It’s one of those “tough” Old Testament passages. Abraham and Sarah (Abram and Sarai at the time) force their Egyptian slave girl to be the surrogate mother of their son. Abram was probably 85 years old at the time (Gen 16:16). And so, a barren mother in desperation gives her helpless slave girl to anContinue reading “Does the Bible condone patriarchal abuse?”
Category Archives: How to Read the Bible
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 3
Most Christians today will associate the original promise of victory over the serpent by the woman’s offspring (Gen. 3:15) with the death and resurrection of Jesus. However, it’s easy to see in the New Testament that Satan is still active in the world (e.g. 1 Pet. 5:8) after Jesus ascended. While Christ was victorious, HeContinue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 3”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 2
The great plot conflict of Scripture is the battle for kingship of earth, a battle between the serpent and the woman’s offspring. Hostility between these two parties was promised by God (Gen. 3:15), and throughout the Old Testament physical violence and hostility ensued. The Israelites committed genocide against the Canaanites (as to why God wouldContinue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 2”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 1
In just the first few pages, Scripture reveals itself to be an epic, cosmic tale about the rulership of the heavens and the earth, with the promise of marital drama (Gen 3:16), blessing and curse, political subversion, war, and the battle for cosmic kingship (Gen. 3:15), all held under the watchful eye of Yahweh Almighty.Continue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Plot, Part 1”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 3
To compare the Biblical narrative to modern novels as it relates to characters, the primary protagonist throughout is the woman’s offspring (Gen. 3:15). It is the woman’s offspring who will deal with the serpent. However, Scripture is unique in comparison to a novel because, like the serpent’s offspring, the woman’s offspring is not necessarily restrictedContinue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 3”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 2
As mentioned in Part 1, Genesis 1-3 provides Scripture’s own unique character categories that subsequent characters often fall into. Grasping these character categories is key to both understanding the plot conflict and perceiving the unified nature of the metanarrative. (For ease of use and understanding, we’ll use the terms “actor” instead of “character” or “individualContinue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 2”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 1
Just as the first three chapters of Genesis provide the initial taste of the cosmic setting of the Biblical metanarrative, these same chapters also provide the prototype for the characters to follow. And similar to the way the named characters in a modern novel fit into our larger storytelling categories of protagonist, antagonist, and others,Continue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel: Characters, Part 1”
Reading Scripture Like a Novel
I remember when I first learned that Scripture was a meta narrative—that all the stories contained in the Bible worked together to tell a single larger story. It was a big shift in my thinking because, for a long time, many Scriptural narratives, poetry, or letters felt disconnected from other books of the Bible. MuchContinue reading “Reading Scripture Like a Novel”
Epic Gospel 