by Christopher R. Smith (Editor)
Many biblical scholars today approach the Bible as a collection of books, treating each book as a composition in its own right. Can such an approach help devotional readers? This introduction to the books of the Bible will have you reading in a whole new light. The units of meaning in the Bible are not chapters, or verses, or topical sections, but the literary compositions that God inspired to create the Scriptures. If we want to know the meaning of God's word, we need to engage these compositions on their own terms. This means understanding why they were written, what kind of writing they are, how they are put together, and what major themes and ideas they develop and pursue. This book answers these questions for each of the books in the Bible.