Tag Archives: Old Testament

“He Took Up…the Mantle of Elijah” (OT Lesson 29)

By David Larsen | Published: July 31, 2010
This lesson is about the transition of the prophetic office from Elijah to his successor, Elisha, and the ministry of Elisha to the people of Israel.  One of the first things that one may notice, after reviewing and comparing the narratives concerning Elijah and Elisha is that there are many similarities between them, especially in [...]
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The Great Elijah Stories (OT Lesson 28)

By David Larsen | Published: July 27, 2010
I now finally have a decent internet connection at my house (we moved a little over a month ago and haven’t had a dependable connection), so I’m hoping now to get back into blogging on the Old Testament lessons of the LDS Sunday School curriculum.  I have, unfortunately, missed a great number of lessons on [...]
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Out with the Old Moses, In with the New Joshua

By David Larsen | Published: May 6, 2010
Musings on Deuteronomy/Joshua (Old Testament Lessons 17 and 18) As I was studying recently about the “transfer of power” from the prophet Moses to his young aide, Joshua, it hit me that there was a similarity in this motif with the ideas presented in a paper by Julian Morgenstern  that I recently read called “The [...]
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The Exodus Narrative as Another Creation Story (for Old Testament Lesson 13)

By David Larsen | Published: March 24, 2010
Please excuse me for not sharing much for the last couple of weeks. I have been working hard on my dissertation. Unfortunately, I missed commenting on a story I really love — the Joseph in Egypt narrative. I won’t take the time to backtrack now and write much on it, but I have always thought [...]
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The Jewish Legends of Jacob vs. Esau: The Birthright and the Blessing

By David Larsen | Published: March 4, 2010
I have had a crazy week, so all I have to offer on this week’s Old Testament Lesson 10 (“Birthright Blessings; Marriage in the Covenant) is two excerpts from Ginzberg’s Legends of the Jews. Now I realize that this work is not the best resource for reliable or primary-source material, but it is very interesting [...]
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“God Will Provide Himself a Lamb” (Old Testament Lesson 9)

By David Larsen | Published: February 26, 2010
The Aqedah (“binding”) of Isaac was an important part of both early Jewish and early Christian understanding of God’s plan for mankind’s salvation. Although the biblical version of the story of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac is told in a way in which the similarities to Christ’s atoning sacrifice are only subtle, many ancient traditions, including [...]
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The Three Men Who Appeared to Abraham: The Godhead, Angels, or Human Beings? (Old Testament Lesson 8)

By David Larsen | Published: February 19, 2010
In Genesis 18, we read that the Lord appeared to Abraham in Mamre, and also, in the same verse, that three “men” visited him.  This has to be one of the most debated passages of all time.  The big question is whether these three were divine beings (and if one of the three was the [...]
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“Noah…Prepared an Ark to the Saving of His House” (Old Testament Lesson 6)

By David Larsen | Published: February 4, 2010
Although this week’s (if I’m ever off-schedule here, please let me know — I am in Scotland…) lesson is focused on Noah and the Flood narrative, this post will concentrate more on “his house.” Not that the story of Noah isn’t important, or that I couldn’t find tons of things to say about it, but [...]
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