Pocket Guide to the Bible , livre ebook

Lion Hudson - Kevin O'Donnell

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

127 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

A small, very easy to use guide to the Bible. This book uses an attractive design and concise text to give the reader an accessible way into the Bible. The book takes the reader step by step through the Bible, helping him or her to understand the key subjects and types of book it contains, and suggests passages of the Bible to begin reading. This is not a commentary or a handbook - it doesn't deal with weighty issues or debates over interpretation, historicity etc. Nor is it a zany guide for the young - rather, it is for those who want a simple, unfrightening approach to this important book, and who will feel more comfortable with the small format.

Sujets

Philosophie et théologie

Christianity

Informations

Publié par	Lion Hudson
Date de parution	17 avril 2013
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780745957647
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0350€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Text copyright © 2004 Kevin O’Donnell This edition copyright © 2004 Lion Hudson
The right of Kevin O’Donnell to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by Lion Books an imprint of Lion Hudson plc Wilkinson House, Jordan Hill Road, Oxford OX2 8DR, England www.lionhudson.com/lion
ISBN 978 0 7459 5131 7 e-ISBN 978 0 7459 5764 7
First edition 2004 First electronic edition 2012
Acknowledgments Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan and Hodder & Stoughton Limited. All rights reserved. The ‘NIV’ and ‘New International Version’ trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society. UK trademark number 1448790.
Cover image: Sinai/David Townsend, Gutenberg Bible/AKG images
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
A Pocket Guide to the Bible
‘This is a marvel of scholarly compression and clarity; but it’s more than that, because it helps the reader understand the Bible as a theological whole, as a text with Christ as the centre of the entire tapestry of Old and New Testaments alike. The perfect gift for someone just beginning to read the Bible seriously, from teenage years onwards.’
Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
‘An amazing amount of information for a little book. A very useful tool for anyone beginning to read the Bible.’
Steve Chalke MBE, Founder Oasis Trust & Faithworks
‘I am happy to commend this little book to all who are beginning to read the Bible. It will be a help and an encouragement along the way, seeking to open hearts to the mercy of God.’
Cormac Murphy O’Connor, Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster
‘This small book is fantastic! … Easy to read, highly informative and packed with headline information, concentrated, valuable, sometimes surprising. A must read.’
Gerald Coates, Pioneer Network Leader, speaker, author and broadcaster
‘This book is ideal for Christian and non-Christian alike. Its historical criticism combined with its “key verse” approach, give it both scholarly and devotional value. It is an aid to deepen the biblical faith of many and to lead others to discover for themselves the riches of God’s scriptural word.’
Tom Butler, Bishop of Southwark
‘This handy book about the Bible shows how, when and why the Bible became a book and the world’s best seller.’
James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool
For Katherine, who inspired this book, as well as Rob and Sylvianne at the Chateau Blanc, with thanks for all their support and hospitality when the New Testament section was being written.
Contents
Cover Title Page Copyright Page A Pocket Guide to the Bible Dedication GETTING TO KNOW THE BIBLE INTRODUCTION TO THE LAW Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy THE HISTORY BOOKS Joshua Judges and Ruth 1 and 2 Samuel 1 and 2 Kings 1 and 2 Chronicles Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther WISDOM Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs THE PROPHETS Isaiah Jeremiah and Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel THE MINOR PROPHETS – PART ONE Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah THE MINOR PROPHETS – PART TWO Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi THE APOCRYPHA INTRODUCTION TO THE GOSPELS Matthew Mark Luke John The Acts of the Apostles INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS Romans 1 and 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 and 2 Thessalonians 1 and 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 and 2 Peter The Letters of John Jude Revelation MIRACLES AND THE BIBLE FURTHER READING
Getting to Know the Bible
The Bible is a bit like the works of Shakespeare. Everyone knows of it, and it’s always one of the things that is suggested that you might have with you on a desert island. The idea seems to be that you would have plenty of the time necessary to give it the attention that is its due as one of humankind’s classic literary accomplishments, and, quite honestly, most of us have the nagging sense that, even if we consider ourselves to be educated people, we don’t really know either the Bible or Shakespeare as well as we should. Fortunately for Shakespeare, however, the educational system usually gives us some exposure to him. Only passing glimpses of the Bible might have been engaged with during school life, though, and was anybody really listening?
Not a Novel
The Bible is not to be read from cover to cover like a novel. It doesn’t work like Jane Austen or Jackie Collins. If you’ve ever tried, you’ve probably ground to a halt somewhere in Exodus (the second book of the Old Testament) with all the long lists of laws. The word ‘Bible’ is from a Greek word meaning ‘books’. The Bible is a collection of 66 books that were written by different people at different times. If you went back in time, say before the start of the 1st century AD , a Bible would have filled a whole shelf or a huge box, for the books would have been on separate scrolls, rolled up. The book format that we know today was invented about the time of Jesus.
The books are different styles of literature, too; there are stories, historical lists, genealogies, law codes, poems, hymns and a powerful style called prophecy. The writings are not only spiritual thoughts and moral guidance; there are all sorts of things in there. It is not a book (or books) of pure enlightenment with lists of wise sayings by someone like a Zen master. We need a guide to find our way through the Bible, such as a handbook to the Bible, or a commentary on a particular book, that will provide all sorts of background information. This little book is to slip into your pocket to dip into as you wish. It gives a brief synopsis of the major features and stories of each book of the Bible, and a few key things to think about.
In Two Parts
The first thing to grasp about Bible reading is that the Bible falls into two sections, a Part One and a Part Two – what Christians refer to as the Old and New Testaments. Christians believe that Part One is a preparation for Jesus, and Part Two is about him and what happened after he came. That preparation took over a thousand years and traces the development of the faith of the Hebrews from very early and primitive beginnings until they had more sublime and enlightened thoughts about God and how we should treat one another. (The New Testament, in contrast, was put together over about 70 years!) The long preparation goes some way to explain why there are some things in there that seem to be odd or even cruel in the early parts of the Scriptures. It is a bit like in Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001, A Space Odyssey , where an advanced alien race communicates with developing humans in stages, imparting knowledge little by little until they are ready to handle it. There is a progressive revelation, a gradual unveiling of what God is really like. Christians believe that what we see in the life of Jesus is what God really is about, though much light shines in the Old Testament writings, too – particularly in the great prophets and later writings.
There is a sense, too, among Christians, that in the earlier days God was working from a different angle, sometimes almost at arm’s length. This was pre-Jesus, and before his death on the cross that allowed people to know forgiveness and to draw near. The Hebrews had all sorts of sacrifices to help them cover up their sins temporarily. There are mercy and compassion expressed in the Old Testament, but they come to perfect fruition in Jesus.
Testaments and Covenants
The terms ‘Old Testament’ and ‘New Testament’ need some translating. A ‘testament’ suggests a solemn oath, a written pledge that something will be so, like a ‘Last Will and Testament’. The term is a translation of Hebrew and Greek words that also can mean ‘covenant’. This, in the ancient world, was a binding agreement between two parties, often involving the ritual slaughter of animals to seal it in blood. Moses instituted the old covenant with its animal sacrifices and altars, as well as the moral code that God expected his people to follow, the Ten Commandments. But there was an older covenant recorded in the Bible, one with Abraham, an ancestor of Moses. Abraham’s covenant was one of promise – all the nations would be blessed through his offspring. Christians believe that this promise was fulfilled in Jesus, the promised messiah, and the old ritual of Moses was brought to an end.
‘Messiah’ is a word that means ‘anointed one’ or ‘chosen one’. It was used for the Israelite kings, who were anointed with holy oil and blessed by God. However, the Old Testament looked forward to the coming of a special, holy king, and Christians believe that this king was Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus brought a new covenant, sealed with his own blood shed upon the cross. He shows us that God is bound to his creation, to you and to me, for all time, by having become one of us and having suffered for us.
Looking for Jesus in the Old Testament
If the Hebrew Scriptures of the Old Testament were a preparation for Jesus, then there should be all sorts of hints and clues about his coming in them. Many think that there are, though some are rather indirect and can only be applied to him with hindsight. Each section of the Old Testament has something about Jesus in it – a verse, image or idea that Christians have seen as being fulfilled by him or as prefiguring him. Jesus set the precedent for this, himself: after rising from the dead, he walked with two disciples to Emmaus. In conversation, he opened the S