
2. Why does “Each genre requires us to ask different questions.”?
   

Ch1:

1. What does it mean that the Bible is “the Word of God given through human words in history”?
2. Explain both the differences between exegesis and hermeneutics. How does modern science help us note the difference?
   

Ch2:

1. What are the texts of the LXX, the MT and the DSS?
2. Explain the difference between internal and external evidence in textual criticism?
3. In your own words, explain to a lay person the advantages and disadvantages of Formal equivalence and Functional equivalence in translations?
   

Ch3:

1. Explain the differences between the 3 forms of narratives in the Old Testament.
2. What does it mean that the Hebrew narrator is ‘omniscient’?