Joshua

The “Book of Battles”

Order of Events

1. Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River, into the the promised land, Canaan.

2. Joshua and his army moved from city to city, battling the people there who were idol worshippers. (see Battles Chart)

1. Cleaning out the wickedness and evil

3. Joshua divides the land into 12 regions for the 12 Tribes of Jacob

4. Joshua encourages the Israelites to continue to follow the Lord; Joshua dies.

Joshua’s Battles

1. Jericho1. Story of Rahab, the

prostitute

2. 1st Ai (Achan’s sin in ch. 7)

3. 2nd Ai4. Gibeon and the 5 Kings

(God stopped the sun!)5. Hazar

Judges

• Purpose: to tell the story of how the Israelites sinned again and the leaders (Judges) who stepped up to rescue them

• The Israelites didn’t remove all of the wicked people from the Promised Land like God told them; they became captives again

• The book of Judges spans a period of over 325 years, telling the stories of 6 cycles of oppression and deliverance

Order of Events

1. Military Failure of Israela. Incomplete conquest of the landb. Disobedience and defeat

Order of Events

2. The Rescue of Israel by the Judgesa. 1st Period: Othnielb. 2nd Period: Ehud & Shamgarc. 3rd Period: Deborah & Barakd. 4th Period: Gideon, Tola, and Jaire. 5th Period: Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdonf. 6th Period: Samson

Order of Events

3. The Moral Failure of Israela. Idolatry in the tribe of Danb. War against the tribe of Benjamin

*It’s important to remember that the Judges were not perfect people; they sinned, too. But God used them when they submitted to his will.

The Story of Ehud

• Judges 3: 12-30

1 Samuel

A book of great beginnings…and tragic endings.

Vital Statistics• Purpose: to record the life of Samuel, Israel’s

last judge; the reign and decline of Saul, the first king; and the choice and preparation of David, Israel’s greatest king.

• Author: Possibly Samuel, but also includes writings from the prophets Nathan and Gad.

• Setting: Begins in the days of the judges and describes the transition to a land led by God (theocracy) to a land led by kings (monarchy).

Order of Events

1. Eli and Samuel (1:1-7:17)a. Samuel’s birth and childhoodb. War with the Philistines

2. Samuel and Saul (8:1-15:35)a. Saul becomes king of Israelb. God rejects Saul for disobedience

Order of Events

3. Saul and David (16:1-31:13)a. Samuel anoints Davidb. David and Goliathc. David and Jonathan become friendsd. Saul pursues Davide. Saul’s defeat and Death

Important People

• Eli – the high priest during the time of the judges; was a judge for 40 years; 2 bad sons

• Hannah – mother of Samuel; prayed faithfully for a son

• Samuel – Israel’s last and greatest judge; anointed 2 kings of Israel; mentioned in Hebrews 11

Important People

• Saul: first king of Israel; made some bad choices; very jealous of David

• David: greatest king of Israel; ancestor of Jesus; “a man after God’s own heart”

• Jonathan: Saul’s son; David’s best friend; military leader is Israel