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Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament
Copyright ©  text by Pam Farrel, Jean E. Jones, and Karla Dornacher. Illustrations © Karla Dornacher
Published by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
ISBN ---- (pbk.)
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Contents
Introduction: Do You Want to See Jesus in the Old Testament? ......
Chapter 1 Genesis : Jesus the Serpent Crusher .................... 
Day  How It All Began................................... 
Day  e Promise to Eve ................................. 
Day  God’s Plan Unfolds ................................. 
Day  e Woman’s Seed.................................. 
Day  e Serpent’s End .................................. 
Chapter 2 Genesis : Jesus the Sacrificed Son ..................... 
Day  A Father’s Sacrifice .................................. 
Day  God Makes Himself Known .......................... 
Day  A Father Gives His Son .............................. 
Day  Another Father Gives His Son ......................... 
Day  Living by Faith..................................... 
Chapter 3 Exodus : Jesus the Sacrificed Lamb .................... 
Day  Abraham’s Children in Danger ........................ 
Day  e Passover Lamb Saves ............................. 
Day  e Sacrificial Lambs Bring Near....................... 
Day  e Lamb of God Enters the World..................... 
Day  e Conquering Lamb Saves.......................... 
Chapter 4 Psalm : Jesus the Afflicted One....................... 
Day  What’s Right in God’s Eyes ........................... 
Day  David’s Path to the Crown............................ 
Day  e Lord Rescues David ............................. 
Day  Jesus’s Path to the Crown ............................. 
Day  e Path to the Crown............................... 
Chapter 5  Samuel : Jesus the King Forever ..................... 
Day  e Anointed One.................................. 
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Day  God’s Covenant with David........................... 
Day  e Future Righteous King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Day  e King Has Come ................................ 
Day  e Temple Builder ................................. 
Chapter 6 Psalm : Jesus the High Priest Forever.................. 
Day  e King-Priest Melchizedek.......................... 
Day  e Future King-Priest .............................. 
Day  “e L Said to My Lord”.......................... 
Day  e New Priestly Order .............................. 
Day  Holy Garments .................................... 
Chapter 7 Isaiah : Jesus the Mighty God ........................ 
Day  God with Us ...................................... 
Day  A Sign Is Given .................................... 
Day  A Future Righteous King............................. 
Day e Word Was God................................. 
Day  e Stone of Offense ................................ 
Chapter 8 Isaiah –: Jesus the Suffering Servant ................. 
Day  Two Servants ...................................... 
Day  A Future Righteous Servant........................... 
Day  A Future Suffering Servant............................ 
Day  e Servant’s Sacrifice ............................... 
Day  True Servanthood .................................. 
Chapter 9 Isaiah : Jesus the Light of the World ................... 
Day  God Is Light ...................................... 
Day  e Need for Light ................................. 
Day  e Spirit of the Lord ............................... 
Day  e True Light..................................... 
Day  Lights in the World ................................. 
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Chapter 10 Jeremiah : Jesus the Covenant Mediator ................ 
Day  e Covenants..................................... 
Day  God’s Plan to Stop Evil .............................. 
Day  e Glory of the Lord ............................... 
Day  Jesus Offers a New Covenant.......................... 
Day  e New Covenant Today ............................ 
Chapter 11 Daniel : Jesus the Son of Man ........................ 
Day  It’s Not As Good As It Gets ........................... 
Day  e Everlasting Kingdom ............................ 
Day  Coming Home .................................... 
Day  e Son of Man Revealed ............................ 
Day  e Son of Man in the Clouds......................... 
Chapter 12 Zechariah : Jesus the Kingdom Deliverer................ 
Day  Persevering rough Disappointment................... 
Day  e New Temple ................................... 
Day  Jesus in the Second Temple Prophecies .................. 
Day  e Prophet like Moses .............................. 
Day  God’s Way and Human Ways ......................... 
Appendix: Creative Ideas ............................. 
Notes .......................................... 
Acknowledgments .................................. 
About the Authors .................................. 
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9
Introduction
Do You Want to See Jesus in the Old Testament?
Welcome to Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament. is is a -week study designed to help you learn from God’s
Word, apply what you’ve learned, and rejoice in God’s amazing plan for us.
e Old Testament reveals that God created humans to dwell with him. But something happened to separate
people from God. rough the ages, God revealed his plan to reunite people with himself so that they could
again dwell with him.
e New Testament reveals that Jesus “was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made man-
ifest in the last times” ( Peter :). at amazes me! I ( Jean) love looking at the Old Testament from the van-
tage point of how God revealed his eternal plan. His great love, care, and patience are on display, along with his
compassion for those who suffer, his righteous anger with those who mistreat others, and his mercy toward those
who seek forgiveness.
As we see God’s plan unveil, we’ll also discover lessons we can apply to our lives. e Old Testament abounds in
examples of how to walk with God. After all, these are the Scriptures from which Jesus and the New Testament
writers taught.
Many of God’s revelations about Jesus occur in the prophetic books. e New Testament explains how Jesus ful-
filled numerous prophecies in his first coming. It teaches that he’ll fulfill the rest in his second coming. We’ll con-
centrate on the former and touch on the latter. Conservative Christian scholars differ in their interpretations of
passages about his second coming, so we’ll not take a position on those. After all, the main things are the plain
things, and the plain things are the main things. e important thing is Jesus is coming to take us to our eternal
dwelling place with the Lord our God.
Why We Wrote this Discovery Book for You
Pam, Karla, and I ( Jean), with our different paths and gifts, have connected over our love for interacting with
God’s Word and encouraging others to experience the hope of his promises and faithfulness.
All of us grew up without a Christian influence in the home and know what it’s like to encounter the Old Tes-
tament for the first time when older. Many women tell us they would love to know more about the Old Testa-
ment. Others have expressed confusion over atheist claims that “the God of the Old Testament” is not a God of
love. Our hearts break when we hear this because nothing could be farther from the truth! God never changes
( James :). God is love, and he has always been love ( John :). Just like us, he’s angry when people intention-
ally wrong others and commit horrific crimes. But unlike us, he’s quick to offer mercy and a way to be washed
clean from sins, no matter how bad. His plan to save is also a plan to end evil.
With love,
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10 Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament
The Treasures in Each Chapter
We collaborated on this book to inspire you. Here’s what you’ll find in every chapter.
Daily Lessons—Jean
You’ll hear from me throughout this journey. In each chapter, I share an introduction to one key hope that the Old
Testament reveals about Jesus. e chapters have five daily lessons that will take – minutes to finish. Each Day 
lesson concludes by guiding you in a private time of worship and prayer. e lessons use these icons:
is is a personal question designed to help you apply what you’re learning to your life and to possibly spark
a rich discussion with others.
is activity guides you in prayer and worship.
An activity marked with this has further instructions on www.DiscoveringeBibleSeries.com.
The Little Details—Jean
Along the way, you’ll see sidebars titled e Little Details. ese are extra insights for both seasoned Christians and
seekers who thrive on details.
A Walk with Christ—Pam
Pam’s A Walk with Christ devotionals invite you to rest in God’s strength and love. She shares some of her go-to ways
for remembering and holding on to the promises of Jesus. She’ll take you forward with faith and hope.
The Heart and Art of Worship—Karla
You’ll hear from Karla at the end of each chapter. She’ll encourage you to connect creatively with God and others as
you delight in God’s eternal plan throughout this study.
Illustrations—Karla
e bookmarks and coloring pages will help you connect with God’s Word as you spend time coloring and meditat-
ing on each verse. You can also slip designs under a page in your Bible, sketchbook, or journal for tracing.
Creative Ideas—All of Us
e Creative Ideas appendix offers fresh ways to express, experience, and meditate on passages. Discover your favor-
ites! What a gift it is to have God’s eternal plan to save us etched on your mind, heart, and spirit.
Discover More on www.DiscoveringTheBibleSeries.com
Here are the extras you’ll find on our website.
• Instructions for how to use this discovery book for both small groups and individual study
• A small group leader’s guide
• Timelines
• Action steps from this book summarized and illustrated for you to download and color
• Links to worship music to go with each chapter
• Links to Karla’s art instructions
• Links to articles that go deeper into chapter topics
• More inspiring ideas
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11
Chapter 1
Genesis 3
Jesus the Serpent Crusher
e hope of evil’s end
Day 1
How It All Began
F
or my seventeenth birthday, my then-boyfriend Clay gave me ( Jean) a white leather
Bible containing both the Old and New Testaments. Until then, I’d had only a paper-
back New Testament. Not having been raised in a Christian home, I was excited to finally
be able to read the rest of the Bible and see what it said.
As I read through Genesis, I thought, So that’s what happened! God created people good, and
that was Plan A. But they blew it and disobeyed, so God had to go with Plan B, a flood. Later,
I read about God calling Israel to be a nation and giving them commandments. But the
Israelites blew it and disobeyed God too. I thought, Israel was Plan C, and Jesus was Plan
D! God had to keep starting over because people kept messing up his plans.
I was wrong.
I had missed the significance of  Peter :, which says Jesus “was foreknown before the
foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times.” Revelation : ()
reads similarly: Jesus is “the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.” And
there’s  Timothy :-, which reads, “God
…
saved us and called us
…
because of his own
purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now
has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus.”
In other words, God knew before he created the world and the first humans that Jesus
would one day die for the sins of the world. He knew Satan would deceive Adam and Eve,
and he had a plan in place to rescue humankind. ere was always just one plan. is
book will show how he revealed that plan over time, beginning in Eve’s lifetime.
The Reveal
Eve’s Day
“In the beginning, God.” ose are the first four words of the Bible. ey
introduce the story of how God created the heavens and the earth and then
populated the earth with birds, fish, and animals.
God’s Word to Us
Take a moment to pray for insight as you read God’s Word.
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12 Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament
1. Read Genesis :-; :-; and all of chapter . What stands out to you
from your initial reading of these passages? Why?
Quite a story, isn’t it? Let’s look at some of the pertinent details.
2. (a) When God looked over his creation, what did he see it was (Genesis :)?
(b) In whose image did he create the man and woman (verse )? (c) What bless-
ing did he give them (verse )?
e man and woman were God’s image-bearers. God blessed them and told them to fill
the earth with more image-bearers, subduing the earth and ruling over all its creatures.
3. When God looked over his creation, what did he see it was (Genesis :)?
God placed them in a garden with a river and fruit trees. God walked with them and
talked with them. e garden was a sanctuary where he could dwell with his people. He
created the first couple not just to rule, but to fellowship with him.
4.
(a) What two special trees were in the middle of the garden (Genesis :)?
(b) What did God command the man not to eat (verses -)? (c) What would
happen if they ate (verse )?
And that’s where things go wrong.
5. Describe a time you learned the hard way that a prohibition was in your best
interest. Or describe a time your children learned the hard way that something
you told them not to do was in their best interest.
The Little Details
Genesis
Genesis is a book of begin-
nings: the beginning of cre-
ation, of humans, of sin on
earth, and of the reveal of
God’s plan to bring people
back into relationship with
him. It’s the first book of the
Bible and the first of the five
books of Moses. Together
the five books are called the
Pentateuch. Professor Albert
H. Baylis writes that Moses
knew the people were going
to a land whose inhabit-
ants worshiped gods that
were “like most people—and
worse! ey play and drink,
and drink too much. ey
fight, deceive, and engage in
licentious behavior.”
Since
“people become like the gods
they worship,”
Moses’s chal-
lenge was to show in Genesis
what the true God was like.
In Genesis , Moses shows
that “God is the transcen-
dent, sovereign ruler of the
creation. He is in complete
control. He is not a part of
it. Nor does it control him.
It came into existence at his
command
…
e surround-
ing gods are nonentities.”
People thought humani-
ty’s purpose was to serve the
pagan gods, but the true
God created humankind for
fellowship.
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Chapter 1
*
Genesis 3: Jesus the Serpent Crusher 13
A Walk with Christ—Kick Satan to the Curb
Has the unwelcome, unwanted, unbearable, and unbelievably difficult entered your life? Maybe you said a little
prayer when you picked up this book, hoping this study would help you become stronger, braver, and wiser. It is
human to feel overwhelmed, exhausted, and undone. We all have those “desert days.” I have been to this desert
described in Matthew :-, where Christ walked. It is hot, rugged, rocky, and desolate.
Jesus went to the desert to fast, pray, and commune with God. When he was weary and hungry, Satan tried to
trip him up so the triumph of the cross would not happen. ree times, Satan tempted Jesus. ree times, Christ
answered by quoting the Word out loud. At the end of the  desert days then on through the cross and resurrec-
tion, the victory was secured by Christ! How did Jesus defeat Satan? Truth! God’s Word is the power to overcome.
Dr. Tim Muehlhoff, author of Defending Your Marriage: e Reality of Spiritual Battle shares that  percent of what
Christ talked about in the Bible is about the battle we are in.
Satan uses the same devious tactics on us as he did on Christ. And to conquer him, God has equipped us with armor,
described in Ephesians :-:
Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground,
and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around
your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness
that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you
can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God ().
e power is in the Word.
Satan cannot read our minds; only God knows our thoughts. A solid defense against the attacks of Satan is to do
what Jesus did: Speak out the truths of Scripture aloud over your life—and live like you believe in the victory God
faithfully executes over evil. James : reminds us, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will
flee from you ().” If I gave you a backstage pass to my life, you would hear me proclaim something like this:
Dear Lord Jesus, I proclaim your victory on the cross through your blood shed to redeem and rescue.
I acknowledge your power to take back territory and move me from darkness to light. Satan has no
power here to discourage, disrupt, disillusion, or depress me in any way. God, I stand in Your power,
provision, peace, and protection affirming Romans : (): “e God of peace will soon crush
Satan under your feet.”
God’s crushing of Satan is a complete shattering into dust. Sometimes, I symbolically stomp my spiked high heel
or beat my flip-flop on the ground as evidence God has kicked the evil out. Give it a try sometime. It is a power
moment of trust and faith. is study will teach you more about Christ and the power of specific scriptures in the
living Word to vanquish the devil.
Go to www.DiscoveringeBibleSeries.com for resources to help you walk closer with Christ, including an In
the Savior’s Sandals devotional for each chapter based on places Christ walked in the Holy Land.
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14 Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament
Day 2
e Promise to Eve
e opening pages of Genesis—the first book of the Bible—give us our first glimpses of
Jesus in the Old Testament. Some hint at what later revelations expand upon. But there’s
also a promise of his coming that we don’t want to miss. Let’s dig in.
The Garden
In the last lesson, we read that God commanded the man and woman to rule over the crea-
tures of the earth. But when a serpent entered the garden, that’s not what happened. is
serpent “was more crafty than any of the wild animals the L God had made” (Gene-
sis : ). e New Testament links the serpent to Satan (Revelation :). Albert Bay-
lis, in his book From Creation to the Cross, notes that in the garden came an “already fallen
intelligence” (see sidebar).
Here’s what God commanded: “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it
you shall surely die” (Genesis :-).
6. Compare Genesis :- above with Genesis :. How did the serpent’s repre-
sentation of God’s command differ from God’s actual command?
When the serpent asked, “Did God actually say?” it may have been the first time Eve had
experienced a creature doubting God. e serpent exaggerated the Lord’s command and
emphasized the only thing the couple had been denied in the abundance of the garden.
7. (a) In what way did the serpent say God had lied (Genesis :)? (b) What did the
serpent say was God’s true motivation for denying the fruit (:)?
e woman had a choice: She could believe God, or she could believe the serpent. God
had never given her reason to doubt his character or his word, but now the serpent told
her God was denying her something that would benefit her. In other words, God wasn’t
acting in her best interest. Suddenly, the fruit was attractive. It looked good, would taste
good, and would make her wise like God (Genesis :). e desire to be like God, to be
his equal even, enticed her, and she believed the serpent.
She reached out her hand, seized the fruit, ate, and gave some to her husband. en their
eyes opened, and the couple who had never known shame for the first time ever felt humil-
iation and guilt. ey knew that they were naked and wanted to hide.
ey tried to cover up their nakedness with fig leaves. When they heard God walking in
the garden, they hid. is divine manifestation is called a theophany (see sidebar). When
God called out, “Where are you?” the man replied, “I heard the sound of you in the gar-
den, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself ” (Genesis :). Fellowship
was broken.
The Little Details
Baylis on the Serpent:
We are forbidden by the pas-
sage to make the scene myth-
ical. We seem forbidden by
the conversation to make the
serpent one of God’s good
creatures and nothing more.
It is clear from the narrative
that a sinister mind is at work
in the serpent. e ancient
Israelite readers were aware
of the use of the serpent as
a god. ey also recognized
that false gods were demonic
(Deut. :). All of this
agrees with the view of New
Testament writers who iden-
tify the serpent with Satan
(see John :; Rev. :;
Rom. :;  Cor. :).
Our account of the entrance
of sin into human experience
assumes an already fallen
intelligence—devilishly so!
The woman had a
choice: She could
believe God, or she
could believe the
serpent.
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Chapter 1
*
Genesis 3: Jesus the Serpent Crusher 15
God asked the man if he had eaten the forbidden fruit. God knew the answer but gave
him a chance to confess.
8.
(a) What two beings did the man blame for his transgression (Genesis :)?
(b) Whom did the woman blame (Genesis :)? (c) Does blaming others
remove guilt? Why or why not?
Shifting blame started in the garden and continues today.
9. (a) How does focusing on what we can’t have instead of on what we do have
affect our relationship with God? (b) Why is it important to remember God’s
intentions for us are good when we’re tempted to disobey his commands?
Hope Within Judgment
God judged the three beings, but in the judgment, he gave the man and woman hope.
When he cursed the serpent, he said, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and
between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel”
(Genesis : ).
He pronounced judgment, but he didn’t curse the couple. Instead, he promised a serpent
crusher would one day come. e serpent would bruise his heel, but the woman’s off-
spring—literally her seed—would deal him a mortal blow.
Genesis : is called the Protoevangelium because it is the first announcement of the gos-
pel: the good news that a seed of the woman will crush the serpent. e serpent will cause
that seed to suffer, but the suffering seed will destroy the serpent.
God’s judgment on the woman was that through painful labor she would bring forth chil-
dren. Within the judgment lived the hope of bearing life. God’s judgment on the man was
that through painful toil he would bring forth food. Within the judgment lived the hope
of sustaining life. ough they would eventually die, humans would continue.
God cursed the ground: It would bear thorns and thistles and was bound to decay (Gen-
esis :-; Romans :). Professor Clay Jones says, “Natural evil entered the world
because God cursed the earth in response to Adam’s sin. In fact, what pestilence—mold,
decay, cancer, and so on—can’t have ensued from God looking at planet Earth and say-
ing, ‘I curse you’?”
When the man heard God’s judgment coupled with hope, he in faith “named his wife Eve,
because she would become the mother of all the living” (Genesis : ). Eve sounds
like the Hebrew word for living. e man continued to be called by the Hebrew word for
man, ’ādām or Adam. In compassion, God clothed Adam and Eve, covering their naked-
ness and protecting them from the elements.
The Little Details
Theophany
roughout the Old Testa-
ment, God reveals himself to
some people in a way that is
tangible to human senses; for
instance, a human form or a
physical manifestation such
as a burning bush. is type
of divine revelation is called a
theophany. e first mention
of a theophany in Scripture is
Genesis :, where the man
and woman hear God walk-
ing in the garden.
Prophets such as Abraham
and Moses experienced quite
a few theophanies. In fact,
the Lord regularly spoke with
Moses “face-to-face, as one
speaks to a friend” (Exodus
:). However, God did not
fully reveal himself to even
Moses. When Moses asked to
see God’s glory, God refused
and said Moses couldn’t see
his face and live (Exodus
:). e New Dictionary
of Biblical eology explains:
“Apparently God’s ‘glory’ and
‘face’ refer in :- to the
full splendor of his majesty,
which he was not willing to
reveal.”
God judged the three
beings, but in the judg-
ment, he gave the man
and woman hope.
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16 Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament
10. (a) What would humans now know (Genesis :)? (b) Why did God banish
them from the Garden of Eden (:-)?
11. (a) Why wouldn’t God want creatures who had chosen to rebel to be able to
live forever? (b) What hope did God give in letting people know a tree of life
exists?
God placed cherubim (winged heavenly creatures) on the east side of the garden to block
the way to the tree of life. Without access to this tree, Adam, Eve, and their offspring
would eventually die.
By eating the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve plunged human-
kind into knowing evil, but also into knowing good. Evil lets virtues such as self-sacrifice,
courage, and mercy arise. None of these are humanly possible without the risk of personal
loss or harm. e greater the loss or harm, the more heroic is the virtue that counters it.
12. God had commanded Adam and Eve to fill the earth and subdue it. With what
did they fill the earth (Genesis :)?
e story has just begun. In the next chapter we meet the family through which the seed
of the serpent crusher will be traced.
Day 3
God’s Plan Unfolds
Let’s summarize how the Lord God dwelt with people in Eve’s day and then look at God’s
continuing revelation about how he’ll fulfill his promise to Eve.
God with Us Then
At first, Eve lived in a flourishing garden with Adam. ey enjoyed God’s company. He
told them to subdue and rule the earth and to fill it with descendants. But when Eve took
of the forbidden fruit and shared it with Adam, everything changed. God expelled them
from the garden.
e Bible describes God briefly visiting certain people outside the garden. It looked like
the serpent had defeated God’s goal of an earth filled with people with whom he could
dwell. But God’s promise that a seed of the woman would crush the serpent remained.
By eating the fruit of
the knowledge of good
and evil, Adam and Eve
plunged humankind
into knowing evil, but
also into knowing good.
The Little Details
T. Desmond Alexander on
God’s Dwelling Place:
e opening chapters of
Genesis assume that the
earth will be God’s dwell-
ing place. is expectation,
however, is swiftly shattered
when Adam and Eve disobey
God and are expelled from
his presence. From there
he occasionally descends to
meet with selected individu-
als, although these encoun-
ters are always relatively brief
and sometimes unexpected.
When God reveals himself, it
is always for a particular pur-
pose. is pattern is found
throughout almost all of
Genesis and the first half of
Exodus.
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