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  It is our pleasure to now introduce Mr. Mark Groman. Enjoy!

Introduction to the Restoration Books

INTRODUCTION TO THE RESTORATION BOOKS

            As we come to the last section in the Old Testament history books, I want to remind you that they are not just history.  These books are redemptive in nature - that is, they tell us the story of salvation in Jesus.  Theologians call this section the Restoration Books - as in, the restoration of God’s people from Babylon to Canaan.  There are actually six restoration books - three history books and three minor prophets.  As we study the history books we will look at the prophets as they help us understand the history.  For the record, these six books are Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther (as history), and Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi (as prophets).  Ezra is first in the group, therefore it is foundational and sets the tone for all the rest of the Restoration books.

            How do these books fit into the Old Testament?  I like to view the Bible in the light of Genesis 1 - light, separation and fruit.  I believe the whole Bible is structured around that pattern, including the Restoration books.  If we put it in a chart, some of the Old Testament would look like this:

            Obviously, this is not a complete breakdown of the Old Testament.  It’s only a partial view to zero in on the Restoration books. 

            OBSERVATIONS

            The first thing to note is that these books are not chronological.  Nehemiah is actually the last history book of the Old Testament.  Esther actually occurred between Ezra chapters 6 & 7, but its message fits at the end, so that’s where it was placed.

            The next thing I want to talk about is restoration “from” and restoration “unto.”  In Egypt, the children of Israel were born into their situation (though Joseph himself didn’t sin to get there).  In Babylon, the children of Israel were sent there because of their sin.  In Egypt, everyone got out.  In Babylon, not all left, yet all were invited.

            In relative numbers, only a handful left Babylon to return to the Promised Land.  While there were probably millions of Jews by then, only about 50,000 actually returned.  In Old Testament terminology they were called the “remnant;” in the New Testament they would be called the “overcomers” of I John 4.

            How long were they in Babylon?  Seventy years as prophesied by Jeremiah in Jeremiah 25:11 and 29:10.  Why were they sent there?  According to II Chronicles 36:21, they had skipped seventy years worth of sabbath rests in 490 years.  Thus failure to rest in the Lord brings captivity and bondage to God’s people, both physically and spiritually speaking.

            If we have restoration from captivity and bondage, what is restoration unto?  At least three things: the land, the temple and the wall - all destroyed and devastated.  The temple was a barometer of the relationship of the people with God; as the temple went, so went God’s people.  If the king was okay in the sight of God, he either planned, built or repaired the temple.  If he was not okay, he would at least neglect the temple and in some cases even abuse it.  Broadly, the land speaks of our position in Christ, the temple speaks of our relationship with Christ, and the wall speaks of the knowledge of Christ.

            So what’s the big message of this section?  From Ezra, God desires to restore His people to a right relationship with Him, illustrated by the land and the temple.  From Nehemiah, God desires for us to be surrounded by the knowledge of God, represented by the wall.  Finally, Esther illustrates how His bride is to live by faith as He displays His providential power.

            We need revival.  We need to be restored to a right relationship with God.  We need to know God and to walk by faith in Him.  Lamentations 5:21 tells us “Turn thou us unto thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned.  And renew our days as old.”  As the song says, everything old is new again!

                                                  Patterns

For years I have seen parallels between some of the books of the New Testament and some of the books of the Old Testament - parallels that no one seemed to talk about. I have pondered long and hard over making these links and establishing the themes of the books in question. For instance, I could see parallels between the major prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel) and the pastoral books (I Timothy, II Timothy, Titus, Philemon), but I had trouble defining the precise way they paralleled each other.

Some time ago I was listening to a teaching tape by Ed Miller on Genesis 1. I have known Ed since my days in Rhode Island, and his ministry and life have greatly blessed me and my family over the years. His teaching on Genesis 1 intrigued me and started the wheels turning in my mind.

To summarize briefly, Ed states from Genesis 1 that there are three big things that are happening during the first week of creation, summed up by the words "light," "separation" and "fruit." He also makes the statement - and this is the part that got my wheels turning - that the whole Bible could be understood as an extension of these three elements. God keeps saying essentially the same things over and over, only using new and better illustrations at each new cycle of the pattern.

So what comes to mind when you think about "light" in Biblical terms? There are several possible responses: faith, salvation, justification, understanding, etc. Genesis 1:16, where light is associated with authority, also suggests kingship, lordship, government, etc.

Okay, what does the word "separation" suggest? Possible responses are sin, sanctification, servanthood, surrender, etc. And how about "fruit"? Food, fullness, strength, reproduction, evangelism, missions, even priesthood. Those three words suggest quite a bit, and you can see how those themes might play out all through Scripture.

What things in Scripture (anywhere in Scripture) are always associated in groups of three? I made a column with light, separation and fruit on the left, and began filling in more columns as I could:

Table 1.

As you can see from Table 1 there were several possible combinations, and more that aren’t included. But there was one response that was not in the proper order. "Prophet, priest and king" roles off the tongue quite well, and there’s a Fanny Crosby hymn that uses that order (Praise Him, Praise Him), but the proper order - the Genesis 1 order, if you will - should be first King, then Prophet, then Priest. Such combinations such as "Huey, Dewey and Louie," "Kookla, Fran and Ollie," "Larry, Curly and Moe," and "Peter, Paul and Mary" aren’t really appropriate.

The idea here, in case that isn’t already clear to you, is that the items in the first row (left to right) are all associated with each other, the items in the second row are all associated with each other, and so on with the third row, just as the items in each column (up and down) are related to each other.

Sometimes - quite often, in fact - we see this cycle in groups of three, and sometimes we see the cycle in groups of four. For instance, there are four major prophets and four gospels, etc. So how does this fit into this scheme? Good question! There’s one more significant event during the creation week: Rest! "And on the seventh day, God rested from all his labor." So sometimes we see the pattern "played out" in cycles of three, and sometimes in cycles of four. Going back to our chart, let’s fill out the cycles that do or might have four items in them:

Table 2.

Now, I could put others in, but let’s stop here for the moment and discuss some of the implications of what we have here. Some cycles have four items to complete them, some obviously only need three. Why? Well, one answer is that the cycle of three is complete in and of itself. For instance, God is called the "God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" because they are a complete cycle; Joseph could be added, but he would have been redundant. Now, in Joseph you have all three elements combined into one - he is your complete package of light, separation and fruit in one person; thus, he is a "rest" kind of guy. By extension, that goes for John and Daniel as well - their books represent the summary and completion of the three previous books. Of Joseph and Daniel there is nothing negative recorded in scripture. Of course they were not sinless, it’s just that none were recorded. John was the disciple that "Jesus loved best." So you see in these men a special relationship with the Lord pictured that few others had.

Now I want to give a more complete answer to this question, so let me tip my hand and map out how I see some of the books of the Old and New Testament falling into place in this scheme.

* - these are one book in the Hebrew

Table 3.

Some things jump out right away - why are there no "rest" books between Deuteronomy and Daniel? Because there was no rest! That is, the sabbatical year was not observed in all that time. According to II Chronicles 36:24, that’s why Judah was carried into captivity - they refused to rest! Why are there no "rest" books after II Corinthians? Well, because there are too many to fit into the table. I believe (until someone can show me differently) that Galatians through II Thessalonians are all books on rest, that is, what the believer who is resting in the Lord will look like.

There are books missing from the list, for instance Genesis, Acts and Revelation. I believe these books in particular are stand-alone books, which is to say, they have the cycles internally (either 3 of 7 or 4 of 7). For instance in Genesis you have the creation week, and Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, etc. Obviously Revelation is full of "sevens."

One note of reality and caution: I haven’t mapped the whole Bible yet, at least not to my own satisfaction. For instance, I don’t know how the 12 minor prophets fit in yet, as cycles of 3 or 4 (though I suspect 3 because there are three post-exilic prophets). I don’t know how exactly all the sevens of Revelation fit into the cycle. This brings up way more interesting questions than I have time to answer! I haven’t done enough study, and I’m hesitant to crow bar all of scripture into a box just to fit my little thesis. Take all this as a general observation, not as the last word, and as an observation in progress!

Also, please do not think that this is now the only way to look at the Bible. Every means, method and system - within the light of the Holy Spirit - has value. Nor do I think that everything that’s been stated on various books of the Bible that might not be in line with this should be tossed. Maybe refined a bit, but we all stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us - I hope someday to walk where these dear old saints have walked! In other words, don’t pitch what you already think or know just because of little ol’ me.

So what’s the point of all this? Well, I see this as a tool to point us in the right direction for some books that are difficult to understand the themes - Kings, Chronicles, Jeremiah, the Pastoral epistles, etc. My hope is that if we can see the Big Picture, and see the patterns and recurring cycles, we will be pointed in the right direction toward the theme of each book we don’t understand yet. Maybe, also, having seen the Big Picture, we might even gain new insight into the books we thought we already knew! For instance, this has realigned my understanding of I Timothy. I see the emphasis on salvation and evangelism that I largely ignored before.

Matthew obviously fits as the Gospel of the Kingdom, and Mark fits as the Gospel of the Amazing Servant, and John certainly is a fitting summary as the non-synoptic Gospel. But how does Luke fit into this? Luke presents Christ as the "perfect man" - a priest! Note how much of the action takes place in and around the temple, which obviously speaks of priesthood.

I and II Samuel focus on Christ the King and what His Kingdom looks like illustrated by the life of David. I and II Kings then, while in the context of the history of Judah and Israel and their respective kings, focus on His servants the prophets and the men of God. The most obvious examples are Elijah and Elisha, and there are many others in the text as well. Thus, I give the theme to be "Christ, The Servant of God, illustrated by His servants, the prophets and the men of God."

And Chronicles? They were written by a priest (Ezra); the first nine chapters are genealogies (definitely a priest thing, which by the way Luke has too); and as Dana Congdon has asserted, the temple (and one’s attitude toward it) plays prominently in the rest of the narration. Thus, the theme I have given to it is "Christ, our Great High Priest, illustrated by the those with a priestly heart."

What about the major prophets? The name of Isaiah means "Jehovah is salvation." That fits. Ezekiel is the priestly, spiritual book in the sequence. I’ve already mentioned Daniel as the "rest" book of this cycle. So what about Jeremiah? If Ezekiel speaks to the "heart priest," then I see Jeremiah speaking to the "heart servant." There are multiple references in the book to the heart, and it is a parallel book to the Kings (also written by Jeremiah I believe).

Okay, what about the "what abouts"? Lamentations? Doesn’t that make a fifth book in the Major Prophet cycle? Since Jeremiah wrote it, I include it as a part of his message. I believe the book of Jeremiah can be taken singly, Lamentations can be taken singly, and Jeremiah and Lamentations can be taken in combination as well. This would be like taking David as a picture of Christ, Solomon as a picture of Christ, and David and Solomon together as a picture of Christ.

What about the poetical books? I suspect Job is a stand-alone book with internal cycles (of his friends, Huey, Dewey and Louie); there’s no way of shoe-horning a hundred and fifty psalms into this pattern, though I suspect there will be some internal cycles as well as external groupings; but then there are the next three - Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song - all written by Solomon, and I think I see something there. How about "wise unto salvation, separation from folly, and the fruit of relationship with Christ"? Does that work? I’ll have to think about it.

So what’s the conclusion of the matter? Christ is being revealed through all of scripture in a repeating pattern that begins in Genesis 1 and continues right to the end of the Bible. Each cycle reveals him more fully and more wonderfully each time. But you already knew that, didn’t you?

                                                      Bible Chart

Genesis 1           Salvation           Trinity           Man           I Corinthians13           Kingdom 

Light               Justification          Father           Body                Faith                          King 

Separation      Sanctification        Son              Soul                 Hope                       Prophet 

Fruit                Glorification       Holy Spirit      Spirit                 Love                         Priest 

Rest     

Genesis 1                      Noah                            Theme                           Key Verse(s) 

Light                          In the Ark            Salvation from Judgment          Gen. 7:7 

Separation              Flood  Waters   Rising Above Circumstances       Gen. 7:17 

Fruit                         Raven & Dove             Finding Fruit                        Gen. 8:6-17 

Rest   

Genesis 1             Patriarchs                 Theme                    Key Verse(s) 

Light                     Abraham             Father of Faith               Gen. 15:6 

Separation             Isaac                 Living Sacrifice              Gen. 22:9 

Fruit                      Jacob                  God-Sufficiency            Gen. 35:1-14 

Rest                      Joseph           Complete Man of God       Gen. 45:8 

Genesis 1                   Mosaic Books                   Theme                                 Key Verse(s) 

Light                               Exodus              Salvation by Power and Blood        Ex. 12:13 

Separation                  Leviticus                    Sacrifice for Sin 

                                                                 (Holiness through Redemption)            Lev. 9 

Fruit                            Numbers                          Pilgrim Life                              Num. 9:15-23 

Rest                             Deuteronomy               Summary of the Law:           Deuteronomy 30:1- 

Genesis 1                          Canaan Books                             Theme                       Key Verse(s) 

Light                                    Joshua                         Life in the Land (Christ           )Joshua 6:2 

Separation                         Judges                              Overcoming by Faith           Judges 3:1-4 

Fruit                                     Ruth                            Channel of Redemption           Ruth 4:13-22 

Genesis 1                     Kingdom Books                                  Theme                     Key Verse(s) 

Light                             I & II Samuel                         The Kingdom of Heaven         II Sam. 5:1-3 

Separation                    I & II Kings                       Kingdom of Servanthood          Rev. 21:19;

                                                                                                                                     Amos 3:7 

Fruit                            I & II Chronicles                       Kingdom of Priests                Ex. 19:6;

                                                                                                                                    II Peter 2:5,9 

Genesis 1                    Restoration Books                     Theme                                Key Verse(s) 

Ligh                                     Ezra                              Revival - Living Again                Ezra 1:2,3 

Separation                     Nehemiah                    Surrounded by the Knowledge 

                                                                             of God                                           Zechariah 2:5 

Fruit                              Esther                       Walking by Faith (Providence)            Esther 9:1 

Genesis 1                          Poetry                            Theme                              Key Verse(s) 

Light                                  Job                           God is Enough                      Job 1:1 - 2:10 

Separation.                                                     For Job & Friends                    Job 2:11 - 42:6 

Fruit                                                           To Restore Double Blessings          Job 42:7-17 

Pentateuch                        Poetry:                       Psalms                  Theme           Key Verse(s) 

Genesis  It has been noted that the Psalms parallel the Pentateuch in their order

                               Foundational Psalms Ps. 1-41 

                              Exodus  Salvation Psalms Ps. 42-72 

                               Leviticus  Temple Psalms Ps. 73-89 

                             Numbers Pilgrim Psalms Ps. 90-106 

                            Deuteronomy Psalms of Rest  Ps. 107-150 

Genesis 1        Poetry:                     Theme                       Key Verse(s) 

Light              Proverbs                Wise unto Salvation       Proverbs 1:7 

Separation   Ecclesiastes         Separation from Folly      Eccl. 12:1 

Fruit            Song of Songs        Fruit of [Knowing] the 

                                                       Groom                           SoS 2:16; 6:3; 7:10 

Genesis 1             Major Prophets                   Theme                        Key Verse(s) 

Light                        Isaiah                   The King on the Throne,

                                                              the King on the Altar              Isaiah 9:2, 6; 53:4-7 

Separation            Jeremiah/

                             Lamentations         The Heart Servant and

                                                            the Faithfulness of God              Jer. 9:25,26; 

                                                                                                                 16:12; 17:10;

                                                                                                                29:13; Lam. 3:22,23 

Fruit                       Ezekiel                The Heart Priest and the

                                                            Glory of God                                 Ezekiel 1:1 

Rest                        Daniel                God’s Summary of History          Daniel 2:19-23 

Genesis 1                       Minor Prophets                  Them                            Key Verse(s)

                                      (God’s First Call)) 

Light                               Hosea                        God’s Call to the Unfaithful

                                                                              for Union                             Hosea 1:7 

Separation                      Joel                             Set Apart ... For the Day 

                                                                              of the Lord                        Joel 1:14, 15;

                                                                                                                              2:12, 13 

Fruit                                 Amos                Summer Fruit and the

                                                                  Righteousness of Go                      Amos 5:24;

                                                                                                                               8:1-3 

Genesis 1                          Minor Prophets II                  Theme                    Key Verse(s)

                                      (God’s Persistent Call) 

Light                                  Obadiah                           Deliverance (of the

                                                                                      Humble                       Obadiah 12, 17 

Separation                        Jonah                         Repentance (of Jonah,

                                                                             of Nineveh, but not God)      Jonah 3:1; 

                                                                                                                                4:10, 11 

Fruit                                   Micah                        Progressive Mercy and

                                                                             Unchanging Love