CASKET EMPTY: Old Testament Study Guide: God's Plan of Redemption through History

by Carol M. Kaminski

This book will help you understand the redemptive story of the Old Testament through six major Creation, Abraham, Sinai, Kings, Exile and Temple, with the first letter of each heading making up the word CASKET. This acronym will enable you to memorize the storyline of the Old Testament and place key events, people and biblical books in their correct time period. The author takes you through each period step by step, explaining the major covenants and highlighting the most important people, events, and biblical themes. As you become familiar with storyline of the Old Testament you will learn that God’s redemptive plan is climactically fulfilled in the New Testament with the coming Messiah. The acronym for the entire Bible is CASKET EMPTY, therefore, which points to the empty tomb of Jesus as the beginning of God’s new creation, the assurance that death has been defeated, and the guarantee of our resurrection yet to come. Through the acronym CASKET EMPTY you will have a framework for remembering the entire sweep of the Bible with the person and work of Christ at the center.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Theology, Christianity

292 pages, Paperback

First published August 13, 2012

Reviews

[Katie Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Makes the OT approachable, helped me sift through who’s who/what’s when, and keep the coming of Christ central as I studied. Really recommend for anyone wanting to better grasp the grand narrative of Scripture.

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ridiculously good book, I cannot recommend it enough! Changes the entire game. Your bible study will never be the same.

[Shannon Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid overview of the OT. Very worthwhile.

[Joel Wentz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before reading this book, one must understand that Kaminksi's writing is not intended to feel like a polished, narrative approach to the old testament. This is really for people who would like to study those biblical works. That being said, this is an absolutely fantastic tool, and one that I think many bible students should have on their shelves. It is an extremely practical, step-by-step, chronological guide through the confusing tangle of old testament narratives, prophets, and poems. Kaminksi takes great pains to explain each time period simply, and to include a plethora of relevant scripture references as you are working through (she even includes many New Testament references, which Paul or Jesus is quoting OT passages, as well as explaining how these books form the backdrop for much NT theology. Fantastically helpful!) Reading through this book has truly helped me demystify and wrap my mind around the Old Testament, and I am certainly keeping this book on my shelf, as it will be an invaluable reference point for future sermons, lectures, and classes. Highly recommended.

[Angie Giancola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of the Old Testament and the Judeo-Christian redemption narrative. Helpful for individuals who want to understand the relationship between historical context and prophetic claims of the OT and the overarching narrative of the redemption story through history.

[LMG · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to really like this book because I was hoping to use it in a leadership development group I lead at church.

I love the idea of the book - the Old Testament can be so challenging in part because it does not happen in chronological order at all. The premise is great. The tools are good but the book is a slog. I believe there could be a way to summarize the information more and avoid the details, which was what I thought as the point of the book!

In fact, I just couldn't finish it.

[Becca Sloan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Having a hard time separating this book from the class as the author is my professor and the class has been dissatisfactory.
This is a fine overview of the Old Testament from Kaminski’s evangelical viewpoint. At a graduate level, I would have expected a deeper or at least more nuanced look at the Hebrew scriptures. Very simple and goes over the basics.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second time I have read this book and probably won’t be my last, I like how it works through and explains the Old Testament in such an easy to learn and read way. Learn something new each time I work through it

[Kerrison Chanda]

Supernatural

[Danny Petersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great material. Writing was slow.

[Chockletter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent study!

[James Wirrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really great tool for allowing laypeople to understand the whole Old Testament narrative from a Christian perspective. I have heard Carol Kaminski cover this material via lecture also (though much abbreviated) and she does a fantastic job of giving the necessary background and context to allow people to understand what the OT and the individual books are about. She divides the OT into six eras - Creation, Abraham, Sinai, Kings, Exile and Temple - and then provides an overview of the theological and narrative significance of that era before discussing each OT book that pertains to that era. I think that for laypeople who desire a seminary-like grounding in understanding the Bible; having a sound basis for your Bible reading: and a foundation for everything else you read about your Christian faith, this is about as good as it gets. For Christians, reading the CASKET EMPTY books is just about the best use of your time possible.

[David Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took this class (OT Survey) with Dr. Kaminski at GCTS and it still is one of the most popular classes to take! This book is pretty much the materials covered in the class and it is a great tool to read and understand the whole flow of the Old Testament.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although it took me forever to read this book, it is an excellent study guide of the Old Testament which is the purpose of this book. Easy to read and understand. This book reiterated Carol's presentation.