living in the land

This is the longest section of the Old Testament.  In this section we will witness the conquest of the Land, the calling of the Judges and the rise and fall of Kings and Kingdoms.  In some ways this is not part of a physical journey, but of a spiritual one.

Once the people take hold of the land, the question becomes one of faithfulness.  The Israelites never quite seem to be as faithful to God as God desires them to be.  This includes demanding kings to lead them as well as finding other gods to worship.

Also included in this section are the Psalms and Proverbs; works which were penned during this significant period of Israel's history.

One of the things that we need to keep in mind while reading these sections is that they begin in an era when the only great world power was Egypt.  However at this time (1,000 BCE) they were in a period of weakness.  What this meant was the there was a moment when Israel was able to exert its political and military influence over significant territories.

However on the horizon (both historical and geographical) were new Middle Easter powers.  These would be the Neo-Assyrian (911 - 605 BCE) and Neo-Babylonian (620-539 BCE) Empires.  These empires would sweep aside all opponents, often in brutal fashion.  Those opponents included Israel (722 BCE) and Judah (586 BCE).