In his Seder 4 sermon, Rob Wilson reflected on the meaning of the very first verse of the New Testament: "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matt 1:1). Does this verse refer to what has come before this verse, or to what comes after it? Rob suggested that the answer is "yes". The entire Bible is the story of Jesus.
Theologian John Sailhamer has contended that there are special messages at the "seams" or transition points in the biblical canon. Matt 1:1 gives one example.
Sailhamer pointed out a pattern at the transition points between the major divisions of the Hebrew Scriptures. The Torah ends in Deut 34 with anticipation of the coming of the Messiah, the special "prophet like Moses". Joshua 1, the first chapter in the prophets (Neviim) then begins with God's advice to Joshua:
"This book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success" (Joshua 1:8).
At the close of the Prophets in Mal 4, Malachi looks ahead to the coming of the Messiah. Then in Psalm 1, the first chapter in the Writings (Ketuvim), we are told that a man is blessed who follows this practice: "But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night" (Ps 1:2).
Both Joshua 1 and Psalm 1 seem to be telling us what to do as we anticipate the return of the Messiah.
Such patterns in the biblical canon seem to imply that not only did God inspire the content of Scripture, but its canonical organization as well.
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