Summary

Of
Salvation
History
(Patriarchs to
Crucifixion)
The Patriarchs
In this period, God made a covenant with Abram (later named Abraham) and his
wife, Sarah. Because of the covenant, Abraham journeyed from Haran to Canaan. God
promised to give Abraham his own land and that he will be the “Father of All Nations”.

Abraham had a son named Isaac who married Rebekah. Rebekah bore Esau
and Jacob (later named Israel). There was the sibling rivalry between Jacob and Esau
that nearly led to violence. 

The 12 tribes of Israel are the 12 sons of Jacob. Joseph is one of the sons but
because of envy, his brothers sold him as a slave. He then raised power in Egypt
because of his interpretation of the dreams of the Pharaoh. Because of famine, his
brothers went to Egypt and there, they reunited. Joseph eventually forgave his brothers
and asked his father, Jacob, to settle in Egypt. The general migration of people drew the
descendants of Jacob in Egypt.

Egypt and the Exodus

From 1720-1560 BC, Egypt was under the Hyksos Dynasty.

The Israelites flourished in all aspects. After a harmonious relationship with them
by the Egyptians, they then turned into slaves. God hears their cries and called Moses
to lead people out of slavery. But the Pharaoh has a hard heart. Yahweh then proved
his might over the Pharaoh by sending terrible plagues upon the Egyptians. The
Israelites escape from Egypt and journey to the Holy Land is called the Exodus.

On the way to the Promised Land, the Israelites stopped at Mount Sinai. There,
the key event in Jewish salvation history occurs. In a dramatic theophany (God
appearance), God extends the Covenant he made with Abraham to all the Israelites. He
gives Moses the Law, summarized in the Ten Commandments, which the people must
obey as a sign of their commitment to the Covenant.

During the Exodus the people frequently complain and lose their faith in God. As
a consequence they must wander in the desert for forty years, and only their children
will be able to enter the Promised Land.

Settling to the Promised Land

Moses dies before the Israelites entered the Promised Land. God calls Moses’
right hand man, Joshua (“Jesus” is another form of his name), to lead the people into
the land, much of which is inhabited by other people. The Israelites fought to gain
control of the land. When they trust God, they are successful in their battles; when they
do not trust God, they fail. Eventually they gain control of the land, and Joshua divides
the land between the twelve tribes.

New invaders tried to capture the land. At this time the Israelites have no king,
because God is their ruler. A pattern develops: 1) the Israelites forget about God and
are unfaithful to the Covenant, 2) they suffer at the hands of invaders, 3) they cry out to
God for help, 4) God calls special leaders and warriors, called judges, to help deliver
justice and defend the land against the invaders, 5) life is good for a while until the
Israelites lapse into unfaithfulness and the cycle begins again. Deborah, Gideon, and
Samson were some of the more famous judges. Unfortunately, with each cycle the
violence gets worse and the judges are less holy. The end of the Book of Judges ends
with a horrible rape which leads to a civil war in which the whole tribe of Benjamin is
slaughtered except for 600 men.

Kingdoms of Judah and Israel

Eventually the Israelites want their own king. God reluctantly answers their plea.
He has Samuel—the last of the judges—anoint Saul as the first king of Israel. At the
same time Samuel warns the people of the dangers of kings and empires. Saul has
many problems and is eventually killed in battle. David follows Saul as the second king.
David is a mighty warrior and unites all the twelve Tribes into one kingdom. After
David’s death, one of his sons, Solomon, builds a Temple at Jerusalem, the capital city.
Despite their many positive accomplishments, both David and Solomon are guilty of
many sins in building their empire, succumbing to the temptations of violence, sex, and
power.

After Solomon’s death there is disagreement between the tribes, and the
kingdom splits in two. Israel is the name of the northern kingdom and Judah is the name
of the southern kingdom. Many of the kings of Israel and Judah worshiped foreign gods
and allowed injustice in the kingdom. So God called prophets to call the people to obey
their Covenant with God. Prophets like Amos, Hosea, and Isaiah called the people to
stop worshiping idols, to practice justice, to worship God with integrity, and to care for
people in need. The sayings of the “writing prophets” were collected and became part of
the Jewish Scriptures.

Several kings in Judah--particularly Hezekiah and Josiah--attempted religious

reform and strove to end the worship of indigenous gods and goddesses, tearing down
the high places and sacred groves where they were worshipped. It is likely that a
significant portion of the Jewish scriptures--the books Deuteronomy through 2 Kings—
were initially collected, written, and edited during their reigns.

Exile and Return

Despite the prophets’ warnings, the people of Israel and Judah continued to turn

away from God’s Covenant with them. So God let their kingdoms be conquered and
their rulers overthrown. The Assyrians conquered Israel in 721 BC. The Babylonians
conquered Judah in 587 BC. Many of the people were taken into captivity, so this time
was called the Exile. Prophets like Ezekiel and Second Isaiah comforted the Israelites
with the promise that God was still with them. These great prophets also hinted at the
future coming of a just, gentle, and suffering king/servant who would lead the people
back to God.

The Exile was a key event in Jewish salvation history. During and after the Exile,
the Israelites rewrote much of their sacred scriptures. They now believed that their
special relationship with God was not centered in being a nation with a king. Their
identity was primarily a religious identity centered in following the Mosaic Law--with an
emphasis in the offering of ritual sacrifice at the Temple.

Fifty years passed in exile. Then a new Persian king allowed the people—now
called Judeans or Jews—to return to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. The people
saw God’s hand at work and the books of Ezra and Nehemiah tell of the struggles and
successes they experienced in this process.

Alexander the Great came along and the Greeks now ruled over Israel. One of
the Greek governors tried to establish Greek culture and religion in Israel and put
statues of Greek gods in the Temple. In response, around 150 BC a Jewish family, the
Hasmoneans (also called the Maccabees), led a successful revolt against the Greeks to
restore Jewish independence. During this troubled time, the common people hoped for
a messiah, or savior, to make them great again. New Jewish groups-- the Essenes, the
Pharisees, the Sadducees—arose during this time. Each group emphasized a different
approach to faithfully living the Jewish faith.

Life of Jesus Christ

God never abandoned his Chosen People, even though so often they did not
keep their part of the Covenant. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, tell of
how when the time was right, God sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, into the world. This is
the ultimate event in salvation history. Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, the second
person of the Trinity, is the complete and final revelation of God’s saving plan. When
Jesus was born, the Romans now ruled Israel. Some of the Jews were hoping for a
mighty warrior and king like David, who would drive the Romans out. Instead, Jesus
showed a different way. He preached love, justice, and forgiveness. He healed and
worked miracles as signs of God’s power.

Jesus’ followers, called disciples, came to see that he was the Messiah, the
Savior. Simon Peter was designated by Jesus to become the leader of twelve of Jesus
closest male disciples, who became known as the Twelve Apostles. Mary Magdalene
seemed to be a leader among a group of women disciples who followed Jesus and
supported his ministry. Jesus showed his disciples that salvation comes through faith
and a change of heart, not through violence and political power.

When Jesus was killed by the Romans—with the approval of the Jewish leaders
—his followers thought that all was lost. Instead, after three days God raised Jesus from
the dead! Christ’s Resurrection affirmed that Jesus was the Son of God, affirmed that
everything he taught was true, and affirmed that through Christ sin and death have been
conquered forever. All the baptized who put their faith in Jesus Christ will share in his
Resurrection. God’s original plan for creation is now brought full circle as we anticipate
the fullness of the Kingdom of God in which perfect goodness, harmony, love, and joy
will be present for all eternity.

Submitted by

Marianne Suba

BS Accountancy 2A