1. Joshua The “Book of Battles”

2. Order of Events 1.Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River, into the the promised land, Canaan. 2.Joshua and his army moved from city to city, battling the people there who were idol worshippers. (see Battles Chart) 1.Cleaning out the wickedness and evil 3.Joshua divides the land into 12 regions for the 12 Tribes of Jacob 4.Joshua encourages the Israelites to continue to follow the Lord; Joshua dies.

3. Joshua’s Battles 1.Jericho 1.Story of Rahab, the prostitute 2.1 st Ai (Achan’s sin in ch. 7) 3.2 nd Ai 4.Gibeon and the 5 Kings (God stopped the sun!) 5.Hazar

4. Judges Purpose: to tell the story of how the Israelites sinned again and the leaders (Judges) who stepped up to rescue them The Israelites didn’t remove all of the wicked people from the Promised Land like God told them; they became captives again The book of Judges spans a period of over 325 years, telling the stories of 6 cycles of oppression and deliverance

5. Order of Events 1.Military Failure of Israel a.Incomplete conquest of the land b.Disobedience and defeat

6. Order of Events 2. The Rescue of Israel by the Judges a. 1 st Period: Othniel b. 2 nd Period: Ehud & Shamgar c. 3 rd Period: Deborah & Barak d. 4 th Period: Gideon, Tola, and Jair e. 5 th Period: Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon f. 6th Period: Samson

7. Order of Events 3. The Moral Failure of Israel a. Idolatry in the tribe of Dan b. War against the tribe of Benjamin *It’s important to remember that the Judges were not perfect people; they sinned, too. But God used them when they submitted to his will.

8. The Story of Ehud Judges 3: 12-30

9. 1 Samuel A book of great beginnings…and tragic endings.

10. Vital Statistics Purpose: to record the life of Samuel, Israel’s last judge; the reign and decline of Saul, the first king; and the choice and preparation of David, Israel’s greatest king. Author: Possibly Samuel, but also includes writings from the prophets Nathan and Gad. Setting: Begins in the days of the judges and describes the transition to a land led by God (theocracy) to a land led by kings (monarchy).

11. Order of Events 1. Eli and Samuel (1:1-7:17) a. Samuel’s birth and childhood b. War with the Philistines 2. Samuel and Saul (8:1-15:35) a. Saul becomes king of Israel b. God rejects Saul for disobedience

12. Order of Events 3. Saul and David (16:1-31:13) a. Samuel anoints David b. David and Goliath c. David and Jonathan become friends d. Saul pursues David e. Saul’s defeat and Death

13. Important People Eli – the high priest during the time of the judges; was a judge for 40 years; 2 bad sons Hannah – mother of Samuel; prayed faithfully for a son Samuel – Israel’s last and greatest judge; anointed 2 kings of Israel; mentioned in Hebrews 11

14. Important People Saul: first king of Israel; made some bad choices; very jealous of David David: greatest king of Israel; ancestor of Jesus; “a man after God’s own heart” Jonathan: Saul’s son; David’s best friend; military leader is Israel