How to Read the Bible as Literature [Paperback]

Leland Ryken (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 3, 1985

Why the Good Book Is a Great Read If you want to rightly understand the Bible, you must begin by recognizing what it is: a composite of literary styles. It is meant to be read, not just interpreted. The Bible's truths are embedded like jewels in the rich strata of story and poetry, metaphor and proverb, parable and letter, satire and symbolism. Paying attention to the literary form of a passage will help you understand the meaning and truth of that passage. How to Read the Bible as Literature takes you through the various literary forms used by the biblical authors. This book will help you read the Bible with renewed appreciation and excitement and gain a more profound grasp of its truths. Designed for maximum clarity and usefulness, How to Read the Bible as Literature includes * sidebar captions to enhance organization * wide margins ideal for note taking * suggestions for further reading * appendix: 'The Allegorical Nature of the Parables' * indexes of persons and subjects

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Why the Good Book Is a Great Read

If you want to rightly understand the Bible, you must begin by recognizing what it is: a composite of literary styles. It is meant to be read, not just interpreted. The Bible’s truths are embedded like jewels in the rich strata of story and poetry, metaphor and proverb, parable and letter, satire and symbolism. Paying attention to the literary form of a passage will help you understand the meaning and truth of that passage.

How to Read the Bible as Literature takes you through the various literary forms used by the biblical authors. This book will help you read the Bible with renewed appreciation and excitement and gain a more profound grasp of its truths.

Designed for maximum clarity and usefulness, How to Read the Bible as Literature includes * sidebar captions to enhance organization * wide margins ideal for note taking * suggestions for further reading * appendix: "The Allegorical Nature of the Parables" * indexes of persons and subjects

About the Author

Leland Ryken (PhD, University of Oregon) is professor of English at Wheaton College in Illinois, where he has twice received the 'teacher of the year' award.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan; 1 edition (January 3, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310390214
• ISBN-13: 978-0310390213
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Information: View shipping rates and policies
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,095 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Leland Ryken (PhD, University of Oregon) is Professor of English at Wheaton College. He has authored or edited several books, including The Word of God in English, The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, and The Complete Literary Guide to the Bible. He is a frequent speaker at the Evangelical Theological Society and served as literary stylist for The Holy Bible, English Standard Version.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Introduction, August 22, 2006

By 

Aaron Culp (Denver) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Read the Bible as Literature (Paperback)

Ryken does well with his introduction to the Bible as literature. This work is clear and tight, the way such a book ought to be. Perhaps its greatest virtue is that it works within the traditional western categories of literature, explaining them all along (for those of us who don't remember everything from our school days!). As such, the ideas and terms will ring familiar, at least faintly, with most of us educated in the States, and it will offer a sound introduction to the Bible as literature.

With this said, though, perhaps the greatest weakness of this book is that same characteristic. Traditional categories are a good place to start, but the reader must, at some point, go beyond these into the more Hebrew-specific realm of reading. The Hebrew Bible/Old Testament truly is, despite some opinion, a masterful work, but to understand it as such one must become familiar with just how it works. Wonderfully, there are writers, such as Robert Alter and Adele Berlin, who have written well on precisely this topic.

In the end, this book is a great place to start. It offers a well-grounded foundation for reading the Bible literarily, and as long as the reader knows its strengths and limitations, it will serve him well.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear introduction to reading biblical literature..., August 25, 2008

By 

Travis D. Hutchinson "Travis Hutchinson" (Chattanooga, Tennessee) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Read the Bible as Literature (Paperback)

Ryken's book, written by an Evangelical professor of literature, is an excellent introduction to reading the Bible. It is a short and simple handbook, separated into categories of biblical literature, which will help the reader understand how the different genres (types) of literature in the Bible "work." This is not a book on "interpreting" the Bible, but on "reading" the Bible. Many Christians miss that reading should always precede interpretation.

Reading involves more than words and grammar, we have to learn how genres work. Some genres we have to learn to appreciate (such as how to "read" the poetry of Emerson). Others are written so close to our methods of normal communication they come easily (such as newspapers or popular novels). The Bible contains genre which seems familiar (historical narrative), but some of the narrative leaves the reader with the feeling that she didn't quite "get it." Other genres in the Bible are terribly foreign; Hebrew poetry is dramatically different than English, prophecy is often completely alien to Western readers. By helping us understand how these types of literature communicate their message, Ryken helps us read the Bible in a way which makes it understandable.

I have not yet found an Evangelical book which accomplishes this task better than Ryken's. I heartily commend it.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Bible beyond a theological outline, November 22, 2007

By 

T. Dahlstrom "T. Dahlstrom" (Arizona) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Read the Bible as Literature (Paperback)

As the author notes, the Bible is not a theological outline with proof texts attached. He states that we have been so preoccupied with the hermeneutical question of how to interpret what the Bible says that we have been left impoverished in techniques to describe and interact with the text itself. I have found this to be true in my life. This book brings out the richness of the Bible in introducing its literary forms and allowing the reader to get more out of the Bible as a result. It is a quick and interesting read which I recommend for any one interested in knowing more about this great book.