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 1 Chronicles 2-4 and (for Lent) Psalm 63.

Drs. Bergsma and Pitre in their Catholic Introduction to the Bible (see below) point out that the overview of salvation history contained in the (now) two books of Chronicles starts not with the call of Abraham and the constitution of the family of his descendants, but with the creation of Adam. As the writer develops the genealogies (which will go up to the "current day"), the starting point is not with the descendants of Jacob's firstborn son, but with the tribe of Judah. 

For the Chronicler, the "present day" is the very recent return from Babylon. (We just got there in our reading from 2 Kings!) The Babylonian Exile is a huge event in salvation history. We will be reflecting on it repeatedly with the prophets (especially Isaiah!) and psalmists, but for now it is in the back of the Chronicler's mind: The exile and return from Babylon form the framework for the whole retelling of Salvation history. 

Psalm 63 seems to be one of the Church's favorite Psalms. With its mentions of thinking of God while in bed and "through the watches of the night," it was a perfect fit for Morning Prayer from the very first centuries. It is still the first Psalm of Morning Prayer on Sunday once a month and on every major feast day. St John Chrystostom (circa 390) simply called it "the morning psalm."

Start reading 1 Chronicles 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.