<< 1 >>
Rating:  Summary: Excellent conservative interpretation of the Old Testament Review: An in-depth analysis of each book in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). Each book's authorship, date, purpose, basic outline, and summary is described. This is written from a Fundamentalist Christian viewpoint. The author believes in the inerrancy of the Bible. Thus he believes that Moses wrote Genesis, and Daniel wrote Daniel. A very fine book for fundamentalist Christians; quite unsuitable for mainline or liberals.
Rating:  Summary: Recommended for conservative Christians Review: If you are a conservative Christian you will find this an excellent survey of the New Testament books. If you are not then you will probably find difficulty with many portions of the book. One of the things that I really liked the way the author brings the reader up to speed about the history of the area between the Old and New Testament time periods. He does an excellent job covering the rise of the Greek Period, through the Hasmonean Period, and up to the Roman Period, including the rule of the Ptolemies and Seleucids. Throughout the book the author includes many photographs and illustrations to help the reader understand the text. He also does a good job of recounting the various theories as to why the synoptic gospels often share not only common themes but also at some points nearly the same wording. On the other hand he does not even mention the fact that there are other places where they disagree with each other. This one-sided treatment is consistent throughout the book. In addition, some of the pictures belong more in a tourist pamphlet than a serious Bible survey book. (For example, there are pictures of places where the caption reads "traditionally", "probably", "supposed", or "believed" to be a particular site. For most of them there is no evidence of this being the actual location but even in the Middle Ages traders recognized the value of having a religiously significant location within your city. So, many "traditional" sites suddenly sprang up.) Fortunately these sorts of pictures are few in number when compared with the large number that enhances the text. While mainstream or liberal readers will find little of any value in "Survey of the New Testament", it is recommended for conservative Christian readers who will find it a valuable resource that enhances that belief system.
Rating:  Summary: Recommended for conservative Christians Review: If you are a conservative Christian you will find this an excellent survey of the New Testament books. If you are not then you will probably find difficulty with many portions of the book. One of the things that I really liked the way the author brings the reader up to speed about the history of the area between the Old and New Testament time periods. He does an excellent job covering the rise of the Greek Period, through the Hasmonean Period, and up to the Roman Period, including the rule of the Ptolemies and Seleucids. Throughout the book the author includes many photographs and illustrations to help the reader understand the text. He also does a good job of recounting the various theories as to why the synoptic gospels often share not only common themes but also at some points nearly the same wording. On the other hand he does not even mention the fact that there are other places where they disagree with each other. This one-sided treatment is consistent throughout the book. In addition, some of the pictures belong more in a tourist pamphlet than a serious Bible survey book. (For example, there are pictures of places where the caption reads "traditionally", "probably", "supposed", or "believed" to be a particular site. For most of them there is no evidence of this being the actual location but even in the Middle Ages traders recognized the value of having a religiously significant location within your city. So, many "traditional" sites suddenly sprang up.) Fortunately these sorts of pictures are few in number when compared with the large number that enhances the text. While mainstream or liberal readers will find little of any value in "Survey of the New Testament", it is recommended for conservative Christian readers who will find it a valuable resource that enhances that belief system.
<< 1 >>
|