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: 

Everlasting Father,

All time belongs to you, and all the ages. In signs, in songs, in words of promise, you reassured your chosen ones, “I am with you; fear not.” You taught them through the prophets to trust that your saving deeds were not limited to the past.

When Jesus came, he fulfilled “all that was written in the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.”

The Church has found him everywhere in these same holy books.

Help me to find Jesus in my reading today, to listen to him, and to follow him with all my heart.

Amen.

Today's chapters are Habakkuk 1-3. 

Another day, another whole book of the Bible. Yes, the Book of Habakkuk is three chapters long, so we'll polish it off today, God willing. The content of the book will sound familiar, since the prophecies warn of the Babylonian exile. Drs. Bergsma and Pitre (A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament) argue that warnings about the Chaldeans (Babylonians) suggest a relatively early date for the book; presumably when Assyria (Nineveh) was still dominant and Babylon a second-rate power, so perhaps towards 620. Other scholars consider it more likely that Habakkuk was a contemporary of Jeremiah, and that the book is concerned with the immediate future of Judah.

An interesting feature of Habakkuk that is we have read so far is that unlike the other prophets, Habakkuk does not address kings or leaders or the people of Judah or Jerusalem: His book is addressed to God. Habakkuk wants to know, "What is going on? Where are you? Are you even listening?"

And God will answer him in unforgettable words.

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.