OTHCC Chapter 34: items 661 - 680

The Old Testament in the Heart of the Catholic Church < > All Chapters

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Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy || Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings || >> 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles << Ezra Nehemiah || Tobit* Judith* Esther 1 Maccabees* 2 Maccabees* Job

Psalms

Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Songs Wisdom* Sirach* || Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Baruch* Ezekiel Daniel || Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi

The Old Testament books with a star * are not any more or less important than the others. The star indicates that the Catholic Church definitively professes and knows these books to be part of the sacred writings, the inspired Word of God [cf. CCC 120], but that they are specifically rejected by the Jewish people, and called ''apocryphal'' (of doubtful inspiration) by Protestants.

1 and 2 Chronicles covers the kings from David to the Exile - the same ground covered by 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings. According to many scholars, the basic viewpoint of 1 and 2 Chronicles

a.   is exactly the same as 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings.
b.   is very different from 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings.
c.   slightly differs from 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings.

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1 Chronicles

a.   faithfully records David's sinful lust for Bathsheba.
b.   makes only passing mention of David's sins and difficulties.
c.   portrays David as the perfect model of the ideal king.

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Regarding Solomon's numerous foreign wives and his worship of their false gods, 2 Chronicles

a.   condemns it.
b.   excuses it.
c.   never mentions it.

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Regarding the entire existence and history of the northern kingdom of Israel that separated from the house of David, 1 and 2 Chronicles

a.   condemns it.
b.   excuses it.
c.   never mentions it.

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David is flawed but faithful - David is always faithful. Solomon is wise but eventually unfaithful - Solomon is always wise and worthy. It is important not to fall into traps when comparing Samuel and Kings with Chronicles. Like Samuel and Kings, Chronicles is the true Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit. Chronicles can not be ''less true'' than Samuel or Kings - or vice-versa.

There is no ''real'' Bible hidden in the Vatican that harmonizes and reconciles what seem to us to be differences among the books and passages in our real, true, inspired Bible as it actually exists.

In fact, we may have questions about the Bible that no one on earth - no pope, no bishop, no scholar, no saint - can answer to our satisfaction. This is normal. Scientists in all fields always have questions that they do not know how to answer. The physical world remains true even when men have a question about how it works that they can't answer. >>

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Actually, having questions is better than normal. It is a good thing. If scientists and other scholars had no questions left to answer, the world would be totally boring and there would no longer be any reason for them to go to work in the morning.

Questions about the Bible - even questions no one yet knows the answer to - are normal, and no threat to Catholic faith or to the truth of the Bible. The Bible remains true even when men have a question about its meaning that they can't answer.

If the Holy Spirit has not led the Holy Father and bishops in communion with him to a definite judgment, we have the freedom to do our best with any questions we may have about the Bible - as long as we do not explain away parts of the Bible, call some parts less ''true'' than other parts, or do anything else contrary to the defined true meaning of the Bible or of the Catholic faith. The work of scholars can help us.

Many scholars say that Samuel and Kings were written before and during the Exile, and that Chronicles was written at a later time, after the Exile and after the return to Jerusalem.

They also say that Chronicles was written with a different purpose in mind: to give new hope and a new direction to the people by emphasizing that Israel's earliest kings were truly faithful and good and can be models of faithfulness for the people in the present, and to show that worship under the re-established law in a rebuilt Temple in a rebuilt Jerusalem, under the leadership of the priests, is the key to faithful obedience to the LORD. <<

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The first nine chapters of 1 Chronicles are devoted to

a.   a genealogy from Adam to Abraham to those who return from the Exile.
b.   an account of David's hidden early years in his father's house.
c.   wars between the people of Israel and the surrounding peoples.

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Read 1 Chronicles, 1 Chr 16:1-36, a beautiful canticle of praise to the LORD. The presentations in 1 Chronicles 10-29 are devoted to

a.   David.
b.   Saul.
c.   Solomon.

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Many scholars have stated that 1 and 2 Chronicles emphasize many things that would be important and favorable to

a.   kings of Israel.
b.   priests of the Temple.
c.   slaves of the wealthy.

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Read 1 Chronicles, 1 Chr 10:13-14. Many modern scholars say that this account of the reasons for Saul's downfall is typical of the difference in emphasis between Chronicles and books such as Samuel and Kings in that Chronicles always

a.   carefully preserves memories of both the good and bad points of the person.
b.   presents an absolutely straight-line progression from unfaithfulness to downfall.
c.   refuses to make a judgment about the ultimate meaning of the person's deeds.

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2 Chronicles is an account of the reigns of Solomon and kings after him, and concludes with

a.   the decree of Cyrus that ends the Exile in Babylon.
b.   the destruction of Jerusalem and Exile in Babylon.
c.   the secession of the northern kingdom.

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Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy || Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings || 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles >> Ezra Nehemiah << || Tobit* Judith* Esther 1 Maccabees* 2 Maccabees* Job

Psalms

Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Songs Wisdom* Sirach* || Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Baruch* Ezekiel Daniel || Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi

The Old Testament books with a star * are not any more or less important than the others. The star indicates that the Catholic Church definitively professes and knows these books to be part of the sacred writings, the inspired Word of God [cf. CCC 120], but that they are specifically rejected by the Jewish people, and called ''apocryphal'' (of doubtful inspiration) by Protestants.

The books

Ezra
Nehemiah

occur in that order in the Old Testament. Most scholars think that, historically,

a.   Ezra and Nehemiah were contemporaries.
b.   Ezra came after Nehemiah.
c.   Ezra came before Nehemiah.

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The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are concerned with

a.   the last days of Judah and the destruction of the Temple.
b.   the period of Exile in Babylon and the struggles there.
c.   the re-occupation of Judah and the rebuilding of the Temple.

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Note: Do NOT restate the incorrect answers to this question. Only the correct answer has meaningful content.

Historians tell us that the Jews were citizens of the Persian Empire after the fall of Babylon in 539 BC, until the entire near East (including Judah) came under the control of the Greek leader Alexander the Great. Jews were citizens of the Persian empire for about

a.   200 years.
b.   400 years.
c.   600 years.

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After the Persian king Cyrus defeated the Babylonians, the Jews

a.   did not need permission to re-occupy Judah and rebuild the Temple.
b.   received no permission to re-occupy Judah and rebuild the Temple.
c.   received permission to re-occupy Judah and rebuild the Temple.

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Many scholars think that Ezra and Nehemiah

a.   pay little attention to the restoration of the Temple and its worship.
b.   pay much attention to the restoration of the Temple and its worship.
c.   pay no attention to the restoration of the Temple and its worship.

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Read Ezra 3. Read Nehemiah, Neh 8:1-11. After the Exile, the people of Israel

a.   did not rebuild the Temple but began again to hear and understand the Law.
b.   rebuilt the Temple and began again to hear and understand the Law.
c.   rebuilt the Temple but failed again to hear and understand the Law.

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In the judgment of many scholars, Ezra and Nehemiah emphasize that holiness

a.   involves physical closeness between Jews and non-Jews, but not between Jewish and non-Jewish practices.
b.   involves physical closeness between Jews and non-Jews, and also between Jewish and non-Jewish practices.
c.   must not involve physical closeness between Jews and non-Jews, or between Jewish and non-Jewish practices.

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After the Exile, the people of Israel had a devastated land, no king, no Jerusalem, and no Temple. Most scholars think that there is Old Testament evidence that many Jews preferred to remain in Babylon rather than return to such desolation. They also think that the return happened in waves over a long period, under the dedicated, even heroic, leadership of men such as Ezra and Nehemiah. Ezra is remembered for his restoration of Temple worship and the revival of the law.

Nehemiah is remembered not only for rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, but for rebuilding a sense of unity and common purpose among the returnees. The book of Nehemiah plainly records a returning people beset by internal squabbling and by external enemies on all sides. Many scholars note the humility, political and diplomatic skill, and sheer guts demonstrated by Nehemiah in the face of such difficulties. >>

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According to many scholars, the books of Ezra and Nehemiah emphasize the continuity of post-exilic Jews with pre-exilic Judaism. The books portray Jews returning from Exile, proving that their ancestors came from the land. The Temple is restored and Jerusalem's walls are rebuilt. Worship in the Temple was resumed as in the past. The law of Moses was restored and read to the people.

Also according to many scholars, Ezra and Nehemiah place a great emphasis on physical separation as a key to closeness to God. Both Ezra and Nehemiah are recorded as condemning marriage to foreigners, and of emphasizing practices of worship and of law (such as the Sabbath rest) that set Jews apart from their neighbors. The unity of Israel and its closeness to God is now seen to be more related to Israel's physical separation from its neighbors, and becomes more closely centered in the law and Temple worship.

Many scholars note that there were few other institutions that could have given the people a sense of unity and purpose, since the kingdom of Judah and its kings were effectively gone. <<

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