Y U S U F U L U C A N: EXPLANATIONS ABOUT OLD TESTAMENT AND THEIR AUTHORS

EXPLANATIONS ABOUT OLD TESTAMENT BOOKS

AND THEIR AUTHORS

1. The Bible: This book which is called “Die Bibel” in German, “al-Kitab al-Mukaddas” in Arabic, which means “Holy Book” and “Kitab-ı Mukaddes” in Turkish, includes Holy Scripture of Judaism and Christianity that were put together by Christians. However, since Jews do not accept any book but their own they object to this unification. Groping The Bible into two different books as Old Testament and New Testament also belongs to Christians. In other words, The Bible is the book of Christians.

The first Turkish translation of The Bible, which is also “the first book that was published by a press”, was done by Ali Ufki Bey during the reign of IV. Mehmet. This translation which was finished in 1666 was published in 1827 in Ottoman Turkish[1] and was adapted in Latin alphabet in 1941. Nowadays after some rearrangements it is published as “Holy Book - New Translation” with introductory information and chapters.

The Bible was accepted/seen as “the word of God which is faultless” until the 14^th century. The part which belongs to Jews is thought to be the “true history of children of Israel”. The contradictions in the book were considered as the “deficiency of the people in reading the text”.

Later on with the innovation movements which started in Italy and then spread to Europe stable and permanent ideas about The Bible were also changed. The researches which were intensified especially in the 19^th century made it clear that the text of The Bible is “in conflict with historical and literary facts” and is not “the word of God”. The criticism about The Bible in the world of Islam started much earlier than Europe.[2]

2. Old Testament: It consists of 46 books, 39 of which are accurate and 7 of which are suspicious, about the Holy script about Judaism. In itself it has three different sections: Torah’ History and Wisdom and Prophets. These three sections comprise 77% of The Bible.

Old Testament whose oldest Hebrew script belongs to 9 or 10 A.D. took its final form and standardized after Jewish rabbis controlled the Greek translation (Septuagint) done by a group of Alexandrian Jewish of 73 people (who were forced to leave their country because of genocide and forgot Hebrew in time) in 90 - 100 A.D. In this meeting known as Synod of Jamnia 39 of 46 Books taking place in Septuagint (which means seventies) Translation were announced as accurate and the rest was thought as suspicious or fictional.

Hebrew manuscripts of Old Testament which are also called “Masoretic Text” are on display in some famous museums: Cairo Codex (Codex Cairensis) of 895 A.D. is in London Museum, Leningrad Codex of 1008 A.D. is in Leningrad Museum, Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran manuscripts) which are found between 1947 and 1956 and which are thought to be belong to Essenes sect is in Shrine of the Book Museum in Israel[3].

There are dissidences among Christians about the validity of Old Testament Books. While Catholic and Orthodox communities base on Greek translation, Protestants accept the 39 books of Jamnia. Jewish people call their sacred book “Tanakh” (which is the short form of Torah, Prophets and Books in Hebrew) instead of “Old Testament”. The distribution of Old Testament books in Tanakh is also different according to Jews. For instance, while Books of Samuel and Kings are put in History Section by Christians, they take place in Prophets Section in Tanakh, which consists of 24 books.

It is scientifically proved that the books that compose Old Testament were not written by the referred people but they were written later by other people, there were some corrections, additions and some interference and while the manuscripts were being copied some copies were changed intentionally or unintentionally[4].

3. Torah: This is one of the four holy books of Islam and according to Qur’an it is the book “which is a revelation form God to Moses[5] in order to show Jews the right path[6]”. According to The Bible it is the first five books (Pentateuch) of Old Testament which were believed to be belonged to Moses.

Genesis which is accepted as “the first book of Moses”: It is about the time between the creation of the world and Adam and the settlement of children of Jacob to Egypt. It tells about the life of Noah and the flood and the lives of Lot, Abraham, Ishmael and Hagar, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph.

Exodus: It tells about children of Israel travelling from Egypt to Desert Sinai under the leadership of Moses, settling in Sinai Desert, their life there and the rules they had to obey.

Leviticus: This third book takes its name from the Levites tribe which comprised the group of “religious people/predictors” among Jewish community. Bread, salvation and gratitude, confession of crime and sin (atonement), the rules that need to be obeyed and some Jewish festivals like Shabbat / The Sabbath (Saturday), Passover, Sukot are told in details.

Numbers: It is about the numbering of Jewish tribes, people at Sinai, distribution of tasks and the immigration from Sinai Desert to the North. Christians claim that in this section “despite the disobedience of people God’s faithfulness and favouritism are constantly emphasized.”[7]

Deuteronomy: It includes the immigration to the northern parts, repetition of rules and the last words of Moses.

It was believed that the books which are called Torah by the Jews and which are thought to be the holiest parts were explained by Moses. But researches showed that Hebrew Torah, original texts of which has never been found, was compiled only from mouth to mouth or by different documents and these happened many years after Moses.

In 1854 it was established that Torah was compiled from 4 different sources and these sources were announced to be:

1. Jahwist (also referred to as the Jehovist, Yahwist) source which was written in Kingdom of Judah district in 9 BC. (after the time of Solomon) and in which Allah is called “Jehovah”.

2. Elohist source which was written a little earlier than Jahwist source in Israel Kingdom area and in which Allah is referred as “Elohim”.

3. Deuteronomy source which was written in 8 or 7 B.C.

4. Priestly source which was written during or after the period of exile.

In 1941 it was understood that Jahwist source depends on three, Elohist source depends on four, Deuteronomy source depends on six and Priestly source depends on nine different sources[8].

After all, it is historically and scientifically proved that Torah is a book which wasn’t written at a certain time by a single person, which was subjected to corrections, additions and changes; therefore it is a “compiled book”, and which cannot be referred to Moses as Jewish traditions accept[9]. These facts prove that current Torah copies are far from authenticity. Today Christians consent to the fact that these books belong to Moses with “traditional belief”[10]. In these books Moses isn’t the person “who talks himself” but someone “about whom is being talked” and even his own death is mentioned. The name Torah is also be used for the whole Old Testament part of The Bible.

4. History of Folks: These are the books which tell about the lives of Jewish people in the desert, their settling around Dead Sea, establishing their kingdom, interior conflicts and dissolution of the kingdom, the Babylon exile and coming back and the later periods. In the German translation used by the Catholics there are 16 books between Deuteronomy and Job under the title of “The History of The Folk of God”.

5. Joshua: Joshua who gives its name to the 6^th book of Old Testament is the same person who was called Yuşa bin Nun in The history of Prophets books prepared by the Islamic scholars and whose tomb is thought to be in one of the hills of Istanbul which has the same name. Neither his name nor his life is mentioned in Qur’an. However, in some interpretations he (Yuşa or Yeşu) is said to be “the helper of Moses”[11] or “one of the two people whom Allah helped”[12].

In this book the conquest of land of Canaan and the land around The Jordan River by the children of Israel under the leadership of Joshua who succeeded after Moses is told. However, some of the information in the book is inconsistent with the archaeological facts, such as although the land of Ai was demolished long time before Jewish conquered that part it was shown as if it was conquered by Jewish people.[13] Today’s Christians see the Book of Joshua as “renewal of the agreement between God and Israel”.[14]

6. Judges: Although this book is believed to be written by Samuel according to Jewish traditions, it is scientifically proved that it was written in different periods. The book talks about the interior conflicts after Israelis moved to land of Canaan (Palestine) and about the judges who tried to guide and guard people in this chaotic period.

7. Ruth: It is a book about a woman who was formerly a member of Moabites marrying two different Jewish men the first of which was settled in Moab after the famine during the time of Judges and the other was called Boaz. In the last sentences of the book it is mentioned that Rut is the mother of the father of David’s father (grandfather’s) mother.

8. 1 and 2 Samuel: it is the part where the kingdom which was founded after the interior conflicts of Jewish people is told. Saul (Thalout), David and Galiot events take place in these books which also include inappropriate and insulting expressions. He is sometimes told as “someone who prays his God faithfully” and sometimes told as “someone who is brutal, selfish and sinful”.[15] These books are known as 1 and 2 Kings in Greek Septuagint (seventies) translation. Although Jews believe that Books of 1 and 2 Samuel were written by Prophet Samuel, this viewpoint is not true. Through the end of Book of 1 Samuel it is mentioned that Prophet Samuel is dead. The parts after 24^th book were claimed to be written by Nathan and Gad.[16]

9. 1 and 2 Kings: These books are about the period of Prophet Solomon, building of Temple of Jerusalem (Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa), dissolution of the kingdom after the death of Solomon and Israel kingdom founded in Samaria in the north and Judah kingdom founded in Jerusalem in the south. The incidents taking place in these books cover a time period of approximately 400 years. After some additions made by different people at different times currently read books were formed. Septuagint (seventies) translation is taken as the later parts of Samuel Books and they are known as 3 and 4 Kings.

10. 1 and 2 Chronicles: This is the part where the incidents in the Books of Samuel and Kings are told again and which “has the most conflicts.”

11. Ezra: He is known as the person who became the leader of Jews after the Babylon exile and who is taken as the person to lay the foundations of Judaism due to his reforms. By looking at the sentences “He was a scribe skilled in the law of Moses”[17] and “the scribe, a scholar of the text of the commandments of the Lord and his statutes for Israel”[18] it is understood that he wrote Torah. Ezra who is also called “The Father of The Jews” and “Moses the second” also cancelled the marriages of Jewish men to non-Jewish women.

The fact that Ezra is called “The son of God” by Jews is strictly criticized in Qur’an in which and in some Islamic books Ezra is known as “Uzair”[19].

12. Nehemiah: According to the book he is the person who used to be the cupbearer of The King of Babylon and then with his own will he went back to his country and became a governor of Jews[20] and the person who applied the taken precautions with Ezra. He said because of non-Jewish women even Prophet Solomon committed sin (13/26) and he purified Jews of non-Jewish people.

13. The Books of 1 and 2 Chronicles and The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are called History of Chroniclers in Old Testament Literature[21] and these are told to be written according to the “religious needs”[22]

14. Tobit which belongs to History of Folks but considered to be suspicious and fictional shows the values that can be seen in any ordinary family. Judith and Esther are about patriotism and bravery of two women. However the people and the events in these books are claimed to be a figment of the imagination (Look: Maurice Bucaille, The Bible, Qur’an and Science). The Books of Maccabees tell about the insurgences against Greek cruelty during the time of Greek- Seleucid Empire to protect Jewish traditions.

15. Book of Wisdom: The first boom of this category, which includes not only some advice and blessings but also some sentences of rebellion and some unethical expressions, is Job. This book is about Job who used to be a very prosperous person but after some unfortunate events a lot of dreadful the boils pointed in his body then with the help of his friends he restored his health. The sentences of rebellion in the book are described as “Job’s bravely challenging to God against His undeserved and fierce punishment” by Christians[23]. Meanwhile, the author of "Izhar-ul-Haqq" (Truth Revealed) and the founder of Protestantism Martin Luther stated that this book is “nothing but a story”.[24]

16. Psalms: The book of Psalms which is very significant for Christians is said to be the book (Psalms) given to Prophet David in Qur’an.[25] The book which has five chapters contains poems and prayers and is shown as the most distinctive example of Hebrew poetry. Some of the western researchers say that “with its current form it is hard to believe that this book is written by David.”

17. Proverbs (The proverbs of Solomon): This book which is thought to be belonged to Solomon generally includes advice about daily life. In a similar way with the words referred to Solomon The Book of Ecclesiastes emphasizes the fact that “the world is mortal”.

As it is seen in almost in all of the Old Testament books, in The Books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes it is again suspicious that these books were written by the mentioned author; that is Solomon. The theses that these parts were written by “the men of Judah King Hizqiyah (B.C. 728 - 699)[26] and “Massa King Lamuel who are taught by his mother”[27] also confirmed this doubt.

18. Song of Solomon: This book which is one of the most bizarre parts of The Bible and Old Testament also includes “really bawdy” dialogues.

This book is defined as “praise of human love as a perfect gift of God” by Christian scholars[28]. They are also said to be the wedding songs of Israelis. And some Catholic scholars wanted this part to be removed from The Bible. Especially in the 5^th-century-scholars defined Song of Solomon as “nasty songs and cabal”[29]

19. Books of Wisdom and Sirach: They are thought to be suspicious and apocryphal. In these books the subjects of “resurrection after life” and “rewarding the good people and punishing the bad people” are told better than other Old Testament Books. The Book of Sirach is very similar to Proverbs[30].

20. Book of Prophets: The third part of Old Testament Books consist of the books named after Jewish prophets. As they criticize the children of Israel harshly they are called “the conscience of Israel”. Jews classify the Books of Prophets as “former ones” which include Joshua, Judges, The Books of Samuel and The Books of Kings and “later ones” which include Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel who are also considered as Major Prophets.

21. Isaiah: He used to be an influential person of Judah Kingdom; he is believed to work until the invasion of Assyria and then was “martyred”. The book has 66 chapters.

Considering the differences in the style, environment and history, The Bible critics group this book into three sections. It is about the threat of Judah district by Assyria Kingdom, invasion of Jerusalem by Babylonia Kingdom and exile period of Jews. The parts between 40 and 60 are thought to be written by Isaiah himself.

22. Jeremiah and Lamentations: Jeremiah is one of the prophets of Judah. He was stoned to death as he did not go to Egypt with other Jews after the fall of Jerusalem (586 B.C.)[31]

In this book the perversion of the folk is condemned. There are some bizarre sentences addressing to God like “Oh Lord! You deceive me… You betrayed us… In one chapter of the book it is told that the sentences of Jeremiah were written by Baruch son of Neriah.[32] The fact that Lamentations was not written by Jeremiah is not accepted by the modern researches.

23. Ezekiel: He is the last one of the Major Prophets of Old Testament. He is believed to witness the exile of Babylon. There are some irrational expressions like “weigh ones hair” and “baking bread on human dung”.

24. Daniel: He lived during the time when the children of Israel were under Babylon captivity and he compiled his book in 2 B.C. It is about the fall of Babylon Kingdom, the domination of Persian Empire, and the dreams of the Babylon emperor Nebuchadnezzar (Buchtu’n-Nasr) and Daniel.[33] Although in the Turkish translations of The Bible, The Book of Daniel has 12 chapters in the text respected by Catholics there is an additional part (Suzanna and Bel and the Dragon) which has 2 more chapters and 106 sentences.

25. Baruch: He is a student of Jeremiah. The book is believed to belong to 1 or 2 A.D. The Book of Baruch which is considered as one of the apocryphal books does not take place in Turkish translations and Sinod of Jamnia standard texts.

26. Hosea: He is said to live during the time before the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by Assyria kingdom. The book is about a prophet and his wife who used to be a prostitute. The disloyalty of the children of Israel likens to the behaviour of a woman who cheats on his husband.

27. Joel: It consists of the speeches of Prophet Joel with the guidance of locust plague and severe drought.

28. Amos: This person, who was a shepherd during the time of Judah Kingdom, recommends being fancy and merciful with bizarre metaphors. Amos is known to be the first Prophet “whose words were recorded in detail” in Old Testament literature.

29. Obadiah: This is the smallest book which consists of only 23 sentences. It declares that the land of Edom where took place in the south of Dead Sea and which was attributed to Esau, the brother of Jacob, would be destroyed forever. The book was said to be written after Babylon Kingdom was conquered Jerusalem in 586 B.C.

30. Jonah: It is about the travel of Prophet Jonah to go to another place in order not to work in Nineveh, his being thrown overboard, eaten by a fish and so on. Some of the sentences are in accordance with the ones in Qur’an.[34] However, sometimes it is interpreted as “removing the torture in order to give people chance”, “God’s repentance”.

31. Micah: It is a book which declares the fact that Israel and Judah Kingdoms would be collapsed and a rescuer would come from Bethlehem (the village where Jesus was born). It is believed that the sentences in the first three chapters were said by Micah and the rest was composed in later times by different people.[35]

32. Nahum: He is a Jewish prophet about whom nothing is known. The book tells about the threats about the people of Nineveh.

33. Habakkuk: Although there is very little information about him it is said that he lived around 7 A.D. when the district was under Babylon domination. Strangely, he addresses to God “Why don’t you listen to me?” as bad people surround good ones.

34. Zephaniah: It foretells the fact that people of Judah Kingdom will be punished as a result of the religious reforms of 621 B.C.

35. Haggai: He was a prophet for four months in 520 B.C. and his preaches were summarized by one of his students.[36] It is about the announcements to people of Israel after they came back from exile and who tried to rebuild their homes and the ruined temple.

36. Zechariah: He is a prophet who lived in 6 B.C. The first eight chapters of this book, in which some extraordinary events like “a flying scroll of 20 cubits long” can be found, was written by Zechariah and the rest was compiled by other people. The Zechariah whose name was given to the book is not the same person who is mentioned in The Bible and Qur’an.

37. Malachi: He is the last Jewish prophet who worked between 480-460 B.C. The book, which was said to be written in 5 B.C., is about Jews, their religious leaders and prophets.

38. Deuterocanonical Books: The seventeen books which take place in Greek seventies translation but which were announced to be suspicious in the Synod of Jamnia are called like this in The Bible literature. These books which were originally written in ancient Greek are considered as important by some of the Christians as they give information about the history, life style, religious traditions of Jews and the way they think and pray. The order of these books is as follows: 3 Ezra, 4 Ezra, Tobit, Judith, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, 3 Maccabees, 4 Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, The Book of Sirach, Psalm 151, Epistle of Jeremiah, The Book of Baruch, Suzanna and Bel and the Dragon which are the last two parts of The Book of Daniel, Prayer of Azariah and Prayer of Manasseh. These books were declared to be “uncertified and inappropriate to be used” in The Westminster Declaration.

[1] Turkish Religious Foundation Encyclopaedia of Islam

[2] American Protestant Priest (Ordained Methodist Minister) J. Leslie Mitton says about the fact that Bible cannot be a spiritual book as: The Bible is not regarded as a spiritual book every word of which is true anymore. It is now considered as a collection of texts written by ordinary people who can make as many mistakes as others.” And Dr. Arnold believes that “there are discrepancies, declaration which do not reflect the truth and human originated sentences” (Look: M. Sakioglu, Who wrote Bible?).

[3] (http://www.kutsalkitap.org)

[4] Turkish Religious Foundation Encyclopaedia of Islam

[5] 'Āli `Imrān (3): 3

[6] Al-Baqarah (2): 53

[7] Look: The Bible, Numbering in the Desert, Introduction part.

[8] Look: Maurice Bucaille, The Bible, Qur’an and Science)

[9] Turkish Religious Foundation Encyclopaedia of Islam

[10] Look: The Bible, Genesis, Introduction part.

[11]Al- Kahf (18):60

[12] Al-Maidah (5):23

[13]Maurice Bucaille, The Bible, Qur’an and Science

[14] Look: Old Testament, Joshua, Introduction part