Archive for July, 2011

Do you ever read the Bible as literature? Have you explored its narrative structure or noticed how its characters, themes, and genres compliment and amplify the text? Christians are well-accustomed to reading the Bible devotionally and theologically, but not enough of us have spent the rewarding time unpacking it as a literary work. And, to be honest, it’s hard to know where to begin.

The Literary Study Bible, edited by Leland and Philip Ryken, is still a unique resource and a good starting place for appreciating the inspired Word of God as the literary masterpiece that it is. (Sample content from the book of Genesis.)

The ESV Online Literary Study Bible is now available for ESVBible.org. At $9.99, it contains all of the content of the print edition, including:

• An extensive introduction to the Bible outlining strategies for reading the Bible as literature
• Introductions explaining the genre, literary intentions, and theological themes of each Bible book
• Study notes that guide the reader through a literary reading of the text
• A glossary containing explanations of dozens of literary terms

We hope you find this to be a useful tool for your study of the most read literary work of all time.

Here at Crossway we want to hear how you’re using our digital resources. We’ve set up a new way for you to submit feedback on our ESV mobile and web apps using a service called Get Satisfaction. By navigating to our online support community you can participate in ongoing conversations about ESVBible.org and our mobile applications. It’s a convenient way to share ideas, ask questions, report on problems, and let us know how you’re benefiting from these resources. Each new topic creates a message thread, allowing replies and comments from others to further the discussion.

In a short time this has grown into an important support community where your ideas and feedback are helping us improve our products, answer questions, and resolve problems. We’re also enjoying the encouraging and creative ways you’re using ESV Digital apps.

If you have a discussion item, we’d love to hear it. We’re active in the community and read every new topic that gets submitted. Stop by and join in on the conversation.