Behind the Scenes of the Bible: New Testament & Old Testament Set (Hardcover)

Bible Study Guides Uncovering the Cultural, Social, and Historical Contexts of the Old and New Testaments - Behind the Scenes of the Bible, New Testament and Old Testament Set

The ancient world and the modern world are separated from each other by vast chasms of time, space, culture, and language—and this reality limits our understanding of what was being communicated by those ancient scribes to their early hearers. We subconsciously impose our own cultural understandings on the text, at the same time missing the point of the ancient communicators.

Behind the Scenes of the Bible is for those who seek to understand the message of the Bible in its context; some understanding of the ancient world—its geography, archaeology, literature, iconography, history, and culture—is an essential starting point.

Placing texts within the context of the ancient world and allowing the discourse of those texts to resonate within that world sharpens an appreciation of their force and significance. The texts more readily become vehicles for conveying meanings appropriate to their original purposes; they are less readily put into the service of our own interests, identities, and agendas; and they are able to be appropriated more authentically in contexts beyond the ancient world.