This series of Meditations comprise a verse by verse commentary on the first seven chapters of the Gospel according to St. John delivered as Sunday talks by Charlotte Mason to her disciples at "Scale How", The House of Education in Ambleside, and mailed weekly to subscribers during the year 1898 and later published in "The Parents' Review". This edifying collection is also an indispensable source for any one interested in exploring more deeply Mason's religious convictions.
Recent years have seen a renewed interest in the study of background materials relating to Scripture. More and more Christians are seeking out resources that will help them understand the culture of the times when the Bible was written. Indeed, to fully understand the Old Testament, one must first understand the social, historical, and political forces that affected its writers. Old Testament Times explores and explains the characters and events of the Old Testament in historical perspective. Being released for the first time in a full-color edition, this guide includes - thirty-two maps - seventy photos - eight charts - five illustrations Pastors, small groups, and anyone wishing for a better understanding of biblical times will find an excellent tool in this comprehensive handbook written by one of America's foremost biblical scholars.
A literary history of our most influential book of all time, by an Oxford scholar and Anglican priest In our culture, the Bible is monolithic: It is a collection of books that has been unchanged and unchallenged since the earliest days of the Christian church. The idea of the Bible as "Holy Scripture," a non-negotiable authority straight from God, has prevailed in Western society for some time. And while it provides a firm foundation for centuries of Christian teaching, it denies the depth, variety, and richness of this fascinating text. In A History of the Bible, John Barton argues that the Bible is not a prescription to a complete, fixed religious system, but rather a product of a long and intriguing process, which has inspired Judaism and Christianity, but still does not describe the whole of either religion. Barton shows how the Bible is indeed an important source of religious insight for Jews and Christians alike, yet argues that it must be read in its historical context--from its beginnings in myth and folklore to its many interpretations throughout the centuries. It is a book full of narratives, laws, proverbs, prophecies, poems, and letters, each with their own character and origin stories. Barton explains how and by whom these disparate pieces were written, how they were canonized (and which ones weren't), and how they were assembled, disseminated, and interpreted around the world--and, importantly, to what effect. Ultimately, A History of the Bible argues that a thorough understanding of the history and context of its writing encourages religious communities to move away from the Bible's literal wording--which is impossible to determine--and focus instead on the broader meanings of scripture.
The authoritative new account of the BibleÕs origins, illuminating the 1,600-year tradition that shaped the Christian and Jewish holy books as millions know them today. The Bible as we know it today is best understood as a process, one that begins in the tenth century BCE. In this revelatory account, a world-renowned scholar of Hebrew scripture joins a foremost authority on the New Testament to write a new biography of the Book of Books, reconstructing Jewish and Christian scriptural histories, as well as the underappreciated contest between them, from which the Bible arose. Recent scholarship has overturned popular assumptions about IsraelÕs past, suggesting, for instance, that the five books of the Torah were written not by Moses but during the reign of Josiah centuries later. The sources of the Gospels are also under scrutiny. Konrad Schmid and Jens Schrter reveal the long, transformative journeys of these and other texts en route to inclusion in the holy books. The New Testament, the authors show, did not develop in the wake of an Old Testament set in stone. Rather the two evolved in parallel, in conversation with each other, ensuring a continuing mutual influence of Jewish and Christian traditions. Indeed, Schmid and Schrter argue that Judaism may not have survived had it not been reshaped in competition with early Christianity. A remarkable synthesis of the latest Old and New Testament scholarship, The Making of the Bible is the most comprehensive history yet told of the worldÕs best-known literature, revealing its buried lessons and secrets.
Exodus is seen in its relation to the preceding Genesis and to the succeeding three books of the Pentateuch. Unlike Genesis, which dealt with individuals, Exodus is primarily concerned with Israel collectively and with the basic elements of Israel's faith. The author shows that the central motifs are the flight from Egypt, especially the crossing of "the sea", and the theophany and covenant at Sinai. The exegesis deals with the narrative as it appears in its final form but, in order to clarify the story, the author makes constant references to the successive stages in its literary development, and throughout the commentary he distinguishes the literary strands -- notably those know as J, E, and P -- that are woven into the fabric of the book.
Rawlinson chronicles the history surrounding each king, giving account of the politics, warfare, religion, and culture of the reign. With close reference to the Bible throughout, Rawlinson's study has become an essential part of Old Testament studies and is important tool to aid with the examination of The Books of Kings and Chronicles in particular. In addition to this, Rawlinson provides a close look at the lives of the various kings of Israel and Judah: the events of their reigns; the battles fought; and the effect on the kingdoms of the decisions made by the monarchs.
We tend to look to the New Testament to tell us about Jesus, yet it was the Old Testament about which Jesus said, “the Scriptures point to me!” In The One Year Book of Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament, Bible teacher Nancy Guthrie takes readers from Genesis through Malachi, shining the light of Christ on the promise of a descendent who will put an end to the curse of sin; the story of a father who offers up his son as a sacrifice; the symbol of a temple where people can meet with God; the prophecy of a servant who will suffer; the person of a king who will rule with righteousness—and so much more. Day by day throughout the year, readers will see the beauty of Christ in fresh new ways, creating a deeper understanding and appreciation for who Jesus is and what he accomplished through his Cross and Resurrection.
The classic Harmony of the Gospels by J. W. McGarvey and Philip Y. Pendleton with interspersed comments. Attractively re-typeset, this enduring work is a valuable resource to modern Bible students. "In most commentaries a fifth or sixth of the space is taken up in drawing distinctions between the texts of the four Gospels, while in this work these distinctions are placed before the reader's eye, where he can see them for himself at a glance. Moreover, in other commentaries, which give the text, another sixth or seventh of the work is taken up in reprinting in the notes that portion of the text concerning which the commentator wishes to speak. Our interjected method avoids all this needless repetition, and makes it possible for us to present the comment with the least preliminary verbiage or introductory setting. Time is also saved because the reader does not have to look back and forth from the text at the top to the comment at the bottom of the page. Again, other commentaries lose a large amount of space by using the King James text. Those which preceded the revision waste space correcting the translation and modernizing its English: those published since the revision suffer a similar waste by drawing endless comparisons between the two texts. By choosing the American revision as the basis for our work, we have a text which needs but little explanation or apology, and we are thereby enabled to employ the reader's time and strength to his best advantage." --Excerpted from the Introduction
