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The main themes of the Hebrew Bible (also known as the Old Testament) surely include God, man, sin, justice, grace, covenant, law, atonement, and holiness. A final topic we will examine is the Messiah. Almost everyone would agree that these ten topics are among the most important. Let’s take a closer look at each.
God – From its opening verse, the Hebrew Bible affirms the following important truths about God: As for time, He is eternal, as for power, He is unlimited, and as for knowledge, He is infinite; He is one and not two or more, He is creator, not creature, and He is both loving and holy.
These characteristics, and many more, define who God is and are at the heart of the Old Testament revelation of Him. He reveals himself primarily, however, not in abstractions or propositions, but in relation to human beings.
Man – Unlike God, human beings are limited: they have a beginning and are mortal, they have limited power and knowledge, and they are certainly not always loving and holy. To be sure, human history has some heroism and stories of noble thoughts and deeds, but it documents the sad history of failed potential, wasted opportunities, and perverted purpose.
The original pair of human beings come into existence in relationship with God, objects of His grace and love and reflections of His likeness. Unfortunately, however, they give up their position before the Lord. In the name of independence, they become slaves to sin, in need of liberation. The progress of his descendants reaches a climax when Genesis 6 says: “Every inclination of the heart of man is only evil all the time.”
Sin: The Hebrew Bible reveals the nature of sin primarily in narrative form; in other words, by telling the story of what happened to real people. Human beings were created in a sinless state, even now that they are born into the world pure and innocent. Sinfulness is abnormal for human beings; it is out of alignment with what God designed us to be and do.
Since we bear the image of God, sin is anything that contradicts God’s own nature. Because God is true, lies are sin. Because God is holy, pollution is sin. Because God is love, hate is sin. Because God is unity, division is sin, etc. This is best expressed in Leviticus 19:1, where God says, “Be holy, for I am holy.” Throughout Leviticus, the announced moral precepts are tied again and again to the statement: “I am the Lord.”
Doing what is right and experiencing the blessing that God brings is what the Old Testament means by knowing that God is LORD (see the statements in Ezekiel and elsewhere over and over again).
Justice – If sin rebels against the reflection of God’s nature in our lives, then justice is living in harmony with that nature. It is maintaining a relationship of trusting obedience with God. Justice implies faith, but it also springs from the loyal heart in faithfulness in walking.
The Hebrew Bible describes the righteous person as dedicated to God with his heart, soul, and strength. A right relationship with other human beings accompanies this right relationship with God. The Old Testament portrays the righteous person treating others as they would like to be treated, acting toward them as God would act.
Grace: Some readers are under the impression that they will not find grace in the Hebrew Bible, which only becomes a major emphasis in the New Testament. This impression is false, dispelled by almost all the books of the Old Testament.
God’s goodness toward human beings begins with the first couple and continues as a constant theme in the Old Testament symphony. The LORD is “abounding in mercy” and is willing to forgive a thousand generations. Time and time again He reveals His long-suffering and His tender mercy toward sinners. Unfortunately, some have only focused on passages in which He reveals His wrath against sinners, a counterpoint melody to be sure, but one that is always developed in the context of covenant love and fidelity.
Covenant – The sovereign, almighty and transcendent God-Creator is willing to lower himself to enter into agreements with human beings. These agreements are called covenants, and they provide much of the framework in which the Hebrew Bible unfolds.
The major Old Testament covenants include those of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses (and all of Israel), Aaron and Levi, and David. Each of these covenants involves promises that God makes and expectations that he has for the subjects of the covenant. The Hebrew Bible also expects a New Covenant, which is what the New Testament is all about.
Law – The covenant that God made with the nation of Israel is called the Law (Torah, or Law of Moses). In the Law, God rehearses the acts of salvation for which He has placed the nation of Israel in his debt and then challenges them to agree to live in a relationship with Him, experiencing the blessings that come with that relationship. Of course, he also warns them of the curses they will bring upon themselves if they break the pact. The Ten Commandments are basic to the Law, laying the foundation for living in harmony with God.
Atonement: Under that same covenant with Israel, God provided a means of obtaining forgiveness through a system of animal sacrifices. These offerings were a way for the believer to remove offenses and beg God for a renewal of the close relationship that sin made impossible.
According to the Old Testament, atonement was only possible through the shedding of the blood of a perfect sacrifice. This laid the foundation for the eternal sacrifice of the Perfect Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, of the New Covenant.
Holiness – In the Hebrew Bible, to be holy means to be devoted to God. Holiness is part of God’s nature and He imparts it to human beings in a right relationship with Him. God intends all human beings to be holy all the time. Sin, however, defiles us and puts us in need of atonement so that we can be holy once more.
Messiah – The Old Testament anticipates the coming of the Holy One of God who would have a miraculous conception, live a perfect life, serve as the ideal human being, and then willingly offer himself as the sin offering once and for all so that all beings humans could be restored to God and sanctified again.
Over a period of more than 1,000 years, inspired prophets foretold aspects of the life of this Saint. The accumulation of his predictions paints a perfect portrait of the birth, life, character, death, and even resurrection of Jesus Christ. Several of these prophecies in the Hebrew Bible describe him as “the Anointed One” (Hebrew: Meshiakh), or “the Messiah,” in keeping with the practice in Old Testament times of pouring olive oil on a person’s head especially appointed by God to fulfill his purposes.