Best Christian Old Testament Criticism
In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day is inspired by one of the most obscure yet courageous acts recorded in Scripture, a blessed and audacious act that left no regrets: “Benaiah chased a lion down into a pit. What if the life you really want, and the future God wants for you, is hiding right now in your biggest problem, your worst failure…your greatest fear? Look in the rearview mirror long enough and you’ll see that God has purposely positioned you everywhere you’ve been—even when it seemed you’d taken a wrong turn.”. —Mark Batterson. Praise for In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: “A thoughtful and energetic leader, Mark Batterson presses us to consider how we live out our faith in the world around us. Mark’s genuine warmth and sincerity spill over into his communication, combining an intense love for his community with a passionate desire to see them living the life God dreams for them. In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day helps us make sense of this beautiful mess we call life.” -Lindy Lowry, Editor, Outreach magazine “Mark Batterson is down-to-earth and humble—yet constantly pushes me to grow.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It challenges Christians to chase after their dreams and, with faith in God, to go out on a limb and live those dreams He has given us."
"I had read Batterson's second book first it was given to me."
"Mark Batterson said, "If your dream does not require divine intervention to accomplish, then it is too small.""
"A great book to encourage you to understand you potential to move forward, conquer and overcome!"
"I've read Bible many times and don't always remember certain passages."
"Have given this book to friends and family who are beginning new life chapters."
"This book was written in the joy of the Lord."
"But we need to consider God's power in order to shrink our problems."
The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition, is an essential resource for anyone interested in the Hebrew Bible. Serious students of Judaism will want to have a copy of this outstanding and surprisingly affordable study Bible, which stands in the tradition of Oxford's great study Bibles. From the previous edition: '' The Jewish Study Bible encompasses a monumental assembly of critical learning and acumen, representing the achievement of an entire generation of Jewish scholars. ''Serious students of Judaism will want to have a copy of this outstanding and surprisingly affordable study Bible, which stands in the tradition of Oxford's great study Bibles. ''. --Lawrence A. Hoffman, Liturgy, Worship and Ritual, Hebrew Union College. "First published in 2004, The Jewish Study Bible is a landmark, one-volume resource tailored especially for the needs of students of the Hebrew Bible. The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition , is an essential resource for anyone interested in the Hebrew Bible."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"And the footnotes are a life saver for people unfamiliar with scripture or for people who want to have a little bit more background on what their reading."
"Received in two days."
"Get it for your library, it has Jewish insights to verses that may not be in our regular commentary ."
"Bought it for a class but will continue to use it."
"This was a gift to a family member."
"Expanded from the first edition."
"Will use along with my KJV bible for study."
"has what I need for my studies."
Regarded throughout the English-speaking world as the standard English translation of the Holy Scriptures, the JPS TANAKH has been acclaimed by scholars, rabbis, lay leaders, Jews, and Christians alike. ( Time Magazine ) "Turns Holy Writ into fresh, understandable, contemporary language.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'M HAPPY TO HAVE IT."
"The seller was honest about its condition, and I'm very pleased with it."
"The best and most accurate translation of the Old Testament that I own."
"It was not easy for a foreigner like me to read 1600 pages book."
"I am excited to learn more about the chronological history."
Best Christian Old Testament Study
This Bible is filled with references and study aids to strengthen your Bible reading.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I give this bible 5 stars cause it exposes that the bible has been tampered with... All bible believers must have this bible in their collection..."
"I love this bible!"
"My favorite version for its devotion to accuracy in translation."
"Thank you this wonderful book."
"Love this bible."
"Great print size and of course it's word of God can't get any better."
"While there are free versions available, none of them really had the superior search feature that this one does."
"cheap option for distribution; not too durable but functional."
Best Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) Meditations
Matt Chandler helps navigate these issues for both singles and marrieds by revealing the process Solomon himself followed: Attraction, Courtship, Marriage ... even Arguing. Matt Chandler pastors The Village Church, a multi-campus church attended by more than 10,000 people. Matt Chandler pastors The Village Church, a multi-campus church attended by more than 10,000 people.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The Mingling of Souls: God's Design for Love, Marriage, Sex & Redemption - Matt Chandler with Jared C. Wilson. The scope of this book runs from the beginning to the end of a relationship. Starting with attraction, Chandler works his way through each phase of romantic relationships: attraction, dating, courtship, wedding, sex, fighting, romance, and commitment. Overall Chandler gives a balanced, Biblical, and practical take on dating, marriage, and beyond. In the chapter on marriage ("Wedding Bells") Chandler says this: "I just see no reason to agree with the worldly romantic notion that every person has just one 'soul mate' out there waiting for him or her. Chandler's distinction between dating and courtship is also extremely helpful. He spells it out this way: dating is the "get to know you" phase of the relationship, and courtship is the "let's head toward marriage" phase of the relationship. Another strong point of the book is the dealing with marriage being a representation of Christ and the Church. Chandler also does a good job of not leave things in the theoretical sphere, but also offers practical advice throughout the book."
"This book walks the reader through God’s wisdom revealed through Solomon for relationship pursuit and marital bliss."
"Absolutely loved this booked and followed it with the video study."
"Matt Chandler speaks with a candid view on dating, sex, and marriage, and doesn't shy away from the messiness or the humor."
"This was a great breakdown of the Songs that put things in perspective for me in regards to relationships."
"This book has helped me tremendously to deal with my own issues and make me willing to make this marriage work."
"I've never thought to approach the Song of Songs like Matt has in this book, the ways he interprets this mysterious book is very insightful!"
"This book is amazing!"
Best Other Christian Bibles
Brazilian artist Sergio Cariello has created attention-holding illustrations marked by rich coloring, dramatic shading and lighting, bold and energetic designs, and emotionally charged figures. What David C. Cook couldn't know is that Sergio had grown up in Brazil with a Portuguese translation of that very same Picture Bible. Even though he knew as a kid that he wanted to be a comic artist, he never would have dreamed that he would one day get to work on the Picture Bible itself!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Incredible number of stories (over 200)--this thing is THICK and solid. Similar to the Sistine Chapel, it explains Biblical truths in an engaging, dramatic, and artistic way that is relevant to our culture's art-form (i.e. graphic novels). In the same way it would be unfair to see the Sistine Chapel and complain how Michelangelo painted Cane and Able in the nude. I'd rate this PG depending on the maturity of your child and his/her understanding of Biblical text. Perfect for teenagers or kids you're looking to get hooked on Biblical studies."
"I absolutely love The Action Bible! The Action Bible isn't just for kids, I'm 30 and love it."
"Please consider that this is NOT an exact word for word depiction of the bible."
"I highly recommend the Action Bible to anyone wanted to get their kids more involved in bible reading."
"The artwork in this bible is well received by them as a supplement to the lessons, they still feel like they are "reading" the bible!"
"I got a copy to suggest it to our Youth Director at our church."
"I also have a friend and I have a hard time trying to tell him about God because he really hates it wen I tell him about God."
"If you've got any one that you want to share the truth of the Bible with and they need a little coaxing, have this book lying around."
Best Christian New Testament Criticism
This collection contains: Be Right (Romans), Be Wise (1 Corinthians), Be Encouraged (2 Corinthians), Be Free (Galatians), Be Rich (Ephesians), Be Joyful (Philippians), Be Complete (Colossians), Be Ready (1 & 2 Thessalonians), and Be Faithful (1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon). Be Wise (1 Corinthians): Be Wise guides us through Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, where he encourages his fellow believers to embrace a life of wisdom and truth. Be Joyful (Philippians): Discover Paul's secret to finding joy in Christ as Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe leads you on a verse-by-verse tour through the book of Philippians.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Wiersbe is renowned, such a strong book."
"Great, easy to understand teaching."
"Quickly gave me the information I needed."
"Very good way of studying the Bible."
"Easy to understand with applicable commentaries."
Best Christian Hermeneutics
More than three quarters of a million people have turned to How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth to inform their reading of the Bible. Updated language for better readability Scripture references now appear only in brackets at the end of a sentence or paragraph, helping you read the Bible as you would read any book—without the numbers A new authors’ preface Redesigned and updated diagrams Updated list of recommended commentaries and resources. Gordon D. Fee (PhD, University of Southern California) is Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies at Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"If teaching disciples to read the Bible for themselves is the most important task pastors, teachers, churches can perform then I believe most have failed. I grew up in a conservative Southern Baptist church context that taught the innerancy and importance of reading Scripture daily and studying it corporately, but never once had a lesson in exegesis, hermeneutics, biblical theology, etc. The importance and practical application of proper exegesis and hermeneutics are what Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart teach in this book. Reading this book, and others like it which they recommend, is extremely important. The authors have since written a companion book that I hope to read (How to Read the Bible Book by Book) but I'll read D.A. "Reading the Bible with an eye only to its meaning for us can lead to a great deal of nonsense as well as to every imaginable kind of error--because it lacks controls... we believe that God's Word for us today is first of all precisely what his Word was to them. Second, we must learn to hear that same meaning in the variety of new or different contexts of our own day; we call this second task hermeneutics...the original meaning of the text--as much as it is in our power to discern it--is the objective point of control...And this brings us back to our insistence that proper 'hermeneutics' begins with solid 'exegesis.'". "Even the two authors of this book have some disagreements as to what certain texts 'plainly' mean. Yet all of us are reading the same Bible, and we all are trying to be obedient to what the text 'plainly' means. "There are two basic kinds of questions one should ask of every biblical passage: those that relate to context and those that relate to content.The questions of context are also of two kinds: historical and literary...The most important contextual question you will ever ask--and it must be asked over and over of every sentence and every paragraph --is, 'What's the point? Or to put it in a positive way, the true meaning of the biblical text for us is what God originally intended it to mean when it was first spoken. Consulting a commentary should be "the last thing you do" in studying a text or a book. Christians believe that the New Testament authors were inspired by the Holy Spirit and therefore able to write analogies between the Old Testament and the life of Jesus than we are able to today. The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write about this analogical connection between the Israelites in the desert and life in Christ without following the usual rules about context, intent, style, and wording..." Similarly with Matthew noting Jesus' "fulfillment" of various prophecies, such as being the "son called out of Egypt." OT Narratives, their proper use: "In the biblical story God is the protagonist, Satan (or opposing people/powers) are the antagonists, and God’s people are the agonists. The basic “plot” of the biblical story is that the creator God has created a people for his name — in his own “image” — who as his image bearers were to be his stewards over the earth that he created for their benefit. The plot resolution is the long story of 'redemption,' how God rescues his people from the enemy’s clutches, restores them back into his image, and (finally) will restore them 'in a new heaven and new earth. '”. "As you read the various narratives, be constantly on the lookout for how the inspired narrator discloses the point of view from which you are to understand the story." Errors in interpretation of biblical narratives: Allegorizing - relegating the text to merely reflecting another meaning beyond the text. Redefinition - Example: 2 Chron 7:14-15. "so they tend to ignore the fact that God’s promise that he will “hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” was about the only earthly land God’s people could ever claim as “theirs,” the Old Testament land of Israel. In the new covenant, God’s people have no earthly country that is “their land” — despite the tendency of some American Christians to think otherwise about the world. "Unless Scripture explicitly tells us we must do something, what is only narrated or described does not function in a normative (i.e. obligatory) way — unless it can be demonstrated on other grounds that the author intended it to function in this way". Trying to look at Acts and the epistles for "how to do church" is problematic. The Gospels: "the major hermeneutical difficulty lies with understanding 'the kingdom of God,'". Authors shaped, and arranged his materials. "Think horizontally". "To think horizontally means that when studying a pericope in any one gospel, it is usually helpful to be aware of the parallels in the other gospels. To be sure, this point must not be overdrawn, since none of the evangelists intended his gospel to be read in parallel with the others. Nonetheless, the fact that God has provided four gospels in the canon means that they cannot be read totally in isolation from one another." The purpose of studying the Gospels in parallel is not to fill out the story in one gospel with details from the others. Usually such a reading of the Gospels tends to harmonize all the details and thus blur the very distinctives in each gospel that the Holy Spirit inspired. "Think vertically". To think vertically means that when reading or studying a narrative or teaching in the Gospels, one should try to be aware of both historical contexts — that of Jesus and that of the evangelist. OT is not our Testament. "unless an Old Testament law is somehow restated or reinforced in the New Testament, it is no longer directly binding on God’s people (cf. While a complete coverage of the categories of Old Testament law would take a book of its own, the portion of laws from the Pentateuch that no longer apply to Christians can be grouped conveniently into two categories: (1) the Israelite civil laws and (2) the Israelite ritual laws. All of the OT is still the word of God for us, even though it is not still God's command to us. Only that which is explicitly renewed from the Old Testament law can be considered part of the New Testament “law of Christ” (cf. Do see the Old Testament law as God’s fully inspired word for you. Don’t see the Old Testament law as God’s direct command to you. 373 – 546; Joachim Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus. read Robert H. Stein’s The Method and Message of Jesus’ Teaching. how to do hermeneutics in the Gospels: "highly recommend" George E. Ladd’s The Presence of the Future (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974). These. The very best introduction to Revelation — how it “works” as a book, its basic point of view, and its theological contribution to the Bible — is by Richard Bauckham, The Theology of the Book of Revelation (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993); for an “easy read” commentary intended for the lay reader, you may wish to look at Professor Fee’s Revelation in the New Covenant Commentary Series (2011), The Appendix contains information on how to choose a commentary while offering suggestions for each book and some introductions to OT and NT."
"Not an easy read, but lots of good information."
"This will change the way you read the Bible."
"Fee and Stuart, two of the world's foremost biblical scholars, guide the reader into understanding how to appropriately interpret scripture."
"It does not take a particular demoninational point of view but rather stays focused objectively on biblical interpretation from the text."
"Every teacher and serious student of the Bible should read this several times and apply its principles."
"This book is about Biblical exegesis and hermeneutics, in other words how we can understand texts and apply them to our own contexts."
"It is loaded with practical help, guided tours of the Scriptures, and skilled ease with boiling complicate concepts down to a simple and understandable form."