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: 

My God, I adore and thank your loving and wise Providence, manifested on every page of Sacred Scripture. You have always been close to sinful and erring humanity, and have indicated the way and given hope. Amid the shadows of error and corruption, you kindled the light of your truth; amid universal corruption, you are the Just One; amid so much idolatry, humanity in every corner of the earth has cultivated a sincere worship of you.
Let my reading today increase my trust in your goodness, your mercy, and your unfailing faithfulness.

Today's chapters are 2 Samuel 1-3 and Psalm 35.

The death of Saul inspires both a haunting lament and a harsh punishment. David, who had twice held back from touching "the Lord's anointed," here metes out to the foreigner who admits having a hand in Saul's battlefield suicide. 

The next events might be confusing. David is then anointed king--but over Judah alone, not over the entire kingdom. The rest of Israel is still loyal to Saul's family, and recognizes one of Saul's surviving sons as king. The intrigue between David's officer's and those of Saul's family leads to more bloodshed, and another Davidic lament.

Psalm 35 is the prayer of a person who has suffered a public injustice and who asks God for public vindication. According to the NABRE footnote, "The Psalm may appear vindictive, but one must keep in mind that the psalmist is praying for public redress now of a public injustice. There is at this time no belief in an afterlife in which justice will be redressed.... The psalmist seeks lost honor through a trial before God."

Start reading 2 Samuel here and Psalm 35 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.