A Most Peculiar Book: The Inherent Strangeness of the Bible

Description

The Bible, we are constantly reminded, is the best-selling book of all time. It is read with intense devotion by hundreds of millions of people, stands as authoritative for Judaism and Christianity, and informs and affects the politics and lives of the religious and non-religious around the world. But how well do we really know it? The Bible is so familiar, so ubiquitous that we have begun to take our knowledge of it for granted. The Bible many of us think we know is a pale imitation of the real thing. In A Most Peculiar Book, Kristin Swenson addresses the dirty little secret of biblical studies that the Bible is a weird book. It is full of surprises and contradictions, unexplained impossibilities, intriguing supernatural creatures, and heroes doing horrible deeds. It does not provide a simple worldview: what "the Bible says" on a given topic is multi-faceted, sometimes even contradictory. Yet, Swenson argues, we have a tendency to reduce the complexities of the Bible to aphorisms, bumper stickers, and slogans. Swenson helps readers look at the text with fresh eyes. A collection of ancient stories and poetry written by multiple authors, held together by the tenuous string of tradition, the Bible often undermines our modern assumptions. And is all the more marvelous and powerful for it. Rather than dismiss the Bible as an outlandish or irrelevant relic of antiquity, Swenson leans into the messiness full-throttle. Making ample room for discomfort, wonder, and weirdness, A Most Peculiar Book guides readers through a Bible that will feel, to many, brand new.

Get the book

Amazon.com

Search the book

eBay.com

Search the book

Similar books

• 

  The End of the Law: Mosaic Covenant in Pauline Theology

  By Jason C. Meyer

  to understand the concept of covenant in Paul by adopting a methodology that examines the eight occurrences of the term “covenant” (diatheke).2 Second, Stanley E. Porter argues against this restrictive ap- proach lest we commit the ...

• 

  Inventing Hebrews: Design and Purpose in Ancient Rhetoric

  By Michael Wade Martin, Jason A. Whitlark

  Stanley E. Porter; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 51–87; Malcolm Heath, “Invention,” in Handbook of Classical Rhetoric in the Hellenistic Period (330 B.C.–A.D. 400) (ed. Stanley E. Porter; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 89–119, esp. 103–18.

• 

  NIrV, The Story for Children Bible, eBook

  By Max Lucado, Randy Frazee, Karen Davis Hill

  He said, “A thorn bush in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar tree there. It said, 'Give your daughter to be married to my son.' Then a wild animal in Lebanon came along. It walked all over the thorn bush. 10It's true that you have won ...

• 

  El llamado de la sabiduría: Reflexiones sobre proverbios

  By Karen Mason, Alice Matthews

  "La sabiduría, tal como se describe en el libro de Proverbios, se refiere a tomar decisiones en todo tipo de situaciones de la vida", escribe la autora Alice Mathews.

• 

  The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Books of the Bible

  By Michael D. Coogan

  In The Canon Debate, edited by Lee Martin McDonald and James A. Sanders, pp. 252–263. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 2002. ... “The Biblical Canon According to Lee McDonald: An Evaluation. ... Abraham, and David J. Wasserstein.

• 

  NKJV, American Woman's Bible, eBook: Holy Bible, New King James Version

  By Thomas Nelson

  Never Underestimate a Girl 1 Samuel 20:13 LOYALTY Laodicea Langston—nicknamed “Dicey”—was the daughter of Solomon Langston, aSouth Carolina planter during the Revolutionary War. Among the widely scattered plantations, political opinions ...

• 

  NKJV, Ancient-Modern Bible, Ebook: One faith. Handed down. For all the saints.

  By Thomas Nelson

  On Lazarus and the Rich Man. --------. On Repentance and Almsgiving. --------. On Temperance and the Gospel of St. Matthew. --------. Tractate on the Acts of the Apostles. Chytraeus, David. Commentary on Genesis. Clarkson, David.

• 

  Ezekiel 38-48

  By Stephen L. Cook

  ... 192, 288 Smith, Jonathan K., 139, 205, 218, 278 Smith, Mark S., 230, 269 Smith, W. Robertson, 176 Sommer, Benjamin D., xii, 25, 183, 184, 187, 188, 189, 258 Stager, Lawrence, 262,271 Staubli, Thomas, 205 Stevenson, Kalinda Rose, 6, ...

• 

  Holy Bible

  By William J. Bennett, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Thomas Nelson Publishing Staff

  Features include: Read-Along References® and Read-Along Translations® Self-pronouncing text Words of Jesus in red Presentation page Giant print concordance Full-color maps Ribbon marker and gift box 6-page Full-color Family Record ...

• 

  Ceb Wesley Study Bible: Clover Honey Bonded Leather

  By William H. Willimon, Joel B. Green, Bishop

  Lead an abundant life, grow as a faithful disciple, and find new avenues to serve.