Read the Bible with Me!

Welcome to the Pauline Family's "Year of the Bible"! I'm reading the Bible clear through this year, and I invite you to read along with me. But first, let us pray: 

I praise you, my God, with all people.
May they thank and adore you!
You have written your greatness in creation,
your Law in consciences,
your eternal promises in the Bible.
You are eternally faithful and always lovable!
As I read Sacred Scripture today, open my mind to hear your voice and understand your loving message.
Amen.

Today's three chapters are Genesis 25-27.

Here we have the famous story of twins Jacob and Esau. Esau, the elder of the two, "sold" his inheritance for a "mess of pottage," thus bringing about the prophecy that the younger brother would outrank the elder. This is an example of God's preference for those whom the world tends to ignore or hold back. We will see this again and again in the Bible: Two of the most outstanding examples will be David, the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem, and Mary, the virgin of Nazareth.

It can be hard for us not to be somewhat scandalized at Jacob deceiving his blind, ailing father. In fact, Jacob is not presented to us as a paragon of virtue. The stories of the patriarchs are not about human virtue, but about the faithfulness of God. We are only at the beginning of the story here, with God establishing this one family to be his Chosen People. Their education and moral training and development will take centuries. (Actually, it is still going on, though powerfully assisted by the teachings of Jesus and the grace given to us through the sacraments.)

Start reading here.

If you are looking for a solid but approachable companion to the Bible, I can wholeheartedly recommend A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament by Brant Pitre and John Bergsma. Although the authors are top-level Scripture scholars, they write for "real" readers. Notes include recent findings from archaeology and ancient manuscripts.