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→The Old Testament
===The Old Testament===
===The Old Testament===
The Old Testament, or [[Hebrew Bible]] consists of 39 books. "Hebrew" in "[[Hebrew Bible]]" may refer to either the [[Hebrew language]] or to the [[Hebrew people]] who historically used Hebrew as a spoken language, and have continuously used the language in prayer and study, or both.
The Old Testament, or [[Hebrew Bible]] consists of 39 books. "Hebrew" in "[[Hebrew Bible]]" may refer to either the [[Hebrew language]] or to the [[Hebrew people]] who historically used Hebrew as a spoken language, and have continuously used the language in prayer and study, or both.
As used by the Jewish community, the word ''Tanakh'' describes the three parts of the Hebrew Bible: the [[Torah]] ("Teaching/Law" also known as the [[Pentateuch]]), which is also famously known as the first five books of Moses; [[Nevi'im]] ("Prophets"), and [[Ketuvim]] ("Writings,” or [[Hagiographa]]). The arrangment of the books in this way is common within the Jewish community; within the familiar Bibles of the English-speaking world the arrangement differs, however the actual writing of each book does not.
As used by the Jewish community, the word ''Tanakh'' describes the three parts of the Hebrew Bible: the [[Torah]] ("Teaching/Law" also known as the [[Pentateuch]]), which is also famously known as the first five books of Moses; [[Nevi'im]] ("Prophets"), and [[Ketuvim]] ("Writings,” or [[Hagiographa]]). The arrangment of the books in this way is common within the Jewish community; within the familiar Bibles of the English-speaking world the arrangement differs, however the actual writing of each book remains the same.
The books of the Torah, or "Teaching," is also known as the five books of [[Moses]], thus [[Humash|Chumash]] or [[Pentateuch]] (Hebrew and Greek for "five," respectively):
*[[Genesis]]
*[[Exodus]]
*[[Leviticus]]
*[[Numbers]]
*[[Deuteronomy]]
The Torah focuses on three moments in the changing relationship between God and people.
*The first eleven chapters of Genesis provide accounts of the [[Creation (theology)|creation]] (or ordering) of the world, and the history of God's early relationship with humanity.
*The remaining thirty-nine chapters of Genesis provide an account of God's covenant with the Hebrew patriarchs, [[Abraham]], [[Isaac]] and [[Jacob]] (also called [[Israel]]), and Jacob's children (the "[[Children of Israel]]"), especially [[Joseph]]. It tells of how God commanded Abraham to leave his family and home in the city of [[Ur]], eventually to settle in the land of [[Canaan]], and how the Children of Israel later moved to Egypt.
*The remaining four books of the Torah tell the story of [[Moses]], who lived hundreds of years after the patriarchs. His story coincides with the story of the liberation of the Children of Israel from slavery in [[Ancient Egypt]], to the renewal of their covenant with God at [[Mount Sinai]], and their wanderings in the desert until a new generation would be ready to enter the land of Canaan. The Torah ends with the death of Moses.
Traditionally, the Torah contains the [[613 mitzvot]], or commandments, of God, revealed during the passage from slavery in the land of Egypt to freedom in the land of Canaan. These commandments provide the basis for [[Halakha]] (Jewish religious law).
The Torah is divided into fifty-four portions which are read in turn in Jewish liturgy, from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Deuteronomy, each [[Shabbat|Sabbath]]. The cycle ends and recommences at the end of [[Sukkot]], which is called [[Simchat Torah]].
The [[Nevi'im]], or "Prophets," tells the story of the rise of the Hebrew monarchy, its division into two kingdoms, and the prophets who, in God's name, judged the kings and the Children of Israel. It ends with the conquest of the Kingdom of Israel by the Assyrians and the conquest of the Kingdom of Judah by the Babylonians, and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Portions of the prophetic books are read by Jews on the Sabbath ([[Shabbat]]). The [[Book of Jonah]] is read on [[Yom Kippur]]. According to Jewish tradition, Nevi'im is divided into eight books. Contemporary translations subdivide these into seventeen books:
* I. [[Joshua]]
* II. [[Judges]]
* III. [[Books of Samuel]]
* IV. [[Books of Kings]]
* V. [[Isaiah]]
* VI. [[Jeremiah]]
* VII. [[Ezekiel]]
* VIII. [[The Minor Prophets]], which are:
**[[Hosea]]
** [[Joel]]
** [[Amos]]
** [[Obadiah]]
** [[Jonah]]
** [[Micah]]
** [[Nahum]]
** [[Habakkuk]]
** [[Zephaniah]]
** [[Haggai]]
** [[Zechariah]]
** [[Malachi]]
The [[Ketuvim]], or "Writings," contain lyrical poetry, philosophical reflections on life, and the stories of the prophets and other Jewish leaders during the Babylonian exile. It ends with the Persian decree allowing Jews to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple.
Ketuvim contains eleven books:
* [[Psalms]]
* [[Proverbs]]
* [[Book of Job]]
* [[Song of Songs]], also called [[Song of Solomon]]
* [[Book of Ruth]]
* [[Lamentations]]
* [[Ecclesiastes]]
* [[Esther]]
* [[Daniel]]
* [[Ezra]], often divided into two books, [[Book of Ezra]] and [[Book of Nehemiah]]
* [[Books of Chronicles]]
According to Rabbinic tradition, many of the psalms in the book of [[Psalms]] are attributed to [[David]]; [[King Solomon]] is believed to have written [[Song of Songs]] in his youth, [[Book of Proverbs|Proverbs]] at the prime of his life, and [[Ecclesiastes]] at old age; and the prophet [[Jeremiah]] is thought to have written [[Lamentations]]. The [[Book of Ruth]] is the only biblical book that centers entirely on a non-Jew, a [[Moab]]ite) who married a Jew and, upon his death, followed in the ways of the Jews, ultimately becoming an ancestor of King David and Jesus Christ. Five of the books, called "The Five Scrolls" (Megilot), are read on Jewish holidays: Song of Songs on [[Passover]]; the [[Book of Ruth]] on [[Shavuot]]; [[Lamentations]] on the [[Ninth of Av]]; Ecclesiastes on [[Sukkot]]; and the [[Book of Esther]] on [[Purim]].
===The New Testament===
===The New Testament===