Professor: Rev. Mark Vander Hart
Time: Juna 5 – 16, 2026

Schedule:

Friday, June 5 (18:00 – 21:00)
Saturday, June 6 (9:00 – 12:00)
Tuesday, June 9 (18:00 – 21:00)
Thursday, June 11 (18:00 – 21:00)
Tuesday, June 16 (18:00 – 21:00)

Place: Brivibas gatve 291, Riga. Registration necessary for participation.
Language: English, with simultaneous translation channel in Russian (on Zoom).

COURSE DESCRIPTION

A study of the Old Testament text dealing with the history of redemption from creation to the end of the wilderness wanderings, with special attention to the Old Testament covenants in Genesis through Deuteronomy. Consideration will be given to understanding and addressing the special introductory topics, crucial themes, and distinctive dynamics of revelation in reading the first five books of Moses.

ABOUT PROFESSOR

Rev. Mark Vander Hart is Associate Professor of Old Testament Studies, Mid-America Reformed Seminary.

He is a member of the Society for Biblical Literature, the Evangelical Theological Society, the Calvin Studies Society, and the National Association of Professors of Hebrew. Previously taught at BRTS: Pre-Exilic Prophets; Post-Exilic Prophets; Ecclesiology; Pentateuch, Old Testament History; Messianic Message in OT; Biblical Greek; Biblical Hebrew.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

1. Attendance at all class sessions (10%).
2. Required reading (10%):
   • Exodus Old and New: a Biblical theology of redemption, by L. Michael Morales.  Pages 1-103.  Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP, 2020.
   • Old Testament Survey: The Message, Form, and Background of the Old Testament, by William Sanford LaSor, David Allan Hubbard, Frederic William Bush. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, 1996 (English – chapters 1-8; Russian – chapters 6-13)
   • According to Plan – The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible, by Graeme Goldsworthy
   • The Pentateuch.
     Deadline: June 16, 2026 (by the end of the course) Completed reading statement to be submitted.
3. A reading report on Exodus Old and New: a Biblical theology of redemption (35%)
   • After reading the Exodus book by Morales, write an essay of 4-6 pages and discuss the following: The Pentateuch is both redemptive-history and covenantal framework (for living).  How does the Pentateuch give some answer to our understanding about our Biblical home, exile, and exodus?  In other words, how does the Pentateuch inform us about home, exile, and exodus?
   • Deadline: June 5, 2026 (by the beginning of the course)
4. Writing Assignments:
   • Final written examination (45%)
     Deadline: July 5, 2026

INFORMATION:

Andrejs Prieditis, e-mail: aprieditis@brts.edu.lv,
Phone: (371) 26177539.

COURSE OUTLINE:

In this course we will be exploring the following questions:

1. What is the Pentateuch: myth? history? law?
2. Why is the Pentateuch so basic for the rest of the Old Testament? And for the rest of the Bible?
3. What is the basic story line in the Pentateuch, and why are these details so important?
4. What is the covenant of God? What are the various covenants that God makes with people in the Pentateuch?