The Bible is the book that has influenced the whole course of history. It continues to influence millions of people today. It is the book in which God speaks to you.

But it is a book that many people find hard to read. It can be frustrating, confusing, boring or simply overwhelming. In this course, we shall consider how to read the Bible effectively, so that its ancient message is exciting and relevant to us today.

Preface

Welcome! We know that your time is valuable. So we promise to make your time with us productive and enjoyable. Our goal is to teach you to read the Bible more effectively. You are certainly capable of reading and understanding this great book, but if you are like most people you are occasionally:

frustrated

confused

bored

overwhelmed by the task.

We assume that, since you are completing this course, you want help in furthering your understanding of the Bible while avoiding the many roadblocks that hinder progress. We think we can provide you with keys and tips in doing so.

The aims of the course are to help you:

become more familiar with the Bible;

be able to read and understand the Bible independently;

evaluate the claims for the Bible's inspiration,

Why are we providing this course?

We are hoping God is pleased that we are attempting to build respect and familiarity with his Word. We are fulfilling our responsibility to share what we have learned with others. We are concerned for your salvation as well, but rest assured, we do not believe it is our place or role to attempt to convert you to our way of thinking in this seminar. We are committed to helping you discover the Bible message for yourself. If we come to agreement on matters, all the better. If not, your conscience and ours must be satisfied independently. For this reason we will avoid a debate of doctrine during class time, and stick to our promise of helping you read the Bible more effectively!

C O N T E N T S

The following Table provides the headings that can be found in this first Study and the other seven Studies.

1 Introducing the Bible	2 Starting to read	3 The Bible's origin and history	4 Reasons to believe
A unique book A library of books The Bible timeline Bible geography Why read the Bible? Activity	Bible Reading Planner Preparing to read the Bible Strange language Strange customs Footnotes and cross references Activity	Inspiration The canon of Scripture The Apocrypha Old Testament manuscripts New Testament manuscripts The first English Bibles Choosing a Bible Activity	Archaeology The Bible and modern medicine Resurrection of Jesus Activity
5 Bible prophecy	6 Reading carefully	7 Interpreting the Bible	8 Bible study tools
Predicting the future Bible prophets Prophecies about Israel Ezekiel's vision of the valley of dry bones Vision of world empires Activity	Internal consistency Contradictions? Bible echoes Activity	The Bible interprets itself Why the Bible is difficult to read Literary styles Literal and figurative language Basic principles for interpreting the Bible Activity	Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias Commentaries Concordances Topical Bibles Lexicons Computer Bibles Activity

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