A Review of "Exploring Christian Scripture"
A special kind of frustration comes with having to start something over—whether it’s retracing your steps after a wrong turn on a road trip or dismantling a piece of furniture because you missed an important step. The authors of Exploring Christian Scripture aim to spare students of the Bible from this kind of frustration by providing a guide that sets them on the right path from the start, helping them avoid any “backtracking” when it comes to studying the Bible. This book is a one-stop resource that seeks to provide those looking for more in-depth Bible study with the proper information and expectations of what reading and studying the Bible entails. It includes both a big-picture overview of the story of the Bible and a book-by-book summary of each book of the Bible, placing each book in its context within the biblical story. This book is a great, accessible new resource that can help any Christian on their journey of studying the Bible, wherever one might be in that process.
The book begins with a very helpful “high-altitude” survey of the Bible that orients the reader to the overall message of redemption in the Bible. The book moves on to explain how the collection of books that make up the Bible all contribute to this overall theme. The way that the authors organize this helps connect books back to the overall plot of the Bible. Rather than just putting a summary of the books together in a timeline, they are organized and explained in a “plotline” to ensure that each book is understood in light of the overall story of the Bible. There is also some very helpful information about the language and lands of the Bible that orient a new reader of the Bible to some of the important details in the Bible that are easily missed or misunderstood. The book then moves on to give a summary of each book of the Bible. While these summaries are brief, they are carefully crafted and very potent for their size. Each summary contains a “snapshot” of the book, an overview of the basic biographical information, and a section exploring the overall message and main theme of the book.
The summary of each book concludes with some questions to keep in mind while reading each book of the Bible, which is a very useful feature for aiding Bible reading. The book concludes with a chapter on helpful resources that aid in Bible study, from an overview of online Bible software to a list of recommended books on different topics. From beginning to end, this book is put together with intentionality to aid in Bible reading and understanding for a Bible reader of any background.
This book has several very helpful and unique features. First, the book contains several “going deeper” chapters that explore various topics and questions that arise when exploring the biblical story. These short chapters (only two to three pages each) on topics like the Apocrypha, the role of apologetics in Bible study, and archaeological findings related to the Bible, are well-placed and packed full of information relative to their size. Another useful feature is the list of recommended books for further Bible study at the end of the book. The authors of this book compiled dozens of recommended resources on topics like hermeneutics, Old and New Testament study, biblical theology, apologetics, etc. Every resource is also ranked as either “beginner,” “intermediate,” or “advanced,” which is helpful for those looking for further resources to know exactly what kind of resource they are looking for. Lastly, the book itself is just a starting point that leads to other valuable resources. The authors of this book are all professors at Dallas Theological Seminary, and the book contains easy-to-follow links and QR codes to hundreds of resources from Dallas Seminary’s website. So whatever topic you’re exploring, the book points to more in-depth, easily accessible resources that will deepen any area of interest and study. This is the most unique feature of the book, and it makes this book stand out among Bible study resources.
Overall, Exploring Christian Scripture is a very useful guide that can lead to a deeper understanding of the biblical story. If used as a supplement alongside regular Bible reading, it can assist anyone on the journey of studying the Bible from having to go back and reorient themselves when approaching certain passages of Scripture. Because of this, it would be a great addition to the bookshelf of anyone looking to understand the Bible more in its original context.
Sam Hitchcock (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) serves as the Director of Spiritual Formation at Oklahoma Christian School in Edmond, OK.
