How to Read the Bible as Literature

Excellent resource for understanding the Bible as Literature. Ryken has left no rock unturned in his review of this Holy Book from a literary aspect.

This book was shocking! Some years ago when I first picked it up, it admonished me, a Bible believing evangelical, to read holy Scriptures in a manner I had never contemplated doing so before: as literature written by master word-artisans from other centuries.For many the above admonishment may be old hat, but for me it was like a lightning strike and quite revolutionary in my thinking. At first I considered that the thought might even be blasphemous. But Ryken opened a whole world of explanations for why the narratives, poetry, and letters contain the elements they do.Far from eroding my faith in the Word this book most strongly bolstered it. Finally I understood that Hebrew poetry (the Psalms and Proverbs for example) were not doctrinal dictates with apparent contradictions that seemed to need to be reconciled but were to be understood as emotive outpourings filled with hyperbole, imagery, lies that we tell ourselves, and sarcastic commentaries on then-contemporary society and about the way believers live in society, all in an effort to reflect back to us what is in our hearts as opposed to what God would want our hearts to be. In other words, Hebrew poetry functions much as Western poetry does. It is a mistake to read Hebrew poetry as a literal study in doctrine.Ryken takes pains to examine every major literary genre in the Bible and illustrate how that genre should be generally read for understanding. The goal is to gain the meaning that the original author intended to convey using the styles and literary tools available to him at the time.Many of the narratives were crafted to be timeless and engrossing stories about historical events. They were not like Western news accounts that slavishly and almost thoughtlessly repeat details without attention to symbolism or major or minor impacts. These story telling historians generated artful explanations of past events that emphasized certain highlights and deemphasized others. Those master writers crafted some of the narratives like modern mystery stories, not bothering to explain the morality implications of every decision of the characters but using seemingly irrelevant or disconnected scenes and events to point the reader to stunning conclusions about God's view of human behaviors. When reading one must always ask, "Why did a master story teller include that; what did he want to story to gain with that purposeful addition?"Certainly I do not agree with every small assertion in Ryken's book, but I found the book overall to be an excellent kick-start to understanding the human skill and human intent of the biblical authors. Obviously these men were inerrantly inspired by the Holy Spirit, but just as with us, He employs the human mind and heart to accomplish His ends.This book is faith building and instructive. It reminds us of truths we long since have forgotten to teach in the church.

As a former English major, I've always been fascinated by the literary style of the Bible. While I appreciate much of the religious teaching that comes from the Bible, I've often wondered at how I could study the Bible as a literary text. This book is more of an introduction that helps to get a foothold in that direction, but it's an excellent foothold. I'm quite excited to check out the resources of other scholars to see what they say. The Bible has such an excellent way of communicating its ideas in such a vivid way.

Most Bible students have little familiarity with the concept of differing literary genres of Scripture. This book is an excellent introduction by a very learned and respected author - Leland Ryken, co-author of several books on the subject of Biblical literature and co-editor of the ESV LITERARY STUDY BIBLE with son, Phillip (a must have in my opinion).Ryken begins by asking the obvious: IS THE BIBLE LITERATURE? - the title of Chapter 1. Of course it is and he continues in the rest of the book to cover the major types, but it's not exhaustive (some of his other titles are more so)What I liked most about the book was its clarity within the various Chapters and the format of the text. Ryken provides an exceptional number of topical/summary headings in the wide side margins on each page - this makes for easy searching and helps reinforce the reader's learning.I've purchased, read, annotated and enjoyed this and several other of the author's works on this topic. I've also taught the principles of reading the Bible as Literature and was surprised at how many people never considered this aspect of Biblical interpretation.

I have read this book two or three times in the last six years and have thoroughly annotated my copy. I only suggest you read chapter 12 (the lastchapter) first. It makes the rest of the book more comprehensible.

Leland Ryken is excellent in pointing out nuances of the Bible that most people have never even seen (such as satire, tragedy and parables). It gave me a fresh perspective on the Bible because even though the Bible is inspired, it was still written by competent men of God (I guess people 2500 years ago aren't as dumb as we were taught they were). This book helps to interpret even more accurately, and helps you identify the genres withing a book of the Bible. I believe this is a condensed version of another larger, more in depth book of his, but I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know about biblical literature and what's in the pages of the Bible. Pastors and congregations across America would benefit from owning a copy of this book on their shelf.

This is a reader friendly book that explains how to read the Bible literately. It is extremely helpful in bringing the narrative, letters, poetry, and proverbs alive in context using the elements and devices of story. It cultivates curiosity and encourages exploration.

I had to purchase this for a college class but I probably would have read it on my own if I had found it earlier. Ryken explains ways scriptural texts should be academically analyzed in a simple and straight forward manner. Chapters include helpful subheadings, summaries, and a further reading section. All of which has been helpful in my studies. This is a book I can see myself using throughout my academic career and beyond. It will always have a place on my bookshelf.

Thorough, relevant and helpful to any student of the Bible but especially to a Bible teacher (church or academic level)

All entries are properly explained. Reading it is an enjoyable experience.