When studying a book of the bible, we are used to asking questions like: Who wrote it? Who was it written to? When was it written? Why was it written? Where was it written from? Answers to these questions help us to understand the book better because they give a setting for the book, a setting which almost certainly influenced what was written and how it should be understood.
About four years ago, I read the book Midrash and Lection in Matthew by Michael Goulder. This book caused me to consider some aspects of Bible study that I had never thought of before. In particular, the author caused me to see the importance of two other questions that require answers: When was it read? What was it read with?
In order to answer these questions, we need to have some idea what Bible reading plan was used at the time the books were written. Such a plan would tell us when different chapters in the Bible were read. In trying to figure out that plan, I began to realize some other points.
For example, our way of reading the Bible is very different from the way our first century brethren read the Bible. We each have our own copy of the Bible that we can read every day. Our Bibles have marginal references to which we add our own notes. We can carry our Bible with us everywhere we go. In contrast, our first century brethren would not have had their own personal copies of the Bible. Following their Jewish roots, they would have gone to worship services to hear scripture read aloud.
On what occasions would the scriptures be read? In the first century, the Jews publicly read portions from the Torah and from the Prophets each week at their synagogue services. We know their reading plan for the Torah. We also have clues what the plan for the Prophets might have been.
Moreover, all weeks were not created equal in the Jewish calendar. By the first century there were eight major feasts and fasts during the year: Passover, Pentecost, Ninth of Ab, Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles, Hanukkah, and Purim. For three of these — Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles — the Jews were commanded by God to appear at Jerusalem. The others had special services in the local synagogue. These gatherings provided further opportunities for public reading of scripture. We have the reading plan they used for these occasions.
It seems reasonable that the first century ecclesia, many of whom were Jews who had been keeping the feasts and attending weekly synagogue services their entire lives, would adopt that same reading plan for the Old Testament. They may have had little choice, at least at the beginning, because they would not have had their own ecclesial copy yet, so they would have had to continue attending the synagogue to hear the Old Testament read.
Once we take the Jewish Bible reading plan as given, we start discovering that New Testament books (especially Matthew, Luke, Paul’s epistles, and Revelation) have been designed to be read alongside this plan. After this has been pointed out, we realize that it could hardly have been any other way, after all, Jesus had said, “Think not that I have come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill” (Mt. 5:17; see also Gal. 3:24). What better way to prove this claim than to have weekly readings that showed how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament readings for that week?
In short, the reading plan is fundamental to a deeper understanding of both the Old and New Testaments.
Following up on the basic idea
I was excited about these ideas. If nothing else, they led me to all sorts of parallels between different portions of the Bible. As connections are made in other parts of the Bible, and we see these themes over and over again, the ideas become more a part of what we know and recognize. The parallels help us to remember more of the Bible itself; for example, not just the order of Matthew’s gospel, but some of the details and why he was inspired to put them where he did.
We now provide a summary of the topics covered in the previous articles.
Reading as Part of Public Worship (1/93)
As mentioned above, the primary way the Bible was read in the first century was as part of public worship services. There are several references in scripture to this aspect of Bible reading: reading at gatherings of the children of Israel (Ex. 24:7; Dt. 31:9-13; Josh. 8:34-35; II Kgs. 23:1-2; Neh. 8); reading at synagogue services (Lk. 4:16-17,20-21; Acts 13:13-15; 13:27; 15:21; II Cor. 3:12-15 RV); reading of Paul’s epistles (I Th. 5:27; Col. 4:16) and reading of Revelation (Rev. 1:3).
The Jewish Calendar (1/93)
The Bible has three calendars listing annual events: the calendar of the old covenant (Ex. 23:14-17; Ex. 34:18-24; DL 16), holy convocations (Lev. 23) and sacrifices (Num. 28-29).
Besides the daily sacrifices and weekly sabbaths, by the first century the Jewish calendar had eight feasts and fasts: Passover (1/14-21), Pentecost (3/6), Ninth of Ab (5/9), Trumpets (7/1), Atonement (7/10), Tabernacles (7/15-22), Hanukkah (12/2-10/2), Purim (12/14-15). (Brethren at a study day suggested the mnemonic to help remember the order and names of the feasts: Poly Played Nine Trumpets At Tabitha’s Hanukkah Party.)
Passover, Pentecost, Tishri (Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles), and Hanukkah are major festival periods. Passover together with Unleavened Bread, Tabernacles, and Hanukkah are each eight days long. The Ninth of Ab and Purim are relatively minor events compared to the four major feasts. The Day of Atonement and the Ninth of Ab are fasts rather than feasts.
The Festival Readings (2/93)
The major themes and readings for the feasts are as follows:
Passover is at the barley harvest in the first month of the year and celebrates the Exodus; Exodus 12-15 is read. Pentecost (Gk. for “Fiftieth”) is at the wheat harvest seven weeks after Passover and celebrates the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai; Exodus 19-20 is read. The Ninth of Ab in the fifth month is a fast commemorating the destruction of the Temple by the Babylonians; Lamentations is read.
Trumpets, the seventh new moon of the year, is also called Rosh Hashanah (Heb. for “New Year”) and Yom Hadin (Heb. for “Day of Judgment”); 10 passages on God as King, 10 on remembrances and judgments, and 10 on trumpets (especially the trumpet voice of God) are read together with Genesis 21-22. The Day of Atonement (Heb. “Yom Kippur”) is a fast commanded by God to teach repentance and forgiveness; Leviticus 16-18 and Jonah are read. Tabernacles, also called the Feast of In-gathering, is at the end of the annual harvest and celebrates God’s protection in the wilderness and Solomon’s dedication of the temple; readings include Exodus 34 and I Kings 8.
Hanukkah (Heb. for “Dedication”) is around Christmas time and celebrates the rededication of the temple by the Maccabees as a second Feast of Tabernacles; Numbers 7-9 and Zechariah 3-4 are read. Purim (“Lots”) is in the twelfth month of the Jewish year and celebrates the reversal of Haman’s plan to destroy the Jews in Persia; Esther is read.
More detailed reading plans are given in the second and other articles in the series.
The Torah Readings (3/93)
The Torah, Genesis through Deuteronomy, is read in an annual cycle with portions read aloud at the weekly synagogue service. The third article gives the complete list of Torah readings.
The Former Prophets (4/93-5/93)
Besides the weekly Torah readings, each week the Jews read a second portion from one of their five prophetic books. The reading from the Prophets was supposed to complement the Torah reading so parallels between the two are expected.
The five Prophets are: the Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings); Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve minor prophets. It is conjectured that they alternated between these, taking one each year.
The fourth article gives the reading plan for the Former Prophets.
The readings for the Former Prophets parallel the Torah readings. In particular, there are many parallels between Joshua and Genesis 1-17, and between Joshua and Passover, which includes readings from Joshua. There are also parallels between Judges and Genesis 18-36.
Reading plans for the other four Prophets are more difficult to determine. They were each read in an annual cycle, but the details are hard to piece together.
Matthew and the Jewish Festival Readings (6/93-8/93)
The most impressive results of this method of study concern the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Matthew apparently organized his gospel around the speeches that Jesus gave at the Jewish feasts. Here are some highlights of the connections.
The Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5-7), with its references to the ten commandments, was given at Pentecost and Matthew designs his gospel so it could be read at Pentecost. The discussion about fasting (Mt. 9) is in the right place to be read on the Ninth of Ab. Jesus’ instructions to the twelve about preaching the Kingdom of God (Mt. 10) would have been given at Trumpets. The sign of Jonah (Mt. 12:38-41) came up on the Day of Atonement. Jesus’ harvest parables (Mt. 13) are for Tabernacles. The initial instructions for the ecclesia (Mt. 18) would be read at Hanukkah. The death and resurrection of Jesus would be read at Passover, so the Woes (Mt. 23) and the Olivet Prophecy (Mt. 24-25) would have been given on the two weeks preceding Passover. Matthew 1-4, with its allusions to the Exodus, is a bridge between Passover and Pentecost.
Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles and the Torah Readings (9/93-10/93)
These four books were evidently intended to be read along side of the Torah readings. Many of the allusions are in the marginal references of a good Bible.
Luke and the Torah Readings (11/93-5/94)
By far the longest studies in this series involved Luke. Luke 1-2 are filled with parallels to Genesis. And Luke 9-18 have so many allusions to Deuteronomy that it is hard for me to understand how I had overlooked them before.
Luke and the Former Prophet Readings (6/94-9/94)
Because Jesus is fulfilling the law and the prophets, Luke has parallels to the Former Prophets as well as the Torah.
Daniel at Pentecost (10/94)
The parallels between Daniel 2-7 and the readings on and around Pentecost are impressive. Such connections add a new dimension to prophetic study. When you become comfortable with the Jewish calendar and reading plan, try aligning Revelation with the annual reading plan; the results are quite rewarding.
Paul’s Epistles and the Jewish Feasts (11/94)
Three connections between Paul’s epistles and the Jewish Feasts provide moorings for a reading plan for them. Romans 12-14, with its connections to the Sermon on the Mount, would be appropriate reading for Pentecost. II Corinthians 3-9, with its allusions to Exodus 34, the tabernacle, the temple, and reaping, would be appropriate for Tabernacles. The parallels between I Thessalonians and Matthew 23-25 make it suitable reading for the first two weeks of the year.
A Daily Reading Plan
I am working on a daily reading plan based on the ideas presented in this series of articles. I have had some difficulties converting an essentially weekly plan into a sequence of daily readings, but my first attempt should be done soon. The plan’s starting point will be the last week in March, 1995. If you would like a copy, please send your request to me: Joe Hill, 11110 South Bay Lane, Austin, TX 78739.
P.S. Those of you who have been waiting until the series was finished before starting to read the articles can start now. Please send me your reactions, comments, or suggestions.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One