As a pastor and a trained theologian, I think it matters that we talk about this book known as the Bible. It was the first book in print in the history of publishing. It is the all-time best seller and a book owned by the biggest population of the world. Many people own and use this book but few people actually do understand that it is not a single book as it looks bound but rather a library.
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary;
A library is a collection of sources of information and similar resources, made accessible to a defined community for reference or borrowing.
The types of Libraries are due to the services they render and the special needs of particular audiences. And that is how we ended up having four types of Libraries:
(a)-Academic Library
(b)-Special Library
(c)-Public Library and (d)-National Library.
The Bible is a single library that offers all those services to specific audiences. There are 66 books in the Library called: THE BIBLE. Originally these books were written in three major languages for its first section the books in there were written in Hebrew and some parts like in the book of Daniel, Ezra and Jeremiah 10:11 to be specific were written in Aramaic. The second part of the Book was written in Koine Greek. It matters therefore that you understand that if your Bible is not in any of those languages, it is a translation and all are vernaculars including English.
The books in the Bible did not begin as books, drafts or actually the manuscripts as we know them but rather originally, the Holy Scriptures were written on scrolls of papyrus and later parchment or animal skins, until the invention of the codex. A codex is a handwritten manuscript formatted like a modern book, with pages bound together at the spine within a hardcover.
The Bible is a library characteristically because its books were written at different times, under different circumstances and from different backgrounds. Over forty men and women from all sorts of the social class participated in writing the books in the Library of the Book. The books in this library address different purposes, themes and messages. And finally the books in this library are written specifically for particular audiences.
The Bible according to me is a library with 7 sections. And these are:
ORIGINS & PATRIARCHS: Genesis
HEBREW CULTURE AND NATION FORMATION: Exodus-Deuteronomy
HISTORY: Joshua-Esther and Acts of the Apostles
POETRY AND WISDOM: Job-Song of Solomon
PROPHECY: Isaiah-Malachi and Revelation
BIOGRAPHY: Mathew-John
EPISTLES AND LETTERS: Romans-Jude.
The first rule of reading and studying the Bible then is _know where you are_. The worst case scenario is when a Bible reader or student addresses a historical problem using Poetry and wisdom books in the Library. Michael Horton says
“The danger is apparent when poetry is read as prose, apocalyptic is read as a historical narrative, and figures of speech are treated as literal descriptions—or when the relation is reversed, as when a historical report is interpreted as allegory or poetry.”
The Bible is a library for scholars who use it for academic purposes, it is a library for those with special needs, it is a public library as it is a national library too.
Finally, it suffices to say that the Bible is a library of books reporting about different facets of the same object and event altogether. It is a library that has one message but communicated through many different genres.
These are many witnesses testifying about the same thing and their discrepancies in word and speech should not be mistaken to mean contradictions. It is just that each witness saw the event described from a particular angle and at a particular time in the unfolding of the scene. Biblical theology, therefore, ought to be consistent, coherent and corresponding in whichever section of the Library you are.
God bless you and: _think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things._ (2Tim 2:7 NLT)
Pr WHITE
The Gospel Hawker
*iTiS Well of Worship Ministries (John 4:24)*
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 