Randolph Freelander
Member
Like I said, I am going to finish with it, although I've read it before. When I made the decision during the OT to temporarily skip Psalms and Proverbs, I also decided then to insert those two before Revelations.
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GAF Reads The Bible (in one year)
- Thread starter Xeke
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Like I said, I am going to finish with it, although I've read it before. When I made the decision during the OT to temporarily skip Psalms and Proverbs, I also decided then to insert those two before Revelations.
Since the bible is a collection of books, spreading it out over a year probably wouldn't harm the experience in the same way that spreading other books over a year would. That's just a guess, though, since I've only read a handful of books from the Bible.
I'll follow this thread and perhaps even read along with it. Coincidentally, I checked an Oxford Annotated Bible out of the library last week.
Dead Prince
Banned
i think i tried to participate back in the days. but i could never get out of Genesis lol.
FO-totality
Poet Centuriate
As a poet and musician, I love Psalms, which is basically a collection of songs/musical poems.
Escape Goat
Member
Read The Precious Moments Bible
BurritoBushido
Member
I'm going to give this a shot.
FO-totality
Poet Centuriate
To be fair the kjv is a slog to read, imo.
BladeoftheImmortal
Member
I have never gotten throught the thing..maybe I'll try.
Cuban Legend
Member
Please be sure to keep track of starting and ending points of Bible "covenants" and "laws", as the the Mosaic Law was ended when Jesus died for our sins. Romans 10:4
the craziness of some parts make up for it, sometimes you just feel shocked the Bible could contain such weirdness,such violence and sexual depravity. I wouldn't let a kid read it to be honest.
For the lazy there is always the Brick Testament, which highlights most of this special passages.
I did this exact same thing around 12 years ago. Started on January first, and finished it October 8th or thereabouts (only read a handful of pages every day). I'm not religious, but it was a fascinating read.
Some parts of the Old Testament are brutal to get through, though... especially that part where they build a temple for the Ark. First, there are pages upon pages with detailed building instructions... and then the whole thing is repeated again when they actually start to build it.
Indeed. The Bible (particularly the Old Testament) is just...interesting as a kid. I always enjoyed those lessons in Sunday school more than learning about Jesus. I remember asking my parents for more details on how Lot's daughters raped him to conceive children. First time I learned about incest.
And yeah, Brick Testament really helps highlight those...interesting parts of the Bible. If anyone finds the Bible a slog to read through, you guys should definitely give The Brick Testament a look.
And since that story about the raped concubine was already talked about (NSFW ehhh fuck it)...
chaosblade
Unconfirmed Member
If there are enough people involved to allow for some actual discussion I might be in. Doing it as a group might help slog through the boring parts and keep motivated.
archnemesis
Member
I just started reading that and it's excellent. The Bible is a pretty interesting read too though.
Like the hat?
Banned
How many "begat"s are there listed in the bible?
BladeoftheImmortal
Member
i shall underline them.
CornBurrito
Member
I mean, it is a huge ass book. You will have interesting stories, but also really boring stories. Though seeing how values have changed over time can be pretty interesting so even the boring stories have some worth.
Aika'svyse
Banned
I love using my Kindle with the BibleIs app. It reads the Bible too you!
CornBurrito
Member
Wait why? I don't think I've ever read any version of than KJV, so what makes them so different?
BladeoftheImmortal
Member
Cause you can't begat shit if there aint no begats!
FO-totality
Poet Centuriate
The style of English used. KJV is almost kinda old timey English, NLT and NIV and the like generally stick closer to more contemporary English, iirc.
Complex Shadow
Cudi Lame
Yea sure. At least this way I can bash it all I want after trying to under stand it.
Monocle
Member
The Bible's poetry is lost in the modernized editions. This might not seem like a big deal to the average reader, but consider why the King James Bible is an essential pillar in the foundation of English literature. The specific phrasing matters, because that language contains the literary allusions, sayings, and allegories that have given the Bible such a distinguished place in our literary tradition. Many, maybe even most, of the great books in the Western canon owe a profound debt to the King James Bible. And so does Western culture broadly. Hundreds of our common idioms, like "a cross to bear," "a man after his own heart," "pearls before swine," "a two-edged sword," and "a wolf in sheep's clothing," are derived directly from the KJV.
The modernized versions are pablum, as worthless as classic books rewritten for children. Just as the point of reading a classic is far more than simply to find out what happens, the King James Bible is worth reading for the range of effects produced by the exquisitely wrought language, the richness of imagery and metaphor.
GotEmRunnin
Member
I'm down.
ComputerMKII
Banned
I read the Bible when I was in high school, just so I could say I did, and in my opinion it's not a text you're supposed to read from A to Z like a novel. It's made of several books -written over a long period of time- and you can pick whatever you like.
In the Old Testament, there are entire books consisting of nothing but Israeli genealogy and warfare (Jerusalem fell/got rebuilt -> Rinse and repeat) that will bore you to tears unless you're really into Jewish studies.
Read the first five or so books in the Old Testament, then the other few interesting books from the OT (I don't remember which ones so use the summaries on Wikipedia), then read the entire New Testament. That part of the Bible is shorter and potentially more interesting for non-Jewish people since it specifically deals with Christianity (the Old Testament being more of a huge background piece) and God knows how much the New Testament has influenced language, art and culture.
In the Old Testament, there are entire books consisting of nothing but Israeli genealogy and warfare (Jerusalem fell/got rebuilt -> Rinse and repeat) that will bore you to tears unless you're really into Jewish studies.
Read the first five or so books in the Old Testament, then the other few interesting books from the OT (I don't remember which ones so use the summaries on Wikipedia), then read the entire New Testament. That part of the Bible is shorter and potentially more interesting for non-Jewish people since it specifically deals with Christianity (the Old Testament being more of a huge background piece) and God knows how much the New Testament has influenced language, art and culture.
I'm in, but I highly recommend www.bible.cc as a reference. Each verse is written with every single translation in parallel.
Edit: may I propose that we do New Testament first? We're going to lose a lot of people if we start with OT. It's that boring at parts.
Edit: may I propose that we do New Testament first? We're going to lose a lot of people if we start with OT. It's that boring at parts.
Joe Shlabotnik
Banned
This. The Bible is a fascinating read as long as you keep in mind that it is the most influential piece of literature in the history of Western civilization. Specifically, the King James version. Essentially all of Western culture and literature is informed by it. You're not going to get much out of it otherwise if you're not religious, but it can lead to a better understanding of everything that ever came out of Europe or the Americas.
ComputerMKII
Banned
I've got a BA in English (which isn't all that hard and doesn't make me an expert) from a French university and we were required to read the King James version of Genesis and the Gospel according to Matthew, for the very reasons you've mentioned.
The KJB translation does sound somewhat archaic and convoluted but it's classy and makes for some cool quotations. Unfortunately, I still haven't seen a French translation that I like (The 1910 translation by Louis Segond is acceptable, though). Now, if I had the will and the time to re-read the Bible, I'd probably read it in English.
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Edit: I've just checked several revised editions published since the 1950s and, while they do claim to be closer to the original text, some of the most famous passages now sound too plain/simplified. It doesn't resonate as much.
For instance: in the Segond Bible from 1910, it says 'Que la lumière soit ! Et la lumière fut.', but in the revised/modernized versions it became 'Qu'il y ait de la lumière ! Et il y eut de la lumière.'.
I do agree that the Bible should not be reserved to an elite and the point of a translation is to make a foreign text sound like it was written in the language spoken by a foreign group (as in, the actual language they speak every day, which is even more useful considering the most common use of the Bible is to try and convert uneducated/illiterate masses), all the poetry got lost and I'm not used to it.
ComputerMKII
Banned
I bet even the Jews find the Leviticus and its >9000 legal restrictions/commands boring, don't worry.
The NASB and RSV are much better translations than the NLT. The NLT is designed for those not interested in a detailed study of the bible, but rather for spiritual (devotional) purposes.
But the KJV has tons of manuscript problems, and we've discovered many better (and earlier) readings of the Bible that make the KJV worthless in terms of understanding the ancient context of the bible.
1 John 5:7 is a famous example of the use of a problematic manuscript's (Textus Receptus) rendering of a verse in the KJV.
But the KJV has tons of manuscript problems, and we've discovered many better (and earlier) readings of the Bible that make the KJV worthless in terms of understanding the ancient context of the bible.
1 John 5:7 is a famous example of the use of a problematic manuscript's (Textus Receptus) rendering of a verse in the KJV.
I dont think i could spread my reading over a year, unless its hard to digest it all. My biggest concern comes with discussing it as an Atheist and having that leaning on my views, I imagine my reading and anothers will be completely different based on our chosen points of view. I learned a long time ago that I can be just as picky as believer when it comes to my point of view, even if i try my best not to be.
ComputerMKII
Banned
There are about 31,000 verses in the Bible. Reading/posting one verse a day (assuming that's what you meant) wouldn't make much sense and would take 85 years.
I really think people who are going to do this should go in with as much an open mind as they can muster.
I haven't read the Bible but from the small amount of excerpts that I HAVE read, I'd highly suggest reading the King James version instead. Reads so much better than the link in the OP
This guy gets it.
This guy gets it.
Damn, people love taking jobs and putting more fire on the flames.
I have been meaning to read it, but my steam backlog is also yearning for attention...
No wonder I always hated the version my parents bought for me, they were drenched in self-interpretation and read like a faulty high school thesis paper. I have always adored old literature, I've also been interested in reading the original Greek version.
I have been meaning to read it, but my steam backlog is also yearning for attention...
No wonder I always hated the version my parents bought for me, they were drenched in self-interpretation and read like a faulty high school thesis paper. I have always adored old literature, I've also been interested in reading the original Greek version.
Partial Gamification
Banned
The site in the OP uses a daily planner:
Jan 1: Gen 1-3
Jan 2: Gen 4-7
Jan 3: Gen 8-11
[...]
Dec 31: Rev 20-22
I would argue that opening up the various versions would be fruitful for a larger discussion than just having one interpretation. Harper Collins has their Study Bible online (preview- not sure how much one can view). Each Book has a good introduction, but the book itself, from pages xiii to xix, has an overview that is a good primer to reflect on. This is followed by; a Letter to the Reader, Strategies for Reading Scripture, a Chapter on Israelite Religion, a Chapter on the Greco-Roman Context of the New Testament, a Chapter on the Bible and Archeology, another Chapter on Archeology and the New Testament, and after 66 Roman Numeral pages, the Genesis Intro is on page 3.
The Book has many footnotes to explain and relate various aspects of the stories. I can't say that I will be committed to reading the whole thing but the thread is a neat idea and I'll follow the discussion.
ComputerMKII
Banned
Well, only the New Testament was written in Greek.
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