It has been said that a person is not a good steward of his or her time or studies if he or she spends more than a passing effort at Old Testament study. This excuse in laziness, and New Testament arrogance, could not be further from the truth! Timothy was a "New Testament Times" preacher, and was strongly encouraged by Paul to "study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth," and that "all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." His first Bible: the Hebrew Old Testament and its Greek translation! Later, as writings were offered by the various New Testament writers, their works were included in his studies. It is precisely by studying the life, times, and events of Old Testament men and women that we see the same God of grace at work then as He is today. Righteousness comes only from God to those who live out a life of faith in God's mercy. This is seen time and again in each one of those accounted righteous in olden times. And now in this latter day we have the standard of that life seen in our Lord Jesus Christ. In Him who did not fail, we have our perfect hope. In others who lived by faith yet failed on occasion, we have encouragement in our trials -- Christ our standard and others its witnesses ( Heb.12:1-2).

Therefore, all scripture is profitable. Why? "That the man of God be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." It is, therefore, a great gratitude and appreciation one should possess for God's record of Old Testament man and the revelation of Himself to him in his struggle to regain what his first father lost, a right standing and subsequent fellowship with his Creator.

What follows is an extract from a larger Old Testament study and is provided for a quick Biblical look at the lives of Israel's early fathers. Scripture references are given alongside each number as a handy guide in a quick search for specific events found in Genesis. As expected, some references overlap, therefore, careful thought was given to keep the information as brief as possible to maintain its purpose. For example, an event in Abraham's Chronology might have complementary information in Isaac's Chronology.

All dates given in each work are taken from the Thompson Chain Reference Bible. It is acknowledged that these dates are only approximate and arguable at best. However, these were chosen as a representative of the variety offered, hoping to serve the reader in grasping the timeline of events as they relate to each other and the overall Biblical history itself.

It is further hoped by this writer that the reader will approach this brief study with a prayerful spirit and a meditative heart as he or she looks at the lives of men no different from those today, but nonetheless, were great men of faith living daily for the God who had revealed Himself to them. Both were chosen by each other. As much as God had chosen them, they in turn had chosen Him. It is still the requirement for covenant today!