Jehovah and the World of the Old Testament: An Illustrated Reference for Latter-Day Saints

by Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Dana M. Pike, David Rolph Seely

A must for every home library! This companion volume to the bestselling Jesus Christ and the World of the New Testament is the perfect guide to Old Testament culture, language, history, and teachings. Richly illustrated with hundreds of images, including original artwork, artifacts, maps, and timelines, the book presents an indepth look at life in the ancient world and provides much- needed context to the biblical text. Discover the origins of the books of the Old Testament and learn how these teachings have been shared and preserved. Explore the role of prophets, prophecy, and politics, and examine scriptural issues that have been debated by scholars throughout the ages. More than 400 topics provide valuable insights into Old Testament times, from portraits of key personalities to controversial legends that have persisted to our day. This unique resource will enrich your study of the Old Testament as never before!

Genres: Religion, Lds, History, Nonfiction, Old Testament, Church, Spirituality

397 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

Dr. Richard Holzapfel is a Professor of Church History in the Religious Education Department at BYU. He attended BYU, Hebrew Union College, and the University of California, Irvine (B.A., M.A., and Ph.D.) emphasizing in Middle Eastern Studies, Jewish History, Ancient History. Dr. Holzapfel began teaching at Brigham Young University in 1993, and has taught in the Church History, Ancient Scripture, and History departments. He is currently the Managing Director of Religious Studies Center Publications and the Editor-in-Chief of the center’s periodical The Religious Educator. In addition, he serves as an Editorial Board Member for BYU Studies. Dr. Holzapfel has received various awards and honors for his teaching, including Continuing Education Faculty Teaching Award in 2006. In 2008 he was named the BYU Honors Professor of the Year. Along with his teaching and university appointments, Dr. Holzapfel remains one of the most rigorous and widely published writers on campus.

Reviews

[Corey Astill · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book presents a synopsis of OT stories and ancient Israelite history. Great pictures and descriptions of artifacts and ancient geography. Full of interesting factoids. Nothing earth shattering. But it's a great intro/review of the Old Testament.

[Kim Dennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book, I really did. It was probably a 2.5 star book for me. Part of the reason I rounded up is the immense respect I have for Holzapfel, whom I normally love, and part of it was because of another book I read that I rated 2 stars and I liked this one better.

Given the title, I was expecting something much more Christ-centered. Quite a lot of the book was just summarizing what each of the books of the OT are about. There were only a couple of things that reached out and grabbed me and said, "Oh, you want to put this in your scriptures. It's really cool." That's what I was looking for in the book.

[Brad Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great companion volume to the study of the old testament, providing many pictures, maps, and descriptions of the Old Testament world from an archaeological or historical perspective. Quite large -- not a quick read. The authors are Latter-Day Saints and so they give indications when the material is of special interest to LDS readers.

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been reading this along with my study of the old testament this year. I've quite enjoyed it's additional background of the time and place. It walks through the various books of the old testament and their prophets and what was going on during that time period - providing some very nice background to what the prophets are surrounded by when they were prophecying.

[Patsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much information presented in such an appealing way. Maps, photos, charts, and prose to help us understand the world of the Old Testament. We ended up purchasing the book, to help us in our Old Testament studies.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This offered clarity and context to study of the Old Testament. Lots of interesting and fascinating info. I feel like I understand more of what’s going on in the OT, especially the timeline and cultural context.

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has helped me understand the world of the old testament more than anything else I had previously read.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent overview of the world of the Old Testament -- one I read to help contextualize my gospel doctrine teaching this year.

[Bonnie Atkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much, much more than a coffee-table text, this is a fabulous addition to the weekend scholar's library. The writing is perfect for those interested but not steeped in the vocabulary of ancient scripture or middle-eastern history, providing exceptional insights in a readable voice.

In addition, the structure makes those insights very easy to find, and without interrupting the flow of a discussion, adds sidebar highlights that are fascinating and useful. The illustrations are largely both beautifully added and supportive of the text, with the end result a book that engages a wide variety of people who pick it up ... from my coffee table.

I use this and its companion (Jesus and the World of the New Testament) weekly. What a treasure. I *LOVE* this book, and its affordability is still astounding to me.

[Kiersten · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing. So so so amazing. I'm taking an institute class on the Old Testament right now, too, and I'm kind of obsessed with it. I learned so much from this book; there were so many times when I was like, "oh wow, so that'swhat that means!" It really makes the Old Testament accessible, because the crazy things the people do in it make sense when you understand their laws and culture a little bit better. And it helps when you're reading a long string of unpronounceable names to know a little bit about the people you're reading about. After reading this book, I really understand that these events, these people, were real, they actually lived. I mean, I always believed that, but now they actually seem real. I'm actually excited about reading the OT now.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like "Jesus Christ and the World of the New Testament," this is a coffee-table-sized book packed with beautiful pictures and paintings of Bible settings and scenes as well as hundreds of pages of Old Testament commentary and background from three LDS Bible scholars.

I read this book in conjunction with my Harper-Collins Study Bible, and I learned a TON about the Old Testament. I still have several books to read in my Study Bible (1 and 2 Chronicles and Psalms being the largest) but I feel like I am finally grasping the history and culture underlying the Old Testament. I'm going to take a break from my Study Bible for a while, but I hope to finish reading it by the end of 2015.

[Joshua Sears · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a lot of LDS and non-LDS books on the Old Testament (which I teach at BYU). This is one of my favorite introductions to the background of the Old Testament geared toward an LDS audience. I have come to accept that most people don't find the Old Testament as naturally fascinating as I do, but I have gifted this book several times because its beautiful artwork and inviting layout do a great job inviting readers into that world and getting them interested in learning more. The text does a great job balancing critical scholarship with a faithful Latter-day Saint lens for understanding the Bible.

[Lesli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is pretty boring, because its a reference book, but I read it last year as I read the Old Testament and it was infinitely helpful. It made the Old Testament so much easier to understand. My one complaint was the Old Testament does not follow chronological order so I got so confused with the guide and the actual Old Testament, so after 350 pages of the guide I gave up on it, and just finished the Old Testament.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an overview of the Old Testament connecting it to the archaeology and landscape of the lands in which it is set. It has many pictures of artifacts and landscapes to help illustrate the connections.

It was interesting to me to read about the earliest evidences of Biblical accounts attested by artifacts and some of the scholarship and current unanswered questions around the Old Testament.

[Dale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I started reading out of a sense of mild curiosity. Now it's one that I want to purchase. A wonderfully understandable presentation of archaeology and documented history as it relates to the Old Testament. It put a little contextual meat on the bones, so to speak, making it well worth the time I spent on every page.

[Tamra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I taught the Old Testament Sunday School class, and this book was indispensable. I feel like I understand the history so much better, and it gave me confidence to teach certain scriptures from that historical perspective.

If you're going to be teaching Old Testament, and you're Mormon, GET THIS BOOK!

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite kind of history book--short vignettes on a wide variety of topics, plenty of interesting photographs, and covers some different viewpoints and traditions, while adding the LDS perspective as well. Definitely helped in my reading of the O.T. I just bought the New Testament one. (Note: this gives a historical context, not scriptural commentary).

[Keri-Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took a year to read this one, mostly keeping up with reading in the Old Testament that went along with it. I loved the blend of historical sources, archaeology and scripture that expands on the stories in the Old Testament and sets them in their time and geographic frame. Full of pictures, something I really appreciate in a non-fiction book, it really brought the time period alive.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the Old Testament 14 years ago and when I finished, I thought I'll never read that from start to finish again. Unless I can find a good commentary to help me through it. Last year I decided to read the Old Testament again and read this as I went along. It was fantastic. It really helped me to understand what I reading. I liked that it was scholarly, but still readable and interesting.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this book to go along with my Old Testament study. On a suggestion from a blog I visit, I checked it out at the library. It is so good I bought it the next day. We have the New Testament version and I didn't even think to look for this one. We are also in the OT as a family and the kids are loving the photos of places and artifacts and maps. Yeah!

[Karina · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want an in-depth study of the Old Testament with history and cultural info, this may be a good option (not so much scriptural/spiritual). I don't have anything to compare it to, but it has lots of info. A bit too much for me, too overwhelming, but still a good book with lots of info from that time period.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this slowly, but was amazed at the content. This one book helped me better understand the timeline of the Old Testament better than anything else. I was impressed by the scholarship. I have a better grip on not just the Israelites, but also the surrounding cultures

[Laurel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting. The pictures and illustrations were great and definitely added to my understanding of the environment and cultures of the times. My only criticism is that the insets often have repeated information from the running narrative.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This took me a while to finish, but I am very, very impressed. This book is beautiful, meaningful and fascinating. A wonderful addition to Old Testament studies.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

For biblical history and scholarship, this book is remarkable. But it lacks the inspiring spiritual dimension that I found in its companion work, "Jesus Christ and the World of the New Testament."

[Alaina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is truly a masterpiece. I can't help feel gratitude toward the men, their years of experience, and the vast knowledge they each have poured into this book!

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm using this to help me this year as I teach Gospel Doctrine. So far it's great in helping me to understand more about the Old Testament and the background needed.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I. continue to use this as a resource and am never disappointed. if gives a view of the ancient biblical world unavailable i. other books. i love that it has photos too.

[Sheridan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been reading this all year along with the Sunday School lessons I have been teaching - so insightful and helpful! Fabulous illustrations, examples, background and historical context.

[Lugene Lancaster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book for those who want to understand the culture and history behind the Old Testament. I learned a lot from this book.