How to Read the Bible

Thus the Temple must on occasion be ritually purified.

The historical-critical method makes two assumptions: that biblical society is discontinuous with our society, and that the Bible should be read according to its original social context, not anachronistically The Bible must instead be understoodonly after its ancient conventions and genres are understood, but because there is so much discontinuity,

the biblical authors understood all law as divine law11

Rather, all biblical texts changed during their transmission. They were updated, expanded, and made to fit their broader context.21

This device-in which a phrase or several words indicate the limits of a unit-is called an "inclusio," and it…

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The vast empire of Alexander fell apart upon his death, and was divided among his generals. Israel had the great misfortune of falling on the border between the Ptolemies, who ruled from…

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the verb bara (W12), typically translated "to create," a word used more than fifty times in the Bible. Unlike other creation words,…

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In this case, Kethevim has come to serve as a catchall term. It is a miscellany

The name of the second part, Nevi'im, means "Prophets."