The World and the Word is a fresh introduction to the Old Testament driven largely by the fact that so much Christian preaching and teaching today increasingly ignores what is eighty percent of the Bible. Authors Eugene Merrill, Mark Rooker, and Michael Grisanti work through the world and text of the Old Testament always making three major points: • The Old Testament is a rich source of theology and doctrine that is presupposed by the New Testament. Without it, Christian theology would be seriously deficient. • Mastery of the Old Testament is crucial to an understanding of the New Testament. • The Old Testament offers, by teaching and example, practical principles of belief and behavior for contemporary times. Who God was and what He did then can be replicated in the lives of men and women today. Separating the verifiable biblical and extra-biblical data from the various interpretations of that same information, the book further shows how the Old Testament forms the platform and matrix from which sprang the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus and the church. The World and the Word will help students see an entry point into the very heart and design of God who loves them and wishes to make them the special object of His grace.

Know what the Bible says. Understand why the Bible matters. This stunning, full-color study Bible answers your pressing questions with just the right amount of information, placed in just the right location. With its decades-long legacy of helping readers grasp the Bible’s meaning, the NIV Study Bible embodies the mission of the NIV translation to be an accurate, readable, and clear guide into Scripture. Specifically designed to expand upon the NIV, the NIV Study Bible’s editorial team crafts that same accuracy and clarity into every study note. Now the study Bible millions have come to trust has been fully revised and updated. A new committee of top biblical scholars--who are current and former NIV translators with a passion for making the Bible’s meaning clear--have pored over every note, every article, every chart, and every essay to refine this treasured resource even more. Thousands of newly written or revised notes and articles combine with hundreds of four-color maps, charts, photos, and illustrations to create an entire library of study helps designed to increase your understanding and application of God’s word. 2021 ECPA Bible of the Year Recipient Features: Complete text of the accurate, readable, and clear New International Version (NIV) Over 21,000 bottom-of-the-page study notes, with icons to make important information easy to spot Over 125 topical articles, 16 pages of full-color maps, the Comprehensive NIV Concordance with nearly 4800 word entries, and a subject note index enable even deeper study Sixty-six book introductions and outlines along with six section introductions provide valuable background information for each book of the Bible In-text maps, charts, diagrams, and illustrations visually clarify the stories in the Bible Words of Jesus in red

Dive into a deeper study of God’s Word with the comprehensive NIV Study Bible The beloved NIV Study Bible features a stunning four-color interior with full-color photographs, maps, charts, and illustrations that bring the stories of the Bible to life. The in-depth notes are coded to highlight items of special interest in the areas of character study, archaeology, and personal application. This NIV Bible provides you with just the right amount of study information, placed in in just the right locations, to answer your most pressing questions about God's Word and how it connects to your life today. Since its first release in 1985, the Gold Medallion Award-winning NIV Study Bible has become the treasured and trusted companion of over nine million Bible readers. Referred to daily by pastors, students, church leaders, and other Bible readers around the world, the over-20,000 NIV Study Bible notes are the handiwork of the same translation team that produced this Bible’s text. Like no other Bible, the NIV Study Bible places an entire resource library for Bible study in your hands. Features: Complete text of the accurate, readable, and clear New International Version (NIV) Over 20,000 study notes, with icons to make important information easy to spot Introductions and outlines provide valuable background information for each book of the Bible In-text maps, charts, diagrams, and illustrations visually clarify the stories in the Bible 16 pages of full-color maps plus time lines and presentation page Words of Jesus in red NIV concordance plus subject and study notes indexes eBook has been optimized for reading on color screens, but will still function effectively on other devices

Biblical scholars by and large remain unaware of the history of their own discipline. This present volume seeks to remedy that situation by exploring the early history of modern biblical criticism in the seventeenth century prior to the time of the Enlightenment when the birth of modern biblical criticism is usually dated. After surveying the earlier medieval origins of modern biblical criticism, the essays in this book focus on the more skeptical works of Isaac La Peyrere, Thomas Hobbes, and Baruch Spinoza, whose biblical interpretation laid the foundation for what would emerge in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as modern biblical criticism.

Rediscover the incomparable literary richness and strength of a book that all of us live with an many of us live by. An international team of renowned scholars, assembled by two leading literary critics, offers a book-by-book guide through the Old and New Testaments as well as general essays on the Bible as a whole, providing an enticing reintroduction to a work that has shaped our language and thought for thousands of years.

When Old Testament Wisdom appeared in 1981, new perspectives on biblical theology, an increasing awareness of ancient Near Eastern texts resembling biblical wisdom, and an emerging interest in ethnic proverbs were mere intimations of what was to become a dramatic outpouring of scholarship on wisdom literature. In this expanded edition, James Crenshaw takes stock of the wealth of new material produced by contemporary interpreters. Liberation and feminists critics, scholars in comparative religion, specialists in devotional theology, and researchers exploring educational systems in the ancient Near East all have enriched our understanding of wisdom literature in recent years, and all receive insightful treatment in this new volume. Now as before, Crenshaw's Old Testament Wisdom is an invaluable asset for anyone wishing to understand the rich and complex legacy of wisdom literature.

Does human life have any significance? The statements below have become widely accepted in the Western world: -Life is the accidental product of random events. -The laws of physics are totally deterministic. -Science does not accept a connection between physical matter and human consciousness. -Atheism is a conclusion from evidence while faith is speculation. -Science and faith are incompatible. -Suffering contradicts the existence of a loving, omnipotent God. -Jesus was a compilation of pagan mythologies or a human teacher who was deified. But do these statements represent eternal truths? Are they logical conclusions based on established facts or merely opinions? What is the evidence? To investigate these and other questions of existence and faith, a skeptical academic objectively explored relevant aspects of philosophy, mythology, history, archaeology, cosmology, quantum physics, biochemistry, and various faiths that finally led to investigation of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures (including the Dead Sea Scrolls and the gnostic gospels). The findings of this research not only challenge many modern assumptions but also have significant implications for our understanding of reality. Written with minimum technicality for general readership, this book presents a wide range of interesting and carefully confirmed facts relevant to the above questions. Whether you are an atheist or an agnostic, a Christian, or a follower of another faith, or have simply not been interested, this investigation provides valuable and surprising insights into the nature of the universe and our place in it.