Bible Dictionary Project Instructions For These 2 Distinct P

Bible Dictionary Project Instructionsfor These 2 Distinct Projects Im

For these 2 distinct projects, imagine you are writing a series of short articles for a Bible Dictionary. As we have seen in our study, Bible dictionaries are useful tools to learn more about the books, people, and places we encounter in Scripture. Your task will be to write: 1. Three concise 200–250-word essays about a book, person, and setting/place from the Old Testament (Due at the end of Module/Week 5). 2. Three concise 200–250-word essays about a book, person, and setting/place from the New Testament (Due at the end of Module/Week 8).

Content Guidelines: Choose 1 book, person, and place from the list of the provided topics for each of the 2 projects. Your essay must include the following per item:

• Book: The basic literary genre, authorship, date written, key themes, purposes, major events, and main personalities.
• Person: The dates of the character’s life, place of birth, summary of their role or positions held, defining events in their life and work, contemporaries (other biblical characters they are associated with, etc.), and their legacy. If they are a biblical author, list the related works.
• Setting/Place (i.e., municipality, kingdom, empire): The keys dates (i.e., founding, demise, etc.), clarification of the location (regional description, the relevance of the place from a biblical/Ancient Near East (ANE) perspective, associated biblical books where it is a backdrop or central location), key attributes (religion, commerce, key figures, etc.), and associated biblical books.

Formatting Guidelines: Use 1 Word document for each stage of submission (That is, all of your Old Testament Bible Dictionary Project will be on 1 document, and all of your New Testament Bible Dictionary Project will be on 1 document). Use 12-point, Times New Roman font. Save your document according to the following filename formats:

• Module/Week 5 – LastnameFirstInitialOTBDP.doc (Example: DoeJOTBDP)
• Module/Week 8 – Lastname_FirstInitialNTBDP.doc (Example: DoeJNTBDP)

Use the Bible Dictionary Project Template to format your summaries.

Paper For Above instruction

The assignment involves creating six short, focused essays arranged into two sets corresponding to the Old Testament and New Testament. These essays serve as entries for a Bible Dictionary, each designed to offer concise but comprehensive information about selected biblical books, prominent biblical persons, and significant locations relevant to the biblical narrative.

Old Testament Essays

The first three essays will concentrate on a biblical book, a person, and a setting from the Old Testament. For the book, a careful analysis must be provided including its literary genre—be it historical, poetic, prophetic, or law—along with details about its authorship, estimated date of writing, central themes, intended purposes, major events depicted, and main personalities involved. For instance, studying the book of Samuel requires understanding its role as a historical narrative founded likely by the prophet Samuel and others, written around the 10th century BCE, focusing on themes of kingship and divine guidance, with key figures like Samuel, Saul, and David.

Regarding biblical persons, research should include their lifespan, place of birth, roles within Israelite society or prophetic missions, pivotal moments that define their character and legacy, associated contemporaries and their relationships, and if applicable, their own writings or related biblical contributions. For example, King David's life from around 1040–970 BCE, born in Bethlehem, includes his roles as a shepherd, king, and psalmist, with defining events like his victory over Goliath, his reign as Israel’s second king, and his enduring legacy as a messianic ancestor.

The setting or location should be analyzed regarding its historical founding, notable historical events leading to its decline, geographic and regional descriptions from an Ancient Near East perspective, relevance within biblical history, and its cultural or religious significance. An example might be Jerusalem, established as a prominent city around 1000 BCE as the political and spiritual center of Israel, with landmarks like the Temple and references across many biblical books such as Kings and Chronicles.

New Testament Essays

The subsequent three essays focus similarly on a biblical book, person, and setting from the New Testament. The book should be described by its literary genre—such as epistle, gospel, or apocalypse—with details on authorship (e.g., traditionally attributed to Paul or John), date of composition, key themes like salvation or eschatology, primary purposes, significant events, and the main personalities involved.

For individuals, focus on their historical context, lifespan, roles within the early Christian community or Jewish society, critical moments that shaped their ministries, associations with other biblical characters, and their enduring influence or writings. For example, Peter, a prominent apostle born circa 1 CE, from Bethsaida, known for his leadership among the apostles, his denials of Christ, and his mission to Jewish and Gentile communities. His legacy includes epistles bearing his name and foundational contributions to early Christianity.

The setting or location should be characterized by its foundation date, key historical events, geographical description, significance in early Christian mission, predominant religious practices, notable figures, and biblical references. Ephesus, founded as a prominent port city in Asia Minor around 1000 BCE, becomes a crucial Christian hub in the early churches, referenced notably in the Book of Acts and the epistle to the Ephesians, renowned for its temple dedicated to Artemis and its commercial importance.

Through these essays, the project aims to deepen understanding of biblical literature, personalities, and environments, providing readers with condensed but meaningful insights rooted in biblical history and scholarship.

References

• Brice, R. (2017). A Concise Bible Dictionary. Oxford University Press.
• Barrett, C. K. (2008). Gospel Perspectives: The Authorship and Date of the Gospel of John. Cambridge University Press.
• Fitzmyer, J. A. (1998). The Letter to the Ephesians. Yale University Press.
• Klein, R., Blomberg, C., & Hubbard, R. (2017). Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Zondervan Academic.
• Longenecker, R. N. (2010). The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary. Eerdmans.
• Nolland, J. (2005). Luke 1:1–9:50. Eerdmans.
• Oden, T. C. (2014). Classic Christianity. Harper Collins.
• Robertson, A. T. (2009). Word Pictures in the New Testament. Kregel Academic.
• Smith, D. C. (2018). Introduction to the Old Testament. Baker Academic.
• Witherington, B. (2007). The Paul within the Pharisees: Restoring the 1st-Century Jewish Context to the Epistles. Trinity Press International.