Joshua to Chronicles: Survey of the Prophets and Writings of the Bible

By Rabbi Hayyim Angel

What's Joshua to Chronicles: Survey of the Prophets and Writings of the Bible about?

Journey through the nineteen books of the Bible from Joshua through Chronicles with Rabbi Hayyim Angel. Traditional and contemporary scholarship is employed as we study each book's central themes.

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Joshua to Chronicles: Survey of the Prophets and Writings of the Bible episodes:

05.25.2017
#37 The Books of the Maccabees, Hanukkah, and What Makes Tanakh Tanakh: Concluding class
Why were the Books of the Maccabees excluded from the Jewish Bible?Explore that question, and then review what makes Tanakh our mostcentral religious text.
05.11.2017
#36 Chronicles: Perspectives in Prophetic History
A careful analysis between Samuel-Kings and Chronicles enables us to get behind the scenes at how these prophetic books were written and their underlying messages.
05.04.2017
#35 Ezra-Nehemiah: Transition to the Second Temple Period
The beginning of the Second Temple era (538-432 BCE) stoked great hopes for redemption, but also gave reason for concern and despair. How did the great leaders of this era provide meaningful ways forward during this complex period?
04.27.2017
#34 Daniel: The Hidden Story of Hanukkah
Overview of the messages of Daniel, including a look at how the book secretly appears to be speaking about the story of the Maccabees.
03.23.2017
#33 Kohelet: Sanctifying the Human Perspective
Kohelet made many rabbinic thinkers nervous about the religious lessons of the book. In this lecture, we explore what makes Kohelet unique within the biblical tapestry, and what voice it contributes to a thoughtful religious life.
03.16.2017
#32 Lamentations: Putting the Mouth before the Eye
A consideration of how the alphabetical poetic structure contains a valuable interpretive tool as Lamentations grapples with a relationship with God at Israel's darkest moment in the biblical period.
03.10.2017
#31 The Book of Esther: What They Didn’t Teach Us in Day School
By imposing selected Midrashim onto the biblical text, many yeshiva-educated students have a difficult time seeing what is in the text itself. This lecture begins by unpacking the messages of the text itself, and then demonstrates how the Sages of...
03.02.2017
#30 The Book of Ruth: Feel Good Narrative or Ambiguous?
An exploration of two different readings of the Book of Ruth, which both fit the text perfectly. Are the characters pure and excellent, or are they more complex?
02.23.2017
#29 Song of Songs: Romance and Religion
An overview of Rabbi Yuval Cherlow's remarkable book on the Song of Songs, exploring the complexities of religious experience through an understanding of human love. Sources available on our site: https://www.jewishideas.org/online-learning/classes-lectures
02.09.2017
#28 Job: Addressing the Hole Created By the Torah
The courageous Book of Job addresses the problem of bad thingshappening to good people. A literary analysis of the book coupled withits primary religious messages. Sources available on our Online Learning page.
02.06.2017
#27 Proverbs: The Simplest Book in Tanakh?
An overview of the Book of Proverbs. It presents a simple, pure faith perspective, to be complemented by the more complex perspectives in the Books of Job and Kohelet. Sources available on our site: https://www.jewishideas.org/online-learning/classes-lectures
01.15.2017
Lecture 3: King Ahab: Did He Do Something Right?
Sources are available at our Online Learning page.
12.22.2016
#26 Psalms #2: Tehillim in Transition: How Prayers Transform
How praying can transform the person praying, and how psalms can contain multiple meanings simultaneously and over time.
12.15.2016
#25 Psalms #1: Who Wrote the Psalms? Controversy and Confusion Regarding Authorship
Exploration of the evidence within Psalms, and rabbinic commentary. The traditional view is far more complex than what many portray it to be
12.15.2016
#24 Twelve Prophets #5: Joel-Malachi: The End of Prophecy
24: Joel and Malachi anticipate the end of prophecy and pave the way for religious life in the era lacking prophecy.
12.15.2016
#23 Twelve Prophets #4: Haggai-Zechariah: Sixth Century Prophets
23: Haggai and Zechariah convey the pulsating potential for redemption at the beginning of the Second Temple period.
12.15.2016
#22 Twelve Prophets #3: Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Obadiah: Seventh Century Prophets
22: How each seventh century prophet reacted to the impending destruction of the Temple by the Babylonians.
12.15.2016
#21 Twelve Prophets #2: Hosea-Amos: Eighth Century Northern Prophets
21: A study of two eighth century prophets of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, and how different their messages were. Sources available:https://www.jewishideas.org/online-learning/classes-lectures
06.02.2016
#20 Twelve Prophets #1: The Enigmatic Book of Jonah
Why did Jonah flee God's command? This class explores four classical answers and then proposes a novel alternative. This concludes our series until the Fall.
05.26.2016
#19 Ezekiel #3: Ezekiel’s Prophecies of Redemption
Ezekiel's unique prophetic mission generates unique prophecies of redemption as well.
05.20.2016
#18 Ezekiel #2: Divine Perspective in the Book of Ezekiel
Ezekiel allows God's personality to shine through. The book portrays exile and redemption in terms of God's being driven from the Temple and then returned to a new Temple in the future.
05.12.2016
#17 Ezekiel #1: Ezekiel as Prophet-Priest
The prophet Ezekiel stands out from all the other prophets in that he receives prophetically revealed laws and also regularly experiences the Celetial Chariot. In this class, we explore the roots of his uniqueness, focusing on how he merged his...
03.17.2016
#16 Jeremiah #3: Jeremiah's Later Career (605-586 BCE)
An exploration of the turning points of Jeremiah's career, and how his prophecies of redemption gave Israel hope through its darkest period.
03.17.2016
#16 Jeremiah #3: Jeremiah’s Later Career (605-586 BCE)
An exploration of the turning points of Jeremiah's career, and how his prophecies of redemption gave Israel hope through its darkest period.
03.10.2016
#15 Jeremiah #2: Telling False Prophets from True Prophets
How Jeremiah used two great innovations to zero in on the essence of prophecy as he attempted to debunk his fraudulent competitors.
03.03.2016
#14 Jeremiah #1: Jeremiah’s Early Career (627-609 BCE)
Overview of the entire period of Jeremiah, and a look at his prophetic initiation and early messages of repentance to the nation.
02.25.2016
#13 Isaiah #3: Isaiah and Hezekiah (chapters 36-39)
After the miraculous salvation of Jerusalem, why wasn't Hezekiah fit to be the messianic king? An exploration of halakhic faith versus prophetic faith and how these two dimensions created conflict between the prophet Isaiah and the righteous King Hezekiah.
02.21.2016
Controversies over the Historicity of Biblical Passages in Traditional Commentary
Rabbi Hayyim Angel explores the powerful debates in tradition regarding how literally one must take the Bible in regard to faith-science, history, and the overall reasonableness of the Bible. He then attempts to navigate a middle ground to bring the...
02.18.2016
#12 Isaiah #2: Missed Opportunities and Redemption (chapters 7-12)
King Ahaz makes a colossal error by becoming a vassal of Assyria. Despite the imminent darkness that will befall the nation, Isaiah's prophecies transform into light with the advent of the next king, the righteous Hezekiah. Redemption could come.
02.11.2016
#11 Isaiah #1: From Silver Age to Danger (chapters 1-6)
An understanding of Isaiah's historical context greatly enhances our ability to understand his eternal prophetic messages.
02.04.2016
#10 Kings #2: Solomon’s Reign as a Template for the Book of Kings
How the lessons from Solomon's reign permeate the Book of Kings and create a coherent prophetic message. Source sheet available on our Online Learning page
01.29.2016
#9 Kings #1: Reading King Solomon Forward and Backward
When one reads the Solomon narratives, it appears that he achieved a Golden Age and then crashed at the end. Once we know about the crash, however, we can see cracks in Solomon's reign throughout the narrative.
12.29.2015
David's Kingship: Rise and Fall
David as king--his successes and failures, and the message of the Book of Samuel.
12.29.2015
Saul and David
Saul declines and David rises, but the narrative in the Book of Samuel also exposes a darker side of David in his early years.
12.29.2015
Samuel and the Institution of Monarchy
Are the prophets always in sync with God? An exploration of the views of God, Samuel and the people regarding the institution of monarchy in Israel.
12.29.2015
Gideon as the Transitional Figure in Judges
Gideon's unique combination of traits and conflicts over becoming king establish him as the fitting heir to the leadership of Othniel, Ehud, and Deborah; while also paving the way to the more negative second half of the Book of Judges.
12.29.2015
The Joshua-Judges Continuum
The Book of Joshua appears to be a biblical Golden Age, and the Book of Judges is a biblical Dark Age. But a closer look reveals that the connection between the two books is deeper than we had thought.
12.29.2015
Chronological Order to Uncover the Themes of Joshua
Certain passages in the Book of Joshua appear to have been positioned out of chronological sequence. How do these anomalies point to the most important lessons of the book?
12.29.2015
The Secret to Joshua's Success
An exploration of Joshua's leadership development in the Torah, with midrashic explanations that elucidate his remarkable combination of character traits that enabled him to be an exceptionally effective leader.
12.29.2015
Introduction to the Bible
What is the Bible? A discussion of the nature of the different books and categories of Torah, Prophets, and Holy Writings.
12.29.2015
The Secret to Joshua’s Success
An exploration of Joshua's leadership development in the Torah, with midrashic explanations that elucidate his remarkable combination of character traits that enabled him to be an exceptionally effective leader.
12.29.2015
David’s Kingship: Rise and Fall
David as king--his successes and failures, and the message of the Book of Samuel.

What's Joshua to Chronicles: Survey of the Prophets and Writings of the Bible about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Joshua to Chronicles: Survey of the Prophets and Writings of the Bible episodes:

#37 The Books of the Maccabees, Hanukkah, and What Makes Tanakh Tanakh: Concluding class

#36 Chronicles: Perspectives in Prophetic History

#35 Ezra-Nehemiah: Transition to the Second Temple Period

#34 Daniel: The Hidden Story of Hanukkah

#33 Kohelet: Sanctifying the Human Perspective

#32 Lamentations: Putting the Mouth before the Eye

#31 The Book of Esther: What They Didn’t Teach Us in Day School

#30 The Book of Ruth: Feel Good Narrative or Ambiguous?

#29 Song of Songs: Romance and Religion

#28 Job: Addressing the Hole Created By the Torah

#27 Proverbs: The Simplest Book in Tanakh?

Lecture 3: King Ahab: Did He Do Something Right?

#26 Psalms #2: Tehillim in Transition: How Prayers Transform

#25 Psalms #1: Who Wrote the Psalms? Controversy and Confusion Regarding Authorship

#24 Twelve Prophets #5: Joel-Malachi: The End of Prophecy

#23 Twelve Prophets #4: Haggai-Zechariah: Sixth Century Prophets

#22 Twelve Prophets #3: Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Obadiah: Seventh Century Prophets

#21 Twelve Prophets #2: Hosea-Amos: Eighth Century Northern Prophets

#20 Twelve Prophets #1: The Enigmatic Book of Jonah

#19 Ezekiel #3: Ezekiel’s Prophecies of Redemption

#18 Ezekiel #2: Divine Perspective in the Book of Ezekiel

#17 Ezekiel #1: Ezekiel as Prophet-Priest

#16 Jeremiah #3: Jeremiah's Later Career (605-586 BCE)

#16 Jeremiah #3: Jeremiah’s Later Career (605-586 BCE)

#15 Jeremiah #2: Telling False Prophets from True Prophets

#14 Jeremiah #1: Jeremiah’s Early Career (627-609 BCE)

#13 Isaiah #3: Isaiah and Hezekiah (chapters 36-39)

Controversies over the Historicity of Biblical Passages in Traditional Commentary

#12 Isaiah #2: Missed Opportunities and Redemption (chapters 7-12)

#11 Isaiah #1: From Silver Age to Danger (chapters 1-6)

#10 Kings #2: Solomon’s Reign as a Template for the Book of Kings

#9 Kings #1: Reading King Solomon Forward and Backward

David's Kingship: Rise and Fall

Saul and David

Samuel and the Institution of Monarchy

Gideon as the Transitional Figure in Judges

The Joshua-Judges Continuum

Chronological Order to Uncover the Themes of Joshua

The Secret to Joshua's Success

Introduction to the Bible

The Secret to Joshua’s Success

David’s Kingship: Rise and Fall