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/lit/ - Literature

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22148347 No.22148347 [Reply] [Original]

Is the Bible actually an interesting read? I want to read it to be more knowledgeable but I'm curious if it's a slog to get through.

>> No.22148554

>>22148347
Of course the Bible is an interesting read. Start with the Gospels if you are not convinced yet to read entirely.

>> No.22148591

>>22148347
I( went to a private baptist college so had to take either old tesetament or NT as part of common core and it was p cool .I did new testament and now wish I had done old as well. I did take two other classes however, one was origin of Christianity. I will tell you this, you MUST get a reading companion with it. If you dont understand roman politics and history you will not be able to understand some of the most important parts in it. Most people will never understand what is really in that book because they dont understand the history, metaphors etc. Also try this if you are really interest in the topic
https://ugetube.com/watch/cracking-the-matrix-religion-part-two_LR1mDEhyiTpnP4K.html/list/MH5k1ZEw8Eci9ql

>> No.22149798

>>22148347
Read New Testament -> Old Testament
-> New Testament

>> No.22149826

Thinking of listening through the Bible in a year. I've listened to it a bit and it's honestly pretty entertaining. More than I thought.
It's a catholic version

>> No.22149840

Not really.
The overall theme is that if you're faithful to its God, you're rewarded with military victories, and lots of plunder, cattle, and slaves.
If you're not faithful, you get smited, and your tribe has to wander the wilderness for several decades until the guilty generation dies off.
Kind of simple-minded, really.

>> No.22149864

Some books of the bible are more entertaining than others, but if you don't consider it the inspired word of God then it can come across as meandering, or as a list of things to do.
Here is my list according to their entertainment and wisdom value
Ecclesiastes > Job > Luke > Acts (should be read following Luke) > Judges > Genesis > Revelation > Exodus
the rest are kind of meh but I'm sure I'm forgetting some good bits. Psalms and Proverbs are also worth reading but they should be read in between the others since they don't really have a narrative and they can drag if you read them all at once. John is considered perhaps the most spiritual of the gospels but it has some confusing bits and I think Luke is more appealing if you're simply reading the bible for "knowledge". It has the most detail of all the gospels and it pairs with Acts. Revelation is interesting but there isn't really any knowledge in it.
Also, if you read Job and come away with "God was fucking with him" or something like that then consider yourself filtered.

>> No.22149870

>>22148347
Start with the New Testament

>> No.22149871

>>22149840
>filtered
>tips fedora

>> No.22149882

>>22148347
Read The Great Code by Frye, then read The Bible (get a "readers edition"), then read Words With Power by Frye, then read the Bible again (Oxford Ed).

>> No.22149885

>>22149864
fuck I completely forgot all of Paul's letters
fuck the order man, just read the ones that seem interesting. Romans is considered his magnum opus. James is very good too. Try doing the legwork of reconciling Paul and James teachings regarding faith and works, that will teach you a lot.

>> No.22149888

>>22149882
P.S. Frye did a lecture series to go along with The Great Code and it's available on YouTube (I think the university at which he taught has it on one of their library pages, free access, as well).

>> No.22149892

>>22149882
>read a book, then the *whole bible* then read another book, then read the *whole bible* again
be honest anon, did you even really do this

>> No.22149945

>>22149871
That impression is from my own reading, and this summary:
https://www.gotquestions.org/66-books-of-the-Bible.html
No fedora necessary.

>> No.22150210
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22150210

If you're going to read it, pick up a modern translation.
I'm presently reading the New Revised Standard Version.
It's got more historical and explanatory material you could ever hope for, plus it's heavily footnoted and cross-referenced.
It's free on archive.org, also.

>> No.22150274

>>22148347
Read it

>> No.22150316

>>22149892
I'm currently doing it. Through TGC and into the 2nd volume of a reader's set (I've read the Gospels in the past though so I might skim when I get there). TGC is short but it was pretty dense--I had to reread a lot. Reading it first and listening to (most of, still working through them) Frye's lectures definitely afforded me much more (much much more) insight than I would have otherwise had. The Bible isn't the type of book you just jump into without building up any background knowledge (maybe you could just read something like the Oxford edition but taking the time to first read Frye has really benefitted me; I feel going that route, just reading a technically dense Bible alone, wouldn't be nearly as fun from a literary perspective). My original plan was to read TGC and WWP back to back and then the Bible, but I got so much out of TGC on its own that I figured I could take even more out of WWP by reading the Bible in between (that's why I went with a reader's edition).

Reader's edition Bibles are much easier to read than traditional chapter/verse ones. You don't take as much out of it, at least I'm not, but that's why I intend to go with the Oxford Annotated NIV after WWP (but I might just focus on certain books at that point). For now it's just going through it for a decent level of familiarization. Frye gets into the different voices afforded by different translations (and briefly touched on how they have an influence on how different aspects of the Bible come across)--but I'm not worried about that at this point.

Anyway, I'm reading other books at the same time so I don't expect to start the Oxford Bible until late this year. The full readers edition and Frye's books are only around 2600 pages so it's not as giant an undertaking as it seems. Like I said, Frye's book was extremely rewarding and greatly enhanced my appreciation for the Bible--reading TGC will make you want to read it.

>> No.22150335
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22150335

>>22148347
You should follow along with the Onions Standard Version.

>> No.22150338

>>22149864
I like simplified versions, overviews and annotations before analysing parts of the text. Everyone is filtered, it's supposed to be studied for a lifetime and still filter you. Who is that fifth guy mentioned as an ancestor of that guy? Oh you don't even know? Filtered.

>> No.22150343

>>22150210
>New Revised Standard Version
>the preface to the NRSV Bruce Metzger wrote for the committee that “many in the churches have become sensitive to the danger of linguistic sexism arising from the inherent bias of the English language towards the masculine gender, a bias that in the case of the Bible has often restricted or obscured the meaning of the original text”.[8]
Yeah, no.

>> No.22150358
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22150358

>>22148347
Reading the bible got me more interested in reading. My favorite book was Samuel 1 and 2. The saga of King David is right up there with Arthurian legend. Also the Gospel of John is super cozy. 10/10 highly recommend.

>> No.22150480

>>22150335
https://youtu.be/1BMs1iFG2hg

>> No.22150569

>>22150335
If Jesus personally smites all wojakposters and their derivates on Judgement Day, I'll get down on my knees and confess he is Lord.

>> No.22150590

>>22149870
The more I look up apologetics, the more true this rings.