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Old Testament History

Everybody loves a good story. From the storybooks of our childhood to the latest blockbuster movie, a good story has the ability to create drama with words, capturing our attention and imagination. The Bible is full of stories, with some of the best known found in the Old Testament historical books.

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A great way to earn seminary credit! Earn 2 graduate credits for successfully completing this course from either Trinity Evangelical Divinity School or Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

To enroll in the course for academic credit, simply click “Take Course Now” and select “Course [Academic Credit]”.

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Instructors

WOODHOUSE

John Woodhouse

Principal, Moore Theological College (Retired)

John retired as Principal of Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia. He completed degrees from London, Sydney, and Manchester in Divinity and Old Testament Studies. Prior to serving as Principal at Moore Theological, he served as a senior lecturer. He also pastored Christ Church St. Ives for over a decade. John is most known for his work in the difficult task of teaching the Old Testament as Christian Scripture and has written several books, including volumes on 1 and 2 Samuel for the Preaching the Word series.

HELM

David Helm

Lead Pastor, Christ Church (Chicago)

David serves as the lead pastor of Christ Church Chicago and Chairman of the Board of the Charles Simeon Trust, an organization dedicated to the sound preaching of God’s Word. Before that, he served as Lead Pastor in the Hyde Park congregation of Holy Trinity Church. A graduate of Wheaton College, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, David is ordained in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and serves on the council of The Gospel Coalition. For Crossway, he authored 1 & 2 Peter and JudeThe Big Picture Story Bible, and contributed to Preach the Word: Essays on Expository Preaching in Honor of Kent Hughes. He also authored One-to-One Bible Reading for Matthias Media and the 9Marks volume Expositional Preaching.

WILLIAMS

Romell Williams, Jr.

Pastor, Lilydale Progressive Missionary Baptist Church

Romell Williams, Jr., serves as Pastor of The Progression Church (Lilydale Progressive Missionary Baptist) Church in Chicago, Illinois. He was educated at the historical Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois, and is a graduate of Trinity International University. He is a speaker affiliated with Cutting It Straight, the Barnabas Brotherhood Conference, the Issachar Conference, the Bible Exposition Conference, and the Moody Bible Institute. Romell currently serves as the Associate Director of Workshops for the Charles Simeon Trust.

ELOFF

Mervyn Eloff

Rector, St James Church, Kenilworth

Mervyn Eloff is the Rector of St James Church, Kenilworth. Mervyn did his undergraduate studies at the Free State University and the Bible Institute of South Africa and before earning a DTh from the University of StellenboschHe was on staff at St Helen’s Bishopsgate, in London for three years where he worked with Dick Lucas. Mervyn also served as Rector of St Paul’s Church in Stellenbosch and then as a lecturer and as vice-Principal of George Whitefield Theological College in Cape Town. He has contributed to Built upon the Rock: Studies in Matthew’s Gospel (Eerdmans), The Proclamation Bible, and he authored Teaching James and Teaching 1,2,3 John (PT Resources – Christian Focus). His doctoral thesis was titled From the Exile to the Christ: Exile, Restoration and the Theology of Matthew’s Gospel.

RYKEN

Philip G. Ryken

President, Wheaton College

Phil is the president of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. Before that, Phil served as Senior Minister of Tenth Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Philadelphia. He received his Bachelors degree from Wheaton College, his Masters of Divinity from Westminster Theological Seminary and his Doctor of Divinity from Oxford University. He has authored numerous books, including commentaries on 1 Timothy (Reformed Expository Commentary) and Exodus (Preach the Word Series). He also serves as a Council Member of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals and on the council of the Gospel Coalition.

Overview

Everybody loves a good story. From the storybooks of our childhood to the latest blockbuster movie, a good story has ...More
Everybody loves a good story. From the storybooks of our childhood to the latest blockbuster movie, a good story has the ability to create drama with words, capturing our attention and imagination. The Bible is full of stories, with some of the best known found in the Old Testament historical books.
Download Syllabus
Lesson 1

Preaching the Old Testament: Must We?

John WoodhouseWelcome to the Old Testament History course. In his instructions, John Woodhouse teaches us how to handle the stories from the Old Testament. In this first lesson, he makes the case for preaching from Old Testament narratives.
Lesson 2

The Context is the Key

John WoodhouseIn this second lesson, John Woodhouse demonstrates how understanding the context of a text is key to interpreting a text.
Lesson 3

Structure in OT History

David HelmDave Helm explores strategies for discerning the structure of a passage in Old Testament History. The book of Exodus offers helpful examples of both narrative and discourse passages.
Lesson 4

How OT Narratives Work

John WoodhouseIn this fourth lesson, John Woodhouse explores how Old Testament stories work, their unique features and shape.
Lesson 5

Preaching Christ from OT History

David HelmIn this lesson, Dave Helm demonstrates some strategies for preaching Christ from Old Testament history.
Lesson 6

Exposition 1: Exodus 24

Romell Williams, Jr.Listen to Romell Williams, Jr. preach on the importance of God's covenant with his people from Exodus 24.
Lesson 7

Exposition 2: Deuteronomy 20

Mervyn EloffIn this lesson, Mervyn Eloff preaches an exposition on a discourse text within OT History. 
Lesson 8

Exposition 3: 1 Kings 1

Philip G. RykenIn this exposition Phil Ryken preaches against self-exaltation from 1 Kings 1 in his message, "King Me."
Bonus Feature

Women's Exposition: Ruth 1

Carrie SandomIn this lesson Carrie Sandom demonstrates how to teach from an Old Testament story from Ruth 1.
Bonus Feature

Biblical Theology Delivers the Goods

John WoodhouseHow can one legitimately point to Christ from the Old Testament narratives? In this lesson, John Woodhouse begins to explore Biblical Theology and its use for Old Testament stories.
Bonus Feature

Melodic Line of Exodus

David HelmIn this lesson, David Helm goes over some strategies for discerning a melodic line in a biblical book and uses Exodus as an example.
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Course Resources

Here you'll find course documents and other helps for the course that are all available for download.