Congratulations

Friends:

You have read the Bible in a year. Congratulations!

Please post your name to me so that I can recognize you in the church newsletter and on this blog as well as the church's Facebook page. My email is dan@firstchurch-winchester.org

Peace.

PS: At some point, I would like to gather us and share observations on our reading experience.

Final readings of the year-long journey

Well, we are almost there. Congratulations. Here are the final readings. Thanks for making the journey. Please let me know that you completed the project. My email is dan@firstchurch-winchester.org

Aug 22: Dan 8-10; 3John
Aug 23: Dan 11-12; Jude
Aug 24: Hosea 1-4; Rev 1
Aug 25: Hosea 5-8; Rev 2
Aug 26: Hosea 9-11; Rev 3
Aug 27: Hosea 12-14; Rev 4
Aug 28: Joel; Rev 5
Aug 29: Amos 1-3; Rev 6
Aug 30: Amos 4-6; Rev 7
Aug 31: Amos 7-9; Rev 8
Sep 1: Obadiah; Rev 9
Sep 2: Jonah; Rev 10
Sep 3: Micah 1-3; Rev 11
Sep 4: Micah 4-5; Rev 12
Sep 5: Micah 6-7; Rev 13
Sep 6: Nahum; Rev 14
Sep 7: Habakkuk; Rev 15
Sep 8: Zephaniah; Rev 16
Sep 9: Haggai; Rev 17
Sep 10: Zech 1-4; Rev 18
Sep 11: Zech 5-8; Rev 19
Sep 12: Zech 9-12; Rev 20
Sep 13: Zech 13-14; Rev 21
Sep 14: Malachi; Rev 22

Week of August 15 Readings

We are in the home stretch.

The readings for the week are:

Aug 15: Ezek 40-41; 2Pet 3
Aug 16: Ezek 42-44; 1John 1
Aug 17: Ezek 45-46; 1John 2
Aug 18: Ezek 47-48; 1John 3
Aug 19: Dan 1-2; 1John 4
Aug 20: Dan 3-4; 1John 5
Aug 21: Dan 5-7; 2John

This week, we begin Daniel. Daniel is a prophetic book with some of the better known Old Testament material as well as some of the most baffling. Remember, Daniel is apocalyptic literature, that is a literary work containing visions of the heavenly court and information about God's culmination of history.

Daniel can be divided into two halves. Daniel 1-6 is a collection of six stories about Daniel and his friends. Daniel 7-12 is a collection of apocalyptic visions.

Keep reading.

Peace.

July 4 through August 14 Readings

We are coming into the home stretch. Congratulations. Summer is a great time to catch up or read ahead.

The July and August readings include the major prophets of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. They are major not because they are more important than the other prophets. They are major because of the length of their written prophetic work.

We are concluding the letters of Paul to congregations and turning to his pastoral letters where he is writing to individuals to provide them with advice and counsel on how to lead effectively and faithfully. Then there are the catholic letters, that is letters written by persons other than Paul to the church universal.

Keep up the good work. And, once again, congratulations you have almost read the entire Bible.

Peace.



Jul 4: Is 59-61; 2Thess 3
Jul 5: Is 62-64; 1Tim 1
Jul 6: Is 65-66; 1Tim 2
Jul 7: Jer 1-2; 1Tim 3
Jul 8: Jer 3-5; 1Tim 4
Jul 9: Jer 6-8; 1Tim 5
Jul 10: Jer 9-11; 1Tim 6
Jul 11: Jer 12-14; 2Tim 1
Jul 12: Jer 15-17; 2Tim 2
Jul 13: Jer 18-19; 2Tim 3
Jul 14: Jer 20-21; 2Tim 4
Jul 15: Jer 22-23; Titus 1
Jul 16: Jer 24-26; Titus 2
Jul 17: Jer 27-29; Titus 3
Jul 18: Jer 30-31; Philemon
Jul 19: Jer 32-33; Heb 1
Jul 20: Jer 34-36; Heb 2
Jul 21: Jer 37-39; Heb 3
Jul 22: Jer 40-42; Heb 4
Jul 23: Jer 43-45; Heb 5
Jul 24: Jer 46-47; Heb 6
Jul 25: Jer 48-49; Heb 7
Jul 26: Jer 50; Heb 8
Jul 27: Jer 51-52; Heb 9
Jul 28: Lam 1-2; Heb 10:1-18
Jul 29: Lam 3-5; Heb 10:19-39
Jul 30: Ezek 1-2; Heb 11:1-19
Jul 31: Ezek 3-4; Heb 11:20-40
Aug 1: Ezek 5-7; Heb 12
Aug 2: Ezek 8-10; Heb 13
Aug 3: Ezek 11-13; James 1
Aug 4: Ezek 14-15; James 2
Aug 5: Ezek 16-17; James 3
Aug 6: Ezek 18-19; James 4
Aug 7: Ezek 20-21; James 5
Aug 8: Ezek 22-23; 1Pet 1
Aug 9: Ezek 24-26; 1Pet 2
Aug 10: Ezek 27-29; 1Pet 3
Aug 11: Ezek 30-32; 1Pet 4
Aug 12: Ezek 33-34; 1Pet 5
Aug 13: Ezek 35-36; 2Pet 1
Aug 14: Ezek 37-39; 2Pet 2

May 30 through July 3 Readings

Here is a month of readings. Over the course of the next several weeks we will be reading a goodly portion of wisdom literature from the Old Testament -- Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon as well the prophet Isaiah. We will also be working our way through several of Paul's letters.

The wisdom literature is self-explanatory, more or less. Its goal is to observe life, learn from it, and frame what has been learned into a saying instructive for future generations. For example, Prov. 22:3 reads: "The clever see danger and hide; but the simple go on, and suffer for it." Most wisdom literature has a parental tone to it. If we listen carefully, we can hear it as sound advice from a father or mother.

When reading the prophets it is good to know if the prophet is writing before, during, or after the Babylonian exile, 587 BCE. Prophecies before the exile contain words of warning. Israel should change her ways to avoid exile, which will come as punishment for faithlessness. Prophecies during the exile contain words of comfort. Israel, though chastened, is still God's chosen and will not be abandoned. Prophecies after the exile contain words of hope and promise. Israel has atoned for her sins and will be restored to her land.

Isa 1-39 is pre-exilic. Isa 40-55 is exilic. Isa 56-66 is post-exilic.

When reading Paul it is helpful to use a study Bible. You will want to know something about the situation that has prompted Paul's letter. What happened that warranted correspondence from the apostle?

Keep up your reading and study. Peace.

May 30: Prov 22-24; 2Cor 8
May 31: Prov 25-26; 2Cor 9
Jun 1: Prov 27-29; 2Cor 10
Jun 2: Prov 30-31; 2Cor 11:1-15
Jun 3: Ecc 1-3; 2Cor 11:16-33
Jun 4: Ecc 4-6; 2Cor 12
Jun 5: Ecc 7-9; 2Cor 13
Jun 6: Ecc 10-12; Gal 1
Jun 7: Song 1-3; Gal 2
Jun 8: Song 4-5; Gal 3
Jun 9: Song 6-8; Gal 4
Jun 10: Is 1-2; Gal 5
Jun 11: Is 3-4; Gal 6
Jun 12: Is 5-6; Eph 1
Jun 13: Is 7-8; Eph 2
Jun 14: Is 9-10; Eph 3
Jun 15: Is 11-13; Eph 4
Jun 16: Is 14-16; Eph 5:1-16
Jun 17: Is 17-19; Eph 5:17-33
Jun 18: Is 20-22; Eph 6
Jun 19: Is 23-25; Phil 1
Jun 20: Is 26-27; Phil 2
Jun 21: Is 28-29; Phil 3
Jun 22: Is 30-31; Phil 4
Jun 23: Is 32-33; Col 1
Jun 24: Is 34-36; Col 2
Jun 25: Is 37-38; Col 3
Jun 26: Is 39-40; Col 4
Jun 27: Is 41-42; 1Thess 1
Jun 28: Is 43-44; 1Thess 2
Jun 29: Is 45-46; 1Thess 3
Jun 30: Is 47-49; 1Thess 4
Jul 1: Is 50-52; 1Thess 5
Jul 2: Is 53-55; 2Thess 1
Jul 3: Is 56-58; 2Thess 2

Week of May 23 Readings

May 23: Prov 3-5; 2Cor 1
May 24: Prov 6-7; 2Cor 2
May 25: Prov 8-9; 2Cor 3
May 26: Prov 10-12; 2Cor 4
May 27: Prov 13-15; 2Cor 5
May 28: Prov 16-18; 2Cor 6
May 29: Prov 19-21; 2Cor 7

Week of May 16 Readings

May 16: Ps 135-136; 1Cor 12
May 17: Ps 137-139; 1Cor 13
May 18: Ps 140-142; 1Cor 14:1-20
May 19: Ps 143-145; 1Cor 14:21-40
May 20: Ps 146-147; 1Cor 15:1-28
May 21: Ps 148-150; 1Cor 15:29-58
May 22: Prov 1-2; 1Cor 16

Week of May 9 Readings

May 9: Ps 119:1-88; 1Cor 7:20-40
May 10: Ps 119:89-176; 1Cor 8
May 11: Ps 120-122; 1Cor 9
May 12: Ps 123-125; 1Cor 10:1-18
May 13: Ps 126-128; 1Cor 10:19-33
May 14: Ps 129-131; 1Cor 11:1-16
May 15: Ps 132-134; 1Cor 11:17-34

Week of May 2 Readings

We begin Paul's Corinthian correspondence this week. According to Luke's account in Acts [Acts 18], Paul founded the church and spent more than a year in Corinth nurturing the Christian community. Paul continued on his missionary journey, making his way to Ephesus just across the Aegean Sea. From Ephesus, Paul wrote to the Corinthians in response to news he received as to how the community was faring.

The Corinthian congregation looked like Corinth itself, indeed the Greco-Roman world. There were a few very wealthy people, a lot of poor people, and no middle class to speak of. The Gentile Christians far outnumbered the Jewish Christians.

It is not surprising that most of Paul's letter address fractiousness in the Corinthian church. Paul also addresses the Corinthians' individualization or privatization of their faith.

The letter is an excellent example of the genre of deliberative rhetoric. The author, Paul, is attempting to persuade his audience, the Corinthians, to change their behavior and their thinking. Paul longs for the Corinthians to live their faith more fully and wholesomely.

May 2: Ps 100-102; 1Cor 1
May 3: Ps 103-104; 1Cor 2
May 4: Ps 105-106; 1Cor 3
May 5: Ps 107-109; 1Cor 4
May 6: Ps 110-112; 1Cor 5
May 7: Ps 113-115; 1Cor 6
May 8: Ps 116-118; 1Cor 7:1-19

Week of April 25 Readings

Apr 25: Ps 81-83; Rom 11:19-36
Apr 26: Ps 84-86; Rom 12
Apr 27: Ps 87-88; Rom 13
Apr 28: Ps 89-90; Rom 14
Apr 29: Ps 91-93; Rom 15:1-13
Apr 30: Ps 94-96; Rom 15:14-33
May 1: Ps 97-99; Rom 16

Weeks of April 11 and 18 Readings

I have included two weeks of readings in this post for fear of failing to post Holy Week.

Yesterday, we completed Acts. Today, we begin Romans.

Romans is the first of Paul's letters to appear in the New Testament. It is also the longest and perhaps the most theological. The order of Paul's letters in the New Testament is from longest, Romans at 16 chapters, to shortest, Philemon at one chapter.

James Edwards, professor of theology in Whitworth College of Spokane, WA, suggests that "Romans is the most commanding exposition of the gospel of salvation by grace through faith ever written." He adds, "Throughout two millenia of history, Romans has repeatedly proved to be a catalyst for reform and renewal of Christian faith and life."


Week of April 11
Apr 11: Ps 46-48; Acts 28
Apr 12: Ps 49-50; Rom 1
Apr 13: Ps 51-53; Rom 2
Apr 14: Ps 54-56; Rom 3
Apr 15: Ps 57-59; Rom 4
Apr 16: Ps 60-62; Rom 5
Apr 17: Ps 63-65; Rom 6

Week of April 18
Apr 18: Ps 66-67; Rom 7
Apr 19: Ps 68-69; Rom 8:1-21
Apr 20: Ps 70-71; Rom 8:22-39
Apr 21: Ps 72-73; Rom 9:1-15
Apr 22: Ps 74-76; Rom 9:16-33
Apr 23: Ps 77-78; Rom 10
Apr 24: Ps 79-80; Rom 11:1-18

Week of April 4 Readings

Apr 4: Ps 29-30; Acts 23:1-15
Apr 5: Ps 31-32; Acts 23:16-35
Apr 6: Ps 33-34; Acts 24
Apr 7: Ps 35-36; Acts 25
Apr 8: Ps 37-39; Acts 26
Apr 9: Ps 40-42; Acts 27:1-26
Apr 10: Ps 43-45; Acts 27:27-44

Week of March 28 Readings

Mar 28: Ps 10-12; Acts 19:1-20
Mar 29: Ps 13-15; Acts 19:21-41
Mar 30: Ps 16-17; Acts 20:1-16
Mar 31: Ps 18-19; Acts 20:17-38
Apr 1: Ps 20-22; Acts 21:1-17
Apr 2: Ps 23-25; Acts 21:18-40
Apr 3: Ps 26-28; Acts 22

Week of March 21 Readings

This week we begin the Psalms.

In the words of one commentator, "The psalms are poetic discourse between Israel and God, who is said to hear and answer. Many are frank, unrestrained conversations. Some are prayers and praises that soar to the depths of human misery, anger, and frustration. A few are complacent and self-congratulatory and a few others are militant and chauvinistic. The psalms present a rich cross section of speech to and about God, and in some cases include speech from God. At their heart is the conviction that God is one to whom all can speak." [Walter Harrelson]

Mar 21: Job 34-35; Acts 15:1-21
Mar 22: Job 36-37; Acts 15:22-41
Mar 23: Job 38-40; Acts 16:1-21
Mar 24: Job 41-42; Acts 16:22-40
Mar 25: Ps 1-3; Acts 17:1-15
Mar 26: Ps 4-6; Acts 17:16-34
Mar 27: Ps 7-9; Acts 18

Week of March 14 Readings

Mar 14: Job 17-19; Acts 10:1-23
Mar 15: Job 20-21; Acts 10:24-48
Mar 16: Job 22-24; Acts 11
Mar 17: Job 25-27; Acts 12
Mar 18: Job 28-29; Acts 13:1-25
Mar 19: Job 30-31; Acts 13:26-52
Mar 20: Job 32-33; Acts 14

Week of March 7 Readings

We begin the Book of Job this week.

By nearly all scholarly accounts, Job is the finest wisdom text of the Jewish and Christian scriptures. Job addresses the question of divine justice. In the words of one commentator, Job "is a story that speaks to every generation and to every individual who has known undeserved suffering."

Mar 7: Esther 9-10; Acts 7:1-21
Mar 8: Job 1-2; Acts 7:22-43
Mar 9: Job 3-4; Acts 7:44-60
Mar 10: Job 5-7; Acts 8:1-25
Mar 11: Job 8-10; Acts 8:26-40
Mar 12: Job 11-13; Acts 9:1-21
Mar 13: Job 14-16; Acts 9:22-43

Week of February 28 Readings

We finish Nehemiah and begin Esther this week.

Esther is a Jewish novella. Its setting is the Jewish diaspora community in the Persian Empire during Ahasuerus' reign. Esther is a young Jewish orphan. She becomes the Persian queen who rescues the Jews from the genocidal plot of one of king's advisors, Haman.

The book of Esther establishes the Jewish Festival of Purim, named after the lots Haman cast to determine the date of the genocide [the word "purim" means "lots].

Feb 28: Nehemiah 4-6; Acts 2:22-47
Mar 1: Nehemiah 7-9; Acts 3
Mar 2: Nehemiah 10-11; Acts 4:1-22
Mar 3: Nehemiah 12-13; Acts 4:23-37
Mar 4: Esther 1-2; Acts 5:1-21
Mar 5: Esther 3-5; Acts 5:22-42
Mar 6: Esther 6-8; Acts 6

Week of February 21 Readings

This is an eventful week in our reading plan. We will be completing Chronicles and John, starting and completing Ezra, and beginning Nehemiah and Acts.

For most of its history, Ezra and Nehemiah were one book. They were separated in the Christian scriptures by Origen, Early Church Father from North Africa [185-254], and Jerome, Illyrian [Balkan Peninsula region] Catholic priest and translator of the Bible into Latin [347-420]. Ezra and Nehemiah remained one book in the Jewish scriptures until the 15th century.

Ezra 1-6 reports the return of the Jews from Babylonian exile and the rebuilding of the Jerusalem Temple. Ezra 7-10 reports the initial activities of Ezra, who arrived nearly 60 years after the completion of the Temple.

Nehemiah recounts Nehemiah's role in constructing the walls of Jerusalem. It also tells the story of the expansion of Jerusalem's population, the correction of social abuses, the nurture of the community's worship life, and the prohibitions against the loss of Jewish identity through intermarriage.

Acts is a sequel to Luke. It continues the story of the Early Church, from Jesus' ascension and the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost to Paul's final imprisonment in Rome. The early chapters tell the story of Peter's preaching in Jerusalem. From chapter 9, the story turns its attention to Paul, his three missionary journeys, and the establishment of Christian communities throughout the Mediterranean world.

Feb 21: 2Chron 32-33; John 18:19-40
Feb 22: 2Chron 34-36; John 19:1-22
Feb 23: Ezra 1-2; John 19:23-42
Feb 24: Ezra 3-5; John 20
Feb 25: Ezra 6-8; John 21
Feb 26: Ezra 9-10; Acts 1
Feb 27: Nehemiah 1-3; Acts 2:1-21

Week of February 14 Readings

Feb 14: 2Chron 17-18; John 13:1-20
Feb 15: 2Chron 19-20; John 13:21-38
Feb 16: 2Chron 21-22; John 14
Feb 17: 2Chron 23-24; John 15
Feb 18: 2Chron 25-27; John 16
Feb 19: 2Chron 28-29; John 17
Feb 20: 2Chron 30-31; John 18:1-18

Week of February 7 Readings

Some encouragement is in order. You have made it through First Chronicles. That is no small feat. Now for Second Chronicles.

Chronicles uses the books of Samuel and Kings as its primary source. So, if you have that sneaking suspicion that you have read this material before, you have.

The most important points of reference for Chronicles are the reigns of David and Solomon, especially the promises made by God to David concerning a Davidic monarchy and to Solomon concerning the temple.

Hopefully, John's gospel is providing a respite from all that history in Chronicles. Key to grasping John is the affirmation that Jesus provides "unique and unprecedented access to God because Jesus shares in God's character and identity." [New Interpreter's Study Bible]. Also, "Jesus' words and works, all of his life and death, make God known in the world." [Ibid]

Feb 7: 1Chron 28-29; John 9:24-41
Feb 8: 2Chron 1-3; John 10:1-23
Feb 9: 2Chron 4-6; John 10:24-42
Feb 10: 2Chron 7-9; John 11:1-29
Feb 11: 2Chron 10-12; John 11:30-57
Feb 12: 2Chron 13-14; John 12:1-26
Feb 13: 2Chron 15-16; John 12:27-50

Week of January 31 Readings

WEEKLY BIBLE READINGS:

Jan 31: 1Chron 7-9; John 6:22-44
Feb 1: 1Chron 10-12; John 6:45-71
Feb 2: 1Chron 13-15; John 7:1-27
Feb 3: 1Chron 16-18; John 7:28-53
Feb 4: 1Chron 19-21; John 8:1-27
Feb 5: 1Chron 22-24; John 8:28-59
Feb 6: 1Chron 25-27; John 9:1-23

Week of January 24 Readings

Jan 24: 2King 15-16; John 3:1-18
Jan 25: 2King 17-18; John 3:19-36
Jan 26: 2King 19-21; John 4:1-30
Jan 27: 2King 22-23; John 4:31-54
Jan 28: 2King 24-25; John 5:1-24
Jan 29: 1Chron 1-3; John 5:25-47
Jan 30: 1Chron 4-6; John 6:1-21

Week of January 17 Readings

Jan 17: 1King 19-20; Luke 23:1-25
Jan 18: 1King 21-22; Luke 23:26-56
Jan 19: 2King 1-3; Luke 24:1-35
Jan 20: 2King 4-6; Luke 24:36-53
Jan 21: 2King 7-9; John 1:1-28
Jan 22: 2King 10-12; John 1:29-51
Jan 23: 2King 13-14; John 2

Week of January 3 Readings

Jan 3: 2Sam 12-13; Luke 16
Jan 4: 2Sam 14-15; Luke 17:1-19
Jan 5: 2Sam 16-18; Luke 17:20-37
Jan 6: 2Sam 19-20; Luke 18:1-23
Jan 7: 2Sam 21-22; Luke 18:24-43
Jan 8: 2Sam 23-24; Luke 19:1-27
Jan 9: 1King 1-2; Luke 19:28-48

Week of January 10 Readings

Jan 10: 1King 3-5; Luke 20:1-26
Jan 11: 1King 6-7; Luke 20:27-47
Jan 12: 1King 8-9; Luke 21:1-19
Jan 13: 1King 10-11; Luke 21:20-38
Jan 14: 1King 12-13; Luke 22:1-30
Jan 15: 1King 14-15; Luke 22:31-46
Jan 16: 1King 16-18; Luke 22:47-71