Product Description

Ninety percent of Americans own a copy of the Bible, and while it’s the most widely read book, it’s also the least understood. Regardless of your religion, understanding the Bible brings much of Western art, literature, and public discourse into greater focus—from Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper” painting to the Wachowski brothers’ The Matrix movies. People have historically turned to religion to deal with tragedy and change, and with the right insight, the Bible can be an accessible, helpful guide to life’s big questions.

The Bible For Dummies appeals to people of all faiths, as well as those who don’t practice any particular religion, by providing interfaith coverage of the entire Bible and the often fascinating background information that makes the Bible come alive. You’ll find answers to such questions as:

• Where did the Bible come from?
• Who wrote the Bible?
• How is the Bible put together?

Follow the history of the Bible from its beginning thousands of years ago as tattered scrolls to its status as the bestseller of all time. The Bible For Dummies covers these topics and more:

• Ten people in the Bible you should know
• The Hebrew Bible
• The Apocrypha’s hidden treasures
• What’s new about the New Testament
• Israel’s wisdom, literature, and love poetry
• The Bible’s enduring influence
• The prophets: more than fortunetellers

Discover the world’s all–time bestseller in an entirely new light. Whether you’re interested in broadening your spiritual horizons, uncovering the symbolism of Western culture, or gaining a deeper understanding of the book you grew up reading, The Bible For Dummies has all the information you need to navigate this ancient and fascinating book.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12607 in Books
• Published on: 2002-11-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 432 pages

From the Back Cover
An easy–to–follow guide to the bestselling book of all time

Get a better understanding of the Bible and how it shapes our world

What is the Bible all about? Who wrote it? What’s the difference between Jewish and Christian Bibles? Featuring an interfaith perspective, handy maps, and enlightening discussions of the Bible’s vast cultural influence, this reference guide provides answers to these questions and presents fascinating facts that bring the Bible to life.

The Dummies Way

• Explanations in plain English
• "Get in, get out" information
• Icons and other navigational aids
• Tear–out cheat sheet
• Top ten lists
• A dash of humor and fun

About the Author
Jeffrey Geoghegan, PhD and Michael Homan, PhD have authored and coauthored numerous books and articles about the Bible.

Customer Reviews

The Bible for Dummies
Very helpful book for people wanting to start to look deeper into the Bible. This will never replace a set of good commentaries but it was never ment to. I have this book on my "often used" shelf above my desk. Fr. Gareth Bowen.

Very useful
I bought this book originally as I wanted understand a bit more about the Bible, I am relatively new to the Christian faith and while I do study the Bible on a regulary basis and attend group discussions, I find I am often missing out on the context that passages are set in. Both in terms of history and relevance to other parts of the Bible. This books sets out very clearly the different sections of the Bible and tells you in plain, and often humourous language, what was happening at this particular point in history and what it meant for people then and what it means for Christians (and others) now. It walks yout through the Bible and explains things in sequence and builds up into a comprehensive knowledge base. I have found it very useful for helping me to deepen my understanding of relevant parts of the Bible, though I would stress that it is not enough to read this on its own, you really do need to study the Bible itself if you every really want to learn about God and study His word.

Reasonable introduction
This was a reasonable introduction to the Bible written by Protestant Scholars.

I have several much heavier books at home e.g. "Mackenzie Dictionary of the Bible", "The New Jerome Biblical Commentary", "An Introduction to the New Testament" by Raymond Brown. I also use The New Jerusalem Bible with notes and the Holy Bible RSV Catholic Edition with notes.

There are just a few quibbles:

1 Although this is pitched at a basic level the authors could have introduced more debates from modern scholarship and to have accepted the more reasonable views while rejecting the more outlandish ones.

2 There are some passages where I think the authors have dogmatically accepted a non-Catholic interpretation even when this makes the least sense i.e. when the Catholic explanation of a passage is patently far better than any alternatives. I do not wish to be polemical but books such as "The Catholic Verses" and "A Biblical Defense of Catholicism" both written by Dave Armstrong a Protestant scholar who became a Catholic have some interesting arguments on some of these texts.

3 There were a few passages in which the authors seemed rather too tolerant towards Islam's claims for my liking. Not that I am advocating intolerance but the Biblical prophecies in the Book of Genesis certainly don't apply to Mohammed and his followers and the authors, while not saying that they did, seemed to leave the matter far too much in the air for my liking. There was no need to have mentioned Islam at all but by mentioning it several times in the book the authors may have misled some Christian readers into thinking that Islam is on the same footing as Christianity or that Mohammed is on a par with Jesus Christ. I am sure that the authors don't think this but trying to be "inclusive" and politically correct may well have given that impression.

Nevertheless, this was a good and humorous read and I learned among other things that oases were the 'pick up joints' in the ancient world.