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 Numbers 5-7.

Thanks to the commentary by Drs. Bergsma and Pitre, a real issue I had about Numbers 5 was resolved. In this chapter we find norms for resolving the suspicions of a jealous husband. (There are no norms for resolving the suspicions of a jealous wife!) It turns out that Israel's regulations for matrimonial conflict as detailed in the Book of Numbers differed markedly from those of other ancient peoples, and in a way that gave women extraordinary protection from arbitrary abandonment, violence, or false accusation. (Israel's neighbors offered the accused two options, both of them ending in death.)

This is one example of how cultural assumptions can prevent us from understanding what the Bible is actually doing (in this case, defending women). 

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 John Bergsma and Brant Pitre. Although the authors are top-level Scripture scholars, they write for "real" readers. Notes include recent findings from archaeology and ancient manuscripts, and how each book of the Bible has been understood by the Church Fathers and used in Liturgy.