On Reading the Bible

Thoughts and Reflections of Over 500 Men and Women, from St. Augustine to Oprah Winfrey

Bill Bradfield

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780486437088
• eBook ISBN: 9780486149493
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Biography

Hundreds of heartfelt, perceptive comments by men and women from all walks of life fill the pages of this inspirational book. Included are memorable quotes from historic and contemporary writers, philosophers, entertainers, business people, politicians, and spiritual leaders. Words from Abraham Lincoln, Ray Charles, Sal Bando, many others. Brief contributor biographies provided.

Quotations

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS

So great is my veneration for the Bible that the earlier my children begin to read it, the more confident will be my hope that they will prove useful citizens to their country and respectable members of society.

I speak as a man of the world to men of the world, and I say to you, search the Scriptures! The Bible is the book of all others, to be read at all ages, and in all conditions of human life—not to be read once or twice through and then laid aside, but to be read in small portions of one or two chapters every day, and never to be intermitted unless by some overruling necessity.

MARILYN McCORD ADAMS

However much it divides, the Bible also has a marvelous way of bringing people together.

NA’IM AKBAR

Black women “didn’t know nothing” about Dr. Spock, but they did know the Bible. Raise up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.

WILLIAM FOXWELL ALBRIGHT

Thanks to the Qumran discoveries, the New Testament proves to be in fact what it was formerly believed to be: the teaching of Christ and his immediate followers between circa 25 and circa 80 A.D. In the light of these finds, the New Testament becomes more Jewish than we thought—as truly Jewish as the Old Testament is Israelite. Yet both parts of our Bible are deeply indebted to the world in which they arose . . . The non-Jewish streams which flowed through Judaism into nascent Christianity were transfigured by the Cross and given a spiritual depth which was to transform the world.

From the Stone Age to Christianity

There can be no doubt that archaeology has confirmed the substantial historicity of the Old Testament. The excessive skepticism shown toward the Bible by important historical schools of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries . . . has been progressively discredited. Discovery after discovery has established the accuracy of innumerable details, and has brought increased recognition to the value of the Bible as a source of history.

The Archaeology of Palestine (rev. ed.)

WICK ALLISON

Even if there were little external evidence of Jesus’s life, the actions of His disciples and the written record produced by His followers hardly seem possible without a real person to inspire and motivate them. The fact that many of His early followers, including the Apostles themselves, were put to death on account of their fidelity to the mission they believed He had sent them on seems inconsistent with the notion that He was a fabrication.

That’s in the Bible?

ROBERT ALTER

Genesis begins with the making of heaven and earth and all life, and ends with the image of a mummy—Joseph’s—in a coffin. But implicit in the end is a promise of more life to come, of irrepressible procreation, and that renewal of creation will be manifested, even under the weight of oppression, at the beginning of Exodus . . . Although it looks forward to sequel, it stands as a book, inviting our attention as an audience that follows the tale from beginning to end.

Genesis: Translation and Commentary

MAX ANDERS

Without the Bible, we might believe that there was a God, but we would not know who He was, whether he wanted or expected anything from us, or how to get to know Him. The Bible fills in those gaps, and through the Scripture we can be led into an understanding of who God is and how to develop a relationship with Him.

The New Christian’s Handbook

The word “inspired,” when it is used in reference to the Bible, is a technical term meaning “God-breathed” . . . When God revealed His word to humans for the Bible, He supernaturally oversaw the writing down of the Scriptures so that without the loss of the writers’ own personalities, they composed and recorded without error God’s revelation in the original manuscripts and letters.

The New Christian’s Handbook

PAUL M. ANDERSON

I recall one evening reading a statement made by a 19th century professor of natural sciences, Henry Drummond: “Willpower does not change men. Time does not change men. Christ does.” I was somewhat startled—and excited—to realize that I understood its meaning. Subsequently, I bought a New Testament and read most of it in about three weeks. It amazed me. Here was a blueprint for living and a description and explanation of the sense of separation from God that I had been experiencing . . . I came to understand that one of the ways God communicates with us is through the writings of godly people as collected in the Bible, and that understanding its message is also a gift.

Professors Who Believe

SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS

It is one of the glories of the Bible that it can enshrine many meanings in a single passage . . . Each man marvels to find in the divine Scriptures truths which he has himself thought out.

De Potentia

MICHAEL C. ARMOUR

It is only natural to ask why the impact of the Bible has been so monumental. What accounts for its attractiveness over the centuries? And why is it still the best- selling book in the world? The answer lies in the great ideas conveyed by the Bible, the great truths it unfolds. No other book has ever surpassed its exalted view of God and His love for mankind. In a word, the Bible stretches our sense of who God is and what we have the potential to become because of His love.

A Newcomer’s Guide to the Bible

WILLIAM ARNDT

In reading and studying the books of the New Testament, we are doing what in other fields of learning would be considered beyond the scope or ability of the average person. Consulting primary sources is ordinarily the task of scholars and experts. When they have finished their work and written down their findings for us, we are satisfied. But in examining the books of the New Testament, we have access to the original documents in translation and do the research work ourselves.

MATTHEW W. ARNOLD

He will find one English book and one only, where, as in the Iliad itself, perfect plainness of speech is allied with perfect nobleness, and that book is the Bible.

KAY ARTHUR

The Bible was written so that anyone who wants to know who God is and how they are to live in a way that pleases Him can read it and find out. God wants to bring us into intimacy with Himself . . . He also wants us to understand the blessings of a life of obedience to His Word and the consequences of disobeying Him. And He wants us to know the truth about life and what is going to happen in the future.

How to Study Your Bible

GAIUS GLENN ATKINS

The Bible furnished good Christians an armor for their warfare, a guide for their conduct, a solace for their sorrows, food for their soul.

SAINT AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO

Scripture, which proves the truth of its historical statements by the accomplishment of its prophecies, gives no false information.

The City of God, Book XVI

If you believe what you like in the Gospels and reject what you don’t like, it is not the Gospels you believe, but yourself.

PAUL AZINGER

. . . During this time I faithfully attended a Bible Study Fellowship group in our hometown. I had been reading the Bible regularly since my first chemo. After recommitting my life to the Lord, I found that the Bible was no longer a dusty book, but a living Word. I knew I couldn’t live without it ever again. My initial meeting of the Bible study impressed me in many ways: the number of men there, the demographic diversity—wealthy and poor, black and white, young and old. But all the guys had a common goal—to discover in the Bible how Jesus Christ could be more real in their lives. My Bible study group became a mainstay in my physical and spiritual improvement.

Zinger: A Champion’s Story of Determination,
Courage, and Charging Back

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH

This is the great fountain of music, and every musician should play to the glory of its Author.

FRANCIS BACON

Prosperity is the blessing of the Old Testament; adversity is the blessing of the New.

Essays

JIM BALL

The Scripture passages attest (that) this land is not my land, this land is not your land, this land is God’s land. This land was not made for you and me, it was made by and for Christ.

Creation Care

SAL BANDO

God’s gift, the Bible, is my manual on how to live a fruitful and meaningful life. I have found the Bible’s truth and authority to be restorative. In both my personal life and my professional baseball life, the Bible has been a foundation and a guide to work through life’s highs and lows. The Bible provides peace and strength for all my tomorrows.

WILLIAM...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Bibliographical Note
• Copyright Page
• A Dedication to Sowers of the Word
• Acknowledgments
• Table of Contents
• Quotations
• Brief Notes on Authors