The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV, page 2
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Amos
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
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Obadiah
1
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Jonah
1 | 2 | 3 | 4
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Micah
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
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Nahum
1 | 2 | 3
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Habakkuk
1 | 2 | 3
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Zephaniah
1 | 2 | 3
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Haggai
1 | 2
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Zechariah
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14
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Malachi
1 | 2 | 3 | 4
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NEW TESTAMENT
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Matthew
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28
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Mark
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
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Luke
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24
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John
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21
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Acts
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28
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Romans
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
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1 Corinthians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16
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2 Corinthians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13
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Galatians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
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Ephesians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
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Philippians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4
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Colossians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4
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1 Thessalonians
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
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2 Thessalonians
1 | 2 | 3
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1 Timothy
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
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2 Timothy
1 | 2 | 3 | 4
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Titus
1 | 2 | 3
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Philemon
1
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Hebrews
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13
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James
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
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1 Peter
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
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2 Peter
1 | 2 | 3
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1 John
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
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2 John
1
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3 John
1
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Jude
1
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Revelation
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22
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Index of Charts and Maps
Genesis
The Flood Chronology
Major Mountains of the Bible
The Nations of Genesis 10
Abraham’s Journeys
False Gods in the Old Testament
Jacob Returns to Canaan
Joseph’s Journey to Egypt
Adam to Israel’s Twelve Tribes
Joseph—A Type of Christ
Exodus
Moses’ Flight and Return to Egypt
The Ten Plagues on Egypt
Chronology of the Exodus
The Exodus Route
The Ten Commandments
The Plan of the Tabernacle
Leviticus
Christ in the Levitical Offerings
Old Testament Sacrifices Compared to Christ’s Sacrifice
Christ Fulfills Israel’s Feasts
Jewish Feasts
Numbers
The Placement of Israel’s Tribes
From the Wilderness to the Jordan
Deuteronomy
The Death Penalty
Israel’s Calendar
Joshua
Joshua’s Preparation for Ministry
The Peoples Around the Promised Land
The Central and Southern Campaigns
The Northern Campaign
Division of Land Among the Twelve Tribes
The Cities of Refuge
Judges
The Judges of Israel
The Geography of the Judges
Ruth
Moab to Bethlehem
Ruth: The Proverbs 31 Wife
1 Samuel
Locations of Samuel’s Ministry
Locations of the Ark’s Journey
Locations of the Philistine Threats
Locations of Saul’s Military Campaigns
Before David Became King
2 Samuel
The City of David
The Kingdom of David
1 Kings
The Kings of Israel and Judah
Solomon’s Jerusalem
Solomon’s Temple
The Land of the Divided Kingdom
The Kings of the Divided Kingdom
Resuscitations from the Dead
The Ministries of Elijah and Elisha
2 Kings
The Assyrian Empire
Jerusalem in Hezekiah’s Time
The Babylonian Empire
Nebuchadnezzar’s Campaigns Against Judah
1 Chronicles
A Short Harmony of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles
The Chronicles’ Sources
The Davidic Covenant in Chronicles
Temple Duties
2 Chronicles
The Spread of Solomon’s Fame
Ezra
Post-Exilic Returns to Jerusalem
Routes of the Jews’ Returns
The Persian Empire
Nehemiah
Time Line of Nehemiah
Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s Day
Seven Attempts to Stop Nehemiah’s Work
Esther
The Historical Chronology of Esther
Job
Biographical Sketch of Job
The Script
Job’s Living Death
Psalms
Types of Psalms
Historical Background to Psalms by David
Messianic Prophecies in the Psalms
Images of God in the Psalms
Anointing of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
Christ in the Psalms (Luke 24:44)
Proverbs
Symbols for the Bible
Ecclesiastes
The Vanities of Ecclesiastes (1:2; 12:8)
Solomon Reflects on Genesis
Song of Solomon
Local Color in the Song of Solomon
Geography of Solomon’s Song
Isaiah
Isaiah Fulfilled at Christ’s First Advent
God’s Judgment on the Nations
Isaiah’s Description of Israel’s Future Kingdom
Jeremiah
Illustrations of God’s Judgment
Major Trials of Jeremiah
Object Lessons
Lamentations
Second Kings, Jeremiah, and Lamentations Compared
Other Laments
Beyond Lamentations—Hope of Restoration
Ezekiel
Dates in Ezekiel
Ezekiel’s Sign Experiences
Scope of Ezekiel’s Prophecies
Ezekiel’s Temple
Millennial Sacrifices
The Holy District
Millennial Feasts
The Restoration of the Land
Daniel
An Overview of Daniel’s Kingdoms
Alexander’s Greek Empire
Hosea
God’s Lovingkindness to Israel
Joel
Day of the Lord
Amos
Five Visions of Amos
The Ultimate Restoration of Israel
Obadiah
God’s Judgment on Edom
Jonah
Ten Miracles in Jonah
Micah
God’s Forgiveness of Sin
Nahum
God’s Judgment Against Assyria/Nineveh
Habakkuk
Other Psalms
Zephaniah
“Day of the Lord” Fulfillments
God’s “I Wills” of Restoration
Haggai
Zerubbabel
The Temples of the Bible
Zechariah
Other Names for Jerusalem
Malachi
Old Testament Names for God
Roman Control of Palestine
Introduction to the Intertestamental Period
Expansion Under the Maccabees
Matthew
Family Tree of Herod
The Parables of Jesus
Christ’s Trials, Crucifixion, and Resurrection
Mark
The Miracles of Jesus
The Plan of Herod’s Temple
Luke
New Testament Women
John
The Eight Signs
The “I AM” Statements
Acts
Ministries of the Holy Spirit
Major Sermons in Acts
Romans
First Century Rome
1 Corinthians
Appearances of the Risen Christ
2 Corinthians
The Agora of Corinth
Ephesians
The City of Ephesus
Colossians
The Glories of Christ
Titles of Christ
1 Thessalonians
Communities with Christian Churches—ca. A.D. 100
1 Timothy
Names of Satan
2 Timothy
A Comparison of Paul’s Two Roman Imprisonments
Jude
Profile of an Apostate
Revelation
The Seven Churches
Introduction to the Bible
The Bible is a collection of 66 documents inspired by God. These documents are gathered into two testaments, the Old (39) and the New (27). Prophets, priests, kings, and leaders from the nation of Israel wrote the OT books in Hebrew (with two passages in Aramaic). The apostles and their associates wrote the NT books in Greek.
The OT record starts with the creation of the universe and closes about 400 years before the first coming of Jesus Christ.
The flow of history through the OT moves along the following lines:
• Creation of the universe
• Fall of man
• Judgment flood over the earth
• Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (Israel)—fathers of the chosen nation
• The history of Israel
• Exile in Egypt—430 years
• Exodus and wilderness wanderings—40 years
• Conquest of Canaan—7 years
• Era of Judges—350 years
• United Kingdom—Saul, David, Solomon—110 years
• Divided Kingdom—Judah/Israel—350 years
• Exile in Babylon—70 years
• Return and rebuilding the land—140 years
The details of this history are explained in the 39 books divided into 5 categories:
• The Law—5 (Genesis—Deuteronomy)
• History—12 (Joshua—Esther)
• Wisdom—5 (Job—Song of Solomon)
• Major Prophets—5 (Isaiah—Daniel)
• Minor Prophets—12 (Hosea—Malachi)
After the completion of the OT, there were 400 years of silence, during which God did not speak or inspire any Scripture. That silence was broken by the arrival of John the Baptist announcing that the promised Lord Savior had come. The NT records the rest of the story from the birth of Christ to the culmination of all history and the final eternal state; so the two testaments go from creation to consummation, eternity past to eternity future.
While the 39 OT books major on the history of Israel and the promise of the coming Savior, the 27 NT books major on the person of Christ and the establishment of the church. The 4 gospels give the record of His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Each of the 4 writers views the greatest and most important event of history, the coming of the God-man, Jesus Christ, from a different perspective. Matthew looks at Him through the perspective of His kingdom; Mark through the perspective of His servanthood; Luke through the perspective of His humanness; and John through the perspective of His deity.
The book of Acts tells the story of the impact of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Lord Savior—from His ascension, the consequent coming of the Holy Spirit, and the birth of the church, through the early years of gospel preaching by the apostles and their associates. Acts records the establishment of the church in Judea, Samaria, and into the Roman Empire.
The 21 epistles were written to churches and individuals to explain the significance of the person and work of Jesus Christ, with its implications for life and witness until He returns.
The NT closes with Revelation, which starts by picturing the current church age, and culminates with Christ’s return to establish His earthly kingdom, bringing judgment on the ungodly and glory and blessing for believers. Following the millennial reign of the Lord Savior will be the last judgment, leading to the eternal state. All believers of all history enter the ultimate eternal glory prepared for them, and all the ungodly are consigned to hell to be punished forever.
To understand the Bible, it is essential to grasp the sweep of that history from creation to consummation. It is also crucial to keep in focus the unifying theme of Scripture. The one constant theme unfolding throughout the whole Bible is this: God for His own glory has chosen to create and gather to Himself a group of people to be the subjects of His eternal kingdom, to praise, honor, and serve Him forever and through whom He will display His wisdom, power, mercy, grace, and glory. To gather His chosen ones, God must redeem them from sin. The Bible reveals God’s plan for this redemption from its inception in eternity past to its completion in eternity future. Covenants, promises, and epochs are all secondary to the one continuous plan of redemption.
There is one God. The Bible has one Creator. It is one book. It has one plan of grace, recorded from initiation, through execution, to consummation. From predestination to glorification, the Bible is the story of God redeeming His chosen people for the praise of His glory.
As God’s redemptive purposes and plan unfold in Scripture, 5 recurring motifs are constantly emphasized:
• the character of God
• the judgment for sin and disobedience
• the blessing for faith and obedience
• the Lord Savior and sacrifice for sin
• the coming kingdom and glory
Everything revealed on the pages of both the OT and NT is associated with those 5 categories. Scripture is always teaching or illustrating: 1) the character and attributes of God; 2) the tragedy of sin and disobedience to God’s holy standard; 3) the blessedness of faith and obedience to God’s standard; 4) the need for a Savior by whose righteousness and substitution sinners can be forgiven, declared just, and transformed to obey God’s standard; and 5) the coming glorious end of redemptive history in the Lord Savior’s earthly kingdom and the subsequent eternal reign and glory of God and Christ. It is essential as one studies Scripture to grasp these recurring categories like great hooks on which to hang the passages. While reading through the Bible, one should be able to relate each portion of Scripture to these dominant topics, recognizing that what is introduced in the OT is also made more clear in the NT.
Looking at these 5 categories separately gives an overview of the Bible.
1. The Revelation of the Character of God
Above all else, Scripture is God’s self-revelation. He reveals Himself as the sovereign God of the universe who has chosen to make man and to make Himself known to man. In that self-revelation is established His standard of absolute holiness. From Adam and Eve through Cain and Abel and to everyone before and after the law of Moses, the standard of righteousness was established and is sustained to the last page of the NT. Violation of it produces judgment, temporal and eternal.
