I have never been a fan of the “pick your own word” translations of the Bible like the Amplified Bible.  While the concept of providing a wider range of meaning for words is noble, it just doesn’t reflect the way that langauge is used or the way people communicate.  People (specifically authors) pick one meaning out of the possibilities and intend for their audience to know which one they chose.  Giving Bible readers the ability to pick whichever word the like best from a list seems like it leads to narcissistic Bible reading.

My first reaction to The Expanded Bible was much the same.  I thought it was just an updated version of the Amplified Bible.  That reaction has proved to be inaccurate.

The concept of the Expanded Bible is different.  While the actual Bible text is a modified version of the New Century Version (which is a very loose Dynamic Equivalent translation), several useful features are built into the text to help the reader fully understand the authors intended meaning.  Interspersed within the text are seven features designed to enhance the Bible reading experience.  These features are…

• Expanded meanings of words
• Alternate translations
• Literal readings of the Greek
• Traditional readings
• Comments from scholars
• Biblical references
• Textual variants

All of these features do indeed bring a fuller understanding to the text.  In this regard, this project does deliver on its purpose.  The downside to this approach, though, is the creation of a very choppy, interrupted reading of the Bible.  You can barely go five or six words without one of these embedded notes that stops your train of thought.  This drawback takes this work from a reader’s Bible to a reference Bible.  It would be nearly impossible to read a lengthy section of Scripture and focus on the text because of all the notes.

That being said, I placed the Expanded Bible right along side my other study Bibles on my desk.  It is a welcomed addition to a biblical reference collection.

by James A. Beverley

Writing a book on the religions of the world can be dangerous in our culture of tolerance and political correctness.  What better way to offend people than call their religion into question?  James Beverly takes this challenge on admirably.

Writing from a very well-stated Christian position, the author first lays out some basic questions to the study of cults and religions, names what qualifies as both.  This kind of helpful information seems to be missing from other popular books on the subject.  The main body of the book, though, is a catalogue of the worlds major religions, the major arms of Christianity, significant Protestant groups, and finally groups that have been traditionally viewed as “cults.” 

Overall, the author’s treatment of each of these categories is very fair and helpful.  He states from the outset that he measures truth from a Christian perspective, which necessarily means calling many of the groups surveyed in the book inaccurate and wrong.  This negative evaluation is always given with personal respect and Christian love rather than acrimony or disdain.

The best feature the book offers is very helpful summary charts for each group.  They provide good information in easy to understand and read formats.  The “illustrated” aspect of the book is very minimal.  There are a few photos scattered throughout the book that do not significantly add to the value.  That being said, this is a great resource for students, ministers, and anyone wishing to understand the diverse world we live in.

The Old Testament speaks the language of the heart

“I was born
I was born to sing for you

I didn’t have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise …”

Nope.  Not a quote from the Old Testament.  It is a verse from U2’s Magnificent.  An amazing song that sounds like it came directly from the Psalms.  I think one of the reasons that I like U2 so much is because their music speaks the language of the heart.  As a culture (actually, as an object of creation) we are wired to express ourselves in heart language–song and worship.

As good as U2 is, God is a better composer.  One of the great things about the OT is that it speaks the language of the human heart more accurately than others.  So many of the songs we sing (and have sung for a long time) come from the Old Testament, particularly the Psalms.  It’s not just praise songs that we find there either.  Just about every emotion is found expressed in the OT.  Whether that be praise, thanks, awe, fear, dread, disappointment, or amazement.

“O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth”

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

The Old Testament is exciting reading

Yeah, yeah, I know Leviticus is in the Old Testament it has served as a cure for insomnia for many would be readers of the Old Testament.  Who hasn’t made that New Year’s resolution to read the Bible in a year and hit the skids about the middle of February when they turned the page to Leviticus.

The laws about mildew and skin disease aside, from a pure literary perspective, the Old Testament has some incredibly interesting plot lines.  I love a good page turner as much as anyone else, and John Grisham and Dan Brown have nothing on the OT.  Think about these plot turns and twists…

• The high drama of Abraham and his would be heir and the several failed attempts to force God’s hand.
• The scandal of Judah and his daughter-in-law Tamar.
• The bittersweet saga of Joseph and his ascent to Egyptian leadership.
• The cosmic battle of Moses and Pharaoh.
• The violent and bloody conquest of Canaan.
• The action packed period of the Judges.
• The heart wrenching epic of Ruth.
• The fierce pursuit of David by King Saul.
• The underhanded conspiracy of Absalom’s failed coup.
• The political intrigue of Solomon’s ascent to the throne.
• The tenion filled showdown between Elijah and the prophets of Baal.
• The supernatural career of Elisha.
• The bloody and desperate siege of Jerusalem under King Hezekiah.

That list could go on and on.  The Old Testament is anything but boring.  In fact, there is just as much violence, illicit sexual encounters, murder, and drama as any R-rated movie.  Why study it?  Because it is flat out good reading.

The Old Testament makes us wise to salvation

In some of the his final words, the Apostle Paul said these words to his protege Timothy…”the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus…” (2 Timothy 3:15).

How can the Old Testament make us aware of salvation?  After all, there’s no Jesus in the Old Testament.  That’s a great question (glad I asked it!)  Primarily, the Old Testament makes us aware of the need for salvation by making us aware of sin.  We learn of man’s shortcomings by becoming acquainted with the Law.  The Law made us aware that God is holy and we are not.  It is the knowledge of sin and leads us to anticipate the final solution to sin: salvation in Christ Jesus.

The Old Testament doesn’t just make us aware of sin, though.  It also looks forward to the promised solution.  As early as Genesis 3:15, God drops hints that one day the problem of sin will be taken care of.  The Old Testament doesn’t complete the picture, but it brings us to the doorstep of the Gospels.  Without the understanding of the human condition we learn in the Old Testament, the good news of the gospel makes no sense.

The Old Testament was written for our instruction

The church at Corinth must have been an absolute mess.  It seems like they had every single problem that a church can have.  The fought among themselves, abused spiritual gifts, taught false doctrine, tolerated immorality, and much more.  The issue of idolatry also had to be dealth with.  With so many of the new Christians coming from a background of pagan idol worship, there was always the temptation to either return to the idols or incorporate some of the idolatrous practice into their new Christian faith.

In chapter 10 of 1 Corinthians, Paul takes the issue of idolatry head on.  In doing so, he used examples from the Old Testament to illustrate the dangers of idol worship (Ex 13, 14, 17, Num 11, 14).  However, he also makes two very interesting points when referring to the Old Testament stories.  He says, “Now these things took place as examples for us that we might not desire evil as they did” (v6).  Again in verse 10, Paul says, “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.”

WOW!  Do you sense the imprtance of those statements?  All of the things that happened in the Old Testament–every event, story, and word–happened as an example for us.  In other words, we are supposed to learn from them.  They’re not just cute stories for kids; they are instructional narratives.  Also, they were written down for us to learn from.  God went to the trouble and effort to record those events so that we can be instructed by them.  All those scribes who gave their lives to preserving the text were working for our benefit.

What are we to learn from the Old Testament?  Well, we learn what faith is, how to please God, and how to put faith into our every day lives.  Paul assumes that we are being instructed by the Old Testament.

The Old Testament was written FOR Christians

A common misconception among Christians is that, while the Old Testament is nice and has some interesting stories, ultimately it isn’t “Christian” and therefore not really applicable or beneficial.  Now, it is certainly true that the original audience of the OT was Israel.  We need to study the OT in its original context and attempt to understand what God said to the original audience.  However, we need to realize that while the Old Testament was not written originally TO Christians, it was ultimately written FOR Christians. 

Don’t believe me?  This is exactly how the New Testament writers understood the Old Testament.  Look at these three statements…

For whatever was written in the former days was written for OUR instruction, that through endurance and through encouragement of Scripture we might have hope. (Romans 15:4)

It was revealed to them (the OT prophets) that they were serving not themselves but YOU in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels longed to look. (1 Peter 1:12)

(Speaking of a quote from the OT Law of Moses) Does he not speak ENTIRELY FOR OUR SAKE?  It was written FOR OUR SAKE… (1 Corinthians 9:10)

According to the New Testament writers, the ultimate audience of the Old Testament writers was the church!  While this does not mean that the Old Testament didn’t have a meaning in the original context, it does mean that the ultimate significance and mean of the entire Old Testament can only be found through Jesus.  Jesus is the interpretive key to the Old Testament.

Keep this in mind as you read the pages of the Old Testament…the law of Moses, the psalms of David, the proverbs of Solomon, and the prophecies of Isaiah were written for US.  It wasn’t written TO us, but it certainly was written FOR us.

I am now a member of Shelfari, a website that allows you to track which books you’re read and also allows you to see what other people are reading.  Like most people, I am always looking for good books to read.  You can see my profile at www.shelfari.com/donsanders.  Take a look and join so I can see what you’re reading!

The New Testament Quotes the Old Testament Like Crazy

Depending on exactly how you count and categories OT quotes, there are approximately 341 direct quotations of the Old Tesatament within the pages of the New Testament.  Of course, beyond the direct quotations, there are hundreds of allusions and references to Old Testament people, events, places, symbols, and ideas.  The New Testamament literally builds its theology using the bricks of the Old Testament.

The importance of Old Testament quotations tend to fall into three categories.

1. To demonstrate the fulfillment of an OT prophecy (Matt 1:22; 2:6).
2. To contrast a NT doctine (Matt 4:21-22; 4:27-28)
3. To develop a new doctrine (Rom 3:10-18; 9:25-26)

When I read a book, I tend to skip over parts when the author quotes another book.  That’s a huge mistake when reading the New Testament.  If you don’t know the OT, you’re missing a lot.

The New Testament assumes you know the Old Testament

Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and all of a sudden you get that very puzzled look?  You ask a couple of questions and then hear those familiar words, “I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.” 

I wonder if the the Apostle John feels the same way when people read the book of Revelation.  He recounts his fantastic vision of seals, thunder, horsemen, locusts, swords, disasters, dragons, etc, only to see a very puzzled look on our face.  Then he asks, “You don’t have any idea what I’m talking about, do you?” 

Like many other books in the New Testament, when John wrote Revelation, he assumed that his readers would know that so many of his symbols, signs, characters, and events were drawn from the Old Testament.  Matthew has the same approach in his gospel.  From the very first words, he assumes that his readers will know the people listed in the geneaology of Jesus.  The unknown author of Hebrews follows suit.  He talks about angles, Melchizedek, Mount Sinai, and the Tabernacle, assuming that those who read the book know what those things are.

I dare say that the New Testament is so full of Old Testament quotes, allusions, references, symbols, and doctrines, that it is impossible to fully grasp the meaning of its words without a working knowledge of the Old Testament.

It is like trying to read The Chronicles of Narnia without knowing a little mythology.  Maybe it’s like listening to American Pie by Don McLean and not know a little musical history of the 60’s.  The authors just assume that you know Aslan is the Lion of Judah, the Joker on the sideline in a cast is Bob Dylan, and the quartet in the park is the Beatles.  John assumes that you know the four horsemen in Revelation 6 draw their meaning from Zecharaih 6.  Otherwise you might think the rider of the pale horse was Wyatt Earp, just like Johnny Ringo did in Tombstone.