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Essay on Old Testament

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In Walton’s Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament, he writes, “ With no revelation . . . there was no way to know what pleased and what angered . . . This is the plight of those who live in a world without revelation. In the end, for all of their conscientious ritual, they did not know what deity wanted” (p. 145). Please post a 400-word response to Walton’s statement. Discuss the importance of revelation to God and the biblical writers. Seek to answer questions like “Was it important for God to reveal himself to mankind? If so, in what ways has God revealed himself? How important was revelation to the prophets who often used the phrase 'Thus says the Lord?'” While sources are not required, you may support your answer from the …show more content…

We have to understand that our God loves but He is just. He loves us but because His character is just he has to allow us to feel the consequences of our sinful nature, but His love offers redemption. This would not make sense if he hadn’t revealed His nature to us.

God revealed himself to creation in many ways. In Exodus 3:14, God revealed his name to Moses: "I am who I am." God's name reveals that God is self-existent, self-perpetuating life. The other names of God, found throughout the Bible, offer additional insight into who and what God is. Noah a preacher who warned everyone about the flood also received revelation from God about His expectation for Humankind.

Revelation of God was of significant importance to the prophets who claimed to carry messages to the people from God. Prophets used the phrased, “Thus says the Lord”, as a means to offer assurance to the people and convince them of whom they have received authority from to give the message. By saying, “Thus says the Lord”, this guaranteed to the prophet that the people or audience understood that he was speaking on the behalf of a “High Power’ and not of his own accord. This was especially important in the Old Testament text because messages often displayed God’s anger, wrath, judgment and warnings of things to come. Oftentimes, these messages were connected to promises that could not be carried out by those delivering the message, and so they

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