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Kristin M. Swenson

Kristin Swenson

Bible Babel: Making Sense of the Most Talked About Book of All Time Paperback – March 15, 2011

by Kristin Swenson (Author)

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Why does the film Magnolia end in a downpour of frogs?

Is the serpent in the Garden of Eden the devil or just a snake?

How do people use the Bible to argue different sides of today's most controversial issues?

Why did Metallica's bass player name their song “Creeping Death” after watching The Ten Commandments?

Where does the fish symbol of the Christian faith come from?

Who is the lamb with seven horns and seven eyes who opens the seven seals of a cosmic scroll?

Without either promoting or undermining specific beliefs, religious studies professor Kristin Swenson offers an intelligent, humorous, highly accessible, engaging, and illuminating guide to the Bible—incorporating biblical scholarship with contemporary pop culture references to help readers better understand the most talked about book of all time.

Print length

368 pages
Language

English
Publication date

March 15, 2011
Dimensions

5.4 x 0.9 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

0061728268
ISBN-13

978-0061728266
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Wide-ranging, objectively factual and written for the common reader. . . . Swenson’s book possesses a singularly breezy tone, a kind of “Jesus Christ Superstar” approach to the sacred. . . . A solid, readable work that doesn’t shy away from the tough issues.” — Michael Dirda, Washington Post

“Kristin Swenson offers a confident, well-paced, well-informed, and accessible guide to Bible basics and biblical literacy. The reader may expect some surprises, some confirmation of hunches, and some challenges―exactly what ought to arise from serious, sustained treatment.” — Walter Brueggemann, author of An Unsettling God: The Heart of the Hebrew Bible

“Finally, a book on the Bible for the rest of us! . . . This broadside against our collective biblical illiteracy hits the sweetspot between blind belief and angry atheism. Who said a book on the Good Book can’t be brave, smart, and fun?” — Stephen Prothero, author of Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know―and Doesn't

“Bible Babel is a breath of fresh air. . . . Kristin Swenson’s writing is brisk and lively. She has an informed sense of everything relevant to the Bible. . . . She is an engaging corrector of misconceptions and a helpful guide to the common reader.” — Robert Alter, author of The Book of Psalms: A Translation with Commentary

“Swenson successfully shows why, in spite of all its difficulties, the Bible remains a thought-provoking and infinite source of inspiration and debate for all kinds of people.” — Publishers Weekly

Hats off to Kristin Swenson. . . . Ms. Swenson combines meticulous scholarship with an original eye and a sense of fun. She has succeeded in presenting the Bible anew in a highly accessible way. . . . A most welcome achievement. — Washington Times

About the Author

Kristin Swenson teaches religious studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. Her books include Living Through Pain: Psalms and the Search for Wholeness and What Is Religious Studies?.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial; Reprint edition (March 15, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0061728268
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0061728266
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.4 x 0.9 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,513,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #5,253 in Popular Culture in Social Sciences
- #7,440 in Christian Bible Criticism & Interpretation
- #21,502 in Christian Bible Study (Books)

Customer Reviews:
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Ruth S. Jones

Really Enjoyed my Lenten Study!

Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2022

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This book was recommended by our priest as a good book to read and discuss during Lent. I thoroughly enjoyed it because it was an objective and thoroughly researched book about the Bible. It did not try to preach to me (the proverbial choir) and presented all sides of any issues. This book should be included in every church library.

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Alan

Readable, thorough, dispassionate, and for everyone!

Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2010

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This is such a good book that I'm surprised there aren't more people reviewing and talking about it, especially after the recent writeup in the Washington Post. If people aren't getting into it, I can suggest a couple reasons why.

Despite Swenson's very readable style, the book is still formidable reading; it comes in at well over 300 pages, including reference materials at the back that are actually worth reading. There is some humor, but Swenson stops well short of anything approaching disrespect to any faith view. It actually reads very much like a university lecture. Lots of facts, lots of perspective, and just enough humor and personality to keep you awake.

A more important reason for its slow start, I would guess, is that it doesn't really give anyone on either end of the belief spectrum (atheist to evangelical) much fodder for their point of view. This is not a book you can recommend to people who think just like you to use in ridiculing the other side. Nor will most people find their perspective wholly represented. She dismisses the use of the word "theory" in referring to evolution with the flippant (and common and incorrect) "gravity is a theory". She notes that Proverbs shares some themes with Egyptian works and assumes that the Egyptian works are primary without footnoting her statement or acknowledging that this topic is still the subject of some debate. She states that the flood story was lifted from the Mesopotamians, again without exploring alternative theories or justifying the position. Yet there is a limit to how much depth you can go into in such a book, and I suspect on the other side that some people will find her too respectful of religious belief. On many hot-topic issues (homosexuality, abortion, for example) she explains both sides from a Biblical perspective, while not arguing for one side or another. In short, she walks a very difficult line here and does it well, describing the views and discoveries of the majority of Biblical scholars at this point in time, but never giving the appearance that she has any sort of axe to grind.

I think the most surprising thing to me, reading the book, is that she tacitly makes the case that some of us Bible readers are placing our faith in the wrong thing: Matthew was really written by Matthew the disciple, for example. What does it matter? In the end, the Bible is still an amazing collection of thoughts, history, and theology recorded by people who worship a common God, which has been handed down over millennia and still touches people daily. If nothing else, perhaps Swenson helps us all to look past petty arguments and more at the themes of the Bible itself. And that's a good thing!

"Bible Babel" is arranged topically, with chapters on (for example) women in the Bible, names for God, etc. Some familiarity with the Bible might be helpful, but Swenson covers all of the major themes, characters and concepts. The length of the book doesn't always allow for in-depth discussion, but even long-time readers of the Bible will find food for thought. In short, this is well worth reading for anyone who enjoys scripture, or is just curious about what's in their Bible.

28 people found this helpful

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Madyson Adams

Good Read!

Reviewed in the United States on June 5, 2014

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I just finished this book and before I say what I thought of it I will give a bit of back ground about me because with these types of sensitive subjects people usually like to know who they are hearing from before they accept any opinions on the topic. I am a young woman from the Southern United States who grew up in two house holds simultaneously as a result of divorce. With my mother I was a Jehovah's Witness and with my Grandmother(father's mother) I was a Baptist. If you're not familiar with Jehovah's Witnesses they are a sect of Christianity. In both households I was Christian( for a time being at least) and I remember as a child wanting very much to be accepted into both communities and remarking( to myself at least) how similar they in fact were and questioning why they both insisted on the stark differences they supposedly had from each other. I would ask myself why could they not come together in the love of this thing that they both understood as the same thing, but called by slightly different words. This book definitely shed a light on just how important the translation is, of the original texts that went into the final draft of Bibles commonly used by Christians today, in the final message that is ultimately translated to the people who read it. It has helped me personally in my journey towards a better understanding of this experience, that has affected me so deeply since as long as I can remember. I am grateful to the author for writing it in such an understandable and neutral language. Overall I highly recommend this book for anyone interested at all in the history behind the Bible and other texts that go along with it and how these texts have been translated in different ways through the millennia that fallowed their creation.

3 people found this helpful

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D. M. Prum

Nice to Finally Learn the Story Behind Bible Stories

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2015

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Growing up, I was part of a church called the Bible Students. We studied the Bible every Sunday and every Wednesday evening. By age six, I knew my Bible stories cold, even the obscure ones. I had heard so much about Old Testament characters—their births, diseases, marriages and battles—I once asked my Italian grandmother if I was an American or an Israelite.
Although I knew the stories, I had never given much thought about the history of the Bible. As a child, I pictured a bearded old guy scratching out verses with quill pen on a long piece of parchment. And, as an adult? Well, I still haven’t given it much thought.
However, thanks to Kristin Swenson and her book, Bible Babel, I know lots more about the topic. Bible Babel is a comprehensive history of how the Bible came to be. Swenson’s writing is lively, engaging and thoroughly accessible to a non-Bible scholar. No dry treatise here. In fact, many parts are laugh out loud funny.
Before I read the book, I wondered if Swenson would take a position. Would she declare the inerrancy of scripture? On the other hand, would she discuss the Bible with skepticism or perhaps, disdain. In a refreshing way, she is both respectful and impartial.
Think about how often you hear Bible verses quoted, or how frequently the Bible is used to justify an action, or how many references to the Bible you can find in novels, poetry, plays and music. Wouldn’t it be beneficial to know the history of this influential book? Yes, it would. And for that reason, I highly recommend Bible Babel.

7 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Ray V

Readable and Informative

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 3, 2013

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This is an ideal book for anyone wanting to understand the Bible and its background better. It is very readable, and suitable for someone who is a complete newcomer to biblical scholarship or even to the Bible itself. It is a good guide to the main consensus of biblical criticism, but at the same time sympathetic to those who have a conservative view of the Bible's authority.

REV W R ARMSTRONG

Honest and Thought provoling

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2013

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The research behind this timely offering is significant and the honesty of interpretation makes Bible Babel an essential read for those who want to know more about the background to the Bible than its superficial contents.

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