Why Should I Read the Old Testament?

I always feel apprehension before reading a book in the Old Testament. Some of the passages are quick reads while others have confusing structure and meaning. If you struggle to find focus or excitement when reading an OT book, let me give you some motivation!

​The whole Bible is about Jesus - not just the New Testament. The foreshadowing of Jesus can be seen in, arguably, every chapter of the Old Testament. Some areas of foreshadowing in the OT are easier to spot than others. I use the Jesus Bible to help me see Jesus’ character in the difficult passages.

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To add to the difficulty, any situation resembling Christ always ends up being an imperfect human covered in sin. For example, Moses leading the Israelites from the slavery of Egypt to the freedom of the promised land [Exodus] runs parallel to Jesus leading His followers from the chains of sin to the freedom of salvation. The difference is that Moses was only human, imperfect, and subject to sin. Jesus, in contrast during his ministry on earth, was both fully God and fully man, perfect, and not subject to sin.
​There are memorable and captivating stories to learn from. In the Old Testament, there was a prophet who was cast out of a boat from a storm, was swallowed by a big fish, and then eventually found land where a worm ate his only shelter. The book, however, states that the Lord provided the storm, provided the big fish, and appointed the worm… what’s that about? Read Jonah to see how destruction can actually be provision from God for what we need most. And don’t forget the women with whole books about their stories - Ruth and Esther!

You will read faith-strengthening verses that you’ll want to treasure. Just a few examples for you to look up:

• Numbers 23:19
• Deuteronomy 31:6
• 2 Samuel 7:22
• Ecclesiastes 3
• The wisdom in the book of Proverbs
• The praises of the Lord in the book of Psalms

God can easily work through what you know. The devil knows the Old Testament; don’t think he won’t attack there if the OT is a weak spot for you. Want to be a light for the Lord in the lives of the people around you? Know God’s words! If we seek to understand what life for humans was like without Jesus, we will have a deeper appreciation for His sacrifice for us on the cross. In Matthew 5:17-19 Jesus says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Reading the Old Testament helps you to see that God, who has no beginning and no end (Revelation 1:8), is the same in the Old Testament as He is in the New Testament, as He is now. We learn a lot about the character of God from the NT. We can also learn a lot about His character in the OT. Throughout all of scripture we see how God is sovereign (Matthew 10:29-31), loves His children (John 3:16-17), is slow to anger (Psalm 103:8), is a great provider (Psalm 23:1-3), and keeps His promises (Luke 1:45). Seeing for myself that God is the same in the OT as He is in the NT has helped to strengthen my faith and worship of the Lord.

Two side notes:
1) Not everything a person does in the Old Testament is okay in the eyes of God. Most books in the OT are written as narratives and don’t explicitly point out what is a sin and what isn’t. For example, when you read the story Little Red Riding Hood, does the author explicitly say that the wolf is the antagonist and that when he ate Grandma, it was bad? No, we assume based on context clues and societal norms. For example: in the book of Esther, the king had many wives and Ester was just one of them. The King spared Esther and helped make loopholes for her desire to save the Jews. However, the King is not supposed to be the epitome of Christian living, or even a Christian, for that matter, since Jesus hadn’t come yet.
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2) The people in the Bible were real people with real lives and real cultures. Cultural norms back then were not as they were today. It’s important to use a commentary or a good study Bible to understand what the context and culture are from that time period. For example, measurements were different, currency was different, societal norms were different, and the expectations of women and children were different. These details are super important to know in context for most scriptural passages.

Recommended resource | The Jesus Bible
It is stuffed with devotionals and articles for almost every single chapter in the Bible. Each devotional/article shows how the scriptural passage it refers to points to Jesus. It has absolutely changed the way I read the Bible and see Jesus!

“Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

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